Life is a Waiting Room

So now I am back in San Diego. After graduation in Sept I went to Boulder to visit some MAS friends, then cam back to my home base to print and finish my book. Then I went back to Chicago and then to NY for meetings and book reviews in my attempt to get myself out there and known in this Ad world.

And you know what I have found out? Life is just one big Waiting room. You submit your name and your forms (aka your book) and you wait for your number to be called (aka your cell) or for some form of written acception (aka email). And there is not much you can do in between the submission and their response. Sure, you can submit to even more places but then that means even more places to wait for a response.

And I for one don't like waiting around.

They teach you in this biz you get out of it what you put into it. So all through school you are left up to yourself to work through the crap and the bad partners and the crazy assignments to get a good book for yourself in the end. Sure you listen to the teachers to turn in the final at the end of the term, but if you don't agree you can always change it and make it what YOU want for YOUR book.

Not so in the waiting game of getting your first job as a creative. You send them your book and that's that. You wait.

You may glance at the tv while waiting (we all know the tv lineup this Fall is actually pretty good) or pick up a magazine or two, but you can never really fully shut off your mind and train of thought. You run back to the computer every 30 min and refresh your email, hoping for something other than Spam. You sign onto ichat to complain with your fellow waiting room companions. You check MySpace for anything new, a comment a message a blog, even a bulletin. But ultimately you wait.

They all tell you it takes time, anywhere from 3-6 months usually. But in this waiting room 2 weeks feels like a lifetime.

Moving Around like Dust in the Wind

So since I last posted I have *graduated* from Miami Ad School. I am a bonified Art Director now :)
I moved back home to San Diego, and realized how much I LOVE the weather there.
I worked my bootie off and made some books and way too many CDs of my portfolio.
I set off again to hit Chicago and NYC for portfolio reviews.

So yep, I am in the middle of the trip right now in Chicago.
And yes it is Friday the 13th. But I promise, no broken mirrors for me this time. Or walks through cemeteries. (*ahem* Prague)

And I was also lucky enough (if you can call it that) to be in Chicago for some HISTORY!
That's right, the earliest snowfall in Chicago recorded history of 0.3" on Thursday October 12th, 2006.
And I was here - in all of my FROZEN glory.
Seriously, I leave So Cal and it's 70 degrees. I wake up in Chicago to snow.
Needless to say a trip to H&M for a scarf and gloves was necessary.

I am staying in a comfy hostel in downtown Chicago, and going across the street daily to Panera for free internet :)
I leave the Windy city (they aren't lying! The freezing wind is brutal!) tomorrow for New York City!

Reunions and Reviews await!

Over 1/2 Way to nowhere

That's right - I am over 1/2 way done with my last qtr of school!! Then the job search starts. I am looking forward to finally getting a pay check for my creative thinking, and getting my own apt and my own stuff, and a place to unload my suitcases for more than 11 weeks at a time. Imagine that!!

So now it's getting crunch-time like time has never crunched before. I am starting the many book reviews/interviews and am ready to hear what people out there really think of my work. *shudder* If I have learned one thing, it's that this biz is sooo subjective. I mean, one person can love one campaign, while another person just doesn't get it. In the end I just have to have stuff in my book that I love and that represents me. (but I also want a good job..)

On another note, I am loving my new haircut. It's surprisingly easier to take care of than I thought. All I really have to do is blow-dry it after the shower and I'm good to go. And if I want a little extra sass I can straighten it. Not too shabby, looks like a winner to me!



This past weekend we went to the top of the John Hancock building to the bar there - The Signature Lounge. It was pretty awesome, despite the $10.50 martinis! Apparently the cost goes up the higher altitude you're at. It was on the 96th floor and the view was awesome. You could see both Lake Michigan and the downtown Chicago lights. Here is my attempt at an artsy shot of the lights..


Here is a pic of Beau and I at the top. We decided to get all fancy, since we usually are just in jeans and a t-shirt.

We *heart* Animals

This past weekend Beau and I ventured out to the Lincoln Park Zoo here in Chicago. This is a free zoo, and it is pretty darn good. This coming from a San Diego native at that. The Zoo is located in the famous Lincoln Park with numerous entrances around the whole park. Here is the entrance we found:


Then it was off for some animal viewing. First stop, the air conditioned underwater viewing for the Sea Lions!


Then some turtles, um, enjoying themselves.


Then off to the Monkey House!! This lady was RIGHT up against the glass. Were we looking at her or was she looking at us?


Then this big Silverback was sitting there angry and staring at his hands.


Then he shot us a glance of DEATH, that I sadly did not capture on film. But Beau was nice enough to reenact for us, shown here:


Then we went to the Lion house, and it was feeding time!! I can honestly say that I have never been this close to a lion as it tore into a meaty chunk of flesh!


After the zoo we went into Wrigleyville for a post Cubs game happy hour. And it was happy because they won that day :) Here we are with Chicago's own Old Style beer - notice the can wearing a jersey?


And I close with a fine example of the usage of puns in today's world. A crappy Chinese food place near our work called ... Wok's Up.

Picture essay of Chicago

Here are some pics of Chicago - the parts that I have seen so far.

The Buckingham Fountain
(also known as the Married With Children fountain)

Street performers!



The Pritzker Music Pavilion - designed by Frank Gehry.

Part of the downtown skyline from Millennium Park.

One of the lake beaches - right next to downtown.

Me with my new towel.

All the pretty boats, kind of reminds me of San Diego.

Beau on the art/bench.

Me on the same thing.

A mall that we stumbled upon that looks to be made all of glass.

Art in front of the mall. "Monument with Standing Beast" by Jean Dubuffet (1984).

The Sears Tower! So high!!




And here are some pics of the people that I live with and the people I work with.

Me with Nina and Anna - our German roommies.

My partner Beau, our co-worker Geoff (he's Canadian) and me. Representing Hadrian's Wall ad agency!

Nina and Anna

Me and Geoff

Beau and Adam, another of our roommates.

Me and Adam.


Last Tuesday night our boss got us tickets to go see a Cubs game at Wrigley Field, it was awesome. We had seats under the level above us so we were in the shade, which was very nice. Here is our view of the field.

And we had to get the famous Chicago Dog - a hotdog on a poppyseed bun with grilled onions. Mmmm, actually really REALLY good.

And the famous Wrigley Field sign - Cubs Win!

Artsy shots of The Bean!

You may remember some other artsy shots of The Bean art piece here in Chicago from my trip in April. But it was raining then, so this weekend I went back with a Bean first-timer - Beau!

We took plenty of cool artsy pics in it's glorious reflective surface.
So *pertty*















Then we went to what I like to call the "Spit Fountain" art piece.
It cools off the hot Chicago-ites on warm summer days.

Partnerz

It is almost the end of my first week in Chicago - and so far so good.
Here is a pic of Beau and I. He is my partner for our internship at Hadrian's Wall.


That pic was taken on July 3rd after we went to the beach to see the fireworks. The city of Chicago does their 4th of July stuff on the night of the 3rd, while the neighborhoods of Chicago do their fireworks on the night of the 4th.

It was pretty cool to walk out on the street and see people out and fireworks going off in all directions. I also saw lightning bugs! We had to make it an early night though because the next day was Day One at work.

Tomorrow we will join the guys from the agency at the Wrigley Building to record stuff. Fun!

I Can See Clearly Now

Just wanted to post a couple of the beautiful pictures that I took from the plane on my flight from San Diego to Chicago.

I am not sure where in the country this is, but I just woke up from a snooze and glanced out my window and saw this.

Amazing.

Beware of the Crazies

Ok, so here is the infamous "Fence" in my parent's front yard.



Yes, it is striped, and yes it is ugly, and yes the man who had it done suffers from Little Man Syndrome.

*the opinions expressed in this blog are those of the author only.

Last Stop - The Windy City

That's right, on Monday I move to Chicago!! It is here that I will intern, take a class, and finish my book! My 8th and final qtr of MAS ad school. I'm excited, I think Chicago is going to be an awesome city. Plus I am ready to do some great work and build myself a great book, which will lead to a GREAT job! (*fingers crossed*)

I'll be living in Wicker Park area in a house with 6 other students. We will all have internships and a weekly class. Our house is pretty cool - I saw it when I visited Stef and Annie in Chicago in April. It is two stories and has 5 bedrooms. Hopefully I'll be able to snag a single room. Hoping that maybe seniority will be a factor ... but who knows. It'll probably be first come first serve.

The agency I will be interning at is Hadrian's Wall. My friend Stefenie was there last qtr and my partner in Prague (Eric) was there at the end of 2005. They both loved it and said the people there are the best, and everyone will be jealous of us for working there. Haha, can't wait!

Here's to 3 more months of living out of a suitcase! *clink*

A Minne Goodbye

We had our "goodbye" party at Carmichael Lynch on a Thursday (since fridays were part of the so called summer hours and no one was at the office past like noon). They brought in Fritos and M&Ms, and a bowl of beer, water, and soda. Here are all of us former CL interns:

Jon, Anna, Me, Lauren, Jon, Nora



And here are The Jon's.



They gave us these really cool bags as a parting gift... and Lauren and Anna demonstrate.



Then Anna and I decided that these bags were so huge that we could stuff them full of all sorts of goodies. So we started by raiding the CL fridges that were on the walls displaying all the very cool CL work.



Ok, just kidding. We didn't really take anything. But we did step on a fallen Frito.
So that made for a perfect picture opportunity (in our minds at the time) to model our new shoes.



After the office party the 7th floor (ie the Creative floor) moved down the street to a bar called Mckenzies. Long Islands were bought and all in all it was good times. Here I am in front of the "Creative" sign.



After the bar we decided to go out to a place called Jet Set with the MAS peeps. (after we watched the Heat game of course ... GO HEAT!) This was Bryan's last night in Minne so we decided to go out with a bang. After he left it started the domino affect of everyone leaving one by one. *tear

Anna, Brad, Bryan, Lopez, Cannova



Anna, Bryan and Me



After Jet Set we decided to go to The Saloon. It's a gay bar on Hennepin (which is the main street in downtown Minneapolis). Things got a little crazy...



Let's just say that was the most tame picture of the night. Haha.

After I left Minneapolis I came back to San Diego only to pack up and head off towards Miami with my sister!! That posting coming soon. :)

I am now back in San Diego till July 3rd when I fly to my next and final location for school. I am off to Chicago, to intern at an agency called Hadrian's Wall. Can't wait!