Enter Vineyard Fest - The Life Suck

For the past 2 months a good portion of my work has been planning my resort's largest event - Vineyard Fest.

It's a 5 hour long event that exists as a sort of harvest festival of grapes. About 2,000 people attend. I had to track down wineries that would want to participate and donate wine to be poured and sort out all the state legal issues with it (getting permits and transfer forms etc), organizing staffing of about 150 workers, coordinating the days events (7 restaurants serving food, 2 live bands, 4 wine seminars, 3 cooking demonstrations, wine art, and grape stomping) and preparing everything for the day including creating all signage and printed materials....quite a task.

Anyway, I was a bit behind about 3-4 weeks leading up as I didn't fully understand all that was expected of me...once I got organized, I knocked it out pretty rapidly and even got a little ahead of myself. Even with a day or 2 to spare, I was pretty nervous about pulling this off as the areas that the festival was going to be occupying last Sunday was all in use on Saturday, so a lot hinged on our Conference Services Dept. busting their asses to get all the needed tables and chairs in place overnight.

I woke up at 4AM, tried to relax for a bit and then arrived at work at 6:30 AM. They were ahead of schedule and everything went pretty smoothly as I was obsessive compulsive about every little detail beforehand and the rest of the workers and wineries arrived around 10:00 and then the chaos set in. I was everywhere for the next 4-5 hours...on the phone and running everywhere making sure everything was perfect. The guests started showing up at 11 to get their tasting glasses and tickets even though no one can get in until 12. Once the gates opened, my job shifted from preparation/coordination to double and triple checking on everyone and getting a few last minute things....by about 2:30, no one needed me any more and I crashed. The next 2.5 hrs drug by as I was exhausted as heck.

All-in-all, everything went very smoothly and I received a lot of compliments from nearly everyone. This past week has been recovery...I was a zombie on Monday as the stress had left me and I didn't know how tired I was. I'm really proud of how well it all went and I feel like I accomplished something. It'll be something very good to have on my resume!

If you care, here are some pics...

a week in review

Well I've been a bit busy this week, so I haven't had much time for blogging. I try to find time at work, but it's been pretty busy there too. Last Sunday was a birthday party for some of our friend's daughter...she turned 1. A little grilling, chilling, and drinking. They just got a new patio put in too, so we enjoyed that in small doses (it was still pretty hot outside). Jo (the birthday girl), didn't tear into the cake like I did on my 1st birthday, but she still had a few handfuls. We ended up crashing pretty early that night as the weekend hadn't allowed for much sleep.

Monday always begins with a department meeting...this one moved pretty fast. Meetings are pretty big time wasters most of the time so I was glad it kept moving. Still, put me about 2 hours behind and tried to catch up all day. Got home and decided to mow the lawn. The rider got all jacked up in the middle of the lawn, so I had to finish with a push mower....different heights, so the lawn looks retarded. I like mowing when using a rider....I pop a Claritin and mix a few rum 'n cokes and go to it. The Claritin keeps the allergies at bay and the rum makes the heat bearable. But once it came time to push mow (I mow 2 lawns...so it takes awhile)...not fun. And I don't know how to fix the damn mower. One of the blades stopped spinning, so I know one of the belts must have came off a pulley, but I'm not much of a mechanic. Hoping this will get fixed soon before our lawn looks like total white trash.

Tuesday, Sam had a meeting (again, time waster), all the way over in Douglasville...for you non-Atlantans, that's about 65-70 miles away on the west side of Atlanta. We're on the northeast, and the lake stops us from having any way around it...so through Atlanta it was. Sam got a ride there, but it took them about 3 hours thanks to Atlanta traffic....but I still had to go pick her up. While I was at work, I fiddled around on google maps to get directions, and I discovered they had a traffic map that lets you know when (according to day of the week) traffic is heavy in areas in 15 minute increments...pretty sweet. So I knew when to leave work, and I made it there in just about an hour. As I made such good time, I had some time to kill, so I went to a nearby office depot and picked up some needed things - some kick ass pens amongst other things. As I walked back to my car, the humidity had risen significantly, and a gray blanket of clouds was moving in. If it's a sheet of gray, in GA, that means it's going to pour....back home, there usually has to be some sort of texture to the clouds for it to do anything...this was smooth and gray (not very dark). It started to sprinkle as Sam was getting to the car and we wanted some dinner. On my way, I saw signs for a BW3's...and I hadn't been to one since I left Michigan 2.5 years ago. While we were driving there, all the heavens let loose....it poured. Lightning was striking every 5-10 seconds...dime sized hail...you name it. Zeus was pissed! We ran into BW3's and I was able to enjoy 12 spicy garlic wings and 2 rum 'n cokes and watched the apocalypse roll in from the Alabama border while watching some employee suck at Guitar Hero. Somewhere deep down inside, I knew I'd die listening to a poorly played rendition of Mississippi Queen. I made a few calls to some friends in hopes they could go onto weather.com and see if we would catch a break. Within 2 minutes of one estimate, it broke and we ran to the car and got on the road. As we were headed east, we caught up to the storm and drove through it for about 3 minutes until we got ahead and were in the clear....or so we thought. About 6:00 we were in downtown Atlanta on the I75/I85 merger and it surrounded us. It started to pour and traffic slowed to about 30 MPH...motorists pulling off left and right, but we pressed on. I was fueled by what gives us Yankees the ability to drive in white-outs.....BW3s wings and booze. It was about 2 hours before we got home as traffic eventually slowed to about 15 MPH. And we arrived to see a river in our front yard...it was about 10' across and 6-8" deep and flowing full force to the storm drain about 200 feet away. And it had only been raining at home for about 15 minutes at this point.



Miraculously, no damage here and the power stayed on.....

But when I arrived to work Thursday morning, trees were down all over the place. Normal boring work day. BUT, we went to see Dark Knight with some friends that night and really enjoyed it.

Friday, Sam called me at work telling me how sick she was. Most of you know, I'm a germophobe. I wash my hands a lot and refuse to touch a lot of gross shit. I was just waiting for it to hit me, but I managed to dodge that bullet. I picked her up after work and she looked and sounded like death. I inflated the air mattress and slept on the floor of the office. So on Saturday, she was supposed to work, but she called in and we went to an immediate care place and they tested her for strep throat - negative...but she did have a rockin sinus infection and would be contagious for the next 24 hours....fun times for germophobe Paul! Got her medicines and a bunch of soup, got her all setup on the couch and I got ready for work. Had another concert and I was privileged enough to wear the chode shorts again! Hot as hell as usual...and the setup was all jacked, so I was moving tables and chairs all by myself at about 2:30 in the hottest part of the day.....sweating buckets. But at least I wasn't around my plague-riddled wife. Packed up and headed out at about 9:30 and went to grab some dinner with a co-worker friend afterward. He started getting a headache at the concert, and when we walked into the restaurant, there was some douche playing a lot of bad top 40's songs on his guitar along with a CD of backup vocals and drums. Painful. We ordered food and drinks....when the food arrived, he took a bite and said he felt sick as hell and had to jet. People dropping like flies around me here. He took his to go, I finished up, came home, and crashed on the office floor again.

Sam woke up feeling a ton better, but she still has 3-4 more days of antibiotics (that will mess with birth control....shit!). She had to work, so I've been disinfecting the house today and washing all our linens. Fun. Back to it folks....

Batman - Dark Knight....FINALLY!

I've had about 5 or 6 people that I told the about this blog that have asked me what I thought of the latest installment of Batman and I hadn't seen it yet. Well, it finally happened last night.


I'm going to do my best to avoid spoilers, but there will be some info revealed in vague form. So there's your warning.


I went in with high expectations and have done my best to avoid all teasers and trailers for the last year. So I hadn't seen any footage of the film, aside from the trailer that was on before Indiana Jones 4. That said....

...WOW! The movie started off with a bang. No origin story on the Joker. Your introduction is that you join him on a twisty-turny heist. It was all that was needed and I was glad they didn't feel the need to bloat it with a bio or to give a description of how he became who he is so people could identify with him; it let the viewer get to know him in the same way that Batman did. And the way the Joker asserts himself within the first few seconds of meeting the organized mafia families in Gotham...just jaw dropping. It took me and everyone in the theater by surprise...there were gasps that transitioned into laughter, almost as if on cue. It felt so good to laugh - it seemed a natural reaction to relieve the tension. Ledger had a brilliant portrayal of the Joker, and it left me wanting to see more of it - a lot of that feeling is probably due to the fact I know it won't happen.

My favorite villain of the Batman world has always been Two Face/Harvey Dent. And Aaron Eckhart created a very strong character. One of you mentioned that you thought his lines were the cheesiest of the bunch, but I didn't pick-up on that. His delivery wasn't every fake or forced, so while the dialogue may have read that way on paper, he pulled it off well. I'd have to see it again now that I could pay closer attention to it. But anyway, the way Dent fit into the story was a little different than the cartoon show I grew up loving, but I'm glad for the change. I was surprised with the change of how he became Two Face, but again, I welcomed the change.

Not surprisingly, Bale was a great Batman once more. He is the best Batman...and probably the best Bruce Wayne as well. One of the few flaws in this movie is the gravely voice he speaks with when he is Batman. It is over the top, but I know WHY Bruce Wayne would do it - so no one could pick out his voice as matching up with Batman, so I can't fault him for it. It's something a real person would do when trying to hide their double identity. So it can't even be a true fault.

Gary Oldman was a great Commissioner Gordon. He's charming in Harry Potter, and while I don't know much of his work outside of Batman/Harry Potter, I know that from the 2 characters of Sirius Black and Gordon, it's hard not to love the guy. Either he plays some very identifiable and wonderful roles...or else he just brings that warmth to these characters. I really prefer the style of interaction that Gordon and Batman have in these movies than I have in any of the other movies/shows.

Lesser characters - I also prefer Maggie Gyllenhaal as Rachel Dawes to Katie Holmes. Holmes version was a bit too self-righteous for my taste. And Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman stole the scene whenever they shared with Bale.

Beautifully shot - every Gotham city scape shot was gorgeous. The way the Joker was shot added an immense amount of creep factor...Nolan always framed his scars up perfectly.

The writing was smart and had depth thanks to so many great exchanges, superb action sequences, twists, and brought about a devious and psychotic Joker compared to the slap-happy old portrayals (sorry Jack...Ledger wins for this reason alone).

As stated prior, the movie started out very quickly and forcefully - and while the score was very ambient for the most part, it did build up a lot of tension and helped to keep the story moving. With the quick start, it must have been hard to keep building everything happening with the pace of the build of the score, but they pulled it off brilliantly.

There's a bit of a political statement made that draws similarities to the wiretapping scandal that I could have done without. But it didn't suck me out of the story as it was minor. That is the only complaint I can muster.

In short, (to borrow from the Totally Rad Show) this movie is the reason I'm a geek. Sequels can rarely come close to the original, and this has surpassed it's predecessor. I was tense and holding my breath through so much of the movie. I actually forced myself to exhale a few times when I realized I hadn't been breathing. The whole movie moved so fast, it's 2.5 hours long, and while it sounds like a long time, I cannot think of more than maybe 5 minutes that I could have done without. I didn't view that movie, it took me on a trip and held me by the throat the entire time. Go see it now.

For those of you that have seen it, let me know what you thought in the comments. I'd love to hear it and get some interaction going - so please be as long winded as you like!

I quit TV

TV sucks right? We've all said it, or at least thought it. A lot. Especially on a weekday off when it's rainy and we find ourselves flipping through 70+ channels of crap every 15 minutes in hopes that maybe something good is hiding out there. Sure, we settle on Discovery or History Channel...but there's only so many UFO encounters and WWII stories a man can take....and let's face it, not every week is Shark Week. Discovery is smart, they save that for a special time of year so it's not old-hat like everything else.

Our local monopoly is Charter. I think of Charter as the empty-nesters of the cable suppliers. They aren't on the edge of what's new in the world of technology...but they hear things through their oldest son, Comcast, who is off at college but returns to do laundry and tell them about some new stuff they've learned. Now, Comcast isn't all that great, he's kind of a selfish prick who's always looking to swindle and make an easy buck for beer money...or to pay off future lawsuits due to spying/throttling.

Now then, I had a deal with Charter since we moved into our house...we had established trust that I'd give them $60 a month in exchange for cable TV and internet. I had a few problems along the way, for the most part, they took care of what arose....what they didn't fix, I figured out how to work around myself (thank you google). Now our agreement was nearing an end, and being the savvy consumer I am, I tried to call my old buddy Charter and see if we could continue on the path we had begun. The person I spoke with had an attitude from the start and when I tried to explain I only had 3 weeks until our agreement ended and I wanted to be sure it continued at least one more year, I was denied. The problem was that she was not willing to negotiate before my contract was up. To me, that means that I'd be forking out $110 a month if we did not reach an agreement at that juncture and I told her as such and she didn't understand why I wouldn't just wait a month and take my chances. So I went ahead and canceled. Bye bye Charter.

I tossed around the idea of direct TV...meh. Not really worth it. Same channel line-up as cable pretty much. And they don't offer any internet, and being the dork I am, I need high speed internet more than anything.

I still have my Netflix, and lo and behold, they were launching a new streaming video service. Perfect timing! They have a nice little box you can buy for $100, and you can stream your choice of 10,000 titles. They have about 80,000 in all, but as they get the service going, there will be more added to the streaming list. Right now, it's pretty simple and not-so-good offering, but I've got a movie collection of about 500 DVDs and I haven't watched much more than half of them. So while Netflix get's the service up and running, we've been watching a lot of movies at night and aren't paying anything extra. I even degraded my plan from 3 movies at a time to 2 movies at a time. The streaming option is free and included in my rental plan at no additional charge. Boo-yah!

Now, we have entertainment covered, but we still need internets. I tossed around the ideal of naked DSL - it's not as sexy as it sounds...it's DSL service without paying for a phone line. But then I talked to Sam about getting a phone line and she was for it. We have a cell plan for both of us on Tmobile, but she never uses her phone...she uses mine when we're together, or else she'll use the phone at her work...when she's home, I'm usually there or she's asleep. It made sense to get a home phone and pay about $15 a month for it, rather than $30 a month for her cell. So come November, we're canceling our family shared plan. I'm paying about $40 a month for DSL and $15 for the land line. $5 less than what I was already paying with Charter, not to mention that once we cancel her portion of the cell plan in 3 months, I'll be saving an additional $30 a month.

Next time you utter those words "TV sucks"....how much do you really mean it? Call up your cable co and see if they're willing to negotiate. If not, give 'em the boot.

Homesick for somewhere I've never been

I left Michigan a little over 2 years ago to be nearer to my (now) wife and to find greener pastures for jobs. It was a wise move in both regards...but I'm homesick as a mofo. It comes and goes in waves. I told Sam when we got married that I had a shelf-life of 5 years in GA. It's already been a year since then, so I'm down to less than 4 years and I don't yet have any where specific I want to move. I know I can't return to the North and face those long winters ever again, but I HAVE to be near water. Big water. And since I can't be near the Great Lakes, it's going to have to be the Atlantic Coast (the Gulf Coast is too damn hot). Somewhere between Virginia and South Carolina I think. I find myself day dreaming and scouring the web about Coastal North Carolina, and most of it looks and sounds like a perfect fit. There aren't many mid-sized to large-sized cities which has it's drawbacks as far as the job market goes. Sam can get work just about anywhere, as she's in the optical field, but I'm in marketing, and most places have to have a lot of employees to have a marketing department. I check online for job postings in the Wilmington, NC and Greenville, NC (not exactly on the coast, but very close!) areas. I've had a few that sounded nice, but I'm in no position to even apply just yet.

If any of you have lived in a coastal community, you know the plusses of it...there's a certain vibe to it that is a lot more laid-back than anywhere else. Not to mention the peace of mind that seeing big water every day can give. Knowing that if you want, just a short walk or bike ride will get you to the beach and you can be back home without much trouble. Ugh....I miss it!

We have a vacation booked for Hilton Head Island, SC in September, so I'm hoping that trip will lay some ground work for getting Sam on board for moving out of the Atlanta area and get to the coast. A little over 2 more months to go until that trip and I cannot wait!

As to the move, I'm open to suggestions, but ultimately, it depends on the job market.

Chode Shorts

Yes, I am the unproud owner of chode shorts. Quail at my awesome presence or you will feel my chode-ish wrath.

Backstory - for those of you that are unaware, I work at a resort in the Atlanta area. I do marketing work there and aside from targeting like no one's business, and being in charge of every printed material on the whole property, my duties also include the running and planning of some events. One of these events are some concerts that we host during the summer. None of the bands are anything I am into, (not even close) so don't think it's exciting. Well we host these concerts outside in a covered pavillion. It's enclosed on 2 sides and is at the base of a hill thwarting what little wind exists in this God forsaken state unless it comes from a certain direction and manages to dodge the freaking forest of 50+ foot tall trees. In short, it's hot working these things. There are a total of 7 of them, 2 are behind me and I'd like to wear shorts but it's kinda against the rules. I have gotten away with it thus far in cargo shorts, but if I should stand a chance at doing another 5 concerts between now and Labor Day without the worst case of swamp butt the US has ever seen thanks to having to wear pants, I'd have to suck it up and get some 'nice' shorts.

Other than the 10 seconds in the dressing room, I haven't worn them, nor will I until this Saturday between the hours of 5-9PM when I suck it up and pretend to be in a J Crew ad on a yacht with all my douche bag friends and a golden retriever with a blue bandanna around it's neck (he's a Cripp) - laughing and cavorting like a rich young Turk.

Or perhaps I'll pretend I'm a color blind UPS driver.

At least I didn't get chode shorts with pleats nor shave my legs like the guy in the picture....that makes it better, right?

The whole damn mess

In a perfect world...err...well...a more perfect America, we'd have more than 2 parties. Just when I thought I'd had it during the last 3 months of the Democratic primary....Obama and McCain finally met up. I had hope that Obama would live up to the hype, but he's had his first mess up with this whole FISA debacle. And it was enough for me to rethink of donating any money to his campaign....not that my $50 matters, his campaign is as rich as the Vatican.

So for those of you that haven't been following along at home, this FISA bill allows the gov't to tap phones without warrants to protect us from turrists. A few years ago, the telecoms were ordered by the gov't to tap phones without letting the public know. This bill will protect the telecoms from being taken to court for following gov't orders. Makes sense, right? They were following orders. But at the same time, if the telecoms cannot be taken to court, then Bush and Co. cannot be held responsible either and they get away with shady-dealins. Nice precedent being set eh?

Well, Obama had originally said he was against it and would support a filibuster on the senate floor if it came to a vote. A few weeks ago, he changed his tune saying he'd accept this bill, and when he becomes president he'd look into stripping out the protection of the telecoms. How very passive aggressive. No way of knowing if he'll follow through. He changed his mind on the filibuster right?

Anyway...onto McCain. For those of you who voted for GW in 04, I know (and I'm sure you do as well) that you said at least once that Kerry was "a flip-flopper". The media hasn't been covering McCain all that well from the bit I've read. But here is a nice list of his flip (and mainly) flops in just the past few months. Also, he was in the bottom 1% of his class at the Naval Academy - oh and lost 5 jets! WINNER!

I haven't made up my mind what I'll do in November - I may go out and drop a marble in Obama's jar still as I think he'll at least end this age of fear and ignorance, or I may vote 3rd party and do what I truly believe, or just stay home.

Anyway, enjoy these - at least we can get a laugh out of this race.