This is the life

Magnet #795 - Florida

So there were a couple of all-nighters down in Tampa last month, but there was one night that was just one adventure after another. Basically, I had to run a friend out to the airport at 4 in the morning, but then on the way back from the airport, I must have stopped by every 24-hour-place along the way home. I mean, back to the resort.

I picked up this magnet at like 5 in the morning at a CVS on Tampa Road, I think. Really, who hangs out at a CVS at 5 in the morning?

There were a least a half dozen running around. The cashier asked me if the Championship was hiring. And yes, because I'd forgotten to take off my all-access pass from the day before. Heh.

But that's nothing compared to the fun people at the Walmart (no, not the groceries-only Walmart - which I didn't even know existed!). Seriously, 24-hour-Walmarts. Interesting place to be at 6 in the morning. And boy howdy, are the employees friendly! Actually, if one had one's druthers - I think 6am might actually be the best time to shop at Walmarts. Heh.

Anyway, I knew I'd have to get this magnet from that CVS at 5am...mostly because I laughed my bum off, when I read the fine print on the umbrella...

Oh, yeah. This is the life, indeed.

Ribbon me this

Magnet #755 - Snoopy and Woodstock, BFFs forever

Hee. Target $1 aisle. C'mon. Need I say more. Pretty colors, pretty stickers, pretty magnets, pretty ribbons.

What?

A while ago, I was at my sister's place in DC, and I noticed that she put stickers on everything she owns. Mainly to tell the difference between her phone and others, her remote and others, her iPod and others, her basically anything and others.

I mocked her for that.

I should have known better, because I noticed something about myself over the last couple of weeks.

First, I stickered my chargers - for my Mac and my Blackberry. I stickered my clipboard, my notebooks, my folders and even my all-access pass.

Second, I beribboned everything. No. Seriously.

I beribboned the key to one of the conference rooms we were in.

I beribboned the key to the other conference room we were in.

I beribboned the car keys.

I beribboned the key to the CHIPsmobile.

I beribboned jump drives.

I even tried to double-ribbon the brand ambassador gifts.

Hmmm. I think in addition to just liking ribbon, I might like the word beribboned too much. Especially given that I'm pretty much using that word incorrectly. Eh.

Beribboned!

Doing the Dew

Magnet #754 - Soda

Another Kristina Myers Crafts magnet, one that I specifically took a picture of, to post about down in Tampa.

Mainly because I kinda figured that I'd be living on caffeine down there. Hah.

I kinda figured right.

At the risk of sounding like a commercial for Mountain Dew, during my 20 days on-site, I made sure that I had a steady stock of the stuff (in bottle and Throwback form) in the Playpen (our team HQ), the office fridge (in our conference room office), the Tahoe (big enough to lug around boxes), the Camry (yes, we had a note from Hertz saying it was safe), and my room fridge (not that I spent all that much time there).

The only place I never thought to stock it was the pavilion (because I totally didn't even think of it until just now. Huh?) or the CHIPsmobile (because I totally stocked that with waters for Erik and me).

Even so, no matter where I went, I was within easy reach of a Dew.

You know, they say that if you give up one sugary drink a day, you give up something like 50,000 calories in a year.

I believe it.

I sure as hell won't do it, but I certainly believe it.

I got kids! Here!

Magnet #752 - Columbus, Indiana

This is one of the many parks in Columbus, Indiana, still one of my favorite finds in America. I kinda just liked the healthy, active bikers at the park, and was saving it for one of the two Youth Days we did for the local schoolkids.

Last year, we did one Youth Wellness Day, and had something like 1251 kids. In one day. 1251.

At one point, I was awash in kids. It was the only time I seriously thought, OMG, we're not going to make it. All I saw in every direction possible for as far as I could see, were kids.

Hundreds of them. Ya'll, anything en masse scares me. But hundreds of kids? Whoa.

But that was last year. This year, we learned our lesson, and had two days. Never mind that we still had 1050 on one day and 700 something on the second day.

Totally manageable. Totally.

No. Really.

Won't you come blog, joy magnetism?

Magnet #750 - Mile 0, Key West

WHEW. This is what I feel like I've hit. Mile ZERO.

I know, I know, the last time I blogged was March 13, the day before we went into overdrive for Transitions Championship week. I mean, I was able to blog from a hotel lobby in the middle of Florence, Italy, more easily than I could have done from Tampa in the last couple of weeks!

No worries, I'll quickly catch up (to the real magnet tally), I just needed to catch my breath.

The funny part is how everyone left behind thinks that Tampa was some sort of a picnic, that we weren't really doing anything but watching some golf, and throwing up a couple of Transitions swirls here and there.

Actually, it's not really all that funny. Even with a dozen people on site (a dozen, FFS), we still had one chick log in about 97 hours on one week's timesheet. And she's one we took it easy on.

So yeah, I get pretty het up when I hear folks wondering out loud just what we were doing down there, when I know for a fact that Tampa was not just a walk in the sun.

Anyway, moving on...I think my sister brought back this magnet for me, because no, I haven't been to Key West. In fact, all I know about it, is that there are lots of cats at Hemingway's house there, and that Joey Potter stole a brick from the house for Dawson. As a symbol of their friendship. Or some such. (Honestly, I dunno why she even bothered to get him a darn thing, when she should have just sailed away on the True Love with Pacey, and never came home or given Dawson a second thought.)

What? I've just been away, is all. joy magnetism hasn't magically turned into a different blog in my absence. Of course, I'm yammering away about work. And Dawson's Creek.

You're just lucky I didn't mention anything about David Tennant and Doctor Who.

Yet.

With open galleries

Magnet #743 - Alexander Calder, National Gallery

We've established over and over that I love art, and art museums. That it's not even like I'm particularly well-versed in any genre or any artist, that I just love looking at the stuff in whatever museum I visit.

With as many as 15 grueling days ahead of us, we took a bit of a break and went to the new Tampa Museum of Art. A very cool building of pierced aluminum (900,000 holes!!!) nestled along the waterfront park, and designed by Stanley Saitowitz, an SF-based architect with several structures to his name.

So then we walk in - free, by the way, because of the Gasparilla Festival of Arts - and have lunch at the still getting its bearings in a big way Sono Cafe, and take a gander at some art.

The funny thing was that you walk into this giant open space, and you see this staircase that leads you up to the collections. Then, you turn around, and as you start to go up the stairs, you look up, and bam!, you see a giant multistory Calder mobile, much like the one in this magnet from DC's National Gallery. And while I'd seen the pictures of the Calder on their site, I was still awed by it as I looked up into the atrium of a zillion holes. Very cool.

The whole visit (save for Sono) was very cool. Very small. I think we may have missed a few collections, because we did only see one floor full of galleries that intentionally flow into each other to show the openness of art.

But that's the thing now...instead of having wings devoted to one particularly course of art, the rooms and exhibitions all just flow into each other. While on the one hand, this openness explores how art is interrelated, and pushes you to figure out how they are connected, it also doesn't visually define what you're looking at.

In other words, one minute, you're looking at a nude Matisse, you cross an entryway, and all of a sudden, you're looking at a Greek Black-Figure Amphora, circa 510 B.C., and then into a set of black and white Garry Winogrand Women are Beautiful photographs. And left to draw conclusions as to how they're brought together under one roof.

In the end, we did the Matisse side and the Winogrand side, and I'll give it to the TMA curator, that was a good job of tying the two exhibitions together. The sketches, drawings and paintings of various women by Matisse during the early 1900s was a great juxtaposition and comparison against the black and white photography of the women that Winogrand captured in the later 1900s.

It's kind of what the curator of the Accademia in Florence was going for, when he combo'd an exhibition of Mapplethorpe imagery of the human form and...Michelangelo sculptures. Mind you...that one blew my mind completely. Mostly because I couldn't believe it had been done.

Yeah, that's a whole nother magnet.

eta:
After being open a month, their little gallery was stocked full of the easily orderable Matisse magnets from Pomegranate (my faves, as you know), but low on the actual museum logo magnets themselves. Probably good because besides the Sono beef, my other issue with them is their logo. But, I can't wait to come back and see how that museum magnet collection grows. I'm hoping they do an atrium shot like this one here.

Rollin', rollin', rollin', those eyes!

Magnet #481 - VSP's Mobile Eyes

Not feeling particularly inspired today on this rainy Thursday. (Don't get me wrong - I am the only one in the world who is loving this rainy weather. It matches my disposition of late...)

But, I will say that picking this swag magnet from the VSP Mobile Eyes unit down at the Transitions Championship in April made my day. (So you could tell what sort of day I was having, I suppose. Heh.)

I had been despairing of actually finding a magnet during that Tampa trip, and when we made this pitstop, I totally snagged this from their little basket.

VSP is a vision insurance company, who sends this motorhome out on the road to help provide vision screenings for those who need/want them. It's crazy tricked out inside - from the examination area to the frame selection area, to even a small little waiting room. Dudes. No lie - they even have a Twitterfeed. Or three.

If you see it rolling by, definitely check it out. They have good pens, too. Hahahah.

Where the boys are

Magnet #398 - Florida, Joy and the boys

Yep. So, if there's one thing to sum up our time in Tampa, it's this picture.

Remember last week, my post about hating being a Damsel in Distress? And that the production guys were bailing us out left and right?

Here's two of them right here. Without these two guys, Jay and Ash, along with the entire Evolution Studios team, we'd probably still be down there, looking at empty pavilions. You seriously can't get any better than than this team. Whether it was running down to the school buses a mile away to get coolers full of school lunches, or hauling 50 cases of bottled water for the students, or always being around when we had some ridiculous request or ten, or just needed someone to calm us down - I don't think they ever said no to us.

And, my other guy of the week, Mr. Erik Estrada, who did everything we asked, without complaint. Who signed every autograph, kissed every cheek, shook every hand - and was without a doubt, one of the nicest guys I've ever met.

I's a lucky, lucky girl, no doubt. Thank you guys, so very, very much.

Soaking it up like a sponge

Magnet #397 - Tarpon Springs

So, on the day before leaving Hotel California, we were able to steal away for a final team lunch. They said, we're going for Greek, everyone all aboard.

Ya'll know how when I visit someplace, I like to do my research. I like to know what's there to see, what places to visit, what you shouldn't miss, etc., etc. But ya'll also know that when the team heads to Tampa for Transitions, we don't actually see Tampa. We see Innisbrook, and if we're lucky, we'll see the Transitions offices.

So, imagine my surprise, when I look up, and suddenly, I see we're down at some docks, with Greek establishments and surf shops and gift shops, and sponge boats and piles of sponges - everywhere.

Dudes. We went to the Sponge Capital of the World.

Dudes. I didn't even know that they were called the Sponge Docks until someone told me when we got back.

The deal is, the Gulf waters of Florida are some of the best areas for sponge diving. And, the reason why there's a huge Greek community here, is because this Greek guy came, and introduced the sponge diving technique (before, they just used hooks).

I know! You don't even think about where that loofah or sponge came from! From here! It came from here!

And, yes, even though we came for lunch, I ended up speed-dating Tarpon Springs. The boats were supercool with their piles of sponges. There was a bronze diver statue, which I didn't get to take pictures of. But, I did manage to pic up the two signs, in case you wanted to read more. I didn't get to see the Historic Sponge Exchange, but, of course, I made my way through at least four or five gift shops, of course, to find just the right magnet.

Methinks this boat, with the bits and bobs of sponge on it, totally rocks. Geddit it? Boat? Rocks?

No?

Fat Witch Joy

Magnet #396 - Fat Witch

There's a brownie bakery over at Chelsea Market, on 15th and 9th called Fat Witch Bakery. They have the most amazing brownies. Period.

Get thee there. ASAP.

My favorite is their breakfast brownie - oatmeal, walnut and coffee, with a little bit of brownie. Have that with a cup of coffee, and you're golden.

I picked this for today's magnet because I've openly been a witchy, bitchy grumpypants this whole year. On top of that, the doctors I visited last month told me I could stand to lose a couple of pounds here and there.

Little did they know that hanging out in Tampa working from sun-up to just a few hours to the next sun-up, would make us drop some weight. It's the one constant that we've noticed these last twelve days down there - the clothes we brought down hang just a little looser now. For example, a snug pair of jeans fresh from the dryer...I can now pull on and off without unbuttoning them. Heh.

Actually, it's because of that, that I felt totally well within my rights to go to Daily Eats just before leaving for the airport. And, I fully enjoyed that potato-chip encrusted turkey burger and honey-drizzled sweet potato fries that I have been looking forward to since the last time I was down there.

It didn't disappoint. Neither did the Deep Dark Chocolate and Vanilla Bean milkshake.

Fat witch that one, docs.

Able to leap tall buildings

Magnet #389 - New York's Time Warner Center

I have a love hate relationship with this building - it's the Time Warner Center at Columbus Circle.

One, it gives a weird twin tower effect, but in midtown. Two, it took the place of the old NY Coliseum, which, though old and sad, was still part of a NY that's rapidly getting overrun by new builds everywhere. (New builds, mind you, that no one has any money to lease, rent or buy into.)

But, I do have to say, I do kinda love TWC, too. And not just because I used to want to work there. It's just a pretty cool building. One tower's mostly residential and hotel, and the other is corporate TWC offices, WB and CNN.

Sadly, once, I went out for drinks with clients at the gorgeous Mandarin Hotel bar on the 30-something-eth floor, and my view was right into a Warner Bros floor. It was so close, and yet so far.

I don't really like the mall in the first floor. It's just like they packed up Mad Ave and moved it west. Though, I won't complain because there's also a Borders and a Whole Foods, and a great Samsung experience there.

I picked this magnet up from the Skyscraper Museum, downtown. Love that place, but I wish it were more than one floor. Right now there's an exhibit comparing buildings and density between the vertical cities of New York and Hong Kong. Superinteresting.

But, I really picked this magnet, because I miss New York. There's too much air and space, trees and sunshine here. Also? I am going insane driving around in golf carts. It's too slow! And then, when I leave campus, I find myself going like 15 on the highways, because I realize that I'm inching along. Crazy.

Who would have thought that I'd miss concrete and glass.

Oh, and my post title is actually more relevant to yesterday's activities with the production guys. Yes. More saving of our collective behinds, and in general being our get-it-done guys. Sigh.

Damsels in distress

Magnet #389 - Disney Princesses Crowned with Beauty

As far as I can tell, except for smiling really pretty and cajoling the hell out of someone, I try not use my so-called feminine wiles to get what I want. It's mostly because I'm not a pretty, pretty princess type.

I don't play the silly git who can't add two and two (even though I can't).

I don't flaunt my so-called wares to score a free round of drinks or dinner.

And I most certainly don't like playing damsel in distress, waiting for the big bad hero to come and save me.

And yet. These last five days in Tampa have seen me playing the damsel in distress more times than I'd like to count.

Seriously. I hate it. I hate being dependent on someone else. I hate taking up someone else's valuable time with something that's my responsibility, but that I can't physically can't do. I hate imposing on someone to stop what they're doing and go out of their way they're doing to help me get some stuff done.

I just hate asking for help, is really what it boils down to.

But sometimes, you just can't run a forklift to move some skids. You can't run electricity yourself. You can't lift heavy crates on your own. You can't blame yourself for not bringing a Philips screwdriver on site. Gah.

And sometimes, you find yourself needing a hero. Or two. Or ten.

What is it about guys in production being like the most helpful, get it done guys in the world? Whether it's designing and producing a million ads in New York, or printing a million banners or grabbing a forklift to run some pallets around for us Tampa, the production guys I work with are truly spectacular. I'm telling ya'll, without the local team here, I probably would have packed up five days ago.

At some point, the word thanks doesn't cover it. But, thanks soooo much, guys. Mwah!!!

Wait. That wasn't a wile, I swear.

Ready or not, here I come

Magnet #383 - Florida

(Caution, there be advertising ahead...mind you, none of the below thoughts/opinions/yada-yada reflect the opinions of my employer, my clients, etc., etc., caveatcakes.)

So, because of this story, the producer on our TV spot bought me this magnet. Very sweet. Thanks, Alisa!

It's hard to believe the last six months have passed by in a flurry, and we're down to crunch time.

We've all gearing up for the Transitions Championship next week, a PGA TOUR golf tournament held down at Innisbrook Resort and Golf Club, outside of Tampa. It'll be the culmination of many long days and nights for most everyone involved, and I can't wait to see how it all pans out.

But, I'm not gonna lie, man. Sheesh. It's like I've never been away from home before, with the amount of prepping and packing and wardrobe buying.

In my defense, it's such an odd trip - it's clothes for staffing events/tents, clothes for play, clothes for client play, jammies acceptable to wear in polite company. You get the picture.

And my DVR's gonna miss me while I'm gone! I figured out last night, as I was ruthlessly deleting my stored shows, that just tomorrow and Friday, I've got ten shows on the docket. That's two Thursdays and Fridays - each! Twenty shows! Jeepers.

I'm hoping my luck holds, because I think I can fit something like 3o shows on my DVR. I think. Mind you, this yet another reason never to get HD, and another reason for hotels to have DVRs for their guests!

Finally, I've been toying with a theme for the next 12 days - should I do straight refrigerator magnets (no muss, no fuss, albeit odd organizations and businesses getting free advertising)? Should I do art gallery images (what? you didn't like yesterday's Whistlejacket, the cutest horse on the planet?)? See the thinking that goes on for joy magnetism?

Eh, in the end, I think I'm just gonna stay true to the joy magnetism mission statement. Random magnets. Random stories.

Signing off now. And, I'll see ya'll on the other side. Florida, please. Be kind to me.

(Mind you, I am totally sneaking away at some point for that scrumptious potato chip-encrusted turkey burger at Daily Eats. Oh. And a superearly morning breakfast at, yes, Dennys. Mark my words.)

Props to Big Al

Magnet #285 - Florida

On my way home, I picked this magnet up at the fabulous Tampa airport, because the gator just cracks me up.

I just spent the last few days at Innisbrook Golf Resort, where I learned to drive a golf cart like a pro, but still have never held a real live golf club in my hand.

On the fourth hole on Copperhead course, there's this fairly big water feature (heh, new term for me) with Big Al, the alligator. Someone showed me a picture of Big Al on Monday, and then I saw her myself in the exact same place the next day. But, I had convinced myself that the gator was actually just a stupid prop that the groundskeepers just moved from place to place.

So yesterday, I was driving one of the clients out on the course, rather blase about the gator prop, as we were approaching the water. He says to me, "You think it's a prop? Well, that's an interesting theory."

Just as we were passing the gator, just close enough to see her eyes, the darn thing was startled by our golf cart and hopped up and dove into the water.

Freaked. Me. Out. I slammed on the brakes, and we pitched forward, and all the while the client chuckled his ass off at me.

Yeah. Umm, Big Al.

Not a prop.

Sparkly Tampa

Magnet #282 - Disney Princesses Sparkle

Yeah, I know this isn't Orlando, but, it's as close as I can get to glitter right now.

Yesterday was a great day, despite having started out with me not only wandering into the men's restrooms, but also running into a reallllly cute dad of a young kid...who also happened to be on my flight.

I swear, I did a full 360 in the restrooms, wondering when they installed urinals in the ladies' room, or when La Guardia had gone unisex. What can I say, it was like 6:30 in the morning!

But after a sucky morning, I landed in this wondrous world, this place called Tampa [metro area].

First, I had lunch with some old friends, and you can't beat company like that.

Second, my lunch was the most scrumptious potato-chip encrusted turkey burger I've ever had. Ok, it's the only potato-chip encrusted turkey burger I've ever had. But seriously, it was like one of those food epiphanies I mentioned a few weeks ago, and I just know I'll end up in NYC trying to find someone to recreate the darn thing.

Third, while I saw a few superawesome and completely unexpected roadside attractions (that I didn't get to take any pictures of, darnit). Off of US 4, someone recreated Cadillac Ranch, but used airstreams instead - how awesome is Airstream Ranch! But even more awesome, because down the road a couple exits later were some giant dinosaurs! Dinosaur World! (I'm so sad I didn't have time to stop!)

Fourth (and technically not Tampa), I went to Florida Southern's campus and wandered around for a couple of hours. I'll probably blog more on that side trip for the next FLW magnet, but for now, here are the superawesome pics without any captions.

But, finally, the piece de resistance. Yay for multiple Targets!

Really. How can you go wrong with a Target that sells me this magnet!

Jet plane to Tampa

Magnet #281 - Tampa, FL

Headed to Tampa for work today.

While we think it'll be fun, I will need glitter. And lots of it. Like someone head to Sam's Club and just empty the glitter aisle for me, please.

Juuuuust need to make to Wednesday night.

Café con joy

Magnet #119 - Columbia Restaurant

Writing this post as I've just polished off my second café con leche to help me power through the night...

I may never drink Starbucks again, folks. The Cuban Roast Coffee from Columbia is probably the best coffee I've ever had - and that includes the fanTASTic coffee with brown sugar I had in Toronto. Good gravy. It's just freakin' awesome.

This magnet was given to me by a friend who just recently visited from Tampa - she and I recently reconnected on Facebook (hmmm, I seriously need a FB magnet). We spent quite a bit of time together growing up down in Salisbury, NC. Then her family moved, and though our parents kept in touch, us kids didn't.

So how great is it, that even though we hadn't spoken since 1987, we were still able to spend two hours on the phone, just gabbing away and catching up. And, after spending a couple days hanging around NYC, we realized that even though she moved a few states away - we still shared many of the same experiences - with our parents, our sisters, our cultures and our upbringing in small Southern towns.

They say no one knows you better than family...but I guess it's really family - plus those who knew you when...