Overtime

So I've been busy playing the game for the past few weeks. A couple clutch plays here and there, an ankle-breaker every so often, maybe a few timeouts. But when Thanksgiving was fast approaching, I realized this game had been over for quite some time. Now I was in overtime. Sudden death. I needed to get off the court and back in the locker room, this game was starting to mess with my skills.

I thought and thought about this for quite some time. I had to get out of this job, because I was picturing myself just floating along, waiting for something to fall in my lap. That's not how I play. Do I take that leap into the sea of the unemployed, or do I stay, quietly collecting my $100/week stipend that doesn't even cover groceries? I was starting to realize that I was setting my worth at that $100--if I believe that's how much I'm worth, that's what everyone else will believe, too.
I'm worth more. So I quit.
I quit the day before Thanksgiving and I was at peace with my decision. I believe that everything you do in your life should not only teach you something, but it should serve some type of purpose. Even this job served a purpose. It made me remember how much I truly love music and the industry. Most of the times I've been working have been in the music industry, and sometimes, you just don't know what you have until it's gone. My love has been reinstated. I guess you could call that the game winning play at the buzzer.

Game. Set. Match.

Everyone calls the entertainment industry "the game." Well, if this is a game, then I'm going to play it and I'm going to play it well.

I've been noticing at work that despite my best efforts to remain under the radar and keep my head down without anyone raving about what great work I've done, I've been given a lot more responsibility than the other interns who have been there much longer than me. At first, they made me an administrator on one of their seasonal websites so that I could answer customer inquiries. That was fine with me, it's one website that's only popular during that particular holiday.
Then, they made me administrator of another seasonal website. Okay...I can dig it, still not an extremely important thing in the grand scheme of things here.
Monday, they gave me access to one of the shared drivers on the network that interns are absolutely prohibited from. Not only did they give me access to this drive, but they had me refunding costumers for tickets to events they'd purchased. The company doesn't like to give refunds so they told me that it was at my discretion if I thought they should be refunded or not.
Now these people's money is in my hands??
Yesterday, they made me administrator, again, for what is probably their biggest ticketing website, if not their second biggest. I left work knowing I had to make some plays here before they gave me some type of Rookie of the Year award.
I woke up this morning feeling groggy as usual. And like every morning, my argument with myself over if I should quit or not had me running behind schedule. This morning though, I saw my chance for an All-Star play. I went on my laptop, wrote a quick note to my boss to let him know I would not be in until 1 PM today because I had a last minute interview I had to go to.
Now, under normal circumstances, I would never let my superior know I was actively searching for work, (nor would I tell a lie!!) but this is how I've decided to play the game. Call it a foul on the play if you'd like, hit me with an unsportsmanlike conduct if you have to. I don't want this team making room for me on their roster. I cuddled back into my dangerously comfortable bed, and slept with a smirk on my face until 12 PM. The streets of Manhattan were good to me for those extra hours, completely quiet and calm.
I strolled into work at 1 PM, still smiling and had the usual pleasantries with my boss. He asked how my interview went and I could tell by the look on his face that he was happy when I said it was just okay but I wasn't very confident in it. I went over to my desk where my other boss told me another intern would now be splitting up my work with me.
3 Point Play for the Intern Chick. This is what I wanted. Make room for someone that wants it, I'd rather be the free agent, pen in hand waiting to sign with someone else.

A Living Nightmare

My new job, and subsequently what my life has become, is as if someone took notes on everything I hate and rolled it into one big monster. It's a nightmare. Every day.

I won't complain about what I consider to be early hours, because I know it's just me that finds waking up at 8:30 AM to be unbearable.
My desk at work is in one huge cubicle where the dividers have been taken down in order to fit 4 people. I am part of the 4 people, along with 3 other females who I'm not sure what they do. One can't speak English very well. The other prints out tickets all day and the noise of the ticket machine would be enough to drive you crazy if it wasn't for the 3rd girl. I think she is my boss. No one told me what department they moved me to, and I've figured that out on my own, so no one told me who I report to. I think this girl is it. She listens to Techno and House music all day, and when its not that, its slow whiny alternative music that makes you want to cut open a vein. The first few days I was falling asleep at my desk from the music, and figured out by the looks I was receiving that these people don't think its okay to listen to your iPod all day while you work. They do at record labels, that's all I'm saying.
If her music isn't bad enough, she snorts all day. At first I thought it was because she was sick, and I was really hoping this was the reason. I don't think it is. I think she just enjoys it. She comes to work in her gym clothes, works out on her lunch break, and comes back, in the same gym clothes, for the rest of the day. Why am I the only one that doesn't think this is okay??
The best part about this whole thing is the work they have me doing. Customer. Service. Call me crazy, but I always thought the whole role of customer service representatives was foolish. I don't understand why people can't just figure things out for themselves. You type one word in google and a million things pop up, surely the answer to whatever ridiculous question you may have can be found there. Working in customer service is one of those things I've always seen as the type of job you get when you don't finish college and don't know the different between "then" and "than." And now I'm doing it. And they expect me to be nice when these people ask their outrageous questions that are clearly posted on the website. The day they put me on the phones, I am going to cry.

My Last First Day

Today was my first day at what better be my very very last internship (for real this time).

I came in and was given an overview of the company priorities and then shadowed one of the employees for a few hours. I had only sat at my new cube for 5 minutes before I was already answering the main line for the office, fielding calls and answering questions the best I could. I found this to be much less nerve wracking when regular people are calling instead of executives I've idolized since I was 9.
Then I worked on a spreadsheet for the rest of the day, filling in the blanks and posting the company priorities on the internet.
Maybe I was happy to join the rest of the living this morning, but there was one thought I couldn't chase out of my head all day. I went from working in the music industry to now just being one of the thousands of people who want to work in music and don't.
I feel like I just walked blindly into mediocrity.

Lucky 9

Not too long after I posted that blog last Thursday, I applied for just one more job. I've been battling with this "to intern or not intern because I'm not an intern anymore" dilemma. I applied for one last internship. The description said they needed someone to do data entry fast. I'm your girl.

3 hours later, they called asking me to come in for an interview. I said I'd come in the next day, and less than 24 hours later, found myself waiting for the elevator in their office building. The receptionist was nice and brought me into the conference room to meet with the director of sales. The guy had never even seen my resume. I handed him a copy, he sat down with a half smile on his face, circled a couple of things and looked up at me.
He asked me about one of my past internships (3 of 8). "What made you so important there?" "Why were you 'head intern'?" "Why did you have all these responsibilities and no one else did?" I used the fact that he thought/knew I was some kind of gem to my full advantage. He said the job involved 3 parts--2 of which I love, marketing & writing. I kind of felt like I was selling myself short, taking an internship when I have mounting student loans to pay off. I found out during the interview that everyone that works at the company starts out this way, and they pay a weekly stipend. Nothing crazy, but enough to buy groceries. I told him it was definitely something I was interested in it. All he said was, "Okay. See you Monday then, come casual." and walked out of the conference room.
I walked out of that building feeling elated. And as I walked the many blocks home from the subway with the rain beating down on me I felt, for the first time, that I am going to be okay.

I Give Up

I'm angry.
Get this: According to a survey from National Association of Colleges and Employers, the class of 2009 is leaving campus with fewer jobs in hand than their 2008 counterparts. The group's 2009 Student Survey found that just 19.7 percent of 2009 graduates who applied for a job actually have one. In comparison, 51 percent of those graduating in 2007 and 26 percent of those graduating in 2008 who had applied for a job had one in hand by the time of graduation.
Here's another one. A job listing for Sony yielded FIVE THOUSAND resumes. FIVE thousand.
And this. Almost 2 million college graduates are unemployed and a recent survey by the National Association of Colleges and Employers predicts companies will hire 22 percent fewer graduating seniors than they did last year.
I was feeling humble this morning so I googled things like what a recent college graduate should do to increase their chances in the job market. Guess what? I've done it all. Intern, network, high GPA, go to your school's career center, rewrite your resume. Let's get real, this is all a bunch of crap some guy sitting comfortably at his job is feeding you because maybe that's how he got his job (you know, before the recession).
I interned for 8 different jobs. I network. I graduated from a top 100 university with honors. I went to the career center while I was still in school. I've revised and rewritten my resume. And it's gotten me nowhere. In the 6 months since graduating, I've had two interviews. I've probably applied for somewhere between 50 and 100 jobs. And all I hear out of anybody's mouth is "You'll be fine. You interned." No I won't, because I'm still sitting here unemployed, aren't I? If I don't hear that, I hear, "The music industry is a tough place to break into. Maybe you're setting your sights too high. Why don't you work for a non-profit? They take all the help they can get."
Well excuse me for having a dream while the rest of the world wants me to put my head down and work a job doing menial tasks for the next 10 years. Maybe I just should.

20 Favorite Quotes

You know those people that have "favorite quotes" coming out their ears (and maybe their mouths)? While I'm not one of those people, I somehow started this Memo in my Blackberry where I add in any quotes I've come across while going about my everyday life that mean something to me. I didn't think I really cared about it until one day I accidentally deleted it and was extremely upset. They aren't your typical quotes that you copy down from some painfully corny website with whiny Muzak playing in the background. I take them from magazine articles or interviews, books (fiction and non), a few from songs, and some just from regular conversation. I have nothing else to write about, so I'll let these speak for me--and you can quote me on that... Which one is your favorite?

1. If people aren't laughing at your dreams, you aren't dreaming big enough.
2. Luck is what you have left over after you give 100%
3. Contemplate compatibility before commitment.
4. As long as the music has the true to the heart soul, it can be Hip-Hop. As long as it has soul to it, Hip-Hop can live on. - Tupac Shakur (from a rare interview)
5. In the end, I've found that flying solo is difficult but not impossible -Victor Manuelle (interview with Billboard Magazine)
6. 'Stressed' spelled backwards is 'desserts'. (who's with me on this one??)
7. Never work for money, make money work for you.
8. Without resistance, there is no growth. Without growth there are no good and bad moments. Without good and bad moments, there are no special moments or lessons learned.
9. If crime doesn't pay, does that mean my job is a crime? (This should be the motto for every intern, and its probably true)
10. The higher your goals are and the bigger you dream, the smaller your competition becomes. - J. Cole (first artist signed to Roc Nation)
11. When you know you're going to make it; when you know you're destined for something and you believe in yourself, you have to keep telling yourself its coming or else you'll start to doubt it. - J. Cole (from an interview)
12. Stay far from timid, only make moves when your heart's in it, and live the phrase "sky's the limit." - Notorious B.I.G. (from the song "Sky's the Limit" feat. 112)
13. Envy can be a positive motivator. Let it inspire you to work harder for what you want.
14. 90% is your business, 10% is your talent.
15. There's no association of people wanting to see others do well in this space. They think that if someone else is doing well, they must not be. They're stealing their ability to do well, and to me, that is sad. - Lyor Cohen (on the state of the music industry in an interview with The Source magazine)
16. You have to love what you do to really make things happen. - P. Green
17. Specialness, excitement, and emotion are what resonate. - Ralph Lauren (as quoted in Vogue magazine)
18. Stay up. Be aware. Be innovative. Let's keep making this shit interesting. - Jay-Z (from an interview with XXL Magazine)
19. One reason you work hard to be the best is so the people you're up against see right away you are. You make 'em believe they can't beat you, and they can't. - Tabitha King (from her book "One on One")
20. On Earth, our dear ones do live on through those of us to whom they were so very precious. (A personal favorite of mine)

Add your own!

I grew up listening to a lot of music. Some of my earliest memories are of listening to Bing Crosby or Nat 'King' Cole Christmas records. I have fond memories of sitting in the backseat of my father's maroon Pontiac, windows open as he drove to drop me off at cheerleading practice, listening to the classic rock station spinning The Who and Queen. I always talk about digging through my older sister's cassette tapes, looking for the latest mix of Hip-Hop dubbed from the radio. Most of all, my mother instilled in me this deeply sincere love for the Motown Sound. I don't even recall when or how it came about, I just know these records have always been near and dear to my heart.

And so, when I became aware that Maxine Powell, Motown's artist development queen, would be speaking at NYU on Friday night, I knew I had to be there. Maybe even in the front row. I RSVP'd and talked my 'networking buddy' into going, only to have her cancel on me later. I went anyway.
Sitting there, right of center, second row, I anxiously awaited Maxine Powell to take the stage, and to take me to another time and place. With the help of the interviewer, she appeared on stage, in a fabulously royal looking deep purple suit, complete with fur collar. She wore a black bowler hat and when she took her seat, she crossed one black heeled foot over the other. As she spoke, I noticed her red nail polish and a beautiful rhinestone, maybe even diamond, encrusted pinky ring. I should mention the woman is 90!
I learned that Ms. Powell taught Marvin Gaye how to sing with his eyes open, and taught the Supremes how to be graceful and how to properly enter a room. How did the name 'artist development' come about? "We'll call it what we're setting out to do--developing artists," she said. No biggie.
I lost myself in her words, and for most of the discussion, I felt like she was talking only to me. "Sometimes your dream doesn't happen when you want it to." she said, "Maybe you give it 6 months and it's not working out. But you alter your approach and you keep trying; you'll get there." Filling the conversation with little jokes and spunky remarks, she also said, "Some people will tell you you can't achieve your dreams. You just say under your breath, but I'm going to keep trying until I do."
I spent my Friday night with the woman responsible for giving a segregated country such elegant and graceful images of African American men and women. And something like that just doesn't happen everyday.

You know how when you have a job, all you want to do is stay home, sleep, relax, maybe read the paper?

But when you don't have a job, the very thought of another minute spent "relaxing" (if you could even call it that at this point) and reading makes you physically ill?
You can put me in category 2.
I'll admit, it hasn't been that long since I've been truly unemployed. I wake up in the morning and as soon as I remember why it's past 10 AM and I'm still in bed, the dread starts to build. I think about the impossible task, i.e., get on Craig's List, search through scams, er, I mean listings, and apply to zero, because none of them are what I need/want/am qualified for. Then I flip through the channels and announce, everyday, to myself, "THERE IS NOTHING ON TV!" Does anyone else but me have any idea what kind of crap is played on TV during the day? Yesterday I went to the reservoir in Central Park and went for a 1 1/2 mile run. I was feeling better afterwards and I even walked the 30 blocks home. I decided to adopt it as a daily ritual, until I got out of bed this morning and experienced extreme pain after months of not working out. I won't even talk about the phone call that went unnoticed this morning from the temp agency with an assignment for me today.
After sulking for most of the morning and early afternoon, I took myself to Border's. I could stay in a bookstore for hours and never get bored. I've always been in awe of the amount of knowledge housed in just one section, each book waiting to unlock a world of secrets. I spent a long time in there, by the time I left it was dusk. I treated myself to a book about women in the entertainment business. At this point, I need all the motivation I can get.
After reading countless pages of a different book, watching a documentary on Ellis Island, and making dinner, I thought my head might explode. Then I attempted to lose myself in the wonder that is Google.
Did you know you can take free tours of the Gold Vault at the Federal Reserve? Or that on certain days at certain museums like the Whitney or the Guggenheim you can name your price for admission? You can pay as little or as much as you want. How 'bout that, in honor of the holiday weekend, there is a Christopher Columbus Block Party tomorrow in New York? Does anyone even know what that involves? Did you know that there's a program called Big Apple Greeters in which someone visiting New York for the first time will be taken around the city by a native, all completely free? They also have a no-tip policy. What's not to like? And this weekend is Open House New York.
You know what the internet doesn't have for me? One decent job listing.

Jobless (Again)

I've failed.

Last week I went into work and Eva said to me, "Hi.  Effective Thursday, we no longer work here."  She was as nonchalant about it as asking me what I wanted for lunch.  Truth be told, we both knew it was coming.  There was no money in the budget anymore, and the record label has been stretching it pretty thin since the spring.  
The problem though, lies in the fact that I failed to do what I set out to achieve.  I started towards the end of June, and gave myself 3-4 months to turn nothing into something, to create an opportunity for myself.  Unfortunately as I write this, its 1:53 on a Tuesday afternoon, and I am still in my pajamas.  Some opportunity.  
I've decided to give myself a certain amount of time to beat myself up over this before I start from scratch, again.  I just can't decide how long that should be.

My introduction to the music industry at my 1st internship was liquor in the filing cabinets rather than real files, executives rolling into work, hungover and passing out on the leather couch, and errands that involved buying underwear, coffee, cologne, and jewelry for my boss. But there's one errand I will never forget.

It was a warm autumn day and I heard the office assistant, Mike, on the phone, finishing up a conversation saying, "Ok. I'll get Intern Chick to do it." What? Mike busily started googling stuff on his computer, printed out a bunch of papers, stapled them together and said, "Intern Chick. Here is your Fun-Pack for the day. I need you to go to the Mandarin Oriental and pick up a CD from a friend of Bradley's (the president)."
I made my way to the plush hotel and called the president for instructions. He told me to go up to the guy's room. Of all the people working in this office, I was the only female. Why in the world would someone pick the only female to go to the hotel room of a strange man by herself? I went to the front desk, gave them the guy's name and made my way up. I knocked on the door and nothing in the world could prepare me for what I was about to walk into. A man answered the door, standing in his boxers and slippers, a red velvet robe draped over him. I stared down at my Fun-Pack, flipping through the pages, praying I was in the wrong place. I followed him in and began taking inventory of the red flags setting off my Creep-O-Meter.
On a small table, I caught a glimpse of the largest bottle of liquor I have ever seen (completely empty) and blunt guts strewn about. That would explain the burping/coughing half dressed man in the middle of the afternoon. I turned the corner of the room to see more alcohol, more blunt wraps, and the largest amount of weed I've ever seen in one place. There were two beds, side by side, one completely made and the other with the sheets and blankets wrapped up and tangled. I blinked my eyes to find, what else, a half dressed woman in that bed! If that wasn't awkward enough, she then held out her hand and introduced herself to me, as if this is perfectly normal. I'd had enough at this point and asked for the CD. Mr. Man here informed me that he didn't have the CD because he didn't know how to burn said CD on his brand new MacBook.
He blew weed seeds off the top of his laptop and asked me to show him how. I looked around for a place to sit and the only place was the other bed. Just me, half dressed man and woman on a Wednesday afternoon, chillin' in a hotel room with enough booze and drugs to get the entire city of New York high as a kite. Nothin' out of the ordinary here.. I opened iTunes and next thing I know, the guy sat down right next to me, I could feel his breath creeping down my neck. I tried to focus and just hurry up and get the CD burnt but since not one single song was labeled (other than Track 1, Track 2, etc) we had to play every one until we found the right ones. I burnt the first one and then he insisted burning another. Let's not forget here that I had no idea why I was burning these CDs or what they were supposed to be, no matter how many times I asked, no one would give me an answer.
As the last CD was burning, the man excused himself to go to the bathroom. As soon as it finished I picked up my things, said goodbye to the woman who was now asleep (or experiencing an overdose, I can't be too sure) and made my way to the door. If I hadn't been creeped out or disgusted enough, the guy was standing over the toilet, peeing, with the door wide open. He looked up at me, smiled and waved goodbye.
The icing on the cake? Two years later, at another internship in publishing, that man was listed as one of our songwriters and guess who answered the phone the one day he called?

The Golden Egg

I swear to Claire, this morning on my walk to work, cement dripped from the construction site I was walking past and landed on my face.  Not just anywhere on my face, right near my lip as I was eating my breakfast.  

It was THAT kind of morning.
I'm trying really really hard to stay positive about this whole job hunting ordeal.  I spent one last sleepless night thinking about it last week and have been making a conscious effort to stay positive.  Today is Day 2.  My main reason for interningwhenIshouldbeworking was to go to industry events to network.  Guess what? You can't go out when you're broke.
Unless you have managed to sneak your way into the life of a club promoter at one of the most exclusive clubs in New York City.
Enter InternChick.
It was much to my surprise when said promoter messaged me today to come hang out with him tonight.  Let's see.  It's a Tuesday night, I have probably about $20 to my name, I need groceries, and my jeans are damn near falling off my waist (club attire? I think not).  Then I found out this event tonight is one of the more star studded events going on in Manhattan tonight and is being hosted by one talented basketball player and one record label that would most benefit if my name were on the payroll!
I frantically messaged my old intern buddy, telling her to come out to the city and indulge in this rare opportunity.  I told the promoter that if I could find someone to come, I'd come out.  My intern buddy answered me back telling me she couldn't go because her hair was a mess.  What??  Am I on some type of other planet where there is no recession and music industry jobs fall out of the sky like rain drops???  She, who is also looking for a job, is turning this event down?  Okay...
I tried to find someone else but, after only living here for 2 weeks and working all the time, friends are few and far between.  I weighed my options.  My boss told me she used to go to events all the time by herself.  I warmed up to the idea and all of a sudden realized, why WOULDN'T I go?!  Alone or rollin' 20 deep, why would I pass it up?  There is a chance, no matter how slight, that I could meet someone who knows someone (who knows someone...) that is looking to hire an assistant.  And if that chance exists, I fully intend to take it.
So, wish me luck tonight as I go on a wild goose chase for my dream job.  Maybe tonight is the night I will find my golden egg.

When I was in high school and my Italian teacher would teach us a new concept, she would finish it by saying "It is going to be this way 99% of the time. Why? Because that's the way it is!"

99% of the time, a simple task with me turns into an all out adventure. Why? Because that's the way it is!
I decided today that I needed to face my fears of city grocery shopping and get myself to the grocery store about 7 blocks from my place, so I took out the granny cart and got myself ready. In the hallway, I ran into my neighbor, Bob. He told me there was a Whole Foods much closer that I should check out, especially if I'd be buying produce. I told him I'd check it out and happily walked on over. Its always puzzled me if people use their own carts in the store, or if they use the grocery store one and put theirs in the lower rack, or any other myriad of options. I asked my boss and she told me people use their carts, so I did just that--except I was the only one and everyone was staring at me.
I maneuvered my way around the produce section, feeling a little overwhelmed and grabbed some random things. Then I started my way up and down the aisles. I had some idea of what I was there to get, but to my dismay, most of the things there were too high in calories or fat for my taste. Just because its organic, doesn't mean its healthy. I was appalled at how unhealthy some of that stuff was, meanwhile these trendy New Yorkers are eating it up, thinking they're so great because they eat organic.
I was growing increasingly more irritated when I decided to just make my way to the check out line and that I'd just go to a different store tomorrow night. At that moment, a lady dressed in all black with her hair in chopsticks started wheeling her cart very close to mine and while I walked straight, she kept getting closer and closer to mine. In a few seconds, she was so close to me that her wheels got tangled in mine and she seemed completely oblivious to it! I was so annoyed that I sped past her to get in the check out line and all of a sudden, that same lady's cart rammed into the back of my ankle at warp speed, making a crashing noise on impact. I turned around, even more annoyed when I saw it was the same woman and gave her the death stare. I pulled over to survey the damage, my ankle was throbbing and burning and weak all at once and I was convinced something was actually wrong. She saw me inspecting my leg and sped away, mumbling a sorry as she wheeled away.
I stood in line, praying I was in the right one (it appeared there was an intricate system that I was not aware of) and weaved through the maze of control barriers. The check out was difficult enough but I made it through. I finished up and went to take the escalator back up where I came from only to find that it was out of order. In my experience, when the up escalator is broken, they should (and usually do) turn the working down escalator into the up one, and everyone is happy. Not here. There was no way I could carry the granny cart up all those steps. I found an elevator in the back of the store. When one opened and everyone filed out, I started to wheel my cart in and the doors began to close. The girl inside the elevator just stared at me, and I yelled, "Are you going up??" She just stared at me some more, blankly, and I watched as the elevator ascended upwards. Rude.
I got in another elevator with two other people. I thought I'd want to get off on the G level, but one man got off there and it didn't look right so I stayed on. The next lady got off on another floor and that didn't look right either. I got off on the floor after that so I could look around and get my bearings. Wheeling my cart around, in the world's worst pony tail, wearing rubber flip flops and a confused expression, I was surrounded by fancy restaurants and classy people. I frantically pressed for the elevator so that I could get back on. I was so confused about where I was and how I ended up there and becoming increasingly more flustered. I got on the elevator and pressed the button for a floor I hadn't seen yet. I stood there for a second and decided that I should just push all of them until I found the right one.
Smart idea right?
Well it is when no one else comes on the elevator. Nothing with me is that easy, though. Why? Because that's the way it is! The elevator stopped on the one floor I didn't press and I stared at all those buttons, lit up, screaming attention to themselves. Finally, I couldn't take it anymore and I exploded in laughter. I started the the girl in the elevator and said, "I'm sorry, I can't figure out how to get the heck out of this building soo...I just pushed every button..Hope you're not in a rush!" She assured me she gets confused all the time too, and still can't find Whole Foods. I told her I could find that but I really just wanted to find an exit. She helped me find a way out and as I thanked her on my way out of the elevator, she called back, "Don't worry! This place is a circus!" That made me feel a little better, but not much. I then strolled through the building, passing Coach and Gucci, still feeling extremely underdressed and inferior!
I hurried home and as I was unloading my food, I noticed that I came home with NOTHING I set out for. I wanted to buy peanut butter, snacks to bring to work, cold cuts, yogurt, tupperware, and stuff I can easily make for dinner with my one pot and one frying pan. I came home with mild salsa, apple sauce, some kind of pasta sauce, and something called potato littles.
Needless to say, after I put everything away, I had to go right back out to the mini grocery store on my street and buy what I actually set out to buy.
Why? Because that's the way it is!


Big Red Button

Remember when I wrote about the Artist From Hell? I am thankful everyday that I don't have to put up with him anymore, in the office at least. We got the interview we needed to get and that was the end of it, or so I thought.

It's Labor Day yet around 10 PM this evening, I was laboring away, getting out my reports for some new projects when I got a message from my boss, Eva. She asked if there was any possibility if when I gave her the tape of the interview we did if I may have mixed it up with a blank one. I knew there was no way I had done that, because I distinctly remembered taking the tape out of the camera, putting it into its case, labeling it, and handing it to her. She said that when she sent the interview out to be cut and edited, the editor said the tape was blank.
That cannot be good.
I thought and thought, trying to put myself back in the studio that day. It wasn't making sense to me how the tape could be blank. I set up the lights, set up the camera, put the tape in, turned the camera on, tested the mic levels...and then I remembered the other intern that was helping out.. Eva had asked him to help us out so that while she was asking the questions and I was keeping order of which question was asked from the stockpile we had and in what order, the other intern could keep an eye on the camera, make sure it was on and recording and that the microphones were picking up the audio. I brought him up to the studio, showed him how to tell that the mics were working, showed him the zoom and unzoom buttons, and the record button. The artist arrived and while everyone got into their places, I set him up with his mic and took my seat on the sidelines to take notes.
The interview went fairly well and the questions Eva picked were really great, much different than what is usually asked of this artist. I was feeling pretty good about it, you know, as good as I could have after that awful week.
It occurred to me though, that the other intern was in charge of the camera and I had a sneaking suspicion there was no way he pressed RECORD on the camera. How do you miss that? It's a big red button, and its your only job. And now, with the release date just one week away, there is no way we can record another interview or pay for someone to do it. So if you are reading this and it is Tuesday afternoon, keep me in your thoughts, because tomorrow is going to be a special kind of nightmare.

My New Love

I'm going to take a step away from me battling my apartment and list here a few things that I truly love about my new home. Here we go!


1. It came with some a great speaker set-up to listen to music on
2. The walls are THICK as heck so you can listen to said speakers loudly without being able to hear it in the hallway
3. It came fully furnished!
4. Its peaceful and serene in it's own quirky way.
5. My bathroom is purple
6. High ceilings and ceiling fans (which means I can get as big of a Christmas tree as my little heart desires!)
7. I have two huge closets (I will never have to worry about where to put all my shoes again)
8. Brand new stove!
9. The layout is GREAT for parties (of which I intend to have plenty)
10. It has a TON of potential

Now that that intermission is over...back to the battling!

(Unfortunately for me, this will probably end up being a series)


If you haven't picked up on this yet, this apartment is a real fixer-upper. Not 100% ready to be lived in, but it's better than riding the train knowing that at any moment, I could be settling for an awkward ride with that guy. Lately all I think about is which little job I should do next, and I wait for work to be over so that I can come home and mark at least one thing off my never-ending to do list.
Monday night I painted the dingiest bookcase I've ever laid eyes on. Then I taught myself to sew. Tuesday night I sewed some more, washed some dishes, and did some decorating. Tonight, I swore I wasn't going to do anything but relax. Yea, right. Not only did I find a job for myself, it was probably the most difficult one to be done.
I have these great windows, but there are huge metal gates covering them. My cousin must have felt extra unsafe here because there are no regular gates. These come with locks and wheels and nails and screws, along with what felt like a hundred pounds of metal. I inspected the gates and saw all I had to do was unscrew the hinges. Easy enough, right? I should have known when I had to get the Vise Grips out that this was going to be more than I bargained for. As I pressed on I realized that I would have to finish what I started, since each piece was connected to another piece. I finally got the first hinge off when the gate came swinging at me, hanging only by the one screw still holding the bottom hinge. I wrapped one arm around it and unscrewed it with the other hand. I lifted the gate and almost toppled over from the weight of it. Somehow I managed to get it down and over to the other side of the room. An hour had passed.
I spent another 30 minutes trying to get the track down. Some of that time was spent scraping paint off a nail so that I could take it out. What someone was doing nailing that into that gate I will never know. I disassembled the track and threw out the pieces, cleaned up the window sill and admired my work.
Score one for Intern Chick.

First NIght

Last night was my first night at my new apartment. I got to New York Sunday afternoon and was dreading the whole ordeal. I packed my suitcase, resenting each shirt or pair of pants I folded and stuffed into it. My mom and I did a little decorating, part of which involved an attempt at turning a king & queen size duvet into a slip cover for a sofa (a work in progress, I assure you.) After my mother left, I closed the door behind her, took a deep breath, and turned around to face my fears.


I stood in the entry way in between the bedroom and the living room. What to do? I vacuumed. Now what? I made myself dinner with one pot, one frying pan and no microwave. What else could I do? I fluffed pillows, filed my nails, and watched TV. Is this what people do when they live alone? My bets are on whatever it is, they probably do it naked.

I read a book I haven't picked up since July. I watched more TV. I called my friends. I did anything I could think of to prevent myself from thinking about my mounting anxiety. Eventually it will get the best of me, but the longer I can put it off, the better. I finally climbed into bed, put on my favorite TV show and waited for sleep to come.

I tossed and turned the whole night. The air conditioner moaned loudly. My new pillows too fluffy to sleep on. My bed not yet broken in. I opened my eyes in the early morning hours, truly concerned that I had no idea where I was and no recollection of getting there. I fell back asleep. When I woke up for work and tried to open the bedroom door, I pulled and pulled but couldn't get it open. Could I really be stuck in my own bedroom on my first morning here? In retrospect, why would I expect anything less from myself! I finally got it together and took the 15 minute walk to work while I ate my yogurt and waffles on the way.

The day went by really fast and while I was dreading coming back to this apartment slightly less than I was yesterday, I realized something. The nonsense that goes on at work is so much easier to deal with when your commute goes from an hour and a half train ride to a 15 minute stroll through Manhattan. I guess you have to take the good with the bad. I haven't had this much free time after work in I don't know how long. I made an attempt to go to the gym until I realized that I'd left my ID card at my mother's house. I fixed some things up around the apartment. I almost went out for drinks but decided I didn't want to jump right into having a life after work just yet...(ha, ha).

Well I'm exhausted! I've spent the last 2 days in record label hell. Needless to say, I'm not ready to talk about it. Here's an overview of the past couple of days, and maybe I'll write about it later:

-Artist shows up 2 hours late for first interview of the morning

-Said artist strolls into the office with a drink in one hand and has so much weed on him you can smell it as he walks past.

-Artist (we'll call him ABC from now on) brings everyone he has probably ever met, in life, everywhere he goes with him (we will call them "entourage" from now on)

-ABC is so high he can't answer questions straight during interview

-Entourage smears cupcakes and juice all over my boss' desk (guess who got to clean that mess up?)

-Camera Man from 2nd rate website pees all over the walls and floor of the bathroom of a first rate store

-Disgruntled staff at first rate store now refuses to sign the release form unless 2nd rate camera man cleans the bathroom (yea, right.)

-ABC is the father to probably half the children running around the Southern coast, he brought a 3rd of them with him to the office

-Artist escapes the office for over half an hour while various press outlets impatiently wait to interview him (guess who gets to explain his whereabouts to angry press)

-Intern Chick must then engage in a search & rescue to find artist (although at that point, I could have cared less)


Let's just say I'm happy its Thursday.


No Games

It’s a beautiful night in New York City tonight. The thickness that’s been in the air for the past few weeks has subsided, but that comforting warmth of summer still wraps around you the moment you step outside. Most nights when I get out of work I practically run to the train station so that I can get home and get in bed. Tonight, though, I lingered a little. I left the office later than usual, and I walked through Rockefeller Center to get to Grand Central. Usually I avoid tourist attractions at all costs, but there was something calm and peaceful about it tonight. Maybe because it was almost 9:00 on a Tuesday night, and the only people still wandering around don’t have to travel to far to go home. I almost wanted to stay even longer, just to walk around the city and take everything in. I realized that pretty soon I’ll be living just a few blocks from work and I can linger all I want. I realized that when that day comes, I’ll probably just want to get away from New York.
I’m getting pretty close to the day where I will have no more excuses as to why I have not moved in to my apartment yet. The shelves have been cleared, the floors scrubbed, I’ve broken every last nail on my fingertips lifting boxes and washing walls. Even the thick smell of incense that hits you as soon as you unlock the front door has subsided. What was once a dark space filled with chaos and bits and pieces of memories long gone is now a bright yet serene apartment, filled with the scent of a fresh start.

Perhaps its because usually I have a set date that I’m moving out of one place and into another, and I have time to mentally prepare. It could be because I am truly terrified of what I’ve waited my whole life for, but I just don’t think that’s it. Whatever it is, I can say something inside me is just not ready to live in that apartment. I don’t think it’s the actual living there that’s getting to me either, I think its what it will mean for me.

My mind is racing with what-ifs. What if I’m not good at it? What if I never find a job? What if I don’t have enough money? What if I want to go home? What if I don’t want to? What if I just plain can’t do it? I feel like I have to grow up overnight. Everything else was just temporary and this is semi-permanent.

Liiissttenn!!

Last night we held a listening session for one of our debut artists. Usually we have events like these at a club or a bar with plenty of alcohol but this one was held at a recording studio. Since the artists are under 21, the refreshments were kept to water and soda and I think some of our attendees were a little upset about that. We got to the studio at 6 and immediately began setting up. Once again, I was instructed to work the door (I should say elevator) and I was keeping my fingers crossed it was nothing like the last event I was supposed to work the door at. I stood at the front of the studio while everyone else was in the back, laughing and munching on chicken fingers and wings. As people slowly filed in I had to mark them off (I was told that we needed a good record of who showed up) and hand them a press kit (I’d like to give myself a pat on the back that I stuffed all 100 of them in under 15 minutes!). We had a few fan contest winners that were invited and we had autographed posters to give them. Seeing their faces light up at that was priceless. I was a little upset that I had to stay by the elevator while they played the album but as the night wore on I moved myself closer to the control room and further from the elevator.

I noticed a name on the list that looked familiar. I realized that this person had randomly requested me on Facebook and after accepting his request, I then proceeded to delete him because his status updates were annoying. I was hoping he wouldn’t show up, and when my boss told me she was good friends with him, I was REALLY hoping he wouldn’t show up. I had no idea what he looked like, so when a balding middle aged man walked up to me and that name fell from his lips to my ears, I shoved a press kit at him and hoped he would continue on his way. That would be too easy. He was staring at me. He peered closer into my eyes and said, “Do I know you?? “ I told him he didn’t (that’s not a lie, the internet doesn’t count). He persisted, “You look so familiar, are you sure we haven’t met before?” By that point, I had to let him know. “Your name is familiar to me, we used to be friends on Facebook.” He mumbled something and walked away. I guess it could have been worse, right?
After the album was done playing I set up a line for people who wanted autographs from the guys and took pictures for the fans that were there. The event was mostly for press people so once the autographs were through we shuffled the artists into a different room to do 5-minute interviews with anyone that wanted something for their website/magazine. My boss’ boss told me to get down everyone’s information that did an interview so I talked to all sorts of people while they waited their turn.
Everything went well, except for one thing…

Most of the press were men, and most of the women working or attending were older. Cue shameless flirting by press with young, bubbly intern. I haven’t yet mastered a polite way to let industry men like this know that I’m here to work and furthermore, I’m not interested. It’s easy when you’re at a bar or walking around the city, you can be mean and no one will bat an eyelash. You can’t do that when you know you’ll see these people at the next event (in my case that next event would be Wednesday night!). I managed to weasel my way away each time but I know there’s an easier way to do it My boss told me to say, “I don’t date industry dudes.” I’ll have to try that out next time…

Crap!

Time flies when you're hauling garbage from your new apartment to the side of your mom's house.



Two weeks ago I made my first trip to "the apartment." I came with 4 of my friends and my mother, armed with a granny cart full of Fantastik, Clorox, Lysol, 4 pairs of rubber gloves, sponges, buckets, pledge, etc. We split up into teams, one team tackled the bathroom and the other got started on the kitchen. You can imagine how small a kitchen and bathroom can be in an apartment in New York. It took all day. Since I am cleaning out the whole apartment and can't throw the garbage away in the basement, I've been loading it up into my mother's car and then unloading it on the side of the house.

After that first weekend, I couldn't convince any of my friends to come back. My mom and I went Saturday morning and spent 12 hours on the bedroom alone. We dusted light fixtures, scrubbed the windows, polished furniture, sorted through costume jewelry, and threw out loads and loads of useless crap (I'm convinced that when you turn 65, it is a rite of passage to begin a collection of plastic bags that are at least 10 years old). The car was stuffed to the brim with garbage bags and Sunday morning I added them to the pile collecting on the lawn. Sunday night my mom and I went back to take more garbage. We loaded up a granny cart with a few bags, and I carried three out to the street. We stopped for a moment to rest, and the cart started rolling down the street. I ran after it and we tried to collect ourselves despite the flock of people walking by staring at us in disbelief. It took us three tries to bring the garbage to the car, after many attempts at stacking it every which way and it toppling over every time. The end result was me running bags back and forth amid confused stares from passersby. My favorite was the trip where my mom carried a bag with a bright orange pool noodle popping out the front and I paraded down the street with an enormous ebony carving of African elephants and a Hoover vacuum circa 1950. Bag after bag we carried, into the steamy hours of that Sunday night. You cannot fathom how much crap an 85 year old woman can aquire in her lifetime. Some if the things are gems, just waiting to be uncovered. Unfortunately, most of it is crap. We arrived home and proceeded to add more garbage to that ever growing pile.

That night, I dreamed (or should I say nightmare-ed) of the pile of crap growing on the side of the house. Garbage at a barbeque. Garbage at work. Garbage in the rain. Garbage. Crap. More garbage, more crap.

At this point, you just have to laugh, or else the crap will kill you.

You know how sometimes, you don’t mind talking to strangers because your iPod is dead and you can’t call your friends because they’re at work? Or how sometimes you meet somebody and think they’re perfectly normal, and then you see them a 2nd time and you can’t believe how many red flags you missed during the first meeting? And then you realize they are certifiably crazy?

A while back, I was riding the train home and a businessman sat down next to me. He seemed upset and agitated, and all it took was one connection of eye contact and he opened the floodgates on me. He was blabbering about which cars platform at which stops and was he in the right car. I can see all too clearly now this was a trap. I assured him he was in the right place and thought I’d done my good deed for the day. But no, he wants to talk.

He’s in his 40’s. He has kids my sister’s age. A boy and a girl.

Oh, so he’s a dad? Dad’s are totally fine, you can’t be creepy when you’re a dad, it’s in the rule book!
He’s divorced. His wife got the Barbados timeshare in the divorce.

You can definitely be creepy when you’re divorced and you tell people on the train about how it went down. Kids or no kids.
By this point it was time to get off the train so I said goodbye and thought that was it. But that would be too easy. You know how in college when you’re roommate hooks up with the crazy frat boy you’ve never seen before, and then you guys see him all over campus and at all your favorite bars? I keep seeing this man on the train. Sometimes I’m lucky and he doesn’t see me, other times I swear he’s been standing there all day waiting for me. God has been good for the past month, though, and I haven’t seen him. I’d hoped he’d stopped riding the train and was seeing someone about his creepy-ness. For all I cared he could be in Barbados with the wife and kids, working on a reconciliation.

So when I strolled into Grand Central at 10 PM last night the last thing I was expecting to see was this guy, standing there in his glasses and suit, goofy smile on his face, holding an umbrella in one hand and his briefcase in the other, arms outstretched for a hug he’ll be waiting for forever. I just stood there, dumbfounded. I was convinced that an aspiring Ashton Kutcher would pop out and tell me I’d been Punk’d, Grand Central style. No such luck. I continued to stand there, and I thought about my options. I could make a run for it. I could stare blankly and pretend I was Intern Chick’s evil twin. Before I could make a final decision, the words “What are you doing here” shot out of my mouth. I had about 15 minutes before the train was leaving, so I stuttered out some story about buying a water and going to the bathroom and see you later. I took my seat on the train and hoped for the best. I put my iPod on and shut my eyes, praying he’d walk right past me. I opened my eyes to see him getting ready to sit in the seat next to me, panting, sweat dripping down his freckled face. I told myself I just had to get through an hour and a half of nonsense, maybe I could just let him talk and nod my head every once in a while.
But of course, he wanted to talk up a storm—he had a hurricane of questions for me. He wants to know if I’ve been ignoring him. Can you do that when you have only ridden a train together and don’t have each other’s phone numbers or e-mails or anything? He says he was hoping we could be friends, he told his work buddies about the day we were on the same train but different cars and I literally ran to my car to avoid him. He let me know he was upset.

I sat up and looked around for that camera crew and Ashton Kutcher wannabe. Still no luck. There’s no way this guy was for real. Maybe he had me mixed up with some other girl he’s bothered, I mean met, on the train. So I asked him. Hey, I had nothing to lose at this point. That was a mistake. Apparently he does this all the time; he had a stock pile of stories to tell me about people he’s met on the train, to and from work. Why is it that all the creepers latch on to me? I’m not even that nice.
As we got closer to my stop I realized something. It was nearing midnight, the parking lot is pitch black, and this guy was probably parked near me. I weighed the two evils, do I ditch this guy and walk alone in the parking lot, hoping he won’t go crazy and come after me, or do I play nice so that I’m not alone. I should clarify here that this guy isn’t creepy as in criminal creepy. He’s more like creepy as in he is a fumbling mess and doesn’t know the social signals for, “I don’t want to chat anymore.” There was no way for me to get away, so we walked to our cars. He was blabbering so much he walked right past his own car, unless that was another one of his ploys, I can’t say I doubt that. I unlocked my car doors and sat down and shut the door as soon as possible, waving from the inside with a smile on my face. Score 1 for Intern Chick. Seriously, what are the chances?

I was dreading the train ride home all day today, hoping I wouldn’t have a repeat of yesterday. I got on a late train again, sat down in my seat and turned my back to the aisle. I watched each passenger walk by and counted down the minutes until the train would leave. I busied myself on my laptop writing this blog and kept my head down. I breathed a sigh of relief when someone sat down next to me, and can happily say I have not seen him today. I’ve decided next time I see him I’m going to tell him some crazy story, I haven’t decided what yet. Maybe that I’m getting married, or that I’m taking a vow of silence for the next three months, or that I’m wearing a bug and the government will come after him if we converse. I can say I’ve learned my lesson and your parents had good reason for it when you were little—DON’T TALK TO STRANGERS!!

Yesterday was my first day going into the office without my boss, Eva, being there. I checked her messages and called to check in with her. She asked me if I’d want to work an R&B event later that night, and made it sound like it was going to be painfully boring. Boy, was I eager to volunteer myself for that—not. I asked what she thought and she told me it’d be dumb for me to go so I declined her invitation, even though it sounded like a grand ol’ time.
I had a few assignments to get done and then I promised myself I’d suck up my shyness and ask some people around the office if I could help them. About 20 minutes after I started my work, the President/CEO’s assistant asked if I could cover her phones. Eva told me about interns covering those phone lines before--the exact phrase she used was “only special interns get to do that.” I was a little scared but the assistant said she just had to run down the hall for a second and no one would call. I sat there nervously and finally she came back. Have I made it into the special intern group??
Eva told me at 5:00 that I now HAD to work the event and that I would be out by 8. I wasn’t excited or mad. I had no idea what to expect. We left the office at 6 and got to the venue to find complete chaos and a bunch of people standing around not knowing what was going on. I was told I’d be working the door but everything was so hectic I ended up standing around holding Eva’s phone, kicking myself for wearing jeans and a t-shirt that day while everyone else was dressed to the nines. I met some interesting characters standing outside the club, holding two cell phones and two purses.
At one point, Eva’s phone rang. I stared at it and debated if I should answer it or not. Mistake. It went like this:
Me: Hello??
Him: EVA! I need you to get DJ a bracelet, he’s standing outside. Do whatever you have to do.
[silence]
Me: Um, this isn’t Eva…I don’t know where she went, but I can try to find her.
Him: Eva needs to get him a bracelet, he’s been standing outside for a long time.
(I should mention here that EVERYBODY was standing outside and there was nothing anybody could do about it)
Me: Okay, well, I’ll see if I can find her.
Him: Do you know who I am??
Me: Yea.
Him: GET IT DONE
[click]
These type of conversations used to upset me. Now they irritate me to no end. I don’t care who you are. And for the record here, the person on the other end of the line was no one important, and this was not his event. I did, however, take pity on the poor sucker who clearly suffers from some type of identity crisis, and found 2 bracelets for him and escorted him right past security. Eva handled most of the line at the door, and my shining moment of the night was when she said she was dying of thirst and I handed over my half empty warm bottle of Dasani. It was pretty much all downhill from there.
I finally got to leave at about 9:30 and caught a train at 10, and that proved to be a mistake all on it’s own.

Lights, Camera, Action

I’ve been at my new internship (read: 8th internship) for about a month now. The artists are different but the work is the same work I’ve done in the past. Most days the only thing I learn is where the copy machine is or that we actually do have ice in the kitchen. Other than that, everything else is pretty much the same stuff I’ve been doing. A few weeks ago one of our newer artists were coming in to the office for us to film an interview of them. I went with the other intern to the artist lounge to learn how to set up the video equipment and all the lighting. Then she went to get some drinks for the guys and it was just me and the creepy A/V guy. You know the type…I don’t think I have to re-hash old stereotypes on this blog. But he was that guy you don’t want to be left alone with.

Well apparently, someone’s gotta test the white balance right? Cue Intern Chick awkwardly sitting on the couch (you know the kind that you sit in and it just envelopes you to the point where all you can do is sit back and accept the fact that you might be stuck?) holding extra large legal paper, staring blankly into the camera. A/V Guy didn’t indulge me in the fact that he was testing the white balance, and for all he cared I probably could have held that paper in front of my face. It would have made me feel more at ease! Then I had to test out the two mics we had set up. I’ve never had the opportunity to be “that lady” testing out mics, shouting CHECK! TESTING 1-2! Those people always concern me. To me its usually apparent after the first time they say it that the mics are working just fine, and they continue to just stand there, repeating it. Both of the mics tested out fine and eventually our artists came to do the interview. At one point I got to film part of the interview (and by this I mean, press the record button and then press it again once it was over).

Its been awhile since I’ve learned something new so I enjoyed setting this up and was glad when I knew how to disassemble everything too. Then last week another one of our artists came in and this time the other intern and I had to set up the same equipment in the recording studio in the building. It was her last day so I was told that I would have to do it and she would just supervise. I set up all lighting and the tripod just fine, but when it came time to put the battery pack and the tape in the camera I couldn’t figure it out. It’s always funny (read: really annoying) to me when what seems like the most counter-intuitive thing is done with a flick of the wrist by your peers. This time I tested the white balance—no more awkward moments in front of the camera for me! I got to film the back up camera once the interviewing started rolling and took the tapes over today to a film company to be edited.

Every morning before school, my father would always shout behind me “Learn lots of stuff!” Then while seated at the head of our dinner table that night he’d ask, “What’d you learn today?” If I said nothing, I’d get the same spiel about what a waste it is to send me to school if I’m not learning anything. Sometimes it feels nice to go to work and actually learn something new. And I’ll admit, last time I talked to my father, he seemed pretty happy I’m learning something. You know, until he brought up the inevitable question, “Are you still working for free?”

Race Against Time

I have three months to turn this internship into a job opportunity.  It seems so impossible to me but I'm so determined and committed to making it happen.


I've been commuting into Manhattan 4 times a week.  I leave at 8:30 in the morning and get home around 9 or 10PM.  Some days are great, some are uneventful, and some are just plain awful--like the day I plugged my laptop in and it started smoking, and I had to go home, 20 minutes after coming into the office.

All in all, the work is fun.  We work closely with our artists so I get to be hands on and watch their projects come to fruition, and sometimes I actually feel important.  I'll be using my time on the train to blog more often about what goes on day-to-day.  Definitely  a lot more exciting than the work I was doing last year, and I get a lot more responsibility.  Three months to turn that responsibility into a paycheck..

A New Beginning

Last summer, while living in the hell hole that was "student living at a fabulous New York hotel," I wrote about visiting a cousin of mine.  To refresh your memory, this cousin has been living in Manhattan since my own mother was younger than me, and yes, it is rent controlled.  On Monday night, we found out that she will be giving up this apartment.  It was like the loss of a piece of living history, knowing this place would now only be a family legend.  My mother asked my sister and I to go to NYC this week to pick up a few of her things that we would like to keep.  I pictured all the African masks coming off the walls, her jewelry boxes emptied of costume pieces bought in countries I will never see, and all her records coming to a halting stop.

  On Tuesday night, I found out that I'd be starting my new internship for my old boss, Eva, on Wednesday.  I then found out that there was a chance I might be able to take over that apartment.  And as of July, I will be living in there.  I will be able to hang my own pictures on those walls, fill my own music into that place, and begin my own story.
It seems that everything is falling into place.  Careful planning and patiently waiting for my turn has paid off.  I will be able to walk to my new internship from this apartment, host my own chic parties, and hopefully, begin my new life--post-college, post-interning.

You're Doing What?

Go to college. Intern. Graduate college. Get a job.

Go to college. Intern. Graduate college. Intern.
Wait, what??
So it's probably not the "normal" path to take, but who said I was a normal chick?  My options are this: Option 1: Sit at home waiting for a job to be created that matches my qualifications.  Option 2:  Intern again and create a job for myself.  To me, the choice is easy on paper.  In real life, it's not so easy.
You know how when you move on to kindergarten from pre-school and you no longer have nap time because you are now a part of those effortlessly cool big kids?  For a long time now, I've been waiting for the moment I can move up that short ladder rung from intern to entry level employee and be a part of the cool kids.  Its not that I didn't enjoy being an intern, but eventually, you just want to move on and move up.  And for me to have a college diploma, and go back to interning?  Its basically the same feeling I got when at 4 years old, even though I'd passed the appropriate tests to be admitted into kindergarten, I still wasn't able to go because I wasn't old enough.  I passed the test of college, but I'm still not allowed entry to the big kid playground.  
I'm trying to look at this in the best, most positive light.  I think of all the opportunities that I can create for myself while interning that just can't come to fruition well I sit at home watching "Gotti's Way" re-runs.  When I think about it like this, the choice is an easy one.  I can do what I love doing, even if its not the path you're "supposed to" take.  God have mercy on the person who tries to belittle me for doing it.

How Did It Go?

I grumpily got on the train Friday morning, armed with my iPod and the newest edition of VOGUE.  My interview was scheduled for 1:00, the earlier train got into New York at 11:40, the later train got in at 12:40, which wasn't enough time to get to where I needed to be.  So I got to Grand Central at 11:40 and sat for almost an hour until it was time to head over to the West side.  I arrived at the office building about 10 minutes early, and stepped off the elevator on the 5th floor, taking the twists and turns until I found the suite I was looking for.  I noticed that all the other offices had fancy gold plates with their company name on it.  The one I was interviewing for just had the company name printed on a piece of computer paper (at least it wasn't hand written, right?).  This is where I'd like say that Red Flag #1 was waving wilding in my face.

I opened the door to find one open space with areas separated by trees and large plants.  Yes, but where are the offices? The cubicles?  The bustling employees?  Red Flag #2 made it's appearance.  I was greeted by the assistant and told to sit down at the conference "area."  I filled out a few forms and was told that the president's lunch had just arrived and I would have to sit tight while he finished.  "My interview is with the president?" I thought to myself.  Red Flag #3.  I sat there waiting, admiring how nice the conference table was, how polished the floors were, and noticed in the window across the way a small gray cat peering down at the traffic below.  I wished with all my mite to be that cat, basking in the sunshine of that window, instead of sitting at a conference table in a weird office.  I sat some more.  The conference table was in between two whiteboards, the one on the left had a funny drawing of a man labeled as "Super Jake," and the one on the right had two faces and in between the two faces was a drawing of, poop!  Drawn in brown and labeled so, complete with squiggly lines to indicate it's stench.  Red Flags #4 & #5.  I kept myself occupied by looking around the office some more and kept coming back to the huge plants placed all over the room.  I had just spent the weekend planting and doing yard work with my mother, I couldn't help but wonder who was responsible for watering these monstrous plants.
Finally, the president was done with his lunch.  He came over to me and introduced himself as Jack, and the man next to him introduced himself to me as Super Jake.  I couldn't tell if that was a joke or not, did he really want me to refer to him as Super?  I mean, I just met the guy, how do I know what's so super about him?  Super Strange, maybe.  Needless to say, Red Flag #6 waved hello at me.  
So, Frick & Frack sat down to interview me, firing questions at me left and right.  Because this job was in rock and not urban, I was completely relaxed because it didn't mean much to me.  I was viewing this really as interview practice.  Before I knew it the whole thing was over and I realized I hadn't been asked about why I was qualified for the job, told what the job would entail, or the details about what the company did.  Red Flag #7.  I was told they'd have a decision by Monday, said my goodbye's and checked my cell phone as I walked out the door. 
A text message was awaiting me.  It was from a strange number, and it read "Hey Intern Chick, I stole your number from your resume.  Sorry you have to sit over there by yourself while everyone eats, I'd come talk to you but it's rude to talk with my mouth full."  The assistant had sent me a text while I was sitting at the conference table.  Strange, yes, but kind of nice I'd supposed.
I spent the rest of the day wandering around New York, saying hello to my old friends I hadn't seen since I left in December and then went home.  Monday came and went, no phone call.  Tuesday came and went.  I expected as much, men never call when they say they will, even men who need to hire an assistant apparently.  Today they e-mailed me to inform me they'd filled the position.  I can't say I was surprised, although it didn't say explicitly, I could tell that our difference in musical preferences had played a factor.  This was something that concerned me as well, and something I was repeatedly asked about during the interview.  If I'm being honest here, working in rock would have upset me, it would have made me feel as though I'd failed in what I set out to do.  So I guess this was a blessing in disguise, the kind of disguise that has "You're Still Broke & Unemployed!" written all over it.

My 1st Interview

Monday was the beginning of week 4 of "Intern Chick the Bum" and I'm restless.  I've been restless since the 2nd half of week one.  I'm lucky if I find one job to apply to per day, and if you do the math, that's not a lot of jobs I can be considered for.  No one has called me back.  Well that's a lie, one place called me back...they said I'd need to cook and do laundry, I was still on board until they said I'd need to walk the CEO's dog.  Yea, right.
This afternoon I applied for a job that my "alma mater" (ha that feels good to say) had sent an e-mail out about.  I figured it was another e-mail address that I'd send my resume to and it'd get lost in the black hole that is the job pool.  It was for a management company for some music that I'm totally not into, but can we really be picky in this economy?  I'm gonna vote no.  Today must have been my lucky day, I was able to apply for that one and an even more useless sounding job afterwards.  Two hours later, someone from that management company called asking if I could interview tomorrow or Friday.  Heck yea I can!
So my interview is Friday afternoon, I'm expecting a classic disaster, Intern Chick style, but we will see how it goes.  Okay so it's not my first interview but can't we pretend?  I mean, it's my first "real job" interview!

Why I Won't Settle

My dad is a mad scientist.  He loves science like I love music and even though they're on opposite ends of the spectrum, I can understand a love that strong for anything.  When my parents graduated college the economy was about as bad as it is right now and the job prospects were, well, non-existent.  My dad, like myself, had a specific degree with a specific field in mind.  You don't go through 4 years of college to take just any job.  The problem with knowing exactly what you want to do (unlike most of the world) is that there's little room for improvising.  


People keep asking me why can't I just take any old job while I look for what I really want.  I refuse to do this and no one understands this except, of course, my dad.  When he graduated college, he was married to my mom and unemployed.  People asked him the same thing.  Why can't you just get any job while you look?  And he refused.  He knew that by taking whatever job came his way, even if it wasn't what he wanted to do, he would never do what he was setting out to do.  He held out for a long time, waiting for the right job, and while everyone shook their heads in dismay, he kept looking.  Because he knew no matter how long it took, he wasn't going to get to age 50 without ever having a job, the odds are just never that bad.

And that's where I'm at right now.  No, I will not go temp for a car rental place or assist a CEO who wants me to cook and do her laundry because I didn't bust my ass for 5 years learning about the music industry to do those things.  I'm not settling.

So its been over a month since I promised a Part II to "Things You Should Never Do," but better late than never!

A few months ago while in class, a guest speaker came to talk about his work in the music industry.  As he spoke I noticed that he was doing something very similar to what my friend, Jacob* wants to be doing.  Jacob also just so happened to be sitting next to me listening to this guy talk.  The whole time I was thinking about how excited he must be that the career gods have planted this industry professional into our classroom for Jacob to connect with.  At the end of class, as Jacob headed for the door, I had to stop him.  Normally I mind my own business, but here is this huge opportunity to Jacob to make a contact in something he wants to do but doesn't know the right people to get started!
I asked him if he was going to talk to the speaker.  He looked at me blankly, not understanding why I would ask such a thing!  Then I looked at him blankly, not understanding what there was for him to misunderstand!  So I said it bluntly, "Why wouldn't you talk to him?! He is the perfect guy for you to speak with, and he might be able to really help you."  He still stared blankly at me and said he wouldn't know what to say in the first place.  I fed him a couple of lines to say to the man and nearly pushed him in the guy's direction.
I watched from the door as Jacob attempted to approach him.  He stood there awkwardly, with his hands in his pockets, half waiting for the guy to start up a conversation with him.  Then I watched Jacob let the man walk right out of the classroom, still standing there with his hands in his pockets.  We left class and I asked him why he did what he did.  Jacob seemed annoyed, probably upset that he'd let the opportunity go by and just told me he didn't need that guy anyway, what was he going to do for him?
Please, all my interns and aspiring interns, never underestimate what network one person can bring to you!

A few weeks ago while on spring break I checked my e-mail.  Expecting to just clear out some junk before it got out of hand, I was surprised to see an e-mail from someone named Dallas Dymes and the name of my last internship as the subject.  I opened it and was two paragraphs in before I figured out that this kid goes to my school and wants me to help him get an internship at this specific company.  I wanted to write back one simple question, "How the hell did you get my e-mail??"  I decided to be a little nicer that that--I was once a sophomore, desperate for an internship in Hip-Hop and surrounded by professors and advisors who had no contacts to help me.  I told him more about what I did on the internship, asked him where he'd been applying, and told him to try googling things like "music internship" or to add "hip-hop" to it.  I really thought that would be that and I'd be done with it.  I don't even know this guy and I don't remember signing up for any program to be this kid's mentor.  Not that I'd mind, but really....how the hell did he get my e-mail?

He revealed to me in his next correspondence that he'd gotten my name from my advisor.  Maybe she should have e-mailed me and told me he would be contacting me, I think that would have been nice.  Dallas asked me a ton of questions, he seemed really eager to get his feet wet in the industry and who can be mad at that?  He also made it clear that tips on HOW to find the internship weren't enough, he wanted me to GIVE him names and numbers of people that worked at this company.  I think he wanted it delivered on a silver platter if I'm not mistaken, maybe garnished with a fresh flower or two.
I love helping other students find their place in the industry.  I'm still looking for mine and am forever indebted to an old friend who happened to know someone at what later became my first internship.  However, I still had to call this place, set up my own interview, interview, read a book, and write an essay before I was offered the internship.  All I was given was a phone number (which I later found out was pretty easy to find online) and the name of my friend (no one know who he was anyway so it didn't even help like I thought it would).  I'm all for making myself accessible to other students at my school that have the same interests I do, because we are few and far between.  I speak on internship panels, I work with my bosses and advisor to get the companies I intern at added to the database for other people to work at, and I give detailed reviews on how it was to work for that company.  What I don't want to do is give someone a hand-out.
Dallas suggested we meet up on campus so that he could ask all his question because the e-mails were "taking too long".  I agreed, I didn't really want to recommend someone to my past internship whom I'd never met.  So I wrote him back and told him when I was on campus, and he never responded.  I have a sneaking suspicion that Dallas got too tired of waiting for me to give him this contact info, that he'd realized I wasn't going to give it away that easily and he didn't want to put in the work.  And by work, I mean meet up with me somewhere on campus (he has to be on campus to go to class, doesn't he) and talk with me for a few minutes, per his suggestion!
You can pretty much say he threw that one away because I know that company was looking for interns, and even though I found that one by googling what I'd suggested he google, I would have helped him.  His constant hinting, and eventual outright asking, for a specific name and phone number should have tipped me off in the first place but his lack of effort was the end of it.
Don't ever throw something so easy away!
UPDATE: Dallas just e-mailed me, after not responding over a month ago, asking me for a "hook up" at my last internship.  DO NOT DO THIS!!!

Part II tomorrow...

Me:  Hello??

That A&R: Oh hey Internchick, its That A&R...what's up?
Me: (thinking: umm..seriously? What IS up, because you called me!) Nothing really, how are you?
That A&R: I'm great.  So, when do you graduate?

Man, this guy wanted to get right down to business, didn't he?  I told him when I graduate and he continued..

That A&R:  Okay cool, well, I'm going on tour with my artist for a month.  But, I really think I need to hire an assistant at my company...I just need to get the money together.
Me: (Is this one of those "aww too bad, maybe next time" things?) Oh, okay...
That A&R:  Yea, so when I get back from tour I'm going to decide but I'd really like to bring you on board if possible.  
Me:  Yes!  That would be great!  Anything you could do for me, just let me know, it's been hard trying to find a job.
That A&R:  Okay.  And if that doesn't work out, maybe you can just freelance for me for a little while until it becomes more permanent.

Right.  You know what the problem I have with the word "freelance" is?  It has the word "free" in it.  And you know what the most exciting thing about graduating from intern to employee is?  You actually get to fill in the box on the application that says "desired salary."  I hung up the phone with him and mulled that one over.  And by mulled it over, I mean I analyzed it to death in typical 20-something female fashion until I finally fell asleep.  And then I kind of just let it go.
I decided to look at it as something to blog about but something that would probably not come to fruition.  Hey, thats okay...99.9% of the things people in the music industry say may be true when the words come out of their mouth but will probably be untrue within an hour, or at least by the end of the work day.  If it happens, it'll be great...I think, and if it doesn't, I think I just drafted this guy onto my team of great people who want to see me employed.  At least as a second string player.
Then today a friend of mine called and said, "Hey, I heard That A&R is going to hire you.  That's what he said to me."
Excuse me while I pick my mouth up off the floor and recover from my mini heart attack.

I realized that going to school is not nearly as interesting as being an intern. The highlight of my week when I'm in school is when class gets out 30 minutes early...and I'm pretty sure no one cares about all that! But, since I am graduating in a month, I am looking for a job. That's not exciting either. Especially when your job search consists of pages and pages of jobs that could only be relevant to your qualifications on Opposite Day and message strains of me shamelessly promoting the fact that I am in need of a job.

I'll admit, its funny every once in a while. You know the kind of humor I'm talking about. The kind where you spend thirty minutes filling out an online application only to find that there's an error in the website and in the part on your application where it says "position applying for" yours is blank. Which means yours goes right in the garbage. It was funny the first time, and all around hilarious the second time. Or, its pretty laughable when after asking all your contacts if they know about any job openings they all inform you about the same one at the one company you interned at where you got a horrible evaluation for no reason. Ahh, don't you just love humor like that?

Well, one day last week, I decided to up the ante a little and turn the whole job-hunting thing into an even bigger joke. I made my facebook status say something like, "If I were in your shoes, I would DEFINITELY hire myself" Ha,ha,ha...it's all so funny. I did get a chuckle when someone in a very good position wrote, "If I had the money...," you know the kind of chuckle that brings tears to your eyes?? Right. But yesterday when I logged into my facebook account I had a message from an A&R that I know through a mutual friend. All it said was, "Give me a call when you get a second...I want to seee what you're doing now" I just so happen to know this A&R is in the market for an assistant. This job hunting thing just got serious. The laughs just turned into that queasy feeling you get when you get called into the prinicpal's office and you don't know why.

Does anybody have a Rolaid on hand??

Pursue Your Happyness

Every Tuesday, I have a 100 minute senior seminar class where we talk about, hmm, pretty much nothing.  Sometimes I take something valuable away, like last week's lecture but most of the time, I end up BBM-ing my friend next to me.  Today we talked about our plans for after graduation.  

Everyone in this class has completed a 5 year program in Music Business at over $40,000 a year.  Obviously, it wouldn't be wise to shell out this kind of money for something you would a) never use and b) never make a return on that investment.  So what do you think my classmates are planning on doing after graduation?  Well, the responses were anywhere from "a regular old 9-5" to "I don't know, probably some landscaping."  I'm not here to judge anybody and if that's what is going to make these people happy than they should go after that.  But why spend 5 years studying the music business?  Then someone said that they had to accept reality that it is too hard to work in the industry, and this is when I got annoyed.
Yes, its hard, but getting out of bed in the morning is hard for me, should I not do that anymore?  Freshman year, I sat in the same classroom with these same people, in a class called "Intro to College" and all of us said our goals were to get jobs in the business after graduation.  
Its really easy to lose your drive, or to think what you want to do is too hard and give up.  When I was in high school, I used to loathe telling people what I wanted to be when I grew up because they would snicker and say, "Yea...that sounds cool but what are you really going to do?"  Now I just tell them to wait and see.
My point here is, don't lose sight of your dreams.  Don't be afraid to go after it just because it won't be easy...do you think we would have just watched President Obama's addressing Congress tonight if he gave into the fact that his dream was going to be a hard one to achieve?
So I'll leave you with this, one of my favorite quotes:
"Don't ever let somebody tell you you can't do something. You got a dream...you gotta protect it. People can't do something themselves; they wanna tell you you can't do it. If you want something, go get it. Period." - Pursuit of Happyness 

The company where I spent my very first internship was a little less than just unorganized.  Our filing cabinets were stuffed with oversized promo t-shirts, Jiffy envelopes, candles, and snacks.  The lone assistant desk was a mess, covered with receipts from the year before, old Starbucks cups, and random post-it notes of messages left weeks before.  This was my first experience at a record label, and with no prior expectations, I just accepted what was presented to me.

I had a sneaking suspicion that something wasn't right but I did what was asked of me and along the way, attempted to clean said desk and filing cabinets.  I started working there in August and by October I was growing tired of the office antics.  Its not that it wasn't fun, because it certainly was and I look back on my time there fondly, but I was so eager to learn, and there was just nothing going on.  It was a Thursday night and I was glad the weekend was approaching.  All day, something just didn't feel right.  There was absolutely no work to be done and so we all just waited.  At the time, we had a consultant come into the office every so often.  I'd heard he was trying to help clean up the company and make it better, and I admired him for that because I saw the potential it had.  But in the other ear, someone was telling me not to trust him, that he was plotting something big, and it was only a matter of time before the bottom dropped out.
Well, that Thursday it did.
First he went into the president's office, and brought along the heads of promotions and marketing.  They were in there for a while, the conversation was barely audible through the paper thin walls and when they came out, something did not look right.  Then, the consultant called in the interns.  We sat on the couch in the office while he stood in front of us.  A while back, someone had told me he wanted to talk to all of the interns and ask them what they wanted out of this internship.  I knew this wasn't that conversation.  He paced back and forth, hands in his pockets, finally he looked up and abruptly said "Frank*, Michael*, and Tom* no longer work here.  I will be taking over with the help of their assistant."  All of us interns just sat there quietly, waiting for more.  We were all wondering the same thing, "what does this mean for us??"  He spoke again, "As of right now, we will be cleaning out the office, and re-working the business model.  We don't know how long this will take, but once we're through, we will call you guys to come back and intern.  Does anyone have any questions?"
Now, I'm no fool.  I only had until December until my internship was finished and I had to go back to school.  And during this period, you must be interning, otherwise the university will purge you and it will be as if you dropped out of school.  Everyone just sat there, dumbfounded I'm sure, but no one was speaking up.  This guy just came up in here and snatched our internship from us after we'd all worked so hard to get it!  I wasn't letting this one go.  Before I knew it, I heard my own voice saying, "Are you serious?  What do you mean, you'll call us to come back?  How long will that be????"  With no emotion he said he didn't know how long, but that he would definitely get into contact with each of us.  He said it shouldn't be that long.  This response wasn't enough for me, I felt like I'd fought so hard for my spot there and I didn't want to watch it go that easily.  So I spoke again, "I understand there is no way for you to know how long this will take, but please, do not give us the run around here.  If we won't be coming back, then just tell us so we can be prepared."  All he said was, "It shouldn't be more than a week."
I walked out of the office enraged.  If they were going to be "cleaning out" the office, why didn't they want interns there?  Isn't that the work no one wants to do??  And one week wouldn't even be enough time to sort of the mess in one filing cabinet, let alone the entire office.  None of it made sense to me and the whole thing sounded slimy.  We all packed up our stuff that night and walked out together.  I e-mailed the president, marketing head, and promotions head later to exchange information and one of them asked for my help in future projects.  
I waited one week.  I called the consultant, no answer.  I e-mailed him, no answer; so I e-mailed again, and still no response.  I knew it was over and set out looking for a new internship.  I was in a bad spot here, it was the end of October by now, and I would only be available to intern for two months, who would want to hire me?  I scoured the internet and started sending e-mails asking people for informational interviews because I thought this would be more likely than finding an internship.  I grew frustrated and angry that this had happened so suddenly.  I e-mailed two of my bosses from the company asking if they knew anyone that needed any intern.  Two days later, I had two interviews set up and I ended up taking a marketing internship at another record label where I worked for the full two months.  It didn't take that long; it was only the first week in November when I started my first day there.
The moral of the story is, expect the unexpected.  I never saw that coming but I didn't let it stop me either.  I spoke up for myself in that office and because I accepted the fact that I would not be returning there, I was able to find another internship.  I maximized the time I had left to intern somewhere else and never gave up.

Something's in the air, and no its not Cupid-pixie-dust-residue.  It seems everyone is extremely worried about where they're headed in life.  I've had my share of hysterical late night phone calls to my mother about where I'm going.  But when my professor felt the need to spend half of today's lecture discussing it, I realized just about everyone in my class is worried.  Maybe it's because of the instability of the music industry, or the instability of the economy all together, but it seems everyone is struggling with this.

The professor talked, for a very long time, about how he came to be a professor of the music business.  Turns out he started out as a high school band director, went to grad school, then had his own, very successful, recording studio, ended up filling in for a professor at my college and was hired, all the while performing as a professional musician.  20 years later, he's still here, but the interesting thing was that he said he truly enjoys teaching and it wasn't until his 40's that he started.
Forty. Years. Old.  Can you imagine?
He assured us we will try on many things before finding the perfect size in the music industry and most importantly, he told us that this was O.K.  Personally, I can't imagine doing anything different than what I'm setting out to do, but what I really took away from this lecture is that it's okay if you don't know what to do or how to get there.  Sometimes, all the little things you're doing don't add up in your big picture, and its hard to see how an economics class, or organizing your boss' filing cabinet matters at all.  But eventually, each tiny piece of the puzzle connects and you've finally achieved your masterpiece.  It's not going to be easy, its not supposed to be.  If it were, everyone would be doing it!  It's a constant struggle to not only achieve your goal, but to silence the voices in your head telling you that it's impossible.  
So maybe you don't know exactly where you'll end up, how you'll get there, or how long your stay will be.  Its more important that you know it's okay if you don't; eventually we'll all come out on the other side better than we were.


 

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