Obviously, because of the (way too short) break between the end of my internship and the start of classes, I'm behind on my posts. So I'm backtracking here. My last day at Internship #3 was December 22nd (the day they gave me the bad evaluation) and December 23rd at Internship #1.
Yesterday I wore heels to work, and I got sent out on a lot of walking errands. So today I wore big comfy cuddly snow boots, because when the Big Boss comes in, it's a guarantee I'll be going somewhere, at least once.
A few hours after I'd been at work, Vin asked me to go meet Big Boss at the cell phone store. I looked up where the store was and asked what I was going there to do (its always good to be prepared) and Vin casually said, "She just needs you to sit in her car while she goes in the store." I thought "oh" casually, this sounds easy enough and I was on my way. Vin gave me his metro card so I could get there fast and told me to call her on her cell phone when I got there and to look for her car, its a BMW. As I was sitting on the train I started to think about how this little task would play out. I pictured her running into the store, and me sitting there waiting. Easy enough.
Then my mind started to race. What if someone came and told me I had to move the car? Would I have to drive it? Where would I even drive it to? Why can't I just go in the store for her and SHE sits in the car? I can't do this, why can't Vin do it?! He drives her car all the time.
I finally got there, and by there, I mean 6th Avenue and 42nd street, you know, really close to Rockefeller Center where they'd be lighting the Christmas tree in a few hours. The traffic was INSANE. This was not what I pictured at all. I slowly pulled out my cell phone and told Big Boss I was at the store, she said she was looking for a spot or somewhere to pull over and told me what street she was on. I walked down a block or two and found her sitting at a red light. We hung up the phone and she pulled down her window and asked what I thought she should do. I stuttered and stumbled over my words...like I know ANYTHING about driving around midtown Manhattan in a mob of Christmas tourists.
Before I knew it, she'd grabbed her bag and hopped out the car, leaving the door open and the car running and said, "Here, you drive it..just circle around the block" and was walking up the street before I could protest. WHAT?????? This is exactly what I didn't want to happen! I just stood there, dumbfounded, trying to process this in my mind. Did she really just leave her car running at a red light on 6th avenue and tell me to drive it?
Did I mention this was a BMW?
I guess she looked back and still saw me standing there, so she called out behind her, "You do know how to drive, don't you??" I yelled, "Y-y-yea..I know how to d-drive" I looked inside the car for a moment, trying to calm myself down, and all of a sudden remembered, "WAIT!!! Is this a standard?!!?" She turned around and said that yes, it was. I thought GREAT! I don't know how to drive a standard, glad thats over. Then she said, "I mean, no it isn't. I mean..you don't need a stick to drive it" Great, I was stuck now, I had no excuse. So I got in. First, I had to figure out how to put the seat back, because Big Boss is actually Tiny Boss, she barely even comes up to my shoulder. There were a ton of buttons, no bar that you pull that moves the seat back like in a regular car for us middle class people. This was not my Mercury that I'm used to. So I started pushing the buttons, the seat went up & down and up & down...that wasn't right. I pushed a few more, the seat back went forward & backward, forward & backward, the side mirrors went up and down, left and right. The seat wouldn't budge. I pressed another and got it to move just a little, but that sent the mirrors into a frenzy and I couldn't see out of them. I put the car into drive and slowly took my foot off the break, I went to press the gas pedal and I couldn't find it, I swore it wasn't there! I felt like I was in some type of horrible nightmare. My boots were too big for the tiny gas pedal, I stepped on the break with my left foot and slowly felt around for the gas. Finally I turned onto 41st Street and went ever so slowly. Big Boss had turned the hazard lights on when she pulled over and I couldn't find that little red triangle button to save my life. I looked everywhere. Meanwhile, a line of cars behind me was beeping and cussing at me. I reached a red light finally, found the button and turned those annoying lights off with a hard push. At least that was settled. I was in such a state of shock when I got in the car that when I put my seat belt on, I tangled my iPod wire in it and now had to leave it that way, while Keyshia Cole blared from the headphones. This was awkward.
I circled around once. It took about 10 minutes, still no call from the Big Boss. I kept seeing signs that said to avoid the streets I was driving on because of the tree lighting...great, who else but me would be stuck in this predicament on such a day? So I went to circle around again. By this time I started to feel like I was in a bad video game. Driving the same track over and over. Dodging obstacles in the road (trucks unloading, dumpsters, cars cutting you off every which way), watching out for people jumping in the road, and swerving through crazy driving cars.
I kept thinking about how hard it is to drive in New York City, and that I'd only done it once before for just a few minutes. Why did my first time have to be in my boss' BMW??? More than 20 minutes had gone by, and I kept hoping she would call as I was passing the store, because if she called after I'd passed it, she'd have to wait 10 minutes for me to get around. Finally, Vin called. I answered the phone and he must have heard the fear in my voice because he said, Intern Chick??? Is that you?? Are you okay??? You sound terrified! All I could muster was "yea, I'm...fine." He said Big Boss was ready for me, just at the time I was approaching the cell phone store. Big Boss got in the driver's seat and I got in the passenger seat. I mumbled an apology about having to move her seat, luckily she was on an important call so I dodged the bullet of having to talk about it.
Phew, I'd made it. It wasn't so bad once I actually did it (and of course, after I figured out how to turn the hazard lights off). Yet another example of how your internship will force you to do things you never thought you could do, and show you that you can, in fact, do it.
My task for tomorrow? Fill Big Boss' new cell phone with ring tones.
So yes, I washed dishes last week. Big Boss likes to order take out and then eat off her own dish. But that dish has to get clean somehow, doesn't it? I guess Vin usually does it, but he wasn't around when she finished her dinner, lucky guy. It went like this.
Big Boss: Internchick? Can you come in my office please?
Me: Yes, Big Boss, what can I do for you?
Big Boss: Can you, uh, take care of my dish?
Me: I'm sorry, what???
Big Boss: Yes..you need to clean off the dish and then wash it in the kitchen and replace it back in my cabinet. Thank you.
Seriously? I don't even wash my own dishes. I prefer plastic forks to silverware any day just so I don't have to wash it. And this wasn't just any dish, I think it wins the world record for heaviest dish in the universe because by the end of the whole ordeal, my arm was shaking. I got soap suds all over the entire kitchen and got some pretty crude looks from the other employees coming into the kitchen.
In all honesty, I've done much worse at my past internships. I've ironed clothes and gone to hotel rooms of strange men to teach them how to burn CDs, I've even gone pants shopping for one of my bosses. I expect these things from an internship, I just thought my boss was not that type of boss. I don't know what I was thinking to be honest, this is the music industry after all.
Sometimes you have to do things you don't want to do at work. But this? This, personal maid service crap? I've washed my (dish) hands of it.
Today I washed dishes.
What. the. hell.
I'm not ready to talk about it. Leave me love.
The Big Boss made an appearance at internship #1 on Thursday. It's always an adventure when she comes in. I did get sent out, in the rain, in my new favorite shoes, on an errand to the weirdest gift wrap store I've never heard of so that she could wrap the CEO's (belated) birthday gift. That was interesting.
While she was there I heard her giving, what I now consider to be the best advice I've ever heard. This advice was directed towards Vin but I listened and I listened attentively, and what she told him was this. She said that when he was an intern and he took direction from her then assistants, Vin was always messing up. In fact, I think her exact words were, "I wanted to fire you everyday" (that made me wonder how she REALLY feels about me). And then she said that now that he works directly for her, he rarely messes up. I missed some parts of the conversation because, after all, I was eavesdropping.
She then went on to say something to this effect. Sometimes you get so concerned with trying to impress your boss, you stop listening. You interrupt, trying to finish their sentence so you can prove yourself and let them know you are 100% in tune with their needs. But what really ends up happening is that you missed the point, and you increase your margin of error. She said that the key was to stop the chatter, and not just the chatter coming out of your mouth, but the chatter in your mind. Just listen, and listen wholly and completely, and you'll get it right.
This piece of advice spoke loudly to me because I am the queen of trying to go above and beyond to please my bosses, and not often, but sometimes I don't get it right because I was 5 steps ahead of where my boss was in trying to explain.
Not to mention, this advice was given after I did an amazing job running the errand for her. She asked me to find a box that was already wrapped, that you could just open and the gift would be inside, rather than having to unwrap something. I went into her office when she was explaining this and sat completely quiet and listened (not because I have some psychic ability and knew she'd be passing this advice to Vin later, but out of pure exhaustion). She told me to go look up any stores nearby that carried what she was looking for. I found one, called them up, had the customer service woman look through their catalog and give me all the information. So not 10 minutes later, I marched into the Big Boss' office, notepad in hand, armed with the answers to her every question.
Big Boss: How big are the boxes they carry?
Me: Anywhere from 2 x 3 to 16 x 13, and I looked up the measurements of the gift which are about 5 x 7 and they have a box that is 7 x 5.
Big Boss: Well, what do they look like?
Me: They're all different patterns, they have boxes that are appropriate for men and women so we shouldn't have a problem finding one.
Big Boss: What are the boxes wrapped in?
Me: I'm not POSITIVE, but I think they're done in their own paper
(By this time, I could tell she was semi-impressed but also trying to catch me with a question I didn't have the answer to)
Big Boss: (long pause) Oh, well that sounds perfect. Let me get my card for you. WAIT! Where are they located?
(I could totally tell she'd thought she caught me with a question I didn't know the answer to)
Me: Not far at all (I proceed to give her the address with the cross streets) so its not far at all, it shouldn't take too long to walk to and come back.
Big Boss: GREAT! Because I really wanted to give it to him before he leaves today. So, here's the card, you know how to sign my name right??
Me: No problem...I'll be back in time. And yes, I know how to sign your name the right way. So I'll be back in a bit, is there anything else you need before I leave?
Big Boss: Oh yea....you don't know how much they are, do you? (She really thought she caught me this time)
Me: The smallest one is $6 but the one that I think will fit the gift best is $13. (I gave her a slight smile that must have said, nice try, but I'm on top of it) And, did you want tissue paper and a ribbon to go with it?
Big Boss: (with a surprised look on her face because she hadn't thought of it) Umm, yea, that'd be great! Thanks, Internchick.
I picked right and she loved what I came back with. I knew she was impressed because there was not one question she asked me that I didn't have the answer to, because I listened to what it was she wanted, and got all the information for her. I decided a long time ago I would never be able to spend enough time with her to impress her and I gave up on it, but because I was just trying to get the job done as she asked, I did it right.
Just like she told Vin, you have to stop the chatter, and the chatter in your mind, and just listen.
One time for your mind..
Today the Big Boss came in to work. Pretty exciting right? I ran a CD over to another label during the late afternoon, worked on some lists of songs our producers/songwriters have done, sent out a hundred million faxes, and waited for the Big Boss.
