a Sunday kind of love

The stakes are high, ya'll. Apparently my last post was comparatively bland, according to my sweet sister. She's right. It was. And I think I know why.

I remember a far away time when I was working at a debt consolidation company and everything was whack-a-doodle. The bizarre/lovely people I worked with and all of the crazy characters I helped out of debt kept me on my toes. And luckily they didn't have a link to my blog.

I recall a time when I had a fresh social life with new friends and constantly changing activities, all as a result of a schedule as wide-open as the smoggy LA skies. With not a lot of money in my pocket and plenty to half-heartedly complain about, life was exciting.

And somewhere, in a distant memory, I remember saying that this was supposed to be the time of my life to flounder, to struggle, to have nothing figured out.

Don't worry, I'm still floundering. Just in a more professional way.

I don't have much silly commentary overflow nowadays as I love my job and I'm too busy to be unhappy. My everyday has turned into a rather constant adventure with a comforting, exciting rhythm. But I do miss those days. There is something romantic and kitschy about not having it together. For one, it made me feel more comfortable writing about stories of me failing in humorous ways. I had oodles of material. I was a walking, talking, real-life Bridget Jones sans hunky British men fighting over me.

But really, I still don't have it together. My room is an utter disaster. I haven't been to yoga since December. I haven't seen my friends for longer than an hour or two for over a month and come the first week of February, I will be eagerly searching for a new, fantastic job.

Yes, I'm happily all over the place.

Thursday morning I rose and shone (...rose and shone? Does that work?...past tenses...) at the crack of dawn for the SAG Awards Actor Pouring. Every year media outlets, a handful of us from the PR department, and some awesome talent observe as the Actor Statues are made for the SAG Awards. It's an incredible process to watch and I was lucky enough to work the event.

Like any proud publicity assistant, I found myself on coffee and doughnut duty. I proclaimed that I would only be on said duty if I could get Krispy Kremes. After being approved I took my responsibility very seriously. I pre-ordered a huge coffee container from Starbucks and plenty of dozens of doughnuts for all of the VIPs who would be attending.

You might remember me mentioning in a previous post about my very dirty car, inside and out. Well, in true Jenny-fashion, that full-size old school television is still banging around in the back of my car. I have not checked to see if it has been damaged in my Mr-Toad's-wild-ride-reminiscent driving style. I wince every time I make a turn. I had to put the huge, forty-pound coffee container in the back of the Jimmy next to the godforsaken television. Then of course, after my short and bumpy drive, I opened the hatchback to reveal a lovely smattering of fresh joe all over the carpeted floor and television.

My car smells like Starbucks. Minus the toasty breakfast sandwiches and occasional conspicuous hobos.

I set up the doughnuts and coffee, helped distribute press releases, and the fun began. We were lucky enough to have some of the most amazing talent-- Betsy Brandt from Breaking Bad and Creed Bratton from The Office. If you have never seen Creed in The Office, do yourself a favor and watch this. I've never watched Breaking Bad but I can honestly say that Betsy was one of the loveliest women I have had the pleasure to meet. The two of them were a HOOT. Hilarious.

It was such a whirlwind-- the cameras, the workers pouring molten bronze into the molds, the questions, the everything. It was incredible.

Here's a picture of Betsy and Creed trying to sneak out with their Actor friends...

Oh, and here's a picture of Betsy Tebowing.

I told you, they were a hoot.

This was also the day that I worked sixteen hours. A very happy, fulfilled sixteen hours-- but sixteen hours, nonetheless. Oouff. But really, what an amazing start to the day!

Besides the Statue Pouring we had an incredibly busy week--- meeting after meeting after meeting. I can't even imagine what next week will hold, as we're only seven days away from SAG Awards!

...And here comes the plug... as you knew it would...

What kind of publicity assistant would I be if I didn't plug the show?

There will be a webcast of the Red Carpet Pre-Show which is your chance to (yes, see your favorite actors but also...) see me! I'll be running around looking fabulous/bewildered with an iPad in my arms, snapping pictures and writing away on our social media sites. It is sure to be a very busy and entertaining red carpet so please don't miss it! You can stream the webcast on tnt.tv, tbs.com, or People.com on whatever sort of technological device you may have at 3 pm PT / 6 pm ET.

Then the real show begins! Simulcast live on both TBS and TNT, the SAG Awards will begin at 5 pm PT. You can see who's nominated on our website. I'll be tweeting, facebooking, and blogging during the show so follow our social media sites for live-from-Jenny updates!

SAG Awards: 

Facebook
Twitter
Blogger

...I fear that my life will become ever so dull when the Awards finish. Free time? Getting home at normal human hours? Exercise? I won't know what to do with myself. BOY does it sound good. I also literally can't wait for the Super Bowl. I've already been snack-rehearsing today. The football watching menu for this afternoon: pizza puffs, a sweet little apple tart, baked zucchini sticks, and my favorite family spinach dip recipe with sourdough bread. YUM. So... I have to fit in a dress this weekend? What? Take that.

And now an update on my running. I had a very solid twelve weeks before my half-marathon in April to train safely. With the show it looks like I won't be able to keep with it. Working so many hours a week has really inhibited my a) running time and b) energy. I'm sad. Looks like I'll just have to focus on a 10K in April instead. Half-marathon in October. Hmph.

Hey guys, thanks for reading along, even when my life doesn't allow me to share as much as I'd like. Turns out working for a major awards show in publicity where you're trained to monitor every word you say really starts to mess with your creativity/writing psyche. But HEY-- I'm a happy girl. I guess I'll just have to find enough everyday adventure to make up for my secret workday happenings. That or find a place to work with less astute web people.

Before I leave you, I wanted to share my favorite Etta James song-- A Sunday Kind of Love. The romantic in me (which is... most of me...) owes a lot of my daydreaming to Etta James. So--- thank you.

I listened to this song quite a bit this week after her passing and it rather struck a chord with me. First of all, the lyrics are very sweet. And secondly, it reminded me that at the end of any long week you still have Sunday.

...And as long as 'a Sunday kind of love' means pancakes, football, cuddling, and writing... I'm in. Mmm-mmm-MMM.

Yes, please.

Have a lovely week.

Kisses.

Nightmares

I know I said that I wasn't going to write... and here I am... writing.

Welp. It's a woman's prerogative to change her mind... Right?

I woke up this morning after some pretty dreadful nightmares. It was awful. I like to keep my waking thoughts as happy and bright as I possibly can, but apparently I'm a little more frightened of life than I allow myself to let on. It seemed like all of my fears had created this cohesive death ball of a foreboding magnitude. I woke up defeated.

Then I stumbled upon this:

Good morning, Universe. Thank you.

It's a shame how much we limit ourselves. We're scared that it's too late to start a band, to learn a new language, to love who we love despite complications. We're nervous that we'll look stupid or be misunderstood. We need to let the good in. It's OKAY for things to work out and it's okay for this to be the right moment. We just have to let it be.

Yeah, my nightmare shook me up. A lot, if you could tell. But I think I needed a reality check. I do have a lot of lessons on my plate and things do look scary at times. I just hate waiting around for things to be just right. I like when things are mysteriously up in the air. As Miranda July, one of my favorite authors said, "Don't wait to be sure. Move, move, move".

I believe that if your dreams don't scare you, they're not big enough. So I'm comfortable being uncomfortable and putting it on the line for a chance adventure. Even if it means a nightmare or two (yet another reason I so believe in sleeping buddies).

(Exhale).

What did you guys expect... of course I had to re-start my writing with some whammy of a philosophical rant! It's been too long!

So what have I been up to?! So much!

I just got my dress for SAG Awards! I can't believe it-- we're only two weeks away.

Everyone in the PR department is wearing black dresses, which proved much more difficult to find than I expected. This will do. I feel pretty sassy in it, but I'm sure when I am standing on the red carpet with skinny minnie actresses I may feel like an Amazon woman. I've come to terms with this.

It's been an absolute blast in the office. I wake up every morning so excited to go to work. Everyone is like family now. That's what happens when you work as long as we do. We know how to keep each other laughing and happy during those long days. I love my job.

In other news, yesterday marked day one of my HALF MARATHON training.

It didn't go well. I felt like I was on my eighth grade basketball team again running suicides. I was a quarter mile away from tossing my cookies. At least I drove myself to Santa Monica so I could run on the beach. That way when I got so weak I couldn't run any further I just collapsed onto the sand to rest. (True story). We'll see how this running thing goes. If day one and two are any indication of what the next couple of months hold, I may be in trouble. I'll keep you updated.

I do apologize for not posting my writing during December. I have three half-written posts sitting in my blogger account, staring at me disappointedly. I do feel bad. Especially when I read through them and there's a lot of good stuff there. It just seems weird to talk about presents and pageants and parties in January. Ya know?

I rang in the new year in the most delightful way-- in my favorite little city of San Francisco. I usually celebrate New Years by sitting on the couch with good friends so this was certainly an upgrade. We got tickets to the Westin St. Francis' New Years' Eve Party in Union Square and had an absolute ball. Seven different large rooms, each complete with a lavishly decorated theme and an open bar. Results pictured below:

That's Tim, my handsome friend Spencer, me, and Kelly. They're my favorites. It was incredibly packed by the time it hit midnight. There was a huge balloon drop at the end of the countdown but I must say I don't especially remember them falling.

The next morning Spencer and I woke up far too early to go to the RAIDERS game.

So. much. fun.

Me and about twenty guys had quite the tailgate. Lots of beer, chicken sandwiches, and beer were consumed. Mostly beer. The guys were all far too kind and welcoming. I ended up making some lady friends once we got our seats inside. That way I could burn off a little bit of feminine energy and have bathroom buddies, too. I would like to thank Connie for fostering my talent to make friends virtually wherever I go. Connie-- you'd be proud.

Unfortunately my greatest fear came true... the Raiders lost. It was very sad. I was hoping that my first NFL game would be a win. That, and I prefer happy Raiders fans. I was very nervous about the fun level of the weekend dropping after the loss. Spencer was a trooper though. We spent the rest of the night a) eating potatoes  b) hydrating and recuperating from a ridiculous weekend and c) watching a marathon of The Twilight Zone. Man, that show is creepy. We even saw a young William Shatner in what was certainly the scariest TZ  episode I have ever seen.

Yikes.

It was certainly a delightful way to recharge for January. I can't believe we're already halfway through... where does the time go?

I've got to go run some lines for our Femmetastiks encore tonight! We're so lucky we get to do another show, I can't wait. If you are in the West Hollywood area at 8 pm, you really shouldn't miss it. It's an incredibly funny, uplifting show. Funny ladies being funny. I promise.

I think I'll leave you with this picture of me and my silly cat.

Or my cat and silly me. He's the best. (or worst, if you know him).

Lots of love, friends.

Oh... and kisses, too.

WORK.

Hello all!

I'm sure you must be wondering where the heck I've been. Don't worry, I've been wondering the same thing.

Working. A lot. Family, friends, but mostly--- working.

It's been very difficult not being able to write like I'd like to. I simply don't have the energy when I get home to pull coherent thoughts together.

December was an absolute whirlwind and January is looking even more hectic. The SAG Awards are only 24 days away--- a bad, naughty thing to say in the office. We've got a lot to get done and the clock is ticking!

So I would like to make a formal statement, before I head out for another long day of work, that the likelihood of me writing some fascinatingly hilarious post in the month of January is not good. You may get one or two mildly humorous, unorganized splatters of thoughts--- but not much solid writing. Prepare yourselves for that. And prepare yourself for a whole lot of stories come February to make up for it. Even this little blurb is making me homesick for a comfy writing sesh. Darn.

Miss you, blog. And miss you, human friends. I might not be much fun this month. Imagine that.

Summary of December: Work, random 'Christmas shopping', sister visiting, my niece's Christmas pageant, baking, Christmas parties, ice skating

Summary of January: New Years in San Francisco, WORK, training for the half marathon in APRIL, WORK, SAG Awards!

Wish me luck.

Kisses.