Fun Facts

Anytime there is a gathering of all of your family and friends people want updates on your life. When you were in school the inevitable questions of "So what are you up to?", "What's going on in your life since I last saw you?" were frequently asked and easily to answered. As long as you said you were studying, got good grades, and were having some fun (but not too much) you were pretty much off the hook. Now, however, with graduation comes adulthood and the expectations of adult conversation making the questions more difficult to answer. "How's work?" or "What are you working on these days?" are seemingly simple but require a good, thoughtful and detailed explanation that will inevitably set the tone for the expectations of your future success.

The last few weekends I was at family parties and those who did not probe the first weekend, did so the second. I'm not sure how most people deal with such questions but I was unprepared and blanked the first time. However, by the 3rd or 4th time I was asked I had figured out a pretty good answer. Albeit flat and somewhat canned, I was able to discuss my responsibilities of my current job and attempt to give an overview of the last 4 projects from the last 9 months.

Each time the conversations ended with one of the two parties being pulled away, or needing some sort of libation, I felt like I had somehow missed the mark in explaining the last year of my life. Surely it was far more fun than answering phones and typing, but that's what my explanation, in my eyes, boiled down too.

It wasn't until later when I sat down with my sister, some friends and a plate of food, that some of the fun facts surfaced. And it was only because my sister, the person I first call with any funny or exciting stories, brought them up. So here are some fun facts that seem to have fallen through the cracks of my blogging.

Job 1: Creative Artists Agency Temp. Receptionist (July to October)

My job was picking up phones and greeting guests, and since it's kind of a big deal in the realm of talent agencies we had some interesting callers and guests.

Story 1:

Me: "Creative Artists Agency"

Caller with a very distinctive accent: "Hello, this is Sean Connery calling from the Swiss Alps, I was hoping to speak with my agent."

(pause)

Me: *regaining the ability to breathe "One moment please and I'll transfer you."

*Click

Me: Holy Crap! I can die happy! I spoke to Sir James Bond, Agent 007, himself!

Receptionist to my side: "Who? Oh, the guys with the accent? He calls all the time."

Story 2:

The weather is hot and sticky, I wasn't feeling particularly inspired with my wardrobe choices that morning, ( I recall it being laundry day) and I was not feeling particularly attractive. Low and behold, Stacey London from What Not to Wear comes strolling into the lobby looking for one of the conference rooms that's booked to connect her to a meeting in LA. I have never been so self- conscious as I was walking down that long hallway with Stacey following me, and seemingly judging my poor choice of wardrobe. FML. If only she had come the day before... Good thing she was without her 360 degree mirror. And yes, she does look fabulous in real life.

Story 3:

Apparently some clients are working with their agents on certain business endeavors and are frequently visiting, therefore, they essentially have reign of the office and do not need to be announced, although assistants really appreciated being notified upon their arrival. Sarah Jessica Parker, or SJP, as she was affectionately known by the receptionists, was one such client. She came in often enough that we would chat as she waited for the elevator. As far as how she looks on a day to day basis, some days are better than others. And she absolutely wears things that no one else could pull off, yet looks fabulous.

Story 1a:

Sir 007 called again. This time he was in the Bahamas, I'm convinced he's still a secret agent and that his talent agent is actually his handler or "M" and he's just giving status reports on his current operation. I mean think about it, when was the last time he was in a movie?

Story 4:

Since we were located in New York City we had Broadway performers calling all the time. Norbert Leo Butz, Sutton Foster, Sherrie Rene Scott, just to name a few. Shout out to my fellow theatre nerds.

Story 5:

Chris Bosh and Dwayne Wade showed up shortly before "The Decision" aired. I don't think they could fit in the elevator.

Story 6:

The week before the job ended, I had one final encounter. Kate Winslet showed up. She's completely lovely.

Job 2: Teatown Communications Development Intern aka glorified errand girl (November to January)

My resposibilities boiled down to answering the phone, which rang maybe once an hour, and accepting deliveries with additional errands and tasks every so often. Needless to say I watched a great deal of internet TV.

Story 1: 
I'm not sure how my boss was a voting member of the Academy (as in the Awards), but he was and would therefore gain access to certain premieres in order to cast his vote. Apparently he hates these events and since his sons were busy on the night of the True Grit premiere, he gave the tickets to the other intern, Lauren, and I. A-mazing!

The screening was at the beautiful Ziegfeld theater in Midtown and then there was an after party, which we also had tickets for, that was held at the Four Seasons. Not only was the movie fantastic but the after party was fantatic. Even though I felt I was severely underdressed for such an occasion, since I had only been notified once I got to work, and Lauren had a final exam the next day, we stayed long enough to see Josh Coen (of The Coen Brothers), John Legend (even hotter in person), Jesse Eisenberg (shorter than I expected), Marcia Gay Harden (she's been in everything once), Famke Janssen (Jean from X-Men, wears too much makeup),  Bill Hader of SNL, Artie from Warehouse 13 (Anyone else watch this? Anyone? 
Bueller?), and Jill Hennessy of Crossing Jordan and Law & Order. Actually I would say the cast 
of every Law & Order was there, I mean I saw Munch (David Belzar) from SVU, Jill Hennessy, 
of course and one of the reoccuring defense lawyers (the one that kind of looks like Morgan 
Freeman but younger? You know who.) The cherry on top of the cake, however, was when 
walked right by Jeff Bridges as we were leaving. Epic. The man is a legend.

I imagine if we had stayed longer more people would have shown up, but I had work the next 
morning and I felt underdressed. Next time. 

Job 3: Production Intern for Red Fern Theater Company
No really fabulous but I thought it was cool to work for an Off- Off Broadway production. I mean
Off- Off is really off broadway but still.


Job 4: Script supervisor for a feature film
Way too many stories to even include them here. Good times....


Job 5: Transcriber/Production Assistant for the Discovery Channel production on the rebuilding 
of the World Trade Center
Yes, at times this job is exactly as cool as it sounds. Although, other moments, as I'm sitting in 
my cubicle watching a first hand account of working on the pile right after 9/11, crying my 
eyes out, it's not so glamorous but worth every minute.


Story 1: (Not entirely related to the project but it happened as I was working here.) April 2, 
"Coming Off the DL" the short documentary I directed was honored by the Garden State Film
Festival, receiving the Broader Vision Award. I had to speak after the screening and met Ann 
Reinking you may recognize her as Grace Farrell from the original "Annie" movie.




I'm not gonna lie, it's been a pretty epic year and I'm sure there's numerous moments and stories
I have already forgotten. Alas, I will just have to blog more often and make sure I write as things
occur. 
Hope you enjoyed reading this. I know it's quite long, and seemingly self-aggrandizing but I had
some great moments and I wanted to share them and give all the interns out there some hope for
their future.