group 7 post 2

Dear R Entertainment,

I would like to thank you for allowing me the experience of interning for you.  I have thoroughly enjoyed learning the process behind putting on an event and participating in day-of logistics.  Of course, my favorite events were the food truck festivals and the Beach Boys concert.  Being able to give those tickets to my dad and have that experience with my parents was priceless and something my family will never forget.  Allowing people that type of experience is what the events industry is all about and I think R Entertainment really excels in that. I appreciated the patience and support you all have showed, as well.  I've learned that good leaders empower their employees and that's certainly what you all have done with the interns.

I have also enjoyed getting to know the team on a personal level.  I thought it was so generous of you all to take the company out for lunches and meeting for a special intern-goodbye dinner.  That's not something all companies can do, and being able to chat about topics other than work is a nice little break!

This has truly been an experience of a lifetime and I could not be more grateful.

Sincerely,
Natalie

group 7 post 1

One of the most important things I gained from my internship was the confidence to speak to someone else, i.e. a vendor, restaurant owner, sponsor, about my company and event.  I learned that I'm capable of successfully describing our goals and values as a company and team and I'm able to get others on board as well.  For my big event, "Check, Please! Arizona," I had to repeatedly call restaurant owners and pitch my event, remind them to send in their application, give me their menus and chef biographies and their protein requests.  This was difficult for me at first because I felt like I was nagging and annoying, but they're all so busy they genuinely needed to be reminded and were appreciative because they did want to participate.  Once I realized this, I relaxed a little more and realized I was becoming more confident in my capabilities.

I also learned how difficult the events business is.  And that I probably don't want a career in events.  And I don't see that as a negative thing.  I thoroughly enjoyed my internship and had amazing experiences.  I think in order to have a successful event planning business, personal time has to be sacrificed.  Because I want a family, I don't think this is the career for me.  I do, however think it's a good background to have.  It has taught me to control my anxiety in stressful situations and find ways to solve problems quickly.

I think I certainly achieved my goals. My first goal was to to better understand the process behind creating an event.  Because we created the first Check, Please! event, I got to see how they created an event from scratch.  Being able to sit in on meetings was really cool, too.  They would bring up things I never would have thought of to think about. My second goal was to create relationships with professionals in my field.  Because our office was so small, I was able to connect with each of the owners and other employees.  This is certainly true with Chelsea and Allison who were more around my age.  My third goal was to create, work on, and carry out an event.  I achieved this with Check, Please! and feel very proud of it.  It was even nominated for Phoenix New Times Best Of!

Group 6 free write

With Thanksgiving just a few days away, I think it's important (as it is everyday) to talk about what I'm thankful for.  I realize it's a little cliche, but a little gratitude doesn't hurt, right?

1. I'm thankful for the many opportunities that lie ahead of me.  Although it's stressful and scary, I'm so fortunate to have options.  I feel like I will be able to put my education to good use and hopefully help a few people along the way.

2. I'm thankful to have the ability to drive to Flagstaff whenever I want to see my friends.  It's hard having my best friends two hours away, but if I really want to, I have the funds and car available to head up there for the weekend, or even just the night.

3. I'm thankful to have friends. I've had my same best friend for 17 years.  We met on the first day of school in 1st grade. I showed her around because I had been at that school for kindergarten.  Over the years, we have remained best friends, but we've also made other friends along the way.  Some of them we haven't kept in touch with, but others, like our college friends, I know will stay in our lives for a long time. They're my biggest support system (alongside my family) and we can have fun doing nothing.  I love that.

4. I'm thankful for my family. We've had a pretty perfect family.  We stayed strong through a really rough time, and relations have changed, but we're getting through it.

5. I'm thankful for having healthy food.  Through my capstone project, I've learned how many people don't have access to food, and especially healthy food.  There are so many repercussions to eating bad food.  I'm happy I have the choice to eat healthily.

6. I'm thankful for both of my jobs.  I adore being a nanny and could not have asked for a better family.  While I don't love my 2nd job, it's money in a time of need and it won't last forever.  I'm glad to have the choice to quit or not and not be tied down to something because of the need for money.

I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving and finds a few things to be thankful for as well!

Group 6 career services

For my career services write up, I read an article from the W.P. Carey School of Business entitled, "Eight Strategies for Success" by Rhett Doolittle. Here were his 8 strategies:

1. Positivity breeds success: Create a positive culture that is driven by success and always have a good time.
2. Focus on the wins and don’t waste time on the losses: Figure out how to win and then multiply the wins. Learn from your losses or mistakes but do not waste too much time on them.
3. Candor: Be brutally honest and up-front with yourself, your partners, and your employees. We made candor a huge part of our culture. If you sugarcoat anything it’s just a waste of time and hampering the chance of success. Former General Electric CEO Jack Welch described candor perfectly in his book “Winning.”
4. Be smart and sacrifice: Be smart with your time, efficient, and still work longer than the competition…way longer. (SACRIFICE SLEEP FOR SUCCESS!)
5. Hire the best talent: We realized early that we needed the best talent possible to grow and we did whatever it took in order to recruit top talent. It’s not scalable trying to do it by yourself. You need support to grow, so get the best talent possible to support your growth.
6. Focus on our people: Train as much as possible, invest in developing talented people, and give them all the tools possible to succeed. Just finding top notch people is only the first step, you still have to invest time, money, and resources in  the talent you find.
7. Build your brand – Professionally and Personally: People should WANT to work with you, for you, or just be associated with you.
8. Be aware of Risk Versus Reward: Make sure your business model matches your risk tolerance.We constantly took more risks than everybody else, but it was calculated risk and we made sure we hit our numbers consistently.

For the most part, I agree with these strategies.  However, I think I would change a few of them slightly.  For instance, on number 3, I would add it's important to be honest, but to also be kind.  Referring back to Bambi, "if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all."  If honestly comes with rudeness, it's not worth it.  Burning bridges won't lead you to success.  I also feel that #4 is a bit extreme.  It's important to take care of yourself.  If sleep is what you need, working harder and later isn't going to help.  You can't be attentive if you're exhausted.  Bosses don't want you falling asleep in the office.

I think success looks different to everyone.  One person may want to climb to the top of the corporate ladder and be a CEO of a company, while another might want to simply have enough money to travel with someone they love.  In my opinion, in order to succeed in life, one must do the following:

1. Be kind, but not let others walk over you

2. Seek out people and opportunities that make you happy

3. Travel, read, and seek new ideas and experiences to broaden your horizons

Group 6 free write

Today I took the kids I nanny for to Barnes and Noble at Desert Ridge to play on the train table there. As we were walking down the breeze way, Savage Garden came on the outdoor speaker system and rocketed me back to middle school. So naturally, I started dancing with Zakary just to be silly.  Apparently a woman sitting outside saw us.  She called out to me, "You're a great mother!" I said, "Oh thank you, I'm just their nanny."  She started chatting with me and asked if I did anything else besides nanny. I told her I'm about to graduate and am waiting to hear on a job in Flagstaff.  She said she loved my personality and wanted to talk to me about working with her in the future.

Now, I realize this could totally be a weird situation with a fake job (I just said I'd give her a call if I didn't get the other job), but nonetheless, I think it was a good reminder that opportunity can be anywhere.  In this stressful transition time in my life I think it's important to remember that.  I'm really struggling with what I should do in my life.  I've even thought of just packing up and moving to Paris. I don't know if Student Affairs is something I really want to do, or if it just seems like the smart thing to do.  I'd have a steady career, benefits and my kids could go to school really inexpensively.

I also realize everyone else is going through this, but it's hard! I'm hoping things fall into place soon.

Group 6 Post 1

A definite strength of my organization is networking and reaching out to possible clients.  Even though it's a very small company, the owners have been in the entertainment business for decades and make sure to not burn any bridges.  They see the value in keeping connections and it has certainly paid off.  We are able to get big names and big accounts simply because of their reputations. They also have great relations with logistics companies.  They work closely with ProEm event managements where we get our set up equipment as well as the security group we hire. This is important because we need someone we can always count on for day-of set up. It's the most stressful day and knowing that our security team and set up people will be there, on time, with the proper materials is crucial.

It's hard to think what I would change if I were in charge.  I think they have done a good job at making their events count.  They don't over book and create stress because they don't have enough people to work events.  The events that they do are big, and have an impact.  They don't take on small, unimportant events simply for the revenue.  They make them count.  I think a little more office organization could help.  After my internship was over, I was hired hourly to organize thousands of files and papers.  Not the most glamourous thing, but it was necessary!

Group 5 free write 3

One of the coolest things I got to do with my internship was work at the Beach Boy's concert.  It was the last event in a series called, "The Good Life Festival" where we featured cool bands and chefs.  The first event was a Valentine's day culinary event where we had Tyler Florence and Duff Goldman from the Food Network come and do cooking demonstrations based on Valentines Day. It was awesome as I'm big fans of theirs! I got to hang out with Duff all day and drive him around in a golf cart!

Growing up, my dad and I would listen to the Beach Boys and rock out! We'd sing an dance in our living room and listen to them on the way to may day care.  My favorite song is Barbara Ann.

So with this in mind, it was PERFECT that the Beach Boys were coming two days before my dad's birthday this year and I was able to get free tickets! My dad is incredibly hard to buy for and I couldn't wait to give him these tickets.  I had to work the event all day and was excited to have my parents show up in the evening.  The tickets were general admission and they sat in the lawn.  Right after the concert started, my boss, and the owner of the company came up to me and asked where my parents were.  I pointed to their spot on grass and he said bring them up to VIP. I want them to have a great experience. I could have cried I was so excited.  I found my parents and told them to pack up, we were moving. It was awesome to see their faces when I brought them to the third row.  We had a great spot on the end and danced and sang. It was awesome.  Then, one of the other interns came up to me and said we were needed backstage.  It turns out, they band wanted a group of girls to dance on stage with them! So we had to wait backstage until they wanted us to come out.  I didn't want to miss Barbara Ann so I could listen and watch with my dad, so I asked if they would be playing it soon.  Their stage manager said that's the song we'd be dancing to!! I figured, if I couldn't be next to my dad, it would be a close second being next to Mike Love!

We got on stage and totally rocked out. It was a blast!! The weather was absolutely perfect and I couldn't have asked for a better way to spend time with my parents.  I felt so blessed that night.

Group 5 post 3

My internship doesn't really provide public services or display urban governance, as it's a production company.  The closest thing to anything city-related would be filling out city permits for alcohol, festivals, having the health department come, and serving food.  Because these are so important, I wasn't really in charge of them, but I did sit next to Chelsea and watch her fill some out to at least have some exposure.

In one of my event classes, we had someone from the health department come in and speak about what they do at events to make sure everything is safe.  I think this is a really important aspect of creating an event.  Food is always a crucial part of any event, and it has to be safe.  If someone gets sick, not only is it bad for the person, but it can really damage an event's reputation.

At my main event, 'Eight's Check, Please! Arizona Festival,' I had to make sure each restaurant had their permits displayed where the inspector could see them.

You might say our events created civic engagement.  It's certainly true that if someone has a connection with the city they live in, they're more willing to provide feedback to city officials, vote, and volunteer.  Many of our events were charity related, took place in Downtown Phoenix, or involved local artists or chefs.  These all add to the pride a citizen can feel towards their city.

Group 5 free write 2

Today would have been my big brother's 46th birthday.  He died last March.  That's not something I normally say out loud, but I think I need to start getting over that.  I get asked about my siblings a lot because my dad is so much older than most dads.  My dad (who's 72) was married to a woman and had my brother and twin sisters.  They got divorced and he married my mom and had my brother and me.  My oldest siblings were in college by the time I was born. I never quite know what to say when people ask how old my oldest sibling is (was).  I'll figure it out someday, I guess.

Joel was a professor at NAU, so it was really cool going to/working at the same university as him for 2 years.  We even got to work Orientation together.  He was the first speaker the students heard each day and he spoke to the parents on the second day.  He really knew how to connect with them.  He got the students laughing and participating and knew how to relate to the parents.  I always felt so proud to tell my students that he was my brother.

My parents and other brother and I went to dinner tonight in honor of Joel.  My sisters in Florida spent the evening on the beach (one of his favorite places) and Joel's wife and kids went to Sedona yesterday and had a party in Flagstaff.  I hate that we can't all be together for times like this, but technology helps. So much has changed in the past few years.  I never thought my college experience would include losing one of the most important people in my life.  I'm a completely different person because of it.

Group 5 Free write 1

Today I had to tell the family I nanny for that I might be taking a full time job in Flagstaff beginning in January. The mom and I both burst into tears. I can't imagine my life without them anymore!

It's a tricky situation because it's not certain if I will get the job or not, and it's unknown when I'll find out. They're from South Africa and are spending all of December there so they would have to find somebody to replace them before they go.  So if I end up not getting the job, I'm out of two jobs! But she said she would interview and not place anyone until I know for sure, which is more comforting. They have been such a bright spot in my life the past year and a half.  I was there before she was pregnant and have gotten to experience her pregnancy and the birth of Gia and watch her grow.  It's such an honor to be a part of a family like that.

Since I was little, I thought it would be so cool to be a nanny.  I used to have occasional babysitting jobs growing up. Once I was in high school, my math and dance teachers (who were married) would have me babysit and house sit for them.  She wanted me to be their full time nanny once I graduated but since I went to NAU, I couldn't.  And up until last January, I wasn't in one place long enough (Flagstaff, Phoenix or New York) to be useful.  I honestly think it was meant to be that I waited until I was at ASU.  I'm not a person that thinks everything happens for a reason, but I do think they were meant to be in my life.  From the love and support, to the sleep challenges and tantrums- this family has made my life so much better.  Not too many bosses close text messages and emails with "xoxo" (and not have it be creepy haha).

She wants me to be there to interview potential replacements. Not sure how I feel about that, but I think I can handle it. I just have to keep in mind I'm growing up and heading into the real world. Apparently I can't be a nanny forever!

Group 4 Post 3

Leadership plays an interesting role in my internship.  Because we are such a small company, we all work closely together.  There are two co-owners of the company and about 5 other full time employees.  At the time I was there, there were 4-5 interns working.  As an intern, we worked closest for Chelsea and Alison, two of the full time employees.  They are both quite young but were really professional and great to work with/for.  They gave us tasks to do each day and we reported to them with any issues or questions.  However, we also would help out the owners or other employees at the drop of a hat as many things we had to do needed to be done quickly.  Many times this included booking flights or hotels last minute.

As far as demonstrating leadership skills myself, I took more of a backseat in this internship.  In the past, I have been to leadership camps, taken leadership classes, and have always had a leadership role in projects.  It was interesting to not be in that position.  I was able to soak up a lot of information and not feel responsible for what others were doing.  I had my own projects and was able to work on those and ask questions when needed.

Chelsea and Alison took the biggest leadership roles for the interns.  They were really great about empowering us to work on projects on our own but gave us enough direction that we were never lost or confused.  They did not micromanage, either.  There was a lot to learn, especially with creating/reading contracts for bands and they were able to patiently explain (and re explain!) how to work with those.

Group 4 Post 2 free write

I mentioned in my Career Services post that I needed (and still need) to write a resume for a possible job at NAU beginning in January.  My nephew plays on Flagstaff's club soccer team along with my boss from NAU's son.  About a month ago, we went up to watch them play and Anika, my boss was there.  She hugged me and said, "I have three jobs available and I want you to apply!" This was a lot to take in- I'd have to move to Flagstaff right after graduation, leave my nanny job, and start working right away.  The other issue is that although my best friends live in Flagstaff right now, they won't after May. I've been waiting for them to come back to Phoenix and now I'm (possibly) going to Flag!

I know this is a really great opportunity.  I'm considering a career and grad school in student affairs and this would be a perfect way to gain professional experience and make sure it's really what I want to do. It's a school I deeply respect and feel comfortable promoting. I'm thinking I'll get the admissions officer job and that would mean lots of traveling, which I'd really love.  It's just really scary making huge life decisions! Either way, I'm going to apply and see what happens.  I've decided to put off grad school and give myself a break from school.  I'll start August of 2015 and hopefully have a better idea of what I want to do/where I want to go. And have more money saved up!

Group 4 Post 1- Interview

Here's the interview I did with Chelsea, one of the employees at my internship.  She helped oversee the interns and actually graduated from ASU and the same special events program that I'm getting my certificate in! She's really awesome and knows her stuff!

1. What are your main job responsibilities?
- My main job responsibilities are event production logistics- entailing vendor acquisition and management, city and state permitting, event layout and flow, staffing, transportation, social media, marketing packages etc. 
2. How did you choose this career?
- I enjoyed organizing events in high school and after shadowing some event producers decided I wanted to try it as a career. 
3. What type of education or training is needed for this position?
- EXPERIENCE! There are so many aspects learned in this field that come from experience, not a text book. Internships are the ultimate way to gain experience. The Special Event Management program at ASU is a fantastic training course as well because it is taught by local business owners who educate about what is relevant and important- you WILL use what they teach you in your event position at some point and will be ahead in your position because you are already familiar with it. 
4. What advice would you give to someone interested in this field?
-Internships, shadowing, and volunteering are the most important things you can do when starting out in this field. It is a very unique career and is not for everyone, so gaining experience in different types of events fields such as weddings, festivals, concerts, or corporate is important to see what you like and don't like. Also, everyone knows everyone in this industry so networking is a great to get your foot in the door. 
5. Do you notice any new trends in the field?
-Culinary festivals are becoming a craze and social media is more relevant than ads in newspapers and on the radio. 

After working in a similar position as Chelsea, I don't think I would like to make a whole career out of the events world.  I had a really great time at my internship, and learned more than I could have imagined.  I got to do some things I only dreamed of before.  But I realized how much time and effort is put into an events career.  They work even when they're not at work, and the weekends are almost always eaten up by being at events.  It might sound lazy of me, but I'd prefer a more mellow career, with time to spend with my family!  I might consider it before I settle down with a family, though.  It was an awesome experience.

Group 3 Post 4- a desperate request!

So in this free write, I'm requesting any extra convocation tickets for December! As the 5th child in my family, the 6 tickets we're allowed doesn't cut it! I have a large family and they're all very important to me, so if anyone has extra tickets, I would be so appreciative if I could have them! I'll take you out for coffee even :) I was told you're not allowed to pay people for their tickets, but coffee is different, right??

Graduation is becoming this big stressful thing.  I need extra tickets, my sisters need to fly in from Florida, I need to get my sister in law and her kids down from Flagstaff on a Tuesday, and my friends from Flagstaff have to get around work and finals to come down.  It's a lot.  I had a crappy high school graduation so I really want this one to be special. I'm also looking for a venue for my party that night.  Easier said than done!

And then there's what to do after I graduate. I've found myself avoiding talking to anyone I haven't seen in a while so I don't have to answer the "what are your plans after graduation?" question.  I don't know and it's stressing me out! I'm hoping things will fall into place soon.

Group 3 Post 3

I nanny for an amazing family with a 3 year old and a 7 month old.  I've been with them a year and a half and I could not be more blessed.  Moving back to Phoenix and leaving my friends in Flagstaff was really hard, then I lost my brother very unexpectedly.  Needless to say, I needed something (someone) to brighten up my life.  This family has done that and then some.  They're from South Africa and England, so they all have cute accents, including Zak, the 3 year old.  He's the cutest and funniest little guy I've ever met. He's got quite the personality and has no trouble telling you what he's thinking. A few of my favorite sayings:

"Natalie, I can't go to bed right now because I need to be free!"

"Natalie, I can't go to bed because I'm on a call"

 Me: "Zak, will you have two more bites of cucumber before you get down from the table?"

Zak: "Sure can, I won't let you down!"

Now imagine those in a little South African accent....it's hard to get mad at him (until it's his 8th time out of bed in an hour..then it's quite easy to get "cross")!

His sister, Gia is 7 months old and is the sweetest little thing in the world.  Unfortunately, we just found out she's allergic to milk, peanuts and eggs.  We had a scary reaction from her after she drank formula and spent the afternoon at the doctor's a few weeks ago.  So sad to think of her little body not being able to handle such common foods! I had to learn how to use the epi pen today- not fun.  

Sometimes I think, "do I seriously get paid to hang out with these two all day?"  We go to the mall to ride the train, we go to movies, the children's museum, the train park, and gymboree.  It's so much fun and watching them grow up is such an honor.  I'm one lucky girl!

Group 3 Post 2

Rather than attending a Career Services event, I decided to meet with Maryjo Zunk to discuss something that would be more relevant to me.  In this case, it was my resume for a possible job at NAU in January.

I was sort of dreading this meeting because getting downtown is a hassle, I was tired from working all day and I had no idea what we were going to talk about.  It turned out to be pretty helpful.  We talked about what should be included in my resume and in what format.  In the past, I have used a really basic resume model, and although it has always worked, I knew I needed to step up my game for this "real life" job.

We talked about the importance of matching up words in the job description with the skills that I have and using that in my resume.  She said it's important to make the headlines relevant to what you offer.  For example, don't use "Technical Skills" if your technical skills are lacking, or the job has nothing to do with using those skills. We decided I should have a "Leadership and Development" section because I have a lot of leadership training from various jobs and clubs.  I was a little confused on what I put in the "Education" section as I've gone to 3 universities.  We decided to list ASU then NAU and as a subsection, Queens because it was through NAU.

What stuck most with me is that I have to think about what I have that they need.  I think it's hard to think of yourself that way.  It's difficult to think of specific skills and attributes that you have that can possibly help someone else.  Especially going beyond the typical, "I'm punctual, a good communicator and work well with others."

Group 3 Post 1

For this free write I'd like to talk about one of my favorite events we did at my internship.

The Street Eats Food Truck Festival takes place in January.  It was a coincidence my company was a part of this because I had tried to attend it the year before, but wasn't able to get in due to an overwhelming attendance.  So this year, they added another day and more food trucks.  I think it went a lot smoother.

My company's job in the festival was to hire and book celebrity chefs to do cooking demonstrations.  Since I was little, I've watched the Food Network and the Cooking Channel.  I absolutely love food, cooking and baking, and get more excited about chefs than rock stars.  So, when I found out we were getting Chef Geoffrey Zakarian for one of our chef demonstrations, I lost it.  He is one of my favorite chefs of all time.  And by the grace of God, it was my job that day to show him around, make sure he had everything he needed, and basically hang out with him until it was time for the demonstration.  It was so awesome.  

The best part of the day was as I was walking back to my car, I got a call from one of the girls that works at the company saying we were invited to go to dinner with Geoffrey and his sous chef at Pizzeria Bianco.  I could have died I was so excited.  I raced home to a house full of family over for dinner, excited to tell them I wouldn't be joining them that night.  My sister in law helped me pick out an outfit and I left for dinner.  We got there and he ordered a bottle of wine for the 5 of us and one of everything on the menu, including another bottle of wine.  It was one of the coolest experiences of my life.  The festival went well, and the night was even better.  I got to have a conversation over amazing dinner with someone I've wanted to meet for a really long time. Definitely a once in a lifetime opportunity!

Group 2 Post 4

I worked at my internship about 10 hours a week, between 2 days. A typical day would go as follows:

• Arrive and chat with everyone about how the week has been going.
• Log onto computer and check email
• Follow up emails or phone calls
• Check the "intern to do list"
• PHONE CALLS

I was one of 4 regular interns during my time with R Entertainment.  We had a few come and go but the 4 of us were there for most of the year.  Theoretically, we had an "intern do do list" but I was generally exempt from that because of the work I did on the "Check, Please! Arizona Festival." It was my job to contact the restaurants that had been featured on the show and get them to participate in the festival.  I had almost an entire legal pad of notes for what restaurants were interested, who was a definite participant, who to call back, who not to call and what steps they needed to take after my calls. Once we got the number of restaurants we wanted, I needed paperwork from them.  This included licenses, menus, chef bios and pictures and what type of protein they wanted donated.  We worked on sponsorships from different meat suppliers to get the protein donations.  It was nice to have Channel Eight, Arizona PBS behind us because they are such a reputable company and they had a lot of strong relationships already.  

Because it's a production company, events were a big part of my internship.  There were events that we were basically required to attend and help out with and others were optional- some we were even paid for! We did everything from selling merchandise at concerts to walking around with chefs at festivals to numbering chairs and selling beer. Basically, if someone needed help with something day-of, we were there to take care of it.

Group 2 Post 3

Right now I'm writing in this blog because I'm avoiding a 6-8 page paper I'm supposed to write.  I have major senioritis and my motivation is in the negatives.  I really hope that if I take a break and work for a year or so before grad school I don't just say, "man I love not having to ever think about homework, I should never go back to school" because that would be something I'd totally do.

Okay let's see.  Something I think in theory I'd like to do some day is own a bakery/flower shop.  Two of my favorite things all rolled into one.  I think going to pastry school would be amazing (and expensive).  I took an intro to business class at NAU and swore I'd never own a business in my life after it.  But you can hire people to do the boring math parts, right? Cool. So my bakery would include yummy pastries and breads made from scratch.  Interesting flavor profiles, too.  Not sure what they'd be yet, but interesting and chic.  I would also sell baking supplies.  So like flour from a local mill, stuff like that.  We would also serve coffee and tea, also local.  We'd have a few tables inside and out as well.  The flower shop would sell individual flowers so you could make your own bouquet or we could design them for you.  The whole place would smell delicious all the time.  The decor would be clean and simple. Pastel colors with white so the flowers would pop.  I think about this place when I'd rather not think about what I'm supposed to be, i.e., homework.  I see this happening once I'm retired.  I'm hoping I can retire when my mom did (early 50s).  I'd open this little place up and spend my days baking and arranging flowers.  What more could I ask for? Oh, I know, someone to do all the accounting and cleaning :)

For now, I'll continue with homework and leave that little dream for many years down the line.

Group 2 Post 2

This free write post is about my college experience.

My first two years of college, I attended NAU.  I LOVED it.  The people were friendly- so friendly they would just smile and say hi to you on the street and wouldn't think twice about it.  The campus had a real cohesive feel.  I worked in undergraduate admissions and was an orientation leader and was part of an all-girls community service group as well as my freshman hall association. I was a biology major my freshman year- I had wanted to be a marine biologist from the time I was 5. I attended Sea World Camp, ocean camp at Catalina Island, went to countless aquariums and watched/read everything on marine biology. But once I got into college, I realized there's so much out there to learn about.  I wanted to see what else I could be good at.  One of the reasons I chose NAU was for their participation in the National Student Exchange program. I planned to spend a year in California or Florida getting specific marine biology education.

So I change my major to "undecided."  This made me the butt of many jokes, but I didn't mind. I still thought it would be cool to go on a student exchange.  The summer between freshman and sophomore year my entire family spent a week in New York City in a amazing brownstone apartment on the Upper West Side.  It was a dream come true.  I still don't know how we scored that place at the price we did! I thought it would be the perfect place to live and decided I would do my student exchange there.  My suite mate at the time also thought it would be cool to live in Boston as she had some family she didn't know that well there.  We both got in and couldn't be more excited.

Because not every school participates in NSE, the closest I could get to Manhattan was Queens College.  My experience in Queens could fill an entire book, but I'll condense it into a few sentences.  I had TERRIBLE roommates who fought constantly, making being in my apartment horrible.  Getting to the city took an hour including a walk to a bus stop, a bus ride, and a subway ride.  The closest grocery store was Target- a walk to a bus, the bus ride, and a 15 minute walk to a mall that Target was in.  I quickly learned that having my own car at home was quite the luxury.  I learned that semester that I'm capable of doing things on my own.  Before that, I was never alone.  I had my parents, I had my best friend of 14 years, I had my suite mates and other friends.  There's nothing like getting dropped off in an unknown city without knowing a soul to make you feel alone.  But I got through it.  It was not glamorous, it was not the time of my life like so many of my friends' experiences abroad.  It was terrible and I hated it.  But I grew so much from my time in New York.  And looking back, I had some really incredible moments.  And I miss the city (not Queens) like crazy.

My major in Queens was Urban Studies.  It was something I didn't even know existed until I looked at their classes.  I had one really amazing teacher that sparked my interest in the subject.  I realized this was something I could see myself studying for the next 2 years and realized I couldn't do that at NAU.  I had to make my first major life decision and decide to leave the place I loved for ASU.

Now, my experience at ASU has been quite similar to my experience at Queens College.  Everything that could go wrong at both schools, has.  I try to give it a chance here, but literally everything has been a struggle.  Between admissions, advising, class selections and graduation, there have been problems all along the way.  It's frustrating because working in admissions and orientation at NAU, I know how these processes are supposed to go and that's not how they happened.  The silver lining in this, is that I want to take these bad experiences and use them as fuel to bring order to universities like these.  I have decided that I want to attend grad school to get a masters in student affairs.  I've seen a school run like a well oiled machine, and I have seen two schools run like chickens with their heads cut off.  As a student at all three, I can definitely tell you which is more inviting.

Group 2 Post 1

The company I interned for was R Entertainment.  They are a production company specializing in booking artists for casinos, culinary events and managing tours (comedy, concerts, etc).  As an intern I did a lot of behind the scenes work, as well as work day-of.  For example, my biggest project was with Channel Eight and their 'Check, Please! Festival at CityScape.'  It was my job to call all the restaurants featured on the show to get them to participate.  I made spreadsheets of who we contacted and what forms we needed form them, acted as a liaison between the restaurants and the company and answered any questions they had, as well as help with set up, clean up, and anything in between on the day of the festival.  This even included calling and running to 3 different Target stores and Ikea to look for a grill pan for a picky chef!  Many day-of activities they asked us to do were making sure chefs or artists or bands had everything they needed, making sure they were on time for their appearances, numbering 1,000+ seats for concerts, or coordinating where vendors were set up.

In case anyone is interested, here's a link to their website :)
http://r-entertainment.com/

And if you read this before September 15th, you should vote for the Check, Please! festival in the "best culinary festival" category for the Phoenix New Times!
http://readerschoice.phoenixnewtimes.com/

Group 1

Hi I'm Natalie Olson. I'm an URB major with a certificate in special events management.  I'll graduate in December!  Three goals I would like to achieve through this internship are:

1. A better understanding of the process behind creating an event
2. Create personal connections with professionals in my field
3. Create, work on, and carry out an event