The Year of Amy

It just occurred to me I had The Year of Botti but haven't taken the time to have The Year of Amy. I think that starts now. In actuality The Year of Botti was all about me, not him. I miss it. I kind of miss blogging. It was pretty expensive to jaunt across the country and I felt bad about leaving George Bennett for over 36 hours. Not a very good mommy. But I needed to do that for me.

I'm sitting on a patio (ok, a lanai) of a multimillion dollar home of someone I met once in Vegas. Friend of a friend kind of thing. The view is spectacular. Breathtaking. Something even Instagram can't duplicate. You have to experience the wind, the clapping of the palm tree leaves, the tiny specs in the ocean that are huge boats and yachts, the smell of fresh air. Im' on a hillside overlooking the pacific. I hear a tiny thump. I look off in the distance and see a couple of whales breaching. They're smashing their tails on the water and about 10 seconds later I can hear it all the way up here.

yesterday I went deep sea fishing. One of the most amazing things I've ever done. I got a fish to bite but lost him. Once I got into the seat I feel like it was 10 minutes of reeling. It was really probably only 3 minutes. Whatever. It was cool.

I also went snorkeling. I wasn't going to do it. I felt dumb and I knew I'd have trouble in the water. But I said fuck it and went against my instinct and dove in. I'm so glad I did. Not just to say I did it and not even to see the fish and coral. I did it because I wasn't going to. Make sense. I was more proud that I did it when I didn't want to than any beauty down below. Ok, it was cool and I did enjoy it. Hell, I'm never gonna see any of these people again.

The captain was cool. Good looking too. You could tell he was hot when he was younger. Kinda reminded me of Billy. Or what Billy will look like in 20 years. Tan, white teeth, younger wife. You get the picture.

I have no idea why these people are being so kind to me and generous but I'm just going with it. I have a feeling that these women (and men) are not among the .5% or even the 2% but definitely up there. Do I want this life? I don't know. Prob not. It's not really me. Don't get me wrong. The lifestyle is great but I don't think this is for me. Or maybe it will be in 20 years. I kinda see the DG girls becoming them more than me. I took a different path. I'm ok with it. I just have to figure out how to let someone into my life. I'm single for a reason. Because I put up barriers. Plenty of people who look like me found the love of their life, or even a boyfriend for fuck's sake. I can too. I just haven't tried. I think this is the year I try.

I don't know if I'll be different when I get back to Vegas. I'm sure a part of me will. I did this for me. I have to remember that. I don't have to tell a soul where I am/was. And really, no one actually gives a shit. That's the truth.

So almost a year to the day that I ended The Year of Botti (sort of) I find myself seeing him one more time in my house - the MGM Grand Garden Arena.


Over a year since I've been @ MB. In thinking about it, the first 2/3rds were ok. Looking back, the beach was actually the highlight of the year. The fall has been nothing short of miserable. I'm pretty sure it's a combo of things but I attribute most to the atmosphere there. People ask me all the time about why I don't like it. It's so hard. Putting things into verbal words

The Great American Juicer Experiment III

I've been juicing now for 23 days. I've missed a total of 3 out of those 23 days but bought xxxx juice so I still downed the goods. It's been pretty easy and since I've been doing it for over 3 weeks it's now just a normal part of my routine. My pal Brian told me I need to ditch the Black & Decker and get a Ninja. Doubt I'll do that until this one breaks. Not really in the mood to spend $150 on a gadget. 

07.06.12 Chris Botti @ Smith Center - Las Vegas, NV

Smith Center - Reynolds Hall

Aside from the intimacy of seeing Chris Botti at the Blue Note, this may have been the best Botti show I've seen, sans orchestra. Granted, I haven't seen as many shows as some but I've seen my fair share. 

Botti in the audience

The Smith Center is beautiful at worst. I'm a venue brat at the MGM Grand Garden Arena so I have a fine eye for event management. Their staff was amazing and gives me ideas on how to improve the arena. Granted, they've prob only got 50 employees and I have over 300+ but given the way they took care of me, I learned a great lesson. Great lesson. Only they know what I mean when I say a sincere, "Thank you."

On stage at Smith Center

Botti is a ridiculously great performer. Yes, he's a genius at the trumpet, grammy nominee, sought-after entertainer, blah blah blah - but what makes him a great 'performer' is his relationship with his audience. He's warm, familiar, funny, kind and giving. Like the perfect boyfriend. And beyond that is what he does to his audience. His temperament makes the rest of us want to make friends with our seat-mates. I have no idea how this happens but it does. At my first 2 shows I was so vain as to think it was me who made this happen; the people sitting next to me wanted to talk to me because I was so charming. It wasn't until 4-6 shows later that I realized it was him who made this environment happen. I'm just an average schmo. Botti makes the camaraderie. That's a talent. The naive me would say he doesn't even know he does this but he's a marketing machine. He knows. Otherwise he wouldn't be as successful as he is. Smart man. Smart tour manager. Smart agent. 

Backstage @ Smith Center 

I could babble on an on about his great performance, the set list and the amazing ensemble but - been there, done that. What made this show extraordinary was the sound and the atmosphere of the Smith Center. I will never pay for a Botti show anywhere else in Vegas unless he's playing the Smith. No disrespect to my colleagues at Station Casinos but you simply cannot beat an orchestra hall. Cannot.

He's so accessible

On a personal note, I had an amazing time. Botti's tour manager Jeremy was nice enough to give me a quickie tour of the place before the show and do a quick M&G with his artist. I put my foot in my mouth (shocker, I know) by saying to him something like, "Go kick some ass tonight!" I don't think Botti appreciated my vulgarity given the fact there were other people in the room, including a little old lady, but he was a good sport. 

I sat next to an amazing couple who couldn't say enough about Botti. "I told my grandson I was going to see Chris Botti. He was like, 'who'?" He wanted to bring him to the show to let him hear a different genre of music but it wasn't to be… this time. They were prob 55-ish, successful, articulate, adorable, unpretentious & fun. I love meeting people like this. It's not often you see this calibre of concert-goer at, say, Deadmau5.

Back to the show… there were some regular faves like The Very Thought of You (with 'the snaps'), Hallelujah, The Look of Love & My Funny Valentine & Nessun Dorma but he also had some of his new stuff from the album Impressions. As many times as I've seen Botti, I never bore of him. It's like peeps following the Grateful Dead or Dave Matthews or 311 - only we bathe & don't smoke pot. It's not necessarily Botti himself; it's the sound & feeling that comes out of his horn and the relationship he creates with his audience. My friends all call "bullshit" when I say this because, let's face it, the guy's gorgeous, that's why scores of girls drag their boyfriends to see this "jazz dude." But beauty eventually fades and you come back to the talent; you come back to the sound. This is why Botti keeps selling out venues across the world. When he's 70, ok, maybe girls won't swoon but he'll have some fucking great stories to tell! (Actually, I still swoon @ Tony Bennett so… maybe? Christ, I named my dog after him - Bennett, not Botti.)

Caroline Campbell & me

After the show I was fortunate enough to get a pic with Caroline Campbell, violinist extraordinaire. Normally I loathe beautiful, blond, thin, talented girls like this but she's so kind and warm, I couldn't help but adore her. Yeah, I'm a jealous, superficial, prejudiced idiot. I admit it. I wish I looked like her and had her talent. But I love being proved wrong. She was not only lovely but put up with my antics. Again, class act. My only contribution is hopefully I can be the butt of a joke they talk about on the road; I deserve it. 

The bow

I know there are only like 5 people who read my blog (especially since I took down all of my posts about the Grand Garden Arena shows) but if you do and haven't seen Chris Botti - go. GO. GO! His ticket prices are affordable, he puts on a truly unforgettable performance and some of his songs will bring you to tears, not in a sappy way but in an I-never-thought-I'd-be-moved-by-music kind of way.

And a very sincere, special thank you to Jeremy - you know why. Love you kid. 

Last Saturday night I kissed one of DQ's buddies. I didn't set out to do this. When I met him he was actually introduced to me as Bren's brother, Derrick. I don't know what happened - actually it was probably all the Sapphire I drank but I remember seeing him for the 1st time and thinking there was something kinda attractive about him. No attractive as in cute but attractive as in a magnet. But it was initially fleeting. I walked into the beach with my Mandalay House credenial and made a beeline for the elevator to the 3rd floor villas. I get up there and see Big Rod. Soon to follow was Bren, Baldizan and Derrick. Bren kind of dished his brother off on Big Rod and me. Apparently all the girls (Bren's and Balrizan's daughters) were in a room up in the hotel and Bren had to get back to watch them. Derrick was left alone - with me. Big mistake. Or best mistake ever. Still trying to figure that out. Anyhow, not sure how or why but we stayed attached to the hip for a long time. At first I kinda felt bad he didn't have anyone to talk to but normally I'd just say fuck it and leave to hang out with Big Rod and the other peeps I know. But this time I didn't. I stuck to him like glue all night. Maybe it was wounded bird syndrome. I saw a helpless man and took advantage of him. Actually I think we both took advantage of each other. We went thru the normal pleasantries. I worked into the convo if he had any kids, a wife, a girlfriend, etc. None of the above. But he's young. Like sick young. 32. That's 8 years younget than me. He's tall, 6'2" bald as an eagle and "in transition" with jobs. He's a substitute teacher at the moment. He wants to be a math teacher and apparently in CA there's a really hard certification test he hasn't passed yet. I think he said. 

Clean Margins

So I wasn't gonna blog anymore but I've got a couple more posts in me so here goes.

My best friend from home Terri Harder launched into the blogosphere with her chronicle Clean Margins. If you like my sensibilities check out her writing. She's like me only smarter, fearless, funny & a great writer. 

06.16.12 Nickelback

What an amazing night. The truth is I wasn't a Nickelback fan. I appreciate them as musicians but it's not my kind of music. I like light jazz. We've had them before at the MGM Grand Garden Arena back in 2010 but I couldn't tell you how that show went. I could prob look back on a blog but if memories of it don't pop into my head upon first thought, then who cares. But this time was different. Not sure why but it was. The entire day was different. It might have had something to do with me having spent much of the previous night hanging with Tequila-guy but that only contributed to my good mood. It didn't have anything to do with my new appreciation for this band.

The day started off quiet which is always good. The more phone calls, emails and texts you get, the longer the day seems to go. I met with their head of security, Chris - again one of the coolest dudes on the planet. Cool, calm, reasonable, respectful - the way you want them all to be. It's a great reflection of the tour as a whole. 

I snap a couple of pics as the stage is being built in the middle of the arena. This is one of my fave parts. It's so amazing to know that it 5-6 hours an entire light rig, stage & all the production elements of a major show goes up like an erector set. Better yet, this thing comes down and goes into specific set cases in 1/2 that time. Simply amazing. If you've never seen this, at the very least, catch it on a youtube time-lapse. 

I didn't pay much attention to the CAD when we went on-sale with the show. I knew there were pods stage right and left with cocktail tables but I didn't notice the massive circular b-stage next to the FOH mix. At some point in the afternoon I head out to the floor, look up and see this thing. Awesome. Jay, my colleague tells me it lowers and spins. Awesome. Can't wait to see this thing in action.

It's a GA floor which means everyone stands. I love GA floors for rock shows. They're such a cool experience and makes it seem much more intimate and old school. In the 7 years I've been at the arena we've never had a problem with GA floors. In fact, it's the opposite. The fans appreciate the space, the freedom and the environment. 

Before I know it we're 15 minutes to doors. Granted this show was a little earlier than normal. Usually we have 6.30p doors with an 8.00p show start but for this one we have 6.00p doors with a 7.00p show start. They've got 3 opening acts: My Darkest Days, Seether & Bush. Actually we're 15 minutes to early entry. This has become the norm for major tours coming thru. You purchase a special ticket package, get some merch, maybe access to a party room with food and drink, a souvenir lanyard and early entry. The kids stroll in quite nicely I have to say. Most of the time they come running in like madmen. These guys are pretty well behaved. No running that I saw. 

So I'm on this ridiculous health kick: no drinking (Yeah, kinda blew that on Thursday & Friday night but more on that later, maybe.), no red meat or eating badly, no smoking - what the hell am I gonna do while the bands are on stage? I've got a novel idea. How about actually checking out some of the concert. I'm so used to taking this stuff for granted that I decided to make a conscious effort to watch as much of the show as I could. And man am I glad I did. I missed all of My Darkest Days because I was busy doing work stuff; missed most of Seether although managed to snap a pic or 2; caught 3 songs of Bush and watched 2/3rds of Nickelback. Have I mentioned what an amazing show this was? 

All thru the week I'd been tweeting from the MGM Grand Garden account and following Bush & Gavin Rossdale. He'd been giving out tics to fans. It amazed me how fan-friendly & accessible he is. During Bush's set he went out into the audience bleachers on the east side, then to the GA floor, then to the west side. Totally hung with the fans. He's in great shape so he ran up and down the isles with ease.

Best part for me was when they hit the b-stage. I couldn't wait for this part. Luckily it was only 4 songs into the set. The arena goes dark, the band heads down the house right trough we create for safety and onto the circular stage. In hindsight I found out the guys from Nickelback are hockey fans and are playing the NHL Awards Dinner which is ironic because the b-stage seemed to be made of the same kind of plexiglass they have attached to the hockey dashers. But I digress. They get up on the stage and up it goes… and then it starts spinning. It was the coolest thing. It just worked for them. Not sure why. Maybe because they were pure rock and the structure was metallic and clear. Who knows. I don't think this kind of thing would work as well for most other bands.

05.27.12 Van Halen @ MGM Grand Garden Arena - Las Vegas, NV

So tonight I received an unexpected gift. Jeremy, Chris Botti's tour manager shot me an email to say they were here @ the MGM to check out Van Halen. Jeremy, Botti's tour manager, Tim, one of his bass players & Sergi, a tour liaison in the Ukraine all popped down to do a quick look-see of the load in. How fun that this time they're on my turf. Loved that. That was earlier in the day. Right now Van Halen is on stage and the trip are out there. I'm gonna pop over to say hi. We joke but there's a fine line between being a fan and a stalker. I like Botti's music. I don't know him, I don't know much about him. I just like his music. But Jeremy I like. He's quite nice in a Canadian sort of way. Tim is a jokester. I liked him a lot. Sergi was sweet too. Quiet. Then again I don't give others much opportunity to speak.

We bumped into Mick and they all chatted a while. Jeremy's been around a while so he knows a lot of the touring guys.

UNCHAINED

RUNNING WITH THE DEVIL

SHE'S THE WOMAN

ROMEO DELIGHT

TATTOO

EVERYONE WANTS SOME

SOMEBODY GET ME A DOCTOR

CHINA TOWN

HEAR ABOUT IT LATER

PRETTY WOMEN

DRUM SOLO

YOU REALLY GOT ME

TROUBLE WITH NEVER

DANCE THE NIGHT AWAY

I'LL WAIT

HOT FOR TEACHER

WOMAN IN LOVE

OUTTA LOVE AGAIN

BEAUTIFUL GIRLS

ICE CREAM MAN

PANAMA

GUITAR SOLO

AIN'T TALKING ABOUT LOVE

JUMP

05.26.12 UFC 146 @ MGM Grand Garden Arena - Las Vegas, NV

UFC 146 at the Grand Garden

Tonight is UFC 146. Nothing remarkable about the day. Same old crap. Sponsors need info the promoter didn't communicate. So-and-so is unhappy with something. Joe Schmo needs a credential. Sally Sue needs a wristband, numbnuts is missing a box because they addressed it to the wrong place. Stuff so mundane that it's mind-numbing. But after the past 2 weeks, I'll take mundane. 

Burt Watson doing his thing

I get in late, around 11.00a. I had my guy Dave in at 9.00a to babysit the kiddies though so I wasn't worried about it. I've made no secret about the fact that I'm not a big fan of the sport of UFC. I appreciate the fighters as athletes and I like doing UFC shows at the Grand Garden because they're pretty simple but would I ever buy a ticket or purposefully go to a show I wasn't working on or going to meet people at, probably not. To me the best part about UFC is Burt Watson. I get to spend a bit of quality time with my dear friend.

Quiet before the storm

So the day rolls along and before you know it it's time for doors. Our production guru on the UFC/Concom side people have said resembles Justin Timberlake so that's what I call him. I look around for JT and my colleague Zippy tells me he's actually not there this time. JT's not here? What the… So we go ringside (or octagonside as the case may be) and we see Al, one of the owners of the production conglomerate Concom. He's a fun dude. The kind of guy you want to be around. Tres handsome, personable, successful, blah blah blah. I finally say to him, "Since JT's not here I don't even know who to ask for doors." He turns around and asks someone on headset. Truthfully, I could have done the same thing. I was just lazy and wanted to keep talking to with Zippy & Al.

Best seat in the house.

I get doors open around 2.45p and the fans trickle in. I head back to my office to work on budgets, staffing, CADs & other housekeeping things for a couple hours. Tomorrow we have Van Halen so this is the perfect opportunity to get a jump on things so I'm not scrambling to do it at 11.00p tonight while I'm trying to leave.

Crowd of 13,000+

At some point I realize I should head out to see some of the show, walk the floor, feel the energy of the event, check in with staff, spot check guests to see if they're having a good time, take some ops pics. Nothing was out of the ordinary or going wrong so I head back to my office to watch the fights on TV & do a little tweeting & FBing. I never get over the palpability of a crowd totally into a show, whether it's boxing, UFC, Buffett, ACMs or hockey. For a girl who doesn't like crowds, this is a funny occupation choice but somehow it works.

Before I gutted the thing

All's well with the event so I grab Trubes & we head up to Seablue for dinner. Bill tells me the special tonight is red snapper, in the water yesterday, flown in this morning. Ok, ok. I'll get it. It was delish but a bit fussy to eat. It's a whole fish so you have to debone it yourself. Not into fussy food. I'm fussy enough. But it was delish once I figured out where the bones were. I mention to Trubes, "Christ, I'm like a surgeon over here." She laughed. "I know, I'm watching you." I wouldn't order it again. I don't mind the eyeballs looking at me, I just don't like working for my food. 

Later I head over to Zippy's office. One of the fights I catch is so brutal that blood is literally squirting from a cut over this dude's nose onto the mat, like someone severed his carotid artery. I couldn't tell you what fight it was. Google or youtube it and you'll find it. The fighter looked like a neanderthal. So gross. But the crowd loved it. 

Main event fighter walk in

Several of the fights end up as first round knockouts. Leaves for lots of dead time in between fights which is good for the bars, bad for 'code blues' which is the code what we use over the radio for when someone pukes. I feel so bad for the EVS crew who has to deal with that. First round knockouts are also great for the venue, early out - and particularly for us tonight - this is critical. We have 7 hours to load out UFC because we have Van Halen loading in @ 6.00a. It never stops here.

Fans lining the fighter tunnel

The post fight presser takes place in the media center. I didn't pop my head in once. No desire. My gal Peggy has it covered. She's amazing. She puts up with a lot of shit and I give her all the credit in the world for being the strong-willed woman she is. She's one hell of a supervisor. I know she's got everything under control so I hang out chatting with my other supervisors going thru what went well and poorly that night. We had some scanning connectivity issues & some credential issues but that was about it. All and all, an excellent night. Bring on Eddie, Alex, Wolf & David...

Watch What Happens

I haven't posted in a while. Lazy writer, perhaps. Mostly busy with work and living life as one does. 

UFC 146 load in

This week we have UFC 146. Pretty much the same as every UFC fight we do on an operational level. Every time they're here though, they seem to have more and more people I don't recognize. I used to know everyone but a handful. Now I only recognize a handful and hardly know anyone. But it really doesn't matter much. Things still get done and we move on to the next show.

Last week we had the 2012 Billboard Music Awards. I'll try and do a post-date recap of that. It ended up not being as awful as I had imagined - even despite having to hang stage left with the fire inspector while Bieber did his rehearsals and continually bumping into him. It was actually a good event to work on overall. But more on that later.

Had dinner with my life-advisor and longtime friend Burt Watson last night at Seablue. I always learn a little more about myself when we have our dinners. He lays it on the line for me - no bullshit. "Amy, listen to me…" he says. He grilled me about the men in my life. I told him I don't speak to Counselor anymore, told him a little bit about Motorcycle-guy; but mostly he gave me guidance on my future, as he always does. "You gotta let it go, baby, and just let it happen. Be patient." I know Burt but patience is not my strongpoint. My dad's been telling me that since I was 4.

The Dolce Diet: Living Lean

We eventually got talking about my current lifestyle. Burt's been a picture of health for a long time but in the past year he started doing something a little different. He hooked up with Mike Dolce, author of "The Dolce Diet: Living Lean." Mike's an athlete himself, a performance coach to many UFC fighters and Burt's good friend. There are lots of health books & trainers out there but if Burt works with him & says I should too, I listen. So naturally Burt hooked me up with Mike as a favor to him. Mike gave me his book to read before we start any consultations so tonight after I get done tapping this post out, I'm gonna start it. 

I'm still being a good girl, walking 4+ miles about 4 times a week (last week only once though because of the crazy Billboard schedule), juicing when I have time (I smartened up and just bought a half-dozen bottles of Evolution juice for those days I can't do it myself), haven't had any alcohol since February 28, down 14lbs since March 1 and haven't eaten red meat or poultry since April 2. Not drinking is not hard. Not eating red meat is not fun. I literally crave steak. Motorcycle-guy is a big health nut too and he's helping to steer me in the right direction - moderation. Something I'm not particularly good at. But I'm trying. He's coming to Van Halen on Sunday to hang so I'll get to see his charming self again. It's fun to like someone again. I'm 40 and I still get butterflies in my stomach. He's got a big company bash next month. I wasn't sure when he invited me if he was asking me to go because he wants to see me or just because we are in the same industry and I'm with the Grand Garden Arena. Recent texts lead me to believe it's the former but I'm making sure Zippy & his wife are there in case it's the latter. I don't want to look like a total fool, after all. Motorcycle-guy has my ticket so unless I do something monumentally stupid (which isn't out of the realm of possibility) it should be a fun night regardless of why he wants me there. We'll just have to wait and Watch What Happens.

Now off to bed to read about how I'm going to reshape my future (literally) and rest up before the UFC 146 autograph session, fight club q&a and weigh in at the MGM Grand Garden Arena tomorrow. Truth be told I doubt I'll even see more than 10 minutes of any of it. I'll be working on Van Halen, a couple conventions & Pacquiao vs. Bradley. I'm not a micromanager. My team can run the events. They're the best in the business!

Second Nature

Nights like tonight remind me why I love this business… and it couldn't have come at a better time. 

The day started out like most this week. Typical fight goofiness. Who gets wristbands for the green room? Where do we put 'Joe Schmo' celebrity's security who doesn't have a ticket for the fight? So-and-so needs to be added to the credential list. We need to hold 20 more seats @ the weigh in for the casino. Can we add a banner here? Where's my FedEx shipment? Who gets billed for this? We need a space to do a breakfast meeting. Can you hook me up with parking? I need a bout sheet. Who put the ring cards in my office? I need this CAD and manifest asap. Can you do a map for 'show x'? I need directions to the arena for the VIP party. Can you email me the updated budget for 'convention x'? Blah blah blah. 

Around 4.00p I head up to the fight media center to go meet up with the VP of Public Affairs. Today we have a gaming and tourism tour set up. We do these once or twice a year to give the peeps who promote tourism in Vegas a behind the scenes, comprehensive look at what goes into a major event here at the MGM Grand & the MGM Grand Garden Arena. There are about 40 of them. I give them the schpeel on the fight ops. I've given the speech a million times before. I do walkthrus with clients all the time but rarely are the groups this large. We head to the arena so they can get a glimpse of the boxing ring. That's a big hit. I don't think the HBO lighting crew appreciated us too much because I busted in on them raising the light rig. But they got over it. I took a couple of group pics of them on the ring apron with their iPhones and we were outa there. I did screw up big time though. Floyd Mayweather was doing an interview for HBO along with some press in the stands. I was pretty loud (me? naaa…) when speaking to the group. I'm usually very good about being aware of my surroundings but this time I missed it. Major faux pas. Put it on my karma tab. It's 10 miles long.

We finish up the tour out back by the TV trucks with the senior VP of HBO production telling the group about HBO Boxing ops. He's one of my favorite people on earth. I just love this man - smart, tough, funny, charming & has impeccable taste in food, wine and travel. If I could have anyone's life, his would be high on my list. 

I head back to my office and it's 5.00p. I have no idea where my day went. It's funny. People ask me all the time, "So what do you do?" Recently I had to update my job description and it was such a ridiculous exercise. And I had to put percentages to it. There's no way to accurately come close to doing this unless I put "And other duties as necessary" as 90%. What do I do all day? Troubleshoot, maintain relationships & problem solve. Some days I'm better at it than others. 

Hopcraft & Zopfi

So why do I love this business? Because tonight I had dinner with my girls from HBO @ STK at the Cosmopolitan. Not only did I get to hang with women who are at the top of their game I also laughed my ass off! So fun and funny these gals are to be around. Swapping stories - love it. These relationships make all the idiotic people, stupid situations, douchebag clients, irritating exercises in futility worthwhile. My friend Steve Hopcraft is the executive chef @ STK but I didn't call him to let him know I was coming. I didn't want to bug him. After we order, low and behold over pops Hopcraft. He looked at me like, "I can't believe you didn't tell me you were here." He popped over a couple of times to check on us.

3 deserts, in addition to the cake!

One of the girl's had a birthday today so Chef hooked us up with ridiculous deserts and a cake with sparklers coming out the top. Actually they were more like road flares. They were HUGE! Dinner was a total success all the way around. Hopcraft entertained - as he does. Tonight I tweeted: I love this man. I miss this man. And it's true. I never had more fun than the time I spent @ Seablue when he was the chef there. We finished up what we could and chef asked if we wanted the cake. "Naa, just give it to your guys here." I am still on my health kick but even if I weren't, I'm not a sweets fan and the girls are all staying @ hotels so it worked out well. No cake went to waste. And Tyra the Director of Marketing was so sweet to pick up the champagne.

I've spent the greater part of the past 20 years building professional relationships. It's one of my strengths and luckily it's Second Nature to me; I don't have to work at it. If only I could carry that over into my love life.

My One And Only Love

Oh how I wish I could write about what really happened today. Instead I'm just going to post a link to one of my favorite songs, despite Law & Order SVU linking it to a psychopath on tonight's episode. Introducing John Coltrane & Johnny Hartman's My One And Only Love.