Gainesville

Mom and I got up here last nite.

Today, I don’t have to be to work until 1pm, so Mom and I went to Micanopy. It’s “old Florida” at its finest.

We strolled around town and visited a few shops – it was early, so not much was open.

Afterwards, we headed back to Gainesville for lunch. We happened upon Bistro 1245 – very good!

Then mom dropped me off for work while she went back to the hotel to lay at the pool with Auntie Gayle.

More drama surrounding the Viz install. The technician was having travel issues and would likely not land until our work day was over.

So Steph and I moved on with our day.

When I was done working, I went and got mom and Auntie Gayle. We went looking a place the hotel staff suggested, but never found it. Instead we found a Flying Biscuit. Since I had just been there, I was excited to share it with them.

Well… it wasn’t exactly the same as it was in Charlotte, but it was still yummy.

Afterwards, we went back to the hotel for some wine and girl chat.

Fort Myers

Spent the last 3 days with my parents; we went on the boat, which is always a highlight for me.

Tomorrow evening, mom and I are driving up to Gainesville. My game is there this weekend. Auntie Gayle is meeting us there on Thursday. Mom and her are having a “girls weekend” while I work.

September 1st – 4th

Columbus > Atlanta > Athens, GA > Fort Myers
Louisiana Lafayette vs Georgia

It’s here!!! SEC Football!!

I am sooo excited! After all these years of Big Ten and Big East football, I finally get to spend football season in the South! So many new towns to visit!

Flew to Atlanta on Wednesday afternoon. We have 2 set days this week since we are launching the Platinum look on the Viz and because this is the first time that the Charlotte office has 4 Viz football shows each week.

Had to stop halfway to Athens at a Panera so I could get online for the Conference Call and Webex.

Got to Athens in the late afternoon.

Courtyard by Marriott in Athens… ick!

My room was dreadful and very mildew-y. So much so that they had a portable dehumidifier in there. I couldn’t do that for 4 night, that’s for sure!

So I went to the front desk and requested a new room. Of course that was no easy task because I had forgotten my room key in the room and got myself stuck in the courtyard. I couldn’t get into the lobby without a room key. Thankfully, there was a lady reading in a chair on the deck, so she let me in.

New room. Time to move all my crap. And I have a lot of stuff because I am going to Fort Myers on Saturday night. Am staying there until Wednesday night.

Got to the 2nd room. Got settled. Ran out to the store and got a few things. Also got lost.

Went to bed early – long weekend ahead!

On Thursday morning, I went for a walk. Great weather!!
Then headed over to the truck around noon.

And the drama began with the Viz….

It was evident that the technician that was sent to our site to install the rack mounted Viz was very green. But, nothing I could do about that!

Steph and I got started on setting up shop. For today, I am using the Bullet that was shipped in. The goal is to move our show over to the rack mounted Viz tonight or tomorrow by lunch.

Meanwhile, back at home, Dave was tending to the tomato worm outbreak in my garden

That is momma worm with a gazillion baby worms on her back.  Ugh!







Various technical issues that I won’t bore ya’ll with. Plus a pretty big
learning curve since this is the first time I am using the new software and new look on the Viz.

Thursday didn’t go as well as we had hoped. The rack mount Viz is still not installed. Using the word “technician” to describe the guy who came from LA for the install – is laughable.

For example, he left parts needed for the install, in his hotel room. Why?

Thursday evening, Steph and I walked to downtown Athens. We met up with Steve and Jeff at a place called Pauley’s.

It’s a crepe place. Huh? I was skeptical, but it had rave reviews!






And… I am sold!
Buffalo Chicken crepe – OUTSTANDING!


Friday…. My “technician” continued to fail miserably at the install. There were questions he was asking me that blew my mind. He truly has no idea what he is doing.

Steph and I fell behind fast. It just takes time to figure out all these new elements, what they look like and how they work.

We stayed late trying to catch up.

On our way back to the hotel, we stopped at “The Varsity” for takeout.

Mmmm.. grilled cheese!







Got to my room – called Anne to update her on our lack of progress and issues.

Then talked to my friend Amy to see how things went at her site today.

Oh dear – I have to get to bed! Have to be up in a few hours!


Saturday – Game Day!

Needless to say, I am using the Bullet today as the rack mounted Viz is still not functional.

Steph and I took some time at breakfast to check out the stadium

Dave had mentioned the term “between the hedges” a few times this weekend and I had no clue what it meant. Now I do.

There are hedges on both sidelines.

And then it was time to check out Uga’s house.

Well, right now it’s actually Russ’ house.






Uga I first graced the sidelines in 1956. The 7 dogs to follow have all been from the same line of pure white English bulldogs owned by a family in Savanah, GA.

Russ is a stand-in dog as Uga VII died unexpectedly to a heart condition in November 2009.
Russ is the half-brother of Uga VII.

Uga VIII is in training and will debut later this season.

The view Russ has during the game from his house:

We also paid our respects to all the previous Uga I thru Uga VI whom are buried in the end zone.

Georgia is the only major college who buries its mascots within the confines of the stadium.

The game… well it went well considering all the hurdles we had.

Baby steps.

The rack mounted Viz is still not installed. A new technician will be coming to our show next week.

I am completely exhausted! But it feels good to have week one behind us!

On the walk back to the car I took these shots from the street.

The stadium is just in a really cool spot. I don’t know how they ever got it down in there – but it looks awesome!

Now it’s time to head back to Atlanta.

The drive sucked. Should be about 1.5 hours; but it took almost 3. And I waited for an hour after the game had ended before I left.

Got checked in and headed to the SkyClub.

While sitting in the SkyClub, I realized I had left a bag in the rental car.
Crap! There wasn’t enough time to go back to get it, so I attempted to call National.
Which, like most things in my life, turned into quite the saga!

Landed in Fort Myers just before midnite.

When I went out to my room, mom had left one of Madison’s favorite toys on my bed.

August 26th – 29th

Rock Hill, SC

High School Football
9 Hoover (AL) vs Byrnes (SC) – ESPN – Noon ET
South Pointe (SC) vs Northwestern (SC) – ESPNU – 4 ET












On Thursday afternoon I flew to Charlotte. Drove to Rock Hill, SC, which is only a few minutes over the border.

My long time friend Mark, who just moved to Charlotte, joined me for dinner at the Chili’s next to the hotel.

It was nice to catch up and talk about the upcoming football season.

Friday was our set day. About half of our SEC Football crew was here this weekend. We also are using “our” truck for the season.

This weekend we are using the Duet, since it’s High School football. However, my Viz is being installed on the truck today/tomorrow.

This weekend is the debut of the new look on the Duet. So there was a huge learning curve! Stephanie and I both attended the seminar, however, the disk will be a work in progress for several weeks.

We spent a lot of time taking notes on what should be added and changed. And even more time figuring out how to use a lot of the shells!

Since we felt that we were falling behind fast, I ran out to grab us some lunch.

Very tasty!






We spent the rest of the afternoon building away.

That evening, I went with my friend Mike over to Stephanie’s house for a cookout. It was very nice – but we couldn’t stay late as we have an early call tomorrow!!

Saturday morning came fast!

Double header football is always a long day. Even if it is High School football! (shorter quarters)

Our catered breakfast was across the street at the American Legion post.

It was awesome!

It was staffed by American Legion volunteers. Everything was homemade and delish! Right down to the sliced tomatoes from one of the ladies’ garden. It was really cool to hang out and talk with the volunteers. They were all super sweet.

Walked back to the truck.

Before we knew it, it was kickoff!
Between games, we had a quick break. We had Chick-fil-A catering. I kinda like the new spicy chicken sandwhich.

Game 2 started and … ugh. I am tired!!

Side note… there were issues with installing my Viz. The wrong size of brackets were sent so it can not be installed until next week. Bummer :(


I talked to the appropriate people and made sure that an additional Viz was being shipped next weekend, so I would have one to work on, while the permanent one was being installed.

After the game, Stephanie and I worked on our notes to send back and then parted ways.

I headed over to Shannon’s. She had pizza and wine waiting for me!
We stayed up late watching TV.

On Sunday, we met Mark for a late breakfast at Flying Bisuit. Oh my!
Totally worth the wait!

I had some chicken and bricks of grilled Mac & Cheese. Yes, GRILLED Mac & Cheese!

It was Mac & Cheese, cut into a brick and then grilled. I was in heaven! The chicken and biscuit were good, but didn’t compare to the Mac & Cheese!!

That evening, I headed back to Columbus.

Taylor, MI > Columbus, OH

Got up bright and early… just wanted to get home!

It was still raining a bit, but nothing too bad.

Always a welcoming sign….

Stopped at Cracker Barrel on the way home. There is always some new squirrel figurine that I need – so I try to stop every few months.

Was eager to just get home… I have the next days off – then end of my summer. Football starts next weekend and then before I know it, it will be June!

Taylor, MI

Tyler, TX vs Chinese Taipei

Well…  the forecast is not in our favor.  Looks like it is going to be a very, very, very long day!

Rain, rain, rain, rain…

Being a little league field, there was not much the grounds crew could do.

The start of the game was delayed 2 hours, 47 minutes.

Which was actually good, because it allowed us to catch up on building graphics.

We started and stopped the game a few times during lightning. 

It was just a really, really long day!

15 hours to be exact.

Taipei defeated Tyler 9-1

Taylor, MI

Got on site only to find that my Viz had been damaged in shipping. The machines are mounted in rack that is inside of a bright orange shipping container. That container is called a “Bullet”. It’s allegedly bullet proof. But not airline proof!

The computers themselves didn’t appear to be damaged, so I was optimistic.

Thankfully, I was on a Lyon truck so my boys were quick to help me set it up to test it out.

It came up fine – the damage was just cosmetic.
Whew!

The next challenge was dealing with a graphics package that had not been used since the Women’s College World Series back in June. It was a mess then and even messier today.

Add on to that – a newbie AP!

Seems to happen every year on this event. They send me an AP that has done maybe 1-2 games, and typically knows nothing about baseball. For those of you who really know me, when I am the resident expert about baseball, you know it’s bad!

Thankfully, he was really sweet and was trying very hard. That’s all I ask.

We got thru our set day; there is a lot we can not do because the teams in the Championship game (our game tomorrow) are not determined until all the games on Friday are played. And even then, we only know one of our teams.

In the evening, I walked across the mall parking lot and ate dinner at a Bravo.

Sent a few emails and then headed to bed.

Columbus > Taylor, MI

In the late afternoon, I packed up the car and headed to “that state up North”. One of my least favorite trips.
I know, it sounds bad...  it's my birth state.  And I do still have some family living there...  and many buried there.  I can't really explain it...  I just hate it there. 

Could it be living for the past 14 years amongst Ohio State fans?  It's no secret how much they hate Michigan!

When people ask where I am from, I always say, "I am from Florida, but live in Ohio."
I guess maybe it's cuz I lef

Am working this weekend in Taylor, Michigan – it’s outside Detroit.

Junior League World Series – have done it a few times over the years.

Got up there, got settled and ordered room service.


At least it was a better  hotel this year :)










Exciting life!!

Charlotte > Columbus

Mid-morning I headed back over to the office. The Viz’s were still set up, so I wanted to go back over and play around on them for a few hours.

I was able to figure a things out.. and get frustrated about a few things that have changed.

Went to lunch with several friends from the office and then raced back to Shannon’s to pack and hit the road!

Slept on the flight back.

Charlotte

When I woke up, I may have used Shannon’s name in vain. It was NOT a good morning.

I picked my friend Amy up at her hotel at 7:45am for breakfast.

We headed over to the office for our College Football Viz Seminar.

We learned a lot!
The new Viz software and graphics look are very different!

It was a great day, full of endless information. So glad I had this opportunity!

After the seminar, Amy and I visited a few of the departments before heading over to Shannon’s. The three of us walked across the street to a burger place to meet up with a few of the other people in town for the seminar.

Lots of gossip ensued!

Afterwards, Shannon and I headed back to her place and watched TV for the rest of the evening.

Minneapolis > Charlotte

Got to Charlotte in the mid afternoon.

Went to Harris-Teeter for groceries and headed to Shannon’s.

I made my chicken bruchetta sandwiches and she taught me a 2 new recipes for sautéed corn with basil and roasted asparagus. Yummy!

The wine also flowed as the evening progressed.

We watched all of her silly reality tv shows.. I was sooo lost!

Went to bed at a somewhat decent hour.

Brainerd, MN > Minneapolis

August 14th – 15th












It’s good to be visiting this crew again so quickly! As I have mentioned before, they are such a wonderful family!

Got settled in quickly and started the day.

Saturday went well.

In the evening, I stayed in again. Another storm was rolling in.

Here is the view from my balcony

And here comes the rain again…

Sunday came fast. Long day followed by a drive back to Minneapolis. Wanted to get back there since I have an early flight in the morning.  Thankfully, my friend Rich rode with me.  That made the drive go much easier!

Another great weekend spent with one of the best crews out there!

Charlotte > Minneapolis > Brainerd, MN

Started out the day by having breakfast with my friend Anne. Always nice to catch up!
Headed back to the hotel to pack and get to the airport.

Flew from Charlotte to Minneapolis, then had a 2.5 hour drive up to Brainerd. Which turned in to a 4.5-5 hour drive. Severe weather, power outages and a recent tornado had the roads a mess!

I arrived at the resort in the late afternoon, which was very disappointing. It was a beautiful resort and this was my once chance to check it out. It’s the kind of place you want to take your family to in the summer for a few weeks. Tons of activities and lakes - Maddens on Gull Lake.

Of course we stayed in the old section that was make shift hotel rooms; not the luxury condos.

When was the last time you saw an elevator like this:

Elevator "artwork" - the one on the left is a shotgun with shells laying next to it.  Classy!

I assume they used to be small hotel rooms and then they took the dividing wall out because I had 2 bathrooms and 2 closets.  (no photo - duh!)

I quickly went outside for a walk because I could tell another storm was moving in.

Didn’t get very far before the rain set in.

Early day tomorrow, so I ordered room service and called it a night!

Charlotte

Crazy busy day!

Met Steph for breakfast at 7:15am. She will be my football AP this season, so we got together for a little “team building”.

Got to the office around 8:40am and made my way to the conference room. It’s always so awesome to visit the office. So many people there that I have known for all these years. And they all make me feel soooo welcome! Always just a great experience all the way around!

During the seminar, I got to meet a few of the other operators and APs that I have heard about over the years, but never met. Which is always so much fun!

The seminar wrapped up mid-afternoon and I wandered around the office, visiting various departments. I am coming back next week, so I knew I didn’t need to try to visit everyone today.

Afterwards, I headed back to the hotel to catch up on email real quick. My uncle Eric, whom lives about 1 mile from the office, was coming to pick me up at 6:30.

We headed back to his place for a few beers and then went to dinner.

Got back to the hotel around 11p.

Wow! What a day! My head is spinning!

Columbus > Charlotte

Got in to Charlotte in the late afternoon.

Got settled at the hotel and then met up with a few friends from the ESPN Charlotte office for drinks/dinner in the hotel lobby.

I am here for a graphics seminar for football season. They are debuting a new look on the Duet platform. I am only doing one weekend of football on the Duet – but because I do so much work for the Charlotte office, I was asked to attend anyway.

I am very eager to see what’s in store!

August 4th – 10th

Columbus

After mom and dad headed back to Florida, I was busy working on a project for my friend Rick. He is launching a new company (kinda like a talent agency of sorts) in the coming weeks and he had this huge photo shoot. His wife is my best friend AND responsible for me living in Columbus (she hired me back in 1996 at our former job).

Anyway, he asked me do craft services, which is something I absolutely LOVE doing, but it’s a huge undertaking. In the TV/Film world, ‘craft services’ is Latin for “catering”.

I spent several days planning the menu and then shopping at various stores to keep within the budget. I had a blast!

The photo shoot turned into a 20 hour day! But it was so much fun! I was doing something I loved, with people I loved. It was so awesome to be spending a SATURDAY not only WITH my friends, but also HELPING my friends. It’s something that I rarely have a chance to do.

In the days after, I was able to catch up on a few things around the house.

I also got to go visit some other long time friends, Eric & Stacia. I had dinner with them and their adorable boys. I worked with Eric for 5 years at my former job and Stacia is a client of mine.

It has been a busy, busy, busy week – but oh how wonderful! I wish I could have more weeks like this – spent with friends!