Celebrities

Friday, January 15

Lesson of the day: you can have fun at work.

Today (well I guess it was yesterday since I am writing this late), we had the morning to relax and what better way is there to relax than running? Not much, so Jeni, Megan, and I ran along the boardwalk of Fisherman’s Wharf and ran into some affiliates of the Milwaukee Bucks (or at least we think we did…Megan is positive that they are two players). After grabbing a quick bite to eat and showering, the group headed off to Union Square for shopping, eating, and a spot on the radio (more on that later).

The first stop on our whirlwind adventure was to a shop were I got souvenirs (I can’t mention the name because then it wouldn’t be a surprise). Then we window shopped at stores with prices we couldn’t afford after finally deciding we wanted to go somewhere we could actually feel comfortable in. We settled on searching the seven stories of the Nike store. After a bit of shopping, we headed to the corner of Stockton and Geary to meet the rest of the group.

It was near the ice rink that Megan and I found our next step to stardom…the radio. We were minding our own business when two guys from Movin’ 99.7 asked us to say a few lines for some spots on the radio. Five minutes and a few “Movin’ plays the music I want to hear” later, we were on our way to the first meeting of the day at Porter Novelli.

Amazing does not even begin to describe Porter Novelli and the meeting with Karen. Just to give a little taste, the meeting started off with introductions which included our favorite cereal (Waffle Crisp) and ended with a brief tour that showed research for a video game by playing it in the middle of the office. The meeting simply instilled an even greater interest in the public relations field and sparked a curiosity about consideration of entering a PR agency.

Karen, who works with the social media team at Porter Novelli, highlighted the importance of social media (Facebook, Twitter, etc.) to all of their clients, not simply the tech-oriented ones. The fact that all products and services can be promoted cost effectively on-line showed me that using social media in PR will be the future for many clients.

Although our meeting was rushed, I greatly enjoyed it and am excited about my future prospects if and when I enter the PR world. The group hurriedly walked a few blocks until we reached Creative Commons, a nonprofit organization that helps artists share their work by licensing specialized copyrights to pictures and/or documents that are on-line. Going to Creative Commons helped me realize that the world of the internet has restrictions, but that I can share my work with others. I had never thought about the legal side of business or entrepreneurship until that meeting and am glad that I had the opportunity to learn about it.

After heading back to Union Square, Megan, Kiflu, and I waited patiently while Pyz shopped in the Levi store before our stomachs started talking and we went in search of food. Again, I was trying new things and got the clam chowder in a bread bowl at Boudin Sourdough Bread. Let me just say, although there were clams, there was also potato and the bowl was delicious.

Dinner ended and the four of us headed back to the hotel to meet our other counterparts to begin a night of laughter and celebrity meetings. Megan, Pyz, Jeni, Aaron, Jacob, Drew, and I headed to Bus 30 to catch a ride to the Purple Onion, a famous comedy club. SFSketchFest was in town and we waited in line for about an hour before we were let in (it was standing room only). The wait wasn’t bad at all seeing as how Robin Williams walked past us to get right into the club.

The entire night was one laugh after another. We ended up staying for the next show, Joke e Oke, a sort of karaoke but with stand-up. Robin Williams also stayed for the show so in between we took pictures and chatted about our favorite acts of the night. The crowd was a lot smaller for the second show and we were able to sit directly behind the three celebrity judges for the night. The judges continually looked to us for opinions on whether or not their jokes were funny which they were. I can honestly say I have not laughed so much in one night.

The best of the night was the Chris Rock impersonation by the first contestant and eventual champion, Allie. Other highlights were Kazumi and the guy who didn’t read anything off the screen, but instead proceeded to attempt his own act which failed miserably (which was of course hilarious…especially the judges comments during his time slot). It was a blast including when Jacob offered to count one of the judges head rings (he was pretty old).

Since we got back to the hotel pretty late and we stayed up talking about all the fun we had, I didn’t get an opportunity to write about it that night. Yet, we were up the next morning perky and ready to ride.

Saturday, January 16

Lesson of the day: communication is always important (especially when riding a tandem bike).

The goal of Saturday was to ride across the Golden Gate bridge; however, I, being in my try-new-things attitude, decided to try something new and ride tandem with Megan. Let's just say, it was an experience. Our takeoffs were a little rusty at first, but by the time we got to the bridge, we were pros at riding tandem. I owe it all to Megan seeing as she was the one to steer and brake and shift gears (I seem to have trouble with bikes so I thought it best not to be responsible for another person while I am steering). The views were beautiful and we only got out of sync twice (which I am still impressed by). To top it off, we headed to a lighthouse in which it is straight up hill for the first part. After deciding to not continue, we talked to a local rider who was quite impressed that we even made it up the hill, let alone doing it on a tandem...we were pretty proud and decided to head back.

Jeni and I wanted to go to Sausalito, so Megan took Jeni's bike and I had a new partner. Once again, there were a few rough starts, but we kept communicating when to pedal and such that it worked out. Jeni shopped for a while and then we headed back under a press for time before we had to head to Alcatraz. We took a scenic detour on the way back and rushed to get ready but made it in time...once again very impressive.

Alcatraz was quite depressing on the night tour and creepy. The ferry out to the island was relaxing and then we started the climb up to the cellhouse for an audio tour. The views from the island were magnificent until it started raining which added to the gloom. I took a special tour about Al Capone and then headed back to the mainland where food awaited! I decided I had been adventurous enough that day and opted for a hamburger at Wipeout. After being fueled, we shopped around Pier 39 before heading back to the hotel to start Shawshank Redemption where we all fell asleep.

All in all, it was a great two days and I can't wait for more fun and explorations when we head to Menlo Park tomorrow.

Unitl next time,
Kaitlin