9 to 5

One of the reasons I love my job is ad campaign photoshoots. Bright and early this morning I showed up at Miauhaus studio somewhere in the sprawling mess that is L.A.



The photographer and his assistants were busily setting up.



There were the requisite agency people working on macs.



The stylist and I worked together to pick an outfit for the first model and then White, our makeup artist, got her ready for the shot



The photographer, Nick, was really really cool. The night before at the pre-production meeting he got all fired up about photography and film and what an amazing time it is to be an artist. I think everyone else in the meeting was a little bit "whatever", but I was completely inspired. I've worked with several photographers on other shoots but working with Nick was a unique experience. He worked incredibly well with the models and got great work out of them. He also just had a very fresh eye which was EXACTLY what we were looking for at this shoot. I feel like we totally lucked out to get him.



We made the first model run around and around and around.



And then we stood around admiring how hot she looked and how great Nick's work is



Truth be told there is actually alot of that standing around at a photoshoot



Which is why we were goofing around with the Photobooth on the iMac in the corner of the studio



Our second model came in and Nick gave her a little coaching on her kickboxing



which is harder than it looks



so Arturro stepped in to help



Probably the best thing about models is that they are like lifesize Barbie dolls. So when we got tired of the blue, we put Carmella in a new outfit



Our third model came in to do the stretching execution. I was obsessed with the program the guys were using to capture the images. It's great to see that you got all the shots you wanted almost immediately. It means I'm relaxing tonight knowing the campaign will rock, instead of wondering what we ended up with and worrying about it for a week.



My favorite part of the day was when we thought we were pretty much done but Nick decided to have Saskia do a little bit of kickboxing. And she pretty much nailed it.



Yeah, there are worse things a person could get paid to do.

Truth in advertising

My degree is in Advertising and I currently work in Marketing. It's just been part of my brain for the last 12 years to notice commercials. So I'm pretty picky about what I think is good. I don't like advertising that was probably a blast to make but won't mean a thing to the consumer it's trying to reach. I know in the ad world especially, we all want to do something hip and cool, but the marketing side of me knows that hip and cool doesn't always move product. However. The other night I didn't get to the tivo remote in time and happened to catch the new Jaguar commercial.
It's pretty much just a montage that doesn't show the car very often with a soundtrack featuring one of my favorite Spoon songs, I Turn My Camera On. But it is dead sexy. AND, it made me think, hmmmm, Jag? Because although I did get to drive one for a few weeks when I was a nanny while the family car was in the shop, and yes it was quite a lovely ride, Jag to me says "middle-aged-old-money-overtanned-smoker's rasp-007 wannabe-luxury car". I thought Audi had corned the market on fantasy cars for my demographic. And yet, here I was-watching impossibly attractive British men (they don't ever speak, they might not be British, but if I imagine the kind of man that drives a car this hott, he has to have an accent)prance around to a song I'll bet 99% of the people in my office could never identify but spent some serious quality time in my ipod last summer-and I really, really wanted a Jag. A few weeks have gone by and I'm still thinking about that commercial. It's a good thing I don't have an extra $75K laying around...

Spanishfaster

To steal a phrase from the girls in San Francisco "unexpected visits are the new awesome".

I was driving home from work on Friday feeling a little homesick for Boston. I am so happy to be back in California and I really do love it, but I miss my friends back East. I haven't developed that circle of go-to friends yet here and I was a little bummed out that I would probably end up going to a movie or something by myself.

But then! I got an out of the blue phone call from Mandy in San Diego



saying that Kimberly was in town from D.C. and they would be Orange County later if I wanted to play.



So I met up with the two of them and Mandy's cool boyfriend Ryan at The Yardhouse and ended up talking until 1:15 in the morning.

The next day my newly marrieds Andy and Emily Kane showed up





They were sunburned in funny places after spending some quality honeymoon time in Mexico. So they showered carefully and I even let Em be an honorary Clifford for the night. Then we headed out to make quick work of a bunch of sushi



I like to think of sushi as very integral to my relationship with the Kanes. Emily and I were the resident sushi fiends among our friends in Boston and then the first time I thought perhaps Andy had designs on my friend was the night she helped him make approximately 10 tons of sushi for his metrosexual coming out party last summer.



We went to Cold Stone afterwards because that is what Mormons do. We eat ice cream.

And then we came home to watch whatever was still in our Tivo from the last week. And I noticed that Emily and I really are twins


I love that I moved 3000 miles away and they got married and not one thing has changed. Three cheers for dear friends!

So Long, So Wrong

So it's done. I have had my last soda for the foreseeable future. There was bacon present at my last hurrah. That should clue you in that this particular can of Diet DP was consumed at breakfast. That's right, breakfast. It's a good thing I'm not a drinker because I would clearly be the type to say "it's five o'clock somewhere!" I have given up soda twice, once when I was marathon training and once just to see if I could. Uh, apparently I can't. Although that time I lasted six whole weeks, including four days in Utah for my brother's wedding which typically means my mother starting an intravenous Dr. Pepper drip the moment I step off the plane.

I feel better, look better and run better when I don't drink the dark tasty beverages. So no matter how many caffeine headaches I get, no matter how seductively the fountain vanilla coke at Rubio's beckons, no matter how much I crave the bubbles and the sugar and the sweetness, I am serious about this.

Help me.

Caravan

This weekend I braved about seven hours of this



to get me to this place in St. George to spend the weekend at my grandparents with various siblings and friends.



I got there around 11:30 from California but the Salt Lake crowd didn't get there until about midnight. Emily looked adorable as always. Even though we were all super tired, we stayed up talking until after 2:30.



This is the view we woke up to on Friday morning. So. Freaking. Amazing.

My grandma goes to yoga at the senior citizens center on friday mornings so Tasha and Emily and I went with her. The best thing I have every seen is a room full of old women doing yoga. Since we were good girls and worked out we went over to The Bear Paw and stuffed ourselves with all manner of pancakes and french toast.



After breakfast, Tasha's grandma Bev came over from Mesquite to visit and see the house. We ended up sitting in a McDonald's in town drinking Dr. Pepper and laughing away the afternoon. We rushed back to give her a tour of the house and get ready for a concert at Dixie later that night.



I call this photo "Sea of Old".



I think this photo gives you an idea of what you missed because you weren't at this show.



My grandma's friends thought we were adorable, we thought they were hilarious. It was a good mix.



I took style lessons from Emily and Tasha all weekend.



Afterwards we went out for ice cream at The Blue Bunny. Yum. And then yet another night of staying up too late.



We got up late the next morning and Grandma had breakfast waiting when we straggled out of our rooms. We had big plans to go for a run and do some shopping but then we all started telling stories



And watching home movies (awww, emily has not changed a bit.)



I realize I'm almost 30 years old but I think I could sit like this with my grandpa all day.



We finally took showers and Grandpa took us for rides in this!



Seriously, how cute are these girls?



Tasha and I hopped in the back seat and we all headed off to Cafe Rio to get takeout for Sunday dinner the next day. I know it's the trendiest place in Utah but seriously, those burritos are the greatest things on earth.



Do grandfather's come any better than this one? I submit that they do not.



After we took the food home, we got a little tour of the development where my grandparents live. Emily took advantage of some good photo ops.



Everytime we go to St. George we go to the Pizza Factory in town. My Aunt Barb and her boyfriend Greg, my cousin Lexie and our friends Mike and Jen met up with us there for pizza



and breadsticks



Nice headband Mike.



Afterwards we stopped by Artic Circle to see our other cousin Will. He didn't recognize any of us when we walked in but it was pretty cute when he realized we were all there for him.



We headed back to the house for more staying up way too late talking.



Mike and I did a little dirty dancing



Sunday morning Christopher and Emily's friend Marc showed up after driving all night



Aunt Barb brought Lexie and Will over and we had another marathon breakfast.



Then Tasha and Christopher and I went out for a run.



And Emily and Marc went for a ride on his tandem bike.



Lexie and I tried out the bike a little later.



We were having so much fun that none of us wanted to leave. Ever. It was 10:00 before they finally managed to get us to get rid of us.



I love these people beyond all reason.