CineYouth Fest

I was so honored this year to be asked to run a Pitching Workshop for the CineYouth Film Festival.  It was so fun!  It was great seeing so many junior high and high school students with their films, exploring their passion for filmmaking, and awesome to see so many supportive parents!

March and April

Running at full speed ahead into spring - we somehow "sprang" forward already yesterday, and now its already almost halfway through the month.

Work is freaking crazy, I have been going full steam ahead with Industry Events and the first event is less then a month away.  Kind of freaking out over here.

I also have been going to Industry parties, any kind of social engagement to invite professionals to Industry Events.  The best ones have cotton candy.

That's Lisa from Women In Film.  Its good to have people to tag team these events with.
And thats about it.  All I do is work.  I have started working on my website but I have no idea what I want my website to actually be.  So its kind of all over the place.
Anyway, there is nothing I would love to do now more then anything then lay under my desk and nap.   But I can't.  But I wish I could.

Oh, and my birthday is coming up - just planned it Here!

I have a Nude colored dress.

I bought a dress from Mod Cloth for the AICP this year.

This is Rob, one of the other Creative Industry Liaison's in the Portfolio Center.
And here is the dress at Christine and Nick's wedding:

It was a super fun wedding, it was on 11.11.11 at the Mayslake Peabody Estate.

Mid October

This semester is flying by.  I can honestly say I haven't been this busy is a crazy long time.  I like being busy, though but it also bums me out because I can't see my friends as much.  I haven't seen Molly since the beginning of summer :(
Things with the family are a little tough.  My dad recently got diagnosed with Amyloidosis.
This is a rare blood disease that occurs when your bone marrow has too much protein.  The fantastic news is that its treatable.  We find out on Monday what type of blood cells are in his protein then we start the treatment.
And I have high blood pressure - I'm sure most people do but I have been running on anxiety for a few months now, and it shows.  I'm working on it, though.
Bill and I celebrated 8 years of knowing eachother yesterday!  Although we didn't actually celebrate - Bill worked late and I made breakfast for dinner and went to bed!
I can't believe its been eight years!  We met at Gold Star.
I wish we would have stopped there for at least one drink yesterday!

I'm an Event Planning Fool!

With the Fall semester up and running, I have events coming at me all over the place.  Check out some of the posters our graphic design student worker has done!

I have to assist tognight for the Crowdsourcing event, and tomorrow I moderate two panels - the Casting Directors (in from Los Angeles) and Gina Rugulo, Talent Manager.
I can't wait until Saturday!

And there goes summer!

How on earth, is it that when you feel like as a kid that summer goes so fast, but as an adult it goes faster? Well, I lost my cord for my camera, and it was a teeny, tiny cord, so I had to do some fast magic to download these pictures.  Anyway, here is the rest of the summer is summary.
Work was mellow during the summer, now we have two new creative liaisons that started in the portfolio center and thus far, barely two weeks it seem to be working out ok.
However, here is the real reacap on life.

My lovely friend Amanda's birthday party!  She's third from the right and one of the coolest people ever.

John & Kadima's engagement party at the Bristol Renaissance Faire....amazing as you assume.

Bill and I at the Ren Faire, what a great and awesome engagement party!

Our lovely Christian and his girlfriend Jackie moved to Miami, and this was his going away party. He is a crazy talented cinematographer, and just a wonderful guy.  He worked at Sip Coffee House and we have known him for at least 5 years.  Hell of a guy, super sad that they moved.    But they're doing well in Miami, for now!

 Oh how I love Denise and Colleen, our downstairs neighbors.  This is Denise at her birthday party, straight off the trolley.  We are honestly blessed to have instant, awesome and amazing great people right downstairs.  It made the summer even funner, and makes it even harder for us to move!

Mr. Bob Sage was in town, Bill's best dude.  He's awesome, and a lovely man who is crazy smart and a wonderful person.  It was so great to have him around for a few days, Bill was over the moon with him in town!

 Ryan and Harper about to eat their birthday cake!

 How are these girls so grown up?  Sofia and Zoe with little Jimmy.  How in the world is Zoe a freshman?  I'm not ready!  I'm not ready!

 News flash!!!!! This hat is going to be on everyone's Christmas list this year!  I mean, how can you not want an Alevizos hat!!!!!!!

Our little bunny Jimmy.  check out those smudge legs!  I love him!  What a joy he is!
Hmm....anything else?  Lets see.  Work. Summer. Love.  Oh wait, sleeping dogs!

How can you not love those faces????

End of Summer Realizations.

Every August, I am the most destitute of the year.  Even more so then Christmas.  However, I am thinking ahead this year and I am working on making my Mom's cookbook which are a collection recipes from my Grandmother, into a cookbook for her.  I'm also adding mine and Amy's favorite recipes.
This is what I have so far: Taste Book. 
However, I'm switching over to Create My Cookbook because that way I can add family photos, and with Taste Book, although that one is fancier and more modern and sleeker, for some reason I can't change the cover.  And that bugs me!

September 1, we have two new Creative Industry Liaison's starting.  My boss, Caroline, is off to get married and move to Boston, so instead of one person replacing her we have two.  One is going to be focused on music and marketing, the other one on design, fine art, photo, illustration and advertising, and I have film, television, radio, dance, theater, journalism, etc.  I'm pretty freaking nervous about this whole thing.  I don't feel like I know enough yet. I came into this position before Industry Night, so it was a different situation then coming in at the beginning of the semester.  It's not like a regular job where you have XYZ tasks at hand, its about planning, attending and organizing events and meeting with students.  But I'm unsure how to handle this but I hope to handle it well.  I'm going to make this job what I want to - this is still my dream job and I want to be 150% for students.  That's the whole point.

And in family life, my dad has to have some serious surgery.  He had a lump removed, we're waiting for the biopsy results, but regardless he has to have surgery to pull up his stomach lining over his esophagus.  It all stems from Barrett's Esophagus which  runs on his side of the family, and its a 5 day hospital stay at Northwestern Hospital.  And having a double hernia removed.  It's a nightmare, and I'm scared.  But we will deal with it when it comes.  :(