General Session Fun

So, I got a GREAT night's Sleep. Thank you Advil PM. General Session is going really well, Everyone is hitting their cues and the video they showed really added to the meeting. At 9:30 AM the security guy rolls into the room and whispers something to the producer type guy. next thing you know, the producer guy walks up the aisle and interrupts the presenter and says something to the effect of...."there is a fire in the hotel and we need to evacuate immediately!"

Wow... not just a fire drill... an actual fire! So, there is a fire exit directly behind my mix position, and we turn off the mics and step out into the warm Florida Sun. 

The group is standing all around the parking lot and someone realizes that they should take a role call of all our people to ensure everyone is out of the hotel. So, they herd us all into this huge tent in the parking lot, and ask everyone to write their name on a pad of paper. At this point, I realize that it might be helpful if the big cheeses could talk to the people and I remember that I have a powered speaker sitting right inside the door by my mix position. Larry and I snuck back into the burning building and grabbed the speaker and a mic, and head back to the tent. The Hotel Security wasn't very happy with us for sneaking back in, but they don't understand that we are about to save the day! In less then 3 minutes, we rocked the setup out, complete with gaffe taped cabling, and hand the mic over to the cheeses. Ladies and Gentlemen... We now are back in General Session. They finish out the last two presenters, and everyone is happy! We saved the world!

Later that day.. the hotel left a voicemail to all the guests explaining what had happened. If you want to hear it.. I posted it here.

http://www.yellowshirtproductions.com/fire.wav

Enjoy

Orlando FL America's Play Ground

Ah Yes, Orlando. Big big hair and make-up applied with a trowel the size of a snow shovel. The smell of people-fat and insecticide. Not enough beer and the world to make Orlando look good in bed. This is Scotty's synopsis of this town, and I couldn't agree more! I got down here on Sunday bright and early... 9:00 am flight, on the Florida soil by 11:15, and a driver standing at the baggage claim escalator with my name on a sign to take me off to the hotel so I can start working. 12:15 PM.... Ready to work.. but there is another group in the room, so we grabbed some lunch and payed 20 bucks for a Club Sandwich. Welcome to Disney World. 

3:00 PM, Meet to unload the truck and find out that 9:30 PM is more likely, because thats when the existing convention is going to load out. Time to get some food, watch the Giants win over Green Bay and get a nice night sleep for a 6:00 AM wake up call. 

4:00 AM... Still laying here in the dark wide awake... haven't gotten a wink of sleep. Alarms are set for 6:00 AM. I am totally in trouble. 

1.5 hours of sleep, and 30 minutes of hitting the snooze button... I feel like I am going to drop. We unloaded the truck and did the setup, and all I want to do is get to my bed. The setup and rehearsals finally ended at 9:00 PM and we grabbed the last bit of food off the clients dinner. Time to sleep (with a little help from Advil PM to make sure it works this time)

January Work

I am headed to Orlando on Sunday for 5 days to do a follow up show to Memphis. After that, I am off to Dallas. These are two of my least favorite cities to work in. At least it isn't Chicago in the winter. It is a high of 65 in Orlando today, and  supposedly a high of 64 in Dallas. The hotel in Dallas is supposedly really close to the airport. the good news is, it will be a cheap taxi ride from the airport. The bad news... There is going to be nothing to do while we are there without paying 50 bucks to get downtown. I got word yesterday that Beijing is back on!

The dates are:

Travel - February 24, 2008
Set - February 28-29, 2008
Show -  March 1-2, 2008
Travel - March 3, 2008

This should be very exciting. I have to do some research as I have not been to China!

New Tools

I am working on my website, and have created a "Tools" page. On here, you will find Audio Visual related tools. Such as Speaker Timers, Alignment Power Points, and Wireless Microphone Frequency guides. Check them out and let me know if you have something I should put up there!

http://www.yellowshirtproductions.com 

Click on the Tools link

Memphis Wrap up

Ok, So, the show in Memphis went well... nothing outstanding in my mind to write about except this:

When you are working at an old hotel, even if it is restored or just extremely nice, the tell tale sign is the load-in! We had to push gear, off the loading dock, through an exhibit hall, up a hallway with a ramp, around a corner, down a hallway, onto a freight elevator, up 1 floor, then down a hallway, around a corner, out onto the carpet in the public space, then down a ramp and finally into the ballroom. They just didn't know how to design the inside space of hotels back then.

Day one in Memphis

Well... I got up this morning at 4:45 am and headed to the airport for a 7:00 am flight. Landed in Memphis around 8:00 am Memphis time, and there was a driver standing in baggage claim with a sign that had my name on it. I Got to the hotel and was surprised that they had a room available for me to check in.

Nice hotel... A little old school with tiny rooms, but nice anyway.

Found the guys and then found out that we aren't going to really load in until noon. 

So, I am sitting in the office watching people trying to get ready for the cheeses to arrive. hurry up and wait.

The ballroom is super wide, and it is going to be interesting.

more to come

When it Rains... It Pours

Well... Amazingly enough, I have been offered 5 gigs this month.

I am headed to Memphis TN the 6th through the 10th, and Orlando the 20th through the end of the month.

I received a call today from a producer that I met almost a year and a half ago. Nice guy.. but it didn't seem like it was going to produce any work. Then, today I got a phone call from him and he offered me 5 days in Greenville SC. I was already booked in Orlando, so I had to turn him down. Thats just no fun at all.... I hope he tries to get me on another show soon!

So, at the end of the day... January looks like it is rockn. Go 2008!