The only short story I have ever written.

Little Toy Car

I woke up a little later than usual one morning, but just like any other day the sun filled my room and gave me a sense of a relaxed feeling. I turned over to look at the alarm beside my bed, it read 8:50. My eyes widened a bit more and suddenly rose out of bed, led myself down the hallway, past my son Jake’s room. His bedding was all messed up. There was only one place he could be. I turned the corner of the hall to find him sitting in a ball on the floor, watching his usual morning cartoons.

“Mornin’ buddy,” I said as I proceeded to the kitchen where I always find coffee in the pot waiting for me.

I walked through the other side of the kitchen and sat at the table near our balcony.

We have a beautiful view, our condo overlooks the beach, and it’s always so bright and sunny. You can see sailboats on the ocean and people surfing. I turned on my laptop to check the daily Miami news reports, to see what kind of crime had brewed overnight. Then I checked my emails, a message from Tom, Ted and Bob, my boss saying we had an urgent detectives meeting this morning at 10 AM.
“Gah, as if they didn’t phone me. How often do people go around checking their emails these days anyway,” I thought to myself.

All of a sudden the phone rang; I looked at the caller-ID, it was Bob, my boss. I didn’t answer, though I probably should have. Instead I walked into the kitchen and dumped my coffee in the sink. I placed the mug on the counter, and stood there for a bit as my stomache started to growl.
“Shit, we don’t have time for breakfast.”

My phone laid on the counter with3 missed calls, one text from Bob. It was 9:15 I walked into the living room and told Jake it was time to get ready, no response.

“Dad’s got a cop meeting Jake,” I said, still no head movement from the kid.
I crouched down beside him and said,

“Hey Jake, how ‘bout some McDonalds?” Well that got his attention as Jake immediately looked up at me, eyes all wide and said,

“Yeah!”

He got up and rushed down the hall to his room to get dressed, I followed him and went into my room. I stood there for a moment staring at my closet. I had to dress appropriate for the meeting which I would most likely be late for. At that moment, I heard another ring. I ignored the call, then opened it for a text message and told Ted, I was on my way. I snapped the phone shut and turned my attention to the closet. I grabbed my favorite blue tie, a matching shirt and a pair of pants and got dressed. I grabbed my wallet, keys, badge, and phone from the night table and dashed into the bathroom and called for Jake to join me for our morning ritual. Jake and I would brush our teeth, comb our hair and wash up for the day. Besides, a four year-old needs assistance in the everyday grueling task of grooming.

Jake went back to his room for a few minutes to play with his cars. It was 9:25. I had a few minutes to go to the kitchen to make sure everything was neat and tidy. Kate despises a mess when she gets home. Being a nurse, Kate tries to keep everything in her life clean and organized. So I walked into the kitchen, wiped down the marble counter tops, made sure everything was in the trash, and placed my empty mug that was left on the counter, rinsed it under the tap and placed it in the sink. Then I quickly made my way back to Jake’s room. He was sitting quietly, all his cars in a circle around him, playing peacefully as any child should.

“Jake, it’s time to go,” I said while leaning in the doorway. Jake looked up at me with a smile,
“I’m hungry.” he said.
“Ok, good,” I said, “We’ll go to drive-thru on our way, but we have to hurry to the car, dad’s going to be late for a police meeting.”
“Okay,” said Jake as he jumped up, looked at his cars, and found his favourite police car and put it in his pocket as he did every morning.

We grabbed our stuff and headed to the car. I buckled Jake into the backseat. I sat up front and as soon as I turned the key in the ignition,

“Dad, you forgot my backpack,” said Jake looking at me intently,

I turned around to look at him, the sun shining in my face, I turned to face forward, thinking to myself, “I must have left it, maybe I could just dash upstairs and leave him in the car.” Then I shook my head and quickly got out, walked around the car, to the right side and opened the door. I picked him up and ran back into the condo, up the stairs. Still holding Jake with one arm, I saw the green army camouflaged bag which was resting on Jake’s doorknob, I grabbed it with my free hand and ran back downstairs. By this time, I had 30 minutes to drop Jake off at the sitter’s and get to my meeting.

I pretty much sped through the express way; I had to drive around the beach to get to the other condo community where Jakes sitter lived. Promising Jake McDonalds, I had to make a pit stop. We went through the line surprisingly fast; there were only three cars ahead of us. Most of the morning traffic had slowed down by 9:40 as most commuters were already at work. We were in and out in four minutes.

“I’ll hold on to this till we get there,” I said to Jake after the brown bag and cup of OJ was given to me. Jake squirmed in his seat and I didn’t want a tantrum on my hands so I gave him a hash brown.

“But no ketchup,” I said flatly. I was pretty confident I would make it in time.

We arrived at the sitter’s; I left the car on and took him to the door. We walked up the steps of the two-storey condo, almost identical to our own. I let Jake ring the buzzer. Paisley, the sitter’s little terrier began her daily, “Jake’s here,” bark. I glanced down at my phone, it said 9:48. Worried about the time, I rushed Jake through the door and gave him a quick hug. Just as I was about to get in the car, Jake jolted the door up the stairs open and cried out,

“Dad, I think I dropped my car.”
I didn’t have the time to deal with it, I told him,

“it’s OK, we’ll find it later.”

“But…,” Jake started and I cut him off,

“daddy’s late, bud, I have to go, bye.”
I closed the door and left him standing there with his foot in the door.

I had 10 minutes to get to this meeting and wasn’t going to be late. I sped, the fastest I’ve ever sped in my life. My phone kept vibrating sickened by it; I threw it on the dash. I still hadn’t answered it nor had I opened any of the text messages. Most likely it was all from Bob; by this time he had called four times and left about six texts. In downtown Miami, at about 9:56, I was stopped by a red light only two blocks away from the police station; the vibrations still going, I reached onto the dash to pick up my phone; seven texts. The light turned green,

“Yes almost there, wow I made awesome time,” I said out loud.

I sped up a bit maybe doing 70 in a 50 zone. I decided to quickly text Bob, just to let him know I was parking.

“I will be there in no time,” I thought and I opened the first text, it read:

Detective Hoban, I’ve tried calling you, this morning’s meeting has been delayed until this afternoon, don’t bother coming in early,
Bob

I looked at it astonished,

“what a hell of a morning I went through to get here,” I thought.

I let out a sigh and thought about slowing down, as I brought my attention back to the road, two bright lights, blurring my vision, were right in front of my eyes. I squinted,

“what the hell,” I said and then a loud horn beeped, and it kept beeping, like one continuous beep, it never stopped.

Instantaneously I realized it was a car, and that I or it was on the wrong side, either way we were coming to collide with each other and there was no time to change it, no time at all, not even a microsecond had passed. I loosened the firm grip I had on my phone and it fell, bounced off my lap, and then hit the floor. And then, smack! We hit, my body felt a wild, uncontrollable shudder, and it was the most unreal thing I had ever experienced. I was ejected from the car; the whole thing was out of my control.

I flew through the dash, through the steam that flooded the hood of my car. The other car had bounced back a few feet, giving me room as I landed about four feet to the right side of the wreckage, and I lay there a few seconds, unable to move. No sounds were heard, steam and smoke flooded all around my face which was stuck left cheek up. With my eyes to the pavement, I saw something in the few seconds I had. Something small, something rectangular shaped. It had colors on it, but I couldn’t make them out, my vision was still extremely blurred as the steam surrounded me more and more. I looked hard, and tried to focus, it was a car. No it couldn’t be,

“I must have a concussion,” I thought.

Could it have been Jake’s car? His beloved toy car that he brought with him every day; the one that he carried in his pocket, the one that he told me he dropped? Did it really follow me out here? Just to show me how stupid I was. To show me how it’s all the simple little things in our lives that we take for granted. If I had stopped for a second that morning, just to look at a text, could it have altered my entire morning? What if I answered when Bob called? What if I woke up on time? What if I slept in? What if I stopped to help Jake look for his car? Would I have then calmed down and took control of the situation? All these things that you think right before you die, they say your whole life flashes before your eyes, and I believe in its own way it does.

Goodbye Friends!

To section 1, I will miss all of you. I couldn't have asked for a better class to start out my college years. You're all awesome. And I will see you again.

Mummies at Portage Place! Egypt 3D at Imax

Mummies At the Mall

The IMAX Theatre at downtown Portage Place Mall is known for its ultimate big screen movie experience, and now it’s in 3D.  Egypt 3D: Secrets of the Mummies has been running at the IMAX Theatre since September 12, 2009 and will continue until December 6^th.  The movie gives a great sense of reality.  With the IMAX 3D goggles, watching the film feels like being right in the action, and everything you are viewing is right in front of your face! 

Starting in the 1970’s, the IMAX Corporation presented itself at a multi-screen expo and has since been the leader of entertainment technology.  In 1997, IMAX won an Oscar for their scientific and technical achievement.

Currently the IMAX Theatre is particularly popular for their hype on making you feel like actually “being there” during a show.  The large screen, approximately 10 times the size of a standard 35mm frame, tricks the eye into thinking you are actually moving.   Now that IMAX has gone 3D, the feeling is so much more real. 

The 3D experience is phenomenal; you can observe the people as if you were in Egypt with them.  You are being brought along for the adventure.  The pyramids and hieroglyphics feel like an arm’s reach away, almost like you can touch them.  As the researchers and actors re-enact the events, it feels like you too are walking through the tomb, and looking through the caves, it gives the feeling of being in the world of ancient Egypt.  It was an amazing experience.

However, on the down side, the 3D goggles are quite uncomfortable and ridiculously big.  Without the use of the goggles, the show would have not been a great show at all or even one that could have been watched thoroughly.  While not wearing the goggles, everything seen on screen was blurry and subtitles could not be read at all.  If a person was to become sick during the movie experience, they would have a hard time getting out of there.  The goggles make everything difficult to see, and without them, it would be hard to not focus on the screen.

The sound was incredible; the effects caught the attention of the viewers, with their 12,000 watt digital sound system.

On top of the astonishing experience of what the eye can see, the knowledge learned in this film exceeded my expectations.  The film discussed historic events that dated back 3000 years, focusing on the widely known ancient Pharaoh, Rameses, whose burial took place in 1212 B.C.  One of the biggest secrets of the mummies is that they were never originally laid to rest in the tombs built for them, all that was in them were their treasures.  The mystery was put to rest when the 12 mummies of kings and queens were found in 1888, in a hidden tomb.  The mummies were returned, and years later the hidden tomb collapsed.  It has never been discovered as to why they were all put to rest in a hidden tomb.

The film was great, running 40 minutes; it gave a great impression on what Egypt would have been like 3000 years ago, as well as how it looks today.  Its only downfall is that it would have benefited from a more in depth view of the pyramids as they stand today.

A Rant

I've been told that my time management is rockin' by various classmates in CreComm.  We are all dealing with the same issues.  The enormous research project, endless articles, creative writing and ads.

But after this week, of doing two after school, school assignments, I feel that I manged my time horribly.  I have barely seen my fiancee and on top of that, spent practically no time with my son at all.  This is something I have to deal with.  My priorities are stretched.  And with all this commitment I can't shy away from feeling that I am a bad mom.

I spent last night working on my PR research, while my son was in bed with me playing and talking and coloring.  Yes he was supposed to be in bed, yes I should have gotten him to sleep, but seriously, I did not have the time.

Two rather big assignments due in a short amount of time + one sleeping fiancee on the couch  = a very stressed out Jenn.

But life will go on, we are all faced with obstacles in our lives and we have to pick our battles.  I gave up on the battle of cleaning, because honestly, getting myself worked up about the being a neat freak is not getting me anywhere.  I mean with a four-year-old son and a "live life my the moment" fiancee, and me not being home, my place is never the way I want it.

I think the end of my troubles will be to find a new haven, the search starts now.  Good luck fellow CreCommers, this will be it for many years to come.

Hey Twitter Twitter!

I am officially a part of the networking scene.  I now have a facebook, blog, and a twitter! Where will I find the time?
I joined twitter at the beginning of crecomm, but haven't done anything with it since.  Now, as part of a PR assignment, we have to sign-in and maintain a twitter account.
Twitter is a great place to keep up with the happenings of the world. Ahh. the joys of networking.  It's really easy and actually quite fun.
http://twitter.com/JennTwardowski
That's me! Let the networking begin.

Part 2: Kandahar Airfield Base in Afganistan

When you think Kandahar Airfield base... what do you think of? Some sort of desert, filled with troops, tents, tanks, maybe even some barracks'? Well the fact is that Kandahar Airfield base or KAF, the general abbreviation for it, is actually the size of a town.  The base is filled with approximately 40,000 soldiers, with only 2500 Canadian troops at the moment.  Many Afgan civilians also live on the base. The civilians are rebuilding and constructing of base for their future, the Afgan Military plan to keep the base operational and run it themselves once Canadian and American troops leave.

The people of KAF are most likely to live in really big tents, which hold 30 or more rooms.  Or what is called a modified sea-can as in a shipment container.  They put in windows and doors to make it appear like a bedroom with a personalized touch.

Afganistan is in the desert, so there is a ton of sand. "The biggest beach in the world, but there is no water."  There are a lot of trees however, and ground wells, but there isn't much water, so they have to conserve.  KAF gets shipments of bottled water from neighboring countries like Egypt or Pakistan.

American money is the common currency at the base.  Everything is paid for in American and they all carry cash on them.  When they do run out of money, the soldiers just walk up to a cashier and take out money from their allowances.  Allowances are monies received in Afganistan on top of their normal Canadian or American pay.  With their American money, soldiers and civilians have all the perks of home with: a Tim Horton's, Pizza Hut, and Burger King located on the base.

Most soldiers work long weeks, some work all week and receive only a half day off, others work two weeks before getting a day off.  Soldiers have weekly barbecues and are allowed a beer or two a month.  They have hockey rinks and baseball fields on KAF.  They also have a place for internet accessibility and it's filled with many computers.

Most of the time KAF is safe, it is well patrolled, occasionally KAF gets hit with rocket attacks.  The rockets however, are from the '70s, what was left over from the Russians and most find them to be more annoying than anything.  During such attacks, everyone has to throw their kits on and hit the floor until they are told otherwise.  On top of the attacks there are the occasional 'bad guys' that lurk in the mountains and caves, who try to sneak their way into the camp at night.  But once they get in, I am told they are taken care of fast.

Remembrance Day Week Part 1

“It’s a special feeling to know that I’m going overseas and contributing to this mission which is very important, I’m helping a country in one form or another.” After serving one month in the Canadian Armed Forces, Private Michael McLauchlan returned home for a two-week visit with his family. Upon his arrival, not even two days had passed before he appeared as a guest speaker at Brooklands School for their annual Remembrance Day Ceremony. “Remembrance Day to me is a day to remember all the people that have gone overseas and fought—so that our country can live freely and that other countries can have the opportunities that we have,” says McLauchlan. He saluted with grace as the children and faculty members sang the Canadian National Anthem: O Canada. His five year old niece, Amy, led the wreath parade as an introduction to the assembly. McLauchlan led his speech by speaking about his background history in the army, his current position and Canada’s involvement in Operation ATHENA in Afganistan.

Mclauchlan, 27, joined the Canadian Armed Forces two years ago. His basic training sent him all over the country. He finally resided in Shilo, a Canadian Forces Base located east of Brandon, Manitoba. Mclauchlan was sent to Afganistan in September of 2009, as a Supply Technician in the Kandahar Airfield.

Operation ATHENA sent troops to Afganistan in 2005, to help re-build and reconstruct the economy; they provide food and water to the civilians, as well as education. “We’re making sure that the Taliban can’t come back and take away all that we’ve fought for,” says McLauchlan referring to women having the right to vote; being able to work, children getting an education and “training the military -- as well as the police so that if we pull out in 2011, they’ll be able to pretty much govern their own country,” he says, “I think the country can change, but it’s gonna take a while, it’s not something that will happen overnight.”

McLauchlan currently works in the stocktaking cell in the Kandahar Airfield, where he keeps track of all the military equipment and where the money is being spent. His typical day consists of laying out weapons and matching them to the flight manifests for that day. He issues out the weapons and does the necessary paperwork, to make sure everything is where it should be; to make sure that everything is accounted for, that nothing is getting lost, “if a light armoured vehicle (LAV) goes missing, that’s – a couple million dollars right there that we have to explain to the Treasury Board,” says McLauchlan.

a LAV

The Kandahar Airfield Base holds approximately 40,000 troops in Afganistan. It is well patrolled and armed. “We get the rocket attacks once in a while—that’s when we get our kits on and hit the floor,” says McLauchlan, who says he feels pretty safe on the base. “Bad guys usually don’t have a chance to get where we are,” he adds.
During his month overseas, McLauchlan attended two ramp ceremonies, one of which was for a troop he had issued a weapon to. “It was kind of overwhelming to know that I met that guy ten days prior and ten days later he was killed,” he says “It’s more real once you’re over there, you know you see it on TV and it’s very sad, but when you’re actually there and you see the casket going by you, it’s a ... an odd feeling.”

This soldier, is a friend of mine and actually used to work at Portage Place with me, he was my boss!

Every day it seems as though bad things happen to good people. And we are all left wondering why? It has been almost two weeks since my friend's boyfriend got killed in a head-on collision and yet, I still get quite upset during various times of my days. Some days I'm fine and others, like today, my thoughts get to me and I can't stop the tears. Does anyone know the right words, the things to say when this sort of thing happens? We all mean well in expressing our sympathy, but isn't asking, "how are you doing?" going to trigger tears? Not only did she lose her boyfriend, but we all lost our friend, she wont be the same and as hard as she tries, with her kind words over texts, I know she is hurting. She is strong, but sometimes we aren't strong enough. Sometimes being surrounded by family and just knowing that they care is all you can do. She had to quit her job and is moving back home to another city. And everyone keeps asking me if this is why I'm upset, honestly it is not. I haven't seen her since I started school. The reason is that she such a kind-hearted girl who shouldn't have to go through something as traumatic as this. She was always there in my troubled times and it hurts me that I can't do anything for her. I can't even imagine what she is going through, how she feels. I mean how traumatic can it be for you when you are on the phone as its happening? I can't even tell her how I feel because I'm worried about how it will make her feel. I just hope that her knowing that we are there if and when she needs us will help her through. I still can't believe this has happened. I remember how she used to tell us she couldn't sleep without him. Or as angry as he would make her, in their three years she could never go a weekend without seeing him. They used to have so much fun together, they were so in love. All it takes is a second and your whole world can come crashing down.
We live in an unfair, uncertain world and it saddens me.

This is for you Dina, it helped me through my pain. Hugs and kisses honey, I will always be here for you.

CBC News - Manitoba - Man, 19, killed in head-on collision

CBC News - Manitoba - Man, 19, killed in head-on collision

We will miss you greatly. Our condolences go out to your family and loved one. We will care for her. You will forever be in our hearts. R.I.P.
In loving Memory,
October 26,2009

Bad PPR

So, it appears that the title for my blog and its contents aren't working so well for me. Every weekend I work, I am proposed to deal with the same problem. I can't seem to find any good PR in Portage Place. Maybe it's the fact that I work in a bad environment.

This past weekend, the second customer I served, I kid you not, was unbearable.
Here is the play by play:

Women comes up to order.
She has a coupon (2 can dine for 10.99)
I punch in her order.
Comes up to 12.31 with taxes.
She hands me 10 loonies and a twoonie.
I respond, "It's 12.31."
She says, "That's 12."
I say, "but it's 12.31."
She says, "can you do it for 12?"
I say, "no, it's 12.31"
She repeats, "can you do it for 12?"
I respond, "well if you want you can get a combo and then an extra burger..."
She cuts me off, "No dummy! I'm asking you if you'll take 12?"
I just look at her.
She digs into her pockets and pulls out a handful of change, grabs a loonie and tosses it my way.
By this time all the staff is surrounding me, to see what the deal is.
I say, "thankyou."
And complete the transaction.
I smile at her, "And tell her to have a good weekend."
She smiles back.

Are you kidding me? I forgot what it was like working there. And honestly this kind of situation, in most cases much worse, happen to the staff almost daily/ three times a day.

My conclusion bad PPR.

Buyers Beware

Hey so for our ad class, we all got assigned into group to come up with an idea for the project. My group consisted of Jeremy, lisa and Tom. The four of us chose the topic of tanning salons, our teacher was skeptical on the subject but I think we did a pretty good job. We researched on how well tanning salons in the city do at informing their customers of the risks associated with tanning. We checked out five local shops:

Fabutan
TanFX
Sun City
Lava Suntan Studios
Golden Tan

We found that Fabutan and TanFX are both franchises and offer franchising opportunities,  they both have a selection of pamphlets, information posted in their lobbies and tanning bed rooms, and they both have websites. In fact TanFX has a tab on their site dedicated to positive press releases from the International Agency of Research on Cancer (IARC)  They both have strict guidelines on tanning precautions, appointment booking and time limits on their beds.  Although, buyer's beware: some staff do not follow these regulations.  As in an interview I conducted with a fellow co-worker (the name of which i will not disclose) She is a middle aged woman, who has outdoor tanned most of her life and only used tanning beds for two years.  In her first year at Fabutan, she was allowed to tan almost everyday for a year.  In her second year, as a new manger took over, she was not allowed to tan this often; the result of this excessive tanning she says

" It did wreck my skin.  The owner didn’t care how long I went.  I found a spot on my leg and that's why I went to see a dermatologist.  He said it was nothing but found a precancerous spot on my nose.  No doubt that was from the tanning bed.  All that intensity right in your face!  I couldn’t even believe it! He came into the room with a silver bottle, it was very cold and he zapped it off.  I see him every six months now."

She also said that she was not fully informed of the risks of tanning.  As hard as I looked I couldn't find anywhere associated with indoor tanning the actual risks and harm it could do to you.


The last three places: Sun City, Lava Suntan Studios and Golden Tan, did not offer brochures, they didn't have any posters up in their stores about the risks and precautions.  And one place even told me, "Its is not any different than being out in the sun, you have to protect yourself."


Our conclusion is, if you choose to use indoor tanning, go to Fabutan or Tan FX, but even so make sure you are aware and follow their guidelines.

Is Journalism Dead?

We live in a world where competition is unavoidable.  Whichever career option you choose, you have to fight to be the best of the best.  The best chef, the best lawyer, the best engineer, the best teacher.  It's all about your resume, experiences, portfolio; everything that 'you' bring to the table.  Journalism is no exception in this rule.  Yes, it may be true that Journalism is a really hard career to get into, but honestly is it an easy job?  No, I don't think so, the idea of Journalism in itself is competitive.  In order to be a good Journalist you do have to be the best of the best.  The jobs are out there and if you're good at what you do; love it, enjoy it, fight for it, fight for it, fight for it, you will be just fine.  Journalism is far from dead.

Turkey Weekend

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!  First off the whole idea of this holiday is confusing to me.  Why is it that in the states, they celebrate a month later?
Anyway... So my turkey weekend, did not consist of turkey at all; More like rushing out at last minute to grab a roasted chicken from Safeway ( and might I add, was the last one)  I have decided that with all the family drama in my life ( and I'm sure everyone else's) that I will just plan my own holiday dinners, since I do have a family of my own.  It's not nice to get shafted for the holidays, but some things can't be helped.  So our turkey was a bust, but our scalloped potatoes were totally homemade.  Potatoes are the highlight of my life and I can't live without them.  Yes, I used to be a farm girl; in the summers anyway.
Not much else to say, only that this three day holiday was much needed and enjoyed, we made our own dinner and non-traditionally sipped frozen pina colada.

The Legislature Has New Meaning?

Yes. According to Dan Brown's new book "The Lost Symbol".  The book states that Freemasons are responsible for symbols and hidden cryptic messages throughout the historic monument. 

Freemasons are the world's largest secret society and in his book, Dan suggests they are occult ed, practice sexual deviancy and are in contact with extra-terrestrial life.  Scary right?  Did you ever notice the black pentagram-like star in the white marble room? Or the fact that there are sphinxes located near the top of the building just outside the roof. Sphinxes? In Winnipeg??

These are just the odd ones, of course there are many Romanesque statues and paintings as well.

In Washington, Masonic buildings are located throughout and form the grid of a pentagram.  Is this the work of Masonry's or just coincidence? 

There are these two buildings in the city, one in St. Boniface (crumbled old church) and the other is a mall type of building connected to the Fort Garry Hotel.  Both have a circular symbol on their roof top and both are straight across from each other separated by the Red River.  I always felt that to be very strange.  Could this be a form of Freemasons too.  Perhaps the eye that was meant to be in the pentagram, of the floor of the Legislative building that was denied.

I truly think this book is worth a read. I mean come on not many things such as this happen in Winnipeg!

Portage Public Relations

Alright I think it's time to post some PR on Portage Ave. It may seem more like an events calendar but hey, it's a start.  So at the MTS Centre we have Tampa Bay Lightening VS the Edmonton Oilers.  I'm not a hockey fan really, but I have to say this is pretty cool. Some big star players are coming Vincent Lecavalier, Martin St.Louis, Steven Stamkos, and defenceman Mattias Ohlund just to name a few from Edmonton's team.  And the MTS Centre does this pretty often.  So if you are a fan of either of these NHL teams come check them out tonight at 7:30 PM.  Sorry but tickets are kind of expensive :(

A couple of other events we have Keith Urban "Escape Together World Tour"
With special guests
Lady Antebellum
on Saturday & Sunday at the MTS Centre as well.  He is a Grammy Award Winner and ....
(And now comes the quote)

"his fifth studio album, Defying Gravity, is in stores now. The CD’s first single “Sweet Thing,” gave Urban his 14th #1 Country single"

So if you are a country fan or Keith Urban fan definitely think about seeing this much accomplished Country singer.

So that's it for the MTS Centre in September, but this weekend at Portage Place Mall; a unique event is being hosted.  It's the British Antiques Roadshow 
this Friday and Saturday, where people bring in their antiques and have them appraised and then put on display for other to see.  Apparently the event has found over $52 million worth of antiques across Canada.  This event must be widely popular because all of the appointments have been booked.  So sorry guys you will not be able to enter this time around.

And well that's it for September, as more events unfold I will post them.
Ciao!

Cocoon Branding Inc.

So I finally came back to class today feeling a little bit better. Thanks for all the compliments guys :) So I walk into ad class and it looks like I missed out on some great presentations pertaining to ad agencies; big and small, all over the country.  I immediately thought of my favorite one right here in the city called Cocoon Branding Inc. I fell in love with Cocoon about a year ago when I was searching for office work before going back to school.  Pretty much what drew me in was their logo...

 ... I remember passing the building on the street and was always fascinated by their unique butterfly logo.  I thought it was super adorable. I thought "a place this cute and colorful must be a fun place to work."  What do ya know, it turns out to be an ad agency, one by which did the campaign for Curve94.3 FM; also a career that can be attained in the CreComm program at RRC.  They have also done campaigns for Red Bull, Scotia bank, Winnipeg Credit Union, Cropo Funeral Chapel, and the Arthritis Society just to name a few.  I have applied for this company a few times and have befriended them on facebook. I am happy to say they have my name on file and that this is my career goal objective.

Jenn

American dad?

Hey guys!  So its after seven.  And I feel back on track. Oh boy what an incredulous day I've had.  Haha ya, I've just said incredulous; it seems to be the word best suited to express my joy filled day....

Most of you already know what was in store for me today, but I'm sure there are some of you who don't. I didn't work today. I didn't even go anywhere near downtown.

What did I do...?  What did I do...?

I had the thrilling experience of getting my wisdom's pulled this afternoon.  And back to be being so particularly incredulous, I am the sort of person who has never broken a bone.  I have never been stung by anything black and yellow.  I have never even had bronchitis, strep throat or any of those other common illnesses.  I am, who most would call, a pretty in-experienced person in the matters of Medical Health.

Yea, so today was pretty fun... I had two melt-downs (one being before and one being after).  There were three people as I walked into this tiny room all looking at me.  I believe that the doctor who was supposed to do my surgery, wasn't even there.  But there were three women all of whom I could hear the extent of their conversation while I was under.  Their babbling was all that I focused on, it kept me calm and relaxed.  I never once felt giggly or delirious.  I just closed my eyes, aware of what was to come and didn't even care... That part was awesome!

Afterward, waking up was so hard.  It's not like when you've only had a few hours of sleep and are forced to wake up at 6 a.m. either.  It was like "okay, we are done now." They rose my chair and start talking to me.  All I could do was try to stare at the window. My eyes were tearing. No, I wasn't crying. I don't know what my problem was, I wasn't even sleeping.

There was pain, even while frozen I felt pain. They had to cut my mouth open since nothing had grown through yet.  Why you may wonder did I even get them taken out then?

... There was pain, for a long time pain.  This type of pain was in the form of severe migraines, tooth ache and face aches (uh huh yea, not fun) I couldn't continue two more years in such a strenuous program as CreComm.

Long story short, in the hours to follow I have taken a pretty big amount of pills, suffered extreme nausea, had a crying ordeal about replacing my gauze and have had two naps.  As well I have barely eaten and I love food!  I feel great now, almost no pain.  I have decided it best to just keep my mouth shut and not talk. I just text my boy all my demands and as well as my love of course. :)

I do, however have the biggest square shaped head I have ever seen.  It`s kind of like in those movies where they use a make-up artist to add on the pounds to their face. I really don`t like it. Ohmigosh guys the first thought that jumped into my head was that I have the chin of the friggin guy from American Dad!  I hope it goes down soon....

Next week I will be working, the stories may be lacking, but.... in two weeks we have our football game and I also work that day, so expect a good downtown story then! Have a good weekend guys, and hope this American dad look doesn`t last two long for me.

<3 Jenn!

What to expect in my blogs

Hi! I'm Jenn.  I'm a student at Red River College in the Creative Communications program. I plan to major in advertising. I am a fan of local music. And watching television is my weakness. This blog will be about everything that I enjoy. But the main theme is going to be about all the crazy/scary experiences I have had while working in the downtown vicinity for the past six years. I will only be working about once a week. But I'm sure that will be more than enough time to experience something crazy, scary or downright offensive about working downtown.  As well I plan to blog about events happening on or around portage Avenue.  Please remember that these blogs are my opinions and comments are welcome.

So where I work (not naming names), we open early at about seven AM. There was this guy in the food court who before we were even open, ran to the middle of the room ...  ripped off his clothes ... jumped up on the tables and danced around! Seriously we had to sit there and watch this guy while we waited for the cops to show up. Can you believe this one?

This guy I was lucky enough to find him on you tube, I believe I have seen him on the bus about twice.




I am not being mean. Honestly. I am just using this video to relate to the many experiences I have had.  Unfortunately most are inappropriate and can not be posted, but I will try as best I can to keep you informed.