Yes, I'm lazy - I stole the title of my last blog on my personal site (as those of you who read it know), and I'm going to steal most of my last blog off of there too, just because I can.
Anyway, as I said in the title....
Coming up for air …and taking a deep breath before rolling into the next list of projects. August has certainly been an incredible month - Digital Storm, Mendella here for a two week tour, the Abbotsford Airshow - busy, tiring, but oh so fun.
While the tournament component of Digital Storm wasn't as well attended as we'd hoped it would be, those who came to play had fun. It's too bad the weekend was marred by a thief who made off with two 360 Elite hard drives, but I'm sure that in the long run, the thief will be enduring some serious payback. The show put on by the boys in
Mendella kicked some serious butt and won themselves some new fans and friends. As always we're indebted to our crew and sponsors for the assistance in putting on a fun event - and we wish those who are moving on to the World Cyber Games Canadian Nationals the best of luck on their road to Cologne and the Grand Finals.
The day after Digital Storm ended, we had a houseful of friends over for a barbeque. It was great extending some BC hospitality to Mendella and their management - Dave, Jo, Luke, Jason, Toby, Lewis, Tom and Sam - and serving up some fine Canadian steaks, some good Canadian beverages, some Guitar Hero and a radio interview. Okay, they hijacked the station Mike dj's for, but that's a minor detail. Maybe we'll even have the new patio done before they return in 2009
We spent BC Day at the Tom Lee Music Hall in Vancouver, where the boys had a 3pm performance. After the boys' show, we were treated to dinner at a Thai restaurant in Yaletown by Dave, Jo and Luke. The food was incredible - almost as good as the company we were in. Unfortunately we had to cut the evening a bit short due to the fact that our parking time was going to expire and we didn't want those parking lot hawks making off with our wheels.
During the week we made preparations for Mendella's Saturday afternoon performance out here in Aldergrove. We'd hoped to be able to host a small-ish Battle of the Bands for some local groups, but due to logistics and a few other issues, the bands who wanted to participate couldn't. Friday afternoon we took everyone to the Abbotsford Airshow, introducing Dave and Jo to the President's Club while the boys, with Mike as their guide, wandered the static displays until early afternoon when they were able to join us in the President's Club. They definitely made an impact among the crowd, making new friends all around - especially with the USAF Strike Eagle Demo team. The photo shoot we were able to conduct after the show ended for the day was very exciting. I haven't processed those photos yet, though.
Saturday's outdoor performance in Aldergrove was definitely unique. After a week of hot, sunny weather, I bet you don't have to try very hard to guess what it did on Saturday. Yes - it poured. It was windy. There was lightning and thunder. However, we had hoisted - and re-hoisted - a very large tarp which kept the ground and our audience dry. Even with the weather, we still had a great time, again with a great crew. This was the first time we had an opportunity to work with Ryan and Curtis from Sonic Voodoo Productions; we all worked extremely well together - the weather conditions and stringing up the tarp created several moments of amusement, and we are definitely considering doing more shows with them in the future. While the weather did put a big dent in the audience size, those who came to watch and listen enjoyed the band's performance immensely. I must make mention of Dave from Sweet Max. If not for his loan of a guitar amp, the show may not have gone on. The Fender DeVille we'd rented for Lewis didn't work properly and had an awful squeal in its valve. While it was a cold and windy afternoon, working with great people always makes the worst situations seem more fun. The experience of performing in such conditions was a learning experience for the boys in the band as well - and they had a good time too. Packing up in torrential rainstorms isn't all that much fun, but we got the job done anyway.
We all had some relax time, and then it the was boys' final Vancouver performance for this year. They rocked The Roxy, and have been invited back anytime they're in town. This was followed up by dinner at MileStone's in YaleTown, which was relaxing and a great time - even though we all knew that our friends from the UK would be going home the next day.
I met up with everyone the following afternoon to provide the extra vehicle needed to get people, instruments and luggage to the airport on time. It was a bitter-sweet parting - knowing that they would be back next year, and that they will soon be off to record their first commercial album. I am thankful for the time I got to spend growing a deeper friendship with everyone, and I especially enjoyed meeting Dave's wife, Jo. I am definitely looking forward to seeing her again, as we have so much in common and get along quite well - and at least now she knows who her hubby has been chatting with in all of those late night (for them) phone calls.
So…what are we doing now that our events are done for the year? Well - we have sites to design for some new clients, and I have about another 1500ish band photos to go through and choose which ones to spend time on - and a few new landscapes/sunsets too. We have planning to do for next year's event, PAX is coming up at the end of August, and of course there's Greg's final sentencing date in September, when we get to find out what the judge has to say in regards to the amount of time he will serve and any restitution he will need to make to KillaNet.
And now you are basically up to date on where I've been and what I've been doing - and seeing as the dispatcher is on holidays for the next week and I'm stuck in the office filling in for her, I will have time to get more caught up on here - it's always good to have something enjoyable to do at work, isn't it?