Sleepy Recaps

Been a busy week for me!

Since returning from Vegas a week ago with every hope of taking it easy and catching up on sleep and life, I am probably still about 5o hrs behind in the sleep department and about three pages behind on the handwritten "to-do" list that sits on my nightstand...

Most notably, last Thursday was our company's Sweet 16 Party at the Bridgeview Yacht Club, celebrating 16 yrs of being in business. The party proved once again that we rock. No really, we do! Everyone had a great time sipping on perfectly made cosmos and eating passed hor d'oerves, pastas, meats, and my favorite part--the chocolate dipping station! The party was great and I barely remembered that I was running on limited steam from the night before...

The previous night I was at a party for ESPN magazine in the city, where highlights included a performance by Third Eye Blind, a red carpet entrance, a REALLY cool bathroom complete with a "director" who literally walked you to your stall (by the way, is this normal?) and of course a make your own candy bag upon departure...very cool!

Last night I was in the city again, celebrating a birthday and forgetting that people would be celebrating the unofficial holiday of "Almost St. Patricks Day." I was one of the only bar patrons not wearing green, or at least a shirt with green in it somewhere, and a catchy saying like "Everyone Loves an Irish Girl." Random observation, why do you girls wear stickers on their faces to show their "spirit" and why do Mardi Gras beads apply to every holiday? I won't throw stones though, I totally ended up proudly wearing a green set of beads by the end of the night...

Seinfeld's almost over, time to get to sleep...more to come later this week :)

The test...live from vegas!

I wish it were a little sunnier here, poolside, at the Venetian in Vegas...but hey, I'm not complaining!

So I've been in Vegas the past two days at a Social Media Conference with my boss learning all the latest tricks and trends in the social media phenomenon. I learned a lot and was super excited to jump on my laptop and play around on the internet the second the conference was over. I am currently the picture perfect image of an uptight New Yorker, wearing her business attire, shoes AND socks at the pool while typing furiously away on her laptop as children splash and play in the background...

So being my first time in Vegas and all, I definitely have to say it's a great city. Do people actually live here though? I mean seriously, imagine waking up and seeing that giant 3-d TV screen with the mermaid coming out of it right outside your window? It's just nuts...the lights, the energy...definitely cool!

Ok, so back to the test I mentioned in the title. It came up at the conference that a great way to utilize social media is to know what people are saying about you, and your company. That being said, there's a great way to track every time your name or company appears online by using the fabulous google alert tool. Sounds good right? So I wonder, are all these social media experts really practicing what they preach? If so, I expect to here from you David Pogue, Tech Editor of the New York Times. You totally have a new fan, thanks for the laughs, insight, and truly helpful info!

Not to short change anyone else who may have google alerted their name...I also really enjoyed Steve Crescenzo's speeches and found Jim Ylisela, a former reporter currently with Ragan Consulting, to be chock full of useful info. Because of his presentation, I vow to convince the rest of my office to break out of the boring press release mold, get rid of our made-up crappy quotes and keep our writing clean, simple and SPICY!

Stay tuned, more to come from Sin City later...

In Your Dreams!

I've always been blessed or cursed, depending on how you look at it, with REALLY vivid, borderline psychic, dreams. Lately my dreams have been an intertwined jumble of clients, coworkers and my personal life (sorry to freak anyone out, but if I see you on a regular basis, chances are you're in my dreams...) Usually I don't pay much attention to them, I brush them off as a byproduct of my overstimulated brain. But every once in a while I get to thinking, "what is my subconscious trying to tell me?"

Last week, while telling a coworker about my latest dream involving my email account, coworkers, and a fried chicken restaurant, a conversation started about whether anyone else had these crazy dreams. The next day, like three people in my office came in to tell me about their crazy work-related dreams. Apparently, my wild imagination is contagious!

Without going into too much detail, last night's dream found me, among other things, surrounded by cherries. My roommates tell me I fell asleep during a movie and was snoring up a storm. While certain scenes of the movie did sneak into my dream, they assure me that there were no cherries involved. Before Asking Jeeves what the heck the cherries meant, I decided to come up with my own ideas. Could it be a sign that my upcoming trip to Vegas will have me seeing three cherries in a row? (That's like a jackpot or something right?) Will my company land a new account in the fruit distribution field?

While I realize that dreaming about people and places you see everyday is normal, I am a big believer that dreams are trying to tell you something.

I ran track most of my life, but why can't I ever run in my dreams?

Why do people suddenly change into someone else in the middle of your dream?

And, why do you always wake up seconds before a) the face of your future husband is revealed b) you're about to collect your lottery winnings c) god himself is whispering the meaning of life in your ear?

Hopefully subconscious Allie will guide conscious Allie down the path to fame, fortune and a rent controlled apartment with a sweet skyline view! Until then, sweet dreams :)