On a more serious note

This story is especially disturbing to me for two reasons.

Missing Teacher from Bethpage, Long Island

One, it's close to home, real close. She's about my age, and she was in a situation I could have just as easily been in. Two, she teaches at a school that is a client of ours. Very sad--please pray for her safety and if you have any information please do the right thing!

Media Advisory--PR girls don't eat dessert!

So a couple of months back I attended a Publicity Club of NY luncheon and "jokingly" poked fun at the crowd of coiffed, predominantly female attendees. Well yesterday, I revisited the scene and quickly saw that I wasn't the only one who observed the unusual habits of the "NYC PR girl."

Generally at these types of luncheons, you get served a nice chicken dish, maybe even a steak if you're lucky, and usually some sort of generic cake/pie/ice cream type desert. Not gonna lie, I always eat the desert! Interestingly, I believe I might be the only one in PR that does. This month's luncheon served up possibly the most healthy meal ever placed in front of me. Appetizer--lettuce with possibly a dash of some sort of vinaigrette, Main Course--steamed veggies, boiled potatoes and what I guess was poached salmon? (PS, I loathe salmon...), "Desert" (And I use that term loosely)--3 blueberries and a strawberry. Oh yeah, and the Diet Coke was in full effect, but regular Coke had been pulled from the table all together!

Now don't get me wrong, I fully attended this luncheon for the panelists and networking, and very much enjoyed their discussion and helpful hints, and as a former waitress, I am grateful for any nice meal that is prepared and served to me, but I just had to comment on the hilarity of the menu and beverage choice for the crowd of nearly all young women with "small appetites." I bet the few men in the room left there hungry!

This got me wondering why there are so few men in the business. Even in my own office, the women outnumber the men by a lot (A LOT!) It doesn't seem like a girly profession to me, anyone have any thoughts on this?

Oh yeah, and once again, even though I was furiously taking notes about potential blog topics during the luncheon, I was also gaining valuable insight into the pitching preferences of journalists. One thing was clear, phone calls are out, emails are in. All five editors and writers on the panel agreed that they rarely even answer their office phones and never listen to voicemails. I guess the days of call sheets and rehearsed pitches are over. In this digital world, a short, compelling email that positions your client as a "gotta have it" story seems like the way to go. One thing that was interest to me though, was that most of the panelists DID NOT enjoy the follow up email. My colleagues and I have always thought this was a great way to stay fresh in a writers mind and to give them a gentle reminder to get in touch. So now I'm torn, to follow up or not to follow up, that is the question...

Reflections

Had some time to think this weekend on my own, which almost always leads to over-analyzation (is that a word) on all subjects...I guess it's the writer in me...

Last weekend I was in my often mentioned favorite town of Newport, RI. I am adding my first pictures to this blog (if it works) to try and capture how truly serene it is there for those of you who have not been.

While there, I of course had a momentary mental crisis in which I questioned why I ever left such a peaceful existence and the easy living of a writer by day, waitress by night, party girl by late night, life. As I sat at the bar at my old place of work, seeing far less familiar faces than my last visit, I realized that it was the right decision to move on. My NY life is sometimes filled with stress, money woes, traffic and more stress but it is also filled with excitement, motivation, a meaningful career, new friends and relationships and a dream of fame and fortune (fingers crossed).

Lately though, I'll admit, I've been feeling a little friendless. Not in the pathetic, I literally have no friends way, just in the fact that I don't have all that many close friends around me in NY these days, and I don't have a giant group that I roll with like I did back in the day. I guess that is a part of growing up. Friends get married, have children, move, and that giant posse of ever-ready to party pals becomes a lot smaller. You begin to hang with couples (if your a couple) or work friends, or friends of convenience, but sometimes you just really miss your old friends.

I guess I am not the only one who feels this way though. Recently an old best friend from college who I lost touch with (she lives in Chicago now) contacted me. It brought on an email chain between old friends that went on for about 200 emails in the past couple of weeks between 10 or 12 friends who are now spread all over the country and doing all sorts of things. A big reunion is now set for December in NY and a spring trip to include even more of us is brewing. Yay for old friends reuniting!

Sometimes on the flip side, you just grow apart from people who may have once been close to you. You change or grow, they don't, or vice-versa, but if they were really as important to you as you thought, then you learn to accept the differences. If not, then you move on, appreciate the friendship for what it was and look forward to making new friends and cherishing the ones that will remain forever...

On a final, and completely off-topic note--Congrats to my boss, Hilary Topper for being chosen as a finalist for Blogger of the Year by the Stevie Awards. Check out her blog at www.hilarytopper.com. And yes, that is me with the giant cookie from my darling boyfriend :)

Sunday night

Just a quick post because I'm having my usual Sunday night anxiety/insomnia after a sweet fall weekend, complete with wine tasting, apple pie, and one of those two hour walks on the boardwalk talking about everything from religion to black socks with white sneakers (everyone knows this is a major fashion faux paus right??)

As I was checking my emails, paying my bills, looking at my planner for the week's agenda, and watching my Sunday night shows, I remembered that we were assigned "homework" just before the 5 o'clock whistle on Friday at work. Panic has now set in, as it did so many times before, in Jr. High, High School, College...wait did I ever really do homework??

Anyway, I digress. Seeing how it is now 11:42 pm and counting, I am faced with a dilemma I have had MANY times before. Do I try and do it now, when I'm tired (although apparently not too tired to write this while simultaneously watching a Two and Half Men rerun on the CW) or do I set my alarm early and do it in the morning? Odds are pretty good that I will hit snooze 2-3 times, then take an extra long shower, change my outfit 4 times and show up to my morning staff meeting flustered, unprepared and praying that I don't get called on.

A less serious Allie may have rolled the dice with the quick, morning homework scramble, but this Allie is doing it now, I promise! Tired or not...

Speaking of other Allie's, stay tuned for my latest "other" Allie Herzog story...our paths have crossed...I wonder if I'll get my domain name back now? :)

My first sports blog (kinda)

Following in the footsteps of my dad (the original zog blogger) read on for about as close to sports writing as I can get...

Out of all the teams that were the topic of MANY discussions between the men of my house growing up, the Yankees were always the most talked about. I knew from an early age that the Yankees were sacred to my dad and my bro and of course, I became a fan by default. I think the first game I ever went to was when I was invited to tag along on one of my brother's traditional birthday outings to Yankee Stadium. I don't remember much about the game, but I remember feeling a part of something magical...oh yeah and lots of traffic getting out of the Bronx!

When I was in high school and the Yankees won the first World Series of my lifetime, I begged my parents to let me ditch school and head into the city for the ticker-tape parade. After being denied, I did what any other disobedient 16 year old would do--I went anyway. I don't regret it either, my fondest memory of that day was climbing up on top of a bus stop to gain a better view of the players. To this day, I swear that Jeter winked at me! (Editor's note: I got caught, and I think grounded, but I'd like to think dad was secretly proud that I was at least ditching school for a sports related event).

When I headed up to the great state of RI for college, I quickly learned just how serious the Yankees/Red Sox rivalry was. Once I was deemed a "Yankee fan" I was quickly grouped in with the other Long Island and Jersey transplants and became part of the small but faithful group that bravely cheered against the Sox. During one Yankees/Sox series a bunch of friends and I crafted homemade "Yankees/I love NY" wife beaters and proudly showcased them at the local campus bar (thankfully it was actually owned by a native New Yorker who was a huge Yankee fan...I think our photo may still hang on the wall...)

So getting back to the point, although I was never the biggest sports fan, despite being raised by a sports writer/sports fanatic and growing up with a brother that watches ESPN religiously, I always had a soft spot for the Yankees. Baseball was a sport I could actually follow and understand and root for, and baseball games were a great time (beer, hot dogs and sunshine). Shamefully I will admit that I have been to more than one Red Sox game and was even photographed wearing a Sox hat once, but I have always felt proud to be a New Yorker and root for the Yankees, a team whose history and tradition is so rich.

Last night, watching the last game at a stadium that I've heard about my whole life, I definitely felt more than a touch of sentiment and nostalgia. I've always been a sucker for history, and seeing all the past legends back where it all started struck a cord with me. I watched the whole game, right through to Jeter's heartfelt speech to the fans. I cried--I'll admit it, I cried at a sporting event and I think I like baseball just a little more now. Too bad the Yanks are out of it, but I am looking forward to next year, to becoming a better fan and to a new place for history to be made.

A day for reflecting...

So as a native New Yorker I felt compelled to at least write something on this very somber day...

When I woke up this morning to Good Day NY, I was instantly reminded of the date and was brought back to that morning seven years ago like it was yesterday. I saw on the news that there was a big ceremony in Pt. Lookout not far from where I live. I could literally feel the heaviness in the air and tried to psych myself up for my busy day...

Of course hearing Greg Kelly ask every guest what they were doing on that day made me immediately recall in vivid detail what I was doing...which was watching the news in my towel at the Sigma Kappa sorority house in Kingston, RI. I missed my 9:30 class (for once it was for a legitimate reason!) and glued myself to the TV for most of the day. I remember frantically calling my family and not being able to get a hold of my brother, who was living in the city and working near the towers, for hours. Thankfully, I didn't lose anyone close to me, but nevertheless I remain forever affected by that day...

A defining moment for me came later that night. I was sitting on the porch of our house with a bunch of girls just talking things over when literally hundreds of students, many with candles, came walking by humming a spiritual tune. Without a word exchanged, we all got up and just started walking with them. We didn't know where we were going, and I don't think it mattered. We finally ended up at the chapel at the top of our campus which was literally bursting at the seems with people. I couldn't tell you what was said at the service that day, but I could probably recreate the scene with a sketch artist down to a T. I remember exactly what I was wearing (an old volleyball camp T-shirt and black gym shorts), exactly how hot it was (HOT), and everyone that was sitting around me. I remember singing along to Amazing Grace and crying from the shock and sadness but at the same time feeling overcome with emotions such as pride, thankfulness and many other things.

The next day, September 12th, is one of my closest friend's birthday. Seven years ago I spent it with her, a few other friends and a bunch of old sailors at a dive bar in Narragansett, RI. We had cancelled our plans to celebrate that night in light of the tragedy that had just taken place, but after sitting around our house for hours being sad, we decided to get out of the house. We ended up at a neighborhood bar that felt so safe that night. It was dark and quiet and everyone was just sort of sitting there, staring into their drinks and not saying much. Somehow between the jukebox, the cheap beers and the dusty overhead lights, a conversation that I will always remember took place about life, love and tragedy. That night, Four young and naive sorority girls had something in common with a bunch of aged, worldly seaman. I will always remember that night just as vividly as I remember the day before. It will always remind me how tragedy brings people together, as cliche as it sounds.

Tonight I was watching the Rachel Maddow show on MSNBC and was hoping to be truly inspired by one of the presidential candidates' words. Maybe I was just expecting too much, but I wasn't moved. I know they were trying to put partisan issues aside for one day, but it didn't seem that way to me. I hope I feel differently tomorrow when the fierce race to the White House continues without the sensitive issues this day has raised.

Let's let Lee Greenwood sign this one off with the tune of "I'm Proud to be an American"...oh yeah, and happy birthday Jenny Lee!

What does Fall mean to you?

Living in beach towns for the past 10 years or so, I have grown accustomed to an overnight ending of summer. The day after Labor Day brings a palpable feeling of season's end. The empty streets, sparse shorelines and quiet storefronts remind me of the city streets the day after a big parade. Lined with only ticker tape and empty cups, it is hard to imagine all the action that was there just a day before.

I spent my day after Labor Day on my neighborhood beach in Long Beach, where my second summer has drawn to a close as an LB resident. The beach was so serene I barely recognized it. All summer long, I squeezed my modest folding chair in between camps of families with wagons, rowdy teenagers with rolling coolers of beer, and older couples with umbrellas and big blankets. Today, I scored a picture perfect spot all to myself as close to the water as the tide would allow. As I looked around me, I saw locals happily enjoying this day, which I now think may be one of the best of the summer. Great weather, but no hoards of pretentious day-trippers make the Tuesday after Labor Day my new favorite day.

It's funny how the end of summer has so many different meanings throughout a person's life. As a young child, it's the end of your fun, carefree, sprinkler-running days. As a teen, you sometimes look forward to going "back to school" to see your friends and get back in the swing of things. During college, summer meant coming back home to curfews and parents and September meant getting back to freedom and frat parties. After college, I waitressed and worked in one of the most touristy towns on the East Coast. End of summer meant the end of double shifts and big money, the end of cruise ships full of tourists, the end of beach days and crazy nights and always brought on the question of "now what?"

Now that I am part of the coffee-drinking, compulsive email-checking, metro-card carrying workforce, end of summer doesn't much affect my daily routine. My commute remains the same my alarm clock will ring at the same time and my clients will still expect the same things. About the only hint of fall for me today was picking out an autumn shade for my pedicure...

So as another summer draws to a close and the smoky smell of fall is fast approaching, I am looking forward to pumpkin picking, watching football games (more on this later!) and the return of Caramel Apple Cider at my local Starbucks!