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Wednesday morning, I was functioning on less than four hours of sleep, but I felt serenely energetic. I thought back to last night. I had never done karaoke before, and I have a very-small-but-still-present fear of performing in front of an audience…but I ended up singing three songs. I even sang one song with Forrest! Also, to bike around town in 70-degree weather late at night surrounded by cliffs and canyons was just so freeing. I kind of felt as if I was in the “Wonder Years” or something. I don’t know why I thought that, that was just the first television show that came to my mind.

That small-town feeling of close proximity, trust, and freedom was alive in me and I wanted it to stay.

When I woke up, Forrest was already up, getting ready to leave town. The night before, Kyle mentioned that I could take his bike to work, but I couldn’t adjust the seat, so Forrest ended up taking me to work. I was happy about this because we had gotten some good talks in during our bike ride, and it was nice to have an official opportunity to say goodbye.

Blogging takes time and energy and I have been running low on both! I have been traveling a ton lately for the One-Week Job Program. I just finished job #6 after having a busy week in Dallas, Texas.

I am so thankful I got to spend week #6 at the Dallas Market Center to learn about the wholesale business. If you missed my first blog about DMC, read it here.

A special thanks is due to Meredith Hite, Dallas Market Center’s Director of Public Relations. She is also the logistical genius who offered me the job, arranged my schedule, and ensured that the week was absolutely fantastic!

I love meeting people who are so gifted like Meredith and so on top of their game. For Meredith, public relations is her forte’ but there were many other young professionals with exceptional talent at Dallas Market Center.

My schedule was tight from Wednesday to Sunday since I was booked to be in a different place and with a different employee every hour! I’m thankful for the chaos though because I learned as much or more about the business than some of the long-time employees know.

In my next blog, I will give a breakdown of all the departments I visited and the role they play in putting on the Market.

For now, I can’t help but share the main things that stood out during my week.

Friday 08/06/10 @ 5:10pm CDT: Leave Austin, Texas by Greyhound bus.

Saturday 08/07/10 @ 2:40pm MST: Arrive in Phoenix, Arizona by Greyhound bus.

Sunday 08/08/10 @9am MST: Leave Phoenix, Arizona by car.

Sunday 08/08/10 @1:40pm MST: Arrive in Page, Arizona by car.

1,379 miles of travel in order to make it to Job #7! The journey map has been retired for obvious reasons. If you’re really curious, you can view it on a separate tab.

If my friend Katie hadn’t given me a ride from Phoenix to Page, I’d be in lots of trouble. A 5-hour drive to Page, and then 5 hours more back to Phoenix. Now that’s a good friend. Thank you so much, Katie!

Last week, I was a river Guide with the Colorado River Discovery (CRD)! This job was the first one I received when I found out I got into the One-Week Job Program, suggested by my friend Dani. Being the quintessential outdoors Arizonan girl, she had worked for CRD one summer and wanted me to get to know what many would call “the best job ever” for a week:

“Welcome to Dallas, Texas!”

I received a warm welcome from Sydney Holt (Dallas Market Center intern) on Wednesday morning as we met at the Dallas airport. This week is likely to be my busiest week and also the best learning experience!

The World Trade Center at the Dallas Market

I’ll be working for the Dallas Market Center in Dallas, Texas. The Market contacted the One-Week Job Program to participate and I’ve never visited Dallas so after a few calls, emails, and a short flight, here I am! This week is different since my work week is Wednesday-Sunday.

When I initially heard about the Dallas Market Center, I thought of a shopping mall. I was partially right, but there’s a big difference between the Dallas Market and a regular mall: the Market is not open to the public. Only qualified buyers are allowed!

To clarify my role here, it’s important to explain what the Market is all about. The DMC is a set of four buildings that house hundreds of showrooms (stores).  To give you an idea of how massively big, I got this fact from their website:

The four buildings total more than 5 million square feet; larger than the Sears Tower and roughly twice the size of the Empire State Building.

Buyers from retail stores, boutiques, and other businesses come to the market to see new products and buy products at wholesale prices.

Hello All!

This is sort of a disappointing blog post, because it doesn’t contain any good One-Week Job meat, but I wanted to check in with the world. It is the Friday of Week #7, and as you may have noticed, I haven’t blogged at all. I’m always late with these posts, but I’ve never been this late so I’m addressing the issue. While I could have and arguably should have posted SOMETHING by now, I always aim to give my best words, so I refuse to write just anything. That would make this Program a waste; the stories I share with You are very important to me.

I’m currently not in a state where I can share with you, because I am completely immersing myself in this week’s job. This is in an effort to make sure I’m doing all that I can to take as much away from the opportunity as possible. This job’s much more difficult for me than all the others, so I’m having to try extra hard. Consequently, my mind has been nowhere ready to write. I have to admit that I would describe this week as sort of a life vacation, but I am definitely not slacking off. I’ve been reading and studying a lot. I’m awake randomly at 4:30 in the morning because I’m studying again. Consider that a clue for what I’ve been spending my time with this week! It’s probably the worst clue, but clues are fun anyway!

Okay okay, here’s another:

This week I’m in Dallas, Texas to work with the Dallas Market Center and learn all about the wholesale business!

Before I jump into blogging about this week, here’s a recap about last week. I worked with Peak 7, a nonprofit in Spokane, Washington on one of their 5-day backpacking trips. To read my first 2 blogs about last week, click here for part 1 and here for part 2.

After surviving our first night in the wilderness, we woke up to soggy boots outside out tents. There are times in life when you ease your way into something, but we sure didn’t ease into hiking! After eating our standard breakfast of instant oatmeal, we loaded our daypacks with granola bars, filtered water, and raingear and hit the trail.

We had three amazing guides on the trip, Nicole, Laura, and Lo. For the first day of hiking, they announced we would summit a mountain called “Stiletto Peak” by the end of the day. Hearing “stiletto” made me think of high-heels and glamorized the idea of hiking to the top of the mountain. Let’s just say I missed the memo that we would be walking 3 miles up a mountain! That may sound like nothing, but we counted the number of switchbacks (alternating hills up the mountain) and there were close to 30 hills we climbed.

Well, the life of an artist isn’t exactly what you’d call “structured.”

With a handful of projects going on at the same time, Dean Stanton is constantly buzzing from place to place, either finishing up a job or getting supplies ready for the next one.

So far, I’ve helped him outline his latest mural (one for a community garden in Calgary), painted with the kids camp, done some varnishing, and am getting ready to help set up for a large community mural to take place later this week.  It would be great to have a boss like Dean!  He’s easy-going and totally supportive of individual ideas.  He understands how people work, and instead of getting frustrated of upset if things don’t go his way - he totally rolls with it.

Painting is almost therapeutic…gently brushing the colour on the canvas, whether staying in the lines or drawing outside, it’s a hands-on project, that gives you immediate results. I’m definitely a visual person, but am not one that’s able to articulate much of anything with a paintbrush. Dean’s style is funky – simple, but uplifting. You can’t help but smile when you see his zany cartoon caricatures and animated animals.

As far as my own painting ambitions go – I can definitely appreciate how tough it is to figure things out in a freelance world.  You never know where your next job is coming from, or how long until you’ll be able to stock the fridge with something other than kraft dinner and hot dogs…

To be an artist, you have to sacrifice.  Whether that sacrifice includes ever being able to wear pants that aren’t stained with paint, or larger things such as having a decent-sized savings account – the reason people become artists is because it’s their PASSION!  Professions such as painters, photographers, musicians and actors, encompass the focus of the entire OWJ program!  Artists become artists to express themselves and to create beauty – either for themselves or others.

There’s no guarantee that anyone will notice, never-mind like your artwork – but for some, it’s just something they have to do.  Not many artists become rich and famous, but they continue to work at it because it makes them happy.

Simple, right?

I think so.

- Amanda

Ever wonder what it would feel like to paint for a living?!  I have.

For the past few weeks all I’ve wanted to do is take a canvas, slather it in paint, and dig in.

Today, that dream came true!

Dean 'Saws-are-Manly' Stanton

This morning I met up with Calgary, Alberta artist, Dean Stanton at 8am (not sharp), for coffee.  He’s established his own style, and has become somewhat of a local celebrity.  His artwork adorns many homes and businesses, as well as a crop of local murals – the recognizable Sunalta School, especially.

Dean is hilarious; a ‘wild and crazy guy,’ with a strong feeling that art should be a team effort.  In Dean’s mind, there’s no such thing as ‘high art’ – there’s only fun and creativity to be shared with everyone.

Paint Paint Paint

It’s this attitude that continues to bring him notoriety in every kind of circle in Calgary.  He’s even developed a system of team-building/art cooperation, where he takes a large piece of plywood, makes a rough sketch on it’s surface, and then cuts it up.  Everyone in whatever group he’s working with (kids, a corporate office, wedding party, etc), gets a piece of their own – to paint.  Once everyone’s had their fun, Dean redraws the outline on top of the painted pieces, glues ‘em back together – et voila!  A masterpiece.

Today, we had the pleasure of hosting a small group of kids from an arts camp, and making art together.  I got to help sand the wooden pieces, and varnish some others from a freshly painted project.  When the kids came, it was show time!  We painted, flicked, finger-smudged, smeared, and painted again.  It got on clothes, hands, shoes, and some of it even got on our canvases

My masterpiece!

It felt so great to get paint under my nails, and to see the kids having such a great time with it too.  You never know what your piece is going to look like, until you’re done….and even then…how do you know when you’re done?!

Colours and creativity are what this week is made of, and I’m very much looking forward to it!

- Amanda

Hello!

So – this post is totally late, but I swear, I’ll make it up to you…

Sea to Sky Highway from the air

Helicopter Pilot.  This job is tough – no lie.  Whether you’re fighting fires, flying a news/traffic chopper, doing search and rescue, piloting tourists, or even heli-logging, this job requires guts AND brains.  You have to be willing to travel at the drop of a hat, hover dangerously close to the ground, and expertly maneuver through mountains.  These pilots make life and death decisions in under a second, and do it all without anyone else on board even realizing…

Now – I don’t mean to make the position of pilot sounds ominous, or overly dramatic – but it is a pretty cool position to have!

Stuart Baxter of Britannia Beach Heli Tours showed me both the business and the flying side of the helicopter industry.

Lesson #1: To work as a pilot, you have to be patient!  The industry can only handle so many positions, and if you’re going to get one of the coveted spots you’re going to have to pay your dues, sweep some hanger floors, and be ready to step-up when your time eventually comes.  To be considered a competent pilot you have to have a certain number of flying hours under your belt.  It’s a bit of a catch-22, as companies won’t hire you unless you have a certain number of hours, but unless you’re working – how are you supposed to fly?!  To get these hours you have to either pay a decent amount of money to rent a machine, or find someone willing to let you get your hours on theirs.

Patience also comes in in regards to maintenance.  Maintaining a helicopter is integral to…well…lives, really!  Things have to run, and they have to run properly!  And it takes time to get every part in it’s place and running smooth.

Pilot Stu and myself

Patience ALSO comes in regards to customers/clients and a new business.  Britannia Beach Heli Tours is only in it’s second summer of business, so things were a little slow.  The heli-pad, however, is strategically placed on the side of the highway and perfect for tourists making the trip between Vancouver and Whistler, B.C.  We got a lot of traffic off the road, as well as by word of mouth.

Lesson #2: I would say the next most important lesson I learned, and this is more in regards to running a new business, but marketing is key. To get the word out there, you have to beat down doors, make those phone calls, and brainstorm like mad.  Stuart’s a genius at this, and we spent many-a-time thinking up new ways to entice customers into a helicopter ride.  ie: clown costumes, bus tour stops, and good ‘ol magnets!  ;)

On Thursday, we even entertained a group of 3 and 4 year-old kids from a summer camp and taught them all about helicopters.  It was pretty cool to see their faces light up, and compete for a position to sit in the pilot seat.  Maybe a One Week Job program will start for kids that age?!

The Chief. Hiked to the top one day and flew over it the next!

Stuart loves the variety that comes with the job.  So many avenues to go down – so many views to see!  No trip is ever the same, whether it’s simply the weather, the landscape, or the people you’re flying with.

As far as my career future goes, however – I’m not sure that Heli Pilot is actually in the cards.  I had a great time flying (did you SEE the video?!), and it was really gratifying to see guests so excited to go up and take their first ride.  I think my mind was kind of still in ‘Event-Planning/Marketing Mode’ from Week 5 though, as at every turn I tried to find a way to help create more business for the company.  And to be honest, I’m not sure I have the technical know-how to fly on a daily basis.  I’m also not sure I want the responsibility of keeping others safe while soaring thousands of feet above the ground…

But here’s the kicker…the feeling of soaring, the feeling of freedom when you’re above everything else…the feeling of adventure…wow.  That feeling is a passion in itself.

Washing windows on the chopper

On my last day, after expertly cleaning the windows (!), Stu took the door of the helicopter OFF for me to take pictures!  I was nervous, but totally excited and in absolute AWE of what I got to take in.  Words and pictures can’t do the scenes justice, but I am so grateful for the time I got to spend both in the air and on the ground at Britannia Beach.  The mountains, the ocean, the wind…amazing.

A HUGE thanks to Stu and crew – I really appreciate your hospitality and the opportunity to see the world from such heights.

- Amanda

I am back to civilization!

For the past five days, I’ve been backpacking with Peak 7 Adventures in North Cascades National Park. Peak 7 is a non-profit based in Spokane, Washington, that specializes in amazing outdoor adventures for at-risk teens. I was fortunate to go on one of their “Ascent” trips, backcountry wilderness trips that challenge the teen participants physically, emotionally and spiritually. This trip was unique since a youth group flew in from Minnesota to go on the backpacking trip. With 3 guides, 3 adult leaders, and 6 girls, we had a blast this past week!

It’s hard to put into words the magnitude of beauty I saw in the great outdoors. It was mind-boggling to look at the mountain peaks, the meadows, and dense forest, meanwhile pondering that God created it all!

In case you missed my first blog with some background about Peak 7, check it out here.

I love that Peak 7 really educates the participants about “Leave No Trace” Principles, navigation, and about other vital outdoor skills. What is “Leave No Trace?”

Leave No Trace is a set of 7 principles that center around the idea of enjoying nature, but not leaving evidence of being there.

For example, one of the principles is to “Leave What You Find.” There are some mighty cool rocks, sticks, and flowers, but if everyone started hauling off natural souvenirs, there would be no nature to enjoy!

To give you the play-by-play of the week:

Monday night, I went rock climbing!

Getting ready to climb!

It was my first time to actually climb outside. (I usually just climb on an indoor climbing wall.)

Tuesday morning, I woke up around 4:30 AM to drive with Nicole (one of the guides for the trip) to the

Hiking Boots, Jackets, Helmets, and More!

Warehouse. Upon arriving at the warehouse, I got some extra gear that I needed and got my food sack for the week. Check out the picture of the warehouse with plenty of gear to lend to participants.

Around 6:00 AM, all the youth participants showed up at the warehouse to get backpacks and other gear checked out for the week. To give you an idea of what I took on the trip:

• Gaiters (go around hiking boots to keep debris out)
• Headlamp (very important for when you have to pee in the middle of the night!)
• Whistle (only used when you see a bear or are in an emergency)
• Clothes (lightweight nylon pants and shorts, polyester t-shirts, & travel undies that dry super fast)
• Food (instant oatmeal packets, lots of granola bars, cup of noodles for dinner, and jelly beans)
• Raingear (waterproof jacket and pants)
• Journal (a small hand-bound journal I made for the trip)

As you can see, the key to backpacking is to pack light and only bring essential items!

After helping the girls get their gear checked out and packed into their backpacks, we loaded up and drove about 4.5 hours to North Cascades National Park.

The drive was incredibly scenic and offered all of us the chance to sneak in a last nap before a full week of hiking.

About 4 hours into the drive, we stopped at the Ranger station to pick up a permit that allowed us to camp in the area. Then the rain came…

When I say rain, I mean LOTS OF RAIN!

We arrived at the trail-head and knew we were in for quite the adventure. The 12 of us girls sloshed through 3.5 miles of muddy trails and rain pouring down and finally made it to our camp, Fireweed Campsite. On that first night, everyone was worn out from the drive, the cold rain, and the hike, and ready to get to bed pronto! Before we could sleep though, we had to set up 3 tents.

After setting up camp, it was time to get some dinner! For dinner, each girl had 2 packages of cup of noodles in her food sack.

Honestly, I was pretty darn miserable the first night since I was soaked, (despite wearing a new waterproof jacket) cold, and hungry.

The trip guides went to the closest stream to get water to boil for the noodles and set up the mini-stoves. After what seemed like an eternity of waiting for boiling water, it finally boiled. The girls were troopers in spite of horrible weather and didn’t complain too much about our simple dinner.

After dinner, everyone ducked into their tents for the night as the rain continued to come down.

Settling in for the night and glad to be out of the rain

I could seriously write so much about this trip, but will split it up between multiple blog posts. I am flying home today from Spokane, but will post again with more details, pictures, and even a video!

Cheers,

Kieley Best

Follow me here on twitter or email at bestweekjob@gmail.com

You may remember a few weeks ago when Amanda Lowe (during her week at Reframe Marketing) helped set up a pop-up event in downtown Vancouver.

For your viewing pleasure, here’s the video of the event:

Recap Time.

My last night in Austin was a late one. “Last nights” are always filled with weird emotions. You have to be focused because there are always a lot of little things that need to be taken care of before departure – packing, laundering, ticket-buying, calling, etc. And you’re kind of sad because you’re going to be leaving, maybe you don’t want to leave, and you want to make sure you’re using your last hours up well, soaking it all up. So you want to hang out with as many people as possible. But doing chores and hanging out with people makes the time pass quicker. So does sleeping. So your best option is just sitting somewhere by yourself, alone, reflecting. But that can get depressing, and you can’t get depressed, because you need to gear yourself up for the new place you’re going to, because that place is probably going to be just as awesome as the one you’re about to leave.

“Last nights” are a little rough.

I stayed up late after Beth, David, and Matthew went to bed. I did some laundry, wrote a lot, and ate a lot of Beth’s chocolate chip cookies with craisins.

When I woke up the next morning, I showered and packed hurriedly. Cookies were in the kitchen again. Beth not only let me sleep in, but she packed some extra cookies for me to take on the road! I made sure David didn’t see me tear up. Every morning I shared with the Brookses came with a tasty breakfast taco and a cup of coffee, both of which were made by David. This Friday morning, David switched it up. Toasted French bread, eggs with shredded cheese, turkey bacon, and orange juice. The breakfast of association professionals.

I forgot to mention that Tuesday’s night of “America’s Got Talent”-watching came with a couple of Matthew’s chocolate-banana milkshakes. It was good, Matthew.

By Wednesday morning, I had stepped into the shoes of a Communications Manager and Business Development Manager, was working as a journalist as I finalized three press releases, and had attended two meetings, one as an association management trainee, and one as an association staff member. Not too lazy of me.

To finish off the releases, I had to obtain Beth’s input. As the CEO and President of the association giving out the awards, it was imperative that she give a few authentic, positive words on each of the recipients. On the way to work, I took down her words and fit them into the press releases after we arrived at the office around 7:45am.

9am brought the nominators of the award recipients. The plan was to film each nominator speaking about the person they had nominated, and the footage would be used for the presentation at the Annual conference. Josh and Beth let me sit in on the filming, and it was fun to be a part of yet another aspect of the association world. I enjoyed witnessing the different speaking styles of each of the nominators. Some were more conversational and funny, while some were more professional.

I’m back in my home state for a little bit, in the city of Austin, Texas! It feels so good to be here. Here’s the weekly hour and mileage update:

~769 miles from Denver to Austin by bus.

~5806 miles traveled overall.

~83 hours spent traveling overall.

And here’s the trusty weekly map update:

Haha that map is looking a little messy! This week, I’m working with the Texas Society of Association Executives (TSAE) as an Association Professional! I know you probably don’t understand that job title because I had issues of my own before actually working with the company. Let me try to help.

Head-Set-Go!

Helicopters are awesome!

So – the smoke cleared enough for us to take off today, and fly from Squamish to Britannia Beach.  Here’s a photo of me and Stuart in the air, and a video for your viewing pleasure!

See you in the sky!

-Amanda