31 Aug
Photo shoots are hectic days. There are people running around everywhere, products, dresses, models, makeup and hair products flying around…and delicious cheese and dips laying around that no one else wants to eat (don’t mind if i do).
Its a long yet fun day wherever we are. I mainly just stand around and write stuff down…but here’s a sneak peak of what its like. Ben Adams did amazing work & gotta love the music too!!
27 Jul
So I thought it would be a great idea on a rainy tuesday to make sugar cookies with my babysitting kiddies so they could have a fun (and crafty) little indoor project.
We made the dough, tasted, and tasted, added a bit more sugar, tasted some more, refrigerated, and started decorating.
I’m sure we ate more of the dough and sprinkles than actually rolled and baked – but hey, it was delicious & that’s what its all about.
We had just put the beautifully decorated cookies in the oven when the kiddies’ parents returned home. The house filled with the delicious aromas of freshly baked cookies as we waited by the oven door for the final products and like vultures, we tore in.
A few satisfactory chews, then everyone stopped. “What is THAT?” I said. “It tastes like poison” Chloe yelled. We all spat out the cookies into our hands when Megan (the Mom) pointed out that the disgusting taste was in fact, bicarb soda…then she ran to the sink to wash out her mouth.
Oops, I had grabbed the bicarb instead of the baking powder! Mission Failed. I wish my iphone camera wasn’t broken, because it was priceless.
It reminded me of the Modern Family episode when the daughter makes cupcakes for a school project & they turn out pretty much the same way my cookies did.
26 Jul
I want to get married again just to wear this gorgeous dress! Of course I’d get married to the same dude…unless there are any better offers on the table….just joking 
18 Jul
What do I worry about? What don’t I worry about would be a shorter answer – nothing. I used to get the shits about my dad worrying about everything. while I was out with my friends he would stay up to the wee hours of the night until I was home, safe in my bed. This meant that I would always be caught cutting curfew. “Why can’t you just CHILL OUT, Dad?!” was my favourite saying. But now that I’m older (and way wiser) I totally get where he was coming from.
Every Morning I tell Adam to drive safely. I catch myself saying “it’s the other drivers you need to worry about”. What! If you’ve ever been with me in my teenage years attempting to leave my house, you would have heard those exact same words coming out of my dad’s mouth; Directly following with “remember the 3 things…” (don’t ask).
Mostly I worry about the health and safety of my friends and family, my skin, my weight, and my wardrobe – in that order.
When serena Williams had a pulmonary aneurism from flying earlier this year I called my mom & told her to make sure dad reads up on prevention & symptoms.
I wasn’t the most cautious in my younger years, so when I had a skin cancer scare, it shouldn’t have been a shocker. Now, every dot and every dimple is that nasty C word.
Adam insists that I am a mild hypochondriac. I disagree. However, while I don’t claim to come down with every medical problem in the book, if I have the symptoms, I’ll research day & night until I can rule it out. It’s science. I’m still convinced that I have RLS, or restless leg syndrome.
My weight has been an issue almost since day dot. Find me a girl who isn’t concerned with her weight or body shape and I’ll show you a liar. Don’t get me wrong, I’m comfortable in my own skin, but I would also love to slip into a pair of skinny jeans and not slightly cringe. It’s a constant struggle that I’ll always worry about (until I can fit into those jeans again).
My wardrobe. In my opinion, it’s a gal’s perogative if she wants to have 16 versions of the lbd or 5 green shirts (in different shades…duh!). More often than not, while getting dressed I pray that I’ll turn around and the perfect shoe will magically appear in the corner. When new trends come out, I stress about how to get it & how I’ll possibly be able to afford it (with no income and all).
Oh yeah – MONEY! I forgot about money woes. Who the heck doesn’t worry about money, especially us married folk. I want new shoes & he wants to see a band. I want a bag & he wants drinks with the boys. Along with worrying I’ll have nothing to wear, I worry about how to afford the new items that ill just die without!
Now that I’m married, I can’t call mom & dad if I’m one dress short of my rent this month. So I’m left worrying about my compulsive shopping habit, which much like a chocolate binge, causes a heart-pumping shot of euphoria, but leaves me sobbing in the corner with regret (a bottle of wine & the confessions of a shopahic DVD).
As my friends & family will attest, I still enjoy my life. I don’t let worry stop me from doing things, nor does it cloud my head. While i will never worry as much as my dad, I can now empathise with him. I now know what it’s like to worry about someone when they’re out all night or drive long distances when tired. I can only wonder if it’ll get better or worse as I get older.
25 May
Nothing will ever beat Ruby Tuesday’s original blonde, but this was my attempt. And it was a big fat fail.
I can only dream of the ooey-gooey blondie with a giant scoop of ice-cream that I would get for fee thanks to nealie & grace and the rest of my ruby’s housemates from lane st.
25 May
it was a sharp-shooting duel tonight in the halpin household – winner claimed remote rights. Oprah’s last stand (part 1) or State of Origin…lucky for me the blues weren’t doing so hot and Oprah mostly prevailed. And beyonce should seriously consider inspirational speaking as a retirement option. I’m all women’s lib now. We can rule the world, ya know!
Beyonce rocks it...again.
8 May
I’ve been speaking with a friend about finding work in PR as “newbies” and how its quite difficult. The rejection letters flow like the mississippi and after reading a job description (& the subsequent rejection letter) self confidence is quickly washed away. It makes me question my approach, my tactics, my style and even my personality. But, its important to remember, though, that finding a new career is like meeting friends that first day of elementary school. You have to get in where you fit in, or you’ll never be happy. Maybe I’m not perfect for every company, but I’ll be perfect for one.
When I saw this job description, I knew that they value people, not just a CV and that some person, who has received tens of rejection letters from stiff PR companies filtering CV’s like they’re border patrol (who plays hard and works hard), will get that one brilliant interview they’ve been waiting for.
I don’t know how else to say this… we need you. We need you to come work for us. We are hiring at damn near all levels, and looking for folks who are positive, smart, creative, and … well, the word “ballsy” comes to mind.
SHIFT is a cool place to work. Where else could you come to work on a Friday, see the principal walk into the staff meeting holding a 1930’s-era leather football helmet, and have your name pulled out of the hat for “Ejector Seat Friday?” If your name is called, you gotta go home, right then and there, immediately. The message? — Your team not only has your back, but, you work in such close collaboration that they know exactly what was on your plate that day. The client should feel no hiccups, and everyone else is reminded to “get a life.”
Where else could you walk into the office on April Fool’s Day, only to see your entire cubicle has been enshrined in plastic wrap? Or Jell-O?! Or that your office equipment — phone, computer, tape dispenser, stapler, etc. — has been completely replaced by cardboard cut-outs of those same worktools?
See? Cool.
If you want to see a listing of current positions, check us out on LinkedIn. But before you go — since you’re already here — have a look at how we describe our agency and its culture. It’s not for everybody:
We’re SHIFT Communications. We’re what happens when you combine social media goodness with traditional PR. We’re what you get when 100 brainy, fun people actually like working (and playing) together while crushing it on kick a$$ consumer and technology clients!
We’re the place where killer ideas are born and where office politics goes to die. Not the other way around, like some other places you may have worked.
At SHIFT, with offices in Boston, New York and San Francisco, we give you a voice and a spotlight in exchange for your passion. You’re good at what you do, and we’re good about helping you shine. Whether you’re working on cool startup clients or major brands, we’re looking for a person who isn’t content with the status quo. We’re looking for a person to punch above his/her weight class. We’re looking to challenge you with new opportunity, and for you to challenge us by thinking differently, creatively, nimbly.
Importantly, we’re looking for folks who know how to play nicely. The awesome culture we’re bragging about in this post? Yeah, we have that because we’ve gone to great lengths to hire people who have a positive outlook. Are you quick to provide solutions in the face of problems? Do you value the success of your fellow colleagues as much as your own?
Cool. You just might be a SHIFTer.
I hope you’ll consider joining in on the hijinks. Send your resume to HR Director Lori Jepsen, ljepsen@shiftcomm.com. Rockstars only, please.
21 Apr
We’re trying to decorate our (rented) townhouse on an almost nonexistent budget. I got some great ideas from this artist. Lisa Madigan can do amazing things with everyday items…to have the vision would be nice!
21 Apr
my mom's. It comes from forging that siggy so much in high school.
21 Apr
My mom and dad used to throw some bangin birthday parties. They were always themed and never strayed from that theme – from the cake to the games and even kiddie accessories. Too bad I outgrew that.
I’ve gotten myself into some pretty sticky birthday situations, but the only one I’m willing to admit to this day is from a childhood party at the house, back when I had a stylin bowl cut & used to hand out invitations with the info hand written on pre-printed lines. Not sure the number but old enough to be embarrassed.
Tried to go to my room & change from jeans to shorts, but was in such a hurry I didn’t want to take my light-up velcro Ninja Turtle shoes off & tried to shimmy the pants over shoes. It didn’t work. When mom finally realised I was missing, she came to find me flailing around my room, crying with my jeans inside out over my shoes, which she surgically removed just in the nick of time for cake.
