Man, what a crazy month it has been so far. I did have a great New Year's Eve, spending it with some new friends here in Nashville. I also had the opportunity to play host to my friend's Bob and Caroline. They were gracious enough to take care of my intoxicated butt one night in South Bend, IN, so i felt it was time to return the favor. Little did I know 2004 would have such a great start, but Bob and Caroline asked me to be in their wedding, which is this coming August in Winston-Salem. I was flattered and surprised all at the same time, but I of course said YES. It is an excuse to get back home right before football begins, and it is also a damn good reason to support two good friends whom I know will build a wonderful life with each other.
I had a couple of visitors just a week later, when the NCAA had a convention here in Nashville. I was lucky enough to have a dinner with Cary and Stay from NIU, as well as my old friend Jody, who is now at Arizona State. Cary was always very good to me while I was at Northern, and in a way, I felt like i turned my back on her a bit when I left for Vanderbilt. Luckily she didn't feel that way, and we had an enjoyable dinner. I was actually able to convince Stacy and Jody to hit the town with me after dinner. Stacy did owe me, as the "younger" group in DeKalb always tried to get her to do something with us. In her defense, she does live about 30 minutes away from DeKalb. Regardless, I took the two ladies out to a couple of honky tonk bars here in town. Believe it or not, I actually enjoy those places. Yes, I am not a fan of country music. However, I do enjoy live music. Give me a beer, a bar, some ladies in the crowd and someone crooning in the background, and I'm happy. I just hope they had fun. It was great to visit with them, and I was fortunate enough to spend more time with Jody that weekend. She also knows Scott, who is my Nashville Social Coordinator, from when he worked at Wake, so we were all able to visit. It's always nice to have friends around you, especially when you have a lot of respect for them.
Other than that, I have been swamped with work. To be honest, coming into this job in the middle of the year is not ideal. It is difficult because there is so much to learn about a school, but on top of that you have to run the events that are going on right now. You have to prepare for events later in the year. You have to deal with all aspects of facilities and game management, not always knowing your resources. It has been challenging, and I believe the summer will present me with a little more time to catch my breath and get organized. But I love it here. I do. That was reinforced this past weekend, as our men played host to #10 Florida, whom we smacked around by 14 points. Yes, we had some situations to deal with, but we had a sell out. The crowd was great. The teams were great. Being in an atmosphere like that will quickly remind me of why I love what I do.
I'm sure that now I've said it, the world will come crashing down, but ... speaking of work, I'll have you know that since I stepped foot on this campus, we have not lost a home event in anything ... football, men's hoops, women's hoops and women's tennis. No, it can't last forever, but it has been an exciting two and a half months.
In a few weeks I am taking a weekend away from work to visit my friends Jessica and Smoose at FSU. Smoose worked with me at NIU and is working in media relations while working on a grad degree. Jessica is in a similar position, working in the ticket office while trying to complete a degree. I'm excited to get down there for numerous reasons. The first would have to be that I will get to spend some quality time with two people whom I enjoy being around. Jessica and I have grown close as friends over the past year and a half, and Smoose ... well, he's like me. He is a clown in regular clothing. I'm also trying to set up a meeting with the head of the sport management program at FSU. I am interested in possibly pursuing a doctorate at some point, and that is a program that sparks my interest. It will also be nice to just be away from events for a weekend. Breaks are always helpful.
For all of you ARGUS fans out there, and I know there are thousands, we will be playing here in Nashville in March. It looks like the weekend of March 26-28 will be our time to Jam. Erich is here for a convention, and somehow I've convinced Donovan, Greg and Michael to head out here as well. Needless to say, I'm pretty damn pumped. Every time I mention ARGUS, I'm sure I say this, but ... I know we didn't play very regularly, but I loved when we did. I miss it. So pack your bags, and come spend a weekend with the ARGUS boys.
I'm going to try and update more regularly. I've been a slackass, there is no doubt. I just hope I can unveil my new jaylowe.com design here in the next few weeks.
I had a couple of visitors just a week later, when the NCAA had a convention here in Nashville. I was lucky enough to have a dinner with Cary and Stay from NIU, as well as my old friend Jody, who is now at Arizona State. Cary was always very good to me while I was at Northern, and in a way, I felt like i turned my back on her a bit when I left for Vanderbilt. Luckily she didn't feel that way, and we had an enjoyable dinner. I was actually able to convince Stacy and Jody to hit the town with me after dinner. Stacy did owe me, as the "younger" group in DeKalb always tried to get her to do something with us. In her defense, she does live about 30 minutes away from DeKalb. Regardless, I took the two ladies out to a couple of honky tonk bars here in town. Believe it or not, I actually enjoy those places. Yes, I am not a fan of country music. However, I do enjoy live music. Give me a beer, a bar, some ladies in the crowd and someone crooning in the background, and I'm happy. I just hope they had fun. It was great to visit with them, and I was fortunate enough to spend more time with Jody that weekend. She also knows Scott, who is my Nashville Social Coordinator, from when he worked at Wake, so we were all able to visit. It's always nice to have friends around you, especially when you have a lot of respect for them.
Other than that, I have been swamped with work. To be honest, coming into this job in the middle of the year is not ideal. It is difficult because there is so much to learn about a school, but on top of that you have to run the events that are going on right now. You have to prepare for events later in the year. You have to deal with all aspects of facilities and game management, not always knowing your resources. It has been challenging, and I believe the summer will present me with a little more time to catch my breath and get organized. But I love it here. I do. That was reinforced this past weekend, as our men played host to #10 Florida, whom we smacked around by 14 points. Yes, we had some situations to deal with, but we had a sell out. The crowd was great. The teams were great. Being in an atmosphere like that will quickly remind me of why I love what I do.
I'm sure that now I've said it, the world will come crashing down, but ... speaking of work, I'll have you know that since I stepped foot on this campus, we have not lost a home event in anything ... football, men's hoops, women's hoops and women's tennis. No, it can't last forever, but it has been an exciting two and a half months.
In a few weeks I am taking a weekend away from work to visit my friends Jessica and Smoose at FSU. Smoose worked with me at NIU and is working in media relations while working on a grad degree. Jessica is in a similar position, working in the ticket office while trying to complete a degree. I'm excited to get down there for numerous reasons. The first would have to be that I will get to spend some quality time with two people whom I enjoy being around. Jessica and I have grown close as friends over the past year and a half, and Smoose ... well, he's like me. He is a clown in regular clothing. I'm also trying to set up a meeting with the head of the sport management program at FSU. I am interested in possibly pursuing a doctorate at some point, and that is a program that sparks my interest. It will also be nice to just be away from events for a weekend. Breaks are always helpful.
For all of you ARGUS fans out there, and I know there are thousands, we will be playing here in Nashville in March. It looks like the weekend of March 26-28 will be our time to Jam. Erich is here for a convention, and somehow I've convinced Donovan, Greg and Michael to head out here as well. Needless to say, I'm pretty damn pumped. Every time I mention ARGUS, I'm sure I say this, but ... I know we didn't play very regularly, but I loved when we did. I miss it. So pack your bags, and come spend a weekend with the ARGUS boys.
I'm going to try and update more regularly. I've been a slackass, there is no doubt. I just hope I can unveil my new jaylowe.com design here in the next few weeks.
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