Sometimes I wonder what I’d be doing if I hadn’t discovered journalism. I think my sister Kirsten thinks of me as her own personal travel agent. Every time she’s needed to fly home, I’ve been the one scouring the Internet for flight deals to find the cheapest way to bring her home. It’s a challenge and a game to be played with the airlines since the prices are constantly changing. I like to travel and explore new places so I think it would be fun to advise and arrange trips and vacations for travelers. It’s a hobby though, not something I want to make into a career. This past week at a meeting, Gary Leichtman jokingly told me I should have been a police officer. One of my college roommates became a sheriff’s deputy and really enjoys it. Maybe I should have looked into it a little.
I’ve had a few friends from college who at one time wanted to be event planners: conferences, weddings, etc. That’s one area that’s never appealed to me. Too many details to worry about, too many things that can go wrong and too many people involved. This past weekend I got a little taste of what that career would be like in planning Jacob’s third birthday party.
For the kid’s first and second birthdays we just had small family gatherings, usually just for cake, ice cream and a few gifts. After encouragement from a few others and attending a kiddie birthday party earlier this summer, I decided it would be fun to finally host one. Plus, it would give people who haven’t had an excuse to visit yet a chance to see our house.
Events tend to snowball, I think. It starts innocently enough: picking a date, a guest list, designing and mailing invitations, menu planning, etc. It doesn’t take too long to get somewhat out of control. Looking at the calendar, there were only two open weekends that would possibly work in July and August. I crossed off one because Nate’s mom would be on vacation in South Carolina. That left August 9. The first full week of the month tends to be my busiest week because I usually have both a city council and a village board meeting. Throw a referendum meeting in there and that eats up the first three days of the week.
Thursday morning I surveyed the house and wondered what I was thinking. The island was piled full of mail. The lawn was four days past when it should have been mowed. The fridge was piled full of uneaten leftovers. To top it all off, Jacob’s toys were littered about most of the house. I made a list of what needed to be done on what days to make this work by 2 p.m. on Satuday. Somehow, it all came together. Jacob even helped a little (I bribed him with fruit snacks to pick up his toys). My mother-in-law washed windows and my mom helped with the food. By 1 p.m. Saturday, most of it was pulled together and I was finally able to relax as the guests arrived.
Tuesday I visited the friends and family picnic at Continental Manor. As I talked to one of the employees, Becky, we were in awe of how well organized the event was despite having what looked like several hundred people to feed and entertain. I could barely handle 30 guests. No, event planning is not for me. I’ll stick with newspapers.
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