An Intern's Adventure: Brochure Distribution 2.0

For those avid readers out there, you may remember a post I made last summer about distributing our advertising materials in Sister Bay. Yesterday, I had the distinct pleasure of repeating the journey in Egg Harbor.

Last year’s adventure looked something like this:

This year, I was in Egg Harbor, which is an area we drive through all the time in order to get to our main spot in Door County: Ephraim. However, my family and myself don't normally spend a lot of time in Egg Harbor, so I am not that familiar with it. Also, it was approximately 700 degrees (C) outside, so I was slowly melting the entire time. I'd say this experience looked more like this:

 Or maybe...

But most definitely: 

Not that I actually got tremendously lost, which is saying something indeed. My mother kindly tells me that I "couldn't navigate my way out of a paper bag", which I'm sad to say, is mostly true. But, to be fair, I made the brilliant decision to take on the Egg Harbor Adventure at noon -- peak lunch time. And if you've ever been to Egg Harbor, you'd know that it is similar to the rest of Door County in that it is packed with delicious restaurants, all on super narrow roads with lots of foot traffic. Needless to describe further: it was a hot mess. 

Luckily for me, Egg Harbor is very well labeled. They have signs directing you to places of interest all of the place, which makes it very tourist friendly. However, these signs are really difficult to look at while you're trying to navigate traffic, parked cars, people, animals, children, heat stroke, dangerous beasts etc. 

Once I figured out roughly where I was going, I felt pretty well prepared to tackle the list of businesses to visit. One thing I was not prepared for though, was how many dining establishments don't actually open until 4/5 PM for dinner. This means, which did not really register to me at the time, that there would be no one to unlock doors or to receive my brochures. Parador (a new Spanish restaurant in town) happened to have their first door unlocked, so I could leave materials behind it. I was less lucky at the next stop...


I knew that Trio Restaurant was on a corner off Highway 42, so I headed in their direction. Along the way, I passed a bank and another shop I was supposed to stop at (darn it) but I parked behind Trio anyway. As I walking up the front door, a group of two guys and a lady were walking away from it. One of the men was blatantly checking me out, and I was so startled by his obvious staring that I didn't really register anything else about the situation. Upon reaching the front door, I realized not only were those people walking away because the Trio wasn't open yet, they had also failed to tell me this information. It wouldn't have been that much effort saved, but still....


I then decided to leave my car in the parking lot and walk to the businesses I had passed, rather than scope out another parking lot. Now, had it only 75 degrees outside, it would've been a nice walk down the hill. Since it was a million degrees, it was more like what the people above were experiencing. 


The last thing to report was that along this journey, I was startled by two different people. I have a tendency to get lost in my thoughts, and when I'm in a quiet place, any disturbance startles me. And I'm also one of those people, who when startled, literally jump in the air (thus my friends love watching scary movies with me...). Both times were occasions were the other person saw me, but I didn't realize they were there until I was practically on top of them, and then jumping out of my skin at their presence. Not necessarily the nicest interaction to have with a person...


Anyway....By the end of the day, I was exhausted and ready to return to the office. One of my last stops was the Wood Orchard Market, where I rewarded myself by buying a piece of their Orchard Medley Pie (my absolute favorite). Then I looked like this: 

Intern's Top 5 Picks!

A third summer? This intern must be crazy…About great music!

Hello all! Box office intern Alisa reporting. This blog marks my first report in Door County, AND my third summer with the Peninsula Music Festival! I just completed my fourth year of studies at St. Norbert College, in De Pere, and graduated Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Music. I’m happy to report that I am one of the few graduates who gets to actually use their degree for their summer job – not to mention gets to be soaked in fantastic music for an entire month!

What are some things to look forward to this summer? (Other than my friendly self on the other side of the phone when you call the office, of course!) It’d be really easy to say “the entire season!” because it’s going to be a fantastic one, but here’s my personal list of Top 5 things not to miss this summer!

1 Festival Opening

a.     Of course, the Opening is ALWAYS exciting, it’s kind of like the 1^st of the 12 days of Christmas, right? But this concert in particular features “Symphonic Dances” by Grieg, who is one of my all-time favorite composers. He wrote in the Late Romantic Era, and a lot of his music has simple melodies, that are deceptively difficult to play. “Symphonic Dances” is sure to be as fun for the orchestra to play as it will be for us to listen to!

2 Saturday, August 11^th

a.     This concert has both “Rhapsody in Blue” AND “Appalachian Spring” – two very “user friendly” pieces, featuring highly recognizable melodies. For those of you who really liked the “From Broadway to Hollywood” concert last year, or who are looking for a start to orchestra concerts, this concert is singing your tune! Plus, starting earlier at 6:30pm, this makes a great concert for the whole family!

3 Thursday, August 16^th

a.     “The Planets” by Gustav Holst is one of the most beloved orchestral pieces of all time. Many people are familiar with the “Jupiter”, especially because this is frequently played by itself. However, this summer you get a chance to hear this magnificent work in its entirety! Wow! Enjoy this celestial concert, then spend some time under the beautiful spread of stars that graces Door County’s nighttime skies.

4 Saturday, August 18^th

a.     A night of two great B’s – Barber and Beethoven. Both are considered to be innovators in their fields, and this night will surely highlight this. Come enjoy Beethoven’s Symphony Number 9 and hear choral and orchestral forces combined like you’ve never heard before!

5 Festival Finale

a.     Just like the opening, the Finale is always a great time, no matter what’s on the bill. But this summer, for the 60^th anniversary of the Festival we’ve got a real treat for you: Guest Artist, award winning, Hilary Hahn. In our intimate auditorium, no matter where you sit it will feel like she’s playing just for you! This is the one to make, and bring all your friends too!

6 Okay, so I know it’s a “Top Five” list, but I can’t help but include that student tickets are only $10 again this summer (before tax). That means that you can bring your kids, neighbor’s kids, grandkids – whomever! – to hear some of the best musicians in the world, all on one stage, all for $10. This is an experience they will not soon forget!

So come check it out! 1 concert or 9, you'll be glad you came! And we can't wait to see you! 

Viola, Flute and Harp - Oh My!

The annual February Fest of the Peninsula Music Festival starts tomorrow afternoon with a chamber concert at the Peninsula School of Art. These chamber concerts are a nice way to bring some PMF musicians to Door County in a month other than August and also create much needed 'buzz' on the Festival during the long stretch from August to August.

However, sometimes the logistics for these small chamber concerts can be harder than getting 70 orchestra musicians to the Door Peninsula for the month of August - this concert especially! Three musicians, two states, one harp and the first real snow all season has ended up being a logistical challenge.

The violist and the flutist are flying from Omaha Nebraska to Green Bay airport and renting a car to drive to Door County today. As you may have figured out, you can't take a harp on an airplane and you can't put a harp in the baggage compartment of a plane. Which means that one harpist along with her harp are driving across Iowa and Wisconsin to get to Door County. I just checked the radar and it is snowing in Iowa as well as Wisconsin.

Of course, the snow has tapered off and the plows will be out. The concert isn't until 3:00 p.m. tomorrow so we have lots of time to travel and rest. But it does never cease to amaze me that we can go a whole winter without snow and if the Festival plans a concert, Mother Nature decides to remind us that she is in charge.

But these are the things that keep my job exciting, right? How could it be fun to have everything go as planned, right? My job would be boring, right? Well, just once I'd like to find out what my job would be like if it were boring - once, that is all I ask.

See you at the concert!!!!


Concert Details and Purchase Tickets

A New Ticketing System and Our Resistence to Change!

We entered the 21st Century this year - we purchased a point of sale ticketing system! Yep, after 60 years, we finally took the plunge and thanks to a generous donation we now can sell tickets, track donations, send letter and emails easily and seamlessly.

Or so you would think! The one thing we did not even consider was the human being's amazing ability to resist change. It is like an instinct that we cannot shut off. Who knew that something that should be so simple has become so complicated, but we are all creatures of habit. And though the old way was cumbersome and complicated, we were used to it, comfortable with it, we had embraced cumbersome and complicated.

Something so easy is almost too hard to get our heads around. We want to complicate it and that just makes it worse. This too shall pass, but in the meantime, we will continue to repeat to ourselves, "keep it simple, embrace the change," and hopefully we will finally hear our own voice!!!!

Life's Constants: Death, Taxes and Change - and we resist them all!!!!

An Intern's Adventures: Driving Miss Caroline

Tuesday night I was privileged with one of the best random intern tasks I've gotten in a while: driving our fabulous guest artist, Caroline Goulding, back to her hotel! We left after the delightful post concert party in high spirits...but quickly realized that the situation was essentially setting us as stars for the next horror movie. 

Evidence?

1. We left a party, where we were dressed all fancy, celebrating a great life experience.
2. We were both young, pretty and blonde. 
3. It was dark, and we were driving on an even darker road, essentially in the middle of nowhere. 
4. We had to stop for gas, causing us to get out of the vehicle, thus making us even more venerable.
5. We then got mildly lost...Okay, well really I just missed a turn, needed to turn around and then was a little confused as to which way I needed to go to get back on track. (Again, it was dark and I don't normally drive out that way!) 
6. The road to the hotel seemed abnormally long, and I was thoroughly convinced we missed it until we actually saw signs for the Ashbrooke. 
7. When we finally did arrive, in one piece mind you, Caroline mentioned that she left her key in her room...thus rendering us locked out of the building completely. Luckily, we could look up the number for the hotel, get connected to the night time security guard. 
8. This, however, could have been very dangerous. He told us to meet him outside the office and that he'd arrive in a few minutes. Really, that could have easily been all a part of his sinister plan to lure us in. We are lucky to have survived. 
9. Lastly, I had to drive all the way back to the office to unload our traveling box office and then home in the dark and quiet. It was dark and noisy you know things would be fine, it's the quiet you have to watch out for!! 
10. Oh, and nearly the whole way to Egg Harbor...we talked about scary movies. If that's not enough to have the Scream monster get us, I don't know what is! 

So, there you have it. I am happy to report that both Caroline and I made it home safely, no worse for wear. I did see some deer on the way home, which was kind of frightening in that I really didn't want them to run in front of my car, but otherwise all is well! 

What on earth do we do all day?!

I like to tell my friends at school and home that I pretty much have the best job ever. I mean, I get to work in an office with two hysterical bosses (plus all the fun and wonderful people who are in and out every day), drink all the coffee I want, and hear incredible music. What's not to love, right? 

However. Sometimes, the whole "selling tickets and doing office work" bit -- well, it gets a bit old. 

So, we have to find ways to entertain ourselves! To break up the time when I spend an hour and a half folding paper inserts and stuffing them into envelopes (not that that isn't thrilling. Gee, how I love keeping the postal service in business!). This subject came up tonight before the concert, and we (Sharon, Laura and myself) came up with our list of favorite activities to do in the office (in no particular order). Here we go!!

• Drink iced mochas. This is particularly important during the very hot and humid days we've been having, where we are caught in a catch-22 of needing coffee, but it also being very hot. We have even resorted to making our own iced coffees when we are really busy, by chilling mugs of coffee in our tiny fridge and using ice acquired from our neighbors at the Village Green. 
• Throwing things! This can be very dangerous, or just slightly irritating, depending on the object/piece of candy.
• On that same line: keeping away from sharp objects! Since we all get a little stressed and jumpy during the concert weeks, using safety scissors  is really just the best option for all of us. So, if your letters arrive with fun designs cut in them, or just appear to have been hand ripped: you know why!
• Enjoying the occasional Youtube gem.
• Eating oreos. Particularly mini ones. (Background: Sharon walked into the office the other day and announces: "I brought you guys coffee creamer and Oreos. Because I thought, you can't have coffee without Oreos.") 
• Organizing supplies in the back of the office and coming up with creative labels. For instance, a few weeks ago we sorted out holiday decorations into two boxes which I then labeled "Christmas" and "Not Christmas"
• Having adventures in the woods! Also known as: sending Alisa to the Coke machine at the Village Green (there is a small path connecting us through some trees that is kind of like the Room of Requirement, and it's sometimes tricky to get into!) 
• Listening to Pandora (my favorite station is the Film Scores one -- what's yours?)
• Every day is a great day for arts 'n' crafts! Break up the time by turning an every day project into something fun and creative! (Preferably with glitter)
• Use Laura's Android App to tell us what song is playing on WPR 
• Fire or give raises to each other as needed
• Share fun life stories (we all know everyone's pets by name, and could probably give you a brief life story/extended family medical history)
• Play 52 million pick-up with the tickets you've just spilled on the floor...
• Plan out fun t-shirts and calendars featuring various soloists/members of the orchestras (Because who wouldn't love 12 months of Victor?!) 
• Play Tetris with the items in the tote for the traveling box office (I hold the high score, thank you very much!)
• Delight in the random street names that patrons live on. (Hey, my street is named "June Ave" ANYTHING is more exciting than that!)
• Make detailed plans for this weekend's "Girl's Night"! (Having your boss's four-year-old pick out your nail polish is a must!)
• Plan fantastic "alternative" careers (Get ready for Alisa and Laura's hit book, and KT's traveling ice cream/cookie delivery service!) 

Sooo...now you're probably looking at this thinking "Well, when the heck do you sell me my tickets?!?!" But, of course, we must bear in mind that these adventures do not happen every day. In fact, it would get boring if they did. We would then need to come up with new activities to break up THAT monotony! And then we'd never get any work done at all!

An Intern's Adventures: Mystery Solving!

An intern takes on many different tasks, and is thus required to wear many different hats. On one particular day, this intern had to put on her Mystery Solver hat! 
 I was working on cataloging all of the recordings in our PMF archives. When we are in the middle of our 59th season, we have a lot of different recordings in a lot of different formats.You would think that in this advanced day and age, we would have most of our stuff on CD's. 

  But...Since CD's have not been around as long as we have...most of our records are actually records. And cassette tapes, beta max tapes (I barely know what those are!!!) mini CD's (I definitely don't know what those are...) and VHS tapes. 

Luckily for me, it seemed as thought most of records (in whatever form they may have come in) were neatly labeled with the concert year, number and even some of the pieces*. *The pieces were of course labeled in teeny, tiny writing in order for all of them to fit on those smaller than necessary scraps of paper included in a cassette tape.* However, at the end of organizing the stacks of recordings, I came across 4 CD's that were labeled "Concert #8" and "C0ncert #9" (two CD's per concert) -- but no year! No track names. No nothing, except what number the concerts were. 

Now, it's easy enough to rule out what years they did not come from, because I'm pretty sure Thor Johnson did not have access to that kind of technology. But! They could be from the last ten years, or so, when we were using them. So, my first thought was find out what was on the CD's. With any luck, it would be something very easy to recognize, like the William Tell Overture, Beethoven's 9th, Happy Birthday etc. No such luck. The first piece on the #9 Concert did sound familiar, but not close enough to put a name to it. After 6 semesters of music theory, though, I felt like I well prepared to solve this mystery! I listened to the beginning of the piece a few times, and concluded it was something on the modern* side. *By "modern" I mean in the last 125 years, of course.* So I start looking through our programs, trying to find pieces on our 9th concert that would fit. When I found something that I thought matched, I'd pull up a reference with some other new technology: Youtube! Eventually, I went through seasons 2000-2010, with no luck. Finally, I had the thought to go back another year and BINGO! There is was. Concerts 8 and 9 from our 1999 season. In the flesh (or, plastic and shiny bits, rather).  

The moral of this story is: label your CD's thoroughly! However, this story has a happy ending: for us, we now have a nicely organized recordings archives. For you, mention the word "Mystery" while ordering tickets and you will receive $5 off each ticket!!