BEST.WEEK...EVER!

Hello from Cleveland, OH. (Obviously I was elsewhere for my BWE)

As you know from my last couple posts I was in Orlando, FL last week...Best.Week.EVER. Let me tell you about it.

It started off with beautiful weather, warm & sunny! And as my last blog post indicated I went to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter! If you didn't read my last post & want to know all about that...please read it, it's worth it...it was EPIC. While donning a tank top through the park I started to get a tan which I worked on throughout the week while doing different events! :)

The next day was a guerrilla marketing day which my team & I promptly decided the beach would be a perfect place to work! So we headed to the Tampa area and found ourselves at Clearwater which was a gorgeous white sand beach! It was a beautifully warm day and full of people enjoying the sunshine! After we finished working we relaxed on the beach for a little while before we met up with my friend Jess & one of her friends! It was awesome to meet up with them, even though we missed the sunset by less than a minute due to parking :/ We enjoyed a couple margaritas, some amazing food & fresh air off the ocean! I can't wait to go back to spend more time with Jess...and Michelle & I have even considered taking up residence in the area as well!

While in Orlando...it wasn't ALL a vacation, we actually did work, I promise! Our event was the International CTIA Wireless Conference which was very cool! The product we were promoting was a device by Sony Ericsson called the Experia Play. Now, I'm not a gamer or anything but even I thought the device was pretty awesome. It is a smart phone that runs on Gingerbread (the latest version of Google's Android platform) and is also a PlayStation certified device! It looks like a regular phone with a slide out keyboard which is actually a PlayStation controller! There will be games available for download on the Android market that you can play right on your smart phone...my favorite was Madden '11...FIFA is coming soon!! The rest of the conference was cool as well, we got to see the latest in wireless technology including 3D phones, new 4G phones & the newest Samsung Galaxy tablets. That was just the tip of the iceberg too, there was SO much going on there I didn't even get to see it all. The event lasted three days & after each day I relaxed at the pool & took advantage of the weather and ran a couple miles in shorts and a tshirt!!

Our last day in Orlando was a day off & oh how amazing it was! It started off by me renting a car from Enterprise & when I made my reservation I requested an American made car, which apparently the two men at the office found funny. They asked where I was heading & I told them Lakeland so they assumed I wanted an American car because Lakeland is a 'country' area & I wanted to fit in...but it is really because American cars are better. :) They were about to give me a Chevy Impala when I inquired about the Dodge Challenger out front & both were surprised that that was the car I wanted...but BOY did I want that car & I got it! So I headed out to Lakeland to visit Joker Marchent Stadium, even though the Tigers weren't playing there that day, I just wanted to check out the field. While on the highway I got PLENTY of looks in my sweet car while I was jamming to some music, my favorite songs to hear was Keri Hilson's "Pretty Girl Rock" and Eminem's "Lose Yourself"...awesome songs to rock out to! As soon as I parked my car a man came out from the field & I thought for sure he was going to tell me I couldn't park there but he just gave me a smile & said, "Nice car"...I returned the smile & just said, "Thanks"...I mean, no one needed to know it was rented, right? (I also got several other compliments on my car...it might be a good investment for me in the near future!) So I walked around the park, took some photos & then headed off to Kissimmee where I was ready for a baseball game!

I went to Champion Stadium at ESPN's Wide World of Sports for a Tiger's game against the Atlanta Braves, which just so happen to be my favorite two teams! As soon as I walked into the stadium I could smell baseball, between the grass, hot dogs, beer & a faint smell of leather...I was right where I needed to be! I got myself a PBR & found my seat next to a wonderful old man from Michigan, transplanted to Orlando. He & I had great conversations about Kalamazoo, Detroit & of course the Tigers as he used to be in the farm system back in the day & because of Willie Horton, didn't make it on the team! On my other side were a couple guys, one who used to play college baseball & described how much he missed the game which brought me to miss playing ball too. I was on cloud 9 though with PBR in hand, the sun going down & baseball in my sight...it definitely made for an awesome end to an awesome week. The Tigers lost the game and actually didn't play all that well, but they were also finalizing their rotation & line up...I'm not worried.

If that wasn't a great ending...being able to spend a day and a half in Charlotte was! As we were heading back to the Midwest, our half way point just happened to be in Charlotte!! So, Kevin & Michelle dropped me off & I spent some much needed family time with Ellie, Stef, Nick & Gabbers. As soon as I got in Nick had the Red Wings game taped & a Bell's beer chilling in the fridge, just like before! I also got to see Stef & Nick's new house and my/Linda's new bedroom (for when I'm done with the tour)...I LOVE IT! I was sad to leave, but very happy to see my little Boo-Boo!!!! Our first event was a Blue Jackets game in Columbus & I was also able to meet up with my bud Shulack while there for a few days which was awesome, tomorrow's event is the Cleveland Indian's opening day game...MORE BASEBALL!!! <3

Overall, you put that mix of things together & I look at my life & just see how amazingly blessed I am! It's a little early in the tour to say it was the best week of the whole tour, I think it's my goal to top it in the next eight months!! :)

As I sit here watching baseball, enjoying an Oberon...I hope y'all have your BEST.WEEK.EVER soon! Muah!

P.S. A special shout out to my dear friend Jess Waugh...CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR ENGAGEMENT!!!! <3 I can't wait for the wedding!