Uh Oh, Another Six-Pack Summer Comin'

Remember Jessie, the quieter roomie? Check her out on stage with her biker/bass-playin' buddy at Crusen's (local bar).

How did we wind up here?  Read on about my week and find out!

Week 2

Monday: Memorial Day (already blogged on that one)...GET PAID FOR IT THOUGH!

Tuesday:  

 Is there any adjective that can make sorting and filing contract papers exciting?  If there is, I haven't found it, but thank goodness for Pandora adding value to my day by giving me new great bands!  So, our company has a GSA contract that was started in 2008 and each award since then has been somewhat haphazardly filed without tracking documentation, and as the time comes to renew the contract, there is a potential (and likely) audit that will happen, and I am charged with the task to go back and track which documents are missing and organize them so that the auditor is in and out...ahhhhh, the dream of any intern!!!

As my supervisor tasks some of our group members with starting a new marketing campaign, we went downtown to meet with a marketing director.  She was incredibly well-versed and on top of her game - it was a great opportunity for me to see what the brand marketing side of Caterpillar encompasses.  I am definitely looking forward to working on this project...just gotta get through this filing first!  

After our meeting we got to have lunch outside and experience the cart scene on the streets of P-town.  Quite scrumptious!  At lunch, a co-worker informed me that the D&FP sand volleyball team was one female down for the game that night and asked if I wanted to join...duh!  

Keeping with my working out, I have officially joined the Riverplex.  I was a member last internship, and now that I have discovered the fantastic world of spin class, I had to go back!  Before sand volleyball I headed over to the Riverplex and went to spin...love it! 

The Riverplex

Located on the Illinois River and has incredible running path that winds along the waterfront

At sand volleyball, I got the opportunity to play with my co-worker, supervisor, and some of their close friends.  Needless to say, my competitive spirit revealed itself in full force...at least they got to know the real me?  It was extremely fun, and I hope I am allowed to play with them for the rest of the season (more on this later).

Wednesday:

File. File. File. File. File. *It is pretty astonishing to me that more thought wasn't put into these processes prior to starting the contract.*  This is me taking mental notes on the company.   

  

Rewind: So, I did some prelim research before I arrived in P-town regarding sand volleyball.  I posted on our intern facebook page asking if anyone else would be interested and received an incredible amount of responses.   Well, I decided to take on the task of organizing about 30 people whom I have never met before let alone know their athletic ability and create three teams of interns to compete in the Peoria Park District sand volleyball league.  I really didn't know what I had gotten myself into.  Waivers needed to be signed.  Fees needed to be paid.  Captains needed to be picked.  Well, with the help and patience of the Club 4-3-2 roommates, we collected the reimbursement money for the $1090 paid to Peoria Park District for all of us to participate. *I asked the intern coordinator of Caterpillar to consider sponsoring the intern teams and was surprised to get shot down immediately.*

Fastforward to Wednesday morning when I get a call from the director of the Peoria Park District: the check bounced.  Apparently, I can't write a check for over $1,000 or else my credit union gets upset at me.  So, I left work early to skidaddle over to the local credit union (now my best friend with all of this reimbursement shenanigans) and withdrew the money to deliver it to the Administrative Building so the teams could all play on Thursday!  It all worked out but added a little panic to my day...

Just FYI, here is the view I face as I pull out of the parking lot of Tech Center A where I work in Mossville, IL.

 My view!

Mossville, IL across from Tech Center A

Spin class was another great one!  You know you are getting old when you pass out around 9:30 PM every night...

Thursday:

As I was walking out of our third-floor apartment, I looked out into the parking lot and saw something weird at the end of it.  Obviously, I had to figure out what it was...

Gobble Gobble

My turkey friend made me wish for Thanksgiving in May!

It put a smile on my face that lasted up until I got to my desk and realized I was just finishing 2010 contract filing.  Two years to go. File. File. File. Today, instead of Pandora I was checking out Turnpike Troubadours newly released album...LOVE IT!

I was also inundated with approximately 120938192837 sametime (instant messaging for the internal Caterpillar network) from fellow interns asking about weather plans for the sand volleyball game.  Obviously, it would be too easy if the first sand volleyball game for the interns had perfect weather.  First rain I have seen in Peoria since I got here.  Terrential downpour was an understatement.  Oh, and a steep temperature drop.  Once again, a great learning opportunity.  As I have learned from my years at Georgia Tech, successfully communicating with engineers is quite the challenge, but all of the teams made it to the courts on time, so I guess I did something right?

Apparently here in Peoria, nothing stops sand volleyball.  So in 50 degree weather and a cold mist, our team (the Blue Zebras) hit the court at Bradley Park at 6:30 for our first match - a seeding match to determine if we get placed in the A-league or B-league.  SO MUCH FUN!!! Even with numb feet (for my Georgia Tech readers: it reminded me of freshmen tug workouts at night in the winter in TKE's sand pit), we managed to have an absolute blast...and obviously WIN! The first intern team to play, the Fluffy Bunnies, played before us and won their match.  We hung around to cheer the third team, the Pink Elephants, but they were still working on strategy and didn't pull it out.  Walking away from the courts, the BZ's thought we had A-league in the bag, but I come to find out on Friday afternoon that we were still placed on the lower league - needless to say, I am still upset about that.  I have a sneaking suspicion that the league coordinator messed up because of the response I received when I questioned him on it, but the schedule is set and the BZs will just have to dominate the lower league.  

Friday:

The roommates and I sat down last night after our great volleyball victory and made huge plans for our Friday evening.  It was going to help me get through the emminent filing that I knew I would face in the morning.  As I was getting ready for work, I told Jessie how excited I was to go out with the roommies and explore Peoria a little further, and about three minutes later she responded, "I am really excited because when I drink, I get louder and people can actually hear me."  I knew at this moment it was going to be an epic night.

Gotta love short weeks...especially when you are filing again. File. File. File. File. Moving closer to the end of 2011 and hoping there is a light at the end of the tunnel.  Oh wait.  Four more boxes were conveniently found of more files.  Christmas came early. It's okay though...Jim, the guy who put me on this filing extravaganza, came over and told me how impressed he was.  What can I say...filing is a mad skill and it's going on my skills section of my resume now.  At the end of the day, I had a meeting with my supervisor to delve further into the marketing campaign further next week...hip hip hooray! 

Friday Post-Filing:

Liz's boyfriend, Connor, was coming into town to celebrate their four-year anniversary.  So, she was trying to get off work early and left at the crack of dawn this morning.

Liz and Connor

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY YOU TWO GOOBERS!!!

Lauren's boyfriend, Matt, was coming back into town for the weekend, so she wanted to get off work early and went into work shortly after the crack of dawn this morning.

So, we made plans for Lauren, Matt, Jessie, CJ, Ben, and I to go out to dinner at Kelleher's, an Irish pub on the riverfront, at 7PM.  Bad decision.  On Friday's, they block off that section of the street and it becomes a street party.  It was an hour-long wait.  Our stomachs were growling as we walked into the brewery next door and contemplated withstanding the awful stench encompassing the brewery just to put our stomachs at ease...we chose to head back over towards East Peoria and grab dinner at Granite City; however before we got to our cars, we noticed something a little out of the ordinary. 

So, you may ask yourself, what do people do on Fridays in Peoria?  Well, we were passing a parking lot full of unique cars with their hoods popped (I wanted CJ to take his Mustang over there and join the party) outside of Hooter's (yes, even in Peoria, Hooter's has found a home).  Obviously, I had to find out what was going on, so Jessie and I went over to check it out more closely.

Every Friday night, somewhere in Peoria, there is a car show where anyone can come and bring their car and put it on display.  I know.  It sounds extremely exhilarating and right up my alley.  Our favorite pick was the old school VW bug convertible (bottom left picture).

 

 

At dinner, Lauren impressed us all with her HR skills and non-discriminatory speech when we were talking about the noticeable amount of red-heads in Peoria (Nikki and Jennifer...you would fit in!) and with all of our nerdiness discussed the recessive gene, and she said, in all seriousness, "I didn't know it skips a ginger-ation." 

Granite City

From left to right: Matt, CJ, Jessie, Ben, and Lauren

After dinner, we showed off our non-engineer engineering skills in constructing a beer pong table out of my desk and closet door for Club 4-3-2 to kick off the night's festivities. 

 Makeshift Beer Pong Table

One desk + one closet door = hours of fun

Honoring our safety vow to Caterpillar, we decided not to drive and take advantage of Crusen's Blue  Bus (think short bus + drunk tank - any cost to ride) and go to Crusen's on Farmington.  Although this was not our ideal destination, it got us to the bars on Farmington.  Might I say, at this point, Jessie was having a great time, "tying one on" if you will (phrase complimentary of Lauren's parents).  Pictures don't properly depict her swagger (aka lack of ability to stand in one place without swaying).

 Club 4-3-2 outside of Crusen's

Waiting for Lisa Carlson #1 to make it safely into Crusen's before entering.

After entering the bar, Connor quickly posed a challenge saying "I will buy a shot for the first person to get on stage..." Shortly thereafter, I was buddy buddy with the lead singer swaying to the music as their unofficial background dancer.  Vodka was my choice of shot.  Back on the dancefloor, Jessie remarked, "I am not drunk - it takes so much to get me drunk." Well whatever she was, sober Jessie was rocking it.  She also remarked, "I want you guys to make me more outgoing..." which I took as the second challenge of the evening and got the bass player to invite her onstage to make some friends with the crowd!!!

 Crusen's Regular

Jessie loving the spotlight!

 Trying to take over

At this point, the bass player was looking at me and saying, "She should get off the stage now."

With the free transportation to Farmington, we quickly were over Crusen's, and decided to head out to our original destination, Jimmy's.  All of .6 miles away (verified by iPhone), we decided it was best to take a $4 taxi.  Can you say lazy?  

 Sittin' at the bar at Jimmy's

My GT intern buddies, Ben and CJ

 The two lovebirds!

Liz and Connor

Lisa Carlson and Lisa Carlson #1

Can't you tell the resemblance?  The bouncer could see it.

Saturday:

Lazy/recovery day in Club 4-3-2.  Jessie and I took a trip over to One World for brunch around 1:30 - some may call that too late for brunch, but it worked perfectly for us.  The restaurant is across the street from Bradley University and had a fun atmosphere. I ordered a delicious egg and veggie skillet which came with a wheat bagel and savory cinnamon raisin cream cheese.  Jessie got the chicken pesto pizza (not so much brunch...) which will also serve as her lunch for the rest of this upcoming week.

One World

Our Meals!

At brunch, Jessie and I discussed our plan of action.  Why did we need a PoA? Unfortunately, Jessie's debit card was MIA after the night before.  So, we had to go back to where it all started.

 The Suspected Culprit

We headed back to the second (and final) bar and asked the bartender about their lost and found contents, and after some chuckles and comments at my roomie's unfortunate situation, we checked out the bathroom and decided it would be worth a try to see if it hadn't even made it out from the first bar.  Well, sure enough, when we walked into Crusen's, the bartender immediately recognized Jessie and was able to magically provide her debit card and a lovely story to go with it...

We were supposed to take a nice walk afterwards; however, Peoria decided to have temperamental weather and we headed towards the nearest RedBox instead.  As we were leaving the Walgreens parking lot, we literally were on the break of the storm and saw beautiful weather to the West and the storm headed straight to ICC...just our luck.

Temperamental Weather

On the edge of the storm 

Fulfilling my chick flick quota for the summer, we started watching The Vow (I give it five stars!) and shortly thereafter, had the opportunity to meet Lauren's family as they passed through on their way to University of Iowa orientation for the little sister.  What a hoot!  My personal favorite was when her mom was laughing so hard that she let loose a light snort which brought about another bout of laughter!

Before the movie was over, I had to start getting ready for dinner with the birthday girl.  Who was the birthday girl?!?  The one and only, Anne Schnitzer.  She was an intern with me during my first internship with Caterpillar and now works for Cat full time as an accountant.  She had invited me to dinner at PV II with her parents who had driven up from St. Louis to celebrate her 24th birthday.  After parting ways with her parents, she showed me around her one-bedroom apartment which is literally above Kelleher's (the place we couldn't get into the night before because of the long line) and is AWESOME.  If I lived in Peoria, I would want an apartment with premier location like hers.  She could walk to work easily since she works downtown (too lazy...), and she just has to go one flight of stairs down to get to the happening bar and its across from the river!  In the foyer (not hung), was the framed Braves jersey which was my companion on the road trip to Peoria.

We headed back to Woodview Commons to meet up with some interns who were interested in celebrating her birthday with her, and before you know it we were hitting the streets downtown!  First, we went to Kelleher's where I proceeded to sneak my way into the cornhole competition that was in the street with some businessmen from Chicago where I tried to sell my business plan to potential investors.  My partner and I lost the game (not cool), but I got some serious interest on the investing front.

My business plan?  Well, I have noticed that Caterpillar has an older demographic, and assuming that Caterpillar remains committed to Peoria (which I believe they truly are as they are in the middle of building a state-of-the-art museum on the Riverfront) they are going to have to replace all of the soon-to-be retirees with youthful people such as the 300+ interns I am surrounded by here.  What do youthful interns look for in a city?  A social scene!  I want to purchase a building right near the waterfront and turn it into a tri-level club which caters towards a multitude of demographics.  Country bar with bull riding (Wichita friends...think Club Rodeo style) on one level, hip-hop/rap on another level, and a sky level for VIP access that is a really nice bar (Atlanta friends...think Prohibition).  I have found that through my internships and exposure within Caterpillar, there is such a great diversity; yet, there is no bar/club/scene that really envelops it all.  That is where my business would come in.  So, if you are interested (Derek...ehhh?), please let me know if you would like to be an investor too!

I forgot to mention that the birthday girl was easy to spot.  She made friends with lots of interns!  Check it out.  A great time was had by all!

 Yellow "Happy Birthday"Glasses

The birthday girl and me...check out her new hot pink jeans!!!

Anne on the dance floor at Sulley's with the CAT interns

From left to right: Boomy, Anne, Kunle, Patrick, Cicely, Priscilla

 Weirdest Bike Ever (like a double decker)
A night out in Peoria wouldn't be complete without something weird like this...

Sunday:

I woke up and finished The Vow, and then Jessie and I ventured out to St. Thomas' in Peoria Heights for Mass.  Alright, so when it came to the homily, the priest started undressing and talking about a tradition on the day of the Trinity, and we were slightly skeptical.  Shortly thereafter, he was juggling.  I am not kidding.  It was pretty impressive how he tied it all in together and definitely kept our attention.  St. Thomas is very similar to St. Joseph's (the church I went to when I was in Marietta) in that it is very simple - not adorned with expensive decor like OLA's new church, the two sisters who were altar serving reminded me of when I was a youngin', and it is connected to St. Thomas Catholic school.  The community is on the older side (welcome to Peoria...), but one of their announcements they made was for a Wine Tasting next Friday!  That also kept my attention!  Jessie and I are thinking about giving blood at their Blood Drive next Saturday.

St. Thomas in Peoria, IL

As you can tell from the picture, weather was on our side today, and we met up with Lauren and took a lovely stroll along Grandview Drive which is considered one of the world's most beautiful drives.  Before we left, Jessie mentioned her desire to go for a long run this afternoon to which Lauren replied, "When are you all going running because I really want to go roller blading."  It's these Lauren-moments that keep my abs in shape as I laugh so hard at her seriousness.

 Grandview Drive

 

Grandview Drive

My dream house!!!

  

 Grandview Drive

My dream house's front porch view!!!

 

Grandview Drive

Lauren and I 

 Grandview Drive

Jessie and I were admiring the wonderful, mulched running path and found this commemorative rock.  

"May all your running paths be as grand as this one"

 Grandview Drive

A little history before we headed back!

After our lovely walk, the roomies and I parted ways as I headed to an INCREDIBLE coffee shop in downtown called Thirty-Thirty Coffee Co.   They make their own syrups, they brew their coffee so meticulously, and they charge by the weight (I had never heard of that)! I had an iced Miel and it was so freakin' good.  I will definitely be back!

 thirty-thirty Coffee Co. on Main Street

Check them out: http://www.thirty-thirtycoffee.com/

So, in my mind, this has been a perfect 10 on the scale for relaxing weekends, but it wasn't over.  Last night, I found my Euchre partner for the summer who is a fellow Cat intern.  Another thing I love about the midwest: they ALL know how to play Euchre!  Not all of them, but enough for us to easily find some competitors.  Tim and I took on Lauren and Jessie, and as you can tell from the picture below...we won!  It was just the opener of what I am sure will be an intense season of Euchre!

Euchre Champs!

Tim and Lisa: 1

Lauren and Jessie: 0

Peoria held up this weekend, and word on the street is that there will be a birthday boy visitor next weekend!!! Silas (previous Caterpillar intern) will be in town after he turns 23, Josh will be back from his Michigan vacation, Liz will be turning 20, Kak and Hannah will be in Chicago (I will be going up there on Saturday night to see those ladies!), and hopefully...filing will be finished, but we will have to see how much I can finish off tomorrow!