old hat

Hi everyone, long time no talky. We have so many people working here I rarely get to blog these days, but it's good to be back. Today I thought I'd share a little about one of my hobbies and something I'm becoming increasingly passionate about, which is oil painting. We're chalk full of creative folks around here, not just with the great web, video and print pieces we put together daily, but everyone on staff seems to have some great talents they don't get to showcase very often. So I'm using today to go through the process of a few paintings I've done recently. It's not quite as awe-inspiring as one of Geoff's time-lapse videos, but it's fun for me to see the process when something's completed.

Have you ever had a celebrity sighting that wasn't? I was 1-out-2 on celebrity sightings during our many many Old Hat on-location shoots this last year. We DID see Bobby Brown on our layover in Chicago en route to South Bend, Indiana. He was with some lady who wasn't Whitney Houston. It would have been more exciting if she had been there, but I probably would've been seriously disappointed if she didn't act anything like Mya Rudolph's impression of her on SNL:

What's up, everybody?

My name is Dane. I'm a father, jazz musician, designer and intern extraordinaire - but you probably know me through my various interactions with or having to do with the pop machine here at Old Hat HQ. If not, go ahead and get acquainted: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNM55hxMDl8

Yeah, that aired on local television.

I wanted to blog today about something I know a lot about. I wanted to provide valuable information for those of you that happen to be working today, but maybe you’re looking for something to read to pass the time before taking off on Thanksgiving break. This might not be either of those things, but this is what I’ve come up with.

Hey folks, Dustin and I are out shooting in the lovely Peoria, Illinois yesterday and today so I thought I'd recap our trip with a few photos. I have to admit Peoria has never been at the top of my list for travel destinations, but I also live in Oklahoma so who am I to complain? So far Peoria has been a good trip. And I only downgrade to "good" because our flight out of Chicago O'Hare once again got messed up (canceled actually), so we had to take a 3-hour charter bus ride into Peoria on Monday night. But I don't fault the city of Peoria for that. I blame big brother Chicago for that one.

Somewhat sticking with Tracie's blog theme from Friday, I want to talk a bit about how having CSRs in different areas has enhanced the way Old Hat is doing business. We've been fortunate to employ so many people with previous collegiate and professional marketing experience, and now we're letting these folks out into the wild to discover more prospects and become more involved with our existing clients.

Keeping in the spirit of Dane the Intern's thorough reflections on the trials and tribulations of today's recording artists, I too have decided to blog about one of my favorite subjects--music. Music that I am living without this morning having forgot my headphones on the counter at home.

Aside from the mind-numbing drone of the air-conditioner tirelessly working to keep the triple-digit temperatures outside, I find some solitude in the occasional outburst of Ke$ha's latest hit (Unicorn people and the 'Beek. 'Nuff said.) from Tracie's office across the way.

Well today is going to be a pretty big day around the Hat. We not only have a lot of work going on, but a little bit of play too (don't worry, 30% of the time work is more important than play, every time). First off, it's Tracie's Birthday!! Happy Birthday Tracie! You're officially the oldest person at Old Hat by a year. In case any of you don't know who Tracie is, I've included a couple of the most recent photos I could find. I think she currently looks most like the second photo.

I can't believe it's Friday already. The days just seem to fly by anymore, which is just a sign that I'm getting older and remembering less of my days. These past few weeks have been pretty busy for me, a lot of traveling and a lot going on here at the Hat. And we're just now getting ready to hit the busy season.

Since June has been such a whirlwhind of activities I thought I'd do a little recap of all that I've been up to lately. I won't bore you with all the details, so hopefully a few photos will tell the story.

To kick things off in June, my family took a trip out to the Hawaiian island of Oahu where we stayed on Waikiki beach in Honolulu. It was my first trip to Hawaii, and a great one at that, courtesy of my spectacular in-laws. We stayed a week and I could've easily stayed a month and not been bored. Here's a photo recap for you: