The Twilight Zone

2008-03-17T07:42:00.000-07:00

Playing Catch Up

So it's been a while since I've posted anything here...been a little busy starting our new company AKMG. Since finishing business school last year, I have helped the CKMG partners plus Kim White start AKMG which is a performance based ad network. It's taking up the majority of my time so most of my future blog posts will be on the AKMG corporate site. Be sure to check it out and stay up-to-date on the crazy world of online media.

2007-06-28T07:30:00.000-07:00

Six weeks post graduation...life is good! Since my last post, I went to the Bahamas with Steve and Emma for a Casino conference. We were lucky enough to stay in the Cove tower of the Atlantis which is definitely the way to go if you're planning to spend time in Paradise Island. It is a beautiful, tropical oasis that is only a 40 minute flight from Miami. We spent time with clients & friends and had a lot of fun in the meantime. We got stuck in several tropical storms which meant an extra long excursion to the Cove pool bar...of course since we couldn't go anywhere in the middle of the storm. On Sunday Steve reserved Cabana 6 in order to show our clients a good time and talk business at the same time. We had a meeting in our robes after exiting the pool and with a Kalik light in hand. But it worked since we closed a lot of business and formed solid relationships with clients from all over the world.

Back to Miami...I am actually enjoying Miami so much more since I've been gone so much. This past week was Ad Tech Miami which meant another whirlwind week of clients, meetings and dinners. Michelle from our LA office is here and is staying in my massive apartment at the Mirador. We are having a good time and have had great access to everyone that we needed to meet at the show.

So the Zottola has been in full wedding planning mode for BOTH Shanna and Aimee! This weekend will be the excursion to Boca Raton to look at wedding dresses for Shanna. We already have some beautiful ones in mind so hopefully it won't take too long and we'll walk out with a fabulous dress perfect for their November Miami Beach wedding!

I'm so happy to be heading home next Wednesday to see everyone and finally all be together again...I haven't seen my Dad since January which is WAY too long and I haven't seen Aidan and Vivian since last November which is awful. More to come after the trip!

2007-05-24T11:53:00.000-07:00

Ok so somehow another 5 months went by since I've posted anything...school kind of got in the way of everything. But I'm officially done with graduate school and my MBA...which means I'll never have to go back to school again. What a good feeling!! The whole graduation ceremony was amazing. My family came down to Miami to help me celebrate...well we had a lot to celebrate considering Shanna's recent move to Ft Lauderdale, my graduation, Aimee's engagement and my mom's pending retirement (um what!). We had the best time and took advantage of us all being together. Then it was off to Puerto Rico with Antonis and Emma (aka Barby and Kenny) where we went hiking in the rainforest, swimming in the water falls and snorkeling offshore in Fajardo. Back to Miami for a day and then to Santa Monica to work with the West Coast CKMG crew and eat all kinds of tacos, of course! Last stop will be New York City to visit Greg...it's been way too long since my last visit to NYC.

Now it's time to look forward with my MBA in hand...I feel lucky to have stumbled upon the kings of search engine marketing...the Captain & SGP. We're looking to make some big things happen which is exactly what I need after a tough 2 years in school, living off of student loans (unfortunately they're making me pay those things back!).

More to come soon on our progress at CKMG and life in general.

2007-01-03T09:03:00.000-08:00

So it's a new year and wow did 2007 start off wild & crazy in good old South Beach! I innocently returned from a nice & relaxing trip from the 'burgh with my family and the bender weekend basically started right when I arrived. That could have been because Shanna, the wild child, arrived a few hours after me and we headed directly to Steve's catered birthday celebration at the Loft. The party was extremely entertaining and most of the characters were present..."Papi", "the chef", "the special one", "the intelligent contractor", etc. The whole group then went over to Mokai to continue the party with a huge bottle of Imperial vodka which lasted us until 5 am! There was plenty of dancing on the couches all in the name of helping Papi celebrate!

The bender continued on Friday as we started off with a dinner party at the Snow Queen Vodka corporate apt in Sobe and then went to Prive for Antonis' bday celebration (I promise to NEVER go there again!). That night wasn't too crazy but filled with lots of dancing in the hip hop room! I forgot to mention the best part of the weekend, I was dogsitting the 2 most adorable dogs ever - Lucia and Carmen - who were absolute angels and went everywhere with us! Anyway, Saturday started off very innocently with what was supposed to be a quick brunch with Steve & Shanna before heading to the Standard pool. Well that never happened and we stayed at La Piaggia for over 5 hours consuming 5 bottles of French Rose wine which was fantastic! Who would ever want to leave that place with the great food, entertaining freak show & sand in between your toes? Too bad Steve and I weren't able to break up that couple...next time! The brunch group returned to the Loft for margaritas and brownies at which point Shanna & I ran out of steam big time!!

Sunday morning was filled with getting ready for NYE. We started off at the Loft (again!) before heading over to the house party on the Venetian Causeway. This house was spectacular with its bayfront views, pool, hot tub, large BBQ and amazing decor. After the party, Papi decided that he's ready for the big time which of course means moving to the Venetian Causeway! Anyway, we decided (well maybe I decided!) that it was time for Mokai...the Italian guys waiting for us were way too tempting to stay at the party! We ended the night by drinking Rose champagne at the Flamingo until after 6 am...what a weekend!!

So my parents arrive this Sunday and will be here for 10 days...it’s just what I need - complete detox and relaxing days with my family! And who knows what the rest of 2007 will bring but I hope it’s filled with all things Rose!!

2006-11-08T08:37:00.000-08:00

So today is my birthday...another year gone which is actually a good thing this year because that means that graduation is near. My birthday "week" has been lots of fun so far. It started off with an entertaining dinner with Papi Patton and Bibs, the "special" one. Then I had dinner at Bond St, the best sushi in South Beach! And tonight will include a surprise from Nicole and Emma followed by drinks at Novecento and then Glass at the Forge. Tomorrow's quiz at 10 am might be a rough one...I think this will be my "dropped" quiz!

I can't believe it's already time for the holidays! I'm going home to Pittsburgh in 10 days...can't wait for the snow and cold weather, yeah right!! But it will be great to see everyone especially little Aidan and Vivian. The next few weeks will fly by I'm sure and then I'll be on a much needed 5-week break from school!!! Can't wait.

Back to work...more about my birthday to come!

2006-10-24T12:26:00.000-07:00

Who can believe that it's already Halloween? I really can't especially since it always feels like summer in Miami so the concept of Fall is very foreign. And it also means that another year has passed and it's my birthday (ugh!). My last year in my 20's. How the hell did that happen either?! At least I'll be finished with my MBA soon and can start to make money so that I can own a place and have a savings/investments like an adult. About time, huh?!

So, the "season" is about to start here in South Beach and everyone is revving up for it. There are non-stop party invitations and people from up north who are starting to plan their trips down here. A very exciting and busy time. It will be even better when we finish the semester in early December!! Then only 1 more semester until freedom!!! Other than that, life is moving along rapidly...group projects, exams, case studies, etc. What a joy!

Off for a Starbucks run...going to be a long night of reading for school!

2006-10-18T10:54:00.000-07:00

Well, it looks like the hard work paid off...first term so far with all A's. Very excited about that. Now just 3 more terms and no more school, ever! This term seems like it will be interesting again: entrepreneurship, advertising communications and business law (international implications).

So, I was having a conversation with Lindsay today at lunch and she made a really good point. In order to succeed, you must seize an opportunity head on, risk everything and just go for it, if it's something you truly believe in. Look at what Tom and Steve did with CKMG. Tom had a great position, VP of Sales, at InfoSearch and just picked up and left on the spot, with no guarantee that the company would take off. Steve lended Tom his expertise, kept his other company for awhile and eventually got rid of that too. I find that very inspiring and hope to achieve something similar one day. I guess going back for my MBA was a step in the right direction. Soon I'll have it and no one can take it away from me! Thank God, especially after all of the hard work, long nights and damn group projects!

Anyway, time is flying by and it's almost the holidays already. I booked my ticket home yesterday for Thanksgiving and I can't wait because I get to see my babies - Vivian and Aidan. I'm dying to see them. Now have to get back to work and researching search engine optimization.

2006-10-11T11:08:00.000-07:00

I flew in from Las Vegas this morning and I feel a little out of it...the red eye didn't help the fact that I barely slept all weekend! Vegas is a crazy place and so over the top. We went to Ghost Bar and the new Playboy Club on Friday - very fun! Saturday night was dinner at Circo (yummy) and the Cirque du Soleil show O. That was probably my favorite part of the trip, what an amazing display of strength, talent and entertainment. We had a table at Body English in the Hard Rock on Sunday night. That's a very cool club and we were next to the lead singer of the Red Hot Chili Peppers all night. Monday was a bit more relaxed and I worked during the day and finished it off with dinner at the Mandalay Bay and a movie afterwards.

Now that we're back in Miami, I have to say how good it felt to come "home". I was actually missing the Miami heat and humidity. It was colder than expected in Vegas and we weren't really prepared. Plus Shanna arrives late tomorrow night so there was reason to come home...although Erick is back in Vegas (more to come on that in another blog...not sure what the future holds at this point).

Hopefully the studying and hard work from last week will pay off when our final grades are posted soon. Ok back to catching up on CKMG work.

2006-10-01T13:06:00.000-07:00

So somehow an entire term of school has passed since my last post...just goes to show how crazy the life of a full-time MBA student is! The weekend has been full of non-stop studying, all in the hope of getting straight A's this term. Not sure if that's possible but I'm going to do what I can to make sure that it happens.

Yesterday was full of international marketing readings and today is consumer behavior...doesn't get much more exciting than that. These are the times when living and studying in Miami just don't go hand-in-hand. Today it is 85 degrees with perfect sunshine and I've been sitting inside the entire day except for a quick Starbucks run. The rest of the week will be much of the same but it will all be worth it...I leave for Vegas on Friday for a long weekend, combo of work and fun!! Couldn't have planned the trip at a better time. It's a definite motivation to get through the studying and exams so I can be off to the wild town of Vegas.

October is going to fly by just as quickly as September did...exams, Vegas, Shanna coming to visit, potential trip to Atlanta and then Halloween. Hmm, wonder if there will be any time to study??!!

2006-08-23T08:40:00.000-07:00

Monday marked the beginning of our second year of the MBA program. I'm hopeful that this year will be better - no more classes in accounting, finance or statistical modeling. It looks like we'll have lots of group work as usual but I'm used to that now so it should be ok. It was definitely weird to be sitting in class again after 3 months off but at least I'm with all of my friends this year.

The textbook that we will discuss in our leadership class is The Godfather by Mario Puzo...interesting choice, huh?! I'm actually glad that we'll be doing something different and unconventional for once. It will be interesting to see how the professor will relate Don Corleone back to leadership and running a department/organization. Funny thought! Other than that, we will have readings and projects on international marketing and consumer behavior which is actually something that I'll like reading about for once.

On a more fun note, Emma is moving here in less than 5 weeks!! I feel like we have been talking about it forever (1.5 years) and it's finally happening. She'll hopefully find something in my building or within walking distance on the beach. It will be nice to have someone from "home" in Miami with me!

Alright back to work and keyword planning for our Education client.

2006-08-17T14:25:00.000-07:00

Sometimes you just gotta break out the jazz flute and air guitar! Yes, it's true. Like when you're partying at Suite with Paris Hilton and your own alter ego. Ok, no, this didn't happen to me but is still a very funny story!

So the summer in Miami Beach is starting to wind down as the school year starts next week - ugh - but at least it's been a great one. Full of drama and ups & downs, of course, but unbelievably fun. We'll continue that trend this weekend as it's our last hurrah before classes. Did someone say dinner at Prime followed by a table at Mansion with Papi and the Captain?! Lovely, count me in. Emma arrives tonight and will hopefully be pleasantly surprised with what we have on the agenda this weekend! Here's to wishing her luck on finding a fabulous apartment on the beach.

Shanna is officially in Sicily - lucky girl - and I really hope that there are no more unruly airline passengers. I'm sure her experiences are going to be life changing and absolutely amazing. We'll find out soon enough!

2006-08-14T11:36:00.000-07:00

Isn't life truly all about the floral essence?! Well it was last night. I had dinner at the Setai with Lindsay's family and the waiter was a riot - completely serious and explaining the menu in the most detailed way possible: "Our cuisine is Chinese, Thai and Asian inspired with a French twist which is accented with the floral essence..." But the food was out of this world. We each started with a warm appetizer and cold appetizer (lobster bisque and duck & foie gras dumplings for me) and then onto our entrees (grilled kobe beef short ribs). It was the complete dining experience - amazing service, chill music and a great ambiance.

It was a typical summer night in Miami - pouring down rain - but we still made it to the Raleigh for the Soiree Sunday party. Can't wait for nice weather to actually enjoy that party because the music was great. And then onto Mansion...don't even ask. An innocent Sunday night turned into a wild night on South Beach!! But of course it was Diana's last night here so we had to make it special for her.

On another note, Shanna (the lucky one!) is leaving for Sicily on Wednesday. She's sailing there from Rome which should be unreal. Seems like it's been a pretty good summer for the Zottola girls - trips to the Bahamas, Cabo St Lucas, NYC and Sicily. Not bad...if only the next school year could fly by!

2006-08-08T08:11:00.000-07:00

So how do you really know what you want to do? I know that it seems like the older you get, the more you should know. But I'm almost 29 and I'm still trying to figure it out. My main question is where to live. I'm extremely close with my family...but they live in Pittsburgh. How can I go from living in Washington DC and Miami Beach back to the 'burgh?! This question haunts me on a daily basis and leads me back to the same thought - how can I make enough money to move them down here? But then, is that even realistic? I can't be that selfish to ask my whole family to come here even though I know it would be better for them! I mean seriously, who wants to deal with another freezing cold Pittsburgh winter which lasts like 6 months?!

Don't get me wrong. I love Pittsburgh, its sense of tradition and the Steelers but it's really just the weather which kills it for me. I hope this whole global warming trends speeds up so that Pittsburgh can become tropical in my life time...ok, I don't really mean that. But I hope that I find some answers soon because I'm about to enter my second and final year of my MBA program. Along with that comes the debt but I'm not going to sweat it because I'm a hardworker and will work my butt off to pay that back as soon as possible.

Hopefully living in the twilight zone will bring me some clarity and resolution!

2006-08-03T10:26:00.000-07:00

So it's a slow, hot Miami summer day and I couldn't be happier. Linds and I are sitting at Starbucks editing away while watching the weird people that congregate at the local Starbucks. It is definitely another episode in the twilight zone with all of the freaks but definitely entertaining. It also makes you feel normal when you look around.

So, why is it that guys in Miami can pull off tank tops like no other? They would definitely look weird in other cities but it totally works here. Take the tank brigade, for example. Mix their semi-feminine with a foreign accent and it's hot. We're not even very picky about the country, any accent will do (minus the 7/11 accent). Funny how people in Miami can truly pull off anything. I feel like I don't even notice the freaks as much anymore. When I first moved, I used to laugh non-stop at the people walking around in my building but I hardly even think about it anymore. Collagen lips and fake boobs have just become the norm - ew!

Back to editing because of a client deadline...more to come this weekend. Should be another good one!

2006-07-31T10:31:00.000-07:00

I'm not even sure where to start today. I returned from the Bahamas yesterday on a tiny 12-person plane and can't even begin to describe the weekend. We left Thursday am from Miami and took the boat down to Paradise Island. It ended up taking taking 8 hours because of the choppy weather but we used that time to sun ourselves on the upper deck, watch movies and just lounge. It was perfect. Upon arriving, Immigration and Customs came to us on the boat - way more convenient than waiting in a long line somwhere. And that was just the beginning of the weekend of convenience!

We spent the following day sipping margaritas at the Atlantis pool amongst all of the families and kids! Once it was time to break free of that, we headed for a spectacular dinner at Nobu which did not disappoint at all. We finished up and then headed over to Dragons, the Atlantis nightclub, which turned out to be great time. The next morning, we set off for Staniel Key on the boat, which is part of the Exuma Islands. I was not prepared for what was to come.

It took about 4 hrs to get to Staniel Key and the water was the most beautiful color I have ever seen. And there's something so peaceful about being out on the water alone...not another boat or person in sight for miles. While docking at Staniel Key, we all quickly noticed there were sharks swimming around the dock. Apparently these are sharks are friendly and don't have teeth - although no one bothered to find out for sure! It was lunchtime but our first task was to place our order for dinner so that the locals could get a count and go out to catch dinner! Now it was time for the jet skis. Shannon and I went out there and Shannon was driving which was hysterical. She weighs all of 95 lbs and I didn't have much to hold on to so any minute I was ready to pull her off! We went flying around through all of the little deserted islands, laughing the entire time. Next stop was cave snorkeling with the whole group. I've never been snorkeling before and it was amazing. We had to duck our heads and head into this cave which was unreal. Think of the movie Goonies and picture yourself inside of a cave, swimming with a ton of fish and floating around checking things out. It doesn't get much better than that.

But the day doesn't end there. Staniel Key is known for it's swimming pigs - don't ask - so we took a small boat out to this deserted island to feed the pigs which actually live there year round and swim out in the water, with their snouts out, in order to eat food that is brought to them. And the pigs are actually really friendly and were trying to climb up into our boat! Our last adventure of the day was to take golf carts (the official car and mode of transportation of Staniel Key) to the end of the island where we hiked down a hillside and took a walk/hike through the water. Again, it was unbelievable and the scenery was amazing!

Back at the local restaurant/yacht club/internet cafe/airport/humane society, we sat down for our fresh catch of the day dinner. Everyone was relaxed and happy. Too bad I had to leave the next am...the rest of the group sailed further south down to Georgetown to check out the new Four Seasons resort and casino.

Well, next time. I'm happy enough to have fake lived like a celebrity this past weekend. Now what? Everything seems bland compared to the yacht and Staniel Key's beauty!

2006-07-25T07:59:00.000-07:00

Only in Miami...why do I feel like I start many of my stories with that phrase?! Well, it's true. Things that happen in Miami don't happen elsewhere in the country, maybe even the world! But anything goes down here. It's a jungle...a paradise...another country...all that and more wrapped in a small city at the edge of the USA! What a crazy place to live and a dream all at the same time.

Here a few examples:
1) Only in Miami do women wear mini skirts, tube tops and stilettos to grocery shop
2) Only in Miami do you leave your car with a valet company does it come back vandalized and you're stuck paying the bill. Oh and wait, it gets better. Then the valet company calls you yelling you, telling you that you got someone fired and that person has a wife and 3 kids. My response...I'm sorry someone got fired but my brand new car came back damaged, deal with it.
3) Only in Miami are there a ton of people who hang out and lounge all day long but drive custom Mercedes and have enormous Gucci bags. Did I mention that they all have perfectly toned and manicured bodies? I guess that's easy to do when you don't have any other responsibilities!

On another note, Miami Vice the movie comes out this week and that's all anyone can talk about here. And yes, I have to say that I'm interested and will definitely go and see it as soon as I can. The movie premiere party is at Mansion and is $500 a head! It will be full of celebrities and Miami socialites I'm sure. For a minute, Lindsay and I thought we could get tickets; but no way! We're not celebrities or socialites...yet. We're working on it though! A few more weekends out and fashion shows, and you never know! (Yeah right, but we can dream, right?!)

So the Bahamas countdown is on! I'm leaving in 2 days and still have a thousand things to do! I guess I'll be running around tonight and tomorrow like a mad person. But it will be worth it!

2006-07-24T16:22:00.000-07:00

Ok, so maybe the power of positive thinking isn't all that powerful. I had a mini lapse of drama free days but of course it was back on today - the twilight zone was in full affect. EVERYTHING turned into the most difficult task today and for no real reason. It started as a beautiful, sunny Miami day but turned into a very annoying day...quickly. Lindsay and I were trekking all over South Beach lugging our heavy laptops in the 95 degree heat just looking for any wireless Internet connection. Somebody please, hook a sista up with some wireless. And since when is every person in Starbucks, a complete whacko?! We attempted to work there today and were surrounded by some major characters.

But back to the day. We finally finished our day at Starbucks at 5:30 pm but now I have to START my regular day's work. Ahh! So much for going to the gym this week before I leave for vacation. Oh that's right. I'm lucky enough to be going to the Bahamas on Thursday so enough bitching by me! So back to the power of positive thinking - here's to hoping that tomorrow is a much smoother day!

2006-07-23T08:59:00.000-07:00

Well another great weekend passed by in South Beach. I am proud to say that I actually stayed home last night and watched movies - a very difficult thing to do in South Beach because there is always something to do. Friday night was eventful with all of the girls together at the Sagamore and Ink...turned into a late night for some of us, myself not included, of course!

Now, this entire week is going to be spent relaxing and preparing for the Bahamas! I leave Thursday with a few friends and we're sailing there on my friend's bosses yacht...this is their reality NOT mine. But somehow I'm being included which is an offer that I could not pass up. We'll be chilling on the boat and at the Atlantis resort all weekend - not a bad way to spend a weekend. Too bad there isn't time for a crash diet before I leave! Oh well, it will just be nice to be away.

More to come this week!

2006-07-19T09:49:00.000-07:00

Life really is simple but we somehow spend our days making it more difficult than it needs to be. It's my new goal to live my life simply and cut out the unnecessary B.S. Take last night for example, a group of friends convened at my boss Tom's apartment for "Taco Tuesday's". Tom made his famous homemade salsa and guacamole and everyone just chilled around the table chatting and sipping on margaritas. I stayed a bit outside of the conversation and just observed everyone and their interactions. It was nice to watch how people's guards were down when they were surrounded by friends and they just felt comfortable. I left the night with a sense of peace, realizing that life really can be that simple.

So moving forward, as I mentioned earlier, I am going to focus on the power of positive thinking and living by life simply. I can sum that phrase up by saying that I'd like to be surrounded by people that I enjoy, good food, tasty drinks and good conversation. Of course I'll have to spice it up and that will just depend on the situation!

2006-07-18T07:23:00.000-07:00

The power of positive thinking...that's a phrase definitely worth pondering. I was given the advice yesterday that you can actually change your luck with the "power of positive thinking" and I actually experienced that last night. Lindsay and I made our way to our 3rd night of the Miami Swim Week. We had only RSVP'ed to one of the shows and our seat was for standing room in the back. But we quickly noticed a pair of empty seats smack dab in the middle of the 2nd row...so we confidently walked and immediately sat in those seats. Wouldn't you know it - nobody looked twice at us and we had a great view of the MALE swimwear show!

Now, we didn't have seats for the 2nd or the 3rd show but we got into both! We talked our way into both shows, sitting in the first row for the 2nd show which included a gift bag and the fourth row for the 3rd show. Not bad for 2 girls that didn't even have invitations or really any reason besides curiosityto be at any of the shows!

So I think my life has officially changed just by living by the "power of positive thinking". Who knows, I might even be able to stop living in the Twilight Zone!

2006-07-17T11:44:00.000-07:00

I feel so lucky to live in South Florida where life can be enjoyed outdoors year round (minus the few hurricanes a year). Yesterday was spent lounging at the Mandarin pool, right on the bay, and eating fabulous, healthy food. What a way to live! And luckily we can pretty much do that any day of the year. Not many people can look out their window and see the bay and ocean on a daily basis and for that I feel blessed.

Now back to life in the Twilight Zone...with this lovely view that I have, I also have a very special alarm clock that wakes me up 7 days a week. Now, it is isn't the most pleasant wake up call but it's reliable - if nothing else. And I'm talking about the daily TRASH PICKUP which happens EVERY morning between 7:30-8:30 am. Yes, that includes weekends, holidays, hurricane evacuations, etc. It never fails, I'm woken up 7 days a week by the lovely crashing sounds of the trash being picked up. Did I mention that it sounds like bombs exploding? Very nice, soothing sound. Of course I wasn't told about this before I moved in but it's South Beach, what do you expect?! At least I love my apartment and have a great view, plus a reliable alarm clock.

2006-07-14T08:25:00.000-07:00

Is FREE champagne ever not welcome?! Not usually except when you've helped finish 3 bottles of wine at dinner. Oops! So here it is Friday - thank God - and I'm feeling a little rough. Nothing a little bit of food can't take care of.

I think I actually made it through yesterday relatively drama free and that even included a trip to the lovely DMV. Of course it wasn't completely hassle free. As I'm just about to be handed my new license, the guy tells me I can only pay in cash and I don't have enough with me. (Since when are credit cards not accepted everywhere?) So I set off to find the closest ATM, which no one can tell me where that is, in English at least. After a quick trek across Route 1, I find an ATM, pay the $2.50 fee and am off to get my new license. Not bad, huh? (for me at least!)

Now I can only wonder what the weekend will bring. I've asked my friends for a drama-free weekend. But I'm wondering if that's even possible especially in South Beach. At least everyone is on board with trying to keep the weekend drama-free. We'll see what happens...I'll be sure to report back on the status of my life in the Twilight Zone!

2006-07-13T08:25:00.000-07:00

How come I feel like I'm living in the twilight zone all the time?! The craziest things seem to happen to me and the people around me...drama follows us even though I truly try to live without it.

Here's an average Friday night in my life.

A group of us head to an outdoor bar in Miami for a night full of drinking and dancing. Soon into the night my sister and friend are being harassed by some ghetto girls in the bathroom. Next thing they know, they are having to throw down and defend themselves against these whackos. I missed the whole thing because of course I'm off on the dance floor with a Vodka Tonic in hand, dancing salsa with a hot Cuban who barely speaks English. We finally call it a night but little did we know that our hectic night wasn't going to end anytime soon. When the young valet guy brought around my BRAND NEW Mini Cooper, I realized that it was missing the driver side mirror. Hmm, suspicious considering that the valet is supposed to be a secure parking lot. I proceeded to fight with the guy until he promised that the company's insurance would pay for the damage. At that point, we were so over the night, over Miami and over everything in general.

We wake up the next morning, all excited because we're heading down to the Keys to spend the weekend hanging out on a friend's boat. Well, that trip was going to have to wait because we needed to get an estimate for the car's damage. We barely made it to the dealership in one piece because we ran out of gas (that has never happened to me before - honestly!). I looked at the mileage and realized that the valet went out joyriding for a total of 40 miles the night before with my car - remind you of the movie Ferris Bueller's Day Off. Yeah, well, welcome to my world. So the little punks apparently drove the Mini 40 miles to steal the mirror - where the hell did they go, Homestead?! Anyway, we eventually made it to the Keys and had a good time.

So this is a day in the life of me. Fun, huh?!