“The way you spend Christmas is far more important than how much”.
(Henry David Thoreau)
Merry Christmas everyone!
Please make time for family and friends during this holiday season. We have traveled far in 2021 and look forward to talking with you in 2022!
Continue to Walk into the Future!
Calvin
“At Christmas, all roads lead to home”.
(Majorie Holmes)
“The journey is the destination”.
(Dan Eldon)
Searched for a clever destination run quote since I have been writing about the 2021 Savannah Rock N Roll Half marathon for months now. The quote above brings me back to center with the simple concept on the importance of the journey.
Well, I have been working up to this journey for quite a bit of time. I was originally scheduled to run in Savannah for the first time back in November 2020. We know COVID-19 caused havoc and most races were cancelled in 2020.
The Rock N Roll folks allowed runners to defer race credits forward to 2021 races—I decided to do a direct swap to the 2021 Savannah half marathon since I have never run in the city. Please note, I have visited Savannah multiple times to enjoy the culture, food, and sightseeing. My draw was to be a running tourist in Savannah and take in the sights while running through the city.
Full disclosure, my running tourist adventures did not happen in 2021 and we cannot blame it on COVID-19 this time.
Savannah weather in the month of November is normally mild and attracts 15k+ runners from all over the world. I am sure my fellow runners targeted this race for the mild temperatures, flat course, music, and great food. Unfortunately, I am not sure many runners experienced any of these things.
The weather forecast for race weekend identified rain and colder weather early in the week. The premise was the rain would clear out before race day and keep temperatures cooler than normal. I was excited to run in cooler weather since I train in Fort Pierce, Florida and experience heat and humidity daily.
I got on the road on Friday to head up I-95 to Savannah. The trip was a straight shot up the interstate and took a little over 5 hours to get there. It rained the entire drive up, but it was never a heavy rain, just steady. My thoughts heading up was the rain would clear out by race day and things would be great in the morning.
This concept did not play out and the weather got much worse than projected.
I made my way to the EXPO to pick up my race packet and get some shopping in—normal routine. The rain impacted the foot traffic at the EXPO while I was there so getting in and out was quick. Most of the folks there had rain gear on, but we all were hoping the rain would be gone by race day. I was shocked with the number of vehicles still trying to get to the EXPO—I am sure the weather caused delays with runners arriving in town and then to the EXPO.
Made my way to the hotel to check-in and then look for a place to continue my carb loading program. Decided to make a quick trip to a local Goodwill store to buy a sweatshirt I could wear in the corral while waiting for the race to start. Runners routinely drop sweatshirts and blankets prior to racing—these items are then donated to local homeless shelters. I did not find a sweatshirt at the Goodwill so headed across the street to Burlington and found what I needed for a very good price. 😊
Headed to Buffalo Wild Wings to complete my carb loading process and watch some college football before going to bed early. FYI—it was raining the entire time I was out and about, but the hope was the rain would stop before morning—it did not!
I laid out my race outfit like normal when I got to the hotel. Decided to dress in layers with a long sleeve run shirt since it was colder than normal. My sweatshirt would allow me to stay warm prior to the race—in theory.
Fast forward to race day and it was STILL raining! The rain was a drizzle when I headed out towards downtown and got a bit heavier the closer I got to the shuttle pickup spot. My fellow runners were dressed in layers wearing rain gear, trash bags and large coats to stay dry and warm. This should have been an indication of what was to come but we all got on the shuttle and headed to the start line. The rain appeared to get heavier the closer we got to our drop off spot.
Everyone got off the shuttle with full intent to run the half or full marathon. This intent lasted for about 30 minutes as the rain came down harder and the streets started to flood. I met a lot of nice people from all over America as we huddled and shivered under a restaurant overhang trying to stay dry and somewhat warm.
There was a gentleman who flew in from Seattle two days prior who needed to run this race to complete his goal of running a half marathon in all 50 states. He was conflicted with the weather but determined to run. Other runners had similar stories or reasons they wanted to run. The consensus was none of us expected the weather to be this bad and completing the race in these conditions would be tough. Some vowed to stay and run while others said to hell with this.
I was in the hell with this camp since I rarely train in the rain but have done it. The temperature at the time was 41 degrees and we were experiencing a downpour with no end in sight. I decided to call NO JOY and not risk injury or sickness with the current conditions.
Made my way to Forsythe Park since that’s where the shuttles were to drive runners back to their vehicles. A positive note is the shuttles had heat and provided a dry environment to get us out of the rain. I have never made it to a race start line and not run but this was the best option for me considering the cold, rain, and race conditions for the day.
Happily made it back to my hotel, took a hot shower and got back in the bed for a 2 hour nap! 😊
I normally write about the sightseeing from a race location, but the rain never stopped. I made my way back downtown so I could visit New Realm Brewery. My first experience with New Realm Brewery was when I ran in Virginia Beach back in September. Great food again! They were out of the Acai Berry cider, but I was able to enjoy another local craft beer which was pretty good.
That’s about it for my trip—the rain and cold weather was not conducive to exploring so I didn’t. Made my way back to Buffalo Wild Wings to watch more football and stay dry.
Don’t know if I will try to run Savannah again—two tries and two false starts.
May just take a trip back up in the summer to experience the city as a regular tourist. 😊
“If work isn’t fun, you’re not playing on the right team”.
(Frank Sonnenberg)
The concept of FUN at work comes up often when discussing how to keep organizations moving forward. The quote above makes me laugh with the simplicity of the concept but it does have a place in the modern work environment.
Organizations that do not allow their staff members to unwind and have fun are doomed to have unhappy people in the workplace daily. I am not saying staff must be entertained daily but the concept of fun has shown to be an attractive variable for some well-known organizations.
Google leads the way for work environment fun with nap pods, video games and ping pong tables available daily for staff members. Who would not want to take a nap at work? Genius concept!
Texas Roadhouse is another organization that values fun at work. It’s right there in the mission statement: We are committed to our shared Core Values of Passion, Partnership, Integrity, and Fun with Purpose.
The staff gets to line dance multiple times during their shifts to some upbeat country music. It is great watching the staff members dance with huge smiles on their faces while enjoying being at work.
Well, if the Texas Roadhouse folks can dance at work, then why can’t I? That is a loaded question but one that we recently overcame in my current work environment.
Yes, there can be dancing at work! 😊
A friend at work and I started joking a few months ago about having a break-dancing contest in the parking lot. It was our little inside joke and it made us both laugh. We would mention the dance contest passing each other in the hallway and occasionally feign a dance move. A couple of our coworkers overheard us talking about break-dancing and offered we should have a dance battle at work—true story.
This led to others chiming in that we should have the contest at work and dress the part. The more this talk went on the more buzz the topic generated at work. A final suggestion was everyone in the building should wear 80s gear and we should make it an event. Please note, while at the FSU Career Center we had a Fantasy Career Day in October. Staff members dressed in gear to represent their fantasy career—one year I went as a golfer complete with golf shirt, shorts, and a golf club. This was the only time I wore shorts to work as a professional—it was great! 😊
This concept was the catalyst for us to create an 80s-decade event for our division. I went to my boss to let her know we were dressing in the 80s and her response was: I am coming as Madonna! I did not have to make a plea; it was as simple as that.
The entire campus caught the energy, and the Fall Celebration Day was established. The challenge went out to other divisions to dress in a preferred decade—we had dibs on the 80s. The 60s and 70s were quickly grabbed by folks on campus and the celebration was on.
We decided to go all in for the 80s and dress the part. I was a frequent eBay shopper as I looked for the perfect 80s outfit to enjoy the day. The great thing about the 80s is the multiple phases we all went through—so many great looks to choose from. I went with the mid-80s Hip Hop look as a throwback to some of my favorite artists—Eric B and Rakim, DJ Easy Rock and Public Enemy.
I was able to find multiple options for vintage Nike 80s track suit within my stated budget. I was also able to find a fake (plastic) gold chain to accessorize my look. A quick trip to Party City allowed me to complete the look with large rings for my fingers to really get that throwback look. One of my colleagues had an old boom box at home and allowed me to borrow it for the day to complete my 80s throwback look.
Fast forward to 10/29/21 and we produced old school flyers to pass out on-campus to promote the dance battle in our building. We wanted to ensure we had an audience and allow everyone to join in on the fun. There were several practice sessions so we could space out the dance battle and then bring in a few surprise guests—we kept the surprises close to the vest so it would enhance the event.
We coordinated a three round dance battle to get the crowd pumped and generate fun, laughter, and anticipation. The goal was to have fun!
I won the dance battle coin toss and elected to have my friend lead off with his first routine. We agreed to three rounds and then get silly with dances an old dude would do: the sprinkler, starting a lawn mower and the robot. The crowd got into each round and really enjoyed the process of two professionals making a fool of themselves at work—it was all for fun! 😊
We finished our dance sequences back-to-back in a B Boy Stance. We positioned ourselves directly in front of our VP—on purpose!
She pushed us both out of her way as the Salt N Pepa classic hit ‘Push It’ started to play. This was surprise #1 and she rocked it. She had been practicing for two weeks to get her moves right and started out with the 80s dance classic, The Roger Rabbit—the crowd went wild! We joined her after with a choreographed rendition from the Push It video—don’t think I have ever had that much fun at work.
We got everyone in the building up and dancing with a classic Soul Train line. It was fun to see others with HUGE smiles on their faces as they went through the Soul Train line multiple times. I went through the line about 5 times since we were buying additional time for Surprise #2.
We have a Performing Arts program on-campus and partnered with faculty to request a student flash. The students practiced the Michael Jackson’s 80s classic Thriller dance to finish off our dance party. I had our DJ adjust the music once I saw the students enter the building. We cleared the dance floor and let the students take over. They were a big hit with the crowd as they went through their Thriller routine—it was fantastic!
The last part of our event was the Electric Slide! Most of the folks hit the dance floor again as we did the Electric Slide—a great way to complete a dance party.
I have not seen people smile so much at work as they did during our 80s day! Several made a point to let me know this was the best day they have had at work. The smiles and happy faces made dances in front of colleagues worth the effort. Some have asked what we plan to do to top this event—I’m going to let someone else plan the next event, but we will continue to have fun at work.
What do you do to have fun at work?
“Work is either fun or drudgery. It depends on your attitude. I like fun”.
(Colleen Barrett)
Thoughts of you crossed my mind today
Seems like you just stopped by to say hey
Maybe this was your way to let me know everything will be okay
Either way, it was great for you to drop in
Because I have really missed my friend
Don’t stay away so long
Thoughts of you make me smile
“What if today, we were just grateful for everything”?
(Charlie Brown)
Here’s to a great day for everyone who reads this! Hope you take time to enjoy your family, friends, and great food.
Continue to Walk into the Future!
Calvin
“Be present in all things and thankful for all things”.
(Maya Angelou)
“Every morning we are born again. What we do today is what matters most”.
(Buddha)
Merriam-Webster defines resilience as an ability to recover from or adjust easily to misfortune or change.
Happy to report there has not been any misfortune for me, but the change has been an adjustment to my training regimen. I am still putting in work but not able to get the same quality sessions I put in pre-COVID. This can be directly attributed to my work role in Fort Pierce but please do not think I am complaining.
We have made some major operational improvements and there is light at the end of the tunnel where we will soon normalize operations and I can get back to putting in more training miles.
The concept of resiliency reminds me of the old saying: try and then try again!
Decided to use shorter races as a bigger part of my training program to get me prepared for the rigors of the half marathon distance. I have the 2021 Rock N Roll Savannah half marathon in November and the 2021 Track Shack OUC half marathon in December. My overall goal is to run a half marathon under 2 hours and the Track Shack OUC half marathon is the ideal setup to make this happen. I need to put in additional training miles to build my endurance back to my 2019 levels.
My fastest half marathon was the 2019 Track Shack OUC half marathon with a time of 2:05:51 (two hours, five minutes, and 51 seconds). 2020 was set to be my fastest year ever but of course COVID-19 shut down racing and my training lagged—that’s on me! 😊
So, what’s my plan to correct my training and speed issues? Well, I check multiple running clubs to see what races are being offered locally and within driving distance to me in Fort Pierce.
I routinely scan the Fleet Feet Stuart and Orlando Track Shack events pages to determine which races are available to help with my training program. I just shared with my best friend I have a hard time training with race pace—it is a mental thing for me since I do not have competitors or anyone to pace with. I am sure I may be the only active running with this issue but targeting real races seems to get my competitive nature going. This may not be the ideal strategy, but I will try this out to get me closer to my half marathon goal.
Made my way back over to Orlando for the 2021 Track U Can Finish 5 Mile race to get some speed work in. I ran this same event when I lived in Oviedo, but this is the first time I tackled the race distance in 8 years.
This is an interesting event because it has multiple distances available for runners to try. The first event is the U Can Finish 2 Mile race and Track Shack has a distance dare. Runners can sign up to run the 2-mile race and then compete in the 5-mile race right after. The hook for distance dare runners is the opportunity to collect 3 medals: 2-mile, 5-mile, and distance dare medals. Runners love their bling and a lot of them took part in the distance dare. I did not—officially. 😊
Did something new on race day to ensure I got in extra training miles. I stay in the same hotel each time I visit the Orlando area and it is down the street from the UCF campus.
I decided to leave my vehicle parked at the hotel and ran the 2-mile distance to the UCF campus for the start of the 5-mile race. Figured this was a great way to warmup and stretch my legs before my race and ensured I would get in a long training session—it was just broken up into segments.
Toed the line for the 5-mile race completely warmed up and excited to run on the UCF campus again. The race village was setup directly in front of the Career Services building where I worked for 4-years prior to moving to Tallahassee and the FSU Career Center. Great being back on the old stomping grounds. 😊
My goal for the 5-mile race was simply to test my endurance and consistently run miles splits with a 9 on the front of them (9:05, 9:10, etc.). Mission accomplished.
The UCF campus is completely flat which helped a lot. Went out with the intent to run my race based on feel and then push myself when I could.
Mile-1 went by at an 8:44 per minute pace and I felt good with the effort. Mile-2 through 5 were: 9:15, 9:33, 9:57, 9:42 which got me to the finish line at 47:29. Targeted 45 flat but happy with my results considering I put in a 2-mile run before my race.
Collected my 5-mile medal and took some pictures to commemorate the race and my time back at UCF. Got some refreshments and stretched a bit before heading out. I tucked my race medal away and began my 2-mile journey back to my hotel—yes, I ran back for a total of 9 training miles for the day. Felt great every step of the day!
I will look for additional races to help me prepare for my next two half marathons. Still have some speed in these legs, just need to release it in my unique way.
FYI—I am still on pace to meet my 2021 goals of 1,000 training miles. Imagine my mileage if I could stay consistent with my training.
Irie!
How do you display resilience in your daily activities? Thanks!
“Life does not get easier or more forgiving, we get stronger and more resilient”.
(Steve Maraboli)
“Every pizza is a personal pizza if you try hard and believe in yourself”.
(Bill Murray)
Raise your hand if you do not like pizza! Doubt there are many hands up right now since everyone loves pizza. 😊
I admit I enjoy pizza probably more than anyone I know and have decided this is my go-to cheat meal. I have never been one to count calories and my running program allows me to indulge without having to worry much about gaining weight. Not saying this as a brag point but just a daily fact for me.
The Treasure Coast provides me with multiple dining options to include fresh seafood and great ocean views while out for a meal. I take advantage of these options, but my designated pizza night is one I look forward to weekly.
I was introduced to 2nd Street Bistro as a great place to catch a ballgame while enjoying a beer at the bar. Seemed like a typical place to get wings, drink a beer, and watch Florida Gator football on Saturdays. Happy to report 2nd Street Bistro provides all these things but it turns out they have a fantastic menu with rotating daily specials. It is not your typical dive bar but a place to get a great meal for really good prices. Note: they provide a substantial military discount on all menu items, so I am hooked since I love saving money. 😊
I made my first weekday journey into 2nd Street Bistro on a random Wednesday after work because I wanted to get a beer and see what was on the menu. I did not venture out a lot in 2020 due to COVID but kept hearing about this place and the food. Made my way downtown Fort Pierce once I felt comfortable being around people again and grabbed a high-top table to enjoy a meal.
Turns out Wednesday is half price Bistro Burger night and there are a lot of fans of the burger. There is always a good crowd of folks in the restaurant to take advantage of the special and get their burgers. The menu has a lot of variety and everyone in there has a favorite menu item.
I did not have a specific food item in mind when I stopped in on the first Wednesday night so I asked the waitress what she recommended. She rattled off that everything on the menu is great, so I was on my own selecting what I wanted for dinner.
Gravitated to the pizza selections and the waitress said they were all good—she’s tried them all. Decided to go with my tried-and-true Pepperoni pizza with extra Pepperoni. Never imagined a place like 2nd Street Bistro would have pizza this good but I am hooked.
The personal pizzas are made once ordered so it takes a bit for it to make it to the table. Trust me, it is well worth the wait. The ingredients are fresh, and the pizza comes out of the oven smoking hot. Learned that lesson the hard way the first time I got a pizza. 😊
I have been hooked on the Pepperoni pizza from day one and Wednesdays have become my official pizza night. Everyone who knows me can track my location after work on Wednesdays to 2nd Street Bistro. I am such a regular there the hostess takes me directly to a high-top table and the waitress does not bring me a menu. She puts in my Bud Light draft and a personal Pepperoni pizza with extra Pepperoni. I told her one day I am going to change my order up to mess with her but one day has not happened yet.
I have tried other items on the menu but not on Wednesdays—that is my designated pizza night since I run on Tuesdays and Thursdays after work. Figure I earned a cheat day and 2nd Street Bistro helps me cheat like a champ! 😊
Can’t wait for my next pizza night!
What is your favorite place to get a cheat meal? What is the meal? Thanks!
“I’d rather have leftover pizza than leftover feelings”.
(Sarah Burgess)
“I want to run the beach’s length, because it never ends”.
(Deborah Ager)
The quote above makes me laugh because it could not have been written by someone who runs. The beach is a wonderful place to get in some training but there are challenges and rewards to running on the beach.
I am always looking for a training edge to allow me to run at a faster pace. My goal to set a personal record (PR) for every half marathon I run stays true—that is the goal every time out.
I ran the Virginia Beach Rock N Roll half marathon in early September to get back into the swing of being a running tourist and to test my training against other runners. I am happy to toe the start line again but want to see improvement each time I finish a race. Decided to find a new training method to help me get better daily and work towards improving my half marathon times.
I was able to increase my endurance by running the rolling hills in Tallahassee when I lived there. Did not realize how much hill training helped my ability to run faster until I relocated to Fort Pierce which is completely flat. Running on flat surfaces is better than nothing but it is hard to replicate the intensity needed to get up and over rolling hills.
A majority of my Fort Pierce runs are done close to the beach on Ocean Drive. I enjoy the views on this route and feel safe since I do not have to cross traffic. I am parallel to the beach when running and make pit stops to catch views and listen to the waves. Example: I run 2.5 miles on Ocean drive and then sit on the beach for a bit before running back 2.5 miles. Some of my best Instagram pictures come from the middle part of my run. 😊
This process and route have worked well for me but wanted to find a new way to train since I do not have hills to climb.
Decided to leverage the beach and start running directly in the sand. This is not a novel approach but one I have not maximized since I moved here. I have run on Jacksonville Beach, but it has a flat surface without awkward inclines. Most beaches in Florida have an incline which puts pressure on one side of the body. The Fort Pierce beaches have this incline closer to the water but provides a flatter surface further away from the water. I used this part of the beach to build my mental and physical endurance.
My goal for the beach runs is to slowly increase my distance each time out as I establish a new training threshold. Running in the sand creates unstable footing and makes the body adjust to continue to move forward. This process brings in muscles that are not used with traditional running and strengthens them. The sand on the beach moves with each step and forces the body to adjust. Going fast is not the object of the training sessions—building endurance and mental focus are the top outcomes of running on the beach.
My initial foray on the beach allowed me to finish a 2.5-mile run. I extend my beach runs an additional .5 miles each time I go out with an end goal of 5 miles completely in the sand.
The benefits of this training approach will pay off when I tackle the Savannah Rock N Roll half marathon in November. I plan to run faster in Savannah with an end goal of setting another PR at the Orlando OUC Half Marathon in December. The flat surface should be conducive to running fast. Who’s going to join me in Orlando?! 😊
What new techniques have you incorporated into your training program?
“When I run on the beach, it is always in slow motion. That’s how I roll”.
(Amber Heard)
(Image by Mediamodifier from Pixabay)
“The worst form of justice in pretended justice”.
(Plato)
Dictionary.com defines white privilege as inherent advantages possessed by a white person based on their race in a society characterized by racial inequality and injustice.
Merriam-Webster defines bias as a tendency to believe that some people, ideas, etc., are better than others that usually results in treating some people unfairly.
So, where am I heading with these definitions? I will get to the point but need to ask you a few questions.
Who is Gabby Petito? Who is Brian Laudrie?
I am sure you did not need to run a Google search to provide an answer to either of those questions. We have learned more about both individuals on the morning, afternoon, nightly and cable news shows almost daily since September.
We know she was a travel influencer and they traveled out west to hike and camp while documenting the trip. We also know there was an incident during the trip and police were called in to investigate and/or deescalate the situation between the couple. No arrests were made, and the couple continued the journey without a warning from the police.
I will not dive much deeper into the situation because it has been covered extensively by the news media. We know where they were before Gabby went missing and Brian decided to return to his parent’s home in Florida. The media set up outside the homes of both families and conducted interviews with them. The media spoke with local law enforcement, FBI agents and experts on finding missing people.
The media coverage for this ONE case was 24/7! We got in-depth and breaking news coverage to let us know every time something new was identified in the case. Bravo to the news media for being so aggressive providing us with these vital updates.
Next question. Who is Jelani Day? I am going to wait so you can go Google his name.
He disappeared the month PRIOR to Gabby but no round the clock coverage to inform us of updates in the investigation. We did not get updates on a person of interest, circumstances surrounding his disappearance or background information about him.
I found an article on USA Today in the News category—it was not listed as Breaking News or a Top Headline. I am happy his story was listed at all but why the disparity in how both cases were covered by the media? Another question I must ask is how many other people went missing during the same time frame, but we heard nothing about them on the national news either. This is what media bias looks like!
People of color are missing right now but there appears to be only one story the media is interested in covering. I am fine with the media covering this case but why do they completely ignore everyone else? It is hard to not see the media bias in the coverage, but the sad thing is multiple networks/outlets are all doing the same thing.
Would we know more about Jelani Day’s investigation IF the media put as much interest in his case as the one we all have been hearing about since September? Don’t answer that—I know the answer!
Jelani Day and all missing people should be afforded the same coverage and investigation we have seen for the disappearance of Gabby Petito—nothing more or less!
I wrote about The Two Americas last summer—this is another example. You be the judge.
Research:
“Freedom is a road seldom traveled by the multitudes”.
(Public Enemy)
“Paisley Park is in your heart”
This is a lyric from the song titled Paisley Park on Prince’s Around the World in a Day album. It’s not one of his most well-known songs but the title was translated by the artist to name his artistic palace in Chanhassen, a suburb of Minneapolis.
Paisley Park is a combination of residence, recording studios, sound stage, video editing and party spot (concerts, DJ’s, etc.) designed by Prince in the late 1980s. This is a place where he churned out hit after hit from his own recording platforms. It afforded him the opportunity to create new music and concepts right where he lived. Simply, come downstairs and walk into a recording studio to lay down some tracks that would one day become a #1 hit.
Paisley Park is a place I always wanted to visit to experience the place responsible for the soundtrack of my life. I grew up listening to Prince from the very early stages of his career and wanted to Walk into the Future and see Paisley Park first hand.
Wow…what an experience! I decided to make a visit to Minneapolis and then venture over to Chanhassen to tour Paisley Park. They have multiple tour formats to select but I decided to reserve my spot for the General Admission (70-minute tour) and was not disappointed. There were roughly 20 other Prince fans along for my tour timeframe. We’re talking people from all over the world who decided to make the Paisley Park journey to reconnect with Prince, his music and the place where he created magic.
The tour started with a brief history of his music, why he wanted Paisley Park and what happens there now. The tour’s most emotional moment for me was when we stepped into the foyer at Paisley Park. Prince’s ashes are encased under glass overlooking the foyer. Didn’t expect the ashes to be there but it was a goose bump moment for a lot of us on the tour.
We were provided free time to explore multiple rooms dedicated to specific albums/tours (LoveSexy, 1999, For You, etc.) and his personal office. The tour guide identified the office was intact just as Prince left it. Of course, it was a very cool set-up to include video, music and a sitting area to entertain visitors.
The tour then took us directly into Studio A where most of his hits from the 1990s were recorded. Very cool place to see and experience the sound system and unreleased music that will be coming out soon! Sounds great and you will love the concepts! LOL.
His numerous awards (Grammys, BET, MTV, etc.) were displayed in hallway cases. The effect of seeing these awards put a smile on most of our faces as we remembered watching Prince receive these awards on TV over the years. Fantastic opportunity to actually see history.
Prince’s movies/soundtracks had separate areas at Paisley Park. The Purple Rain display included the motorcycle from the movie, his iconic purple trench coat and the Grammy awarded for the soundtrack.
Under the Cherry Moon with the black and white theme provided a unique contrast to his other movies. Graffiti Bridge, Sign ‘O the Times and RAVE were displayed, and all were shot on the sound stage at Paisley Park.
Speaking of the sound stage, our tour took us into the enormous space used by Prince and others for tour preparation, make videos and shoot movies. Prince allowed other musicians to use this area to help them get ready for national tour dates.
The tour ended in the New Power Generation (NPG) club which is still used to host dance parties for Prince fans. This area was used by Prince to host fans and sometimes play live shows for the few lucky folks in attendance. It was noted Prince normally didn’t start playing until 2 am in the morning so you would have to be an extreme night owl to catch one of these impromptu shows.
Cameras are not allowed at Paisley Park so the memories from this experience must be lived and not streamed out. I believe this enhanced the overall experience for me.
Very happy my Walk into the Future led me to Paisley Park!
Where have you always wanted to go but never made the time? How can you leverage a trip to help you decide to walk into the future?
FYI–I plan a return trip to Paisley Park in 2022. Who is going to meet me there? 🙂
Walk Into the Future 