Locally Global | Wheres Cate | Cate Crandell: Locally Global

Las Vegas

February 23, 2013 0

Las Vegas is not a place I would necessarily choose to go to unless it’s for good reason. You see, a club is not something I usually enjoy and I can’t calculate numbers or see patterns fast enough to be successful playing cards. (My dad, on the other hand, might as well call Vegas “home” because he spends the majority of his time there – and rather successfully – playing Texas Hold’em). The first time I went was for a friend’s wedding (good reason #1) and this second time was for my cousin’s 21st birthday (good reason #2). I’m willing and able to put on a party face when I need to but the truth is I enjoy Vegas more when I’m not actually in Vegas. It was my cousin’s birthday, however, so I put my party face on. And then she got food poisoning. And the lines to the clubs were ridiculous. And the women and men we saw seemed very superficial. And the food – and drinks – were very expensive. Even with all of the negatives, we did our best and got a lot of much needed sleep!

But, less than a week before I caught my flight I put a post on Facebook showing my excitement to see my cousin again… in Vegas. A few hours later I received a text from my dad asking when I was going and a few minutes later we realized we were going to both be in Vegas this same weekend, and he promptly planned a big surprise for us to do together. The last time we were there (yes, he was there, too) he’d booked a couple of shows, planned a nice dinner, and we went on a Hummer tour to Hoover Dam and Rainbow Canyon, so I could only assume it was going to be something amazing. And it was: a helicopter ride over the Grand Canyon. This crosses two things off my bucket list, and the tour company was wonderful!

In the end, though, I was happy fly into the sunset back home to Kansas City.

Safe and sound in Aruba

November 27, 2012 4

Mel and I arrived safe and sound in Aruba. The biggest lesson I’ve learned so far is that Google Voice numbers expire. Due to the fact that texting rates are so ridiculous here, I connected my Google Voice number to my phone, hoping to keep rates low as I was connected to the Internet. Well, apparently Google Voice numbers expire when not used. The reason I know this is because in the middle of my texting I was seeing confused texts from me, but I wasn’t sending them. It was very confusing until we figured out what happened.

Now that it’s resolved, I found out there is Internet everywhere, so if you need me, text me. It’s quite convenient while I’m laying on the beach and absorbing harmful UV rays into my white, white ski n.

Oh the People You’ll Meet!

November 27, 2012 0

I boarded the plane this morning in a tizzy because I almost missed my first flight due to the Monday-After-Thanksgiving travel traffic I wasn’t anticipating, and then I was waiting on hold for 20 minutes to discuss activating a roaming plan for my phone, and dropping the call as I was boarding the plane. I slept through the 6am flight without a problem and was hoping to sleep through the second one (which was bringing me to Aruba) but that didn’t happen. As I was sending last minute and frantic texts to those who I assume will contact me while I am abroad to alert them of my Google Voice number in case my international plan wasn’t activated, small talk was started with the woman sitting next to me. Three and a half hours later, we had landed in Aruba and never stopped talking.
Our conversation began because I saw an ad for a new Fuji camera that represented the photographer for the beautiful Ballerina Project. I encouraged her to check it out if she enjoys ballet or photography which led us to discussing photography and my time in the Peace Corps. She kept wanting to see more photos which led us both to sharing stories of our past. We talked about the history of our names, and our family members’ names, and what brought us to Aruba. After I told her about My Maria, she told me about her first grade teacher who she will never forget (and bonded with over sharing the same birthday) and then we discussed rings and travel. She told me how her father used to spell her name with an accent at the end (Bette) and her grandkids, and loves won and lost. Finally, she encouraged me not to stop taking pictures.
I truly believe we meet people in our lives because they are needed at that time. I’ve tried so hard to turn photography into a “stage in my life” but she told me I need to keep doing it- and what a better place than Aruba to fuel that fire. I can’t wait to get out and explore the island with this rekindled excitement and I can’t wait to share it with Bette, my new friend. If we never meet again, I hope she knows the impact she had on me. I love sharing the stories of the photos I take and the people I meet, especially when others appreciate them as much as I do, and I love hearing the stories of others because everyone has a story to tell… What’s yours?

$150 KC Portrait Special! This Weekend ONLY!

November 23, 2012 0

If you have family in Kansas City for Thanksgiving weekend, you don’t want to miss this special! $150 (for up to 4 adults, $25 for each adult after that) gets you all of the retouched images to make prints (and holiday cards) at your convenience! Email me to book, because spots are filling up fast! mccrandell@gmail.com

How’s that saying go?

November 23, 2012 0

You know how the saying goes, “If your nose itches it means someone is thinking of you”? Or maybe it’s “If you sneeze it means someone is thinking of you”. Whatever action goes with the thought, the idea is the same: someone is thinking about you. But have you ever wondered if maybe when you hear a song it’s because someone is thinking of you at the same time you’re thinking of them?

I suppose if that were the case this song would be on repeat on every radio station all the time. Oh, wait. That’s the Christmas playlist.

Of Monsters and Men: LIttle Talks

Loft living lessons 1&2

November 16, 2012 0

I finally did it: I moved into a loft in downtown Kansas City! This has been a dream of mine since I first walked into a loft in the Rivermarket when I was 12 years old (was it really that long ago?!). At that time I didn’t know anything about the life in the ‘Market but I knew it’s where I eventually wanted to be. I love the concrete floors, open floor plans, exposed brick, and high ceilings. To me, the possibilities are endless!

When I came back from Moldova, though, I wasn’t quite ready. The finances weren’t in line, and I didn’t want to stick around long. In addition to all of the above, I didn’t have time to look. So, when I was presented with a “mini house” halfway between work and babysitting (a 20 minute drive to either place) I decided to take it. It was a house to myself, no loud neighbors to deal with, and, well, adorable. But then I’d pay my bills, and before I know it another month had passed and it was that time again. I was spending money on the luxury of living alone. Ironically, I often felt alone. My evenings were spent socializing when I wasn’t babysitting but that 20 minute drive always seemed super long late at night and I dreaded going home to an empty house.

So I searched Craigslist.

Yes, I know the hype behind Craigslist. It is VERY important to be careful and smart about who you respond to an what you post and where you meet. But I was desperate so I searched.

What I found was a sublet for a loft in the Rivermarket. The girl I’d be taking over for needed to leave due to personal reasons. The rent was reasonable the same as my mini-house (which includes almost all utilities), and as it turns out, I had French classes at KU with the roommate. (Small world). It seemed perfect. So I moved. Yesterday. With the assistance of Dad who just so happened to be in town from Albuquerque!

It was an awesome feeling arriving to my new home last night, 5 minutes from where I was hanging out with co-workers (and Dad). I pulled into the garage to see a car parked incorrectly in a spot, and it was still running, so I was suspicious. I entered into the building and peeked through the door. When I saw it was a woman and a teen girl, I stopped my peeking and headed to the elevator. Shortly thereafter they walked in behind me and said they were suspicious of someone “lurking”. They later admitted they knew it was me, and they were suspicious. Ok, maybe we are both guilty. #noseygladys

An hour or so after doing some more unpacking and organizing, it was bed time… But not without a few lessons.

Loft living lesson #1: lurk less suspiciously
Loft living lesson #2: trains are loud at all times of the night.

I’m an Intern… and?

November 9, 2012 0

Im an Intern... and?

Let me just preface this post with I’M AN INTERN AND I’M 25. Ok, I said it. This is something I used to be embarrassed about until I met other 25 year-old interns and until I really realized just how lucky I am to be in this position. It is true that I have had a lot of experience in my life but it is not enough to get me to where I ultimately want to be in the business world and this internship has helped me in numerous ways to get my foot in the door. One thing it’s helped me do is remember what I love to do, and what I excel at: networking. While it may seem like I’m abnormally social for Kansas City, I love it because I meet new people EVERY DAY. While I hope to have a new post relating to this soon, I’m going to get back to my point: networking and learning from others.

Tonight I reconnected with someone at an event whom I highly respect. He left a poor work situation where he wasn’t given the respect and acknowledgement he deserved and is now doing HUGE things and working with big name clients. (I’m so proud of him!) But this event? It was pretty cool. It was sponsored by AAFKC, and they brought in Justin Ahrens from Illinois. He’s done great work for his company and I think he was really insightful when he spoke about how companies can use “wonder” for inspiration for both their clients and their employees. He suggested ways for thinking outside the box and making a difference. But this acquaintance of mine who just so happens to work for this studio where the event was held decided to join in on the networking pre-and-post event, but skipped the event. Why? Because he doesn’t care what the speaker has to say.

Now, this brings me back to an intern status. This speaker had a lot to say. Is it totally related to what my acquaintance does? Well, no, not really. But can we learn from it? Absolutely. Everyone has a story to tell and speakers tend to do it in more organized ways than many of us, and sometimes the story is repeated. In my opinion, something can always be learned from these stories so they aren’t worth skipping out on. Maybe it’s because I’m an “intern” and I don’t quite have my whole body in the door yet but I do hope when I am accomplished and successful in my work that I will not frown upon new ideas and thoughts and only attend events for the networking. As an intern who is new to the marketing field, I’m learning something every day but I sure hope I’m teaching others something, too. I sure don’t know everything there is to know about marketing but I do know a thing or two about a thing or two and if you want to listen I’d love to share it. The great thing about my internship? I’m an intern but I have a real job…. and I love it because I get to learn something from someone (or many people!) every day!

Moral of the story: listen to what people have to say, even if you “think” you know more than them. You might be surprised!

And then… and then… there was TODAY!

October 25, 2012 0

Gracie 300x225 And then... and then... there was TODAY!

Life has a tendency of handing out lemons that I cannot use for lemonade because I want to make the best lemonade and I don’t know how to do that with advice (err, a good recipe). In other words: sometimes it’s a challenge to be optimistic all of the time and this frustrates me. I move 1 step forward then 10 steps back and I don’t feel like I’m going anywhere and then I don’t feel like myself and I’m unhappy and then disappointed… And then… And then… And then I have a day like these last 24 hours.

You see, for the last 3 1/2 weeks I have been looking for a ring that means the world to me. I thought it was taken out of my car when I left the top down and maybe forgot to lock the glovebox… But before I had to tell my family it was gone I had to know I looked EVERYWHERE. And I did. Except for under the couch, which is where I found it. Why was it there? I’m really not sure and that’s not even important anymore because it’s no longer relevant. That success of finding it, though, took a weight off my shoulders and reminded me to persevere until I find the answer… And I did… Just when I was ready to give up. You’d think that would be enough excitement to get me through the month. Nope. That was just the beginning of today (well, yesterday).

After finding the ring, I started browsing Craigslist for potential living situations beginning sometime from two weeks from now to the beginning of December-ish. I responded to a couple of ads and got one reply. The reply was from a girl who lives in a loft downtown (on my bucket list!) but wants to be closer to her work.. And her roommate? A guy I had a few French classes with at KU. Either it’s a small world, I know a lot if people, or it’s Kansas. Regardless of the answer to that, it seems to work out nicely for both of us. We know each other and I get to live downtown for a few months in a loft! #score

And the good day still isn’t done! Then I had an amazing day tweeting and learning at a conference for work today. If you have a twitter account and would like to know more about Social Networks for Non Profits, search #socialirl. I had a blast taking notes on what the speakers were saying via my tweets.

After the conference I had a rather spur of the moment interview for a part-time position at Apple to be in addition to my internship (fingers crossed but no guarantees!) and then got to play soccer mom for a 5 year-old. As I put him to bed he said, “I love you” which means a lot coming from a kid who isn’t even mine! Then his parents came home and opened another door for a potential job. I love the people I work for, wither it’s the kids I watch (and their parents) or my co-workers. People rock!

On TOP of all of this, it was 85 degrees and sunny. What a whirlwind of an amazing day. Sometimes timing and patience is everything because this feeling of making the right decision and letting things happen feels great.

Encounters at a Coffeeshop

October 17, 2012 0

As I was sitting outside of a coffeeshop enjoying this amazingly odd 80 degree October afternoon, I happened to overhear a conversation when I came back from the restroom. The 30 year-old woman, who had previously been talking about her recent career and nasty divorce, said, “It was an incredible experience and it makes my resume look amazing”. Woah. Wait just a minute. PAUSE! I chose to go to the bathroom at the wrong time! But have no fear, Cate, who is rarely afraid to approach people, stopped this woman as she was leaving. I wanted to know just what that experience was. What I’m in the middle of trying to figure out is this thing called life. Does anyone really have it figured out? Well, probably not. Regardless, I wanted to know her secret to that amazing experience that boosted her resume. So I asked her.

Instead of her telling me what the secret was, she asked me what I’m doing now and what I want to do. The answer to that is, “Interning at a marketing company, and considering everything from getting a Master’s degree to learning to make coffee in Paris to buying a franchise”. How do I decide? Mr. Marketer next to me coughed Paris under his breath, and she said experience. What I need to do is make a list of everything that is jumping out at me (ie all of the above mentioned), Pro and Con it, and then go fo

r it. Without the experience the franchise is probably not the best idea, and there is always the possibility to get a Master’s degree. There will also always be franchise possibilities, even though I can just see the potential in this one and the reason to act now. But I don’t think I’m quite there yet.

DrSuess 300x300 Encounters at a Coffeeshop

Of course this is all stuff my friends and family have been telling me for awhile. But sometimes it helps to hear it from a complete stranger who doesn’t know me. I know I’ve written before that advice should be taken with a grain of salt because every experience is different. However, sometimes we hear things we need to hear at that moment because, well, we need to hear them at that moment whether it’s from a successful 30 year-old going through a nasty divorce or a Taylor Swift song. Either way, all advice is encouraged.

The Story of a House and a Deserted Ammunition Plant

October 16, 2012 0

A few weeks ago I met someone who encouraged me to take the backroads to Lawrence for a Sunday drive. It was something I’d never done before, and he said it was beautiful and it would be so much fun with Cooper (my oh-so-perfect MINI Cooper convertible). It’s not that I was blowing off the idea, but wow, weeks have begun to fly by and before I realize it’s Sunday it’s already Monday. How does that happen? Oh, right… a busy social calendar and lots of thoughts.

Yes, lots of thoughts. My mind is full of lots of thoughts now but it seems like there has been a lot going on lately. This isn’t really something I want to go into on here, but let’s just say my heart and head has been hurting a lot lately. I’ve decided to move out of my oh-so-adorable “mini house” to save some money and to be able to make a last minute move decision if the need be, which would of course be for a good reason. I’m not quite sure what that means right now but you will know when I do. It could be Colorado, Florida, Connecticut, Texas, or even Paris…. or even no move at all. Surprise? Hm.

As I was driving home from Aubrey&Michael’s photoshoot in Lawrence, I realized I didn’t have anything else on my agenda except for working on photos and doing some research. Plus, I’m without a voice, so might as well not strain it anymore than it had been strained the rest of the weekend, right? (Rhetorical question).

Without any idea of how the backroads actually would take me home I figured I had enough time that it really didn’t matter if I ended up in Oklahoma because I could still be home by sunrise. (Just kidding. The iPhone’s new maps may not be spectacular but I could still pinpoint where I was). I saw a house I’d always been curious about and I exited the highway to explore.

This house was almost eery, which fits in perfectly given the Halloween season. It was old, empty, and the once-screen door kept opening and closing in the wind. Turkeys were in the background gobble-gobble-gobbling at the uncomfortableness of my presence. But the HOUSE. Oh my gosh it had so much character. There were metal “Texas” stars on the outside of the red brick, designs carved in the wood surrounding the windows, and there was an empty bottle out on the back porch. I could just see the old floors being refinished, the walls with deep contemporary colors, a beautiful wood table in the kitchen, and a wrap-around porch being added with a firepit and grill in the back and a tire swing in the front. But for what I could see for the future of this house I could also imagine the past. Actually, I couldn’t really see it but I was curious about it. How long has this place been empty? How many families have lived there? When was it built and what was the first family like? The highway wasn’t there then, so why did they choose that location? Was it there before 1900? If I had a voice I would have gone to ask the neighbors… but, well, that wasn’t happening. But it made me wonder… what’s the story of YOUR house? Do you know the history of it? Have you ever wondered what the people were like that lived there? Why they moved? Please share with me!

As I moved further, I found this abandoned plant. I wasn’t sure what it was at the time, but upon further research I was able to figure it out. Back during WWII, Sunflower Ammunition Plant was the largest smokeless powder plant, employing over 12,000 people. (Talk about job creation!) In 1951, production at the plant was put on standby but reinstated for the Korean war, deactivated in ’60, and reactivated in ’65 for the Vietnam war. In 1972 it was reopened off-and on until 1995, when it was sold to build houses. Well, as far as I can tell, there aren’t any new houses there. The buildings are completely deserted and the welcome gate no longer has any glass.

While my mind didn’t wonder too much about what life was like as an employee there, it did as I got to the baseball field. Unlike the house earlier in this post there in envisioned a future, here I envision the past. I could see the baseball players sitting on the bench both in uniforms and also in work clothes. I could seethem really getting into the game and having a great (albeit competitive) time. I could see family members and friends lining the outside fence and cheering for their favorite players (ie friends). It really made me want to go back in time and see a game.

There is so much to America that is beautiful. We have beautiful homes, roads, stores, landscapes, and parks. Even though there are places like these that are run-down and deserted, they are still beautiful in their own way because of the stories that came from their past and possibly even their future. Much like the places I visited on Sunday, I may not know where I’m going, but I canalways imagine my future. I’m sure the family that built the house never thought they’d see it deserted one day, and the same goes for the Sunflower Ammunition Plant. Even though I can imagine my future, it has a mind of its own and will change. That change? Well, hopefully it’ll present itself sooner rather than later. I’m getting impatient.

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