Another Internship?- Meh

Ophelia, I hope that LFW is rocking.  I'm sure all the pieces to  your puzzle will slowly begin to make sense.  Figuring out the rest of your life is no joke! We are blessed and spoiled to be living in a time where we are granted the liberties to actually discover and pursue our dreams.  Hang in there, my dear.

Flora, how was NY during all the fashion buzz?  I bet it was such a thrill to be in the city during those weeks.  I know I say this often, but I am seriously trying to figure out my finances to come and see you soon.  There is nothing more beautiful than autumn in NYC.  

My internship is coming to an end, and I could not care less about what is next.  I am so flippin' exhausted, both mentally and physically, that I just want to detox from all the sharks in Hollywood.  I would love to take some time and write again, but knowing me I will jump right back into the shark tank.  Actually, a close girlfriend works at one of the major TV production companies out here and is trying to get me on set for a long running series.  It would be a dream come true to move over to TV for a while.  We will see.  All I have to say for now is: MEH.

How was that movie?  Meh.

How are you this Monday morning? Meh.

Are you enjoying the heat wave in LA?  Meh.

How is work?  Meh.

How is your love life?  Meh!

I need a vacation!  Flora, get ready for a visit, even if I have to hitchhike all the way across the country to afford it!

xxx Rose

An Intern at a Fork in the Road

Chères girls,
Rose, I am so glad you are enjoying your internship and the deliciousness of In and Out burgers.  The downside to living in Paris (and on the East Coast!) is the lack of In and Out burgers in my life.  I am truly jealous!  Flora, how are you fairing at work?  Still an Eternal Intern in the minds of your coworkers?  Consider it a blessing in disguise, you are a young ingénue à la Audrey Hepburn and your coworkers don't know what to make of you!

As for me, my sweets, I am not sure what to make of my current situation.  For the time being, I am taking in the gorgeous fall weather and enjoying Paris to the max, but I must say, it is getting old fast!  I have a few exciting ventures on the horizon:  London next weekend (for 5 days!) and then Fashion Week working in the showroom for a fab English designer (with my even more fabulous friend R!), but after that, who knows what the future holds for this Eternal Intern.

Last weekend, I had brunch with the chicer than chic R and we started talking about the fashion industry.  R has one of the most incredible CVs I have ever seen, holds an MBA from a prestigious  university and has worked in some of the world's largest and most respected fashion houses and yet, even her current position is getting her down.  It got me thinking about how I would fare when I finally get myself out there.  If a girl with this much experience is struggling with her own Devil Wears Prada situation, how will I rise above it?  I left brunch inspired by her resourcefulness and connections in the business (in the first half hour of brunch a few quick blasts from her Blackberry had put me in touch with countless fashion contacts!), but fearful for my future.

And so here I am again with another internship under my belt and still no closer to figuring it all out.  "It" being my life, of course!  Where do I go from here?   I am hoping that London and Fashion Week will provide me with some answers... if not, I am officially screwed!  haha!

Love and bisous, 

xx Ophelia

Internship Bliss

Good evening beautiful ladies!

I have been feeling a bit down lately from money troubles (long story short: I don't have any of it), but today my luck has turned.  Today I love my job.  Today I love my internship!

Why?  What is about my job that has me dancing in the streets?

Meeting the people and being in the places that I have literally dreamed of as a child.  One of my favorite directors came into the office yesterday and I got to serve him coffee!  Laugh if you will, but I can seriously say that I can cross a big one off my bucket list.  He is my idol and inspiration.  I have watched every single one of his films with commentary, and his work ethic and knowledge blows my mind!

This is why, I would like to take this moment to thank the economy for making me an Eternal Intern.  My internships have allowed me to experience things that I would have been deprived of had I been chained to a desk for the last few years.

Naturally, I needed to celebrate yesterday and I couldn't think of  better way than with an In N Out Burger!  Animal style of course!   The perfect end to the perfect day in the sweet town of Hollywood.

xxx Rose

p.s.  Flora, how was NYC during fashion week?

Un Mariage Par Excellence

Hello dear girls,
I just received a batch of photos from M's wedding and I couldn't wait any longer to tell you all about the incredible wedding weekend!  It was a magical 5-day event full of love, laughter and of course, pink champagne!  And to think M planned it all on her own without a wedding planner.  The entire long-weekend went off without a hitch!

Day One:
What do you get when you mix a yacht, 8 bridesmaids and 8 English groomsmen?  Adventures on the high seas!  The bride-to-be picked me up at the airport and we set sail soon after!  Nothing brings strangers together like an afternoon on a yacht!  Throw in a whale sighting and a mixed CD of old favorites and you get a bridal party that left shore as strangers docked as good friends!  From there dinner at a seaside restaurant and a night of drunken karaoke (Yours truly did not sing!).  It was the perfect day!

Day Two:
I must admit, wedding rehearsals can be draining but they are even more difficult with an excruciating hangover!  We all arrived at the gorgeous venue looking worse for wear as we tried to take in all the pertinent wedding day details.  It went a little something like this... Groomsmen:  Make sure your bridesmaid doesn't fall down the stairs (Oh so reassuring!).  Bridesmaids:  Bouquets in your right hands and don't fall.  After the formalities it was off to a Sea Cider Farm for a cider tasting and the most delicious dinner.  Let me tell you, there are few greater things in the world than watching the sunset behind snowcapped mountains!  Magnifique!

Day Three:
Manicures and Pedicures for the ladies and a day of fishing for the gentlemen.  We (the bridesmaids) then checked into our bridal suite at the Laurel Point Inn and spent the rest of the day tanning and catching up on the latest celebrity gossip on our incredible terrace.  In the evening, the parents of the bride hosted an out-of-towners dinner at their beautiful Victoria home before the bride- and groom-to-be were whisked off by their respective friends for one last night of single living!  I'm not sure what the guys go up to (do we even want to know?), but for us it was a night of Sex and the City and champagne!

Wedding Day:
8:00:  A morning pre-wedding jog for the bride followed by a breakfast of fresh fruit and mimosas, evidemment!!
10:00: The hair and makeup team arrive and pink champagne is served!
2:00:  All dressed in gorgeous Jenny Yu dresses, the bridesmaids were ushered into the waiting car to take us to the venue.
3:00:  The bride is dressed in her stunning Monique Lhuillier gown and ready to go.
3:30:  Girls are paired up with their groomsman and the music starts.
4:00:  The bride and her husband exchange vows as we, her closest friends, choke back tears.  I have never seen a happier or more beautiful bride!
5:00:  Champagne and bridal party photos.  We posed among the lush rose bushes and on the rocky beach.  The setting was breathtaking!
6:30:  Dinner is served.  I was too nervous for my impending speech to eat the delicious BC salmon that was caught by the groom himself!
7:30: After a glass of champagne I took the mic.  My speech went perfectly!  It is not hard to say nice things about someone I love so much!
8:30:  The dancing begins!   We took brief pauses for cake, cigars and scotch (fireside, overlooking the ocean!).  The bride and groom retired at 1 but the party continued until 4!

Day Five:
Out-of-towners brunch at the Victoria Golf Club hosted by the grandfather of the bride.  Most of the guests only stay a few hours which left the wedding party, tired (and hungover!) yet happy to discuss the events of the weekend and say our goodbyes as we all prepared to leave later that night.  Its funny how in only 4 days strangers become dear friends and it is almost impossible to say goodbye.  It felt a bit like the end of an amazing summer at camp!

I cannot think of a better way to end my summer than to watch one of my oldest and dearest friends marry the man she loves so much.   Congratulations to M and her husband, the London Chef!

And in case you were wondering, no... I didn't catch the bouquet!

Bisous xxx Ophelia

The Spiritual Intern

Salut les filles! I am back from my wedding travels!  I have so much to tell you about my trip but there is one story I have been dying to share with you for weeks!  As you know, I was in New York for a few days before heading to Victoria, Canada for M's gorgeous wedding!  When I wasn't catching up with Flora, Ashton and the rest of my New York crew, I had a lovely dinner with a one-time Eternal Intern turned assistant buyer for a well-known department store.  Sheena and I interned together way back when (ah it feels like only yesterday I was living in New York!) and we have been friends ever since.  After our internship, she stayed in New York bouncing from internship to internship always hoping to find that perfect fashion job.  Luckily, I was always able to keep track of what she was up to since she is a fixture at every chic fashion event!  If there is a great party, S will be there on the arm of a fabulous gay stylist or sexy photographer!  She's a real star!

Anyway, S and I met for dinner at Eleven Madison Park to catch up and reminisce on how far we have come.  I was, of course, interested in finding out how she found her job as a buyer as I always saw her as a Rachel Zoe-esque celebrity stylist.  Well, what Sheena had to say was actually super interesting.  After a few failed jobs here and there she decided to take a different approach to her job hunt.  Every day for 2 months, she woke up at 8am and went to morning mass at her local church.  There, she prayed for work!  She was a little embarrassed to tell me the story, but I assured her that I found it most fascinating.  I mean, girls in our position do just about anything to find a job, but she is the first person I know who decided to ask a higher power for help in her search!  I was always fascinated by S before, but I was even more impressed by her unique and more spiritual approach to her career.  It really got me thinking....

I am a bit of a fatalist when it comes to my life and I believe that whatever is going to happen will happen and that everything works out in the end.  Not to get into the deep and complex topic of religion, but couldn't it be true that at some point no matter how many resumes you send or interviews you attend, the job you're supposed to have (like a soulmate) is out there somewhere just waiting to find you.  Why is that in every other aspect of our life we are fine placing a higher power in the driver's seat, but when it comes to our jobs "que sera sera" just doesn't apply?

Well, it worked for Sheena.  She is now happily employed and even if her job wasn't a gift from above she is most definitely thanking God that she has it!   That said, I am off to find a wishing well and a bucket full of pennies.... perhaps my luck will change!

More on Victoria and the wedding to follow...

Bisous xxx Ophelia

The Invisible Intern

Flora, Eternally an intern?  Why not!  Let them underestimate you and then when you are running the show, they won't know what hit them!  My work is slow and boring right now.  We are done shooting the feature, so me and the other intern have been asked to stick around the production office and help out with runs and wrapping up. 

I feel bad for the other intern though...Friday, after our lunch run, one of the supervisors that has been in the office for the last three months asked the other intern if they were waiting to be interviewed.  We were so confused... was she taking the piss?  The intern has been here every day for the last 3 months.  That's a quarter of the  year!  OMG.  My fellow intern looked like she just saw a ghost!  Are we, as interns, invisible to the people that are actually making  money for their work?  As free interns, we might as well be wearing Harry Potter's invisibility cloak!  

Anyway, I have no idea what is ahead for me.  I have nothing lined up after this gig, which comes to an end in another few weeks.  To be honest, I am trying to get on as many productions and meet as many crews as possible, because there is a lot of money to be made in production.  So fingers crossed for another paid gig in the near future. 

I have given up on being ashamed of taking on yet another internship or even being scared of them.  I have come to accept that this is my reality for now.  There are worse things in this world than following your dreams and making some money doing so!   

xxx Rose

Eternally an Intern?

My dearest Rose,

I couldn't agree more! When did being 'over qualified' become a negative thing?? On the contrary shouldn't it be something to treasure, desire, want??? Oh my goodness, where are we heading?? Haha!

Well, I've been incredibly busy lately...it's already been a few weeks and I do feel as though I'm starting to get the hang of things around here! My colleagues are great, the job is awesome fun and dynamic and honestly hours are fine for now!! Luckily too, this weekend is Labour Day weekend, so I've got tomorrow off! I couldn't be happier!

The one funny thing about this new "eternal employment" position....is the fact that many of my colleagues don't actually really understand that I'm a full-time employee........

Yes, you guessed it right....some think I'm an intern!!! Granted, these are only those with whom I haven't yet had a professional contact...haha but still!! It's so annoying!!

Now I'm not saying that being considered an intern annoys me (dudes I'm an ex-pro-intern!), but why is it that I'm still stereoytped as an intern?? Is it that I look too young?? Is it the way I dress? The way I put my hair up? What I have for lunch? My timid demeanor??

Honestly what is it??? How can I be taken seriously as a veritable full-time Eternal Employee??????

There are many other twenty-somethings out there fully working, who don't get these 'intern' reactions! What is it with me?? Am I now forever categorized, stereotyped, filtered as THE Eternal Intern?

Any tips girls?? I am wondering and pondering and seriously trying to figure this one out!

I must run, but I'll be around later, so let me knowwwww!!

Besitos chicas!

Flora xoxo

Overqualified and Proud!

Ladies, get ready for a rant!  

Someone please explain to me what it means to be OVERQUALIFIED.  Here is one definition: 'the state of being skilled or educated beyond what is necessary for a job'.  So let me get this straight, if someone with amazing experience or abilities is willing to take a job that would normally be beneath them, due to extenuating circumstances, it is not acceptable?  For F***s sakes!  I think that any employer would be an idiot to turn away this 'overqualified' individual.  It seems to me that our times is defined by this idiotic term!

It has become clear to me that the people running internship programs are the only sane ones left in this economy! Why shouldn't someone with a masters degree, or years of business experience be given the opportunity to go after their dreams and start from the bottom?  How is it that I could easily be hired for an internship position, but not even considered for a.... let's say... reception position?  If I need some extra cash and want to take on a reception position, how dare the people with power tell me that I am simply too good for this job?  They don't know me!  

I'm so frustrated with this.  I have a handsome, highly educated, ambitious and clever friend who after years of working in law has decided that he wants to work in entertainment and the stupid people he would be working for are too intimidated by her to give even her a chance!  I think that employers should count their lucky stars to have someone OVERQUALIFIED on their team!  I think that this term should be spun to show it in a positive light.  In fact, let's say it loud and proud!

Hi, my name is Rose, I am an Eternal Intern, and I am OVERQUALIFIED!

xxx Rose