127) Photo Shoot 10:52 PM

This week has been a series of uncharacteristic Natalie behavior that culminated in a photo shoot this morning. The lovely and talented Laura of Laura Elle Photography came out to shoot some photos of me in a couple of my favorite Santa Monica spots (photo above not from shoot). When Laura first offered her services, I was hesitant and wish-washed for about six months. I'm not really the type of person to jump in front of a camera. Not to mention that the thought of a bunch of photos of myself seemed a little self-indulgent. But in the end, I was really glad that I went through with it. It was fun to take direction from her, and we got some great shots. There's no way I'll regret having these pictures of SaMo to look back on.

One really interesting thing that I learned from Laura was the importance of branding for wedding photographers. For some reason, I was under the naive impression that people chose wedding photographers (a highly, highly saturated group, especially in SoCal) based on the pictures they took. Turns out that it is actually the self-branding and client handling that often distinguish a photographer. Of course, you're not going to choose someone who is a notorious douchebag behind the camera. Having not been a bride yet, I imagine it's a more subtle differentiation.

126) ChatroulOMG 5:35 PM

Warning: Language NSFW.

I've been really impressed with movie promos this summer. This latest example comes from Lionsgate, and their latest horror flick, The Last Exorcism. Employing Chatroulette, they've prayed on the young and the horny, who were hoping for nudity, but instead got inner demon. For the cost to produce the short clip and the foresight to record reactions (SO funny to watch their eyes get HUGE), the movie has scored a healthy amount of buzz, including over 400,000 views of the above video on YouTube in the past few days.

Can't beat new media being used in unexpected ways for marketing purposes.

125) Stylist Relations 5:48 PM

Today I received what could possibly be my last haircut from my LA stylist, Jesse (Floyds 99, Venice - go. He's amazing!). As I sat enjoying it, I realized some similarities between a relationship with a stylist is to a relationship with a significant other. The parallels between a first visit and a first date - the same get-to-know-you conversation, uncertainty in a future together. The good ones are hard to find - it took nearly 5 years of bouncing around from LA stylist to LA stylist until I found him (the whole, have to kiss a lot of frogs thing). He makes you feel great about yourself. It involves trust - who else would you let trim your bangs with sharp scissors right in front of your eyeballs, or brandish a hot iron so close to your neck? And finally, in my leaving LA & Jesse, I have to keep reassuring myself that he is not the last man who will cut my hair well.

124) 20-Somethings 11:43 PM

My Facebook news feed has been abuzz with posts regarding an article published today by the New York Times (recommended read, if you have half an hour). The long-winded piece attempts to explain why 20-somethings today take so long to "grow up."

Tonight I was again challenged to pinpoint what exactly I want to do, career-wise. And again, I grasped at what I think I might want to do, without being able to provide a precise answer. It's no longer enough to just say that you want to do advertising, or that you want to be an entrepreneur. The world and its technology has evolved to the point where 20-somethings have a harder time finding their niche, simply because there are so many options out there.

Though I'm not one of the "boomerang kids" that moved back home, I can see why my fellow 20-somethings would turn to this economical option while trying to figure out what they want to do. While there is something to be said about getting out there to find yourself, the comforts of home are often too good to pass up.

123) Twifficiency 10:37 PM

Lately I've been seeing a lot of Twifficiency score tweets on Twitter. The application calculates your score based on the number of people you follow, the number of people who follow you, how often you tweet, and apparently how many tweets you read (not sure how they figure out that last one). Twifficiency then automatically spits out a tweet reporting your score (much to the dismay of this Google Exec pictured above).

One of the people I follow wondered if there will come a day when one's Twifficiency score would be scrutinized at a job interview. I've been thinking about Twitter activity a lot recently, in light of my hiatus from the working world. While I was in Spain, I took a sabbatical from Twitter, and am just now getting back into the swing of it. The job that I will eventually apply for will most likely require an understanding of social networks. Does it, then, behoove me to remain active on Twitter, even if it means forcing it a little bit? By the same token, should I have a foursquare account, even though I don't like broadcasting where I am? Should "proficient in [insert social network here]" be included at the bottom of resumes?

122) That Girl/Guy 8:42 PM

Yesterday I spent the day with a good friend who is also an ex-boyfriend (not pictured above). We talked about a lot of things, and at one point, I lamented that I'd never gotten to meet his longtime and now ex-girlfriend from college. He laughed and reminisced about how much she hated my guts.

Now, I wasn't expecting her to be my number one fan, but even though we never met, (edit: Turns out, we did meet once. And by meet, I mean we attended the same New Years party and awkwardly avoided eye contact all night.) she built me up to be this horrible person in her mind.

I get it. I've been on both ends. We've all had a significant other with a close friend of the opposite sex who may or may not also be an ex. That girl/guy. The one you have to put up with. The burning jealousy of any past physical and emotional intimacy that fuels a present closeness. The thought that someone might know your boy/girlfriend better than you do. And ultimately, the knowledge that this friend will be a constant in your significant other's life, whether you're in the picture or not. (If you don't know what I'm talking about, then thank your lucky stars.)

Strangely, I feel the need to redeem myself to this girl I've never met, who used to (figuratively) ban and curse my name. To prove that I'm not the raging bitch she imagined. Aside from the fact that it's too late for any of that, it would have been a lost cause. That kind of thinking is hard to reverse - anything that you do can and will most likely be interpreted negatively. I know because I've done it myself.

Photo note: I didn't want to post a picture that hit too close to home (gotta keep it anonymous and general, right?), so here's a completely unrelated photo of me and my Portuguese friend Joao on my last night in Barcelona.

121) Experiential Experience 11:23 PM

I'm writing this in the car on my cell on the way back from Outside Lands festival (don't worry, I'm not driving). A short post on one of the many things I saw there.

Odwalla had one of those tent "experiences" set up. Upon entering, you're greeted soup kitchen style by free samples. Next, you're invited to sign up to perform on a tricked out stage, made to look like the inside of an Odwalla vending machine. Those not musically inclined can watch perched on cloud-shaped bean bags. The MC urged us to "check out the Facebook" on the laptops in one corner of the tent. Meanwhile, Odwalla reps went around taking pictures of the audience and directing them to a website to retrieve the photo.

The whole time we were in the tent (which inexplicably had an upside down inflated farm scene on the ceiling), all I could see was the potential case study. Those in marketing and advertising will know what I'm talking about. It will probably include something along the lines of, "We created a multi-media marketing experience that allowed people to engage with Odwalla in new, exciting ways."

I'm generalizing, of course, and I don't mean to demean Odwalla's efforts. Having worked in advertising, I was simply struck by a weirdly meta experience. A group of people's hard work was culminating in that tent, and everything was contributing to the case study. Upon entering, I passed a sign that warned that by being in the tent, I was agreeing to be photographed for Odwalla's use. I couldn't help but wonder in which case study, deck or presentation the photo of me sitting on one of those bean bags with Odwalla sample in hand will end up.

(Picture to be uploaded tomorrow.)