Thinking in vain...

For a while now I've been thinking that I really should get involved in the local Ad Fed group, so after reading Fred's Suggestion #3, I finally decided to make an effort. Saturday I helped out with the Student Portfolio Review.

And it actually wasn't that bad. Everyone was really nice to me. I don't know if it was just because they really needed my help, but I'm hoping it's because they're nice. Neither of the incoming presidents (I think they're tag-teaming it) were unfriendly. But they actually don't work in agencies, one works for the chamber of commerce and the other is in PR at VT. I sometimes find that I don't get along with the type of girls that seem to get hired at 3 of the agencies around here, but none of them were there Saturday.

While everything went well and I'm looking forward to getting more involved – that wasn't the most interesting thing of the day. The most interesting thing was running into my agency's previous Creative Director.

Now let me see if I can explain this without using names and not confusing everyone.

The previous CD here is now the CD of another agency. He also happens to be one of the best copywriters in the valley. He was fired from this agency because my boss found him freelancing for the competition (although that's not the whole story according to him).

He also happened to be one of the reviewers. Several of the students he was supposed to review didn't show up so he was out there talking to us. He was friendly and he seemed the opposite of everything I'd heard about him.

So frankly, I didn't think he recognized me. He and my now-boss had interviewed me several months after I started work at a law firm. Several months passed, he left, I left the law firm and came to work here. But I was wrong, he knew exactly who I was.

So around lunch he finally asks what I'm sure he's wanted to ask all day - how was life here. I told him it was great. He told me not to lie and that I could tell him. So he spends the next 10 minutes trying to find out what my boss has said about him and what I think of her. I told him she hadn't really said anything and I thought she was very nice to me.

He told me I was no fun and that eventually he'd get me drunk and find out everything. The only thing we could agree on was that I had the best office in the world (his old one).

I thought he was kidding. Then I come in this morning to an email from him.

This is why I don't network - I like to avoid situations like this. I need a bigger porch.



(If you want the details of the conversation, 'cause there's lots more - you'll have to get them over email...)