Day Four: skiing + Indie Mogul Party + Weird night

Yesterday was a weird day. I went over to Deer Valley to go skiing with friends...only to spend half the day chasing them all around trying to meet up. This was partially my fault as I ended up getting a spontaneous ski lesson from Scott, a nice old man who was out visiting his daughter. We were sharing a lift when half-way up I realized that I hadn't checked the level of the runs from the top and from the chair they looked pretty difficult. So I turned to my lift partner and asked him, "what level are these runs?" He replies, "blacks and double blues, although the double blues are just as hard as the blacks." The fear on my face must have been obvious because Scott offered to ski down with me and help me out if I needed it. Well I needed it. And he ended up spending most of the morning working with me. By the time we were done, most of my friends were done for the day or off to watch football, so I ended up having to ski alone...which was a fair trade-off as Scott had made me a much better skier than any instructor I've ever had. With my new confidence I was zipping down double blues like it was nothing.

Indie Mogul Party
After skiing I headed back to the condo to get ready for another night of parties. We were kicking off the night with The Hollywood Reporter's Indie Mogul Party. It seemed fun, we were on the list, so why not. (Note: for Sundance parties it is critical not to arrive fashionably late as the line is always long.) This was the case we when got there at 10:30 for a party that started at 8. The line was ridiculous.

But we waited for a while because they had a kick-ass DJ and we wanted to dance. Two of my favorite celebs, Adam Scott (Tell Me You Love Me) and Rex Lee (Entourage), were in line so it couldn't have been that bad. (ps both of these kids are much shorter than anyone can imagine from TV - cameras may add 5 pounds, but they also must add 5+ inches too) The party wasn't that bad. They had broken a lodge into five rooms...two with masseuses ready to give free back rubs, one for lounging, one for eating, and one was the dance floor.



Unfortunately the dance floor was full of middle aged housewives trying to shake their tailfeathers...a scene I'm unable to block from my memory. It was slightly humorous until they tried to Crank That Soulja Boy which looked more like a bunch of women having clonic-tonic seizures. If I had a time machine I would've gone back and shown those old ladies how to crank that soulja boy for reals. (Note: this picture was taken to capture my "WTF?" expression when the old hoots started trying to supersoak that ho)

Soon we were unable to handle the dancing, so we hopped in a cab with two cute boys and headed downtown to meet The Colonel who was at the Delta lounge hanging with Seth and Matthew Perry's crew. It started to pour snow on the way downtown which for some reason inspired LF to change into four inch heels...this still baffles me as she is my most practical friend. I, on the other hand, am not so practical. While standing in line to get into the Delta lounge, we were approached by three nice looking boys. Here is how the conversation went:

Boy 1: Ladies, how are you tonight?
LF: Fine, thanks.
Weezie: Freezing.
Boy 2: Well would you like to go to a party?
Weezie: We're about to go to a party in here.
Boy 2: Would you like to go a party at Jamie Foxx's house?
LF: (turns to me) Um...where is his house?
Boy 2: At his mansion in Deer Valley.
Boy 3: We were there on Friday night. It was sick.
Boy 1: (begins naming off celebrities that were there) namedrop, namedrop, namedrop, the peeps from The Hills.
Weezie: like Brody Jenner?
Boy 1: Yeah - he was there. Took his shirt off to play bball with Jamie Foxx's crew.
Weezie: hmmm....Brody Jenner with no shirt.
LF: How will we get there?
Boy 2: We've got the karaoke cab waiting for us right there.
Weezie: You had me at Brody Jenner, but the karaoke cab seals the deal.

So we went off to Jamie Foxx's house with three strange boys in a karaoke cab...i warmed us up with my best rendition of Gin & Juice on the long ride up into the dark hallows of the Deer Valley mansions. I can't believe we weren't chopped up into tiny pieces. But a fun and random night ensued.

Day Three: movie + celeb shoving + music + comedy + hunger + lameness

Yesterday was ridiculously busy. We got up pretty early…me not feeling so well…from the Margaritas and the vodka and the red bull. Anyway we hauled it to Eccles for the premiere of “Frozen River.”, Frozen River was fantastic. Going into the movie, all I knew was it was written and directed by Courtney Hunt and had been featured in the Sundance short program a few years back. With no expectations, I was more than pleasantly surprised. More on that later…

Post Movie, LF ran off to a panel and I went home to shower. We met some NYC boys on Friday night in the music business who put us on the list for entry into the ASCAP music café and had invited us to join them to catch the five person line up yesterday afternoon.

So I shower and hurried to meet up with Leigh and the boys. I get down to Main street, already running a little late to find a massive amount of people standing and gawking on the sidewalk. No one was moving. Fed up with the crowd and now officially late, I weave my way through the people Manhattan style. As I’m hurrying up the hill, out of nowhere I’m shoved into a snow bank. Like full on, get-the-hell-out-of-my-way-lady shoved into the snow. Was there a fire? Free swag bags being handed out? NO! I got shoved into the snow because two women wanted to catch a glimpse of Corey Feldman. COREY FELDMAN?!?!?!? I got up, brushed off the snow and in my loudest, meanest voice I shouted at the women, “I mean we all loved Goonies, but really ladies, Corey Feldman?”

Anyway, I got to the music café irritated and tired…which was the theme for the day. We spent the next five hours listening to some great artists…Ingrid Michaelson, Sea Wolf, and Pat Monahan (lead singer of Train) we're the best of the crew…although Pat Monahan kind of acted like an asshole…hopefully it was just an act.

Then we left music behind us and headed to Sidecar to get in line for Seth’s Sweet show. It was hilarious and the highlight of the day. He had a great line-up – John Veiner, David Wain, Nick Kroll with Jason Sudekis acting as the Kevin Eubanks of the Sweet show. Seth was the funniest and not just because he is my friend. Nick Kroll gets my non-friend vote for funniest comedian and it’s not just because he’s a cute jewish boy…he’s really quite hilarious. Last note about the show = Jason Sudekis has a good looking strike beard…pulls it off real well...almost makes him as hot as Seth Meyers. No wait, that is impossible. (Note: As much as I was irritated at the two tools that shoved me into the snow, I would have done the same in the effort to catch a glimpse of Seth Meyers. I heart him in a little school girl crush kinda way. It is retarded.)

Post comedy we scoured the streets for a restaurant with a table for three. We were starving as the last time we’d eaten was before Frozen River and nothing had availability…except the Prime steakhouse at the end of Main. I told the hostess that I’d name my first born after her if she could get us a table, so it looks like I’m naming my first kid Erin.

After steak and wine and potatoes, the Weez was exhausted + drunk/hungover + full + and decided to leave LF and The Colonel downtown to party and head home to bed. I know…me = the lamest person in Park City on Saturday night…especially since I missed both the EW and the Motorola parties. There is no excuse, I was lame. But I slept well and now I'm headed to Deer Valley to ski with some old friends.

Frozen River

In both a heart-wrenching and heart-warming fashion, Hunt intertwines the desperate determination of two mothers doing what they can for the sake of their children. All I knew about the film going in was two women somehow came together to help one another smuggle immigrants across the border from Canada. Coming out of the film I was amazed that I actually didn’t want the women to get caught.

Both Misty Upham and Melissa Leo were fabulous and the cinematography was beautiful…unbelievable that it was a low budget film. It won the Grand Jury Prize for Best Dramatic Freature, so check it out when it makes its way to the theaters.

Sundance Day Two: Skiing + Zoom + Parties

Day Two was supposed to be low-key. We slept in, I went skiing – good day on the slopes as it was at least 20 degrees – and then we got ready to go out. The Colonel got into town just in time to join us for dinner at Zoom – Robert Redford’s restaurant which is AMAZING!!!! It is so amazing that I passed up tickets to the Opening Night Premiere of “In Bruges” because eating there was more important. And it was worth it...except next time I should not kick off a night of heavy drinking with a Zoom margarita. Post dinner activities = going from Zoom to Easy Street to the Kenneth Cole party.

Side Note: Sundance Parties

The Sundance party scene needs a brief explanation. There are some fabulous parties, but getting into them can be an awful experience…even if you’re on “the list.” During the first weekend of the festival local Park City bars turn from Doolan’s, Harry O’s, and J.B. Mulligan’s into NYC and LA hotspots like Stereo, Tao and Marquee. So basically we wait in line to go to the same clubs we try to avoid in Manhattan to party with celebrities we see day in and day out at the bank, grocery store, etc. It is the most ridiculous thing…I mean really dumb. But not so dumb and ridiculous that I don’t make sure I’m on every list possible so I can get into the parties. I know I’m a hypocrite.

Kenneth Cole Party at "Stereo"

This is why I felt so bad on Saturday morning
Originally uploaded by weezienyc

So back to the Kenneth Cole party. LF + Colonel + Me get to “Stereo” to a line full of people trying to whine/bully their way into the bar. It is 6 degrees outside and no one was getting in because the bar was at full capacity…people were literally flipping out.

There were these two girls totally losing it because they couldn’t get in…yelling at the doorman – “we are ON THE LIST!!!…calling their friends who were inside…more yelling. Then there were the three guys next to us that were all (in meathead voice), “um, do you not know who we are, yo?” I was cold and a bit tipsy & I thought it would be fun to play with these assholes. Turning to the boys I chimed in with “I don’t know who you are, but WE are really important. (turning back to the Colonel) And should actually be on the VIP list.” (I mentioned before that the Zoom Margarita may have been a bad idea) The boys rolled their eyes and looked at us like we were crazy.

But about two seconds later, the door opens and our friend Danny points the three of us out to the doorman. We walked into the party leaving the meathead dudes and screaming LA girls outside to freeze…but not before I turned to the boys and softly whispered, “I told you we were important.”

The party was super fun. Our friends already had a table when we got there, so it was cool to just sit back and watch the LA crowd act up and spot celebrities mingling about. Most important take aways = Woody Harrelson is much better looking in person, so is Emily Mortimer and I have no business drinking vodka on the rocks with red bull chasers.

Sundance Day One: It's colder than Vernal up in here!

Day One kicked off like this…wake up, shower, eat breakfast, get dressed and head to the mountain for a quick lesson to warm up my legs for the season. First problem = it was 13 degrees outside. Second problem = I misread the temp and 13 was actually the high…when I left it was 1 degree. This made for an awful day on the mountain. So I took my lesson, took a few runs by myself and waited for LF to get in town so we could get settled into our condo and begin Sundancing.

LF arrived a little late and we headed up to Main St. to pick up our tickets and grab a bite to eat. We ended up at Butcher’s, my local Park City hang out. I spent so much time there last year that I felt like Norm from Cheers. We walked around in the freezing cold until we could no longer manage and then headed home to rest up before dinner.

We had dinner at 350 Main which was nice, but we got stuck at a table downstairs with large parties and couples. It wasn’t so much the atmosphere we sought and you pretty much go to 350 Main for the atmosphere. We finished dinner pretty late and Big Meal + Cocktails + Elevation + Exhaustion + Married couple scene = LF & Weezie losing steam fast. So we decided to make it an early night, except we ended up at Butcher’s for “one more drink” on the way home. This is how it starts. Ugh. Lots of drinking. And lots of boys makes Weezie forget about Big Meal + Cocktails + Elevation + Exhaustion + Married couple scene. We ended up chatting with these really hot boys who turned out to be totally douches. I man total douches. I swear they were working on material for “Mormons gone Wild” because all they could talk about was how they used to be Mormon but now they were going to the dark side. LF and I weren’t interested in joining them on their journey (or taking showers with them…though they kept asking), so we ditched them and went home...need rest for big day of skiing tomorrow.

Explanation: It's colder than Vernal

Ok - last year when we were out at Sundance, LF and I cracked up every time we watched the weather because Vernal, a small town in Utah was always 20+ degrees colder than everywhere else. It's 19 in Park City, 22 in Salt Lake City and -4 in Vernal. So we started saying, "It's colder than Vernal in here."

One day I said this in a cab full of non-Utah folk, so I had to explain it and one of my cab mates thought it was so funny she wrote about it on NPR.

Welcome to Sundance!!!

I’m in Park City for the next 10 days for Sundance. I’ve been in town for a day and a half so far and while I’ve enjoyed skiing & relaxation, I’m eager for the action to begin.

The most exciting event thus far resulted from me being a total idiot the first night I was in town. I arrived at the hotel relatively early and since LF wasn’t arriving until much later, I decided to walk over to the outlet mall. I forgot to pack a swim suit, so decided to pick one up, but ended up getting sidetracked at the Harry & David. My mama has been looking for this Red Pepper Relish they sell, so I went it to pick some up for her. 45 minutes and $60 dollars later, I walked out carrying two bags of relishes, crackers, and moose munch.

I realized on my way over to the outlet mall that the proper route (meaning the sidewalk) to and from was much longer than the way the crow flies. Since I’m the girl who runs 10k races and does 120 minutes yoga classes, but drives around the parking lot for 10 minutes to find the closest spot, I decided to take the crow’s route back to the hotel. This requires me to cut behind the outlet mall and cross over a small snow bank back up to the hotel.

I’m sure you can guess what happened next…the snow bank = not so small as I found myself waist deep in snow after taking my first step off of it. After standing there assessing my situation for a few minutes, I decided that it would be much easier to trudge through the waist deep snow than to climb back up the snow bank and walk the long way back to the hotel. Another. Bad. idea. Basically it took me longer to work my way through the snow carrying two bags of overpriced snacks than it would had I taken the proper route. But it was almost worth it just to look back and see the imprint of my body and the two bags dragging along in the snow. The one time I didn’t have my camera.

Snowpaint by KalKulus

I met the dude today whose production company makes these videos. He also has a clothing line...check it out.

Go Dawgs!

Training of Young Dawgs Fans.. from Weezie McS on Vimeo.

Whoa! Big Time Pressure for my Dawgs!

I'm in Vegas!

We decided (very last minute) to come out for CES. I'm ready to hob nob with the gadget geeks, stuff my face, and win tons of cash.

First day of total sadness of 2008

Short Ribs and Big Apple Cocktails

Needless to say, I was starving by the time dinner came around on flight 69 last night. STARVING! Thank goodness they were serving my fave Delta dinner – short ribs. There are only three people that can whip up some irresistible short ribs – Mama Kearney, the chefs at Spice Market, and Delta. I’m not even kidding. And only cuz makes better mashed potatoes. Does it sound absurd to say that Delta’s short rib dinner is one of my favorite meals? Yeah – probably. Anyway, while I’m giving culinary props, I must give a mention to their newest signature cocktail - The Big Apple.

The Big Apple is a bourbon + apple concoction that is delicious. Wow! Who knew bourbon tastes even better when you mix it with artificial apple flavoring. Needless to say I ended up getting pretty sauced and passing out just long enough to put me in a semi grumpy mood by the time we landed.

Post landing I was met with both good news and bad news. Good news = Kansas beat those whiny Hokies! Bad news = the big meeting for which I'd flown out had been canceled. Plus the weather is too bad to go to Tahoe and ski. Double bad news. Looks like I'll spend the first weekend of the year indoor and working. Hopefully, this won't set the tone for 2008.

You Know You Travel Too Much When...

oIt’s the third day in the new year and the vacation is over. I’m currently on a plane heading out to San Francisco for five days of investment meetings and strategy work with my partners. I traveled so much in 2007 that EsselNYC said my New Year’s resolution should be to stay in town more. I agree. But in the foreseeable future, this is my reality – too little time in NYC, searching for Internet access while stuck in an airport, or alone in a Hilton watching college football.

Okay the last one is a stretch. Because there is no more college football (sniffle, sniffle) – at least for me. Preparing for this trip caused me to miss the Fiesta Bowl last night. I’m flying right now during the Orange Bowl. (I’ve asked the pilot to please keep me updated with the score. I really want VA Tech to get trampled.) And I will miss most or all of the National Championship game on Monday.

It’s ok. I’ll get over missing the bowl games. However, I may never get over today’s dining experience. While having lunch in the Terminal A Chili’s To Go (I know – glamorous life I lead), I found a dark curly hair in my salad three bites in. Gross. I told the waiter. He asked me if I wanted a new one. I answered him with “the look” and he nodded walking away quickly to get my check. Here’s the weird thing. He came back with my bill for $1.12. The manager comped my food. BUT – charged me for the tax. Isn’t that the weirdest?

Or is this the weirdest? As I was walking onto the plane (three hours late due to delays), one of the flight attendants called me by name and asked if I’d like her to hang my coat. Seriously. I fly so much that she recognized my face and remembered my name. EsselNYC is right. I need to make a point to spend more time in Manhattan.

Sweet Jesus, I wish I were her!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!

and HAPPY GAME DAY!

I may hate New Year's Eve. But I LOVE New Year's Day as it's an all day college football fest and that makes me happy. Today is especially exciting as my Dawgs play tonight. I can't even think about resolutions today. All I can do is concentrate on TV and my desire for all SEC (minus Florida) to win their games.