CMF: Caitlin. Movies. Frabjous.

Last night we finished up at our last school of the fall tour. I don't think the reality has really hit me yet. I'm sure once we get on the road, tour will feel like ages away. CMF touring kind of does that to you; every week feels like its own separate month. Speaking of which, can somebody tell me how it's possible that we're already living in late November? Thanksgiving has completely crept up on me.

Before I jump into this post, I have to give a shout out to my boy, Max Meinhardt, who made some pretty baller album artwork for Team NorCal. Nate and Nishant starred in a rap video for San Diego State University's finale intro. Max broke out his photo editing skills and came up with this masterpiece to visually describe our work of art:
Thanks, Max - youdabest.

Our plan is to start our drive back to Atlanta today, which will take about 34 hours driving time in total. I'm not looking forward to fighting the time changes. We also only have 3 drivers to get 2 vehicles (van and box truck) back home, so that's going to be a real challenge. Please keep me and my team in your prayers and thoughts =)

Given that tour is wrapping up, I thought I'd give some closing thoughts about what this experience has been like. Firstly, it's been a lot of fun. I know that sounds generic, but I mean it. Tour life has given me lots of opportunities to laugh and have a good time. Making movies, eating great food, checking out wineries and breweries, hanging out on the beach, going to awesome festivals, listening to incredible musicians... I've enjoyed all of these things.

I have to give some credit to my team members who've stuck it out with me the whole way. Nishant has so much passion and energy, and it's a blast to watch him get excited and connect with students and people in general. One of the things I've really noticed with Nishant in particular is how extremely different our temperaments are; he's an extrovert to the extreme and I'm an introvert to the nth degree, but somehow we've managed to get along =) Nate has been my boss and my best friend. I admire his management and interpersonal skills as well as his goofy personality. Nate has made some of the more cringe-worthy moments of tour much more bearable thanks to his careful planning and control. Even though I've been upset/annoyed/etc. with these guys at multiple points over the past few months, I still love 'em, and I couldn't ask for a better team.

I also can't get past this point without mentioning Ish, our amazing promotions assistant. He might be the strangest guy I've ever met, but I love him to death as well. The students have really enjoyed working with him, and I've enjoyed getting to know him just as much.


This job is completely unique and such a cool thing to be a part of. Watching students work so hard and create so many great movies at each school has been really inspiring. I think some of the most meaningful moments on tour have been when students personally tell me thank you. Going to finales and having students stop me just to tell me they've appreciated my help feels really good.

Something I'm really carrying away from this tour is just how imperfect I am; I don't mean to say that in a self-deprecating way at all. I've learned a lot about my limits and how much I can actually get done, which turns out is more than I expected! I've worked so hard, and I'm proud of what I've been able to accomplish along with my team so far. In light of all of this, I've been really humbled by my humanity; I realize that I can't possibly be perfect, but I can do my best and make great things happen. Working and living on tour can get really depressing if you don't stay realistic and maintain a good attitude.

All that being said, I'm going to stop the introspective overload and start getting ready for road trip part two. Wish me luck!

Team NorCal has officially transitioned to SoCal! We arrived in San Diego on Wednesday night after an 8 hour drive from San Francisco. We are fortunate enough to be staying at a house in a cute little neighborhood called Normal Heights. I gotta give Nate some credit on the housing situation - this place is sweet. Fun fact: our house has 2 other homes directly behind it (1 lot, 3 houses). It's kind of funny to see a front door in your backyard.


I already have an affinity for San Diego - great weather, great food, great vibe. Everything feels much more relaxed here as opposed to San Francisco (much of this may be due to the decrease in severe parking restrictions). When we got in on Halloween evening, we stopped by the Blind Lady Ale House, a cozy pizza and beer spot. I was really impressed by the amount of people I saw dressed up in costumes - lots of dedication to the holiday in this part of town! Sadly, I kind of missed out on the grand Halloween celebrations this year... Good news though! It seems that we came into town right in time for San Diego Beer Week 2012! I'm pretty excited to get my hands on some craft brews and enjoy a beverage with some new friends =)

Before I get too pumped up for San Diego, I wanted to mention a few last memorable events from my last weekend in San Francisco. First off, I got to visit Lucasfilm (only days before the public announcement of Disney's acquisition!) - fantastic experience! Our big boss man at CMF hooked us up with a personal tour on family and friends day. This meant that my three team members and I got a private look around the offices led by a Lucasfilm employee (thanks, Ryan!). We also got to see a special film that showcases all the operations that go on within the company (quite an amazing and educational look at Lucas's special effects). The offices are basically a museum, full of movie artifacts and movie posters, and complete with a gift shop at the end of the tour. All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed the chance to get to check out such an influential corporation in the film industry. Just wow. The Yoda fountain was a favorite sight of mine =)



Over Halloween weekend, Nate and I checked out San Francisco's Chinatown. It really is funny how one minute you're walking through all the big, expensive shops downtown, and the next minute you find yourself stumbling into a totally different neighborhood full of Asian architecture and cheap buys. We popped into a few of the souvenir shops (panda overload!); I didn't actually end up buying anything though. After about 50 minutes wandering the streets, we decided we'd gotten our fill. We got some dumplings and headed back to our hood. Fun times!






Even though I didn't really get to celebrate Halloween as festively as I'd hoped, I did manage to carve a pretty snazzy pumpkin. Nate and I stayed up until 3 am perfecting our CMF-themed jack-o-lantern (no joke). I cut the top, drew the stencil, and carved the design, while Nate scooped the guts, spray-painted the whole thing silver, and toasted the pumpkin seeds - quite the team effort! We thought it ended up looking pretty good... Thoughts?





Another awesome end to my stay in SF was watching the San Francisco Giants win the World Series. I was hanging out at home with the game on the TV when the Giants swept the Tigers. The effect on the city was immediate. Cars were honking, people were hooting - the energy was all around. Nate and I ventured out into the streets to check out the hullabaloo only to be met with a massive block party happening right in the middle of the street. Public transit was still supposed to be running, but that was a definite no-go. One house was blasting music through speakers from their windows, completely running the party on the street. Everyone was drinking, dancing, and congratulating each other. Police were stationed nearby making sure everyone was staying safe. Fortunately nothing dangerous happened in our neighborhood, but seeing the aftermath of the rioting that went on elsewhere in the city was really disheartening; I really don't understand why people take something that is meant to be celebratory and turn it into an excuse for destruction. Dumb. All that aside, it was really cool to experience the spirit of the city firsthand. A lot of people brought brooms with them, sweeping the sky while swirling in the streets.

The last thing I'll mention isn't actually a San Francisco-specific treat... I got to taste Jeni's ice cream for my first time. Amazing. Jeni's is an Ohio-based company that produces some of the best ice cream available in the US. Nate brought back some brambleberry crisp to the house, and it was gone within 2 days tops. The pint cost $12, but it was worth every penny. So so good.


San Francisco was a blast - let's see if San Diego can show me the same good times!