Part I: Remember that time I was on HGTV...

View from the hotel room. The sky is exceptionally blue in LA.

The memory is sharp in my mind! Now. But will I remember all the details and quirks of the experience in a couple of months? Or a year? Probably not. Hence, why I'm going to jot down some of the details here. On the blog. Ha. Bless you for reading.

Check out those freshly painted nails. OPI - Let them eat rice cakes.

Monday, September 28, 2009

• Work half day. I'm jittery excited. Got my big girl suit case packed and my camera charged.
  
• Fly out of JFK and into LAX. Flying in and out of these huge airports, coast to coast, feels grand and epic. I feel small. But confident.
• Steve the PA picks me up from the airport. I trust he's actually from HGTV and not here to abduct me in his Honda Accord.
• We rendezvous with the producer at the studio where 'I Love Lucy' was filmed. I mean honestly....
• Jump in his car and drive out to the burbs where I'll be staying.

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

• I get ready. Make sure my hair is extra TV big and my lips are extra Texas red. I expect the producer at noon.
• At 12:30, a full camera crew walks into my hotel room. Oh dear Lord.
• I get mic'd up and pretend like I know what I'm doing.
  
• They start filming. I start rambling. They film me getting into the car like 4 times. It's mildly awkward, but secretly, I'M LOVING THIS. We grab lunch. I trip over my gigantic wedge sandals. We get in the car and head to the homeowners house.
• Lots of hurrying and waiting.
• Practically get pushed out of the car and WHOA, I'm meeting Lisa. Wait, that is Lisa right....? "Hey you!!", I almost say. Hahaa. It's Lisa LaPorta. She's about a minute big and is darling and warm.
• I meet the family and present my plan. We chat. And walk around. Chat some more. And then its the end of Day 1. Whew.
  
• I go back to my hotel decompress with my mom and then film my "confessional style day wrap up" with the camera set up on a tripod in my hotel room. (See above picture) And that's not sketchy or questionable looking AT ALL.
  

Wednesday, September 30, 2009

• Game on. First day of on camera shopping.
  
• We hit up the paint store, carpet warehouse and a mod little furniture store. Lots of decision making. Going on instinct and internal processing.
  
• I think I could do this all day long...
• Did I mention my carpenters? Now, I was kind of hoping to get to LA and work with a ridiculously good looking single carpenter, fall in love, get married, and live happily after in our adorable house the he would build and I would decorate. Sadly, HGTV had other plans for me and my carpenter. I did, however, get to work with Eric and Rupert who were fantastic at their jobs but far from datable (married and a lot out of my age range).
  
• And guess who flew into LA....Ivy! She gets in late, rents a car and meets me at the hotel. We talk, decompress, laugh and sleep soundly like we were back in our loft beds in Auburn.

More to come tomorrow! Didn't want to overwhelm...