Hello, Farm Aid blog readers!
This is Erin, Farm Aid’s new intern for the summer and fall. I’m here on a “co-op” job from Northeastern University, where I just finished my third year as a journalism major. (That’s “middler year” to all you non-NU people; we are a five-year school, so I am actually going into my junior year).
My first day at the office was Monday, and I’ve been spending the week getting acclimated, and beginning some projects. We’re putting together the “media book” from last year’s concert in New York City. The media book is a compilation of all the press that Farm Aid generated around the concert. Farm Aid puts one of these together yearly, with each concert, and they serve as a great example of the level of press and attention that Farm Aid is able to generate!
Of course, the big news around here right now is that we are having a press conference on Tuesday with John Mellencamp to announce the location of the 2008 concert!
I think the office is awesome. I’m still learning the secret of unlocking one of the doors (but if I can’t get in, there’s a bell). I hear this is the most fully staffed Farm Aid’s been for a while so for the moment I have sort of a floating workspace. I’m using Anna’s desk right now while since she’s on vacation. Anna deals with a lot of the merchandise inventory and orders, and right now I’m sort of boxed in on two sides by boxes of t-shirts – neatly organized and labeled by size, of course. Speaking of t-shirts, I’ve just seen some designs for this year’s concert. From what I understand, at least one new shirt will be available for sale online the day of the press conference.
As my first week here comes to an end, I’m thinking that I’m very excited to be working here. Here are five unique things about the office at Farm Aid: (1) People can bring their dogs to work; (2) If you shout loud enough, pretty much anybody in any part of the office can hear you; (3) People prepare (even cook) their lunches here, just bringing bags of vegetables from a local farmers market; (4) Everyone seems to be on a first-name basis with “Willie”; and (5) Everyone seems to believe in their work, and that belief is also incorporated into their lives.
I think this blog is going to be sort of a weekly thing, but of course there are quite a few people posting on the this site, so keep checking back!
