Spring is nearly here! Update time...

It's been a while since our last post; I've been a lot busier than I thought I would be. So here's what I've been up to here at Adam's DJ Service!

After the open house at the Tacoma Art Museum the week of my last post, I helped out with the Bellevue Relay Kickoff for the American Cancer Society at Lincoln Square Cinemas. We will be helping provide music and sound equipment as sponsors of the Bellevue and Gig Harbor Relays this year again.

On the night of the 23rd of January, I DJ'd the Tacoma City Dance at the McGavick Center at Clover Park Tech. Great venue, great decor, great kids (for the most part!) - overall the event was a success and most attendees had a good time. Lots of meetings filled up my calendar the following week and time in the office prior to our two mini vacations with family to Birch Bay, WA and Seaside, OR! Saturday the 30th, I did participate in two open houses for venues who host weddings and other events, one at The Manor in Everett and the other at the Holiday Inn in Seatac. I then proceeded to a Sweet 16 in West Seattle that I DJ'd at; had a great time, as this was quite the surprise party! Sunday the 31st, we participated in the South Sound Wedding Show at the Great Wolf Lodge in Centralia. We met a lot of great people and potential candidates, but we haven't booked any events as a result of being there. I hope that changes soon!

Between our Birch Bay and Seaside trips, I DJ'd a surprise 60th Birthday for a family friend and of course watched the Super Bowl! The following weekend, I DJ'd a valentines dance and a Haiti fundraiser with Heather Hope at the Center House Bistro in Seattle where my good friend Tracy Garrow works! It wasn't the turnout we were hoping for, but thanks to generous donations, we were able to send nearly $700 to the charity Doctors Without Borders.

February 17th was the highlight of my month, though. I had been planning since December a surprise 30th birthday party for my wife Ellen for this night! My friends Amy and John Hatcher (owners of Cafe Pacific in Auburn) helped me work out a great deal for a party at their place and we pulled it off! The food was great and we had a nice mix of family and friends attend. Special thanks to Travis, Eric, Kami and Ryan for helping with that! The "Twilight" cake from Celebrity Cake Studio was great, too!



Lisa Dupar had a nice open house on Thursday the 18th of February and I took a high school student who I'm mentoring for his Senior Project. The food was excellent and I'm happy to have finally met Lisa herself, because I've worked events with her staff a few times and they're always a pleasure to work with!

The weekend of the 19th was a learning experience; I got to stay at The Nines in Portland for the NACE Leadership Conference. I could write an entire blog post on this weekend alone, but I'm going to keep the highlights from the public because it's just something I have to do. Let's just say it was educational, fun, tiring and something I hope I get an opportunity to do again some day. Sunday the 21st, I returned from Portland and provided DJ/Karaoke services at the Taphouse Grill in Bellevue for one of our best corporate clients, Maggiano's.

The following week, lots of meetings, open houses, and a symphony date with the wife! Occasions Catering had a tasting at Pioneer Park Pavillion in Puyallup. The Wedding Network USA teamed up with ISES (Seattle chapters) to have guest speaker Sasha Souza talk about her experiences with planning/designing weddings. What an awesome presentation held at The Ruins in Seattle! She is one of the best in the U.S. at what she does, and it was an honor to meet her and learn some things from her. She talked about what makes a trend: when someone sets out to create something different that is then imitated or replicated by others using the original idea. Some wedding trends she mentioned are economy based, based on experiences from the past, include family, and downsizing without sacrificing design (need vs. want). Quote: "I spell need W-A-N-T!" I also liked how she talked about color trends, and how the Pantone forcast for 2008 really wasn't relevant with weddings until 2010 (2 year turnaround). So for those that think Turquoise is the color of the year, I guess you'll have to wait until 2012 for that one to kick in really big! For brides with big budgets who want a beautifally designed wedding, hire Sasha's company, or at least check out her blog and read her book to get ideas! (http://sparkliatti.com/) And then yes, I finally got to have a date night with my wife Ellen. She thought that was going to happen when we had her surprise party, but we ended up going to a nice restaurant in Bellevue called Pearl, the Seattle Symphony at Benaroya and then a night in a hotel room! Thank you grandma Lynn for babysitting Loodle!

This past weekend, I helped with A/V and music at the Lincoln Day Dinner held at the Nile Golf & Country Club in Mountlake Terrace. The next night, I DJ'd for a fashion show put on by the Wedding Bell in Tacoma. The following night a wedding at The Manor in Everett. And the following night, a Snohomish Wedding Guild meeting at Craven Farm. Lots of wedding folks in Snohomish...the wedding capital of Washington State! Looking forward to the Showcase coming up Sunday May 23rd. All brides and grooms still looking for a great venue in that neck of the woods should tour the venues involved with the Showcase! Adam's DJ Service will be showcased at the Antheia Ballroom.

Another upcoming venue tour we'll be participating in is the Metro Parks Tacoma tour of the Pagoda, Titlow Beach Lodge and the South Park Community Center. This is on Sunday March 21st.

And of course, we'll be at the Tacoma Wedding Expo courtesy of BridesClub.com the weekend of March 27th and 28th. We'll be sharing booth space with 3 great vendor partners: Jason & Heather Mook from Red Letter Events, Kim Halinen with Vivid Images Photography and Anthony Giordano from Motion Of Life Video Productions.

By the way, some great news about some national PR I've received lately. I recently had an article published about me in DJ Times Magazine. Check it out by clicking here. That was the February issue. In the new March issue, I'm quoted in Stacy Zemon's column entitled "Command Performance," and it's about things we DJ's do to get people's attention at events. I also just received word that I am quoted and acknowledged in Stacy Zemon's new book, The Mobile DJ MBA! I'm excited to get my copy and read it through. Stacy Zemon is an experienced mobile DJ from the East Coast and has written a few books that have helped DJs like me get better simply from the knowledge she shares within them.

Here's the website of the month. It's a site with some great wedding pranks!

So for now, I've gotta run. But I hope you all like the information I've shared and please continue to check back for more information about where we've been and what we're doing!