As much as I love the 704events.com lifestyle, sometimes it gets to be too much. Too much meaning that there are nights where one person cannot do everything. Affectionately, I have received the nickname from a local bar owner… “Miss 10 Minutes”. As embarrassing as it is, it is sometimes true – From my own produced events, my sponsored events, and my client’s events, I sometimes feel rude and elusive.

Last Thursday was one of those days. I had my event, Bud Light Lime Bites and Brews Restaurant Week; I had Alive After Five, which I have been a consistent sponsor of, and my client’s production of Breaking Silence at the Knight Theatre.

I was able to delegate out Alive After Five and in the 11th hour, my friend, whom I will call ‘C’, attended Breaking Silence for me. She wanted to go; I needed someone to cover for me… A match made in heaven.

What is cool about Breaking Silence is that it was produced by Charlotte native, Justin Mann, who has gone on to become a world-class choreographer. Mann has battled his fair share of demons in his life and his performance truly came from his heart and undoubtedly, his experiences. The basis of this event was an exploration into a love story; from the ‘good’ stuff, like chance meetings, passion, and true love and the ‘not so good’ stuff – Betrayal, outside influences, and fear.

This is not the end of Breaking Silence, as it was eluded to that next year there will be another performance (via the Breaking Silence Facebook page) – Keep tuned to 704events.com and we will keep you up to date!

Thank you to my friend, C, for covering for me. Here is her take and breakdown on the Breaking Silence event:

I thought the show was unique and really enjoyed the music. The dancers did a great job and really showed how much young talent Charlotte has. The lead roles were executed so well and the choreography was outstanding. The dancers, especially the lead girl, performed with enthusiasm and style, which made the story intriguing; the music and the dancers pulled my attention in with their combination dance styles. I think it’s great that Knight Theatre is available for smaller productions, such as this one. It was fun to watch and I’m really glad I decided to “try something different”.

And C was nervous about writing this…. Psshhh! Thank you for your help, girl – You are AHmazing!

- Kim Hughes and C

Revolution’s Rock the Republic Fashion Show was a success on Friday, August 27, 2010. The Epicentre was crowded with Charlotte’s sexiest people.

I walked up the flight of stairs to where the stage was set – The night was cool and comfortable and the ambiance was electric. I was in awe of all my surroundings. The runway was set and seats were surrounding it; cabana’s were set up for the elite sponsors and VIP’s complete with white leather couches, roses, champagne bottles and champagne flutes, and tall black candle holders that held tall white candles – Giving it a combination look of hip retro Miami romantic style. I walked around and found a seat near the stage. I noticed the SUITE waitresses were dressed in sexy black pants and red lace tube tops, giving them a stylish, posh and elegant look.

I was comfortable, excited and happy to be at one of Charlotte’s hottest events. I sat in my seat, afraid to lose it. I was front row, top of the runway; a great place for pictures; the crowd was getting bigger and bigger by the minute. We were entertained by a local rock group, SuckerPunch. They played some of my favorite 80s rock songs from bands I haven’t listened to since I was a teenager. You can find them on Facebook, however, what is the worst thing that can happen to a writer when she’s at a Fashion Show? Her camera can start to kick the bucket for starters.

My camera decided to play tricks on me and the pictures that I took were horrible. Instead of crying, I decided to sit back and take in the beauty that surrounded me. Women wore their best outfits, complete with huge jewelry and sexy shoes. Men dressed in their sexiest shirts.

At the bottom of this blog, I will add the links to the photographer’s website where you can see the pictures and I’ll upload some of the cool pictures that I did take.

When the band completed its set, we were introduced to TAO Las Vegas DJ Five and ‘entertainment’ dancer’s danced on stage. Charlotte’s NBA Bobcat’s dancers, also known as the Lady Cats took the stage to hand out t-shirts.The fashion show started ‘fashionably’ late. One after one, the models dominated the stage with fall 2010 fashions.

Revolution clothing style is retro, trashy rock and roll jeans, skirts, dresses, sexy alternative business suits, sexy tops; and bigger then big jewelry and hot shoes and boots with spiky heels for the ladies. Each model had a unique artistic look, some wore tall hats with all sorts of jewels, beads and lace around it; others had very high hair, with flowers, braids and colorful hair pieces to them. The make-up was artistically designed on their faces. Lipsticks and eye shadows were silvers, gray and black.

I was in heaven. I’ve always wanted to sit in the audience of a fashion show and there I was, in the front row.

To see more pictures of the event, check out www.lazyday.com, and you can also view them on blu photography’s website.

Charlotte’s rock and roll radio station 106.5 THE END hosted its 8th annual Shake the Lake party at Midtown Sundries on Lake Norman last Saturday (8/21/10).
After paying the $10 cover charge, my friend and I grabbed a few beers, stood around engaged in conversation; met new people and watched the local bands play cover tunes.
What I thought was cool were the boats. Boat after boat lined up and tied up close together. People went swimming, sat on floats or ‘noodles’ and drank beer in the murky waters.
I wouldn’t say this was a family fun event; I didn’t really see kids. People who live in Harborside Village got there things, hung out on the green grass, swam in the lake and heard all of the music. It was an event that could be enjoyed by many who simply hung out in the cove by Midtown.
The radio station has a team of 15 girls called “The Endmates.” These ladies were introduced to the audience and then five o’clock rolled around and I was joining a line of girls for a bikini contest;, also known as the Miss Shake The Lake contest, grand prize, $500. I didn’t win. I’m not really crazy enough to do the kind of dancing guys like to watch during these bikini contest and although I heard lots of cheers while I was on stage, I wasn’t going to take the top off. I competed with class and I’m proud of that. The girl that won happens to be one of the stations Endmate.
After the bikini contest, things simmered down. My friend and I grabbed an order of wings and fries, which leads me to say, if you’re ever at Midtown Sundries, be sure to check out their wings, they’re filled with meet and taste delicious.
- Genevieve Cadorette

Charlotte area gas stations have been hosting many promotional events that are led by a group of men and women wearing either red or green shirts. When you’re approached by 1 of them, do not fear them, they’re not there to sell or scam you, they just have something for your car that’ll benefit you in the long run.

The green shirt people happen to be with Auto Glass, they’re offering a service to fix that chip in your window; it’s important to get it fixed as soon as possible because all chips eventually lead to a huge crack and the cost for a new window is expensive.

The red shirt people are promotional and marketing professionals that offer you a free demonstration to show you an amazing product called FW1, it’ll wash and wax you’re entire car with no soap or water, so, give these guys a chance to show you what they’ve got.

It’s safe on your paint and will protect the clear coat from fading and cracking; it’s one of those products that you must see it to believe it; which is why I’m going to leave the rest of the information out of this blog and let the guys and ladies tell you more about they have. There’s no obligation to buy but they are working hard to give you an amazing product that can help you out. Each event there’s a special promotion and prices vary so I would certainly keep my eye out for them and have some money saved up to buy when you’re at the station. Saving your money for a worthwhile investment like a can of FW1 is a good decision and you will not regret it.

I know this product works because I use it and to be honest, I spent the last three weeks working with these guys. Hence the purpose of my disappearance.

I’ve been busy traveling and working hard; hanging outside in 90 plus temp’s but now I’ve found time to sit and write again. I’ll be on the 704events page more often and you can certainly count on me to write.

Moving to Charlotte is the best decision I’ve made in a long time and I look forward to discovering more about the 704, The QC and about the rest of the Carolina’s.

- Genevieve Cadorette

Truthfully, the idea is something that I was talked into. My marketing diva, Anna Smith of Hibiscus Graphix, has a way to pursuing me to do things without being pushy. She asked me to envision the impact of LKN and OBX stickers and then think of originality and coolness factor of having 704 (events.com) stickers – An amazing tool to brand 704events.com, and something catchy that people would pick up.

I have had these stickers for the last year but it wasn’t until the last few months that they have been given out like crazy. By accident, one of my friend’s found them in my promo closet at my house and he ‘yelled’ at me for not giving him one and for not asking to put them in his store. He took a stack and the next week, came back for more.

I got ‘yelled’ at by another friend who wanted to know where the pink ones were for us ladies. She pointed out to me that adding a blue sticker to her color scheme of stickers on her car currently just wouldn’t work.

Long story short – I tested the stickers at a semi-recent Alive After Five and they were all gone – Somewhere used on the spot as you can see but everyone wanted one!

When Anna was creating a new screen play for Whisky River’s new site, she called me pitched the idea to ask Whisky River if they would be exclusive spot to get a 704 sticker. In return, I got a quick ‘Yes, absolutely!’ from my Whisky River rockstars.

I suck at taking credit for things traditionally but this one, I truly have to give credit to Anna, Reema, and Josh!

SO – If you want your 704events.com branded sticker, you have to pick it up at Whisky River’s merch counter’s register. Yes, they are free. I will be going in weekly to check the status and yes Reema, there will be a pink order at some point, too…

Whisky River – The exclusive place to get your 704 sticker (besides from Kim)!

The 704(events.com) stickers recently got quite the workout on the 4th of July at Loft1523 – Check out some pictures and to view more, click here.

- Kim Hughes

Uptown Charlotte is getting a little more crowded, in a good way. The City of Charlotte in partnership with Coca-Cola and Harris Teeter announced a new uptown recycling initiative taking effect August 5th as Charlotte continues taking more giant green steps towards sustainability with the installation of 15 recycling bins along Tryon Street. The need for these bins very much evidenced by me as I parked in the EpiCentre garage on top of about 8 flattened beer cans.

Standing at Disco Plaza at the corner of Trade and Tryon, shifting every five minutes to find a shadier spot, I was pleasantly surprised to run into an old friend who just happens to work for the city. And I was even more surprised (also pleasantly) to learn that Charlotte’s green initiatives are funded by stimulus money.

A recent report released by US Sens. John McCain and Tom Coburn listed the worst 100 stimulus projects and North Carolina had seven on the list including:

• $294,958 to Wake Forest University for scientists to figure out how to reduce the frequency and severity of menopausal hot flashes. I don’t want to be the one to tell those subjects that people consider their study wasteful.
• $770,856 to N.C. State University for researchers to study how video games can help improve mental health for the elderly. But if they can get my dad to play anything beyond Solitaire on the pc and remember where he put the TV remote, I’m perfectly fine with this study.
• $144,541 to Wake Forest to test cellular metabolism in monkeys that self-administer (love this phrasing!) cocaine. Really, $144,541 is a drop in the bucket for an $862 billion investment so why not let the monkeys have some fun.
• And in our city of Charlotte, $762,372 to UNC-Charlotte for a software development program that is creating a computerized “Dance Draw” choreography program.

Okay, I admit, that last one bugs me a bit. But Charlotte is now redeemed, in my humble opinion, with their going green initiatives kick-started by these recycling bins. The bins are the first project using Charlotte’s Department of Energy block grant initiatives awarded this past spring. The project will put Charlotte on the short list of cities with on-street recycling on their main streets.

Anyways, back to the sweltering hot press conference. Coca-Cola was kind enough to provide us with cold Dasani water and smart enough to avoid a p.r. blunder by bringing temporary recycling bins. Mayor Foxx showed some respect for the occasion by being brave enough to wear a suit jacket in 90+ temperatures.

But Jennifer Roberts, Chairman of the Meck Board of Commissioners, stole the show when she bounded onto stage. Her enthusiasm for the project was palpable and attention-grabbing. Not only did she ride her bike to the press conference (apparently it was Ride your bike to work day although why they put that day in July is beyond me), but a friend of mine working for the city relayed a story to me that just made me laugh. She [my friend] was at a Charlotte Rollergirls Derby a few weeks ago and saw Commissioner Roberts at the same event. Afterwards, my friend was trying to find her to say hello and saw Roberts actually grabbing cans and bottles from the tops of the trash bins (not digging through) and placing them in recycling bins. No cameras, no glory – that’s dedication to the cause folks.

And Roberts even wrote a poem for the occasion which I so wanted to share with you but a passing bus drowned it out on my tape recorder. It was Dr.Suess-like, kind of rhymed and was completely unexpected. I applaud a politician that can take the issues seriously but themselves not so much.

One more thing from the press conference – the introduction of the big green foam finger! If you’re uptown and see these big green foam fingers, don’t be alarmed that the Panthers have changed color schemes. They are part of a promotion by Harris Teeter, Coca-Cola and Charlotte Center City Partners to encourage everyone uptown to get caught “Green-Handed.” A street team will reward random recyclers with a $25 Harris Teeter Gift Card and lunch coupon for the Harris Teeter Uptown. And the giant green foam finger…..it could be yours! Cheese-tastic, yes! But very forgivable for the cause.

So there are many more things to chat about regarding the eco-friendly fun coming from our Center City and local government but I’ll save those for later posts. In the meantime, if you win a big green foam finger, send us a picture! It will make us happy.

- Stacey Irwin

Hello everyone! My name is Stacey and I’ve lived in Charlotte for six years. I alternate between social butterfly and hermit. Semi-retired from the bar scene since marriage, overly-involved in local charities and always looking for a chance to write, I’m excited to contribute to the 704events.com blog about happenings around town. Visit my LinkedIn page for more information and forgive me for its appearance. I’m still working on it.

The southern heat is on and it has been for a few weeks. Even with the storms that hit the 704 last Monday and Tuesday, the heat was high.

What I’ve learned in my three weeks that I’ve been here is that the warm weather is awesome, air conditioning is awesome and the temperature seems to be consistent.

In New England, the temps are always fluctuating. In the summers, it is very common to wake up in a cold front. Often times, it makes sense to throw on a pair of jeans, socks and sneakers to start the day. By noon time, it’ll be hot enough to throw on a pair of shorts and flip flops, however, be prepared to change into those jeans again around 6 or 7 o’clock at night. Once the sun goes down up north, so does the heat.

I always hear New Englanders complain about the weather: “Damn, it’s cold, sick of this!” is a popular cry in the winters.
In the summers, it’s the opposite, “Damn, it’s too hot, this is awful.”

Sometimes, it seems as though it’s cool to complain and if you don’t complain about the weather, you’re just weird.
I spent my twenties in Boston and if there’s anything that Bostonian’s are proud of, is their bad attitudes, so, they call themselves, “Ma$$holes.” That nickname suits them just fine if you ask me.

I’ve come to realize that southerners don’t complain. The attitudes are chill and laid back. I’ve heard a lot about “southern charm” in my life and I’m now experiencing it. It’s comforting and sweet and not too hard to get used to.

I’m not saying that northerners are not nice or impolite; I’ve met a lot of friendly people up north, I also have a lot of friends I’d like to keep that are still living in New England so I’m not trying to insult anyone, I’m just saying that to survive in the north, you have to be thick skinned, confident and ready to take life by the horns and expect to survive alone because no one gives a crap; no one will give you a chance if you don’t command and earn it. It’s easy to have an “all for one” attitude when you’re living in the north. What you see in the movies based in New York and Boston about tough bosses and untrustworthy co-workers are real scenario’s that have happened to the writers or friend of theirs.

It took me almost 6 months to a year to make friends when I first moved to Boston from NH. I commuted to work every day, looked for an apartment and got along with everybody that I met, but, I didn’t have much of a life. It wasn’t until I moved in with my roommates that life started to happen for me.

I’ve been here for all of three weeks and I’ve been busy. I’m meeting new people every day; I’m making new friends and I’ve already made memories that are close to my heart.

I hear a lot of southern women say they do not like to be called “ma’am.” I’ll tell you what, I like it. It sounds respectful.
I’ve been called Miss Genevieve, and, it seems to be common to call women Miss around here, I like that too.
I also like that everyone waves and says hello, with a sincere smile. What I have noticed (from the people that I’ve met) is that they are not judgmental or have preconceived opinions. People are not afraid to ask, “How are you?”

I once heard a comment that northerners are not happy people, maybe because of the weather, maybe that’s true. It may also be because life is at a faster speed; things happen fast; people want more, people want it all and they want it now. I’ve even heard bosses say they “want it yesterday.”

I may still be new and I may have not run in to people who want it all and want it now. Either way, I still see that southerners are happier. Maybe because the weather is warmer; because in warm weather, it’s just easier to be laid back and relaxed.

A laid back and relaxed attitude always leads to happiness just like there’s no such thing as a bad day with a positive attitude.

- Genevieve Cadorette

We came, we saw, we experienced… And had an awesome time in the process! Check out the pictures to prove it!

- Pictures by Kelly Ivey of 704events.com

Birkdale Village is a hip and trendy shopping center located in Huntersville, North Carolina.

Stores range from Victoria’s Secret to Barnes and Noble to Gymboree; there’s a coffee shop, a wine bar, restaurants and a movie theater in the small center that looks like it could be a ‘village’ (or city) of its own; to top it off, there are even residential apartments on top of these shops and restaurants.

Every 4th of July, a parade for young children is held. There’s a spot for the little kids to decorate their bicycles; there’s face painting; there’s Walt Disney Radio; there’s an inflatable jumping tent for the kids as well.

The firemen and police department attend and lead the parade. The mayor of Huntersville took a moment to judge all of the decorated bikes and handed over a gift certificate to the winning kid. This year, it went to kids dressed in 4th of July matching outfits.

After the parade, the fire department hosts a water fight with the kids. They take out their hoses and have a ball.
A lot of the parents with infants had decided to decorate strollers or wagon, like my sister did, she’s very creative and artistic.

I had fun 4th of July morning. This past year has been a year of firsts for me as an aunt. I look forward to attending more kid friendly events with my niece.

- Genevieve Cadorette