First Day

I officially started my internship at the game last night. I really wasn't all that excited when I woke up because I wasn't sure what was coming. I'm not the biggest fan of starting new things until it actually happens.

I've been to more Islander games in the past two years than I can keep count of, so being at the Coliseum for a game was something I definitely wasn't a stranger to. This being said, it was strange to be inside at 5:00 for a game that started at 7:00 and the only crowds around were the other employees. They all knew exactly what they were doing and it was business as usual for them. Meanwhile I was there having no idea what to do. I really can't even imagine how out of place I looked. Once I got squared away and picked up my temporary credential at security, I realized my supervisor (Alexa) never told me where to go after I actually got into the building. So then I really must have looked out of place. I had to call Alexa and ask where to go, which I felt kind of dumb doing because I knew she was probably busy. She picked up after a couple of tries, and finally came to get me.
Everything actually went pretty smoothly after that. I got to meet the four other interns doing Fan Photo. I still felt a little out of place because they were all at least 4 or 5 years older than I am. Alexa brought me a huge stack of papers to look through and sign,then I got my picture taken for my real credential. I also got the t-shirt to wear into the crowds. The only size they had left was an XL, so it's a little bit more like a dress.

After all of the paperwork was filled out, we were broken up into different groups. They started me out going around the concourse with 2 other girls and the Islander mascot Sparky, a huge blue dragon in an Islander jersey. (I still haven't quite figured out how a dragon fits in with the Islanders, but the fans love him so I guess it works, right?) If I never have to do pre-game with Sparky again in my time with the Islander, I will be a very happy girl. It was so incredibly overwhelming to me, and there were 3 of us there! I have NO idea how I would handle that by myself. People literally just run around trying to get in and take their own pictures. People get insulted because there's really no fool proof way to figure out an order with so much going on. Kids aren't looking the right way. Drunk adults are touching and pulling Sparky's tail. It was just chaos. With that as my first experience into the Fan Photo Internship, I seriously wondered how I was going to handle doing that until April.

There's more to tell about all the things I got to do at last night's game, and hopefully uploads of some of the pictures I took to come later, but for now it's time to get ready for the Super Bowl party going on today. :)