6:30am – It’s Valentine’s Day. I know this because every year Jam Session takes place over this celebratory day of love. I know I need to call my Mother and tell her I love her but the walk from my bed to the shower shook my mind and shifted my thoughts toward the pain that was in my feet. I’m sure the thought of calling my Mom will pop up in my head throughout the day right?
Today is the first day in which Jam Session is open to the public. I am very interested to see the overall response from the city of Houston and if the attendance numbers will spike compared to 2006 when NBA All-Star Jam Session last hit the city. From how much the event has grown in terms of popularity and the way the NBA is marketed today, I am predicting a flood of participants to flock through the doors come 4:00PM with smiling faces, eager to take in the game of basketball like no experience they have ever imagined.
Before we get the opening of the show, there is a plethora of tasks to carry out before we are “show ready.” The punch list looks as follows: stock all meeting room coolers with beverages, send a crew of five to setup for the Budweiser event in Discovery green, move furniture, replace and remove exterior signage, re-rig kiosk banners that are falling, replace a rim on the Slam Dunk Court, place backboard decals on all hoops, setup versatruss at Gatorade Court and FIT Court, deliver skills challenge pieces to the Toyota Center, tape down all Jam Session App signs throughout the show floor, deliver premiums to sponsors, switch out necessary show cards and sign holders, and my personal duty….make sure to hydrate myself with water and apple juice.
4:00pm hits and the doors to Jam Session are now open. FILO staff is out on the show floor being proactive and responding to radio calls. “We have a basketball hoop that is down in the Pop-a-Shot area, can you have someone from FILO come fix it please?” This is an example of a typical radio call from the show floor. Having a veteran crew that can take initiative while using creative problem solving skills is always a plus, and extremely stress free on FILO management.
Before I realize that all I had for dinner was a pack of fruit snacks and a granola bar, it’s rapidly approaching 10:00pm, show closing time. Today was a great day. Such a great day that I might even pop my head down in the lobby after work and enjoy an adult beverage. Shoot, its 12:07am! Hopefully my Mother wasn’t woken by my phone call to wish her happy Valentine’s Day. And I hope she still loves me although I was seven minutes late :/
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| Written by: Andy Acosta |
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