It’s eleven-ish in the morning as I walk into the Subplot Studio office.
The first thing I see upon entering the carrot hued space? Nothing but pure focus and concentration coming from the minds of Jimmy and Brian as they diligently work away on their computers. Do I know what they are doing? No clue. But that’s not of my concern. Then it’s usually time for a recap of “what’s up with Nicole.” Be it a dreadful tooth ache, food poisoning, or how cool it is that I work at winery on the weekends I fill the guys in on the life of me for a good five minutes. It’s probably the favorite part of their day. Kidding.
Then it’s off to work for me. Sign on to the googly documents that Brian has created for me and re-read the babble I wrote from the day before. As I type away it’s not uncommon for Brian and Jimmy to excuse themselves for a “meeting.” I’m pretty sure this is when they secretly go practice their juggling skills with the three little multi-colored soft balls they have in the office. I haven’t had the nerve to follow them yet….but i think someone should. All I can say is that if they are practicing like I think they are….it’s really not paying off.
By the time they come back from their important meeting I’m usually well into my blog for the day….most likely hating what I wrote and deleting it and rewriting it and deleting it some more. At this point Brian usually has his music playing from his computer (most of the time I like it) and Jimmy is either sneezing a lot or throwing unexpected juggling balls over the large pipe in the ceiling onto Brian’s desk. This is almost always accompanied by minor cursing and laughing. I’ve thought about bringing my own balls into work and bouncing them off the wall that me and the other intern, Laura, share. We could probably teach ourselves some cool tricks that would entertain the rest of the office as well. Then whenever anyone came into our area of the office we could put on a show for them. Kinda like a circus. The Subplot circus.
The rest of the day consists of me writing a lot more, playing words with friends, and listening to Jimmy and Brian talk and laugh at things they say. Sometimes, (like today) we had a conversation about how good grilled cheese is, how Laura hates bananas and that the sound of celery is really loud when you eat it. I guess we like to talk about food.
Oh I almost forgot. On no occasion in particular, Ryan Miller, the Director of Technology for Subplot will ambush people in the office with a nerf gun. Typical attacks come from the loft above our office which offers him the perfect angle for a sneak attack. It’s really unfair because we are left defenseless against his childish games. One time Brian attacked back with an entire bag of mini candies that he threw at Ryan. It was pretty epic. Laura and I usually take cover with pieces of paper or whatever else we can grab in time. Ryan thinks it’s hilarious. It is pretty funny.
The day wraps up with my blog probably not making sense and me leaving Jimmy and Brian to their own devices. Overall its a good environment to work in. It’s very laid back and casual but things do get done. Most of the time.
I like that I can be silly and serious at the same time. I like that it’s okay to talk and be silent at the same time. I like the Subplot team because I really believe in what they are doing. I’ve been lucky to be their intern for a short period of time this summer. I’ve been even more lucky that they like my writing. It’s weird. I know that their business will be successful and that they will take the theatre world by storm. Until then… I’ll be sunbathing in San Diego and checking up on them periodically. It’s been real.
Nicole Younger, Marketing Intern
