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Lunch, it's a privilege not a right
29-09-2010So as you know, working in the PR field often means working at our fair share of events. Everything from conferences and exhibitions to lunches and reception dinners, and all that might fall in between. One thing about events is that you can never eat or drink unless specifically invited to. For one you are meant to me working and two it can look pretty unprofessional standing there in your suit, scoffing away at the canapés.
The only thing is, some of these events are all day sessions. Perhaps even longer than a working day. Sometimes an event can be so busy you don't have time to stop and eat, but there are those that involve a lot of standing about just keeping an eye on things. Believe me when I say, standing about twiddling your thumbs makes you a lot hungrier than running around being kept busy.
None the less, no matter what an event it is always nice to be offered part of the lunch or part of the dinner. It's nice, just don't go in expecting it as you will be sorely disappointed when it doesnt happen.
Today, I had an all day event which involved about three hours of being insanely busy followed by the rest of the day listening to speeches, presentations and trying to generally keep an eye on things and make sure all the press were happy. Nothing too taxing. So when lunchtime rolled around I was very aware of my rumbling stomach which had been threatening to disrupt the speeches as I stood at the back of the conference room. Thankfully this was not a case whereby I had to gulp down a glass of water pray my stomach would be tricked into feeling full. Once the delegates has wrapped up their lunch I was able to sample some of the catering for myself.
Like I said, it's always nice when that happens. Surprisingly it can be the 'nice guys' who pass the events organiser over when it comes to lunch and dinner, and it can often been the more 'hard asses' that go out of their way to ensure you are at least kept away from deaths door due to starvation.
The nicest situation I have ever been in involved none other than Roy Keane himself (such a name dropper I am!!). We had organised a press conference and a series of interviews for him in April. It would be an all day event and I was left in charge. Basically I had to oversee the press conference and organise all the interviews.
Lunch time rolled around and Keano went off to his private room for his lunch with his assistant (it's not the best use of the word, it was more a friend of his who looks after all his business any time he is in Ireland. The two men have been friends for ever and a day and it must be nice to have someone you can trust in such affairs).
Anyways I was outside the room chatting with the journalist who was in next to interview when the door opens and the man himself steps out and asks me if I have had anything to eat yet. At this stage I had been up since about 6am and was FAMISHED. When I told him I hadn't he took me into the room and ordered one extra of everything for lunch so I wouldn't, and I quote 'fade away to nothing'. So there I sat, little old me from a small town in the middle of nowhere, eating lunch with Roy Keane and his childhood friend discussing what we had recently seen in the cinema. And in case you are wondering, it would seem that he is a fan of the Blind Side.
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