Boffo Productions

How to Produce a Boffo Event

2011-10-20T08:24:00.000-07:00

First of a series to provide the key elements of event production The first item of event production is to determine why people will be getting together. This is often easy for personal events, like weddings and milestone birthdays. For the corporate or non-profit event, it isn’t as clear. What do you hope to achieve as a result of the event? The corporate event should be tied to the company’

A Lovely Read

2011-10-09T13:20:00.000-07:00

The Art of Fielding is my favorite read for 2011. Written by Chad Harbach and a first novel, Art uses baseball and a shortstop as the foundation of the book. I love the characters, the story and the writing. "She's gotten so far ahead of the curve that the curve becomes a circle, and now she was way behind." Beautifully written. If you hate baseball, don't bother, as you probably won't

A New Adventure

2011-09-12T13:25:00.000-07:00

Move #49 was from Half Moon Bay to Aptos, California. After the real estate market decided to suck for the last 3 years and for the next 5, I rented out my beloved beach house. Downsizing sounded like a great idea, but where to move? San Francisco is the city of my birth and family goes back 5 generations. But it isn't inexpensive, the homeless lessen the appeal, and a house is outside the

Letters from the Past

2010-12-31T18:38:00.000-08:00

New year, new blog theme. In preparing for the 40+ reunion of the high school gang, I came across letters and notes and cards that Beppi/Beppy sent back to me a couple years ago. Beppi was my BFF from 7th grade through college and she kept letters I wrote to her during that time. Amazing that I used to swear so much (right?) and called her a bitch constantly (in jest, I'm sure), but they do

Last Book Blog for a Minute

2010-12-30T19:06:00.000-08:00

This will be my last blog about books for a bit, as I will be starting a new series to be introduced shortly. Hold your breath...it will be awesome! But first, new reads. 1. First on the list is a lovely tome, Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter by Tom Franklin. Set in Mississippi (hence the crooked letters), the story is about two men who grew up in rural Mississippi. Love the characters; they

Belated Book Blog!

2010-11-22T13:34:00.000-08:00

I keep having this recurring dream that the San Francisco Giants won the World Series...weird. But back to my book list, so very far behind! 1. The Confession by John Grisham. He's back! A strong showing by Mr. Grisham, along the lines of his earlier novels. Death penalty theme. Liked it! 2. Moonlight Mile, Dennis Lehane. Lehane brings attitude to the sequel of his earlier (by 12 years)

A Giants Affair to Remember

2010-10-26T14:39:00.000-07:00

Before we start the 2010 World Series between our San Francisco Giants and their Texas Rangers, I’d like to share why this Giants team is special and why I’m in love with them. Let me count the ways! Pray for Giants move Giants win WS 1. I was born in SF 6 months before the Shot Heard ‘Round the World, I was 3 ½ when the Giants last won a World Series, 7 when they came West. We’re

Time to Sell Charlie?

2010-09-21T19:33:00.000-07:00

Charlie caught my eye in the furniture store after an alcohol-fueled lunch with my friend Dave Gregory. Goaded-on and always susceptible to dares, I adopted him. His name was Charlie and he was adorable, albeit a bit stiff, and I fell for him. We put the top down on Dave's convertible, lay Charlie in the front seat and took him home to my loft in Jack London Square. Christmas Charlie

Why I Love Jon Stewart

2010-09-21T12:11:00.000-07:00

Let me count the ways... 1. He is adorable! 2. The Daily Show marketing is brilliant. 3. The Rally to Restore Sanity shows that he is more than a politics wonk; he cares what happens. 4. New book! Can't wait until I grab my copy. 5. Did I mention that he's adorable?

The More Things Change

2010-08-10T12:25:00.000-07:00

You know the old saying about change and how the more things change, the more they stay the same? Once again I am impressed with the wisdom of that statement. After completing four years of marketing consulting for Venrock, a premiere venture capital firm, I decided it was a good time to contemplate what I wanted to do next. I left because we had accomplished everything we set out to do,

Summer Bits and Bites

2010-07-12T16:06:00.000-07:00

So far behind on the blog! Here's the latest scoop... The Margarita Marathon became a 5k, only hit two bars (Bluewater Steakhouse and Stockton Bridge Grille). Great fun with an entertaining group. The beach book brigade continues! Try Crashers, by Dana Haynes, great page-turner, loved it Boffo has two awesome proposals out with great non-profit concerns. Here's to potential new clients.

Books for Beach Reading

2010-05-29T10:32:00.000-07:00

I am so behind and I need to pass these books on to Jules, so here goes... 1. Deception by Jonathan Kellerman; Always a good read. He hasn't gotten too formulaic yet, and I am a big fan. But he's really short and doesn't look like his flap photo. 2. The Spellmans Strike Back by Lisa Lutz; The latest installment of the very clever and amusing Spellman series. Love the context of San

Questions for People Like Me

2010-05-10T11:20:00.000-07:00

If you had been born in 1990 or 1995 instead of when you were (not mentioning what year!), and given how different life is for kids today, would you be any different? Sports; There was no Title IX when we were in high school. Would you have been an athlete instead of a cheerleader? Which sport? Or maybe martial arts? Yep, could have been Scarlett Johansson. Technology; Given the advances

Important Women's Health Issue

2010-05-04T16:23:00.000-07:00

Do you have feelings of inadequacy? Do you suffer from shyness? Do you sometimes wish you were more assertive? If you answered yes to any of these questions, ask your doctor or pharmacist about Margaritas. Margaritas are the safe, natural way to feel better and more confident about yourself and your actions. Margaritas can help ease you out of your shyness and let you tell the world that

Book Bonanza!

2010-04-26T10:45:00.000-07:00

There are four books to review today, three solid and one not-so-much. The three solid novels I read without cheating and checking the ending, a lovely batch of good reading! Walter Mosley is my hero. His latest, Known to Evil is really good. I love how he writes, and his select choice of words often makes you stop mid-paragraph to review a sentence just to savor it. Leonid McGill is one of

Myriad Professions

2010-04-11T14:35:00.000-07:00

Over dinner the other night, a newer friend asked what I did for fun. While hanging around the pool the next day with 3 of the 4 quadruplets, we gave it some thought. My free-time activities have evolved over the decades into professional level skill sets. In fact, I’m so good at party planning, I made it the cornerstone of Boffo Productions! 1. Pro-tanner, since the days of iodine in the

The Swan Thieves stole my heart

2010-04-11T14:10:00.000-07:00

The book aspect of this blog has been neglected. My new personal favorite is The Swan Thieves, by Elizabeth Kostova. I had heard good buzz on her first effort, The Historian, but don’t do vampire books, although given how much I like The Thieves, I may need to reconsider. The Swan Thieves is a fascinating character study of two men, an artist and his shrink, plus the women in their

Why Good Movies Are Like Good Parties

2010-03-21T19:15:00.000-07:00

Think about it; with both movies and parties, the key objective is to entertain. Both begin with a creative concept, both require art and science, and both end with satisfied guests, who enjoyed spending their time with you.You need a great concept/theme for a great movie/party, a plot/interactive flow for a movie/party, fun and interesting cast/guestsfor the movie/party, music to match the

Parties Anonymous!

2010-03-14T16:23:00.000-07:00

I need help and I know it. Give me the challenge of an event or party or reunion or just about anything that involves a group of people, and I am in it. Last week, Deborah Stevens posted on Facebook, “Very interesting story about the coffee party compared to the tea party! I think I will start a margarita party or maybe a 'hot chocolate' party. This really shows the power of connection

The Academy Awards!

2010-03-06T17:50:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow is one of my favorite days of the year; a chance to celebrate and recognize all that is wonderful with movies, the escape, the fantasy and the reality. Of course, it would be perfect if the Academy would only vote as I would! Without further ado, here are the winners, according to me. Not who will win, but who I would like to win. • Best Director; Kathryn Bigelow, The Hurt Locker

New book: The First Rule, Robert Crais

2010-02-18T17:15:00.000-08:00

I read the latest Robert Crais last week. It was an autographed copy, which means it's better than reading one that is not autographed. Robert is quite cute, as evidenced by his author portrait, which to me means that he writes better than ugly writers. But I fear he's short, no reason why, just thinking. The book itself is great. It's a Joe Pike novel, the ultimate cool, collected

On Tanning...

2010-02-15T17:15:00.000-08:00