Spiral Bound Journal

Meet Me at the Studio

Dana stuck her face between two of the vertical blind panels and glanced at the skyline. The late November snowfall was light enough to keep the view clear. From the sharp geometric slopes of the US Bank Stadium roof to the glass crescent perched at the top of Capella Tower, she could take in all the most prominent sights of downtown Minneapolis. SHifting her eyes downward at the street, she watched a city bus roll by the condo building.

The sliding of the front door lock bolt drew her attention away from the window. Soon Quinn stepped into the condo, his hat damp from melted snow. He stooped to untie his shoes before greeting Dana.

"Did you do any work before heading to the studio," he asked.

Dana shook her head. "My boss told me to take the day off. She said she's a teensy bit jealous that I'm doing a photo shoot. I told her that she might change her mind once the Person of the Year stuff is all rolled out."

"Well, will you get any copies?"

"I'm not sure, actually. I should ask. We'll see if I remember to do so."

That got a chuckle from Quinn. "You'll have eight hours to get that done."

"If I ask before the hour seven 59 minute mark I'll surprise myself."

"Okay, fair. What time to do have to be at the studio?"

Dana checked her smart watch. "In about a half hour. Thankfully I don't have to go very far."

"Indeed, you don't."

With that, Quinn wandered over to the home office to start preparing for his work day. Dana figured that it was time to at least start getting ready. She did need to bring a few things with her since the shoot was expected to last all day. Of greatest importance was her medical bag.

It took a moment for her to retrieve the bag from her work satchel. The bag was a pouch covered in purple sequins. Dana flipped it over to see the pink sequins making up the flamingo figure on the front. Pulling on the zipper tab, she pulled out a plastic box and a blue, round cylinder. She opened the box and took a quick inventory: two vials of Solu-Cortef, two wrapped needles, two syringes, and wipes. Dana unscrewed the top of the cylinder and double checked the number of pills. Satisfied, she placed everything back in the flamingo pouch and put said pouch in a tote bag. After adding a bottle of Gatorade, some salty snacks, and her water bottle to the tote, she shifted to putting on her coat and Red Wing boots before heading out.

As Dana strode down the hall to one of the building's stairwell, she felt her phone buzz in her tote. Curious, she fished it out and turned on the lock screen. A new text from Morgan greeted her letting her know he was en route. With a soft grin, she set the phone back in her bag and resumed her walk. It wasn't until she was stepping out the stairwell entrance to the street that she understood Morgan's text. He was not only en route but on the sidewalk in front of her condo building. While Dana was comfortable in her wool pea coat, she did a double take at Morgan's hoodie and down vest combo. Part of her wanted to toss him into an indoor space as quick as she could. After all, aren't Texans supposed to shrivel up and die at temperatures below 40 degrees? Indeed, as Morgan got closer, Dana noticed how hard he was shoving his hands into his pockets. Dana stepped over to greet him.

"I'm not going to ask how you are because I'm pretty sure all my neighbors are watching you shiver right now," she told him.

"How do you live in these conditions," Morgan asked while trying to hold back the chattering of his teeth.

"I could ask the same about your neck of the woods, except I'd probably die of heat stroke before I could even open my mouth. To answer your question, I've been living here for nearly 20 years. Nothing short of me falling through thin lake ice is going to get me to move out of the state."

"I think I got colder just listening to your last sentence."

"Okay, that's fair."

"Where is this studio, anyway?"

"Two more right hand turns to go, and then we'll be there. If we walk fast, it will warm you up a bit."

Morgan nodded. "I trust your judgment. Lead the way."


True to her word, Dana set a speed walking pace. The lack of snow sticking to the sidewalk made it safer for them to do this. By the time they reached the designated studio, Morgan managed to almost stop shivering. Dana opened the door and urged Morgan to step inside first. She then followed pulling the door shut behind her.

When they stepped inside, they found various crew members adjusting the blackout curtains and setting up long, wooden tables that looked like something out of a 1920s board room. Off to the right they spotted a kitchen area with an island and a lacquer dining table with six chairs. As the two of them stood and attempted to absorb all the studio activity, a young woman with her reddish hair pulled back approached.

"Hello," she greeted them. "You're just in time. I'm Madison, Darrel's assistant for this shoot. I will be keeping track of scheduling for today and can help with anything the two of you need."

"Thanks," Morgan huffed as the warmth of the studio began to seep into his clothes. "Do you have any coffee?"

Madison giggled. "Just the regular stuff, no espresso or anything like that."

"That sounds good."

"There is a fresh pot in the kitchen. I can pour you a cup, if you'd like."

"Sure."

Madison flounced off, leaving Dana and Morgan in the same spot.

"I'm starting to warm up a bit, but I could really use a space heater," Morgan remarked.

Dana snorted. "If you really need it, you can wear my coat. It might be a little small, though."

"Nah. It looks better on you."

"Uh, right. I actually could go for shedding it at the moment. It's going to get too hot for it soon."

With that, Dana made her way to the table to set her tote bag down while she undid her coat. She felt someone walk behind her as she unfastened the buttons. Once she had removed the coat, Dana turned around to find a coat rack. Instead, she found Madison approaching her.

"I can take that for you," Madison said.

"Thanks," Dana replied as she handed her coat. "When you're done with that, I do need to go over some medical information with you and anyone else that would need to know. Mostly I want to make sure everyone knows where my kit is."

Madison nodded. "I remember Darrel talking about you having Addison's."

"Well, at this point everyone knows that I, Dana Villavasso, have Addison's disease. Well, there's a bit more to it than that, but people have some clue what Addison's is, so it's just easier to say that."

"I bet it is. Well, let me hang up your coat, and then I'll get Darrel. We can either meet out here or in the conference room to go over anything."

"Sounds good. Can I put my drinks in the fridge?"

"Absolutely! Go for it."

Dana noticed how when it came to her stuff Madison leaned more forward as she moved, like she was trying to get as much speed as she could to get everything done. Shrugging, Dana walked over to the refrigerator and found space for both of her beverage bottles. Once she put those away, she walked back over to Morgan, who was busy nursing his coffee.

"I don't know what exactly Caribou is, but it sure is tasty," Morgan told her.

"Local coffee brand," Dana replied. "I'm surprised you haven't heard of it, given that there's at least one location in downtown Denver. I almost went to that one because it reminded me of home. Really, Denver reminded me of Minneapolis in a lot of ways."

Morgan nodded and sipped some more coffee. "I can see that. But yeah, maybe I'll need to buy a bag of Caribou before I head home."

"From what I've heard from other coffee drinkers, you have good taste."

Soon Madison rejoined them and ushered them to the studio's conference room. As Dana walked and observed further set preparations, she realized that this really was going to be a long day.