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November 2009
           
 
Virginia  Notes from Virginia    
 
Greetings!    
                           
Click here for a special message from Virginia and Craig!

Until next time... Wishing You All The Best!

Tips & Tricks  Andrea HK
Since it's Thanksgiving time, we thought it appropriate to give a holiday dinner tip.  Virginia's tip... eat at mom's!  But for those of you who, unlike Virginia (lucky for Craig), ARE cooking dinner, we've got a great recipe for you.

Virginia called upon her friend Andrea Heinly who was happy to share the below recipe for her yummy Chestnut Soup.  Wondering what the heck this has to do with production?  Well, you may recognize Andrea from TV.  She finished 3rd on last season's Fox reality cooking show, Hell's Kitchen.  You can taste more of Sous Chef Andrea's culinary creations at the new Stokesay Castle re-opening next week here in Reading. FYI, the historic Stokesay Castle happens to be the location where Craig and Virginia were married, 16 years ago!  See there really is a rhyme and reason to our madness here!

Easy Chestnut Soup

Ingredients:
8 cups chicken stock
2  pounds chestnut meat
1 small chopped onion
1 rib chopped celery
2 sprigs thyme 
1 bay leaf
1/4 cup heavy cream
Salt and black pepper to taste

Directions:
In a large pot combine the chicken stock, chestnut meat, onion, celery, thyme and bay leaf. Place the parsley sprigs, cloves and bay leaf. Simmer over medium-low heat for 30-45 minutes.
Discard the thyme and bay leaf. Puree hot soup in blender until smooth.  Return soup to pot. Finish with heavy cream and adjust seasoning with salt and black pepper.
 
Serving Suggestions:
Garnish soup with crispy bacon crumbles and sage infused oil.
Serve as an appetizer or in tall shot glasses as a unique hors d'oeuvre


 
 
TechSpot santa peanut

Do you have a picture you would love to bring to life?  We can do that!  Our animation software can take any still image and add life to it through puppeteering and recorded voice.  The image, once brought to life, will have an idle mode where it blinks and appears to be waiting, and then once the voice begins you will see full on facial expressions matching what the voice is saying.

Click the Peanut Man image to see the animation (voiced by Kevin Kerstein) that we created for a special promotion at the Peanut Bar!

Meet...The Peanut BarPeanut Bar Logo

A longtime institution in Reading
and a longtime friend of VA Productions, Jimmie Kramer's Peanut Bar Restaurant is a unique and fun dining experience.  In fact, the Peanut Bar is so unique, it was featured on The Travel Channel's Food Paradise!  You can view the video, which VA Productions helped with behind the scenes, on the Peanut Bar website.  Naturally, peanuts are served at the table and you can even throw the shells right onto the floor! 

The Peanut Bar is a historic landmark of Reading.  Jimmie Kramer began his business over 84 years ago in the resort community of South Mountain in Wernersville!  The restaurant didn't occupy its current location until 1933.

The Peanut Bar serves lunch and dinner and you can go to the website everyday to check out the daily specials.  In addition to regular meals, the Peanut Bar offers special events throughout the year for many holidays such as New Year's Eve, Cinco de Mayo, Halloween and many more!  But even when there isn't a party, it's ALWAYS party time at the Peanut Bar because you can bring your friends, family and co-workers for your next private event.  Private space is available for 6-90 people with flexible menu and beverage options.  Contact Michael Leifer, owner of the Peanut Bar and close friend of Virginia and Craig, for more information by calling (610)376-8500 or by clicking here.

Many thanks to the Peanut Bar for years of fun and friendship!



Staff Stats - The MomsThe Moms 

Did you know that VA Productions has our very own in house security, drape fabricator, kraft services, financial advisor, errand runner, chauffeur and, or course, on demand shoulder-to-lean-on?  We like to refer this position collectively as "The Moms." 

VA Productions truly is a family company!  The moms of Virginia and Craig, both retired, often attend VA Productions gigs and lend a helping hand in any way they can.  The moms enjoy the change in scenery and Craig and Virginia enjoy the "cheap labor" :)

Ann (aka Alana Cash) is so much more than just the bookkeeper for VA Productions.  She is willing to drive just about anywhere and usually mans the rental vehicle on road jobs.  She also provides shuttle service to the airport at any hour.  Perhaps her most memorable job though, is that of overnight security in the ballroom of hotels all over the country.  Don't feel bad though, she wouldn't sleep anyway.  As Ann likes to say, "I'll have plenty of time to sleep when I'm dead."

Mary, a retired home economics teacher, has fabricated just about every piece of drape owned by VA Productions.  In addition to that, she's made most of the skirting for screens, tables, projector stands, etc.  (And don't get her started on the crazy voile column covers!)  More the "hands on" one of the two moms, Mary attends a lot of the local jobs and helps with pinning drape and building lights.  She's also been known to take a lunch order or two.

VA Productions, and especially Craig and Virginia, want to thank the moms for ENDLESS hours of help and support.  This company really would not be possible without them!  We love you both so much!


 
Stories from the Trenches
Since it's the season for turkeys we thought we'd share a turkey story of our own.  As you may or may not know, VA Productions is cut into a wooded lot, so we get our fair share of wildlife here, including our very own turkey "family."

It was a typical morning at VA Productions and Nicole was on her way into work.  The rest of the crew was on the road and Nicole was looking forward to a quiet day around the office.  Well, little did she know someone was waiting for her to arrive that day.  The BIGGEST BADDEST turkey she has ever seen in her life was standing in the driveway, fighting with his own reflection in the bumper of one of the work vans.

Knowing, in her pregnant state, that she would not hold up well in a turkey attack, Nicole parked as close to the door as possible and ran in.  For the next several hours, the turkey continued to peck and gobble at himself while Nicole periodically checked on him from the window.  Finally, Alana saved the day by driving in and chasing him away so Nicole could safely leave for lunch.

Nicole would never admit that the picture below might be the actual turkey (because the one she saw that day was at least 10 feet tall and weighed 500 lbs) but this is a picture of a turkey taken from her office window one day.

turkey
Issue 5
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Did You Know?
Question mark

At one time, the turkey and the bald eagle were each considered as the national symbol of America. Benjamin Franklin was one of those who argued passionately on behalf of the turkey. Franklin felt the turkey, although "vain and silly", was a better choice than the bald eagle, whom he felt was "a coward".




A Helping Hand

We all have friends and family that are out of work.  During these tough times, we'd like to lend a helping hand to those in search of employment.  Please let us know if you know of any openings for any of the following:

Meeting Planner
Graphic Artist
HR Specialist
Customer Service Rep
Administrative Assistant
Director of Development



What's Happening...

As a member of the following organizations, we recommend you visit their websites for events and happenings in our area.

GRCVB

Arts Council

Reading Public Museum

GoggleWorks
VA Productions, Inc
610-777-3636
www.vapro.com
$50
 Receive a $50 gift card to the Peanut Bar Restaurant
when you spend $500 or more on an animation.
Offer Expires: Must be contracted by November 30, 2009             Click here if interested