Every year the Ad Club of Kansas City has a party to celebrate the Addy awards.  It’s basically just an excuse for KC’s advertising muckety-mucks to get together and drink.  This year with the popularity of AMC’s “Mad Men” … the Ad Club couldn’t resist a ‘60’s theme.  In fact, they even changed the Addys to the Maddys.  (Oh, those wickedly creative geniuses.)  

Everything about the party smacked of Austin Powers.  It was a lavishly decorated and well planned.  Everyone was thoroughly enjoying themselves until … an unexpected “fire emergency” threw everyone off their A-game.  I doubt there was actually a fire, but the alarms were blaring for about twenty minutes.  It’s a good thing there wasn’t actually a fire … everyone was so hopped up on gin and tonics they barely had the motivation to leave their tables.  

My date for the evening was Ms. Laura Anderson – the manager of our company’s Print department.  She went all out for the occasion … complete with beehive.  Needless to say, I was duly impressed.  My editor Kevin went with us too, but he seemed to be decked out in ‘70’s garb.  Right attitude, wrong decade.  Again – good thing there wasn’t a fire … Kevin was wearing so much polyester he would have immediately combusted.  Laura’s beehive, meanwhile, would have went up like a roman candle. 

Since we weren’t up for any awards, the fire drill seemed to be good excuse to leave the party early.  Well, that and Kevin suffers from chronic ADD.  He spent half the evening mesmerized by shiny things and the other half wolfing down food.  

In keeping with the spirit of the evening, we immediately headed to a martini bar.  I love martinis when made correctly.  The drinks that night were so strong that everyone immediately got better looking.  

So here’s to the ‘60’s … in all of its shimmy, shagadelic, swingin’ splendor.  The party was delightful despite the fact we didn’t enter/win anything.