Karen Shelton's HairBoutique.com Crew

I am a huge fan of Entourage and am thrilled to read that Kevin Connelly is getting his own story line (good job Doug Ellin). In real life that would definitely happen. Members of the crew grow up and want to split away OR they turn to mush and get kicked out.

Recently I was hanging out in the waiting room of my Dallas haircolorist - Rose Zuniga (who rocks color like no one else I have been to). I was with my PA Lance who takes me a lot of places so I can answer phone calls and deal with business while he drives. There was an article in one of the magazines in the waiting room about the dynamics of business "crews" or "teams". It was fascinating and while very obvious, I had never quite considered some of the points made about the inter workings of a crew. Lance definitely plays a big part in the crew and since he is my personal assistant it would strange if he wasn't a key part.

I actually did a phone interview in the car recently on the way to a dinner meeting...thanks to the Money Chick crew member. I was chatting with Victoria Beckman's lovely celeb hairdresser while the car MC was driving was speeding down 75 to Northwest Highway. Carefully propped up against my knees was a yellow lined notepad (my favorite other than blue and pink) and I was madly scribbling away (as we hit every bump and curve in the road) as she told me great stories about Victoria aka Posh (the interview will eventually be on HairBoutique.com). I could never have had that interview without Money Chick driving for me.

My "crew" also consists of my marketing guru (aka The White Streak) who is wild and crazy, just like me. Together we could get in serious trouble except I am too busy being a workaholic to allow myself to play. Although I will tell you - shssshhh_ that the two of us accidently figured out a secret way to meet the hottest guys at a big party. No...can't spill that secret. But it is pretty cool, if I do say so myself.

Lance (my PA) and the White Streak (marketing guru) and the Money Chick who pays the bills and makes sure I stay within the budget are sometimes supplemented by the some of the HairBoutique.com IT guys who are invited to hang with us when they are on their best behavior (but you know how geeks can be).

WHY do most crews only consist of 4 or 5 people? You probably know the answer but it just occurred to me the other day when trying to jam six people into a restaurant booth.

It's elementary.....crew size is tied to number of car seats, restaurant booth size, number of stools at a bar and number of Starbucks cups that can be packed into a drinker holder.

It now makes sense why Sarah Jessica Parker on Sex And The City only had three BFFs in her all girl crew. Or why Vince and the Entourage guys only have four. Yes, there are visitors from time to time like Ari Gold or some of the SATC guys. But hard core, the crew, entourage or pack is usually four or five.

What happens over time? Assigned seating at the restaurants (I won't slide in a booth so I get the end of once side) and seats in the car. Even who drives most of the time (Lance or the financial chick). Both the white streak and I drive two seater cars which makes it hard for us to drive, not to mention I like to write notes or read while driving...not great for being a good driver.

We even have the same ole, same ole restaurants where we "hang" because we have favorite servers or the managers know us and make sure we are "taken care of".

It is interesting how the crew has evolved over time. We used to have two regular visitors (one IT guy, one Customer Care guy) but both left...suddenly.....if you get my drift. Similar to Ari Gold leaving the Entourage inner circle.

The advantages of a crew? Max comfort zone. Disadvantages? Drama when someone forgets to buy someone else a Starbucks, is fussy for whatever reason or won't slide in the booth when they need to.

Of course I hope I am not misleading you. The HairBoutique.com crew does a tremendous amount of work when in hard core formation. We rarely talk about anything but HairBoutique.com business and going to lunch together allows us some time away from ringing phones and email to get business settled.

There are days when everyone in the crew works my nerves, and other days I would be lost without them.

No wonder Entourage is such a huge hit. Of course it doesn't hurt that the setting is in Hollywood and based on the "real" life of a Hollywood star.