Posts

DEJA VU

Image
Recently, amidst a race against time at the airport, sprinting to catch a flight to Florida via Charlotte, I found myself the last passenger to board, a bit flustered from the rush after swapping my car for an Uber to eliminate the parking hassle. Initially relieved to have made it, my relief soon gave way to a sense of déjà vu. Two years prior, I shared about an extraordinary encounter with a minor league baseball player on a flight as he was called up to the majors. The lesson then was simple: ditch the headphones and embrace the people around you. Despite subsequent failed attempts to replicate such an experience, fate smiled on me during this recent journey. As my seatmate shifted to the window, revealing his college ice hockey background, we delved into an enjoyable conversation about his athletic and professional experiences. Before touchdown, we exchanged business cards and connected on LinkedIn. His genuine kindness shone through when he acknowledged my gratitude for alleviatin...
Post a Comment
Read more

What Is Your WEIRD?

I was lucky enough to participate in a book club discussion yesterday of Wild Courage: Go After What You Want and Get It where the author and former Google executive, Jenny Wood herself, joined in. How cool is that!! I love her chapter about WEIRD! I have done some unconventional things in an office setting that set me apart such as start a classroom instruments band (ala Jimmy Fallon) and ring a large cowbell for important gatherings. While admittedly not everyone loved my cowbell, it set me apart and was part of my unique secret sauce. The classroom instruments band was a lot of fun and the company used it to set it apart as its WEIRD. Thanks Jenny for validating my WEIRD and for so many other tips related to getting out of your own way and asking for what you want.
Post a Comment
Read more

Momentum Building for Ambassador Program in Support of Oncology Camp in Rural Montana

  One 17-hour plane delay and a three-leg flight later, I am back home and energized to continue the work I did out West and am confident that momentum is building for an important non-profit project on behalf of my clients. In June I blogged about my time at  Camp Mak-A-Dream , an oncology camp in rural Montana near and dear to my clients’ hearts. I returned to big sky country in mid October for two weeks to support my client with not only routine estate management and family assistance, but also to do some in-person advocacy for the Camp.    It takes a village to support the tuition-free medically supervised Camp and we are working hard to strengthen the existing volunteer and donor network to ensure programming remains strong and the opportunity to bond with others who share the common experience of cancer, whether as a survivor, sibling or caregiver, continues for all who would benefit. Operational support and outreach was my focus leading up to an ina...
Post a Comment
Read more

Postscript - I have a cowboy hat!

Image
  I am ready for my next trip out West! I have been back from MT for a few weeks and was no longer worried about appropriate Western apparel. On to the next summer event in my schedule, I flew down South to attend the biennial convention of Tri Delta sorority. I had dinner the first night with both old and new Tri Delta friends, one of whom, Susan, is from Oklahoma and she had the best hat!  I had to have it!  I called the Anthropologie store near my home, had it held for me and I picked up the Sparkle Cowboy Rancher today.  I don't know when I will next be in an area where cowboy hats are customary, but I am now prepared and excited to don my new fashion accessory! It is a neutral beige, but the flecks of gold glitter throughout make it very fun.  Keep connecting with people, you never know what opportunities will open up! This blog post is part of a series documenting my trip to Montana where I am performing  non-traditional executive and personal assist...
Post a Comment
Read more

Old Salt Festival 2024 Continued - Gratitude, Connections and Oysters on the half shell!

Image
I met some REALLY interesting people while providing hospitality and other support at this three day event and feel so fortunate for the opportunity!  After chatting with Christian Wallowing Bull , an indigenous singer-songwriter from Wyoming, several times over the weekend, I was able to hear him perform during an early morning pasture walk on the Mannix Ranch. On each occasion that we spoke he expressed his gratitude for being there. I am very confident that gratitude was a common emotion among Old Salt Festival attendees, certainly by me. Christian Wallowing Bull Although not a headliner, my favorite performer of the weekend was Zia Blue , a former American Idol contestant who wowed me not only with her talent, but with her youthful spunk, sparkling smile and her vulnerable sharing about how hard it is to make it in the music industry.  Her style is pop country and she performed both well-known covers and songs that she wrote herself. Zia was accompanied on keyboard by her ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Old Salt Festival 2024 - Helmville, MT

Image
My role as an outsourced assistant presents varied, interesting and new experiences.        The Old Salt Festival certainly fell into the interesting and new categories,                          as well as being a lot of fun! I assume I am not alone in my failure to take the time to make really good meals. However, this past week I have given more thought to the art of a good nutritious meal.  I enjoyed some fantastic and varied charcuterie treats from The Union butcher department that were created at The Old Salt Festival.  The liver pate was excellent and even the strawberries were better than any grocery store-bought berry I have every eaten. The sight of a big cow tongue was a little unsettling, but I got past it! Eduardo Garcia of Bozeman, MT, known as the "bionic chef" due to his prosthetic left arm, created a sumptuous pairing of savory and sweet for the attendees to enjoy. He wears his...
Post a Comment
Read more

This Maryland girl is headed to a meat festival with great music and the Cheers lyrics on her mind

Image
Photo credit Matthew Paulsen My Montana trip has been peppered with opportunities to support the Old Salt Co-Op , primarily for the Festival, but also with other facets of the organization. I have spent a few dinner hours getting to know not only the Old Salt team, but also their customers as I circulated among them to promote the Festival. It's funny how opportunities pop up. Last Saturday I met Matt Paulsen , a local marketing entrepreneur and photographer,  to have some professional photos taken for my marketing purposes and he invited me to the Helena Young Professionals (HYP) networking social that followed our session. On my way to the social I popped into The Union, grabbed a stack of Old Salt Festival postcards and arrived at the HYP social ready to share the event details. The Festival was a great talking point as most of the attendees had some knowledge of the event, or at least the two sister restaurants in town, and welcomed learning more. The New York Times featured an...
1 comment
Read more