Daily Courage

Finally there is a little fall chill in the air here in Southern California. I’m going to get my first real taste of fall when I head up the coast this weekend to Remnants of the Past, October 10th in Nipomo. I remember when this event was just a dream Judy Watkins had. It has been wonderful to watch her bring it to life. Down a country road you enter the Dana Powers property and step into a delightful world far from the hustle and bustle of everyday. This one day event has hosted some amazing guests. This time around, my friend April Cornell is the featured VIP. She will have loads of her signature linens and a smattering of the soft romantic women’s and girl’s clothing she is known for. This is the first time April has done a show like this. It’s a lot of hard work getting there and getting set up. But I am confident that once she feels the energy and warmth of the people who are drawn to this delightful event, we’ll all feel it was worth it. So, being as the glamour never stops, I am off to Home Depot to pick up a few things we need to set up the booth. If you are in the area, I really hope you will stop by!

Like many people going through midlife changes and transitions, I find myself wondering more than I ever did before, “Who am I?” I have been working in the book business since 2003, and prior to that had a six year run in consumer magazines, preceded by years of B2B publishing and event management. (Bear with me, this is leading to the widget headline!) In college, I was what they then called a “print” journalism major. But with all the changes, including the fact that this “print” journalist reads the newspaper and books on a Kindle much more often than actually touching a paper page these days, what am I now? I’m a communicator, part storyteller, part reporter, and these days an interpreter too. I’m spending a great deal of time interpreting what social media means for my peers and colleagues, and how they need to be positioning themselves to use it right for their business. I have always been fascinated by new ways to reach audiences and communicate with them. To engage like-minded people and give them a message they need and want has always been a high for me. As the media is changing by leaps and bounds, I know that the past is behind us and the ways we reach each other and engage in common interests together will never be done how its been done in the past.

That brings me to the widget. This cool little application holds all the information a person would need to make a decision to attend the wonderful Remnants of the Past Show this coming weekend in Central California.It has photos to enjoy, maps, entrance information, and anything else you need to know about the event. I love it when we can use technology to connect with each other. I’m picking April Cornell and Pam Cowan from Cornell too up at the Long Beach airport and we are driving up the beautiful coastline to the show. April will be a special guest at the event.  Hope to see you there!