As a contrast to my previous freaked-out post…
Lisa’s band, Dirty Dishes had a “Jamboree and Bake Sale” on Tuesday night and they rocked the house down. Their act was polished smooth, and the banter between them was so warm and lighthearted that you just had to laugh and clap along — and try to not sing! The songs are all so eminently singable, even if you couldn’t hope to match the intricacy of the Dishes’ harmonies. There’s nothing worse than paying to see a good act then having some person trying to join in from the crowd and hear themselves. I didn’t want to be that guy.
Problem solved: I bought their demo CD, so I can have them at home. And the girls raised a wagon-load of money — enough to record and produce a full CD.
~
Last night was the Strategic Coach holiday party, which was a lot of fun. We went again this year to the Steamwhistle Brewery, a converted old brick railway roundhouse near the lakeshore whose giant windows look up at the glass monoliths that make up the skyline. The beer was free and free-flowing, everyone pulled out the best and handsomest version of themselves, and we had an opportunity to celebrate what a great and rare thing we have there as a team. I also had a laugh when I found my friend Gary there: turns out he was the caterer for the event! (I must tell him at Lisa’s party tonight that the food was great.)
Afterward, Margaux and I went to one couple’s house party, where I had great chats with the folks there (some of whom I’ve not had many opportunities to connect with before).
Our swell legal guy Jonas and I sat in front of a laptop for a while and he pulled all his favourite musicians off the ‘net to perform for me. I was pretty blurry by then, but I know I’ve got a list on a notepad to follow up on. I’m grateful, ’cause I like music, but I never know where to find more of what I’d like. Jonas is one of that new breed of social influencers with this, as well as in art and literature. I often feel like I’ve been asleep in class when I’m around him — but he makes it fun, like there are exciting, original things to catch up on.
We stayed at the party until some sick time like 6:30AM, when Jonas had to leave to get his things, catch another taxi, and move to Chicago! Moo and I shared a cab, and she dropped me here on her way home. Sleep hit me like a train as soon as I put my head down.
So, the work thing, since I brought it up the other day: I won’t be writing for Strategic Coach anymore. Instead, they’ve asked me to take on being “Storyteller-in-Residence” full-time, gathering the lore about the company that is their best possible marketing and proof-of-concept. To be honest, I’m scared ’cause it’s a shift and I might suck at it. But Lisa, Alvaro, and Cosgrove talked me out of my tree yesterday afternoon and I had a nap, after which everything looked different. After all, my former editor (I need a new name for our relationship now) did everything but use skywriting to send me the message that I’m going to be completely supported and that everyone from the top down wants this to work.
I just had to grieve for a bit about the loss of a role I’d really enjoyed. I still get to write anything and everything I want through my own press, and maybe it’s time to concentrate on keeping my output for myself. I am also going to take on some freelance writing: this change was a lesson in eggs and baskets.
Over the course of last night’s parties, I found myself concentrating on story, and the people around me — whom I already liked — took on an added dimension and became fascinating.
So here I declare it: For me, 2008 is The Year of Listening Closely.
