I “attended” a virtual online brand storytelling conference today. My boss signed me up under her email and username. When I logged in and realized I was her—and that none of the participants were on camera—I could not let the opportunity to have a little fun pass.
It all started when introductions were made. People were sharing where they were from in the online chat box.
“Nashville, TN.”
“Hi from Chicago.”
“I’m in Austin, Texas.”
So formal. So boring. My supervisor, D, was feeling a little sassier.
“Rapid City, South Dakota in the house!” she announced.
Next, one of the presenters shared some valuable information with the group. They expressed their thanks in the chat.
I have no idea why D was getting her ’90s slang on. Seems pretty loose and informal, but who am I to judge?
My favorite part came a little later. One of the presenters was discussing how to build a multi-channel digital storytelling strategy. He was also obsessed with Julia Roberts, using movies of hers as examples to illustrate each of the five steps in his plan.
For example, he played the clip from Pretty Woman where Vivian goes back to the store that refused to serve her (“Big mistake. Big. Huge!”) to demonstrate how important it is to Know Your Customer. Erin Brockovich was his inspiration for Do All You Can. And so forth and so on.
My “supervisor” just had to chime in.
Hmm. Bit of an overshare there? Hey, don’t blame me. To quote the esteemed Jamaican-American reggae musician, Shaggy, it wasn’t me.
Mad respect, D.
You know, I really shouldn’t be left to my own devices…
Well, that big storm they’d been predicting for a week came in not with a bang, but a whimper. It snowed for about 10 minutes. North Dakota got our blizzard.
Those thieving bastards.
I only say that because of the drought we’re in. Lots of worried ranchers here in western South Dakota as we head into a potential year three with below normal precipitation.
Hell, Portland, Oregon ended up with more snow than we did this week. Funny, I lived out thataways for 20+ years, and not once did it ever snow in April.
Talk about a great cosmic joke.
We do have plenty of cold weather, though. 15° this morning and our high never made it out of the 20s. I’m actually huddled in the basement enjoying a blazing fire in the hearth. In mid-April.
That’s downright nutty.
Tomorrow is a very auspicious occasion for Team MarTar. It’s the 10th anniversary of our shackin’ up!
Tara arrived at my townhouse shortly after 7 p.m. on April 14, 2012. Along with her dad, a U-Haul, and boxes. Lots and lots of boxes.
For those who weren’t following along back then, we’d been dating long-distance for exactly seven months. She was in Nevada, I was in Washington. The only reason we were able to make an LDR work was the fact that I was a bum unemployed for a stretch. Hell on the bank account, but it gave me lots of free time to see her. The 845 miles separating us were nothing! I drove to Ely a bunch of times, she came to visit me on several occasions, and once we met halfway in Boise. Being jobless sucked, but it did wonders for our relationship.
File that under Silver Linings.
I’d thought about writing a long, sappy post commemorating all that, but my blog was brimming with mush a decade ago. Instead, I’ll just say it’s been great and leave it at that. A thousand times better than my first marriage. It’s all so effortless; we make each other laugh and truly enjoy one another’s company.
It’s like one big Julia Roberts rom-com, come to think of it.
Mark My Words 
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