I grew up listening to country music. Don’t get me wrong, I would consider myself to be very well-versed in all genres of music, (no pun intended), but hearing the sound of a steel guitar and fiddles just takes me back to those early formative years of childhood.
When I was about seven years old, there was a song called, “State of Mind” by Clint Black on the radio. I remember sitting in the front seat and scanning the country stations on the way from school and hearing this tune. I was never super impressed with it. It was just simple melody and lyrics. But, for those of you who don’t remember it, the chorus goes a little something like this-
♪♪ Ain’t it funny how a melody can bring back a memory? Take you to another place in time, completely change your state of mind ♪♪
Yesterday, I started thinking about how true those words are. If I were to hear Vince Gill’s “Pocket Full of Gold” it would remind me of my earliest interaction with CMT music videos. My older sister, Bridget, loved Vince Gill, and would sing to the top of her lungs whenever this song was played. Luckily, she’s a great singer, so the only nuisance was her volume. Dwight Yoakam’s “Pocket of a Clown,” would take me back to the summer before I entered the second grade. That whole summer my parents remodeled my dad’s first church, and every day for lunch we’d go to this little café that served Dr. Pepper in 10 ounce glass bottles,(Ahhh…wouldn’t it be nice to have one of those right now?) A few years later, I remember hearing Shania Twain’s “If You’re Not in it For Love (I’m Outta Here)” for the first time on a trip to the bank with Bridget. And, folks, that very CD just happens to be the first I ever bought. (Before that I was the cool kid with the cassette walkman!)
The list could go on and on. So, Mr. Black, yes, it really is funny how a melody can bring back a memory.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Work
Wow, I haven’t posted since last year! I guess it’s time for me to update everyone as to what is going on in the world of Jessica. Good news—yesterday, in our employee meeting, we were informed that all full-time employees would receive a $350 bonus on our next paycheck. YAY times WHOA! The harsh reality is that now that I’m “on my own” and have financial obligations, this $350 can’t be spent on clothes, shoes, makeup, or expensive perfume….and oh how I love expensive perfume! Nope, kids, this will be used to pay bills. Don’t get me wrong, I am so very thankful and appreciative of an undeserved bonus, but this “real world” thing sucks! Okay. *End Rant*
Now, on to other things. Something interesting happened this week. Tuesday, I met a prospective client for coffee. You may be wondering why we didn’t just meet in his office, but he is a retired attorney working out of his home. Coffee seemed an appropriate meeting spot. This man was referred to me by my boss. Evidently, he is involved in a community organization with our president and was asking about advertising. Sounds great, right? I didn’t even have to make a cold-call for this appointment. Since he, the attorney, is perceived as a nice Christian man and very involved in church affairs, my boss decided to hand me this prospect since I’m a p.k. (for those of you who aren’t familiar with the term, it’s an abbreviation for preacher’s kid).
I was already forewarned that this man was quite the talker, but that was no problem for me. Generally, I stare at a computer screen on most days, so chatter is a welcome attendee for any meeting. Turns out the warning was true. We were at the coffee shop for about two hours. We talked about business of course, but this man was full of stories from the 50 years he’d practiced law. It was entertaining to hear about the case that went on for six years, being an intern in Washington while Kennedy was President, and countless others. We talked about church and politically correctness being a huge crock (sorry if you don’t agree), and dogs. In my mind this was a refreshing retreat from the office (or shall I say my cube!), but this meeting would take an unusual turn.
We had already scheduled a lunch appointment for next week, where I would present the research from our marketing software, when he asked for my business card. Upon first glance at the card, he asked if I had a personal email address. I thought nothing of it, and wrote it on the back of the card. MISTAKE! A few short hours later, I received an email from him to that address telling me how very delightful and interesting I am, and that I could send him a message anytime I pleased. He also said that he would enjoy corresponding with me on any subject, and he proceeded to ask if I liked movies and if I’d seen any good ones lately. I was a little weirded out by that email, but I brushed it off thinking that he’s just an old man with no children and wants a surrogate grand-daughter. I could deal with that. I replied to the email very innocently, telling him I hadn’t seen anything good lately, but I’d heard good things about Blindside. MISTAKE! The next email he sent was asking if I could get away from the office during the afternoon. He wants to take me to a matinee so that we can get to know each other better. REALLY???? Have I mentioned that not only is this man older than Methuselah, but HE’S MARRIED!
I replied to the email and told him that I couldn’t get away from the office during the day, and said I wished I had more free time. He then replied that if anything changed to let him know because the offer was still on the table. EEWWWWWW!
Needless to say, our Market Research Director will be accompanying me to lunch with him next week.
Thoughts anyone? Am I making too much of this? It just seems very inappropriate to me for him to not include his wife. If I were her I wouldn’t want him taking a young woman out to the movies because he “wants to get to know her better.” I mean, dude, she’s just sitting at home with the dog too. Take her to see a movie!
Now, on to other things. Something interesting happened this week. Tuesday, I met a prospective client for coffee. You may be wondering why we didn’t just meet in his office, but he is a retired attorney working out of his home. Coffee seemed an appropriate meeting spot. This man was referred to me by my boss. Evidently, he is involved in a community organization with our president and was asking about advertising. Sounds great, right? I didn’t even have to make a cold-call for this appointment. Since he, the attorney, is perceived as a nice Christian man and very involved in church affairs, my boss decided to hand me this prospect since I’m a p.k. (for those of you who aren’t familiar with the term, it’s an abbreviation for preacher’s kid).
I was already forewarned that this man was quite the talker, but that was no problem for me. Generally, I stare at a computer screen on most days, so chatter is a welcome attendee for any meeting. Turns out the warning was true. We were at the coffee shop for about two hours. We talked about business of course, but this man was full of stories from the 50 years he’d practiced law. It was entertaining to hear about the case that went on for six years, being an intern in Washington while Kennedy was President, and countless others. We talked about church and politically correctness being a huge crock (sorry if you don’t agree), and dogs. In my mind this was a refreshing retreat from the office (or shall I say my cube!), but this meeting would take an unusual turn.
We had already scheduled a lunch appointment for next week, where I would present the research from our marketing software, when he asked for my business card. Upon first glance at the card, he asked if I had a personal email address. I thought nothing of it, and wrote it on the back of the card. MISTAKE! A few short hours later, I received an email from him to that address telling me how very delightful and interesting I am, and that I could send him a message anytime I pleased. He also said that he would enjoy corresponding with me on any subject, and he proceeded to ask if I liked movies and if I’d seen any good ones lately. I was a little weirded out by that email, but I brushed it off thinking that he’s just an old man with no children and wants a surrogate grand-daughter. I could deal with that. I replied to the email very innocently, telling him I hadn’t seen anything good lately, but I’d heard good things about Blindside. MISTAKE! The next email he sent was asking if I could get away from the office during the afternoon. He wants to take me to a matinee so that we can get to know each other better. REALLY???? Have I mentioned that not only is this man older than Methuselah, but HE’S MARRIED!
I replied to the email and told him that I couldn’t get away from the office during the day, and said I wished I had more free time. He then replied that if anything changed to let him know because the offer was still on the table. EEWWWWWW!
Needless to say, our Market Research Director will be accompanying me to lunch with him next week.
Thoughts anyone? Am I making too much of this? It just seems very inappropriate to me for him to not include his wife. If I were her I wouldn’t want him taking a young woman out to the movies because he “wants to get to know her better.” I mean, dude, she’s just sitting at home with the dog too. Take her to see a movie!
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