Prior to those two nights I'd been fighting off an annoyingly persistent urge to hibernate....doze, sleep, stay in. Is this some leftover primal rhythm deep in my being that kicks into gear when winter approaches? Is it just the grey, soggy weather we are known for here in the Seattle area? Is it a low-grade flu, some version that's been running rampant around our office building? There have been a few days recently where I've woken up and just known I'd need to work from home. I'd shoot off a quick email to the crew that I'd be online at home, go back to bed and sleep hard until 10:30 or 11:00am - no joke. Thankfully I didn't miss any conference calls!
Ugh. I hate feeling like I'm operating on 70% of my normal energy level, but don't feel sick. What's going on??
Nothing like changing up your routine to re-ignite your personal pilot light! As I mentioned in one of my earlier posts, I'm now a Silpada Designs representative! This is top notch sterling silver jewelry, and I am so excited and proud to now represent this brand after being a loyal, loving customer for about 3 years. Woo hoo!
Bonnie Kelly and Teresa Walsh, the co-founders of Silpada, were here in town on a whirlwind Founders Tour, traveling all over the US and Canada, and I got to see them and hear them and many others speak at this event at the Red Lion Hotel in Seattle! What divine timing to be a newly-minted rep AND have the Founders Tour event that same day! I was truly the newbie that evening.
It was a beautiful night downtown - and not raining, bonus. The first glimmers of holiday decor are sprouting up in the city. High energy vibe everywhere. I love it...and also remember how much I miss working downtown. I felt so happy and loved at the Tour - being in a room of 200 people where I may know just one or two is no big deal to me. I love going out and meeting people - I shed the childhood shyness ages ago. These ladies were decked out in incredible jewelry and I had fun sporting my own personal stack of amazing bracelets! Great conversation starters! I heard the story of how Bonnie and Teresa met through their kids' school, became best of friends and launched this business sheerly through their love of jewelry. I heard stories from other representatives about how they launched their own Silpada businesses and how transforming, life changing it is.
After the Tour a few of us from my core team walked down to Sip for a glass of wine and munchies. Felt so fun being out downtown on a weeknight - this used to be so common for me when I was younger. I didn't get home until 11:30pm and was so pumped up from the evening out I could hardly sleep.
But the energy only crescendoed (is that a word?) up further, as my own Launch Party was the next evening! I had a few great friends over for a girls night in. My sponsor, L, brought her amazing jewelry collection over to my house and showed me how she sets everything up for her own shows. My dining room table turned into a jewelry showcase! Add some drinks, munchies and great friends and you've got a fun, relaxing evening. It was wonderful introducing friends of mine who had not yet met eachother before. Childhood friend. A friend I met through hockey. And another I met through an online purse discussion group - one of a group I get together with a few times a year for lunch and shopping! After the party, L stayed with me late into the evening to show me the ins and outs of how to process orders, manage customer lists, keep track of leads, run reports. All the "backend" stuff behind the scenes is as top notch as this incredible jewelry! My expectations were blown out of the water. Here I was thinking I'd have to manage my business by designing my own spreadsheets and whatnot. Nope: all I have to do is log into Silpada's site with my rep number and BOOM. Easy! And the amount of training they have online or via conference calls - did I mention that? Everything is at my fingertips - and free!
Keep in mind, this was Wednesday night. And I have a standing 8am meeting Thursday mornings. And I'm not a morning person at ALL. Yet somehow I bounced out of bed the morning after my own party and came in eyes open and ready for a great day.
How could this be? Why was I so full of energy? Simple - I shook up my routine. And I surrounded myself with incredible women - new faces at the Founders Tour with a common bond between us to grow our Silpada business. New friendships. Big hugs. Support and caring from friends at my launch party, and the virtual support and well wishes from so many other incredible friends. Wow!
I'm on my way with something new! And I feel great! Let's not joke around here - I'm a little nervous, but in a good way. L has been absolutely wonderful helping me get started with her coaching and support. Did I mention she's about ready to give birth to her 3rd child in a few weeks? Heck, if she can run her own business, support her Silpada team while being a super busy Mom on top of it all I can do this too!
And then Friday morning rolled around.
I woke up ready to bounce out of bed and get to work. But why was it so COLD? My furnace normally kicks on around 6:30am to start warming up my townhouse before I get out of bed. I put on my robe and headed downstairs to look at the thermostat. 60 degrees? Fuck. It's supposed to be 68 in the morning and then shut off while I'm away at work. I tried to turn the fan switch on - a click but nothing. Oh boy.
Remember the refrigerator drama back in September? Ladies and gentlemen, we now have Furnace Drama. I had a part replaced two weeks ago, and now the furnace craps out yet again. What's the deal? Well, thankfully the repair company came out that same afternoon to check it out. [One of those "we'll be there between noon and 5:00 - and they actually showed up at 1!]. Now it's the fan motor that's died. And of course it's a special order and won't be here till Monday. And of course it's 3 times as costly as the first repair job. UGH.
So...I wait. And chill out - literally. And I try to dig deep and remember I'll get through this too. I have hot water and electricity. I have polar fleece and an electric blanket. Yeah, it's freaking cold in here but I'm OK. This didn't happen during my party Wednesday. This is nowhere near as bad as the weeklong blackout we had during the big snowstorm of 2006. And once again I remind myself that everything happens when it's supposed to.
But those hibernating instincts are back full force. Guess I'll snuggle up with a jewelry catalogue...and smile.
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