It was a lot of fun and I got to meet some really interesting and committed members of my community. I’m looking forward to the next opportunity to participate in something like this – I’ll post about the next activity in case you want to join the fun.
I’ve been wanting to get her here since Day One and Mistie, with her love of history, was pretty interested in coming to Charlottesville, too.
We had a day and a half to work together on a project for our client (and our favorite airport). I picked her up at CHO on Thursday afternoon and she flew out again before dawn Saturday morning.
So late on Friday, I turned to Mistie and said, “How would you like to visit James Madison’s Montpelier?” She wouldn’t admit it, but I think there was a bit of a High School Musical-style squeal in her answer. Off we went (the historic spot is a mere 20 minutes from my home) and made it just in time for the next tour. The photo is of Mistie standing on Montpelier’s terrace, with the Blue Ridge in the background.
Of course, as we took our tour, our wheels were turning with all the ways we’d like to drive visitors to Montpelier, an attraction that gets just a third of the visitors that Monticello sees annually. We’d love to do the work, and we make a heck of a team.
I get so completely fired up when one of my team members visits (five of the 25 from St. Louis have visited me in C’ville so far). We are a force of nature and get some amazing work done in a short amount of time.
Mistie — it was so great to have you here. There’s no shortage of historic spots so we’ll squeeze a new one in every time you fly in.
Here’s the trip I’ve taken, back and forth, since I moved to Charlottesville less than three years ago, something like 30 times:
Washington, D.C. to St. Louis
See that short line? I actually fly out of Charlottesville Albemarle Airport to Dulles before taking the flight to St. Louis. That’s about 7 hours doorstep to doorstep. No big deal.
In the next couple of months, I’ll be taking this trip instead:
Washington D.C. to Mumbai, India
A bit longer, to be sure, but still no big deal. I’ll be working along the way and while I’m there (visiting two cities in the country and beforehand, making a one day stop in London for some meetings).
What I’ve learned since I moved 800 miles away from the home office in St. Louis and continued to work for the same firm, is that we are truly no longer bound by geography. I can and do have relationships with people all over the world. We’re not limited by anything but a closed mind.
So for a short time, I will not be the St. Louis Working Mom you all know and love, nor the Charlottesville working mom to my peeps in the ‘ville; instead I’ll be trying on the role of International Working Mom.
