Open Dialogue

I Saw Hillary

My sister, Nancy, called me last week and told me that some secret service agents had been in her coffeehouse in Newton. The end result was a request for Hillary Clinton to make a visit on Saturday, April 21 at 1:00.

The Iowa Caucuses tend to bring some attention to this state every four years. During the last election, four of the democratic candidates made stops at Nancy's coffeehouse for appearances. Brian Williams from NBC news did a small piece on Newton and it's lure for candidates to make stops. They also featured my sister's coffeehouse.

So, I wasn't surprised that Hillary's camp had chosen Nancy's coffeehouse for a campaign stop. What did surprise me was how awestruck my sister was with this one. She's seen candidates before, but having Hillary in her place was a rockstar moment.

My friend Beth and I made the trek to Newton to see Hillary on Saturday. The thing that stood out to me most is that she is a petite woman and that photographs do not do her justice. She is very dynamic and worked the crowd well. There were probably 100 people crammed in--including a contingent of red-hat ladies--and she made the rounds to shake hands with everyone.

Christie Vilsak, former first lady of Iowa and wife of former democratic presidential candidate Tom Vilsak, introduced and endorced Hillary. I got to talk to Christie Vilsak afterward and she commented a lot on how much she felt Hillary was prepared for being President. One of the main things she mentioned was how much they had lived through and come out stronger during her husband's presidency.

So, Hillary gave her speech and it was a typical candidate speech. National healthcare garnered a lot of applause. Immediate withdrawel of our troops in Iraq garnered less applause. The lack of savvy in foreign policy brought the crowd back.

When it came time for questions, there wasn't anything too pressing. Mainly Hillary patiently gave a civics lesson.

While I helped my sister clean up after the crowd left, my friend Beth was talking with Dennis Black of the Iowa Senate. Beth is an incredible lady. She got married young and put her dream of going to law school on hold. Several years and three daughters later, she is working, has two daughters in high school, and going to Drake Law School. Senator Black gave her some contacts and I think it was a good networking time for her.

One of the things I like about being back in Iowa is that we do get attention and see candidates during election years. When I lived in Georgia--it was such a red state--that we got next to nothing.

posted by Susan @ 11:26 AM 5 Comments

I'm Moving

I took a took a job in Iowa City with a tentative start date of May 14. After 4 years, I will be back to the place I had called home for many years.

There is a lot to do. Sell my wonderful house, pack, move...It's tiring just thinking about. As a friend likes to say, "How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time."

posted by Susan @ 1:11 PM 0 Comments

Fortune Cookie

"No one can walk backwards into the future."

posted by Susan @ 5:52 PM 1 Comments

30 Years

No, the title does not refer to my age...

It is the age of the architectural firm I used to work at though. I was there 1989-1999.

They had a big celebration a couple weeks ago and I made the trip to their new office. The last time I was through and visited--before the move--they were packed in like sardines.

When I started out at the firm, there were 7 of us. Six of which are still at the firm. That was about all that could fit in the old location. We had no large conference room or breakroom for that matter. The firm needed to expand (by this point there were 8 on staff), but there was no room. So, we moved across the alley into a new building. Three more people were hired on immediately and it slowly built until the staff numbered over 30.

Initially, it felt like we had all the room in the world--particularly compared to the previous location. So, it was really strange for me to be in the office when this was no longer the case.

Someone asked me if I missed working there. It's been a while and I couldn't relate to the new space. I look back fondly on my days there. It's been 7.5 years since I left and I've moved twice--across the country and back.

There were a lot of people there who I hadn't seen in years (clients, consultants, vendors). I saw more gray hair than when I left (unfortunately that applies to me as well).

It's nice to go back and visit.

posted by Susan @ 3:20 PM 1 Comments