Monday, March 28, 2011
Ladies Who Lunch Together Frequently
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Learn From Those Who Have Gone Before You
So I went to lunch recently with Lisa Thompson. Lisa is someone that knows me very well since we met 31 years ago (when I was 7). Lisa has had her own business as a family therapist in Western, MA for many years. Her business is called Share Vision and the website is http://www.sharevision.net/.
We met at Judie's in Amherst, MA. (http://www.judiesrestaurant.com/) The main thing to know about Judie's is that it has legendary popovers. If you check out their website - you can see a picture of one - and that is about the extent of the website. I got one and enjoyed every morsel.
Lisa and I talked about my new business and what kind of work I wanted to do. We also discussed running this consulting business out of my house. Lisa has run her business both out of her house and now has an office separate from her house. Not really sure which way to go - there are certainly advantages to both.
Lisa also mentioned that there are a couple of people she wants to introduce me to. Both of these people are currently in a similar business to my new business. One is an accountant (focusing on taxes - which I don't do) and another owns a business services company. Perhaps we can provide referals to each other. I asked her to set up lunches with them and so more blogs to follow.
It was great to see Lisa and to talk to her about some of my ideas. Talking to someone who is already running her own small businesses helps me learn from the experience that she shares. And we had fun!
We met at Judie's in Amherst, MA. (http://www.judiesrestaurant.com/) The main thing to know about Judie's is that it has legendary popovers. If you check out their website - you can see a picture of one - and that is about the extent of the website. I got one and enjoyed every morsel.
Lisa and I talked about my new business and what kind of work I wanted to do. We also discussed running this consulting business out of my house. Lisa has run her business both out of her house and now has an office separate from her house. Not really sure which way to go - there are certainly advantages to both.
Lisa also mentioned that there are a couple of people she wants to introduce me to. Both of these people are currently in a similar business to my new business. One is an accountant (focusing on taxes - which I don't do) and another owns a business services company. Perhaps we can provide referals to each other. I asked her to set up lunches with them and so more blogs to follow.
Saturday, February 19, 2011
No Need To Get Fancy
 |
| Kelly's Restaurant, Rt. 9, Amherst |
 |
| Lunch is for the birds |
 |
| Menu Mural |
 |
| Kelly's great staff |
 |
| The Wise Bloggers |
This is only the second time Sarah and I have managed to have lunch together since starting Ladies Who Lunch--so much for the fantasy of endless free time to hang out. We decided to lunch at Kelly's Restaurant on Rt. 9 in Amherst just a mile or so from each of our homes. We decided we had no need to "go fancy". Kelly's is a townie breakfast and lunch spot with no pretensions. However it recently went through a decor uplift with painted murals by local painter and artist Becca Wheeler.
Search Results
Becca Wheeler's Painted Whimsy: Decorative Painting
Becca Wheeler creates beautiful works of art on your walls or of your favorite pieces of furniture. Becca will also teach you and your friends how do bring ...
www.beccawheeler.com/
In the photos you will see some of Becca's work as well as some of Kelly's cooks and wait staff as well as Sarah and me enjoying our time together.
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Loving My Work
Funny...I just read my mom's last post and she also went to Esselon. I met my friend Kathy (Mireault) Foster for lunch at Esselon. I have known Kathy since 7th grade - so for over 25 years!
We met for a working lunch and Esselon has great coffee and free Wi-Fi. We were meeting so I could help her with a business plan for a business she plans on opening. It was really fun to hear about the business (an indoor gym for kids). We worked on the financial plan for the business so that she could show it to a potential landlord. At one point she asked me "don't you hate doing this" and I replied "no, I love doing this - this is what I love to do".
Doing something that I love - helping people start or manage their businesses - makes me wonder why I didn't start my own consulting business sooner. It is especially fun to work with someone like Kathy who is so passionate about kids fitness and providing a fun, clean, and safe environment for families with young children. I commend anyone who wants to work with kids full time - I sometimes wonder how I manage to handle one (my 10 year old son Liam), never mind twenty or thirty kids at a time!
Here is a picture of us after our lunch (not the greatest, but the best of 5).
And my best advice for the day is to try to find something that you love to do - because this is the path to success!
We met for a working lunch and Esselon has great coffee and free Wi-Fi. We were meeting so I could help her with a business plan for a business she plans on opening. It was really fun to hear about the business (an indoor gym for kids). We worked on the financial plan for the business so that she could show it to a potential landlord. At one point she asked me "don't you hate doing this" and I replied "no, I love doing this - this is what I love to do".
Doing something that I love - helping people start or manage their businesses - makes me wonder why I didn't start my own consulting business sooner. It is especially fun to work with someone like Kathy who is so passionate about kids fitness and providing a fun, clean, and safe environment for families with young children. I commend anyone who wants to work with kids full time - I sometimes wonder how I manage to handle one (my 10 year old son Liam), never mind twenty or thirty kids at a time!
Here is a picture of us after our lunch (not the greatest, but the best of 5).
And my best advice for the day is to try to find something that you love to do - because this is the path to success!
Lunch is the Antidote to February
February may be the shortest month but it sure feels never ending this winter. But having lunch with friends are some of the bright spots. A few weeks ago I picked up my dear friend Sue Thrasher at Five Colleges Inc. where she works as the Schools Partnership Coordinator. We ventured over to Hadley to have lunch at Esselon. Esselon is a favorite place to hang out for breakfast, lunch or just a 'cupa.
Esselon Artisan Green Coffee Roasters | Premium Coffee Beans and Teas
Esselon artisan green coffee roasters offers fresh roasted premium coffee beans and quality teas, both retail and wholesale. www.esselon.com/ They have the best coffee in the Valley in my opinion.
Here you will see some snaps of Sue and an assortment of Esselon views.
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Lunching with Fran
Lucky for me that many of my friends are out of or between full time employment and are happy to have lunch with me and talk about what we're currently doing. This Monday I had lunch with an old friend, Fran Van Trese who I initially met when she was on the Town of Amherst Redevelopment Authority. Fran's no longer doing that but she is serving on the town's transportation committee and on the Advisory Committee to the Norwottuck Rail Trail. This week she's off on a trip to Africa to see wildlife. We lunched in downtown Amherst at the Monkey Bar. Here's a picture from the lunch as well as the business card from my almost ready to open B & B.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Family and Friends First
So one of the stumbling blocks of starting your own business is quieting the negative thoughts that will run through your mind. It doesn't matter if you are an optimistic and positive person, you will have some doubts about starting your own business. There is a lot to do and there are lots of decisions to make. Some things will not go as planned and some days will be harder than others.
My solution to this is to spend time with your biggest supporters. Pick some people from your family and friends that will pump you up and help you to realize that you can do it - after all they believe in you! And what better way to get positive feedback than to have a lunch with one of these ladies in my life.
So I met my step-mother, Dr. Margaret Kierstein, for lunch at Bertucci's. It was a fun time and we both talked about our changing careers. She is a psychologist who does a lot of work for the courts and is looking for a change. I told her about starting the business and she had some ideas for me - mentioning that she had talked to an attorney friend and they had asked for me to send some of my cards. Just this information alone, made me feel very hopeful and I left that lunch thinking "I can do this!".
My solution to this is to spend time with your biggest supporters. Pick some people from your family and friends that will pump you up and help you to realize that you can do it - after all they believe in you! And what better way to get positive feedback than to have a lunch with one of these ladies in my life.
So I met my step-mother, Dr. Margaret Kierstein, for lunch at Bertucci's. It was a fun time and we both talked about our changing careers. She is a psychologist who does a lot of work for the courts and is looking for a change. I told her about starting the business and she had some ideas for me - mentioning that she had talked to an attorney friend and they had asked for me to send some of my cards. Just this information alone, made me feel very hopeful and I left that lunch thinking "I can do this!".
Friday, January 28, 2011
Green Street Cafe
Jan. 28--I met my friend Karen Leveille for a "ladies who lunch" at the Green Street Cafe in Northampton. We had a great table facing the fireplace which had a wood fire going. Not only did we share great food but talked about our evolving work reinvention, Karen's watercolor painting, my B & B project and our shared affordable housing work history and ways we might collaborate in the future. While we were lunching my friend and co-grandparent Margaret Kierstein came by for a planned pick up of two pairs of snow shoes I had brought over in my trunk (the story of our shared custody of the snow shoes is a tale for another time but they will soon be traveling to Lake Placid where they probably once again will not get used but 'ya never know). Margaret took the picture of Karen and I together and I apologize to the blog viewers and to Karen that I don't have a better shot of us to show you but here are some pictures from the Cafe. I did notice that there were many other ladies lunching at the Green Street Cafe today.
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Who Are the Ladies Who Lunch
Our blog, Ladies-Who Lunch (sorry about the hyphen but the first choice name was already taken) sprang out of our intention to have fun together with our time off and to share with our friends and blog followers our process of starting our own businesses: Sarah's is Thompson Business Solutions and Connie's is a few different things under the umbrella of Hop Brook Enterprises-- the first and soon to open is Hop Brook B & B (look for web site soon). We are enjoying supporting each other in starting our own business and have been sharing tips and tribulations.
The idea for this blog came out of a recent turn of events and an on-going mother-daughter adventure. The mother, Connie, had voluntarily left an 8 year position with a state affordable housing agency and the daughter, Sarah, had ended a finance director position with a production bakery company in central MA. We have both been full-time workers our whole adult lives and then some, so it was a unique situation to both be unemployed at the same time. We realized that this was an opportunity to spend some time together that we had never before been able to do---even have lunch together during a weekday. Thus we landed on the term "ladies who lunch" to reflect our new found leisure time and the tongue in check implication that we were in the same league with affluent country clubbers and the like. Sarah noted that it was better that we bond around both being out of work than around being mother and daughter who were pregnant at the same time ("not that there's anything wrong with that"--Jerry Seinfeld).
Saturday, January 8, 2011
The Assembly
A very successful trip to IKEA was followed by lots of cardboard boxes in to the recycling and many little screw being laid out and pondered over. Jim was kind enough to put the bureau and nightstand together. The rest was managed by tool girl here and very proud of it.
Friday, January 7, 2011
IKEA trip
Hi Everyone,
Yesterday, my mom Connie and I went on a road trip to Ikea in Connecticut. It was about a two hour drive to get down there. Our mission was to get some furniture for the bed and breakfast that my Mom is starting. She is starting the business on a tight budget, so Ikea where furniture is cheap was our first stop on the furniture hunt.
We had a list
of furniture to buy. My mom had the measurements for both of the rooms (it is a suite with a bedroom, living room, and bathroom). And in typical mom style she brought a pocket tape measure. It was a good thing that she did, because a lot of the furniture that we found was too big for the spots we were trying to fill. We got discouraged after about a half hour of looking and only a few small items like a serving tray and a couple of canisters later. So we did what most people would do and stopped for lunch.
Ikea has a cafeteria for shoppers and my mom commented that it was a good strategy because it keeps people in the store. The prices for the food are low so it is added incentive to stay and eat there. I had swedish meatballs with gravy with mashed potatoes for $3.95 and my mom had vegetable crepes for $5.95. We both had a side dish, I had a fruit cup and she had potato fritters. Keeping to our budget was key, so we both opted for water. Total lunch bill was $12.34 and my mom bought since I was volunteering my decorating eye to her adventure.
After lunch we were back on the hunt and managed to find a table that folds down so it is compact, and when folded out will comfortably sit two for a meal. We also found a dresser that fits right in the tight spot that mom had measured. 4 chairs, a nighstand, and a lamp later and we were ready to go.
The stuff was heavy and comes in flat boxes unassembled so we got a guy in the warehouse to help us load the carts with the items we had picked. My mom spent $486 in total. Luckily, there was someone to help us load the items in the back of the car - and he is also the first guest photo of the blog. Meet Terry, who was very nice about letting me take his picture - especially after I told him he would now be an internet star of a new blog dedicated to our story of starting our businesses. Mom tipped him 5 bucks for his help and we were on our way home.
Will post again soon.
Sarah
Yesterday, my mom Connie and I went on a road trip to Ikea in Connecticut. It was about a two hour drive to get down there. Our mission was to get some furniture for the bed and breakfast that my Mom is starting. She is starting the business on a tight budget, so Ikea where furniture is cheap was our first stop on the furniture hunt.
We had a list
of furniture to buy. My mom had the measurements for both of the rooms (it is a suite with a bedroom, living room, and bathroom). And in typical mom style she brought a pocket tape measure. It was a good thing that she did, because a lot of the furniture that we found was too big for the spots we were trying to fill. We got discouraged after about a half hour of looking and only a few small items like a serving tray and a couple of canisters later. So we did what most people would do and stopped for lunch.
Ikea has a cafeteria for shoppers and my mom commented that it was a good strategy because it keeps people in the store. The prices for the food are low so it is added incentive to stay and eat there. I had swedish meatballs with gravy with mashed potatoes for $3.95 and my mom had vegetable crepes for $5.95. We both had a side dish, I had a fruit cup and she had potato fritters. Keeping to our budget was key, so we both opted for water. Total lunch bill was $12.34 and my mom bought since I was volunteering my decorating eye to her adventure.
After lunch we were back on the hunt and managed to find a table that folds down so it is compact, and when folded out will comfortably sit two for a meal. We also found a dresser that fits right in the tight spot that mom had measured. 4 chairs, a nighstand, and a lamp later and we were ready to go.
The stuff was heavy and comes in flat boxes unassembled so we got a guy in the warehouse to help us load the carts with the items we had picked. My mom spent $486 in total. Luckily, there was someone to help us load the items in the back of the car - and he is also the first guest photo of the blog. Meet Terry, who was very nice about letting me take his picture - especially after I told him he would now be an internet star of a new blog dedicated to our story of starting our businesses. Mom tipped him 5 bucks for his help and we were on our way home.
Will post again soon.
Sarah
Starting A Business
So both my mom and I are starting a business. Different businesses - she is starting a bed and breakfast and maybe some other things too and I am starting a business consulting company.
Because we are no longer working for "the man" we now have time to "do lunch". I thought it would be fun to write about our lunching adventures and our experiences as we launch these new businesses.
Stay tuned for my next post of our trip to IKEA, our lunch, and some pics!
Because we are no longer working for "the man" we now have time to "do lunch". I thought it would be fun to write about our lunching adventures and our experiences as we launch these new businesses.
Stay tuned for my next post of our trip to IKEA, our lunch, and some pics!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)