A few months ago, around the time I officially launched this site, I had more than the usual number of plates spinning. In addition to some freelance work coordinating a client’s social media pages (whew!), a couple of ongoing writing projects, and the daily grind of motherhood, I had two major bonus pet projects due in the same week:
The first was reporting on an annual cultural festival known as the New York Encounter. This three-day event, which boasts presentations on politics, education, literature, economics, music and more has been a highlight of my year since its inception (and about the only thing that would get me to New York City in the winter). This year’s affair was primarily a virtual one, but somehow the possibility of “encounter” still emerged, through presentations and witnesses that did not shy away from the intense historical moment we’ve all been living.
I co-wrote a summary, available here. The events are all available on YouTube.
The second project was outside of my comfort zone. I volunteered to present a “website building basics” webinar for Ergon, a professional hub with which I’ve been involved for a few months. I teamed up with my former colleague Lee, a true web guru, and shared a few best practices of web design and copywriting I’ve picked up over the years. Check it out on YouTube.
It was a crazy couple of months juggling these projects during nap times and late nights, but both were gifts–incredible opportunities not only to engage myself in new topics I would otherwise have not pursued, but also to learn. Often it seems that the weeks or months where projects are moving at breakneck pace and I’m chugging coffee to keep up are the stretches of time in which I feel most alert and attune to the reality around me. Sustainable? Not a bit. But I’m grateful for these moments that show me what’s possible.