Real Irish

apple blossom on the tree in my back yard

Next Friday, for the first time in quite a while, I'll be performing live!

It's not like a Madonna concert exactly. (Actually I don't know that. I've never been to a Madonna concert.) Friday, March 9th, I'll be joining Anne Louise Bannon at Webster's Fine Stationers for "Real Irish," an early lead-in to St. Patrick's Day. (I wanted to call it "Lorica and Scot go to Ireland," but I was outvoted.)

Anne is a renaissance woman, a freelance writer and a wine afficionado. I even buy my handmade soap from her. Plus it turns out she holds a Master's degree in oral interpretation (even more obscure than my Bachelor's in Rhetoric). My qualifications are almost as good: I like to drink wine and I like to talk (okay, I've also had a 30-year acting career and I'm actually paid to talk), so we make a good pair. Anne is even of Irish descent, which makes her green-wearin' legit. (She's Real Irish.)

I'll just admit it right now: I'm a Scot. The family claims Welsh descent as well. None of this qualifies as Irish. (I am Not Real Irish.)

Anne and I figured a wine tasting and some Celtic and Irish literature would make a fun late afternoon/early evening. Starting at 4:30, come to Webster's and have some wine. At 5:30, once your edges are soft, Anne and I will read to you for a little while. In fact, in fewer than 30 minutes, we will run you through a simplified gamut of the entire history of Irish literature. As if that were possible.

Come on by. We'll get you all Irished before you head down the hill for Art Night Pasadena.

Real Irish

Friday, March 9th

4:30 wine tasting

5:30 readings

Webster's Fine Stationers

2450 N. Lake Avenue,

Altadena, CA 91101

(626) 797-1135

Altadena Urban Farmers Market

If the photo looks a bit homey it's because the Altadena Urban Farmers Market takes place at someone's house.

Granted, it's a big house, but it is indeed private property. If you're local you're likely familiar with the Zane Grey Estate, owned by Steven Rudicel and Gloria Putnam, a young Altadena couple. I can't claim to know them but this past Sunday I stood in the goat pen (beyond the grape vines out back) and introduced myself to Steven, just to have a chance to tell him "thank you." I'm awed at how these two regularly open up their historic home to their community.

John and I thought we might pop up to the market and buy some soap from Anne Louise Bannon (because her hand-made soap is superior to every other soap we've ever used), then pop back home. But just because we don't know Rudicel and Putnam doesn't mean we didn't know about half the people at the market, and that included patrons and vendors. Besides Anne and her wine-making husband Michael Holland, we stopped to talk politics with this one, hiking trails with that one, etc. Our neighbor from across the street was there with her daughter. Michael Coppess from East of Allen stopped to chat. Our friend the Apron Strings Baker was there! She who makes the cookies for A Penny for Your Thoughts, the coolest coffee-shop-within-a-gift-shop in Pasadena, was selling challah and cookies at the market! She sold out, of course, as did Anne. You want the good stuff, you get there early. These folks make and grow things at home. It's small business at its loving best.

Read Felicia Friesema's LA Weekly article to learn more about this unique event. Felicia herself gave me this giant, delicious mulberry when I saw her at the market. You meet the most fascinating people there.

The Altadena Urban Farmers Market is more than a market. It's a community bonding event. Yet it's possible John and I attended the final one. Let's hope there'll be another market in June.

Webster's Fine Networking

Anton Anderson emcees as Lori Webster looks on. Fluorescents be damned, I like the shot anyway.

Like a lot of people, I've been looking to spruce up my online social networking skills for the sake of my business. I'm okay at blogging, but I've got a few things to learn about Facebook and my LinkedIn page is neglected. (I'm so pathetic at Twitter I'm not at liberty to discuss it here.)

Lately I've been speaking to groups about blogging. The first thing I tell them is that blogging is networking. The second thing I tell them is that networking is giving. Networking used to conjure up depressing pictures of dreary social functions where you'd pass out your business card in hopes of getting work. It felt like begging and I was lousy at it. But that's an old idea. Now, networking is about service--finding out what your network needs and filling that need, knowing the returns will come. Giver is a much more powerful position than Beggar.

Last Friday night, Webster's Fine Stationers in Altadena showed us how it's done. WFS, owned by Scott and Lori Webster, hosted a well-attended Social Media Meet and Greet event, free and open to the public. The audience comprised upwards of 50 local entrepreneurs of all stripes and levels of networking knowledge. Everyone was eager to learn and share.

Anton Anderson of Productivity Consulting emceed and Hilary Cable of Business.com Answers led the evening with an informative talk about using Facebook for your business. (She cleared up some Facebook mysteries, which until Friday I would have told you was impossible to do.) I spoke briefly about blogging, and Deb Halberstadt of HalfCity Productions guided us through the uses of LinkedIn.

Then we got to eat! courtesy of Amy's Patio Cafe. And there was wine tasting! provided by Anne Louise Bannon and Michael Holland of OddBallGrape.com. And there was much offline networking, quite social, provided by a lively and interesting crowd.

It would be nice if you clicked all the links, though I know you won't. Still, it gives you a visual idea of how many people and businesses contributed to the evening.

I'd like to see Webster's Fine Stationers do this type of event again, perhaps with even more community input. At a time when so many of us need to stay on top of these changing networking platforms, WFS provided a forum, a gathering place, a community service. Lori, Scott and their great staff filled the needs of their network, and I know the returns will come rushing back to them.