rants

Well, it’s a bittersweet day for me. After eight years, I’ve hung up my hat as the unofficial “Mayor of Short Pump,” the title (jab, perhaps?) jokingly given to me over the years as one of the most vocal advocates of the Far West End of Richmond.

I started DowntownShortPump.com in 2004 in high school when no other online outlet for news specifically for Short Pump existed, after driving by the “Downtown Short Pump” signage in front of the Regal Cinemas. Under the title, etched in stone, was the domain name, originally used to promote the shopping center. After visiting the website and learning it had expired, I purchased the domain name for $8.00.

Now to understand the name, you have to go way back to the time when Short Pump was a sleepy, quiet outpost in the middle of nowhere. The long forgotten Henley’s Store, which stood right about where Trader Joe’s is now, donned a sign that said “Downtown Short Pump,” ironically poking fun at the fact that, well, that was about all there was out there. And it just about was.

That’s the Short Pump I grew up in. Back when it had soul. Fast forward to 2012, and there’s nary a point of reference to even begin to point out what stood where in the Short Pump of olden days. All that remains is the name.

Downtown Short Pump, then, was both an accurate and ironic name for my website. What was once a rural crossroads joking about being a city had actually become one, in a suburban sprawl kind of way. And that suburban city, I thought, needed an exclusive news source.

That being said, I never dreamed my little project with a couple visitors a day would end up netting 30,000 visitors per month or gaining the traction that it did. It’s funny to me that I sort of became the face or persona (or “Mayor”) of Short Pump to some people. I guess it was just because no one else was doing it. Either way, it ended up becoming the biggest project of my life thus far.

Unlike a lot of people who saw Short Pump as a suburban jungle of chain stores and concrete, which in many ways it had become, I aimed to utilize Downtown Short Pump to show that the community still had a pulse. Short Pump may have had an almost full-body transplant, but local businesses restaurants still thrived among the “big box” stores. I tried to demonstrate this as often as possible, and often times became the butt of jokes for it. Which I not only didn’t mind, but I quite often got a kick out of it and laughed right along.

I sold the site last December, but stayed on as Editor & Publisher. As the new owners prepare to take DTSP in a new direction, I think this was the right time to part ways. I can’t begin to express how grateful I am to have had the opportunities I did because of the site, and the connections I made. Not just business connections, but the friendships I formed and the people I met city-wide.

I didn’t just run a website. It was literally part of me. After spending a third of my life running Downtown Short Pump, it was very strange, almost surreal, driving down West Broad Street and seeing a sign for a new business opening. The instinct to make a mental note on something like that and put together a writeup for the website is so ingrained into me that it just comes as second nature. It’s going to take a while to remind myself that’s not what I do anymore.

Thanks for everyone’s support over the years–for believing in me, especially in the beginning, when I sometimes didn’t believe in myself. And for all the advice and support as I started out (extra special thank-yous go out to NBC12’s Ryan Nobles and Andy Jenks, who in some ways were my mentors and provided phenomenal advice).

I’ve grown and changed in ways that never would have been otherwise possible, and I would be nowhere if it weren’t for those that stood by me for the past eight years, including the loyal readers.

So while moving on may be bittersweet, and I may even be (gasp!) moving to The Fan soon, stepping back from something I’ve been used to doing has really given me some good perspective and clarity. I think I’ll be able to focus more on some big projects and ideas I’ve had in mind for some time. But not before I take the next couple months to reflect and really consider what it is I want to do next with my life, get myself and my life in order, and prepare to embark on my next adventure. I have some big ideas to make an impact on the community again, and this time, I’m going Richmond-wide, if not further.

Stay tuned, and again, thank you from the bottom of my heart to everyone who’s supported me.

Life sure is funny sometimes. It almost makes you wonder if God himself has a sense of humor. When you look back on certain things, you realize it’s sometimes the smallest of decisions that end up taking you down certain paths. And it sure makes for a great story. I want to share one of those with you today.

It was mid September of 2009. I had just quit my job at a local computer company, where I managed a help desk at the University of Richmond and traveled around the state installing and servicing computers and printers for mainly educational clients to spend more time growing my web design and branding business and my news site, Downtown Short Pump. While working out of my favorite local coffee shop, I saw a tweet from a woman I’d never met before, desperately asking for help with her computer from someone nearby. Being that I was next door and had done this for a living, I decided to pop in to this woman’s store, By Invitation Only. It was there that I met Monica Horsley.

I spent an hour or so attempting to resolve Monica’s computer issues that day. Well it turns out there was more than one issue that needed taking care of. The next day, Monica asked me to come back and take a look at a few other things. The third day, she invited me out for drinks with her and the rest of the staff after work. We all really got along. She invited me back to do a few more things the next day.

Before I knew it, I got my first paycheck. I was officially working at a invitation and stationery store. I began helping with the graphic design and printing of everything from childrens’ birthday parties and graduations to rehearsal dinners and weddings. I even familiarized myself with the more than eighty vendor invitation books we had and began helping customers select wedding and other invitations when they came in the store.

Once the former manager quit and a couple others left for one reason or another, it was pretty much just Monica and I holding down the fort for a few months. I was doing so many things that, though I didn’t, I felt like I owned a part of the store. I had that kind of dedication to its continued success.

I stayed for just over two years at a job I was never really hired for– I just never left! But two weeks ago, I put in my resignation after accepting my new job at Loving Consulting. My last day was February 29, 2012.

It was a fun ride. Getting to work in a fast-paced retail environment with a clientele that expected nothing less than perfection definitely sharpened my skills physically, mentally, and socially. I was kept on my toes at all times. It had its ups and downs, but overall, I’m thankful for the experiences that helped mold and shape me that I otherwise wouldn’t have had if I had stayed at the coffee shop that day in 2009.

A lot of the people I met through Monica (one of the most connected people I’ve ever met) helped me to accomplish a lot for my business and connect the dots between myself and those that they knew to do the same.

If you asked me two years ago if I’d ever either work in or get to know anything about the bridal industry, I would have looked at you and laughed. But I now know it inside and out, and I’m better off for it. And I never thought I’d be sitting here typing that.

What I’ve learned is that little, seemingly insignificant decisions can end up making the most impact in your life. If I had continued to sit in that coffee shop and not respond to that tweet asking for help, what path would I have taken? I have a feeling I wouldn’t have expanded my horizons the way I have or even ultimately made the decision to sell my website (and accept a position doing something I love while still getting to run my website), which ended up being one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.

It makes me wonder how many other small decisions I’ve made, even subconscious ones, that have lead me to where I am now. I guess John Lennon was right. Life’s what happens while you’re busy making other plans.

So, as I said once before, life sure is funny.