A Confluence of Events

Who does not love a good Ted talk? Come on, there is something for everyone on that site. I love them. Of course some are better than others. Just depends on what you are into. When I arrived in Savannah after seven years in Europe, I realized a few things were different in America or had completely changed. Online banking was still in its infancy when I left. Now I can deposit checks with my phone! Urgent Care medical facilities are everywhere. These did not exist when I left. I either begged for an appointment with my primary care physician or panicked as I read through possible lethal conditions on WebMD. My mom is visiting and her shoulder pain flared up. No. Big. Deal. Took her to urgent care. She got a cortisone shot and was back to normal within an hour.

One of the biggest surprises is TEDx events. I kind of sort of heard about them, but did not know the details. TEDx are independent TED-like events. That was all I thought I needed to know. Then I followed a former colleague's IG account. We reconnected a few months after I got settled in Savannah. She was excited and busy with a successful fashion company she launched a few years ago. She told me she wanted to do more with her IG account. And then she posted a link to her TEDx talk.

She looked fabulous. None of the years that passed since the last time I saw her showed. I listened intently expecting to hear how she launched her business or how going to an Ivy League graduate school changed the trajectory of her life. Instead I heard about her near-death experience. She was diagnosed with cavernous sinus thrombosis. A condition that left her in a medically induced coma for five days. She recovered from the serious health crisis and remains at the helm of her company, Cepi Style.

Within a matter of days my friend who asked me to help him start his start up told me he is a scheduled speaker at TEDx Savannah on May 11. I adore coincidences but, this confluence of events portended something special. Two TEDx pings in my inner circle in one week? Something big was underfoot. Next I did a little research. TEDx Savannah is a full day of "ideas worth spreading." Intrigued, I dug deeper. When I watch TED talks I get riled up and inspired. I imagined what a day of that kind of stimulation would do to my overactive imagination. I would be overwhelmed. I would want more. One day of ideas could never be enough. I would want to tell the world about it over and over again. I would drive those near and dear to me mad.

I clicked the volunteer button. I had to get behind the curtain, and stave off a potential obsession. I have indulged those and it ain't pretty. Instead I would meet new people and learn new ideas and discuss those ideas and my ideas, and you get the picture. I said a little about myself. I skillfully excluded any penchant for obsessive tendencies and general fan girl inclinations. Then poof, I sent my email into the ether. I did not think about it again until I received a fascinating response from one of the organizers. It began: Dear Mickie, (he had me at dear Mickie) I am thrilled to have you on board for the TEDx Savannah 2018 volunteer team. What happened next gave me the courage to reveal a little known experience of my own.

Until next time on The Cat Who Swallowed the Canary.