Then There Were Three
by Jennifer Moyer
Here we sit, brother and sister, across the table from one another, trying to BLOG. Why the heck is it called a blog? Wait…. Here you go; in 1997, Jorn Barger, blogger for Robot Wisdom, coined the term "weblog," which was meant to describe his process for "logging the web" as he surfed the internet. The term "weblog" was shortened to "blog" in 1999 by programmer Peter Merholz. Nice. Now, back to our regularly scheduled programming (If you don’t get this phrase, go ask your mom).
It's January 8th, 2020…. And we sit. Brother and sister. Jennifer and Stephen. And we have many questions.
What does one write in a blog that other people will want to read? Who is going to want to read about US? I mean, of course we think that we are charming and interesting, and fun, but that’s essentially because we are the same person. We are six years apart, but we have this weird ability to finish each other’s sentences and know what the other is going to say before it’s even said. My youngest son is in a constant state of eye roll when he is with us, which needless to say, we think is hysterical and relentlessly point out at any opportunity to we can just to aggravate his condition. My oldest son just quietly chuckles. Incredibly, my sweet husband has somehow found himself dealing with two of me for about eight-to-ten hours a day, most days. Yep, the three of us work together. It kind of just…happened.
Let me back track a bit. My husband Chris and I started this business with another couple back in 2014. As it turns out, starting a business is hard, but staying the course is harder. It’s kinda like playing Monopoly; it takes a lot of effort, time, and commitment, and most people can stay in the game. Some people though…well… so then there were two.
Stephen was living in LA and we kept in very close contact. He knew all about the business and often helped us with various things here and there that he could do from afar; technical issues and advice about marketing and promotion ideas. We often daydreamed about living close enough to have weekly dinners at one another’s homes, but it was always a “someday” situation. Over time, little by little, or maybe I should say more by more…things started to shift. He came to visit us more often, became more involved in the business, and stayed a little longer each time. There was still the “someday” conversation every time he left, but we’d eventually fall back into our usual routines once he was back on the west coast.
Then COVID hit.
I remember Face-timing with Stephen much more as the proverbial S*!T started to hit the fan. I had my pod of four, six if you count our two furry friends, but he was by himself in his LA duplex (amazing at it was). Things were BAD there.
The guy couldn’t even step outside of his house without a mask! I was standing in my kitchen one day and I said, “Just come here! Get in your car and drive here!” It was April 2020, a few days before my 50th birthday. It took him a minute, but honestly way less time than I thought it would. You see, we’re both rule followers and this was NOT following the “rules.” Stephen is also very practical and quite the planner, especially surrounding travel, so a spontaneous road trip was a bit of a stretch for him and most certainly so during a pandemic.
Though, as many people learned, he was doing his job remotely and the realization that he didn’t need to stay in LA to do it was, well, liberating! I started spewing my strategy; hard boiled eggs in a cooler, bread and fruit, PB&J, protein bars. You won’t have to stop to eat- just gas and a hotel or two along the way! We can talk when you’re sleepy, no matter what time! And that was it. We came up with our master plan. He mapped out his route and he was standing in front of me ON my 50th birthday in April of 2020.
Best. Present. EVER.
And then, just like that, there were three.
