Sometimes life throws us curveballs. Big, out-of-nowhere curveballs.
We think we’ve got it sort-of-maybe figured out, are trucking along, when suddenly something pops up out of nowhere and we think “what if?”. Opportunity knocks and it’d be really easy to just look the other way and stay comfortable. But damned if curiosity isn’t a bitch, and temptation of a new adventure is strong. Maybe life’s too short to just settle.
That’s pretty much been the past few weeks. I was settling in for another winter here in Vermont when, one morning, a curious email showed up in my inbox. Would I have interest in working with the American Fly Fishing Trade Association (AFFTA) as the Communications Director? One thing led to another, and—what’s the song?—here we go again.
I’m excited to announce I’ve accepted the role with AFFTA, as well as a role with Yellow Dog Fly Fishing involving social media, blogging, and photography. Both positions offer quite a bit of flexibility, and I’ll be actively continuing to grow the freelance business. At the end of the day, it all comes down to the ability to grow my own business and keep expanding the skill set. I’ve realized I rather like words… taking random letters and putting them in order to create something that interests people and, in the best scenario, incites change. And when words and pictures come together, that’s the happy zone. That’s when life is good.
I can’t thank Orvis enough for the past few years. I’ve been lucky enough to work with some of the most incredible people here—creatives who are willing to let me step outside the role of copywriter and try some new things, executives willing to take the time to mentor an outside-the-box thinker, and a host of other talented people I’ve been able to work alongside. It’s been photo shoots in far-off places, late night catalog reviews with a six-pack of beer, and hundreds of cozy mornings sipping coffee and talking shop.
It’s been unexpectedly hard to leave—living in the Northeast has felt rather like living in a different country, and that’s something I like—and some of these friends I know I’ll keep for a lifetime. The beauty of the fly-fishing industry is that it’s small, and while I’m leaving Orvis, the reality is I’m really not going all that far.
Physically, however, I am trekking back to Montana in early October. I’ll be based in Bozeman, and while I’ll be on the road as much as possible (something about saltwater that keeps drawing me in), this means I’ll be in the “belly of the beast” for fishing photography. Look for some exciting new projects in the near future.
I guess this means these next few weeks will be the close of The Vermont Chronicles. I’ll have to think up a new series name for this next chapter… I have a feeling it’s going to be an exciting one. Huge thanks to all of you who follow along with these posts every week; you make it all worthwhile. You put up with a lot of random gibberish, so thanks for that.
Stay tuned for more adventures.
