F.R.I.E.N.D.S.

Of all the social media platforms out there, we think that Pinterest is the most intriguing.  Facebook is great for keeping friends/customers/whomever engaged with your day-to-day goings on, as is Twitter for short updates, moments of inspiration or quick quotes.  Blogging is fabulous when you want to get wordy (like now); and Instagram/Tumblr are fine for pictures and quick glimpses into what you're doing.


But Pinterest?  Isn't that just another picture sharing site?  Yes, and it's so much more than that. With all the metrics Facebook provides Page administrators, it's still just a daily chronicle, and one so overused by so many that it's become ubiquitous. Do people actually remember everything they read there?  Pinterest, on the other hand, may seem overwhelming, but we know people who peruse that site who are actually looking for inspiration.

We're on Pinterest, naturally.  We like that we can divide up our photos into different categories (called boards), and we also love that in our infrequent spare time, we can cull through other people's photos and find what inspires us.  I find it fascinating looking through those boards that are devoted to inspiration, be they collected images, poetry, quotes, or sayings.  We have a board for what inspires us called Core Beliefs - What Makes Us Tick.  It's interesting to see which quotes and words of wisdom get repinned (meaning that someone liked it so much, they "pinned" or copied that picture onto one of their own boards).  The following three quote memes were the most popular on our board:

The first quote about friends was repinned a whopping 243 times, the Never Lie quote 86 times, and What Will Matter 8 times.  Something said in all of these resonates deeply with many people out there, it seems, and is very telling about how people think about relationships. It's a subject that is universally felt by all of us and we like how putting those feelings into words can help people get through some dark times. It also makes us feel so grateful that we have so many true friends.

Speaking of which, our entire complex of stores has been sold off by Scott's dad to an investment firm located in West Los Angeles.  They want a lot of money for rent, which we don't think is warranted, given the current traffic though here.   This investment firm, Greenbridge Management, says they want to help our community by giving it another bank, a Starbucks (maybe), and other stores that will increase consumer activity in Altadena.  While the jury is still out on whether or not our townsfolk want increased traffic, I'm sure the other businesses in town will be pleased by any such increase.  We certainly would be, too.  But it's not looking good for us, so it seems there might be no actual Webster family members in the complex of stores that began 87 years ago, in 1926.

As the quotes we printed above point out, however, we know we can get through this change in our life and business with a little help from our friends. We choose to remain optimistic about our future, be it here at our former family enclave or elsewhere. Stay in touch with us, and we'll keep you informed of any news.  Onward and upward, friends!

Have a great week, and we'll talk to you soon.

Lori & Scott