Page 17 of The Funnel to You

My brother makes me think of Taylor Swift.

Follow me for a second.

He works in advance and drops little hints of what he is working towards. It doesn’t always make sense in the bits and pieces. But as it comes together, you can see all of the “Easter Eggs.” There’s been more than one time that I look back on something and ask myself how I could have possibly missed what he was working on.

For example, the farmers market...there’s absolutely no way that he didn't orchestrate getting Sasha and me into that. My parents have gone to that market for years and Sasha didn’t even know it was a thing. I didn’t even think of the possibility of us going as makeup influencers. Who does that?

When I was in high school, there were so many instances where things just magically “worked out.” And it usually tied back to a conversation I had with my brother. Getting a chance to audition for a school play that I missed out on because I was sick, a girl in homeroom who teased me getting moved to a different schedule, and then there was the restaurant that I got food poisoning at – they got a surprise health inspection that closed them down within a few days.

How he does it, I have no clue.

Is he the one behind it all?

I can’t prove it, but I know it’s him.

He’s in my phone as “Mastermind” and he just keeps proving to me that he deserves that title.

Now if only he could help with some of the Karma side of things with some other of my current issues, but for now, I can handle that on my own.

For now, the focus is on as much content as Sasha and I can get out before I go back to school in the fall. Everything else can wait until then.

Chapter Ten

Sasha

English Breakfast Tea with a splash of milk

Social Post: I think I might have had too much coffee this week. But I get to meet some amazing people at the farmers market tomorrow!! Who is local that I’ll get to see? And what booths do I need to go check out once I’m set up?

Image description: Tote bag with makeup cards and pens next to it. #sashaloveslipstick #farmersmarket #eventprep #noco #coloradosummer

Friday morning has me working with Ashley and Kylie on the final prep for tomorrow. We have done a mock table setup and have done a handful of story posts to show off what we are working on for this weekend. Several local people are planning to stop by our booth too. I was even able to get some stickers done with my IG handle: Sasha Loves Lipstick. They’re the thicker material that is great for water bottles or notebooks. The different colors are perfect and I am hoping they are a hit with my followers that are able to make it.

We also made up a few resources to share about local beauty favorites, top summer makeup trends, and links to tutorials on my site. I don’t have paid services that I offer besides collaboration with brands so the goal for tomorrow is connection, collaboration, and freebies. Who doesn’t love more stickers and pens?

Carter is working early today so he should be getting home at four and that will be our cue to be done for the day. I ended up taking today off from work. I went over my hours at work a few days this week so only had to take a few hours of PTO to finish off my week. I want to go into tomorrow well rested and ready for whatever happens. Will it turn into any more deals? I’m honestly not sure, but it’s a great opportunity to connect with others and pitch what I want to do locally.

Carter has a couple of pizzas and salads with him for dinner so he throws the pizza in the oven to keep them warm as we pack up the car. The more I can get done tonight so I don’t have to remember them in the morning, the better. We have to be at the space at nine tomorrow morning and I don’t want to be rushed. Ashley is going to meet me here so we can go over together in the morning, and get coffee on the way, obviously. Kylie and Carter are going to come by the table for a bit around lunch to check in and give us a break if needed. The event goes from ten until two tomorrow, so it’s not terribly long, but depending on traffic, a break may be nice.

As we finish packing up the car, I pull out my phone to double check my list of everything we need to bring. I think we are good to go but I don’t want to forget anything. I shoot Matt a quick text with my list and ask if there’s anything else I may be forgetting.

Matt: Do I need to bring you coffee in the morning or are you and Ashley planning on stopping first?

Me: I think we are planning on stopping first so we can take our time going over and setting up. We just finished loading the car and are going to eat dinner before we call it a night. We have extra pizza if you want to come over if you are free. No pressure, but wanted to check.

Matt: I am actually out by your place right now (Ashley sent me the address when she was over a few weeks ago ;) ) so that would actually be great. Do you need me to grab anything?

Me: Perfect. I think we are all set. See you soon.

I turn to the group and let them know Matt is coming and I don’t miss the little smirk that Kylie gives me. We have had more than one conversation about how easy it is to talk to him and how I’m enjoying getting to know him more. And how I wouldn’t mind seeing him in a less than professional capacity at some point. But I know that isn’t the focus right now. Maybe tonight we can just hang out as two adults with our friends rather than business colleagues though.

Within a few minutes, Matt drives up. He parks by the curb and then makes his way over to us. He greets his sister with a side hug and then lazily drapes his arm over her shoulder as he turns to greet the rest of us, “How was packing everything up?”

“It went pretty well. Luckily we don’t have to deal with a lot of products or fragile things to worry about. I just hope this isn’t a total waste of time,” I am already second guessing myself so much with this. Who ever heard of an influencer attending a farmers market?

“It’s going to be great. You’ve got your focus areas for the event and you are going to have your cheer team there with you, right?” Matt asks me. His focus doesn’t stray from my face, even with the others standing around. He makes me feel like I’m the only one in the room when we talk. I take a moment to take him in and then nod in response.

“Yep, I’ll have my cheer team with me. And several of our local followers are planning to stop by. So there will be some familiar faces in the midst of all the walk-by traffic.”

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