2023 in Ten Minutes

As always, it took a lot of work to put this together, but when I watch the finished product, it just fills me with joy—because I lead a charmed life, thanks to all the wonderful and fantastic people in it. ❤️

2023 at PCC

Friday, January 27 I can't remember now who gave me this amaryllis. A broker, maybe? (if you're reading this, let me know!) I know I got it in December 2022, for that year's holiday season. It bloomed in late January.
Thursday, March 16 I can talk about how much I love the Elliott Bay view from our office windows . . . until the orcas come home.
Friday, April 7 Me, Scott, Kevin and Elin: only two of us still work at PCC. Elin retired eight years ago (though she then subsequently spent a couple of years on the PCC Board of Trustees). Elin actually trained me when I was hired in 2002. This was the last time we managed to meet up for a lunch, before Elin moved later in the spring, to spend the rest of her retirement in greater Atlanta. I'm going to visit her there one day soon, mark my words! Incidentally, Noah and Kevin and I had our last lunch with Scott on November 29. He's now moved to Phoenix (where I'll probably visit him one of these days as well)—all these former PCC staff, scattering to the wind. I didn't take a photo that day though. You've got this one to look at, after all!
Thursday, April 13 Merchandising Team Spring Social: we made tamales! (I happen to be in this really great shot because it's one Tristan took.)
Friday, May 12 Have I mentioned that brokers love me? This one even included homemade "at-home Twix" in the gift box I received, and I nearly had a brain aneurysm because of how delicious they were.
Thursday, June 1 I did not take this photo, but rather it was shared via email to the co-op from the Ballard store, to show off their display for Pride month—and I just really loved it.
Thursday, June 29 Justin, who had been working in our IT department longer than I've been at PCC, moved on this year. June 29 was his last day at the office. I saw him standing out on the balcony with his coffee that morning from the kitchen and so I snapped this photo.
Wednesday, July 19 Merchandising Team Summer Social: barbecue at Justine's farm on Whidbey Island. Shelley brought her "Lawn Yahtzee" and it was a big hit. We never did manage an Autumn Social. ☹️ Not that I'm bitter! The holidays and a store closing made everyone super busy, I get it.
Thursday, July 27 I did, however, get to go on a day trip out to tour Wilcox Family Farms. After hearing about their awesome mobile hen houses for several years, as soon as I heard this tour was happening I immediately asked if I could go along. (Even as a vegetarian, I could not possibly care less about chickens as a general rule—eat them all, they're feathered idiots!—but this farm was still very, very cool. Besides, I do love eggs, so there's that, chickens are good for something.)
Friday, August 4 My first business trip! Or at any rate, my first conference attended as a PCC staff member: "Co+nvergence," hosted by National Co-op Grocers (NCG) every year in their headquarters city, Saint Paul, Minnesota. I had a blast and really hope to go again in 2024. The above shot includes all but three of the 22 people from PCC who went: Grocery Coordinators, HBC Coordinators, Merchandisers . . . and me. Side note: one of the 20 people in the above shot is not actually from PCC, the one on the far right. I only learned later that she was from some other co-op and she photobombed us, which I thought was hilarious. This was also my first time visiting the Twin Cities, which was why, on the Saturday the conference ended (after I had arrived the previous Tuesday), Shobhit flew out to meet me, we shifted over to Minneapolis, and we stayed together over there until the next Tuesday.
Tuesday, August 29 Tiny ducks suddenly started appearing in random spots all over the office. The appearances stopped for a while, and reportedly some more suddenly started showing up again just a few weeks ago. As of this week, whoever is behind this anatine rash remains a mystery. This one was on top of the coffee pot in the kitchen.
Friday, September 1 In 2023, my team spent some time making monthly visits to POS (that's Point of Sale, not Piece of Shit) people at stores, just to get some better understanding of their daily tasks at stores. In the above shot, Gabby (seen at far left) and I visit the Central District store (the one I do most of my shopping at), where I snap a quick shot of some fine art along the wall in the hallway toward the break room in the back.
Tuesday, September 5 The completely silly reason I took this photo, using the self-timer on my phone propped on the windowsill of the small conference room next to my desk, was just so I could post it to my socials and say "I’m wearing white after Labor Day muthafuckaaaas." But then? I discovered I could finally update my work Outlook profile picture, which for seven years had been stuck on my "DO GO ON" imitation of the old meme, from when I dressed up as Willy Wonka for Halloween in 2016. Outlook at work, for a few years, had locked the feature to update the user pic for some reason, and I thought, Well, I guess I'll just be Willy Wonka for eternity. But, this year I discovered that lock magically went away, and I liked this photo well enough that I zoomed in on my head and updated it to this photo, which it still is in Outlook at work to this day.
Thursday, September 7 Thanks to Marie in IT, I had my first-ever meeting in "The Globe" meeting room at the north end of the office! It was very exciting.
Tuesday, October 31 Turns out there was a cereal killer in the office. They tend to hide in plain sight. As you can plainly see here, it was very inconspicuous.
Tuesday, November 14 At this year's "PCC Foraged Feast" potluck, our office Thanksgiving: first in line for self-serving food, three people in front of me: a guy whose name I can't remember, Mel, and Leah.
Monday, November 27 There is evidently a whole lot of reason to talk shit about Martin Selig Real Estate, but hey! at least they put up lovely Christmas decorations in our office building lobby! This includes a giant blow-up reindeer, which they've been putting in there at least since we've been in the building. So what if they're deadbeat tightwads, they can't be all bad!
Wednesday, December 6 Here I am, putting in my hour of volunteer work for the year: making cards for the Pike Market Senior Center. Mel, the Office Manager at work, set up a station for those of us who would like to, to make holiday greeting cards for seniors who might not otherwise receive any, and my team (myself, Gabby, Amy) blocked some time to work on them together. Michelle in Finance had a bag of a bunch more crafty supplies she loaned me for us to use, which was really quite helpful.
Wednesday, December 13 Left to right: Jacey, a broker I email frequently but who I apparently met in person once many years ago; Matthew (it's me! drinking, like Jacey, a hot buttered rum in a winking Santa head mug); Katy, National Sales Account Manager at UNFI, who took several of us at PCC out to this for the third year—and included me for the second year—this year; and then the other PCC peeps who made it: Steven, Amanda, Noah. After waiting a solid half hour to get in, we took the first space that became available for a party of six at "Miracle on 2nd," the annual "holiday pop-up" at Rob Roy, a bar on 2nd Avenue: the small space they have outside. Thankfully it wasn't raining, and I was able to order a hot drink (although the use of oat milk in their hot buttered rum, when other ingredients include dairy, completely baffles me).
Wednesday, December 20 It's this year's Ugly Holiday Sweater Brunch! And, after this group photo was taken, White Elephant gift exchange. That was where I received a bag of dried mealworms, but that's a whole other story. As will be, I presume, 2024! So let's start that one.