Hey there! I’m Caroline. The chickadee that runs this here part of the interwebs. In speaking with my people–that’s YOU–it’s come to my attention that a small (re)introduction is needed. Starting my own copywriting business, then moving 1400 miles, while also desperately trying to find the perfect mascara, made me realize readers really liked hanging around here.
Truth be told, I never forgot about it.
It lurked and nagged in the back of my mind the way your laundry does when you think you can begin to just wear your underwear inside-out. Did I just compare you to dirty underwear? Yes.
Hang with me.
A mentor of mine died last week. Death can put so many things in perspective, that unadulterated slap in the face that taking the comfortable path isn’t what life is about. The kind that reminds you the people you surround yourself with in life who truly love you, love all the bits and bobs about you. Imperfections and all.
A teacher at the funeral, whom I haven’t seen in 20+ years, told me she reads my musings and loves taking a glimpse at my take on life. Side note: How cool is that?! This website feels like a little part of me that I open myself up to and very often, as life gets busy or sad or confusing, it suffers. I thought it was time to get back to the regularly scheduled program.
So, to all of you who have seen me IRL (In Real Life, for those who have one) in the last few months or have written to me or commented about how much you enjoy this little fun bit of the internet, how much you identify with being not-so-average, how much you appreciate keeping it real–thank you.
For those of you who don’t know me or aren’t familiar with the Not Your Average Gal community–welcome! Let me (re)introduce myself. *cue the music*
Who
My name is Caroline Peterson. I dropped out of dance class in second grade because, being the tallest and most rhythmically-challenged, I was perpetually shoved to the back. Plus, during practice they placed us in one of two groups: those with dance experience and those without. I always ended up in the latter, with a girl who had a broken leg.
From there, I grew up, traveled the world, meandered around marketing jobs, married a med student who is now an ER resident and started my own copywriting business.
What
In simple terms, this is a corner of the internet that proudly shouts the benefits of not being average. We take different paths in life. We speak opinions that may not be popular. We fiercely defend and support women. We embrace differences and support self-love, however it may look. We like to watch people squirm at Thanksgiving dinners.
This lifestyle brand immersed in the world of traveling and living an unconventional life is also how I do business. I work with brands that want some KA-POW! put back into their messaging. Currently, I’m working on redesigning this site so copywriting is at the forefront. (Don’t worry, this part is not going anywhere, just getting a fancy make-over.) What is copywriting? It’s the writing portion of marketing and advertising. Those hysterical brand campaigns you laugh at? A copywriter wrote that script, social media post, email, billboard or tacky political slogan. Consider us word wizards. *adjusts pointy, star-covered hat*
Where
HERE, silly. Well, technically here, too:
I currently live in a sweet little area north of Detroit, by way of Fort Lauderdale for the past six years. I’m originally a Michigander, you know the ones who point to their hand to show you where they live? We moved to Fort Lauderdale so the hubster could start medical school and while it may have taken me a solid year to adjust to geckos finding their way into the hood of my car, only to reappear by flying up the windshield when I hit a certain mile per hour on the freeway, I learned to love it. We spent 2 years apart while the hubster started his residency back up in Michigan. Now I’m up here too, sniffing my bikinis that smell like coconut sunscreen and petting my sand-filled sandals. Too weird? Too bad.
Now that the hubster is in his last year of residency, we’re not sure where the next stop is. We’re so freaking close to the finish line after well over a decade on the medicine journey, that I’m not sure what to do with my hands!
When
On the business front, I be closin’ deals every day. Did that sound as lame as I intended it? Good.
We traveled to Japan and the PNW this year and typically, I write about such adventures. That got backlogged playing that untimely bitch-of-a-game called perfection. Making time to edit photos perfectly. Waiting for the perfect time to sit down and write. Hoping the perfect words capture my travels. You know what perfection is? It’s a fun sucker. I’ve even written about it before here!
But in full honesty, even with perfection’s grip fully clenched around me, this has been a truly tough season for me. Learning, failing, celebrating and succeeding are a few of the feelings and lessons experienced in my first year of business. The hubster worked all night shifts (and then some) in his third year of residency, which thankfully ended in June, and it was Rough. Yes, with a capital R.
Want to know how rough? There are literally support groups for spouses and significant others of doctors. And I’m in one!
Suffice to say, as I’m coming up for air, I’ve got a plan of attack to keep everyone entertained ’round these parts. You’re welcome, world.
Why
Because we’re all a heck of a lot more alike than we want to admit. Hand-to-heart, traveling reiterates this every single time I step up to customs and hear the pound of another stamp in my passport. We all have such similar hopes and dreams and dammit, it doesn’t take a plane ticket to see that if someone is writing about it.
It’s also refreshing to find relatable content in an often Instagram-filled world that doesn’t make you want to scream, “THERE IS NO WAY SHE LOOKS LIKE THAT IN REAL LIFE.” I wrote about mental health years and years before it became a buzzword and found that sharing our struggles can make others feel a little less alone (and crazy). We’re all in this together.
Because as a copywriter, I know I can start a sentence with, ‘because.’ Compelling content can take many forms: novels, self-help books, protest signs, breakup letters. Words are powerful. When they are used for good–to bring a sensitive subject to light with compassion and care or to reinvigorate a work-horse brand that helps thousands of people by adding a small ingredient called personality–it’s electrifying. It’s that A-HA moment, the one where you’ll find me buried in my laptop, furiously typing away trying to get the words out.
I’m truly honored you’re here for those moments.