Perfect Pixie Lunch

Okay, so last Friday, Kelly and I had a magical lunch. At first glance, it was just a networking lunch. Kelly and I read an article in Real Simple magazine about organizing by personality type (I know!) — so we wrote a week's worth of PixieTips describing how left brain/right brain personality types synchs up to Myers-Briggs and PixieType. The source of the article was Melissa Picheny, a home and life organizer, home stager and interior designer. Her website is slick, her before and afters impeccable, and her bio photo intimidating — a hip, clever, gorgeous New Yorker.

And she is. Our lunch was brokered by the lovely stylist, Lani Rosenstock Inlander, whose roommate is, of course, friends with Melissa, because this is the way of New York City and six degrees of separation. The fact that they happened to run into each other running in Central Park a week after our PixieTips on the Real Simple article ran is just plain uncanny. Coincidence can only take you so far.

We met on the Upper West Side at a cute little cafe, whose name I won't besmirch, but they were a little pissy and there was an hour wait! So, we went next door. I was way nervous, because I always assume that everyone else is more established, more together, and never nervous, but of course that's just my crazy head. Melissa and I started talking while Kelly went to the bathroom and it was quickly established that while her home & life service business has taken off in this THE WORSE recession we've ever seen, ours had quickly tanked and we were grateful for the lull.

We believe Melissa is a Fun Freedom. She's easily adaptable, started her business organically because she cleaned up her house and everyone was impressed. Clients started coming and when one of them wanted to renovate a bathroom, she learned how. Kelly and I were both in awe of this. UGH! So it was quite clear that we share a passion for organizing, designing, and getting rid of junk, but while Melissa loves to DO THINGS (like a good Fun) Kelly and I would much rather talk about it and spread the word!

So as we sat around the table, and the lunch crowd thinned out, I watched Melissa, Lani and Kelly's eyes light up as we each took turns telling our stories. How we had gotten tired of the "rat race" of doing what was expected and what was safe. That path only seems easy, but in reality there's not much wonder, hope or excitement about it. By each taking a leap of faith in starting our businesses, we turned away from those naysayers, people who say things like, "What happens when pixies can't?"

We turned away from them and their safe and sure route and turned to the open road, which is the brave path, filled with fear, uncertainty, but a freedom that promises wonder and dreams that come true. It is most definitely less traveled and we are all the better for it.

Something magic happened when we were sitting there. Lani is a new friend and she is a marvelous gem, and I hope that Melissa becomes a friend too — I feel like we already are, just because we are on the same road, trying to tell people that life should be easy. Soon everyone will be listening, rapt.