Community Archives - Kristina's Media

5 Reasons Why I Choose to Live in Canton, NC.

Sorrells Street Park-Canton, NC

I have lived in Canton, NC since May 2013. Before that? Hickory, NC, Minnesota, Alaska, and born and raised in The Lone Star State—TEXAS. I’m proud.

I have been immensely blessed to have lived in amazing places where I’ve found friends that turned into family. Now, with a husband and a young child, we knew we needed to make a move that put us close to family for support. More importantly, we were ready to put down roots, buy a house, get careers. Our stereotypical millennial ‘follow your dreams’ had faded into, ‘let’s find a home, community, and purpose where I can feel settled and calm’. Dreams change (I used to dream about pulling a ‘Promised Land‘, I really dodged a bullet there!).
Our family’s unlikely path lead us back to my husband’s hometown of Canton, NC, where people from outside of town—for some reason—are always asking why we live here. With a paper mill in the center of town, the stigma is high. Over 100 years ago, the paper mill was built and has been a staple of the town since. Besides employment, the paper mill also (and still does) the water treatment. The result, roughly 3/7 days a week there is a smell from the mill. I still smell it, but knowing that the town is actively addressing the water challenges is encouraging, and the smell is part of that.

Regardless of stigma, smell, or small town size, I have fallen in love with this place. Why?

Location, location, location. Positioned right off I-40, the Town of Canton is only 20-25 minutes to downtown Asheville (where I work), only minutes away from amazing hiking, and the tourist friendly Town of Waynesville. Canton also has some great amenities, like a Japanese, Southern, and Mexican restaurants, several grocery stores–including Food Lion and a great Ingles (with a Starbucks! I have a problem). For us, we also have family close by (see BONUS below).

Affordability. Canton has a much lower median house price than several areas of Buncombe County (especially Asheville) and even some parts of Haywood County. Rent in Asheville/Buncombe county is painfully high and in short supply. Right now, rent in the area we live in (according to an unscientific poll) ranges from $600-$850/mo for a 2-bedroom 1-bathroom house. I have some colleagues paying double that in the Asheville Metro.

Canton Rec park

Walk-ability to recreation. We live in town, so that means sidewalks that lead to the Recreation Park! While several towns and cities in the region have this as well, it is typically coupled with higher priced housing. Basically, you pay to have access and the views. Here, we have affordable housing that is located in a place where we can take a walk by the Pigeon River, and enjoy the local pool and playground. There are also basketball courts, a small skateboard zone, sand volleyball, and river access.

On a walk around Canton

Scenery. This place is beautiful. That is all.

Family Friendly. The affordability, the recreation, access to healthcare, the rec park… did I say that one already? The town’s recreational programming team and community works dilligently on family friendly activities and events. From the Labor Day Festival (the oldest Labor Day celebration in the Southeast), National Nights Outs, Shining Rock Riverfest, Christmas Parades, Fourth of July celebrations (fireworks on the 5th, always, because why not?), and so much more.

Grit. I don’t use this term lightly, especially after reading Grit by Angela Duckworth, a book about passion and perseverance. This town was built on the backs of the American worker. It values community and it knows that the paper mill is part of the community because Canton was built around it. When other mills were being closed and outsourced, this paper mill stayed open, Fun Fact: The Canton papermill makes your Starbucks cups!

This community perseveres and fights. They are proud and focused on preserving Canton for the next generation. That could mean ensuring future work training for future generations through pulp and paper vocational training, encouraging chemistry for students in local high schools, and developing and sustaining family owned and small businesses. Count me in.

Hometown band, Balsam Range describes Canton’s history in their award-winning album, Papertown:

BONUS: Last but not least, proximity to family. We live close to family that has been a great support system for us. We can’t do this alone, and don’t want to! You can’t put a price tag on free babysitting… but I have. We’ve saved at least $4,500 in past 3 years living close to ~~free babysitting~~ family. They have picked up my son when he’s sick at preschool when my husband and I didn’t see the calls come through, we’ve enjoy dinners made by someone else when we were too tired to cook, and we get to watch our son grow up knowing family.

So, if you still want to know if it smells, I’d say you are asking the wrong question. Is Canton improving this family’s quality of life? Yes.

I like my question better.

Turning 30

I have been thinking about the future lately. I suppose it has to do with the new year that arrived and the fact that I’m turning 30(!) this year. The big 3-0 is something that I’m welcoming with open arms. My twenties were crazy. From college graduation to Alaska to getting married and moving (again and again)…Oh, yeah, and having this adorable kiddo!

I welcome the thoughts of settling down and making some tough choices. Choices about money, where we live, work, play… the list goes on. The choices I make now, are not only for me, but for my family.

Things I think about as I turn 30:

My choices are my own, only I can make them, and they impact people around me.
My choices are exactly that. Choices. I may make the wrong one, but I’ll learn.
It’s alright to try new things… and it’s alright not to like them, no matter how ‘cool’ they are.

When I was in my early 20s, I would read countless articles from women that said that they were more comfortable in their own skin in their 30s than they were in their 20s. I never understood that. In my 20s, I could do anything, be anything, and move anywhere. And, for the most part, I did.

What is more comfortable than all that freedom? Man I was naive.

Today, I’m still shocked that seasoned professionals grabbed me and kept me focused. From awesome managers to tremendous mentors that still check on me from time to time.

Now I am more confident and sure of my choices than I have been in my entire life. Yes, all 29 years. I enjoy the work I do and the people I work with. I make choices on who I work with and for. That is liberating.

Another thing I never new would bring so much freedom is security.

Yes, I said it, security.

20s are not as glamorous as everyone makes them out to be. Seriously, my idea of a fun weekend was taking the bus to Borders (yes, it’s now closed), getting a magazine, and going home to cook dinner. Glamorous? Glam cost dinero. I had none.

Knowing I have a job, a family to come home to, a car that works, or money to try some new recipes is the best I’ve felt since… ever. They are simple things. But I love simple.

Sure, the days I didn’t have a car and rode the bus all over the Twin Cities was… humbling. But now? I’d rather have a car to run errands with a toddler.

Today, I know what I need, what I like, and what I can do to keep me and my family happy and healthy. I know and trust God to guide us, and if I truly desire to be successful in my life’s relationships, work, and health, I need the help of others. I need community. People better than I am. Friends and family that love me. In my 30s, I want to nurture that.

Bring on my 30s!

20s- I know you’ll always be there because Facebook will always remind me.

Community that can’t be replaced

I want to take a minute and talk about community. I am a HUGE supporter of the internet and the beauty it brings. The internet has a great way to bring (and keep) people together.

For example, as a person that has moved to several states over the years, I’m able to stay in touch with friends from all over the world because of the internet. I can send emails, view pictures of their trip to China, and they can see our new house in the mountains of NC. This is all wonderful, but at the end of the day it can leave a person feeling alone in a room full of people. You have the world at your fingertips, but without real, tangible community, you are left lonely.

I am NOT saying that you can’t find great community online, but you still need community in real life (IRL). These days, I believe it’s easy to fall into the rhythm of not attending social events and gatherings to play another game of halo, or to hang out and read Wikipedia articles.

But at the end of the day, it comes down to the fact that we need people. Real, in the flesh, people.

I would be lying if I said my 1-year-old didn’t have anything to do with this post, but in all honesty, he does. We’ve moved and that means finding a NEW church/community home. We desire for Henry to have a community of loving and giving adults and other children he can play and grow with. My son can’t find what he needs on a computer, he needs people. And he taught me that.

Babies, children, teens, and adults all need one another. We need to learn to grieve, love, have fun, and be together as community. We all learn from one another and that doesn’t stop with age.

What is community?

How do you seek out community?

What tips do you have for people new to a community single or otherwise?

Below is a list of IRL events that communities nationwide are hosting:

(in)courage

TED talks– ideas worth spreading

Continuing education

Community Reading programs

Email Marketing

The next step in my career will be in Email Marketing. During the interview process for this new position, I was asked where I thought this communication tool would be in 5 years. That lead me to think about how organizations need to change to enhance their marketing…

My 3 thoughts:

Need heavy segmentation. The time of ‘batch and blast’ has been over. For email marketing to be effective, heavy segmentation is a must. We need to provide our customers a terrific experience right in their inbox. That means providing relevant content, not sending everyone the same thing. Perspective: Just because I walk into the women’s department at Target doesn’t mean I want to see toothpaste and camping gear next to the bras and swimsuits. I want a swimsuit, not see things I don’t want. —Now I know some people argue that I may remember that I need toothpaste when I see it, but that’s a whole other blog post.
Must follow CAN-SPAM. You might be surprised how many people I consult with that are NOT following best practices that support CAN-SPAM laws. To be an effective email marketer, you need to follow best practices that make you not only follow, but surpass the laws in place. Otherwise, your emails can/will be labeled as SPAM and more and more of your communications to your potential and current customers could end in the junk folder. No bueno.
Improve promotions. I’m really tired of iPad giveaways. Honestly, you’ll get people entering to win the iPad that aren’t interested in your products or services. Are those people considered ‘engaged’ or even ‘leads’ because they filled out an entry form? Now, if you have an iPad app associated with your organization, or a great mobile site launch, by all means, give away an iPad. Remember: If it can showcases/enhances/promotes your brand/products/services, do it. If the giveaway outshines, then please don’t waste your time and resources promoting the giveaway.

Where do you think email marketing will need to be in the next 5 years? What can people change or enhance to improve this tool?

Google Flu Trends + Sharing your life for the better

If you haven’t seen Google’s helpful flu tracking tool, you should check it out (here). The search giant created a ‘Flu Trends’ page based of search trends found through their tool ‘Google Insights for Search’ (view page).

As you might expect, there are more flu-related searches during flu season, more allergy-related searches during allergy season, and more sunburn-related searches during the summer. – From Google Flu Trends ‘How it works’ page here

Makes sense to me. I would think that there are more searches for Santa Claus in November and December than in April, and more in areas where people recognize the jolly man.

But, how do we feel about Google logging all of our keystrokes?

Usually, I am incredibly skeptical on companies/organizations keeping all my data and information (but yes I still ‘Google’ and ‘Facebook’). But the use of my information for good? If it’s possible, I say, do it. I know, this does beg the question: ‘where will it end?’

I don’t have that answer. But, I have to say, I love trend maps like this one. It really brings out the marketer in me.

What kind of trend maps would you like to see from Google?

Is email killing you? (It’s crushing me)

I have been wondering lately where my productivity has gone. I started a brand new (awesome) job that I am loving that’s really pushing me to greater heights (it helps that my coworkers and bosses are fan freakin’ tastic). However, sometimes I look down and it’s been 2 hours since I started a project. I need and want to be productive, so I decided that this has to stop.

Last week, I took an inventory of my time, and I realized that I spent WAY too much time just ‘cleaning’ and organizing my inbox.

Everyone has been there with email. You’ve been working on ‘cleaning’ and ‘organizing’ your email to ‘put out fires’ and someone calls to see if you received their novel of an email. Regardless who it’s from, your boss, co-worker, or vendor looking to up-sell it seems that email has become a life preserver as if to say ‘I held up my end, the ball is your court’.. and I’m done.

Conversations go something like this:

Them: I emailed you that proposal 203 hours and 23 minutes ago with 7 attachments and my edits to your proposal. Have you not read it yet?

Me: Not yet. I’m overloaded from the holidays.

Them: Ha! I know what you mean. I check mine all the time and still can’t seem to keep up.

—

Wait. WHAT?

So not only are we ‘using’ email as a file cabinet (are those even made anymore?) to make sure that we have a record of the conversation, but we’re never leaving work because we have to constantly keep our ‘desk’ clean by checking and cleaning our email. Don’t even get me started on voice-mail.

So all this begs me to ask: Why am I doing this to myself?

Answers (justifications?):

Because I manage several vendors and it’d be a nightmare otherwise? Vendor management. Oy vey.

Because workplace culture dictates? Maybe.

Because that is the only option right now? Not good enough and not hardly.

There are SEVERAL options out there for project correspondence and collaboration. Think 37signals. But what about day-to-day communication?

My background is in communications and email, in my opinion, IS NOT great tool for proper conversation. Honestly, it’s one-way. Forget about collaboration, it’s not good with that. Maybe if you are having correspondence with one person over time, but then, let’s call that what it is, a freakin’ letter.

Companies like Hootsuite are making a day-to-day conversation tool for communications within organizations, but I can see the comments so clearly…

‘I can’t follow the thread all the time!’

‘Ugh. Not another network to maintain.’

‘I’m not on Facebook,’

You see where I am going with this. While email is crushing me (and everyone’s productivity) I’m also weary on a taking the social network approach. However, I think we MUST re-imagine what communication looks like, and like everything, communication, like culture, is unique to a company.

What does communication look like for me and my company?

Will I stop using email? Not right now, but I will improve my time management with it so I am able to really be productive.

How are you communicating in your office? Do you use a social type network? Do you love or loathe email?