Off to Toronto

Cory Bourdeaud'hui, the Grainews ad sales manager, asked me along for one of his business trips — this time to Toronto. Today and tomorrow we'll be hooking up with company and ad agency reps for Toyota, Syngenta, Yamaha ATV, Dupont, BASF, Dodge and some others. I asked Cory why he wants to have me on these trips. His first response: "To drive the car." I did drive today. We had a GPS navigation system, which — for a person like me who prefers a good old map — can make a mess of simple common sense.

When pressed for a serious response, Cory gave four reasons:  1) I provide the editorial perspective "because I don't know what you're doing and thinking in terms of content," he says. 2) I help carry the conversation in the meetings. 3) We're like a team, he says. "I don't think anyone else does that, which makes Grainews stand apart." 4) I provide companionship...someone to travel with, eat with, and smell his gas in the hotel room. (Cory told me to say that. He said my blog was too serious.)