SIDE NOTES

Welcome to Side Notes - a collection of essays, excerpts, and reflections shaped by two decades of building things from the ground up. These entries pull from the margins of business, creativity, reinvention, and everyday life. The parts we often overlook but always learn from.

You’ll find moments of humor, clarity, nostalgia, and insight. Whether it’s a chapter preview, an observation, or a personal truth dressed, everything here comes from a place of experience and curiosity

RaeAnne Conat 4/10/25 RaeAnne Conat 4/10/25

Blink. Blink. Blink. You Good?

Blink. Blink. Blink. You good? Because I’m one turn signal away from a full-blown emotional episode. From hallway shoulder checks to broken toes via home trim sabotage—this one’s for anyone who’s ever screamed “REALLY?!” at a cabinet and called it coping. You’re not unhinged. You’re just at capacity.

RaeAnne Conat 3/9/25 RaeAnne Conat 3/9/25

Hi, I’m Business Bleu Cheese

You know what goes great with cold, lumpy mashed potatoes and overcooked peas you’ve been avoiding for an hour?A big ol’ glass of milk.At least, that’s what my grandpa thought when he tried to induct me into the Clean Plate Club. It did not end well. I decorated the family dinner table in a way no one appreciated, and to this day, I still can’t do cooked peas.