So I was watching Lord of the Rings and Gandalf the Grey (not to be confused with Gandalf the White) said something that I had heard many a time before but stuck with me this time.

“All we have to do is decide what to do with the time given to us”

This was the thought that got me started on this blog post reflecting on the past year of Monon.

So as you may or may not know, By state records, my business is now a year old. It was at this point last year that I started getting Monon Beverage going. It wasn’t until October 1st that I did my first sales day, but, Monon has been alive for a year now. I guess October would be when Monon started crawling…? There is some metaphor to be made I’m sure…

“There’s some good (beer) in this world Mr. Frodo, and it’s worth fighting for” -Samwise Gamgee, sorta.

Anyway, I started reflecting on all the people I have met and relationships I have made over the past year, and I love it. There are producers that I work with that not only support Monon, but they support what I do in my personal life, like triathlons. To most, if someone told you to “Do good like John Goodman in 10 Cloverfield Ln, or do bad like John Goodman in Transformers, Kisses” that would be meaningless, but to me it meant a lot. I know I can also send memes or have good discussions with those I work with about their personal life happenings, not just what beer or spirits are in the pipeline. I guess I never expected that starting out. Even starting out and being invited into a producer’s home for their Christmas party when the relationship was new, it was a welcomed surprise. Anddddddd being able to share pints with Scott during a work meeting has been fun. He has been with Monon for almost 2 months now… Crazy, right?

“It comes in pints?!”- Peregrin “Pippin” Took

So that leads to where I am going I guess. Monon Ohio was announced recently. That is still being planned, but should be going by the end of the year if all goes as planned. There will be a big celebration in October for Monon turning 1 officially. I feel it is best to celebrate Monon during the month that the first sales was made. I will do a week of events at venues around central Indy, then I will do a week of events with the producers I work with! So you can celebrate with me for 2 long weeks! I guess you could celebrate my birthday too as I will turn a year older as my business turns a year older as well. A few gray hairs since last year, but, thats okay.

To end this post, I will leave with a Bilbo Baggins quote:
“It is no bad thing to celebrate a simple life”

Starting a business has been the most complicated thing I have ever done, but it has made the most sense. I am fortunate to still be operational through hard work and solid products that I work with. More fun things to come and more news to be announced in the near future!

Cheers!
SPW