I must first apologize to Lauren, or LBW, for not finding a solo photo of hers where she's smiling. The photo was taken at work, so that's proof she takes that, along with other roles she plays, very seriously.
In May 2018, I joined my first CrowdTangle retreat, an in-person gathering of the team where we spent a few days planning the product roadmap and figuring out ways we could work more effectively, given the growing size of the team across locations and time zones.
After a day's work, we were in a bar for trivia night and I was seated with her and Carlin. Sometime during the night, Carlin and I took a photo of the two of us and made it LBW's wallpaper.
Over the next year, we would learn how much we both adore Taylor Swift, and she would introduce me to various Taylor lores (or dare I say, Taylores). At the start of the pandemic, LBW would lead health-related projects and we found ourselves talking about Azerbaijan and Armenia and how to find the Facebook pages of their health ministries.
I loved working with LBW. She was straightforward, a natural leader who spoke with authority but remained open to feedback, and always had time for side chats about music and pop culture. Spending time with her also gave me a glimpse of how great she is as a mom. I haven't met her kids, or husband, or parents, but I feel like I know them because of the sparkle in her eyes when she talks about her family.
Over lunch in December 2022, I told her I got tickets to Taylor's New Jersey show in May 2023, but I didn't know yet if I could make it, and she said she'd watch with me if I wanted to.
That would be one of the best moments of my life. Partly because Taylor surprised us with Clean (it was the first time she'd repeated a surprise song during the tour), but also because it felt like the perfect celebration of a friendship built over years as colleagues.
And while our CrowdTangle eras are behind us, LBW will always be on the list of friends I need to see in LA, even if she asks me about all the new things I know about Azerbaijan.