Hello!

NO, it’s not so bad this year, because at least, it’s not a Monday!!!

For me, it’s a nice and sunny day, waking up spirits as to remember that some day, quite soon, spring will be here! And I just spend an hour in a very interesting consultation with a new client, and I don’t have that many - YET! - so that makes it a wonderful day for me!

Keep up the Great Work, Mike! It’s contagious, you know!

cheers from france,

: ) Maria

I disagree. I’ve had a miserable week. Unfair performance review despite doing a really good job. That’s what happens when you get your work done rather than going around socializing. Had I know that it would be a popularity contest, I would have spent more time chatting and less time working. This was followed by frustration, which was followed by lack of motivation. My friend lost her job yesterday with almost 50 other people–for no good reason other than the morons running the place can’t make things work during record commodity prices and cheap capital. So, all-in-all not a lot of fun.

Today, I decided that it wasn’t worth the effort to try to fight it. It is what it is. I had a great day. Went to the gym first thing to help ensure a better mood and smiled all day long. Good thing I didn’t know Jan 24 was supposed to be such an awful day!

What’ s going well for me is that I have started posting on craigslist. I am doing it based on a new economic philosophy. Rather than asking what is the most I can get for an item, I let the buyer make an offer. Since Americans are reticent about bargining, I offer a baseline. “First offer over $ x amount takes it.” Or, “make an offer and take it.” It’s not that I don’t want to make money, but I don’t want money, or the lack of it for someone else to keep from being able to make someone’s day. I started in Dec. I have a couple of people’s personal contact # already on file so when I come across more of what they are looking for, they will get first dibs. There is a slow but steady flow. It works for me!

Jan 24 was a good day for me.. I managed to meet my commitments to the adults in my community who are just beginning to learn about the use of computers. The days here are really cold, well below freezing in fact, and my innitial choice might have been to stay under the quilt, but I am committed to this volunteer initiative program and feel a great satisfaction when I see that me efforts are helping to elevate the spitits of others who are feeling left behind in this ever changing, fast paced world of technology..

Thanks to all of you - Libby, Deb, J and Maria - on how you’re shaping things and therefore why Jan 24th wasn’t the pits after all