It's Greek to me

I'm learning Greek. Kind of. Cupcake is now in her junior year at FSU. (Wow- time flies!) It so happens that all the girls she "hung out" with for the last two years graduated in May and moved away. She stayed in Tallahassee over the summer and she was extremely lonely. Going to a school of 40,000 students requires finding a nest in a smaller group, so she decided to participate in fall recruitment for sororities. Some family members were cheering her on and others were skeptical, saying "it's a set-up for hurt and rejection." The outcome has been terrific and she's having a blast, but that's not the point of this post.

I've been thinking about life lessons and I've come to the conclusion that if we're truly alive, we put ourselves at risk for rejection every day. When we're rejected, it stinks and it hurts but it's such a necessary part of giving, living and loving. The only way to avoid rejection is to not try anything new. Not an option, in my book.

I just read an interview of tennis champion, Martina Navratilova and she was asked, "What quality do you have that champions need?" Her answer was, I think the ability to fail. Not being afraid to put it all on the line and come up short. Most people don't have that."

So there you have it. Our children are champions because we've taught them that failure is just feedback. May you have the courage today to try something new and go somewhere you've never been. Now, how do you say that in Greek?

Silent but Deadly

My main computer died a silent death last week. People blue-line when their heart stops and computers blue-screen when they expire. There was no warning. My solution was to put it in the car and drive to my favorite MicroSoft engineer's place. The bad news is he's 6 1/2 hours away. The good news is he's Addison's dad and he can fix any computer and retrieve files that others might declare as lost. I had a delightful time playing with the baby while he operated.

I got a brand new computer as the other one could not be rescusitated. He recovered all my files and settings, but since it's a new version of Windows and everything is the latest version, I am still finding my way around. For example, I took a picture this morning and thought I saved it to my blog folder and yet it is not to be found. So here's a file photo of what was in our garage this morning:

Ever heard the little rhyme, "red and yellow kill a fellow, red and black are friend to Jack?" Coral snakes have the red coloration next to the yellow and they happen to possess the most potent venom of any North American snake. Great. Once again, a knight came to the rescue (that would be builderman sans the armor) and the snake is truly dead. He's a skinny looking fellow which seems to be the norm. And thus my title; silent but deadly.

I'm not just a survivor though... the Word I read today says I'm "more than a conqueror!" Awesome. I still might be in the market for some snake boots.

She Put All Her Eggs in One Basket

I never thought I'd be blogging about chickens and egg-laying. Seriously.

But I'm easily entertained and the real-life illustration of the common metaphor, "don't put all your eggs in one basket", gave me a good laugh. Well, technically, our chicken didn't put hers in a basket - it was a box.

Egg production at the on-site cackle house has dropped significantly in the last couple of weeks but we attributed it to the heat. I mean, who feels like being productive when sitting in a 100 degree house? In addition, there was one chicken that started brooding over her eggs. We could use a few more hens, so Builderman figured he'd leave her alone and let her sit on her eggs. She had one false start when she moved off the 4 eggs she'd been sitting on after about 2 weeks. (It takes 3 weeks to hatch eggs).

Well, 3 weeks came & went and she was still brooding so Jim decided to check under her and see what was going on. To his surprise, she was sitting on 31 eggs. Thirty One. Apparently, whenever she would leave the nest to get water or something, another chicken would sit down and lay an egg. The whole pile was a mess as there was a broken egg in the mix so Builderman disposed of all of them.

I think chickens are really dumb, so I don't suppose broody hen will learn a lesson. But it was a good reminder for me and gave me a good laugh. And there are actually two morals to this story, the second one being ... Don't count your chickens before they hatch.

The Ice Cream of Our Learning

“If you’re like me, you’ll jump at the chance to bypass all the churning and scoop the cream right off the top. And that’s what quotes are…the cream of our learning.” ~Zig Ziglar

I’ve made a hobby of collecting quotes since I was in high school. With the rise of Social Media, I feel like a glutton at an endless buffet table – it can be distracting. I grab them and horde them and sometimes I feel like a walking book. I guess there’s worse things.

Since, it's Friday, I feel like having an ice cream party of words, so enjoy some of these flavor bites with me:

Even if you're on the right track you'll get run over if you just sit there. ~Will Rogers
(filed under "motivation")

“He who walks in the middle of the road gets hit from both sides.” -- George P. Schultz
(filed under "politics")

You must never confuse faith that you will prevail in the end, with the discipline to confront the most brutal facts ofyour current reality, whatever they might be." ~ Admiral James Stockdale
(filed under "contemplation")

God's will is not an itinerary, but an attitude. ~Andrew Dhuse

( filed under "faith")

“If you treat your wife like a thoroughbred, you'll never end up with a nag.” ~ Zig Ziglar

(filed under "marriage")

"My fashion sense is dictated by what doesn't itch. " ~Gilda Radnor

(filed under "humor")

As you enjoy your weekend, try something brand new along the way. I love to fill my life with “firsts”. The stimulation, wonder and delight tends to ignite passion! And you can quote me on that. (With nuts and cherries on top.)

7 Little Rules to Guide Your Work & Play

1. Ask for what you want.

2. Do what you love and love what you do.

3. Have the courage to “do it scared”.

4. If you don’t like it, fix it.

5. You’re not perfect, get used to it.

6. Dare to be yourself.

7. Measure your success by your joy.

Sparks & All Stars

I have a friend who says that God created night and day so we can have a chance to start over every 24 hours. I agree, but I also reason that each day is divided into just 24 hours so we have limits; I think without constraint I would burn myself up like a shooting star. There’s so much I want to do!!

I bring you the quick version of what I’ve been up to… Last weekend I went to Atlanta to “Spark & Hustle”, a conference for women entrepreneurs. (Details Here)

The women I met there were nothing short of totally amazing. It’s impossible to introduce all of them at once (there were 200+!), but I must mention Shameeka, aka The Broke Socialite, who launched what has grown into a very successful business with her blog in 2005. She is a hoot and a half – had so much fun with her. Then there’s my courageous friend, Alyssa, of VintageBodySpa who flew to the conference by herself at 8 months pregnant because she is so determined to stay home with her new baby. Leeann Staples of MaddyMoo custom handbags gave us awesome gifts in our goodybags and the list goes on... Joyce Bone of MillionareMoms blew me away with her story of mom blogger to owning a 150 million dollar company. Huh? Yep- you heard that right. Phenomenal.

The message that was engraved on my heart is: pursue your passion and believe in the power of your dreams!!

I’ll leave you with another star that made her debut on the cover of Sarasota’s Style magazine this week. Her mother is my favorite blogger, (You've got to read this post titled "Emily Post Would Hate Facebook") Uncommmon Blonde is the most sylish of all because of this accessory on her hip! I know you recognize my favorite baby:

Have a great weekend!

Haste Makes Waste

When I was writing the article below, I was searching my memory for occasions when I've mistakenly grabbed the wrong product in haste and suffered the results. My personal recollection was of mixing up my contact lens solutions. That's bad - but I figured no one could relate. One solution is for soaking & cleansing and you're warned NEVER to put it in your eyes. The wetting solution is used to douse the lens right before you insert it directly into your eye. Mixing the solutions means major pain, all your make-up comes off and your eye is bloodshot ALL day. If you have a story like this, please leave it in the comments. I want to hear. (Fodder for my writing too- thank you very much. Though I promise you anonymity.)

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It’s dark-thirty and you’re at your bathroom counter hastily going through your morning routine, getting ready for the day. You grab a tube, squeeze out a line of gel and start brushing your teeth. You gag as it hits you that the tube on your counter is NOT toothpaste. The right product, applied the wrong way has tainted your day before it even got started.

Congratulations if you don’t have any memories of an experience similar to the one here. But wait – have you ever gotten an email that left a bad taste in your mouth? How about one that twists your gut or makes you feel like the room just got hotter?

Without a doubt, email is a convenient and time-saving tool. But it becomes a liability when used for the wrong type of communications. I’ve found myself wearing the hat of a mediator more times than I can recount as a result of faulty communications that often started with an email.

When there’s a subject that is personal enough to engage emotions, sometimes a simple phone call can circumvent misunderstandings. The real time-savings is in avoiding a mess that has the potential to drain far more time than it takes to make a phone call.

The problem with email is that non-verbal communication is eliminated. Considering the following statistics from Professor Albert Mehrabian of UCLA who is recognized as an expert in the science of communication, it is no surprise that email messages can be the vehicle for misunderstandings.

Professor Mehrabian states that :
• 7% of message pertaining to feelings and attitudes is in the words that are spoken.
• 38% of message pertaining to feelings and attitudes is paralinguistic (the way that the words are said).
• 55% of message pertaining to feelings and attitudes is in facial expression.

Next time you have a message to deliver that affects feeling and attitudes, consider that your intent has a 7% chance of being interpreted as you intended. Even if the statistic were as high as 50%, you would still be better served to pick up the phone. These statistics also drive home the fact that if the message is weighty, a face-to-face meeting is the best choice. Technology is a wonderful thing, but don’t let convenience make you lazy when it comes to good relationships.

No one wants to be an example of the saying, “I know that you believe you understand what you think I said, but I am not sure you realize that what you read is not what I meant.”

The right message, delivered in the right way, can bring clarity and strength to relationships. Choose well.