Twitter Weekly Updates for 2009-12-27

December 27, 2009 by JD · Comments Off
Filed under: Twitter

@aj1996 Congratulations on making that first sale on Zazzle! Hopefully it will be the first of many. #
I just read Mitch’s review of a new ebook about blogging. Maybe you’ll be interested: http://www.imjustsharing.com/beyond-blogging/ #
New: Dec 22, Appalachian Heritage: Our Appalachian heritage derives much of its richness from our ancestors in Scot… http://bit.ly/5FoY7Q #
New: Dec 23, Articles: We invite you to read original articles submitted to AYearFromNow.com for publication. http://bit.ly/8eWwVT #
New: Dec 23, Castle Freedom: I would like to build Castle Freedom ™, the first castle in the history of the worl… http://bit.ly/7WhEIB #
New: Dec 23, Fresh Coffee in Murphy NC: Relax with fresh coffee at coffee houses in Murphy NC. http://bit.ly/6p7xr3 #
New: Dec 24, How My Jewelry Business Evolved: Rena Klingenberg tells us she always loved earrings, and this love ha… http://bit.ly/4R8wIV #
New: Dec 24, Murphy NC: Murphy NC is a growing community that still has small town charm and friendly people. http://bit.ly/2G3OCg #
@patinkc Merry Christmas Pat! I hope you had a great day. #
Murphy Gold News: Dec 26, ShoeBooties Cafe Dining Experiences: ShoeBooties Cafe offers distinctive lunch … http://bit.ly/63Q4iq #MurphyNC #
New: Dec 28, Site Map: Site Map – an index to the pages on AYearFromNow.com. Easily find information that will help… http://bit.ly/8DryvI #

I had a very Merry Christmas this year

December 26, 2009 by JD · 5 Comments
Filed under: Family, Friends, Holidays, Personal

I’m a day late, but I wanted to take a moment and wish all of my family and friends a very Merry Christmas!

I had a computer-free day, yesterday, and that’s very unusual for me.

I spent the day with my daughter and her family and had a wonderful time.

There are many holidays and events that are celebrated at this time of the year and each of us has different views of what is important to us and our family and friends.

Sometimes that leads to big disagreements, which I think is unfortunate.

Over the years, I’ve had good friends who celebrated things differently than I do and I’ve learned to be happy for them and what they believe and not to try to convince them of my way of thinking.

So, even though I have different views than most of my family and friends, I can still enjoy spending a happy day with them and basking in the warmth of love and friendship.

So, whatever you celebrate at this time of year, I hope you enjoyed it with family and friends.

The two holidays I celebrate are Yule and Christmas and I enjoyed both of them.

2009 was a very difficult year for many of us and I am happy that we can have a few days where we can celebrate the good things in our life before we roll into a new year and start the annual cycle, again.

Here’s my wish that all of us will have a happy, healthy, and prosperous 2010. It’s only a week away.

All the best,

Tags: Christmas, Family, Holidays

Think and Grow Rich test: Do you see any connection between your friends and some unhappiness in your life?

December 21, 2009 by JD · 2 Comments
Filed under: Books, Self-Improvement, Success and Failure

My answers to the Think and Grow Rich Self-Assessment Test

Recently, I was reminded of the self-assessment test in Napoleon Hill’s best-selling book, Think and Grow Rich.

There are fifty-four questions in that test, and I’m going to be giving my answers and thoughts on one or two of them as close to daily as I can manage. I may miss a day here or there, but I’m going to follow through until I reach the end of the test.

I’ve started the series of posts with:

Think and Grow Rich self-assessment test

Question Number 39. Do you see any connection between your friends and some unhappiness in your life?

Finally, an easy question to answer succinctly.

No, I don’t.

In the past, I may have been able to say yes, but not now. I’m proud of my friends and happy with them.

What about you?

Do you see any connection between your friends and some unhappiness in your life?

All the best,

Tags: Napoleon Hill, self-assessment, test, Think and Grow Rich

Think and Grow Rich test: What do you know about your friends?

December 21, 2009 by JD · 1 Comment
Filed under: Books, Self-Improvement, Success and Failure

My answers to the Think and Grow Rich Self-Assessment Test

Recently, I was reminded of the self-assessment test in Napoleon Hill’s best-selling book, Think and Grow Rich.

There are fifty-four questions in that test, and I’m going to be giving my answers and thoughts on one or two of them as close to daily as I can manage. I may miss a day here or there, but I’m going to follow through until I reach the end of the test.

I’ve started the series of posts with:

Think and Grow Rich self-assessment test

Question Number 38. If you believe that “birds of a feather flock together,” what do you know about your friends?

I don’t know if it’s a matter of belief or just simple observation, but I’m sure that birds of a feather tend to flock together and this applies to most people I know.

Not only do we do that, we want to flock together, so we look for more who are like us so we can associate with them.

Some of my best friends had feathers of a different kind than I. We had different backgrounds, different wealth levels, different cultures. I could learn from them and they from me.

When we tend to stick only with our own flock, about all we can do is nod our heads in agreement most of the time and that leads to stagnation.

That said, I do think that most of my friends are pretty similar to me.

In general, it means that 2009 has been a rough year and we’re hoping that 2010 will bring an upswing in the cycle. More than that, though, we’re not just hoping, we’re looking for ways to help that happen. We’re being innovative and trying things we might not be doing if circumstances were better.

I believe that we grow more during hard times than we can during easy times. We have an incentive to do so.

When I think about my friends, I see an optimistic bunch of creative people who are doing what they can to improve their lives and cope with the difficulties. I think there are a lot of people like that out there and not all of them are in our flock.

On the other hand, some of my friends and I have very different viewpoints when it comes to religion, politics, and other “hot-button” issues.

What do we do about that? Mostly we recognize the fact, accept it, and respect the others’ rights to hold different thoughts, opinions, and beliefs than we do. We’re a tolerant flock. We look for the things that make us stronger and better friends and not for something to divide us. I like that about my friends.

So, that’s all I have to say on this subject, for whatever it is worth.

What about you?

If you believe that “birds of a feather flock together,” what do you know about your friends?

All the best,

Tags: Napoleon Hill, self-assessment, test, Think and Grow Rich

Think and Grow Rich test: Do you have spiritual forces to protect you from fear?

December 21, 2009 by JD · 3 Comments
Filed under: Books, Self-Improvement, Success and Failure

My answers to the Think and Grow Rich Self-Assessment Test

Recently, I was reminded of the self-assessment test in Napoleon Hill’s best-selling book, Think and Grow Rich.

There are fifty-four questions in that test, and I’m going to be giving my answers and thoughts on one or two of them as close to daily as I can manage. I may miss a day here or there, but I’m going to follow through until I reach the end of the test.

I’ve started the series of posts with:

Think and Grow Rich self-assessment test

Question Number 37. Do you have spiritual forces powerful enough to keep you free from fear?

Now, this is one that I really have trouble answering.

I just don’t ever feel much fear and I can count on the fingers of one hand all the times (as an adult) that I’ve actually been afraid.

In none of those instances did I feel that I needed spiritual forces to protect me.

So, I guess the simple answer to this question is no.

What about you?

Do you have spiritual forces powerful enough to keep you free from fear?

All the best,

Tags: Napoleon Hill, self-assessment, test, Think and Grow Rich

Happy Yule!

December 21, 2009 by JD · 2 Comments
Filed under: Holidays

Now that the Winter Solstice has arrived (well, it will around 1:47 pm EST), we can rest assured that the sun will start coming back north and all the little green things will stick their heads out of the ground in only a few more weeks.

Even though Winter officially starts today, I feel just a little bit better knowing that our big old yellow ball in the sky will start getting higher and the days will start getting longer.

All the best,

Tags: solstice, yule

Twitter Weekly Updates for 2009-12-20

December 20, 2009 by JD · Comments Off
Filed under: Twitter

Murphy Gold News: Dec 16, Appalachian Outfitters – Everything Inside For The Outside in Murphy, NC: Appal… http://bit.ly/6rrPRG #MurphyNC #
Murphy NC Business Owners – Don’t miss our Bring a Friend, Two For One special on MurphyGold.com #MurphyNC – http://bit.ly/7wLvmc #
Murphy Gold News: Dec 18, Murphy Gold Christmas 2009 Bring a Friend Two For One Special: Murphy Gold Chri… http://bit.ly/4BIB9L #MurphyNC #

Tags: tweets, Twitter

Twitter Weekly Updates for 2009-12-13

December 13, 2009 by JD · Comments Off
Filed under: Twitter

@Mitch_M Good morning, Mitch. Thanks for the retweets! I hope you’re doing well today. #
@Mitch_M So, it looks like you’re ending your day as I’m starting a new one. Still sleepy, though. May go back to bed for a nap. #
Tonight is All You Can Eat Crab Legs at Shoebooties Cafe! Yum! #MurphyNC #
Murphy Gold News: Dec 10, ShoeBooties Cafe – Distinctive Dining in Downtown Murphy, NC: ShoeBooties Cafe … http://bit.ly/6qQQfN #MurphyNC #

Tags: tweets, Twitter

Why does tomato soup taste better in winter?

December 11, 2009 by JD · Comments Off
Filed under: Musings

And now, for something totally different than what I’ve been writing about lately.

I like soup.

I prefer to drink soup from a cup rather than eat it from a bowl using a spoon, unless it is full of big chunks of meat.

When I’m eating soup with a spoon, I enjoy the slurping sound I make when I’m trying to eat it before it’s really cooled down. I like my soup hot and I’ve been known to microwave it half through to heat it back up.

I don’t like cold or even cool soup.

My taste for soup changes depending upon the weather. When it’s warm outside, I prefer chicken noodle soup or cream of chicken.

However, when the temperature drops outside and my fingers and toes start to ache from the cold, there is only one soup I crave and that is tomato soup. I love tomato soup in the cold of winter, but can’t stand it the rest of the year.

I wonder why that is.

I don’t really like tomatoes.

I don’t like raw tomatoes, except when they’re on a hamburger or chicken sandwich. I will eat them in a salad, sometimes.

I like lasagna and spaghetti, but don’t eat either of them more than once or twice a year.

Tomatoes just don’t play an important part in my diet.

I’m craving tomato soup.

But, even so, yesterday and today I’ve been craving a hot cup of tomato soup. Yesterday, I treated myself to tomato soup and a baked chicken sandwich for lunch and enjoyed every bit of it.

I don’t normally eat lunch. Usually, I try for a good breakfast and then a good dinner, but lunch tends to leave me sleepy and non-productive for the next couple of hours.

That’s what happened yesterday. I worked for five or six hours and ate my delicious lunch. Then, I didn’t feel like doing anything and took a long nap for almost three hours.

Today, like yesterday and the day before, I feel like I’m running a low-grade fever with the itchy eyes, runny nose, and lack of energy. It doesn’t seem to be getting any worse and I don’t really feel sick, just not quite up to par.

So, can you guess what’s on my mind? That’s right. I’m looking forward to a hot cup, or maybe even two cups, of tomato soup this evening. I don’t know what I’ll have with it, but that doesn’t seem to be all that important. I’m looking forward to hot tomato soup on a cold day.

I wonder why that is.

What about you?

Does your taste in soup change with the season and the outside temperature?

Whatever you like during this time of the year wherever you live, enjoy some soup today!

All the best,

Tags: chicken noodle, soup, tomato

Think and Grow Rich test: Does your job inspire you?

December 8, 2009 by JD · 6 Comments
Filed under: Books, Self-Improvement, Success and Failure

My answers to the Think and Grow Rich Self-Assessment Test

Recently, I was reminded of the self-assessment test in Napoleon Hill’s best-selling book, Think and Grow Rich.

There are fifty-four questions in that test, and I’m going to be giving my answers and thoughts on one or two of them as close to daily as I can manage. I may miss a day here or there, but I’m going to follow through until I reach the end of the test.

I’ve started the series of posts with:

Think and Grow Rich self-assessment test

Question Number 36. Does your job inspire you?

This is hard to answer, because I don’t have a job.

I have a lifestyle.

So, indulge me for a moment as I rephrase the question to, “Does my lifestyle inspire me?”

Most of the time, it does.

I enjoy what I do. I enjoy marketing and promoting things for other people. I enjoy promoting other people.

Sometimes, I even enjoy looking into myself and writing about it, as I have in this series of questions.

A long time ago, I had jobs I did not particularly like. Some were hard, others involved having to work with unlikable and unreliable people. I took steps to leave those jobs and find others that were better fitted to me and the lifestyle I wanted.

Some of the most inspiring jobs were the hardest, so I wasn’t just trying to find an easy way to live. I wanted to do something that mattered and helped others, and not just find an easy way to a big paycheck.

Now that I’m self-employed and haven’t had a job for awhile, I still try to find things that help others achieve what they want and I find that to be much more inspiring than most jobs I’ve ever had.

From a practical viewpoint, I have to increase the amount of income over what it has been this year, but I believe that the money follows when you’re doing something worthwhile. It may take some time and it may be a challenge – especially at first – but I believe the money will come.

If I had to make a decision between a big paycheck for doing something I disliked versus less income for doing something I love, I’d pick the latter one every time.

It’s been nearly 20 years since I had a job that did not inspire me, and I like it that way.

What about you?

Does your job inspire you?

All the best,

Tags: Napoleon Hill, self-assessment, test, Think and Grow Rich