You don't know what you don't know

Over the past few weeks I've experienced a wide variety of examples...
When you go to a "show" whether it be a show full of exhibitors for women, gardening or fishing do you not go one, for the free stuff and two, to learn more or discover something new? So when you meander past booth after booth, you are immediately stopped by free stuff right? And then next by noticing something that surprises or intrigues you if not something that is already familiar to you. So if you are the exhibitor and your product is still in the widely unknown column, handing an interested party something on your product should probably be accompanied by the "oh and we have this too" information as well? If they don't know what you have, who you are or even have maybe a stereotypical take on your product, don't you want to give them all that you have to show them who you really are? Just because they're at a fishing show doesn't mean they don't also like to go to concerts, eat or other activities. But if they don't know you have those opportunities they can't ask you for more information.
Rules for "shows"
Don't be stingy with your stuff, free or otherwise, do be enthusiastic, don't be timid, do make eye contact and greet as many as are willing to allow, do share your excitement.
Think about what you would expect from anyone in the customer service. Would you bank with a banker who didn't look you in the eye? Would you tip a waitress who chose to read a newspaper instead of refilling your water? It surprises me how some exhibitors judge their success on a show by how many walked by their booth and not on how many they may have actually reached by making new connections and sharing your enthusiasm for your product. Throwing a big picture up in the background and setting up a table does not entitle you to my attention.

Please let the sun shine soon

I truly think the lack of sunlight our area has experienced is starting to take it's toll on the minds of everyone around me and me! It's almost as if the life has been sucked right out of us. It's toughter to get out of bed and then it's tougher to keep going through the day and when you get home you really just want to collapse. I'm not sure how folks in areas like Alaska survive with limited sunlight inthe winter. While I can appreciate having 4 seasons here, I would really like to move on to the next!

It's Official

Ladies and gentleman, sedate yourselves. You are officially at the beginning of that journey called teenager-dom. Gawd save ya! Our daughter has always been that little blond haired princess that makes it really easy to be a proud parent. Honor roll from the time she could get grades, helpful, looks people in the eye and carries on conversations with adults fromthe moment she could form words. Tonight we did the parent teacher conference thing. I will admit I tend to go to hers with a bit of expectation, "she's a good student, great leader, yada yada" but this time there was a "but" and it came at us like a sucker punch. Granted, it really wasn't something of great consequence, but the princess dropped her tiara.
After I could gather my thoughts tonight I started thinking about my time that was her time now. I remembered. Boys were quite the subject. Girls were flexing their flirty muscle with the boys with one eye and tearing each other up with the other one. Even the negative attention from the boys...shoving, play punches etc would get your blood movin. I had a thing in middle school for a guy a grade ahead of me. He was nothing but trouble and I knew that. Part of the reason I found him so hot! We all have to have our bad boys and the princess has found hers. So I explained to her that I get it. I do. But what I didn't get back then was that all those things you're willing to put up with for attention aren't worth your time. What you can do for yourself and your future is live in those little moments but don't ever jeopardize your future and your integrity for a boy. She set the bar high for herself by showing me she was an A student and a leader. I explained that I jsut want her to live up to her potential that she's already displayed. I think she gets it. I don't know how longit will stick but I think she gets it. I hope she gets it before I finally got it!

Groundhog Schmoundhog

Okay, so maybe that's not a word but I would have to say the overall mood about this season of winter is less than stellar right now. It seems the extra cold, grey skies are not helping even the perkiest of personalities right now. I'm tempted to find one of those sunshine lamps... Bring on the sun and the warm air.
I've often thought I would like to eventually live in Colorado. My husband was giving me a hard time about that fact as I was complaining about the possibility of more snow. But in Colorado there are fun things to do with the snow! Here, it's just mostly a pain in the butt!