The new year is a great time to take stock and start fresh. Kind of like beginning a diet on Monday, there seems to be a mental advantage to putting a new plan into action at a solid jumping off point.

I will be doing the obvious, such as cleaning off my desk, reorganizing my home office, and calling my mother more often – but I want this year to be more. My resolutions involve both family and business, but none of my major goals are crystal clear yet.  I read a cartoon in today’s paper that pretty much sums up my mental state as I mull over the possibilities for this brand new 365 days that has already begun: “…this year I’m really gonna accomplish something. What should it be?”

Today I met a friendly customer that was shopping for kitchen type puzzles to use as decor in her home. She shared her excitement in a nice note of thanks for my quick shipping. Her attitude felt like a spring breeze in my office.  She made me smile. I want to share that smile with you! 

I enjoy meeting enthusiastic puzzlers.  People are the best part of what I do for a living.

I hope you enjoy whatever you need to do today. If you find an extra smile in your day, please come back and share! 

What is your focus today? Mine has been my home. That’s the great thing about working from home, isn’t it? We can decide from day to day, hour to hour, where we are needed most.

Nobody paid me to clean the fish tank this morning. I doubt anyone will even notice – guppies never seem grateful. Nobody will notice that I covered my gray either. (I like it that way.)

Sometimes it just feels good to clock out, leave my office, and do something for my home. 

I hope you are enjoying your day. I am!

The big snow storm has past. It included sleet that left a layer of ice, set like concrete on top of the snow. It has created hours of work as people attempt to dig out of their driveways.  Area hospitals have also reported an unusual number of broken bones from falls.

I spent hours chipping and shoveling yesterday. I began with the sidewalk leading from the house to the driveway.  I worked to clear the walk to the mailbox and street.  It looked like a near impossible task that was going to take days instead of hours with my slow progress.  (I shovel like a grandma.)

Imagine my delight when one of the neighborhood teenagers walked over with a very large snow shovel and an offer to help. He moved snow so much faster than I did! Soon the teenager that lives next door yelled over, asking if we wanted more help. He brought his shovel and dug in.  Both of the helpful young men had already spent hours clearing snow at their own homes.  Both stayed until my driveway was clear enough to get my car out. They even moved the huge pile of snow left behind by the snowplow.

As they walked away together I think I heard them comparing video games.  I hope they got some rest and got to play for awhile last night.  I will not soon forget their thoughtfulness. They made a huge difference in my week.

There are some very fine young men living on this street!

Today, as the winter storm warnings become big news for our area, I am extra thankful to be working from home. I love my home office. As long as our power stays on – fingers crossed that the ice misses our town – I can get my work done just fine.

There is the challenge of snow to shovel. I am also very dependent on my hardworking mail carrier, so I will keep the walkway clear and salted.  This is what it looks like right now. Yes, that is my mailbox out there, but packages are picked up near my front door from a weather sheltered area.

As you can see, I haven’t been outside to shovel just yet. Snow is coming down as I type this. I tried to capture the large snowflakes on camera, but it didn’t work.

Towns about 45 minutes away are reporting ice accumulation. My candles are ready and the fireplace is lit. Are you inside and safe from the winter weather?  I hope so!

I run eBay auctions every week.  It generates interest and I make money – at least that’s the idea.

Sometimes I am the only person interested in the item that I list and it doesn’t sell. Or, perhaps worse, only one other person likes it and there is only one bid. I often post small items with free shipping, knowing full well that I may end up losing money.

How can I lose money on an auction that sells?  I paid for:

• the inventory
• the insertion fee (eBay stores do not get free listings)
• the final value fee
• the PayPal fee
• shipping supplies
• shipping (it was free for the buyer, not for me)

 It adds up fast. I would have been ahead if I just gave the item to a friend or donated it.  But I don’t spend even one moment worrying about it.  It is money well spent. 

Even after after all costs are added up it was inexpensive advertising.  I have gained new customers this way.  When shipping costs me more than they paid for the item and they still get great customer service with face shipping…many times they will be back to do more shopping.  Also, these auctions can be good rewards for faithful repeat customers.  Everyone likes to get a break once in awhile!

Last weekend was the 35th year for the Indianapolis annual garage sale and my 1st as a vendor. Setting up a booth at the Indy hosted sale was a new experience for me. My friend, Carol, sells at shows on a regular basis – and I have been a shopper many times.

The weekend was labor intensive – hauling tables, boxes of items, and shelving from our cars to our booth was real work! Then we had to make the best use of our 10 x 10 space while leaving room for ourselves. We were exhausted when we left for home on Friday night, but we had everything done except for a few finishing touches that were easily taken care of before the doors opened at 9 a.m. Saturday.

We were excited because we felt like we had thought of everything. We were close to the entrance and surrounded by nice vendors. I had the great idea that we should pay for the same booth for next year so nobody else could get it. Carol, bless her smart little heart, wasn’t ready to commit.

First we found out that a new entrance had been added in the back of the second building and most people were coming in on the opposite side of the sale…hundreds of booths away. Then strange loud music started. What we hadn’t realized is that we had put our one place to sit right up against the neighboring booth’s bump and go battery car display. We spent 9 hours (they had great batteries) listening to 4-6 toys play different tunes, all at the same time, while they bumped into obstacles in their square table of a track. Kids loved to stop and watch, at times little boys even climbed up on our stool to get a better look. We were strong though. We came back on Sunday and listened for 6 more hours.

We laughed with customers that sympathized with us because of the repetitious noises coming from the toy cars. The vendors selling the cars were nice people. I hope they sold a lot. But I did not sign up to have the same booth next year. I hope we see you there – same time, different space

January gives all of us a clean slate with a calendar full of possibilities. My “work from home” life is going to be redefined this year!

I have always had long term goals, but I tend to get sidetracked by day to day tasks while less immediate deadlines slip away. The most rewarding projects are often left undone. My grocery list is current, but I haven’t written any of my planned articles for publication…and let’s not talk about the book I could have finished by now. The laundry is done, but my skinny jeans no longer fit because I haven’t taken time to exercise. I could give example after example.

Day 6 of the New Year found me working to put my house back in order. We closed Mustard Seed last week, which means there are quite a few boxes to unpack. I am sure Carol is going through much of the same at her house. The good new is that we have both already lost a few pounds and sold some things since locking the shop for the last time a week ago.

While I unpack and organize I am planning how to make my business more profitable this year. Somehow I must master the art of investing my pennies instead of just pinching them. Has something worked well for you? Please share!

One of the great things about my job is that I own a lot of fun jigsaw puzzles – at least for a short time.  This artist, Tom Newsome, has done several Santa images.  I am sharing this one because it makes me smile and it is the most popular with my customers.  I am shipping my last one tomorrow.  Look closely at this picture of Santa painting toy cars.  You can almost hear him laughing as he works…

Santa's Toy Fords

I work best with goals. Whether I set them for myself or rise to the occasion when challenged by others, I tend to do better when I work with an end in mind.

This blog post is a good example of what goals do for me.  It is part of a challenge from the group that I belong to and learn from.  Virtual Online Learning. 

I have had a challenging week, but none of the challenges have caused me anything other than frustration.  The heat went out at the shop.  My computer bit the dust and is currently at the repair shop.  My business partner and I announced the year end closing of our shop, Mustard Seed.  Add all of this to the gloomy fall weather and cold temperature and all that I really want to do is curl up on the corner of my couch – hoping this all works itself out while I read a good book.

VOL sets challenges.  Blog challenges. Listing challenges.  Twitter challenges.  The leader, Danna Crawford, must know that reaching past the day to day difficulties and keeping on, keeping on, is the best for all of us that truly want to learn and grow our online presence.  It works for me…because here I am.  Blogging and sharing and feeling empowered.  You should join us if you haven’t already.