Just When I Thought It Was Safe…
… for me to sit in my office and click my way to success, I discover there’s a bigger plan, one that’s only recently been revealed to me. If you didn’t read last year’s summary (or are as overloaded as the rest of us and don’t recall all the details), let me fill you in on what I’m talking about. Recall that I started a coaching program with the Internet Marketing Center in January focused at launching my financial freedom through the identification and support of niche markets on the internet. That process brought www.3rdGradeReadingHelp.com to the world wide web – a summary of my grand daughter Mia’s astounding reading transformation with Himalayan Goji® Juice – that’s right, a fruit juice to improve her reading! The Himalayan Goji® Juice didn’t directly improve her reading, it allowed her to focus, improving her concentration, her reading and kept her from having to repeat the 4th grade. OK, so what’s the big revelation?
Who Else Wants To Think and Grow Rich?
Huh – Think myself to wealth? That’s exactly what I’ve been missing. Maybe you’re familiar with Napoleon Hill’s classic book, Think and Grow Rich. If not, click the link and order a copy – if you honestly can say that it’s not worth the $15 you invested, I’ll but your copy from you. I’ve spent much of the past 14 years trying to outwork everyone else to find my path to success, without truly knowing where I was headed (just out the door of P&G). I’ve been quick to change gears, hop ship, change flights and open new doors hoping a new path would get me to a destination that was yet to be defined (sounds crazy, but it’s absolutely true). I’m starting 2008 getting crystal clear on what I want, becoming emotionally connected to it and focusing everything I’ve got on achieving it – how is yet to be determined! Please keep in touch throughout the year for updates.
Who In Their Right Mind Would Do Such A Thing?
That’s the question, Anita and a fellow animal rescuer asked themselves when they discovered 62 cats abandoned in a Cincinnati home. The Foreclosure Cats received national attention as the latest victims of the spiraling foreclosure problem in America. Anita mobilized forces, raised over $15,000 from a web site she developed and started the long process of nursing the cats and kittens back to health and finding forever homes for them (there are still 25 in need of guardians). One of the fosters is a nationally recognized artist and through her efforts an art exhibit featuring the foreclosure cats will open in Cincinnati on January 12th. If you’re interested in owning some unique pieces, visit www.ForeclosureCats.org for the details.
Anita received her much coveted 501(c)3 designation for her non-profit Pet Alliance, continued her work sponsoring the mobile low-cost spay/neuter clinic The Neuter Scooter and received grant money to start Spay Ohio. When Anita’s not rescuing abandoned cats, she’s working to find homes for others (she found Wally in the local Wal-Mart parking lot and Buddy in the neighborhood) and attending regional spay/neuter conferences.
Going, Going…
Gone! The sale of www.BarronsOnline.com to the Wall Street Journal Digital Network will be finalized in January. This is the 2nd time they’ve tried to purchase our domain name for their Barron’s online magazine. Let’s just say, they finally made an offer worthy of their ability to pay and leave it at that. Our new family web site iswww.BarronsPlace.com.
Guess Who’s Back?
My grand daughter Mia moved back to Cincinnati on my birthday – what a wonderful gift! She returned from Jacksonville, FL with her mother and sister. We got the news just after her visit for Spring Break and were thrilled to see them return. We spent the summer at the water park and took Mia and her family to visit the mouse in Orlando for Thanksgiving. Mia’s enjoying the 5th grade in West Chester, OH, started playing basketball this year and modeled in her first fashion show with her sister Anna. We’re going to ski this year (I didn’t go once last year while she was in Jacksonville) and we’ll have her through the summer before she moves back to Florida. Her Mommy’s wedding plans are back on. We’ll be sad to see her leave again but are glad Rebekah and Roger will be building a family together in Florida.
International Border Crossing Raises Suspicion
We ventured out of the greatest country in the world to vacation in Barrie, Ontario to celebrate Independence Day. We were looking for a break from the heat and got exactly what we wanted in Ontario. We took a day trip to Toronto, drove to Niagara Falls and experienced Tree Trekking (a great adventure). Anita had to make a special request of the border agent to stamp her new passport but its now broken in and ready for re-use! We took a cruise to the Mexican Riviera with 1,800 Success Seekers and spent a day with Mom in Coronado prior to the trip and a day with Dad in Del Mar after the trip. We visited Las Vegas in March, went to Orlando with Mia and her family in November and I returned to Ontario in August to explore ship wrecks on the bottom of the St. Lawrence River.
Look Who Wandered By…
I’m sure most of you have never visited Cincinnati (we are now home to the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center), but there were many who chose to brave the rust belt of America for a visit this year. Bruce & Bobbie Johnson stopped by for lunch on their long summer tour of the mid-west, John Hessenauer visited twice while inspecting FAA buildings in Kansas and Michigan and Eric Schneider stopped in for dinner on his return trip to Cleveland from Florida. We’ve long since converted the spare bedroom into Anita’s office but for those willing to brave the sofa bed (or the air mattress), we’d love to see you. If you’re interested in visiting but don’t want the comfort of the sofa, we’ll put you up in a local hotel at our expense – how’s that for having your own space!! Seriously, you are special to us and we want to share our lives with you. If you’re ever close to Cincinnati, please drop us a line so we can connect for a visit.
Just When You Thought It Couldn’t Get Any Better…
We did have a chance to get a few projects done around the house this year. We added garden windows to the rooms we use as offices. It was time to replace the windows and Anita had the wonderful idea of “extending” the feel of the room (and providing perches for the cats). I painted the dining room and kitchen while Anita was away at a spay/neuter conference, I worked with the neighbors to remove piles of brush from the green belt on Earth Day, we purged our closet of old clothes (I’m the clothes horse in the family) and I trimmed our bush-like hedges with one of the best pieces of yard equipment I’ve ever used!
The Whole Famdamly
Kevin was supported by dozens of his friends for a surprise 43rd birthday party. His son Andrew is 9, completed his first communion and is playing ice hockey and soccer; his daughter Grace is into ballet and is also playing soccer and his son Will is swimming like a fish. Kendra is still working full-time for the same law firm as a paralegal andA.J. is attending pre-school and improving his swimming. Dad has fully recovered from his by-pass surgery last year and finished 2007 with his wife Nancy as the #3 agents in their real estate broker’s office. Mom is enjoying “retirement” in Laguna Beach, although she seems to be so busy it’s hard to tell if she’s doing any relaxing. We spentChristmas with Anita’s family in Georgia and celebrated with Mia and her family prior to heading south (where our luggage was delayed for 3 days). Anita’s Mamma Louise just had lap band surgery and is looking forward to a much slimmer 2008. Her Daddy Sam just celebrated his 69th birthday and is still working as a Deputy Sheriff in Worth County. They’re both looking forward to the time when Sam will have to shake the sheets to find Louise!
We still have 4 kitties at home, each is very special to us in their own way. Beaver is the leader of the group. He has a very tender side but also likes to chase Sphinx. Sphinx has started to allow me to pet her and has even let’s me pick her up once in a while (for very brief periods). Wolly is the sensitive one of the bunch. He cleans everyone’s head for them and snuggles with his brother Beaver. Simba is still all kitten. He loves to play and is frequently in trouble for chasing Sphinx. He has turned into a real lap kitty and loves to have his belly rubbed.
The Closest Shave On The Planet
If you use a Gillette Fusion or Venus razor or use Duracell batteries, thanx so much for supporting my current project at Procter & Gamble. I’m assisting with the massive effort of upgrading Gillette’s Distribution Planning systems in North America and Latin America to our latest, greatest high tech offering. It’s been nice to see a different aspect of P&G’s business but truthfully each project is pretty much like the last one – what do you do, here’s what we can offer based on your time and money constraints and we slog it out and move on to the next. Don’t get me wrong, P&G has been very good to me over my almost 22 years – YIKES, I’m an old-timer now! I’ll hold my tongue on the next chapter until the goal setting exercise is complete, but I do have a good idea of the type of work I’m going to be doing – any guesses (it’s one Anita introduced to me but not one I’ve mentioned to you to date)?
Happy New Year
It’s 9:34 PM on New Year’s Eve – as close to a year-end summary as I’m willing to get. Time to push the keyboard tray into the desk and snuggle with Anita on the couch watching a favorite movie to celebrate the start of 2008 (at least we’ll make it past midnight, many of you reading this probably won’t make it that far). We’re fortunate to have each other and every one of you in our lives. God Bless you and may 2008 be your best year ever (we plan to make it ours).
With All Our Love,
and 