Freedom On Toast

Happy Thanksgiving!  As we celebrate with friends and family today, I thought you might enjoy some fun Thanksgiving facts (provided by www.History.com).

• The American Automobile Association (AAA) estimated that 38.7 million Americans would travel 50 miles or more from home for the Thanksgiving holiday, a slight increase (1.5 percent) over the previous year.  Of those Americans traveling for Thanksgiving in 2007, approximately 80 percent (31.2 million) were expected to go by motor vehicle, 12.1 percent (4.7 million) by airplane and the rest (2.8 million) by train, bus or other mode of transportation.
• The National Turkey Federation estimated that 46 million turkeys—one fifth of the annual total of 235 million consumed in the United States in 2007—were eaten at Thanksgiving.
• The cranberry is one of only three fruits—the others are the blueberry and the Concord grape—that are entirely native to North American soil, according to the Cape Cod Cranberry Growers’ Association.
• According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the largest pumpkin pie ever baked weighed 2,020 pounds and measured just over 12 feet long. It was baked on October 8, 2005 by the New Bremen Giant Pumpkin Growers in Ohio, and included 900 pounds of pumpkin, 62 gallons of evaporated milk, 155 dozen eggs, 300 pounds of sugar, 3.5 pounds of salt, 7 pounds of cinnamon, 2 pounds of pumpkin spice and 250 pounds of crust.
• Originally known as Macy’s Christmas Parade—to signify the launch of the Christmas shopping season—the first Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade took place in New York City in 1924. It was launched by Macy’s employees and featured animals from the Central Park Zoo. Today, some 3 million people attend the annual parade and another 44 million watch it on television.  Snoopy has appeared as a giant balloon in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade more times than any other character in history. As the Flying Ace, Snoopy made his sixth appearance in the 2006 parade.

May you all be blessed this Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!  I found this cute poem and thought I would share.  The site I found it on is www.Thanksgiving-Day.org and the writer is only identified as Lauren.  So enjoy the poem and have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

T’was the night of Thanksgiving,
But I just couldn’t sleep.
I tried counting backwards,
I tried counting sheep.
The leftovers beckoned,
The dark meat and white.
But I fought the temptation,
With all of my might.
Tossing and turning,
with anticipation.
The thought of a snack
became infatuation.
So I raced to the kitchen,
Flung open the door,
And gazed at the fridge,
Full of goodies galore.
I gobbled up turkey,
And buttered potatoes,
Pickles and carrots,
Beans and tomatoes.
I felt myself swelling,
So plump and so round.
‘til all of a sudden,
I rose off the ground.
I crashed through the ceiling,
Floating into the sky,
With a mouthful of pudding,
And a handful of pie.
But I managed to yell
As I soared past the trees
Happy eating to all,
Pass the cranberries, please!!
May your stuffing be tasty
May your turkey be plump.
May your potatoes and gravy
Have nary a lump.
May your yams be delicious,
May your pies take the prize
And May your Thanksgiving dinner
Stay off of your thighs!
by Lauren

All the goodies!

With the holidays coming you can expect a bit more stress.  The shopping, the lines, the rushing…just more of everything.  But one thing we can do this time of year is start the day off right.

It’s Thanksgiving in a couple days.  Traditionally we show gratitude for all the things that life has bestowed upon us.  We find appreciation in the littler things - the smiles of a child, the first snowflakes, and the all important one - the car starting on demand in spite of the cold.  We are thankful - grateful - for these small blessings.

So why is it that we don’t show or at least feel our gratitude on a more regular basis?  I don’t know.  We are too busy.  We don’t think about it.  We just take things for granted.  Rather than relegating our gratefulness to just one day, what if we started each day by feeling our gratitude?  It sure makes the day start off nicely.  Rather than focusing on all you need to do, all the money that needs to be spent, all the mishaps that might happen, why not focus on what is good and right with our world?  I promise your day will be brighter if you start by focusing on what is right.  And truly the list is endless.  Rather than thinking about how “poor” you are, think about how “rich” you are!  Your wages in a week equal more than some people earn in a year!  That’s surely something to be grateful for!  You have a roof over your head - many don’t.  You have food on your table - some don’t even have the table let alone the food.  It’s all a matter of perception.  So take advantage of this gift of gratitude - not just on Thanksgiving but everyday.

I was walking to my new PT job the other day.  It was my first day of on the job training.  As I walked I could hear a woman grumbling behind me.  As she approached I noticed she was wearing the same airline uniform that I will have - in fact it identied her as one of my co-workers.  I had not met this woman yet and thought when she was next to me I would introduce myself.  But as she got almost to me she mumbled something that ended with “that’s disgusting.”  I asked her to repeat herself and she sped past me ignoring my question.  Truly I had no idea if she was refering to me as disgusting (although my ego protected me and fully denied that I could be disgusting - after all I was doing nothing but walking) but I still questioned it.  I started to get mad but then realized I should really feel sorry for this woman.  Because if life is so rough that you must start the day by making such negative comments to complete strangers, then something must be terribly difficult in her life.  Sad really.  Although as I went to my gate to meet my mentor, it provided me with yet another thing to be grateful for - she wasn’t my trainer.  Life is good!

So try being grateful for just a week to see what a difference it can make in your life.  I promise (and I don’t say that lightly) that your days will just start out right.

Please watch this exciting 3-minute movie and learn how The Power of 10% can help you:

• Develop a “Goal Attainment” Mindset
• Remove Counterproductive Boundaries to Success
• Understand How Small Changes Can Make a BIG Difference
• And most importantly
• Improve Yourself, Your Business and the World Around You

So, take a moment to learn more about The Power of 10%. Please pass this along to family, friends, and coworkers.

I love videos that share good messages. Not only will you learn a little magic, you will learn a bit about yourself. Enjoy! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0yyO4Wbha10

I know the economy is supposed to be terrible, but I can tell you, the candle business is booming! We are so fortunate to have incredible candles (all natural wax of course - think GREEN) but because of all the woes of the economy, people are enjoying the little things in life at an all time record pace. They may be putting off the new car or the new house, but they are NOT putting off buying a little candle.

And, because so many non-profit organizations are getting less and less funding, the need for good fundraisers is up, up, up! I have a distributor on my team who is working with a school group of over 1400 students. I am so excited for her because her profit will be in the thousands for one fundraiser. How awesome is that? Not only does she feel great about helping a local school, she will make a nice profit as well. Life is good.

I know people who don’t understand the candle business think how can you make money on candles? Well, it’s NOT just “a little candle business.” It is far, far from that. It is a 3 billion dollar industry in which nearly 85% of all households use the product. It’s a consumable product. And it’s a simple business - no need to know complicated information.

So if you are thinking this is just a little business that you can’t really make any money at, I am here to say you are wrong. And of course, I would be happy to tell you more. If you would like to request a free information packet and scent samples, then please visit www.HaveTheFreedom.com

Okay, if you are a Mom, I know you have probably had this fantasy. But I SWEAR I am going to do it.

I am going to get a roll of that police tape that says, “Do Not Enter” and put it in select spots throughout my house. Why you ask? Because here’s the all too familiar scenario. I have just cleaned and dusted my desk area. My desk is large so cleaning and organizing it can be a daunting task if not tackled on a regular basis. So, it’s clean. Whew. I leave to go get a cup of delicious vanilla latte (no foam please - waste of good coffee space) and return to find what? Stuff all over my freshly cleaned desk. Not MY stuff but things like my daughter’s flute, my husband’s football picks, a can coolee (without a pop - what’s the point of that?), hair binders, a flashlight and a CD. I was gone 15 minutes. I am certain that while I was away my family instituted an elaborate plan to put as much STUFF as possible in my freshly cleaned area. Sort of like a family contest.

Or here’s another favorite of mine. I have taken care of my morning routine, including making the beds. My husband showers, gets out and decides he’s cold. So what does he do? He pulls the comforter and sheets back (they are practically in the next room at this point) and crawls back in bed because “he’s cold.” Now mind you he has at least 2 or 3 robes but no, that would not require trashing anything so he doesn’t go for that option!

So you can see the benefit my new roll of police tape would have! I could cordon off my office. I could run a circle around the bed. And oh, there are so many other areas that hold promise! Of course I would have to be careful about visitors because with all my new tape they would no doubt think a multiple homicide had taken place - to which I could reply, “not yet.” <smile>

So you know I started a new PT job. Well I have to say, it has been a long time since I have worked 40 hours in a week - and thank goodness I won’t be doing that long! It is NOT the way to enjoy life.

So Sunday was my day off and I was determined to relax. But first, I had to catch up on my business activities. Then I needed to fold the laundry. Then it was off to the grocery store because my cupboards were emptier that Old Mother Hubbards. Then I needed a new purse (yes, I needed it). Then I needed to take my daughter to her class. The dog needed to play (poor neglected dog who is used to lots of company during the week.) And the dust was calling - literally. All the dust bunnies started singing YMCA (I could picture them doing the dance) - they got the song stuck in my head. YMCA… see, now you can have it stuck too. Then I had to pick my daughter and her friend up and think about making dinner. Okay, the part about dinner is an exaggeration - my husband almost always makes dinner. But the dust bunnies part is true.

So at 9:45pm, I asked myself, how much relaxation DID I enjoy on my day off? Here’s the answer. NADA! (I must have picked up Spanish somewhere in my journeys.) So as I sat at my computer at 9:45 I decided to do what I love to do - I planned a trip because dang it, one way or another I am going to relax!

So if you are having a tough time “relaxing”, plan a trip. It’s almost like actually taking it!

Bon Voyage! (Oh, guess I picked up French too!)

Now think about this. Seriously. When was the last time you had to learn something new. I don’t mean something little or something that you could learn if you practiced for a day or two. I mean something new like a new job. You know, the kind of “something new” similar to if I suddenly transported you to a foreign country and left you there to figure it all out (I know, it sounds fun doesn’t it?)

Well I recently took a PT job at one of the local airlines. Read this as, “I want to travel the world for free.” It had to be a position that ultimately would not interfere with my business but would provide me with a benefit - the ultimate benefit - free, unlimited travel.

Well, if you have been reading my posts for very long, you know that travel is a big part of my “Why” for my business so this works out great! Except, it requires that I go through some FT training for the next month. Yes, it will be a challenge but I know it’s short lived so everything will be fine in the end. But I am required to learn new things. And not just a few new things. Who knew those nice folks who board your plane did so many things? Certainly not me.

So here I am at the beginning of the learning curve and, well, I am dumb. I know all the nice sayings…”but you will learn it in no time” or “everyone has questions - that’s a good thing!” And while I know they are true let me just add that I am dumb. Thankfully, I am not dumb in all areas or life would really stink. But it is such a huge reminder that everyone has to start somewhere.

I actually think, that in addition to the travel benefits, this has held other benefits. For example, do you know why the folks at the airlines are almost always thin? Because they have to walk 10 miles just to start their job! And it is certainly a good exercise in learning. Not just regarding the airline industry but more about what it’s like to be new at something. Certainly the distributors who have joined my team must feel the same when they see the amount of resources and training available to them. So it’s GOOD to remember how dumb you feel when you are just starting. And it’s okay to be dumb - or at least that’s what I am telling myself to help preserve my ego!

So if you are new at something like me, just know it’s going to get better and it really IS okay to be dumb. If you are a leader, take a trip back to dumb and remember how you got to smart. Help people get there. Mentor and coach them along the way.

But by all means, don’t get in my boarding lane for at least a couple months!

Normally I don’t put much faith in my daily horoscope. In fact, I rarely even read them. But one day this week I decided to take a peek at my future. Here’s what my specialized, custom, newspaper printed horoscope (generally referred to as Horrorscope) read:

As far as you’re concerned, there’s nothing worse than opting for the boring known things when you have a chance to explore the unknown. You’ll follow the one who offers you a suspenseful story with a surprising finish.

I had to laugh and decided this wasn’t my daily horoscope, it was my everyday horoscope. The big horoscope that applies to everyday of my life. You see, I detest boring. I don’t want the absolute predictability of the daily grind.

That’s precisely why I have my own home business.

Just out of curiosity, I went to see exactly how Webster’s defines entrepreneur. Here’s the definition:

A person who organizes and manages any enterprise, especially a business, usually with considerable initiative and risk.

Fair enough. And in perfect alignment with my newfound horoscope. But that is the absolute wonder and beauty of having your own business. You take the initiative and you reap the rewards. You take the risks and are rewarded with excitement and passion. Not to mention tax breaks!

As I see it, I only have one life to leave and when I go I want to make sure I have made the most of it. And that I have lived a suspenseful story with a surprise ending. I can hardly wait to see what life brings and what life I create.

So here’s to an incredible life full of adventure. Party on!