Traveling Mercies

I have none. Or so it seems this afternoon. I spent 51 minutes on the phone with my web developer who was trying to help me get a work blog post edited and posted to the home page of my website. After finally getting the piece edited, it needed to be posted. It took 25 of the 51 minutes for us to realize he was talking about the blogsite home page and I was talking about the website home page. Isn’t it interesting how we often fail in our communication efforts? I was sure I was saying the same thing he was saying, “The blog post needs to be on the home page”. He was sure he was telling me how to find it, “hit refresh, empty your cache, log out and log back in”. It’s not surprising we were on different wave lengths; he is a techie while I revolt against technology. But technology isn’t the only topic where we experience breakdown in communications or where our patience gets tested. What matters is how we handle our lack of patience. I kept the phone conversation light even when I wanted

Be always at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let each new year find you a better man. Benjamin Franklin Peace on earth and joy to those we like. Cocktail napkin. The New Year is the perfect time for a fresh start and for building new habits. In 2011, I'm going to devote more time to personal writing. My favorite writing book, "On Writing" by Stephen King includes this quote, "The scariest moment is always just before you start." There is nothing as scary as a blank sheet of paper (or computer screen). This year, I'm going to write what I know and write what I enjoy reading about. I hope you'll enjoy it as well.