New Shoes in the Rain

Merry post-Christmas, and Happy almost-New Year, everyone! This is one of the oddest times of year for me, when we're in that time period between two holidays that are close together.  That said, I hope that you and yours have a lovely Christmas! I'm fortunately on vacation until NEXT Monday, so I'm enjoying some down time with my family.  But the treadmill will begin again in about a week. Do you make New Year's resolutions?  I try not to, as I don't like to set a course that I either won't hold to, or set myself up for failure and disappointment.  But I'm certainly thinking of things I'd like to do in the coming year. One is to eat better.  That's a personal choice, and a particular weakness of mine, as I so often will take the path of convenience instead of the better, healthier alternative.  I've been through long periods of vigilance where diet is concerned, but, unfortunately, have been on a more lax regimen for some time.  Need to ...

Greetings, friends!  This will likely be my last post before Christmas, so let me first say that I appreciate your visits to my blog page.  I hope that you find this as enjoyable and interesting to read as I do to write!  I also hope, for you and yours, that you have a safe and happy holiday season, without travel difficulties, family illnesses or other things that can limit our enjoyment of such a special time of year! That said, I want to share a quick "naughty or nice" list, in keeping with the Christmas season! NAUGHTY:  The Democratic National Committee, for grossly overreacting to an apparent data breach that allowed members of Bernie Sanders' Presidential campaign to see voter information from the campaign of Hillary Clinton.  The DNC chair was Secretary Clinton's national chairperson in 2008, so this strikes me as a conflict of interest.  So she's naughty. NICE:  Jeb Bush, for finally referring to Republican front-runner Donald Trump as a...

Monday again, folks.  Hope you had a good weekend! My wife and I did, and accomplished a few things.  Our Christmas shopping is done, thank you very much, and everything is either wrapped and under our Christmas tree or on its way to family in Colorado.  The need to ship always accelerates our process, and this year is no exception. But that leads me into my stated subject--discovery.  For instance, I didn't realize until Saturday, when I shipped our box to our daughter and her family, that the U.S. Postal Service prices parcel shipping in such a way that you almost have to use Priority Mail.  Oh, the old standby "parcel post" still exists, but when they project six to nine days of delivery time, the sender gets a little uncomfortable with the idea of waiting and hoping that the item will make it to its destination on time.  Besides, if you add insurance or other components, you may as well pony up for the slightly higher price of Priority Mail.  I...

Happy Monday, everyone.  Here's hoping that you had a good weekend. I want to start by indirectly mentioning a good friend who got some great news last week.  He and I were colleagues (I was his manager) a few years back and formed a friendship through common interests.  Anyway, he was displaced from a long-term employment situation some months ago.  He dutifully trolled the marketplace for new opportunities, cultivated one such possibility but courageously declined it because it just didn't feel right, but ended up getting the job he's wanted for a long time last week.  He starts that job soon, and I know that I speak for many friends in common when I say how happy I am for him! As regular visitors know, I don't talk much about my own work here.  And it's a good thing, too, as that would probably be the dominant theme of this and many posts.  Let's just say that it's good to have a job and leave it at that. My wife and I have apparently finished...