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Themes for 2010
Jan 28, 2010

Themes for 2010

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With the close of January coming up very soon, I thought I’d post one more time about my Themes for 2010. Earlier this month, I wrote about my ThemeWord for the year – CREATE. And it’s my single-minded goal for 2010. What that means, is I take that one word and apply it to everything I do – “What can I CREATE with this?” With only one thing to focus on, I find clarity as well as productivity in the things I do every day.

I’ve read several blogs recently that are taking this ThemeWord thing even farther and adding in things like Theme Song, Theme Color, and a variety of other ideas. While I don’t want to take it that far myself, I do like the idea of themes. Like I already said above, it creates clarity and productivity for me plus it also gives me a sense of balance.

(And sometimes a sense of balance is sorely lacking in the world around me! LOL)

Now, having said that, I am going to add a ThemeColor to my ThemeWord for 2010. I don’t know about a song. Maybe I’ll find one that really draws me in and compliments my other theme choices but for now, no song. ;-)

So here’s my color . . .

pinkSwatch.png

Mind you, I do NOT like pink very well (I’m not a girly-girl!) but I do like the brightness of this color. If I thought I could effectively change my blog design to incorporate this color, I would. But I think it would end up throwing the design off quite a bit and I have yet to find a design I like better than this one. So for now, no design change either but that may come at some point as well.

Have you considered adopting any themes for this year? Why or why not? And if so, which themes have you incorporated into your life and/or business?

(Please don’t be afraid of disqus! It’s a great commenting system. Oh – and speaking of disqus, look out for my post tomorrow about exactly why I decided to implement disqus here. I hope it’s helpful to you!)

Until then . . .

Be blessed,

{ write * design * blog }

Remember – you can always contact me via the contact form if you don’t want to leave a comment but feel like you have something to share.

Filed Under: Ideas, Mindset, Personal, Work · Tagged: , , , , ,
Using disqus for comments
Jan 27, 2010

Using disqus for comments

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You may have noticed that I recently went back to using disqus.com as my comment system. I’ve had a few worried emails from folks about this and so this post is to – hopefully – help clear those worries up.

First, disqus.com will allow you to post with OR without a disqus account. Again, you DO NOT have to have a disqus account to post a comment here. Of course, you CAN if you so desire. To do that, just say yes to the pop up box that asks you if you want to sign up. Or login if you already are signed up.

Second, you can also use disqus by “logging in” to a service you ALREADY use like Facebook, Yahoo, Twitter or OpenID. It’s easy – just select that option on the comment box and a pop up will open up for you to enter your credentials into. It will then automatically create a disqus account for you using the service you selected. You can then post a comment.

Third, if you do not want to do either of those, fear not! You can post the “old fashioned” way – with your name, email and (optionally) your website URL. Your name and email are required. Then, if you get a pop up asking about disqus, simply click the “post as guest” button on the lower left hand corner of the box and it will post your comment just like usual! The good thing about this is that if you post a comment again from the same IP address, using the same email you previously used, you won’t get the pop up box. It usually only pops up that one time.

So, please, don’t let this blogs use of disqus (or any other blog that uses it) dissuade you from leaving a comment here. You can do so without having to sign up for it and if you don’t sign up for it, it doesn’t collect your information.

The only part of my system that will collect your info is the WordPress software that runs the blog. If you choose not to sign up for disqus, it isn’t going to grab your info from me and cause you problems.

Additionally, of course, you can rest assured, your info is safe with me. ;-)

And in the event you have any trouble with disqus, please – PLEASE – let me know! Don’t just go away in a huff! If it’s broken, let me know so I can fix it. You can contact me via the contact form here.

Lastly, let me just say this – in the event you decide to opt for a disqus account, know that your info is safe there too. Only the info you WANT to be shared, will be shared. If you want to keep your stuff private, you can do that too. There are loads of settings the system gives you when you login that allow you to have full control over your comments. It gives you SO much control over your comments, it’s almost too easy.

Be blessed,

{ write * design * blog }

Filed Under: Work ·
Jack and his boy plus other stuff
Jan 7, 2010

Jack and his boy plus other stuff

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Lots of things to write about today – if I can remember all of them! LOL So let’s get crackin’ before I forget . . .

First, I’ve started a new “store” on shopify selling Reusable Bags. Because I think the Earth and our environment is a gift to us, on loan from the Creator. And it’s our job, our duty to protect it and cherish it. I use reusable bags when I shop and I love them. Since it’s something I do and whole-heartedly believe in, I thought, “Why not?” I’m still adding products to the store but it IS open if you’d like to take a peek! You can even buy something if you’d like – the shopping cart and payment gateway are all set up as well. Just head over to In The Bag.

Second, the “Around the Web” is going to be starting again soon, likely next week. I have several things and places to share with you that are scattered all over the web. Some are other blogs, some are specific posts on those blogs and some are just stuff I think is cool.

Third, a quick story from yesterday -

My mom and I went grocery shopping yesterday morning and on the way out of the store parking lot after we finished shopping, was a young man and his dog. He was holding a sign that said the dog needed food. After discussing it for about 10 seconds, we looped around, went back into the store and got some dog food, a box of dog biscuits, a couple bottles of water and some sandwiches. They were so thrilled and appreciative, it was a sight to watch! Jack (the dog) was a cutie and very well mannered. I think his boy even got a little misty-eyed. ;-)

Fourth, I think I’ll bring back the Reading List. Haven’t done one of those in a while, either. Got lots of good books on the shelf that waiting to be read and it’s time to get ‘er done! Any books you’ve read lately that you’d like to share?

Fifth, this blog now has, according to my feed stats, about 575 subscribers via the RSS feed and several hundred more who are subscribed via email. Why are you all so QUIET??? Speak up! Post comments! Talk to one another! ;-) I want to hear from you. This blog isn’t just about me – it’s about you, as well. Please, tell me what you think.

Sixth, my oldest child is turning 16 tomorrow. I can hardly believe how times flies! I keep thinking there is NO WAY I am old enough to have 16 year old! LOL But sure enough, she is. And I’m delighted she’s my daughter. Sure, she can be difficult – like any kid – but she’s the reason I’m a mom and I’m glad she’s part of me and my life.

Seventh, have you picked out a ThemeWord for 2010? Mine is CREATE. What have you created lately? Please share! I want to know what you think. ;-) It would be fun to really CREATE a community around this, this year. That’s part of my goal.

So, if you’re out there and you’ve never commented here or you haven’t commented in a while – what are you waiting for? Introduce yourself!

Be blessed,

{ write * design * blog }

Filed Under: Ideas, Mindset, Work · Tagged: , , , , , ,
Free stuff: menu planner, assignment sheet, character sheet
Jan 3, 2010

Free stuff: menu planner, assignment sheet, character sheet

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Even though I’m not one of those uber organized people, I would like to be exceptionally more organized than I am. And I used to be – way back before I had a house full of kids running around. Not so much anymore. I still try, though. ;-)

One of the things I do, is make forms for myself. It helps me keep things on track and pretty much eliminates missed or forgotten things. Plus, I like to write (who knew?). Anyway, I have 3 forms to share with you today that I use regularly and I thought you’d like them as well.

The Menu Planner. It’s fairly colorful, easy to use and simply designed. But anyone from a small child to an adult can follow along and see what food is planned for what meal any day of the week. Even my youngest has learned to tell which color block is which.

Student Assignment Sheet. Even though I no longer homeschool my kids, I kept this form for myself and it’s been nice to have on hand for my college courses. It’s a plain form – no color embellishments or anything here, but it’s still simple and easy to use for most grade levels if you need to keep track of assignments. It’s 2 pages long and has lots of room for all the details you’ll need to know what assignment is due and when.

Mini Character Sheet. This is a form I use for writing fiction stories. It’s a simple sheet where I can put all of the details about a character when I’m sketching out a storyline. It lets me get to know the character and help develop a background for them. There are 2 character sheets per page which I usually cut in half but sometimes, it’s nice to leave them together. Depends on how many characters I’m sketching out.

I hope you enjoy them!

And please, let me know if you use any of them and what you think. Also, if there’s a form you’d like to have, whether for business or school or home, let me know. I’ve made so many different forms, it’s likely I have something similar to what you want.

Be blessed,

{ write * design * blog }

Filed Under: Food, Work · Tagged: , , ,
Get ready for 2010
Dec 30, 2009

Get ready for 2010

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Just over 24 hours from now, it’ll be 2010!

There’s just something refreshing about a New Year. Like the slate gets wiped clean and one can just start over from the beginning. I don’t know, maybe it’s just me, but that’s how I feel about the turning of calendar. (Yes, I do realize I said “just” at least once in every sentence in this paragraph.)

And I’ve already posted about New Year’s over on margin of {error} so go ahead over there to read all about it. It’s a short ‘n sweet post.

Be blessed,

{ write * design * blog }

Filed Under: Work · Tagged: , , , ,
Guess I’m gonna pass
Dec 22, 2009

Guess I’m gonna pass

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Well, with all of the other housekeeping things for both Christmas and my bog(s), it looks like I’m just NOT going to get to the {W}rite of Passage Challenge this week. Guess I’ll just have to pass this week unless I have some time over the weekend – after Christmas.

I do want to tell you about two things, though.

Way back in 2006, I started a blog about the writing life over on wordpress. At the time, I also owned another domain name but I really had no idea how to install wordpress on my own domain so the blog remained on wp’s own hosting. After I started blogging here, I only blogged over there for about a year or so and eventually stopped altogether. Which is pretty sad, really.

Anyway, I’ve decided to revive that blog so I’ve spent the past few days moving everything from over there to a new subdomain here on AA|Blog. Now that I’ve got some of the tweaks accomplished, I’m going to give you all that link so you can check it out if you’d like. ;-)

Visit Margin of Error here.

If you decide to take a peek, let me know what you think.

In the meantime, I hope you have a fantastic Christmas and that you’ve got all of your shopping done. I am – admittedly – a little behind on mine and have a few more things to go finish up. Hopefully I can do that tomorrow during the day.

If it doesn’t snow. Which it better not . . .

And the other thing I wanted to tell you is – well, to ask you, actually. One of my former sister-in-laws, Helen, is having some health issues. She’s had a couple of small strokes in the past week and I’d appreciate it if you could send her and her family (husband, 2 children, their spouses and 2 grandchildren) some healing thoughts and energies. If you could do that for me, it would make my Christmas! Thank you! Helen is a great person and her family needs her.

Be blessed,

Annie Anderson is a freelance copywriter and graphic designer specializing in the small business and real estate markets. Her tagline “Making your business, my business” means that she’ll take the utmost care when creating words and images for your business – just as if it were her own.

Filed Under: Personal, Work · Tagged: ,
The brain clatter
Dec 21, 2009

The brain clatter

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My brain is so full of stuff to write the past few days that I haven’t written anything. And then when I sat down here today to write something, I had no idea what to write because of all of the clatter inside my head. If you’re a writer, you probably know exactly what I’m talking about.

I have ideas for blog posts, ideas for short stories and the ever-present – and increasingly persistent – ideas for novels. Maybe 2010 will be the year I finally get all of them sorted out and put down on paper. Maybe even finish ones I’ve started . . .

And it’s also the kids’ first day of winter break and of course, it’s the Solstice too. As is typical in Washington, it’s pouring rain today. Truly pouring. We’d gotten spoiled these first few weeks of December which were un-typically cold and DRY. Looks like Mother Nature is going to make up for that in short order!

Hopefully we don’t have another snow storm like last year. Once every 20 years or so, is fine but let’s not make it a regular thing, okay, Mother Nature? 2 feet of snow that stuck around for 2 weeks in an area that usually gets 2 inches or less that’s gone by morning was not too fun. Seattle and the surrounding areas were not meant for that much snow.

Anyway, later today I’ll be posting my entry for Week 3 of the Write of Passage challenge so look out for that. And if I don’t post anything else before Friday, I hope you all have a Wonderful, Merry Christmas!

May your holiday be bright and joyful!

Be blessed,

It’s time for more Christmas music! What are you favorites?

Annie Anderson is a freelance copywriter and graphic designer specializing in the small business and real estate markets. Her tagline “Making your business, my business” means that she’ll take the utmost care when creating words and images for your business – just as if it were her own.

Filed Under: Mindset, Work · Tagged: , ,
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