The events of the past weekend, both personal and observed, have convinced me that it is time for each of us to take a deep breath, slow the heck down and start fresh. From earthquakes, mine disasters, an unexpected loss of a loved one to the loss of a job that we identified too strongly with, it is time to slow down and take stock in who we are, where we were and what we are going to do in the minutes, days, months and years ahead.

Nothing is guaranteed to us except for choice. We are guaranteed our right to choose. Be it a course of action, a way of being, to be happy or not, everyday we have an opportunity to "choose" what our future will hold. My request and my pledge is to choose friends, family and balance over trappings, stress and the emptiness of strangers. I choose to do all I can to create a life that I will be proud of, secure in and will benefit those around me. I choose to move away from those who wallow, complain and conspire. I choose to make the world around me, both near and far, a better place and I choose to embrace my children and appreciate each one for who they are. I choose forgiveness over a grudge. I choose to forgive myself from my past, accept my present and embrace my role in creating my future.

This is my choice. What's yours?

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I'm working on a project and decided to pull out the Crayolas to try a few things. There is something gratifying about that old, used box of 64 featuring "The Built-In Sharpener"... the smell, the bright colors, the endless possibilities... even shooting the photo you see here was fun! Inspiration in a box! 

We've recently had a few discussions in "The Water Cooler" group about how to get your 'self' back following a set-back or rejection... lots of wise advice given by wise LBBers! 

Our Recipe Round-Up discussion has elicited some great photos and recipes. I'm going to head to the market and get some bright orange carrots to try the Carrot Curry soup!

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In the words of singer Carole King, "My life has been a tapestry of rich and royal hue…" 

I like this metaphor for what it means symbolically, as well as literally.  Since childhood I have been manually inclined:  knitting, stitching and sewing.  Furniture upholstery, Halloween costumes, ice skating outfits, cross-stitched samplers and wedding dresses are among my specialties.  In 1986 I watched Miss Vermont parade on television in the Miss America pageant wearing the purple sequined gown she had hired me to make.

I love sharing this affinity with my sister, my daughter and nieces.  Oh, and apparently a growing number of truckers, as reported recently in the Wall Street Journal!

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From Malaysia to Toronto, people are talking about Let's Bounce Back!

Last week Jomsocial featured letsbounceback.com on its Facebook fan page.  Jomsocial is a group of Malaysia-based social network developers, and they are the genius behind our sleek, intuitive LBB Community interface.  For several days over the holiday weekend we enjoyed a healthy dose of Facebook traffic as fans came to see what we've done with it, and some of them to join.

Again LBB got to toot its own horn on April 2nd when I was invited as Bob Bloom's guest on his Toronto Blog Talk Radio program.  With all the high-drama of a live broadcast, we talked about social networks, ecommerce, building websites, and even experienced a technical glitch!  Despite calling Bob a goof ball, he invited me to be a part of his monthly panel to continue the dialogue around ecommerce and in particular as it relates to Joomla websites, the open source web software his guests use to build websites like Let's Bounce Back.

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The past couple of days have been quite wet here in upstate New York. But, that has been a great incentive for me to begin putting things in motion for the new season of farmer's Markets and fairs that I hope to participate in this year. As You Wish Cuisine is alive and well and I am so looking forward to striking out on my own. Wish me luck.

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Today I unpacked some things.

One of them is a book called "ORIGINS - A Short Etymological Dictionary of Modern English".

It was one of my father's favorite books.  He asked for it in Hospice.

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Several weeks ago, I pledged to blog about my favorite woman in technology*.

I didn't have to look far...  she is my daughter, Catherine Grevet.

When she manifested a skill for complex jigsaw puzzles at 18 months, I should have known that her mind was wired to see the big picture, plan a strategy, and fit the pieces together.  That was back before Mattel's Barbie became a Computer Engineer.

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I like spring. It helps maintain a positive frame of mind. I took a few photos yesterday. I quit my job - so I've got some time. :-)

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My family faced a tough decision a few years ago.  My mother, whose Alzheimer's disease was progressing, needed placement in a memory care unit for her own well-being, as well as my father's.  He especially wanted to hold out as long as possible.  We all knew the placement would be inevitable.  The question was When?

We were wrestling with some of the saddest realities of our lives and facing difficult decisions.  When Hospice entered the picture, we gained the  enormous benefit of a case manager.

The case manager helped us to understand that our mom had more to gain from being moved while she still had some level of function.  Arriving before her decline was too advanced, and still able to participate, she would make a better adjustment to her new world. Overall health was likely to improve with all of her needs being met in an environment entirely geared to her situation.  And her family could become her family again, and not the full-time caregivers.

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Part of bouncing back is learning to cover our butts.

Yesterday I was very glad to have a fresh, dependable backup of some files for a project.  What a great feeling to roll back the clock and fully restore my lost work, in perfect condition.

LBB tip of the day:  run a backup!

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