I got the phone call this afternoon: my business plan was accepted into the Self Employment Assistance Program. The only condition is that by the end of the first three months I must meet or exceed my projections put forth in the business plan - which I should be doing anyway! The benefits of the program include a month of morning classes where we will be taught accounting, marketing, legal matters and other vital business knowledge, weekly benefits paid to us so we can devote our time to our businesses and still pay the bills (as it will be slow at first), a graphic designer who will help us design logos, stationary and other such materials, one-on-one coaching with professionals, such as the ones teaching the classes, who are also in business themselves and can show us the ropes. Basically, I am being handed everything I could possibly need to succeed in business - all I have to bring is the motivation and willingness to put it all into action!
It has been my dream to work for myself for years - and to see it coming true is incredibly exciting! I have a chance to make my dreams a reality and prove that my business idea is viable and sustainable and I can succeed at it. Talk about a great challenge! I am definitely embarking on another adventure. I have been doing dabbling in this web design thing for a while, but I'm entering a whole new arena now. I am leaving the field of the employed and "jobbed" and venturing into the realm of the self employed and creating a job that I enjoy! Yes, folks, I will be my own boss, set my own hours, and be able to work from pretty much wherever in the world I want!
Advantage Website Solutions is the name I've chosen, and I now get to re-do my website and launch the first issue of Advantage Tips for Small Business Owners, the newsletter that I actually started under Spideys Web Design but now gets to undergo the same overhaul as the rest of Spideys. I did enjoy that name, but realize it is time for not only a new name, but a new way of doing things and looking at things - as I am now going full time and making this more than just a part time hobby. So goodbye Spideys, and hello Advantage!!! The future looks bright - did you bring your sunglasses?
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
email forward mania
One of my pet peeves is email forwards. It drives me crazy that people will just forward on any and everything without even checking to see if it's legitimate or not. I don't mind the funnies as much - there are some pretty cute and hilarious forwards that give me a laugh or a smile. Those are alright. It's the other ones...
For example, here is one I got this morning. You've likely seen it, or a version of it. It's about a 3-year-old boy who was brutally murdered by two 10-year-olds in the UK and it's a petition against a ruling a judge made to give those two boys anonymity after they had served out their terms. I've seen this email before. You're supposed to put your name on it and send it on, and the 700th person is supposed to send it to this email address to get to the judge supposedly. Well, this morning I decided instead of just deleting it - which I usually do with forwards - why don't I check into it and see if I can find out more about this email forward? So I went to snopes.com and found it through a search. Sure enough, it's a true story, it actually happened. But guess what? The boys were released and granted anonymity in 2001 - there is NOTHING an email petition is going to do for that now! Not only that, but I wouldn't be so quick to say they shouldn't have anonymity either. Sure, their crime was heinous, but they were 10 years old, have served a sentence, and perhaps should be given another chance. I am sure there are those in authority who know who and where they are, in case they get into trouble again - why do we need to know? Would we feel any safer? Not likely. It would just put the lives of those boys in danger, as there would be plenty of people who would be only too glad to give them their "just desserts" - which would make us no better than them!
This is only the most recent example. There are others. What about the forwards that say hotmail will close your account if you do not forward this to 10 people immediately? I've never forwarded one of those on - and my hotmail account is still running strong! Then there are the ones that claim you'll get paid for forwarding an email, because some company is doing a test and is tracking who it goes to and so on. What makes me shake my head is that people just forward this stuff on without even questioning it.
This plague has infected places like myspace and facebook as well. I don't have a "funwall" or "superwall" on my facebook profile anymore. People forward everything. And sure, some of it's cute and funny, but even the cute and funny stuff takes up space, and that's all you ever get from people! I would rather have a personal note from you, thank you very much. Don't send me meaningless forwards. In fact, I'll go so far as to say, don't send me forwards at all unless you're keeping in touch with me personally as well. I don't need "forward friends".
Religion is not innocent either. Have you gotten the forwards trying to shame you into passing it on? They say something like, "If you love Jesus, pass this on! If you don't then you are ashamed of the one who gave His life for you." And good Christians everywhere hit the forward button! I'm not here to bash religion, but there is something wrong with this picture!
In the same category are those forwards you get about friendship - "Send this to 10 people who have been a friend to you, I hope to get it back!" And again, we hit the forward button and send it a whole bunch of people that we never talk to aside from impersonal email forwards or the occasional chat online.
We spend the majority of our lives wrapped up in insignificant details and entertainment. Take facebook again. How many times have I heard people say they are addicted to it and spend too much time on it? I have a facebook profile. I don't have a problem with facebook itself, but look at how it's used. Every time I log in, I have more than one invitation, request or some other notification that one of my friends wants me to add a new application. And what are these applications and games? Mindless, pointless, entertaining frivilities. Buy and sell your friends, pick a fight with a friend, be a virtual pirate or knight and fight battles and build armies, send hearts and hotness and hugs and flowers and chocolates. Don't get me wrong, I'm not dissing this or picking on those who use these applications - I have used them myself! But I would like to ask you a question: Why aren't you going and doing those things yourself? I'm asking myself this too. Why am I not going and doing things? Why am I living so much of my life in a virtual reality? There are applications where you can choose to dance with someone - but all it does is send them a notice saying so-and-so danced with you. Why am I not actually going out and dancing? And what happened to real chocolates, flowers, hugs? I would rather have one real hug than 1,000 virtual hugs. I would rather have one wilted real flower than a huge boquet of beautiful virtual flowers! We are rapidly losing our real connections with people! At what point did we start going virtual instead of picking up the phone to say hello, or mailing a handwritten card or note? Are we so short on time that we cannot spend a few minutes for something real? Hell, even a personal email or wall post would be a good start!
Have we lost our minds?
I would have to say the answer is probably yes! In general, people in north american society no longer know how to think for themselves! We have lost that ability. Our minds have been numbed by entertainment, media, mis-information, and, dare I say it, even religion. We are so quick to take things at face value and look no deeper! We believe what we see on the television, hear on the radio, read in the newspaper and base our entire world view on that - never thinking that perhaps we are being fed that information and are missing something more. We spend all this time wrapped up a virtual reality that doesn't exist outside of the internet and isn't really tangible in any way, and we miss out on the real life adventure and relationships that we could be having.
Our lives have become watered down. We are bombarded with information and entertainment that is really insignificant and of no real value. We spend our time playing virtual games with our many "friends", with no real relationships and connecting. Frankly, it is all meaningless!
What happened to real relationships, where you connect with someone on a deeper level than whether you both liked the newest hot movie? Where did the real life adventures go, where you see and experience the real world around you? Technology is wonderful. The internet is a great tool. We should be utilizing it, but not depending on it, and not living in it.
I don't know about you, but I want my life to be real and meaningful. I want to see the world, have adventures, connect with people on a real and deep level. I want to retain the true meaning and value of flowers, chocolates and hugs. I want to develop real life friendships and experiences. I want the important things in my life to be physical and tangible. I want to be able to think for myself, not just believe everything told to me. I don't want to be part of a human race that is no longer truly human.
Will you join me in stepping away from the email forward mania?
For example, here is one I got this morning. You've likely seen it, or a version of it. It's about a 3-year-old boy who was brutally murdered by two 10-year-olds in the UK and it's a petition against a ruling a judge made to give those two boys anonymity after they had served out their terms. I've seen this email before. You're supposed to put your name on it and send it on, and the 700th person is supposed to send it to this email address to get to the judge supposedly. Well, this morning I decided instead of just deleting it - which I usually do with forwards - why don't I check into it and see if I can find out more about this email forward? So I went to snopes.com and found it through a search. Sure enough, it's a true story, it actually happened. But guess what? The boys were released and granted anonymity in 2001 - there is NOTHING an email petition is going to do for that now! Not only that, but I wouldn't be so quick to say they shouldn't have anonymity either. Sure, their crime was heinous, but they were 10 years old, have served a sentence, and perhaps should be given another chance. I am sure there are those in authority who know who and where they are, in case they get into trouble again - why do we need to know? Would we feel any safer? Not likely. It would just put the lives of those boys in danger, as there would be plenty of people who would be only too glad to give them their "just desserts" - which would make us no better than them!
This is only the most recent example. There are others. What about the forwards that say hotmail will close your account if you do not forward this to 10 people immediately? I've never forwarded one of those on - and my hotmail account is still running strong! Then there are the ones that claim you'll get paid for forwarding an email, because some company is doing a test and is tracking who it goes to and so on. What makes me shake my head is that people just forward this stuff on without even questioning it.
This plague has infected places like myspace and facebook as well. I don't have a "funwall" or "superwall" on my facebook profile anymore. People forward everything. And sure, some of it's cute and funny, but even the cute and funny stuff takes up space, and that's all you ever get from people! I would rather have a personal note from you, thank you very much. Don't send me meaningless forwards. In fact, I'll go so far as to say, don't send me forwards at all unless you're keeping in touch with me personally as well. I don't need "forward friends".
Religion is not innocent either. Have you gotten the forwards trying to shame you into passing it on? They say something like, "If you love Jesus, pass this on! If you don't then you are ashamed of the one who gave His life for you." And good Christians everywhere hit the forward button! I'm not here to bash religion, but there is something wrong with this picture!
In the same category are those forwards you get about friendship - "Send this to 10 people who have been a friend to you, I hope to get it back!" And again, we hit the forward button and send it a whole bunch of people that we never talk to aside from impersonal email forwards or the occasional chat online.
We spend the majority of our lives wrapped up in insignificant details and entertainment. Take facebook again. How many times have I heard people say they are addicted to it and spend too much time on it? I have a facebook profile. I don't have a problem with facebook itself, but look at how it's used. Every time I log in, I have more than one invitation, request or some other notification that one of my friends wants me to add a new application. And what are these applications and games? Mindless, pointless, entertaining frivilities. Buy and sell your friends, pick a fight with a friend, be a virtual pirate or knight and fight battles and build armies, send hearts and hotness and hugs and flowers and chocolates. Don't get me wrong, I'm not dissing this or picking on those who use these applications - I have used them myself! But I would like to ask you a question: Why aren't you going and doing those things yourself? I'm asking myself this too. Why am I not going and doing things? Why am I living so much of my life in a virtual reality? There are applications where you can choose to dance with someone - but all it does is send them a notice saying so-and-so danced with you. Why am I not actually going out and dancing? And what happened to real chocolates, flowers, hugs? I would rather have one real hug than 1,000 virtual hugs. I would rather have one wilted real flower than a huge boquet of beautiful virtual flowers! We are rapidly losing our real connections with people! At what point did we start going virtual instead of picking up the phone to say hello, or mailing a handwritten card or note? Are we so short on time that we cannot spend a few minutes for something real? Hell, even a personal email or wall post would be a good start!
Have we lost our minds?
I would have to say the answer is probably yes! In general, people in north american society no longer know how to think for themselves! We have lost that ability. Our minds have been numbed by entertainment, media, mis-information, and, dare I say it, even religion. We are so quick to take things at face value and look no deeper! We believe what we see on the television, hear on the radio, read in the newspaper and base our entire world view on that - never thinking that perhaps we are being fed that information and are missing something more. We spend all this time wrapped up a virtual reality that doesn't exist outside of the internet and isn't really tangible in any way, and we miss out on the real life adventure and relationships that we could be having.
Our lives have become watered down. We are bombarded with information and entertainment that is really insignificant and of no real value. We spend our time playing virtual games with our many "friends", with no real relationships and connecting. Frankly, it is all meaningless!
What happened to real relationships, where you connect with someone on a deeper level than whether you both liked the newest hot movie? Where did the real life adventures go, where you see and experience the real world around you? Technology is wonderful. The internet is a great tool. We should be utilizing it, but not depending on it, and not living in it.
I don't know about you, but I want my life to be real and meaningful. I want to see the world, have adventures, connect with people on a real and deep level. I want to retain the true meaning and value of flowers, chocolates and hugs. I want to develop real life friendships and experiences. I want the important things in my life to be physical and tangible. I want to be able to think for myself, not just believe everything told to me. I don't want to be part of a human race that is no longer truly human.
Will you join me in stepping away from the email forward mania?
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
puppy cuteness
My family is an excellent source for cuties. Here's some very sweet puppies I thought you might enjoy... Check out the little guy with the bad hair day! ;-)
Feel free to visit their website - if you haven't already - to see more puppy cuteness! http://www.minikennels.com
Feel free to visit their website - if you haven't already - to see more puppy cuteness! http://www.minikennels.com
sick adventures
I've been sick. Like really sick. Not just an annoying cold or something, but an actual fever and feeling achy all over. I don't get sick like this very often - I think the last time was about a year and a half ago, and the time before that I couldn't even tell you. It's the same thing though - tonsilitis. I've had the occasional problem with my tonsils since I was a kid. It's now got me wondering if I should look into having them removed. Feeling like crap for two days isn't fun - and that's just the fever. The actual tonsil pain doesn't start until the second or third day. The last couple days my throat felt a bit swollen, and a wee bit sore, but it was this morning that it started to actually hurt. Damn. I hate being sick! At least the fever finally broke, and I can actually get up and do things now, and have a bit of an appetite again. Still waking up every hour or so during the night in a cold sweat though. Hate that part. You ever notice that when you're sick and need to rest and sleep the most, that's when you sleep the worst? That's sure how it is for me. I can never get comfortable when I'm sick, and wake up sweating or hurting or something. No such thing as a good night's sleep when I'm sick!
And that's the bitching for now. lol. Now on to the good news. For those of you who were reading my blog last year, you may remember how I was commenting on how often I had a cold and how I thought it might be that house I was living in at the time. Well, I've noticed since moving out of there that I definitely haven't been sick as often! I've had a major cold maybe twice since then - and that was almost a year ago! So I am pretty happy about that. Colds are not fun - especially for me, as I get severe watery eyes and look like shit - don't want to be going out anywhere when I have a cold! So nice to see them happening less. I do get a lot of exercise and "fresh" air - as fresh as Windsor can offer - and I've been trying to eat better as well, so I'm sure those things help.
In other news, I submitted my Business Plan yesterday. I had to present it to the Program Manager, and she in turn will present it to the review committee on Thursday. The only thing that she said they might have a problem with is that my financials were too conservative - not enough sales in the first two years. That was the hard part for me, as I didn't want to over estimate and over step myself, but didn't want to be too "cheap" either - I guess I erred on the side of too cheap. But we'll see. The review committee may accept it anyway with the condition that I re-evaluate my financials or something like that. I'll know on Thursday.
Jon left for Cuba on Sunday. Lucky guy is probably sitting in the sun on the beach right now. I'm glad he was able to get away - he's been needing it for a while - but I do wish I could have gone with him too. A nice sunny beach would be delightful right now! However, I am staying at his place to look after things while he's gone, so I have access to the hot tub whenever I want, and a house to myself! Kind of nice, but lonely at times too - and it's only been a couple of days! This will be the first time since we started seeing each other that we went a whole week without some kind of communication - no phone calls, no text messages, no emails. Boy will I be glad to see him when he gets back! And he'll be glad to see me too, which is another bonus. He's been so sweet lately, really taking care of me and showing me that he cares about me - even telling me sometimes! When he was getting ready to leave he was saying that he'd miss me and wished he could take me with him. Not often he says stuff like that, so I sure appreciate it when he does! He seems to be doing much better - I think we are past the rough spot... I am really pumped about the trip out to BC this summer, and very excited that he wants to come with me. This guy has become pretty important in my life, and I can't wait for him to meet my family and they him! :-D
Well, that's all for now. I'm feeling better this morning so think I can actually get some website work done. Mom has been sending me updates for over a week now and I haven't been able to get to them yet. Definitely time to get on that! Caio!
And that's the bitching for now. lol. Now on to the good news. For those of you who were reading my blog last year, you may remember how I was commenting on how often I had a cold and how I thought it might be that house I was living in at the time. Well, I've noticed since moving out of there that I definitely haven't been sick as often! I've had a major cold maybe twice since then - and that was almost a year ago! So I am pretty happy about that. Colds are not fun - especially for me, as I get severe watery eyes and look like shit - don't want to be going out anywhere when I have a cold! So nice to see them happening less. I do get a lot of exercise and "fresh" air - as fresh as Windsor can offer - and I've been trying to eat better as well, so I'm sure those things help.
In other news, I submitted my Business Plan yesterday. I had to present it to the Program Manager, and she in turn will present it to the review committee on Thursday. The only thing that she said they might have a problem with is that my financials were too conservative - not enough sales in the first two years. That was the hard part for me, as I didn't want to over estimate and over step myself, but didn't want to be too "cheap" either - I guess I erred on the side of too cheap. But we'll see. The review committee may accept it anyway with the condition that I re-evaluate my financials or something like that. I'll know on Thursday.
Jon left for Cuba on Sunday. Lucky guy is probably sitting in the sun on the beach right now. I'm glad he was able to get away - he's been needing it for a while - but I do wish I could have gone with him too. A nice sunny beach would be delightful right now! However, I am staying at his place to look after things while he's gone, so I have access to the hot tub whenever I want, and a house to myself! Kind of nice, but lonely at times too - and it's only been a couple of days! This will be the first time since we started seeing each other that we went a whole week without some kind of communication - no phone calls, no text messages, no emails. Boy will I be glad to see him when he gets back! And he'll be glad to see me too, which is another bonus. He's been so sweet lately, really taking care of me and showing me that he cares about me - even telling me sometimes! When he was getting ready to leave he was saying that he'd miss me and wished he could take me with him. Not often he says stuff like that, so I sure appreciate it when he does! He seems to be doing much better - I think we are past the rough spot... I am really pumped about the trip out to BC this summer, and very excited that he wants to come with me. This guy has become pretty important in my life, and I can't wait for him to meet my family and they him! :-D
Well, that's all for now. I'm feeling better this morning so think I can actually get some website work done. Mom has been sending me updates for over a week now and I haven't been able to get to them yet. Definitely time to get on that! Caio!
Thursday, March 20, 2008
name ideas wanted!
I am brainstorming a new name for my business. For purposes of the program I am applying for, I need to choose a new name. So bring on your ideas! Email me at tehjess@hotmail.com, or leave me a comment on here! Any ideas are welcome.
Here's a couple ideas already brought forward that I kind of like, just to give you an idea and get you thinking. ;-) Itsy Bitsy Web Solutions or Dream Web Productions. My business is website design, particularly targeting small businesses - for those of you who don't know - so something to indicates that in some way is good, something unique and creative... :-)
Here's a couple ideas already brought forward that I kind of like, just to give you an idea and get you thinking. ;-) Itsy Bitsy Web Solutions or Dream Web Productions. My business is website design, particularly targeting small businesses - for those of you who don't know - so something to indicates that in some way is good, something unique and creative... :-)
life, the universe and everything!
Life is busy right now. I am putting together my business plan to submit on Monday to try and get into the Self Employment Assistance program. I didn't realize exactly how much work goes into putting a business plan together! Whew! Not only do you write the actual business plan, but there are supporting documents, a resume, a portfolio - all of which must be prepared, printed and attached! But I'm not one to shy away from such a challenge, and I am actually enjoying putting it all together and seeing my business come together on paper! It's good to put it all into words and to actually define what it is I want to do with my business. I have to include financial statements, and it's interesting to sit down and work out the numbers, and see where I could be in a couple of years - yes, I have to do financials for the first two years! Best educated guess is what they call it. Sales predictions, cash flow statements, etc. Very educational!! I am learning a lot and enjoying seeing how my business can actually be successful!
My love life has also been busier and going well. After the official "break up", we have still been spending time together, and he has been more sweet and romantic than I've seen him in a long time. It's a bit like when we first started dating - except that it's someone I know now. So while we may have offically broken up, it's definitely not over. I'm not sure that my friends are as excited about this as I am. They are probably concerned that I'm just staying in a situation where I'll get hurt again. And I guess if I was in their shoes I would feel the same. But I do know that he's the one I want, that I'm not ready to walk away and I still want him in my life as my significant someone! Perhaps it had to take that "break up" to get things back on track, to get rid of the expectations and give him the space and freedom he needed to not only figure things out in his own personal life, but to figure things out in regards to his relationship with me. I don't know. I'm not going to put a label on what we are now, either. I have been enjoying the quality romantic time together though. He had me over for dinner the other night - complete with wine, the hottub, and a massage, not to mention some hot making out! It was sexy, romantic and made me feel pampered and cared for. He said he realized he's been taking me for granted and he wanted to change that. Yes, I melted, my heart was running all over the floor. It's things like that that make the hard times worth it! I am glad to see him doing better - I was a bit worried about him for a while there, but he seems to be getting things figured out. And for all you readers back home in BC, we are planning a trip out there this summer, so you'll get to meet this guy you've heard so much about!
After two days of rain, I was very glad to wake up and see the sun shining in my window this morning! I was getting tired of the dreary, overcast weather, and am very much looking forward to getting out there and enjoying spring this afternoon! Perhaps winter is really finally over and spring can now bring in summer...??? It feels like forever since I enjoyed a hot sunny day...
My love life has also been busier and going well. After the official "break up", we have still been spending time together, and he has been more sweet and romantic than I've seen him in a long time. It's a bit like when we first started dating - except that it's someone I know now. So while we may have offically broken up, it's definitely not over. I'm not sure that my friends are as excited about this as I am. They are probably concerned that I'm just staying in a situation where I'll get hurt again. And I guess if I was in their shoes I would feel the same. But I do know that he's the one I want, that I'm not ready to walk away and I still want him in my life as my significant someone! Perhaps it had to take that "break up" to get things back on track, to get rid of the expectations and give him the space and freedom he needed to not only figure things out in his own personal life, but to figure things out in regards to his relationship with me. I don't know. I'm not going to put a label on what we are now, either. I have been enjoying the quality romantic time together though. He had me over for dinner the other night - complete with wine, the hottub, and a massage, not to mention some hot making out! It was sexy, romantic and made me feel pampered and cared for. He said he realized he's been taking me for granted and he wanted to change that. Yes, I melted, my heart was running all over the floor. It's things like that that make the hard times worth it! I am glad to see him doing better - I was a bit worried about him for a while there, but he seems to be getting things figured out. And for all you readers back home in BC, we are planning a trip out there this summer, so you'll get to meet this guy you've heard so much about!
After two days of rain, I was very glad to wake up and see the sun shining in my window this morning! I was getting tired of the dreary, overcast weather, and am very much looking forward to getting out there and enjoying spring this afternoon! Perhaps winter is really finally over and spring can now bring in summer...??? It feels like forever since I enjoyed a hot sunny day...
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
miss me?
Well, it's been a little bit since I actually wrote a blog here. Hope you enjoyed the "funnies" though...
I have a busy week happening here. I am taking classes this week - Business Plan Preperation classes - and around that starting to put together my business plan, as well as the usual gym and a few shifts at work. Phew! I have now borrowed a bike, so some things take up less time and I found today that I was able to fit the gym in before class, instead of waiting until the afternoon, or missing because of a lack of time between class and work. So, I am learning to juggle things to get everything to fit in, with some time left for working on my business plan - and a quick blog. Thankfully, I will be cutting back majorly on work shifts here soon. Once I know for sure if I am in this Self Employment Assistance program or not - and I almost for sure will be - then I will go ahead and pretty much quit at the cafe, as I don't want to have to be wasting time on the bus trying to get to a job that I really don't need anymore AND try to run a business full time. Whew. It's already bad enough this week, and I'm only taking morning classes!
I am loving seeing spring on it's way. Snow and ice are melting, it feels more mild out. There is hope that winter is on it's way out! I will not miss it. This one has felt incredibly long and cold. I am more than ready for spring and summer!
Well, that's kinda the major news and what's going on with me. Now I need to go do some work on my business plan before I have to head off to the Caffe. Caio!
I have a busy week happening here. I am taking classes this week - Business Plan Preperation classes - and around that starting to put together my business plan, as well as the usual gym and a few shifts at work. Phew! I have now borrowed a bike, so some things take up less time and I found today that I was able to fit the gym in before class, instead of waiting until the afternoon, or missing because of a lack of time between class and work. So, I am learning to juggle things to get everything to fit in, with some time left for working on my business plan - and a quick blog. Thankfully, I will be cutting back majorly on work shifts here soon. Once I know for sure if I am in this Self Employment Assistance program or not - and I almost for sure will be - then I will go ahead and pretty much quit at the cafe, as I don't want to have to be wasting time on the bus trying to get to a job that I really don't need anymore AND try to run a business full time. Whew. It's already bad enough this week, and I'm only taking morning classes!
I am loving seeing spring on it's way. Snow and ice are melting, it feels more mild out. There is hope that winter is on it's way out! I will not miss it. This one has felt incredibly long and cold. I am more than ready for spring and summer!
Well, that's kinda the major news and what's going on with me. Now I need to go do some work on my business plan before I have to head off to the Caffe. Caio!
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