Happy New Year 2015

Happy New Year Everyone!!!!

Please leave the holidays alone, they are not bothering you…

(c) 2014   P.Lynne Designs 

I am making a statement, which is one of my motto's for 2015.   For those who have been following me, do not worry, I am not going to be some militant writer, who is going on a 50-state rant across the country.  I am not going to ignore what is going on either, but I do have something to say about the holidays.

Lately, I have been hearing about all these cities across the United States trying to cancel Christmas, because the very thought of celebrating the holiday may offend some people and their beliefs.  My question is how are the cities doing that?  Let me you in one a little secret: ignore it.  You do not have to participate in anything you do not believe in.  Let those of us who love the idea of going downtown to see all the lights, sounds, and smells have our season.  Let me give you an example:

Where I live in Columbus, Ohio, we have horse drawn carriage rides.  They are only given during the holiday season.  Now I have never rode in one, unless you count the time when me and my family visited downtown San Diego, California in 2007, me and my mom rode one, while my father, nephew (then 11), and a family friend walked by the water.  I love seeing them around Columbus, because it is part of the Christmas season.  I am a Christian, but nowhere in the bible does it say that I cannot ride in a carriage taking a tour of downtown Columbus.  I do not have any restrictions so it does not bother me.  I just personally have taken the time over the years to fully enjoy a good carriage ride.  Ok, now say it did offend me.  Do I have the right to take away from others, just because a horse-drive carriage offends me?  No, I do not, because it is about freedom to do what you want, because it is within the context of the law of this country.  I am not an island, and no other person should feel like that they need to put others with them, just because the celebrations of the season put them in that position.

Now to those who live in the towns where Christmas is “cancelled.”  Christmas is not cancelled.  It is on the calendar, and no one has the right to take away your right to celebrate the season.  This is only year one.  After this is over with, write your congressman, and tell them your feelings about the cancellation.  These so-called elected officials have one year to restore celebrations to your city.  Do not let a few people take away your celebration.  Celebrate anyway.  The police do not have right to tell you what you cannot do in your own home.  This is the perfect time to celebrate with family and friends in your home.  There are more problems in the world to complain about, then the cancellation of a downtown Christmas tree, though it is pretty to look at. 

Try to find out why this year’s celebration is cancelled.  Have you ever heard of the game called Telephone?  It is a child’s game, where the first person whispers a name or a phrase.  The idea is to make sure that last person repeats exactly what the first person has started.  Most of the time that last person gets it wrong every time.  What does this game have to do with the cancellation of the Christmas celebration?  Simple.  The real reason for the cancellation gets lost in the shuffle, and the reason may not have anything to do with offending a few people.  It might have been due to budget cuts, construction, anything but being offensive.  By the time the reason gets to a news person, it turns into something that gets a town stirred up and then the anger starts.  That is how most fights get started.   Other names for this type of talk are called “rumors” and “gossip”. 

Whatever the reason, please have a pleasant holiday, and I am looking forward to my presents and celebration the birth of Christ.

Merry Christmas!

To Blog or not to blog, that is the question…

(c) www.howtostartablogforfree.com

Writing is one of the most freeing things you can do in your life.  I mean, after all, I have been writing in a blog since 2009, and I find it therapeutic for me.  It does not matter if I am writing out my heart and soul because I am angry at someone or something in my life on my personal journal, to telling would be card makers what glue is best for the type of paper they are using.  I even find writing a grocery list exciting, especially now that I can go into my smartphone, access the MS office app, and start typing (or speaking).

It does not matter what I do, I always do not want to give it up.  I know I have to sleep sometime, but even now, it is 1am EST, and I am typing out this post for this blog.   I have not given it up.  As a matter of fact, I have 5 blogs to keep up with, plus an account on a site called Hubpages. This is not my reason for the random thought.

My reason for my random thought is something that I have said over and over again:  If you are going to start blog, JUST DO IT.  You do not need anyone’s permission to start a writing blog, or any blog for that matter.   My tips:

·         Know what you are going to write about.  You cannot just start writing about fuzz balls and thinking that it is going to hold water, until the year 2044.  It is not (unless there is something you know that I do not know about).

·         Be an expert on that subject.  I.E. I know about papercrafting, Disney, organizing, and writing.  I also sell organizational items.  I have a passion about these subjects, and there is plenty of content out there.  I have no business writing about Quantum Theorem Physics (what the heck is that anyway?) See, and I am not looking it up.

·         Gain a following.  After all, you need someone to read it.  The newest thing to gain readership is to add a video to the blog.

·         Finally, have fun.  Add visional effects to it.  Add a little humor to your post, but at the same time, be respectful to the grammer (grammar) police.  Have something that will make a person crave for more.  Do not write just for yourself, which why there are personal journals out there.

I hope it helps. If you want a blog, just start one.  No one is stopping you but you.

What is the one skill you see in other bloggers that you wish you had?

From Lifehacker.com

Today, I am answering one of the prompts from BlogHer. It is the first one I have answered in a long time. The prompt for today is asking about a skill that I might see in other bloggers throughout their own blogs. In true Patricia style, I have to give more than one answer, because I’m like that.

The first skill, is consistency. I know, I know, I keep on saying that I am going to blog more than once a week, and I have an answer for that. The problem is I am a yes person. I constantly say yes to people who I should be saying no to, and that is bad. I am always trying to correct this problem, but I always have people, who when I say no to, they come up with a reason why I should say yes. This is especially true with my nephew, who is 18. He has no driver’s license, refuses to take the test, and get himself a car. More on that at another time. When that happens, I get behind in my work, then I find myself going weeks without submitting a blog post, creating product, or even picking up a piece of paper off the floor. That last part is an exaggeration, but that is how I feel, sometimes. Take today for instance, I am trying to finish my work and pick something to eat, before tonight’s episode of Scandal. Yes folks, I am a diehard Scandal fan, and I do comment on a Facebook group every Thursday. Okay, it could not kill me for once, to take this man child to the movies, but is cold outside, and I am now at the moment, warm and toasty. Who wants to go out in the polar vortex’s baby brother’s weather, when you have a heater? I am just saying.

Okay, I got a little sidetracked for the moment, but the problem is consistency. My next problem, is sponsorship. I can see some eyes rolling already. One of my dreams with this blog, as well as my other blog, is to have revenue comes from it. Again, I can see the eyes rolling. Not a lot, but just enough money to pay for things like web hosting fees, and other things that are associated with monitoring a website or blog.

I am going to throw in a bonus, and say that there are some bloggers who are great with words. And I know that comes with practice, because I can see a difference from my very first blog post so now. I have been blogging since 2009, I think that is around the time that most people start blogging, but there are some people’s blogs look like they have been blogging longer. In other words, they know how to pitch their blogs to others. Another name for marketing oneself, and letting others know why you should read my blog, or sponsor me. I guess I am going to have to hire myself a blog writer, which is the same as a speechwriter for people who need someone to give them the right words to say. But then again, I would feel like that these are not the words, and they are not from the heart.

So now you know my flaws, I am getting better every time I write a blog post. And in closing, I will give you a little tip: use a speech to text software to type a little faster. It is my little gift from me to you, and I love my speech to text software.

Buyers, Beware?

This will be an antique in 2214

The year is 2214, and your computer’s dusty hard drive has just resurfaced at an antique store. Write a note to the curious buyer explaining what he or she will find there.

Dear potential Buyer:

Thank you for purchasing my hard drive.  I want to let you know before you unlock the secrets of this hard drive, what you will find on it.  I have no doubt that things are a lot sophisticated now with your new technology, I know you will wonder how people got along in 2014.

First of all, I am from the Northwest part of country (if there is still a country called the United States.) Columbus, Ohio to be exact.  You may find a lot of reference of the city and state on here.   You may also out about a company called Longaberger as well.  I am an Independent Home consultant, and I have a lot of business stuff on the hard drive.  I hope the company is still in operation.  I have good faith that the company is still striving, and that Dave Longaberger’s legacy has not gone to waste.

I like Disney, a lot, and you may find planning materials on the hard drive.  I was trying to plan a trip since 2009, and had to revise the plan several times.  We finally went in 2016, and had a blast.  I was able to scrapbook the trip in 2017, and had found memories of making the scrapbook.  I did not digitize it, I made it the traditional way, and my offspring should have the book.  I did make copies, so if you want to know what Disney was like through my eyes, you can take a look, before you erase the contents (I assume that is what you are going to do with the drive).

Scrapbooking was another hobby of mine, turned into a business, a booming business.  By the time I died, it was a billion business.  Something I never thought of happening in 1995 when I first got started.  You may have heard of the company, P. Lynne Designs.  Well now you can see the humble beginnings of this company unfold before your eyes.  There were several times that I wanted to just close the business, even a few days before I died, but my daughter, my niece and nephews, and even my parents convinced me not to do it.  I am so glad I did not close the door on a company that was my heart and soul.  You will find several files pertaining to it.

You may find that I was also spiritual and that I love inspirational pieces, especially pieces that pertain to God and His son.  I wrote for a living as well, and became an author.  I never thought in a millions years that I would being doing something like that, especially the number of marks I received from my papers in school.

Finally, you may find random stuff, like a schedule of me working at the Longaberger Homestead, birthday reminders, meetings, and other appointments.  Most of all, I hope you will find what kind of person I was, which a person who cares about people, especially her family, her customers, and life in general.  I cannot say that my life was easy, because nothing is easy in life.  You have to roll with the punches.  Don’t slouch, it makes for a bad back. 

If you really want to get to know me, the real me, you will find some personal journals as well.  You will see my entries on how I went through life in 21^st century, hopefully getting alone with my 50 year old body and beyond. 

Introduction to Blue Apron

Introduction to Blue Apron

I got my first box of Blue Apron today, and it is so simply to sign up. Note I am not Affiliated with the company, nor this was given to me to try. I purchased this subscription with my own money, but they do get you 2 free meals for trying it.