Poll Results

Thank all of you who took the time to vote on my poll. Very interesting I thought. It seesm that out of the 5 who voted, the majority landed in the middle. Only one was getting all he wanted out of the experience, four seemed to fall in the lack luster section. The great part is that no one was ready to throw in the towel.

So what does this mean for entrepreneurship? I think it means that its alive and kicking. When you start a new business it takes 3-5 years AT LEAST for it to take off. I think the fact that young businesses are seeing some form of success and are willing to keep up the good fight says a lot about our tenaciousness and the willingness to persue the American dream. The reason we got into our own practices is to have the personal and financial freedom to call our own shots and succeed at our own goals. Whatever those may be.

If you are an entrepreneur, congratulations! I am proud to be among you. If you are not, do all you can to employ and use the products and services of your local (and not so local) entrepreneurs. We are ambitious and hungry bunch who will do all we can to keep your business and inspire your referrals. Give us a try!

The Best Soup

I know! This is a whole new genre for my blog. But I accidently made the best turkey noodle soup the other night and I thought I would share with the rest of you.

First of all, I am about to disclose my Grandma Susie's famous egg noodle recipe.

1 Egg
1 Tsp. Baking Soda
Enough flour to make a stiff dough.

Beat the egg and baking soda in a small bowl. Add enough flour to turn out on a floured board and roll till thin. Cut into squares with a knife and let stand.

Now the soup!

2 cans of chicken broth
2 cups of vegetable broth
Shredded turkey or chicken breast...as much as you want.
2 celery stalks sliced.
2 carrots sliced
1/2 onion, chopped.
White button mushrooms...as much as your want
Cilantro....as much as you want
A dash of red pepper flakes.

Heat to boil then reduce to a simmer. Continue to simmer until vegetables are tender. Then add egg noodles and continue to simmer until noodles are cooked through. They may look like a small dumpling in the pot. This is sooo good! Serve with cornbread or rolls. The mushrooms and cilantro give it a nice spring, almost thai flavor. Enjoy! Let me know how it turns out for you!

NW Family and Baby Fest

News you want to know about? How about free baby showers? Pregnant women can join the fun of being showered with tons of free gifts at the NW Family & Baby Fest on Friday, March 7th and Saturday, March 8th at the Oregon State Fairgrounds in Salem. The event is a huge trade show highlighting products and services for children and families. Along with the booths of exhibitors, we will host baby showers on both days for expecting moms.

The baby showers include activities, free gifts and even a baby shower cake! We give away a ton of baby products, from baby clothing to booster seats. Kids and adults alike will have a festive time at this event.

We wouldn’t want you to miss out on the inflatable castles, games and craft projects, either. If you’re interested, we’ll also have seminars for parents on anything from first time home buying to foster care, adoption and family services.

HERE IS MORE INFO.....

What: The NW Family and Baby Festival

When: Friday, March 7, 2008 – Noon to 8 p.m.
Saturday, March 8, 2008 – 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Where: Oregon State Fairgrounds
Jackman Long Building
2330 17th St. NE Salem OR 97303

How much: General $4
Family Pass $7 (2 adults & kids accompanied)
12 & under FREE
Grandparents FREE on Friday

Festival Includes:
· Childrens’ products
· Recreation
· Entertainment
· Education
· Child care
· Safety
· Home Improvement
· Real Estate
· Insurance Services
· Investments
· Special Needs
· Social Services
· Health & Fitness
· Nutrition
· Camps

Sponsors:
· NW Kids Club
· Family Building Blocks
· YMCA

Highlights:

· 50% of the Door Proceeds go to Family Building Blocks “Keeping Children Safe and Families Together”
· Family friendly expo event that will highlight products, services and information intended for families with children.

Thank you, Travis G!

I stole this from Travis G's Blog. It was too good not to pass on!

How's Being Self Employed Working Out For You?

It seems to me that 3-5 years ago, everyone was talking about entreprenuership and how owning your own business and living the american dream was where it was at. I was a huge part of that movement. I still believe that entreprenuership is a wonderful thing that is now so much more readily available with the technoligical age. You can live literally anywhere you like and work by means of cell phone, internet and fax machine. To this day I remain a rural entreprenuer and have worked with several rural entreprenuers assisting them in making their dreams come true and in turn making my own dreams a little closer to reality. Some I can say continue to plug along. Some are not enjoying the success in the amount of time that they hoped to. One has the potential to be extremely successful and a few more are simply hemoraging. So what does this mean about entreprenuership? What does it take to make it in the business world without a safety net? I was once at a convention for rural entreprenuers and the guest speaker likened independant business people as the extreme sport athletes of the business world. I agree. It takes a lot of hudspa to dive in, possibly leave what you have done for years to take on the business world, depend on the public and their need for your services to make not only a living wage for yourself and your family, but for your business to thrive. I have been talking to some of those people that made the leap with me and I can't say that all of them are still doing it alone. Many of them have decided to share their home business time with other jobs. What does this mean for the independant business person? Is entreprenuership on its' way out? It's it still thriving? Is it successful most of the time or only for a few? I want to know what you think. I want to know how you own independant businesses are working out for you. Please take a moment to leave me a comment or participate in the poll you see to your left. Its a subject that I have no answers for. I can only draw from my own experiences and those of my sole proprietorship friends, all too many of them who have recently locked their doors. Where does your business stand?

Now Why Would He Say That?

As an avid watcher of the Today Show, I saw where President Bush defended Bill Clinton. He said that he understood President Clinton defending his wife and campaigning for her. He went on to say that he didn't believe what some media was saying regarding the former President as a racist. He said he just didn't see where that had any truth to it.

Hmmmm......now its long been known that there is no love loss between the Clinton's and the Bush's through the years. So why would W come out now in defense of his father's former rival? I pondered that myself until I came up with this.

Bush (obviously) supports the war. McCain is a huge supporter of the war. In fact, he believes the more troops the better. The longer we are there, the better. Wouldn't he be perfect to continue Bush politics? YES! Then by supporting Hillary, what does that say? It says in the world according to Bush, the Republican party has a better chance staying in power if Clinton gets the Democratic nod over Obama. He thinks Clinton will be easier to beat in November than Obama. That is the ONLY reason this presidency would advocate a Clinton on any grounds.

The best part about this? That Bush mentions it at all. Oh yes. It appears that the Republican party is looking at the Democrats with a new set of eyes. Eyes that see a possibility of reclaiming the White House since the Clinton's owned it between Bush's. Could there be any other reason for this mention? You tell me.

Oh Yeah.....

How to Feel Good About Your Mortgage Loan

If you have ever been through or begun a home loan process, you know that it can be daunting and scary. So many new terms to know and sorting out what they all mean can be very intimidating. It doesn't have to be that way. You can find someone to be your advocate and someone who can work for you.

First of all, the mortgage market is not as bleak as the media would have it seem. As a Loan Officer for Lending Tree/Primary Residential Mortgage, I'm here to tell you that even in this traditionally slower market time, our phones are still ringing and homes are still being bought by motivated buyers at a rapid pace. All is not lost. A home investment is still and investment where in the majority of the cases a profit is made on your investment.

To take some of the mystery out of the process, don't have a potential loan officer run your credit right away. Having too many inquiries on your credit report can adversely effect your credit. Be reasonably sure that you are ready to proceed with a loan and that particular loan officer to avoid unnecessary hits to your credit and wasting the time of the loan officer if you aren't ready.

Spend some time visiting with your Loan Officer. Find out where they are located. Ask questions. See how willing your loan officer is to answer your questions and work with you on your particular circumstances. If the loan officer is more interested in "making the deal" than helping you through your home purchasing process, move on. Find someone who is willing to be your advocate from first phone call to beyond your closing.

Be honest about your circumstances. If you know you have struggled financially and have some adverse marks on your credit, come clean early. Your loan officer will know once your credit is ran what your payment history is. If a debt is your spouses but your name is on the account, the debt is yours too. If you have cosigned for a loan for someone other than yourself, it shows on your credit as an outstanding debt. Knowing this will help you be better prepared for what credit report might have to show you.

Be sure to provide more information to your loan officer, not less. And be sure your loan officer is willing to do the same for you. Finding a good loan officer will make you feel comfortable throughout your home buying process and you'll look for that person to do business again. A good loan officer will want your business for life. Not just for the deal.

What a Mystery to Me

I was raised as an only child and due to this, I didn't grow up having to share points of view with siblings, though I was raised by parents who could not have been more of the polar opposite of myself. Because of this, I tend to think that the way I think should be the way other people think too. Are you with me? Anyone else feel this way? That if the world saw things as I/you do, that their would not be the problems there are today? Well, obviously, that is not the case.

I look at the past 20 years of the White House and I can't say I'm happy with how it has gone. We've done the Bush/Clinton/Bush and possibly the Clinton thing again and all I can ask of you is, "how's that working out for ya?" Are you making all the money you want to be making? How are your taxes looking for you this year? Are you able to put your kids through college? Do you have a son or daughter that could be looking at a draft if a certain someone who supports this war and doesn't mind seeing it go on indefinately? Are you making your house payments comfortably? If you are like me, the above mentioned are areas of concern for many of us. And yet, I see a nation that is so reluctant to change. I see that the majority of Republicans are in favor of this war. I see the middle and lower middle class continue to take it in the shorts as the rest of us struggle to keep our heads above water. And more disconcerting yet, I see people who don't even know who is running and who they stand for. I saw on a bumper sticker the other day. It said, "if you aren't outraged, you aren't paying attention". I, for one, am outraged. I hear people talk of change and yet when it's time for the polls, I see people time and time again make the same decision over and over again. They vote for a repeat of the continued disasters that are currently plaguing this country. So why not take that leap? Why not make a vote for change? Are people afraid that things will actually get worse? Or maybe they will get better and then no one will have excuses for their continued failure to thrive. I for one am in favor of positive change and a better life for me and my kids. Come on, won't you join me in Christyland and make a better world for all of us? At least think about it.

This Was FANTASTIC!!!

Wow! Aside from my Steelers, this is one of the best Super Bowl's ever. I am sorry for the loss of the perfect season for the Patriots. Well, not really. Being the football puritan that I am, I think the 72 Dolphins should keep that record forever. That's when you spent your career with the same team. That's when loyalty and shear grit took precidence over money and fame. Fame came because you earned it. Not because of how much money you make or what deal was made, why you were arrested or what inappropriate thing you did.

The NY Giants showed guts and determination that is often lost in today's NFL and my hat is off to them. What a fun game!

So what was up with the pregame show? Since when is a "red carpet" part of the Super Bowl? Frankly? I don't care what celebrities think. I don't care that they are there. I certainly don't want to see a red carpet. I want to see tail gaters. I wanted to see painted faces and what ever version of cheeseheads are attending the game. I wanted to know more about what Jason Taylor did for his community that won him the Walter Peyton award for community involvement. Dammit I want to know what little kid was totally influenced by something nice some humanitarian football player did for them. I certainly don't care who Nick Lachey thinks will win. I finally went to take a nap before the game started.

But kudos the the Giants! This one was really SUPER!!! When does Leatherheads come out?

If You See Nothing Else This Winter, See This!