Inspired by Appalachian Trail (AT) Thru-Hikers

I just got back from "town" - which is what we call Gorham, NH - the closest place we can do any shopping up here in rural Randolph, NH. Whenever I see a backpacker this time of year, I can fairly accurately determine if he or she is hiking on the Appalachian Trail - or "the A.T."

You really cannot miss a thru-hiker (which is the term used for an A.T. hiker whose intent it is to hike either from Springer Mountain, Georgia to Mount Katahdin, Maine or vice versa). The majority of thru-hikers go from south to north, beginning in early spring so that they can reasonably expect to complete the 2,000+ mile trail before the snows fly in the fall.

Of course, there are also a number of "flip floppers" who hike from north to south. When my husband and his buddy decided to do a stretch of trail some years ago, they started at Katahdin.

Anyway, there are several things that scream "thru-hiker" when you see one. By the time these hardy souls arrive in Gorham, NH (a point close to the trail in the northern White Mountains of New Hampshire) they are usually very lean, a bit shaggy looking, have voracious appetities, and are a bit - ummm... shall we say "ripe" - after all, it's tough to wash your clothes very well on the trail.

They also typically go by "trail names." For example, one of our very good friends hikes for approximately 6 weeks every spring on the A.T., and calls himself "slo-go'en'" since he is never in a hurry. I love hearing the trail names. Of course, there's always gonna be the "Katahdin Kid" or "Blister," but I cannot help but enjoy wondering where "whykickamoocow" or "crazylegscrim" got those particular monikers.

All part of being on the trail.

Thru-hikers sometimes have a little bemused look to their faces by the time they hit Gorham as they deal with the sudden rush of population, diversions, and noise (which is actually quite tame in my view - but then again, I'm originally from suburban New Jersey - so who's to say?).

Although I have never attempted nor accomplished a long backpacking trip , I always appreciate the intense effort it takes someone to complete this type of endeavor (my longest hike was about 5 grueling days on the Long Trail in Vermont years ago when I was fit and sassy).

So, it is with respect and great regularity that whenever I see an obvious thru-hiker in town, I stop and give them a lift somewhere. To the store (the closest grocery store is a few miles out of Gorham), to their hostel or hotel, or occasionally to a restaurant where we ply the hiker with food or ice cream...

This summer, I have had the usual pleasure of meeting a few hikers - one whose trail name escapes me at the moment. I'm sure he's long since finished the trail and is hopefully relaxing safely at home and reminiscing about how simple and basic life in the woods can be.

While I was giving this particular hiker a ride into town, he told me of another thru-hiker who had fallen into some bad luck this summer. This unfortunate hiker had made it rather far north when - during some time of high water (which was most of the summer it seems), he evidently fell into a river and lost all his gear.

Pack, clothes, cooking gear, food, sleeping gear - gone. All of it.

Imagine for just a moment the feeling this guy must have had (after, of course, being thankful that he didn't drown and was able to escape his pack while in the water). This can be a difficult situation for one who is more than 20 miles from civilization. Again, he is extremely lucky to be alive - but, being cold and wet out in the middle of nowhere with nowhere to go at the moment could not have been anything but miserable.

But, true to the spirit of the participants in this culture - and it IS a culture all its own - somehow the guy was temporarily outfitted during this emergency in order to make it out of the woods safely. And once he reached civilization, I am told that he was taking a couple of weeks off while his family and friends re-outfitted him.

The thru-hiker who told me about this indicated that even after that scary experience, the guy would be finishing the trail. Of course, this came in from one of the hikers, so since it's 3rd hand, who can be sure of the whole story? I'm guessing that on one of the A.T. websites - maybe http://www.trailjournals.com/ or other hiker resource, we could probably find reference to this incident.

But, then, came today when I gave "The Phoenix" (his trail name) a ride from Wal-Mart (the closest store with food on the shelves in any quantity) back to where he was staying in town. He told me of his own experience on the trail thus far - and told it with such nonchalance, I could scarcely believe it.

Turns out that while this young and lanky lad was in a shelter down in Maryland or thereabouts, he got bitten by a raccoon. He had to leave the trail and endure rabies treatments for a while. He told me this story in the same casual tone of voice as though he had just told me he found the aisle in the store where they kept the bottled water. "Hey guys, found the water. It's over in aisle 10." "Hey guys, I just got bitten by a raccoon and need to think about getting back to civilization pretty soon so I can get shots to be sure I don't die."

Anyway, once he felt better, he headed north to Katahdin and was now hiking south to finish the trail where he had to leave it when he had his unfortunate encounter with the raccoon.

Absolutely amazing! How can ya NOT be inspired when hearing these types of stories?

Actually, I really do give these folks a lift and some trail magic just because it's fun to do so - but, hearing their stories is priceless.

As for me - although I still am not inclined to go without a shower for as long as these hardcore thru-hikers can - I AM inclined to get out from behind this keyboard tomorrow and go just a little bit further up the trail for my daily exercise.

Ok, signing off for today - and for those of you who enjoy a little bit more cushy vacations at comfy resort condos, I invite you to check out our wonderful vacation travel memberships here at Fine Resort Vacation, where we are changing the way we take vacations (and can leave for dayhikes from the comfort of our lodgings)!

Fine Resort Blog

Fine Resort Blog

Selling Our House in Randolph NH (White Mountains)

Hi folks!
I've been a bit "absent" this summer on my blogs since returning from South Carolina, and I apologize for not writing as much lately.

It seems that as soon as we returned, it was time to begin planning once again to leave! Renewing our passports, planning for our upcoming St. Martin vacation in November, working on the house, working on our Portable Garages and Shelters, Discount Kids Clothes, and Fine Resort Vacation websites, welcoming new Global Resort Network team members, and preparing to go back to South Carolina for the winter (we miss all of you guys down there, and cannot wait to see you again!) - all those things seemed to make this summer go by in the quickest blink of an eye.

Plus, to top it off, we have made the very difficult decision to sell our White Mountains (Randolph NH) home after being in this peaceful paradise for more than 9 years. Actually, we have been in Randolph for much longer - John, for nearly 30 years, and I, for 20.

But, after doing a lot of soul-searching and realistically looking at our goals and dreams, it makes sense for us to move on. So, this is another reason for my writing having taken a bit of a back seat for the time being.

For right now, we have placed a complete listing for the Randolph NH house on our Fine Resort Vacation site here => www.FineResortVacation.com/RandolphHouseForSale.

I promise to get back to regular posts as soon as possible! Thanks for your patience!

Avoiding Travel Scams - Read & Heed!

I just saw this great article at the travel section of MSN regarding avoiding travel scams. Since I market really nice fine resort vacation memberships, this topic is of great interest to me, and I'm passing it along to all of you with the hopes that you will avoid these when travelling.

The more we know about stuff like this, the more pleasant our vacations and travel in general will be! Here is the article => The World's Worst Travel Scams

And, in the meantime, I just booked my own flights to St. Martin! We're not going until November, but we thought it was time to start looking at what's out there.

I'm pleased to say that through our own Global Resorts Network membership (the membership is actually with Gold Crown Resort), we got a FAR better deal from Boston to St. Martin than we found on Expedia. For the 2 of us, travelling non-stop on Jet Blue to and from, it cost a total of $1,207.10 (This price includes the taxes, which were over $100 each. Aren't taxes amazing?).

So, I am very glad to report that the travel membership has terrific value well beyond the actual resort stays. Please check us out! Fine Resort Vacation - Truly a vacationer's dream come true!

WONDERFUL A Capella Video - "Perpetuum Jazzile - Africa," and How can I Use this to promote my new Fine Resort Vacation site? Hmmm.

Preface to why I am using this awesome video:
Those of you who have read any of my old blogs know that I enjoy internet marketing - actually, what I enjoy most is the copywriting - I love writing, and always have. You probably already know that I market wonderful vacation memberships through my www.FineResortVacation.com website.

And, besides writing, I have an absolute passion for singing - and have an especially deep love for harmony and harmonizing - which is possibly why peace and harmony are keystones of my life in general.

So, that said, I got to thinking today about a very cool YouTube video one of my dear friends sent me, called "Perpetuum Jazzile - Africa" which is an absolutely astonishing a capella rendition of the old song "Africa," originally sung by Toto. I'm adding it here to my blog post so you can enjoy it too. It is far too incredible for me to attempt to describe this performance. Just watch it for yourself! (To see the video: Scroll down to the bottom of this post - and you'll need to let it run for about 15 seconds before you'll hear any sound - the first sounds are very soft.)

Anyway, after watching this unbelievable performance (and wishing I could be part of their troupe), I began thinking about how I could use stuff like this video in bringing people to my website. I thought about how I might use the "Perpetuum Jazzile - Africa" example because the travel memberships that I sell have gorgeous vacation properties in Africa as well (e.g. Morocco, Tunisia, Senegal, Egypt, Kenya, Zimbabwe, and South Africa).

I just looked at a few of the resorts - and they are wonderful. As I reviewed the information about where some of them are located, I was thrilled - and enlightened. I had not known that such incredible beauty exists. While I am aware that there are many African nations struggling with challenges and difficulties, I am now aware that there is great beauty and joy there as well.

Ahh.. Alas... For one in the USA whose pockets are of humble depths, it will likely be a while before we can afford to fly to some of these amazing places. Sigh.

Nontheless, there are plenty of people in the world for whom a holiday at one of these beautiful condo resort properties is far closer to home and easy to get to.

So, I thought again about inviting this beautiful "Perpetuum Jazzile - Africa" video into my website and blog as a way of inviting anyone who might be as taken by the beauty of Africa and its potential for a holiday to see what that vast continent has to offer.

Enjoy!

FREE Resume Writing Help is Here!

I'm back in northern NH! It's good to be home, but it's time to get back at it. I'm told a lot of people need some info I have on resume writing... Ok. Let’s get right to the point! You need Resume Writing Help – and you need it NOW! I understand!

In times like these, it’s easy to be a little intimidated by all that’s out there, so right here, I’ll give you a bit of FREE resume writing help (you can see a lot more of my tips for writing a resume here).

When you begin creating a resume, it’s important that right at the get-go, you employ EFFECTIVE resume writing strategies. For example:

• Use bullet points. In other words, do not use paragraphs. There! That’s a VERY easy step!
• Leave plenty of “white space” on your resume – your reader needs to be able to scan it quickly and easily.
• The days of the “chronological resume” are over. In other words, don’t begin your resume by listing your employment history. (I go into greater detail at my FREE Resume Writing Help lens at Squidoo.) You’ll find my other lenses there as well!

Hop on over there – and if you find you need more help than I can give you there, visit Creating a Resume. Because I'm a copywriter, I really like this guy's style (and that's another reason I've decided to market it!) - it's effective stuff.

My Hometown - Fairfield, NJ

While we slowly work our way back up north to our place in New Hampshire after spending the winter at Cherry Grove Beach in South Carolina, we have been visiting my dad in Fairfield, New Jersey. I grew up in Fairfield, having moved here when I was three years old.

Because we don't have high speed internet at my dad's place, we came over to the Fairfield Public Library. Wow, how things have changed! I was telling one of the library staff that back in 1963 or so, when Fairfield opened their first library, I had the eleventh library card issued in town. The library then was a tiny 2 or 3 room building on Fairfield Road (it is still standing, and is currently housing a barber shop).

My dad would take me to the library on Saturday mornings for story hour, and I just loved going there!

After a while, the library moved to larger quarters - an old school located across from the Police and Fire Station. Then, sometime long after I left Fairfield for my various adventures, the town built the Anthony Pio Costa Memorial Library located on Hollywood Avenue - and what a wonderful library it is!

The library is adjacent to the marvelous Fairfield Recreation Complex, where - prior to coming to the library - we played a great set of tennis (I lost miserably), and watched people as they walked on the park fitness trails. The town has beautiful ball fields at the complex as well as a gorgeous pool for the townspeople to enjoy during the summer. My dad has a great place to walk, which he does almost daily, and a wonderful library to visit as well.

We're so thankful that while we travel we can pop into public libraries almost everywhere and find internet access and computers for our use. And I'm equally thankful that I had an opportunity to take advantage of this great complex in my old hometown of Fairfield, NJ - which truly is a great town.

I'm glad I'm from here.

Next Adventure: Banner Elk, North Carolina

The last week and a half was filled to overflowing with activity as we prepared to end our 5-month stay in North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. It was with mixed emotions that we closed the door behind us for the last time on Friday morning, 5/1/09, car packed to the brim, to begin our trip back to northern New Hampshire.

We made some wonderful friends in South Carolina, enjoyed true southern hospitality, and expanded our interests and knowledge in ways we never could have anticipated. What an adventure! And we plan on returning next winter.

Instead of racing home, however, we decided that it was time for a little vacation. I know a lot of people think of our winter in SC as more of a vacation, it really wasn't. One of the advantages of working online for yourself is that you can pretty much live wherever you want (within reason!).

Anyway, since we market luxury resort vacation memberships, we took advantage of one of the resorts, and booked a week here in Banner Elk, NC at the Blue Ridge Village resort. You can check out the resort here at the resort registry at my Fine Resort Vacation website.

In the one day since we've arrived, we realized that I'll have a lot to write about! This area is just magnificent! Even though we live in the mountains of northern New Hampshire, these mountains are different, and the communities offer different activities which we are going to be exploring this week.

Stay tuned for more! For now, it's time get ready to go hear some bluegrass... :)

What Smoke on a Beach is Like. Nasty!

Well, this is certainly as close as we ever want to be to a wildfire. A couple of our neighbors up north in NH have worked on forest firefighting crews, and until we actually saw the smoke billowing up yesterday during the Myrtle Beach, SC wildfire that began yesterday (Wednesday, April 22, 2009), we had not seen anything like that.

Believe it or not, this is supposedly a clear and sunny day here in North Myrtle Beach. This is not fog - it's smoke. I have never seen this before, and I have a renewed and deepened appreciation for people who risk their lives to fight fire. And we're not even near the fire!

We've also heard that the National Guard mobilized this morning to help, as have a lot of organizations (Red Cross, etc). It's just incredible to me when I see how many people in this great land volunteer to protect and serve us when they know that they are putting themselves at risk. Wow!

The winds were howling yesterday, and the smoke from the fire was blowing towards the ocean - and of course through a lot of other places. It was pretty frightening to see.

When I see smoke like that, I cannot even begin to imagine what it must be like to be a firefighter. My hat is off to all of them.

Overnight, the winds shifted a bit, so smoke and ash was travelling up the coast a little to where we are in Cherry Grove Beach (northern part of North Myrtle Beach, SC). When I took the photos (above) and video (I posted the video here) this morning, I was only out on the deck for a minute or so, and came in smelling like I'd been near a campfire.

And even though we are proably 10-20 miles away from the areas hurting from the fires, we can taste the smoke and feel it in our throats.

So, my message today is to thank a firefighter for his or her service! Also, let's thank the police, volunteers, the folks who serve in the National Guard...the rest of the Military... everyone who steps up to help others.

I know that I will...

Our NEW SITE! It's Up & Running! Welcome To Fine Resort Vacation!

We did it! We have FINALLY gotten our new Fine Resort Vacation site up and running - and it's looking pretty good! It's pretty exciting to see the progress. So, if you visit us at the site you'll see our smiling faces on the home page - the same picture we are using here at this blog.

We wanted to use the same picture since it was taken on vacation at one of our favorite Caribbean luxury vacation destinations - St. Martin (where, by the way, we'll be heading back to this coming November for a few weeks).

We figured we should use a vacation photo since we are marketing luxury vacation travel memberships at the site. Makes sense, doesn't it? :)

Anyway, we also posted a page if you want to learn a foreign language - John & I have begun using the Pimsleur approach, and lo & behold, the method works! We are retaining what we have learned in our initial lesson, so it's quite impressive. Check it out here.

We also have posted a foreign currency converter, links to the US State Department and other links for up to date information on international travel, and a blog for the site itself (of course!). :)

We've also added a page so that potential members (or anyone who is interested) can view our newsletter where there are some amazing deals. For example, if you wanted to travel to Maui next week, there is a $298 special - which is amazing! $298 for the WEEK! This page gives potential members a glimpse at what the membership portal looks like.

We've also given a dollar-for-dollar comparison of what our timeshare ownership has cost us against how economical our Global Resorts Network luxury vacation membership costs. You can see that at our "About Us" page.

We've added an exhaustive FAQs page that addresses a lot of the questions people have about our luxury vacation travel memberships.

Throughout the site, we have illustrated the pages with lots of photos from the resorts themselves.

We'll post more information as it comes in. For now, I just wanted to share the good news about the new site! Please stop by and visit us - and if you are interested or have questions, don't hesitate to contact us - all our contact info is at the "Contact Us" page.

Review of Two Cool Affiliate Marketing Systems for Global Resorts Network

Most people who see my blog know that I have a bunch of home based business irons in the fire - gotta remain diversified! But, focus and consistency is key.

My favorite affiliate program - and I really believe one of the best affiliate programs out there is Global Resorts Network (GRN). And I'm not just saying that because I'm a member and affiliate. Considering the payout (approx 30% commission) on membership sales versus the payout on other sales that I make on line (approx 10%)it's a great return. Of course, I also love to travel, so that helps! :)

Anyway, I have been experimenting with a number of different marketing systems to promote GRN. My latest is my very own site (which is still VERY much under construction - so if you visit, please be kind!) at Fine Resort Vacation. I've got a lot of work to do on it yet, but at least it's getting there.

I also use a GRN approved system that helps market the stand-alone luxury travel membership as well as the business opportunity. Those two related sites are Fine Resort Vacations (notice the similarity to my newest site), and Presenting GRN. My favorite part about this particular system is the numerous landing pages, along with the retail-only aspect. This is great! After all, some people just are NOT interested in a home based business - but they want to travel. So this is a really great option. It's also extremely affordable - only $30/month.

Then, I use a different internet marketing strategy and system that is really geared for the high energy type of entrepreneur who wants to build a business using article marketing, etc. It is an interesting system that has taught me a LOT about internet marketing. These guys are young and very energetic, and they call it the GRN Team Builder. That system is the one that intially introduced me to blogging!

What I like about that system (besides the marketing techniques that they've taught me), is that I also have the option to have their experts call my surveyed leads. I'm just not that comfortable on the phone, so it's nice to have the option to let someone help me.

Also, when I use the GRN Team Builder site - when the visitors opt in, they receive a nice little Free eBook called, "It's Only Easy If You Know The Truth...Exposing the Lies, Myths and Hype to Help You Finally Succeed Online."

Another thing I really like about this system is that it teaches us about personal "branding," and there are several landing pages where we can write our own text (which I have done here), or put video in (which I haven't done yet! But I will!). What I also like about this system is the price - it's very affordable, and only costs about $30/month to maintain.

But again, consistency is really key - working numerous systems takes quite a lot of effort. Of course, with my very own site, the new Fine Resort Vacation site, I'll promote only the retail product, the luxury vacation travel membership. But, the fun thing about that site is that ultimately, I have control over what is said in it. AND...Yes! I'm adding a blog there too! :)

It's a very interesting experiment! Please feel free to visit my sites! And if you have had any experience with these or other GRN systems, you can comment on them here!

My Old Antarctic Home

For some reason I found myself thinking about Antarctica this morning. Probably because I've been recently corresponding with a few prospective customers from New Zealand, which was one of my favorite stomping grounds after leaving "the ice" (as we called it) after a season of working in McMurdo a number of years ago.

It may also be because today, on the beach at Cherry Grove (North Myrtle Beach, SC), the wind is just howling - and it sounds just like it used to in McMurdo on some of the nastier days.

Aside from the internet marketing work I have embraced over the last year or so, I would have to say that working in Antarctica was some of the most enjoyable time I have ever spent. It wasn't necessarily the jobs themselves, but the people who made it such a blast.

Please indulge me as I take a little trip down memory lane...

During the numerous seasons I spent at McMurdo, I recall thinking that we were all part of Peter Pan's "Lost Boys," and that we just were all a bunch of kids at heart. There really weren't that many of us back then - during my first season in 1984 I think there were about 900 men and less than 100 women. Living conditions were a bit more primitive than they are now, but none of us seemed to care.

For my first few seasons, I worked in the sheet metal department with a group of the most hilarious and fun-loving group of guys I have ever known. Sometimes, we would laugh until we would be a quivering mess, slumped over the sheet metal table - laughing so hard that tears would be falling down our faces. Who knows what we were laughing about... I recall, at Christmastime when everyone would be looking forward to mail. If there wasn't any mail on any given day's flights, we would woefully sing a modified version of "The First Noel," replacing the "Noel" refrain with "No Mail...No Mail..." and a few other choice lyrics. What we did to butcher or modify other songs is not fit for print.

Sometimes our personal renditions of various songs, stories or poems would take on a rather bawdy form. I recall a number of us in the "Foldaway" - the large building housing the carpenters, electricians, plumbers, welders, and sheet metal workers, participating in a type of "round robin" style of poetry, where each person would take a juvenile-type of poem, and re-write a line while illustrating it in our own special way. The result would be about an 8-frame comic of some of the most insane rhymes one could think of. They were, of course, the kind of poems where "you had to be there" in order to understand their meanings. I still have copies of these (maybe one day I can scan one when I get back up north).

I still stay in touch with a few of my old friends - my songbird singing partners Ann and Dawn, with whom I spent countless hours learning how to sing madrigals (thanks to Ann!) - and we became known as the McMurdo Madrigals, where our star (and only) performance was at the Art Show that our friend Neal (who is beyond genius)somehow cooked up. The imagination and different talents people had were unbelievable.

On my occasional visits back to NJ, I see our former construction superintendent Steve - who is now my brother in law. Art is still going back & forth to the ice and New Zealand with the National Science Foundation, and we talk on occasion - but a visit with all these people would be far better!

I often think of Gary and Mike and Nick in the sheet metal shop, and wonder where they are, and if they still laugh as much as we did then. The sheet metal department holds some memories for me that are downright sacred. I miss my fellow "Bio Blondes" Kristin and Lisa, and Steve and Jim (who were honorary Bio Blondes) with whom I worked at the old Bio Lab (which was dismantled after my winter over season). Hmmm. We laughed like crazy in there, too!

Wintering over with Dave, Dawn, and J.B. was amazing - we spent hours upon hours singing folk tunes...

I have hilarious memories of laughing insanely with Neal over scenes in "The Sound Of Music" that he re-interpreted in a manner that absolutely defies description... the fun group in the Chalet - Stephanie, Diane, Art, and Dawn... and singing backup with Kerri for Neal, Dane, and "Falling Bodies," the band that entertained at any excuse for a big base-wide party.

Ahh. I find myself smiling over these memories as I sit here on the beach of Cherry Grove - looking over the ocean, wondering about all the people who were part of my life, and hoping that - wherever they are, they are doing well, and have the same fond memories that I do.

Nearly 20 years later, I have accepted that I will not be returning to Antarctica, although revisiting New Zealand is certainly a high priority for me. But, as I watch from the sidelines as the "new watch" get ready to deploy each October (there are a number of people from northern NH who participate in this annual adventure these days), I can only hope that they are enjoying their experiences at least as much as I enjoyed mine.

Thanks for indulging my little journey back to the land of the Lost Boys, those crazy years on the ice - back when "the men were tough, the women were few, and the penguins were nervous..."

A Little Review: Five Guys Burgers and Fries in North Myrtle Beach

Occasionally, I am moved to write about a business that stands above others. Since I like to write about truth and integrity in business and life, I thought that I would share my thoughts about a little restaurant I visited today.

What We're Working On...
If you have been reading my blog, you may know that John, my husband and I have been spending the winter in the Cherry Grove Beach section of North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. It has been a great place to get move forward on our online businesses - whether it's updating our Save On Kidswear discount children's clothing website, our Portable Garages and Shelters website, the marketing system for our Global Resorts Network business and Luxury Vacation Travel memberships, our latest site to go live.

Bicycle Riding is GREAT in North Myrtle Beach
One of the nice things about this area is that it is very conducive to bicycle riding. Today, John had the car and so I took the bike into town to get the mail and then go over to the bank a few miles away. Riding a bike in the brisk spring air tends to work up an appetite, and I had a hankering for a burger. For at least the second time, someone mentioned Five Guys Burgers and Fries as a place we just had to visit.

Geno's Pizza - Gator Hole Plaza in North Myrtle Beach
Since it was only a few blocks further, I took the recommendation and ambled over to the restaurant. I should also mention that one of the folks who recommended Five Guys happens to be another restaurant owner. The folks at Geno's New York Pizza (located in the Gator Hole Plaza on Highway 17 in North Myrtle Beach) told us that if we wanted REAL fries, then we needed to go over to Five Guys. How's that for a recommendation!

By the way, Geno's is excellent, as well. We've been back several times. Another easy bike ride! So, please, visit Geno's too (I'd give you their website, but they don't appear to have or need one - the place is always filled with locals)!

Back to Five Guys...
So, as I walked into Five Guys, I immediately noticed that, like Geno's Pizza, it was filled with locals. I also noticed that it was spotlessly clean. There was what appeared to be a pallet of hundreds and hundreds of pounds of fresh potatoes ready to be cut into fries. This was a good sign! I have since learned that Five Guys is a private franchise with about 300 restaurants, but you'd never get that impression since it has the appearance of a home town place.

On the advice of one of the folks at the bank, I went with the "Little" burger as opposed to the "Regular" burger. I also ordered "Regular" versus "Large" fries. This was a combined wise move. I barely made a dent in my fries - which are wonderful! I packed the leftovers into my backpack and brought them home for John. Definitely reminiscent of the "Pier Fries" that we indulge in every time we go to Old Orchard Beach in Maine, which is the closest beach to our place in northern New Hampshire.

John will be very pleased at this little snack that awaits him when he gets home this afternoon!

The burger was excellent - freshly cooked. If I had attempted to load my burger with the 15 different free toppings offered at Five Guys, I never would have been able to take a bite - it would have been huge!

For once I was glad to ride back home into a stiff breeze - it made me pedal harder, so it helped to work off at least some of the meal!

The menu is simple. Burgers, Hot Dogs, Grilled Cheese, French Fries, and Soft Drinks. Great value, friendly staff, the ever present crowd of locals, cleanliness, and their honest menu give Five Guys Burgers and Fries my vote. They obviously run the show based on truth and integrity.

So, if you find yourself in North Myrtle Beach, SC, and have a craving for a burger and fries, stop by Five Guys - they are the corner of 2nd Ave North and Highway 17 - the northbound side, in the Lowes Home Store plaza. A jillion locals can't be wrong!

Ok... Back to work on the websites! Have a great day!

Another Good Affiliate Marketing Program and System

As you know, there are hundreds of different affiliate marketing programs and systems out there. I belong to more than one, and in some cases, the various online marketing systems are offering the same end product - just using different strategies.

I like this, not only because it affords the online entrepreneur a variety of methods and systems to test, but also gives the entrepreneur an ability to target different markets or individuals.

For example, using the Global Resorts Network business opportunity, which I am extremely fond of, one person may prefer a more subdued approach to marketing whereas another person may be attracted by something that comes across as high energy. I fall somewhere in between, but I am aware that everyone is different.

Working with these different strategies is a lot of fun, and my work day is never dull!

With all that said, I am fully enjoying Bucky Shiver's system of introducing the business opportunity seeker to Global Resorts Network product. I think one of the things that catches my fancy is the fact that he is well aware of the need for self-branding - which is very important in today's internet marketing world. His system is inexpensive to maintain, and offers a good 10 landing pages which you may or may not decide to brand with your own picture, video, words, etc. Here are just a few different ones I've been using (feel free to click on all of them just to get a quick idea of what I mean): Truth To Wealth Online, Join The Success Team, and You Earn 1K per Sale.

He also offers a nice eBook for free called "It's Only Easy if you Know The Truth: Exposing the Lies, Myths and Hype to Help You Finally Succeed Online." It's certainly worth a visit for you to not only grab a copy of the eBook, but to get a tour around the system and product.

I look forward to seeing you there!

SOME Keys to a Successful Home Business

Are you considering starting or just starting a home business? These days, a lot of people are talking about one opportunity or another. As one who has been working from home for a long time, I can assure you that there are many things that you need to be sure you're doing as you embark on a home business.

Remember: a home business isn't just something that you just consider puttering with in your spare time. Right from the start, you should begin envisioning your home business as something that will develop into a substantial source of income for you. Otherwise, you'll treat it like an occasional activity instead of something that can and should be taken seriously.

If you are really serious about it, and if you do it in all of the right ways, you will find that your home business really CAN be successful, and it can be a great way for you to improve your financial and personal life.

So, if you want to be sure that your home business is actually going to succeed, there are several things that you have to do carefully.

First, you always want to be sure that you are in it to win, and not "dabble" with or otherwise take lightly. If you are going to start a home business, the best thing that you can do in order to make it successful is right from the get-go to make the decision that you are going to do your best. One of the keys to this is always operating with the attitude that you are already a top name, recognizable and successful business.

This means being professional at all times - even if you are working from home, you should still "dress for work" (in other words, get out of the pyjamas and actually act like you are going to your office - which you are), and always answer the phone as though your next big sale or prospect is on the other end (in other words, smile, speak clearly and politely).

Keep your eyes on the prize, and consistently think of the next steps that you can take in order to really make yourself successful. For example: What advertising strategies are your colleagues using successfully? Are these strategies YOU can adopt? What are the leaders in the industry doing that you are not doing but can do? What isn't working? What mistakes have you learned from?

Also, you want to be sure that you are always presenting the best face that you have in your small business. This goes along with your day to day professional behavior. For example, if you are doing video marketing, carefully scrutinize your recordings before you post them. You want to make sure that as you go through your small business you are weeding out anything that doesn't say the right thing about you, and making sure that everything that gets put out there is correct and says something good about you.

This is going to take a lot of time on your part, but it is also part of building up your reputation. Remember - people don't join opportunities, they join other people! Be the type of person you want to work with, and you shall attract those people. You want to make sure that no matter who is looking at your business or your name, they are going to see only good things.

You want to be sure that no matter who you deal with, what you do, or how you feel about it, the consequences end up putting you and your business into a good light.

Last, you have to make sure that you are playing by the rules and doing everything right straight from the start. You have to be sure that every step you take with your home business is a step that allows you to get the most out of your home business and that allows you to grow.

Don't cut corners, don't exaggerate and tell people you're earning 6-figures a month in an effort to impress them (even if it's true, it's called enticement, and that's a no-no!) and for Heaven's sake do not fall into desperation marketing techniques such as spamming. Call it what you will: lying or exaggerating - either way, it will come back to haunt you in the end.

If you follow these steps you will see that your home business truly CAN grow to be a successful home business, and that you can grow right along with it. And doing it right means you will be helping a whole lot of others along the way, too.

And isn't that what it's all about?

Blog now on Portable Garages And Shelters website

The art of business blogging was something we didn't completely understand a year and a half ago when we opened the doors to our Portable Garages and Shelters business.

In fact, had you told me that I would become a "blogger" a year and a half ago, I would have thought you were nuts.

But, those of you who have been reading my blog here know that I've become passionate about blogging, writing ezine articles, and seeing websites and businesses build and prosper - not just my own, but those of others as well. It's a lot of fun to see people doing well!

So, now I have added the blog to my Portable Garages and Shelters website. It's not an interactive one, because I haven't quite figured out how to allow comments in that website's particular template, but perhaps down the line I'll get it. For now, it will remain just one more tool to help potential customers see that there is a real person behind the site.

We're having fun now!

Why I'm Working the Best Affiliate Marketing Program From SC instead of NH

So why am I working on promoting the best affiliate marketing program online today from South Carolina instead of northern New Hampshire?

Well... Because I can. Look at the pictures accompanying this post, and tell me which one looks more appealing.

Ok. It's purely a matter of preference. Maybe you LIKE the view of the 7 foot snow bank. There are a LOT of people who cannot wait for it to snow; they pray for snow all year long, they do snow dances under the full moon, they ski, they snowshoe, they ice climb, they ride snow machines... I just don't happen to be one of those people.

Perhaps it was my years working in Antarctica that sort of pushed me over the edge. Or, perhaps it was the last 20+ years in northern New Hampshire where it felt that 50% of my days were spent shoveling, chipping ice, and skidding around on slushy roads.

But, this winter here at Cherry Grove Beach had all but made me forget about those dreary days. Being able to work from home on my affiliate marketing program and other internet based opportunities has given me the option of living seasonally, which is an adventure in itself.

Then yesterday, one of my friends sent me the photo of the bottom of my driveway (see photo at top of blog post. This is a real photo. This really is my driveway.). Ok. I asked her to send me one. I was in one of those weird moods where I really had to see for myself if northern winters were really as fierce as I remembered them.

Evidently the answer is yes.

So, in case my readers are wondering if I've been exaggerating about the extent of our winters up north, here is the proof. I asked my friend to send me a photo of the house, but the bottom of the driveway was all she could get to - the house is up that hill, just under 1/10 of a mile - and she was telling me that you can't even see the house right now given all the high drifts.

So, what does this mean? We were supposed to be venturing north at the end of March.

It just isn't gonna happen. We've decided to stay through April (for now). We'll see how the snow looks then, and what life brings us. We're really enjoying South Carolina (except for the palmetto bugs), and the people are as friendly as any we've met anywhere.

But for now, I've got some serious online marketing to do, which is something I actually have time to do since I am not outside shoveling.

Have a great day! :)

Affiliate Marketing Resources and Self-Improvement Books

Good morning from beautiful and sunny (if just a tad chilly) Cherry Grove Beach!

I just wanted to pass along a few websites today that might be helpful to those of you in the business of reaching for the stars using internet or affiliate marketing. A couple of these might be of interest to you if you are studying the principles of the Law of Attraction and Attraction Marketing.

Self Improvement Books

For some really good, no-fluff, no nonsense self improvement books, I just love my friend Tony Michalski's Kallisti Publishing site. He is a walking-talking example of the Law of Attraction at work, and I've learned a lot from him. This is absolutely worth checking out - and there is way too much for me to list here! Click Here to visit. (And yes, I AM going to earn a commission if you buy anything. But don't worry - there's good free stuff there too!)

Attraction Marketing

If you are interested specifically in attraction marketing, branding, etc., and you are in a business where recruiting or sales prospecting is imporant, this is a high energy group of people! Start by having a look at Mike Dillard's Free Video here.

High End Product Affiliate Programs

If you are looking for nice, high end product affiliate programs, and working from home in the travel industry is appealing to you, I just love Global Resorts Network (GRN). I love them for several reasons:

• They have a "big ticket" item, which means handsome commissions,


• The service is completely stand-alone - that is, you are not required to recruit others to sell the luxury vacation travel membership that we market (Click here for my website that is devoted ONLY to prospective travel customers), and


• The customer service we get from our travel partner is second to none.


• Plus, the fact that our travel partner has more than 20 years of experience shows great credibility and financial stability.

There are more than a few ways to market Global Resorts Network. If you are interested in GRN as a business opportunity, it's one of the finest. The internet marketing strategies I've been learning with Mike Dillard and his excellent and highly energetic team over at the Black Belt Recruiting are very impressive. Learn from them, and then apply what you learn.

What an outstanding bunch of people! These guys keep me young.

If you have other systems or resources to share, please feel free to comment! Have a great day!

Great Kids Books by My Friend Peggy Gifford

Hello everyone! Today I just want to talk about kids books - not just 'cause I've written one that will hopefully see print some day, but also because I've had the great honor of meeting a wonderfully clever and sassy kids' book author while down here in South Carolina this winter.

Peggy Gifford has written a couple of great books based on an impossibly precocious procrastinator (a trait I, myself share and am going to get to work on curing - maybe starting tomorrow) by the name of Moxy Maxwell.

The books - Moxy Maxwell Does Not Love Stuart Little, and Moxy Maxwell Does Not Love Writing Thank You Notes - are hilarious! They are written in a very relaxed voice that you can just "hear." I love the chapters such as: "Wherein Moxy's Mother Says No..." or words to that effect - and the entire chapter is as follows - and I carefully quote:

"No."

The next chapter gets a little more detailed - but I'll leave you in suspense...

The books flow, kids will love them (actually, they already do), and I recommend that if you have kids anywhere from 8 years old and up, they will just fall in love with Moxy. And so will you. Peggy is a brilliant writer, and I'm not just saying that because we're pals.

While there are already a couple of Moxy Maxwell books out there, as I understand it, there are more in the works. Which is a good thing, because they're addictive, kind of like the Harry Potter books.

One of the great things I love about Moxy is her never ending and ever growing list of "Possible Career Paths." Of course I'm a little partial, but I think that Moxie ought to add "Internet Marketing Entrepreneur" to this list! (You knew I'd have to put a plug in for my own passion, didn't you!?)

So, visit Peggy's site - and tell her I said Hello!

From my First YouTube Video to "Video Marketing Queen!"

Ok, I admit it. I'm now thoroughly hooked on YouTube.

After last week's post (see last post), wherein I DID NOT QUIT and successfully uploaded my very first YouTube video (about assembly a Party Tent), I got to thinking about Video Marketing.

Turns out that Video Marketing is big. And, I need to begin using this fascinating medium. It's one of the things that I have been learning as part of the strategies taught by the folks at Mike Dillard's place, which is a great learning platform for online marketing.

During the week (in which most of it was spent indoors since it was freezing down here at Cherry Grove Beach - no, it really WAS freezing - in the 20's and 30's) I had time to think about how I could begin using video marketing as a tool to drive more traffic to my website.

I knew it works, because the other day, I had a call from some guy out of the blue who saw my video on YouTube, and he was looking for a specific portable shelter from my Portable Garages and Shelters website.

Who would have thought that someone would find me that way?

I learned how to embed the video from YouTube into my website, and now someone can watch the assembly demonstration.

Today, I experimented further, and came up with YouTube video number 2, which primarily introduces the viewer to my Portable Garages website, and encourages them to visit. We really do have some great deals, and I am so fond of the folks up at the MDM Rhino Shelter warehouse in Milford, CT, that I just want to bring in more orders. The customer wins by getting a good deal, I win by getting an order, and MDM Rhino wins by getting the order through me.

So, by tomorrow, my home page at Portable Garages and Shelters will feature my latest YouTube creation, and customers will see the actual face behind the site.

I got to thinking even more... As my regular readers know, I'm hooked on entrepreneurial pursuits. I love working from home - actually, let me rephrase that: I love working from home ONLINE - because it is that "working from home" and "internet based business" stuff that has enabled us to be here in this magnificent beach community for the winter.

So, why not start doing some short YouTube videos to promote my other online business opportunities? I can introduce myself briefly - again, so people can see that there is a real person behind the site and opportunity - and offer little training segments, as well as words of inspiration and motivation.

This is getting more exciting by the minute, and again - I'm glad I didn't give up! :)

Stick To It and Don't You Quit!

Ok. Today I am living proof of the belief that as long as you don't quit, you'll eventually succeed. First, I am an admitted techno phobe - It was all I could do to begin a blog, only because I didn't understand what a blog was, and it all sounded fairly complicated to me. Of course, now here I am merrily "blogging" away.

The point is, once I realized that blogging and article writing were important parts of today's internet marketing strategies, especially the affiliate marketing system that has been teaching me these strategies, I knew I would have to learn how to participate.

And, the interesting thing is, once I got the hang of it, I began not just writing my own blog, but visiting and learning from other peoples' blogs as well.

But, today's post is about YouTube. It was about a year ago that I stumbled upon YouTube. I was looking for information about an old TV show or movie online, and stumbled upon this online TV gizmo called YouTube, where - lo and behold - there was a segment of what I had been searching for!

After that, I was hooked. But only to WATCH YouTube - mind you, never to actually use it myself.

Then, as I learned more and more about internet marketing strategies, I began to hear the whispers... "video marketing" for affiliate marketing systems and terms like that. Like the typical little kid who doesn't want to hear that it's bedtime, I went around with virtual earplugs in my ears, singing "La la la la...I don't hear you... I don't hear you!"

Because there was NO WAY I could figure out how to put videos on the internet.

Until this last week.

You see, as an experiment this last summer (August 2008) John and I had started putting up one of the party tents that we sell on our Portable Garages and Shelters website, when it occurred to me to video tape the process in case someone wanted to see the procedure at some point. I thought maybe I could find someone who understood how to do these things, and put the video on my website for me.

Well, it became increasingly apparent that "if it's to be, it's up to me." So, I tried without any luck whatever to transfer this video file to the website. It was just too big. Then, the people who host my site suggested that I upload it to YouTube and then embed it in my site.

The day I thought could never come came upon me. I bit the bullet. I signed up for YouTube. Piece of cake. Uhh...except for trying to find a user name that wasn't taken. Once I finally got in, I glanced around and breathed a sigh of relief. It didn't look that hard after all. Just click "download video" and away I go.

Or not. The first try lasted over an hour. I cancelled the download. I tried again. Still nothing after an hour of "whirring" around somewhere between my computer and YouTube.

I searched their forums. Ah ha! Perhaps the file is too big! Perhaps it's in the wrong format.

After a few more tries, I called it a night. "Tomorrow," I thought, "this will all be clear."

When tomorrow came, the same thing happened. I tried cutting the video back, removing frames here or there to shorten it. I saved it to different file types, and tried uploading it - in fact, at the end of day two (Friday), I was thoroughly frustrated.

I emailed my sister who has all sorts of videos on YouTube. While she had some good suggestions, she used certain terminology that went over my head. Stuff like "firewall," "uploaders" and "m4v" - but I got the gist of it.

So, this very morning - on day three - I jostled a few more things around, and tried uploading again. Nothing. Then again. Nothing. Then... just when I thought I should give up - I stopped. I'm a student of self development, and am always telling myself to keep on keeping on and see things through. So, I thought - "how about just one more time..."

And it happened. The video uploaded! It took a while, but it uploaded. And now, I can tell you that I'm no longer dreading using YouTube. In fact, I have my next website swirling around in my head, and guess what! On every page, I can see my little YouTube videos welcoming my visitors to the site.

I didn't quit. And I am now on YouTube. Just don't ask me how I finally got the thing to load, because I have no idea. And I still haven't figured out how to embed it into the website. That will be cake after this ordeal.

But, I know I can do it. I'm one step closer to leaving Techno-Phobe-Land.
So, don't quit! I don't care what you're trying to do. Don't quit.

Oh - if you are at all interested, here is the weasley little video that I was struggling with that whole time: Kathy's Very First YouTube Video!

Oh... By the way. I'm on a roll. Notice the little picture in my post - the TV set? I just learned how to do that, too. Ha! What a day... Hope you have a great one too!

Animal Rescue Site Helping to Feed Abused & Neglected Animals

Hello everyone! I heard from an old friend from my days in the Antarctic program, and she knows that I'm a pet lover. She found this site, where, thanks to many great sponsors, they are getting free food donated daily to help abused and neglected animals!

The site is called The Animal Rescue Site, they need people to visit daily, and click on the purple box labeled "Click here to Give - it's Free!"

It's one of the easiest ways I've seen to help. And, if you have a soft spot for animals, like I do, you can do it daily - just save it to your favorites.

Please feel free to pass this post along! Again, this doesn't cost you a thing. Their corporate sponsors/advertisers use the number of daily visits to donate food to abandoned/neglected animals in exchange for advertising.

Once again, here's the web site! Please pass it along to people you know.

Once again, this posted in memory of my little Kitty - who was also abandoned at one time.
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/

Affiliate Marketing System? What About It?

Since most people who know me know that I work 100% from home now, they often ask me how I do it. I have been getting a lot of those questions this winter, since John and I left the north country (northern NH) for the warmer climate of coastal South Carolina.

Except that it snowed here on the beach yesterday. And it's in the 20's tonight. Brrr! Old Man Winter wasn't letting us go without a fight! :)

Anyway, I guess the reason people ask us this question is because we don't fit the typical "snow bird" profile - which means we are not retired (yet!).

We assure people that we most certainly DO work! And we work hard. Well. "Work Hard" is a relative term. My back aches, but only because I'm hunkered down over the computer keyboard for work.

As you know, if you've been reading this blog, we work our online business opportunities. A couple of our internet marketing strategies are centered around products which are physically drop-shipped from our supplier, and yet another is an affiliate marketing system.

I know that some readers might ask what I truly believe the best affiliate marketing program is - and that is a difficult question to answer. Everyone is different, which means that different people will prefer different products. I've addressed this topic in other blog entries, wherein I advise people who are interested in business opportunities online to carefully review their likes/dislikes, how much time they have to devote, etc.

Also, when asked, I will typically tell folks that I prefer to represent a company that has a solid, stand-alone product. You've probably seen that in my writings, as well.

And an affiliate marketing opportunity may very well be different from an affiliate marketing system. At least in my eye.

Because the affiliate marketing opportunity you choose to represent may not necessarily have a marketing system to help you learn the ropes of online internet marketing.

So what to do?

Well, you've undoubtedly heard me tell my readers to do some due diligence and soul searching before joining up with anything. Because, I don't care how good the internet or affiliate marketing system is - if you are not going to put in the time to 1) LEARN the system, and then 2) WORK the system - and by work the system, I mean on a CONSISTENT basis, then you are setting yourself up for disappointment. Because nothing works unless YOU do.

So. That said, there are a few affiliate marketing systems out there that have good information, good educational products, and the type of training that - once you wrap your head around it - you can implement, and begin to see results in the following ways: 1) More visitors (aka "traffic") to your site, which leads to 2) more sales at your site, which leads to 3) more commissions in your bank account.

I like Mike Dillard's style - talk about "no nonsense." You can check it out and get some free information and see if this affiliate marketing system resonates with you.

Of course, it's no secret that I'm extremely fond of Global Resorts Network as an excellent affiliate marketing opportunity, since John & I love to travel and have been very impressed by the exclusive luxury travel club that we market (which really is a standalone product). For people who want to travel AND earn some money marketing a luxury vacation travel product, the GRN commission structure is impressive. For us, it's both an entrepreneur's dream come true as well as a vacationer's dream come true (Hey! That's our motto!)

As far as the affiliate marketing systems that we work, we've learned a great deal through the sites we've already mentioned - which you can visit at your leisure. They are certainly not the only affiliate marketing resources out there, but they're certainly a good starting point. The direct links are:
Presenting GRN (this gets right to the point of the opportunity)
Black Belt Recruiting (this is Mike Dillard's approach)
Truth To Wealth Online (this is a great GRN Team Building System - plus you can get a nice free eBook about dispelling the myths of working online)

But ultimately, it is up to you to discover what it is you enjoy doing, decide if you have the time to devote to learning an affiliate marketing system - and then, once you choose your particular affiliate marketing opportunity that "grabs you" - STICK WITH IT!

Must Have Cats

We are really enjoying life here in South Carolina this winter. The last 2 days were quite cold by southern standards – and it chilled even us to the bone. It actually went into the teens overnight the other night – and this cold snap reminded us why we left New Hampshire this winter to begin with.

But it isn’t just the differences in weather that set each region apart. There are all sorts of differences that we’ve noticed. For example, last night we visited with some of our new friends down here (have I mentioned how friendly everyone is down here?), and the talk turned to our respective cats. First, if you’ve been reading along in the blog lately, you may recall in my entry about the Miracles of 2008 that we recently lost our own little Kitty. So, I still get choked up when we talk about cats…

I had never had a pet when growing up in suburban New Jersey. So, having a pet was a totally new concept to me. The idea of having a little furry companion initially appealed to me when I moved to northern New Hampshire, after having worked for several seasons in Antarctica. In the mountains of New Hampshire, I was alone for most of the year with no family, and I didn't know many people - this was a very quiet area. After the experience of working with hundreds of amazing people in Antarctica over the course of the last 7 or 8 years, life was pretty lonely. That's when cats entered my life, and I've never looked back.

During my years in NH, I worked for a short time for the Mount Washington Observatory, which is a great educational non-profit organization that has been monitoring weather from the top of Mount Washington since the 1930's. They have a wonderful staff, some of the best folks I've ever worked with.

And at the summit (of Mt. Washington), they also have a cat. This has been a tradition for decades. One of my favorite photos from the Observatory, taken of the crew that witnessed the world-record high winds of 231 miles per hour on April 12, 1934, includes a little cat being held by one of the observers.

Just a year or so ago (December 2007), a nationwide primary vote was conducted to find the next summit cat since longtime mascot, Nin, was retiring to live in Gorham, NH. It's a lot of work being the summit cat, and it was time for a younger cat to take the controls. About 8,000 votes came in, and the winner was Marty, a cat from the Conway Area Humane Society, who of course has big paws to fill, but as I understand, is adjusting beautifully.

Back to South Carolina. While we were at our friends’ house, I was petting her newest cat, an adopted shelter kitty who is battling to regain his health. Thinking of how much I miss my Kitty, I mentioned how difficult it is to find a rent that will accept cats – and yet, quite a number of places will allow dogs. Our friend explained one of the reasons for this – cat dander is difficult to remove from the rental units, and some people are highly allergic to cat dander.

Somehow, the discussion turned to the topic of bugs. You know, like spiders, and such. There is this unusual bug that we’ve recently encountered called the Palmetto bug. Oh. And another bug I had never seen before called the cockroach. Evidently, Palmetto bugs are ever so slightly different than the common cockroach – at least that’s what the Bug Man tried to explain when he came to our unit for the monthly pest control routine.

Now as I understand it, cockroaches are just about everywhere in this country. I just had never seen one.

When I did see one, I reacted how some people react when they first see a mouse.

Now, the funny thing is, some of the folks I’ve met down here have said that if they saw a mouse, they would freak out. I mentioned that up in rural northern NH where we have our house, mice are so common that I hardly even notice them.

Except when they skitter and scratch in the walls, waking me up during the middle of the night.

Of course, I noticed them when Kitty would leave one in the hallway at our bedroom door as a gift – obviously placing it there so we would be sure to find it (kind of like anticipating giving out presents on Christmas morning).

So it’s all kind of relative, I guess.

Back to last night. Well, after an absolutely wonderful evening, we drove back to the condo complex with our other new friends staying at the same place – who also have a cat. Fortunately, they were able to find a unit that accepts cats.

And, maybe this is a coincidence, and maybe it is not – but they don’t have any Palmetto bugs or cockroaches in their unit.

I then recalled that another new friend of ours here was telling me how her pets chase the bugs like mice.

And I got to thinking that these condo owners have it all wrong. They should be INSISTING that we all have cats. Even if they only caught a few bugs, the cats would certainly earn their keep. And think of how far this would go in helping raise the pet adoption rates.

John and I began talking about how we would handle mouse control at our New Hampshire house if we decide to use it as a rental property. After all, it is in a gorgeous area, and a lot of people really love the views we have. But, then I’d be concerned. What happens if our renters have the same reaction to mice that I have to the Palmetto bugs and cockroaches?

That’s when John said, “Well, that does it. They’d have to have a cat.”

So here’s our potential rental policy statement:
“You must have a cat. Any mice your cat dispatches can and will be used against the costs of rodent control. You have the right to more than one cat. If you cannot afford a cat, one will be provided for you.”

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention – When I see a tick crawling up my leg in the summer in NH, I react in a similar fashion to how I reacted when I saw the Palmetto bug.

At least the Palmetto bugs don’t crawl up my leg.

(Note: There are so many homeless pets, and it is absolutely heartbreaking to me when I visit animal shelters. I realize that we can't all have pets, and that some people should NOT have pets - and of course we can only have so many pets...

But, if you are in a position to have a pet - please consider adoption, and visit your local animal shelter, or visit http://www.petfinder.com/ or similar website.

This is a public service message from me, because I really miss my Kitty.

If you can't have a pet, please consider helping your local shelter in some other way. The Humane Society of the United States has a lot of information about adoption and how to help at their website here. Thanks for reading!)

Personal and Corporate Accountability - Some Recent Observations

I was just looking at a 4-oz jar of one of my favorite seasonings - this wonderful stuff called Busha Browne's Authentic Jerk Seasoning. This is really flavorful - and very spicy Jamaican rub that my husband and I just love. Unfortunately, it is really hard to find in stores.

So, prior to Christmas 2008, we decided that if we could find this delightful seasoning on line, we could order a bunch of it, and include it as part of the gift packages we were sending out.

It was easy enough to find the company on line - but more difficult to find someone actually carrying this particular seasoning. Busha Browne's had a listing of where we might be able to purchase it, and we began making the rounds.

This is where it got interesting. I refuse to name the company where we finally decided to order from, but they seemed sincere enough. So, we ordered 10 jars and paid about $12 for Priority Shipping. It should have reached us well before Christmas.

A few days went by, and then a few more. No jerk seasoning. Finally, 2 days before Christmas, I called them to find out where the seasoning was. Turns out they sent it to the wrong zip code - instead of using "North Myrtle Beach," which is where we are, they sent it to "Myrtle Beach," which is about 20+ miles south of us.

When I mentioned that I was disappointed that the package was misdirected, the person on the other end did not apologize at all. Instead, she said, "Well, it went to Myrtle Beach." To which I replied, "I am aware of that - this is why, when I placed the order, I told you what my zip code was and that I was in NORTH Myrtle Beach."

Still no apology. Just an excuse. "Well," she said, "The computer automatically put in the zip code for Myrtle Beach." I again explained that this was the very reason why I clearly said NORTH Myrtle Beach, and again, why I emphasized the correct zip code.

Still no apology. However, at this point, she said, "Well maybe it's still at the Myrtle Beach post office." At this point I got on line, and found a number of contacts for the Myrtle Beach post office - for which there are numerous branches. At least at this point she told me that she would call the post office and get back to me.

She finally got back to me and said that someone had claimed the package. She did not offer to send along another package until I said something to the effect, "Well hopefully, they will be honest and return the package to you since it clearly had someone else's name on it... but in the meantime, what about my order?"

She finally said that they would put another package into the mail for us the next day (we finally received the package on January 5th 2009).

It really stuck in my mind how this person never once apologized for the inconvenience. No, "Oh, wow, I'm so sorry that this happened..." Never once a, "I'm terribly sorry for the mistake - we evidently took down the information incorrectly; don't worry - we'll take care of this and send you out another package immediately..."

Nothing like that.

Now, I'm the first to admit that if one of my orders to a customer goes wrong, I want to crawl under the covers and hide my head. But that's not very professional.

As difficult as it sometimes is to have to call a customer and explain that something went wrong, it's the only way to do business. Likewise, if a customer calls me and tells me that something was wrong with the order - and sure, it happens sometimes - I truly do practice what I preach, and immediately offer an apology. After all, the customer ordered from me in confidence, and if something goes wrong with the order's fullfilment, how can that possibly be the customer's fault?

It isn't. So, I apologize and tell them I will do everything I can to make things right.

One final memory along these lines - this one's almost comical. I recall that a few years ago, I was in a fast food restaurant, and ordered a meal that should have come with a side order of mashed potatoes. Instead I got something else - I don't even recall what it was now.

But what I DO recall was the reaction of the clerk behind the counter (who was not a young kid just starting out, by the way, but someone who would have had a few decades of solid work experience under her belt). When I brought the meal back to the counter to point out the error and ask for the appropriate side dish, she looked at me - almost in horror - and splurted out, "Not my fault! It's not my fault!"

I assured her I wasn't upset - I merely hoped to exchange the incorrect dish for the correct one - but all she could do was mutter, "Not my fault! It's not my fault!"

But, ultimately, she did get me the correct dish, and all was well with the world, once again.

Working from Home in the Travel Industry

When I was a kid, one of my fantasies included working in a travel agency. At the time, my only experience in travel was going down to "The Shore," as we called it growing up in New Jersey. I pictured working in a sunny office, helping eager families choose their motel or bungalow for their summer week or two in Ocean Beach or Wildwood.

My experiences in travel have broadened somewhat since childhood, but my interest in marketing vacations hasn't changed. Just the methods have. Perhaps you’ve noticed that some of the travel agencies in your town have closed their doors. Up in the northern White Mountains of NH where we have a home, we’ve seen two travel agencies leave town.

Considering how easy it is to find good travel deals on line, this turn of events is not surprising!
Nowadays, we book almost every trip we take online with the vacation travel club we belong to.

We did feel a little bad when we saw the writing on the wall, and noticed the “For Sale” sign in front of our former travel agent’s building. We had always enjoyed working with her, and seeing what exciting trip she would come up with for us.

For several years, as the internet changed from something I vaguely heard about in the news to my primary tool for my livlihood, I heard the whispering – “travel agents will be doomed by the internet!” or “travel agents will all be going out of business.”

Of course, that’s utter nonsense, since there are plenty of areas where the population still supports a local travel agency - and there are plenty of people who still want someone else to prepare their travel arrangements.

Just not in our rural area.

But, why the doom and gloom? If you love travel (whether or not you have experience as a travel agent), then why not hop on the “Working at Home Online” train?

There are plenty of opportunities working from home in the travel industry these days. Spending less than 5 minutes in an online search will prove that to you!

You’ve seen the advertisements touting the benefits of working from home on line – but you need to focus. For example, if you like NASCAR, but there are no NASCAR related jobs in your neighborhood, then find products in that niche and begin selling them online!

If you like travel, then focus on a travel product. Don’t let the lack of travel agencies deter you. There are PLENTY of opportunities for working from home in the travel industry – and yes, they are now online. You can easily find any number of travel related MLMs and affiliate programs (for all you NASCAR lovers, I don’t know if there are any affiliate programs for you!)

Before you jump headlong into the “internet working from home” pool, but after you’ve weighed the advantages of working from home – along with the benefits of working from home (and there are many! But that’s a different story.), please check the credentials of whichever program floats your boat (pun intended, if working from home in the travel industry is what you want!).

Make sure that your program – whether it’s an MLM or affiliate program has a solid, stand-alone product. One you can confidently offer to the person who just wants to go on vacation without worrying about whether or not you’re going to try recruiting him or her to join your business, or take a timeshare tour.

For example – and I refuse to name companies here – I know people who regularly ask me to join their travel businesses in true MLM fashion. They know I love travel – and typically, they know that I’ve had a lot of experience in MLM. For me, I have noticed that personally contacting people I know in an attempt to interest them in my “working from home opportunity” dilutes my relationship with them. I don't want them avoiding me when they see me at the supermarket.

Hey, that’s just me. You may have different feelings and levels of success with that.

And that’s fine.

BUT… If the friend happens to have an opportunity and can use customers as well as a sales force, I’m all in! I have a very dear friend who is a member of a travel MLM, and if her price on something beats mine, I’m in. For one of my last vacations, I booked a car through her site and got a 2 week rental for less than $200. No joke.

I just want to be sure that whatever working from home opportunity I choose has a stand alone product.

Because I enjoy travel so much, I want to be able to offer someone who loves to travel an opportunity to do JUST THAT. Travel.

Stand alone product. And, so that is what I market. You can buy it, or not buy it. You can join as an affiliate – or not.

Hey, if the customer is interested in learning how to earn commissions marketing the luxury vacation membership him or herself, I’m all over it. But, it remains their choice – and not until they bring it up.

Because, there are so many people out there who really just want to travel – and they want a good deal. Which we have.

One of the best analogies I ever heard in relation to this is “Don’t try to sell a steak to a vegetarian.” It’s true. Remember: Not everyone wants a work at a home business opportunity. So, why try to sell them that?

But, they might enjoy travel, and might be seeking a way to enjoy luxury vacation travel for a lot less than they’ve been paying.

So, keep these things in mind when you are looking for ways you can be working from home in the travel industry – or working from home on line in general. Once you have decided on what you are going to market online, you'll need to put a system in place - an internet marketing system and plan of work to market successfully. But that's a chapter all its own.

Start with an opportunity offering a high quality, stand alone product. It’s critical.

What Finding Sharks' Teeth on the Beach Has to do with Internet Marketing

So, what does finding sharks’ teeth on the beach have to do with internet marketing?

Well, quite a bit, as it turns out. And I'll share this with you here.

See, when we got down to Cherry Grove Beach, South Carolina to escape the cold and snowy winters of northern New Hampshire, we noticed a lot of people beachcombing for different shells and – sharks’ teeth.

First of all, we need to note that the only reason we could uproot ourselves from the bitter northland for warmer climes is due to the amazing opportunities that the internet and internet marketing have given us. For this, we are thankful.

Anyway, as we settled in, and began walking along the ocean front, we decided that we, too, would look for sharks’ teeth.

And so we did. Every day, for a month, we looked for sharks’ teeth. But, nary a tooth was to be found.

This was getting frustrating.

Finally, one day we noticed a couple down by the Cherry Grove Pier who looked like they were completely engrossed in whatever they were finding in the sand. Intrigued, we approached them and asked what they were finding (Note: Down here, everyone – and we mean EVERYONE is exceptionally friendly, so we weren’t concerned about approaching strangers.).

Well, not only were they looking for sharks’ teeth – they were FINDING them. Lots of them. We asked if we could see them – they showed us numerous types and sizes, and they even knew what type of shark some of them were from (they even had a Great White Shark tooth – which served as a reminder as to why we do not want to ever encounter one…).

A week or so later, we decided to walk a little more slowly than our usual pace – just in case we could more easily spot a tooth. Because typically, we were hurried, more intent on getting exercise with the hope that we’d spot a tooth. And every day we said, “THIS is the day we find a sharks’ tooth!” We kept visualizing what it would be like when one of us finally said, “Honey, I found one!”

And all of a sudden, about two weeks or so ago, it happened. We were strolling along – not intent on exercise, but on finding a shark’s tooth. John bent down, picked something up – and said, “Honey, I found one!” And sure enough, it was a sharks’ tooth!

Now, moseying along ahead of us was a gentleman who was also a shark tooth hunter. He had a plastic zipper-lock bag with a bunch of them – and one was very large.

We asked him where and how he found all of them. He explained that we needed to concentrate our search on where the tide was going out, leaving a “wash” of debris behind – almost like a sluicing action one might see in a gold pan or sluice.

Well, wouldn’t you just know it! Within minutes, I found a sharks’ tooth, too! Then another. And another. Before we knew it, and several days later, we had amassed a collection of about 24 sharks’ teeth.

Then, a few evenings ago, I went out for a breath of air on the beach. It was nearly sunset. I noticed that the “wash” from the previous high tide was quite high on the beach since the day before saw extremely high winds, and subsequently, high and rough wave action.

I thought of what the various experienced shark tooth hunters had taught me, and I decided to search in this particular spot. Lo! Within a minute I saw a sharks’ tooth.
And another. And then another. In less than 40 minutes, I came home with 12 full sharks’ teeth!

And to think that less than a week or so before, we hadn’t found even one.

So. What does any of this fascinating story have to do with internet marketing?

Plenty. Because as I marveled at how we were transformed from well-intentioned, but uninformed beachcombing dilettantes, ignorant of the knowledge that would help us find that elusive prize – the coveted shark’s tooth, into beachcombers who were now having success and finding sharks’ teeth easily, and on a daily basis – it hit me. It hit me hard.

Internet marketing success is NO DIFFERENT than hunting for sharks’ teeth. What is it we all want in our internet marketing efforts? We want sales. We want customers. We want like-minded members to join our organizations.

If you decide to market online, but don’t know: 1) what your customer looks like, 2) where to find your customer, and 3) how to find your customer – then you are just like we were when we started searching for sharks’ teeth.

But, the second we 1) slowed down, 2) asked someone what they looked like, 3) learned how and where to find them, and 4) focused on the search until we found one, we became successful.

So, what this means to you, as an internet marketing specialist, is that you – we – all of us, need to do the following:
1) Slow down – don’t work in a frenzy, jumping from product to product, marketing strategy to strategy. Don’t try to focus on more than one thing at a time. It doesn’t work. My eyes prove this – I cannot look at the computer screen while at the same time clearly see the ocean in front of me.

2) Learn from people who already successful. Hey, this is no secret. Every internet marketing guru out there will tell you to follow success.

3) Learn strategies that are proven to be successful, and then implement them. And keep implementing them until you, too, find your first shark’s tooth. Then, by some kind of wonderful magic, you will find more and more of them.

What if – after talking with all the people who are successfully finding sharks’ teeth, day after day – what if I walked away and said, “Well, he doesn’t know anything! It must have been luck! I’m going to look around the base of the Palm trees next. Surely, there must be a shark tooth there…”

What if I did that?

Even worse, what if – after all that discussion, all that initial interest – I decided, “Nah – it’s not worth it to find one silly little tooth.” And then I just walked away, thinking, “Maybe I’ll just find something easier to identify on the beach.”

Hmmm. Beached jelly fish are certainly easier to identify.

Hopefully, you would say that I am a fool for ignoring what is clearly a proven strategy for finding such an intriguing part of nature.

Yet, how many of us do that very same thing, day after day! We say we want to learn a good internet marketing strategy. We pay money – sometimes a lot of money – to learn from those who are successful. Then, after one or two limp gestures, we drop it.

Maybe the next strategy will succeed...

Maybe...