People have been asking me what I’ve been doing with “all my time” between employment contracts, in my ’tween time.
I’ve been told many times I’m
a self-starter, no carrot needed. I think it must be true since it’s
amazing how busy I’ve been in the ’tween time.
I’ve done some freelance public relations work, of course. One project, a trade analysis, was really interesting.
I’ve compiled a selection of my writings into Tuna to Mink and edited The Best of Trent a compilation of columns by Trent Loos. Trent and I have also published Activism 101.
This e-publishing concept is revolutionizing the publishing business.
Need help writing, editing, formatting, publishing your book? Contact me.
If you have an audience and/or are giving speeches, and don’t have a book, you’re totally missing the boat. Trent is now selling his books
when he gives speeches and he’s thrilled with the response.
I too have given many speeches and workshops over the years on a variety of subjects.
In 2011, in my ’tween time, I finally made it to the San Diego Quilt Show, an amazing fiber arts exhibition.
My friend Kim Graf
helps organize the show and, due to all the travel I’ve done over the
years, I’ve never seen it, something I’ve always regretted. 2011 was the
show’s 30th year, the last year Kim will be involved and the first year
I finally got to see this amazing show. Congratulations to Kim for a
job well done!
Of course I’ve also used my
’tween time to clean all the closets and get rid of some clutter. My
linen closet is now a thing of beauty.
I also tackled a really big
job, cleaning all the gutters and painting the exterior of the house.
You can see here that it really needed it.
Now it looks really sharp. What a difference a bit of paint makes!
If you ever want instant satisfaction, paint the house.
Speaking of instant
satisfaction, I mastered the art of the souffle in 2011. Yep, this is a
picture of one of mine. Impressive, isn’t it?
I also made some great jams and some really nice citrus curds.
But my kumquat-lemon-orange marmalade, all made from fruit grown within walking distance, is something really special.
And since I haven’t been tied
to the computer keyboard all day long, I swam more and took up walking
with a neighbor several times a week, How nice to have the time and I
even lost a few pounds!
I have especially enjoyed
being more involved in managing my investments. Challenging — but
Apple’s Q4 earnings put a big smile on my face.
I’ve also been adding to my
skill set. I am sure more of our stories will be told via digital video
in the future, so I’ve invested time in learning an editing software
called AVID. While I have a long way to go, just learning the basics has given me a new found respect for digital editors. proMax.com is hosting a series of terrific online tutorials featuring Steve Holyhead, a great teacher, and I drive up to L.A. for his live workshops. Thank you, proMAX, for sponsoring the series!
And a real treat was seeing Cirque du Soleil at
the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles, a Christmas gift from my brother. The
show, “Iris,” is a $100 million dollar tribute to the film arts.
Absolutely incredible!
It made me want to run away and join the circus! Seriously, wouldn’t that be a great job, working for Cirque du Soleil?
So, yes, I’ve been busy in my ’tween time. Plenty to do. No carrot needed.
And what about a “real” job?, you ask. Did I run away and join the circus? More on that later — so stay tuned!
