I have been busy the last couple of days. That leaves me little time to write. I realized that other day that that is a bad thing.

What do you write about? Master and I have talked about that. You think, he said, so write about what you think about. I realized that when I am so busy, I don’t have time to contemplate things. That, I realized, is the really bad thing about being busy. We MUST take the time to think. If we are too busy to think, we are TOO BUSY!

Maybe it’s just me. Maybe for me thinking about things is a way of escape, a mini vacation. But I believe it’s important to take that time and consider the world around you.

No time to write? No time to think? IT’S TIME TO SLOW DOWN!!!

I stayed the other night at a Motel 6. The Motel 6 is a chain of no-frills hotels that offer a night’s stay at a reasonable price. I paid $30 for the night. At another area motel I would have paid $60, $70 or more. So what did I give up to pay half price?

The thing I think I missed the most was a clock. There was no clock in the room! I’ll admit that surprised me. I had to check my cell phone if I wanted to know the time. TV programming included an abbreviated cable network. In addition to network television, there was HBO, ESPN, Discovery, TBS and a few others. Forget ordering a pay-per-view movie. There was no Kleenex or shampoo. There was no indoor pool. There was an outdoor pool, but in Iowa in February, those are pretty useless.

So what did I get? I got a nice, clean room. I got friendly, helpful staff. Will I go back there again? You bet! I don’t think I’d take the kids, though. (Mom, I’m bored! LOL!)But if you are capable of entertaining yourself, the Motel 6 is a perfectly acceptable place to stay.

As their advertisements say, they’ll leave the light on for you.

I spent Saturday involved in one of my passions. I love fine arts performances, and I spent the day at a competition. As I said, this is one of my passions; I dearly love it. But after arriving at 7:00 am and working until after 5:00 pm, I was exhausted! By the time I got home it was close to 8:00.

It left me wondering, can you have too much of a good thing? Is it possible that maybe one should back away, perhaps just for a little bit? I think that is probably true. The break also allows me to appreciate all the more the object of my passion.

Nevertheless, on the way home I stopped to talk to one of the participants who had done particularly well. I went home, still tired, but buoyed somewhat after sharing his enthusiasm.

Ah, now I remember why this is my passion!

If you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you’ve always gotten.

This is a common saying in the workplace. And it’s almost true. If you do things the way you’ve always done them, you will not get better results. Often, after a while, you will get worse results than you did before.

Change is necessary, not only in business, but in daily life. First of all, things around you change. People in charge change, markets change, gas prices change. The list goes on and on. As things around you change, you must take them into account and modify accordingly. If you stay the same, you will not be successful. Things change. You must, too.

But as a person on an individual level, you must change, too. Have you ever been stuck in a rut? I was recently stuck in a rut and I didn’t even realize it. I just knew I needed to change. My situation at work changed, and it was very good for me. Sameness can be comfortable, but it can also be confining. How can you grow if you will not change? The answer is that you can’t.

I know change is difficult. Often it comes when you don’t expect it and drags you off, kicking and screaming. Perhaps, though, rather than fighting the change, you should try to go with the flow. Funny thing is, either way, you’re going down the river of change. So, when you think you’re up shit creek (the river of change) without a paddle, remember:

If you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you’ve always gotten. Or worse.

I spent last night dealing with my son’s junior high girl problems. I won’t give you details, but since you have probably been in junior high, you can guess. Anyway, he was upset and I made a few calls. I thought I had things squared away.

Later he became upset again, worried that “nothing would change”. He actually started throwing up! I thought, come on, this kid’s thirteen years old. He shouldn’t be getting himself so worked up over this junior high garbage!

After several trips to the bathroom, we both seemed to come to the conclusion that maybe it wasn’t just a matter of being upset. Maybe something else was wrong. He thought he had eaten to fast. I thought maybe a flu bug. Anyway, we decided that maybe an early bedtime was in order.

Such is a mom’s life. Oh, and my reward? Today I’M sick!