Hey, I hope everyone has been doing well, or at least okay during these struggling times.  It seems our economy has taken a nose-dive for the worst for a lot of people.  I know of so many families who have lost jobs and are struggling just to keep their homes and loved ones together.  Businesses have gone under and many jobs were completely dissolved, leaving thousands of people looking for some way to make any kind of money just for the basic necessities.

I, myself, have gone through quite a few changes during the first part of this year.  Most folks around here already know that my husband and I are now separated and leading our own lives.  We are on very good terms however, in fact, we get along much better now that we're apart, and I only live a minute or so down the road so our son has access to both of us whenever he wants.  He's doing very well in school; has three honor classes which are pretty advanced, is on the golf team and has decided to join band this year as well.

After homeschooling for about ten years, I was hired as an Inclusion Aide at one of the local elementary schools.  I was so appalled at what I saw going on in the classroom that I would come home every night in tears because I knew those kids were capable of so much more than what they were getting . . . not to mention the teacher who had no business teaching because she certainly didn't know how to effectively teach; she couldn't even control her class!  Anyway, I'm not going to get all worked up over that at this point . . . I've got something much better planned for later that will help solve that situation, hopefully.

Now, for the good stuff!  I have taken some of my inheritance money and for the past year or so, have researched and learned everything I could about internet marketing.  With so many businesses failing, I wanted to know why so many people were making millions of dollars online and how to tell the scams from the real deal.  Yes, I did lose some money along the way, but in the long haul I have gained so much knowledge that can not be learned from outdated books in a college course.  I've always felt that the best knowledge comes from life, not a classroom and I've had the opportunity to learn from some of the top big time marketers like Brendon Burchard, Brian Tracey, Mike Koenigs, James Malinchak, Robert Grant, Daniel Hall, and many others. 

One of the things that impressed me the most about internet marketers was all the positive energy that surrounds them and the fact that they really do want to help others to make a better life.  The problem I've found though, is that even though they all have these good intentions, there always seems to be something missing; that there are those who get what they're teaching and there are others who don't . . . or maybe they're so close to getting it, but something just doesn't click.  And the reason for that is because each and every person is a unique individual, we learn in different ways and sometimes we just need things explained in a different way or from a different angle or approach.  Some are visual learners while others learn by listening; some learn by reading, others by doing . . . following along and copying or mimicking. It's no different than the way children learn.

So now my big project is putting together everything I've learned in order to share these things with others so that they won't make the same mistakes that I did.  If anyone is interested in learning about internet marketing and in all the different ways you can make money online without getting scammed, then keep an eye out . . . I'll be starting a Wordpress blog shortly which will not only include the struggles in my journey, but will include reviews on products and courses, and hopefully interviews with some of the big guys.  One of the things that I'm most excited about is the latest and biggest move in advertising and that's mobile marketing . . . A REALLY big shift!!

Again, I hope my Xanga friends have been doing well despite the economy.  I miss being here, but will try to post more often than I have been.  Like many, I have been learning to help myself survive and hopefully, all of this research will pay off shortly.  I want to catch up on reading some of your posts to see how you all have been doing. Please don't forget me completely; even though I've been gone awhile I do think of you all and wonder what you've been up to.  As soon as I get some money coming in I'll be able to relax and chat with you all again.  Until then, take care and God bless you all!

Well, I swore it would never happen, but I guess I was suckered into it again!  Last week a small cat showed up on our porch and decided to stick around; no matter what I did I couldn't get it to stay away.  It had sneaked into the house when my son was coming in, and our dog immediately tore after it and chased it around the house.  Matthew finally caught it and took it back outside, but it still kept hanging around!  It's a really friendly cat and you can tell it was an indoor cat. 

Well, then it decided to snow and I felt so sorry for the poor thing ( you could hear it meowing all evening), so I warmed up some old towels in the dryer and set them in a box on the porch for it along with a little bit of warm milk and some of Jango's food.  Took some pictures, posted some "Found Cat" posters around town with no response, and after my son's pleading we finally brought it in and kept it down in the basement.  Thirty five dollars or so later (for cat box, litter, box liner, food, and even a little toy among other things) my husband said if anyone claims that cat now they're going to have to pay for it . . . I think he was serious too!

We slowly and carefully introduced cat and dog so they could get used to each other, and last night Matthew and the cat sat at one end of the sofa watching TV and our dog sat with me at the other end.  I think they're going to end up being okay together, hopefully.  We'll see, I guess.  Here's some pictures of the cat; I don't know what happened to it's tail.  Can't tell if it's a male or female although I think it's a female.  Will take it to the vet for a checkup at any rate, so we'll find out for sure when we do.