Susan B. Anthony Would Have Been 191 Today

A great woman was born 191 years ago today, which is why today is commemorated by some as Susan B. Anthony day. She was born in Adams, Massachusetts. She never married, so never had children or grandchildren, but she was a woman who was passionate about the things that she stood for. The foundation for the things she was passionate about was based in her Quaker upbringing which provided her with a moral base from which to view the world, and a desire to change the things that she saw as unjust around her.

Susan was an abolitionist, and became deeply involved with the American Anti-Slavery Society. She was passionate about Educational Reform...we still need people to be concerned about this today, as we see our standard of education decline, in my opinion. She was involved in the labor movement; she wanted to see people buy American made; and an issue that is controversial today, she promoted immigration in the south to populate the area and increase industry. I'm sure she would be a proponent of LEGAL Immigration if she were alive today. Being raised a Quaker, she believed the Bible taught that liquor drinking was a sin, so she was involved in the Temperance movement. She promoted the right of woman to vote as part of the Women's Suffrage Movement. And as if that wasn't enough, she stood up for woman's rights, cutting her hair and changing her clothing style in an effort to promote her message.

She is a great example to those of us who sit about doing little to change the world around us, and I'm thankful that somewhere I saw it was Susan B. Anthony day and was inspired to get to know this woman a bit better.

Updated 11/28/18

Christmas and My Grandmother

I have special memories of my Scottish Grandmother at Christmastime, and had wanted to share this with you last month. Time got away from me, the post was written, but never made it to this blog, but I'm going to go ahead and share it with you now.

I think of my maternal Grandmother at this time of year, because each Christmas, for as many years as she was able, not only did we sit and polish silver with her for the holiday dinner, but she made Scotch Shortbread.

She came to America from Scotland through Ellis Island when she was 12 years old. Her father came over first, and set up a business, then sent for my great-grandmother, my grandmother and her 2 sisters and brother. I have letters that my great-grandmother and great-grandfather wrote to each other...she was unable to come over as quickly as great-grandpa hoped she would, because their little 5 year old daughter, my grandmother's little sister, contracted Leukemia, and did not survive. It is heart-wrenching to read the letters, and how my great-grandfather wished he could be home with his little girl in her last days. But that wasn't to be, and very shortly after her passing, my great-grandmother packed up my grandmother, her sister and her brother and boarded a ship for America. Can you imagine doing all that? I can't.

It was a treat each year to have my grandparents with us for Christmas as they lived in the suburbs of Boston, 5 hours away. I have carried on her tradition of baking shortbread each year.

I did write more about this, and have our recipe at another spot on the web, "Grandma's Scotch Shortbread and Scotland". It includes the story above in a bit more detail, if I remember correctly, and a video of Scotland, the only way I've been able to visit so far. It would be nice to one day visit the land of my ancestors.

Updated 11/28/18

Do You Have a Facebook Page?

The old year goes out with the face of Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, on the cover of Time Magazine, and the new year comes in with a question from me.

Have you started a "page" for your business on Facebook?  Have you joined Facebook?  I joined long ago, but did nothing with my account at all, just let it sit for what could have been a couple of years, I've lost track.  But finally I started spending more time visiting and updating personal facebook page, and since have started a profile for more business related things on Facebook....but I have yet to do a "page" and keep it going. 

Many of you probably know that you can make "pages" about your business. The pages do need to be updated regularly, and if you have many interests like I do, you are going to have to have a plan to visit those pages...something to remind you.  You do receive an email once a week about activity on your pages, just as you receive one telling you about friend's birthdays on you personal profile page.  You access the business and interest pages that you make from your main profile page by clicking "account" in the upper right of the page, then going down to "manage pages" in the drop-down menu.

Take some time to explore Facebook, if you haven't already, it seems like everyone is using it. 

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

Updated 11/27/18

To Grandmothers House We Go

It is funny that when I started to sing the song "Over the River and Through the Wood" I sang "..to Grandmothers house we go", but when searching for the full version of the poem, found that it is actually "to grandFATHER's house we go". Have I really been singing it wrong for all these years?

Whatever the case may be, it is that time of year again, Thanksgiving, when many gather to enjoy delicious meals, some find their way to soup kitchens to feed those who are less fortunate, some work in restaurants and toll booths so others can travel and eat out with their families, and families gather to, hopefully, enjoy one another.

This year may be challenging for more people than previous years for various reasons, the economy, job loss, loss of loved ones, family strife, any number of things can affect how we approach this time when hearts should be thankful...I know, I experience some of these mixed feelings and emotions myself.

But as hard as things may seem to be, when I take hold of my thoughts and direct them toward God and positive things, there is always something to be thankful for. The list may include things a big as the fact that my husband is a faithful man and still with me after over 30 years (update..until 8/6/17 when he went home to Heaven), to as simple as the fact that the sun is shining today and a beautiful bird just came to feed at the bird feeder.

Some Grandmothers will find themselves working this year that have never had to work before...perhaps even on or the day after Thanksgiving...this can either be something to be upset about or thankful for. It is up to us how we view the circumstances in our life.

I'm not being naive, I know many are hurting, some are very close to me, but also know that if each of us dig deep enough, we can find something to be thankful for.  Do some digging, and journal what you find, or share it with someone.

Updated 11/27/18

Woman Author's Adventures and Income Through Writing

Marilyn is an author, which means she makes an income writing wherever she is, at home, or on the road. Some time ago she provided the following post for an earlier blog that is no longer available, I hope that if you are thinking of writing, or are a writer, you will find it inspiring. 

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It is with great relief and pride that I can announce that the completed first draft of "Questing Home: A Safe Place for My Holy Grail" is now done. It now goes to the first readers who will give me feedback for flow, continuity, and to my children to see if they want themselves portrayed as I have written them. This has meant pouring over journals, letters, photographs, court documents about my divorce and interviews with people who were in my life from 1989 to 1996.

Writing this third book has been hard work and often emotionally difficult. Breaking the old rules of my childhood upbringing about keeping family secrets and turning the other cheek has challenged me. I have removed myself from a lot of life to be able to get this to this stage. Fortunately I work at home. I feel as if I am now free in a way I haven't been free in many years yet I know there is a lot of hard work ahead.

For those who have read "Questing Marilyn" 2003 (took me 17 years to get done) and Questing France 2005 you know I love to travel and I have travel adventures in this book too so I am keeping with the theme Personal Growth Through Travel.

It is my hope that this book will be recognized as a significant contribution on issues of adult bullying, the inequity of the divorce process most often but not always for women and how people in powerful positions can abuse their power with impunity. It is filled with personal growth and stress management methods and experiences.

The next steps include making the edits my first readers suggest if I agree with them, then having it copy edited professionally (even then some typos have slipped through as Questing France was edited by paid editors twice.) and making the corrections found, having it designed including a cover design and pictures inserted then printed. Whew! A long process. I hope to have it ready for sale in May.

I hope this book will become one that women's centers and advocates for a more just process of marital dissolution will use. I know my first two books have helped both men and women find their voice and stand up for themselves in abusive and disrespectful situations. I've had wonderful feedback.

Best wishes to you and as this is a dream coming to fruition for me. I hope your dreams are coming true too!

Marilyn Bellegham
http://www.questpublishing.ca

Updated 11/27/18

Gardens on a Maine Vacation

As I update this, I can't believe it has been over 8 years since I took this trip to Maine with my husband. Since then we went another time or two, and my dear husband is now deceased, so Maine is one of those places that will be hard to visit again without feeling the loss, as we vacationed there as a family and a couple many times. This was one of our favorite places to visit.

We had a wonderful time on this trip, and came home to cooler temperatures after a very hot summer that year.

Pictured below are a couple of gardens on the property of a large Inn in Bar Harbor, overlooking the water.  I think it may be Bar Harbor Inn.  We love to walk their path along the shore, and watch the sailboats, yachts and cruise ships come and go.

I would love to be able to stay at this place sometime, but think it may be a bit out of our price range. Still, it costs nothing to enjoy the outside views and look at their gardens.

 

 

Updated 11/27/18

How a Military Purse Brings Comfort

I'm so happy to introduce you to another Grandmother many times over who's creative gift lead to making a military purse for someone that brought joy and comfort, and that lead to making another...and another. I'll let Jackie tell you her inspiring story in her own words.

"My name is Jackie Thompson and I live in Killeen, Texas. I am the proud mom of 2 boys and 1 step daughter. My husband and I have 9 grandchildren and 1 more on the way. They call me nana, grandma, mawmaw and each time I hear those words it is the sweetest sound to me.

"I started out making cloth dolls and have done well with that but I wanted more. I decided to make a purse for a friend of mine whose husband recently joined the Army. I wanted to make something for her that made her proud and represented her husband, so my purses were born.

"The day she received her purse she had people coming up to her wanting to know where she got her purse and how they could order one. Needless to say I have been blessed with orders since I began my new venture. The best thing about my business is getting emails and phone calls from my customers telling me how proud they are of their purse/bag. These bags/purses are not just regular purses, they are keepsakes, reminders of your loved one who is serving or has served in the military. What better way to keep your soldier close to you while they are away than to carry one of these purses with you. It's like having a part of your soldier with you every time you walk out the door."

At this update, the link to Jackie's craft site no longer works, perhaps she is out of business. I tried to find her without success, so hope she will one day find us again.

Updated 11/27/18

Plan Now for Recess at Work Day Tomorrow

Ladies, are you planning on taking a special break tomorrow, whether you work outside of the home or work at home?  With the economy as it is these days, in some cases fun is being taken out of many workplaces.  Vacations are shortened; no longer do some get vacation days PLUS sick days, but get an allotment of days that have to be used for whatever - whether it be a sick day, personal day and if you have any days left, you may actually be able to take a vacation.  This is how it was at my husband's company.

On the lighter side, if you have any influence in your workplace, June 17th is a day for a little fun...I'm not sure where the "Recess at Work Day" phenomena got started, but it sounds like a good thing.  Plan something special...an outing with the girls different from the usual; have something special delivered to the company to enjoy; play music loud and dance up a storm...okay, maybe I'm getting a little carried away...but you get the idea.

Updated 11/27/18

10 Tips: How to Be Your Own Telemarketer

Many of us cringe when we hear the word "telemarketing" thinking of those phone calls that come right around dinner time or during your quiet evening when you finally put your feet up after a long and busy day.  Because of the abuse, you can now register to be put on a "Do Not Call" list so that you no longer receive these calls (hopefully).  Making contact with people is, however, an important part of a successful business, including phone communication.

In observance of "Telemarketing Awareness Week", I thought it might be a good idea to take a look at good telemarketing practices.

1.  Don't use an automated service to make your calls for you...there is nothing I hate more than receiving a call from a "machine" or recording....now known as "robo-calls".  I hang up on these as soon as I know it's a solicitation and block the number on my iPhone.

2.  Try to sense whether the person you are calling is a "get to the point" type person or someone who will want to be engaged in conversation before you try to sell them.  Personally, my heart sinks when someone I care about calls and carries on friendly conversation, only to find out further into the conversation that they are calling me about something they are selling.  I'd prefer that they say a few friendly words, then tell me what they are calling about...depending upon how things go, we can do the friendly talk later.

3.  When you speak to someone in person or by phone who may be a potential customer, or team-member if you are a network marketer, tell them you will be calling and if possible agree on a time that is good for them. 

4.  Don't call at dinner time...and take into consideration time zones if you are calling out of your time zone.

5.  Personal pet peeve - don't call soliciting business or sales on Sunday. Again, this is something I, personally, don't appreciate as I believe that Sunday is a day set aside to rest...yes, many have to work on Sunday, I know all that....but am just giving you something to think about.  If you know the person you are dealing with, you'll know how they feel about calls on certain days of the week.

6.  Don't call over and over again if a person has made it clear that they are not interested in what you are offering.  I would say call no more than twice, then if it's clear they are not interested, let some time go by, perhaps contact them another way, keep in touch as a (sincere) friend, and see what opens up over time.  I had a woman who called me constantly, once or twice a week, finally had to put a stop to it. She is sending along emails now and then, I don't mind that so much, and who knows...one of these times I may just click on the link in that email. (It's years later at this update, and I never did, and finally did tire of the emails.)

7.  Don't be put off if a person isn't interested, if you're a sensitive type, hearing "no, I'm not interested" can bring you down, don't let it...in reality, only a small percentage of those you contact, especially if you are doing "cold calling" are going to be interested...so move on.

8.  DO offer something special to a customer that has made a purchase, or to encourage them to make a purchase, like a percentage off their next order, or a free item with their next purchase.

9.  DO at the outset, identify who you are clearly when you call and ask whether you are calling at a good time.

10. DO ask for referrals if all goes very well with your contact.

I'm sure there are many other helpful tips, and pet peeves, feel welcome to share yours in a comment.

Image credit: 526663 on Pixabay

Updated 11/27/18