Hubuduh What?

turkey, the boy and a tax id number
2006-11-27 : 11:58 pm

Thanksgivings were good! Thursday was the TDay with the fam (read: mom) and we just took it easy, talked our faces off, played some Quiddler and made up some old fambly recipes, then ate ourselves into a coma. Good times, good times.

Friday was TDay with Ken's fam. As always, I had a great time at La Casa de Ken's Mom. Good food, excellent game of Cranium, though Kaitlyn, easily one of the top 5 most beautiful babies ever to ~~crawl~~ walk the earth, got it in her head that it was a good idea to crumple up and cry every time one of us cheered or even laughed. It actually became quite funny, evil as it may be to laugh when a baby cries.

I am crocheting the cutest little sweater for her for Christmas, by the way. Psyched about that. And Tracy, Ken's sister, is getting an awesome scarf. I'll take pictures when I'm done with them. Because you are all DYING to see my latest stitchery projects, I know.

Meanwhile, 6 months ago today I went on a date with a very tall, dark haired electrical engineer named Ken. We drank beer, had at-times awkward conversation about family and jobs, and hugged goodbye (bastard held out on that kiss until the THIRD date. Keepin' me honest...) I know 6 months isn't a real anniversary (it's not an anni-anything) but it makes me look back and see how lucky I am to actually have this incredible love in my life. He is supportive and sweet and wonderful, adorable, funny, affectionate yet independent and I am very, very much in love with him. Seriously, when is the other shoe gonna drop because I NEVER get this lucky. Hopefully it won't.

Yeah, so I've recently made the discovery that I do not belong in an office. If you know me at all you will already have figured this out, I'm sure. What can I say? I'm blind when it comes to me. I've only just realized it in the past few days. Yes, I've been searching for The Path for nearly a decade and no, I have had little to no luck, but I'm starting to come to the following realizations:

-There simply may not be ONE thing I need to do with my life. It just may be a matter of picking Something and going with it.

-That Something needs to NOT take place in an office.

-The more independent I am in that Something, the happier I will be.

-The more crafty or creative that Something is, the happier I will be.

-The more variety that Something encompasses, the happier I will be.

-If I can incorporate working with people somewhere between 40%-80% of the time in pursuit of that Something, the happier I will be.

The above criteria have led me to the idea of possibly, someday, far into the future, starting my own business. Since, truly, it is ridiculously hard to produce one product and try to sell it, like a particular type of art, and also I'd get bored producing the same thing over and over again, I'm thinking a store. Maybe a yarn shop. A knitting shop.

I truly believe that if I can find the right location and the right marketing techniques, I could do it. I was talking to my mom about this, who has owned several of her own businesses (not several because they've failed, several because she's moved or branched or whatever) and I explained that I never truly entertained this idea because I am neither business-oriented nor finance-oriented. I have no idea how to start a business, and lordisa knows I can barely manage my own financial situation, let alone that of an entire company.

She assured me that the business side would come with research and common sense, and the financial side would be taken care of the minute I hired an accountant. Done and done. She assured me that it's really, truly, not THAT difficult. That the main skills I'd need to have in order to truly be successful in something like this are in advertising, marketing, and creativity. The rest is just paperwork. It's not like I'm wanting to become the CEO of a major corporation, I just want a mom and pop yarn shop with a creative name (you know, "A Good Yarn," "Ewe'll Love It" "In Stitches" or some crap like that). (Okay actually, I'm pretty sure I wouldn't give it a punny name.)

I think, given a lot of research, a lot of planning, a LOT of saving up and credit-building, that this is something I could DO. And be happy doing.

The only thing is that I've had so many ideas and none of them have panned out. I'm worried that this is something I do, come up with some sort of crazy idea and then get bored with it and let it go.

Honestly, though, I feel a little different about this one. Unlike something in film it wouldn't require a major move and it's not a career completely contingent upon who I know, it would provide me with my ideal working environment, it's very reminiscent of other jobs and positions I've had that I've loved. I would be my own boss, I would be in charge of a very small staff and we would share common interests and passions. I'd be in a visually and texturally stimulating environment all day, I'd get to play nice music and play with yarn. I'd get to hold classes for people, and workshops, and help them develop their abilities, and in turn develop my own. I'd be in charge of my own success. I'd be doing something I cared about. I'd be (hopefully) involved in a community, and I'd get an opporutunity to contribute to that community, maybe hold charity-drives, participate in First Friday-type events, write funny ads for the local paper.

Yes, okay, I'm looking at this idea through rose-colored glasses.

If anyone has any thoughts or ideas on why I should NOT pursue this idea, please send them my way. I will quite possibly continue on this path no matter what you say, but I'd like to know about any possible downsides that I'm not considering.

Thanks for your input! Have a nice day.