Handmade Gifts

One of my favorite times of year is fall.

I love the warmth of handmade gifts and always have a project to work on!

This is a scarf I just finished for a young family member. . .





What do you love to make and give away?

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Personal Branding Popular In Job Search - My Interview with WXII

Had a great interview with Bill O'Neil of WXII today about Personal Branding. . . . Perfect timing after the fab article in Piedmont Parent *and my recent presentation to PT CREW on the same topic!

What I really loved, . . . was sharing the Personal Branding success of Experience Farm Client Robin Bodwin! SO HAPPY about her being cast in the pilot episode of “Small Town Big Wedding” even happier that she is able to work for herself doing what she loves!

Here's the segment from today's interview . . .

Personal Branding Popular In Job Search - Video - WXII The Triad

So how are you building your personal brand?

The Power of Thank You

In any given week there are dozens of hand written thank you cards that cross my desk.

It's a habit I picked up from my Mother and to this day I have a weakness for nice pens and stationary.

There is something special about opening your mailbox and finding a hand written letter. You can never replace that feeling with an email. There is emotion in your writing that a computer simply can't duplicate.

When was the last time you received a hand written thank you note?

Do you make time each week to thank those people who touch your life?


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Old Book Marks

Yesterday my husband took me to Nice Price Books in Carborro, NC for the first time.

Both of us are bibliophiles and LOVE adding to our collection and I have to say I can't wait to go back! They have an amazingly diverse and well organized collection in what used to be an old church in the 40's.

I'm a firm believer that the right books always find me. I rarely go to a second hand book store looking for anything in particular. I enjoy taking my time in each section until I come across a book that seems to scream "take me home".

Often it's not only the book, but the book mark that seals the deal. - My most recent find was a Dale Carnegie classic : How to Stop Worrying and Start Living (4th printing 1948).

The book mark that Discovered folded neatly on page 144 is an old full page Esquire cartoon that reads: ". . . so you see, Mr. Carnegie, my problem now is to get him to stop living and start worrying again"




What book marks do you leave behind?

What book marks have you discovered and still use?

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Time to Unwind

"The time to relax is when you don't have time for it." -Sydney J. Harris



Often the last thing we make time for in our busy schedules is time for ourselves.

Time alone to rest and reflect are vital to our ability to give back to others.

Do you make time for yourself each week to recharge?

What activities do you look forward to that help you relax?

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Fun With Food

A habit of mine is to draw on the eggs when we bring them home from the store.

Heck, I think I love the howl of my husbands laughter billowing from the kitchen the most!


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#OccupyWallStreet Trending on Twitter YET? Nope.

There has been debate going on that Twitter has been tinkering with trending topics relating to Occupy Wall St.

I like to check my facts so here you go - screen caps from @tobybenjamin where #occupywallstreet was showing in his trending topics http://twitpic.com/6r1dsg and 3 minutes later it was not. http://twitpic.com/6r1dsg and http://twitpic.com/6q4fye/full

It also appears as though JP Morgan has a stake in twitter. "JPMorgan Chase & Co. has invested in a fund that has bought about $400 million in Twitter Inc. shares" . . . read more : http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-03-01/jpmorgan-said-to-back-twitter-in-deal-that-values-startup-at-4-5-billion.html

Thanks to my Friend Eric Lusion sharing some pictures from the peaceful protest in NYC yesterday - I saw a few people carrying cardboard signs calling for the re-instatement of the Glass–Steagall Act. A line from the Wiki page on this reads " . . . economists believe this repeal directly contributed to the severity of the Financial crisis of 2007–2011 by allowing Wall Street investment banking firms to gamble with their depositors' money that was held in commercial banks owned or created by the investment firms."

There is currently a petition for the President to officially recognize the Occupy Wall Street movement by citizens in NYC on Wall Street and open a dialogue on the corruption plaguing our country. There are currently over 6, 600 signatures on this petition.

What do you know about Occupy Wall Street?

Where did you get your information?

Will you be signing this petition?

Sunday Cooking

One of my favorite things to do on the weekend is cook.

During the week it's often hectic . . . and cooking is the last thing I want to do.

My solution? Prep meal starters and snacks for the week ahead on Sunday. It saves me time and keeps my family eating healthy and away from too much processed food.

Plus it's quiet time that I can watch movies or read while I cook.

This weekend my husband (the bread maker) made a fantastic garlic starter dough. We had one large pizza, crackers, flat bread and a mini loaf (all from one dough ball!)

I also made a double layer chocolate cake in honor of my husbands birthday month. I'm pretty sure this thing won't last the day!

In addition to his birthday sugar bomb - I made roasted red pepper and garlic salad (my secret ingredient is East Coast Wings hot sauce!) which is a favorite snack on fresh bread.

I also broke one food processor for the home made roasted red pepper hummus. My ears are still ringing from the high pitched whirring of the second blender. Oy!

But hands down my favorite thing by far that I made this weekend was this sweet recipe I remember from my childhood. . . It's a bag of carrots (finely chopped), Sun-Maid raisins, a couple of table spoons of sugar and, of course, Duke's Mayonnaise.

So what do you like to cook?

Share some of your favorite 'get me through the week' recipes!

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Social Media and Politics : A Change in the Game

Internet politics: Social media a defining force in presidential campaigns -- This is a great read about social media and politics.

My theory - if a candidate (any level) isn't willing to invest what it takes to do it right and learn why it's important to use social media to connect with voters and not just shove a "vote for me" message out there - they should leave it alone.

My vote will go to the candidate(s) who makes me feel engaged in the process not those who are running a poor attempt at a puppet show.

Case in point - Cory Booker. He's called the "Social Media Mayor" for a reason. He and his staff make voters feel that they are valued.

Brunch: Southern Sunday Fried Peaches

Weekends are my favorite. If for no other reason than I unplug and slow down to enjoy cooking.

One of my favorite meals is Sunday Brunch. . . whether it's fresh ground french press coffee in bed, homemade beignets, or my new favorite - fresh fried peaches. Yep you heard me! Fresh fried peaches! It's a very simple recipe that pairs beautifully with chilled Champagne.

:: My Southern Sunday Fried Peaches ::

• 1 whole peach cut into 12 slices (skin on)

• 2 Tablespoons of simple syrup (simple syrup recipe is 1 cup sugar & 1 cup water brought to a boil and stirred thoroughly until sugar is dissolved - then cooled completely. You can store remaining mix in refrigerator.)
• 3 Tablespoons of unsalted butter (cut into small pieces)
• Fresh cracked pepper

Place all 12 peach slices in large frying pan over high heat with simple syrup, and butter - adding fresh cracked pepper on top. Cook until all butter has melted and the peaches have released most of the juice.

Remove peaches from pan and place on plate while simple syrup, butter and peach juice cooks down to a thicker consistency.

Add peaches back to pan over medium high heat until a caramel color crust forms on the bottom. Turn peaches and cook until crust forms on reverse side.

Once peaches are browned - remove from heat, spoon over remaining sauce and serve.

Garnish can be fresh mint or lime twist.

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What is your favorite brunch recipe?