2017 Last Call - 3 Laptops - 2 Jobs - 1 Trip
2017 has been an incredible ride. We are now on the homestretch and it is time to reflect, make the most out of what remains, and plan for 2018.
The year had many ups and downs for me with my mother passing, my bride experiencing health issues, and myself searching for 9 to 5 employment that I would once again enjoy.
2017 At Times
The crazy thing is although there were many downs, I would not have found Wealthy Affiliate unless I had experienced these challenges.
- There is a silver lining in every cloud.
With one week of 2017 remaining, my bride and I have a number of challenges and decisions in front of us and we need to also button up the year.
What do we need to button up?
- My two (2) year old laptop from hell started working correctly on Christmas Eve day after two weeks of screwing with it. I will not say anything about miracles.
- I now have an extra inexpensive laptop I picked up when in South Carolina and an extra replacement laptop that was a special I cannot return.
- Now the question is do I transition to the new laptop now or do I wait until the original laptop goes crazy again.
- The inexpensive laptop will be set up for my bride since it has a large hard drive for all her paracord pictures, etc.
- Late last week, I called my 79-year-old father to plan a trip to North Dakota with myself traveling today and returning later this week. The temperatures are sub-zero so I planned on parking our car in the garage since my dad only has one car and we do not have an engine heater on the car I was driving.
- My dad was kind enough to inform me that I could not park in the garage since my sister has her spare vehicle in the garage so we decided I would not visit my dad on Christmas.
- We are now trying to determine when I will schedule my next trip north but this did buy me 72 hours of time this week.
- For nearly two (2) months, I have been interviewing and going through the process for a new 9 to 5 job while helping my current employer position his company for success.
- The offer has been made, background checks complete, and we are just waiting for the dotting and crossing of the document to go to training on January 3rd, 2018.
- My current employer wants me to stay and although we have made significant progress since I started in September, the new opportunity interests me more although the door is still open.
So we move to the goals for 2018.
- We will be building and promoting two (2) new websites in 2018.
- Paracord products for my bride.
- Small business turnaround coaching/consulting for myself.
- While traveling for my new 9 to 5 job, I will be able to dive deeply into WA training while in motels during the week.
- Goal of completing one (1) course each day.
- The new 9 to 5 job will involve setting strategy and establish a footprint in the US for a multinational corporation.
- Guess being fifty plus going on fifteen comes in handy sometimes.
- I am sure that goals will be set for me.
- It appears we will be planning a wedding for the fall of 2018 since one of my children is now engaged.
- Can we pull a wedding off in less than a year?
- Not much choice right.
- What is behind us.
- What is now.
- What is in front of us.
With experience and knowledge, we are able to better navigate our future even though we have limited control of the outcome.
- What do you need to button up during the last week of 2017?
- What goals are you willing to share for 2018?
Wishing you health, safety, and success in 2017 and into 2018. It is great being fifty plus going on fifteen.
Time to get back to listening to the Twisted Sister Christmas album which is much better than Donny and Marie.
Finish out the year strong and start the new year stronger.
Feeling LikeAs Long As I Can Say It... Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
Jay Patterson
Recent Comments
39
It is very wise to be focused on your present to live in the now and stop looking at the future, as you and your self discipline are the creators of your future. And those are the tools you have to rely on. Just learn patience when it comes to things we have to enable by our own actions.
Lee, there is truth in focus on the now. I believe you can plan for the future through self-discipline, training, etc., but I also believe that we need to be ready with an alternate plan when things do not work out as planned. Have a great night. Jay
Hi Jay, It sounds promising. I hope everything works out - watch out for Murphy. For me I would definitely transition to the new laptop as you never know when the old one will crack up again. You can save it as a spare.
Merry Christmas.
Alex
Best of luck with everything. Traveling to ND is always a tough proposition in the winter. We are hoping to sell my dads house up in Rolla and get us all moved to Eureka Springs, AR
Michelle,
A wonderful area to relocate to. Last year I canceled 4 times in the winter due to storms. Jay
What an inspiring post, Jay!
may the best of your Christmas be a lovely one and the New Year full of great wonders!
A wedding sounds exciting. Eddie and I did almost everything for our wedding. We couldn't afford catering, so we cooked everything ahead of time and my cousin and her husband (who worked for a catering supply company at the time) supplied the dishes and heated all the food up. I even made the wedding cake and the flowers that went on it.
I made all the flowers for the wedding and all the centerpieces with supplies bought mostly at deep discount stores, like Woolworth's And Wal Mart. I made my veil. A friend bought me the dress as a gift. She got it at a clearance sale.
Another friend rented the hall at the community he lived in and helped with set up and clean up. The wedding party supplied their own tuxes and my maid of honor's dress was made from material my grandmother bought.
I did a lot of paper embossing back then. I made our invitations and wrote each one out in calligraphy that I learned when I was a teenager.
It was a lot of time and effort, but it was beautiful! Something we will never forget! Looking back, it was fun, too.
The church was still decorated for Christmas, so the only decorations we needed there were bows for the reserved pews. It was two days after Christmas and we even had winter weather that evening.
We had a very small ceremony when we got married the second time. Just family and a couple of friends. Again we did it all ourselves (on a much smaller scale, of course) and hosted it in our living room in front of the tree.
Of course, people getting married now want their guests to have trinkets to take home, a chocolate fountain and free photo booths for the guests. My oldest daughter came home from a wedding last weekend with a mug, a caricature of herself and her boyfriend. She had a large soup mug with the bride and groom's name and date on it. There were pictures from the photo booth and candy bars with the wedding information on it. Before the announcements came a "Save the Date" card.
I liked ours better. Less than 50 people in a small chapel on our church grounds (the original church building) and we all got to fellowship together into the night. It was sweet and cozy and everyone left happy and hopeful. Even the photographs were done by a friend as a gift, a video, too.
I wish you all the luck in the world with all your goals for the coming year.
Anita, it will be an exciting year and thanks. Your wedding sounds great, we have already found a less expensive place to have the wedding in Branson MO so tome will tell. Wishing you success also. Jay
Oh great! I have a power outage. No hairdryer, no computer, and no answer from my landlady ad yet. It's been since 11am this morning. Will still be waiting while my batteries on my iPad and Android Phone run out. Still excited about the New Year though!
Lee, if you offered me a ride home today I would probably not accept it since a wheel may fall off the car. LOL. I am excited about 2018 also. Jay
Don't believe in the negative that comes into the mind thru changes though. Believe all the positive. Someone may give you another tire to enable your safe and secure sleighride home! Eh?
You're in a good position to be in Jay! Lots of options, all positive!
I need to button up my website, decide whether to go back to work part-time or full-time and/or whether to do it stationary in one place or back to travaling here, there and yonder! Whew!
Decisions, decisions! I am determined to get my site tightened up and gaining traffic before Summer whether I go back to work full or part time! We shall see!
No advice on the laptops since you refuse to spell Apple! ;-)
Merry Christmas (what's left of it) and Happy New Year to come!
Cindy, I am about a mouse hair from getting an Apple. Ugh... I said it. I believe my issue involved Google Chrome of all things but time will tell.
Understand the position you are in since I am walking the line (The Green Mile) it seems. Need a few more years to get through and now a daughters wedding.
I sure hope you have a wonderful Christmas and New Years. The kids are doing stuff today but we had them for Christmas Eve so I am thankful.
Jay
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It seems that 2017 has been a hard year for many people! But now, it's nearly over and personally I am excited for 2018!
Good luck to you in 2018 and beyond, Jay!
P.S. Your post reminded me that I should create a collage, well because the path to your dreams starts with a collage! How to Create Photo Collage for Free No goals - no itinerary. No itinerary - no final destination.
Zarina, Wow... that was like a slap alongside the head and a great idea to collage your goals. I have always written them down and they are 2D. As a collage, 3D. Thanks for the suggestion. Jay