AND SO IT GOES

I continue to look for a job---currently 30 open applications for employment out there. Haven't heard from anyone for quite awhile now.

And I continue to wish for customers for Juice Plus+. Made lists, thought, prayed, schemed--- but as yet no firm plans for Wellness Presentations or anything that might help me get customers. I have attended one meeting of BNI (Business Networking International) Peabody Chapter--- can attend two more meetings gratis, then must decide whether or not to join and it's expensive.

I am beginning to interview for volunteer positions-1)Beverly Historical Society Receptionist/Docent (-), North Shore Elder Services Medical Advocate (+), Beacon Hospice FREE training at North Shore Community College in Danvers this summer (+).

So today after three days of chill, wind, & rain, I am discouraged, wiped out, headachey...

The good news is that soon it will be June, and June 7-13 Jack & I will be going to the Outer Banks for Vacation!!!

Maybe get a new lease on life, come back refreshed and optimistic.

SO MUCH GOING ON !

I've had a Colonoscopy, a Root Canal.... more to come with a Bone Graft. So I've been under the weather here and there, and had a couple of wasted days.

I've finished my second essay for school, which is NIWH (the National Institute of Whole Health), for EXERCISE PHYSIOLOGY. Anticipating the arrival of my next unit, on BRAIN FUNCTION, HORMONES, AND BEHAVIOR.

I've applied for many jobs, and NOT gotten the position of Patient Advocate with MDVIP. Getting a tad discouraged as time goes by--- it's now been seven months since I left my last employment. I hope I get something soon. Concentrating on part time now as well as full time positions.

I have three customers now for Juice Plus! And some real prospects! Looking forward to a long & satisfying business with this.

Jack & I helped out in Springfield this past weekend, with Donna getting her house ready for Carol (her mom and my birth mother) to arrive for moving in, and helped unload the truck. Both Carol and her dog Maggie are settling in OK.

About to have my first Mother's Day without Martha. Appears that Carl & Melissa will be having a BBQ at her mom's, for both her and for me. I guess I'm the matriarch of my family now.

WHAT'S NEW?

As yet I have not heard from the Joint Committee on Health Care for Children.

I have however received notice of formal acceptance to the National Institute of Whole Health/Whole Health Educator and Wellness Coaching program. Plus paperwork to be submitted, including payment plan. I begin March 1, 2009!

So for one thing I continue to wait--- with some anxiety and trepidation--- and for another the wait is over, and I am relieved and happy to move forward.

BEGINNING

The beginning of a thousand mile journey begins with a single step.
___ Lao Tsu

And so it begins, the New Year that is.

As agreed, my husband and I begin serious preparations for our weight loss program, which will start formally next week. Now we're cutting back on treats and portion sizes, trying to drink more water, and keeping a record of everything we eat and drink.

Other decions are underway:

One has to do with an opportunity I began investigating at the very end of 2008--- about Herbalife and being a Weight Loss/Nutrition Coach for some of the Weight Loss Challenges about to start up locally in 2009. I have found that Coaching is also becoming a licensed distributor, and so I am going in at the MOST basic level. I will function as a Coach but will also be a participant in their 12 week classes, will use the product--- THEN decide if this is something I want to pursue over time.

Another has to do with career change and training.

I left a position this past October, shortly after my mother's death, a position which was administrative, office-bound, and dealt with paperwork--- other peoples' paperwork--- as Medical Records Coordinator for a large behavioral health network on the North Shore, for one of their Outpatient Clinics. In addition to the job being what it was, the agency had a "no raise" policy. so there was no chance of change. I was OK with this position while caring for Mom, because I had flexibility to deal with her issues and needs as necessary, but with her gone, this trade-off was no longer required.

I took a graduate class this past fall, and received an "A". But not sure I want to go that route, at my age,so I looked into short term career options, and found one to which I was very attracted: Polarity Therapy, which could be done locally, at the Palmer Institute of Massage & Bodywork. No sooner had I determined I wanted to do this, with some reservations as to whether it was consonant with my Christian faith, than conservative Christian friends alerted to me with possible spiritual dangers.

So now, I am also deciding about whether to pursue this training, or consider other options. I am currently investigating other options, but need to decide quickly about the Polarity, as the deadline for this semester is 1/8--- a decision to postpone may be necessary.

On the job search: I have an interview 1/8 for a position which very much interests and excites me--- as Volunteer Coordinator for HAWC (Help for Abused Women & Children), a well-known Domestic Violence agency!