'Sup

I have a new job as a SOM for a start up.  It's pretty interesting.  I am definitely learning as I go with Excel, which is cool.  Back when I took Adobe PageMaker through expensive courses my employer covered, you couldn't find all the instructions on line.  My boss lives in Chicago so I rarely see him.  I had a 6th floor private office in a huge complex we had rented from.  But, last week we moved to this nice building in a wooded lot within the corporate complex wasteland.  It has an atrium and desks and booths which is great.  Because I am now in a non window office with three programmers, the CEO, and my boss when he comes up.  So, many of us will utilize the vast atrium space for work.  My office is portable...I am using it right now.  It's a good gig and hopefully, we can launch this nice little start up.

Natalie graduated from 8th grade.  They wore cardinal red cap & gown and she got an honor cord to wear and everything.  She is such an awesome kid.   She will do great things because she cares, and she works hard in school and her athletic pursuits as well.   We exposed both kids to a lot but so did everyone else in their sports obsessed town and school.  Natalie shined all on her own.  I can't put into words how much I love her.  She is really still very close to me and knows I more than have her back.  But she is 14 and going off to a big high school next year.  She will be exposed to all kinds of people and opportunities so our conversations will change a lot.  I have to let go and hopefully she will stay close.  She is so intuitive and has always been part of showing me the way through the unknown.  

It's nice to have a graduation ceremony as meaningful as she did.  50 kids, lots of memories good and bad but what I remember most about Natalie's days were her steadfastness and hope and hard work.  

Four more years.   Presence.

Charlotte worked up the nerve to transfer to public school.  She transferred at semester so she could hang with the elementary crowd before going off to middle school, which will be quite a different experience.  It can be great.  Middle school is hard everywhere, I'm told.  She will be 11 in 7 days.  I don't know how to slow down this fast moving train.  She has four more days of CCES.  It was a great semester and I am so proud of her.  She is so sweet and kind and she has learned a lot about people that she hadn't learned in Catholic school.  

I have gotten into reading James Altucher and am trying to improve my business skills.  The seven months of freelancer salary really knocked us down fiscally.  Things are slowly getting back on track but with the rental going down in a freak explosion, it was an interesting year.  I am so glad I left my old job.  I think back on how much I started to lose my mind with the travel.  It was totally unmanageable and I am surprised we made it through those last few years.  I haven't traveled in over a year.  It's odd and freeing yet I got pretty good at it so I miss the adventure.

It's the beginning of June.  I am going to use this month as a foundation for my growth plan.