Scraping ice off the car window is a not a skill I practice very much.  But, to get to Morning Glory before its parking lot filled this morning, I started my day by finding the scraper in the glove compartment and performing an initial de-icing.  Glad I don't have to do this every morning, but the fresh air and feeling of winter made it special today. It's nice to be in a quieter town for the switch of the year. We're off to the Peerless Hotel restaurant for the early seating and back to Hollis' and Mary Pat's where we have the big [...]

Putting out my church's e-newsletter this week I did some reading of links on giving sites. Lot's of good work is being done, but I am a cynic. Not only are the recent tsunmais horrific disasters, but they are also a business opportunity for some people. I guess my years as a police dispatcher validated my natural New England skepticism. Here are the aid links I most like: American Institute of Philanthropy lists organizations providing relief who deliver the most services per dollar donated.  Too many organizations spend most of their money on third-party fundraising consultants.  The AIP links to [...]

Intentions of posting useful tips and pithy memorable comments are being replaced by the fun of discovering how to use the Live Journal tools. I have gone through the basic level of pictures, friends, and links. I have downloaded Semagic 1.4.6.8U (version numbers like that sure make it feel like geeks are on the loose!) -- this last is a journal posting tool that runs on my PC. What fun! What distraction! Now it's time to do some work so that a couple of Ozdachs clients can get their end-of-the-year e-newsletters out tomorrow.

The Ozdachs journal is both a gift to myself and a new year's resolution. The gift is a step to carrying out my resolution to do more writing. More writing that isn't ad hoc for an immediate purpose. Sure, I may post a link or a tip which winds up in newsletter. But, this is the space where ideas and thoughts will be jotted down along with non-business stories and essays. Viewer comments and suggestions are appreciated.