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This year, I’m thankful for…

* The success of Susie’s and my move to Vancouver.  We took a chance that this city would be good for us, and it has been in many ways: friendly people, healthy living, good for business, and fun to boot!

* Family—my wife, my sister Virginia, my mom, my in-laws, and my various cousins.  You’ll note that my other two sisters and my dad aren’t listed.  It’s not that I’m not thankful for them—I mean, I’m glad they exist and all—I just haven’t talked to them in over a year, so I don’t really have anything to add.

Side note: Actually, my cousin Craig came from Calgary out to Vancouver recently, and we had a long and good conversation about family, and siblings specifically.  The way he talked about his brothers made me think that I was being an idiot for not trying to reach out again to my sisters, so I called Nicole last weekend.  Got her voice mail, left a message.  I’ll try again if I don’t hear from her.  I mean, no matter what else has happened, she’s still my sister, right?

* I’m thankful for Susie.  I know, you’re all, like, dude, Susie’s only #3?  Nuh, uh, I say.  She’s also family, and she’s the reason we’ve been so successful here, too—from helping to make the move happen, to making contacts to just generally being understanding.  I’m thankful for all that.

* I’m thankful for “The Rovers” aka “The Boys,” “The Scouts” or “The Usual Crowd.”  We’re a group of 7 guys I’ve known since I was about 12, and we’ve stayed in touch over the years—some years more than others.  I have breakfast with at least some of them every Sunday; the breakfast has been going on for about 7 years, with a few new faces.  There should be a picture of these guys in the dictionary next to “tradition” and also maybe “video game addicts.”

* Finally, I’m thankful for having not just one, but TWO Thanksgiving dinners this year—and the possibility of one more when U.S. Thanksgiving rolls around.  Anyone asks you the advantage of dual citizenship, this has got to be the number one benefit, hands down.

Overheard

“Oh boy! Another great opportunity for personal growth!”

...who said it?

“I’m not bitter about what happened to me as a child, and my mother was instrumental in keeping me from being so. ... She taught me to be grateful for my life regardless of what that entailed, and that’s directly related to the image of Christ on the cross and the example of sacrifice that he gave us. What she taught me is that the deliverance God offers you from pain is not no pain—it’s that the pain is actually a gift. What’s the option? God doesn’t really give you another choice.”

...who said it?

After over a decade of user testing, it is clear that the way we search the web is similar to the way we would search our home for valuables as it was burning to the ground. Frantically.

...who said it?

“We must shift the focus of companies back to the customer and away from shareholder value ... The shift necessitates a fundamental change in our prevailing theory of the firm… The current theory holds that the singular goal of the corporation should be shareholder value maximization. Instead, companies should place customers at the center of the firm and focus on delighting them, while earning an acceptable return for shareholders.”

...who said it?

“We would accomplish many more things if we did not think of them as impossible.”

...who said it?

Comments

 

 

 

 

 

I am a bit late on this one, but better late than never (and I was inspired by Travis's This ...

 

Posted by http://www.barbandroland.com/blog/_archives/2005/1
  at 12:29 pm on Oct. 11, 2005

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