Small Business Boomers

Baby boomers should write down their memories for their children, grandchildren and future generations.  Some of us may have memories of attending one-room schools that will seem so unique to today’s children.  If we don’t write them down, send them to publications, include them in a blog or book, part of history (ours and our culture’s) will be lost.
This even can be an aspect of a small business for boomers…writing family memories, teaching it, and ghost writing for others.  I’ve been teaching classes in Writing Your Family Stories and having a great time sharing mine and showing others how to compile …read more

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Did you know Barbie is a Baby Boomer?  Yep.  She’s turning 50 this month.
It seems like just yesterday that I heard about Barbie. My sister and I got Barbie dolls when we were pre-teen.  Pretty cool stuff back then.  My daughter (now 30) wasn’t a big Barbie fan.  She was more interested in playing soccer and running.  My grand-daughter, though, is carrying on the tradition and starting her collection (she’s 8).
So 3 generations of girls have been collecting Barbie stuff.

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Spring is just around the corner and I can almost smell the wet earth, one of the best smells in the world.  Yesterday I went to a Winter Garden Fair presented by the Master Gardeners in my county.  I was inspired to get busy on my flower garden as soon as winter is over, but I was even more interested in talking with the Master Gardeners. I saw a lot of Baby Boomers there, and many who were Master Gardeners.
Ever since a neighbor told me about being a master gardener several years ago, I’ve had this on my list of …read more

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The title on the LA Times article was, fittingly, “VHS Era Winding Down”.  The last supplier of VHS tapes is going out of business.  Everything changes, I know.    Heck, I remember when we were using those big 8 track things.  I even remember selling some of those in a garage sale back in the late 1990s.  And that was after VHS beat out BetaMax (remember?) for sole ownership of the video player market, back in the 1980s.

No more movies are being published in VHS format, and you can’t find them at Best Buy or anywhere else, except maybe a flea …read more

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We are not in a recession.  For proof, I offer Exhibit A:

I was in a “big box” national pet store on Friday (Halloween) to get my cat groomed.  I couldn’t believe how many people were there buying Halloween costumes for their pets.  If people still have enough discretionary income to buy this stuff, we aren’t in a recession.
For a recession-proof small business, run a pet store.
Image source: Newscom

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Tomorrow (October 16) is advertised as “World’s Largest Cruise Night” – a night when you can get great deals on cruises.  The Cruise Industry has designated October as National Cruise Vacation Month.
They don’t have to tempt me – I’m already tempted.  In order of priority, here is where I want to go on cruises:
#1 – Alaska.  What a gorgeous place!  I also want to take the train to Denali Park, either before or after the cruise.
#2 – Down the Seine from LeHavre to Paris, stopping to see the D-Day battlefields, Giverney (home of Monet) and another …read more

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I completed a survey on BizChicksRule today, and one of the questions stopped me in my tracks. Here it is:
Which of the following do you use regularly or within the last 30 days:

GPS Unit
Digital camera
Blu-ray player
Blackberry/Smartphone/iPhone
iPod or MP3 player
Other mobile/cell phone without email functionaity
LCD or plasma television
Video game console
Digital video recorder/camcorder
Desktop personal computer
DVD player
Laptop/notebook computer

I hate to tell you how many of these I checked: 8 out of 12!  That’s 75 percent of all this high-tech stuff.  So, do you think I’m too “wired”?  After …read more

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1. Jeopardy! is unique as a game show because questions are answered in this form. What is a question?
2. Jeopardy! was created in 19?? by this talk show host/singer, who also created Wheel of Fortune. Who is Merv Griffin
3. Jeopardy! announcer Don Pardo is most famous as the announcer on this long-running comedy show. What is Saturday Night Live?
4. This is the main difference between contestant prizes on the original Jeopardy! and today’s version. What is that in today’s version only the winner gets money?
5. The original Jeopardy! included this …read more

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1. Jeopardy! is unique as a game show because questions are answered in this form.
2. Jeopardy! was created in the 1960s by this talk show host/singer, who also created Wheel of Fortune.
3. Jeopardy! announcer Don Pardo is most famous as the announcer on this long-running comedy show.
4. This is the main difference between contestant prizes on the original Jeopardy! and today’s version.
5. The original Jeopardy! included this ending feature that is not part of today’s Jeopardy!
6. After the 1985-86 season, contestants could ring in only after this happened.
7. …read more

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It’s difficult to believe that the game show Jeopardy! is 25 years old.  As I mentioned yesterday, I am a Jeopardy junkie, and I have been for years.
Actually, I am more than an addict – I was a contestant on Jeopardy, in 1988, four years after the show aired.  I’ll make a long story short – I tried out and was selected as a potential contestant in Tampa, Florida, when I lived there, but never got called. I tried out again in Davenport, Iowa, in July of 1988 and I was qualified as a contestant again.  This time, I was …read more

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