Pardon my absence.  I've had lots of soul searching to do and very little time to do it.  And life ... well, it keeps marching past.  I have a new manager as I mentioned in my last post.  I'm not very happy about the situation: that hasn't changed.  It would be different if she was competent and a great leader.  She's not.  I feel for her situation and am trying to do my best to support her while I explore other career options.  I kind of feel like a traitor abandoning the programs I have worked so hard to grow but ... it all comes down to my personal happiness and passion for the work I do which is seriously lacking. 

I interviewed for two senior level positions in my company but wasn't selected for either.  I feel okay about that because I truly believe that something perfect for me is lying ahead.  Plus, I totally BLEW the one interview -- it was one of those "can't string two coherent sentences together to save my life" days. 

I try to keep my focus on what it is that I want in my next career and the passion I'll feel doing that.  It revs my spirits up and tunes me into what's really important.  I am successfully keeping this in perspective and moving forward while maintaining my current position.  That's a huge leap for me, emotionally.  Normally, I would have resigned immediately and let the cards fall where they might.  Screw that!  I make a decent wage and need to keep making it until I find my next gig.  Theresa helped me through that process in a huge way. 

She's so careful and methodical with things concerning monumental life events.  My emotions tend to get the best of me sometimes and I can make rash decisions or, at least, what appear as rash decisions.  I usually land on my feet somehow.  I've always been lucky that way.  Or maybe I've just always followed my heart/gut to extremes.  *shrug*  I've learned something this time around though in that I can endure extreme hurt and stress and still play through to the next hole. 

God, I hope that wasn't literal.  Hole, I mean.  *chuckle*  THAT would really suck.  No, I guess I mean that I'll be ready for my next soul-filling task on earth and take it on with glee and a few extra bucks in my pocket.  Maybe I should leave golf terminology out of this blog entry. 

Part of me thinks I should purchase a huge apartment complex and just grow the business and use the equity to buy another one.  I LOVE making sh*tholes into livable spaces that people queue up to rent.  I'm a fair landlady and keep up with the maintenance and screen renters like nobody's business.  So, yeah, maybe that's my next gig.  No more nine to five.  I can leverage some assets to make that happen.  Despite what you read in the papers every day about the crappola subprime mortgage crisis, Pittsburgh has been pretty far removed from that.  Thank God.  Properties here generally increase in value in the right neighborhoods although not outrageously so. 

The thing that really scares me about that (DOWN fear ... DOWN boy!) is my lack of knowledge about evaluating properties for a fair price.  I mean, when you start talking about million dollar babies ... that's some cash on the barrel head.  Every real estate guru I follow preaches the same thing though.  Don't be afraid of the huge investments -- that's where you'll find your greatest leverage and potential income stream.  I have been reading tons of information about this to edu-ma-cate myself.  When it comes down the actual number crunching, I will need some help.  I have some contacts that can help me with that part which is awesome. 

I've also been researching franchises but I don't think that's where I want to spend the next 20 years of my life.  I dunno.  It alleviates some of the risk and provides some back room help but ... pshaw ... go big or freaking go HOME!  I'm the type of personality that has to have some latitude in decision making for a business I run to thrive.  That latitude exponentially boosts the upside and the downside.  Risk.  Who bears it and can I afford to emotionally?  Aye, there's the rub.

So the whip is coming down on "what next?"  but I feel confident that with diligent universal messages spun around the stratosphere that the message will find me.  It might not be either of the two things I'm considering but that's okay.  I just know, without a doubt, that VERY exciting and joyful things are waiting for me to call them into my life. 

WOW!  That's awesome to think about!  Isn't it?!  You can do it too.  Read up on the Law of Attraction and read "Conversations with God."  Powerful stuff.  It will serve your life well. 

Cheers!

Stacey