I swore I wouldn't be defensive on this blog. That I would take whatever criticism people gave me under advisement.
But, you know, there has been a couple of troubling criticisms thrown my way which, while they have some validity, seem kind of unfair to me.
The first is that I work too hard. That I don't get away. That I'm losing perspective.
Well, this smacks just a tad of "Let them eat cake."
Gee, you're right. I haven't taken my Hawaiian vacation this month. Nor my bi-yearly jaunt to Europe.
I'm working every day because there is a recession, thank you very much. And I'd rather not go into debt, because when this recession ends two or three or four years from now I want to be able to really take advantage this time, instead of just digging myself out of a hole.
I'm going to close Sunday's this fall, and maybe even go so far as to close Sundays and Mondays after Christmas. I'm not crazy. But I do what I have to do.
The second criticism that seems a bit unfair is that I'm out of the loop because I'm in the store every day. Well, other than walking around and talking to random people, I'm not sure there is any better way to figure out what's going on.
More than 100 folk a day come in my doors, people from all walks of life, and we have a wide variety of conversations. Most people, I suspect, talk to the same friends, co-workers, and family members. (Which I also do, by the way.) And it's not like I don't do anything outside the store...
Meanwhile, I suspect we all get most of our info from other blogs, from the internet, from the local and national media, and of that -- as I mentioned in the previous post -- I'm a bit of fiend for knowledge.
In other words, we all have something to bring to the table. Mine is from the perspective of a full time shopkeeper, native Bendite, and information hound. Take it for what it's worth.
But, you know, there has been a couple of troubling criticisms thrown my way which, while they have some validity, seem kind of unfair to me.
The first is that I work too hard. That I don't get away. That I'm losing perspective.
Well, this smacks just a tad of "Let them eat cake."
Gee, you're right. I haven't taken my Hawaiian vacation this month. Nor my bi-yearly jaunt to Europe.
I'm working every day because there is a recession, thank you very much. And I'd rather not go into debt, because when this recession ends two or three or four years from now I want to be able to really take advantage this time, instead of just digging myself out of a hole.
I'm going to close Sunday's this fall, and maybe even go so far as to close Sundays and Mondays after Christmas. I'm not crazy. But I do what I have to do.
The second criticism that seems a bit unfair is that I'm out of the loop because I'm in the store every day. Well, other than walking around and talking to random people, I'm not sure there is any better way to figure out what's going on.
More than 100 folk a day come in my doors, people from all walks of life, and we have a wide variety of conversations. Most people, I suspect, talk to the same friends, co-workers, and family members. (Which I also do, by the way.) And it's not like I don't do anything outside the store...
Meanwhile, I suspect we all get most of our info from other blogs, from the internet, from the local and national media, and of that -- as I mentioned in the previous post -- I'm a bit of fiend for knowledge.
In other words, we all have something to bring to the table. Mine is from the perspective of a full time shopkeeper, native Bendite, and information hound. Take it for what it's worth.