January 29, 2003
Several employees on the bubble. Tough decisions but it has to be done. Record territory on Travel Issue. Going to be huge. Meghan whipped out a jackalope piece that is just a stunner. Very funny, witty, where she got all the stuff, I don’t know. She’s amazing. She was a good hire. The Feb.-March issue is on the newsstands and the phones are starting to ring. Many people have just now found us (1,100 new accounts didn’t hurt). Got calls from Alaska, Georgia and Michigan. Very promising.

It’s hard to stomach parents bragging about their kids. I know because I can hardly stand it when some of my friends cut loose with their incessant “my genius offspring” chanting. It makes me want to puke. With that said, I have to say I am so proud of my son. One of his friends was going off on how the English and the Australians are different “races,” and Tommy tried to tell him they are different “Nationalities,” but the friend wouldn’t listen. Finally, Thomas said, “Dude, you’re smoking too much weed.” It affected the guy so much that on the way home, the lad confessed he has been smoking too much, and rolled down the window and threw out his stash and his “pipe.” Now here’s the good news: if you look in the ditch along I-17 south of Flagstaff you could find a free bong. See? Life works out for everyone.

One of the people who changed my life is coming to Scottsdale this weekend. Julia Cameron, the woman who wrote “The Artist’s Way” is appearing at Scottsdale’s Radison Resort and I may go by and just thank her. Back in the early nineties I felt totally blocked by fears and procrastination, the usual. Someone, I think it was Will Heywood, recommended I read “The Artist’s Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity.” In it she gave this gem of wisdom: “Write every day, without hope, without despair.” She recommended that you sit down and write, even if you don’t feel like writing. Write that—”I don’t feel like writing.” Ever since I have written every day and it actually led to this journal and now you know every time I fart. Isn’t that a wonderful thing?

“Thanks, but some things we’d rather not know.”
—Everybody reading this