Stu

As a long-time entrepreneur, I'll just say that discriminating among your customers is a bad business practice. Unless your business IS political, then stick to what you do. The irony, of course, is if a Klansman becomes a regular customer, and YOU, as a savvy business owner, make donations to the NAACP or the United Negro College Fund, then you force THEM to fund YOUR causes. In short, leave religion and politics OUT of business. Now, these days it has become fashionable for companies to "stand for something" and that something might alienate some of their clientele. This is a calculated risk; it can backfire in a big way, to the point where you're shut down, OR it can bolster your crappy ass business because ideologues will see your business as the be all and end all. This is what bigots have done for Chik-Fil-A; they saw their revenues increase as a result of gay bashing. Sad, but true. Further, they got advertisement that they could never have possibly afforded simply by the MEDIA constantly YAPPING about it. They played right into their hands. I took a gamble with my DJ business. My issue is gun rights, so I offered discounts for anyone with an NRA or GOA membership, and an even bigger discount for those with a CPL. It worked far better than I could've hoped! Of course, given my circles of friends and clients, that wasn't completely unexpected, but I was surprised by the overwhelming response. (I'm still running that promotion, by the way.) Otherwise, however, I have ZERO mixture between business and politics/religion. My CPL courses at one time were filled with Muslims. When I asked some of them why they chose my class, they said, "nobody else would take us." Considering how "popular" they are these days, it stands to reason that Muslims might feel the need for self-protection? (And LGBTQ, and just about anyone "of color," etc.) My only requirement for students is that they're good people. Sorry to be so long-winded, but the bottom line is that there is GOOD REASON to not mix politics and religion with your business. Dale Carnegie, Zig Ziglar, Tim Ferriss, Ramon Ray, Jeffrey Gitomer.... ALL of the experts from past to present say the same thing. For good reason.

Happy Birthday to DGN's Dynamic Duo! Many, MANY more! ❤️

LOL! Yes, I actually enjoy it. The focused activity just plain FEELS good. But I also worry. It's what I do. So just be safe!

Just make sure it's not too much for YOU! Pace yourself and keep that heart rate in check.

Uh, oh! Look what day it is. LOOK what DAY IT IS! <Clap! Clap! Clap! Clap...!> Okay, here we go, 1, 2, 3, 4... "Happy Happy Birthday, Happy Birthday YOU! Happy Birthday Tron, from your ol' buddy, Stu!" WHOO HOOOOOOO!!!!! Hope this year is your best one yet!

Hey..... how'd I miss THIS?! Hope your Birthday ROCKED!!!!

You? Is that even possible? I sometimes get exhausted just WATCHING you!

WTF?

Happy Birthday Scares! And Happy New Year! Hope to see more of you in 2020!

I find that semantics is the biggest problem here. What, exactly, IS a "soul mate"? How do you define "soul"? From my perspective, it's about love. What some think of as "soul mates" are, more accurately, someone you cannot imagine living life without. You may resonate on many different levels (common interests, attitudes, beliefs, etc.) and/or you may differ significantly, which can only make things more interesting for both of you! But you simply feel a need to have them in your life. An urgent, undeniable, visceral need. When that is mutual, then we may use the tag, but the reality is that it's all about love. You know who mine is.

Right back atcha! Best wishes to you and yours, as well as my whole DGN family. May 2020 be our best year EVER!!!

I actually prefer to be closer to the screen. That said, let me know which showing y'all choose.

Will try to be there. Only one thing can stop me.

1. Christmas day? Friday the 20th or Sunday the 22nd maybe? 2. Long drive for me any which way, PLUS I have no idea where it's playing. So... whatever? 3. I'm in the Roseville area. Anyone nearby is welcome to join me.

Happy Birthday Trene! I hope it's the BEST EVER!!!!

I'm thinking that needs a bit of an explanation....?

Just discovered Cinnamon Coke! YUM!

I actually have one of those job thingies where I work for someone besides myself these days. (I know - hard to imagine.) Tuesdays and Thursdays are work days for me, so I'm hard-pressed to get out to The Gathering lately. Because my schedule is variable, I used to make it more often than not, but we had a mass exodus at work, so I've been helping to take up the slack until we hire more therapists. Hopefully it will let up enough so that I can come back out. Oh, yes, you might not know: I went back to school in 2016 and became a licensed massage therapist (LMT). So being the "guy who gives good back rubs" kinda got taken up a notch or ten - LOL! I'm working at Elements in Troy, and I'm also on the faculty at my school, Irene's Myomassology Institute in Southfield. Became a TA before I even graduated and now help run their clinical events. SO much fun!!! Anyway, hope to see you again soon!

Welcome BadKitty! I've missed you! With any luck, I'll run into you at The Gathering or another of our many get-togethers. It's been WAY too long!

ALL I can think about is Moe. Being kept from her is like an open wound that will not heal. Knowing she's suffering makes it even more painful. I go through the motions, but it's as if all the color has been drained from my world. It's all I CAN think about. Distractions are fleeting and unfulfilling. I can't wait for this to be over. I want my life back. Sorry for the downer post - it's why I've been quiet for the most part.

It's this one overzealous cop who is trying to connect dots that never should've been connected. It's all suspicion, accusation and innuendo. But they seem determined to push it all the way. They have endless resources. I do not.

Not sure yet. It's basically a running tab. If it goes to trial, it'll be a lot more. Thus far, I'm out about $1K. Plus, they put me on a tether so I can't visit Moe. (True story.) They're charging ME $300/month for it. Any help would be amazing, but my bigger concern is Moe. She has no one. 😞

Absolutely. Trouble is, this is all very expensive. My lawyer is taking payments, but I will run through everything I have very shortly. Right now my focus is on getting the hard no contact lifted so that we can at least talk. That has been the absolute worst part of it.

I miss Moe

Thanks, Tron. All I do is worry about how she is feeling, how she is getting things done (or not). They force me to stay away, despite my hollering that she's still handicapped, still has no help at all. I feel like she's getting the brunt of it, all because they disapprove of our "relationship." Now I have to sit around for another month. SMH.