Is It Friday Yet?

This has not been one of my better days... or weeks. Or years, so far.

I have been in the advertising business for almost 17 years. I know my stuff and I'm good at it. When txrad and I started our own agency 2 1/2 years ago I wondered why I waited so long. Now I sometimes wonder why I bothered.

Here's one of life's most important lessons and it should be my mantra by now:

Cash in advance.

I'm too generous and too trusting of people. Good traits overall, but very bad in the business world -- particularly this business. As a result of my foolish and careless ways we have a mountain of both personal and business debt, and a client who owes us a boatload of money and homey ain't seein' no boat.

The debts are nothing that can't be paid off rather quickly when business is brisk and clients are paying. But business is not brisk right now. Nevertheless, I remain optimistic as long as I stay away from the QuickBooks software. Ugliness lurks therein.

The highlight of my 4-day-old year thus far was finding a credit card I've had in my desk drawer for over a year and never activated. When I called to activate I was also informed of the credit limit. It's more than 4-digits.

I went out and bought groceries. That's my moment of joy this week. I even did something very uncharacteristic of me: I struck up a conversation with a woman in front of me while waiting in line. At least it wasn't just idle chatter. She was buying bags and bags of frozen greens: spinach, turnip, mustard, whatever. I asked her if they were as good as fresh.

"No," she replied, "but they're much better than canned."

And no rinsing of leaves necessary. I may try some. I need life to be easier just a little more often.