Tuesday, September 27, 2011

The Departing

It was just over one year ago my friend, colleague, travel pal, sage advisor, hunting partner, co-worker, and brother in Spirit was diagnosed with yet another bout of cancer. His journey and trial has been difficult to say the least. His cancer has been mischevious, hiding out from view and then pouncing on his faculties. There is nothing good to be said for this disease. It is sad to watch it sap the life from good people, disabling their daily activities, placing them in a state of anxiety, and sometimes fear, and in some cases taking them from this life and placing them in Heaven.

I sincerely wish there would be a cure for this disease found, so we could take away this injustice.

Friday, September 23, 2011

Fall is here...

The leaves are beginning their metamorphosis. Got a bunch of them on the ground already, with every day a few more turning to a shade of yellow. I love fall, the cool evenings, and the chance to find a silver in the river...

LUSB has a whole slew of events happening right now - The International Quilt Market for Bluefig is around the corner at the end of October. GOTE is traveling the NW with the Last Rooster Standing roadshow. LUSB is launching a competition for a customer-designed bag. Lots of things to prepare for so get your game face on. Interested in learning more? Give us a call. 1-800-688-6442




Sunday, September 11, 2011

Measure twice, cut once...

I will never be able to stress the importance of test and evaluation. Over the last year I have been challenged with projects that have not been adequately tested, resulting in changes to the basics of a project that derail the ability for immediate success of a product. Oversight is common, however, blatant disregard for proper consideration of function and form in a new product is often suicidal for a product launch. More often than not a new project is rushed to market well before it is ready, resulting in costs, both financial and opportunity, that cannot be accounted for and an eventual loss beyond whatever could normally be expected.

So the moral to my story is - Test your great idea thoroughly before you think you should be making money from it, then test it again to make sure.

9/11

Terrible memories of a horrific tragedy and day. But knowing we are a strong, resilient, and passionate country reminds me that we will persevere through such events, perhaps wiser and potentially more diligent than before.

I am thankful to live in the US, and I appreciate the country for the principles it was founded on. I may disagree with the politics of the day, but after careful consideration, there is no place I would rather live.

Sunday, September 4, 2011

Fire in the Hills

Those of us living west of Mt. Hood were greeted yesterday with orange-brown haze of wildfire drifting across the gorge and clogging our senses with the distinct odor of wood-fueled smoke. It's fire season, and the alert is sent out to all of us to live smart and tread lightly near areas prone to fire. In the last three weeks the grasses have become crisp and golden brown, ready to ignite from a careless spark or ember, and the potential for a mass burn grows daily until the fall rains submit their offering, which is some time from now.

Bless those fire fighters that work 18 hour days working the lines, risking injury and tempting fate daily in their rugged pursuit of battling an encroaching fire.