The Big C

Some months back our good friend Joe was diagnosed with cancer. While I wrote a few pieces on this, I thought I would follow up with an update on how my dear friend is doing...

Joe's a trooper. Chemo, radiation, doctor visits, discomfort, shots, and countless other issues that arise when cancer becomes a 'lifestyle' have tormented my dear friend, but he pushes through with a smile, a strong faith, and a positive attitude in spite of it all. I cannot begin to tell you how much I admire him for being a model of what one should be when faced with difficult circumstances.

Joe's resting at home some days, coming to the office as he feels fit to, and generally just getting through the multiple treatments he goes through. I pray constantly for his good health. Love you Joe.

New Additions!

Hello All!

Thought I would announce some new additions to the team!

Joining us as Sales and Marketing Coordinator is Bret Vorhees. Bret's a U of O grad with a degree in bean counting and an avid outdoor enthusiast. Bret will oversee the internal workings of Gotegear.com and carry the torch in accounting. Sorry about the championship game, kid...

From way up north (well, Seattle) we have added Marty Michalson as Director of BizDev. Marty is a client's dream, always thorough and excellent on delivering beyond your expectations. I've known Marty for years and we are thrilled to have him on board...

Look for a great written piece on these two gents in our upcoming newsletter!

The Plan, and how to execute...

Came across an important life lesson this last month - Planning and a diligent, meticulous detail focus, while cumbersome, pay off with a result that meets your expectations.

Sure enough, in my haste to develop a project in a tight but reasonable time frame, I failed to cross every T and dot each I. This produced an end result that was less than spectacular, not entirely ready for prime time, short of sufficient, but far from disaster. What did occur, however, is a renewed vigor toward the planning stages and an increased focus on the details that will make it a success. It's the old adage - measure twice, cut once.

I've got to tell you that the details bore me. I get through them in my head faster than I can put them to paper, and sometimes, like this time, it bites me in the rear. It's a blessing and a curse - the ability to mentally develop and conceptualize, but the inability to write it out in detail so another can execute. I have to get better at this...

Next time you see me moving too fast on something, tell me to slow down...

Arizona

Sad to see the finger pointing over who is to blame for such a heinous crime, beyond the perp himself. I have been reading for hours this morning the personal blogs of the shooter, the media reaction from both sides, and the unfortunate opinion of 'why' this happened by so many. Is there socially negligent behaviour at play? Very tough to answer succinctly, but very easy to slip to tangential theory. Philosophy classes taught that initial emotional reactions were often fueled with the same vengeance and malice that may have incited the original acts, so please, everyone, slow down.

Prayers to the families of the victims.

New Year!

A wonderful two weeks we've had with the boys home from school. Time to see friends, family, and share in the holiday spirit. I was thinking recently that this spirit should truly be carried the entire year, instead of just for a few short weeks surrounding Christmas and the New Year. So the challenge I set forth is how to carry it through the rest of the year, and keep a healthy spirit alive when no one might normally expect it.

We are setting forth on our move to a larger facility soon. We have our eyes and minds set on building a world class manufacturing facility near Stevenson, WA while building our administration center in the Portland metro area. We'll expand our employee base dramatically in Stevenson, and hopefully grow by serving the underutilized area as we expand. A big ambitious project, but one we are excited about...

Also, Bluefig.net and Gotegear.com are both being renovated right now - take a look at those changes as they develop. I think you'll like what we are doing...