Having a website in which the URL is your name,  and having built that site yourself feels a bit self aggrandizing.   Truthfully,  I bought the URL on a whim,  thinking it kind of funny, and not wanting anyone else to have the ability to build a website with my name,  and then promptly forgot I’d purchased it.   A while later,  I realized I kind of did want a place where I could consolidate my work,  and talk about what I might be doing in the future.   I also wanted a place where I could discuss how I could help other people who might need it.  Finally,  I just thought it would be fun to have a place where I could be me,  and what better place for that than a website that bore my name?   Still feels weird,  but I’m adjusting to the idea.  This will,  I think,  be my main cyber home,  and that’s kind of a cool thought.

So,  I guess the first order of business is to welcome you to my home.   I like to think I’m a pretty good host,  and I’ll try to keep the place relatively tidy.   I also hope it will be an interesting place to come.   I have a lot to say and, up until now,  not many places where I could say what I like,  so I’m guessing there may be the written version of verbal spew here for a while.  I apologize for that in advance,  but I’m also confident that the majority of what I spew will be interesting and hopefully worth reading.   I’ve been doing this thinking about stuff for a while,  and while I haven’t always written what I’ve thought,  I have written a lot.   I fairly sure people wouldn’t be paying me to write if I wasn’t good at it.  One time might be charity,  but consistent paychecks leads me to believe I have some talent in this area.    (I should also tell you that self deprecation is one of my things.  I’ll try to keep it to a minimum.)

Anyway,  what I mostly wanted to do in this first post is to let you know what you can expect in subsequent posts.   I’m a writer by inclination,  a marketer by trade,  so I will be talking about marketing and writing here.   I also am becoming quite fascinated by social media and what it can do and how it can be used,  so I’m sure that subject will be examined on occasion.    Sometimes I’ll just want to talk about something that happened in the news or in my life or some experience that I’ve had,  and those posts will show up here as well.   I’ll try to keep a balance between informative and life vignettes.   I will do my best to make sure it’s all interesting.

What I expect from those who come here,  if I’m allowed to expect anything  at all,  is that you talk back to me.  Tell me that I’m right,  or wrong.  Tell me what you liked or didn’t like.  It goes without saying that I also expect courteous behavior that encourages discussion and is accepting of all points of view.  I’m all for civilized debate.  Anything that degenerates into a slanging match will be dispensed with immediately.   I definitely like opinions.  I’m not fond of prejudice or closed minds.    Mostly,  I’m hoping that this becomes a place where good discussions happen.   I’m excited about what this could become.