“Marley and Me“ -
Owen Wilson, Jennifer Aniston, Eric Dane, Alan Arkin, Kathleen Turner

I admit it, I fell asleep watching this. It never gripped me, there was no character development, no reason for me to stay awake or get involved and I usually get involved with film stories quickly. The cast was okay, the story was incredibly weak and being not a dog lover I guess I just couldn’t bridge it. What I recall the most is how horribly blown up Kathleen Turner has gotten and why on earth she’d want to appear on screen looking like that. Guess I understand the stars of old like Greta Garbo and Claudette Colbert who stepped out of the limelight at their peak and will always be remembered as the Goddesses of the Silver Screen that they were. Today’s stars could take a lesson from that book, few age with true grace, exceptions are Sophia Loren and Ann Margaret. But I digress, don’t bother with this one.

“Bedtime Stories“ -
Adam Sandler, Keri Russell, Courtney Cox Arquette

This was fun and Sandler is at his best as the underdog. Keri Russell wasn’t given enough meat in this role, but then it isn’t a meaty film. It is a kid flick that this grown up had to watch, guess I had a lack of fairy tales in my childhood and still looking for happy endings! I also related well as it was set in the hotel business and that’s something I know about having spent four years in the frozen tundra of Upstate NY attending Cornell for just such a major. Sandler is great with kids as he is really just a big kid himself, even if he is irreverent and unruly! Russell adds softness to the film that is welcome without being stiff. Pierce is deliciously dreadful. Cox Arquette has never worked for me on the big screen; I sort of trapped her in Friends forever, oops. The premise is simple, father loses business to client, and client promises that father’s son will get to run it one day and reneges on that promise. As business booms the client becomes stranger and stranger (think Howard Hughes, the Disney version) and plans to tear down the local school to build his flagship property, a fight ensues, kids and education vs. crass capitalism. In the midst of all this, Sandler tells bedtime stories to his nephew and niece and then the stories come true each day, talk about a wild ride! Fun for the big kid in you.

All I want for Christmas . . . . is the gift of your connection. I have spent much of this year sharing business building and life changing shortcuts, strategies, secrets and more with as many people as I come into contact with. This is my passion and my profit. I have mentors who enjoy my time one-on-one and many others who embrace it through my articles, my comments, my audio postcards, and my speaking. My greatest joy is knowing that TOGETHER WE WILL ALL GO FARTHER.

Sharing your talents, growing your gifts, connecting with others . . . . I am on multiple networks. I am sharing those links here. It would mean the world to me to have you connect to me in as many ways as you are willing and interested. If you are not on these networks, I encourage you to take a little time during the holidays to explore these new means of connecting and communication. This is not about wasting precious hours lost in mindless cyberspace chit chat (unless you want to!). It is about making new friends, forming alliances, and even getting clients and customers. I have been so very fortunate to find all three online and look forward to many more in 2009.

www.twitter.com/prosperbydesign
www.linkedin.com/in/melissagalt
Connect with me on Plaxo
Connect with me on Ecademy
Be a fan on Avaliving
Friend me on Facebook (new account, though see social network tip article!)
www.snapvine.com/melissagalt

Netliving beats not working! Networking is one letter away from NOT working and it can be an enormous effort. Let’s make 2009 and beyond the age of netliving, where connecting becomes second nature and the benefits of giving and receiving will become wonderfully evident in your business and in your life. TOGETHER WE WILL ALL GO FARTHER.

Prosper by Design, YOURS!

MG

Copyright Melissa Galt 2008/2009

How often do we find that we are losing track of friends without enough time to spend together? It seems easy to say “maybe next month,” “when I get that promotion,” “when the kids are out of school,” or any other myriad of excuses. The bottom line is if we don’t make the time to celebrate our friends we won’t have the time ever.

It is all about committing to connect, and creating opportunities to make that happen. Be sure to involve everyone in the fun by asking them to bring a dish or other element. No one likes to show up at a party empty handed and it is easier if you specify.

Here are just a few more ways you can celebrate your friends!

Halloween Fright Night

Time to spook it up and get back to the reason Halloween was created. Let’s return to scary for just a bit. Come as your favorite ghost, ghoul, monster, witch, or werewolf. This isn’t about any stuffed shirt party but a chance to make grunge look good and frightening.

You can incorporate trivia here with questions about famous vampires, Dracula, monsters and more (sure Buffy counts!) You may even want to create a mini haunted house complete with ghostly blow ups and spider webs and haunting music. Have everyone bring their most terrifiying treat to share.

Celebrate your friends with a Halloween Fright Night!

Broadway Nights

Girl friends and I got together and bought season tickets to a local community theatre. We go on a Saturday night about once a month and all convene for dinner before hand at our favorite neighborhood café. It is a lot of fun and this particular theatre has never let us down with a real variety of plays and great talent playing. I’d like to do the same with a handful of other venues as it means we have guaranteed seats and a night on the calendar to look forward to.

I have noticed that there are regular groups of couples that get together for the same theatre shows and even parents with their children and make it a family cultural outing. It is still a celebration of friends!

Outlet Therapy

I know that most men don’t enjoy shopping (okay they hate it!) except when it means being left for days at a home improvement center or auto dealership. So to make sure everyone has fun, the guys need to have guy stores to hang out at like Frontgate, Bass Pro Fishing, Brookstone, Best Buy, Circuit City, Bose or any sporting goods store. Usually there is at least one of these in most of the popular outlet shopping centers. Then the ladies can have their occasionally necessary shopping therapy at a discount.

Men are generally quite happy with one or two resources and spending time in research while women like the more stores the better, flitting from one to the next always in search of the best bargain (very rarely is it the ideal fit or most flattering look and many times it will sit in the back of the closet with the tag on, but it will be bragged about as the ultimate steal to fellow bargain hunters!) If children are in tow it can be helpful to ensure a stop mid-shopping at a food and entertainment emporium like Chucky Cheese.

Savvy retailers often provide play areas to allow Mom better shopping focus. The key is to know that something as proverbially ordinary as shopping can be a chance to celebrate friends and another pair of eyes is always appreciated to share the virtues of a dress that we might not otherwise need.

Celebrate your friends with outlet therapy!

Goodwill Games (Bunko/Bingo/Bridge/Poker)

I’ve got a handful of friends that have regularly scheduled game nights well apart from a supper club or theatre night. The games are most often a group of women or men, rarely mixed and include bunko, bridge, gin rummy, poker, and even bingo. Crowds range from four to ten plus and easy eats are provided in the form of sandwiches and appetizers.

Jigsaw puzzles could be added to this mix and certainly scrabble, monopoly, pig mania (really a blast!), and trivial pursuit. This is a really nice change from the monotony and soloness of computer games. It is a good social opportunity and allows for some of the competitiveness to come into play, just no sore losers please!

Celebrate your friends with a goodwill games night!

Art for the Ears

Recently I attended a concert at Atlanta’s Botanical Gardens with friends. It was a beautiful night and though they were very restrictive in not allowing food or drink brought in, they did provide for purchase delicious gourmet fare, beer, and wine by the glass or bottle. It made it very easy and the venue was smaller and more intimate than a large concert hall or performing arts center. I realized that it wasn’t truly important to me who was playing but that it was the comradery we enjoyed and the minimal planning since we could buy our feast on site only.

Now whether you are game for an outdoor venue and take your chances with weather or prefer the safety of a music center or playhouse is up to you. Music truly is art for your ears and it is another fun way to celebrate friends by creating a regular concert schedule to enjoy together. It can include food, beverage and picnic style or just grab a bite before or after at a local tavern. The point is to share the experience.

Celebrating time with our friends is one of the best parts of this life experience. It is up to each of us to create that time and make the commitment to honor those relationships.

Get your free edition of Interior Destinations, Melissa Galt’s award winning newsletter devoted to Designing Your Business for Your Best Life Now, available at www.melissagalt.com. For more great articles and tips, check out Melissa’s blog at www.todaybydesign.com

True confessions! I haven’t even begun my holiday decorating this year. I have been going back and forth to Atlanta so much that I simply haven’t found the time. Maybe I’ll skip it and be satisfied with images of years past. It seems that perhaps having six trees last year precludes the need or desire for any but the trees in the woods surrounding my mountain retreat . . .

Time to reflect, renew, review! This is the ideal time of year to reflect on your accomplishment of the year, renew your energy and outlook for the year upcoming, and review steps you will take to go farther. If you do what you’ve always done, you will get what you’ve always gotten. A new year doesn’t assure change, only you can create change. What are you going to do differently in 2009? I’d love to hear from you!

How to Get Ahead: Lessons in Greatness! I’m launching an Expert Interview Series that I’ll be hosting monthly with design professionals and small business specialists. I’ll be interviewing outrageously successful individuals and sharing their secrets of success with you, my listeners! The first call is my gift to you. I want to see 2009 be the year you take your business to the next level (up not down!) Modeling those that have made it is one of the best and simplest ways to make this happen. Q&A will be available on every call. Our first call will be January 6, Tuesday at 8pm EST, 5pm PST. Details to come!

Prosper by Design, YOURS!

MG

The SECRET is out! I had a very tasty Turkey Day with friends in Athens, but alas no leftovers. So I had my first small dinner party (just four of us) in my mountain retreat on Saturday night. The secret is out! I can cook, LOL. I did a marinated beef tenderloin with balsamic baby bellos, baby red potatoes, green beans almondine, and roasted peppers. A gourmet guest brought the cranberry-orange cheesecake. It was a divine feast and lots of delicious leftovers. Hmm, maybe I’ll do it again monthly!

Snowed In! Well it is barely past Thanksgiving and we’ve already had our third snow of the season, very unusual as we often don’t get snow until January. I’m going to venture forth after checking conditions to head down to the big city today for business. I never imagined my escape would be such an adventure.

Make December Count! This is the BEST time to assess the year that we are about to wrap up and establish what you want 2009 to look like and consider the means to make that happen. I am working with not only design professionals but also home furnishing reps, and small business owners to move their business forward, TAKE IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL. If you are interested in learning more, simply go to www.mystrategysession.com, share your biggest business challenge and we can schedule time to determine if I can help you conquer the challenges and rise to the top!

Prosper by Design, YOURS!

MG

Copyright Melissa Galt 2008/2009

How often do we find that we are losing track of friends without enough time to spend together? It seems easy to say “maybe next month,” “when I get that promotion,” “when the kids are out of school,” or any other myriad of excuses. The bottom line is if we don’t make the time to celebrate our friends we won’t have the time ever. It is all about committing to connect, and creating opportunities to make that happen. Be sure to involve everyone in the fun by asking them to bring a dish or other element. No one likes to show up at a party empty handed and it is easier if you specify what to bring.

Here are just a few ways you can celebrate your friends!

Savory Supper Club

This works well with couples or singles but is usually a kid free event. This can be a great way to get to know neighbors or other residents in a subdivision. Often it’s location is rotated monthly between different homes in a neighborhood. A supper club can be very simply created with each couple or person bringing a dish each time, categories are designated to avoid duplicate dishes or too many salads or appetizers. It is a chance for comradery and fellowship particularly amongst those that live nearby.

The food preparation duties and expense are shared by all, as are the benefits of original recipes and home cooking. Clean up is usually light work with many hands, and everyone relaxes and has a good time.

Super Sporting Event

Make it a real mixed event with singles, couples, and kids if desired. It can be live or on TV. If live, plan a festive tailgate is to bring everyone together before the game. If televised set up a buffet for noshing during the game and it can be pot luck, with everyone bringing a dish. Stick with paper plates and plastic cups and flatware and clean up is a breeze.

Just Girl’s/Guy’s Night Out

This is Mars and Venus’s chance to have some time to themselves with friends. Often a once a month regular event, sometimes once a week, this is a chance to connect with close gal pals or guy buddies and gossip, dish dirt, high five on successes, and commiserate on losses. It can be as easy as establishing a place to meet and regular date and time and everyone just shows up. Or it can rotate at private homes but needs to be understood that it is for just the girls or just the guys. We all share a little differently in mixed company! What is said with this crowd stays with this crowd.

Burning O’ Your Troubles Bash

Usually I throw this one just after New Year’s it is a great way to get the New Year off to a truly beneficial beginning. Again who you invite is up to you, generally this is reserved for adults only. You can make it potluck or provide the food yourself. Each person is to bring a listing of their last year’s trials, tribulations, losses, and challenges. You have a fireplace or preferably an outdoor fire (bonfire or chimenaya works really well) and each gets a few minutes alone to literally burn their troubles. Then each party goer gets a New Year’s cracker and that includes a paper crown which they then fill (some write these on the crown itself) proverbially with their hopes for the New Year and burn that as a toast to universal energy. I usually end the festivities with sparklers for everyone to have one last sizzle!

Oscar Party

This falls in early March so it is a great chance to catch up and celebrate with friends between New Year’s and Memorial Day. It is a dressy function with costumes optional. You can download the ballot forms online and I encourage ordering party favors and prizes with a Hollywood theme, again online sources abound. Be sure to start it a little early so everyone can get comfortable mingle a bit and get a bite. Decorate with Oscar statuettes and lots of gold, silver and black. Go glam!

You’ll usually have a handful of die hard movie fans that will be so intent on watching the awards that they won’t really socialize and will shush folks that talk during the show! Having a friend play emcee if you don’t want to do it can keep the party going with trivia questions and prizes. Everyone wants to win!

Be sure to check out Part II of this article for more great ways to celebrate your friends, including a Halloween Fright Night!

Get your free edition of Interior Destinations, Melissa Galt’s award winning newsletter devoted to Designing Your Business for Your Best Life Now, available at www.melissagalt.com. For more great articles and tips, check out Melissa’s blog at www.todaybydesign.com

Hollywood Hooray! It was fascinating to see Mom on the BIG SCREEN for the first time (I’ve only seen her on TV screen), and in her Oscar winning role. I also had the privilege of meeting Tyrone Powers adult children and having never met any other celebrities kids, it was a great experience.

Paradise on fire! Literally, California is burning. I was staying in Hollywood and they had just gotten the Santa Barbara fire under control with the loss of 111 homes, when another broke out. The air, even as far South as I was, was smoke laden. Also had a protest of Proposition 8, the Gay Marriage Law. It was an interesting trip.

RECESSION PROOF YOUR BUSINESS! I am the featured speaker this Thursday on a Teleseminar Program joining a host of other experts in combating the current recession. You won’t want to miss it! It is a great line up and lots of bonuses. If you can’t listen in today at 8PM EST you can still sign up and get the recordings!
Recession Proof Your Business!

Prosper by Design, YOURS!

MG

This week I’m writing from Greenwood, MS and the home of Viking appliances and St. Charles Cabinetry. Did you know that Viking is only 20 years old? I know it amazed me as the name alone gives it such clout and historical reference. I’m enjoying plant tours, a gorgeous stay at their Alluvian Hotel, and meeting design colleagues from around the country.

Great grandfather was a fan! In 1936, Frank Lloyd Wright installed St. Charles Cabinetry in Fallingwater and in 1988 St. Charles cabinets were featured in the Usonia house that toured the country. In 1949 Mies van der Rohe ordered them for the Farnsworth House. In 1997, they were installed in the New York Governor’s mansion. Viking acquired St. Charles Cabinetry in 2001. They have an illustrious history and loyal following as the top steel cabinets made for kitchens and baths. They also boast a 98% recyclable ability and are ideally suited to hypoallergenic interior needs. Those of you put off by steel, don’t be fooled, these come in a wide range of colors and have some great features!

Headed to the West Coast! Tomorrow I’m heading out to Hollywood for a memorial service marking the 50th anniversary of Tyrone Power’s death. He worked with Mom on a handful of films and I am hoping to meet some of her colleagues and collect personal stories. No, I am not writing a tell all or even a tell anything! This is just for personal knowledge. But I’m looking forward to some great star pics!

Prosper by Design, YOURS!

MG

My housewarming was a hit! I rallied a wonderful collection of friends to come up from Atlanta and sprinkled with a few locals and we all had a grand time. I actually did the menu myself with the help of a friend, no caterer. Everyone raved! I look forward to having at least three mountain celebrations a year; I’m thinking a Spring Fling, a Summer Fireworks, and a Fall Foliage Festival.

Halloween was very festive in these parts. I had no idea that the whole town turns out with dogs and kids all in costume, it was quite a sight as evidenced by pictures here. Spookalicious!

Back to Hotlanta! Got a girl’s night out tonight, a couple of business meetings then I’m off the Memphis and a night at the Peabody with the ducks! Sunday, I’m heading to Greenwood, MS for training with Viking. I’m speaking to the designers attending on the Semantics of Success. (And you’ve been getting my audio postcards on Wednesday’s so I hope you are changing your words to change your rewards!)

Prosper by Design, YOURS!

MG