We Talked About it, and We Did It

Some people just have a gift for saying memorable things. One of those people is my good friend, Cindy Dupree. Hardly a day goes by that I don't quote her in one way or another. She has unbelievable stories, funny quips, and she has mottos. One of my favorites is, "You can sleep when you're dead." Another is "Once you've seen one sunrise, you've seen em' all." She truly has a supernatural energy when it comes to making the most of life. We have been to Paris together, met lots of famous writers, politicians, actors, and singers, sat on the front row of incredible Broadway shows and shared laughs and tears. But this blog isn't really about her, she just gave me the title, and she didn't even know it.



When it comes to good ideas, sometimes it seems like they're a dime a dozen. I find that what makes a good idea really a good idea lies in the follow through. In other words, at some very important point, you've got to quit just talking about a particular thing and do it. So that's what we did this weekend.

You've heard me talk about our new business quite a bit over the past few months. And the talking is important, don't get me wrong, but we got to sweat a little bit, well, a lot, at our sale this weekend and the weeks leading up to it, and it paid off.

With a little help from some great friends and family, I can honestly say that Amanda and I exceeded our financial goal, learned a great deal, and had some fun, essentially playing store in our den and dining room this past Saturday.

It was the grand opening event of our new online store called awaken. http://shopawaken.etsy.com.

I guess it all started some months ago after we had both read "Rich Dad Poor Dad" and were trying to come up with a business idea. From there, we had a few false starts, but finally agreed on something we could both get excited about... something we already did. We take what other people might think is useless, and make it into something valuable.

So the morning of the event, we are set to open our doors at 10:00.

9:03, I am on the phone, trying to find someone who could custom cut a mirror for the frame that sat empty, leaning against a corner in our otherwise finished showroom/den. I have called every glass cutter in Murfreesboro only to confirm that they are all closed on Saturdays. Finally, I found someone who could do it in time. Thank you, Farrar Brothers Ace Hardware. The very tattooed glass cutter there had a scrap piece of mirror that could be discounted and would fit perfectly into my frame after just a few cuts. Great!

9:36, I'm tightening the last screw to secure the prized mirror into the frame and hear a quiet but horribly ominous crack. I say a few words that I later had to ask forgiveness for, and we begin the process all over again. Since I still have signs to hang, Momma and Poppa B offer to go get the replacement mirror, which, will cost twice as much because there is no other scrap large enough to fit my frame.

9:59 I, oh so gently, tighten the final screw on the new mirror and the doors open to welcome our first customers.

10:02 Thank the Lord for family and home folks. Dennis and Susan Chambers were up from Arab, and Amanda's amazingly talented Uncle Norris (norrishallstudio.com) and his wife, Linda followed close behind them. The day progressed and we welcomed customers that were not even related to us, they bought things, got receipts with our new logo, ate Basil Cheddar Ham Biscuits, homemade mini blueberry muffins, and drank fresh peach Bellinis. It was all we hoped it would be.



Here are Ashley and Steph modeling with some of our merchandise. The mirror I mentioned is pictured in the background here, and in close detail at the top of the page. It is one of the few pieces still available for 125.



We talked about it, and we did it.