OBX early morning – I never managed to get a sunrise (I was on vacation and we were across the highway, and there were mosquitoes – lots and lots of mosquitoes this go round – and, well, the sunsets were pretty spectacular!)  For those of you who asked, and who don’t go back and read comments:  no, I didn’t make the sandcastle on yesterday’s post.  I wish!  It was up in the dunes and the wind will eventually take it away, but not the water (unless there is a storm).  It’s pretty magnificent, isn’t it?  It’s about 6 ft tall!

I am going to cheat for today’s posting and send you along to a guest posting I did yesterday for Paula, Queen of the Surf Pirates, who is a bona fide resident of the Outer Banks.  This will tell you a bit more about the vacation and has more pictures.

Meanwhile, I will busy myself getting ready to go put up tents at PRAD (Patuxent River Appreciation Days) on Solomons Island this morning and then run home and unload the kiln and finish all that work as backup for the show this weekend – they are calling for gorgeous weather.  The last two years have been rainy and no fun and half the vendors didn’t show, so I anticipate that beautiful weather will bring out the hordes, hopefully interested in spending some money.  I’ll be in the Calvert Artist Guild tents (one of which will be mine) because it’s easier to do it in a group than alone – getting those "easy-up" tents up by yourself is a bionic women feat (in my opinion).

I know that I said I’d award the elevator speech prize today, but I want to take time to consider the entries, and truth is, all of my time has been focused on getting ready for this show (which snuck up on me), switching product out to freshen up spaces for First Friday in the St Mary’s shops and just getting me feet back on the ground and playing catch-up from vacation.  So I haven’t forgotten, I’m just going to expand the judging period until next Tuesday a.m.  So all of you who didn’t put in a submission, you have all weekend to think about it and try! The Contest post is here.

Meanwhile, let me tell you my little synchronistic event on vacation.  How many places do you see neural net written down?  Well, in my One Coach work, we are learning how beliefs create neural nets in our brains, which affect our choices by creating habits of thought (as you think, so do you create! scientifically explained!).  This is a new concept for me.  Well, at our vacation house, Husband found the book that goes with the movie "What the Bleep Do We Know?"  Who knew there was such a book?  I loved the movie by the way.  And what are the chances it would follow almost exactly my One Coach work?  And then at lunch in this cute little hippy joint, (something) Munch, below Avon (I forget the next town down, Buxton?) I picked up and "O" (Oprah) magazine from 2006 and there were the neural nets again.  What are the chances?  So I figure I’m on the right path here for my business – if I can call books and articles about neural nets to me that fast, surely I can attract clients!  What are you thinking today?!

thought for the day:   The real reason you chose to be here – your purpose and mission in life – was to simply be who you now are.  Good Reason.  Mike Dooley, Notes from the Universe: New Perspectives from an Old Friend  (you can get daily notes in your inbox from the Universe here.  Highly recommended!