And of course, Thank You to Active Rain.

I am not sure if I post a Thank You to Active Rain every year when we are giving thanks as a challenge but if I don't I should and here is why:

I used to love writing in my High School years and I excelled at it. Honestly, I was so good at it that my Creative Writing teacher, Ms. Peggy, stole about half my work. With a little modification she later published it as her own. I was in love with Ms Peggy (whole nother story) and I'm thankful for her as well.

The main reason I quit writing was that PC's and spell check were not yet invented plus life was happening and I was struggling to pay the bills... no time to write. Back to PC's and spell check. Although my mother was an artist and writer in her own right she had a horrible blind spot. I would come home on a fantastic high because I knew I had written a great story. Ms Peggy would be near orgasmic over my work and I couldn't wait to show my mom the masterpiece I had created.

What was my mom's reaction: "Bobby, this is spelled wrong, and this is spelled wrong, and this and this and what the heck is this word" Not one mention of the story and my creativity. I just quit writing.... for about 50 years.

And then along came Active Rain. What a GREAT concept! I could advertise my business for free. I could learn tips from actual pros on how to up my game. I was learning more about the profession then any State licensing agency could teach me, even more than all the CE courses I had taken. Even better, I was making friends from all over the country. I was writing again... and you liked it and rarely did anyone complain about my spelling.

Another bonus to my marriage with Active Rain is the photography. A BIG thanks to Roy Kelley in this area for his inspiration to hone our photography skills as well as to just get out there and do photo walks as I did this afternoon. I ran into Teddy on my walk today. At 10 degrees Fahrenheit he looked a little cold.

Thank you Debe Maxwell, CRS for issuing the challenge to share our thanks over the last ten days. It's truly been a pleasure.