I'm definitely not getting ahead of myself. BELIEVE ME. I promise I'm keeping an all-too-level head here. But I can't help but notice that this is, um...happening. Hearts on a Sleeve is starting to really come alive. It's up on its feet. And so am I, kinda. I rocked the house this last time I was on air (I promise I'll give you more of a heads up next time when I know I'll be on...I want you to tune in, Internet!) and, more than that, the heavy lifting is coming pretty naturally to me. If I told the eighteen year old version of myself that, these days, I kinda got a tingle from doing bookkeeping at nights, I wouldn't be surprised if teenage Margie (or "Clarissa," as I sometimes called myself) laughed right in my face and called the age-remaining-a-secret-but-present-day Margie a total simp before walking away, chuckling sarcastically. Well, that's ok by me, I guess. It happens, right? Can't always satisfy the younger version of yourself...but the current me actually kinda digs it. It's crazy. It's coming together. It's...happening. It's really starting to come together.

And we're actually selling stuff. People are actually buying the stuff (and...wearing it...presumably) that I'm putting in front of them. It's crazy. And they're wanting more, somehow...for some reason (besides my stuff being awesome, of course). I'm kinda starting to realize the bubble might not burst as quickly as the most negative-thinking part of me once thought. That's to say: there's no reason to think right now that we're one bad day away from going under. That's a pretty awesome feeling. HA! Event that's an accomplishment! (A big bonus out of all of this for me, mentally or whatever, is that I've learned to really enjoy the small goals being met...the small successes. I think that's something I didn't have in me before. I glossed over some good things because I was already worried about the next — potentially — bad thing...what a waste.) But, for now, I guess I'll just keep my head down, do the work (which I love), and just see what happens. I don't know, though. Again, not taking anything for granted, but I'm actually starting to have a good feeling about this. It's totally not about the money¹, but wouldn't it be awesome if I became some kind of mogul or something. I'd wanna meet Oprah. Can that be a long-term goal for me? I guess you don't get to meet Oprah unless you're at that mogul-type level...I'm talking, like, at her house or whatever. Not on the show. Plenty of regular joe's get to be on the show², but I mean...fine, I kinda wanna be in her circle, OK? Geez. Let me have this. I'll get back to loving inventory in just a second, but wouldn't it be awesome to be in Oprah's kitchen, chatting about how to really solve this health care what-have-you? Ah...a wannabe mogul can dream...maybe a wannabe mogul should dream...

Real quick: "Marlowe73," thanks for the breakdown about the confusing spelling of Filipino. Really appreciate that effort. You're smart! And "lilchet081," obviously, that's a big issue you're bringing up. "The Secret" is something we gotta deal with a lot (though not nearly as much as you might think. You have to remember — or, at least it helps me to remember — that most people are hiding something...too. There's not as much casual probing as you might expect. Day to day, it really doesn't come up. It's always "there," but it's not like having to dodge bullets from a tommy gun 24/7. We don't teach the kids to lie, lie, lie...or play up this secret "that no one else can know." That's too cruel...too much to ask of them. It is amazing, though, how quickly us humans can learn a "don't ask, don't tell" policy...it's interesting. I think they know they have it a little different, I think they like it that way...and I think that's all there really is to it. Keep in mind, though, I got youngin's! Who knows how I'll answer that question when they're high school! (Good grief...thinking more about that will give me a heart attack!)

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¹It's really not. I know people say that all the time when it totally is about the money, but you just have to believe on this one. You know me, Internet. I'm not a money person. Not really my style. Sure, I like looking cute in the right clothes, but I'm not a money person. You know this.
²Of course, I'd kill to be on the show, too...that's just not what I'm talking about in this particular instance...go with it.