A Slogan That Stuck With Me

I found an old photo today — a slogan I saved back in 2017:

“If Plan A didn’t work. The alphabet has 25 more letters.”

It appealed to me then, and it still does. Maybe because my life has never been a single‑letter plan. It’s been an alphabet — one chapter after another, each one teaching me something, even if it wasn’t “the one.”

My Alphabet Life

Since retirement especially, I’ve lived what I call my alphabet life.

DoorDash was my D‑phase — discovering my limits and my patience for stairs.

Affiliate marketing was my A‑phase — adventurous, experimental, and ultimately a “we’ll see.”

Blogging became my B‑phase — building something steady, creative, and mine.

Etsy printables were my E‑phase — exploring creativity and learning what sparks joy (and what doesn’t).

A yellow background with faint paw prints along the bottom and a small photo of an orange cat in the upper left corner, with the text “Printable by Deborah” centered on the page.

Photography tagging is my P‑phase — preserving memories one image at a time.

Facebook Creator is my F‑phase — fun, chaotic, cat‑powered, and still unfolding.

And then there was Welcoming Haven, my online store — my W‑phase. A dream that didn’t quite land, but still part of the alphabet. Still part of the story. Still something I tried with heart.

Turning the Next Page

I guess I’ve never been someone who stays stuck on Plan A. I just flip to the next letter and see what’s there. Maybe I’m somewhere around Plan R by now. Maybe Plan S is waiting. Maybe Plan T involves cats, photography, or something I haven’t imagined yet.

My online store didn’t work out, but I still catch myself wondering if there’s a little line of merch somewhere in my future. Maybe. Maybe not. The alphabet is long, and I’m still turning pages.

Resolutions or no?

Are you big on making New Years Resolutions or do you just say no? Personally I don’t think I pay much attention to an annual To Do List that I’m probably going to blow off in the first 2 weeks anyway. Doesn’t everyone plan to lose weight? How many times is that going to be on your list? But I do think taking stock of your life and where its going is a good idea. Seems to me quarterly would be better than annually but maybe I just need to do it more often to stay on track. Here’s a few of the things I am working on for 2020. I’m not sure of they are resolutions , goals or just wishful thinking.

Work Resolutions

Work is a big part of my life so I’m starting there. Work has been pretty scary in 2019 so I am anxious to take more control. There have been a lot of changes and more to come in the near future. Like I said, scary. Will my boss be the same? Will I need to change roles or apply for another position? Will I end up working for someone I don’t respect or trust? With all the reorganization anything is possible. So to combat my feelings about all this upheaval I want to be better organized. I want to be pro-active. If I am aware of a problem then I want to take steps to correct it. I want to develop a training program, not just wing it. I want to standardize procedure so everyone knows what to do. I want to lead a strong and united team.

Health Resolutions

My hip replacement was a 100% success. My doctor has given me 2 thumbs up but now I need to worry about my knee. X-rays show that the pain I have going up and down stairs is real, not a figment of my imagination. It shows degeneration to the point of bone on bone. You guessed it, I need a complete knee replacement. Pretty soon I’ll be the bionic woman. My doctor says we may be able to delay the surgery with cortisone shots and exercise. He suggested PT again. But tops on his list before he’ll do the surgery is weight loss. I’m trying. I’ve been working diligently on that since July but it’s 2 lbs off 1.5 lbs back on. Not much progress. I guess I’ll have to make more of an effort in 2020.

Fun & Hobby Resolutions

I haven’t been a very fun person in 2019. I got quite lazy during my hip recovery. I put travel on the back burner and did absolutely no weekend adventures. As a result I didn’t take many pictures and didn’t have much to say here. So aroundustyroads suffered and so did my companion blogs, dustyroadsphotos.zenfolio.com and dustyroadsphotos.com . I will try to make a better effort in 2020. More adventures= more posts.

Friends & Family Resolutions

As any member of my family and many of my friends will tell you, I’m not a warm fuzzy sort. I forget birthdays and anniversaries. I didn’t send my Christmas cards last year or this year. I don’t go visit anyone. I’m always busy, busy , busy. But I hope they know that I love them all and worry behind the scenes about the trials they face. I should show them more often that I do care what’s going on in their life and if I can help at all I want to. There have been so many losses both in my family and in my friend’s that we …I….need to cherish those that are still with with us. Life is too short not to.