time to reflect.....

nothing ordinary about this....

The sofa you're looking at in this photo is pretty ordinary, basic color, basic pillow, basic shape. By looking at it, you would think it is like any other sofa made in the marketplace. Even it's selling price at $499 speaks to basic.

Most people wouldn't aspire to be ordinary or basic in appearance. But, for the past 14 months, that's been our goal.

Why, you ask, is basic our goal? Here's the answer. This sofa comes compressed in a box and takes up 73% less room in a truck and warehouse. It uses less fossil fuel in delivery. And, at the end of its useful life, is almost completely recyclable.

Today, this sofa is a real product, and it's available on Overstock.com. We're very proud of this basic and ordinary sofa. In the first two weeks, it's now the sixth best selling sofa (out of 130). Not too shabby.

http://www.overstock.com/Home-Garden/Dexter-Modern-Mocha-Brown-Microfiber-Sofa/4417937/product.html

Happy Birthday Mom!

Happy Birthday Mom! Although she's loathe to admit it, my mother just turned 86. It's been a rough year for her, especially lately, not so much by age consuming her, but her friends.

Thursday was my 52nd birthday and I didn't get a call from her, something she's done for years and years. I knew something was wrong.

Her best friend, Flossy, 86 herself, died unexpectedly. A couple of weeks earlier, her son, Ronny, died unexpectedly. And a couple of weeks prior to that, Flossy's brother died. I saw Flossy at Ronny's wake. She's been battling cancer for a couple of years, but she looked good. Cancer didn't get her. A broken heart did.

Mom and Dad have been married for 63 years. And, for most of those years, they've had a circle of friends, people I've known most of my life. And now, they're watching them die, one by one, I'm sure wondering when one of them will be next. It's a lottery that nobody wants to play.

So, I want to take this time to tell you, Mom, that I love you, that I feel your heartache, that anytime something hurts you, it hurts me. I'm not going to say how it will be better and all of that. Those are just words. But, I will stand by you and so will anyone who knows you. It's your birthday, I wish it was happier.