Casual Friday with Mir—because some days are made for wearing your jeans and surfing the blogs.

For once, I’m actually fairly well caught up on work. I have a cup of coffee sitting here, and the kids are behaving. Today is an excellent day. And excellent days need some excellent new blogs to surf!

I’ve probably linked Mom-101 before, but now that she’s the Etiquette Bitch I can’t resist doing it again. (Keep on with your bad, polite self, sistah!)

Crash Test Mommy has unwittingly written a post that vegans the world over will use to further their cause.

Do you consider yourself neurotic? No, really, these people are neurotic.

I like words, but they really like words.

Don’t wallow after a break-up; please confine your misery to 17 syllables.

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You’ve already bookmarked the Daily Deal, I’m sure of it, but just in case you need a reminder, this is it. Go. Check it out. (Bonus deals on Fridays, because you’re pretty.)

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Well, now I’ve seen it all.

I thought I’d seen all the lists—mistakes women make in business, mistakes male bosses make, mistakes freelancers make, mistakes male freelancing bosses overseeing women of a certain height during months that end in “ber” make. (Okay, I may have made up that last one.) The point is, society loves a list, particularly when it comes to a step-by-step accounting of how to do something right or how everyone is doing it wrong.

But now there’s this: Courtesy of FreelanceSwitch (which you should have bookmarked and should be reading religiously, fellow freelancers; do I have to tell you everything?), we now have The Five Most Common Mistakes of Female Freelancers and The Five Most Common Mistakes of Male Freelancers. Read the rest of this entry »

You could say that I’m a fan of the path of least resistance. You could say that I’m a fan of automation. You might even say that it was inevitable that I would end up in business for myself, because it means that I can start working in my pajamas in the morning, without any of that pesky showering, dressing, and making myself presentable. It’s simple and easy—I get right to what I want to be doing, without any of the associated yet time-consuming tangential activities office-dwellers must pursue.

And so I’m sure it comes as no surprise when I tell you that any regular client of mine who offers direct deposit is a client I adore. Direct deposit? As in, I work, and you put the money right into my bank account? I couldn’t sign up quickly enough. I always did direct deposit when I worked in an office, and I was thrilled to discover that in some instances, I could still do so, as a freelancer. Read the rest of this entry »

Casual Friday with Mir—because some days are made for wearing your jeans and surfing the blogs.

I’ve had a few days all to myself while my family is elsewhere, and inbetween working and painting my dining room (the neverending home renovations continue!) I’ve found some great new blogs. Pull up some time to kill and dig in:

My standard line has always been that I married young because I couldn’t stand dating. Reasons why I dumped you reminds me of how much I hated dating, but with more giggling.

When I read this update at Hollow Squirrel I knew I needed to read her regularly—clearly her life is a lot more interesting than mine.

Have you noticed something different about the “modern” Strawberry Shortcake? If so, you should probably read this.

Have you met Olga, the Traveling Bra? (A site like that takes… well, dedication.)

And this last one is especially for those of you working outside the home: The Office Humor Blog.

(Psssst! Don’t forget to check the Daily Deal for your bargain fix!)

As a busy freelancer, as a wife to a fabulous guy, as a mom to two active kids, what’s the one complaint I most often issue when it comes to work?

“If only I had nothing else needing my attention, I could get this done so much more quickly!” In fact, I often joke that I could probably churn out a novel in addition to my regular workload if only the rest of my life would just back off for a little while.

Well, my kids are away with their dad. My husband is away on a trip. And I am all alone in my home office, and it is reeeeeeeeeeally quiet here. It’s so peaceful.

And a little creepy. Read the rest of this entry »

Did you happen to catch the New York Times article this weekend about cable companies switching their billing to be dependent on your amount of bandwidth usage? The article is called Charging by the Bye to Curb Internet Traffic, and here’s the crux:

Some people use the Internet simply to check e-mail and look up phone numbers. Others are online all day, downloading big video and music files.

For years, both kinds of Web surfers have paid the same price for access. But now three of the country’s largest Internet service providers are threatening to clamp down on their most active subscribers by placing monthly limits on their online activity.

Time Warner is conducting a trial of the new fee structure in a Texas town right now. Comcast and AT&T are talking about following suit. And I am terrified. Read the rest of this entry »

Casual Friday with Mir—because some days are made for wearing your jeans and surfing the blogs.

Goooood morning! We’ve made it to the end of another week, and for the first time in a long time, I’m wishing it wasn’t Friday. Friends, I have wallpaper to scrape this weekend. Pray for me.

But you—you, you need some new blogs to read! You do not need to hear about my wallpaper woes! So let’s get to it.

If you’ve already had breakfast, check out these top 15 amazing facts about the human body. (If you haven’t had breakfast? Maybe wait.)

Only someone who claims to live in “Facking London” could write a post called “Snippets du Jour” that’s over 1600 words long. (I sort of have a girl crush on her. Don’t tell!)

This link is not a blog, it’s a video that might make you laugh out loud. Proceed accordingly.

Despite the somewhat startling title, I’ve been seeing links to this blog everywhere, lately. It’s a funny daddy blog, and I predict you will like it.

Here’s a post that made me go “Hmmmm…”; a little food for thought, perhaps.

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Looking for some shopping deals to go with your blog reading? Guess what! Work It, Mom! now has a very special section just for great deals, and it’s written by, um, me! A deal a day, every weekday. And maybe extras on Fridays, because I like you, and I like Fridays. Usually.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

I realize what I’m about to say is both completely old news and totally obvious. You don’t have to tell me that. I know that you’ll be snickering at me behind my back. But the thing is, I don’t have to drive to work every day, you know? I’m not hip to the ways of the commuter. I have been rather slow to realize what the current state of the economy must mean for those of you who have to drive somewhere every single day.

Here’s the thing: I just figured out that gas is really expensive. Yes. Just now. I mean, recently, not this very second or anything. But in the last couple of months, say.

And as this realization began to dawn on me, I self-righteously patted myself on the back for my wee little carbon footprint and frugal ways, working from home as I do. Yay me! I am saving energy! I totally rock!

Yeah, that bit of joy was short-lived. Read the rest of this entry »

Hey, it’s unexpected side benefit of inventing my own career number 133: This afternoon I’ll be interviewed for Purse Strings, a Webmaster Radio show. I’m pretty jazzed about it; I love talking about money, and marketing, and later today I’ll be doing both.

The part that blows my mind is that I was approached about this because… well, because I’m female, I guess, and because I blog, and because people read me. I am not any sort of “expert” in the conventional sense of the word. I’m just someone who likes to talk, really. Um, don’t tell. Maybe they’ll realize they invited the wrong person. Read the rest of this entry »

Casual Friday with Mir—because some days are made for wearing your jeans and surfing the blogs.

Some of you may recognize this feature—up until today, I was writing it over on Nataly’s blog every week. Well, we were talking the other day and Nataly said “Why aren’t we putting this over on Cornered Office?” and I said “Huh. I can’t remember.” So, um, SURPRISE! Now I’ll be doing it right here every week.

(Try to contain your enthusiasm.)

For those of you who are new to Casual Friday, here’s the deal: We all know that regardless of how busy you are, Fridays require just a little bit of slacking. It’s inevitable, right? And as long as you’re sliding into the weekend, you may as well pair those comfy jeans of yours with a few new blogs to explore and maybe a few online shopping deals. I’m just sayin’.

Ready? Top off your coffee and let’s get to it. Read the rest of this entry »