At the moment, I am all gross and full of cold. I look like the living dead, and sound pretty zombified as well - far too much coughing and spluttering for my liking, and as for my nose, well, my entire face looks like it’s exploded. How’s that for a mental image? Not normally what you get from me, admittedly.

Therefore instead of being out with my friends paying 3 times as much
to get into a club to then have drinks spilled on me, I am at home with my brother. To be honest, the idea of going out at New Year just fills me with a level of dread. Don’t get me wrong, I love a chance for a damn good boogie, and obviously like being with my friends (that’s kind of the point in having them, surely?). But queueing for hours to get into the same places that I go when I normally go out, and being surrounded by drunken idiots (obviously I exclude my friends and I from the ‘drunken idiot’ description) just isn’t my idea of a good time. Perhaps I’m getting old. A house party however is a much better idea, but I can’t inflict my ill self onto my friends - even they have their limits of tolerance!

Instead I thought I would have a brief review of the year. Have I actually achieved anything? It’s all too easy to feel like you have been treading water forever and not making progress, so a little stock-taking is always a good idea.

Talking of stock-taking, I moved house recently - how on earth can one person accumulate so much stuff?! My brother was fairly horrified - he moved in one car trip, whereas I moved in about *cough* 10 car trips.

Anyway, that wasn’t what I was referring to. But then I do tend to get easily distracted. Therein lies a whole separate blog post. Ooh,
talking of distractions, apparently Pirates of the Caribbean 2 is on
TV at the moment…might have to take a little mosey over there while
I write the rest of this. See what I mean?!

So…what have I done this year that may be worthy of note and reflection. Let’s see.

I travelled half way across the world to Las Vegas in May to attend an
internet marketing seminar, cementing some great friendships at the
same time. (For more on that, have a squizz at my blog post on my
return from Vegas, including pictures & video).

I also wrote and released my first ebook, Social Networking Sites
Explained. The response to that so far has been very popular, so I
guess I did something right!

More to the point, I learned how to edit the sales page, adding in the
links to the download page, upload the book, and all the rest. I had
help of course, I am fortunate that I have a lot of patient friends
that are willing to assist me even when I’m being particularly daft.

I also learned how to use Aweber (well, the basic function at least), and so I have progressed reasonably well.

On a far more silly level, I also tried Pub Golf for the first time this year. It wasn’t the fullblown student version, but a marginally more civilised attempt - it was our work Xmas do, and we all dressed up in the most ridiculous golf attire (including pyjama bottoms for some people - don’t ask!).

I have also moved house, and am now sharing with my brother - this
means that we’re having most tasty roasts every weekend (the Meat King requires tribute after all), and he cooks for me as well. Good times all round.

Now, I’m sure there are other items of note that I could mention, but
the Meat King has just made pancakes for us to feast upon…it’s rude
not to enjoy such things!

May I take this opportunity to wish you and yours a very Happy New
Year, and may it be a happy, healthy, prosperous time (and a huge
amount of fun too - that’s why we’re here, right?!).

Purple Minxy Witch out.

So, what have I been doing? I’ve been preparing the launch of my book Social Networking Sites Explained.

I’ve fought with Aweber and Filezilla, and managed to get there in the end (Aweber was doing strange things with formatting, and Filezilla refused to connect to the server).

Nearly had to get the whip out!

Still, disciplining others is one of my favourite ways of spending my time.

Before I take this post right into the gutter, allow me to give you the opportunity to sign up for your own copy of my book - not autographed I’m afraid, although perhaps that’s a thought for next time.

Once you’ve had a chance to look at this book, I would appreciate it
if you would leave me some feedback on it below.

On that note, I’m off for a well-deserved cup of tea (like I need an
excuse!).

Until next time,

Nikki

Are you sitting comfortably?  You might want to go and get a cup of tea & settle down to read this.

I’d like to do a quick shout out first to all the people on Alex Jeffreys MWA 2.0 course (and of course my friends from the MWA 1.0 course).  I’d also like to say hello and welcome to those that are on the Internet Selling For Newbies course with Omar Martin and Mike Filsaime.

Now, in the spirit of all things new and exciting, I’d like to talk to you about relationships.  No, not those kind of relationships, I could write a whole series of books on that and we’d be here all night (ok, so that comment isn’t helping!)!

I’m talking about the professional and personal relationships being formed, both online and offline.

I’ve just read an email from James Arther Ray (featured speaker on  The Secret), and he comments: “You become who you spend time with…“.  I know that I experienced this at school (yes, I can remember that far back!).  I always did better in subjects when I was with my group of friends that were also high achievers.  On the other side, when I was with friends that were (to put it politely) not focused on academic achievement, then my performance suffered.

So what does this mean for us?  Surround yourself with positive, helpful and successful people and you will all benefit as you reflect these characteristics.

Building relationships is very important to online success as well as life in general, and as with all relationships these take time to build, nurture and grow.  The problem is that too many people will build quasi-relationships based purely on the ‘What’s In It For Me’ philosophy, and then will drop the person / people once they have used them as they feel necessary.

Luckily I haven’t seen much of that so far on my online journey, although I am aware that it does go on.  But then what can you expect - we are humans, and sadly not all human nature is altruistic.  Not that I think we should spend all our time helping others; that just isn’t feasible.  But remember your old friends.  It’s too easy to get all excited about these new people in your life (be it online or offline) and just cast your existing friends to one side because they don’t hold that same level of excitement for you.

You wouldn’t be where you are now without the influence and help of your friends, and they won’t take kindly to just being sidelined for not being the latest shiny thing in your life.

Take time out of your day to appreciate the existing people in your life, be it friends, family, co-workers, whoever.  There’s nothing like a smile or contact from an old friend to help lift your day and make you feel that you are still valued.

That’s what building and maintaining relationships involves.  Show how and why you value each other. It’s a reciprocal circle.  You may think that you are too busy to do that, but that’s a terrible excuse.

Most of us or in fact all of us are guilty of wasting time.  Spend 5 minutes writing a quick email to someone you used to speak to a lot but now barely communicate.  You may not get a response straight away, don’t worry.  Half the lesson is in recognising those that used to be the top of your list, and identifying to yourself why they’ve slipped.

Now, I do of course realise that some relationships will end, and some will always have different levels of interaction, frequency and depth.

I’m not suggesting you have to be friends with everyone, that would be ludicrous.  But don’t just push the old friends aside because new ones have appeared.  There isn’t a limit to how many friends a person can have.

Fundamentally it comes down to this basic concept that I’m sure you’ve all heard a thousand times before:  Treat others as you would wish to be treated.

It doesn’t cost anything, and yet I think to a certain extent that’s why we take it for granted.  Perhaps if there was a price on friendship and maintaining positive relationships then people would perceive that to be of value to them.

Don’t be the person that loses touch with everyone simply because you prioritise new contacts over existing ones.  Remember: everyone in your life is there for a reason, whether it’s to learn from, to emulate, or to go out shopping.  You can learn a lesson from every person you meet, and it is often those we think we can learn very little from that prove to be the most educational.

Whew, quite a deep & meaningful post from me!  I’m not always like this as you’ll see if you look at some of my previous posts, but it’s something that’s been bothering me lately so I wanted to highlight it.

Anyway, on that note I’m off to email one of my friends that I haven’t spoken to for a couple of months…I suggest that perhaps you do the same…

Until next time,

Nikki / Purple Minxy Witch

This is going to shut down very soon, and it comes with my highest recommmendation.

Alex Jeffreys is just releasing new spots for his now-notorious Marketing With Alex Coaching Course. It’s literally happening RIGHT now!  You need to hustle to even watch the video here … http://tinyurl.com/NikkiRecommendsNN

Spots for this kind of killer release go fast. And when you see the goodies he’s giving away - which are just nuts - you’ll understand why this is so urgent.

Go here now and try to grab your spot: http://tinyurl.com/NikkiRecommendsNN

Please hurry.  If what Alex offers is what you need, get involved.

If you don’t have the chance to watch this video right now away, I’m sorry it’s going to be too late and by the time you come back this video would have already been removed … good luck … http://tinyurl.com/NikkiRecommendsNN

Anyway, this offer clearly isn’t for everyone, but for those of you who feel like you’re working hard but you’re feeling stuck or the results don’t really show it, watch this video and take advantage of Alex’s risk free offer.

To your success

Nikki
Solve the Newbie’s Nightmare! http://tinyurl.com/NikkiRecommendsNN

asci6m4y8z

I’m back in the UK, sitting on my sofa with a cup of tea & some toast with peanut butter (yes, I know, I’m so English!).

I slept for about 18 hours straight when I got back home, but then I was up for about 34 hours prior to that - so I guess it figures really. It’s strange, I woke up in Las Vegas but went to sleep back in the UK. It’s amazing what you can do when you put your mind to it really.

What can I say about my trip to Las Vegas…or rather, where do I start?! Firstly I have to thank Paula Brett and Garry Parkes for the fun times together before we even left the UK - I don’t think we stopped laughing for the whole time that we were travelling or out in Las Vegas. Thank you for being such excellent travelling companions.

When we landed at McCarran Airport we met up with Alex Jeffreys and got a limo together to the New York New York Hotel - Las Vegas is such a strange place! When we got into the hotel we met up with Dean Holland, Gary Simpson and Dan Briffa as they had got there before us.

Anyway, lots of revelry commenced, as more & more people filtered into Las Vegas to attend Alex Jeffreys’ seminar. A lot of people were also in Vegas for Mike Filsaime’s Butterfly Marketing event, so there was a large group of people all interested in internet marketing, all at different levels within the field. Some were newbies, others were very advanced…but more on that later. In the meantime I want to say hello to everyone that I met out there - and it was great to meet you in the flesh rather than just through our usual online presence.

You know when you drink so much alcohol that the room spins? For those of you that don’t drink, or have successfully respected the bevy & therefore not got to that state, it can be one of the most disorientating experiences. Well, I felt like that for the first 2 days that I was in Vegas, and I hadn’t even been drinking (perhaps that was the problem?!). I think a mix of the constant air conditioning & the additional oxygen being pumped in didn’t help. Perhaps I should have disrespected the bevy, then at least I would have had a justification for feeling so bad. But being spaced out and constantly dizzy was just not the way forward. Luckily I had some good people around me that looked out for me, and for that I am truly grateful. You know who you are.

On Day 2 of Alex’s seminar I managed to make us fashionably late (for those of you that weren’t in Vegas, I am late to absolutely everything. I will be late to my own funeral) so we managed to bagsie the sofa at the back of the room. This then became the Pimp Chair:

The Chair of Big Pimping

(L-R: Paula Brett, Gary Simpson, Nikki Stephens, Sandra Rodrigues, Lesley Morgan)

Mucho networking ensued after the seminar & a lot of good information sharing, and Alex got a few of us out of the room to do a quick video - so if you’re wondering what on earth I look like when stuck in front of a camera, then watch this:

(Yes, I really am that random!).

To be honest a lot of the time in Las Vegas has blurred - I know there was a huge amount of networking & chatting with people that I can call good friends - not to forget the drinking and constant laughter. I can honestly say that I had an unbelievably great time and don’t think I stopped laughing (well, unless I was drinking tea at the time - and yes, I did do rather a lot of that - you can take the woman out of England, but you can’t take the English out of the woman!).

That leads me on to our adventure out to the M Resort where Mike Filsaime was holding his 2-day Butterfly Marketing seminar. The M Resort had only been open for just over a month I think, and was definitely a classy hotel (trust me, Vegas has some really tacky stuff going on - er, what else would you expect?!).

Anyway, Paula introduced a select group of us to Omar Martin who was there as part of Mike’s team for the BM event. He showed us behind the scenes of a brand new product that’s just about to launch - Internet Selling For Newbies. Well, what can I say. Just from seeing behind the scenes, it blew me away. The amount of time and effort that has gone into creating this product is patently obvious. The professionalism and detail is just incredible and makes a pleasing change from some of the so-called courses for newbies that are out there. This one literally takes you by the hand and explains everything in a very easy to follow fashion, so that you too can build a successful online business. For example, I have watched the comprehensive videos on HTML that are provided on the free CD-ROM, and learned all sorts of useful information. The study guides and the videos are all clear and straightforward, free of any of the usual hype and fluff that you find on so many other products.

If you want to learn how to build a successful online business, and would like to know the fundamental steps that you need to take, then I personally feel this is THE product for you. I’ve already increased my knowledge and filled in some of the gaps in my mind as far as creating the systems behind the business are concerned - and that’s just from the free CD-ROM, not even starting on the course.
If you’re interested in having a look, please click on the image below.

Back to the M Resort - as you can see from the picture below, this internet marketing world is a lot of hard work. OK, so I’m being slightly facetious - of course there is a lot of work in getting everything set up in the first instance. But then comes the play time! And I for one am all about the play time…

This is my kind of lifestyle - believe it or not we were hard at work here!

L-R: Garry Parkes, Nikki Stephens (yep, that’s me again), Omar Martin, Paula Brett, Sandra Rodrigues, Michael Ottman, Gary Simpson

Talking of play time, that evening we watched a hypnotism show by renowned hypnotist Marshall Sylver. Now, it isn’t for me to comment as I was just observing, but the sight of Alex Jeffreys riding around on a toy pony just has to be mentioned! I know, I know - what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, right?!

That night we went to the Bellagio for a few drinks - and didn’t leave till gone 5am. Michael Ottman, Garry Parkes, Omar Martin, Sandra Rodrigues, Dean Holland & I propped up the bar there for a good few hours talking about every possible subject under the sun. That counts as networking, right?

Although that night it was raining when we walked back to our hotel - er, hang on, we were in Vegas!  Honestly, if I’d wanted rain I’d have stayed in England!

So, you may be asking: what did I learn & take away from my visit to Vegas?

Well, that’d be telling - after all, what happens in Vegas…oh, ok, I can at least tell you about the people & some other fundamentals.

1. If you want hot drinks - TAKE A TRAVEL KETTLE WITH YOU!  The hotels no longer provide this (now, this puzzled me - even the UK provides these basics!).

2. You see the best and worst in people when you’re all thrown together however many miles from home.  I felt so supported & included out there, and it was brilliant.  The friendships that we have formed online just got stronger and we made a real bond - I hope everyone else feels the same! (Someone, please back me up on this?!  Thanks - will pay you in kind).

3. So much of the IM world is about networking, whether attending seminars and chatting to the other attendees & presenters, or sitting by the bar talking about things that are nothing to do with work. Building relationships is a vital component to this world.

4. What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas of course

5. You are kind of expected to tip everyone all the time.  This is at odds with the traditionally English way of behaving.  Some people however felt the need to give their money to the (allegedly) homeless people & unleash a few moths from their wallet at the same time (yep, Dan Briffa, Dean Holland & Gary Simpson, I’m talking about you).  If you want to see a video of some of their crazy antics, you can click here  (watch from 4:30 onwards if you’re pressed for time)

6. For those of you that are Alex’s students, I would suggest revisiting the module on the Triple Threat Affiliate as we discussed that on Day 2.  Also go check out Jit Uppal and see what he’s up to…

7. They say New York is the city that never sleeps, but I think Las Vegas has to be a contender for that crown. Even when wandering through the hotel at 6am (not that I would be out of bed at that hour of course) there are still people sitting at the machines, mindlessly pumping them full of money. I was tempted to dress up as one of the machines & see if people would post money into me instead…but figured that might get me into more trouble than I could realistically handle.  Still, might be an idea for next time…

8. Those that have made it to the higher echelons of IM are still human, and want to be treated as such.  Personally, when I get there, I will expect the red carpet treatment whereever I go (or should that be a purple carpet?!), and I shall demand all sorts of ridiculous things.  Oh, ok, so I won’t - but it was fun pretending for 2 minutes!

9. Aeroplane food is a whole bag of wrongness. I think because you’re hungry & slightly confused you’ll feast upon it without too much thought, but I had a scary breakfast bagel surprise thing on the way back, and I’m sure I was glowing green after it. Sure, I’m grateful that they fed me, but I wouldn’t give that kind of thing to my cat…it’s probably dosed me up on all sorts of chemicals!

……………………………………………..

I may well add more to my list as & when I think of things, but now I must go to bed.  I have now returned to the real world and I’ve decided it isn’t entirely the way forward.  Just as well I have a plan really!!

Nikki / PMW

Drum roll please, carnivals, street fairs, fanfares & fireworks…

I will shortly be releasing the following book:

When it goes live you will be able to download it from here, so please check back soon.

Once it is live, I would appreciate your comments on the book itself.

Was it useful? Do you have any questions leading on from the contents?

Nikki

So, what do you think? The Lair of Temptation has received a bit of a makeover. Oh, ok, it’s been completely stripped bare & rebuilt - but as most of that is behind the scenes, it isn’t obvious to the viewer.

This now means it is LOADS more functional than my old theme, so I can get it to do exactly as I want. An ongoing theme in my life!

However…(and yes, this happens in real life too), there is a rebellion going on, and I need to find the ringleader of this rebellion and torture them (or deny them their torture; whatever will cause the most pain).

My current issue is that I can’t get my Post Teaser plugin to work. It’s installed, it says that it is activated, but it isn’t doing anything to my posts. I then tried putting in the code manually (the line that WP suggests using), and that just made a horrible mess of everything.

Any suggestions of other methods or plugins that I can use? At the moment my blog page scrolls down to infinity (or it feels that way) as I do tend to ramble on. Er, a bit like now actually. Whoops.

I have a feeling it may have something to do with the fact that my blog is now on a separate page, but I’m not sure…

Thoughts please!!

Thanks,

Nikki

Anyway.  In the meantime, go and have a look at my new Twitter background - some people have found it rather mesmerising, but no, it isn’t one of those Magic Eye pictures.  Although it may leave a lasting impression on some of you…go see here

Then don’t forget to pop back soon, as this is going to be completely changing & be relaunched - and you don’t want to miss out!

Nikki

.

(lyrics from Linkin Park - Breaking The Habit)

 
As I’m writing this it’s Sunday night, I’m on the sofa, and reflecting on my weekend.  I’m also watching Transformers (the film) – so I’m multitasking as always. 

How many of us are rushing around from one thing to the next without pausing for breath in between?  How many of us are on autopilot as we’re moving throughout life?  There’s a quote that I read recently that says “life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away”.  (Once I’ve found out who wrote it, I’ll add their name in here).  How many of us are just going through the motions of life, without really feeling it, enjoying it, or adding any impact? 

I was having a cup of tea in IKEA on Saturday in between a little retail therapy and I was making notes in my book – I was only sitting there for about 45 minutes.  Yet after about 20 minutes, all sorts of ideas were coming into my head for my business and my future direction.  My point being that it was only after I’d been sitting quietly and having some time out that my thoughts had time to filter through to my conscious mind.  I’m definitely guilty of rushing around like a headless chicken at times – despite my calm and mostly chilled countenance, I am normally moving from one thing to the next on autopilot.  I imagine the majority of you reading this will identify with this scenario – we get up, get ready for work, go to work, come home again, possibly see friends or work on our other businesses in the evening, and before you know it, it’s time for bed again.  How many of us feel that there aren’t enough hours in the day?

“50 years from now when you’re looking back at your life don’t you want to say that you had the guts to get into the car?”

Sorry, it just got to that part in the film.  How many of us let opportunities pass by because we don’t know what the outcome will be?  This partially relates to my rather lengthy post over at Hilary’s blog on children, education and upbringing – so many people are afraid of change and of potential failure (or even success) that they would rather stay in the relative safety of their comfort zones.  A lot of us have been brought up to seek security in every area of our lives.  Get a steady job, a steady relationship, have the 2.4 children, the white picket fence, etc etc.  Yawn.  And then people wonder why they never break out of the monotony of their everyday lives.  I do not want to wake up when I’m 70 and suddenly realise that I have spent my entire life sleepwalking through it according to other people’s expectations.

Luckily for me I realised at an early age that other people have their own agendas and reasons for wanting to keep you in a little box, and so I have been following my own path for many years now.  The only problem that I have had with that is not being able to find the kind of guidance that I needed.  It’s been patently clear to me what I don’t want, and that sadly the majority of people that have been around me are those that would rather be safe in their box instead of trying to break out to make something of themselves.  That isn’t me.  I have never been good with people trying to restrain me or pigeon-hole me. 

Anyway, back to my Saturday.  I had also indulged in a little pampering that day, and that had prompted my thoughts on taking a little time out to do something for yourself.  We cannot function effectively when we are tired and run down or drained.  We all need a little time to just take stock of our current situation, without feeling that we have to be actively working on anything.  For having that short bit of time out to just relax and not be ‘doing’ something, I gave my mind the opportunity to cut through all the everyday chatter and produce some useful ideas.  Sometimes we need to just stop to allow ourselves that downtime.  We are often our harshest critics, when we should be our fiercest supporters. 

There is only the one of us, and we are irreplaceable. 

As my final point, I would like to suggest that you pop over to the Gaz-Man’s blog.  He has kindly offered a very powerful ebook there for free – and I think it’s the ideal companion for when you’re taking that bit of time for yourself.  It can help to put things into perspective. 

Nikki

25 weird, wonderful things about the Purple Minxy Temptress.

What, they have to be suitable for public consumption?  Oh.  Then it’ll be about 2 things that I can share with you.

The Gaz-Man started this for me in fact on his blog, so I might use those as starting points.

“Oh, yeah! I hope Nix does this. It’ll be a scream.

Here’s a few:

Hates oysters…

Hates seafood…

Loves purple…

Detests spelling mistakes…”

I’m also reading Linda’s, Renee’s, and Hilary’s answers for inspiration - so somewhere between that are my 25 things:

1.   I’m 5′7″ when barefoot.  Usually wearing heels though, so more like 5′10 / 5′11″
2.  I’m one-eighth Italian (yes, I know, not really enough to count, but it makes me sound a little more exotic)
3.  The only television I watch is either music channels or comedy quiz panel shows - like Never Mind The Buzzcocks, QI, Mock The Week etc.  I can often be found dancing around my house to the music channels.  I don’t do news, or soaps, or any reality TV stuff. 
4.  My favourite cocktail is Sex On The Beach
5.  But no, I have never tried the ‘other’ variety.  Sand friction burns don’t appeal.  If I could get around that though…hmm…
6.  I can’t stand seafood, the sight, the smell, let alone the taste.
7.  I’m horrendously pedantic about spelling.  I know, I should get out more.  I can’t help it, it’s ingrained.  Although I find it a lot harder to spot in my own work!
8.  I am easily distracted by shiny sparkly things (especially purple)
9.  But do not ever underestimate me or think that I am superficial - I run a lot deeper than some people realise.
10.  I am a complete and utter tea addict.  But of all the things in life to be addicted to, I really don’t think tea is the worst.
11.  I have had a couple of burlesque lessons, so could rustle up a burlesque routine (think corsets, fishnets, high heels, feather boa etc)
12.  I have also had a lapdancing lesson so have a routine for that as well.  Complete opposite of burlesque!  But I haven’t had the chance to practice on a real person yet, other than the poor woman I was paired with when we did the lesson in the first place.  She probably still hasn’t recovered!
13.  I’m an Aries, and do tend to follow the majority of Aries traits (hot-headed, impulsive, independent, fiery etc!)
14.  I’m completely obsessed with cats.  Humans I’m not so bothered by, but cats, definitely.
15.  I’m a great multitasker.  But then I’m female!
16.  Er, I’m female (yeah, like none of you had realised that!).
17.  I’m left-handed.
18.  The most important person in my life is my brother.
19.  I have never been abroad and I don’t even own a passport (although I did go on a somewhat disastrous school trip to France when I was about 12 - though I try not to remember that).
20.  One of my best friends happens to be one of my ex-boyfriends.
21.  I have a slight obsession with animal print.
22.  My favourite film trilogies are Star Wars (the original trilogy, none of this ‘modern’ nonsense with Jar-sodding-Jar Binks or whatever it was called), Lord of the Rings, and Pirates of the Caribbean.
23.  I’m an extremely loyal friend to those I choose to care about.  Although don’t ever cross me.  There’s a quote from Shirley Manson (lead singer of Garbage) that I read when I was about 15 and identified with - “If you f**k with me, I’ll f**k with you back.  And I’ll wipe the floor with you.  It’s as simple as that”.
24.  I’m fascinated by lyrics in songs.  Or just words generally for that matter.
25.  I love anything with humourous and sarcastic wit.
26.  If I could be anyone for the day, then it would have to either be Immodesty Blaize or Dita Von Teese.
27.  I don’t do regrets.  Seriously, I regret nothing that I have ever done or not done, because I choose to learn from every experience.  OK, so I might have done some stupid things, but without the lessons learned from doing those, I wouldn’t be the person that I am today.

The rest of the things are too rude or too intimate to share really!

Yes, I know, I went over my 25.  I’m like that.

What do you think?  I view myself as a reasonably straightforward open person, so I don’t think a lot that I’ve said above will surprise anyone.  Thoughts / comments?