Thanks to American Express for sponsoring my writing today about small businesses. American Express is presenting Small Business Saturday, a way to honor the local merchants who are the backbone of the economy, this Saturday, November 27. They’re offering statement credits to people who shop at small businesses, advertising for small-business owners, and donations to Girls Inc. for “Likes” of the Small Business Saturday page on Facebook. Join the celebration by clicking the “Like” button and then visiting the Facebook page to learn more about the program and read the terms and conditions that apply.
My friend Angie is a teacher-turned-work-at-home mom that has an online toy shop called Good for the Kids, which is full of interesting and engaging toys and supplies for young children.
I am a big believer in small business, for one reason: customer service. I live in a small town, and it means a lot when you receive personalized service and you know you’re dealing with people who truly care about what they are doing every day. The same holds true for Angie’s shop, which is backed by her well known commitment to her customers. She stands behind everything she carries, and if ever you have an issue with your order, she’s on top of it.
Just in time for Christmas, Angie is holding a huge sale – at a whopping 30% OFF everything in her shop!
If you’d like to take advantage of this fabulous offer, use coupon code holiday2010 before the sale is over: December 6th.
And if you’re looking for Melissa & Doug products, now is the time to snag them – once Angie sells out of M&D, they are gone!
[Intro - Sample of "O Canada"]
(O Canada! We stand on guard, for thee)
(O Canada!)
(O Canada!)
(O Canada!)
(O Canada!)
[Classified talking behind Intro]
I told this guy where I was from
He said “oh, Canada”
Kind of laughed it off, real funny, huh?
Yeah, uh, come on
One two, one two
Mic. check, one two, one two
Yeah
[Verse 1 - Classified]
Uh, yeah, from the land of the lost, Trans-Canada cross
Patriotic and I honor with my hand on my heart
From the greatest of lakes to the greenest of greens
To the rockiest mountains and everything in between
(Oh, oh), oh Canada, oh you no fan of us
‘Cause our movies and TV shows are so amateur? (ha)
Yes we laugh it off, that don’t really bother me
Look we ain’t serious unless we really got to be
Humorous attitude like Kidz In The Hall
Or Jim Carrey, Mike Myers, hell we claimin ‘em all
It’s the great white north, home of the funniest actors (O Canada!)
The butt of the joke with an abundance of laughter
The red and white flag, keep it high, keep it visual
People say Canada and get stereotypical
Think we finish every sentence with “buddy” or “bye”
And if it ain’t that, it’s either “dude,” “eh,” or “guy”
Canadaka eh, yeah we considerate people And smokin marijuana, we consider it legal
Still doin rap like the 1990′s
But that’s how we like it, off time20and grimy
[Chorus - Classified] (“O Canada!” – repeated in the background)
I know where I’m from and I told ya before
North of America, hard to ignore
Every time I go away I tell them for sure
I’m from Canada, oh-oh-oh Canada
Oh Canada, oh-oh-oh Canada
I’m from Canada, oh-oh-oh Canada
[Break] – 4X
When Class makes a sick beat, we call it a classic
[Verse 2 - Classified]
I’ve been around the globe and heard the confusion
Honestly a lot of y’all are ignorant and stupid
Yes, we have microwaves, TVs and cell phones
Unintelligent fuck, we invented the telephone
We made Yahtzee, the lightbulb, hockey
And bred the greatest players – Gretzky to Crosby We all got at least one drinking buddy
And after one drink, all of us think we’re funny (O Canada!)
Our national mascot’s a damn beaver
Oh Canada, we love our beaver (O Canada!)
Home of Hells Angels and RCMP
Home of Gordon Lightfoot and SCTV
No doubt, the underground railroad
Georges St-Pierre, right here is where he call home Our health care system, y’all know it’s free
Keep our girls bangin with a full mouth of teeth
I won’t even get into the music industry
They say hip hop is dead, nah it’s up north with me
I could do this all day, it’s a part of my routine
But supper’s almost done and tonight – poutine!
[Chorus - Classified] (“O Canada!” – repeated in the background)
I know where I’m from and I told ya before
North of America, hard to ignore
Every time I go away I tell them for sure
I’m from Canada, oh-oh-oh Canada
(I’m from the east coast of Canada)
O-oh-oh Canada
(I’m from the east, east, east coast)
Yo-yo, no doubt
Yeah I’m from Canada, so sometimes words come out of my mouth like this
Get used to it!
(O Canada! We stand on guard, for thee!)
Dayum skippy! I love this rap so much. I love my country so much. We have so much to be grateful for.
Tonight I finished my very last web design. Part of me is overjoyed and excited to be moving forward with my plans to go to nursing school, obviously.
The other part of me is kind of sad. Years ago, I started blogging as a way to share stories about my kids, and eventually my family history, to find like-minded moms and have fun. All of that happened and more. I not only found an enormous tribe of mothers who thought outside the lunchbox, I learned more about myself in the last 5 years than I ever could have predicted. I found friends in the unlikeliest of people, from a Sunday School teacher who calmed me down on a muggy day in Chicago, to a pink puffy heart of a dear friend right here in my backyard. I have walked this path with so many amazing people, there is no way in the world I could list them all.
Along the way, I taught myself everything I know about graphic design and blog development. I created websites, both big and small, and made a lot of people happy with my interpretations of what they wanted for their space on the internet.
It’s kind of cool to look back on this mini-career I built while my babies grew.
Amazing, really.
Here are a select few of the sites I designed. Some I can’t show you for various reasons (too local, too nsfw etc.) Once I designed a blog for a call girl in the UK (oh look it’s still there. Eep!) Okay well that one is nsfw-ish!
Here are some others:
Thank you. From my very first client to my last, thank you from the bottom of my heart. Some of you are more than clients, you’re friends for life.
(don’t forget to change your passwords, kids. If you need any assistance and you have yet to receive a Choose Your Own Adventure Designer email from me yet, or have yet to be assigned a new designer, email me at karenrani@gmail.com.)
