Groundhog's Day for the Rainy Season

   I am not complaining, you should know that straight away.  As the rainy season sets in around the SF Bay area, the forced shifting of gears and juggling of schedules gets me a bit punchy.  Luckily, going into this winter my work has thinned out just enough to afford me time to take on projects that I had only talked about in years past.
   Today, I decided to develop a test for the length and severity of the rainy season with the help of my office assistant, Simian (a.k.a. Monkey Kitty).  If I am to effectively line up projects and activities for the indoors, it is essential to have an idea of how sizable that block of time is.  So far, I find a weak correlation between the three minutes Simian withstood rain this afternoon and the three more days of rain we are to have.  I may have to dust off my old TI calculator for some inverse logs as it just does not compute that my cat's capacity to sit outside during a deluge should indicated how much rain we have in store.  I have tried the Farmer's Almanac, but this global warming has worked a great deal of inaccuracy into the mix.
   I cannot speak for everyone, but I assume landscapers and trades that rely on good weather have a hard time keeping momentum when weather keeps them indoors.  This year, I have it sorted... sort of.  There is the usual battle to dominate Quickbooks that gets amped toward the middle of December, the sorting of photos in iPhoto and onto the website, and keeping up with the CEU's for various certifications.  This year, oh my, I am breaking the sound barrier of productivity by working with a graphic designer.
   "But don't you do design?" you ask.
   "Landscape design," I reply.
(I had to look up rules for punctuating quotations.  I am so ashamed.)
   Susan Asher, the graphic designer, has taken me on as a client.  She was recommended by Don Asher (no coincidence when marriage is involved) from Golden Gate Litho.  They will do the print production once the materials are ready.  The first meeting reassured me that this will be a great addition to winter business building projects.  I am so excited to see her first pass at color and font alternatives that I have hit cancel on at least three giddy e-mails.
   Small steps such as hiring even a part-time employee or purchasing a specialized piece of equipment commit time, energy, and resources in a certain direction.  For me, I knew early in starting this business the direction that I wanted it to go.  In the last couple of winters, the clarity of intent and action has finally come around.
   Now if I could just get my rain-soaked assistant to keep me apprised of events on the deck I may have a meteorological framework within which to conquer the Winter To Do's.