How has this year treated you?

2010 has been kinder to me than some of those previous.  The last few years have been pretty tough, culminating in a near breakdown over workplace stress.  Without saying too much about it, if you feel you are being treated badly in the workplace (or anywhere for that matter) DON'T just put up with it.  Look at the situation like an outsider and if you find yourself saying "this isn't right" then it probably isn't.  My experiences lead to me having to sell my home and leave most of my family to move 3000 miles away.  It was either that or a complete breakdown, something I didn't fully comprehend until I was able to reflect on it on the other side of the country.  During the whole thing, my employers did everything they could (including sending me for psychiatric evaluations!) to determine that they were not at fault.  Looking back, I now see that when you raise the issue of workplace harassment, you are opening a huge, ugly can of worms, and the support tree that you were told was there for you, was just a few twigs that fell off the dead branch every time you reached for them.

One thing that helped me make it through this awful time was without doubt the support of my children.  Whilst they didn't want me to leave them behind, they knew that it was either me or my sanity!  They are all adults (just!) and I'm happy to say they are all independent, smart and employed and we are extremely close, and I'll treasure that for ever.  I miss them like crazy, especially 4 of my grandchildren, but we keep in contact as possible by phone and computer.  Not the same but you do what you have to do.

Grandchild 5 Clover Jane born June 10 weighing 11lb 6oz!

Grandchild 3 Crazy man Connor

Grandchildren 2, 1 and 4 Claire, Zoe and Liam

So now I live my daughter and her 16 month old son in Perth, Western Australia.  We are planning to buy a house in the next 2 years with her twin sister, who is moving here next year.  Exciting times ahead!


2010 was the year that I started my business YarnSoft, after studying business under a government funded program.  It has been a dream of mine for a long time to run my own show and what better way than to open a yarn shop?  I originally wanted to open a "real" shop, but the logistics and money involved proved too daunting a task for now.  I may revisit this idea in the future but want to spend time building up the online business first.  In some ways online is more difficult than B&M, especially when you are trying to reach a large audience that can't touch your product, and we all know how touchy feely yarn is!  But I believe the benefits outweigh the problems and even in this short time I've learned so much and connected with some lovely people, so that alone has made it worthwhile.

So, what is planned for 2011?  I want to keep improving and increasing my range and make YarnSoft the place for knitters and crocheters to visit to not only buy yarn, but to enjoy learning more about the crafts and share in the vast amount of knowledge and enthusiasm out there.  I have a soft spot for beginning knitters and crocheters and will be providing a range of video tutorials where the learner can see a technique explained and demonstrated in an easy to follow way.  I know there are thousands of YouTube videos out there but mine will actually take the time to let you see each movement slowly, so you can follow bit by bit and not get lost when the teacher gets carried away and knits like a demon while you are still trying not to drop your needles!

I would love to know what has marked 2010 as a great/not so great year for you.