Hey Trek, Pick Me!

Trek (the bike company) is looking for a few good women bloggers...who ride. This morning I submitted my entry about why I love to ride and why they should select me. I hope you have fun reading my entry. I had a giggle or two writing it.

WOO HOO!
As a girl, I rode every day of my life -- for fun, to go see friends, recreation -- and the sheer trill of coasting down a hill yelling, you got it, “Wooo hooo!” As an adult, I have barely used a bike at all because I find it difficult to find a place to ride that is safe and away from highways, or a bike that is WSD and small enough for my 5’ tall body. This year, I've decided to return to my roots because I was healthier, happier and life was simpler in my hometown. These days, I ride for the fun of it, the physical activity and to reacquaint myself with a natural pace. (Let’s face it, multi-tasking only makes me a harried, grumpy girl!)

My Commitment to Ride
I sold my truck (my husband and I now share a Toyota Yaris if a car is necessary) and I am getting a bike that fits my stature. Currently, we have a bike trail located a few miles from our current home that is safe to ride but hard to get to without being hit by a car. (No death wish here.) As a result, we plan to move to my childhood hometown (Glens Falls, NY) early this summer so we can live in a place where bikes are used regularly: bike lanes on almost all of the roads, and a bike trail that leads to Lake George village (9 miles from our home there to the lake).

My Commitment to Others
I believe that I have a moral obligation to share my learning and expertise with others. I’m a teacher and hold a master’s degree in storytelling, and am a blogger already. My primary blog is www.votrevray.blogspot.com, and focuses upon people living their “truth” or truest life path that honors who they are. I believe these combination of skills make my writing suited to teach others in an entertaining way. I don’t hold back. If my butt hurts after a ride folks will know it -- on the blog, my Facebook friends and I’ll Tweet about it too. I’d love to help encourage other curvy girls to get their butt in the saddle and give the wheels a whirl again. Together, we’ll have one heck of a year!

Why Pick Mel Edwards?
I'm going to have my bike, be out there riding and writing about it anyway. Why not pick a chick who has the passion and commitment and a big mouth to shout about it? I'll be at BlogHer Conference in Chicago crowing about my work, living in two states (SC and NY) and I'm telling you, it is better to hitch your dreams to my wheels than to build a blogger from scratch.

2009 Update: This Blog, She is a Changin'

I've had a brilliant flash of the obvious. The blogs I love and read the most are less business-formal and more blogger-personal. I just don't think most of my readers really know who I am and what I do on a daily basis and I think that is an enormous mistake.

My Mission To empower people to live the life of their creative dreams (and make a living while doing it) while I do the same.

My Dream Votre Vray means your truth. I strive to learn all that I can about living the creative life running from a day job. (Day jobs: Boo! Hiss!) Then pass on the information.

My Work

• My primary business and personal focus is information sharing -- teaching people how they can live their creative dreams while using experts in their field as exemplars. I do not pretend to be an expert at anything other than teaching, but everything I learn, I teach.
• I have TWO blogs that teach - this one & www.schoolroomtoboardroom.com
  
• I'm striving to learn all I can about how to have a successful creative person's business and I read dozens of books, interview even more people and watch listen and learn all over the place in social media: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn.
• I am a storyteller and public speaker who has taken the information I've learned and my experiences and turned them into a one-woman show called "Shout: Kiss My Art."

My Spiritual Side

• I promote equality, kindness, honoring your spirit and from time to time I'll post things that really tug at my heart. For example, you may have heard of the Richmond Jane Doe who was brutally gang-raped. You can reach out to her here.
• I'm a Reiki master teacher and a certified Ashtanga yoga teacher, specializing in beginners and primary series practice.

My Gift (and Bad Habits)

• My greatest skill in life is generating new ideas and enthusiasm. Biggest problem? Finishing what I started because I have more ideas than time or expertise.
  
• Oh, and to be honest, I'm a potty mouth and have an Irish temper that cannot be equaled. One step from a berserker, I have to learn calm and patience in this lifetime. I expect if I live as long as the lesson takes, I'll be around another sixty years or so (I'm 40 now).
  

Personal Life
I'm happily married and have three bunnies. I cannot have kids. (Why must people ask, "Do you have children?") This is sometimes not an issue for me at all but some days, it spurs me to tears. I had a hysterectomy and it saved my life. That said, my mission to help others is made even more serious because I cannot teach my offspring my knowledge. I only have you. Everything I share is all that I know and I give it with love and hope for us all.

Thursday Bram - Why Are Freelancers More Expensive?

Why Are Freelancers More Expensive? by Thursday Bram

Posted: 30 Dec 2008 03:15 PM CST

I’ve had clients do a double take when they see my hourly rate. They’ve asked why I’m so expensive — especially when they can hire an employee to do the same sort of work for half the hourly wage I’m asking. A few have even mentioned that they can get some minimum wage, entry level to write their project — it’s not like writing is hard, right?

To read the rest of Thursday's post visit her blog!

(Don't know Thursday? She's a Votre Vray Creative Woman interviewee and this woman knows writing and how to network. If you don't know Thursday, you don't know freelance!)

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I personally subscribe to Thursday's blog...comes right to my e-mail. Maybe you should too. (Nothing promotes creativity like seeing what your peers are up to!)

Happy New Year, and for the rest of the day (and 2008),
Keep creating!
-Mel.