Welcome to DiVITA Speaks!!

Angels Among Us

By Chloe DiVita

Wow. Three months can go by SO quickly! Let's see...where the heck have I been?

Well, I got through tax season busyness, and then quarter end rush, and then it was May. I've also spent some of my copious spare time working on my latest project, as well as teaching dance classes at the Louisville Dance Center. It's nearly recital time, so dance routines are high priority right now!!

The other high priority item is continuing to invest my time and efforts into the Beleighve Legacy Foundation. Visit the site and check out the details! I'll also talk about it more as time moves forward and more progress is made.

Last, as many of you know, Leigh passed away last summer from brain cancer. To help raise funds for brain tumor research and support I will be walking in the Angel Adventure Walk in Denver on June 9th. It will be my first time, but definitely not my last. My goal is to raise $1500. I'm really not sure if I will get there, but I'm going to try!! If you would like to sponsor me you can do so by visiting here. Any donation is greatly appreciated and going to a very a good cause. A cause that is so close to my heart.

Thanks for tuning in here. I should be around more frequently through the summer, and I will have many new and exciting things to share!

Isn't it amazing how time flies!

By Chloe DiVita

In my world these first few months of the year are the busiest, and I'm finding they are the hardest to make some time to blog. Since this blog has yet to reach it's first birthday, this is the first 1st quarter I have attempted to work and blog.

January is filled with year end payroll reporting (all those lovely reports most people prefer to just not understand), plus W-2s, 1099s, and all the reconciliation that goes into preparing them. Then comes February. My time turns to focus on year end adjustments and producing financial statements so my clients can get there tax returns done. This always flows into March, and even April sometimes. And during this time the day to day stuff seems to always be as busy as it can be, or maybe that's just my perception as I usually feel slightly overwhelmed by my workload.

It's that overwhelming pile of "to do" items that keeps me working late into the night. Although, recently, my body has not been enjoying my late night work schedule. I've found myself struggling to keep my eyes open as the 22nd hour passes me by. How much can I accomplish half asleep?! Don't worry, I know the answer is nothing, and as I reach that point I usually curl up in my recliner and let the TV drift me off to sleep.

I suppose the point of this post is to let you all know that I have not forgotten about the blogging world. I am not ignoring this blog, and I have every intention of trying to make more time to post. I have taken some time to read a few of the blogs I used to frequent daily, only the frequency has turned to weekly, or even bi-weekly. But, I have found some interesting conversation going on. I also feel I have some input to provide on the subjects, like the generation gap discussion over at Lipsticking, or the working women discussion over at Working Solo. So many interesting things being discussed right now, and me with a clogged schedule - not to mention a clogged brain!

Please stay tuned. I will be back soon!

Emergency! Emergency!

By Chloe DiVita

I should be starting the New Year off by wishing everyone well, but since I’m a bit at late at that I’m going to jump right in to one of my pet peeves. (But I really do hope everyone is jumping into 2007 with a fresh new outlook!)

One of my bigger pet peeves is the abuse of the red exclamation meaning “high importance” when sending emails. I do believe there are times when it is appropriate to use the exclamation. Say if there is something that needs urgent attention, immediate action, or ignoring it could result in major consequences. If that’s the case, by all means use it.

But, if you are simply providing information - even if it’s important information - if your work day (or the recipient’s work day) is not going to explode by not immediately reading and reacting to the email, then it’s not an emergency. It doesn’t warrant the red exclamation.

The main issue I find with the abuse is that the individuals who choose to use it over and over when it doesn’t seem appropriate end up crying wolf. So, if you abuse it, you end up negating its purpose anyway. There are a few individuals I work with who I don’t flinch when I see the little red exclamation attached to the email because experience has shown me that it rarely is an emergency.

I know I’m not the only one who feels this way because I’ve had several conversations about it. If you think you might be an abuser, it’s not too late to change!

Enjoy the Season!

By Chloe DiVita

Today is Christmas Eve, as we all know. And whether it's something you celebrate as a holiday or not, it's the spirit of the season that I'd like to pass on today.

Forget about work. Forget about finances. Forget about school, about stress, about your computer, and your obligations. Hug your daughter, your son, your wife, your husband, your mom, your dad, your brother, your sister, your grandma, your grandpa, your pet, and whoever you get the pleasure to be with on this holiday. Tell them you love them, you appreciate them, and say "thank you." It's two small words which hold an immense significance.

Tis the season to appreciate and give, and remember what's really important. Your religious affiliation, or lack there of, is not the most important piece. It's your mentality, your attitude, your compassion, and your ability to shine.


I plan to shine with my family for the next couple days, and appreciate the time to focus on them and the memories we'll create. We have many things to be appreciative for this year, as well as memories to hold onto for those we've lost this past year. We had plans to continue a tradition my brother-in-law had with his wife, Leigh (for those of you who do not know the story of Leigh you can get an overview here). However, due to the lovely "holiday blizzard" we are all recovering from in Colorado, his flight was cancelled. Somehow he'll get here and we'll make that tradition happen, even if it's a few days late.

Wishing everyone the best.

Chloe's Turn to Meme

By Chloe DiVita

If you still aren’t sure what being memed means, then read the prior post done by Benecia, which explains this. Since my mother memed both Benecia and I, I am passing along a few memes of my own.

To continue the meme path, here are 5 things you probably don’t know about me:

1. I participated in gymnastics competitions with the USGF (United States Gymnastics Federation) from age 9 to 14, and levels 6 to 8. Plus, I can still do back flips and ariels (no handed cartwheels)!
2. I stood in Shaq’s pants. I used to work at Adrian Jules Ltd in Rochester, NY– my hometown. They custom make suits for many different people including Shaquille O’Neal. When I held up a pattern for a suit being made for him I could fit in one of the pant legs. It ended up being a purple suit he wore to the MTV Music Awards many years ago.
3. I help teach dance classes at the Louisville Dance Center three times a week. We just put on a performance of the Nutcracker for our winter recital.
4. I started college at the State University of New York at Albany intending to get a Computer Science degree. Glad it didn’t stick. I couldn’t stand C++!
5. I drove out to Colorado in the summer of 1996 spending most of the time in the back of a 27’ U-Haul. There were six of us and we couldn’t all fit in the cab, so half of us would hang out in the back and play cards. It got really interesting when one of the people in the back had to use the bathroom and had no way to let the cab crew know!

Hope you learned something. Now, you are memed Dick Richards, Bill Brelsford, Scott Wilder, Steve Sherlock , ConnecTips women!

New Fun Blog!

Ok, so when I said "back to business" I meant it! Business has been busy leaving my blogging world lower on the priority list, but I will be back. I promise!

I did want to take a quick minute to direct anyone interested to wonderful new blog about pets. For all of us pet lovers out there this is a fun place to share stories and get some interesting pet facts. Plus, there are already a few pictures of my adorable puppy, who my husband to continues to remind me is a MAN! He's always be a puppy in my eyes.

So, take a break, and enjoy some fun pet lovers time over at Scratchings & Sniffings, and yes, that is my cute puppy in the upper left of the blog's main page!

Signing off for a bit

By  Chloe DiVita

I will be disappearing from the blog world and business world for the next week or so. Today at about 2:15pm Leigh passed away. She was never in any pain, so I am grateful for that. I also happened to call about 10 minutes prior and was on the phone when it happened. The phone was put to her ear so I could tell her I loved her, and I will hope and believe that she knew I was with her at that moment.

Tomorrow morning I am headed to

Chicago

to offer help and support in preparing for the services. Thank you to everyone who has been patient, understanding, and supportive over the past few months while I did everything I could to be with Leigh and help her. Without the support I have been given I would not have been able to be with her as much as I was, and those are moments I will remember and cherish for the rest of my life.

Please be well, and don’t forget the good things in life. As I’ve said before, Leigh would want me to be sure and appreciate all that I have, and I plan on continuing to do that. I hope each of you does the same.

Until next time…

Another Personal Touch

By Chloe DiVita   

And so I will continue with my previous post because today at about 4:15 pm I received a phone call. My cell phone rang, I was in the middle of a meeting, and when I picked it up (just to see) I saw it said Leigh. I knew that it wasn’t truly Leigh because Leigh is much past making phone calls, and for a second everything went silent and my heart sank. This couldn’t be good. And indeed, it wasn’t. It was Chris, Leigh’s husband (and my husband’s brother, but someone who I am extremely close with to the point where he calls me his twin). He said that the doctor, whom I knew was visiting during the day, said Leigh’s pulse was high. At least 160, but possibly higher because she actually had trouble counting that fast, and she hadn’t been truly awake in about 48 hours, and she seemed to be salivating at the mouth, and she was quite warm. This meant that Leigh has anywhere from a few hours to a few days, but definitely no more than a week.

I knew this. This phone call; I knew it was coming. And yet, in the middle of my meeting, I sat in a sort of shocked state. I had to finish what I was doing, and yet I was quite disturbed. I spoke to him for a few more seconds and then said I’d call him back when the environment was more conducive to speak freely. At this moment, I have not done that yet, but soon I will.

Now I sit debating the question of when I should leave. When I should go; when I should be there for Leigh, for Chris, for me. What is important right now? I have much to do. Work tasks are pulling at me, my daughter’s needs are pulling at me, my husband’s needs are pulling at me, and yet, it is me who I am most concerned about. I wonder is that selfish, is that right? I don’t know. But I know I have an overwhelming feeling, deep within myself, to be there. To be there for Leigh; to be there for Chris; to be there for me. I’m not sure I would ever be able to get past not going. So I believe I must go.

And right now, as I read through what I have written, I think I’ve said too much. Maybe let everyone in to my thoughts a bit more than intended, but maybe that’s the way it should be. So I will leave the words as they were written.

Please know that no matter what my decision is, I will be sure my loose ends are tied tight enough to survive my absence. Work or personal, I will be sure I have a plan. But right now, in a matter of life or death, I need to do what will provide my soul the most peace it can have.

Let's Not Forget...

By Chloe DiVita 

…to appreciate what we have. To find strength in those things which hinder our spirit.

Back in the beginning I said this was a business blog with a personal touch. Today is a personal touch, but our personal emotions tend to directly affect our business matters, so in that respect please take this to work with you today.

I look today to this picture of myself and Leigh from my bridal shower. Leigh, for those of you who do not know, is my sister-in-law/best-friend who is dying of brain cancer. Last Friday we were told she probably had 2 – 4 weeks of life left. Not that the life she is living is one anyone in their right mind would want to live for 1 day, much less 4 weeks.

Regardless, it is her picture from a time when there was more hope, more happiness, and more life, that is making me appreciate all that I have. I have my health, my family, my friends, a thriving business, my mind, and worries she is envious of. I find strength in Leigh by knowing she would not want me wallowing in my compassion for her. She would not want my life to come to halt because of the status of hers. She would want me to remember how lucky I am, and to live my life to the fullest.

So I will continue to look to this picture of Leigh, and remember just how fortunate I am. I let go of my anger and frustration of what she has had to go through battling brain cancer for the past 4 years, of my hurt that I am going to miss her, of my fear for what lies ahead for her, and I appreciate what I have. For her. She no longer has the ability to do much of anything, so for her, I remember what I have.

What do you have?

A little needed break

By Chloe DiVita

Hello everyone. I will be signing off for just a bit so that I can get away from the world for awhile and find some peace. My family and I are headed up to the mountains to camp for 5 days. No cell phones. No computers. No clock to stare at. Just us and nature. I'm very excited.

I thought I'd leave everyone with a few pictures of what I'll be staring at for the next few days. And yes, there is still snow up where we will be! Enjoy!