Yes, did it again. I grounded myself good and proper. Though it seems impossible for me to carry out my sentence a full week. No posts till Saturday…..Ha! But I’ve spent the last week catching up with a lot of other bloggers, and found some great new ones as well!

Yes, I grounded myself good. Monday, after my brain threatened a revolt, I forbid myself from the computer, from pen and paper, left my phone on the counter and never checked it once (oh crap! Gotta charge it tonight! Hang on….), and likewise with my wi-fi enabled iPod (which displays all wordpress likes, follows, and comments before being unlocked! It’s awesome!). I cleaned my room. Gasp! Laundry at that! Hell hath frozen over! I then very tentatively approached the living room, sat myself down, and turned on the tv. Caught up on a month’s worth of Grey’s Anatomy (the writers better not screw with Alex next season! Give him something good and permanent and normal already! I like his new interest).

And there, sometime in the middle of episode two of my marathon- which is about the time I finally stopped latching onto every single word and trying to make it into a meaningful name- my publishing name came soft but clear. I knew it was floating around in my swollen mind somewhere.

Grounding myself is two-fold and something of a play on words. It also entails ‘grounding’ myself- slowing down, emptying my worked-up brain, centering. It was miserable and cold this holiday weekend, which canceled out my camping hopes and even my kayaking Plan B. Both are my really great methods to center/ground. But after my tv marathon, after giving myself some much needed space and silence, I thought, Cold be damned! I packed up the boys and sped off to the lake. The coldness worked to my advantage as it was therefore not completely jammed with people. I found parking- holy crap! And was able to roam the beach and hike through the bird-lands fairly privately (aside from the monsters I brought with).

I hadn’t realized how out of whack I’ve become trying to get all the pre-publishing stuff organized as well as balancing personal responsibilities and house craziness. I filled my hands with sand and just squeezed the life out of it. Not sure why, I just had to feel and connect to it. I took off my shoes. I filled my head with the frenzy of the waves and meditated on the gulls preening and splashing in the water. It was grey and windy and overcast, and the clouds had once again beheaded the buildings. As we wandered, I worried the skin off a rock and strangled lots more sand. The last time I’d been by the water was in January when I grabbed the boys and drove/fled to Florida to see the ocean (for the first time!). Lake Michigan- which figures heavily into my book, I remind myself- is a twenty minute drive away (on a good non city-traffic day). But parking and people make it a nightmare to visit lately.

So, the cold cancelled out both normal and holiday madness, and we had it almost to ourselves. I came home, my fingers so cold I couldn’t move them, but was largely refreshed and mostly centered. Grabbed some paper and wrote down my company motto and sketched my logo, which I love!

I feel like I’m finally getting somewhere! Tuesday, got a mailbox at UPS to use as a mailing address for my self-publishing imprint/brand/business. Did you know, if you go through UPS vs. USPS, you get a street address and typically a suite # instead of a P.O. Box address? Looks better!

Wednesday, I got my Doing Business As application notorized and mailed out! I am so nervous it’ll be rejected, or that somehow, someone else will beat me to my name. I filed for a sole proprietorship. My state- of course- has the absolutely highest fees to set up an LLC, which is a more protected model. $300 to reserve a business name, plus $700 to file to apply for that name. After that, I ignored the page list of other associated fees. Sole proprietor I shall be: $50. $2 more if I were to add a secondary location within my county.

I’m so excited!

If you’re pursuing this same path and are stuck, there are company naming companies! Namella is one. They’ll also help with logo design.

There’s also LegalZoom who’ll file your applications, and I believe they’ll perform trademark research and register your domain name, and place your newspaper publications.

Please keep in mind that I have not used either company so can’t refer them. I’m simply passing on what I’ve learned this week.

Anyway, here’s a couple Lake Michigan pictures:

I think these are those evil invasive mussels, but they’re still pretty. They completely blanketed the shoreline in one area.

On a normal summer day, this would have been jam packed with people. Not very enjoyable.