Carrollegal-Virtual Legal Assistant

How 'Bout Them Rockies?

We are fans of the Rockies and the Sky Sox (their AAA Affiliate  in Colorado Springs).  My husband and son stayed up to watch the game last night (which would have ended at a more reasonable hour of 9:30 p.m. if we were still living in Colorado).  I heard about the highlights this morning. 

Here is a link to a FoxSports story:  http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/7288396?MSNHPHMA

Raking Leaves & Outsourcing

Now that we live in Virginia we we have trees--really big trees--and shrubs in the yard.   In Colorado--no trees.  Before Colorado, we lived in Student Family Housing at New Mexico State University--no trees.   The last time I raked leaves, I lived in Massachusetts and I helped my sisters and cousins rake up a giant pile for jumping at my granparents' house on Middle Street in Amherst.  None of us had bad backs and we weren't old then.  It was a long time ago.

The pile of leaves I raked up today wouldn't have been suitable for jumping anyway, as it had branches from the shrubs and pointy leaves from what I think is a holly bush.  I didn't even suggest to the kids that they jump in it.  (Hmmm....maybe next time they start acting up,  I'll gather a special leaf pile just for them...I digress.)

Anyway, on to the point of my post.  I spent a lot of time this morning getting my arms scratched trying to trim shrubs without the right equipment and raking and sweeping (while being eaten alive by mosquitos) to get rid of the leaves on the lawn and driveway.  This is time that I could have spent on billable work.  People offer their services to come to the house and remove leaves.  I think I'll take them up on the offer over the next month or so.   Outsourcing is a great thing.

The yard is clear for the time being.  Now I need to make time to decorate the front door with some artificial leaves.

Business Licenses...

I am up and running in Virginia.  This week I spent an afternoon going to the various county entities that regulate business in Fairfax County.  I was pleasantly surprised with the ease of taking care of my home occupation license, registering a tradename and filing the form required for business taxes.  It would be nice if the county would have a central location for taking care of the three tasks, though. Two of the offices are within walking distance of each other, but the third is in the courthouse complex, which is undergoing what looks to be an extensive renovation.

Mobile Office

I am in the process of moving my business, with my family, from Colorado Springs  to Annandale, Virginia.  During this process, I've come up with a few tips to share about working in a temporary location (say, in your neighbor's spare bedroom).  That is where I am staying and working while getting the house ready to rent out.

1.  Label your cables!  Label all of your computer and peripheral cords and cables.  If you don't do this, you may find yourself running to Staples or OfficeMax to buy a new 25-foot networking cable to match the one you already have packed in a box making its way across the country via I-70.  (Not that I have any experience with this!)

2.  Create a "temporary office" box prior to the time the movers come to pack up.  In a shoebox-sized box, you can keep a stapler, tape, paperclips, highlighters, pens, pencils and any other supplies you use often (or only need when you don't have them).  Keep a ream of paper and some business cards and envelopes handy, too.

3.  Make  a list of your accounts and passwords to carry with you. 

4.  Carry a back up of your business files with you and back up to an online service.

These are things I've found useful during this transition.  Please post your own tips in the comments section.