Having put this off for a while, I decided its time to start blogging! I have never thought I would have too much to say or blog about and am hoping I come up with a few interesting bits and pieces for you to read....
So I am Tina and I own The Wool Stop in Thornbury, a once small market village in the West Country (home of the amber apple nectar that is Cider) which is now a much larger Market Town. I work in the shop on my own with a little bit of help from my mum, and I have been here for just over a year now.
One of the main things that I have learnt over the past year is about the kindness of others. My previous job in a large corporation was fraught with fear and tension, people looking out for themselves and not caring who got hurt in their search for 'power' or 'place' in the team, and I have to admit having been one of those who ended up getting hurt, it left me with a huge distrust of people in general, and very little self confidence in any part of my own abilities. However, since opening the doors of my very small, un-corporate unimposing little wool shop I have been exposed on a daily basis to the kindness, generosity and enthusiasm of people I have never met before, who have no personal gain objectives and who just want to be involved and help others. A real humbling eye opener, and a reinforcement of my own fundamental core belief that kindness reaps kindness, and mean selfishness can only result in misery all round. Examples of the things that I have experienced in the shop and outside of work (if I can really call it that!) are so numerous that I couldn't mention them all, but for example every single Charity Campaign I have run has resulted in mind boggling amounts of donations (over 1000 baby jumpers, 800 Hats for Troops, and I'm up to 56 baby blankets so far) - all from people who have given freely their time and money to help others. Some of these people are poor, old, ill, and frail and they still come into the shop with a smile and it is these people that make me LOVE my job, have given me my trust and confidence back, and make me realise what a waste of time and energy I spent fighting a corporate battle with people who wouldn't even know what kindness towards others is and who, I am sure dont smile as much as I do these days!
So enough for now....I have some funny stories to tell in later blogs, patterns and yarns to share and just hopefully general wiffle waffle that some one might like to read!
On to my next challenge....Ravelry! Twitter is done and sort of understood, Blog has been started but I now need to get on Ravelry and sort out an account WITHOUT getting lost in everyone elses patterns for hours on end and achieving nothing apart form a long wish list of 'things I would like to make'....!!
Bye for now and I'll speak to you soon
Tina xx xx
