I’m well aware of my shortcomings when it comes to major renovations, but like to believe I can tackle the small fix-it jobs.

Others don’t.

When I replaced the sliders on a patio screen for my best friend, she politely ignored that they were inserted backward. It slides perfectly but she has to go outside to lock the door.

When I volunteered to help rebuild houses after Katrina, they accepted me as comic relief, apparently aware my home-improvement skills end when the lawnmover enters the garage. In fact, my first day in Mississippi, I overheard the foreman ask me to cut a 2×4 and then turn to a co-worker and say “watch this.” Once I proved I had all my fingers, I briefly got to use a nail gun.

Thus, my idea of the perfect DIY project involves a point-and-click maneuver, deftly followed by a phone call to someone who knows what they’re doing.

Which doesn’t explain my current fascination with HGTV.

Since kudzu.com became a preferred partner of the Home and Garden Network, their shows now run all day on our office big screens. This silent taste of their morning and afternoon fare creates a hunger for changes at home.

But even before we partnered up, I found myself absorbed with Holmes on Homes. I started banging around the house, wondering if I needed to “make it right.”

I sampled My First Place and recalled everything a new home purchase introduced to me. All I had remembered was how many checks I had to write and how much more I had to buy once I moved in.

Cash in the Attic chased me into my storage areas for hidden treasures, but all I found were items ebay would reject. Curb Appeal? I trimmed my bushes, pine-barked the front bed and painted my front door and mailbox.

Hey! Are they prepping me for Disaster DIY?

A perk writing newsletters around here often hails from the joy of discovery.

Of finding useful facts about flooring, roofing, plumbing or any number of subjects; uncovering tidbits of information I hope will be beneficial to our numerous subscribers.

For example, if shingle granules accumulate in your gutter, it’s a signal you may need a new roof. That it matters what type of flooring finish you use. That carpet padding isn’t just about comfort. I like to think I’m compiling knowledge all we homeowners can use.

However, during my tenure, I’ve noticed a personal troublesome trend with our sponsored newsletters. It seems that when I write about a subject I soon experience it.

Now, I understand self-fulfilling prophecy. I get the heightened awareness angle. It’s not like producing a kitchen renovation newsletter made me suddenly notice the browning spot on the breakfast room floor. And, granted, it doesn’t take much for me to begin imagining supernatural forces at work. It’s in my writing nature to see ghosts where others see shadows.

Something’s up.

How else do you explain in the month I send an auto insurance newsletter, a van slams into me on the expressway? Or a week after I send a plumbing newsletter, I have two commodes implode? Then, the week before a planned roofing newsletter, I develop a leak?

Have I tapped into a paranormal zone?

I’d say that’s just crazy talk, but I might get a request for a sponsored psychiatry newsletter.

My birthday is this Saturday. I’ll be 31. Up until now, I have looked forward to birthdays.

But not this year.

For me, 31 marks the official beginning of birthday dread.

As a child, birthdays were filled with pool parties, sleepovers and the pride and excitement of being another year older.

A decade later, birthdays meant reaching milestones – driving, getting my first job, graduating and going to college.

In my twenties, I still enjoyed getting older, thinking that with each passing year came more respect as a “real” adult, fewer pimples and a greater sense of self.

Last year I turned 30. Everyone made a big deal and I had a great party with good friends and cake. In a way, it felt like turning eight again. Plus, my 30th birthday was exciting for another reason.

But now I face 31. There is nothing special about turning 31. From now on, I’ll be just another grown-up, having just another birthday. And sometimes I look in the mirror and wonder who that lady is with the creases around her mouth and the lines on her forehead.

But maybe I need an attitude adjustment.

After all, today I am the youngest I will ever be again. I have a wonderful husband (who is older than I am!) and an adorable little boy who bring me joy every day. We are close to our families and live a comfortable lifestyle.

And if a positive attitude fails me, I can always fall back on lying about my age and botox.

In the spirit of Thanksgiving and helping others during the holiday season, this year the team at Kudzu held its first annual Kudzu CAN Help canned food drive.

To build up some friendly competitive spirit, we divided the staff into teams to see which group could bring in the most items to donate.  The winning team brought in 155 items just between the 5 people on the team alone!  All together, Kudzu collected 474 nonperishable food items to donate.

This year, the beneficiary of all the food items donated was the North Fulton Community Charities, a non-profit organization in the Roswell, GA area that assists families with food, housing and clothing during times of need.

The team at Kudzu wished everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving!

You can use the economy as an excuse to skimp on giving to charity this year. OR, you can do it our way: Give advice on Kudzu and give twice!

For every review you write on Kudzu between now and January 31, 2010, we’ll will donate a dollar to KaBOOM!, an organization dedicated to building safe playgrounds for kids across America.

So take a minute and share your favorites:

• Know a reliable handyman?
• Can you recommend a good landscaper, painter, remodeler?
• Who fixed your roof? Built your deck? Cleaned your carpet?

Let’s help kids play! Thanks, and spread the word! Go to http://www.kudzu.com/hgtv

I have finally learned the meaning of the statement ‘Do the thing you think you cannot do’. This statement is printed on a magnet that resided on our fridge for more than ten years. I would pass by and catch a glimpse of this powerful statement as I reached for eggs for breakfast, or got a glass of milk in the evening.  The statement always resonated with me, as I’m by nature a scaredy cat who tests very high for risk aversion.  Fear is a normal part of my life.

However, even after 10 years mulling over this statement, I never really got it. Until now that is. You see, I always thought the statement was about the ‘thing’ – you focus on the thing you are afraid of and force your way through to the outcome.  Recent events here at work have shown me a rather different, and much more comforting and workable viewpoint.

A recent re-organization meant I changed my job here at Kudzu, and it changed drastically. I was scared witless, thinking I did not have the skills or aptitude to manage the work required of me.  I was very much outside my comfort zone, forced there by circumstances not of my own making. That’s a scary place to be and I’ll admit I shed some tears over my imagined ineptitude.  Over the last several months I have had to face my fear and walk with it every day. I could not barrel through to the ‘thing’ on the other side, because there was no ‘thing’, there was just ‘do’.  DO the thing you think you cannot do. …CONTINUE READING »

Every once in a while, we try to have some fun here at Kudzu. About once a month, we remove our busy selves from our bland but highly productive cubicles and offices, and come together as a team to eat, laugh and be merry! Hear, hear!

Last month, Annie and Laura organized a potluck and trivia lunch, and all Kudzuvians were encouraged to show off their culinary skills, dig up their random knowledge and fill their bellies with scrumptious, homemade food.

Click on for pictures!

Husband forget to load the dishwasher? Wifey working too many late nights? No problem! There’s a one-stop shop in Arizona where you can get rid of your significant other, once and for all — legally.

This is not a joke — The Divorce Store is real. It’s so real that I actually found out about it right here on Kudzu.

Hey, I know. Divorce happens. And if you have to deal with such a thing, who better to turn to? I mean, when you need hardware, you go to the hardware store. Need food? Food store. Divorce? Duh…Divorce Store.

Plus, they don’t just “do divorce.” In fact they handle annulments, legal separation, child support, spousal support, paternity, guardianship, QDROs, wills and trusts and many other family law matters.

I tried googling “The Marriage Store” but found nothing except for this site that sells products to help you improve your marriage.

Anyone in Las Vegas need a business idea? Open The Marriage Store — Your one-stop shop to get hitched and happy at the most affordable prices. If it doesn’t work out, it’s only a five hour drive to Phoenix.

P.S. I am not endorsing divorce I am a product of happy marriage