The number one rule of doing business online: Be careful.

A number of shady online retailers have been cropping up recently: They seem to exist with the sole purpose of confusing their customers.

I am weary of companies that use phrases like, "Free Trial," or, "Cancel Anytime!" Some people aren't. Would you believe that a lot of people don't bother to read the fine print?

Why should I set out a goal to be "great," and what on earth does that mean anyway?  Isn't it a bit egotistical to think that I could possibly be a great person?  Why should I even bother?  Let's set some ground rules: Being great is about being honest with one's own self.  Being great makes no implication that any other individual isn't great.

I know that we all like to complain about how much tax we pay.  Look around us; see the beauty in this country and the benefits of living here (health care, to name one). By shifting tax collection from personal and corporate income to sales, the lives of the majority of Canadians would be greatly simplified.

 Some benefits:

A lot happened in 2007. I had a bit of an epiphany in the late spring, in which I realized that the key to happiness is inside each of us, and nobody but ourselves can truly make us happy. I found endorphins in my running shoes. I found endurance and stamina on the dikes, biking around Pitt Meadows. I found strength, flexibility and bliss on the Yoga mat.

A few months ago, I started running. It started slowly, and I started too quickly. So I've been alternating between cycling around on the dikes in Maple Ridge/Pitt Meadows and running. I'm hoping to be able to run a 5k this fall and a 10k next spring.

Cliché tells us that all great journeys start with a single step. That step takes us out of our comfort zone and puts us in danger of the unknown. I have been struggling with stepping outside of my comfort zone for some time now, and recently (I'd say, over the past two to three weeks), I've come to some realizations. Nobody is going to tell me to make changes; I have to decide to improve the quality of my life by making conscious decisions every moment of every day.