Debra Dorrell, owner of “A Good Yarn” in Prescott wants help spreading this news:

A Good Yarn, located in The Old Firehouse Plaza at 220 W Goodwin in Prescott, is proud to announce a book signing with Debbie Macomber on Saturday June 7th, at 1:00 P.M. The bestselling author of A Good Yarn, The Shop on Blossom Street, Back on Blossom Street, as well as The Cedar Cove series, is one of today’s leading voices in women’s fiction.

Debbie’s newest Blossom Street book Twenty Wishes will be the focus of this book signing.

Plan a trip to A Good Yarn in Prescott for June 7th, 2008 and meet Debbie Macomber. Pick up your Twenty Wishes book and while you’re here explore all the fine yarns and notions!

If you live in the area, mark your calendar now to stop by Debra’s shop on June 7th.

… which reminds me, I currently have on my needles a cute pair of socks (seen above right) made from Elsebeth Lavold’s Hempathy Designer’s choice (34% hemp, 41% cotton, 25% modal) and a great summer tank top made with Cascade Pearls (no picture of that yet).

Recently completed are some red socks for cheering on my UA Wildcats, made from a purchase made at Kiwi Yarn Company in Tucson: Meilenweit Cotton (41% cotton, 39% superwash wool, 13% Pllyamide, 7% Elite - whatever that is). These were actually finished at the ballpark, and then put on for good luck. So far, they work well!

This topic must be incredibly beguiling since so many people are searching for help with it. That, or simply very confusing and/or seasonal … grad and wedding season is upon us!

Here are a few questions I have received on the art of expressing thanks after publishing some other posts on the subject:

Question: Is it appropriate to hand-deliver a thank you note?

ktcosmos’ reply: Long ago, couriers and footmen delivered thank yous. They were met at the front door by butlers who then relayed them on a silver tray to the intended recipient. Today, I am guessing that etiquette recommends posting your message, but I say that a sincerely written note can be delivered in any way that works best for the sender.

Question: What should I say in a high school thank you note?

ktcosmos’ reply: Not sure if the asker intended to thank teachers for jobs well done or thank those who honored him/her with graduation gifts. The answer is always the same though: be sincere and give a specific example of what you are thanking someone for. Perhaps it was a teacher who always gave extra effort that you noticed. Or, if a gift, something that shows that the giver knows and cares about you.

Question: Can I have someone send out thank you notes on my behalf?

ktcosmos’ reply: Now, I am presuming the asker is a business person who intends to delegate the task of writing thank you notes to someone else. (If I am incorrect and the asker is a bride who wants to have her mom or someone else handle this, shame on you!)

I may take a beating on this, but here’s what I think. Writing thank yous is a DIY job.

If you believe you are so busy that you do not have time to write your own thank you notes, I would admonish you that you are way out of line. Thank you notes, whether in business or personal life, are intimate expressions of gratitude for kindnesses extended to you by others, who found time in THEIR busy lives. No one is too busy to be able to execute that gesture on their own.

If you are writing a thank you (or having your designée do that for you) just as a way to suck up and get ahead, that’s equally lame.

Additional resources on writing your thank yous:

• www.PrescottWeddings.com’s Miss SOS can clear up and questions about thank yous related to wedding and shower gifts.

• Susan Ireland has some perfect business-related thank you samples on this part of her site, www.SusanIreland.com. Examples include writing to say thanks for interviews, job offers, rejections (yes, rejections! at least you were given the time of day and honored with a formal response!), informational interview, and to friends who helped with your job search. You’ll also find helpful video how-tos on Susan’s site.

• Susan’s blog, The Job Lounge, also has some great information on business situations requiring thank yous. My favorite is the “Good News” letter. Check it, and the video treatment on that, here.

Speaking of this, read some related posts elsewhere on Loosely Speaking:

Thank you one and all: giving credit where it’s due

Thank You Notes: Do You or Don’t You?

More on Thank You Notes Expressions of Appreciation

April Series: Answering the Question: Do I have to write thank you notes for graduation gifts?

End note: Just had a little surgery this a.m. and am not supposed to operate heavy equipment. Does that include my laptop??

You’re the best. Here is a bouquet and some other fun stuff for you to enjoy:

Postcards from Yo Mama

Yarn for Dinner

The Rainey Sisters

Fort Peck Dam

French Laundry at Home

Favorite Vacation Spots

Kitchen Klatter

Walking Prescott

Online Moms Find New, More Modern Ways to Nag (this one you have probably already listened to since we are both hooked on NPR, but if not, it’s fun.)

Sorry, no chocolate. Love you.

A great way to be memorable (beyond your expertise in your area) is to be known as one who conducts relationships with grace and humility. That is, one who acknowledges others and gives thanks with deep sincerity. You create goodwill AND a good name for yourself.

The thank you note is one form of acknowledgment, but think about spreading the word about your good experiences publicly as well.

Here are some tips:

• Give public kudos in such places as: networking groups you attend, discussion groups you belong to, and on the various social networking communities you inhabit, like Twitter and LinkedIn (that’s what recommendations are for!).

• When you land a new job, thank EVERYone who had a role. How? Well, you might try the “Good News” letter that my colleague Susan Ireland describes on this video. (Susan is the author of The Idiot’s Guide to the Perfect Resume publisher of SusanIreland.com)

• Give plenty of link love. If you blog or have a website, identify the by name the resources you discovered when tracking down a solution to a challenge.

Speaking of this, read some related posts elsewhere on Loosely Speaking:

Thank You Notes: Do You or Don’t You?

More on Thank You Notes Expressions of Appreciation

April Series: Answering the Question: Do I have to write thank you notes for graduation gifts?

I love Goog 411. And I’ve lately been feeling like I “get” social networking, even though I struggle to incorporate it into daily life. I mean, if it’s a time crunch requiring a choice between exercising and Twittering or LinkedIn, I have to choose exercise.

Now, just as I think I have a handle on enough web-based technologies so as to feel current, I have heard about some new ones that I don’t grasp! I want to fit them neatly into some sort of mental genre folder. Help!

The scoop on Loopt.

Loopt’s website explains that it can “turn your mobile phone into a social compass.” It looks like a combination of Geocacheing (where people are the hidden items) and Twitter, but is not available to all cell phone users at this time.

Newsweek (”Hey, I Know Where U R,” May 5, 2008), featured an interview with its developer, Sam Altman, last week. Altman explains that “it’s amazing how often you’re near one of your friends and don’t actually know it.” Take the free tour/demo on the site and for just $3 or $4 per month, you can be in the loop(t). Read more about it at Wikipedia.

Genre: Mobile Social Mapping Application (according to CrunchBase)

Go fly a Brightkite :

Same idea as Loopt, but doesn’t require GPS and works with any and all cell phone carriers, as long as you have text messaging capabilities. The Brightkite blog explains, “Users can see where their friends are and what they’re up to all while maintaining comprehensive degrees of privacy to non-friends. Depending on a user’s privacy setting they can also be open to meeting others nearby.” It integrates with Twitter and Fire Eagle (yes, another social networking option by Yahoo). Currently in beta, there’s no cost as yet.

Genre: Location-based Social Network (the preferred description per Brightkite’s site).

Ok, phew. That wasn’t so tough to understand after all. Just a new genre (to me) and something fun to try out, taking social networking to a new level. And it brings us full circle back to when all networking was done in person, and we enjoyed bumping into those we knew when running to the post office or grocery store.

I feel lucky that my children have all played sports since it has given me weekly opportunities to stand up and scream at the top of my lungs. Such a purely joyous response to what happens on the field has got to be good for a person.

Do you get to yell and scream in excitement and joy in your daily life? I mean literally, not figuratively.

In an election year, we who are voters get that chance during the campaigning.

What makes you cheer? Who do you cheer for?