So far, so good.

Good Christmas so far, but the next 10 days are probably as important as the previous 20 days.  Still, I'd rather be ahead of last year, and even the year before, entering into this crucial period, than be behind.

What I'm really talking about here is paying down the credit cards -- either by a lot or by a moderate amount.  I was hoping for a lot, I think it will be moderate.   I think we're going to almost exactly break-even for the year, and probably end up beating last year just slightly in overall sales.  Knock wood.

It will be the last five days that take us over the top, if we do it.  Pretty strange, because we've been behind last year all year, but might end up beating it in the last week of the year.  The tortoise comes in at the finish line!

I really stocked up this Christmas.  I think I make a few excess orders -- because I was afraid of coming up short.  But it's material I can sell next year, so no real harm done.  Maybe a little drag on the cash flow. 

It isn't so much that people are buying the extra material I ordered -- that is, the exact same material.  They're just buying more because I have the extra material.

I'm convinced that customers pick up the signals when you've tried to really do a good job of stocking, when you're not trying to get away with minimal orders, and that they usually reward you for this.  Maybe it's the very atmosphere of "too much" which they catch, I'm not sure.  It's a mysterious thing, very akin to ESP, I think.  Customers read your intentions, somehow.

I meant to go in early this morning, but I didn't sleep well last night and then overslept this morning.  We've actually had people showing up in our extra hours this year, which again isn't something that always happens.

Amazing that word must get out that we're the place for boardgames.  I really stocked up this year, and it's paying off.

Anyway, three big days ahead of us, and then a big day after Christmas, and then an entire week of everyone still being out of school.  So what we lost in the short Thanksgiving to Christmas period, we'll make up a little by having a few extra days after Christmas.

I hope.