A happy Chinese New Year to all our readers, and especially to all the Chinese ones!  Today starts the Year of the Dragon, which bodes really well.  Dragons in Western myth are fierce creatures to be slain by knights and saints, but in China they are symbols of great power and bring good fortune.

Those born in a dragon year are reckoned to be full of energy and bubbling with creativity.

"The Dragon is the mightiest of the signs. Dragons symbolize such character traits as dominance and ambition. Dragons prefer to live by their own rules and if left on their own, are usually successful. They’re driven, unafraid of challenges, and willing to take risks. They’re passionate in all they do and they do things in grand fashion."

Dragons also tend to be natural leaders, and are self-sufficient.  They do, however, have quick tempers.  Since we have two of them in the ASI, Madsen and Sam, it can get rather messy in the office when they scrap and breathe fire over everything.

Seriously, though, the omens are good for those of an optimistic bent.  The year of the Dragon is reckoned to be the year for great deeds, innovative ideas and big projects.  At New Year we can put the past behind us and look to the future and the new projects that it brings and the new successes that it promises.  A Happy New Year!