Dirt under my fingernails...

I'm finally over my horror of using old kitty litter containers for my tomato plants this year. After having priced more of the big terracotta pots, I decided that this was the year to recycle all the good litter containers I've been saving. They may look funny but they're turning out to be quite practical. Love the handles while the plants are little.

My yard doesn't get enough sun due to my over planting of trees over the years so I have one little spot off the driveway that works perfectly for growing veggies in pots. This year it's tomatoes in several varieties, Poblano and Anaheim peppers and then some green and red peppers. Last year I froze a ton of peppers and really enjoyed having them available during the winter so I'm trying more this year.

The picture below is hopeful. One lone bud on my poppy plant. Normally it blooms before Mother's Day and then we have a big rainstorm that weekend and it gets beat up. Not this year. And I have hope that I'll still see a beautiful bloom!

Needing good news

I need good news. I don't want to hear how hard it is out there, many of us are already living with that. What I do for a living is not life sustaining for anyone! No one NEEDS jewelry for their existence. The problem is that it IS life sustaining for me. Making it helps get me out of bed in the morning, pays my mortgage and feeds my cats. It's not just a "job", it's a huge part of who I am and I'm afraid of losing it.

So, I want good news. Little or big, I'm searching for more good news...

~~~Baxter~~~

This is when I wish I was an eloquent writer of beautiful prose because this is Baxter, a member of the Hecker family and my nephew. He was only in their lives for 7 months but will be in their hearts forever. As Pat described him, he had short legs, hadn't grown into his ears yet and he ran like a puppy! It was love at first sight, on both sides when he first ran into their lives.

There were always great Baxter stories and hopefully the memories will bring some comfort to his family but for right now, it just hurts. And frankly, it doesn't seem fair.

Baxter brought a great amount of love into numerous lives in a short amount of time. He'll always be remembered with a smile and a story...RIP Baxter...

Everyone's at a show!

At least that's what it feels like! I've talked to people at 3 different shows around the country today which makes me feel like I didn't get asked to the prom!

I did get accepted to a show this weekend but declined the invite because it would make 4 shows in one month which is just too many for me. So why do I feel like I'm missing all the fun???

62% Price Increase and Hotel horrors!

In these times when we're all trying to cut our expenses both in making our work and the expenses to do art fairs, in the hope that we'll be able to keep our work affordable, I was just notified of CheckInn card's decision to raise their nightly fee by 62%!!! Actually, I wasn't notified at all. I discovered that my bill was bigger than I expected and then I contacted them.

They are a reseller of low end hotel rooms that I've been using for a few months, trying to save money on travel. The way they make their money is to charge a fee for every night you use their discounted hotel room rates. Perfectly good system which I've enjoyed using, even though some of the hotels have been a little sketchy to say the least! But raising the fees by 62% in these times is ridiculous!!!

The last hotel I stayed in with them was a Red Roof Inn in St. Louis MO. I don't normally take pictures of the hotel furniture but these chairs were so gross, I felt like I needed to document them. The hotel wasn't cheap to begin with and now to find out I have to pay even more than I expected, well, I'm not happy.

Plus this is proof that just because I love the Red Roof Inn in Troy MI, does not mean I'll love all locations. And this room cost almost twice as much... And that's with using the CheckInn card vs. reserving online for the Troy location.

Boo hiss...

Cancelling an art fair...

It doesn't happen often, in fact almost never, but occasionally I've had to cancel an art fair that I've planned on doing. That's what happened this weekend. So I won't be at Art Birmingham, formerly the Birmingham Fine Art Festival in Birmingham Michigan.

Today would have been set-up day and the weather is absolutely beautiful. Perfect for an art fair. Tomorrow there's a possibility of some rain but it wouldn't be Michigan in the spring without that. Sunday looks lovely for an art fair.

Here's hoping that the show turns out wonderfully for the artists and customers alike. I'll miss being there...

Cottonwood Art Festival

The show in pictures! The rains luckily came straight down, hard but without wind for which we were VERY lucky! The water was streaming through the park in rivers, becoming ankle deep in my booth. Michael was a trooper, getting soaked but helping me tremendously. The show was closed about 3:30 on Saturday which I really appreciated since being under my canopy with the water rising isn't my idea of a fun day.

My friend Marilyn O'Hara deserves an award for even being willing to come visit considering the weather that was coming. She stayed through the mess and helped take out the jewelry for me. Her sandals may never be the same...

When we originally set up for the show I noticed a semi-trailer full of straw in the parking lot. On Sunday morning I discovered why it was there. The show supplied us with all the straw we needed to make the show area and our booths functional again! They were well prepared which meant that the show continued on Sunday but with a new look underfoot!

Now comes the weird part. I still had fun! I really enjoy Texas art fairs and it's because I find the people to just be really nice. Add to that a wonderful artist party on Friday night, lots of good friends at the show, great times outside of the show, and it all adds up to a positive experience, even with the rain and the flu problems in the area. A side note - the show used one of my images (a ring) on their website and I was surprised how many people mentioned seeing it!

Please let this be the worst weather we all encounter at shows this year! If everything else is going to be tough, at least give us good weather!