When It Rains, It Pours.

Christmas Day the driveway was covered with about 5" of ice and snow. The day after Christmas the temperatures started to rise and all the ice started melting, creating a surface that is slippier than any I have ever known. Then the fog rolled in, followed by horrendous downpours during some pretty strong thunderstorms.

This is DECEMBER! In Illinois, south of Chicago, where we should be in the 20's and snowy. We were subzero then snow, then sleet and ice, then rain and storms. So this week we experienced all four seasons...kind of.

The rain seemed never-ending. Not only does it cause all the snow to dissolve and create puddles and massive flooding in some areas, it fills up my duct work. Our house is on a floating slab and the heating ducts are under the house, in the ground. This was the way they did it in the 60's when the house was built. So seepage fills the duct work, and then when the furnace kicks on, it causes the water to slosh and roll around, at times splashing out of the vents and onto the floor.

This is what woke me up at 3am, so I turned the thermostat down in the hopes it would shut the furnace off and give me peace and quiet so I could sleep. Didn't happen; the furnace didn't shut off. Seemed odd since it was about 55 outside at the time and it was quite warm in the house. So, I woke my husband up and asked him to check it out. He had to shut the furnace off completely.

Later this morning, after we were finally able to get some sleep, what with the rumbling in the floor from water sloshing in the duct work and the rumbles outside from the thunderstorm, my son checked the furnace and discovered that the hot surface ignitor was malfunctioning. That explained why the furnace wouldn't shut down last night and why the blower was at such a high speed and caused the water to really slosh around.

So, we spent all morning and part of the afternoon trying to find someplace that had the part for the furnace. The problem we had was that it's an American Standard furnace and they are proprietary and not many supply houses (that are open on Saturday) carry the part we needed. Finally, after a dozen or so phone calls, and running to 4 different supply houses in 3 different towns, we found the one we needed. Then it was back home and put it in. Just in time too, since they are calling for colder weather tomorrow.

We were lucky on several counts with this. First of all, the temperature today was close to 65 and second, a friend of my husband was finally able to locate the part for us. It was either a coincidence or pure luck that this friend also called my husband for help with a refrigeration job that he was on at the same time we were looking for this part. That was when he asked him if he knew anyone that might have it. Either way, everything worked out for everyone.

Memory Wire Is Wonderful!!

I discovered memory wire a few weeks ago and finally got around to creating with it. I love it! No more worrying about how long the bracelet is; a few loops and it's one size fits all.

What I really like about it is the fact that there is no need for crimps or clasps. I started out with the intention of using the little silverplate balls that get glued to the end of the memory wire, but didn't feel confident that they would hold, so I opted for turning the wire at the end. This also gives the possibility of having a charm added to the loop for an added accent.

I just listed two bracelets made with the memory wire along with another bracelet made with 49 strand beading wire, toggle clasp, and crimps.

Check them out:

Cloissone and pearl bracelet made with silverplate memory wire - 3 full loops

Cobalt cloissone and druk bead bracelet made with beading wire and silverplate toggle clasp

Semi-precious fluorite bracelet and earrings made with silverplate memory wire - 2 loops

Yes Virginia, There Really IS A Silver Lining

Of all days, yesterday was not the day for one more thing to hit the fan, literally.
Busy as all get out at work, job bids due left and right, phone ringing off the hook, barely time to, well, visit my "aunt".

Then, when I finally get out of the office at 4pm, looking forward to getting home and putting my feet up, I'm driving home and my truck starts smelling hot. The temp gauge was normal but the battery gauge was low, then the temp gauge started dropping and the battery gauge started increasing. I was sitting in traffic, saw steam swirling in front of me but thought it was the exhaust from the truck in front of me. All this time I was smelling what I can only describe as burnt celery. The celery and hot smell stopped, or diminished, once traffic started moving again. I pulled over, looked around my truck, didn't see anything unsual so I continued on my journey home.

I must have driven another 3 miles when the hot odor came back. When I stopped for a red light, the steam swirling in front of me seemed to be originating from the sides of the hood, then the gauges started acting goofy again. I still had heat and nothing seemed to be drastically out of line so I kept on keeping on.

Another half mile or so and I'm sitting on the I55 overpass in traffic, waiting for the light to change. Then it hit me, along with the most horrible smell like burnt celery, along with the puffing steam coming out from under my hood. I was overheating! It's 16F with a windchill of almost zero, and I'm overheating! I didn't want to be the traffic report that has Weber
Rd backed up for miles because of a breakdown in the right lane on the 2-lane overpass, so I pulled off in the Gas City and called my husband. He came up there, opened the hood, and lo and behold, something had sprayed all over the engine compartment, most likely antifreeze. That was the burnt celery odor. I went into the Gas City to get antifreeze and water, and he refilled the radiator and drove my truck home while I drove his. Once home, he had more light and was able to determine that the water pump had blown a seal. (visualize $$$ flying away)

Now for the silver lining...We knew we had the pump replaced about 5 years ago while vacationing in St Louis. Upon looking through the book in the glovebox where we stashed all the repair and maintenance receipts and old user manuals for non-existent computer backup tape drives (don't ask LOL), the receipt for the water pump was no where to be found. Ok, so we would probably end up buying one as opposed to taking advantage of the lifetime warranty that was on this one.

Today he called the parts place in St Louis where we bought the water pump. Using our old cell phone number and the vehicle info, they were able to locate the original sale information. They gave my husband a number to call, and we are now getting a FREE replacement for the water pump. YIPPEE!! Now the only thing left to do is hope for warmer weather on Saturday so he can change it in the garage without freezing his patootie off. But my son and a friend of ours will try to acquire a small portable heater for the day so he has some heat in there.

All this after we just put close to $900 in the truck for front end work! But it's my baby, and even tho it's 10 years old, I still won't part with it.

I think I'll make cookies Saturday!

Variation On A Theme

Every Christmas for the last 10 years or so, my sister and brother and I, and our spouses, have had a grab bag in lieu of buying gifts for everyone. We started out by drawing names and buying a gift for the person whose name we picked. There weren't too many rules, just that you couldn't pick yourself or your spouse, and started with a maximum of $20 to spend on the gift. We have brought the max up to $25 now, and have made changes to the way the gifts are selected.

For the first few years we wrote our name on a piece of paper, and a list of 3 things that we would like. This made it easy, but not challenging. Then we decided to write our name on a piece of paper and a single theme for the gift, such as food, liqour, something warm, etc. The possibilities were endless. One year we made a rule that no gift cards, since that was too easy.

One year we had one rule...the gift had to be a "gag" gift. That was the last year for that one!

This year, my sister, not I, came up with an idea for gifts..."Make it or bake it". Since not everyone in the grab bag is the creative or cooking type, I added that it could be something that was handmade as opposed to being mass produced. This could be something from a kiosk in the mall, which there are no shortage of but many of the items are handmade. There are also a lot of Christmas craft fairs at the different schools, churches, and park districts in the area. I added that there were numerous kits to be had at Michaels, Joann Fabrics, etc., that even the guys could create from!

The funny part of the suggestion when it was announced after Thanksgiving dinner as we always do, was they all that it was my idea! I plan on making everyone a little something, such as a key chain or phone charm, but I am still contemplating what I will make my intended recipient.
Sorry, I can't reveal who it is, that has to remain a secret until Christmas Day. But my sister usually figures out who has who by process of elimination, and she only needs to know who she has to do this, although now that my son and nieces and nephews are getting older and have jobs and will be involved with the grab bag, I have a feeling it won't be so easy to figure out who has who!

It will be interesting to see what everyone comes up with for their gift. Almost makes me feel like a little kid anticipating what Santa might leave under the tree!

New Listings Today

I finally got the time and energy to make more accessories and listed them this evening in my etsy store.


Now I realize that I listed a few new items 2 weeks ago and never mentioned it in my blog! Shame on me!


Ok, here's the preview:


This is the Lime Twist Charm fob.

It can be seen at:

My Etsy Store - Accessories




This is the Crystal Charm fob.

It can be seen at:

My Etsy Store - Accessories









This is the multi-color beaded charm fob.

View this at:

My Etsy Store- Accessories

The previous listings that I never wrote about here were for two key chains, and a beautiful crystal and glass pearl necklace.





This beautiful necklace would be stunning with a little black dress for a holiday party or that New Year's Eve event.

See it at:
My Etsy Store - Necklaces



Two keychains that are also in my store can be viewed here:

Luck of the Irish Keychain
My Etsy Store - Accessories

A pink and blue beaded keychain
My Etsy Store - Accessories

If you see something in my shop and you would like it in different colors, please convo me on Etsy or email me at rukar@karuss.com and I will work with you on your request and create a custom listing for you.

Time To Get Back To Business

I've been slacking off. Not only has it been almost a week since my last post, but I haven't done any creating in a week. I'm not sure if I was on the verge of getting sick or if I was just having an uninspirational week.

Anyway, last week was a really exhasperating week at work, one thing after another went bonkers, starting with no power all day on Monday, no phones Thursday morning, no phones all day Friday, plus my wide-format printer decided to crap out on me Friday.

My husband and I decided on Friday afternoon to run away for the weekend. We had a blast! Went about 2 hours north of home, and holed up in a cozy suite for the weekend. Saturday morning we went out for breakfast and found a bead shop nearby that had beautiful beads from Botswana, Africa, and many other exotic locations. I also found the gunmetal findings that I've been hunting for.

If you're in Illinois or Southern Wisconsin, this is a great bead shop to stop at. Their website is http://www.beadsandreeds.com and they are located in Rockford IL, right on State St, near the Cherry Valley area. The sweetest lady runs the shop and they not only have beads and findings, but also hemp craft items, display products, classes, and handmade jewelry for sale. I have a feeling we will be taking more trips there in the future. The beads I found there are unlike any I've seen before. They have the standards and also some really unique items.

I am hoping work will be less tedious this week so that I have energy when I get home to create more jewelry and accessories for my shop. I have so many beautiful beads to work with, I know that once I get started, I'll be on a roll. So keep your eyes open for new items in my shop real soon! I will post the new items here so if you subscribe to my feed or blog updates, you'll be the first to know about them!

Blog To Be Named Later

Have you ever stopped to consider how much we are taxed in America? We work and get paid for working. That pay is taxed. Federal Income Tax, State Income Tax, and in some cases, Local taxes. Then we take our meager remainder after taxes and pay our every day living expenses. Housing, utilities, medical, groceries, etc. Many if not all of these expenses are taxed separately. We pay sales tax at the grocery store when we spend our already taxed money for groceries and other items we need for our homes and families. We buy a car, we pay sales tax and use tax, sometimes exise tax. It depends where you live as to the amount of taxes you are subject to.

Many generations ago, there was a revolution to protest "taxation without representation". Now we have taxation WITH representation. The representation by our elected officials who set up laws that determine how much tax we are to pay, and on what, and to whom.

All this was instigated by my wondering why, when I pay tax on the materials and supplies that I buy to make my jewelry and accessories, do I have to charge and then pay tax on anything I sell to residents of my state. Didn't I already pay tax on the components of the item that I created and then sold? If you think about it, when I buy supplies at say, my local Michaels, I pay 8% sales tax on my purchases. Then, when I sell it to someone in my state, I have to charge them 7% sales tax, and then file and submit that tax to the state. So isn't that like taxing the same thing twice? Oh, I know that the tax is based on my sell price, and the tax I already paid was on the cost of the components. So shouldn't the tax on the sold item be the difference? Take for instance, I sell something for $1, which consists of materials that cost me 35 cents. The tax on the 35 cents was based on the cost of the materials, so shouldn't the tax I charge on the completed item be on the amount that is the difference of the sell price and the materials cost? I doubt it works that way but it sure is something to think about.

Next thing ya know, blogs will be taxed under Entertainment Tax!

Technology Failures Part 2

It isn't even Friday yet and already I'm experiencing technology failures.

This morning I wanted to add some info to my web sites, and when I got into the editor to make the changes and tried to update, the changes disappeared! No broken icon, no empty text box, NOTHING! just POOF!!

So I headed over to the trouble ticket place and submitted yet another request for help. I'm sure they're starting to get tired of hearing from me, but I'm tired of not being able to do what they promised me that I could do when I forked over the bucks to let them host my webs. I am seriously considering a move to another host.

That isn't an option I want to resort to, it's a lot of work to get a new site set up. I have this one the way I want it, but if I am going to be met with site issues everytime I try to do something, it tends to make me want to start somewhere else.

The hosting site I use now has a lot of great features, when they work. I could have my jewelry store on my own web, with a shopping cart, checkout, catalog, etc., but I am really reluctant to do that considering all the server issues it has. I don't want to worry that their server in Denver is going to take a poop and my site will be inaccessible by everyone except a small group of people in the Pacific Northwest. Right now the host site has an issue with Sprint/Nextel and another network that I have never heard of. There is a block on traffic between the two so anyone on the other side of the Sprint connection is unable to access email, web sites, etc. if they reside on my hosts server.

I am really in a quandry. I will wait til I hear back from tech support to find out what is going on. My host contract comes up for renewal in March, so if things don't improve before then, I guess I will have to bite the bullet and move my webs.

Makes me miss the old days when all you would do to advertise your wares was put handwritten notes on the windshields of cars in the local grocery store lot.

Time For A Breather

Whew! It's now 3:26 pm here in cool and cloudy Plainfield IL, at the office. Love that little Weatherbug icon in my systray, I can look at it and know what the temperature is without walking outside. Right now it's 43 but the forecast says it is going to drop, then by Friday be in the 60's! This is goofy, no wonder so many people are sick. Nobody knows how to dress so either you're overdressed and sweat your butt off, then get chilled; or you are underdressed and get chilled right off the bat! All I can say is.....LAYERS LAYERS LAYERS. It's easier to take something off if you're too warm (within reason of course), but you can hardly put something on to warm up if you don't have it with you to begin with!

Anyway, I finished what I hope is the work I had for the day and needed some time to regroup before I hit the rush hour traffic on my way home.

I put in another order for some odds & ends with Fire Mountain, among which are jewelry boxes. Have to get ready for the holidays. I can feel those sales ringing up for holiday gift giving.

While I was eating my lunch today, I decided to do some rearranging in my shop. Moved everything that was $10 or less to a special category, obviously named "Ten Dollars and Under". Then did some changing of gallery pictures so different ones were shown on the first view. Trying to see if a change of scenery will spark more interest, altho I have to say I was suprised at the amount of views I have received. I see a lot of new views when I post in Twitter about new listings. Every little bit helps!

Today I submitted my shop url to google search and msn search. Let's see if this brings in any new interest. It all depends if their search engines decide to crawl my url or not. I'm keeping my toes crossed...can't cross my fingers or I wouldn't be able to type...or bead!

Tonight I am going to see if my son will go with me to Michael's so I can find some silk thread. I have some Crystazzi pearls and I want to try my hand at stringing and knotting pearls. Wish me luck!!

New Listing - Swarovski Crystal Earrings---GORGEOUS!

OH! I just love the way these earrings turned out! They are so pretty, I'm tempted to keep them for myself. I just listed them on my Etsy shop so go take a look.
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16600298

These would go great with the Swarovski Crystal bracelet that is already there.

If you buy both, mention that you saw my blog, and I will give you a 10% discount!

As always, **FREE SHIPPING - FIRST CLASS MAIL TO U.S. ADDRESSES ONLY**

New Listings on Etsy...More To Come

Just listed a new bracelet, and an eyeglass chain on Etsy.

Both are made with primarily Czech glass beads.

The creative juices are flowing and will have more listed by the end of the weekend.

I'm Finally In A Treasury!!

I answered a post in Etsy forums for pink, and it got me a spot in a Treasury West Treasury!

The link is http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list_west.php?room_id=29685

Here is a part of the listing (a screenshot):

I Saw The Great Pumpkin!!

Halloween has always been an interesting time of year. The colors are changing, the air gets crisp, and the Great Pumpkin comes to life.

Today my family and I went to a local pumpkin patch for the afternoon. The name of it is Siegel's Cottonwood Farms, and it is in Crest Hill IL on Weber Road. This is an awesome place for families to spend an afternoon.

It was a beautiful day, a little cool but pleasant enough to spend the day walking among nature and all it has to offer.

I have been to other pumpkin patches but this one really has a lot of activities for haunters of all ages. There is a petting zoo, a hayrack ride, train ride, pony rides, two haunted houses, two corn mazes, and even a place where you can pan for gems or fossils.

We tried the gem search and found a couple of pretty good pieces of what appears to be quartz, carnelian, agate, and several smaller pieces of peridot and other stones that we haven't yet identified Oh yes, and plenty of "fools gold".

The hayrack ride was fun, lasting about a half hour and there is even a spot where you can get off and pick your own pumpkin.

The haunted house was a walking venture, with lots of scary scenes and noises. There is also another larger haunted house that we didn't get to since it doesn't open until 7pm. That's the Statesville Haunted Prison, named for the nearby prison. I'm not sure I have the guts to go thru that one tho.

There are a displays of farm animals: a mama cow and her calf, geese, chickens, ducks, and pigs. The ducks were interesting, especially the one that would "laugh" whenever I said "AFLAC" to it. There were about 6 in the cage but this one was the only one that reacted.

The farm has a website where you can see all the activities and times of operation.

http://www.ourpumpkinfarm.com/

No, I am not a paid advertiser, I just live in the area and finally found the time to go there. I am so glad we did. The pumpkin my son's girlfriend picked out is in my front window, and it's a real beauty. My son's is still on the kitchen table, he has an intricate design he plans on carving into it and said it will take him a day or two to complete.

This was a much better way to spend the day instead of sitting inside and playing on the computer or watching tv....or doing laundry hehehe.

Is It The Maturity Factor, Or Is It Sheer Exhaustion?

Have you ever been driving somewhere that you go to regularly, such as work, and took your normal route, but for some unknown reason the scenery didn't look familiar? Did you think you missed a turn, or turned at the wrong spot? A cold chill runs up the spine because you're thinking you have to turn around and figure out where you are.

This happened to me this morning. As I was driving to work, I was thinking of some new jewelry design and calculating what I need to complete it. I mechanically made the necessary turns, but after making the third one, the landscape looked strange, or different. Granted, it was dark, and I was a bit on the tired side, but still, I really thought I missed my turn. Panic gripped me for a moment as I tried to figure out WHICH turn I missed. I am driving thru a heavily industrial area with a lot of sub-lots and half roads and not really sure what went to where. All of a sudden I saw the familiar curve in the road that tells me the next corner is a sharp right turn, and I felt better.

I hate when that happens!

THANK GOD IT'S FRIDAY!!

Thought Processes That Go BUMP In The Night

Never fails, I get ideas of new designs when I am no where near my work area. I'm either at work, driving, at the store, or sleeping. It can be very difficult to convey in words the idea I have. I'm not good at sketching so drawing the idea out would only complicate things. I have a mental image of my work table. I know what I have and pretty much how much. I have already put my inventory in my PDA so that I have it when I am away from home. There's no telling when I might be in a supply store area and they advertise a big "SALE" in their window. At least this way I can see what I have already and what I might be low on. The only problem I have, is that I fail to regularly sync my PDA with the PC or laptop, so my list is often not up to date.

Ok, getting back to the flashes of creativity that whiz across my mind at the most inopportune times. I have decided that I will attempt, (notice I said "attempt"), to photograph every supply I buy and insert the pictures in the database I built to keep everything organized. This way, at least I will have the image to look at and possibly cut and paste my ideas, even if just the single item, but more visual than just words to remember later. Hopefully, by having an image of say, an 8mm Swarovski bicone in lt. siam and a ruby and black lampwork bead, and silver spacers, I can visualize my design, and hopefully remember what it was that I wanted to do with them. I'm not saying I have memory issues, it's just that I get so many ideas when I can't work them out right away. I need something more than just a few words on a scrap of paper to remember the original idea.

If anyone has a proven method that they use to overcome these "creativity crashes", feel free to post them. I'm sure there are many out there that have this same problem that could benefit.

Monday Technology Quirks - Very Frustrating!

So it's Monday. Not a holiday for me, I have to be at work. Not sure what I will accomplish. Banks are closed, no mail, half of our job sites are closed down for the holiday, yet here I sit.

I had a brainstorm to create and upload a page to the sub-domain I created last week on our home site. Not being much with raw html code, I thought I did pretty good for a simple and basic page. Even did the background color, text color, etc. Ok, next step is to ftp it to the server. No problem. I even remembered my ftp username and password!! Wow, that's an accomplishment for me, since I have so many different logins and passwords for the many sites, programs, and other access points that I use. I've been meaning to create a wallet of all my logins so that I have them. Never fails, I try to login to one of my suppliers and I can't remember my login, then have to remember which email address I used to register so they can send me my login. Ok, I digress.

I was happy to see that the page I had just coded loaded and displayed as best as I can expect, considering I didn't do anything fancy, with the exception of adding my etsy mini. Now, when I signed up with the hosting server, I was given $75 in free google adwords. I figured I might as well use them, so I proceeded to login to my account (yep, remembered the login, this time!). Lo and behold, the server is DOWN! I managed to access the support page, of course THAT isn't down. It appears that their main server had a nervous breakdown and they are "working" on getting things up and running, but no word on how long it will take. Great! I get my site online, have it referring to my etsy site, and nobody will find it because I can't setup the adwords.

I am seriously considering moving my web to another host, but not sure which one is good. I like yahoo but it can be quite costly. But I guess you get what you pay for, huh?

If anyone has any suggestion for a web host, please, let me know! I am currently on powweb. I like it, there are a lot of features that make it easy for someone who hasn't kept up with her html coding that was learned many years ago, (Can't even do CSS, XHTML, or any of the other ones, just basic HTML), but what good is it if it's always down?

Oh, and if you want to check out the new page, it's at http://rukar.karuss.com/

Happy Monday!

NOT!!!!!

Found A New Bead Store!

Today I was introduced to a new bead store. I was on a quest with my son's girlfriend to find a bead so we could fix her bracelet. She has a Lia Sophia bracelet, a 3-strand beaded bracelet with black beads, gunmetal ball end eye pins and gunmetal clasp. The bead we needed was a 10mm faceted Czech bead. None of my usual places carried this bead in 10mm. Plenty of 8mm and 12mm, but no 10mm. After making stops at 3 places, she mentioned that there was a bead shop near her house which is a few towns over. Since we were near there, we decided to check it out. Voila!!! We no sooner walked in the door than her sharp eyes spotted the beads in a drawer of a display unit. My eyes were still adjusting to the change in the lighting, but I could see it would do the job. It was a Swarovski, and the bracelet was made with Czech, but the only difference we could see was the price. I'm sure a Czech glass bead would have cost less, but having none to be found, this was our best choice. The new bead is the one at the top center, next to one of the originals. (You can see that it is unattached to the rest.)

The next leg of my quest was locating the gunmetal findings, which we didn't see at any of our previous stops, and the bead shop only carried a few findings, earring and necklace components.

So, when we got back home, I fired up my laptop, made a pot of coffee (3rd one today and it was only 2:30pm), and proceeded to check out all my online sources. Very few of them carry the gunmetal head/eye pins and/or the wire, but the hard part was finding the ball end headpin. After searching through all the jewelry supply sites that I could find, I remembered that there were a few stores on etsy that had supplies. After flipping through a few pages of my search results, I finally found a source for my headpins. The picture was very clear, and the color was right on to what we needed. So I ordered, paid and already got my response from the seller that they will be mailed out on Monday. Being that Monday is a holiday, I anticipate not getting them until Friday, which will be perfect since I don't get much bead work done during the week.

All in all it was a good day. I had an enjoyable afternoon with my son's girlfriend as we had our fun in the craft stores, discovered a new bead store that I intended to get back to on occasion, and I found everything I will need to put her bracelet back together. Oh, and yes, I did buy more beads at the new bead store. Watch for the new items in my shop in the next few weeks.

New Jewelry Listings Today

The mistress has been busy. She made four new jewelry creations last night, but managed to find time to spend with me of course!

Her new items are necklace and earring sets, bracelet and earring sets, and a Swarovski crystal bracelet that I think would look "mahvelous" on ME for a collar! I suggested that, but she just chuckled. Oh well, can't fault me for trying!

Check them out:

This is the Swarovski crystal bracelet.

Don't you think it should be on my neck?

I do.

This is the amber and glass bead necklace and earring set.

Too big for me but I'll bet it would make a nice harness for the big dog that lives behind us. This beauty is 29" long!

Now this is a real beauty! What lady wouldn't like this for an special evening out, like Anniversary dinner, or New Years Eve.

This one is 18" long.

This is the ruby red and black bead bracelet/earring set.

If I lose weight, this bracelet would probably fit me.

naaaa, I like to eat too much!

You can see these and others at her Etsy shop. Just click the link on the side bar or go to http://designsbyrukar.etsy.com/

Mystery Stones

Ok, I'm on flickr now, mainly to store pictures for etsy so if I have them ready but don't list, I can always get them and do it at work when I'm bored LOL

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rukar/

Right now it's just pics of some stones that I was asking others on etsy to help identify. They told me they are carnelian, a type of agate. All I know is they were part of a necklace that my mom had. She got it from a lady she used to work with who got it when she was in Africa, sometime around the early to mid 80's My niece broke it when she was about 2 (she's 17 now), so I know the stones are at least 20 years old or more. She had it when my son was small and he is 27 now.

Carnelian is supposed to have powers, healing, stuff like that. I asked my friend Laurie what she thinks of them, she knows a lot about spiritual things.

I don't know what to do with them. They're too heavy for earrings or a bracelet, and I dont have enough to make a necklace with them. I don't know if I should try to sell them or what. I'M SO CONFUSED!!!

Our First Sale!

We did it! We made our first sale in our Etsy shop. It was the turquoise earrings, which we called "Mysterious Sparkle Earrings". It is very exciting to make a sale, and also very encouraging.

Last night mistress and master went to their favorite craft supply store and pretty much depleted the gift cards that the mistress received for her birthday. Watch for some new sparkly and "pearly" creations in the near future. They also bought more storage containers, which were needed DESPERATELY! Unfortunately, I cannot open them as easily as I could the other boxes, so that means the only way I get to play with beads is if they are open or there are some out on the bead boards. Altho mistress seems to be wise to me now!

below: Catscan


p.s. How do you like this font? Does it make my ears look big? ;)

Happy Monday!

Happy Monday everyone! This was a bit of a busy weekend. Friday was the mistress' birthday so the master and the son and girlfriend showered her with gifts on Friday evening. Her son gave her a gift card to her favorite craft supply store, and the son's girlfriend gave her an assortment of glass and lampwork beads and other findings for making new jewelry. I don't have to tell you that my mistress was ecstatic! Of course the master bought her a new bottle of her favorite cologne - Ici. mmmmm sure smells goooooooooooood!

Saturday we spent the day doing the usual weekend things like laundry, cleaning, etc. Later in the day the mistress' mom and sister came over for pizza and birthday cake. They also gave her an assortment of jewelry making supplies and another gift card for her favorite craft supply store.

I did my usual prancing for attention, and all I heard was how FAT I had gotten since they last saw me. harumph!

Anyway, stay tuned for more great jewelry creations in the near future. My mistress was busy creating on Sunday and I'm sure by the end of the week she will have more items in her Etsy shop to choose from. I know she got some lampwork beads, and more glass beads in different colors; and her order of Swarovski crystals was delivered Friday so I know there will be some new things with those. The crystals are my personal favorite!

Just an afterthought, but I guess I could introduce my mistress and master and the son. I'll do another post and show you a picture of them. First I have to find the folder with the pictures in it. I know where the folder is with MY pictures in it, but I haven't found the folder with people pictures. I'll look for it after one of my naps. The rain keeps the birds from flying around my window, so I have nothing to watch---I might as well sleep!
psssst....sure wish I had thumbs, then I could make myself a beaded collar! hehehe

The Beginning

Hi there and welcome to my blog.
I am a grey Tabby named Missy Dawg (yes, DAWG), and the best estimates are that I am around 2 years old (probably born in the summer of 2006). I was saved from a life on the streets when I walked into the yard of my owners (or should I say STAFF?) last year around this time. It was September 21, 2007 to be exact. They tried to get me inside but I was timid at first, although I did enjoy the tuna and other treats they would leave me on the hottub cover every day.

What they didn't know was that I was "with kittens" and that was probably why my previous owners dumped me. I didn't look too bad, not too skinny, fur was clean, and I did not have any fleas! I think I was on my own for about 3 days before I settled in where I am now.

One day, not sure when, but I lost my kittens. The master of the house convinced me to let him check me out and he realized that something wasn't quite right. When the mistress of the house came home from work, they took me to the vet and he told them that I had a growth on one of my ovaries that caused the miscarriage and was also the source of an infection. This is when they decided that I belonged to them and gave me my name. Mistress called me "Missy", but master called me "Dawwwg" (he's from Missouri so he drug out the ww sound), hence the name "Missy Dawg". I don't answer to either! I was given medicine for a week, then went back to the vet and was "fixed". Didn't know I was broke, but I sure felt a lot better. I was getting tired of all those late nights of prowling around the house and howling and doing the hoochie dance. The hoochie dance is what the mistress of the house called it. I did sneak out once and they were afraid I would get hurt, but I realized how good I had it and came right back. I learned my lesson, never wandered away after that, not even when they let me outside while they worked in the yard. It was all day and I just couldn't resist, the tree was there and the birds were in it singing their little hearts out. They were calling to ME! I climbed the tree, but discovered I couldn't get down the same way, so the mistress and master's son got a ladder and rescued me. He's my HERO!
The yard was very enjoyable for me, there were many bird feeders, so you know what that means! Yep! The birds were everywhere. Pretty yellow finches, chatty sparrows, colorful wrens, and the occasional bluejay. The jays weren't very cordial, they would chase me away all the time if I got near the other birds. I didn't want to hurt them, I just wanted to see what they smelled like, maybe take a little taste. But I had no intentions of hurting them.

Anyway, now I just lay around the house and seem to be the source of amusement for anyone that is there. I recently decided that I was going to be involved in the daily activities of everyone, even though they don't seem to want me involved. I help the master and the son play their World of Warcraft game, and I help the mistress making her jewelry. Well I don't actually DO those things, I just pretend but I do sit in the middle of things and act like I know what is going on. It's fun to chase the pretty beads and shiny crystals, they sparkle and glitter and the mistress even plays with me when I knock them off her work table! At least I THINK she's playing. hmmmmm