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Space and other oddities

Today is a watershed day both personally and for mankind.

This morning Nick and I went to the lawyer, signed a bunch of paperwork and left a large check behind to bring to an end our struggles with debt. Starting now, our money is our own and we can make decisions that will begin to construct the rest of our lives – rather than constantly trying to get ahead of the curve. This is an all round good thing, but still stressful and very guilt inducing. Very. I know this is totally a first world problem, but it’s still difficult.

For mankind, today is the end of an era of space flight. Atlantis STS-135 has taken its last flight. I’m sad that our country has abandoned space. Russia and China will step in, but I think the United States’ willingness to walk away from leadership in space travel/exploration is just one more step towards the end of the US as a global power. One more link in the chain that will lead the United States to be just another voice in a world that is ruled by China.

Overall, I’m tired. I’m tired of the stress of our personal crap and I’m tired in general.

The good news is that despite my malaise, I’ve updated my Etsy Shop with lots of new stuff and there’ll be more new stuff soon. I’ve been getting in my bead shipments, so there’s more purple and amber on the way!

Now, it’s time for lunch and perhaps a short nap. I feel like I’ve run a marathon today. Buh.

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On our way

So, the Knoxville con was really fun and we made a bigger percentage of our table fee than we did at Heroes – which I’ll take as VICTORY! We’re going to try to do a couple more small cons this year. Time will tell.

We had our consultation with a bankruptcy lawyer on Monday. He was very nice and he thinks there should be no problem doing the deed and having a clean slate. I hate to have to let go of our Kroger card and the AmEx, but there’s no way around it. Too bad, so sad. Meh. We’ll have almost $1k a month free to start a REAL savings account and that’s what we plan to do. We’ll also bump up the amount going to the 401k. In a couple of years we’ll start up an investment account as well. We are looking forward to starting fresh and we will be squirrelling away money right and left. This is our chance to get a grip on our financial future and we are not going to squander it.

Hmm, what else? Well, apparently Nick pulled a tendon at the boil on Saturday. His right arm (thank gods) has been very painful – even to the point of keeping him awake at night. :( Even though it’s his right arm and he’s left handed, the comic is on hiatus because he uses the mouse RIGHT handed and it’s painful to use the computer for extended periods. I’ve had my own bullshit going on. I’m still having a period with the Mirena. As I’ve said before, with my luck, I’ll be the one in a hundred that continues to have periods with this thing. Godsdammit. I just can’t win when it comes to the Vile Organ.

I need to put the coasters up on Etsy. They are not going to work for cons, but hopefully they’ll work there. Nick wants me to make some comics based ones to try at cons so that’s the next step. I also think that making them personalised will be a great selling point. Who wouldn’t want a coaster set of their precious babies for the bargain price of $25? I figure I’ll sell the regular sets for $20 and the custom ones for $25. That is pretty good, too, since they are Italian tile and all. I got a commission for a bracelet and earrings from the Knoxville con. I’ve got to go to ye olde Bead Shoppe today and see if she has what I’m looking for. I really like doing commissions. It gives me some sort of direction! I’ve always been more of a make-it-happen girl than a dream-stuff-up girl.

It appears that Nick will be working a LOT more for the foreseeable future, so cons may have to be off the table. I tell you what, though, we WILL get out to San Francisco this fall, dammit.

Lots of stuff going on. LOTS. Just nothing really exciting. In any case, changes are a-comin’. Here we GO!

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Referrals, Knoxville con and more!

I love digging through referrals. Let’s see what weirdness awaits us this time:
– Someone from the Securities and Exchange Dept. in D.C. perusing my Smashed Cauliflower recipe.
– Lots of recipe hits, as usual. Is Italian Chili that hard? Man! Tons of hits.
– A google.de hit for Nina Hartley.
– Cox in Las Vegas! Hi, Heather!! :)
– COOL! Someone in Derio, Pais Vasco Spain translated a post into Spanish with Google translate! It seems to work VERY well! Look at my site in Spanish.
– Lots of Budget, Bibi Chen, Neat Receipts and Atala, as usual.
– The obligatory Dragon*Con sucks and Heroes hits.
– Rendi’s comment seems to lead many searches for her to my blog. Meh!
– And last, someone from Comcast biz office is very interested in my blog, apparently.

We will be in Knoxville for a small con this weekend, the Knoxville Comics and Anime Con. I hope it’s a good show. The tables are pricey for a small show and this is a test to see if it’s worth it. My guess: probably not. We shall see.
Continue reading “Referrals, Knoxville con and more!”

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Heroes Con 2011

What an awesome con! We <3 Heroes! This year was so fun and so exhausting. Whew!

First off, BIG shout outs to Dave for the room and Miracole & Chris for being FAB roomies! Let's do it again next year, shall we?

The load in this year was SO much better than last year. We drove right up to the gate that was 20ft from our table. SWEET! Our block had some awesome artists in it! We sat next to Michael Watkins (and Brynn, his lady and an artist in her own right), Christian Sager, Eric Steiner and Chrissie Zullo amongst others. GREAT BUNCH!

Saturday night was a blast. We descended upon Rock Bottom brew pub with a group of 11 nerds which included Mike Elrod, John Bintz, Eric Menge, Brittany Michel and the rest of the posse.

We had dinner with the lovely Echo Chernik and family on Sunday night. It’s always great to see Echo, but a rare treat to hang with the whole clan! Hugs to Lazarus and the girls!

The show was pretty busy but we’re so new, we don’t usually sell much. The Duo 280 on the table got more attention than the comics, sadly. Some jerk actually said, “Oh, wow! A Duo! Who cares about that crap (indicates the comics) when you’ve got this!” Fortunately for him, he moved along quickly when I gave him the Stank Eye. Fucker. Anyway, we don’t do shows for the money at this point, we do them to meet people and get some recognition. I think the Duo will have to go. It draws people to the table, but it also distracts from the comics. We’re gonna try it again at the next con then decide.

My jewelry did ok. Apparently I was one of only a handful of jewelry vendors at the con. I sold more jewelry than Nick did comics, which does not please me. But money is money. The coasters did not sell because the freaky lights in the convention hall made the polyurethane look yellow. I knew as soon as I unpacked them that they wouldn’t sell. They looked hideous in that lighting. Meh. They look FINE in normal lighting, you can’t see the poly or the decals. I’ll have to find another way to make them.

I’ll have to ramp up jewelry production for the Knoxville con. It’s probably the only way we’ll make a buck. We have low expectations for Knoxville.

Nick will have pix up at some point.

We did the NASCAR Museum on Monday before coming back. It was OK. Seeing the old cars was great, but the tech they tried to implement was lame. At $19.99 a pop, I think it’s pretty pricey for what you get, but I’m glad they are preserving the history of NASCAR nonetheless.

It was again a wonderful con and we can’t wait for next year. :D

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Inspiration

Like the rest of humanity, I watched the Final Oprah Winfrey Show yesterday. I know she gets lots of shit for being preachy, etc., and yesterday was no exception, but I tell you this: the Gospel According to Oprah is pretty spot on.

Anyway, after watching the show I feel the need to publicly acknowledge my friends who put up with me on a daily basis.

I hear you.
I value you.
I love you.

I know I don’t act like it half the time, but I *do* listen. I really do try to understand wacky ideas that are put forth by my more, um, unusual friends. I try not to poke the FB n00bs with a stick, but sometimes, it’s just too easy and needs to be done. I’m also not angry all the time. Irritated, perhaps, but don’t confuse that with anger. I really don’t waste energy on being angry – I swear! I can write a good rant, though, can’t I? ;)

Anyway, all I wanted to do was tell my friends (you know who you are) that I do value all of you regardless of your politics, religion or kid factor. And I appreciate your tolerating my big mouth and even bigger opinions.

THANK YOU.