Well I did a show (Sept 17 & 18) and it was fan-freaking-tastic! I’ve never done a two-day outdoor show before so I was nervous, but then by 3pm on the first day I was running out of things to sell and Panicgirl had to jump in and sell while I furiously made shit to sell, seriously… Who knew watch parts were that appealing? Also, friends who drop by to visit and then jump in selling are beyond priceless! Thank you lady! You earned a something special when I get my new tiny people in!

When I got home that night I whipped up these awesome dudes (tiny people!)

Guess how many of them I have left? NONE! Seriously, I need to do more watch things! Luckily I have a lot of watch parts!
I’ve never had a show where I sold so much. Everyone kept saying “your prices are so reasonable” – which I guess means cheap? But then I don’t so much “make” my stuff as I do put it together, and so many of my components were either free or literally pennies a piece… but whatever, I guess I should start actually charging for my time? There was a lady across from me with lovely cameos, and her earrings were the same price as my most “expensive” necklace, but she’s an honest to goodness “bizness”, does the one of a kind, and other shows, and she did well even if I think I know where she gets her cameos and how much they cost… but I digress. So, I think we’ll bump prices a little next year, not much, cuz I still want to sell like gangbusters, but a bump across the board will do alright I think.Mainly I just like getting rid of stuff. I start not liking things after a while, and if I look at them for too long I’ll start to hate them and then I’ll just take them apart again. So better to sell it I think.

One thing I heard a lot, which I’d not heard before was “your composition is so lovely/original”, so I guess I’m doing well? I dunno, I like my things, and I like making them, and I’m still a little surprised that people want to buy them… /shrug

So yeah, in short, I’ll totally do that show again next year!

Thanks Queen West Art Crawl from Booth C41!

Next year I will have proper signage! And even MORE suitcases! BETTER suitcases! Oh yeah baby! You just wait and see!

Sorry for the blur, but I think you’ll forgive me, cuz look, it’s two (of five siblings) baby raccoons, in my kitchen! You try not laughing or screaming long enough to take a clear photo, I dare you!

So, that photo is from 2006. Five years ago, in the house we used to rent. This happened, a lot, because a) our neighborhood backed onto a valley that was full of raccoons, and b) because I used to leave the back door open, and c) that cupboard is where we kept the catfood. They would waddle in and just help themselves. Cheeky buggers.

Flash forward 5 years to last night when we heard a bang in the kitchen. As we were all upstairs, including the dogs, and the back door had been left open, we assumed it was a raccoon as we’ve been having little incursions of late.

Like last week, when I was watching a movie with two sleeping puppies on my lap, and sleeping cat by my arm, and suddenly I heard the familiar sound of kibble being eaten, save that all the kibble eaters with with me on the couch… of course it was a raccoon, in my kitchen, eating dog food. Ever since then, we’ve had a raccoon incident every day. Mostly its been on the deck, but occasionally small incursion inside too.

So when we hear a bang in the kitchen, its pretty safe to assume its the same raccoon. Down to the kitchen we go, the jug we keep the kibble in is on the floor and kibble is everywhere, and the dogs go barking insane on the deck like they usually do when they’re chasing a raccoon. We clean up and I go back upstairs, Chris makes a snack, goes to throw something in the garbage and lets out the most blood curddling scream I’ve ever hear, (in that instant I thought one of the dogs was dead). I come running down stairs and he’s laughing and everyone is ok, except there is a raccoon in our kitchen garbage can. That was the bang we heard. The wooden lid of the garbage banging shut. It trapped itself in our kitchen garbage. So I dragged the garbage to the door and opened the lids and the lard-butt scampered off and up onto our neighbors roof. Seriously, how does something so fat move so fast?

Little did I know this was the start of an Animal Kingdom night from hell!

After the raccoon incident we all settle on the bed to watch a movie. Around 12:30 I wake up, fully clothed on my bed, and say something like “OMG turn that #$%@#$% thing off!” and get up and go to the bathroom to go to bed. Where I find a giant puddle of pee… Hrm… how many times did I ask “have you taken the dogs out” only to be answered with “they don’t want to go” ? Apparently not enough times. I clean it up. Try to take the dogs out, who really don’t need to go now and so won’t come downstairs, so to bed I go. Only to be woken up around 3AM by a dog that REALLY needs to go now! So down we shamble and out he goes, all is fine. Back to bed we go. Important note: they both totally scarf down the bowl of “hairball” control catfood that I had mistakenly left in reach of the dogs.

About an hour later I get woken up because there is dog vomitting in my bed beside my head. Gee, is that a pile of “hairball” control catfood in my bed? Yes, yes it is. I get up, clean it up. Give said dog some water, and we all go back to bed.

About an hour later I get woken up because there is dog (the vomit dog) who now suddenly has to pee real bad because I was stupid enough to give her water in the middle of the night after she vomitted. Fine. So we all go down. I open the door and its suddenly all “Release the Hounds” because there is a raccoon on the deck. And the dogs are barking like maniacs in the wee hours of the morning and I’m running around in my robe trying to grab them to shut them up and I step in dog shit. In my bare feet. I managed to corral them while hopping around on one foot and wash up, and go back to bed. BUT because of the foot thing I fail to notice that vomit dog didn’t pee or poop while we were outside.

So about an hour later I get woken up because vomit dog didn’t pee or poop an hour earlier because she was distracted by the raccoon really REALLY has to go now. Leaving the other dog in bed with the bedroom door closed we make our way to the stairs where she starts barking and freaking out in my office because the cat is vomiting. Which makes the other dog trapped in the bedroom freak the fuck out because he thinks I’m killing vomit dog or something. By the way, the cat is vomitting all over my craft show display. Seriously, what is with this fucking hairball catfood? The display is all out because I have a two day craft show this weekend, so of course the cat has to vomit on it. I go in to move him, try to go back to let the dog out, and the cat moves right back onto the display to vomit MORE. So I forget about vomit dog that really REALLY needs to go and start cleaning cat vomit off my displays because as gross as it is, it’s much easier to clean fresh vomit off things than dried vomit.

By the time I get downstairs to let the dog out, she doesn’t need to go anymore, because she went in the dining room. Luckily it was just #2, which while smellier is much much easier to clean up.

So around 6:30 this morning I went back to bed and passed right out and didn’t wake up until 9AM.
Pretty sure that is the only uninterrupted sleep i got all night.

Yes, I was very late to work today.
Yes, I still love all my animals.
Yes, I still think raccoons are more cute and funny than anything.
And YES, I will be getting rid of the vomit inducing catfood!
How was your night?

In case you hadn’t noticed, this site had a redesign recently… and it’s very … GREEN … and I’m not sure how I feel about it.

Intellectually I like it. It’s green. I’m green, recycling, reusing, upcycling, all green things. Philosophically, it totally works.

But green is not my colour. I’m a Red and White girl. (Apparently I’m patriotic to the core!) And I try to shy away from colours that I personally use at home, and try to pick colours that I don’t mind for bizness stuff. And green… is not a colour that I would pick, for anything. But it works…

I’m just not sure if I like it.
But, that’s ok. Cuz it’s not me. It’s Landfill that’s green.
And getting my head around that, that my bizness is not me… that’s a mental exercise and a half!

So, for now, it’s green.
Until I just can’t take it anymore!

Sad news, but not really, but there will be no show on October 15th.
The show has been cancelled, not enough interest, which is a shame, cuz it would be such fun! Oh well, I’ve not given up, and will meet with Katie of Cardinal Rule and see what we can do.

Also, note to self, don’t restrict entrance to one group of people, wide open entrance is the only way to get enough interest. Otherwise I might as well try herding cats.

As I said, one has to laugh!

Now, back to the first week of school! Work work work! It’s alls I’s do’s I’s tells ya! Work!