Monday, October 29, 2012

The "Joys" of Halloween

I think every year I post about how much I dislike working on and around Halloween. Now, don't get me wrong, I love the holiday itself, I just don't like working on it.

You see, as a performer (or enviromental entertainer as my job description says), I have to stroll around doing magic in costume at the Venetian.  Now for 51 weeks out of the year, this is fun, and it is very obvious that I work there... but then there's that one week where everyone thinks that I'm dressed up a little too early for the Halloween festivities. People come up and ask me where they can get a costume like that, or when I need to move people out of the way of the stilt walker, they just look at me like I'm nuts, when all I'm trying to do is keep their children from being stepped on.

Now as a kid, I loved dressing up, going door to door and getting candy, and having my parents pretend that they didn't recognize me in costume.  And today, I still love giving out candy at the door (unfortunately my neighborhood doesn't have very many kids, but I keep the goodies stocked just in case). I don't dress up anymore, unless I'm going to a party. Dressing up every day kind of kills the thrill of the Halloween costume.

This year, I'm off on the actual day, but I do have to work the day before, which is slightly less bad, and soon I'll be back to working just another regular day. Hopefully more than 2 kids will come to my door this year... I give out huge handfuls of candy so I don't get stuck with so many sweets the next day.

Thursday, October 25, 2012

Submissions: Blue

Blue Sparkle Beret
Every Friday, I put together a treasury of some of my favorite items made by other etsy sellers, post it on my blog and call it the Friday's Favorites.

Because of my work schedule, we had a one week break, however last treasury, Feline Groovy, had 85 views, 27 comments, 19 clicks, 7 admirers and 2 SALES!

This week, I'm looking for BLUE items.  If you have something blue in your shop, post the link in the comments and check back tomorrow for the Friday's Favorites.

Don't have blue?  Feel free to nominate a friend's item and help spread the love.

Sunday, October 21, 2012

3 Day Gig

The gang and I at the convention. I'm in red.
For the past three days, I did a gig at the convention center, performing magic for a trade show.  The show was all printers.  Printers that printed on paper, that printed on fabric, that printed on wood, or printed on anything your heart desired. Who knew there were so many printers out there.

The gig was lots of fun. I performed with a hula hoop girl, a pole dancer, a juggler, a stilt walker and two other magicians who have been friends with me for a long time.  It was so good to see them, and since there was a lot of down time during the gig, we had plenty of opportunity to catch up with everything the others were doing, and got to make some new friends in the process.

The convention center is so huge, that even though it was an easy gig, my legs were really tired by the end of it.

Now for a much needed break... no... wait a minute... I have to do six shows at the Venetian today.

Thursday, October 18, 2012

No Submissions Today

Hi everyone,

My work schedule is incredibly busy this week/weekend, and I won't have the time to promote the Friday's Favorites treasury properly, so this week, we'll take a break from it.

Be sure to check in next Thursday for the Friday's Favorites theme and submit your item for the treasury!

Sunday, October 14, 2012

Book Review: Rule of Four

I know, I know, I've been slacking on my book reviews, but this one was so good, it gave me the kick in the pants that I needed to share it.

The Rule of Four by Ian Caldwell and Dustin Thomason was a really fun book for those that like puzzles.  It's much better than anything Dan Brown ever wrote. The puzzles in this one reference renaissance art and humanism in Florence, and it has a compelling story line with fun subplots going on around it. It combines history and mystery in a wonderful sort of way. Definitely recommended.


Synopsis: 

Princeton. Good Friday, 1999. On the eve of graduation, two friends are a hairsbreadth from solving the mysteries of the Hypnerotomachia Poliphili, a Renaissance text that has baffled scholars for centuries. Famous for its hypnotic power over those who study it, the five-hundred-year-old Hypnerotomachia may finally reveal its secrets—to Tom Sullivan, whose father was obsessed with the book, and Paul Harris, whose future depends on it.
 
As the deadline looms, research has stalled—until a vital clue is unearthed: a long-lost diary that may prove to be the key to deciphering the ancient text. But when a longtime student of the book is murdered just hours later, a chilling cycle of deaths and revelations begins—one that will force Tom and Paul into a fiery drama, spun from a book whose power and meaning have long been misunderstood.

 

Thursday, October 11, 2012

Submissions: Cats

Every Friday, I put together a treasury of some of my favorite items made by other etsy sellers, post it on my blog and call it the Friday's Favorites.

Last week's treasury, Spooky Time, had 104 views, 44 comments, 65 clicks, 33 admirers, and 2 SALES!

This week, I'm looking for CATS. If you have an item in your shop that is for cats or has cats on it, post the link in the comments, then check back tomorrow for the Friday's Favorites.

Don't have cats? Feel free to nominate a friend's item and help spread the love!

Monday, October 8, 2012

What do I do?


I opened my email today only to find out there was a case opened against my shop regarding a pattern that was not received by the buyer.  It was an epattern that I sent to her on September 17th.
This is the pattern

Since email doesn't have tracking numbers, I took a screenshot of the sent letter which shows the date and time that it went out.

There's a place on the case page to leave a comment, and I explained all of this, but of course no place to show a screenshot, only a place to leave a tracking number (which of course I do not have).

I also emailed her the pattern again, hopefully it does not go into her junk mail.

I hope she realizes that she bought a pattern and not the actual item.  I think I make that clear on the picture alone, but it is also in the description too.

Is there anything else I can do?

Here is the item in question.

Sunday, October 7, 2012

Step Family

Amazing Johnathan and my friend Penny
Well, the step-family is in town for my step-sister's husband's 40th birthday.

Last night I got us tickets to see the Amazing Johnathan.  He just moved into a new theater at Bally's and I hadn't seen him there yet.  The show was great and he added a couple of new pieces and new jokes which made it really fun to see.

There was a lady in the front row with a service dog, and Johnathan kept picking on them, pretending to be angry that the dog didn't seem to be enjoying the show. Great off-the-cuff stuff.

I wanted to go out with everyone afterward, but I knew I had to work today, and needed to come home and sleep.