The new store at CafePress is coming along just fine. I've made a few minor sales and my art has been on the front page twice. Not bad for being back there for a little over a week..but I need more. So, that means work, and lots of it. It's a stunningly beautiful day outside, and I'd love to be out in it, but work must be done. I'm in the office, working on some artwork. I need to get everything in place before this online Wharton course on Marketing course I'll be taking soon starts. That will need me to divide my time even more, but is worth the sacrifice. I've been tested on which side of my brain dominates, and neither do. I am balanced, 50/50 right and left brained. Creative yet analytical. Must've gotten that from my father, he's the same. This balanced way of being will be tested as I have requests for drawings to add to my stores, meaning more to draw, and I will need to deal with complex issues in the course. I have to do one at a time, or it's overwhelming in a huge way, so when I study, I'm analytical, when I'm drawing, I'm creative. My self-esteem gets shaky so I maintain positivity as much as possible, keep my head down and work. It's what I do to survive..and thrive.
I've made this office comfortable, a place that I enjoy being in, and that is livable. Will be setting up the ol' college mini-fridge (well, updated version, at least) in here this week, to make it even moreso. The cats are experts in relaxation and the office passes their comfort standards with flying colors. My back went out in 2007 (herniated disk from lifting heavy furniture and doing too much damage to my spine), and it's healed now, but I want to keep the lowest lumbar vertebrae from hurting again, so the recliner and a donut pillow solve that issue. No more sitting upright in uncomfortable office chairs. Many artists have back problems from doing the same thing I do, sitting long periods of time, letting gravity take its toll on the spine. After that issue with my spine, I learned to be more mindful and preventative, because it was an excruciatingly painful experience that took a very long time to come back from. I never, ever take my spine for granted anymore!
The infection in my teeth is still there, and I have swollen glands to prove it. Without a car momentarily, I can't do anything about getting medicine if a prescrition was written, so I'm just being vigilant with hydrogen peroxide gargle, swabbing the touchy area with toothpaste at night (kills bacteria), and using the Sonicare to keep the teeth clean. How I hate dealing with these problems, and hope they die off as soon as possible.
My car is still at the mechanic's. It's a negotiation between us, so far, so good. I will be happy to get the car back, and plan to get it back this week.
Business at Zazzle has improved, thank goodness. I thought it tanked there for awhile, but it's back..and it BETTER stay back. I am loyal to them, as long as they bring in the sales in a steady manner. All good businesses expand, and even if I have expanded to CafePress, I will continue business as usual at Zazzle. Now, I just have double duty, making sure both locations are well-maintained and products are up-to-date.
An added bonus to everything, I've been losing weight. Some of my clothes are actually becoming baggy. How? I lost my appetite and don't really care to eat much. It happens. No diet, just lots of water, smoothies, and cereal for breakfast every day. Even my favorite food, pizza, isn't as interesting as it normally would be. Small miracles happen, lol. My metabolism is still good, even at fifty. Thank goodness.
The weather is getting colder now, the leaves on my maple trees are showing more yellow daily. My garden still blooms, especially the roses, wine cups, asters and blue penstemon. I've harvested quite a lot of seeds for next year, and will soon be potting up my Bolivian pepper plants so they can (hopefully) live indoors and keep peppering. I added one to a stew recently and it was perfect, just like the ones my ex-husband used to use down in Mexico, to season meals. One tiny pepper flavors an entire meal without making it blistering hot. The peppers are hot, but it's important not to add the seeds to the dish, just the skin. He always told me that the seeds make it more hot. I saved the seeds and will plant them next Spring. The other peppers that I harvested are in the freezer, and will provide me with flavor all winter long. Love it. This growing my own food thing is a good idea and will be expanded to inclued more fruits and vegetables next year!
