People Who Hurt or Kill Animals Need to go to Jail and Stay There.

Beau and his sister were abused and abandoned as kittens, and rescued from the pound soon before they were to be euthanized!! Their wonderful foster family (whom I met via a great website called Petfinder.com ( http://www.petfinder.com/ ) brought him to me from two states away, and he will never know violence again. Together we saved two very grateful (and now, very spoiled) cats (they kept his sister, who is gorgeous, just like him) :)

After reading about that case with dog torturer and killer, Mr.Vick, I am glad he is getting what's coming to him. I'm not a dog person but think anyone who treats loving, trusting and innocent animals of any kind is a cowardly criminal with a serious need to feel powerful. So pathetic. We need to teach our children to respect animals, so they will grow up to be kind and respectable adults. I hope they throw Vick in prison, and develop stronger laws for anyone who hurts or kills dogs or cats. I'm not a fanatic, just someone who has spent my life with animals and wildlife, and cannot imagine anyone being so heartless and cruel like this.

The ASPCA is a great organization that fights for everyday rights of animals of different kinds. It's free and quick to be a part of their different lobbying campaigns to help our loving pets from morons like these. Help the animals and sign up with them, it's free and all they do is occaisionally send an email that you click on and send back, and they send a letter to your local Congressman to vote for specific anti-cruelty issues. It's real issues, not raising heck over silly stuff. Your word does count. I have recieved many letters from the government saying bills I back actually passed. It's a good thing. http://www.aspca.org/site/PageServer?pagename=lobby_home

I'm expanding my line of shirts and designs..

 

Here's a link to my latest additions to my clothing line, this is more international and somewhat more sophisticated than my other site, since it allows language and currency translation:

 

http://www.shirtcity.com/myshirtshop/merchandising/511986/t-shirtshop.html

After working at this all evening, I'm tired. It's late, time to get some sleep. Tomorrow I double duty work again, drawing for a client and working on other projects. It's fun, though, and not like work at all to me.

I found a really nice website today

Here is the site I put my portfolio on:

What an interesting bunch of artists are on this site. I had fun looking at other peoples' portfolios and some of them wrote me. So, I joined, and am glad that I did. It's fun to connect with other artists who are creative, too. Here's the URL for my portfolio:
http://www.artwanted.com/artist.cfm?artid=36110

Memories of childhood jobs

 

As far back as I can remember, I was always trying to make money. Maybe it's in the genes, since my grandparents were well-known antique dealers who used to do shows all over the country. My mom inherited their amazing haggling talents, and a few rubbed off on me, too.

From the beginning, there were lemonade stands, going door to door and selling apples from our tree to the neighbors, and of course, babysitting. Back then, money earned was for buying fun stuff, so I'd pick something I wanted to buy, have it put into layaway and pay it off as fast as possible.

At 16, I got a job working in a very exclusive country club, hidden deep in the woods, at the end of a very long and creepy private drive. The lovely Tudor-style mansion had been brought over by one of the Rockefellers, brick-by-brick. It was old, with low ceilings and interesting rooms. I was a banquet girl, who helped with all the weddings and parties of local rich or famous. Every day, it was a big job to stuff all my bushy hair under two to three hair nets, otherwise my boss would freak out. I think she was a drill sargeant in a former life. She was tough and ran a tight "ship."

My job was to put a lemon slice and ice in every glass, set the many tables perfectly and formally, and serve the food. It was fun to watch normally reserved, highly manicured people end up wild and crazy by the end of the night (thanks to the endless open bars served at all weddings.) One businessman wrote me a love letter and left me a rose from a bouquet sticking out of a crystal glassful of mousse.  He was bombed out of his gourd, but it was flattering.

Then, there was one wealthy family that I babysat their daughter, who was only four years younger than I. The father would pay me very well, usually $30 to $40 per day, back in the 1970's. They would take frequent trips out of town, leaving me alone with their 12-year old daughter in their huge, sprawling estate. I was only 16 but it was fun, because they let us go to the country club and eat whatever we wanted, at any time. So, we'd go swimming, check out the cute teenaged caddies, and eat Chicken Cordon Bleu and desserts until I was sick of them. Ahh, the good old days. It's time for me to me to warm up leftovers and sit out on the veranda, I mean, my balcony. Not fancy, but peaceful. And, working from home beats everything. Life is good, and those old memories remind me how glad I am to be independent and grown-up.

Here's a blast from the past, love the animation and music!
Sleeping Beauty

Bugs sure do grow big down here in Florida

Originally being from the outer suburbs of Cleveland, Ohio, I am used to natural surroundings and an occaisional insect. But, since moving down to Florida, my knowledge of bugs has increased dramatically. Up north, there may be a few species of insect that can be troublesome. Down here, it pays to make sure the critters in your neighborhood stay outdoors, and don't come inside of your home.

It pays to live in a development that regularly sprays for bugs. Also, living on a higher floor helps, for the creepy-crawlies who don't care to crawl fly up high. When I first moved here, I had a lovely apartment on the first floor of a classy building. Unfortunately, everything crawled in, even with spraying, including huge cockroaches, ants of every size, and even termites! The owners of the building had to have the entire building "tented" to keep the lovely, old building from being consumed by the wood-chomping little buggers. Buildings with termites have to be tented every so often, so I moved. The heck with that.

Now, I live up high, and have nothing more than fruit flies (they grow those big down here, too!) and a tiny sugar ant or two. Nothing else. Oh, and down here in Florida, anyone with indoor pets STILL has to put Frontline or Advantage flea protection on them, because cats and dogs get fleas even indoors. It's unavoidable.

So, if you move to Florida, it's a great place to be but make sure to bring bug repellant or spray with you if you live in a place with lax bug extermination policies. Better yet, hire an exterminator to come monthly. Living among nature is wonderful, but bugs are the price you pay to live down in a tropical climate.

Joel Osteen is Very Motivational and Inspiring

Every Sunday morning, I force myself to get up early to watch a half-hour service by Joel Osteen, the Pastor at Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas. How many pastors do you know that have the following of a rock star, and conduct services to a packed crowd in a former basketball stadium? The high quality, motivational content of his sermons packs them in, and makes us watch. It doesn't hurt that he's cute, either. It's nice to see someone who is moral, upbeat and a solid family man, who lives what he talks about. Nothing fake or hypocritical there. I'm not all that religious but his uplifting sermons really make my day a little brighter. With all the negative stuff we see on TV these days, it's good to be able to watch something that isn't corny, stupid or violent. This is good, common-sense information that I can use. He talks about improving our lives by postivity, reflection and being good to one another.


This is Lakewood Church. Incredibly huge.

If one of Mr.Osteen's sermons is particularly special, I record it on my DVR and play later, whenever I'm feeling down and need a boost. It helps to listen to a positive person talk in a straightforward manner, discuss subjects that I can really relate to, without trying to "save" or convert me. He just tells it like it is, and throws a joke in, here and there. I am not easily impressed, but am loyal when I find someone who can get and hold my attention consistently. Other great ministers are out there, but I can relate best to Joel Osteen because he's my age, and is very contemporary in his style.

Shout to the Lord by Darlene Zschech

Looking forward to the next Harry Potter movie

It won't be too much longer now before the release of the latest Harry Potter movie, "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix," hits the local cinemas. I usually wait for movies to come out on Pay-Per-View but in this circumstance, I'm going to go check out a matinee. Everything about the whole series of Potter movies intrigues me, from J.K.Rowling's amazing stories, to the highly creative effects and cinematography of each movie they put out. And, mostly, the talented actors tie the whole thing together perfectly. I've never read the Potter book series but have all the movies so far in my home collection, and will get this one too, whenever it comes out in DVD form. Before even seeing it, I know it will be good, dark plot or not.

Anyone who is a Harry Potter fan needs to check out Mugglenet.com, J.K. Rowling's site, and others who all showcase the world of Harry Potter. Watching these movies lets me forget about the everyday stress of work, and other responsibilities. It is a great way to enjoy fantasy that isn't cutesy or corny. These movies please such a wide variety of ages, which is hard to do. Even my cat, Blackie watched it on tv (see photo here):

Half the fun of seeing the Potter movies is the scenery, of the UK. It is so beautiful there. I went there many years ago and travelled all over England. I want to go back and see Scotland, and Ireland, too. So many of the sites used in the Potter films were in castles, churches and other picturresque locations throughout the UK. What a fascinating country with historic buildings everywhere.

So, when the movie opens, I'll be there. I hope J.K. Rowling decides to write more Potter books after all, because the public loves them and can't get enough. Me included. Keep 'em coming, folks...and don't kill off Harry, Hermoine or Ron!

Another day, another dollar (literally)

My boss, Bill, is awesome. Overworked and underpaid, he works steadily and coolly, without losing it in a high-stress position. I would never, ever want a job like that. I have a mid-level job that is respectable but stressful enough as it is. Add to this a rough economy with customers who aren't buying right now. It makes being in sales frustrating and unusually difficult lately. So, I'm working my butt off, and trying to get my usually high stats back where they should be. Translated, the money will double once I do that. Bill is patient and doesn't push. He knows that makes me all the more stressed. I appreciate that.

This afternoon, I called Bill and we went over ways to help get me back where I was sales-wise. He said I need to get my confidence back, which is totally true. Just talking it over, after weeks of stressing about it, has helped. The rest of the workday didn't show improved stats, but tomorrow is another day. Our company is firing people left and right nowadays, nobody says I'm in any danger of losing my job at all, but still, I want to get the groove back to selling. This is a big company, selling products that aren't a necessity. When the economy takes a hit, impulse sales drop down and people become guarded of their money. I fully understand. Talking about that with Bill, he knows this is now an issue, and helped me to figure out how to address new concerns of our poorest customers. It helped tremendously. I am grateful and now have alternate ways of talking to customers, given the knew tools to do that. Sales is all about going with the flow. Ugh. I like things to stay the same, but they just don't. So, I take a moment to gripe, then let it go and start over. This is one of those times.

Learning about online marketing is a lot of work

I'm starting to get the hang of affiliate marketing, slowly, after much reading and research in general. At the bottom of my blog are some of the companies I've affiliated my business with. Please make sure to visit these great sites, as they keep food on my table and have products/services that you can really use!

I'm working hard to boost my income online, so that I can quit the day job and solely rely on not only my art studio but my writing as well. Money-wise, I see profits rise in both, slowly and steadily. Still, everyday living is expensive and I have to spend many, many hours hunched over at the computer to learn search engine optimization, and other online promotional venues to boost my web presence while not looking like a dork. Here is me (last year), where I usually am - at the computer, working late:

I live at this computer, and even dream of typing and html in my sleep from time to time. Wow, I've really become a computer geek. Well, it's ok, because working on this computer allows me to do my day job from home, and the rest of my work here, too. To break up the monotony, I sit at the drafting table and draw my drawings. It's nice to give my eyes a break from the computer screen here and there.

Here's my cat Beau, watching me work:

He sure has the life, and I'm happy to give him the best one possible. He's my desk kitty, always with me when I work.

Really fed up with my job

My day job really is getting to me. I am in sales for a large publishing company, and slowly, the job becomes more unbearable at time goes on. Insurance isn't any good, the script we follow is lousy and customers are broke due to hard times falling on just about everyone nowadays. I am not a "shark" personality like some salespeople here. I have a conscience and believe in the Golden Rule, not in making people buy things, no matter what. If I had my way, I'd just do my art and leave this sales job, but at present, that isn't an option. So, I bear it, as I watch co-workers suffer along with me. My best friend is two months behind on her rent, and unable to pay her electric bill, due to working conditions messing up our sales stats.

We used to be top in the company. Now, we're on the top team, but our stats are lousy. The bosses just say to "hang in there, everyone is hurting right now." Yeah, they make better money than we do, so for them that is easy to say. My lifestyle is nice, and I want to keep it, not end up having to lose all that I've worked for as I wait for the company to improve itself. I wonder how many other people are out there, in different companies, having similar problems? I went to college, worked hard, and would like to go back to doing art full-time. It pays well if I push it, so I may have to do that eventually. Time will tell. Until then, I'm keeping myself as mellow as possible, to get through the storm. So far, so good. I'm not giving up.