I Don't Have a Title

I have been busy lately. I am starting school tomorrow morning. My class is at 7:30 in the morning. I don't remember there being a 7:30 in the morning. And I "fell into" an Etsy Team. Actually the Team just kind of happened. I have been writing a blog post to introduce you to FFEST (Facebook Fans on Etsy Street Team) and I just can't seem to finish it. I just keep adding to it. It may be time to stop adding information and just proofread and post it. Look for that soon.

Just before the Team happened I lost my old computer. I had that baby set-up the way I like it. And I have been spending alot of time tweaking my new computer. I don't like my computer to talk to other computers unless I ask it to. So I have been learning Windows Vista and tweaking my new computer. I'm not done yet , but I wasn't done tweaking the old one.

I have also been making some new designs using Swarovski Crystals and I really am enjoying making them. But the first 2 or 3 usually go to my step-mom. She is my very own, personal walking advertisement. She wears my pieces and has even made sales for me. Gotta love her. I made these Swarovski Crystal bracelets in Mint Alabaster for her.

I did manage to get these Swarovski Rose Crystal Bracelets listed in my store. I enjoy giving her pieces that I have made. We go shopping and she usually finds some jewelry that she wants in a different color. Then before I am done making it for her, it looks nothing like what we saw in the store. I call her my guinea pig because she always tries the designs before I put them in my store. I don't understand why they need to be tried, but we both like the concept.

I am working on a special bracelet for my store. I am making a red and black Swarovski bracelet.

Red and Black are the colors of Texas Tech University. Go Red Raiders.

Time to be a good student and go to sleep early.

Click here to read more!

Outsmarting Myself Vol 3

This seems to be a recurring theme with me.  I seem to be able to outsmart myself more often than most people.  Or maybe I just like to share these experiences. 

I have a total of 5 email addresses and have addresses on 6 sites that I belong to.  So that is a total of 11 ploaces to check for emails.  One of those places is gmail.  I was playing around trying to make things work my way, we all know that I like to get my way.  And even with my computer, I usually do.  I customize my computer and my web places so that each page links to all the others.  I even type one blog and it posts on all my pages.  So the other day I realized that I can get my gamil to send copies of all my gmail to one of my yahoo accounts.  So I did.  Then a couple of days later I was messing around and I found out that I can import all my contacts and mail from all my emial addresses to gmail.  Can you figure it out yet?

So the next time I went to check my yahoo email and there were only 399 new emails.  Funny I had checked earlier that day and opened all the new email.  What happened is that first gmail went to all my addresses and copied all the mail to my gmail account.  Then gmail sent copies of those copies to my yahoo account.

And all the copies of each email (some had 4) had the original date on them.  I took forever to clean up that mess. 

Sometimes I am too smart for my own good. Click here to read more!

Oh My Aching Knee

I learned the hard way (which is how I learn) that you should not brag about certain things.  In 2002 I was in my mid-30's and in the process of moving from Washington to Oregon.  The man I was in a relationship with and I flew to Texas to visit my Mother.  One evening we were discussing injuries and broken bones.  Both of them had long lists.  My response however was "I have never broken a bone in my body".  What is the saying about "Famous Last Words". 

Less than 24 hours later I slipped and in the process of falling decided that the best course of action would be absorbing the impact of the fall on the concrete with my kneecap.  A word to the wise, Don't do it!  Your knee is not one of those things that heals well.  Lets see, I had an arthroscopic surgery in 1996.  I have been in physical therapy off and on about 10 different times.  I have received 3 cortisone shots and all the shots do is make me long for the time of less pain before the shot.  Is that how they are supposed to work? 

I was at the point where a decision whether or not I could do something was based on what I needed to do within the next couple of days.  I could not walk or otherwise stress my knee if I had things that needed to be done within 48 hours.  I had to save up my time on my feet.  That is no way to live.

I moved to Nevada in 2006 and finally went to an Ortho back in November of last year.  After seeing the results of my tests he came into the room and the first words he said were "Your knee is really messed up".  He told me that the "fix" is to have total knee replacement but at 50 I am considered too young.  So he suggested a series of shots.  When I calmed down, he explained that they were not at all like cortisone.  The compund was a healthy version of the fluid in the knee.  Good knees that is.  The fluid in my knee is deteriorated. I received 1 injection a week for 5 weeks and was told that the effects would last about 5 months at which time we could do it again.  The effects lasted 8 months for me and a few weeks ago I started getting twinges.  Within a week all the pain came back.  

I started a new series of injections today.  You know that there are always rules.  Well I only have one rule to follow.  For 48 hours after the injection, I have to limit the time that the leg bears weight to less than45 minutes at a time.   I can live with that, especially now that I know how good the knee will feel afterwards.  Click here to read more!

Blogs and Such

I usually blog when something happens and I want to tell the world about it. Then it takes a couple of days to write it because I have to catch up on everything I was supposed to do instead of playing an online game. I actually love to write.


So I am making a new Team resolution. It's too late for a New Year's Resolution and I just joined a team so...


I will blog 5 days out of the week. Uh-oh, what am I going to blog about? This is the place where you chime in and help me figure out topics to be used weekly and on which days. I have seen Weekly blogs include things such as: Fabulous Finds, Artist Interviews, New Items This Week, Tech Tools, Introduce New Friends, Recipes, Facebook Fan, Tips and other fun topics that can be done weekly.

I have already decided that I will do my version of Artist Interviews called Artist with a Cause. I will feature artists, such as myself, that feature Awareness items and actively work to support awareness of whatever cause is their favorite.

As soon as I decide on 3 more I will blog 5 days a week. Click here to read more!

Outsmarting Myself Revisited

OK, by now you know that I get great ideas. Awseome ideas. Some of my ideas are even too smart for me. I do "outsmart" myself more often than most people.



You need some background about me and my katz. I love my katz. I try to make their life as pleasant as possible. Until we moved to Vegas in October of 2006, we always lived in a house with a yard. The katz like to be outside. We live in a small apartment and the katz are now indoor katz. They don't like it. They miss the grass.

Grass is good for cats. It helps their tummy. So I buy those little grass packs at the pet shop for my katz. They only last a couple of weeks but during that time the 2 katz are in heaven. Smokie (she's the black one if you look at my pictures) will even lay down next to the grass and I think she is pretending to be outside.



OH, yeah, this is supposed to be about outsmarting myself. 'I got smart and decided not to buy those little kits from the pet store anymore. I went to a nursery to buy some grass seed. And I did. The helpful lady explained to me that I would not be able to use potting soil for the grass. I needed top soil, so I got some of that too. I bought the smallest amout of each that I could and spent around $10.00. Do you see yet where this is going? Remember, I live in a small apartment.



The grass seed says that there is enough seed to cover 225 square feet in grass. The container that I am growing it in is 12 inches by 6 inches. So, I guess I can do it about 450 times. And the top soil, I now have 3 cubic feet of topsoil, less the 1/8 cubic foot needed to fill the container.

I am waiting for the grass to grow and trying to figure out where to keep all that soil and seed. Now that I think about it, I outsmarted myself into buying alot of seed and soil.

I hope this is not a double-whammy. I hope I can grow grass in a container!!! Click here to read more!

New Era: comment = Hug

My husband, Larry, and I both have Facebook pages to keep in touch with family and close friends.  I don't send "gifts", or "hugs", or "plants", or anything else.  I don't see the purpose.  In fact, I don't make many comments on other peoples posts.  I will if the subject interests me or I can make a joke. 

 A few weeks ago, my husband, Larry, and I had a stressful 24 hours.  It started with a phone call from his daughter.  Both of Larry's sons are in the military and both are in Afghanistan.  One of his sons was in an "incident".  Details were sketchy at first and we were worried.  Larry was posting the information on Facebook as it came in. 
I found out that day that during stressful times, Each Comment = 1 Big Hug.  That day each comment left by friends and family reminded us how much they cared. It took 24 hours for Larry to finally speak with his son on the phone.  He is OK.  Just a concussion and 2nd degree burns that he got rescueing the other 3 men in the vehicle.  

So now I get to the title of this blog.  Each comment really did feel like a hug.  They were all warm and soothing.  I know that sounds funny, but we are all tied to our computers now.  It is how we communicate with each other. 

Since then I have tried to be more attentive when I check the posts on Facebook.  Now I am trying to leave a comment when I think the person making the post needs a hug. 

I would like to say "Thank-You" to everyone who left comments for caring enough to give us a  "hug", I mean a comment. Click here to read more!

Jewelry for People with Metal Sensitivity - No Metal Included

I love to make jewelry!!  And I love to make it for my friends and family.  I even make pieces to sell in my store.  But I have several friends who cannot wear jewelry with any type or grade of metal.  They just can't.  So I try to have a few pieces listed in my store (cherylspurplecow.etsy.com) that have no metal whatsoever.  There are other designers that do the same thing.  Especially designers that work with hemp and knots.  Alot of their pieces are naturally free of metal.


Now, here is the problem.  Use whatever search engine that you like and search for metal free jewelry, non-metal jewelry, etc.  You get everything from sterling silver to base metal to metal jewelry with free shipping. 


I need a word, a catch-phrase.  A word that says "NO Metal".  A word that people would use when searching for metal free jewelry.  I have been looking for that word for a couple of months.  It is nowhere to be found.  I think that this perfect word that I am searching for is hiding from me.  Maybe you can help me find it.



I have thought of hypo-allergenic.  But metal can be hypo-allergenic.  But some people still react to it.


Here is a link to a bracelet that I have listed in my shop that is made with seed beads and thread and that's all.  This way maybe you will get a flash of inspiration and help me find my word.
           
 http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=25196579


I posted in the Etsy Forums and someone suggested that I start a TEAM to help promote the concept. I would love to do that. I have never even been on a team or been associated with one, but What The Hay!!! I will either find someone who knows about TEAMS and wants to be in charge or I guess I will learn as I go along.

Please feel free to offer any suggestions, comments, assistance that you care to.  I can admit when I am in way over my head. (At 4'11" it happens alot).  You can email me at cherylspurplecow@gmail.com or post on my fanpage http:http://facebook.com/cheryls.purple.cow

I will be looking for your input.

Thanks,

Cheryl
Click here to read more!