I'll have an order of good news with some extra cash on the side, please
Well, I think I've finally managed to catch up on most of the projects that got put off due to my illness. My "To Do" list is shrinking by the hour and things are starting to run smoothly again. Once I catch up with all the dishes and do a load or two of laundry all my boring mundane chores should be totally dealt with. :) I've gotten back on the writing horse and am continuing revisions on String Shift, and thanks to some encouragement from the awesome folks over at the ISBW forums I've decided not to give up on TSW. I also have a LOT of new story ideas burgeoning in the wings, and I'm keeping careful track of them in my diary. Some are little more than a few random scenes that have flashed through my brain, but I'm working on bringing them all together, organizing them, and making them a little more coherent. (There's nothing worse than having to hunt down scraps of story ideas that have been scattered through a dozen different notebooks) Sometimes it's really nice just to sit back on my bed and scribble down some random thoughts in a notebook. :) I've actually gotten several character profiles done that way recently...there's a particular story idea involving space pirates that I'm really psyched about at the moment. It was inspired by a dream I had last year, and the thoughts I wrote down in my bedside notebook are really kickass. In fact, I'm heading upstairs in a few minutes to do some more work on the plot and some of the different alien races. =D Fun!
In other good news, the spring rains came today. Earlier this month the weather was cold, bitter, and thoroughly wintry, and then the last couple of weeks have felt like diving straight into summer. In the middle of March. But the weather gods seem to have settled down finally and we're experiencing some deliciously humid and cool Spring weather. Mom and dad have planted some seeds on the back porch and they're all sprouting beautifully. We've got herbs, (dill, chives, basil) some flowers, cherry tomatoes, beefsteak tomatoes, and cucumbers. All of them are sprouting great, except for the lavender and sweet peas. (Flowers, not the actual peas) Those haven't come up it. It may be the seeds are too old, and that's OK. All of our old plants are doing really well, too. One of my two silver maple saplings didn't survive, but that's OK because the other one is doing fabulously. Seriously, this thing is taking off. It's huge, and it's putting on new leaves almost every day. It has literally gained several branches in a matter of hours. And, of course, because of the rain, everything's bright green and lovely. =D The humidity is sky high, which suits me, and when I step outside I can hear the little spring tree frogs singing their hearts out from every direction. And when I take Bruno for walks in the mornings, I get to see all the beautiful flowering trees. We've got all sorts here in Broadacres - Bradford Pears, Dogwoods, Redwoods, Weeping Willows, (My favorite - long, graceful sheets of fluffy pink flowers swaying gently in the breeze) Tulip Trees, and a dozen others I can't name. There's also an abundance of daffodils, hyacinths, and phlox blooming, which smells and looks amazing. Even the ugly, battered old tree in our front yard that the power company has mutilated to keep it out of the power lines is blooming again. Three cheers for spring! =D
Oh, I almost forgot - the baked goods biz has been doing great this week. I've introduced a new item, pocket pies, (You wanted me to make Cornish Pasties, Hel? ^_~ Well, now I can make you some fine pasties when I visit or any other time) which are selling really well. In fact, they're going so well that the batch of blueberry muffins (previously everyone's favorite item) I made for Tuesday's sale weren't even touched because everybody was so jazzed about the pies. I made one batch stuffed with sausage, eggs, and cheese, and another with a cinnamon apple filling. I made $15 in one day, which is more than I usually make in an entire week of sales. Awesome, huh? Mom and I are also discussing making things like casseroles and waffles, both of which I already know how to make. I can't wait to experiment with chocolate waffles. XD
I don't have oodles of extra cash, but I am slowly but surely buying things that I want and need. This past weekend I went out to Kohl's and bought a 14 day sampler of facial care products from good skin, which KICKS ASS. My face hasn't felt this good in...well, ever, actually. All the facial products I've tried up until now haven't really worked consistently, or they work only for a little while and then lose their effectiveness over time. They're also usually really expensive because they have to be all natural since I have uber sensitive skin and can't usually abide chemicals. But this stuff is a perfect balance of natural ingredients and chemicals. It's nice to encounter something that doesn't sting, cut, or make my face feel like dried leather. *coughProactivcough* =D I use their "all calm" system and would suggest their products to pretty much anyone who stood still long enough. I also bought a video game off Half.com, (great deals, btw, my purchase only cost about $7.50 and that's with shipping) the sequel to my all time favorite First Person Shooter, "No One Lives Forever". It's kinda old, I know, but the first version is SO much fun (I've lost track of how many times I've played through it) that I'm psyched about getting it anyway. And holy CRAP is it hard to find affordable video games these days! Everything at EB was $30 or over (unjustly so, I thought, seeing as how some titles were several months old or far too crappy to justify those kinds of prices) and eBay has gone completely insane. I guess the second handers decided they couldn't cheat people using reserve bids or buy it now auctions so instead they're going to hike up the shipping prices to make up for the fact that they're listing a game they bought for $50 at .99 cents. Dumbasses.
Anyway, I should go. I've already been down here an hour longer than I planned and this entry is probably already too long to read. Ja ne! :)
In other good news, the spring rains came today. Earlier this month the weather was cold, bitter, and thoroughly wintry, and then the last couple of weeks have felt like diving straight into summer. In the middle of March. But the weather gods seem to have settled down finally and we're experiencing some deliciously humid and cool Spring weather. Mom and dad have planted some seeds on the back porch and they're all sprouting beautifully. We've got herbs, (dill, chives, basil) some flowers, cherry tomatoes, beefsteak tomatoes, and cucumbers. All of them are sprouting great, except for the lavender and sweet peas. (Flowers, not the actual peas) Those haven't come up it. It may be the seeds are too old, and that's OK. All of our old plants are doing really well, too. One of my two silver maple saplings didn't survive, but that's OK because the other one is doing fabulously. Seriously, this thing is taking off. It's huge, and it's putting on new leaves almost every day. It has literally gained several branches in a matter of hours. And, of course, because of the rain, everything's bright green and lovely. =D The humidity is sky high, which suits me, and when I step outside I can hear the little spring tree frogs singing their hearts out from every direction. And when I take Bruno for walks in the mornings, I get to see all the beautiful flowering trees. We've got all sorts here in Broadacres - Bradford Pears, Dogwoods, Redwoods, Weeping Willows, (My favorite - long, graceful sheets of fluffy pink flowers swaying gently in the breeze) Tulip Trees, and a dozen others I can't name. There's also an abundance of daffodils, hyacinths, and phlox blooming, which smells and looks amazing. Even the ugly, battered old tree in our front yard that the power company has mutilated to keep it out of the power lines is blooming again. Three cheers for spring! =D
Oh, I almost forgot - the baked goods biz has been doing great this week. I've introduced a new item, pocket pies, (You wanted me to make Cornish Pasties, Hel? ^_~ Well, now I can make you some fine pasties when I visit or any other time) which are selling really well. In fact, they're going so well that the batch of blueberry muffins (previously everyone's favorite item) I made for Tuesday's sale weren't even touched because everybody was so jazzed about the pies. I made one batch stuffed with sausage, eggs, and cheese, and another with a cinnamon apple filling. I made $15 in one day, which is more than I usually make in an entire week of sales. Awesome, huh? Mom and I are also discussing making things like casseroles and waffles, both of which I already know how to make. I can't wait to experiment with chocolate waffles. XD
I don't have oodles of extra cash, but I am slowly but surely buying things that I want and need. This past weekend I went out to Kohl's and bought a 14 day sampler of facial care products from good skin, which KICKS ASS. My face hasn't felt this good in...well, ever, actually. All the facial products I've tried up until now haven't really worked consistently, or they work only for a little while and then lose their effectiveness over time. They're also usually really expensive because they have to be all natural since I have uber sensitive skin and can't usually abide chemicals. But this stuff is a perfect balance of natural ingredients and chemicals. It's nice to encounter something that doesn't sting, cut, or make my face feel like dried leather. *coughProactivcough* =D I use their "all calm" system and would suggest their products to pretty much anyone who stood still long enough. I also bought a video game off Half.com, (great deals, btw, my purchase only cost about $7.50 and that's with shipping) the sequel to my all time favorite First Person Shooter, "No One Lives Forever". It's kinda old, I know, but the first version is SO much fun (I've lost track of how many times I've played through it) that I'm psyched about getting it anyway. And holy CRAP is it hard to find affordable video games these days! Everything at EB was $30 or over (unjustly so, I thought, seeing as how some titles were several months old or far too crappy to justify those kinds of prices) and eBay has gone completely insane. I guess the second handers decided they couldn't cheat people using reserve bids or buy it now auctions so instead they're going to hike up the shipping prices to make up for the fact that they're listing a game they bought for $50 at .99 cents. Dumbasses.
Anyway, I should go. I've already been down here an hour longer than I planned and this entry is probably already too long to read. Ja ne! :)