Tangible Tidbits 2011 #2: Not Quite Making The Grade

Hey, gang! We had another dusting of snow Friday/Saturday, but nearly as bad as the one on December 27. Rumor has it we're due for another six inches on Tuesday/Wednesday of this week. I've had enough of winter already! LOL

Well, I got a B+ in my Metalwork & Jewelry Beginner II class. I was disappointed, more in the professor than the grade...although it does bring down my GPA. Had I gotten an A-, I would have accepted that as an acknowledgment of my efforts, even if he didn't agree with my taste. Giving me a B+ tells me that he can't separate technique from personal style. Luckily, he's not teaching my class this semester. :\

I submitted photos of pieces for consideration in two juried craft shows this week. There's an application site called ZAPPlication, and I registered for notifications of upcoming events. The two I am interested in attending are ARTRIDER's Spring CraftMorristown in Morristown, NJ March 18, 19, & 20, and Sugarloaf Craft Festival in Somerset, NJ October 28, 29, & 30. First time applicants to the ARTRIDER show are waived the $40 application fee, but I paid $45 to apply to Sugarloaf. I'm not sure how long it takes to find out if I have been accepted, but wish me luck! :D

This was the first week I haven't sent out a Virtual Mall Discounts & Deals e-mailing since the summer. It saved me a lot of time, so I'll be taking the option to subscribe to that mailing off the website with the monthly updates in a couple of weeks. ;)

You'll notice there are a bunch of new commenting options on the blog. I'd registered for CommentLuv a while ago, but they didn't have plug-ins for Blogger at the time. I found some this week, so I downloaded them...all by myself! LOL :)

In terms of the year-end figures, I didn't make my 50% increase in sales from the previous quarter goal, but I did surpass the previous quarter's figure. In fact, I more than doubled my sales from the 4th quarter last year. I think there was only one quarter since I've started that I didn't beat the previous quarter's sales. All in all, I'm making steady progress in a difficult economy, so I can't complain. :)

In personal news, I attended my younger niece's roller skating party on Thursday. I used to have my own skates (not roller blades) and went skating with my sister and a friend every Sunday morning in high school. Let me tell you, it is NOT like riding a bike! LOL :o It took me most of the party to get comfortable and loosen up on the skates. Naturally, after 20+ years, my center of gravity has changed. :o I also didn't have a bad knee back then. It popped out three times while skating on Thursday, but luckily I didn't do any long-term damage. :p And I think I only fell on my butt once. I don't think my brother-in-law got that on video, but he did get me skating like an old lady once or twice. :o

Enjoy your week! If you haven't checked it out yet, tune in to the People's Choice for TV's Best New Drama...Hawaii Five-0! It airs Monday nights at 10:00 p.m. on CBS. It's must-see TV! ;)