Tangible Tidbits 2012 #14: There's One More Angel In Heaven...

Happy Easter, Passover, or Spring...take your pick! ;)

I was saddened to receive an email today about one of our readers who passed away at the end of February. She was one of my Internet friends from way back in 2001, and we even roomed together at one of the early trips I took to Montréal, Canada for a series of annual charity events. She was 84 and lived a long life, although not without its difficulties. She was one of my biggest "fans" from that time in my life, and I will miss her very much. <3 <3 <3 On a more upbeat note, I survived another NAET treatment this weekend. The last one was 75 percent successful; I am only partially cleared of allergic reactions to certain kinds of nuts, so I will have to repeat that treatment at a later date. However, I am fully cleared for a second nut mix, as well as both spice mixes we treated. YAY! We also reviewed some of my previous treatments, and I am fully cleared of reactions to yeast, sugar, eggs, and milk. This weekend, I was treated for bacteria, certain corn products, wheat products, and chocolate. I only recently learned that chocolate gives me headaches, so I decided to deal with that ASAP! ;) We had attempted to clear me using a grain mix before, but that didn't fully take. I'm hoping that by addressing the corn and wheat mixes directly, we will alleviate that issue. Believe it or not, staying away from chocolate, wheat, and corn were not that difficult, since I pretty much avoid them anyway. The bacteria was harder, as I could not use water unless it was distilled or boiled and cooled -- which also ruled out drinking carbonated drinks, milk, and fruit juice -- and I had to avoid toothpaste, shampoo, deodorant, and mouthwash for 25 hours. I prefer to have the treatments as early on Saturday morning as possible, so that by the time I wake up on Sunday it's all over. :p My next appointment is May 5, and I think I will attempt to complete the nuts treatment (again), as well as a treatment for vegetables. I will most likely have to repeat the bacteria test, as it only cleared 50 percent before I left her office. That usually means it won't get much better than that. :\ Hopefully, I will only need a few more treatments...I still have to address berries and then retry the original six calcium-related items, including oxalic acid. Since my overall issue is with calcium oxalates, we attempted that test three times, but never fully cleared them all. I'm hoping that by addressing other groups first and clearing those, that by the time we get back to the calcium groups, the problem will be significantly diminished and potentially curable. Fingers crossed! ;) My accountant called me this week about my income taxes. He was concerned that my reported losses might send up a red flag to the IRS that my business is really a hobby, and hobby losses are not deductible. He wanted to warn me that they could audit me if they become suspicious that I am masking a hobby as a business. I told him that my business was only two years old in October 2011, so losses -- especially in this economy -- shouldn't be a surprise. I am also only working part-time...if I were working full-time and trying to maintain my business, I could see them viewing it as a hobby. I do realize that the IRS may not think logically, so I still may have to face an audit. The good news is that I cut my expenses by almost a third in 2011, so in that regard I did well! LOL And I finally learned the difference between the State of New Jersey and Federal income taxes -- the State of New Jersey does not deduct losses against income, so any losses my company incurred last year don't count! The accountant said they have been trying to address the issue with legislation to make things easier for small businesses for years, but I won't hold my breath. I wonder what the rules for income taxes in California are? That may be another reason to relocate to San Diego. ;) A coworker is interested in having me make a necklace for her this week, and wants to show three necklaces I made previously to her daughters. Another coworker liked a pair of earrings I wore last week, and will buy them this week. :) Things are coming along, slowly but surely. I've decided to register as a vendor for a Networking Charity Brunch Image Forum in Denville, NJ that is hosted by a local plastic surgeon's office. I was invited to the event she held in February, but I was leery because I didn't know what kind of turnout she has or what the vending competition is like. I had thought about attending as a visitor to scope it out first, but something else came up that day and I never got there. I bit the bullet and wrote a check yesterday for a table. It's only $39, and I figure the clientele of a plastic surgeon in Morris County probably has more discretionary income than my usual customers. If it doesn't work out, at least I tried. I just hope I can sell enough inventory to make it worth my while to reprice, package, and schlep everything to and from the event. :o Once I get officially accepted, I'll post more information about it. :) Oh, yeah! I've moved back up to the #1 jewelry-making expert position on Knoji (formerly known as Factoidz), thanks to some recommendations from a group of Facebook friends! I was briefly the #1 expert the first year I joined, then quickly went back down to the #2 spot. I think I briefly went down to #3, but that didn't last long. Apparently, there are 17 of us writing in that category. I posted a new article this week, by the way: How To Create A Beaded Netting Fringe. It was adapted from one of my Focal Piece of the Month items from the end of last year...I'd previously updated the draft, but forgot all about it! :o Speaking of Focal Piece articles, the new one for this month is up. ;) And I've already completed the piece for next month! I just have to draft the story, so I'm a little bit ahead of the game right now. :)

I've got a busy week coming up, so I'd better start getting ready for it! Take care and have a great week! :D

Tangible Tidbits 2012 #11: Progressing In Some Areas...Stalled In Others

Good afternoon, all! I had another NAET (Nambudripad Allergy Elimination Technique) treatment yesterday...my first since last June. I've been wanting to go back for a long time, but financial considerations had me put it off. As it stands, the treatments are considered out-of-network for my health insurance, so I have to pay out-of-pocket until I reach my deductible of $3,000. :o I sincerely doubt I will need THAT many treatments, but it is covered by the flexible spending allowance (FSA) plan we have at work, so I can pay for them that way. :p Yesterday's treatment was to eliminate reactions to nuts and spices. When I left the doctor's office yesterday, the reactions had been completely cleared...I just had to stay away from those items for 25 hours to hopefully make it stick. The "fasting period" ended around 1-1/2 hours ago. It's really harder than it seems because things you wouldn't ordinarily associate with nuts or spices may have them in their ingredients. For example, I found out that Cheez-Its have paprika in them! Also, there are spices in many fragrances and aromatherapy oils, as well as mint in chewing gum, toothpaste, lip balm, and mouthwash. To be on the ultra safe side, I tend to avoid anything that MIGHT have the ingredients I'm trying to avoid in them, which makes for a very long 25 hours. I usually get headaches and just spend most of the time in bed. :p My next appointment is in three weeks, so I'll find out then how successful I was. Wish me luck! :)

As you know, I took the week off to do my income taxes. Well, I still haven't finished them. I printed out reams and reams of paper this week in preparation, though. Statements from my business and personal credit cards and checking accounts -- do you believe Bank of America (BoA) doesn't offer year-end summaries for business checking accounts? I get one for my Cash Management Account at Merrill Lynch, which is affiliated with BoA, as well as most of my credit cards. Particularly for business accounts, you'd think that would be a value-added service they'd offer! Instead, I have to go through statements for all 12 months of last year. Needless to say, that's part of the reason I haven't finished yet. I've pretty much decided to take one figure at a time and work on it piecemeal. I have a worksheet from the accountant to fill in with last year's figures included for reference, so I will just work on the categories (personal medical & health expenses or business education expenses, for example) one by one. Thankfully, I've left myself enough time that I should get them done by the end of March. Fingers crossed! :p

Speaking of education expenses, I found out that the registration and transcript holds on my records at Montclair State are because I owe them $415 and change from the Spring 2011 semester. Their policy, apparently, is that students are required to keep on top of their financial obligations themselves, which is why the school never notified me that there was a balance due. Although I was told where to find the information on the MSU system online, I could not find dollar amounts anywhere. Since they obviously were not anxiously looking for the funds -- and I have no plans to register for another class in the immediate future -- they will have to wait for the money, as I just got my car insurance bill for the next six months. Being that I leased a new car last year, the premiums are almost double what I was paying for the older car! Does it ever end???

On a more positive note, I was invited to join a Facebook group called "We Support Other Businesses" this week. The basic idea is to promote Facebook page traffic on each others' pages in a non-spammy way. They seem like a fun group of people, and very supportive (as you'd expect! LOL). One of the things I promoted there is Factoidz, since these professionals could benefit from the exposure as authors in their areas of expertise. Factoidz happens to be hosting a promotion now to increase awareness, and someone can win a $100 Amazon.com gift certificate. Since I was promoting it anyway, I figured I might as well submit the link. ;) I really have to write another article soon..it's been quite a while. :o

I also (finally!) tackled one other "major" project this week...I cleaned up my office/studio work area! It's 98 percent cleaned up...I still have a small pile of stuff to be sorted out and put away, but it is 1,000 times better than it was! :) I heard or read somewhere that "a cluttered environment is the sign of a cluttered mind." Maybe now I can approach the taxes with a clear mind!? LOL

Well, I've taken up enough of your time on this sunny Sunday afternoon (at least it's sunny here!). I hope you all enjoy what's left of your weekend and have a great week! :)

Tangible Tidbits 2012 #8: MSU Metalsmith Guild, Oscars, & Pinterest

Good evening to those of you not watching the Oscars right now! LOL Can you believe the build-up to the Academy Awards has taken on Super Bowl-size proportions? I've only seen one of the nominated films this year (The Descendents), so I'm not all that interested in the show. :\

I caught a lucky break this week...a friend from Montclair State University had invited me to participate in this semester's MSU Metalsmith Guild Jewelry Galleria on campus. I wasn't online much this week, so I didn't see the invite until the day after the deadline. However, they only got four artists to participate and they wanted at least six. Soooo, they extended the deadline! I emailed my friend and asked if I could participate even though I'm not enrolled in school this semester. She said I definitely could and that I should do it! :) The show is 7-9 p.m. in the University Hall Conference Center on the 7th floor of University Hall at Montclair State. I've already enlisted a good friend from the office to be my model. I just have to make sure she can be there at 5:00 p.m...I didn't realize she'd have to show up that early. :o We both have to wear black to show off my pieces. I have to see what I have in my closet...there was a time that I wore a lot of black, but not so much anymore. ;) Ordinarily, I would have had to submit pictures of my pieces to be evaluated, but since my friend was the one who picked up my items from the Allwood Branch of the Clifton Public Library last week, they can just evaluate the pieces! :) I have no idea what they will select, but we can apparently put other pieces, including non-jewelry items, on a table at the event. As it so happens, my Chinese take-out set was on display at the library! LOL Sometimes, you just get lucky. :)

In the "not so lucky" column, I also found out this week that there are registration and transcript holds on my records at MSU due to an "outstanding balance." I have no idea why, as I have not been enrolled since last spring. According to my Sallie Mae TuitionPay account, I'm all paid up. I left a message at the school on Friday afternoon, but I didn't receive a response yet. Luckily, the MSU Metalsmith Guild doesn't care about stuff like that! ;)

I started working on the scarf my niece made for me again last night while I was watching a movie I had already seen, so I didn't have to pay that close attention to it. ;) I wasn't in the mood to start something from scratch. I have a freeform bangle and a pair of earrings to make for a coworker, but I have until March 25 to deliver them. I worked on another coworker's copper cuff bracelet earlier today. She just wanted me to "decorate" it for her. After sending her some sample photos, she decided she wanted me to add hammered texture and oxidize (darken) it to highlight the texture. I'll have to see what she thinks tomorrow. The difference is pretty subtle, but hopefully she is not be expecting a drastic change.

I don't know how many of you are on Pinterest, but I'm getting a kick out of it. One of the online suppliers I use occasionally has a contest on there. We're being asked to set up a board and pin 10 items from Fusion Beads such as our favorite necklace inspiration, favorite tool, etc. Since I already had a Pinterest account set up, I entered today. I also have boards for my Factoidz articles, Birthstones, Product Reviews I've written, and pieces I've listed on Yardsellr. At first, I thought it was "just another new social media site," but it seems to be taking off. It will be interesting to see if it eventually gives Facebook a run for its money. :o

In the immortal word of Porky Pig, "That's all folks!" Have a great week! :D


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Tangible Tidbits 2011 # 22: Thank Heaven for Air Conditioning!

Hey, all! I don't know what's going on in your part of the world, but here in New Jersey it has been hot, HOT, HOT all week! I finally had to put the air conditioners in upstairs today because sleeping was so uncomfortable. Our house is more than 100 years old and very drafty, so no central air. I have to put air conditioners in the windows at the start of summer and then take them out at the end of summer. I tend to put off doing both as long as possible...there have been years I didn't put them in until July 4! :o Anyway, I'm much more comfortable now that it's done. :D

I forgot to mention it last week, but my "Steampunk" article from Factoidz was published in the Bead Society of New Jersey's (BSNJ) spring newsletter! I've submitted many of my other articles -- the ones that I thought the members would find interesting and appropriate. I also brought my final school projects to the May BSNJ meeting at the request of one of my fellow Board members. I got a lot of compliments on them! It made me feel good to know I can impress these people, many of whom have been doing this stuff for decades! :D

While I was adding my blog videos to the Something Tangible Facebook page the other day, I figured out how to save the narrated version of my Steampunk PowerPoint presentation in windows media video format, so I've finally added that to our YouTube channel and Facebook. This is the presentation I gave to my class in the Spring 2010 semester. :)

We held a Biggest Loser contest in my office -- they've been doing this off-and-on for a couple of years. I came in second the first time we did it...I think that was back in the fall of 2009?! Anyway, I came in second again this time around, losing 14.2 lbs. and winning $80! LOL I'm very proud of myself. ;) I have to decide if I want to participate in the next round...the last time, I hurt my knee and had to stop exercising in the round after my win, so I didn't do very well. I guess I should give it a go and see if I can break the bad karma, right? ;)

I've put in to take a "staycation" during the week of June 6. I really need to get some stuff around here done, and the best way to do that is to take the week and concentrate solely on that. There are a lot of things that have been on my To-Do List for ages, and I'm hoping to at least put a dent in the list that week. :)

I hope everyone in the U.S. enjoyed their three-day weekend! I kept pretty busy...Mom and I went out to dinner on Saturday night with my sister's family for Mom's upcoming birthday (next weekend), and had a great time at The Melting Pot fondue restaurant; attended a pool party at my aunt's house yesterday with most of the extended family; and checked out my nieces marching with their Girl Scout/Brownie troops in this morning's Memorial Day Parade.

Speaking of which...Happy Memorial Day! I'll catch you next week. :D

Tangible Tidbits 2011 #13: Factoidz, Ferido™, and "Forum"

Good evening, everyone! I hope you all enjoyed the first full weekend of Spring...not that you could tell it's Spring around here. It's been bright and sunny for the past few days, but colder than it was before the seasons officially changed. :\

It's been a while, but I posted a new Factoid article today: Six Basic Publicity Tips To Help Promote Your Fundraiser or Special Event. It was a quickie I developed yesterday after posting a response to a request for help in a private Ning forum group to which I belong. After posting my reply, I realized that it would make a good Factoid with only a few minor tweaks and elaborations. :D I've also got another one "in development," but I'm not quite comfortable with it yet, so I posted this one first. I'll probably post the other one in April, since Factoidz calculates a monthly activity bonus based on the number of articles posted. Rather than double up in March, I may as well wait a few days and publish it in April, so I can build up next month's activity early. :)

I purchased a hardwood dowl and Tung Oil (a non-toxic finish) from Home Depot this week. I need them to make chopsticks for my school project. I found instructions on eHow.com for the chopsticks and the Chinese food carton, along with a template for the carton. I made one out of paper the other day and it turned out really nice! I also ordered aluminum sheet metal from a jewelry supplier in Manhattan, so I will hopefully get it in time for Tuesday night's class. The professor suggested I also make some kind of serving plate to go with the other pieces. I'll see how much time and materials I have left after the chopsticks and the carton...hopefully, I will have enough of both to come up with something suitable. :)

While I was at Home Depot, I also purchased some white spray paint. I have some lightweight metal hoops that I wanted to paint white for a pair of earrings. I think I mentioned last week that a coworker asked for white plastic hoops. The resin ones I made a couple of weeks ago are too stiff for earrings, I think. They will probably become pendants eventually. :) Anyway, I coated one side of the metal hoops with the white paint yesterday and they look pretty good. I have to wait 48 hours before I can flip them over and spray paint the back side. Once that dries, I will figure out what to use above the hoops as the attachment piece for clip earrings. I'm hoping I have something appropriate in my stash. Keeping my fingers crossed it all works out! :)

Since I didn't have the materials for my school project yet last week, I brought some rose Ferido™ Formula x1 epoxy adhesive with me to use up, since it is best used within two years and it was coming close to that time since I bought it. It comes in two parts that get blended together to make a clay-like substance, and one part was already a bit crunchy. I think I got in just under the wire on that one! LOL I created three pendants using the epoxy and some miscellaneous items such as broken beads and a button from an old winter coat...you never know what can be recycled, eh? ;) When I got home from class, they were solid enough to add wire bails to them, as well as some texture to one. I really like two out of the three. The third one is the textured one with the button. I may have to figure out a way to jazz that one up a bit. :\

I saw the fourth production of the Paper Mill Playhouse's season today -- A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. Even though I'd never seen the play, I recognized the opening song ("Comedy Tonight!"), but I'm not sure where I've heard it before. It may have been on a recent birthday tribute to Stephen Sondheim I saw on PBS. It was an amusing show, although I think I've seen funnier ones. The final play of the season for me will be on Mother's Day...and yes, I'm taking my mother! LOL It's Curtains, another one I heard about but never saw. I believe David Hyde Pierce performed it on Broadway. This production will star Robert Newman and Kim Zimmer of CBS-TV's Guiding Light soap opera. I've never watched CBS soaps, but I do know the actress and the actor looks familiar from his picture. He may have been on another soap at one point....I have seen all of the NBC and ABC soaps at one time or another. :)

I have some chores to finish up, since I was out most of the day. Have a great week! :D

Tangible Tidbits 2010 #49: The Holidays Are Upon Us!

Hey, everyone! :D

Well, I baked Christmas cookies today with my nieces, and then we went to their house for dinner. Santa is driven down streets in their town accompanied by a firetruck, and he made his visit after dinner. We each got a candy cane. The Christmas Season is officially here! LOL :D

I've been working on my coworker's grandmother's necklace this week. I finished with the pendant part, so I now just have to reinforce the chain section. I want to get it to her before Thursday, since it will be a half-day in the office and people will be going nuts. The office is closed on Friday, as Christmas Day falls on Saturday. :)

Just a little while ago, I submitted six photos of original pieces to the Bead Society of New Jersey. A three-judge panel of Board members are selecting pieces to represent the group at the Tucson Expo Center next month. The J.O.G.S. Gem & Jewelry Show and Art Bead Circle LLC is looking for superior, high quality, completely original work to be exhibited there January 28 through February 9, 2011. I sent some metalwork pieces, wire work, an embroidered pendant, and my Steampunk Box. They will select 15 pieces to represent us, so wish me luck! ;)

My final critique for the semester at MSU was on Monday night. The professor said to my friend (a teaching assistant) afterward, "That was not easy." LOL My friend replied, "She should have been a lawyer." That made my night! :D I wasn't disrespectful or trying to challenge him, but when he talked about aesthetics as opposed to techniques, I justified my choices. A few reasons were admittedly lame, but they were the truth and I stood by my choices. :) I think it rattled him a bit that I would not be intimidated by him and I could really care less about my grade. I didn't even ask him about the grade, to the shock of my friends! It didn't matter to me, because I knew the grade was based on his own taste. :\ I just checked and grades have not been posted yet. I should know by January 4 at the latest. ;)

I posted a new Factoid this weekend: If You Can Tie a Knot, You Can Macramé Your Way To Handcrafted Jewelry! That's eight articles in all now. Two more and I move up from Factoidz Writer to Staff Writer! And thanks to a new Buzz It Up! process at Factoidz, all of my older articles rank high or very high in search engine optimization (SEO) for their categories! :D

One other small business coup...I applied and was accepted to attend a special seminar during the first weekend in February in San Diego, CA. It's professional and personal development, and only 25 or so people will invited/allowed to attend, so that everyone can get to know each other on a first-name basis. A lot of work will be completed at the event, as opposed to them giving us tools to take away and work with on our own. I think attending this event will force me to take some steps I've been putting off because of a lack of time or other resources. I have 70,000 Continental Airlines OnePass miles racked up, so I will at least have that part of the trip covered. ;)

As for my Virtual Garage Sale, the last official week ended on Friday night. I am leaving the unclaimed items on the board until the New Year, as a few people have asked about them. So far, I've raised $624.16 for Fondation MIRA and $2.50 for Donate Life America. As I mentioned last week, I did make a personal donation of $25, and I made Donate Life America the recipient of My Birthday Wish on Facebook, as my birthday is conveniently next Friday. Hopefully, that will make up a bit for the lack of interest in "Moonlight" items. :)

The next time I post will be on December 26. So, best wishes to those who celebrate Christmas! :D

Tangible Tidbits 2010 #46: The Holiday Season 2010 Begins!

Hi, everyone! Hope all you U.S.-based folks enjoyed your Thanksgiving. :)

As I mentioned last week, I had a family funeral to attend on Wednesday. I hadn't been to their house in probably 25 years, but I recognized the neighborhood when the funeral procession passed the house. That choked me up. It's a nice thing to do, and I've heard it's becoming more commonplace. I think my immediate family members would have liked that, had it been done in the early 2000s. :\ I also went to visit a friend at the cemetery on Thanksgiving morning, but I couldn't find his grave. I should have looked for landmarks the last time I was there in June, but it didn't occur to me at the time. :p Got caught in the day's snow flurries while I was there! It didn't stick here in New Jersey, though.

Still trying to promote myself and my company, I submitted some pieces to Buy Art Now Guys! (BANG) 5 this morning at the 1978 Maplewood Arts Center. Check out the second exhibit listed here for more information. I was approached to participate after the deadline for the postcards and posters, so my name isn't listed. :\

I also posted a new Factoid this week: Procedures For Preparing A Wax Cast in Jewelry and Sculptures, based on last month's Focal Piece of the Month. The new Focal Piece is up on the company website, BTW. :)

In addition, I made a trip to Monroe Township (exit 8A on the NJ Turnpike) to deliver a necklace that was requested at the Jewels of New Jersey earlier this month, as well as a ring. We chatted for about an hour and discussed ideas for future pieces she would like. I have some materials already on-hand, so I will hopefully get some time to pull them together for her soon. :)

I have another custom necklace to make this week, which I hope to get to by the middle of the week. I have school tomorrow night right after work -- remind me to report on last week's critique next week! -- and the Virtual Garage Sale to set up on Tuesday night. I was out most of the day today with my mother and sister at the Paper Mill Playhouse's production of Les Miserables. Mom took us there and to dinner for our birthdays, which come in December and January. GREAT performance, BTW! They are really promoting it, too...I heard a commercial on WBGO-AM this morning (Mom's Sunday morning station) and saw three ads on The Hallmark Channel last night! The TV spots impressed me. I don't recall seeing them for any other Paper Mill production before. :o

Still on the back-burner is restitching my coworker's grandmother's necklace. I ordered 4 lb. Fireline (stringing material) for it this week. Hopefully, it will get here sooner rather than later to give me more time to work on it before Christmas. :)

Thankfully, I've done most of my Christmas shopping already through Something Tangible's Virtual Mall. I had read from one astrologer that shopping would be difficult in December due to Mercury going into Retrograde later in the month. Items would be backordered, hard to find, or not enthusiastically received if purchased during that period...so I decided not to take any chances and get my gifts early. Got some great deals, too! ;)

Can you believe December is less than a week away already? Is it just me or does time speed up the older you get? LOL Have a great week! ;)

Tangible Tidbits 2010 #39: Blame It On the Cable Company & Calcium Oxalates

Hey, everyone! I'm really sorry to be so late this week, but we were without a land line phone and internet connection from Sunday morning until late yesterday afternoon. Lots of miscommunication with the cable company, so the services finally came back up just in time for me to leave for class last night. That's the trouble with having one provider for your phone, internet, and cable services -- if one service goes down, there's an increased likelihood another one will go down with it! :o Then, I didn't get home until approximately 1:00 a.m. from school! I went straight to bed, but I haven't slept well the past few nights because of an allergic reaction to calcium oxalates. If I have anything with calcium oxalates in it, my entire body itches 48 hours later. I mean, my ENTIRE body...inside my ears, inside my nose, my scalp. It's really irritating, and it sometimes keeps me up at night, too. :p I had vegetable soup on Friday night and a filet mignon prepared with some seasoning mix on Saturday night. Both contained black pepper, which is a no-no. Lesson learned...NO MORE BLACK PEPPER! I would say "I need my Mommy to take care of me so that I watch what I eat more closely," but she's the one who fed them to me! LOL :\ Anyway, I slept late because I was awake a lot last night, and I got up just in time to make an appointment. Now, I'm fitting this in before I go to the after care job. ;)

As a result of these delays, I will probably send out this week's Virtual Mall Discounts & Deals on Thursday or Friday. ;)

Quick rundown of what progress I made last week: I opened up a new Facebook Fan Page for the Virtual Mall, three Facebook Event pages for my November 2 and November 14 workshops and my Virtual Garage Sale, created a new necklace while typing up the instructions and taking step-by-step photos to use as a guide in my workshops, and spent the internet down time entering data into my database. I'm getting close to finishing that up! :D

I will probably post the instructions as a Factoidz article without photos at some point, and offer readers the opportunity to get the full version by email. I may also create a video from them, and post it to our YouTube account, making the same offer to viewers. :)

I also posted the back issues of the Virtual Mall Discounts & Deals emails on the new Fan Page, but the links don't show up in the Discussions section. I will have to suggest people receive them by email if they want the direct links, as it makes shopping easier than having to copy-and-paste the URLs or searching for the sites. :p

Oh! And a college friend is chairing her Church's Holiday Bazaar, so I will be taking a table there! My first live event will be on Saturday, November 6, at Round Valley United Methodist Church in Lebanon, NJ. Wish me luck! :D

Gotta run...have a good week! :D

Tangible Tidbits 2010 #35: Workshops, Classes & Gallery Openings

Hi, everybody! :)

Well, I posted a new Factoid this week. This one is Five Ways To Promote Yourself and Your Small Business. It seems to be doing pretty well...82 views so far in the first 24 hours or so. My jewelry-making stories seem to get the most hits, so I may stick with those from now on. :)

My second class at Montclair State starts tomorrow night, so I will report next week on what we will be covering this semester. ;)

I started working at Blue Life Karate & Fitness this past Tuesday...and had off on Thursday and Friday already because there's no after care if the school district is closed. Happy Rosh Hashanah! :D

Two workshops to be taught by me in November are featured on the 1978 Maplewood Arts Center website. You can check out the listings here: http://www.1978artscenter.org/classes.php. I have no idea how popular they will be, if at all...I'm just keeping my fingers crossed they generate interest. :o

In addition, I attended a photography exhibit opening on Thursday at GAS Gallery and Studio in Maplewood. It's owned by someone I went to grammar school with, and he recognized me right away! That always makes me laugh, but I guess I have "one of those faces" because people always seem to recognize me, even if we haven't seen each other in decades. :p Anyway, the promotional cards for the gallery say they offer a photography studio, private events, exhibit space, films/discussion, creative workshops, and French language classes (one of the partners is a French teacher). Rick mentioned that they haven't really gotten into creative workshops yet, so I offered, "I can probably help you with that!" ;) He got pulled away and we didn't really finish our conversation, but I left him a note on the Facebook invitation I received for the event. I will follow-up with him at some point. I kind of have too much going on right now to push it. :\

As you know, the first installment of the Virtual Mall Deals & Discounts e-sales circular went out this past Wednesday. It took a while to put it together, but I think that was because it was the first one and I had been stockpiling stuff for it for a few weeks. I'm hoping it will be easier now that I will really only be highlighting one week's promotions at a time. :) If anyone has any suggestions on how to do it better, please feel free to let me know! I'm always open to suggestions. ;)

On the personal front, I spent the early part of the day preparing and photographing packages for my Television Memorabilia Virtual Garage Sale, which starts on Tuesday night. I've gotten some positive feedback about it, so I'm hoping it goes well. It's kind of strange, going through everything and selling it all. That was such a huge part of my life for such a long time -- six years -- it feels like I'm closing the chapter on that part of my life. I seem to be doing that a lot lately...closing chapters. This one doesn't bother me so much because I sort of left that phase behind me a few years ago. Some of the others I've closed this year weren't as easy (I'm getting a lump in my throat just thinking about it). :\ As the saying goes, "it is what it is." That's been quite a popular saying with a number of people in my life, including my late father. :)

I've got a number of orders to keep me busy this week, in addition to starting the first round of the auction and my class at MSU. I have a feeling this fall will be a flurry of activity for me! ;)

Have a good week and enjoy the "back-to-school weather" while it lasts! :)

Tangible Tidbits 2010 #31: Where Do I Start?

Hola, everyone! I've got so much to tell you this week, I don't know where to begin! ;)

First, Something Tangible LLC now has its own YouTube channel called Some Tangible Things. It seems that rapid video blogging is the way of the future. I don't have much in the way of appropriate technology to make my own videos yet, so I posted my steampunk PowerPoint presentation there to get started. :)

I also posted a new Factoidz article, since I noticed I slipped to the #2 expert slot in jewelry-making. It worked, as I am back to #1 again! LOL Here's the new story, if you haven't seen it yet:

Methods for Cutting Metal in Jewelry-making & Sculpture

In addition, I created a Testimonials form after completing one for Bead Manager Pro. The landing page when I finished asked me if I wanted to create my own...well, why not? ;) Anyone interested in leaving a testimonial for the website -- and I know a few of you have already expressed interest in it -- please fill in the form below. Thanks! :)

Testimonials form

As if all of the above were not enough to increase my exposure this week, I also started posting product reviews -- complete with my completed project photos -- on Artbeads.com. You never know who looks at the reviews...someone might get intrigued and take a peek here, right? ;)

I've also posted "shameless self-promotion" entries on four blogs that specifically ask for such content! They are hosted by people who stimulate social media networking as part of their coaching practices. Still, it's free exposure to a different audience than I usually reach! :D

One last item on the "shop talk" portion of this message...I just finished reading Finish What You Start by Craig S. Copeland. I received a copy of the book for free if I agreed to review it on Amazon.com. What did I have to lose? I have to say, it helped pull a lot of different things together for me. The subtitle of the book is Unlocking the Success Secrets of the Top 1%, and I believe there's really something to that. He outlines Five Power Principles, many of which I happen to do already naturally. However, it never occurred to me to combine these efforts to maximize impact. It makes a lot of sense, and the book is written in such a way that anyone can digest it pretty easily. If you're looking to complete projects that have been stalled indefinitely, I highly recommend this book! :)

On the personal side, I've had some major bad luck with transportation this week! I went into the garage to find a flat tire AND a dead battery on my car AT THE SAME TIME! Called AAA, who filled the tire enough to get me to the mechanic and tire place, and then checked my battery. It checked out okay, but the alternator was dead. NOT a cheap fix! The mechanic told me from his experience the battery wouldn't last much longer, even though it was in the "good" range. I asked the guy at the tire shop about replacing the battery, and he told me to hold off and see if it held the charge. The next morning, naturally, it was dead again! Jump started it with Mom's car -- she was nervous, but I was pretty confident I knew what I was doing -- and then went to the tire shop again for a replacement battery. In the midst of all this, I borrowed Mom's car to get to a social engagement I had on Wednesday night. Don't you know...I noticed the low fuel light was on when I got on the Parkway? :o Luckily, I had enough gas to get to the correct exit and hit the first gas station I saw. AND I was only about three minutes late! I guess I'm a lucky person after all? LOL

I think that's enough for this week. :p Have a great one! :D

Tangible Tidbits 2010 #26: Exploring My Financial Options

Hello, everyone! I've been pretty busy this week. I finished the two Totally Twisted Pendants in the kit from Paulette Baron that I mentioned last week. One necklace has already been posted and the second one will be posted tomorrow. I have to admit, I personally prefer the second one. I had some great sea foam luster beads in my stash that perfectly complimented the colors in the pendant. I hope you all like it as much as I do! :)

On Friday, I visited the Unemployment office in East Orange to meet with a counselor. I was advised to do so after the training workshop I had attended there a few weeks ago. The goal is to obtain a Tuition Waiver (I keep thinking Inheritance Tax Waiver because of my prior job at Registrar and Transfer, and even made the mistake of referring to it in my conversation with the counselor! She looked confused and I immediately recognized and corrected my mistake. :o ) to pay for school. She seemed to think it would not be a problem to get the Waiver -- they are offered for people undergoing training for in-demand fields, as an effort to hopefully make the candidates more employable long-term. Although Metalwork & Jewelry classes are not necessarily in that category, I told her about my plans for self-employment, so she seemed to think that would be okay. At the training workshop, the counselor said that graduate applications have to be approved by Trenton. I didn't think to ask about that on Friday, but it will hopefully not be a hindrance. In any case, the sticking point seems to be getting Montclair State to accept it. Apparently, they have declined before. I sent off an email to the Financial Services Department on Friday, since they were closed, and will hopefully get a response this week. If Montclair State agrees -- and since I have already enrolled and have paid part of the semester's tuition, they may not -- I will be taken off the enrollment roster for the class I have scheduled for September and have to reapply for it in August, within 30 days before classes start. Naturally, the school has the opportunity to take paying students over Tuition Waiver students, which is why we get "last pick." However, my class has five openings left out of 13 at the moment, not including me. I doubt I will get shut out of the class in the next four or five weeks. Just in case, though, my fingers are crossed! If the school refuses to change my status, I will pay for this semester out of my pocket and go the Tuition Waiver route for the remaining six classes. I understand that once the school has money in-hand, they may not be so eager to return it. I am being philosophical about this...I can certainly use the extra money that I would have used to pay for school, as times are tight at the moment, but I am willing to pay for school if necessary. Advancing my education is too important to let red tape muck up the works. :\

In addition, I am attending a three-hour Self-Employment Assistance (SEA) workshop tomorrow morning, which I also learned about at the training workshop. I will learn about the program and see if I qualify. I will also find out how it affects my Unemployment benefits, as I do believe it does in some way. They kind of glossed over that part at the previous workshop. If I do qualify, great! If not, c'est la vie. I am exploring every avenue I can to make this transition easier, but I only have control over so much. Particularly when dealing with an academic institution and the State of New Jersey. Don't even get me started on the latter! :p

In other news (pun intended), my second article was accepted by Factoidz this week! I think I previously mentioned wanting to adapt my steampunk oral presentation from last semester. I did that and it is here for anyone who is interested in reading it or missed it on the social media sites. I have now been bumped up to the #2 expert in jewelry-making on Factoidsz! :D The two Focal Piece of the Month stories I have submitted are really the only appropriate ones for Factoidz, so I will have to come up with new topics on a semi-regular basis for future articles. If anyone has suggestions or a particular topic he or she would like to learn more about, please let me know and I will explore it for you! :) I may try to hash out one on public relations for small businesses, as that is my prior experience and not completely unrelated to what I am doing now. ;) As always, I will keep you posted on my progress.

BTW, I did take last Monday (July 5) off. I spent most of the day in bed with the air conditioner running! In case anyone hasn't heard, we had a major heat wave in New Jersey most of last week. It was brutal for a couple of days, but the humidity seems to have dropped off a bit for the weekend. 8)

I saw Toy Story 3 last night at the South Orange Performing Arts Center (SOPAC) Clearview Cinema. It cost $14.25 for the ticket because they charge an additional $3.50 for "the 3-D experience." Luckily, I had a gift card from a friend, so that didn't hurt my wallet too much. LOL For anyone who hasn't seen it, it was really good! Definitely as entertaining as the first one. The audience was mostly adults, and they laughed out loud quite a bit. If you have any interest, I highly recommend seeing it on the big screen. :)

I've also been watching episodes of the former NBC soap opera Another World this weekend. It's available on Hulu, but only episodes from mid-May 1991 to mid-August 1992 so far. As I was working during that time, I missed many of those episodes. Even knowing what eventually happened to the characters almost a decade later (the show went off the air in 1999) doesn't take away from my enjoyment of watching these older episodes. It's kind of like hanging out with old friends after not seeing them for ages. ;)

That's about it for me...back to Hulu! LOL Have a great week! :)

Tangible Tidbits 2010 #23: Happy Father's Day!

I hope everyone is enjoying their Father's Day.

Mom came with me to the Rings & Things Bead Tour in East Hanover, NJ today. Man, was she blown away! LOL She had no idea what to expect, so seeing a large hotel ballroom set up with rows and rows of tables full of bead strands and findings made her eyes pop out! :p I think she was mildly impressed that I knew what I was doing. I spent way too much money -- but I got a lot of good deals, and I even found some of the stuff that was on my Wish List at their website, so it made the trip worthwhile. ;) They will be back again in September...I'll have to make sure I get there! :D

I also made time this weekend to finally finish my first bead stitching project...the St. Petersburg Medallion piece that I started at Linda Gettings' workshop in March. I decided to undo the medallions and start over again, since my first ones were pretty sloppy. :o What started out as a bracelet turned into a necklace because I had seven medallions and attached them to each other across the top, then realized the bracelet would be too large. So, I used the piece I created as the center of a necklace and sewed a St. Petersburg chain onto each end to finish it. I'm pretty pleased with the result, although I apparently took an unorthodox approach to the project. Apparently, people usually pick one base color and one accent color and use that pattern throughout the piece. In my "dare to be different" mentality, I mixed and matched the combinations, choosing a different pair in each medallion. I also alternated back and forth between the two colors in the attached chain, so I think it balances well. :)

This past week, I had a minor coup when Factoidz accepted my first submitted article! I adapted the Focal Piece of the Month on cuttlebone casting and submitted it as a how-to article. It's gotten a lot of positive feedback and I am now ranked the #3 expert in jewelry-making on Factoidz! LOL I haven't even been doing this for a year and I'm already an expert. Only in America, folks! ;) In case you missed the article, you can find it here: Cuttlebone Casting: A Technique for Jewelry and Sculptures.

I'm making headway on the administrative projects I mentioned last week. Breaking down overwhelming tasks into manageable chunks of time definitely takes the stress out of them for me. :)

We're due for website updates later this week, so keep an eye out for a new Focal Piece of the Month. We'll all be surprised, since I haven't decided what it is yet! LOL

Next week, I will be writing from Ocean City, Maryland via my new Acer Notebook. My family goes there during the last week of June every year, and we're leaving on Saturday morning. :)

Have a good week, everyone!