Only One Follower---I better rethink the contest

Well, despite posting on Face Book and Twitter, I have only one follower, so I guess the contest will probably not happen or I will extend it to January.
I'm going to a party Tuesday night held by our group---Handmade in Vegas. We are artisans who live in the Las Vegas area and who also have shops on Etsy. Sarah Flake, an artisan who makes the most adorable children's toys, moved to Vegas form LA and wanted to connect with other artisans in the area. She went through the Etsy search engine, inviting artists who lived in Vegas to join an Etsy team. We are now over 300 strong. The variety of creations made by our team and the quality of them is amazing. We have had two official Handmade in Vegas shows on Mount Charleston, and many of our artisans participate in shows such as First Friday and Art Walk. I really don't know how people can participate in shows on a regular basis. Just the two I was in were exhausting. In a way, it's fun, but so many hours go into planning, creating inventory and then the hours you put in at the show. We even have some members who travel around the state and the country participating in shows. I really admire them. It's a tough way to make a living.
My online sales in my fiber arts shop---http://nevadawoodswearables.etsy.com, have been pretty good this season. I haven't sold much jewelry, which is unusual. Then again, there are so many jewelry shops out there.
Well, I have literature papers to grade and scarves to crochet, so I'm going to close for today.

FIghting the Microbes

This is Day 11 of a very bad cold. I finally convinced the doctor (second visit, different doc) to give me antibiotics. I take a chemo drug to suppress my immune system. It the treatment for rheumatoid arthritis, which has destroyed the middle joints in all my fingers. This does present a challenge for me when it comes to making jewelry and crocheting, but how can I give up two things I love to do? When someone takes such a drug, she isn't going to be able to fight off a very bad cold. So, thanks Doc#1 for making me suffer with a horrible cough and inability to breathe for the last ten days. I took the 2 doses of antibiotics yesterday and am already coughing less and having more energy.
I have several new items I've finished crocheting and want to photograph and list, but there isn't a sign of sun anywhere. I like to take pictures of my creations outside so that the colors are truer. Oh well, I may have to settle for some inside pictures. Yesterday was a nice, sunny day, but I was at urgent care.....

Dreams of helpless kitties

I had a recurring dream last night. It was about my stumbling on all these stray kittens and cats. I try to take them home, but then there are more and more. I have different versions of the dream, but it's always the same: I can't save them all. I don't need Carl Jung resurrected to interpret the dream. I know it' s my frustration at not being able to save all the strays.
I love all animals. In fact, I became a vegetarian about ten years ago because I no longer wanted to be responsible for killing animals to eat. I know that one vegetarian isn't going to stop animals from being bred in horrible conditions and slaughtered, but at least my conscience is clear. For some reason, I am especially partial to cats and horses. I like dogs and I own one, but somehow it's cats that tear my heart strings the most---all cats, big and small.
I do what I can but I never feel that it's enough. All six of my cats are rescued animals. I donate at least 10% of my profits on Etsy to animal charities. I crochet shelter snugglies for no kill shelters so dogs and cats can have a cozy blanket to help their comfort in cages. I leave out dry food and and have a bed lined with fake fur blankets for the ferals I see running around up here on the mountain.But once again, I never feel like it's enough. As a child, I always dreamed of having a huge place where I could adopt all the strays and give them food and shelter. But I know as an adult that this is unrealistic. There will always be more just like in my dreams. But the realization doesn't make me feel any better. I'll just keep doing what I do and hope that it in some way helps.

Only 25 days until Christmas....win this scarf.

I can't believe how fast 2010 went. It seems that every year goes at a speedier pace. I just get used to writing 2010 on my checks, and it's another new year. Life really goes by in a flash. When I was teaching full time, I wished the year away by the next upcoming vacation. Now I wish the winters away so that I can experience spring.
Winters are rough. We get so much snow. Sometimes my husabnd has to get on the roof to shovel it off. I bought him a snow blower a couple of years ago, but H ecan't get that onto the roof We live in a two story house, and one year, we had so much snow, that our entire lower story was encased in snow. It was like living in an igloo. Our little dog att he time would hang out on th e lower roof because it was level with the snow line. That same year was the first and last time I helped my husband shovel the roof. I fell off and my shovel went elsewhere. The snow cushioned my fall, but Jim had ot come down and shovel a path to me because I was surrounded by a wall of snow. Then we had to shovel our way to where the shovel fell. It wasn't a fun experience. Another time we had our truck parked in the driveway which was pretty icy. I fell under thet ruck and could not get back out.After several attempts, I finally was able to pull myself out by holding onto the tire wheelwell. In retrospect, it soulds pretty funny, my constant slipping under the truck, but I could have died out there. It was night and no one was around. Anyway, is it any wonder that I wish away the winters?
You may wonder why I live up here if I hate snow. Well, it's gorgeous and the spring, summer and fall are absolutely wonderful.
Now I'm getting to the first contest for followers of my blog. I am giving away a beautiful, red fringed scarf. It is made from super soft acrylic yarn. The way to win it is by becoming a member of my blog. You can enter as often as you like but only when you add another person as a follower. The first time you enter is because you become a follower. The next time, you must add someone else as a follower. I will be having give away contests each month. Sometimes it will be a scarf or hat, other times it will be a piece of jewelry. Also, I will have discounts and others specials available ONLY to followers of the blog. The drawing for this scarf will be at the end of December.

Winter Blues

It's a sunny day today, but there is also snow on the ground. It's a little early for "stick around snow"!!!! This early snow certainly put a damper on our holiday craft show, as people were afraid to drive up in it. Oh well. That's behind us now. We can look forward to the summer show instead.There is no predicting the weather any more.
I have a nasty cold that has pretty much confined me to the house, so that means crocheting. AT least crocheting cheers me up. I watch trashy TV shows that I never got to watch when I was working full time.It's fun to zone out to Law and Order or Cold Case. My special new favorite is all the reruns of Criminal Minds, but they don't come on until very late in the afternoon.If I'm really desperate for something to watch, I'll watch one of the true forensics shows. My last, totally desperate result is a Lifetime movie.
Watch for my monthly giveaway of a beautiful hand crocheted scarf in December. Details will be forthcoming about how you can win it. You must be a follower of this blog in order to qualify for the contest.
I have a 5% off coupon code on both my etsy shops (http://nevadwoods.etsy.com and nevadawoodswearables.etsy.com). There is also an automatic 5% off at my Artfire shop-http://nevadawoodscreations.artfire.com. Take advantage of this sale for great holiday gifts.

Mt. Charleston SHow is only a month away!!!

Hello everyone. I just wanted to give everyone an update on the upcoming Mt. Charleston show on November 21st. We still have two spots left, although I have one person on our team who expressed recent interest. There are no spots left for jewelry vendors.
Once all this rain goes away, I will be posting signs around. I am taking postcards and flyers to the hotel this week. I am also going to be posting a flyer in our library up here. I am also going to mail post cards to the home owners up here. Many of them live in town. In two weeks, I will place an ad in City Life. I hope all participants received their flyers and postcards that I mailed off last week. PLEASE distribute and post them.
Since this is a small show, I am trying to keep it limited to Handmade in Vegas members only. I have had interest from outside vendors, but even if we only have 18 vendors, it will still be a great show.
I hope those of you involved in the CSN Fall Fest have a wonderful and fruitful weekend.

Please let me Know if you are still interested in the fair on Mount Charleston

Hi everyone. My July 1st deadline for contracts is at the end of this week. I will accept contracts after that date, but I REALLY need to know who is still interested and who isn't so I can get a head count. I also set a deadline because I need upfront money for promoting the show. I sent a reminder to everyone who expressed interest but has not gotten back to me. Please check your spam and let me know one way or another. Thanks so much. My e-mail is nevadawoods@hotmail.com.