One important thing to consider when doing business is moving and grooving with the times. My local local NPR station[WKNO] broke all of these four reasons why NPR is growing. First, there's almost no local coverage. The best we get is maybe some coverage of a $50 opera. Contrast this to MPB which has a whole line up of local shows, including interviews with anyone who has ever thought of Mississippi. WKNO also doesn't use social media well. Their twitter is only a newsfeed, and not of local news. With MPB, there at least some interaction. And of course, the big problem is accessibility. I can pay $300 for a HD radio to listen to Tell Me More or I can switch over to MPB for free and listen. Now, they couldn't have guessed about the recession, but even before, it should have been obvious that being mostly all classical music [on the weekends, instead of something interesting, they have opera. opera. maybe 10 people in Memphis like opera. Certainly something for HD!]

I decided to post about this, because stupid Comcast is TAKING AWAY CHANNELS for paid customers. So I can pay the same amount of money for less channels, including MSNBC, one of my favorites. Just when competition is coming into town. So always focus on the customer's end.

Certain not to be named people have a blog in which they are acting like not having a business paypal makes a business a fraud, and a victim posts on etsy.

While I do have a business paypal account, many of the smaller sellers, who sell maybe one thing a month aren't going to have them.

I'm getting back into the groove, but sadly, making more stuff means getting more cash. So, buy some of my manga. I have a need for beads.

Hey, I was featured on a Fashion Friday.

My business is on haitus. My shops are still open as I always think I'll get back to it. Today is my day off from 'working' and I don't want to do anything.

It seems like Ullja, who was banned from etsy and the self representing jewelry artists for scamming is trying to come back. She has also gotten in trouble for an unliscened bakery. An email:

Ulljas has sent you a message on We Love Etsy

long time no see...i was in Italy for the past 3 years getting lessons in advanced glass sculpturing...i am back in Texas and will reopen my licensed brick and mortar bakery in Waco....soon, online cookie sales will be back too...come check out my new website and make sure to sign my mailing list there to get updates on all
www.ulljasglassnsugar.com

Have a blessed weekend,
Ullja

I would avoid her, as she has gotten in trouble in the past. The cookies were good, but her heart is bad.

I bet this project must have kept the neighbor's kids occupied for at least 30 minutes. Happy 4th!

Quote journals are amazing. Some people draw pictures on the pages and decoupage the covers with vintage ads, but I just have some index cards held together with rings. Some may say, why not buy a quote book? It's more expensive and you get boring quotes like "Too blessed to be depressed" or something instead of awesome quotes like "Never again the foamy times" or "There's no time limit on dancing like Michael Jackson".

You can also make little kids do this as an art project. Just have them fold lined paper and give them some markers and crayons and have them go. I bet it would keep them busy for at least half an hour. Quote journals are for everyone from teens that are writing their first in joke journal to senior citizens collecting dirty jokes to share with their friends.

I find that if I start with a quote I remember and change it a little- I call this remixing- I will end up with a quote that is very personally meaningful for me. So try it.

On Sunday, I saw Wicked at the Orpheum. According to my parents, who are so old that they had to go into the side door and sit in the balacony of the Orpheum when it was a movie theater[note: they are black], the Orpheum looks now as it did back then. With a chandelier, wallpaper so opulent I thought it was carpet and a huge seating area with a balcony, a mezzanine, and tons of seats on the bottom, it's an amazing sight. Uniformed ushers guide you to your seat.

The play was very nicely staged. There was a large moving dragon on the top of the stage, athletic dancing monkeys, and costuming that both brought the Wizard of Oz to mind and was original as well.

The story was quite different from the book, but it was understandable. The world of Oz in the book is gigantic, with many different religions, peoples, and beliefs. Having everything connect back to Elphaba and Glinda wouldn't make sense becuse the world is so big. However, the musical has a smaller scale. There's a love triangle, the scarecrow,lion and tin man now all have something to do with Elphaba's[and sometimes Glinda's] actions, and even the Wizard is tied in at the end. There was a popular girl/nerdy girl high school dynamic added as well.

The music was amazing, as well. All in all, worth the ticket price.

The song that I have in my head for this time of year is "It's too hot, too hot, too hot for me. Gotta run for shelter, gotta run for shade". 6 people have died from the heat lately in Memphis. Two weeks ago, I saw a utility man laying prone in a neighbor's yard. I slowed down and asked the workers if they were OK. One man said yes, his partner was just over heated. I think it was only 92 degrees that day.

Today we came to the end of our pear preserves. My mother washed out the jar, and said she was going to return it, because she doesn't want her friend's mother to go to the expense of buying another jar, and also, because we might get some new pear preserves.

I really respect people who are keeping the remnants of the old barter agricultural economy going. I hope it doesn't fade in our generation, even though I have no useful domestic skills, and work days are getting longer, leaving less time for canning, gardening, and chicken raising

Today is Father's Day. My mom offered to fix my dad's plate. She usually doesn't fix my dad's plate. She used to, as dad's mother used to call the 'girls' to fix the men's plates at family gatherings, but she stopped after my brother started wanting her to fix his plate. So today she asked if he wanted her to fix his plate, since she had made breakfast. He fixed his own plate. GO DAD!

Twitter helps cover the Iran election. I saw this happen myself. Through my follow list, photos of protesters, information about the marches and what was going on, and even locations of proxy servers that the Iranians could use spread quickly. And from twitter, it'll spread into other venues- for example, I emailed that photo to my mother. It's good to remind governments that the world is watching.

Etsians rise up on metatags.

Etsy's having metatag and customer service problems.

Today I had an adventure and went to Chili's. You know, nowadays they are charging for the chips? $4! You know, I went to a Mexican restaurant and they gave me free chips, and this chain is much much smaller than Chilis. So we business people learn an important lesson- sure, you can get business because people don't want to drive around in a strange area looking for something authentic when they can go to feedbag #206 right across the street, but remember, if you're charging for things others give away for free, tell them or at least make up a story about why your chips are higher quality or something!

In using etsy for your activism, please remember two points. 1st point: nothing on etsy can be compared to Rosa Parks unless somehow you knitted a cozy that allowed civil rights to flourish. I doubt this as most people can't even knit a decent pear cozy. 2nd point: really, shut up about China. Just shut up. You'll thank me.

LA offers cash for grass. I think the ideal of the manicured lawn is outdated, and doesn't work with today's greater focus on sustainability. An old saying is 'waste not, want not' and by focusing on each region's unique ecology, we can get yard designs that honor the local wildlife and look attractive as well.

I've finally started my YART sale section. Only 5 items can be in the section at a time, so the more people buy, the more opportunities you have to save. Since items are starting at a dollar, there's no excuse not to buy.

The passive affection of facebook and twitter is right. While I'm one of the 10% creating 90% of the content in twitter, on facebook, I'm quieter. I also wonder how I know 85 people from real life, as I am a hermit. But I do, and I want to know about their Costa Rican vacations, their baby's firsts, no matter how gross, and their occasional philosophical thoughts. At least I can keep up until I see them in real life again.