Sunday, March 15, 2009

Another One Bites The Dust

Well...it's 11:00pm, and we're back in the big red van heading home. Atlanta was a good show, a little down from past Atlanta shows, but lets use the new excuse for everything here lately..it's the economy. This has become a very handy excuse for just about everything. In the same building as the show we were in, there was the Atlanta Arts and Crafts Show, a bridal show, a car show, and a pharmacuticals(sp) show. So there is no shortage of shows, just a shortage of show attendees. Actually, that's not correct either, the number of attendees was about the same as usual, they just spent less money. I don't know if it truly is because of the economy, or if it is due to the hype about the economy.

Thomas Mann was exhibiting in the Arts and Crafts show. I really wanted to go and see his work and meet him, but I was busy with classes, and that shows hours were the same as ours, so I was never able to get there. As we were packing up, another vendor asked if I met Thomas Mann when he came in our show. I didn't even know he had come in. He stood in front of my booth and talked with our show promoter, and I didn't even know he was there. I am so bummed out. He was right there, he may have seen my jewelry, and I didn't even know he was there. Oh well.

Chase is asleep, Charla is asleep, I'm hoping that Norm is not asleep, and we're plugging along. We'll get home tonight around 1:00am. I have 9 students coming in tomorrow at 11:00am to start a two day cold connections work shop with me, so I am looking forward to getting home and sleeping fast so I'll be up to meeting and succeeding all of their expectations!

Friday, March 13, 2009

On the road again

Well, we're back in the "Big Red Van" again. This time we're headed to Atlanta, Georgia. We are doing a Down The Street Bead Show." I'm really looking forward to it because Barbara McGuire is also an instructor there, and we have a lot to catch up on since we last saw each other. Barbara has got several irons in the fire, and I'm a part of some of them, so watch out, here we come. We are going to be doing a workshop in Beaufort, South Carolina over the weekend of March 27-29. I've not been in Beaufort since my college days. I took Marine Science there in 1990. Wow...put away the way back machine. Anyway, we are doing a poly clay/metal combination workshop. That's going to be fun! Barbara also has another project she's working on, but I've got to talk with her some more before I can relay that info to you.

It was a very fast trip home. We barely got our laundry done, paid bills, and made some much needed supply orders, before we were off again. I did get to make a few pieces of jewelry yesterday before we packed up. I will be displaying some of my finished work this weekend as well as teaching four classes. These drives are good for me, becuase thanks to a wireless broadband card, I can now work even as we're driving down the road. Oh...lucky me! There was a day when I could lean back with my earphones on and listen to a good book as we drove, but not anymore, no, no wasting any time here. Now if I could just figure out how to work while I'm sleeping I'd have it made. Just think 9 hours a day totally wasted! I do have to admit, I design in my sleep, but all to often, I forget the design details before I wake up. I keep a sketch book by the bed, but that doesn't alway work. However, when I was using Ambien to sleep, my designs where even better, but the long term price is much to high to pay. Now I just fall asleep out of pure exhaustion.

Those of you who are waiting to hear about "the book" will be glad to hear that I have at least turned it in, and the publishers are discussing it, so keep you fingers crossed.

Well we're hitting Atlanta traffic, and I'm not too thrilled about having an airbag shove a computer up my nose, so ta for now.