I am the Bargain Queen

I know you are all jealous of my bargain hunting skills. Prepare to be positively GREEN.

GOODWILL is right next to the YMCA where we work out. So after yesterday mornings workout, we decided to hop across the street and pop into to Goodwill to see what they had. All in all it was a successful trip.

Finn found a Full Size Buzz Lightyear toy($1 and in perfect condition). I found a a wooden vase from World Market (1.99, originally $30!!), a crystal 2 tiered cake stand (unopened $6!!). THEN the coup de grace. As I was over in the "electronics department" looking at a humidifier, I saw "IT".
Jam,es, from the backroom, brought it out.
I shook my head. I rubbed my eyes. I did a double take. Could it be?? YES! IT WAS!!
IT WAS A KIRBY VACUUM CLEANER!!!
I sidled over(I really wanted to run, tackle, lick it and claim "MINE"). It was a G5, purple/maroon. It was in EXCELENT condition. I opened it up, it had a brand new kirby vacuum bag in (the kind with the hepa filter on it). I thought to myself "The only thing that could make this better was if it came with the box of hoses and carpet shampooer".
As if I had a magic Genie, out came James with (TA-DA) the box of hoses and accessories AND the carpet shampooer. I was stunned. In the accessories/hose box there were 3 more unused hepa bags. All the brushes were there. The carpet shampooer was complete, the hoses were in perfect condition adn crack free. The belts were clean and in great shape.
I had in my hand, a KIRBY vacuum cleaner complete with accessories and carpet shampooer.
I paid...get ready...get ready....wait for it ... TWENTY DOLLARS!!!!!
Yes, $20 for a kirby vacuum cleaner with all the bells and whistles. Yes, it is 8 or 9 years old and not the new model, BUT these vacuums were about $1300 when they first came out! They have 50 year warranties, and have the best suction power of any vacuum on the market.
I actually already own a Kirby. But I saw this vacuum,made claim, called Charles over and said "It's a Kirby with everything. It is only $20...should we get it??"
he took one look at me and said "Uh yeah!"

So we are now the proud owners of TWO kirby's.
My goal is to clean up the G5 and resell it. My grand total at Goodwill: $30.
Had I bought all this stuff new I would have spent almost $1400.

I am debating going back today to get a Kenmore sewing machine with table. It was $22. It is a vintage 1960's Kenmore sewing machine that is mounted in the sewing table and can store. It had the complete set of feet, the rings you place on for the different stitches, instruction manual and everything. It was in mint condition.
It was older than the machine I learned to sew on. My mom had a 1968 Kenmore sewing table that she gave to me in high school. It was the greatest sewing machine.
This one was DEFINATELY older. So I may go back and get it.
They also had a mongoose mountain bike for $30. It was in perfect condition. Although I will assume that one is probably gone by now. It was a NICE bike.

I love finding good deals. I LOVE the thrill of the hunt.

bow down before the mighty Bargain Queen.

ETSY and Martha Stewart

WOW! Another GREAT promotion for ETSY!!

On Leap Day, Rob(founder of etsy), was on the Martha Stewart Show, talking about etsy and what a great showcase it is for artisans around the world.

With him he had brought a large number of items from various shops and stores, and helped show the world exactly what etsy is and what we stand for as a whole.

ETSY: a worldwide marketplace for sellers to sell their HANDMADE goods of every kind. Of course there are the vintage and supplies categories, but generally everything on etsy is made and crafted by hand. There are over 100,000 sellers on etsy, and over 750,000 members total. They sell an average of 15,000 products A DAY.

I will say I have done both ebay and etsy, and I vote ETSY all the way. ebay is overfiltrated with junk and mass produced crap and people are only trying to score a deal. They may charge you 99 cents for the item and then 30$ for shipping to avoid paying fees. It is ludicrous. But on etsy, everything is handmade. shipping fees are generally actual shipping costs. You may pay a little more, but you know you are getting quality and something handmade, not mass produced. Many times when you buy an etsy item you are getting a one of a kind, not to be found anywhere else item.

Here are 2 things I have recently gotten from etsy:

This awesome totebag/purse from sewgracious

I LOVE this bag. I had a whole post devoted to this bag awhile back. I get compliments on it wherever I go, and I DEFINATELY could not have found it in a department store.

This boro lampwork glass pendant called "daisy".

Thanks to flamekist for this AWESOME pendant. Sterling silver bail fused onto a a gorgeous daisy pattern lampwork glass pendant.

the packaging it came in was almost as pretty as the pendant itself!!

I am in love with this pendant, and am off to the jewelry store today to find a silver chain on which to hang it.

Watching Martha, and seeing all the talent on her stage, I was really proud to be a member of etsy.

I am Blueboygifts, where I mainly sell polymer clay pendants, jewelry, greeting cards and crochet items. It took me a full month to get my first sale, I felt really bad about myself and my crafts. I didnt realize that I needed to promote my items and my shop and that posting does not equal sales. So I started participating in the forums more, offering free shipping in promotions on certain items, relisting and renewing regularly and the sales started coming. Then I responded to a forum thread posted by Matt from admin. He liked my story and asked me to be a featured seller. It was a huge blessing to be featured , (September 2006) which really helped me gain exposure. To date I have sold almost 500 items as blueboy.

Then in January of 2008, I decided to open my SECOND shop Thebalmshoppe.

Granted I have to get my name out there(AGAIN) but it is totally worth it. I have bath and body products, balms, salts and more. I currently have several batches of soap curing that I cant WAIT to list!!

So thank you to Martha Stewart, for helping get the name of etsy out into the public. Thank you for showing america that they can buy quality, beautiful and unique items from artists and crafters all over the world and not mass produced junkyard crap you find on OTHER sites.

It was funny to me as I was watching: As the camera's panned over the items I was telling my husband "Oh Look, thats Black Apple!", "Oh there's Littleput!" or "I recognize Janine King Designs anywhere!" and "Don't you LOVE those popsicle soaps by LoveLee??" I have come to recognize many etsyans by their products and by their style and flair.

Thank you to etsy as well. Being a member has given me the chance to step outside my comfort zone and succeed where I didnt think I had a chance. It has given me focus and a goal. It has helped me define who I am as a crafter and what i want to be as a businessperson.

It has shown me that I can achieve anything I want, if I put the work into it.

J.K. Rowling, get over yourself

I am a huge Harry Potter fan. It had a good run, I own all 7 volumes(in HARDCOVER no less).
I read the whole series once a year, at least, and I read them to my kids. We have Harry mania at our house.

However, enough is enough.

Apparently there is a man, Steve Vander Ark, out there writing an unauthorized book called "Harry Potter Lexicon". This man is a fan. He is the editor of a Web site containing a fan-created collection of essays and encyclopedic material on the Potter universe. Spells, potions, animals, creatures, Characters and a Who's Who of sorts.
In the past Rowling has praised efforts of this web site and editor. She has long been the champion of free fan based web sites.

She is NOW trying to stop this Harry Potter lexicon...why?

"I am deeply troubled by the portrayal of my efforts to protect and preserve the copyrights I have been granted in the Harry Potter books...If RDR's(publisher) position is accepted, it will undoubtedly have a significant, negative impact on the freedoms enjoyed by genuine fans on the Internet," she said. "Authors everywhere will be forced to protect their creations much more rigorously, which could mean denying well-meaning fans permission to pursue legitimate creative activities....I find it devastating to contemplate the possibility of such a severe alteration of author-fan relations."

I can understand her point of view. If I were a writer, I think I would feel the same way, especially books that I had spent the past decade writing. A decade in becoming the first BILLIONARE author. A decade in getting every person on the planet wearing taped spectacles and striped scarves for Halloween.

THEN I found out that SHE wants to write the Harry Potter Encyclopedia. Hmmm, I think I see where this is headed.


Lizbeth Hasse, an attorney for RDR(the publishing company wanting to publish the fan based Lexicon) says that Rowling is seeking a monopoly over the work, which is not part of copyright law. They also say,
"It's a very legitimate literary activity," she said of the lexicon. "Like a reference book or a guide to literature, it's a long-recognized genre. ... We are not replacing the novel or taking away the market."
RDR publisher Roger Rapoport said "...the lexicon would not compete with any official encyclopedia written by Rowling..."
RDR Books said it was "determined to publish this book for the benefit of Harry Potter fans everywhere."
It said it "believes Ms. Rowling, who has championed the 'Lexicon' for years, will love reading the book just as much as she does the Web site on which it is based."


So what are your thoughts on it?

I am of both minds. I can understand that she created Harry Potter. I can understand that she would be protective of it.
BUT this was a web site she loved and championed and encouraged. Now that they are wanting to publish something about it , she is turning the cold shoulder and showing her true colors. Because SHE wanted to write one first.
It is an UNAUTHORIZED guide. Thats why they call it UNAUTHORIZED.
How many unauthorized guides to Star Wars and Lord of the Rings and Dungeons and Dragons are there out there on the market? TONS. I dont remember the hissy fits and drama associated with those. Because THEY know that when the real authorized version comes out, it will far outsell any attempts from previous unauthorized versions.

Lighten Up J.K. You wrote a book, not created the Universe. Let the fans have their unauthorized lexicon. Once yours comes out it will far outsell anything they could have written anyway.

I'll bet ya never would have guessed

Wierd things you may not know about me:

1. Eating Croutons makes me dizzy. Something about the crunching kind of twinges my inner ear, and it seriously makes me lightheaded and dizzy. No other crunchy food does it, just croutons. So whenever I get a salad at a restaurant, I pick them off and make my kids eat them.

2. I LOVE sourkraut. my Maiden name is Koch, I am half german, of course I love Kraut. Pork Roast and Sourkraut. YUM. I order extra kraut on reuben sandwiches too. Hot dogs, sausage. Can't get enough Kraut.

3. As much as I love reading a good book, uplifting literature and the classics, I also have a soft spot for ridiculous "bodice rippers". My favorite line from the WORST romance novel ever written is "with a low feral growl, he ripped her gown asunder" AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! Thats freaking awesome.

4. I have been to 49 of the 50 states. I have never been to Maine.maybe someday. I've eaten Lobster from maine...does that count?

5. I lived in Aix-en-Provence, France in college while attending Centre d'Aix at the Institute for American Universities. It was my goal to try every cheese and pastry produced in france. My favorite store was The Monoprix. I still dream about "Caprice des Dieux" and those Smoked Almonds.

6. I can do the Pigeon. (as in Bert and Ernie Doing the wah wah pigeon)


7. My favorite book of all time is "Monster at the end of the book" with Grover.

8. I secretly like Yo Gabba Gabba. My name is Sarah, I like to Dance!


I like it when people make fun of Brittney Spears...bring it on Chris Crocker!

I was going to do a whole blog on Project Runway, but realized I didnt have all the "presentation materials" I needed at just this very moment. Rest assured, gentle reader, that tomorrow there will be a FULL rundown of Project runway-the good, the bad and the ugly.

Today I will discus ... My mother.
I love her. I do. But my kids have been grounded from her.
My parents live 5 miles away. My mom and dad get to see my boys several times a week.
they love the boys, they spoil the boys.then they bring them back to me. Usually decked out with new toys, snacks or other nonsense that they don't need.

As many of you know, Transformers has been HUGE in our house.
It seems like every week they were coming home with a new transformer, a new toy, a new SOMETHING.
Yesterday My mom and Dad and I, along with my youngest son, went to Lowes to look at more shelving for my table displays.
Before they came to pick us up, this is the conversation I had with Finn:

FINN: Is Gramma coming with us?
ME: Yes she is.
FINN: Im going to ask her to get me Optimus Prime(something or other)
ME: No, Gramma is done buying you toys and stuff. It is not your birthday and it is not christmas. No more toys from Gram, so dont even ask.
FINN:(in a very snooty tone). Well, we will just wait and see, wont we?

WE WILL JUST WAIT AND SEE, WONT WE????keep in mind this child is 4 1/2. I swear I am raising a teenager sometimes.
We went to Lowes. Dad and I wandered the aisles, getting ideas while my mom and Finn wandered around in search of "kid things".
We met up again and Finn says to me, "mom, can Gram and I go pick up Peter from school? Then she says she will take us to Target....(my mom clamps her hand over Finn's mouth at this point and says "oh no, dont you be saying stuff like that!"
Stupid me, I let it drop, assuming that Finn had decided he could bully my mom into taking him to Target, but that If I told her no she would respect my opinion. (fool me once shame on you, fool me 1136 times, shame on me)

After lunch, I was dropped off at my house. Before they left again I specifically said "NO TOYS. They have enough transformers. Finn it is not your birthday and it is not christmas. Dont ask for anything else. You may not get new toys. Please do not ask, you are not allowed to have anything new". Finn started crying. He had it in his head that he was going to Finagle a new transformer out of Gram one way or the other.
I figured that since I had made my wishes known in front of my mom AND dad, that all would be right with the world.
My mom took Finn and picked Peter up from school. She took them to get haircuts. She took them back to her house to play. THEN She took them to Target."Just to look".
When they got home there was a bag with new transformers in it. Finn looked at me. his eyes were narrowed, his lips were pouty. He was shaking his head with a cocky swagger. (kind of like Stewie from Family guy)
I asked "Where did these come from??"

Very honestly and with great snootery(is that a word?) he said "From Target. Gramma bought them for us. I told you she would".(snottery snootery and more snootery)
I looked at my mom and said "What are these?"
she kind of shrugged, gave me a grimace and said(I KID YOU NOT), "I dont know. Gotta go" and ran out the door. She KNEW she had called down the thunder and didnt want to stick around for the storm.
Peter immediately started to backpedal and said, within seconds of me shutting the door and turning around, "It was Finn's Idea." Well Played Peter.

So mom, I love you. The boys love you. But no means no. You are grounded.

Dad, you should have known better. You were there in the car when I told them no more toys. You have the wallet, refuse to hand over the cash, bro! You are usually pretty good about keeping mom in line when I say no. We're you not availible for the Target Excursion? Did you HONESTLY think they were going there "just to look?". Dad, you're grounded.

sigh.

It's a No Brainer, if you are a Polar Bear

All information was gathered from http://www.holidayinsights.com/

Today we celebrate two holidays: No Brainer Day and Polar Bear Day.

A No Brainer is something that is obvious. A "well, Duh!" kind of moment.

Today is the day for you to do easy, no thought required tasks. I can live with this.

My whole day will be spent with no-brainer moments. I shall watch TV that requires no thinking or extra "hmmm" on my part. I shall eat Bologna and cheese so I dont have to cook. Anything requiring extra thought or study or preparation will be put off until tomorrow. After all, it IS a holiday.

Happy Polar Bear Day!

Did you know that Polar bears are the worlds largest Carnivore? They can stand up to 9 feet tall and weigh over 1000 pounds! Polar bears live in the North Pole, and are native to Alaska, Canada, Greenland, Norway, and Russia. Polar Bears are Left Handed (Now what agency gave money to study THAT??). Polar Bears skin is black. This allows their skin and bodies to absorb sunlight to help keep them warm.

"Need some ideas on how to celebrate today? Try visiting the local zoo to see live polar bears. Teachers like to use this day to teach about polar bears and other bears, as kids are fascinated with all kinds of bears. Also, check the nature channels on cable Tv. The networks often pick up on holidays like today, and run documentaries"(holidayinsights.com)

Who knew.

so I am celebrating Polar bear day by posting the no brainer obvious...an etsy find .

This ACEO card from fancykstudio is called Max and the Polar Bear.

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=9143465

I really love this card. The Polar Bear looks so sweet and Benevolent (dont let the Art fool ya, Polar Bears will rip your heads off). A beautiful ACEO. Thanks Fancykstudio!

To wrap it up: Dont think too hard., and a poem for you (It was a funny email I received. I changed it to Yep, I'm gonna be a Polar Bear")

In this life I am a woman. In my next life, I'd like to come back as a Polar bear. When you're a Polar bear, you get to hibernate. You do nothing but sleep for six months. I could deal with that.
Before you hibernate, you're supposed to eat yourself stupid. I could deal with that too.
When you're a girl Polar bear, you birth your children (who are the size of walnuts) while you're sleeping and wake to partially grown cute, cuddly cubs. I could definitely deal with that.
If you're a mama Polar bear, everyone knows you mean business. You swat anyone who bothers your cubs. If your cubs get out of line, you swat them too. I could deal with that.
If you're a Polar bear, your mate expects you to wake up growling. He expects that you will have hairy legs and excess body fat.
Yep, gonna be a Polar bear!

This is one of my favorite E-mails. I wish I could say it isn't true, but the fact of the matter is I use 1,2,3,5,6 and 9 on a daily basis. At first I was indignant, but the further down I read, the more I knew I was guilty.


1. FINE: This is the word women use to end an argument when they are right and you need to shut up.

2. FIVE MINUTES : If she is getting dressed, this means a half an hour. Five Minutes is only five minutes if you have just been given five more minutes to watch the game before helping around the house.

3. NOTHING This is the calm before the storm. This means something, and you should be on your toes. Arguments that begin with nothing usually end in fine. (see #1)

4. GO AHEAD This is a dare, not permission. Don't Do It!

5. LOUD SIGH: This is actually a word, but is a non-verbal statement often misunderstood by men. A loud sigh means she thinks you are an idiot and wonders why she is wasting her time standing here and arguing with you about nothing.

6. THATS OKAY This is one of the most dangerous statements a women can make to a man. That's okay means she wants to think long and hard before deciding how and when you will pay for your mistake.

7. THANKS: A woman is thanking you, do not question, or Faint. Just say you're welcome.

8. WHATEVER Is a women's way of saying SHUT UP!

9. DONT WORRY ABOUT IT, I GOT IT Another dangerous statement, meaning this is something that a woman has told a man to do several times, but is now doing it herself. This will later result in a man asking, "what's wrong"(see #3 for the answer)


Men, you totally understand this e-mail.
women, you will act all huffy and mad, then laugh because you will realize you, too, are a "words women use" sinner.