I'm Coming Up

Well.  It's October and that means my final countdown has begun.  Plus it's time to make a few big announcements.  No Mom, I'm not pregnant.

First, I will be leaving the public library at the end of the month.  I both incredibly sad and wonderfully excited.  I have made a wonderful home at the Lafayette County and Oxford Public Library.  They have taken care of me through college, my dad's surgery, a tremendous break up, a house buying, a wedding and now the begging of my next big adventure.

What am I going to do instead?  Well craft of course!  I am hooking up with the Yoknapatawpha Arts Council and our local Moms and Tots groups in order to start teaching at least two sewing/making/creating classes a month.  I could not be more excited to hoard supplies, build lesson plans, create templates and directions, and get out there with the community I love so much.  I am very excited to continue to build on the relationships that the library has provided me, but in new and exciting ways.  I do not have final dates for my classes yet, but I do have a monthly list of what they will be at the top of my blog.  If you are interested in joining us for a class, but the date is not set yet, please email me and I will add you to my list serve.  That way I can notify you when dates are released.  Also- and this is not a plug, but actual advice- I would highly suggest anyone who in interested in joining my YAC classes at the Powerhouse to join the Arts Council.  You will save $5-$10 off each class.  So you're $25 donation will pay for itself after only three classes, plus you get on the Arts Council mailing list, and you save on ALL of the other stuff the Arts Council does too.  It's worth it for the "savings" and for the cause- 100% of your donation goes to help provide more art in Oxford.

To sign up to be a member with the Yoknapatawpha Arts Council click here.

And finally, I am beginning on another big adventure.  I am starting my own business.  We're still hashing out details, like the name, but it will ultimately be a subscription service for a handmade project every two months.  It works like this- every two months, starting in January, you will receive in the mail a box of stuff.  Basically, all the supplies, directions, templates, and suggestions to create something by hand.  There is everything from basic book binding to wax seals to mini woven patches and more.  The projects are gender neutral- but you can obviously girly-fy anything with a little glitter.

People will be able to purchase the subscriptions per year (6 boxes plus two wild card boxes that will be surprises and full of extra stuff) or by month.   Individual boxes can be purchased from the Powerhouse or by contacting me online.  Boxes can be mailed to anywhere in the continental United States and would make great gifts for the upcoming season- PLUS we have just decided to do Boxes of Boxes as well.  Know a group who would enjoy the boxes?  We can put together a Big Box full of small boxes at a discounted rate.  This would be great for church groups, mom's groups, casual groups- whatever.

The best part about this entire adventure is that I will be the boss of it.  So if you have an idea or suggestion or request (more glitter! more upcycled!) I can make that happen!  I am so excited to get started that I have actually created an extra, bonus box to go out on November 1st.  I will be using this box (it will actually be an envelope, go figure) to help promote this new venture and there will be a limited number created.  However, if you want to be a guinea pig and try out this new product for FREE, I am giving away 5 November boxes in the upcoming weeks.  You'll have to keep checking in to see how you can enter for a chance to win yours.

So you see, I am going to be busy and growing and fulfilling that voice that keeps screaming my name.  I am not waiting for my ship to come in, I'm going out to meet it.  Smooth seas never made a seasoned sailor.  Carpe Diem!  And all of that stuff.  I'm scared out of my mind and I am sure that very, very soon I will miss a steady paycheck, but you know, if you wait until the perfect time to do something, you'll never do anything.

I want to thank all of you for coming along on this journey with me and for supporting me this entire time.  When I do finally start working from home full time I have big plans for this blog and will honestly be updating more regularly.  But I hope to see you at my classes, or on my list serve.  And I hope you stop by the Powerhouse and check out my Art Boxes (or Monthly Make boxes, or Made by Mail boxes or whatever we decide to call them).

It's going to be a wild ride, here's to a good time!

Trying Something New

In the last 18 months, Marco and I bought a house, got married and decided it's time for me to make a career change.  What's that?  The career change?  I hadn't mentioned it?

That's probably because I'm still not sure what it is, but I know what it feels like.  It feels different than right now.  Right now I'm not in a good place.  I'm actually in a dark place.  A dark place that used to feel very familiar and friendly has not become stagnant and painful.  So it's time to move on.  I cannot say exactly what I'm moving on to yet, but I can say that I'm starting to figure it out.  

The first thing I've figured out is that I need to start putting into practice more of the things I enjoy, like sewing and socializing.  So I'm heading up a few classes over the next few months and will be keeping up with them via this blog.  I've also decided that if enough people suggest something, maybe you should give it a try, so I am working on a little Closet Reconstruction project too.  Maybe something will stick, or maybe I'll just continue to learn about myself.  Either way, it's going to be great- I can already tell.

On The Clock

I didn't have to go to work on Friday because I had to go to a Staff Development day instead.  If you have ever had the pleasure of having your staff developed, you can imagine how it was.  In fact, I'm sure Staff Development days everywhere are basically the same... no one wants to be there, the seats are uncomfortable and inevitably there are always people who have tons of questions for each speaker.  *When in Staff Development, the answer to "Does anyone have any questions?" is ALWAYS "No."*

Anyhoo- right after our lunch break we were treated to a nice Sit and Be Fit lesson.  I don't know which branches get the luxury of sitting during the day but I can say for certain that we are not one of them.  But the lady who led the demonstration was really cute and spunky, and her calves were fantastic. 

First she led us through the basic arm stretches and calf pumps ("Tap it, tap it, tap it.  Why is the back giggling?") but my favorite part was when we all got together as a group and squeezed our butt cheeks together in hopes of lifting ourselves off our chairs.  Me, my boss, my co workers with beards, everyone was engaging his/her butt muscles in unison. She kept yelling "SQUEEZE" and the entire room would lift up.   It was like some kind of Whack-A-Mole game meets Richard Simmons... 

And that is how I bonded with my co workers on Friday.  

I was sore the next day, so it must have worked.  Touche Staff Development day, touche.