Update

Well, I made it halfway to work before I got the call that everything had been cancelled, due to the impending ice storm.  No work yesterday.  No work this afternoon, and I was already missing this evening due to the concert.  It's possible that there might not be work tomorrow, depending on what the storm does to us.  This winter is going to put me in the poorhouse!  

I am hoping this doesn't cancel the show.  I am already making alternate plans to get there if it is too icky to drive.  I may need those German engineers after all.  If I do not get to see Emmylou tonight due to this storm, Old Man Winter and I are going to have some words.  And it won't be pretty.

Monday Rambles

I'm going to try this week to grin and bear it and get back to my regular routine, despite the weather.  The weekend was a total letdown.  A really good indoor sale was scheduled for Saturday, but we woke up to a fresh three-four inches of snow and unplowed streets, so I just went back to bed.

I ended up not leaving the house all weekend, which was probably for the better.  I got a lot of rest and took care of some things in the house.  I'm still having a lot of problems with my voice and going out in the cold doesn't help things.  I think this lingering cold has turned into laryngitis.  Not a good thing when your job requires you to talk for several hours at a time.  I'm going to call my doctor today for either an appointment or a prescription.  I think getting that cleared up will help my winter blahs.

I'm also going to try my best to follow my full, regular schedule despite the cold.  I've been cutting the booth short and cutting as many corners at work as I can get away with.  I've got another week off coming up, so I'm going to just muddle through as best I can until then.  (And hope for much better weather that week!)

The weather has, predictably, killed booth sales, although I had a really good day on one of the coldest days of last week.  That was the exception to the rule unfortunately.  At least I'm having sales every day, even if they aren't large ones. I am hoping that getting back on my regular schedule with the booth (Mon and Wed after work and all day on Friday) will help me get it all back together.

Not too much to ramble about this Monday, I guess.  Hard to find many topics in the midst of being frozen in, I guess.  I'll try to make it up with some good, meaty blog posts this week.  (Plus, I should have Top Secret Project Phase 2 ready to go early next week!)

I will, however, share with you a little known fact:

It takes lots of Diet Dr Pepper to deal with a particularly harsh winter!

Merry Monday Rambles

Okay, so I'm going to have to put the vintage cards on hold for next year.  At least it gives me a whole fricking year to get the dang things scanned and posted.  Works for me.

I spent the last few days of last week, including the dread end of the world day, in the dark with no lights or heat.  I was still house-sitting and a transformer blew across the street due to very high winds.  The crews worked on it for several days, and the power would flash back on and then cut out again.  This also happened to be the time that the temps dropped to true winter levels.  Dark and cold.  I almost started to believe that the Mayans were right.

I hope everyone is ready for tonight and tomorrow.  I finally got Keith's presents wrapped over the weekend.  We'll probably go to midnight mass tonight.  That's one of our off and on traditions. Maybe Santa will come while we're out.  I've been good.  Really.

Sales have been strong this month, until the beginning of last week, when they slowed to a crawl.  Things picked back up by Friday, though.  It did kill the momentum I had built up a little, which is frustrating.  Still, I am only sixty bucks off last month's total sales at the Peddlers Mall, and we still have a week to go (but the store is closed tomorrow).  I usually have a really good day after Xmas sales total.

Looking back at what has sold, I can make some preliminary conclusions:

Ornaments (new and vintage):  MOSTLY SOLD OUT
Wrapping paper:  SOLD OUT
Cards:  DID NOT SELL WELL
Dishes:  SO-SO SALES
Gift Items:  50% SELL THROUGH

I'm not going to end up with too many leftovers to store.  The gift items will be left out, just shifted around.  New stuff sat good prices is a good thing to have for tax season, which is our busiest time in this business.

My pre-surgery tests went well last week.  Nigel finally stopped bleeding and all the bloodwork was good.  There was a bit of a scare about my blood pressure, which was waaaaaay high.  I've never had blood pressure issues at all, mind you, even during stressful times.  The culprit turned out to be the cold meds I've been slugging in my dread fear that  I was going to get sick and could not have the surgery.

In other words, my hypochondria-driven preventative treatment designed to keep me healthy enough for the surgery almost made me ineligible for the surgery.  The irony, it burns.  I went back to my doc on Friday and my bp was normal, so it's full steam ahead.  This time next week, Nigel and Sixtus will be gone.  I, for one, can't wait.

Happy Merry Ho Ho, Folks!