Art show count-down

First show of the season. On the fast track pulling stuff together for an art show on April 10th.  Trying out lots of new stuff: cute, cool, funky. The gang over here decided to take mostly moderately priced items to this show.  We're thinking if folks can spend just a few bucks on an item, they'll be inclined to buy.  Top end stuff will be going along, too.

Soon as the show is over, the retail area moves to the front porch.  So lucky to have a place right on Main Street.  The little a-frame sign can go out on the curb and voila! open for business. Will be showing items from other artisans and encouraging loitering so we can get to know one another.  Bring your coffee or tea and your lawn chair.

I just want my camera

March 29, 2010

Mr. S. Robson Walton, CEO

Walmart

702 South West Eighth Street

Bentonville, Arkansas

fax: 501 273.4053

Order # xxxxxxxxxx

Mr. Walton,

I am writing to call your attention to a problem with placing an order from your website walmart.com.  I live in a small rural community that does not provide USPS (postal service) for home delivery.  We are required to have a P O Box for postal delivery.  In fact, the USPS data base does not even recognize our home address as an address.  This makes it impossible for us to have mail “forwarded” from the home address to the P O Box. 

This address anomaly creates problems when ordering on your website because your system  will not allow both a street address and a P O Box number to be entered. Your system does not indicate how an item is shipped. Without this information, I do not know which address is needed. 

On Sunday, March 28, I placed an order and used my home address.  I immediately began an email correspondence with your customer service department and received a call back from lovely ladies in your customer service department.  I think, however, they were not totally comprehending what I was telling them. Actually most folks are quite amazed that we don’t have USPS home delivery here, so don’t be too hard on them. They did a wonderful and pleasant job of presenting your canned options.

Mr. Walton, telling me that they would be happy to refund my money and then I could just go to the store and buy the desired item does not help – it’s over a 50 mile drive one way to the nearest Walmart. And no I don’t want a refund and then have to reorder with the “other address.” And no, I cannot just go to the post office and tell them that I’m expecting a delivery to my house and they should just put it in my P O Box.  Why not? Because that piece of mail is sorted in a larger post office several hundred miles from here and it won’t even come here because my home address does not exist in their data base.  So, the order will be returned as “undeliverable”.

Do you see my dilemma? Can you help me out here?  Can you fix that glich in your website? Can you get me my camera? 

Really, the Bottom  line for me:  I JUST WANT MY CAMERA BY APRIL 6^TH

Best regards,

Maria

Junk

I detest junk mail for lots of reasons.  It wastes resources and my time. I need to dispose of it. Tossing recyclables into the garbage gives me great deals of angst, great deals of it. There's not much for recycling around here.  Basically, it's the dump or the garbage can.

Discovered in today's mail was a HUGE packet of those postcard size "ads" for stuff I'd 99.99% never even consider purchasing. I was momentarily peeved until I realized they'd make the perfect insert for a broach series I'm sewing up.  So there, junk mail, take that.

Junk to jewelry.

Small town fun on a Tuesday night

Donkey ball game at the local school.  Oh my...hilarious fun!

Dairlyland Donkey Ball all the way from Chip--wah Falls, WI.  Mispronounced by the announcer as Chip-eh-wah Falls.  Didn't want him to look foolish, so I shouted the correct pronunciation across the gymnasium...Chip-wah, Jan, Chip-wah. Ref grinned, "you from there?"  Me: "close enough to know how to say it."

In the end the girls team beat out the community, school staff, and even the b.o.y.s team. The ref had a little fun with that last one there.

And then there was the matter of the superintendent winning the donkey kissing contest.  Now we understand why no video is allowed. I'm checking You Tube...just in case...

107 years ago...

My grandma was born 107 years ago today, amidst a spring snow storm that stranded a laboring great-grandma at home alone whilst great-grandpa went to fetch the midwife. Grandma was born before great-grandpa returned with the midwife. Actually, great-grandma was not alone. She had a 2 year-old and a 3 year-old with her.   


I remember both of those grandmas as incredibly strong women, hard workers who could stand their ground, argue their cause, and make the best food around. All while managing a house full of children, relatives, guests, and on top of running a farm.  My mentors...

The Pied Piper, Missoula Children's Theater

What a high energy show those kids put on tonight--The Pied Piper, a production of the Missoula Children's Theater.  This is not the first time this production has been in town.  The last time it was here the older children in tonight's play were the little rat characters who are played by first and second graders. There is talent in this town -- that's for sure. 

Studio Work

Soozi came over today and we hit the studio and made earrings and pins and pendants. Well, actually Soozi made the item and I just finished it off.  They are all lined up now waiting to be priced so they can go to a new home. We are all smiles thinking about that possibility.

Closing the studio for the rest of the evening and heading over to the school to attend the matinee performance of The Missoula Children's Theater's The Pied Piper.  A fund-raiser BBQ dinner will be served between the matinee and evening performance. Much looking forward to all of this.