I’m sitting at San Francisco Airport (SFO), 8:10am Friday morning waiting for my 9:20 flight to Seattle (SEA). Can’t wait to see Miss Em and Bob (and Ryan, Em’s boyfriend)…It’s going to be an action packed 4 days as I’ve got lots of people to see this trip and things to do. “Grateful” is in …
It’s been 2 weeks since I wrote a post…that reflects how busy I’ve been…that and the cold that finally caught up with me last week prevented me from getting to this blog posting. Last Thursday evening, after attending the annual “Imagine Bus Project” fundraiser (a charity that Words and Watercolors supports) I was inspired to …
After watching the movie “The Way” last night, I considered the importance of traveling a path…be it a Labyrinth, like the one I walked at Grace Cathedral yesterday afternoon after delivering a re-order of my cards to their Gift Shop, or the Camino de Santiago that Martin Sheen’s character walks in the movie. Both have …
When in Portland for the Nursery Trade show in August, I had a chance to get a “reading” from my very favorite astrologer/tarot reader Lucy Pond. Lucy has been instrumental in helping me “see” things for a number of years. She also used to live in Seattle and we’d meet at her office in her …
Out on a walk last week, I was contemplating the idea of “going full circle”. I’ve been thinking about it for awhile as I realized that my birthday marked my 30th anniversary of quitting my job in Indiana for my 26th birthday present to myself. I had decided, while riding on a boat surrounded by …
Notice I don’t have a Birth…DAY. I actually have a Birth Month. I think I may have noted earlier in the month my Birthday Challenge, which was to paint and/or draw every day in the month of September. Coming down to the wire and I’m proud to say I’ve done good!! Some days have only …
I couldn’t believe it when I went to the FAX machine to pull off an order for Armstrong Garden that my rep in SoCal called to tell me about. Underneath that fax was another from the Chicago Rep group for $839.00!! I’ve never had an order for that much faxed to me!! WooHOOO!!! Not only …
OK, It looks like you may have to sign in to Chirply to vote for me but please, anyone who reads this GO to this website and vote for these 2 designs: Do both please!! You are going to be voting for my design on a DODOcase which is a very cool iPad holder that …
I’ve lately been feeling like Words and Watercolors is gaining traction…and it is a GOOD THING!! Sarm and Nostovski is repping my cards in the Midwest!! They have a showroom at the Merchandise Mart in Chicago and rep coverage in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Minn, Wisconsin and Eastern Mich. WooHOO!! In addition to the Midwest, I …
Has it really been a week since I packed up my car after the Nursery Trade show in Portland and headed north to Seattle?? It seems longer than a week and yet like just the other day that I pulled into Emily’s driveway and hugged my baby girl as she came out to greet me. …
I LOVE LOVE LOVE being back in the Great Northwest. As I drove into Portland, I began singing out loud with joy my made up song (“I LOVE LOVE LOVE being back in the Great Northwest!”). It is soooo green here. Evergreens are everywhere. Mt. Adams looming in the distance. It’s simply beautiful. Not only …
The Far West Nursery show begins Thursday in Portland, OR. I’m going to participate in their Garden Pavilion which will showcase vendors that have products that sell in Nursery Gift Shops. Words and Watercolors is a natural fit for such venues! I’m beginning the drive tomorrow, planning to stop at Grant’s Pass, OR, 7 hours …
I texted my daughter Emily last Saturday, “life appears more precious when death is near”. She had called me that morning to let me know that Debbie, her boss and a friend of mine, had slipped away in the night. Debbie was truly an angel on earth for the 49 young years that she lived. …
What a difference a year makes!! I kept thinking of that phrase throughout the four days of the SF Gift Show. Last year my doubt about my dream becoming a reality was still very high and that doubt cast a shadow over what I was trying to accomplish, I believe. Last year I shared a …
“You are definitely doing what you are supposed to be doing” stated Patty Cullen as she read through many of my cards and asked if I were Buddhist. She owns a coffee/gift shop, Konditori, in Portola Valley, CA. She was my first order at the show (after a very successful chat with Bruce, the buyer …
The title of this blog came to me on the last day of the Atlanta Gift Show as I talked to Tara, from Eco Papers, one of my new booth friends from the show (these trade shows can be grueling as you stand around your booth for hours on end). I’ve been meaning to post …
Mark and I start the day reading from inspirational books most mornings. We’ve read and reread countless times Wayne Dyer’s little book “10 Secrets to a Successful Life”. One of his Secrets is “Don’t die with the music still in you”. His message being do what you are passionate about…no matter what that is…singing, playing …
OMG, I’ve been soooo busy since I returned from Denver and now I’m in Atlanta!! Flew in yesterday. The largest Gift Show in the World, Atlanta, begins tomorrow. Just returned to my hotel after setting up my booth. Happy to say that I got a larger booth space than I expected, that extra space makes …
Holy Moly….last year at this time I “launched” my Words and Watercolors greeting card line at INATS (International New Age Trade Show) in Denver. I was so excited which also translated into so nervous. Thankfully Emily, my daughter, was with me and she provided the calm that I needed then. This year I did the …
Picked up catalogs yesterday in Oakland, just picked up my calendars at UPS (after 9pm) in South San Francisco (I wasn’t here this morning when UPS stopped by), have worked with Sarah on signs to go on top of the card racks. I’ve decided on clothes to wear and boxes were shipped last week to …
Mark and I took off for Livermore yesterday with our bikes strapped on the back of my car. We wanted to ride bikes without the wind blowing or hills to contend with…when we’d been in Livermore for wine tasting we noticed they had an extensive bike trail system through town and the vineyards. The other …
Sarah called about 1pm (it’s now 4) asking if i was up for a trip to Oakland this afternoon. I learned long ago that when you have a plan for a day, you’ve got to be flexible because often that plan gets tossed out the window as other, more pressing items come up. That’s what …
I wrote awhile back about having the opportunity to work with Martha Zlatar at the SF Small Business Development Center. Her expertise lies in coaching Artists in Business. I feel lucky to have the support of a business coach that not only “gets” Artists but also gets the “woowoo world” (as my friend Mary Cleary …
It was a year ago on the Friday before Memorial Day that I picked up the proofs from my “new” card line. I was sooooo excited and couldn’t wait to show off my cards/get feedback. My cousin Kathy and her husband Rob were flying in from Seattle that afternoon to play with us for the …
Participated in the SFMade Pop Up Shop yesterday. 20 companies all had their wares displayed in the Data I/O space on Valencia street in the Mission. We each had a 4’table and chair for our use. There was a steady stream of people walking through and I did sell $100. worth of cards plus one …
OMG, what a busy week it’s been. Last time I posted was when Miss Em flew in to surprise me (and did she!) for Mother’s Day. We had a busy, action packed 2 days. She helped me matt some cards (reminded her of when she would help me do it when she was young!), offered …
Sitting in my office, working on my scans this morning when my daughter called. She asked what I was doing and I explained in detail how the colors seemed to be off on the scans and I had to call The Blow UP Lab who did them when suddenly Mark asked me a question? I …
Wanting to post a blog but not sure which topic to explore…so many to consider…just like my work day. I have a tendency to spin around doing what I think is the most important thing to focus on but realizing I may be way off base. The role of an entrepreneur can be quite solitary, …
They say a picture is worth a thousand words…therein lies the reason for creating “vision boards”. I’ve got to admit that I LOVE creating collages ie: “vision boards”. I started playing with them years ago. I can’t even recall where I first heard about the power behind making a collage (your subconscious goes to work …
Mark and I drove up to Royal Gorge yesterday (near Tahoe). It is the largest Cross Country Ski area in the country. Miles and miles of groomed trails that go up and down the mountain offering scenic views of vistas and pine trees and one helluva workout! This late in the season, there was …
Funny how you can see yourself in the reflection of others. My daughter, Emily, and her boyfriend, Ryan, flew in on Saturday (from Seattle) to celebrate her BIG birthday, she was 21 on April 4th! We had a lovely weekend visiting many of the sites that make San Francisco the tourist destination that it is. …
Busy Busy Busy….I know I’m not alone when lamenting all there is to do and not enough time to do it all in. On one hand, I’m happy that I’ve got this problem as it makes me think that I AM going to achieve all my goals. Words and Watercolors IS going to be all …
Today my Dad would be 91 years old, if he were still living among us on Planet Earth! I began this blog last year on his birthday as a small gesture to honor his life and memory. He had an effervescent personality that contributed to his success in Sales (he sold Mutual Funds before they …
Happy Anniversary to my Blog and Happy Birthday to my Dad! Read More »
It was a great week! My “dogged determination” paid off in a big way! Words and Watercolors is going to be test marketed in 4 Armstrong Garden Center Stores! Armstrong Garden Center has 31 stores in California with the majority in the Southern California market. There is a store in Novato (which is in the …
I am soooooo bummed…I just had created this wonderful post and poof…it is gone. I’m typing at a coffee shop and the internet access went out on me before I copied it. OOOOOOHHHH I should have done this on word. Let’s see if I can recreate what I wrote. I was writing about Social Media …
Saturday morning again. Seems to be a good time to sit quietly and contemplate the blog. Daily life continues to be so busy and I’m not making it a point to update/post a blog on a more frequent basis than weekly it seems. I may try to do more frequent postings but then again, I …
The weeks seem to fly by so fast. Throughout the week, I’ve had moments where I thought I should stop and post a blog about this or that, but obviously I didn’t stop and so an entire week has passed without any reporting. Not to say that I’ve not been busy. I did accomplish alot, …
It’s early Saturday morning and I found myself laying in bed thinking about the past week. Might as well get up and capture my thoughts in my blog rather than have them lift off into the ethers, I figured. So here I sit, with a cup of tea, ready to recall the week. The week …
what a week: poison oak…time mgmt…and accomplishing stuff Read More »
Friday Morning February 4th and I’m on a flight to Seattle. Want to post a blog before I get caught up in the busy whirl of visiting my kids, friends, rep and trying to connect with stores re: my cards. I did have a successful week in that I got all of my orders pulled, …
It was a week ago that I was in LA at the Gift Show. I’ve had every intention of posting a blog update since I returned to SF (at midnight on Monday after driving 7 hours). Tuesday came and went. I was fairly exhausted and took a nap mid day then went for a hike …