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The Last Post: 08-09-08_Website_Fixed
The American Craft Council had
a show this week end at Fort Mason. Since it was my birthday week end, today
Aug. 17, 2008 is my 59th birthday, I decided to treat myself and go to the
Friday and Saturday show. The American Craft Council had this deal, join ACC
for $25, get into two shows for free, get a full year's subscription to
American Craft Magazine, and I also was able to attend their conference "The
politics of Craft and Design", that had an open bar and munchies. So I went
with the deal. Bronze the Day!
I love deals like that. I also met Monica (last name to come) who is the
Director of the Education branch of ACC.
What I did at the show was practice a 30 second sound bite:
"I'm NoraJean Gatine. I've been teaching polymer clay
art online for 10 years, for free. I am the eyes and
ears for my 1800 list members at the show here. I was
wondering if you would allow me to share your work
with my list members and permit me to put your link to
your website on my website?"
The sound bite worked. The artists were taken aback that I would ask
their permission to share their work with my ClayMates, pleased that I
wanted to share their work with others, and hopefully realizing that free
marketing is just that "free", and then they asked for my card, so they can
check my site to see what I said about them.
http://www.norajean.com/2008/ACC-08-15-08/Index.htm
I have a handful of polymer clay artists on pages so far and I have a
bunch to do this week. I was able to meet and shake Steven Ford's hand and I
was thrilled to bits. Anyone remember "City Zen Cane"? Well it wasn't until
he said it out loud that I realized it must be a take on "Citizen
Kane" the movie. Jeese Louise, it only took me 10 years to figure that
out. I always thought of it as Zen City Cane because everything is City this
or City that because of
CITY-Lists. Ok, I'm a goof.
I wish I wouldn't sweat so much for no good reason. I had to bring a gym
towel with me and my grandmother's fan to stay cool. After menopause I've
been sweating like I'm getting paid to sweat. It's just such a bother and it
makes other people uncomfortable. I know because I can see it on their
faces. Only the older women understand.
I finally got to back up my website. I don't know if you remember I
couldn't edit, delete, or add any pages because the webhost's HDD was full.
Then they moved my site. I had to change my DNS address and I still couldn't
get into this subsite or BH4DO because the FrontPage
extensions had to be uninstalled and reinstalled. That wiped out my themes
and navigational structure for the subsites. It's been one thing or another
for my website since the beginning of this year. I change my webhost in
February after the former one erased my site three times because of
FrontPage extensions. I don't know what I'm going to do when I can't use
FrontPage anymore. There's Expression Web that MicroSoft is pushing for
former FrontPage users, but the whispers on the web is that it is still full
of bugs. So I'm holding off until later to get it.
So anyway, I was able to delete duplicate pages in
Creole Queen that
was holding up the back up and it took me four hours to back up my main
site. For some reason, I would assume because my site was moved to a new HDD
or server, I had to back up my entire site instead of only the new pages I
made today about the polymer clay artists.
This does not bode well for me and my plans of setting up an e-commerce
section for my website. If that happens again when I'm trying to make money
to support myself when James moves out then I'll be more than unhappy. I'll
be looking for another webhost. Maybe I should look around and compare
prices now when it's not a hair raising issue.
So anyway, my birthday has been peaceful. I got the new pages up, the
site backed up, and I still have time to do my homework for the Women's
Initiative class tomorrow. There's another business plan that was floating
by my line of sight but I don't know if I'm going to be doing that or not. I
can't be convinced that the cash flow is viable and they want me to work for
free. I can't do that right now. I did some free work for them, setting up
google groups, a communal blog, and shared with them the outline for a
business plan. Other than that I can't get distracted from doing my own
business plan and start building the e-commerce subsite. I still have
inventory to make to put on that section. The good stuff I've given away and
what I have on hand are either sentimental and I don't want to sell them, or
not good enough to have been given away. So I have to start making new
things or remake things I've done in the past.
I was asked to do an astrological consultation for someone I did work for
last year. I told her my fee for counseling. Her beau balked. "I paid last
year." Hey buddy, this is a new year, a new ticket. So I told her forget it.
I am not doing this review for free and giving my time away when I have
other things to tend to. As if 40 years plus of astrological study isn't
worth the money. Go be uninformed or go study the stuff yourself. I'm also
not motivated to do a reading for someone who is resistant. I don't need
that sort of confrontation in my life. So she said "nownowtherethere" and
wired some money over. She laughed because she thinks it's funny when I get
huffy. Dagnabbit.
I mean really. I'm going through my second
Saturn Return and my Fifth Jupiter Return. I'm all about becoming
financially independent because I HAVE to, not because I WANT to. So I'm not
feeling all warm and fluffy right now.
This is what I wrote on Yahoo Answers about Saturn Return, four months
ago.
"I'll tell you what I did for my first Saturn return. I quit drinking. I
went to college, I didn't look right or left until I graduated. That was as
a single mother of two boys, on welfare and financial aid. When I rode the
wave of Saturn's need to get the foundation of my life solid I did alright.
I got off of welfare, became a tax paying citizen, and the boys are now men.
What I'm doing for my second Saturn return is to make my passion my source
of income. I'm an artist. From Saturn square Saturn 7 years ago I've been
investing time, energy and resources to build a brand name, get a following,
and wrestle web site building to the ground. I was preparing for my second
Saturn return when that warning square came up.
Knowing that Saturn wants us to get our act together one needs to look at
the topics most effected. One knows by the sign and house, aspects to
Saturn, that one has in their chart, what issues have to be addressed.
So I have Saturn in Virgo, my fourth son and youngest was born on my first
Saturn Return. So guess what? He's going through his first when I'm going
through my second. It's been a bonding experience. He's getting his act
together by the way. We were both late bloomers in that regard.
Some other examples. I've seen women decide on their Saturn return to have
children. How many 30 year old first time mothers do you know? I've seen
people who married early divorce. I've seen women who have been house wives
go out into the work force. I've seen interns in hospitals decide they want
to refinish furniture in Vermont, and up and quit to do just that.
What do these people have in common? They had to do what meant something to
them. If they were heeding the inner call. When people don't heed the call
they meet their second Saturn return very badly.
I'm not faced with diabetes, high blood pressure, because with Mercury,
Venus and Saturn in Virgo I don't eat badly. I get my exercise. I feel by
meeting my first Saturn return in a prudent and conservative manner I fed
the demon. I didn't get my rear kicked with my second. My Saturn returns
always dealt with what I was doing to make my money.
The first return: Do I have the education and skill set to survive in a
highly technological society as a wage slave? If not, then that's what I had
to work on.
The second return: Is what I'm doing to make my money an expression of my
inner passions? That's why my focus has been on marketing my art.
All second Saturn returns are combined with the Fifth Jupiter return there's
philosophical questions to address too. Do I believe in what I believe in?
Does it work? How do I put my beliefs into action?
So in celebration of my second Saturn return I've started answering
questions here on this forum. It's my indulgence being an old fart. The
second Saturn return addresses being a mentor to the young. It's our right
and our duty.
To find out where your Saturn is located, what sign and house it's in go to
this free site
http://www.astro.com.
save the gif of your wheel chart so you can refer to it easily."
Here's something interesting about a Second Saturn Return in the 8th
house...
"The 8th House Money looms large at midlife: how to pay for
the responsibilities, the alimony, taxes, insurance, and
mortgage — but most of all, the retirement pension! People who
had always put off the thought of retirement suddenly realize
that their energy level is indeed declining, and at this rate,
full-time work won’t really be an option in another decade or
two.
So, 8th-house transits can best be used to focus on
responsible use of resources and working out good methods for
dealing with the financial needs of old age. Also, 8th-house
transits may activate our awareness of death. At the second
Saturn return, we often find we are looking the Reaper in the
face, one way or another. Your friends and acquaintances start
to get mortal illnesses. Your parents or elderly relations die.
Death must be faced, yet you still have maybe half of your life
left to live. There is so much that you can still do — that you
may feel you must do. We write wills during this phase and focus
with more intent on living fully and deeply."
http://planetaryenergies.net/articles/phoenix-rising-menopause-other-midlife-transformations/
Well at least the Second Saturn Return and the Fifth Jupiter
Return means that midlife crisis is over. It's over the hill and
ready to roll I guess.
"Because the typical life span has
increased since Shakespeare's time,
there is no quotation for this
milestone. It's not easy to determine
which part of life is longer, but this
seemed like the logical milestone to
skip assigning one of the "seven stages
of man" because people are retiring
later and living longer. Age 60 used to
indicate a long life, but today many
people live well into their seventies,
eighties and even nineties, remaining
active members of society.
If you have maintained good health,
you can foresee many years ahead of you,
and you are not about ready to stop
here. You may find you need to
re-examine your life and make a new
plan. This is a time for mulling over
the past, not because you are stuck in
it, but because you want to distill the
values you have found and let go of old
ideas that no longer suit you.
Our children often say that we are
better parents to our grandchildren.
This is because we can let go of old
rules and methods, change our attitudes
and joyfully engage life in a fresh,
relaxed way.
This can be a period of spiritual
inspiration. It's also a time to recall
goals from an earlier time, choose the
goals you still want to accomplish, and
focus on them as fully as possible.
While we often think of the period
before age 60 as the productive time of
life, many people are accomplishing
their greatest work after that time. "
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From
Tarot.com
I am returning to a goal from an earlier time. Before I had children I
was an artist. I put everything on the back burner while raising my sons,
because I only had so many brain shares to invest at one time. Now that they
are grown I can go back to my goal of being an artist. My aim is not to make
a ton of money. My carbon foot print is fairly small compared to most: no
car, no mortgage, no credit card debt. Just student loans and a couple of
small debts have to be cleared up. So I'm feeling confident that even if I
make a little money with my art I can sustain myself.
Bushyaib said today that he'll take me along with him when he gets a
bigger place, big enough to have his sons come to visit. "That's the way it
was done in the past and how it's done in other countries. Homes were
intergenerational." I said. So push come to shove I'll be live in grandma,
cooking rice and making my grandchildren laugh at really old jokes.
| "Jupiter and Saturn have a planetary
cycle that repeats every 20 years, so that as the fifties
draw to a close they both simultaneous return to their birth
positions, marking a definitive watershed in life: - As
you enter your 59th year you appreciate the significance of
your age… on the threshold to the sixties, with the
realization that your greatest achievements may well lie
behind you, whilst the future both professionally,
economically and in terms of relationships is dependant on
the structures you have already created. Yet this very
realization has a settling affect; you are too wise to
struggle against the inevitable, and fully aware that any
decisions you make now will have effects that can last the
rest of your life. It is at this age that you really can
plan how you would like your future to be, using your
knowledge and experience of the society of which you are a
part, to maximize the benefits that the future can bring,
and minimize the limitations. Radical experimentation can be
left to those who follow in your footsteps, but if your
economy is strong, and your professional foundations firm,
you can easily build further on what you have achieved.
If childhood is like the water that springs out from the
mountainside, surging in rivulets to join the larger stream,
and middle age the powerful flow of the river through the
plains, then the sixties and beyond show the river estuary
as it flows into the sea and merges with the ocean. The
strong tones of individuality that characterize the early
stages of the flow finally make way for a merging into the
collective. Outwardly the individual during the later stage
of life steps back and sees himself as part of something
greater. Inwardly he or she may smile at earlier
self-importance and ambition, knowing it is all over far too
soon. The time comes to embrace universal values that are
not dissolved by the passage of time. In modern times many
will live to experience yet another Saturn round, with
perhaps thirty full years to consolidate and digest their
existence and this is a great opportunity to prepare for the
most exciting transition of all – death and the after-death
state." |
http://www.world-of-wisdom.com/04_articles/2005/10_fifties.htm
Some people invested in material things
for their old age. I put all my energy into
raising my two younger sons. Now both
Bushyaib and Said tell me "We got your back,
Momma, don't worry." I'm not worrying but
I'm also not going to lay back and not
follow my bliss in being an artist and
trying to make a nickel out of it while I'm
at it. I don't have expectations of buying a
big house or driving a fancy car. That was
never my way in the past. I am envisioning a
small space to lay my head and a work area
to putter about at making my art and
preparing for my inevitable mortality,
peacefully, with no regrets.
Scared? Why should I be scared when
Heaven is Home? But as my Daddy was wont to
say, "Heaven may be home, but I'm not
homesick yet." I was talking to
Bushyaib about this topic just this morning.
I believe the first topic of one's birthday
morning is important. I spoke of my death.
How I don't fear it. "I've had children and
they've had children. I've paid forward the
blessings given to me and I've given them to
others. I do not fear my death and if it
comes tomorrow I won't go out copping a
plea...'no wait a minute, I got something
still yet to do...'. I can't say I've done
it all but I can say I don't regret
anything. I felt I fulfilled my duty as a
mother and citizen. I own my mistakes and
forgive myself for them. I'm ready to meet
my Maker if it comes to that. Until such
time I'm going to follow my bliss, use the
gifts my Maker gave to me. Bide my time in a
way that is full of grace. That's the plan."
and with that I got up to make me some
coffee.
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