Where we is at...

The jewelry keeps moving ahead... I delivered my first commission pieces on Monday, and the recipient seemed pretty satisfied. *whew!* Then, on Tuesday, another class - this one in wire. I'd put up a picture of this little puppy, but Blogger seems to be having a hairball about images. Maybe later...

Now, sterling silver wire is NOT cheap, so it would add up to a pretty pricey necklace, when you also add in the handmade lampwork bead that is the focal point. But, Vicki loves it, so we won't be selling this one anyway. I'm looking around for different wire sources, as well as other wire I can work in, so we'll see how that goes. I do know I LOVE working with wire - almost more than either basic stringing or working with thread.

Met with my friend Brian, the marketing guy, and he gave me some great directions to go in as far as my music and magic. And, Toonz is now through the first month, and is taking less and less time to do as I figure this new format out.

So, am I better? Not totally - but we are making progress. We still need additional income each month to break even, and we desperately need my mom's house to sell. We pray, we wait, and although I still wonder about it all, I'm learning to trust in what I cannot see. God is faithful. He is there. He cares...

Another great class!!!

Went to another jewelry class last night, and learned to make a VERY cool bracelet called Floating Orbs. Vicki loves this one! :-D I actually liked this one better than the last bracelet I learned, because although they both use needle and thread (which I'm not as good at - I work better in wire), I found that this one was a little less tedious for me to do. Not that I'll never make another millipede bracelet - just that I enjoy this one more. I'll try and post a picture of it - we're working on getting pictures of my pieces on our website... which still needs to be designed...

So, Blog Friends - anybody need some custom jewelry? :-D I've got a few pieces for family on the books, as well as a commission that I'll be finishing this weekend. And I really enjoy this work. Can I make a living at it? Doubt it.

But who knows what the Lord has in store... I sure don't, :-D

All dressed up and no place to go...

So. We now own a domain name. Actually, we own 4 domain names.

Wheee.

What do we do with these domain names? Um... I'll let you know. Why did we get these domain names? Well... it's to develop a website. For me. To... um... Well, Vicki understands it all. I think.

Actually, I'll take the keyboard off of Village Idiot mode, and explain. The site will be a way to promote some of the creative stuff I do, like music, storytelling and magic, and even the jewelry designs. To generate interest and (hopefully) bookings or commissions.

Vicki believes in me, as do many others. So I'm trying to hear their voices instead of the one that says (quoting Casting Crowns here) "boy, you'll never win." She also plays Voice Of Truth for me every time she gets a chance, and then sits there and grins at me. My wife. She's amazing.

So, what's our domain name going to be? Um... ask Vicki. :-D

A little light shines brightly...

It's been a tough week... the finances aren't working out the way we were hoping, so it's going to get tough. Our spirits have been down this week, ending with the van giving us some MAJOR issues at Church this morning - looks like transmission trouble, on top of everything else we have to deal with right now.

So, the Lord gave us some refreshment on this Easter Sunday evening. We were invited to dinner over at the home of Eric and Michelle - some dear friends from church. Let me tell you, friends, I haven't laughed so hard in months. It was an amazing time of laughter, fellowship, and yummy food.

So, to the group of 9 Monkey Friends - thanks for bringing some light and joy into our hearts. We love you guys!

I loves my nieces to pieces!!

I know that by posting this, I risk another large salvo from Hannah of nephew pictures... but hey, when you've got the world's most ultra-cute nieces, you just gotta let it show! Here's (l to r) Kara, Adrianna, and Kassandra, all smiles with Weird Uncle Cal.

And, yes, they do call me that. I told them to. :-D

I wish I was as smart as our dog...

Ezri, for all of her anxiety issues, is a smart dog...

- she knows the Windows shutdown sound, which always makes her come around the desk to see what happens next.

- she knows the sound of my amp shutting down in the studio, and knows the difference between that and just shutting off a switch.

- she knows a lot of different words, even similar words like ball, bone, bar (another toy, not a command to go out drinking...) and bedtime. And, when she hears a word she knows, she responds correctly.

- she knows our routines... what we do at bedtime, what suppertime means, what we do when we say "wipe paws," etc. She even knows when wiping paws (after coming from a muddy backyard) that I have to do all four paws. Just to test her, I did one front, another front, repeated the first one, then the two back. She knew when the last one was done, and was ready to go in.

- she thumps her tail louder and louder as I approach her, asking most definitely for a belly rub.

She understands her world. And, she responds appropriately. Not perfectly - not always, but usually. I know we humans are supposedly a smarter species, and that our world is much more complex than a dog's world. Still, there are times when I wish my response to God was as instinctive as my dog's response to me. Maybe if I listen as carefully as Ezri does, I can learn to hear my Master's voice as clearly, and to respond. And, maybe by simplifying my world and taking away certain things, that's what He's trying to teach me. Get rid of some distractions - listen - and respond.

Time to go give my dog a belly rub. She's earned it. :-D

Why the HECK am I doing this?

Toonz was always one of the toughest things about my job. It takes a l-o-n-g time to do, requires a TON of creative energy, and at times, felt like an albatross around my neck.

So, when I left the world of HKR behind me, what's one of the things I took with me?... TOONZ.

I couldn't help it... I kept thinking of things for the show. Ideas for bits, how the show could work as an independent production, how it would keep my production skills sharp.

So, here I am again - it's April, the first of the new Toonz shows aired this past weekend, and I've got this week to finish the rest of April and on into May.

What the HECK was I thinking?????

When all is said and done, I love the show. It's a ton of fun to do. And, the end result is usually - no, always - worth the sweat invested. And, being the host now, following in the footsteps of Mr Z and Amanda, well, that's pretty cool too.

I guess I do this because I feel it's important. It doesn't air on a lot of stations, but on every one that it does, there's another chance to impact young lives for the sake of the Kingdom. That's been my calling for many years now, so on it goes with Toonz.

Toonz - gotta love it. :-D Now, if you'll excuse me, I have many hours ahead of me in my studio... I may play hookey for a little while, grease up the chain on my bike, and run down to the park for a quick ride, but the rest of the day is for Toonz.

Tuesday is Toonz day here in Wonderllama Studio! :-D