Posted in beads for sale, shop update, tagged glass beads, handmade glass beads, lampwork, sarah moran, z-beads on April 30, 2023| 2 Comments »
What: The Procrastinator’s Delight Shop Update
When: Monday May 1st, 2023 at 8PM Central Time
Where: In my online shop
Why: I wanna go glitter shopping
Yes, that’s tomorrow. I even procrastinated on the announcement. Really doing up the avoidant tendencies this time! Anyway, I better get back on it, you guys are great, I hope to see you then!
Posted in blah blah blah, tagged handmade glass beads, lampwork, sarah moran, z-beads on April 24, 2023| 4 Comments »
First things first: New subscribers, welcome! You haven’t heard much from me yet, and I promise I’m not a total flake. I plan on adding new things to my shop very soon. I’m aiming for next Sunday or Monday. We’re going to call this one the Procrastinator’s Delight Shop Update, because that is certainly what I tend to do anymore, although there is nothing delightful about procrastination, unless you enjoy living on the edge. And maybe I do, but I prefer a butterknife to a sword. Perhaps you got your tax returns in at the last minute and you’ll be getting your refund just in time for the new beads. I’ve made an acceptable amount of stuff and I’ve taken the pictures, but finding an extended chunk of time to put a shop update together has been a real challenge for me these days. Once I can get everything situated and ready to go, I will make the grand announcement here.
I know I do this a lot, but I want to say thank you, again. I know that my practically vanishing for a few years probably didn’t inspire much confidence in my ability to return to the rate of production (and more importantly the level of service) I once provided for so many years. I have very different responsibilities than I once did, and I’ve had to make adjustments. And thank you, most of all, for sticking with me all these years, and for believing in my abilities… and more recently, believing in my earnest in putting myself and my business back together after significant disruptions in my personal life. I’m still working on it. But. When it’s time for a shop update, its serious (but enjoyable and much appreciated) business, and quick shipping is my first priority.
Speaking of that, I went to drop things off at the post office one day in March when I saw the announcement posted in numerous visible spots to be sure everyone was made aware: the doors would no longer be unlocked 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, thanks to theft and vandalism. I was always surprised they left those doors unlocked after hours anyway, and it’s practically a miracle this had not already happened dozens of times. I guess it’s just one more Big City Problem OKC has finally grown populous enough to enjoy. The only reason I mention this is because I almost always mailed stuff after hours, and took the boxes inside and put them into the wall drop, where they would land directly inside the facility and could not be tampered with. This also accelerated the speed at which the mail started moving in your direction, and now, I’m going to have to start mailing stuff the next day and keep my fingers crossed I can get my night owl hiney out the door in time.
However. Seeing as how Fritos are nearly $5 a bag now, I’ve had to fill the coffers via part time jobs, which does take some time away from the beads, but gets me out the door a bit earlier than usual. Truth be told, I have found that I enjoy going to a job. I just enjoy work and completing tasks, and I feel at my most calm when I’m earning my way and have a bit left over to enjoy my existence, and at some point recently I decided working for someone else is a fairly straightforward method of going about that. After being my own boss for 20+ years, it’s a relief to go somewhere else where someone else will tell me what to do and pay me for it, and I can fulfill their vision instead of mine for a while. Even though I work hard while I’m there, it’s almost like a daily paid vacation from my own grey matter, which gets thickety and morose if I soak in it for too long. I think the technical term for that is compartmentalization, and some therapists trash-talk it, but I’ve found it to be a very useful tool for maintaining my sanity.
All that said, I will keep making beads and jewelry and doing creative work and updating my shop. I’m just burned out on the full time artist hustle, and I think I have been for years and that’s what has been eating me for so long and I haven’t wanted to deal with it or even consider the possibility. I was never confident that my unique set of skills would be of any use to anyone besides me, and I was certain that putting myself on the hiring block would only lead to rejection. Thing is, I’m not burned out on the beads at all. I don’t feel like I’m lacking in new ideas, in fact they spilleth over, but some days, mustering up the time and energy to make the things, not to mention the wherewithal to sit at my computer for so many hours and find something interesting to say about my life and every set of beads I’ve made when I just want to be quiet, feels impossible. Having this extra income takes a lot of financial pressure off of my shoulders, and gives me the freedom to be a regular working person and not feel like I should be constantly networking and marketing myself to keep the lights on. Not that I’ve ever handled my business that way, but tight funds can squeeze your psyche in some atypical places and might make people feel pressure to conduct themselves in ways they normally wouldn’t. Also, it will allow me to invest some money back into my business instead of spending every last penny I have on inflated bills and cheap white pasta and then wringing my hands about how I will replenish the sterling sheet stock that I’ve been foolishly frittering away on Party Balls. Hey, I might more easily lose that last seven of the 15 pounds I had put on from stressing about this kind of crap all the time.
When I applied to this job I have now, they called me almost exactly 12 hours after I clicked the submit button and asked if I was still looking. I kinda chuckled, but I was also pretty stunned. I had contemplated applying at this place for quite some time and finally worked up the nerve, not knowing what to expect and at the same time, not feeling particularly hopeful that they would even be hiring anyone, let alone calling me so soon. Sprinkles and I had a pretty sad night the evening before, neither of us sure of our individual financial futures, and we were both feeling pretty bleak. The job he had the highest hope for hadn’t gotten back to him yet, but he had kindly helped me create a resume the evening before, which I had never done in my life – I only ever had just enough info in my head to fill out an application. The following day, at literally the exact same time the guy called me (at about 2:20pm) to schedule my interview, the job Sprinkles had been eyeballing called him for an interview, as well… our phones literally rang at the same time. So weird. He landed that job, too, and he’s around a lot more because that job is so close to my house.
I was so nervous about my first job interview in about 25 years, until I met the guy I interviewed with: he was wearing a bright green suit jacket (St Patrick’s Day), which put me at ease right away. He had a surprisingly approachable, easygoing but businesslike attitude – I truly expected corporate and judgy. He was impressed with my resume (thank you Sprinkles), and quickly made clear that he wanted to put emphasis on people over staid corporate metrics, and that certainly impressed me. I was not interviewed for or offered the job I applied for – I was very much hoping to avoid sales and a competitive environment, which I made no attempt to hide during my interview because I don’t like to waste my time or anyone else’s. I was so reluctant and adamant about my preference that he finally revealed my other best option was customer service, and that I probably needed an entirely different personality for that job description. By the end of the interview, he was expressing great interest in hiring me, and I was still reluctant, but with much explanation and reassurance from him, and plenty of faith and encouragement from my own counsel, I decided it was something I should do, and if I hated it, I could go do something else.
I didn’t expect to enjoy it this much. Having a decent manager and co-workers makes a huge difference. They work with my schedule, it isn’t too much pressure, the other people in my department are great, I get to stay active – lots of hanging and stacking of fashionable things, and helping people find stuff. The biggest challenge for me has been the register, I have not used one in 20 years, and maybe for just a couple of months. It’s mostly pretty straightforward until there is an issue, and then I start to panic, probably because I am so inexperienced and averse to handling other people’s money. I’ll get there. But I most enjoy interacting with the shoppers, they’re so appreciative when I help them find something appropriate when they’re not used to shopping for certain items, and that is frequently the case. No matter where I am, people think I work there and ask me where stuff is, and I usually tell them I don’t work there, but I help them find stuff anyway, and now, I can say “Yes! I do work here! And the restroom is right over there.” And even though I still don’t have a name tag, I continue to be easily identifiable as a helpful person, apparently.
So that’s what I’ve been up to, besides making beads, trying new tassel ideas, and hanging out with Sprinkles, mom and the cats. You’ll be hearing from me again very soon with the time and date of the upcoming shop update. Thanks for looking in!
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