Quietly opening...

Since I'm still adding products and web content, I've decided to "quietly" open the cyber-doors of Witchy Living. TW members and a few close friends will get a sneak peek at what's what... and I'll blow the horns loudly in a few more days.

I am kinda disappointed in myself for not getting it all done in time, but c'est la vie and all... I guess being picky has its downfall, in a manner... but at least I know that what I'm selling isn't shit. :D

48 hours and counting...

OMG can I say how nervous I am? I am trying to get the e-store to a reasonable fascimile of readiness for it to "officially" open on Saturday, and I still have so much to do.

*sigh*

YUM... inventory's arriving and my house smells lovely!

I have gotten the first of my herbs and incense in today, and my home is just overflowing with good smells! I am so thrilled with the quality of the herbs - the suppliers have come through big time, and I'm excited that my customers reap the benefit of their goodness.

I am expecting the rest of my initial inventory sometime this week. I debated not opening on 3/21 due to not having all that I wanted, but I realized that I will never be 100% done with that. It's going to flux, and the only way I'm ever going to know what people really want is to get it open and get busy.

My initial inventory is small, but it's quality - and that is my goal. I refuse to sell junk and bullshit... and if it takes time to build a decent amount of stock then so be it.

I've been a good girl!

I spent the better part of this afternoon catching up on overdue work for school. I must admit to feeling a great sense of relief in getting caught up, and this is my last week for this class, so almost done! I've got two assignments and a paper left to do by Saturday.

The website is coming along - I officially open in 7 days and holy shit do I have a ton to do! I still have about 40 products to list, purchase containers and labels, and a slew of other things that I can't wrap my head around right now. Even with everything I've got to do, I'm still super-hyped about being open. I may not have everything completed, though... but that's alright. I'm not going to sweat it.

SO not motivated...

I have SO much to do in the next ten days and I have totally lost my motivation! I haven't worked on my store in > 24 hours - and I do have quite a list of things that I can be doing! I'm in the home stretch before the opening...

Just gotta get my focus back, I guess. My grandson's been home for the last week, and I'm also in school and have assignments that I have to catch up on... AND I've got some household maintenance stuff that needs to be done as well. I guess I'm overwhelmed a bit, LOL...

I'm sure I will get my head straight soon. The urge for perfection will kick in and I'll be cuckoo crazy trying to get everything done.

New Tattoo :-)

I finally got another tattoo - this one is on my left inner wrist/arm. My mother is going to shit because I got it put there, LOL! She's all worried about me appearing "professional" - like that fucking matters anymore... and even if it does I don't care.

Anyway, I originally wanted just a spiral with my name as part of the swirl, with a few stars sprinkled around, but it's too tight of an area for that to have worked, and I didn't want a huge tattoo in this area. Jessi (the chick that did the tattoo) was doodling around and came up with the star and spiral combo. As soon as I saw what she was drawing I was like, "Yes!" and of course decided I wanted some purple in it, and so here it is. The wrist area was a bit tender for getting a tattoo, but it wasn't horrible.

I am very pleased with it. The more I look at it the more I like it. It speaks to me about the continuity of life and is a representation of who I am. :-)

Exhausted!

Wow, I've totally worked my tail off this week on the website. It's a lot of work creating content, and I swear I just want to crawl in bed and stay there for a LOOOOONG time! However, seeing as I "cyber-open" on the 21st and still have tons to do - there will be no rest for weary me, except what I can squeak in during normal sleeping hours.

I must say that the site is looking pretty freakin' good! I can't wait to publish it and get some feedback. I don't know how successful I'm going to be with it, but it makes me feel good inside and that is worth a lot at this point in my life, especially after what I've been through since my hip injury.

:-)

WOOHOO!

I am officially legal! I got my occupational license (for my home office) and my resale certificate - and also a business checking account - so I can now say that Witchy Living is indeed in business! Now I just have to get the site up and going... and that will be that. I know I'll be crazy busy, especially since I'm also in school... but I'm looking forward to it.

Yay!

YES...

I am totally jazzed because my e-store is looking pretty nifty and while I still have TONS to do - I am excited about the upcoming "official" online opening on 3/21. I'm starting out with a small amount of stock because I am not finding the kind of quality that I want in my products - but I'll get more as time goes by. I just want to be sure to only sell things that I myself would get and use.

I can't wait for everyone to see it and give me some feedback!

Happy Mardi Gras!

Today has been fabulous! Husband and I are fortunate enough to live on a street in New Orleans that has the distinction of being the starting point for the flamboyant walking parade "Societe' de St. Anne" - and we invite folks over every year to sit on our porch and eat breakfast while watching the street antics.

This year is Silas's first Mardi Gras - and here's a pic of my sweet'um sitting on the porch in his jumper - also known as the office. He thoroughly enjoyed the show and bounced away as the bands and people walked by in front of our home.

I love this little boy more than life itself... and I'm glad he is now with us to share days like today - a day of celebration - a day of good food - a day of communing with friends and family as we acknowledge and appreciate the most unique city in which we live - New Orleans.

Next year, when I can walk well enough again, we've decided that we will be parading with St. Anne ourselves. I can't wait!

Friends sure do make a difference!

I have to give a shout out to a very close friend of mine - Arabi. I emailed her early this morning, completely infuriated and crying, after I discovered a very hurtful and conniving betrayal by someone I considered a friend. I can't and won't go into details because I've now got magickal work in progress toward this person - but let it suffice to say that Arabi's immediate return phone call, and words of support and understanding, were much appreciated and got my head set straight.

xxx

Can I tell you...

... how jazzed I am about getting this store open? I am thinking that I will be mostly ready to go by the middle of next month, so I'm setting my official "grand online opening" for the Spring Equinox - 3/21/09. I think it's a great day to begin something new!

I've also decided that I'm going to put myself out there as well by offering readings. My grandmother was a fabulous cartomancist, and while it will be a long time before I feel that I am at her level, I must start to use the "Triple Deck" that she talked about to me in a dream. I'm excited about the whole idea but a bit nervous. It's one thing to do personal readings... but I'm sure I'll be fine. I've got excellent intuitive skill and I know my cards well, so...

Anyway... back to the HTML and CSS crap. I may rip my hair out of my head before it's all over with, LOL!

Searching for an online store platform.

This is making me crazy. I don't have a lot of HTML or CSS knowledge, and finding a store that is easy to customize has been a total pain in the ass. Fortunately I've got Kirk to help me out, but still... I want to be able to manage everything on my own.

Cailleach gathers her firewood today :-)

In Irish and Scottish mythology, Cailleach (also called Cailleach Bheur) was the "Mother of All". The word simply means 'old woman' in modern Scottish. I love reading about her.

Legend has it that February 1st is the day the Cailleach gathers her firewood for the rest of the winter. The story goes like this: if the Cailleach intends to make the winter last a good while longer, she will make sure the weather on February 1st is bright and sunny, so she can gather plenty of firewood to keep herself warm in the coming months. As a result, people are generally relieved if February 1 is a day of foul weather, as it means the Cailleach is asleep, will soon run out of firewood, and therefore winter is almost over.

I wonder what today's weather will bring?

Where to start?

I've got so many directions to go in to get the store going. I've got the domain name already - I've had that for a while - and I've got a lot of ideas, but putting them to fruition is another thing. Complicating matters is the fact that I've got this ridiculous hip injury (from work in 11/07 - long story) and it limits the hell out of me sometimes. There are days that it's all I can do to drag myself to the bathroom.

In addition, I've got school starting next month. I'm trying to get another degree in Adult Education so that I can have a better shot at getting some online teaching gigs. Being handicapped right now has shown me the importance of taking advantage of educational options. I am only as marketable as my skill and education.

However, that is a backup plan, or something that I can do in addition to the store. Witchy Living is my main priority. I've waited for years to do this and I'm not backing down this time.

Happy New Year!

May each of you (and me) have a year filled with laughter and magick!