Starting a Business is Hard

So I am mentally banging my head against a wall in frustration. You guys might have read my other blog posts about my previous business ventures, the latest one being home made soap. It hasn't panned out and for a few reasons I doubt that I will be revisiting that idea any time soon. However, I am trying to get something else going, some of you may have seen my Facebook page Starchild Creations. Basically it is crafts and stuff that I make/am going to make in the future. I am starting online and hope to expand to wholesale and craft shows in the future.

New Business Card

But because I am not 12 anymore and I want this to be a legit business, it is going to take a lot more than just setting up a stand in the front yard (not that I even have one because we live in an apartment). Right now I am trying my best to set up an Etsy shop which is fairly straight forward but there is a lot that goes into it before I actually want to start posting things for sale.  For instance, the shop policies. I have never written store policies before and I want to be clear and all-encompassing and fair, and I did try my best to do that, providing information that I think is applicable to my shop. I am sure that there will be things in the future that will lead me to add or edit my policies. The thing that has me the most head-bangingly frustrated though is shipping. Trying to mail something in Canada and trying to get information from the post office about how to calculate costs is like pulling teeth.

Slot of Doom

I spent most of today online and on the phone with various Canada Post representatives trying just to figure out the dimensions of the 'slot of doom' as I have seen it being called on various Etsy and general discussion boards. By the way if you were wanting to know it is: length - 380mm X width - 270mm X height - 20mm. That's millimeters for my American readers - not that I think you would need to know because you guys have that awesome flat-rate shipping, but just in case you were wondering. I took the measurements and made my own cardboard 'slot of doom.'

Anyway, if a package doesn't fit through the 'slot of doom' or if it is over 500 grams in weight, then it becomes a small parcel package. Then in order to calculate the cost of shipping - in addition to size and weight, you also have to know where it is going which is hard if you are selling online and don't happen to know which really awesome person is going to want to buy from you.

SO I was then recommended this thing for businesses called Canada Post web services or something. Anyway it is some kind of software for businesses that hooks up to your Etsy (or other online selling website) and calculates shipping based on the item and where the customer is coming from so they can see how much shipping is. Now I am just trying to figure out how to install this thing and I can't so far. Their 'technical support' was no help but I got an email with another number so I am going to call them tomorrow and see if I can get someone to walk me through it. Once I know how to do it I am going to endeavour to post a tutorial to help others in the future who struggle with the same thing.

AND THEN apart from the oh-so-delightful phone and internet stuff, it was -14*C today. Not too bad, but the windchill made it hella cold. I did not think about this as I ran out the door with only my coat and scarf in search of the John Bead craft supply store that mom recommended to me. It was so freezing cold out at one point I got an ice headache - no joke. The pain was real, and all I could think about while trekking through the cold snow in soft fabric shoes, fighting the painfully cold wind, was how much I want my business to be a success. Wanna know what I was going for? Bead caps and eye pins so I can make these:

into necklaces. I found out however, when I got to John Bead, that they were closed. Oh, it was wonderful. *sarcasm* I actually said out loud 'no, no, NO!!' - complete with the defeated smack of my hand against the unyielding cold of the locked door. Then I thought, 'hey! I'll just go to Walmart!' - This is where I got the ice headache - and only to find that nope! Walmart didn't have them!

 The good news is that I did get some business cards done and a couple test-cards to go with the Stone People Medicine. They don't fold right though...but that (I have to keep telling myself) is a problem to be solved another day.

On the short term, I know how much shipping will cost for the stones that fit through the slot of doom so I will be able to get those up hopefully tonight. Tomorrow I will be leaving early to make sure I don't miss old Johnny boy (John Bead) and then I will be getting the caps and pins and by tomorrow I plan on having some necklaces up. Also some earrings because I found a bag of carved feather charms that came from my dad's crafting stuff. I know he wouldn't want them just sitting around in my crafting things when they could be used to provide for his family so that is what I am going to do.

That's another thing I always admired about my dad, he was never greedy. He got what he needed to survive and be successful but that was it. He never really needed material things and whatever he had he usually gave it away when he found someone that he felt it was really meant for. He took his worldly pleasures from the simple things in life, like having his eggs and coffee done the way he liked. Anyway I feel myself getting emotional and I would rather not cry over my key board. Well, too late I guess, lol. It's been a long day. I miss my dad.

Hope you have a good night - stay warm
Oriona

Valentine's Month - February

Ah, February in Canada, nothing says romance quite like the freezing cold air that makes my face hurt. Not to mention the lovely snow that recently got dropped on us is just ever so delightful in my soaking wet boots. I guess you could say though that this kind of weather is perfect for...cuddling though. ;)

Valentine's Day is just on the 15th, but just like every other major holiday it has become hugely commercialized, and preparation for the day of hearts and flowers begins even before they have played out every single version of our beloved holiday tunes on the radio. Remember the good old days where it was just boxing day? Then it turned into boxing week, and then boxing month which miraculously also stretched way past that - but anyway, I digress. This is going to be an interesting February I think, with the film adaptation of 50 Shades of Grey coming out on - you guessed it - Valentine's Day! I will admit I have read all three books along with the other 99% of the world's heterosexual female population. It doesn't surprise me that the book was and is so popular, I feel like it is becoming more widely acceptable for women to be comfortable with their sexuality. For us not to feel ashamed of ourselves and what we choose to do with our bodies. I laugh when I remember a conversation I had with my adopted grandmother and her absolute shock when I exclaimed that 'I would never marry a guy without sleeping with him first!' - that's like buying a car without test driving it! My mother raised me to feel comfortable with my own body and it makes me sad when I talk to some of my friends and learn that not only are they uncomfortable, but they are also ashamed!

But anyway, I feel a rant coming on and right now I want to talk about VALENTINE'S DAY!! yay woot woot and all that... Anyway, yes, I would say that 50 Shades of Grey was a lot like many romance novels, just a lot more blunt and descriptive. I like that it made openness of sexuality more main stream and I think it will be remembered in history for being a game changer but not as any real literary masterpiece. I mean let's be honest, it started as Twilight fan fiction... enough said. Needless to say that on my other blog Media Reviews by Oriona, although I will not be reviewing the book, I will however be reviewing the movie. I just have to, as a blogger hoping to make a name for myself I would be stupid not to review this movie! I might even make an effort to go on opening day, brave the crowds of hormone crazed ladies who are pining to finally see Christian Grey on the big screen.

For those of you actually celebrating Valentine's Day, have fun and try not to cave under the relentless pressure from the media to buy bigger and more expensive. It is just a day to celebrate love and show extra appreciation for that special someone.

I know that when I post this Valentine's Day is over and I hope you had a good one :)
~Oriona






Photo credits:

https://plumatinteroypapell.wordpress.com/2013/06/25/the-note-english/

Making Pretty Things

Hello there :)

So I hope you guys have been having a good year so far, I have been busy busy busy! Back in November, I went to stay with Scott's parents to help his mom look after his sister's kids while she went on vacation. That was a lot of fun, Janie and I make a really good team and the kids are so sweet and well behaved. After that, I went right from there to my mom's place to look after her while she recovered from surgery - it was nice to have a good long visit with her and my younger brother. While I was there I introduced her to 'Netflixing' and she binge-watched the entire Gilmore Girl series which of course when it was over she had a good long cry because "IT'S OVER!!! :'( " - I found it really funny because I guess I am mean like that.

A few of you may have noticed that I started another blog called Media Reviews by Oriona which is me reviewing books, movies, music, and anything else that I find interesting. Someone on youtube asked me to review his glass ornaments that he makes that are actually really beautiful and the process seems really cool so I am going to look into doing that for him.

the first week of January, my longest and best friend Abi came up from the states to visit which was awesome! She was a little dismayed with the weather, but she had a bit of a "DUH!" minute because, hello? Canada in January... But it was still lots of fun, we went shopping and exploring and saw an IMAX dome movie at the Ontario Science Centre which is like, the coolest place ever and awesomely not that far from where I live :)

Then there was job hunting, and job finding. I am really excited to start work next week! But I am also extremely excited to be re-starting my little craft business of Starchild Creations! (Previously known as Sacred Star Creations) I am starting with a Facebook page and hope to expand to etsy.com and craft shows and things like that. So far I am making Painted Gratitude Stones and Splash Paintings, but very soon I am going to be making those microwavable heating pads and probably some other stuff. I also started writing a new book which in the last week I have written the first two chapters. It is called 'The Darkness' (working title) and it is going to be a supernatural thriller based on a terrifying thing that happened to me when I was little. *scary music*

In May, mom, Stone and I are being flown down (courtesy of my AMAZING big brother) to the beautiful (and hot) state of Arizona to see him graduate and visit him and my sisters!! There is just so much going on right now and I am so incredibly happy and grateful for this wonderful life I live.

Wishing you happiness and love
~Oriona

Random Thoughts

I realize that I think some random things a lot so I have been jotting some of my thoughts down for the past while and decided to share them with you guys - enjoy!

Sept 20 
I see all these 'awesome pic/photography ideas' and all I can think is - do people actually just get together to take pictures that just make them look like they are having fun? Is that a fun activity? 'Omg now that we are done in the pool, let's go take pics of us throwing leaves around for fall!' Why don't people just go have fun and take spontaneous pictures of actually having fun? Is maintaining the appearance of a happy life more important than actually living it?

Sept 24
I wonder if I should just post my random thoughts on Tumblr- that's what everyone else does

What if I don't even realize I'm having random thoughts because it seems normal to me?

Sept 26
Do you ever see a person and think 'I could totally be friends with that person' - and you want to be friends with them but you're too shy to actually say anything

Usually when that happens I think they will miss judge me because I'm usually more comfortable around 'weird' people but I don't think my appearance always reflects that.

September 30
Laying sick in bed I realize how truly not good I'm feeling when I realize I'm laying here trying to figure out how folding chairs work.

By the way did I mention that I've had my phone for a year and only realized a week or so ago that the reason I couldn't hear anything was because my 'screen protector' - actually the packaging I just never took off - was covering the ear piece. - I feel like one of those really special kind of dumb people, like that person who doesn't know the sun is a star. fml.


October 4
Okay, so I enjoy a broad spectrum of entertainment everything from Oscar winning masterpieces to spongebob squarepants. And I'm like this with everything pretty much; music, books, my taste in fashion, my sense of humour, etc. and some people might say something like 'oh well this is stupid, I only listen to classic rock because it has soul and the music today sucks and has no soul - but I'm like 'hey, this is a pretty good song and it makes me happy to listen to it.' Why do people have to be so pretentious? I mean some people actually just refuse to like something BECAUSE it's so popular - what kind of system is that? Has the need to be unique forced people to become this crazy? How about liking stuff because YOU like it and leave everyone else out of it? Or vice versa?

October 8
I'm the type of person that would stretch with a drink in my hand and accidentally dump it on my head.

Little kids scare the crap out of me - especially 2 year olds - they just constantly run around doing stuff to get themselves hurt or they just tear stuff up and laugh like crazy little psychos

Went to go see Annabelle with my friend the other day and I was fine until she told me she hadn't been able to sleep because of nightmares - then last night I couldn't sleep because I kept seeing this sh** in my head:


So I smudged myself and my room and concentrated hard on my happy place!!


Last but not least, with my mom and brother coming this weekend, all I can think is:

Cleaning is the grown up 'never ending story' that is way overplayed and it sucks.


Goodnight!
~Oriona

Weddings

So I have been hearing about more and more people getting married these days, but I guess, summer time is the time to do it! I want to say a quick congrats to my friends on Facebook who are engaged and married/getting married. I am so happy for all of you! :)

 This is going to be a totally girly thing for me to say, but I LOVE WEDDINGS!! I really do, I haven't been to a ton of them or anything, I mean I went to 2 of my sister's weddings and another close family friend had a stunning Native ceremony. For myself, I probably wont get married for a while, only because the Mister and I want to have a nice one so we are waiting till we can afford it ;) - This of course doesn't mean that I haven't you know, been thinking about our future wedding. I think it's good to plan ahead, that way I can really weigh what we want and what we need. After all, a wedding is only for a day, and although we want to have a nice one, it doesn't have to be over the top.

Since most of the planning is left up to the bride, I want to make my future hubby proud by making it as budget friendly as possible - he is a nickle pincher! (had to change the saying because Canada doesn't make the penny anymore lol) Plus for me, I think that spending a small fortune on one day - even though it is a special day - is ridiculous. I have a few things that I would like that are probably 'unnecessary' but as time goes on I am letting more and more things go and thinking of more cost-effective ways to achieve similar effects. I have thoroughly convinced myself that I do not in fact need engraved napkins or personalized monogrammed toasting flutes (not that I actually wanted either of those things, they're just examples). My motto for my future wedding will be to "Remember that today is not about the centre pieces, today is about marrying the person I love."

I certainly don't know everything, but there are some things I have learned through my research that I would like to share with any Brides to be. First - DO NOT LET YOURSELF BECOME A BRIDE-ZILLA! - I think this is actually a fear for myself as well. Weddings are stressful so remember to prioritize, delegate, trust, woosah..., and in the wise words of Elsa, "Let it go!" Don't expect anything to go perfectly or everything will drive you mad, be open to mistakes and mishaps because that is life and you just have to roll with it. Like I said before, just focus on the person you are about to marry - that is what the day is really about. Also, don't over spend on silly things (unless you have more cash than you know what to do with and you have already done something charitable) - because you still have your honey moon to think about as well as your whole lives filled with happiness, love, and bills.

That's it for now! If you want, feel free to check out my Wedding Board on Pinterest :)

Hasta la vista!

~ Oriona

How I Accidentally Bought a Wagon

So I didn't actually buy a wagon, but I work at the information line for a large city fair and this was one of the funniest calls we received today. A customer called and he had 'lost track of time' and didn't bring the wagon back in time and THEN decided it would be a good idea to take it home... so obviously he lost his deposit - as outlined in the agreement he signed. Anyway this is a transcript of the conversation, the call was actually taken by my co-worker. "D" is our supervisor - and awesome friend.

Customer: Uh so… When I tried to return the wagon yesterday at… Midnight… Everything was closed and I couldn’t return it. If I bring it back… Can I still get my deposit back?

Me: … Midnight?

Customer: Yes. I tried to return it but uh… Everything was closed, and I couldn’t give it back so I brought it home now.

Me: (o_O;;) Can you please hold on for a few seconds?

Customer: Sure.

Me: Thank you.

-Customer is on hold-

Me: Uh… D (name is withheld :P), when are the wagons supposed to be returned by again?

D: 10 PM.

Me: So, there’s a customer here that didn’t return his wagon and…

D: Took it home?

Me: Yeah. XD

D: Well then. Tell him: “Congratulations! You just bought a Wagon!”

Me: Ha-ha, alright.

-takes customer off hold-

Me: Hi, thank you for holding.

Customer: That’s alright.

Me: Basically, the wagons were supposed to be returned by 10 PM and…

Customer: Oh, I know. But I just lost track of the time and… Well, I had to take it home because everything was closed.

Me: … Er, unfortunately, you cannot get the deposit back.

Customer: No?

Me: No. The deposit can only be returned if you bring the wagon back by the correct time.

Customer: But then… What should I do with this wagon? I don’t need it.

Me: Basically what ended up happening was… You paid $60 for that wagon. You may return it if you’d like, but unfortunately we cannot give you back the deposit.

Customer: You can’t?

Me: No. Unfortunately, we cannot.

Customer: ……

Me: ……

Customer: … Uh, okay then. Thank you. Bye.

Me: Alright then. Bye-bye.


This was a funny example, but if you have never worked in customer service, let me enlighten you on a little tid-bit. "Customers" are either the dumbest, meanest, or most inconsiderate people ever. They are kind of like mean sheep, and this goes for everyone (even me sometimes with my phone company). If you become a "customer" - automatically you think that the world owes you something because you are spending money.

So for all you customers out there, try to give people a break because in all honesty, we don't really care that your food wasn't done EXACTLY how you wanted it and we don't make the prices so don't treat us like it was our PERSONAL decision - because it wasn't. And please stop asking if we can give you a discount on something 'just because' - we can't. For us, it's just a job and truthfully, if you're a jerk, we are less likely to even want to try and help you, so be nice. AND sorry, but we aren't going to do anything that will get us in trouble. So just because your 'tone' is nice or you say 'I'm not trying to be a pain, but...' you're still being a pain. My level of customer service is directly related to the way the customer treats me first - and I'm sure a lot of people are like that.

Sorry, that was my rant for the day lol

If you want to read more about funny/crazy customer horror stories, check out this other post I found.

I will be finishing up my 'Catching Up' post and will have that up soon too - just so much to write!

Welcome Back :)

My Dear Reader, 

I want to wish you a good afternoon and apologize for not writing for a while. I have been trying to think of a good subject for my next post and to be honest, I just have too many things to write about and I am having trouble pinning one thing down! First I guess lets talk about summer! It's finally here, shining bright and beautiful! The warm weather always makes me think of travel, I just want to get in a car and drive. The warm weather also makes me feel reconnected with the Earth and my spirituality. Watching as the trees go from barren to leaves almost overnight is always so magical.

One of my other posts was going to be about Earth Day. I think I am still going to write it because the environment is a really big important thing that we, as a society, should really focus more on. I know a lot of us are 'aware' of what is happening with the environment, but not nearly enough of us - myself included - are active enough with doing something about it.  I think every day should be Earth Day and I am going to stop myself there before I start ranting, and will talk more about that in my Earth Day post.

Mother's Day is another post I have been working on, as I have said in previous entries, my mother is the top dog of my important people list. I mean, she gave me life so...that's kind of a big deal. I mean really her and my dad are hand in hand for that position, but for different reasons. So much of me came from what I learned from them, I have been told by a few people that I look exactly like both of my parents and on the inside I definitely feel both of my parents' influence on me as a person. But for my Mother's Day post I really wanted to celebrate and honour my mom because aside from the regular 'she's my mom and I love her' stuff, she is actually a really amazing person who has done a lot in her life that I feel needs to me given more credit. 

I also have another post that I am trying to solidify the idea, it has to do with the people I see every day. I want to talk about people, some days it feels like I hate everyone because of stress and crowds (especially when I am in a hurry) but when I take a second to calm down and let the world flow, I look around and see people as individuals, not just a faceless crowd of people. When I let myself see individual people, I feel love for them, I try to imagine the kind of people they are, where they are going, what their families are like. It strikes me that probably a good chunk of people on the train with me watch the same TV shows that I do, or listen to the same music, have read the same books. We aren't so different from each other, and everyone has a story.

Let me know if you have any other ideas for me to talk about, and let me know if you have a preference to a post you would like to see out first :)

AMR

~ Oriona

My Various Endeavours - The Starchild Diaries

So today I want to tell you all about my various...campaigns that I have attempted over the years. These are ideas I have had that were business or non-profit ideas that I started but then lost my stamina for the project. Now I have not entirely given up on all these ideas, they are just...sitting on my back burners for the time being. I guess I inherited more than my love for writing from my parents as they were also very resourceful, creative, and good sales people too.

My very first business that I can remember was at the Quartzsite, AZ Gem and Mineral show. Right before we had left, a friend of mine had given me this Crayola set for my birthday and I had brought it with me on the trip. While my parents were busy with our booth, my little brother and I would be running around playing and obviously, since we were in the desert, there were a lot of rocks and stones everywhere. One time I picked one up that was oddly shaped but to me, I saw the image of a mother holding her baby - so I just coloured in the rock to bring out what I was seeing. I still have that stone as you can see in the picture, it was the only one of the stones that I kept but it sparked an idea for me that actually turned out to be pretty lucrative for an 11 year old.

Stone and I would gather different rocks and wash them off and then I would colour them to look like different things. Mostly I would make little bugs or flowers I think, but some of them were pretty different, depending on what I saw. One of them turned out to be the Loch Ness Monster! - I was pretty proud of that one. We put them in a tray and made a little sign and then we walked around selling them to people. My mom always laughs because she couldn't believe that we had picked these rocks off the ground and were selling them to the people who were also selling rocks.

Another little business venture I had went over a few years. When we lived in Erie, my neighborhood always hosted a one day block sale where everyone would have a yard sale at the same time. We would get a couple thousand people pretty much every year. So me being the little entrepreneur that I am, I thought of setting up a lemonade stand because I had a 'secret ingredient' - which was lime juice FYI - that I thought just made my lemonade the very best. So I had a couple pitchers my first year and I set up in my front yard. It was going pretty good, and then an elderly gentleman asked me if I had any sugar free lemonade or something because he was diabetic. We did have some Splenda in the house so I made him a glass but this
got my wheels turning a bit more. I'll spare you all the details, but over the next few years my little lemonade stand grew to carry ice cold, regular and sugar free lemonade in two 10 gallon drink dispensers. The next year we started carrying hot dogs, then chips, and I developed the 'meal deal' where people could buy a glass of lemonade for 50 cents, chips for 75 cents, and a hot dog for $1.50 OR they could buy the meal deal and get all for $2.00. That year I made more at my lemonade stand then my parents did at the yard sale!


My next business ideas came after we moved back up to Canada, the first being dyed silk scarves that I sold at $10-$20 a piece. I learned the very delicate art of dying silk scarves at a workshop we took at this Christmas retreat we went to for a weekend. I also tried jewelry making because I had a couple bead boxes from our house in Erie and my sisters had been quite skilled at beading so I tried my hand at it. I even started a Facebook page called 'Sacred Star Creations' to try and sell my things online.

When I went to New Orleans to visit my friend, Abi, she taught me a new form of art called Splash Painting! To this day I still love it and try to do paintings fairly often because they are fun and turn out really nice, I think. My most recent splash paintings were a set of three that I made because I am redecorating our bathroom from a rain forest theme to the ocean and...I wanted some ocean-like art to put in there so I made these:

Yes that is real sand and those are real seashells hot-glued to the bottom, I spared no expense ;) What I would like to do is make a bunch of paintings, I have a lot of ideas for some, and sell them online or at an art house. It's possible...that could totally happen...(hahaha) I guess it's better than my idea for 'splash-line' where I splash painted clothes, hats, and other accessories.

I have also attempted a few other things that haven't exactly panned out, like my handmade paper, stationary, and journal business. I have not quit on this one, I just don't have everything I need yet. Also, becoming a chocolatier; again, I just need to you know, go to school for that. If nothing else, I will own my chocolate cafe one day and even if I don't make it myself, I will be serving a lot of chocolate products. Because chocolate is delicious and makes people happy. It has endorphins and antioxidants...oh my gosh so many antioxidants and those are good for you - so chocolate is also healthy! (everything in moderation is good) Not to mention the amazingly rich and ancient history that chocolate has - like how it use to be considered the drink of the gods! Cray cray! (omg I can't believe I just said that...and apparently it's staying)  I did a lot of reading up on chocolate when I was preparing a business plan for the government and I really learned a lot about chocolate that I find fascinating.

Anyway, the point of today's post was to share with you all of the random little ventures I have thought of and tried over the years. I think I have pretty much...touched on it lol. I really have my mom to thank for it because she use to tell me these stories that she made up called 'The Brave Little Adventure Girl' all about this little girl(me) who was always going on crazy adventures trying to provide for her family. So I guess I was inspired.

I am writing a kid's series based on these stories now just called the Adventure Girl series. The one I am working on right now is called Adventure Girl and the Missing Water Mystery. I want it to be in the same genre as books like Judy Moody, Junie B. Jones, Nancy Drew, and other series like that. Anyway, I hope you guys are continuing to enjoy my blog series, I never know what I am going to write about so I hope you don't mind the randomness. I sure as heck wasn't expecting to actually keep up with writing this even once a week, but here I am so far writing almost every day and it's turning out to be really fun! I think what I like the most is just getting all my thoughts out and having them heard. It's been really motivational hearing all the positive feedback on Facebook so I want to thank everyone for your support so far, I love you guys! :)

Anyway, have a wonderful rest of your day and I'll blog to you later :p

Ciao,

Oriona

Spring Cleaning/I Think I Might Want to be a Comedian - The Starchild Diaries

Good Morning!

I know it's afternoon, but I always find that good morning is the most cheerful greeting of the day. :) Today I have decided to cast open my curtains, let in the sunshine, and do a bit of spring cleaning. I am currently listening to one of my nostalgic childhood albums my mom use to play during our Saturday morning cleanup - The Carpenters Gold: Greatest Hits album. Obviously since I'm cleaning, I can't just sit here and write all day so I'll be back periodically...though I will just be posting the whole thing at the end of the day so for you it will all be at once...oh well, see you in a bit!

12:53 - just finished sorting the laundry. Not so easy to do when your darling little furry friends keep jumping in the basket and knocking it over to play. T_T Next up, throwing the laundry in and then we sweep and mop! before I do that though, I think I shall have a little break for lunch, I'm thinking grilled zucchini and cheese sandwich :p

5:13 - Okay so I didn't mop, and my break was a little longer than expected (the sandwich was delish btw) but I am happy to say that our apartment is now very near spotless! I am losing my gusto however, cleaning can take it out of you, but I think my issue was more the whole hour or so that it turned into a dance party for one - which was super fun for me and probably traumatizing for our kitties. Haha :p And the saga continues...

6:27 - Alright, I'm done cleaning for the day. I have been distracted to the point where I am seriously considering getting into stand-up comedy. Now I did take a aptitude test one time in 9th grade and ONE of my options was stand up comedian. Today, after I was finished listening to the Carpenters and then a bit of the Beatles, I started to think about what I might say if I were indeed a stand up comedian.

Have you ever been alone, and you just start talking out loud to yourself? But you're not talking to yourself, you're talking to people that you know or imagine and it's kind of like you are rehearsing conversations that you know are probably not EVER going to happen. Like I can't tell you how many times I have been on the Ellen show...in my mind. I am always there for some random reason, like she saw one of my Youtube videos of me being actually really boring but talking about things I find important for about 15 minutes.

Today, I was imaging being on stage doing a stand-up routine and I was talking to my 'audience' about cleaning...just saying right now, I was terrible. Even my make believe audience - which was my bed filled with clean, folded laundry - was booing me off stage. However, I really think I could be a comedian because every time I am around people and we are talking, they laugh a lot! Either because of me or something I said. I have never really pictured myself as a funny person but I don't know, maybe I am.

What I like most about the idea is that I love to make people laugh, my parents both have(had) great senses of humour. I remember them telling me and my siblings so many stories and jokes that had us all in stitches! When my family would get together in Ajo, AZ for Christmas, we would all stay up late into the night just sitting around my Nana and Tata's table listening to our parents tell stories and jokes. My Aunt Rachel, I remember, was especially funny to me because she would be in the middle of telling a joke - in Spanish, which most of us didn't understand - and she would be laughing so hard, she would have tears streaming down her face and she would just be snorting and cackling - that good kind of - can't breathe - belly laugh, half way through the joke! So, we couldn't understand what she was saying anyway but she couldn't even make it through the telling of the joke because she was already laughing too hard and we would all be laughing just as hard, just because of her!

There is one story that my Dad use to tell and it was one of my favourites and I would like to share it with you now. Now I said in my first entry that my family use to travel around a lot. My Dad use to travel by himself sometimes because us kids had to go to school and Mom would stay with us etc. etc. And he use to go and do shows and Pow Wows to sell his books and the Native crafts we would make at home like Dream Catchers, Medicine Wheels, and other stuff. Anyway, one time he was at this Pow Wow and I guess he was friends with the guy who owned the property it was being held on. So anyway, he had to use the washroom so he asked someone where it was and they told him. But they warned my dad that the owner had a pet goose that hung around that area who was very ornery and VERY territorial so he should be cautious.

When my dad was walking up to the washroom building, out comes this big old goose charging towards him honking and flapping his wings. My poor dad panicked and his first instinct was to just reach out and thwack the big bird on his head. And the goose sorta um...sagged down and staggered away and Dad kind of panicked and felt bad, thinking he might have seriously hurt the thing. But he went into the washroom and when he came back out the goose was nowhere to be seen.

Later on, my dad and his friend(the owner) were walking together and chatting when they came to the area around the washrooms. Again, the goose comes charging out honking and flapping his wings - until he catches sight of my Dad. The goose stopped in his tracks, looked at them for a second and then turned his tail and ran! The guy was surprised and said, "well that was strange, he's never done that before!" And my Dad is all, "Yeah, weird..."  - and I always crack up at that story. Even now as I am writing it up to share with you, my dear reader (I've always wanted to say that), I am chuckling thinking of this big old goose stopping dead in his tracks with a shocked look on his face.

What I also love is how my parents use to make each other laugh. They both had infectious laughs that could make anyone join in even if you didn't know what you were laughing at. Anyway, I guess that is all for tonight(because it is now 9:40pm) I am going to wrap up this post because it is already much too long. But I hope you enjoyed it, thank you for sharing my day with me and I hope you have a wonderful evening :)

Salutations!

~ Oriona