Work Hard For the Money

I had my first shift on Friday! Granted it was 2 hours but still! I worked! Tomorrow I start work for real. Four full 8 hour days. Hopefully I survive. I've become quite accustom to waking up when I want, napping when I want etc. this will be good. Make me feel like a grownup again.
I am sure that I will have lots of funny things to write about once I start working with kids again. They truly say the funniest things.
Anyways, happy Sunday one and al.

Thanks A Lot

Hostel World emailed me today. They wanted to let me know its been one year since my trip.
THANKS HOSTEL WORLD LIKE I DID NOT KNOW!
I'm definitely getting the travel fever. I only have to sell.... 300 cards or so and then I can go somewhere. I'm thinking Disneyland. Or if I sell more perhaps I could go to Eurodisney. Or Disneyland in Hong Kong. Or Disney something.
Start work not tomorrow but the next day, which will be a lot of fun I feel. Got my criminal record check done yesterday. Should be clear. I don't remember committing any crimes.
I've been seriously thinking about what I'm going to do after graduation. Will it be overseas? Will it be the great white north? Either way I think I will be getting a dog because these options sound lonely.
Perhaps things will change in the next 4-12 months and I will get on the TOC list. That would be very nice.
Not that I wouldn't want to go elsewhere to teach. I think it would be an adventure, for sure. We will see I suppose.
But I am getting a dog. Yep. There is a puppy in my future. Torrie wants a German Shepherd, which I endorse completely.
Mostly I just wanted to complain about that email telling me I need to go on another trip. So I did that.
If anyone wants to support these dreams, you could buy some cards or prints. I wouldn't mind that at all. Not. At. All. Etsy!

Some of my Etsy Picks

As promised, here are some of my favourite etsy links :)
Don't expect any through line. This is the most random collection in the world.

Mickey mouse cute romantic charm, click here

Nintendo DS Ewok handmade case, click here

Post card necklace, click here

Anne of Green Gables painting! Click here

(As Promised) Celtic drinking horn! Click here

Peter Pan minimalist poster (I want!) click here

Pirate ship photo click here

I will add so many more, I'm sure. I also want to direct you fine readers to my friends shop. She has amazing shots from all over the world. Some incredible photographs from Africa. Visit!! (click visit to... visit... lol)

Etsy and Celtic Drinking Horns

Oh. My. Lanta. Etsy truly has some fantastical things. I'll post the links later when I'm not on my telephone, however let's just say that there is a Celtic drinking horn.
I would name it King Arthur.
Basically all my nerdy dreams come true thanks to etsy. I believe in an earlier post I mentioned that it doesn't even matter that I'm selling things anymore. Though that is kind of a falsehood but only because I know that if I sell things I would be able to buy other things made available to me because of the magic of etsy.
I will probably start posting cool items I find there. Though we have already gone over the fact that I am posting these entries for my own sake. Blogger stats love to tell me that nobody visits. Not that I mind, I just enjoy writing.
I'm reading the fourth George RR Martin book now. Though my iPhone is great for many a thing, I miss my kobo a lot when I'm trying to read. Luckily Torrie had a hard copy of the novel and let me borrow it. Which I actually prefer over any kind of ereader. Its the smell. I love me the smell of a good book.
I also saw the other day that Martin has written other books? This frustrated me because he is the slowest writer ever and even if he wrote it before he started GoT he should have known his efforts would have been better spent elsewhere.
Speaking of Game of Thrones, etsy has so many really original things representing all types of nerdy topics. There is a Khaleesi shirt with Disney dragons on it. I only have to sell.... 4 cards to be able to buy it.
Etsy makes all my nerdy merchandise dreams come true.

No Fly Zone

I've become completely immersed in my etsy addiction. It has become so much more than just trying to advertise my work.... It is like when I first got on pinterest. A ridiculous amount of time has been spent creating "treasuries" which are much like the boards you pin on. BUT EVERYTHING IS HANDMADE!
I am very excited to begin working as it means I will get off my bottom and move around. It also means money which will be great because my GD money tree hasn't been growing at all.
Heh.
My Dad and I are watching "The Grey" with Liam Neeson, who is bad ass. Though I like wolves so I may root for them. Plane crashes are terrifying. I remember when Lost first aired and I had nightmares of my plane going down and being trapped on a magical island full of polar bears.
I have also been powering through The Wire. Season four is my favourite. It has to do with the school system so it is kind of like Dangerous Minds. But awesomer.
This movie has made me vow that I will never fly over any kind of arctic terrain. If by some divine intervention I survived the crash I would definitely be the first to be eaten. I would probably volunteer as long as we did some kind of Sam McGee style bbq....
This movie is intense.
As if it isn't bad enough that they are injured and in the Great White North, but now wolves are going to hunt them? And these aren't the regular kind of wolves, these are some kind of direwolf hybrid straight out of George Martin's imagination.

Pictures for ALL!.. If you buy them...

Some new photographs on my website. Check, check it out!

http://kp-photography89.wix.com/pictures

I would post some here, but I don't trust the users of the world wide web not to copy paste and print my pictures.... I'm not paranoid, okay? It has happened before. Just because no one reads this blog doesn't mean it won't happen!.....

House Arrest

What have I learned in the last two weeks of selling cards? A) that I have an incredibly supportive community B) That it is weird selling your own art C) Etsy is addicting D) June is the start of tourist season (I already knew that actually) and E) Ordering things online is fun and cheaper... it brings together my two favourite things, buying things and receiving mail.
As you readers know, I spent all my money in Seattle. Clifford (my red volkswagon beetle) is out of gas. So I cannot go anywhere and I cannot do anything. That is an exaggeration as I am doing things, they are just things that I can do in my pyjamas. This includes watching The Wire, eating cereal, drinking coffee and playing on my computer. I'm planning on going for a walk to my mailboxes which will be a party I'm sure.
My Corona umbrella I won came in the mail! But I cannot go get it because as stated earlier I have no wheels.
I have now convinced my Dad that the Seattle Outlet Mall is the Mount Olympus of shopping. I believe we will be going there for retail therapy and a baseball game.
In other news I'm now reading the fourth Game of Thrones book. It is good to be back in Westeros. I'll write a whole post about it soon.

Good Day, Seattle.

Headed back on the ferry as I write. I must say I much appreciate the free wifi made available to me.
I'm not sure that our trip could have been any better. Torrie won enough money to pay for the hotel, the ferry, food, his purchases at the mall and STILL come out with money to put on his credit card.
I have no money. HOWEVER, I do have lots of new pretty things for a fraction of its regular price so I am pleased. The Tulalip outlet mall is seriously rad. I got an Adidas hat, three shirts, two pairs of shorts, a dress, a purse and a pair of shoes for probably 180 dollars. The shoes are very nice and teachery as are 2/3 tops. The hat will be good when I'm working at camp in a couple weeks.
It's weird, I start work in like a week and a half. I am very excited and also nervous. Which I imagine is pretty standard when beginning a new job. Especially one that pays more than I have ever made.
The moral of this post though, is if one is in Seattle or there abouts, go to the outlet mall and stay at the resort casino. I guarantee you won't be disappointed. Also become a rewards member as they give you discounts. And discounts are nice.

Green Backs

So, the boy won money. Lots of money. As in 450 cards sold wholesale kind of money.
I am both happy for him and incredibly jealous. I told him he is lucky I like him or else I would steal the money and bus back home tonight. Or even fly home. I could fly home and still come out on top. If I stole his money. Which I did not.
In other news this hotel room is amazing. I love king sized beds. A lot.

Oh Silly Me

On our way to the outlet malls this fine (it is actually so nice out right now) morning. Turns out that we are not taking the Clipper ferry as I previously assumed. Apparently I was actually quite silly for thinking we were taking the Clipper as we are in fact not actually going into Seattle.
These are important lessons I am learning.
I've been taking pictures like a tourist today and not someone who has taken BC ferries 800 times. But I'm hoping that I get a couple really good shots for some new cards. I got into a few shops yesterday! Seems like this might actually be something that makes me some money.
Took a picture of a float plane that my dad loves. He wanted to get a print. Little does HE know I'm going to get him the picture on a canvas for Fathers day. Or... Rather, I'm going to order the print and my brother (who has a steady income) will pay for it.
Got an email with information about my summer job too. So that will be nice, pay off my credit card and all that.
Well that is my Seattle update. I suppose I shouldn't even say Seattle. But Tulalip is hard for me to say.

Local Talent

Alright avid readers, here is the photographer I wanted to feature (no it isn't me, sillies). Her name is Sam Rose and she is brilliant, truly. She is local, relaxed and talented. I had a shoot with her almost a year ago now and she made me feel very comfortable.
Click here for a link to her Facebook page. Everyone should book a shoot with her. Seriously. I'll even include a picture of me she took last year!

2am...

I suppose this is a lesson that if I am not spending an exuberant amount of my energy resource during the day (like when I'm teaching) napping for three hours is a bad choice. When I'm working at a school I can nap for a bunch of hours after I arrive home and still be able to get a solid 7 hours of sleep that night. Apparently taking pictures does not require the same amount of energy as 24 twelve year olds. Go figure.
So what to do at two. Well, I've exhausted my daily etsy exploration as well as spammed Facebook enough to sufficiently annoy all my friends. Nothing new on pinterest, nothing exciting in terms of tv (I've never been one for infomercials) and every time I read I feel like I get tired enough to sleep. But then I end up going back to my cell phone and spin the whole process over because hey, maybe something changed in the last 15 minutes.
In other news I dropped my cards off at merridale cidery. Then I wandered around the little seaside village and chatted with a shop and a gallery owner. I am going back down tomorrow (which is actually today) to show them some samples.
I suppose napping tomorrow would be a very bad idea because Monday is Seattle day and I need my rest for the shopping marathon. Must be in peak physical condition for such a venture.
It's funny, no one has read anything on here for like... 4 days, yet I keep posting. It does stave off the bored and I do think I'm getting sleepier.
Tomorrow I will be sharing information on another local photographer who is very talented. So stay tuned my mon existent followers, stay tuned.

Bumblebees and Boats

I have been sitting in my yard attempting to take a "good" picture of a bumblebee for the last... Oh I don't know, 2 hours? This is after I went down the road to the ocean and took about 100 pictures of the sail boats booting it around the bay I live by (ah, alliteration at its finest right there). Needless to say most of my day has been trucking around with my camera. Last night I was up late painting as well. Later I'm going to the winery to drop off my card order.

Monday I'm going to Seattle! Torrie and I are going shoooopping. Which I don't have an exuberant amount of money to do, however I do have some saved up from card selling that will get me a few things. And if what Torrie says is true, I should be able to find some wicked deals there.

Life is busy here in Kim land, even though I thought it wouldn't be.

Silly me.

TapadhLeibhCards

I am now selling cards at a winery! This is very exciting as I need the money very badly. They buy the cards outright! How nice is that? MONEY RIGHT AWAY! And then they may do a feature on me as a local artist. And put me on their website.
I have a lot of people to thank for this opportunity and I'm so grateful to them. So is my bank account and my pocket, as both are empty.

Poor People Should Not Love Video Games

I'm sitting here watching the Nintendo keynotes presentation. Turns out very soon my wii will be obsolete. I knew that it would happen eventually, however I feel as though I haven't spent enough quality time with my gaming system. So what does this mean? It means I need to a)play more video games b)buy more wii games before they dont sell them anymore and c)buy the new console.... The issue with this game plan (heh) is my financial situation. Also I still have another semester of school so that will probably cut into my sweet game time.
This new console is awesome. Called the WiiU its got like this hand held thing that is a touch screen. Kind of like the Nintendo 3DS you have two screens to control.
Sigh. I have this feeling that when when I do start making money I won't keep a lot of it. My habits are expensive.
In other news I've sold some cards and prints and one of my small paintings! So that should help me buy like.... A shirt or something in Seattle.
Expensive habits, people.

Babbling Because of Boredom

Almost a year ago I went to Vietnam. I was looking at the blog my roommate and I wrote in before/during/after the trip and I got all nostalgic. Then I realized, I should probably go to South East Asia again. It was really cool there.
So I made some more cards in hopes that I can earn money.
Then I realized that all my money goes to school right now, so the "paying for another trip to 'Nam with my art" plan went out the window.
But I formed a new plan. "Make money to pay for school so you can get your teaching degree so you can go teach and make money in another country or so you can go to another country on the vacations you will be able to afford after you pay off your student loan". This is a somewhat longer more complicated plan than "making cards=go to Asia=take more pictures".....
I did mention that I also got a real job too, right? Working with kids? In a day camp. I'm very excited about this. It is part time which I'm happy about in some respects and not so happy about in others. Mostly, money would be better if I was working full time.
Basically this is how it works: I get up early, go to camp and hang out with kids for two hours. Then, I go home/the beach/the pool/zumba/hiking/something else fun then I return at 3pm and work two hours and forty-five minutes. One might think this split shift kind of format would be awful. Well, it may not be for you but it seems pretty sweet to me. I love naps. I love time to myself. I love kids. Maybe I'll even get a tan this summer.....
Maybe.
In my last blog I didn't think anyone was reading. With this mindset, I began treating it like a journal. Then our posts started to get interesting (Vietnam does that) and people began to read. At this point I realized that posting about my underwear and the like was not a good idea.
I have almost fallen into the same trap with this here blog. I looked at the stats today and realized that I don't really have any readers. Which I'm not too worried about. However, on the off chance that people will one day read this, I will not be speaking about my underwear at any point. Other than this brief mention to it, right now.
I would like to say I won't talk about anything embarrassing however I feel like that blanket statement would be a bad idea because a)it would turn into a lie very quickly and b) I know I've said embarrassing things already.
I should probably shower. Unemployment has turned me into a slob. My makeup supplies aren't depleting at the same rate however I have had to do many-a-loads of laundry because I only have so many pairs of yoga pants.
Today I missed teaching. I will probably be visiting my practicum class this coming week. I hope to be greeted with gifts and compliments. The reality is probably "I thought you weren't teaching us anymore..." or "hey, you wore your hair down!"... or something. But that translates to love in thirteen year old speak.

Shameless Advertisement

I am poor. Though this isn't a state I'm unused to, it has become especially prevalent recently. In response to this I've decided to attempt to sell my art work. Selling my art is something I've always been hesitant to do, as I never really create anything with the idea of making money it in mind. But circumstances call for drastic measures.
I set up an etsy account, I made 40+ cards and I spammed Facebook and Pinterest shamelessly. What is left? Blogger. I shall blog about my attempt to pay for my university degree through taking pretty pictures.
Click here to view my etsy account. Click here for my photography website.

The name of my shop is TapadhLeibhCards. This is sort of a homage to my Nana. Elizabeth was a lovely Scottish woman who inspired me every day with her kindness and her dedication to her family. "Tapadh Leibh" means thank you in Gaelic. So literally, my cards are called thank you cards. It is also a play on "TLC".
So. That is my story. I feel a little embarrassed about the whole thing, but like I said, I'm the poorest in the land.