- Mood: Lookin' for a blanky to crawl under
- Music: "Come Together" the Robin Williams/Bobby Macfaren version
Gainfully Employed at Last!
Yep, it finally happened! At last I am the proud owner of that job in the little grey cubicle farm that I always wanted.
That was my joke for the longest time: That I wanted to upgrade from crappy wage slave to cubicle farm worker. Well I did it and it's in the field I went to school for recently even if it's not quite where I want to be. I'm working in an insurance billing company that handles accounts for anesthesiologists and pain management doctors. I would rather be in the coding department coding operative reports than acting as the account manager who has to make all the billing calls and deal with all the problem claims. But at least it's two accounts and it's possible that if I perfrom well enough to do the job in four days instead of 5, I can take Fridays completely off when I'm up to date on my work. *woot!* As it stands, I can already take off half a day on Friday and still be in the full time range . 
Can't you tell I'm liking this job? Added to its charms are:
- Requires no highway driving (rare in Houston).
- Is about 10 minutes from my house on a route that isn't congested in the morning (EXTREMELY rare in Houston).
- Comes with full benefits even for regular part-time employees. Woo-hoo!
- REAL (t-shirt wearin', even!) Casual Friday! Hot-damn!
Yup, I'm actually a woman who will have some money to herself once I contribute my bit to getting the household expenses paid. Beware my spending allowance Ebay and Apollocon 2007 bidders! MUAHAHAHAHAHAHA! 
I see only one downside to this... it takes a lot of time away from the art and running the business end of art.
Forget Santa! Cafe Press Rocks!
I can't express how thrilled I am with the results of the holiday quarter for my third year with a paid swhhop on Cafe Press. I made more sales than I expected to. I sold items I never expected to sell. Some of my images really surprised me in how well they did. And some just baffled me when it came to the items people ordered certain images on. CP's new Marketplace system and Affiliate Program just add to the increased growth through my Cafe Press shop for 2006. I'm hoping things only get better (or, at least, stay the same
) for the 2007 season.
I'm going to try and do a little more seasonal art for certain items if I can, but I'm not making promises there with the new job. I am definitely doing a little more work geared specifically to the CP store these days, though it continues to be the art I did just because I wanted to that tends to sell best. All I can say to all of you who bought stuff from my shop is: Thank you, dahlinks! You're all mahvelous!
Want to get in on this? Click my linky! (Yup, I do get a bounty for sending ya in to sign up. 
)
Top 5 of 2006!
As I said, I had some surprises this year at Cafe Press. Foremost was the way in which certain images seemed to suddenly be building their own little fandome.... So this is the result of me digging back through the 2006 sale records. Well, it's more than Top 5 really because some spots had the herd mentality going. 
At least there was a very clear winner. But we'll get to that in due time, eh? Coming in at number 5.... *drum roll*
- 5.Titania-An oldie but a goodie that is rather popular among the Celtiana enthusiasts.
- 4. (5-way tie) Pentacle Unicorn: another Celtic/Pagan/Tribal type image placing with (I kid you not) a landslide of panties ; Star Dancer- apparently Celtic/tribal and mermaid make a good team; Fire Spirit- What, Dragons are popular? No way!
Out Damned Spot!- One of the surprise contenders of the year! Bite Me!- Another surprise contender! - 3. (2-way tie) Phoenix- This one speaks to a lot of people!; Legend of the White Wolf- My friend White Wolf cackles at how popular his birthday present became. And who would have thought it was good for... BABY CLOTHES??
(That was the majority of its sales!) - 2. Gryphon- We knew it was popular with people who like all things Celtic and/or tribal. We knew it was popular with Pagans named Griffin (or any variant of spelling). Apparently babies are the great untapped market for this design. Again, it went home with folks on a surpising amount of infants' clothing. LOL
- 1. *drum roll crescendos*
Dryad Medallion!- I can only say I was stunned at how often I saw this piece on the sales reports. 
Especially since it's never been among the ones I personally like. It went from coast to coast and around the world in 365 days! I'm thinking there's one heck of a tree loving cult in California. They love her there the most. Druids? Maaaaybe....
With The Sweets Come The Bitters....
Well, it can't be good 100% of the time I guess. I've had my ups and downs like anyone else this past year. Some things I would have liked to have changed:
- The stuff I'm proud of being totally overlooked when it came to sales; things like Stinger. I worked my butt off on it, but things I spent a lot less time on were far more popular.... Things that weren't as good, too. I just don't get it....
- People who think it's cool to not pay artists for their works. This comes up over and over again and I'm sick of it, especially from people who don't let their work go unpaid.
- I went a LONG time unemployed. I hated that. I hate feeling like a freaking useless lump, ya know? The plus side was waiting that long got me a choice position close to home, but still....
- There were just deals that fell through the cracks all over. Too bad. Sometimes I find it works out for the better when that happens, but it would be nice if more than one or two opportunites turned out to be actually worthwhile instead of some hosejob trying to take advantage of artists or other people in general.
- My temper. What can I say.... Blame a short fuse on a lot of my patience being eaten up with pain from various parts of my body and an increasing difficulty in focusing that I can't seem to find a cause for. Yeah... I'm getting more irritable. I'm controlling it as best I can, but I know I come across to a lot of people as an utter bitch. I'm not when I'm not this screwed health-wise, I can assure you. But I figure the important people know better.
- Health (or lack there of). Sheesh... between injuries, permanent chronic issues, diabetes and just catching any little bug that comes around I just wouldn't have any luck if it wasn't for bad luck. Anybody got a nice healthy body and brain they aren't using that I can transfer my soul into?
But in the End....
I have plenty to be thankful for this year. It ended on a high note with me being employed. I did some things I've never done before. First of all, I actually decided to try and go out for some art related grants and things. Nothing came of them, but so it's meant to be. I took part in a huge art event for charity, Via Colori Houston. That rocked and I want to do it again even though I think that was what put me on the outs with my back this whole last quarter of the year. I got a LOT of attention out there and people took a lot of my cards and gave many positive comments on my work. I also started seeing my first Texas sales (beyond immediate acquaintances) right after. I take that as encouraging. I got to participate in some art shows. I even sold a few things at them, though I hope it gets better soon or those won't be an option for long. Shipping is expensive! Above all else, I've had my fiance and my dear friends to support me and cheer me on and pets to love. I really do cherish them above all else. Thanks guys! You are my greatest gift! 
I hope everyone reading this finds their new year to be joyous, peaceful and prosperous!
Blessed Be!
Jolie
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