What a Full Day Ahead

It's my day off today and the list of things I've got going on is long. At the very least, by the end of the day I'll have clean clothing again and that will make me happy. Yesterday's wardrobe choices were slim and pushed me back into retro enough that I was accused by staff and customers of going "hippie" for the day. They weren't that wrong. *sigh* But, I already have one load washing and will wash at least four more today. That's a day's worth of work in itself.

I'm so very grateful that laundry is easier to do that lugging everything
to the nearest riverbank. I'm very thankful for my modern appliances, even
when they don't work quite as well as they used to.

I got my shipment of enamels via US Mail yesterday. Call me happy. I need to label and shelve them and make sure I have samples already made of these colors. If not, I need to get samples made. I also want to get some chemicals for etching and a bottle or two of MAAP gas to begin using when my torch head arrives from Russ at ABR.

My glasses will look like this - even the frame color will be
this wonderful Tangerine. There is a small laser light that
can fit onto the bridge but I'll save that purchase for another year.

I got the invoice for my new pair of CraftOptics glasses yesterday, so they're in the works and they'll be shipped to me within a week or two or three. Whenever they arrive I'll be happy because they will do wonderful things for my vision. I totally blame Lisa Pavelka for grabbing me as I passed her in the aisle. We have met on and off through many conferences and always have a good time together. She pulled me to the CraftOptics booth and said that these glasses were the best thing ever. She uses them everywhere, especially when flying, and said that they worked great for her. She's a sweetie so after a quick hug I left, but couldn't shake the conversation and dropped by again the next day to take a closer look. I wasn't going to buy them at all, but because they are actually a pair of prescription glasses, the cost is covered by my Health Savings Account. Thank goodness because...

My money is flying away in many directions but my credit card
balance has to be reduced and my expenses at Bead & Button Show
were high. But, I'll get it taken care of and get my new computer
ordered within a couple of weeks so that I truly know what funds I
have available to pay down my debt.

I began paying down on my credit card yesterday. Ouch! I have to be very careful here because I was given money by DH for a new computer and that money has to stay reserved and separate. So I'll chip away at these bills and it will take much of the summer to get my credit card balance back to the usual $200-$300/month that I often have to deal with. If necessary I'll pull a bit more over later in the summer to get things back under control before Ren Faire and Sharon's visit.

There is nothing that matches up to the experience of
being audited unless it is a root canal without anesthetic.

Today the business is undergoing an audit by the State Unemployment office to make sure that all of my employees (one - I only have one and she's been working with us for more than ten years) are reported accurately, that I don't have any illegal aliens or under-the-counter subcontractors that are being paid with cash that is unreported, etc. It is a phenomenal waste of my time and the time of the State, and will end up costing me money because I am having all of this take place at my accountant's offices, not my place of business. But the State has to justify their existence in some way or another, and I'm on their chopping block today. Have I mentioned lately how much I hate government?

It seems that I need my phone lines fixed every year at least once, but
they usually have it fixed in a day. It's been almost a week now and I hope
that they can get this fixed today because it is more than annoying.

One of my three phone lines into the shop is dead and has been dead since last week. The phone company (finally) is coming over to the shop to fix the line today. That means that even though today is my day off, I will still have to be at the shop at 9:00 am in case the technician shows up before my scheduled staff have arrived to open the store.

I have beaded items to repair, one fairly straightforward and one much
more interesting. It's money in my pocket so I need to get going on these.

I have a repair and a custom piece that need to be worked on today. I know - custom? Really? I usually don't do custom work, but this is an exception for a customer of many years who is turning me loose. I need to get this done for her though. It's been sitting too long.

Even Darth Vadar wants to hoist Lord Stanley's cup. Let the games begin!

And...I have a chapter to beta for my friend in Germany, a nice long phone call with Aearwen, grocery shopping, a quick trip to Target, trash and recycling to get bagged and on the curb and four additional loads of laundry to wash. I'll be on full for the day and then tonight we have the first game of the Stanley Cup Finals. I'll catch Masterchef on on-demand later in the week. It's the Stanley Cup! Hmmm - Blackhawks/Bruins - hard to choose between these two teams. It'll be a great series of games though and very fun to watch.