frazzled

Wait a minute, how did it get to be Sunday night?! Ack! I didn't do a single bit of art this weekend, just flat out did not have time. Which wouldn't be a crisis except Chicken Festival art entries are due (received!) the 16th, so if I'm going to submit the Sumatra painting, I need to get crackin. Hm, what else to enter.. of course anything I submit won't be available in my booth, so I need to consider this quite carefully. I can always hand-deliver the entries, that wouldn't kill me. I mean, if I don't finish til the end of the week I'll just drive out on Monday, it's only 45 minutes away.. I would like to go trail riding on the 13th though, which would wipe out that day..

I made a batch of apricot jam today. Yummy! It made 12 half-pint jars, which I had to go buy in town this morning. It hasn't solidified yet but I am trying not to panic, since Mom said it sometimes takes a few days with apricots. If not, I guess I'll just call it another batch of syrup. ;-) Can you believe that a jam recipe calls for 5 cups of apricots and 8 cups of sugar? EIGHT CUPS! That's a lot of sugar. Anyway, this was the first time I've made jam, so yay for me!

So next Saturday is Second Saturday, which is the big art hooha in Sacramento, which means I am probably supposed to do something at the pet boutique, and here it is a week beforehand and all I can think is "oh crap! What do I do?" Seriously, I need help. I've had paintings hanging there since April. All original work, so yeah, it ain't cheap. Nothing has sold. People have taken brochures but there has been no follow-through (yet?). There has been zero publicity, other than me waving my arms around on the blog, but then it's really not my main focus so I haven't dedicated much (any) time to it. I thought the work would just sell from time to time, or that I'd get some referrals. So... I could head out there Saturday and set up a table and bring the portfolio and just try to keep it pretty low-key. There is no room in the store, I'd have to sit outside.

Whaddya think? Should I do this? The other option of course is to do nothing and just let the work hang, it doesn't hurt me to leave it there (other than it would be nice if it sold, but I haven't sold it over the website, so I really can't complain, it's not as though I'm missing some opportunity.) Gah, I dunno. Maybe I just need to be there that evening and pimp out the portfolio a bit. I'd have to take off early though, gotta take birds to auction Sunday morning, which means leaving at 6am. I recently spotted some info for an auction just a few miles away, I need to give them a call. I missed it today, didn't realize it was today. Ooops. If their prices are decent that would sure beat the almost hour drive to Roseville.

Oh, and speaking of nearly-hour drives to Roseville...grrrrrr....

I am the maid of honor in a friend's wedding, which takes place in October. Several weeks ago we went to the big gigantic bridal shop in Roseville (not gonna name names..) and got fitted for the bridesmaid dresses. The lady wrote down all the info, nobody mentioned anything about needing to pay at that time, so off we went. Friday they called me and asked if I had "the card with the dress size info." Um no, they never gave me one. Turns out, the paperwork with all the info has mysteriously disappeared, and oh by the way we need to pay in person before the orders get placed. What!? I'm reasonably sure I remember the dress size, but as long as I have to drive all the way back up there to pay, I may as well try it on again because that would really suck to be wrong. This REALLY pisses me off though that they lost the info, like this is something for which a discount ought to be given, but asking for one is not a readily available part of my personality. I called today and made an appointment for tomorrow morning, and the lady on the phone was just relentlessly perky even though I explained WHY I needed to drive up there again and do this. So...nearly two hours of driving to zip myself into that strapless (bright purple!) dress and say "yup, this one" and hand over a check. Ridiculous. I want to bill them for my time. And they don't even open til 11 so it's not like I can get this over with early and be back by lunch time. Grrrrrrr.

Okay, enough ranting for the day.