I have learned to pick my battles... Heck, I think I have mastered the "keep my head down and mouth shut" action. I have tendencies to go out of my way to make something out of bits and pieces of not much, but I think it is fine time to put my foot down and call it a day.
What I am talking about is still attached to my apparent need to work with beads.
Recently, my credit card bill came in and much to my surprise..... it is worse off than I figured. Who knew my desire to take up the advise of others to make a go of making a bunch of beaded items could cost a small fortune? Obviously, it was not me. I should have known better, though, because I have this tendency to never take the cheap way of things. Especially when it came to making jewelry. Come to think of it..... this applies to every hobby I have managed to master. As I shake my head in frustration... and in utter dismay.... I have to do some serious thinking about the future of any of my hobbies. In fact, I think I may have to reconsider ever doing these hobbies ever again.
I can honestly say that the realization that I need to stop where I am and just finish all that I have made it's appearance just a couple of days ago. Here is what I mean....
I was called in to work at the salon. I had a request to do a pedicure on a woman that I did once before as a fill-in while my boss was looking for another nail tech. I am not really a fan of doing nails and when it comes down to doing pedicures.... my back screams in agony before I even begin. Being hunched over for roughly an hour to pamper another's feet is not as glorious as the person getting pampered feels. Trust me... I am not knocking the service... it is great and all, but there are just some things in life (as well as career) that I would prefer to not do. Heck, the tip I receive is not really worth the pain I suffer, but the ever stoic employee.... I will do as asked because as long as I am doing something.... I am earning a paycheck. If I do nothing... I make nothing. In this day and age, people are taking any job in order to make ends meet. I am no different than the rest.
Well, while I was there at the salon, I figured I would show what I have accomplished so far in my beading frenzy and what is most likely going to be sold in the very near future. You see, my co-workers really liked what I have managed to make and said I should sell what I make to make some extra cash for my family's financial situation. Of course, I failed to foresee the burden that this endeavor would have on our already stressed budget. I did what I could by paying for a good amount of it with the cash I earned in tips, but there were times I did not have enough.... so, I used my credit card. I figured that if it was under $100, I was in the clear to make the purchase, but I obviously forgot to keep a running tab on what I was spending on because those little charges started adding up rather quickly. I have the credit card balance to prove it.
In the excitement of what people were saying, I was given some advice that, while in all intent and purposes, were to be helpful in making my money back, happened to add more burden upon what I have already spent. You see, I make a boatload of earrings and not one matching necklace or bracelet. With the money I have sunk into making the earrings, I shudder at the thought of buying more stuff to make the matching accessories that may or may not even sell. Really, who is willing to spend $40 on a pair of earrings that took me hours to make? Now, I am asked to make necklaces, bracelets and hair accessories, too. All of which does not guarantee that everything will be sold.
Yep, I did not look much farther than the concept when the admiration of the beaded art of earrings were appealing to sell to others. Then, of course, what am I going to do with all these things if they do not sell. I am obviously not going to get my initial investment back and with the sight of the credit card bill.... I already know that DH is on the warpath. He already announced that we need to cheapen-up our grocery bill last night. With Christmas right around the corner, we just do not have enough to offer much merriment. I will definitely need to "bone-up" on making new meals from leftovers when Thanksgiving comes around and odds are looking really good that our health will be affected if we have to resort to cheap, convenience foods as meals. Yep, it is looking like a Kraft Mac'N cheese kind of life forming here. It makes me wonder how much chemical enhancement there is to make that stuff look so.... orange.
Of course, DH is going to go into denial when the desire for his darn weekly snack choice is going to have to stop. Really, since when does a person need to get 5 pounds of raw, unsalted sunflower meats (organic, of course) at a whopping $10 and state that this is not an issue to the grocery bill? Sheesh! This man has been grumpy for far too long and me pointing out the cost is going to send him to dangerous levels we have not experienced as well as try our hardest to avoid from happening. I am not sure if there is more for us to sacrifice.
On another note... DH is getting a taste of how awful our new health insurance is. He obviously is acting like he is in denial over it to avoid my telling him... "I told you so", but you can definitely see it on his face he is not happy that he is paying more for everything. His co-pays went up $20, his prescriptions more than doubled, but he refuses to speak up to his business partner that changing plans was (and is) the worst thing ever. Sadly, I will be getting an even shorter end of the stick, along with blame that I am sending us to the poor house. Well, with my recent lesson in my beading adventure... I am agreeing with him on that one. I just have to figure how to utilize everything I have and hope to sell it all. Not seeing much promise in that, but I have to try. I just cannot make matching accessories to what I already made if there is a demand for it. The spending has stopped and what I have is what I have. I will not be able to make special requests unless payment is made in advance. The lady that supplies my beads is gonna feel the crunch, too. Since I am not going there for a long time. My itch to finish the afghan that I was making just might become a throw because I know I need more yarn and I am not getting anymore.
Come to think about it.... even my insatiable reading habit will now consist of rereading what I have and only getting free books from Amazon. I rarely buy books, but I have a few authors I like to read and their books rarely cost over $5, but even that is flashing a neon light that even those books are going to add up, too. Yep, my $0.99, $1.99 and $2.49 books are out of the question. The library is lacking books I read and there is no way I am going to read historical romance novels. That is where I draw the line! Oh well, time to do what I do. I have a house to clean before we get to puppy-sit again. I believe that it is this weekend, so I better get a-move-on.
Thanks for reading and have a great day!!
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