gah, it's been sooo long!

Where has the time gone?  Why have I not posted here in a millenium?  Taxes.  That's it.  I started inventory the beginning of the year and have been plugging away in between orders ever since.  I finally submitted them last Thursday through TurboTax and will wait to be audited. 

So what else have I been up to?  We found out we needed to buy new tires soon and needed to replace damaged brake linings on the Kia Sportage.  Nice car, right?

So instead of buying tires and brake linings we have to save up for, what did we do?  We bought a new car instead!  Hey, isn't that the best solution?  Help the economy, that's #1. 

Well actually, it's a bigger car, more space for when I do shows and especially when I need to take my tent.  The payments are a little bit less, we got a great trade-in, so it's all good.  Not that I'm doing a lot of shows this year, but I do have a couple outdoor shows.  So that settles that. 

What else?  Orders have been coming in at a good clip this year, and it looks like this year is going to be even better than last year.  I've had a little bit of time to experiment and added a few unique fragrances to my line (Play Dough, for one.  I know, wierd, but I had to have it.)

I've developed a new design for larger diameter candles, the Endless Candle.  It involves a special technique so that a tea light can be placed in the center of the candle without burning the main candle.  I developed it because I cannot find a wick large enough for a 4" diameter candle to burn properly, but the process can also be used in a 3" diameter candle.    

I've also begun making 2-tone soy candles for Kim at http://www.weddingfavorsjustonline.com/unitycandles.html  She does stunning designs on some of the candles I make for her. 

I'll be getting ready for the Indie Garage Sale coming up this month in Utica NY  http://indiegaragesale.org/.  And I'll have lots of new fragrances and blends available, including the aforementioned Play Dough and designer fragrances.  Stop by and say hello!  Mention this blog and receive a 10% discount. 

Thanks for stopping by, and now that the holidays and taxes are finally behind me, I'll have more time to talk to you soon.

Happy spring!

marty

Bought a car, Wolf Trap, Campfires and other stuff

It's been a busy couple weeks. Things are finally back to normal and I'm back to my retirement mode, still unpacking for good measure.

So I finally bought a new car last week. I had rented a car for a month when I moved, and it cost me a small fortune since I didn't drop it back off in Manhattan. When it was getting close to returning it, I dragged my butt out to shop for a car and bought a 2009 Kia Sportage. I originally went shopping for a Suburu because they have such a good reputation and gets around in the snow, which I will definitely need here in upstate NY! I ended up with the Kia because it's been redesigned and is better quality than when they first came out, and it was about $5000 less than the Suburu. In addition, I got a 10 year 100,000 mile bumper to bumper warranty for about $1300 extra which gives me peace of mind since I plan to keep it forever. Anyways, it's a sturdy little SUV and I think I'm going to like it a lot.
So I took my new Kia to Vienna WV to pick up my daughter Carla, who was an opera intern at Wolf Trap this summer. She reserved a ticket for me to see La Boheme Friday night and it was absolutely lovely.

I have to rave about Diego Torre, a Filene artist who played the part of Rodolfo; shades of Pavarotti. I was absolutely mezmerized by his talent. I met him at one of the after-parties, and he is the most humble and nicest guy you could hope to meet. He is going to be such an influence in the opera world. He is making his Met debut later this year, and I plan to be there. I enjoyed myself immensely. Sorry the picture isn't the best, but it's the only one I have.
The next day, we packed up the car and headed back home. Carla stayed a few days with me to regroup before heading back to NYC. Nina and her boyfriend Marcus also came up that weekend from Philadelpia and we all had a grand time, barbecuing, and had a couple campfires in the fire pit in my yard.

I loved having my 2 kids here for a few days, and I'm loving this small-town life where I can get to the post office or grocery store in less than 5 minutes. Last Monday, I had my things which had been in storage for the past 7 years delivered from PA. So the unpacking continues. I still have time to relax and take time to get acquainted with my new home.