George Mackie Library, Delta, British Columbia  -  Author Reading Series     – May 30, 2012     7:00 P.M.

Surrey Central Library, Whalley, British Columbia – Author Reading Series – May 31, 2012     6:30 P.M.

15th Annual RV Owners Lifestyle Seminars, Okanagan College, Kelowna, British Columbia      June 22 – 25, 2012

RVing Women Camping Rally, Westport, Washington,  July 20,21,22, 2012

Hosting RV Women, Camping Rally, Fort Langley, British Columbia -  September 21, 22, 23, 2012

Tsawwassan, Library, Tsawwassan, British Columbia – lecture: Adventures in World Travel, Thursday, September 27, 2012  – 7:00 P.M.

Surrey International Writers’ Conference, October 19, 20, 21, 2012

As more events are booked they will be added to the Calendar

After I finished writing the story I had lunch and then washed my truck.  When the library opened at 1:00 I came over here to send the story.  I now have a couple of stories in mind for Chicken Soup for the Soul – Angel Encounters.  One of them I’ll be reading to my writing group on Tuesday.

I need to check the internet for more Angel Wings – I have about 15 left and that’s down from 50 and I have oodles of events coming up.  First off – the Rodeo in Clover on May 18, 19, 20 and 21.  I have a table in the Craft area where I’ll be selling my books and bookmarks.  Coming up fast and I’m slow at making the bookmarks but I’m looking forward to working with some new pictures.    All is well in my world.  Hope in yours too.

Now who can I snag to help me set up my new television.  Almost 2 weeks old and haven’t set it up yet…….Shame on me…….   Joei

The day is only half over and I’m still energized.  Keep that ole sun shining…..I need that vitamin D.

The trip home was easy since it was only about 75 miles and all on the highway.  I left the campground around 11:00 so there wasn’t much traffic on the road or at the border.  At home I was able to unpack my camper in one trip – I still have to off-load the camper from the truck but I’ll do that tomorrow if it’s not raining.

As soon as it stopped raining I walked over to the library and cleaned out the display case.  When it still wasn’t raining this afternoon I walked up to the grocery store and bought way too much.  The weight of the groceries left red ridges in my fingers.  Ah well – got it all  home anyway.

Tomorrow I’m being interviewed for Impowerage magazine and at 1:00 in the afternoon I’m off to the dentist.  Sometime over the next day or two I’ll decide which photos are going to be laminated.  I now have to create my masterpieces for the 2 contests I have entered.

In the meantime – all is well.  Glad to be getting back to work……and oh yes……I have to figure out how to get my new 47 inch television set up and running.   Joei

Since it was still raining (yesterday and today) after lunch we went to the  99 nursery (again on King George) and while Edith picked up some ready-made plants I purchased seeds for this year’s herb garden.  I’ll get them started in the house so I can limit their water.

From there we drove to Oh So Sweet and picked up a couple of cupcakes since I had a coupon for one free one.  I ordered one with mint frosting and Edith a Black Forest cupcake and drove to my place for coffee and shared the cupcakes so we each had a taste.  Can’t remember the last time I had a cupcake but really not impressed.  They were okay but I wouldn’t go out of my way for another.  Edith said the same.  Would prefer a muffin.

Today is the day I have to pack my camper that is already loaded onto the back of my truck.  Since I’m only going for the weekend to meet up with a camping rally I don’t meet much food, many clothes, my camera and battery charger, will take my computer but not the printer because I want to download all the picture.  Sounds easy but still a pain in the ass for just a few days of camping but looking forward to meeting up with all the people I met last September/October in Leavenworth, Washington. That was the last rally I went to…..they are fun.  BUT rain, rain, go away……I hate packing and driving  in the rain.  Since I’m not going far and the rally doesn’t start until tomorrow I’ll leave this afternoon and stop at a Wal Mart to do my grocery shopping before the rally.

Oh and in between all this running around I purchased a 47″ flat screen television set.  I understand I need some cables for it so I’ll unpack it when I return.  Have a great weekend everyone.     Joei

Yesterday I manned the booth for the Federation of BC Writers at Douglas College in New West.  I’m hoping the headache will go away sometime soon.  What a terrible place to get stuck for more hours then I signed up for but I did sell one book and four bookmarks so it definitely paid for my day including the parking.  Other then the people who signed up to do a reading there was ALMOST no one there.  Since the Fed table was on the sidelines all we heard was garbled.  If you stood directly in front of the speaker he/she could be understood.  It was empty…..empty…..empty.  I signed up from noon to 2:00.  I arrived before 11:00 A.M. because I assumed there would be much to see – wrong – so since no one was at the Fed table I went to work at 11:00 and since no one showed up at 2:00 I stayed until after 3:00.  When I was all packed up I ran into a friend from my Yuma, Arizona writing group.  Had no idea she lived in New West.  One of the very few treats of the day.  The other (minor) treat was: the last time I was at Costco I purchased a 2-wheeled dolly to carry my stuff in and out of craft shows.  Even though it wasn’t heavy (I only brought in 2 of each book) it was great to have my pack (and my purse) on wheels.

Before the day is out I want to upload my information as a “writer”  for Access Canada and discovered that I’m also entitled to sign up as a “visual artist” since all my magazine stories have my photographs to go along with the story.  I’ll be sending them the issue with one of my photos as the cover.  Might as well take advantage of a good thing. Again – today for sure.

Next Sunday (April 22 from 10:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M.)  I’m going to be at a craft fair in Elgin Hall (Surrey, BC) – with much of the profits (according to the organizer) going to BC SPCA so come on out everyone and support us.  Do it for the doggies.

Again, the last time I was at Costco I purchased an OttLite.  Very bright and makes my bookmark making so much easier and with so many events coming up I really have to get busy.  Why didn’t I think of that before……..?

Other then that – have a great day everyone.  Joei

A few days ago I transferred all the beads from my dining room table and put them on my huge desk in my bedroom.  The desk was becoming junky with no real purpose for it.  Having my supplies close by is an important part of my beading and I’m getting a lot of work done – at least one or two bookmarks an evening.  Developed a couple of new patterns as well.  After setting up the book and bookmark display at the Newton Branch of the Surrey Library I discovered that I was running low and since I’m working at LitFest in New Westminister this Sunday and 4 days in May at the Rodeo in Cloverdale I want at least a hundred or so on hand.  As they say: There’s no rest for the wicked.

Since I put my little Mini Read on Greece on the back burner I have done a couple of stories.  I wrote one for Chicken Soup for the Writer’s Soul, read it to my writing group who gave me wonderful feedback, went home, made the changes and sent it out.  In between working on my taxes I’m writing another story for the same Chicken Soup book.   Theses stories are due by June 30th and by July 30 there is another book about Angels for an upcoming Chicken Soup book and I want to do a couple of stories for that book.

Today (April 11) I received word that Impowerage Magazine is going to do a story about me and they also would be interested in writing about my RV travels so I guess I’ll stay busy for a while and it’s one of the reason I’m staying content to be home.

My new camera is working well AND with the update to ZoomBrowzer that comes with this camera I can put my name (or anything else I want) directly onto the picture and it prints out a lot faster than Picasa.  Still a bit of a learning curve but not as much as an entirely new system.  Canon point and shoot is about as technical as I want to get and was out on my balcony taking pictures at about 5:00 A.M.  I do have a lot of cloud pictures but since I got those angel wings from Hobby Lobby I have become obsessed.  Besides I love the picture-taking.

At the end of the month, April 27 -29th I’m heading to a camping rally in LaConnor, Washington.  I’m hoping for bright, sunny and warm (not too warm) weather since the Skagit County Flower Festival is on at that time.  I have about 100 great pictures from my last trip to the festival but more is better.  I love my old ones but I NEED new pictures.

Even though I’ve been up since 5:00, my alarm just went off so I need to start my day.  I’m in charge of coffee morning at the clubhouse so off I go…….More later.  Joei

The upshot of this adventure is that I was so grateful that my truck didn’t leave me stranded someplace in California, Oregon or Washington – it got me home.  I was unpacked and it got me to the dealer to be repaired and, as I said, I was really grateful.  If another dealer had told me that it would cost $1,100 I would have felt that I was being screwed.  This dealer has been looking after my truck for the last 3 or 4 years and I’ve always gotten in back in perfect shape.

I have decided that I’m going to put away my Mini Read on Greece because I feel like I rewriting ancient history and the writing and rewriting and editing  has gotten on my nerves and I’m going to write a mini about stories from the road – some close to disaster but it has never left me stranded.  I’ve already started but I have a couple of stories that I want to send off to Chicken Soup for the Soul and since they have a deadline I’ll finish those first – but I’m definitely back to writing…..and beading.

Since I become a little slobbish when I first get home I have covered my dining room table with my beads and, sooner rather than later, I will transfer everything to a large desk in my bedroom.  I had hoped to leave the beads out in my computer room but there isn’t enough room for an 8 foot table without taking up most of the walking space and the desk is already in my bedroom and not being used.  I find with all the beads out I can pick and choose one bookmark project and concentrate on one rather than trying to do 2 or more because I have to put the beads away when I’m finished.  I LOVE working this way – at my leisure and my pleasure.

I now have a new camera and I’m just trying to learn the ins and outs of taking and transferring pictures.  I’m going to use my old Canon in the display that I’m setting up in the Newton Library either tomorrow or Monday.  AND my beading and picture-taking friend Edith and I did a little bead shopping (actually I did the bead shopping and she did some knitting yarn shopping) before heading off to lunch.

The morning was spent at the lecture and (replica) viewing of the Shroud of Turin.  It was WONDERFUL and I would recommend everyone seeing it but it’s over today.

Now let’s see what the next couple of weeks brings my way…….Joei

The day I arrived was exhausting.  I stayed overnight in Marysville on Sunday night and drove back to Everett, Washington because a new Hobby Lobby (my favorite craft and bead store) had opened in early March.  I used to get the most beautiful beads and so cheap……I just had to go.  Well talk about a disappointment – they looked like every other bead section and their prices were the same (or more) then every other bead store.  I wasn’t going to admit that I drove twenty-five miles (round trip) out of my way in a rainstorm and it was one huge mistake so I just kept looking for something usual…..and I found it – angel wings AND I had been looking for them.  I’ll be printing up some cloud pictures for my bookmarks and my center bead will be an angel.  Problem solved – I purchased 4 packages and some others that I was looking for – but the words Hobby Lobby will never get my heart fluttering again.

I stopped for fuel on my way north. I stopped to pick up my mail and pay for my post office box and after I crossed the border I went to Tim Horton’s for a late lunch.  By the time I was ready to unpack my camper it was around 4:00 in the afternoon.  I unloaded one large grocery store basket and decided the rest would wait until the next day.  I was too tired.  I parked my truck and camper in the RV lot.  Two days later I decided to offload the rest.  I knew instantly that something was wrong with my truck.  It was REALLY hard to start.  I know it’s a diesel truck but it was MUCH noisier.  It blew white smoke out it’s tailpipe…………..YIKES!!!!!!!!

I drove it to the front of my building.  I unloaded one giant basketful, brought it upstairs and called the dealer.  He suggested I bring it in. They wouldn’t be able to work on it that day but would the next and I worried that it wouldn’t start or die along the way.  I unloaded another basketful. Started up the truck and it mocked me – it started instantly and I drove it to the dealer without a hint of a problem.

My conversation started with:  I may have over-reacted………..

I was taken home……..

More to come

I arrived home on Monday and was too tired to unload my entire camper so I put it in our RV lot and, as soon as it stops snowing, I’ll drive it back up and unload.

I picked up the latest issue of the NOW newspaper – found a craft fair that I was interested in participating in and discovered – YES – I’M BACK IN B.C. – and ready to be screwed.  A little background information.  As many of you know I spent 3 months in Yuma and participated in a few craft shows. The going rate for a table was $5.00 at the cheapest and $12. 00 at the most expensive.  Here is what I learned visiting their website here in British Columbia.   It is a juried craft fair.  The processing  fee is $10.00.  A 6-ft table is $110.00, an 8 ft table is $120.00 and a corner table is $130.00.  $10.00 to rent a table AND as if that wasn’t enough you have to supply 25 (YES 25) gifts for their gift bags to be given to the first 25 people who show up.  So, without even selling a thing you have already pissed away approximately $400.00 in sales and heaven knows how many hours of your craft work.  YES – I am sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo  thrilled to be back in British Columbia.  I should mention that the craft fair is one (1) day.

Oh yes…..and couple that with the fact that the apartment complex for SINGLE MOTHERS and their dependent children is now open,  just about the ugliest thing I have ever seen is in full view of my apartment and my tax dollars are going to support these whores and their rugrats – Needless to say – I’m not happy.     Joei

I am SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO enjoying being here.  My sister is GREAT fun.     Joei