Deer Mountain Wood Art

I love summer! I get so ambitious, but unfortunately, so do the bees and wasps!? I've been in a battle with these little dudes all of my life. From the time I was, oh I think 8 or 9 years old, running down the street with Sammy Burgess asking him how many wasps he'd thought he'd captured from a nest for his red ants and he dropped the jar - I was covered, head to toe, in angry vigilante' wasps looking for blood! Nightmares of my friend's mom trying to get them out of my hair still haunt me today. Nope, that's a bad part of warm weather for me - I am sure they hunt me out, and cause me to dance an odd bobbing and weaving motion to the amusement of everyone around!
So, there it is - lots of ambition mixed with an almost unhealthy respect for Mother Nature's busiest of creatures.... It's amazing to me that I get anything done!lol

But, I have been getting some things 'done' - Roger came up with an order for a hundred earrings and it's kept me pretty darn busy! I'm taking the day off from sanding though as my poor shoulder is so sore today :( I decided I'd put a few up online to see if anyone would want a pair or two as I've made some interesting designs this time to stave off the boredom of making such a large lot of one thing. Stop by and let me know what you think! :)

I also just finished working the digital converter box coupon program and am sad to see it go. It was the easiest of jobs and very good money. Back to infomercial calls... I am working for two companies, but I'm still unable to work a good amount of hours. Definitely not able to make enough to support the family, but I'm trying to build up my back to be able to sit a decent amount of time so that I can work these jobs properly. I was finally able to do a two hour shift the other day! So I think it is possible if I keep trying :)

Tyler's still in Russia - he's having fun but I can hear the home sickness in his tone the last couple of days. I should hear from him this afternoon as Skype seems to work perfectly over there. Here's a picture of the view from his bedroom at his current host family's residence. He's so lucky! :) He went to St Petersburg last week and his report of the beauty and wealth of the palaces and especially the Hermitage was awe inspiring - I read all of the books about Peter the Great, Alexander, Constantine, Catherine, etc... when I was young and hearing his account of Peterhoff and the Winter Palace just made me all tingly! I would so love to look across to Finland and walk the halls of these greats! I know for a fact that Tyler is probably already planning his return - his familys' have been wonderful to him. They've accepted him without hesitation and by being in such an element he's seeing the true Russia first hand. He loves the people and the land, but of course, he does miss home a little.

So, that's all the news that's fit to print right now - I have a couple of big projects coming soon, one of which is the 'twin' to the lighthouse intarsia I did last year. Be sure to stop by and check out the new earrings in the meantime!

And as always, thanks for "stopping by the shop!"
Freida

Pretty much all of my friends locally, that is, know what's going on with me so I haven't worried too much about things like this. While I'm trying to get back on my feet I've received many notices such as Project Wonderful's robot warning.
I hate being sick - but this time it's been worse on my psyche more than my body. While I'm in constant pain, I manage, kind of. But the fact that it's affecting my behavior so much is disabling. I can't write anyone back, follow through on anything, I've totally left the dishes to everyone else. I reached out a couple of weeks ago to tell my friends from my book project that I was sick but hoping to get back to 'normal' soon and continue on with the book, but I've been unable to answer any of their emails :( I'm very frustrated and depressed, but still I remain optimistic.
Since I had an attack of sciatica in January, which still continues with my left foot slowly going numb from my arch up my leg, I've been on several answer-seeking journeys to the doctors. Finally last month I was told I have MS. Now, like I've said, I'm not sure right now what that means for me, I have a doctor appointment the 30th of June and hopefully will get better answers. In the meantime, here I remain.
My second oldest son is graduating from HS this morning and I'm not ready - totally depressed(feels like an elephant's on my chest), and don't want to endure the pain of having to take a shower.... sigh
It will get better, I'm sure it will. But I haven't written in so long - think about it often - but just haven't been able to. Getting this second notice from Project Wonderful prompted me I guess into finally writing and letting everyone know what's going on.
To all of the faithful followers and supporters of this blog, I treasure you and hope that you'll stick it out with me - I know it's gotta get better! But I will do my best to get to the writing as I'm able.
You're very important to me - we may be strangers for the most part, but gosh you've been through so much with me! and I consider you all friends.
I will be back soon - thanks for being there :)
Freida

Ya know, I'm such a huge skeptic on everything medical - grew up with a mom that was a total hypochondriac that left me feeling like I should just 'buck up' and get off of my pity pot.
I now know that she's suffered with so many health issues(one of which is fibromyalgia) through the years and wished I'd not ganged up with my sisters on her! :( - man, I can see this now and wished I'd known sooner!! Poor mama!
Anyway, irregardless, anytime anyone in my family has a health issue - especially my kids - I usually try to ignore their complaints and refocus their attention. I guess I am having a hard time with boys complaining so much about pain and such, I know my dad was not like that and that was my mentor, so to speak...
I bought a Teeter Inversion Table a few years ago and felt that as soon as the boys stopped obsessing about wanting to be on it I would pull it out and get to work on my back.
I've suffered since I was 15 years old with muscle spasms, sciatica, DDD, and bulging and herniated discs. Lately, I've not been able to even work here at home because of a sciatic flareup - it's been so bad I was forced to borrow a walker for Heaven's sake!!?! That was an eye-opening event! I've lost feeling in the top of my arch, left side of my left calf as well as completely lost the feeling and strength in my big toe? Not to mention it feels like I've been standing barefoot on a metal ladder for days! This has been going on since the 25th of January and doctors have been less than helpful!
Yesterday my husband(who, to me, is a really big whiner!lol) and I pulled out the inversion table and gingerly set it up.
Talk about being skeptical! But I've reached my breaking point with the hip and back pain and am determined to try everything, and especially do the LTBP program! I had heard a couple of years ago that orthos were downing the home Inversion tables as not being effective and being just a gimmick so I was more than doubtful that any of this would be beneficial. Thank God for breaking points though!lol
I have an appointment with a 'spine clinic' for tomorrow but am thinking about not wasting my time. I know they're going to recommend surgery, and I'm not going to do that again! They also offer what they refer to as "real" spinal decompression, which is something I've been very interested in as it just makes so much sense to decompress and hopefully allow the discs to un-herniate themselves.
But, to the point.
My husband was first on the table - he's 265 and 6'4"(well, now 6'3") and even though he doesn't have all of the back trouble I have, he's in such bad shape it really didn't seem it could hurt! I expected him to not get 'results' from the table, and whine that he was in greater discomfort. To my surprise, he got off the table totally thrilled and eager to do more! Actually said it was the best thing I'd ever bought! He hated it when I bought it...
Okay, so he's very impressionable and I attributed his enthusiasm to the power of suggestion.
I still was convinced it would do nothing for me, or that it might even cause things to become worse, so I put it off for awhile after he got done.
After reading again all of the instructions from Jesse and Steven, as well as watching the videos, I decided to try it out.
The first time it caused me to feel a little discomfort but not enough to not try again later. Before going to bed for the night, DH and I did another session - we felt a little better, but as I told Roger, I felt it was too soon to 'feel better' and remarked how the mind was a powerful influence on how one's body felt.
When I woke this morning though, I had to admit that I really did feel somewhat better! I'm actually eager to do more this morning!
I don't know if it's the power of suggestion, my own desperation to feel better, or that it's actually making a difference, but even though I still am in quite a bit of pain, I do feel different, and can't truly explain, or deny, it.
I hope for all of you that are having sciatica or problems with your SI joint(s) to give it a try though. I now truly think it is going to help and that makes this the very first thing that's ever helped in over 30 years!
I hope that I can keep reporting good results and that you might benefit from my experiences with the different modalities that I am going to be trying :)
Always the consummate skeptic, I still feel that the results may be only temporary, but am hoping that this truly will be part of the 'cure' for my chronic pain and that I can eventually return to a productive life that is free of pain pills and doctors! :)
{{{hugs}}} to all, Freida

Boy, two and a half weeks and I'm still hurting - and my cold seems to be hanging on despite all efforts to get better!?
Roger has decided, actually made it his 'mission' to get me into his neurology doc and I am worried. The guy has the 'bedside manner' of a turnip; would be more palatable if it didn't taste like a burned boiled potato! I don't know what to do though as I don't want to go back to the e.r., they have such limited capacity to really help this type of thing, and my own doctor, who's also my friend, doesn't seem to want to help. He finally had his receptionist call and tell me that I should go back to e.r. so I could get a MRI or other tests. I think he's upset with the fact I don't have his mural done yet - it's only been 2 1/2 years!? What the heck does he expect from a great artist such as myself!!?! LOL Aren't we supposed to be temperamental and eccentric? I have to 'be in the mood' to create this masterpiece and it only happens now and then :( But he's right, he's an orthopod, I think, and his capacity is limited too. He doesn't charge me to see him, and I can't expect much.... Maybe I should get to work on that mural though, before I lose his friendship entirely!!
Anyway, Roger went to his office yesterday and asked to have my records transferred - she said it would take a couple of weeks to complete? hummm, well, the fact that I'm losing more and more sensation in my left foot and I wish someone could painlessly amputate my left leg from the hip socket down must not be the crisis it feels like it is. I've been getting around better as I get 'used to' the constant pain and have been able to sit for longer periods of time so I thought I'd try working at my tele job Sunday. I only had an hour scheduled and thought it would be a piece of cake. I didn't think that the fact I had almost completely lost my voice due to this stupid cold a problem I guess? lol It was bad though. I had three calls, but my Internet was so bad and their system was oh so slow. The last customer's order took so long that his wife was able to get online and order the same offer(for less she stated) and he ended up canceling just as I finally got to the last screen! :( The system was behaving so badly that even after he canceled it took 13 minutes to cancel his order and get the call logged - thank God he was extremely patient!!! I ended up calling my super and explain what was happening and she finally told me to just log off and call it a day.
I had the ISP tech out the next day and he, naturally, couldn't find anything wrong. It worked perfectly for him! argh! and of course, after he left, it went down again :( This has been going on forever so I finally called them again the other day, as I've not been able to trust logging in to work, and explained to him that there was no way it was on 'our end'. He was nearly rude, but it turned out he was right I guess; even after replacing our router last year, it still is not working right. I don't know if it's that we have too much on it - three desktops and my laptop and occasionally Tyler's Xbox360 and Austin's NDS(the router is wireless and hardwire capable) - but I do know that if I plug into the antenna directly I don't have any trouble staying connected. So I guess I'll have to get another router - if anyone knows a 'good one' let me know! :) Hopefully that will be resolved soon! I am scheduled to work tomorrow, but still not sure my voice, or congested nose is going to let me, let alone my leg/back and hip!?!
I started a new project last night; a nice tropical scene. My sister, Sandi, has always associated me with flamingos for some reason that I can't remember now, so it has a flamingo in it as well. I really find myself thinking of her while I am working on it :) I am thinking that doing what I love will help me get better, and it seems to help, so I'm plugging away trying to get some new pieces out there - I love working with the wood, it just feels so good!
I sent off for the business license yesterday for Deer Mountain Creations. That felt good too, to know that my business will finally be a real business! Everything else will fall under this general dba, as I have a few other ventures that I'm working on and needed something a little less restrictive as Deer Mountain 'Wood Art' is; one of the major outlets is getting my community together in one 'store front' that we all can sell our wares on. The folks still don't believe I'm going to do this for free, but there are so many talented people here that I hate to not see them share with 'the World'! I can't wait to get it in full production :) It will be on Etsy as well under "Deer Mountain Creations" and will have tons of different things (Such as these wonderful Peanut Butter Dog Biscuit Treats!), from crochet to metalwork... getting excited just thinking about it! lol
Well, guess I better get out there and start making some sawdust - it's very cold and snow covered here, but my shop heater works well and I'm sure my enthusiasm will help warm me as well! :)
I hope ya'll have a great Thursday!


As always, thanks for "stopping by the shop!" Freida

In keeping with a theme that will hopefully help me keep up with my daily blogging, as well as organize my posts into something that readers can choose which days they are most interested in 'tuning in for', I've decided to base my blog on the days of the week poem, "Monday's Child", A Mother Goose Nursery Rhyme, and hope you'll enjoy the change!
I'm also going to be moving my blog to another platform, "WordPress", so that I have different options for posting and making use of the other goodies that are included so that the blog will be more fun and 'user-friendly' =D

It's been a while since I posted last - In the middle of trying to wrap my schedule around Deer Mountain Creations/Wood Art, working at home doing 'customer service', and home life, I wrenched my back and have been quite laid-up! :( Still suffering, but desperately trying to return to some semblance of living, I decided to go ahead and try to create Friday's post for you so that you won't forget me! lol
As I am still learning the skill of brevity, I'm sure this will remain my usual length, with multiple 'timeouts' for moving and relaxing my poor out-of-sync muscles...

So, "Friday's Child is Loving and Giving" seems to be appropriate to my way of trying to live, and I think it's a good re-introduction to my blog posts. Let's see what I can share with you that will help you in some way -

Maybe you're feeling a little frustrated by the overwhelming amount of layoffs and business closing/downsizing that we as Americans have been subject to lately?
Have you thought of trying to 'work at home'?
I know that in the recent past I've posted some offerings by companies that are finding the '@home worker' to be more cost-effective for their businesses or just flat out more convenient in terms of training and retention - either way, it's quickly becoming a phenomenon!

For the @home worker, it's the ease of finding hours in your day that can accommodate your child's soccer practice, or flexibility of working the late, LATE, or early, EARLY shift to accommodate the mother of under-school-aged children.
A lot of us, in these hard, nearly-critical, times just have to have a second, third, or even fourth job just to put bread on the table and gas in the car! Personally, I'm a hard-to-place disabled worker that can no longer support my family on the meager SDI I receive and hate being a burden to the country in general!
However you're facing your next 'career', the fact remains; there are more, highly-qualified, job seekers out there, and a true shortage of good-paying jobs. Now is when humility and patience can really be an asset to the unemployed worker!
If you're out in the 'real world', as I refer to it, then you are faced with hanging up your college degree and flipping burgers at McD's or scrubbing toilets for the local Park Service. But even with a 'home-based' job you're facing difficulties and disappointments, hence, the humility!

My first two days at West@home left me bawling like a baby! The first was a very perverted man who thought it fun to taunt me, with details of what he wanted to do to me, while I was taking his order. The second, one I also consider perverted, thought it was fun to take up my time asking questions about a product only to say at the last, "I'm sorry, I don't want to order anything. I just called to 'meet' you..." Boy, that one hit me wrong!lol But that's what I get for taking 10pm to 2am shifts! You learn fast in this business!!
Also, while it's never happened in my 'real world' experiences, I've already been 'reprimanded' twice for failing to take information properly - I was trying to save critically fragile sales and hurry the call for the customer so they didn't end up angry. It was my fault on both and I totally deserved the call-on-the-carpet, it was just painful is all... I've always prided myself on being a good employee and considerate and caring customer service professional, so when I failed at doing this, it crushed me...
Anyway, all jobs have their shortfalls and disappointments, but if you're hurting for cash and need a job, I believe that the 'telephone professional' career is definitely becoming the way to circumvent the 'real world' job shortage while allowing people to work and contribute that might not otherwise been able(like myself).
Below is a VERY small list of legitimate 'work@home' companies. I've been honored to be accepted for employment by 98% of the companies I applied to. I think, that in itself, proves that there is a large market opening up that can offer something for everyone.
Okay, I started to put the list here, but in searching for web addresses I found this blogger who'd already put up a beautiful, and seemingly, pretty complete list - check out her blog list here! Source: "Real WAH Jobs" - nice site with a LOT of great information! =D
Some of them offer full-time, others part-time. There's temporary and permanent positions. Some schedule you based on your hours of availability while others completely let you choose when you want/need to work. One of the problems with scheduling yourself, though, is that you might find it hard, amongst thousands of other workers, to actually grab enough hours to support yourself or your families. But like I said, everything has it's good and bad, and this, being the only way I can work right now, it's the perfect solution for me :)
Whatever you choose to do, in what seems to be one of the worst economies we've faced for a long time, I wish you luck and happiness! It may seem bleak right now, but it's always darkest before the dawn - who knows, maybe our new president can pull us out of this crisis, but I am a little dubious on the belief that the efforts of one person can make such a huge change - I pray for him though, as well as us all!!
That's it, for now, on the loving part of this Friday's post - now for the giving... I hope you enjoy!



Thanks for "stopping by the shop!"
Freida