Accidental 20% off Sale

A few days ago, as I was editing Markdown Manager on my eBay store, I managed to put my entire eBay stock on a 20% off sale.  I decided to go ahead and let it ride out until Feb 3rd.  So if you do follow my store, this is an optimum time to purchase. 

I am a believer that accidents happen for a purpose.  This sale accident is actually helping me work towards a goal that I have for this coming year - to reduce my online inventory to 200-300 items.  I currently have over 2500 items just on eBay. 

By knowing my outcome, events will naturally move my business in that direction.  

Rescued Raccoon & Life Missions

Having just gotten back from Tony Robbin's "A Date with Destiny", I realized that the mission in my life (past and future) has been to be an explorer, enjoy the adventure and to share the discoveries.  It is that reason that I decided to use Friday mornings as a time to share the discoveries.  

What I didn't realize that I would discover this last week was a small raccoon using my outdoor cat bed on the back deck.  The raccoon is the same color as my cat, Paka, who uses the bed whenever she stays out at night.  I often just reach down and pet her as I pass by when I cross the deck.  What a surprise when I heard a low growl from the bed as I was leaning down!  

There was several minutes of havoc as I was trying to keep my dogs away as a frightened, bundle lumbered out of the small semi-enclosed bed.  I soon realized that my small friend was blind in one eye, had an injured tail and seemed frail as it crawled up the deck railing then carefully moved along the top of the wood fence until it could climb on top of my garage roof.  

There it rested, spent quite some time cleaning himself like a cat and finally came off of the roof and disappeared down the alley.  I am new to the area and didn't know of any nearby animal shelters that could help this poor animal soul.  

The next morning, there he was, in his cat bed but he knew that when I get up, so do the dogs and he moved with more conviction off of the deck and out of yard.  He didn't look hungry but I suspect his been around for several weeks since the noticed that the cat's outdoor water bowl seemed to empty quickly during the night.

I had decided that if this fragile guy needed a place to live his life, I would accept him into our fold, as long as he was not dangerous to my other pets.  I let the neighbors know about him.  Since the weather has warmed up a bit, I see him in the neighborhood but he has not needed the warmth of my deck and Paka's bed.  

But what did this experience teach me?
I learned that sometimes we are frightened by an idea or situation.  In this case, I was initially frightened by an animal that could hurt my pets.  But if we take the time to look closer, we may see that it is not really a threat.  Then we can take the next step which is to treat it with love and acceptance.  

Think back to your favorite Valentine's day.  Was it a quiet evening alone with someone special or an extravagant night out or one of many variations in between?  After selling jewelry for 18 years, I've been amazed at how men buy Valentine's Day gifts.  There was the occasional man who knew exactly what his wife liked. Shopping for jewelry was very easy for these men and they would brag that their wives often wore the pieces they bought.

There were others that bought their wives or partners what they like (not what she likes) then complained that she never seemed to wear any of his gifts.  

Most often, I'd see panic and confusion so I'd ask the men, what types of jewelry does she wear each day.  Is her ears pierced?  Does she wear small or large earrings?  Have you ever seen her wear a necklace or bracelet?  Does she prefer gold or silver?  Rings are the trickiest - they need to know style AND size. These questions helped some and confused others more since they couldn't remember what she wears.

Back when we were doing shows and festivals, I noticed that dolphins were a favorite especially among women.  They make us smile, they open our hearts and they are fun to wear.  In the next day or so, we will be adding two styles of sterling silver heart shaped dolphin pendant necklaces to our eBay store.  They make a fun Valentine's Day gift for a new romance, for a friend or for a young girl.  And if that someone special loves pendants and loves silver and loves dolphins - you've hit the jackpot.

This a whole New Year for ALDA Jewelry & Gifts.  We will continue to offer clearance sales on most of our old sterling silver charm stock as well as many of our one-of-a-kind offerings on eBay.  Its time to make space for some VERY interesting collectibles that we have been sitting on. 

I've been watching the old episodes of "ThirtySomething".  Its humorous to watch the self-indulgent behavior of that group of "boomers".  I do miss how powerful shoulder pads made me feel back then!  What I am surprised to notice this time are the earring styles of the main characters as well as Elliot's creative use of vintage lapel pins.  These are styles that I have sold this past year.

You'll see more vintage, more classic jewelry and resurrecting old fan favorites.