I slept a lot today. Jim came in to check on me and said I had that "slack jawed, open mouthed look" which is not particularly charming. In fact, it is rather more frightening than charming, I am thinking! He didn't put it this way but the way he put it was worse, so I shall avoid his exact words. I think I was very tired; let's just say that. Then, after the kids came home from school, one after the other, I went to etsy to check on my PERFECT LITTLE TINY TOP HATS. What to my horrorring (<--made up word) eyes should appear...great balls of fire! They were all gone! The larger size, which real people can wear sitting pretty askew they heads as they drink pots of lap sang souchong at the Plaza, were there (well three of them were--they are great, too!) but the littlest ones, for dolls--all goooone!Insert large wail, and add a bit of headbanging. This was heartbreaking to me. I wrote a convo to the resident "candygears" store artist, Redd, and asked her to please let me know when she has made some more of the littlest size, not specifying colors or anything. Whatever she touches her hands to turns to gold! Then I left some feedback over at etsy, and began to mull over my submission to Scarlett Lanson's bead challenge, "Use the Muse II", which is assisted in many ways by the following two fine stores. Here they are listed, quoting Scarlett, who says in her blog: "My contest only runs ten weeks, and winners are announced just two weeks after entries are submitted. And the PRIZES are big! They are tangible, visible, and very desirable! I selected each prize package with my sponsors, Rainbows of Light and Artbeads!" This comes about because if you write about the challenge and you bring in a lot of readers to Scarlet's blog, you win a prize. There is also another prize chosen randomly for anyone who has submitted and blogged! It is an excellent incentive to get people involved in writing. Well, I didn't win anything for blogging, but Andrew Thornton won a gorgeous bead! He is not "lucky" per se; he works hard! Congrats to Andrew! He channeled lots of readers to Scarlett! I now have some tips for my readers concerning this excellent and fun competition, for the next time it rolls around, which will be in August: 1) When you submit your...uh...submission...do NOT copy and paste it. You will have to redo it, as the photo section will not pick up your photos! On the other hand, if you make a lot of typos, maybe this could be a good thing! You will be forced to reread and correct your mistakes! I made four typos I had to correct. 2)I can't really give you too many more tips until the whole thing is over, because some of what I say might be too much of a good thing. However, in general, a great title is a big help in any situation. Have fun getting practice making up good titles! It is a great way to sum up your thinking process concerning your piece in every way, you know. It is like a condensation of your intentions. 3) My little whirling photos, when I post them above my Use the Muse II thoughts, have more than one meaning as far as this competition is concerned. I like to think that they show the process your brain goes through as it blends together the ingredients, both beads and thoughts, which end up making your design. You don't exactly need an oven to finish up your creation, but when it's done, it is done, and --you know it! :) jean!