Fun in the Sun . . .

Before the Florida show in New Port Richey, I escaped Winter in Ohio for our annual visit to Lawrenceville, Georgia (just northeast of Atlanta).  But I took a lot of Ohio Winter with me – our white truck was coated with frozen gray road slop when I left, and even after the frozen stuff melted the leftover salt and such didn’t wash off until a hard rain after the show.  But I didn’t care – it was 62 degrees on setup day . . .

Peggy Gould remembered to bring along her tiara this year – the customers who visit her demo table always enjoy the bubbly Princess Peggy personality . . .

More young folks at the demo table – if all goes well, they will keep me employed for a long time.

Rick and Kelley from Our Daily Bread Designs bought a house near Phoenix a few years ago and spend their winters in the desert warmth – so they aren’t seen in these parts until late March or early April.  But their bags make an appearance at every show, so I text them pictures – this nice lady is on their design team.

This is what happens when I have time to think – Saturday afternoon, I saw the sunbeam start to work its way onto the floor about 2:00.  Wondered if it would make it all the way to the booth by 5:00.  So I took a picture every 30-40 minutes as it traveled toward me – and one from the other angle at a few minutes before 5:00 when it finally hit the finish line.

One of the advantages of Heirloom going to Friday/Saturday shows – I got to spend 90 minutes on Sunday morning in the sanctuary of my childhood friend Alan Scott, who is the senior pastor at Cumberland Community Church in Smyrna, Georgia.  I have mentioned Alan several times over the years – he is a dynamic speaker and I always leave energized.  This time, that energy carried me all the way to Florida – where I checked into my hotel just minutes before the start of the Super Bowl.

Went to Disney on Monday, and came out of a behind-the-scenes tour of the Magic Kingdom just minutes before a parade featuring Super Bowl MVP Nick Foles – there were Philadelphia Eagles jerseys everywhere along Main Street.

What I did while waiting for the parade – the Ice Cream Cookie Sandwich is still the best value in all of Disney World.

I bounce from park to park – took this patriotic shot of Spaceship Earth at Epcot while I was waiting for the monorail to go back to the Magic Kingdom for the fireworks show.

I love fireworks – spent most of my time watching them, without realizing that the colors on Cinderella’s Castle were changing with every shell.

Size has its privileges – took this shot from the monorail – that’s our company truck in the back of the bus parking lot.

 

Worked in the mornings and evenings, and played golf in the afternoon for the next three days.  Took these pics while waiting to tee off on a par three – folks in Florida probably think this moss is annoying, but for those of us from the north who never see it, it is intriguing.

This picture is important because of what isn’t there.  I had just passed through the group of houses at the bottom left and came up a hill to this tee.  As I passed, I saw several people standing in their backyards talking with each other and holding binoculars.  Didn’t think a thing of it.  Then the group behind me came up to the tee while I was waiting, and said “Did you see it?”  I had no idea what they were talking about – SpaceX had just launched a rocket from Cape Canaveral – and from where I was 60-70 miles away, you could see the rocket go up and the solid rocket boosters separate and fall back to earth.  And I missed it . . .

This pic arrived on my phone on Wednesday morning as I was leaving to play golf – it’s the view out by brother’s front door after 3” of white death . . . broke my heart to tell him that it was 81 and sunny in Florida.

I live in a small town, but friends from my school years are everywhere and I enjoy visiting them – on my way to New Port Richey, I stopped to see Barry Hartsock (coincidentally, Barry is Alan Scott’s cousin).  We used to do basketball stats together when we were in high school.

And then I got to New Port Richey – but you already know that, since I am catching up in reverse order . . .

A Boy and His Dog . . . and His Mom

Saw a note on my Facebook feed last night from Connie Williams – it started with “Please vote for my son’s dog…”  Which immediately caught my attention, because I knew/know both.

And many of you know Connie – the success of her Stampaway USA convention in Cincinnati is one of the main reasons why there are so many conventions in the eastern half of the country these days.

  

This was Connie yesterday (second from left) – her group had the winning outfits in a golf outing for autism in Florida.  Reminded me of a couple of outfits I have worn over the years . . .

But I digress – back to Connie’s son and his dog.  Billy (he became “Bill” as an adult, but to me he was always Billy) used to help the vendors unload their cars and trailers and trucks and such at the show when he was a kid, and years later would bring Connie’s booth to me at our mail center so I could bring it to a show and Connie could fly.  Bill always brought his dog along with him – he found her years ago during an ice storm – Baby is adorable and incredibly friendly.

And loyal – Bill had a lot of health issues that weakened his heart and ended his life a couple of years ago.  Baby laid by Bill’s bed and kept him company in the days before he died.  Bill’s friend April adopted Baby, and that’s where she lives now.

This is my favorite picture of the two of them – and leads to a request from April and Connie.  April entered Baby in a “Furry Family Photo Contest”, and Connie would like to see her win as a tribute to Bill.

If you have a minute, please click on the picture above or on this link – then scroll down until you see the picture of Bill and Baby and the description underneath.  Then click on the blue bar under the description – when you do, it will turn gray, a check mark will fill the empty box, and the counter just above it will go up by one number.

Deadline is Tuesday, February 20 at noon EST.

Thanks!

Update on a Friend . . .

Many of you know that our friend Kathy Krivitski (Seaside Stampin’ Ink) has had a lot of medical issues over the past few years.  I got an e-mail a couple of weeks ago from a lady who remembered the prayer warriors on this blog who have taken such good care of my mom over the past several years, and suggested that Kathy could use some of your special medicine as well.

The following is from Joe’s Facebook page, posted on January 28, when Kathy’s most recent issues began . . . “Kathy fell twice last Saturday early morning and was taken by ambulance to Dorchester Hospital. Her legs went numb/weak and she is still unable to stand or walk without human intervention.The medical folks diagnosed 2 fractured vertebrates in her lower spine, the higher one being a older compression fracture. Dorchester sent her to PRMC in Salisbury as it is the closest trauma ER. She was admitted with severe anemia. What about the fall and the leg issues? Oh well, on Thursday, she had successful kyphoplacty? (cement injection) on the fracture in her lower spine. She has been sent to HealthSouth in-patient rehab center in Salisbury for intense one on one therapy to help make her safe at home. This is where we are at the moment for the next 1-3 weeks. This will be a long road ahead, but the Lord will light the way and carry us forward.”

After about ten days in the rehab center, Kathy went back to the hospital.  Again from Joe . . . “After making some progress at the rehab hospital, this has been a challenging week. Kathy was sent back to the hospital and admitted on Tuesday with acute severe anemia, renal failure, low platelets, and unknown crap that was diagnosed a severe UTI. she is recovering in the hospital and we hope she gets sent back to the rehab hospital soon. she is also supposed to have a bone marrow biopsy next week.”

This one really got me – posted by Kathy on Tuesday . . . “Have been in medical facility for 24 days now. Maybe still another couple weeks or so. Joe brought home my hospital gown and laid it the floor and Fred went to sleep on it. He misses his mom. Can’t wait to see him again.”

Kathy and Joe have been good friends for a long time – and I know they would appreciate your prayers and support!  You can e-mail Kathy at kathyk@seasidestampin.com or if you’re on Facebook you can contact her through her page at https://www.facebook.com/kathy.krivitski

Getting Back on the Horse . . .

I have not done a thing on this blog for more than two months.  It’s not that I haven’t had anything to share.  Quite the contrary – I have had lots of stories from work and family (and dog).  Something would happen and I just knew that it belonged here, and I kept thinking that I would have the time to sit down and catch up.  And then I realized how long it would take to include everything, and that wasn’t going to work in my whirlwind December, January, and early February.

I am going to try to catch up a little at a time over the next few days/weeks.  I will hit you with a hodge podge of random stream of consciousness posts – some current, some not so much.  Maybe I will get caught up by the time I go to Arizona to visit my parents in a few weeks.

So let’s start with the most recent – highlights from last weekend’s show in New Port Richey, Florida.

 

The Clearwater show is still at the New Port Richey Rec Center (second year).  Remember the fire during teardown three years ago at the Greek Orthodox Church where the show was held for years?  The church still hasn’t settled with the insurance company, so services are still held in the Fellowship Hall where the show was.  They tried to put away all of the chairs and such and accommodate us two years ago, but it was too much hassle to get everything back in place after the show for Sunday services.  Maybe we’ll get to go back in a couple of years.

 

First thing I saw on Saturday morning was our friend Jan Christensen, wearing a combination Valentine’s Day/St. Patrick’s Day headband.  And then I found out that she came with two similarly attired ladies – and caught a pic with all three of them later in the morning.

 

Not to be outdone were the “Craftosaurs” – the “from behind” shot told the story.

I am loving seeing young crafters-in-training at our demo table – seem to notice at least one or two at every show and try to snap a quick pic when I can.  Almost missed this one as she was standing up . . .

Shot this pic while waiting at a light on US 19 – it serves no purpose other than a reminder of my brother’s early teens, when he rode a moped around town.  Not sure if I have seen one since.

Our First Booth . . .

I have promised a story about our first booth and our first convention experience ever since I started this blog almost nine years ago . . . but kept thinking I would find more of the pictures I took – keeping in mind that at this point I was still taking pictures with a camera and then taking the film to be processed.  I remember taking pictures of the bare floor . . . the tape on the floor . . . and the pile of boxes that Heidi remembers so well.  But years later, I have only found one – and that will have to do.

This is it – our first 10’ x 10’ booth at StampFest Orlando in late June of 1997.  But without more pictures, it will take some narrative to get from “Once Upon a Time” to here . . .

Once Upon a Time . . .

I still remember when we were dragged kicking and screaming into the crafting world – two local stampers happened upon the front room of our little print shop, where we sold scraps of paper and envelopes and poster board to churches and teachers and such.  Those two stampers said that we should be marketing to them, and our response to them was basically “What?  Are you nuts?”

But over time, we would stick a toe in the water – first a small catalog (just a single sheet printed on both sides and folded in thirds), then an ad in Rubberstampmadness.  Gary made a trip to Stampaway USA in Cincinnati and met Connie Williams, and then a trip to Adventures in Stamping in Cleveland and met Bill Petal.

Then came the day when Gary approached me and told me I was going to Orlando to set up a booth and sell at a rubber stamp convention.  I had never seen one.  But I love to travel and was willing to give it a shot.  So we shipped 1,500 pounds of paper (yes, three-quarters of a ton) to what was then the Sheraton World Resort on International Drive, and I pulled the back two seats out of my Dodge Caravan and loaded it with so much that the tailpipe was six inches off the ground.  And Ryan (who was eight at the time) and I set off for Florida.

On Friday morning, I walked to the entrance to the convention hall and met Debby Drabik for the first time – I have said many times in the years since that we owe Debby so much, because she took a chance on us when no one outside of Dayton, Ohio had ever heard of us.  Debby showed me a map of the show floor and pointed out my booth space.  And I walked into the hall.

When I got to that space, I stopped short – all I saw was four corners made out of masking tape, and my booth number taped in the middle.  Oh yeah, and that big pile of boxes that we shipped to Orlando – Debby’s friend Heidi reminded me for years that she hauled those boxes from the front door to my booth.  I had no idea what to do next.  My first thought was of Les Nessman, the newsman from WKRP in Cincinnati – he put tape on the floor around his desk and referred to his “walls”.

If you look back at the picture above, you’ll see part of a garage door just to the left of my sign.  I unloaded the Caravan through that door – then I had another pile next to my tape boundaries, and still no idea how I was going to construct my booth.  Then it hit me – I needed a real wall.  So Ryan and I drove out to the nearest Walmart, where I bought a roll of masking tape and nine yards of red fabric for $1.00 a yard.  Back at the Sheraton World, I taped all of my empty boxes into a backdrop, threw the fabric over it, attached our brand new sign (that I had picked up on my way out of Dayton) and a few Rubberstampmadness covers that had been created with our paper – and I had a wall.  Rearranged several tables a number of times over the next few hours, and piled everything we brought on top of them except the main thing I brought to sell – about 200 packages of multicolored cardstock (10 sheets each of 30 different cardstocks – we still sell them), which I left in boxes on the floor in front of the sign where I could get to them.  I had not yet come up with the idea of a booth that customers could walk through and shop – this was more like the oldtime grocery where you gave your list to the clerk and he got everything off the shelves and handed it to you.

Saturday morning came, and I had no idea what to expect – just stood behind my cash register at 9:00 as the show opened, wondering how many people would come, and if any of them would have any interest in what we were selling.

Fifteen minutes later, customers were lined up 25 deep – and I didn’t have a moment to think until the cardstock packs ran out about 1:00.  At that point, I stood back and realized that I had never had that much fun in my life.  And over 20 years, that has led to what you now see at shows. – and I’m still having fun.

Looking back, I don’t know how I would have survived that weekend without the help of Laura Duhaime, who had the booth next to me, and Gene and Mary from Stamp Cabana across the aisle.  They kept checking on me, offering advice and support.  Gene and Mary went to the same college that I did, so it gave us something to talk about.  But they were off the show circuit within a year.  Laura became a friend – she hasn’t been on the circuit for a long time, but we still keep tabs on each other through Facebook.

Time passes – of the 30 or so vendors from that first show more than 20 years ago, only three are still on the show circuit . . . Debby and Rick from Just for Fun . . . Ted Cutts from Art Gone Wild! (at that point, Ted had a single 15-foot booth – nothing like the Art Gone Wild/Inky Antics/Stampers Anonymous/Darcie’s conglomeration he has now) . . . and that little print shop from Dayton, Ohio.

Last Day of Our Annual Sale . . .

I didn’t realize until yesterday that I neglected to put a note on this blog about our annual sale – and today is the last day!  So if you haven’t seen this yet, you have until I get up on Thursday morning and click all of the appropriate buttons to turn it off to get 25% off practically everything on our site . . .

And free shipping while we’re at it . . .

Please go to www.marcopaper.com and save!

Coupon Contest Winners . . .

Tough choices every year – the locals get really creative when we have our annual “Make Your Own Coupon” Contest.  And the best part for me is that I am not one of the judges – I merely take pictures and report the results.  I also don’t know what the prizes are – winners can pick those up at the store.  So without further delay . . .

First Place – Created by Laura Jack

Second Place – Created by Diane Stilwill

Third Place – Created by Marge Reising (my picture does not do the 3-D effect justice)

 

Honorable Mentions – Jeanette Alley and Sharon Twardowski

 
 

And a look at the rest of the entries.  Thanks to all who participated!