Happy Mother's Day from the Jungle.

Ah, a fresh post. A beautiful Sunday. Again, Happy Mother's Day.

I went with a friend today to check out possible new digs for her. A very nice complex and enjoyed lunch with her and hanging out and talking.

I also spent a few hours with Auctiva figuring out profiles and how to list and problem-solving. That Auctiva is really neat, because its the free site that has a constant slideshow of everything you are listing on each listing on Ebay, plus free nice templates too.

I am proud of myself because I saw it on another site and then checked it out and downloaded it myself and figured it out. That really did make me feel good. I would not let it be a mystery.

My friend and I stopped at a flea market today, which gave me the idea - what if we were to sell some of the books at a flea market? She has so many and will be moving soon, it would be nice to reduce the inventory.

She thinks this is a great idea and somehow when things involve her, she gets me moving and I actually follow through and get stuff done. Like the fundraiser we did at a dollar store, or even getting my angel pins done so I could donate and sell them for the Center. It makes me feel good to be part of something larger and I give what I can.

The Jungle is doing well. They are all healthy and have passed their respective exams by the vet. Well, Emma Pug is next for a wellness exam, to keep up with her shots, but Reese the Siamese did just fine for the Doc.

He was so manic when I brought him in, he got into every door they had and I had to pry him out from under their sink (it had doors - oh goody, he says!) and once I blocked that off he went for the doors on the wall that hides all the vet equipment.

All this between the time the tech left (after taking his temperature, How Undignified) and the doctor walked in! He does not act like this at home because it's not a new place with neat smelling stuff everywhere. He's a very smart, vocal kitty, too.

I know some people don't understand, but the Jungle are easily like kids for me.

I hope Mom's everywhere had a good day.

What has been going on with me.

I have been busy.

The things that seem to come first in my life - my animals and my mental illness - have kept me busy.

This week Blossom, the new Pug puppy, got spayed, got her nose roto-rootered (as my husband puts it) and her soft palate shaved off, I guess to stop any potential snoring and it's supposed to elongate their life because they can breathe better.

That was two trips to the Vet in one week, for drop off (and waiting a day - wanh!) and pick up.

Today I took my cat for his yearly, that was another trip to the 'other' doctor.

Yesterday was Mental Health Day. I sold my angel pins for Trillium Center for a tidy sum, at least I thought so, and manned the selling of the beaded necklaces, which we sold a few of.

The best parts of our Mental Health Day were regular mental health consumers coming up and talking at a podium and just being themselves and the comraderie of the mental health consumers in general. We know each other from different programs and I got to see some people that I haven't seen in a loooonng time. Everyone's a hugger practically, because damnit - we're sweet. People don't think twice about hugging long lost friends.

They gave out silver ribbon pins for spreading Brain disorder awareness, as mental illnesses are brain disorders. I also liked the suicide prevention button in the shape of a heart "I Love Life."

The Ebay thing, which is taking a considerable amount of time, is a learning experience. I have discovered Auctiva, the free site that will put up pictures of everything you're selling in each listing, which I just Know is super! I am getting the courage up to sell my Dad's books and everything I learn will just help that much more.

Go-in's ons in the Jungle:)

I haven't been in blogland for a bit.

I started walking with the Weight Watcher's Momentum Challenge. The goal (for some people) is to walk or even run a 5k race - I just want to go from couch potato to...being more fit.

But we meet each Monday evening to walk and have 'homework' - this week it is to walk 15 minutes a day for 5 days.

I have also been involved with my Ebay project. We sold a book! Yaaay! And I just downloaded Turbo Lister and have been trying to figure that out all morning.

Then there's the baking thing which I go to today, shortly. We have a new person which threw a wrench in it for me, as he talks NON stop but I am hoping that he will calm down, maybe he is just nervous. Hope so, because I promised I wouldn't quit over anything, not even annoying, stupid co-workers.

The A.C. is out and wouldn't you know it, it got hot around here. But a fan to cool me off, and I am feeling okay.

Blossom, (that is new puppy's name!) has started puppy school at the local pet place, and she will be getting spayed in early May. She is still learning to potty train, but doing so well for a four-month-old!! (Almost 5 months). She loves being around her mommy!

I have an appointment with a new therapist on Thursday. She sounds nice on the phone. We'll see how it goes, but I feel pretty positive about it.

New label: exercise! I haven't had that one on my blogs before because I haven't been trying consistently. Wow! New stuff.

Ebay for Trillium Drop-In Center.

Thank you Denise for your comment on my new 'venture, the selling of books (and every sale is a 100% donation to a Center for the socialization for the mentally ill) on Ebay.

Our Ebay user ID is trilliumcenter.

Thank you Denise for mentioning prayer to Heavenly Father about this. I prayed before starting, I pray sometimes for the little things like what I should price things and I am praying hard that this is a success and we will sell. I pray all the time. :):):)

I feel like He led me to this and I feel like it is a worthwhile adventure. While sometimes I feel personally ostrasized from the Center because I am not good around people nor do I feel particularly welcomed by them (but this is a different story), I absolutely adore our Executive Director and would do nearly anything for her and this Center is her life, her baby. She believes in it so much, and there's no place like it in our area. It really is special and one of a kind to my knowledge.

So in answer to your comment, here is our Ebay user ID and I really hope to create some buzz for it. There are books on there for .25 + 3.00-3.99 s&h just to get things going. I know that with time and the Lord's blessing things will get going!

Presenting my new gig: Our non-profit on Ebay!

Because it's that time of the month, I have spent two near consecutive nights not sleeping. Here it is 5:12 a.m. annnnn no sleep still.

I have been listing books on Ebay for the Trillium Drop-In Center for weeks now, just to get and keep up 25 books. I think its hard because the economy has taken a downturn and these are used books. But I am not giving up, no Sir, they will sell. Also, on Ebay feedback is very important and we are new, with no sales or feedback yet, and that may frighten people away.

So after weeks of keeping it under wraps, I have decided to come out on the blog and make it possible for you, Dear Reader, to go to our site and check out what we've got.

100% of the sale of these books is a donation to the Trillium Drop-In Center located in Woodbridge, Virginia (helping the mentally ill of Prince William County).

Trillium's mission is to provide a stress-free, stigma-free atmosphere for people 18 and over who are mental health consumers.

It's a place to socialize, reduce isolation, and participate in a variety of activities and relax be around people. Feelings of isolation are a serious problem for many mentally ill consumers (yes that's the term used) as many of us know and this place was established by mental health consumers for mental health consumers.

Trillium Drop-In Center is a non-profit and so we sell through MissionFish, Ebay's administrator to non-profits.

To see what we are selling go to www.missionfish.org go halfway down the home page (you do not have to sign in), type 'trillium drop' and view to see what we have on sale.

I said I'd never sell stuff on the blog, never put an ad up. This is something I am presently doing on a volunteer basis and I love it, maybe to get paid one day (and yes, it would help when we get sales!:) and it is the thing that is taking ALL my time and keeping me away from you, Dear reader and blog writers, as I am presently all-consumed with it.

There are some good deals on there, you should check it out. Also, I expect to get a new batch of books next week to put up.

'Brief' check in!

Costa del Sol La Axarque Andalucia Spain, Webshots

Dwarf rabbit, Webshots

Ah! Still here! I have a meme to do, but I just wanted to briefly check in and say that things improved with the finding a psych thing.

The 'awful people' fully rejected me and did call back and said 'they are not taking my case at this time' and to call back if I wanted to know why. Didn't want to know why - was relieved frankly. Made an appointment with a doctor across the street who had the nicest sounding receptionist and that's all it took - I was hooked.

Went to my appointment and I actually liked the guy. He's fast, only takes care of the meds and gave me a card for someone that could do therapy. That person turned out to take my insurance and I'm waiting to see if she can take new patients.

So it turned out okay. :)

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter. I did. I cooked lamb for the first time, made potato salad for the first time, completely homemade, and baked a wonderful moist cake in honor of the Risen Jesus and all turned out scrumptious.

Had a friend over and he enjoyed his stay thoroughly with us. Watched a couple of 'Harry Potter' movies - they are so well done. Husband gave me a beautiful card and a chocolate bunny, I did the same for him. Even got a nap in. Was a wonderful day.

I have been busy since last Monday listing books and taking care of any glitches in the first ever selling of books for the Drop-in center. We are going through MissionFish, as all of the selling of our books (100%) is a donation to the Center. I'm now doing this as a volunteer project, I may in fact get paid for it someday. It's entirely addictive for me, as now you can see not only the 'watchers' for the people who put a book to watch in their 'My Ebay' but I can see how many views each book is getting. It's like fishing, honestly. Checking how many bites you may be getting. It will be super exciting when stuff sells.:)

I hope you are all well and I will be checking in with you soon. Thanks for checking back with me.:)

I'm doing the baking thing again!:)

I couldn't decide if I should put this on 'Adventures' or 'The Good Stuff' but since 'Adventures' chronicles my life more closely, I will spread the news on here.

I am doing the baking project again!

This is a six-month program started by a mental health consumer herself (that means she has a mental illness), who has a young son AND is now taking classes for her second master's degree in college! (Wow! A real go-getter, hunh! And I can still relate to her because she said there was a time when she hardly left her house and she would tell her doctors at doctor appointments that she looked forward to seeing them because it got her out of the house, and they said 'You've got to get a life!' Yeah, I can sooo relate to that.:)

This person running the program also has a heart of gold and is a wonderful role-model to me. She called me last week, and was 'interviewing' me on the phone (because I interviewed and was doing the project for several months before I couldn't take it anymore due to someone REALLY getting on my nerves).

She reminded me that there are always people that are difficult to get along with, especially in the real world (oh don't I know it) to which I assured her that no matter how difficult it got, I wasn't going to quit again (I just couldn't imagine anyone as annoying as the person I left for, seriously). She also told me that the goal of the program is getting a job at the end of the six months.

So I am preparing myself mentally for that, because I am thinking I could work in a grocery store in the baking department. I think that might be cool.

I have no idea what's going on with the Ebay thing with Drop-in, which was supposed to raise money for them and eventually provide me with a job, because they would find some way to pay me for starting and working on the Ebay program for them. It may just be going slowly but I am still doing the baking thing because it is a Wonderful Opportunity and you never know how things are going to go.

Recession is the mother of invention.

Please see here for an article from the NY Times about people using their entepreneurial spirit to create jobs for themselves. They are making business plans rather than sending out resumes and experts say it is good for our economy.

"...many people will focus on serving immediate needs for individuals and
businesses.
“It’s a very painful thing,” he said of the pressure people
feel
to find new ways to make money. “But it’s a healthy thing.” "

This sort of thing fascinates me. I'd love to have the energy and the stamina to head my own business. That is why Ebay is the closest thing like it to me.

Have a Great Saturday.:)

Better.

I am writing to say that I feel much better than the previous post. I have switched to something new, for the moment, and my mood (and life) looks improved.

Thank you so much for your comments on the last post. I take them to heart and I really appreciate them!:):)

Today I went to the Drop-In Center and set up an account on Ebay so that we can sell books for the center. Our Executive Director has tons of books that she is donating to the center so that we can sell them and fundraise. Yaay!

I am doing this as a volunteer position right now, but I may get paid in the future. It's a good learning experience, as I will learn to do TurboLister. You may recall or see on my list of things I wanna do that being a seller is El Top O' the List!!

So I spent a good part of the day at the Drop-In Center. And while I still feel funny sometimes because there is someone there that I can feel stabbing me with words behind my back, it is only one person and is probably good for me. Can you believe I would say that! I don't know what's wrong with her but it's her, not me. And I'm okay with it right now.

I also met these two darling young women who go to ARC, Association for Retarded Citizens, and they so brightened my day, just by being themselves. I just loved being around them, they were so sweet and friendly.

My Mom always said I would work well with retarded citizens, or developmentally challenged is a more PC term, as they are sweet and I am too (blush). But to work with them would probably take a degree. Maybe I could look into volunteering.

So things are looking up and I wanted to share.:)

I had other good thoughts too. I watched a very gripping story on PBS (limited basic cable will make you do such things!:) called "A Walk to Beautiful" about the incredible amount of young girls/young women in Africa who have given birth at young ages and then developed fistulas, or tears that cause them to urinate or worse constantly. This causes them to become ostrasized and pariahs in their villages sometimes, devastatingly for the rest of their lives.

This was a wonderful, touching story of the incredible journey of several women to get to a special hospital made just for them and their recovery from this terrible, widespread ailment.

I was just gripped by the beauty of these women, and their incredible courage in the face of being treated awfully, by being betrayed by their bodies - or feeling that way - and for how difficult it was to have this illness in their culture. Not only was the problem physical it was vastly psychological.

You can imagine that I related to that.

So it is with clarification that I state about my earlier post 'I'm glad to be an American Woman' - oh I so am. No where on this Earth could a woman have so many freedoms and pleasure to be herself except in many of our Western countries.

At the same time, I am proud to just plain be a woman, when women like these are my co-patriots of the Earth.

I was outside today, watching the dogs do their thing, and I heard a bird above in the trees make loud noises. I looked up. There is a whole world up there, and out there, a Lord that watches and enters his Hands into the mix and I was more at peace, because I realized the world was bigger and it was A GOOD THING. Can't explain it quite right.

I am finally recovering from the trauma, I think, of the anxiety that befell me after the Lithium toxicity last year - which was almost exactly one year ago next week. Actually, I bounced back pretty fast in many ways, physically certainly.

Thank you again, dear Friends, for your comments on the last few posts. I am so blessed to be aware of your presence on the web, I think of you and even pray sometimes for your needs.:)

So you see, Tart doesn't always write bad things on her blog.:)

Mixed vegetable.

I think I am in a mixed state that is leaning more to the depressive side. I have tried to complete things today, getting a few appointments set, taking care of some things on the phone and really feel like I have not got much done. I am hungrier than usual today too, it's weird.

I also decided to listen to these Tony Robbins CD's that my Dad left me. I had thought about selling them on Ebay but then I decided that I actually needed to listen to them.

So tired and good for nothing. My house overwhelms me and I need to do something about it. My inlaws hinted at coming to visit us and it fills me with panic. I have managed to keep most of 'the critical eye' out of my house but soon will come the day when it can't be held back.

I'm embarrassed but I want to either die Or just go back to bed.

Lowered Happy Quotient (aka agitated) for a day or two; and talking 'bout Ebay

But a mere two days ago I had lots of energy and felt, well, happy. Well, I would be amiss if I always gave the impression that life is perfect, and that I'm a happy bipolar. I am bipolar, I am not happy about it, and life is not perfect. Yup, I said it.

I have been agitated and cranky today. And while I certainly am blessed and always am, I realize, I will change my imood to reflect my agitated state.

Yes, it Must be nearing that time of month, which I admit is probably the main problem. And I admit that I don't understand my moods. I don't understand when I'm physically under the weather and Tart just shouldn't push it so much, be kind to thyself, Tart.

I hate that moods can and do change and so darn quickly. I hate that moods seem so tied to who I am and what I can do. I have thinking about being on Disability of late too.

I have decided to do what I can for my family and try and sell my Dad's books on Ebay. I am working my way to being able to open the boxes, maybe just one box that I sent home to myself after going through Dad's apartment those almost two years ago.

My Dad LOVED books, he treated them with reverence and there are some there from the 1980's and beyond in perfect condition. I feel that I have the okay to sell them, as his very good friend told me that Dad had been thinking himself of selling books on Ebay, so it's not like it's a new idea.

I know what his problem was ~ he couldn't part with them! And I know how that feels because I feel the same way. It's just that they would be blessing someone else and help my family out just a little if they weren't sitting in boxes in my office.

I haven't talked about this before. But if I were to start my real selling on Ebay this is what I've got. I know that I'll keep a zillion books for myself, because they are a Father's gift to a Daughter, and I can't part with them all, there is too much sentimental value to those self-help books.

But some things, like books on improving the brain (which I certainly should care about but don't), I have let go of one so far. And it was therapeutic.

Aaug, it makes me sad to think about it, so maybe I am not ready yet. And maybe no one will buy them. But I get a little bit excited about it, because Ebay is a buzz for me. It truly taps into something manic for me, especially if you win something on it.

I just won the book 'Suze Orman's Women & Money' off Ebay. It's coming from a seller with 100% good feedback (always important) and I am waiting for it to be mailed to me.

I admit that it was really a high and I was on pins and needles as I kept checking to see if I was 'still the highest bidder' on the book. I know I can't be alone in this. What gives you a personal high, if you are bipolar or not?