How does this happen?  I had all good intentions.

As 2012 ended, my books were up to date.  I even had my inventory done and finished all the dreaded end of year stuff for the accountant.

I was looking forward to the empty days that stretched ahead to organize the shop and give it a good cleaning.  A few soapy experiments were in the works.
There were plans for the house...  with three dogs now in residence, there are always floors to be cleared.
And after all the wild abandon of holiday eating, I could hardly wait to get back on my wheat/sugar free diet.  The diet started well, but that seemed to be all the good intentions I could muster up!  I decided it was just the low energy that comes for a couple of days with no sugar, but the energy (and resolve) didn't return.

I would awaken with thoughts of the things I would do that day - and then I would somehow manage to avoid them...  In my stupor, I did work of a new cuff bracelet and finally finished it a day or two ago.

The focal is a beautiful square hematite cabochon surrounded by silver seed beads and the cuff features silver fresh water pearls, hematite stars and leaves.  I have been imagining this cuff for a long time and was happy to see it turn out the way I imagined.

Meanwhile, we are almost through January and the diet has even fallen by the wayside.  But, today I seem to be seeing some light at the end of this dreadful tunnel.

This issue of the magazine is just about finished and I was trying to decide what to do first....

It seems someone in Spain managed to use my business debit card to make a sizable purchase which my bank has declined to cover.  Because I now find that this is at the discretion of each bank, I need to make a few phone calls to decide who will be getting my business when I switch accounts after 25 years.  We switched to this small local bank all those years ago when our big bank began treating us like a number.  Now they seem to have followed in their footsteps.

I have been putting this off and I think once I get past it, I may have more enthusiasm for the rest.

I may even manage to get back to the torch!

Back into the blog pool

I have thought about it for a while and decided this blog would be one of the things I to which I would like to pay more attention this year.

My glass (I haven't lit the torch in so long, there are spider webs festooning the  glass rods and the desk) is another thing I need to work with again, but today, it will be the blog.

This has always been my blog, not only for jewelry and business, but for talking about things that are important to me, sharing my life.  In the past year or so, I have lost track of this - my personal space - in favor of just blurting out things to the world on Facebook.  I suspect my withdrawal from the blog and glass has more than I suspected to do with my devotion to Facebook.  I've blamed it on the soap business - which, don't get me wrong is booming - but again, it's Facebook!

One of the reoccurring themes that I have seen, pretty much everywhere, but especially on Facebook is exclusion.  Maybe it isn't exclusion, just a terrible divide that leads to and encourages exclusion.

Opinions are stated in very black and white fashion, or a story is taken out of context - and the conclusion always seems to be that if you don't agree with me, you must be an idiot.  I wish I could say I have never posted anything like that, but, I certainly have.  I do have strong opinions, but unfortunately, it seems that these days, if we express them, we are either "hidden" or "unfriended."  Don't get me wrong, I've done my own share of that too!

Is it any wonder we all seem to live these days in a bubble of people who all agree with us?  When all you get in response to the things you write are a bunch of "likes" or other agreement, it is shocking to go to the news posts and read the comments.

I still don't agree with the "other side," but I do feel it is important to at least try to understand their point of view.  I'm not at the place yet where I can bring myself to tune in on the opposing side's "news" channel without experiencing a blood pressure spike, but maybe some day.

Maybe that way we may eventually be able to reach some kind of a mid point.

It isn't just politics, either, this attitude seems to find its way into all sorts of fields of interest.  My sister touched on it in the herbal community in her Dec. 30 blog.  I see all kinds of snippy stuff posted on glass boards and don't participate myself because I am just not aware of all the background stuff swirling around and fear putting my foot wrong as I attempt to enter.

I really don't know the answer, I just see a lot of stuff going on online that I thought we had all left behind in Middle School.

We'll see how this goes...