Think before you Monetize!!!!

OH MY GOSH - I love the story about the chipmunks storing nuts in the car. Those little devils!!!! And YES - I need to change my search engine - old habits die hard!!! I MUST try and remember!!! Perhaps a sticky note on my computer—that will remind me!!!!

Guess what? While I can buy that puzzle I wanted online, someone taking the ferry this week just offered to buy it for me on the ferry. That will have so much more meaning to me than buying it online. Thank you!!!! I'm taking that person up on their offer. I'm excited, and I will get to see the gift shop without being there, as they were instructed to take a photo! Now I can take the seaplane across to the island. It's much faster! 

You have to love the trusted circle of friends. And yes—if you want something out there, we all know there are one or two that will do that whether you want them or not. That's where you can have some fun, but I won't go there this morning!

Gosh—so quick on the return of that other flight, I had another travel day!! 

For those of you who are not familiar, there are four levels of self-driving on a Tesla. The most aggressive is called Mad Max. Well, that was my Uber driver yesterday. He was pretty efficient and slightly aggressive, even though he was driving his Tesla manually. We were scheduled to arrive at the airport at 9:07; however, he managed to shave 4 minutes off that time, and it's only a 30-minute drive. Well, 30 with no traffic, and it was rush hour!

And I really, really wanted to touch the roof of that car. I don't know the model, but the roof is completely glass and looks very celestial, and the join between the roof and the top of the walls looks very surreal. Next time -- I'll touch it!! 

Before I left the house, I managed to clear my puzzle table, and there is the next puzzle. This one is for October, so I'm ready when I get home. 

The puzzle table is clear.

I also did one of those quick jobs before I left. I spotted this tote bag that had been embroidered many months ago, and at the time I had to open the side of the bag to stitch it out. Well, I decided it would be a great sample to have with me - not only because of the time of year, but also because we have a NEW embroidery hoop for the free arm, where I could have done this WITHOUT opening the bag. The new PFAFF free-arm hoop (200 by 260). So the seam got finished, and one more thing off the messy tables in Studio B. Yeah, me!!!!

My trick-or-treat bag

By the way -- the white is actually glow-in-the-dark thread! 


So while the drive to the airport was quick, the darn security line was a mess. There was hardly anyone there, but they were replacing the machines, so we had to use a different line, and I have no idea why it took so long. OH -- we had to remove our laptops from our bags, but still. It just seemed to take a long time. 

The skyline from the Uber car

I met up with my colleagues for a chat while we waited to board. Traveling with them is extremely stressful. Some of them get to the airport VERY EARLY, and then I feel like I'm late. I'm not!! Then I ran to Tim's to get in line for tea. What? There was NO lineup. This is unheard of. So I quickly got a tea and then boarded the plane. 

No line at Tim's

I got upgraded, but so did one of my colleagues, and we were sitting beside each other! So of course, I talked her ear off, and she probably just wanted to sleep. We had lots of time to talk, since we were pulled off into the deicing area and made to wait for almost an hour. I feel pretty lucky because that's the first time that's happened to me. Something to do with not getting a gate in Montreal, but usually we get to Montreal before we know there is a problem. 

Waiting in the deicing area 

This is the Montreal scene on the plane screens. I used to work at the spot where the picture was taken. This was the view I had from my window before our department was moved into the branch where the robbery took place. I ate lunch there many times. 

Place d'Armes

And then we arrived in Montreal. 

Montreal airport

I heard that getting to the car rental was a bit of an ordeal, and OH MY GOSH --- you had to walk for a very long time under the terminal and out the other side, and who knows exactly where we walked, but we finally got to a shuttle bus and then got dropped off. It's a bit of a zoo, to be sure!!!! Why couldn't the shuttle bus pick up at the terminal, as if we were getting a taxi? I have no idea, but if you have luggage or mobility issues, it's a huge problem. Thankfully, I got a cart so I didn't have to manhandle two suitcases that distance. I am being wise with my decisions these days. I'm feeling just fine - but taking it easy. 

  

At last on the shuttle bus

And we finally got to the hotel, where I noticed I am now Elite Gold. Only to realize from my colleagues that I am just the second level; there are two more above me!!! Oh well -- it doesn't matter. 

Elite Or level

Then we zipped over to the Salon Quebec location, found our booth, and did some minimal setup. Mostly, we got the tables in order and figured out which quilts needed to be hung first thing this morning. We have all day today to set up. All the show quilts were hung—the ladies and their helpers are extremely efficient. 

Here is the sneak peek I forwarded to my Monday sewing group. They were not impressed!!! 

Sneak peek at the Salon Quebec quilt show.

OK -- I hope I don't get into trouble with this next posting, but I stole it from M's Facebook page. 

Madeline Frances (on Facebook)

I AGREE with her 100%. EVERYONE is attempting to monetize their social media accounts, their hobbies, and their creativity!!!! They make pretty things not for the sake of making pretty things, but so they can make money from it. The competition is fierce, and the pressure is intense. 

I've been writing this blog for many years, and I intentionally chose not to monetize it. I did that for two reasons. First, I write for ME, and I get way more value from the writing than I ever would from money. Secondly, I had no idea how widespread my blog would go, and I still don't because I don't check the analytics. I write for me and only me, but the fact that some people found it and follow it—that makes me happy. Your comments and story sharing make me happy. But I want a safe place where you won't be bombarded with ads. Hopefully you don't get that, and I never see anything on the site. 

Just in the world of quilt pattern designers—how many versions of the log cabin do we need? Many designers design pieced animals - I know of four without even searching. And then designers make a fuss that someone ripped off their pattern. Why not enjoy the journey and stop letting the internet run your life? I don't have the answer to that question, but young moms use it to earn money while staying home. Again—I generalized, so don't yell at me—it's a much broader topic than I want to cover here. 

However you work it out - don't just monetize your HOBBY for the sake of making a living. Perhaps you can monetize something else, but not your hobby!!

Quilting is my hobby; however, I do make money in the quilting world, but I don't go above and beyond to monetize what I do. And I have other non-money-making hobbies like reading and puzzles. I will never monetize those. 

Thank goodness the person above me is gone for the day. I swear I always get the heavy walker above me, and they literally stomp, stomp through their morning routine!! Good grief—get a pair of socks on and glide across the floor. LOL -- I was awake anyway. WAIT -- they just came back - they must have been at breakfast!!

WAIT—I forgot to tell you about the fire alarm last night. I was in bed reading and all of a sudden (of course—fire alarms do not ramp up!), the alarm goes off. A brilliant flashing white light filled the room, plus loud beeps and whatever. Hmmmm --- do I get up? I got up and reached for my clothes—I was NOT going to walk in the hallway with no clothes on—I don't care how big the fire is! Good grief—since when am I so modest? It lasted only 30 seconds, and that was it! 

It's going to be a WONDERFUL day!!!!!

Ciao!!!!