Avatar

So I saw Avatar again. I cannot understand why parents would bring their children to see this movie? Aside from it being heavily loaded with subliminal messages, it is a pretty violent movie, and with it being 3D that does not help at all.

In the theater, there was a little girl who would cry for parts of the movie, understandably so yet even then, her parents/guardians felt it quite appropriate to keep her in that environment.

Being an adult I would hope that I am able to detect and refute value or spiritual systems that are contrary to my beliefs. However, children may not be developmentally astute enough to make the decision to refute the subtle yet complex systems expressed in Avatar . Entertaining yes, child safe, no.

Now, "Avatar: The Last Airbender", that I await.

So Much to Visit

I saw Avatar.
Yes. It is good.

Hopefully, I will see it again, soon.

I was on my way home from the Bronx. On the highway, dusk had already danced its way across the sky. Then suddenly, I started, I started looking at my surroundings with new eyes. As if I had not seen it before. As if I was seeing it for the first time. A new experience. I must admit that it was quite refreshing. I've tried before, to see things with new eyes, and until then had failed. It is, as I had suspected, a method in which appreciation of the complex simplicity of life could be measured.

Hope for Haiti

I am not sure what coverage is like for other cable networks, but  Time Warner Cable, is airing the "Hope for Haiti" campaign on all major channels (ie. mtv, bet, vh1, and all local channels)


For more information please visit:

www.hopeforhaiti.com


As an added bonus if you missed it, here is footage of Beyonce singing another rendition of "Halo" for Haiti.

Too Late for Louisiana?

Millions of dollars have been collected to help bring relief to the earthquake victims of Haiti. A lot of the money collected came from everyday people with cellphones. As I mentioned in a previous post, the Red Cross among other reputable foundations set up electronic ways of making easy donations to the cause. This to me has been an effecient use of technology to help those in need.

I have been wondering though. Is it too late to partake in a similar cause for Louisiana? Hurricane Katrina ravaged the state and I'm not here to discuss what wasn't done or what could have been done, who dropped the ball and who did not. I want to point out that, well, there is still work that CAN be done. Life is not anywhere near normal for the people who lost their homes and loved ones in Katrina. Is it too late for American Citizens to rally up and help their own citizens? Is it too late to help rebuild Louisiana?

Sims 3 for iPhone: "Jane" of all trades.

Ok, so I may be late on the Bandwagon here, but I recently downloaded Sims 3 for the iPhone. I played Sim City on my other cell and loved it, and was thrilled to see this in the App Store when I did a basic search.

Of course I was thrilled to see a "Jack of all Trades" availability on the personality traits of the SIM, and yes, this is what I selected as the trait of my first character. I started "re-creating myself" if you will, but then thought..eeehhhh maybe not. One me is enough for the real world and simulated ones.

I've been playing the game for about a month now, or close to it, and have learned a few tips and tricks...so to speak, and I guess I'll just share it with the world.

Tips for making Money
One thing a SIM needs is cash. That's how you get the nice house, the tricked out appliances the car etc.

First, get a job. Depending on the job you get, you will have different bosses. Get to know your boss. ;-) If you have a relationship with the boss, and ask for a raise, they will tell you why you cannot get the raise, which will give you something to strive for. Once you do what they recommend, you can get that raise which means more money for you. You can get automatic raises by spending time on the job. Just keep working and the raise will come. Please, resist temptation, don't take any widgets from work.

If you are working in the Town Hall, the highest level you can achieve is "Vice President" this level comes after "Mayor." The most money you can make there is $300 a day. Peanuts right, right.

This is where you must start getting a side hustle.

As soon as you have enough money to purchase a fishing kit, do so!

Fish your little heart out, because that's a quick way to stack up the cash.

When you maxed on on a few categories of fish, go to the "Quik Mart" scroll down to the bottom where you see all the fish you have in stock, then hit the (-)minus button. This is how you sell your fish to the "Quik Mart" and this is how you can make a grand easilly afterwork.  The good thing is that people come to visit so your social bar stays up.

When selling your fish, try to keep at least one "trout." If dear old Walter comes up to visit, he will cut you an offer you cannot refuse. He has the angling trait and will give you $200 for a trout. A trout would normally go for about $50. So save one, just in case. Or save one, go to his house and chat it up about fishing until he give you that offer.

I'll add more to this post, there is so much more to share, so I'll add it bit by bit. Stay tuned.

Nickel Free

I just got a sale on Etsy, but this one was a little interesting. I created these owl earrings and the customer wanted to know if they were "Nickel Free" shamefully, I did not know. I contacted the supply store from which I purchased my findings, and they did not know either!

Highly upsetting. This compelled me to make a few calls, troll the net, in order to find nickel free findings that would match the brass toned earrings that I made. After my searching, I found silver and gold toned nickel free findings but not brass toned. My customer was more than understanding, she still wanted to purchase the piece with the silver toned nickel free earring hooks.

You live, and learn. I guess now I could start bumbling with the creation of a new line of nickle free/hypoallergenic products. It would be upsetting to be limited in choice of jewelry designs because of allergies. So, I'll do my part in broadening the availablities.

I felt a little expressive

So tonight I got out my digi paintbrush and this came out...

variations of love

How to Help Haiti's Earthquake Victims?

Just incase you did not hear about it. There was a 7.0 magnitude earthquake in Haiti on Jan 12th 2010. Needless to say that it has devastated the capital of Haiti and there are thousands of people in need of help, and supplies.

Sadly, we have to deal with a maladaptive human condition apparent in some. The condition that I speak of, is scamming. Please please please use caution when donating to various organizations in the name of Haiti. There is reputable information about helping victims on the White House Website:

The White House.gov Haiti Relief Page

The most popular way of giving aid has been through the use of cell phones.

Donate $10 to the Red Cross to be charged to your cell phone bill by texting "HAITI" to "90999."
Donate $5 to Wyclef Jean's Yele Haiti orgranization to be also charged to your cell phone bill by texting "Yele" to 501501

Use any of the reputable resources above to help find more information on helping the relief effort in Haiti.

So many times I stumble across these great craft, diy sites...

I figured why not share?

So If you want to make a necklace and have no idea where to begin, for starters you could look it up on Youtube. I'll jump start you with this great video below:


Of  course there are multiple levels of jewelry design, from basic to intense. This is a really basic example of a single stranded beaded necklace.

A great jewelry source for materials and tuts is: Auntie's Beads and Supplies


If you dabble in photography, want to know a little more about how to take better family pictures or are a pro looking for another pro's perspective, I have THE site for you. I mean, he's very descriptive and clear.  Ken Rockwell's Digital Photography


Now I know I'll be adding more sites here and there, but here's a starter list:

DIY
www.eHow.com - how to do anything, just type it in a search, tutorials will pop up.
www.cutandkeep.net - this is great because its a community of crafters sharing and learning.

Online Storefront
www.esty.com - of course well known for HANDMADE and or VINTAGE products only. $0.20 per item listing. Easily connectible to PayPal.

www.ecrater.com - free, but great simple layout,  you'll be set up in no time, great alternative to eBay, did I mention that it's free? Only issue is that you have to get your own traffic, unlike eBay, if you do not advertise, then you're probably not going to get a lot of traffic.


www.rubylane.com - the place to go for antiques, arts, collectibles and jewelry. If you're selling on there, then last time I checked, there was like a $70.00 set up fee + some.

I visit a lot of sites frequently because they have the good stuff. I'm not affiliated with any of theses sites, no one is paying me for anything, I'm just sharing sites that I think are worth sharing. There are a few more, I'll add them in later on. Do you have some sites that I should know about? If so please share. :-)

Jill of all Trades - I want to master at least one!

Hello world,
Welcome to my blog. This is one of many, as I am a woman of many talents, as I have come to realize. No, this is not said in a boastful way, but in utter frustration. See this is my issue. I am seemingly a Jill of all trades by a master of zilch and being the anal person that I can be, well, that just does not cut it. I hope to explore all the likes and dislikes that I have and then hopefully I could come up with the one trade that I could be come the master of. So far, this is my list:

Graphic Design
Web Design
Logo Creation
Jewelry Design
Wire Wrapping
Looming
Crocheting
Painting
Sketching
Drawing
Arts & Craft
Paper Crafts
Hair Design

The List:

Jewelry
beaded necklaces
wire wrapped necklaces
beaded earrings
wire wrapped earrings
beaded braclets
wire wrapped pendants
wire wrapped rings
beaded rings
paper jewelry
feather jewelry


Paper Stuff
bookmarks
notebooks
binders
airplanes ;-)

Hair Accessories
feather fascinators
headbands
scruncies
basic cocktail hat

Web Design
basic html sites
basic flash sites

Graphic Design
image consulting
photo editing
photo reconscruction
photo manipulation
logo design
flyer design
brochures
business cards
screen printing (dad and I built light-box, mostly him...hee hee hee)

Looming & Crocheting
hats
scarves
gloves
bracelets
necklaces
purses
socks
kid blanket
embroidery

Hair Design
sew in extensions
invisible weave technique
braids
braid extensions
hair color
relaxers
wash & deep conditioning
hair treatment therapy

Arts
sing
act
poetry
dance lol
contemporary painting

Fitness
fitness instructor
yoga instructor
water aerobics
multisculpting
weight lifting

Photography
macro (favorite)

I almost forgot:

Clerical
filing
organization
resume development
10-line phone system management
real estate listing
loan processing


The reason for this extensive yet not exhaustive list is for me to get it all out of my head and on paper. As I remember more, I'll add to the list, but all of this gets quite exhausting. I am pulled in so many directions (as you can see) and I'm afraid if I do not select one talent that is going to stand out above the rest, then I'll be leading a life of utter frustration!

Needless to say that this overwhelming amount of choices has led to the creation of many sites and a few small businesses. But I will use this as a way for me to grow, learn and find out what exactly it is that I want to pursue. I do not plan on advertising my sites on here, not now at least. I want to know which one is going to be the strong-suit, which may take weeks, months, or however long. (preferably sooner than later, I mean I'm not Benjamin Button, I'm aging not "younging"). :-)

I hope to post examples of my work on here, and over time, hopefully I could see where my strengths are and where my weaknesses are. Hey, maybe you can help me figure it out. :-)

Stay tuned, bookmark me, follow me, re-visit.

Youtube: simplyJaysmar@gmail.com
Twitter: Jaysmar