So to recap 2008… Five weddings, two funerals, a trip to Italy, and my first Tonner Doll convention. And let’s not forget the expansion of my new eBay business with my second official client. I attended my second Tonner factory sale in December of 2008 and invested several hundred dollars in merchandise to help supplement my income. I held off sorting through anything and getting it listed on eBay until after the holidays had come and gone. In many ways my life was pretty fantastic, but the loss of my mother still loomed over me and the holiday season that year felt sad and somewhat empty. My sister and I made the best of it, continuing our family tradition by visiting our grandmother on Christmas Eve, and my sister’s boyfriend proposed on Christmas Day which started the count for multiple 2009 weddings I would be attending. Aside from my mom and my aunt passing away, I wanted 2009 to be just like 2008… busy, with lots of travel; which basically translated to “reasons to escape reality”, and for the most part it was. I traveled to the 2009 IDEX in Florida and attended the 2009 Tonner Doll Convention in Lombard, IL. The IDEX convention opened my eyes to a much larger world of doll collecting, I marveled for hours at the many different styles and designs of the many artists who showcased their work. I must confess though, I was a bit bewildered by all of the “newborns”. Admiring their life-likeness at the artist’s booths was one thing; seeing them strolled around in strollers, cradled and caressed in the arms of their “mothers”, and their diapers being changed on the changing table in the ladies room was another thing (my apologies if I’ve offended you, but I’m sure you can imagine how odd this might look to a non-doll collector). I attended three weddings, two of which I was in and had to travel out of state for. I was hired by an old friend to photograph her wedding in San Francisco, CA; that was a really interesting trip as the entire wedding party and guests stayed on an old tugboat (unfortunately, or should I say “fortunately”, the bride called off the wedding the night before). Yes, it was definitely another whirlwind of a year; we sold my mom’s house and my sister moved to Ohio after getting married, I took trips with friends near and far, AND…I gained five new eBay clients. I officially felt like a real entrepreneur and it was time to get more serious with how I ran my little eBay business.  

‘Tis the season… This week I’d like to share with you the time I took Henry with me to go chop down a Christmas tree. 
It was December 2006; Henry had been a part of my life for a little more than a year. I have no idea what possessed me to do such a thing… I guess maybe I am a crazy cat lady. I pulled out the pet carrier backpack that was gifted to me the year before and plopped Henry inside, he was starting to outgrow the carrier but he still seemed to enjoy being inside of it; he is true feline when it comes to empty (and sometimes not so empty) bags and boxes. I placed him in my car and we, along with a co-worker friend, headed out to one of our local Christmas tree farms. Upon arrival I second-guessed this whole crazy idea of bring Henry along, but I brushed it off and placed the backpack carrier on my back; giggling at the site of Henry’s big and curious eyes peering through the mesh sides. We made our way to the small farm stand shack and selected a handsaw that didn’t look like it had been used to cut trees down for 50 years. The previous year was the first time I ever cut down my own Christmas tree; I grew up with mostly artificial trees and continued that tradition into my seventeen-year marriage. My life had changed drastically and so I decided to change along with it. We headed into the field of trees in search of the perfect little evergreen that would fit inside my small apartment. “A Charlie Brown Christmas” has always been one of my most favorite holiday shows. I’ve always felt like I could relate to poor ol’ Charlie Brown; wise beyond his years, trying to fit in, and his overall frustration with the feeling of not being seen or heard. One of my favorite parts is when Charlie Brown picks out the pathetic little tree that stands alone in the Christmas tree lot, left over after all of the good trees had been selected. I suppose, as a child, I could also relate to that poor little tree. Charlie Brown got teased and ridiculed for presenting such a pathetic Christmas tree to his schoolmates but his heart was in the right place. Charlie’s pal, Linus, comes to the rescue with his recitative of Luke 8-14, making all of the other kids rethink their harsh criticism. Things always worked out in the end, as they often do for our fictional friends. Year after year, and still to this day, I look forward to watching “A Charlie Brown Christmas”; finding joy and inspiration in the sweet outcome of its portrayal of the commercialism and self-centeredness that imbue the holidays as we know them. But I digress, I searched and searched but had a very hard time finding a good Charlie Brown type of tree, tree farms don’t grow such. I finally settled on a small tree that had a couple of “Charlie Brown Christmas Tree” traits and, with Henry in his backpack carrier sitting close enough by to watch, I went to sawing it down. We all made it home alive and unscathed! This particular year I decided to decorate my tree with photographs that I had taken during that year; it was a perfect way to celebrate and appreciate my new friends, my new life, and my new furbaby.
 
Many blessings to you and yours this holiday season!

​I attended my first doll convention in 2008; it was the Tonner Halloween convention in Framingham Massachusetts at the Sheridan that resembles an old medieval castle. I was excited about this for a couple of different reasons. One - it was another excuse to escape reality for a few days and two - I would get to play dress up. I always loved dressing up for Halloween as a child but once I became an adult, and was married to someone who could care less about such things, I didn’t have many opportunities to dress up anymore. I purchased a few different costumes for the weekend-long event. There were different themes each day, which equaled several different looks. My first costume was a “girl with apple on head but knife-thrower missed the apple and knives were stuck in belly/chest”, I’m sure there is a shorter name for that! This was such a cool idea but the costume was really cheap and screamed store-bought compared to everyone else’s amazing handmade creations. My second costume was an old-fashioned lady ghost, this was a fun look and I felt more confident than the night before yet still not as incredible as the majority of elaborate costumes that filled the room. My last costume was Elvira. I went all out for this costume, ordered it online and chose the high-quality version with her signature bouffant wig. I had way too much fun playing Elvira and have several times since then. I couldn’t believe all of the people who came to this event from all over, their love for Robert Tonner and his doll creations and the whole Tonner staff was unmistakable. The creativity of the attendees was also astonishing, from their costumes to their doll art that they entered into the various contests. There was everything from actual dolls and doll displays to doll photography. It entire event was super fun, Robert Tonner, along with his staff, sure did an amazing job of entertaining us all. It truly was one giant family of doll enthusiasts, gathering together to celebrate their common passion. I gave much consideration prior to the event on whether or not to introduce myself to anyone or just stay anonymous; I decided on staying anonymous, I didn’t want everyone to know that I was brodjam on eBay, fearing that it would somehow complicate things. A small handful of people figured me out but for the most part I remained just another Tonner Doll admirer. I took all of my souvenir dolls home and offered them up on eBay, it paid my way to attend the event and put a few extra bucks in my pocket. I was already looking forward to the next convention and was excited about playing around with some doll photography to, perhaps, enter in the competition room.  

​And now that I am back on track with the timeline of my story, let’s pick up where I left off with Installment #24.
 
My trip to Italy was fabulous; aside from a couple of cruises to the Caribbean, it was my first time being outside of the United States. I had to put a rush on applying for a passport (my very first) in order to be guaranteed that I would receive it in time, which I did. I purchased a book on learning to speak Italian and studied all of the basics. I thought I was doing really well and looked forward to using this new language when I arrived in Italy. Unfortunately once I was face to face with the opportunity to put this new skill into use all I could muster up was mediocre versions of hello, goodbye, and thank you; and those came out with a slight southern twang. Luckily most people spoke English; I find it interesting that many countries teach English as a second language but in America, the melting pot for so many different cultures, it is only an elective. I visited Venice, Milan, Florence, Pisa, and mini small towns in between. It was the adventure of my lifetime thus far and as I marveled at the architecture and people-watched, it was hard to believe it was me who was really there experiencing it all. I returned from my Italian adventure bitten by the travel bug. I had always loved to travel but this was a game changer...I wanted more and I wanted more NOW. Traveling to various locations within the United States for the numerous weddings that I either attended or was a part of would have to do until I had another opportunity to travel out of the country. I returned from one of the wedding trips to find my apartment door ajar. I freaked out, ran inside and started calling Henry’s name. I couldn’t find him anywhere. I went outside and looked around, but I just didn’t know what to do, I had no idea how long my door had been that way. I reached out to my friend’s sister who had stayed with him while I was gone but didn’t get an answer. I went back into my apartment, distraught and panicking, I went into my bedroom and looked around some more. I was looking under the bed and all around the room but was looking too low, once I looked “up” I spotted him tucked inside of my closet on top of a stack of storage bins holding seasonal clothes. I could see his little eyes peering out at me wondering if it was safe to come out of his hiding spot. Relief washed over me as I grabbed him and held him as tight as I could, crying and thanking the Universe that he was not lost. Time to find a new Cat Sitter!

​After a year of selling dolls full-time, attending a Tonner Doll factory sale, and gaining a new client, I took a good, hard look at my eBay income for the last several months and realized that I was making a living wage selling all of these stunning dolls on eBay. Could I really survive on dolls alone? I felt confident that I could and so I hung up my job-seeking hat and settled into my new entrepreneur shoes; and they felt really comfortable, like a well-worn pair of walking shoes that you trust to get you through the day. With the passing of my mom, an aunt, five weddings all over the country, and a trip to Italy, this new “career”, with lots of flexibility, couldn’t have come at a better time. 2008 was a heartbreaking, challenging and busy year, I don’t think I said “no” to any opportunity to get out of town and escape reality for a brief period of time. When I was at home I would keep myself busy with a multitude of friends. I created a lifestyle scenario where I didn’t have time to think about the loss of my mother and how different it was really going to be not having her around anymore. The “Lost Soles of the Highway” project had, at some point along the way, been put on the back burner. I reached my goal of finding 50-75 lost shoes on the sides of many roads and did some research on how to get a book published. I had to write a “query letter”…a query letter? Finding examples of such online back them wasn’t as easy as it probably is today. I drafted a couple of said letters but fear set in and I pushed it all aside, this was out of my comfort zone and I certainly didn’t want rejection from this passion project that had played a significant role in my coming to be a self-assured, independent woman. I held onto hope that the Universe, just as it had provided me with rainbows, would also provide me with someone who could guide me through this very unfamiliar and uncharted territory. I stopped carrying my camera with me in the car and eventually that fear of getting out of the car to take photos of the shoes, that fear that I worked so hard to overcome, crept back into my life. And I let it win. I would continue to spot shoes on the sides of roads and yell out “SHOE”, but I would keep on driving; the thoughts of pulling over and getting out there for everyone passing by to stare at took back its control over me and I would only stop on the occasion that there was absolutely no one around or if it were super convenient. I had no desire to ditch the project; I was bound and determined to do “something” with it…one day. 

We interrupt this week’s installment to bring you another recipe!
If you haven’t guessed by now, these interruptions are fill-ins for when I have writer’s block. 
Everyone LOVES my guacamole!!! But I have come up with a super easy way to make guacamole that doesn’t involve a lot of kitchen time. I will warn you, it’ll go fast so you might want to double/triple/quadruple the recipe; depending on how many people you’re serving. Just the other night I doubled the recipe to feed 3 people and there was not one bite left! Now, a couple of things that are VERY important…the salsa you use MUST be “Fresh Salsa” from the produce section of your grocery store, you CANNOT use salsa from a jar or any salsa that has a tomato sauce/paste base. The “Fresh Salsa” looks like chopped up tomatoes, onions and peppers with just a little bit of clear-ish juice floating around in there. I have added photos to this week’s blog post if you want to clarify what this kind of salsa looks like. I use the “Hot” version to give my guacamole a nice kick, it’s not TOO hot but if you aren’t a fan of any kind of heat then feel free to go with the mild or medium. The lime juice, I use the stuff from the plastic lime but real lime juice works, too.  
Here’s what you need… 

• 2 ripe avocados
• 1 container of “Fresh Salsa” (see note above)
• Lime juice 
• Salt

Cut your avocados in half lengthwise and remove pit, be careful not to slice your finger open (been there, done that). Make 4-5 cuts lengthwise down the flesh and then 8-10 cuts going crossways creating a checkerboard of sorts. Use a large spoon to scoop out the avocado chunks into a bowl. Use a slotted spoon to scoop out some of the “Fresh Salsa” and place it into the bowl with the avocado, careful not to get too much of the juice. How much you ask? … well, I just eyeball it and it’s also to your liking; but keep in mind the more “Fresh Salsa” you add the more mushy and runny it will get. I personally like my guac more chunky, about half chunks and half mush. Add a few splashes of lime juice and LOTS of salt. Guac needs salt!!! Stir and lightly mash all of this together until you get the consistency you desire, adding more “Fresh Salsa”, lime juice, or salt if needed. Eat and enjoy right away with your favorite tortilla chips or place in the refrig to let the flavors meld. When storing guacamole it is important that you do so so that no air can get to it; otherwise it turns brown quickly and that definitely doesn’t look appetizing. I place any leftovers (there never is) in a plastic baggie and work out all of the air before sealing. You are now a guacamole expert, you’re welcome!