A Possible New Venture

Wish me luck. I have a meeting at 1pm today to discuss a new work venture. Don't want to say too much at this point just in case it all goes belly-up, but I'm quite excited about it.

As for other things happening at the moment, well, I'm still waiting on Sainsburys to get their act together re: my new fridge/freezer. I haven't bored you all with the saga that is 'The New Fridge/Freezer: A Tale of Frustration and Despair suffice it to say 3 delivery attempts later and it still isn't sorted!

As for other happenings lately? Well, I had a great day out with Cherry on Friday, to Bristol. Not, as you might think scrapbook shopping (although we did manage to squeeze a quick one in) but to a knitting shop. Get Knitted. Knitting within my circle of friends is the current passion du jour, although we are assuring ourselves it is just a passing faze and scrapbooking is still dear to our hearts. But what are we knitting? Bags. But not just knitted bags, felted and knitted bags. I finished my first one yesterday (I'll upload photos tomorrow) and am pretty pleased with how it turned out.

I've got my next knitting project lined up, another knitted bag, but this time using some of the gorgeously fantastic Noro wool. But what I really want to knit is one of the fabulous Noro knitted jackets, but having priced it up last Friday and realising that it was going to cost around £100 for the wool alone, well, I've put it on the back burner for a while.

I didn't think Richard would be too pleased either and wanted to reduce the possibility that he will soon put a ban on all excursions involving Cherry! After all I blamed her for my need of a TomTom One... I mean I've got to travel to Watford this Friday and negotiating the M25 and trying to read a map to see where I'm going at the same, well, it would be highly dangerous. Wouldn't it?

Which brings me neatly on to the next thing on my horizon. A scrapbooking weekend away at ScrapFever, organised by Willow Tree Crafts. There are going to be some great teachers there. Donna Downey, Stacey Julian and Venessa Matthews to name but 3. I'm really looking forward to a weekend away, not just for the scrapbooking side of it, but the chance to get together with some friends and to relax. The scrapbooking is an added bonus.

That's all for now as I've got to go press the button and order my photos for the weekend and pray that they arrive tomorrow morning!

A Couple of LOs

The first, Wide Mouthed Frog, done a few weeks ago at the PaperArts birthday crop and the other, Watch Out Watch Out There's A Dimple About, done last weekend.

No Ebay Excitement Today...

... just a warning.

I don't sell much on Ebay, just now and then, but this week, as I've already blogged about, I put up my saxophone for sale and as you will all have read it sold yesterday. Great I hear you all say. Well, yes and it genuinely has sold but then something awful, and pretty scary happened.

Yesterday, before the bid had ended, I then get an email from someone, all 'looking' like it was sent out via the Ebay mail system, saying (ignore their obviously terrible English, but even that didn't make me suspicious as the level of peoples English nowadays is appalling at best):

"I am interested to buy your unit but I saw the same picture and description at another seller and I am not able to figure out who is the real seller."

They then gave a link to this other item which, stupidly now, I clicked on and was taken to the page where this item was supposed to be. Then, like usually happens on Ebay, the screen came up with the normal looking screen you expect to see where you enter your id and password. Once I had entered this it came up with another perfectly expected/looking page saying that the item had been removed. So, I think, oh well, they (the guy who sent me the confused email) must have complained to Ebay and the item has been removed, fine, no need to worry myself. I go off on my day merrily as usual but no. OMG. The whole thing was a scam, including the 'confused' email and my Ebay identity has been compromised.

Not only did he get access to my Ebay, including my name, address, phone number, although thankfully not bank details as I don't have any on Ebay, but he then proceeded to email 3 of my unsuccessful bidders offering them a second chance at buying the sax as it supposedly didn't sell. He asked them to email him at a different, presumably his own, email address, where I'm assuming the intention was to ask for payment, all under my identity, and quite obviously steal from them as there was no saxophone to sell as I had sold it.

I feel so stupid to be duped in such a way. The thing is it all looked really authentic, you can really only tell with little tiny details and only then if you know what to look out for. In this case the link I clicked on quite clearly wasn't to an Ebay site. I've been emailing Ebay but grrrr... they just only ever seem to send out automated emails in response!

Luckily I was still able to access my Ebay, he didn't change my password which could have been a possibility and locked me out completely, so I've now changed my password and each time I've made sure that the address that appears at the top of the page is the right one.

Anyway, just thought I'd let you all know so you can be forewarned. Although, hopefully, you are all more likely not to be as thick as me!!!

The whole thing has left an awful taste in my mouth and I really feel as if I've been violated. I mean he knows where I live, my phone number... Richard is trying to assure me that it probably is just some spotty nosed kid, high on coke and pizza, showing off for his mates as if he had really wanted to do some damage he would have changed my Ebay password. But I still feel creeped out by the whole thing.

The Excitement That Is Ebay

I'm selling something. On Ebay, obviously (hence the title of this post!). For information purposes (and the nosey amongst you) I finally decided that, as I hadn't even got it out of it's case for over 4 years, it was time to sell my saxophone. A hard decision but if it hasn't seen the light of day for over 4 years it's money being wasted, I may as well sell it and spend it on scrapping stuff! I'm right aren't I?

Anyway, back to topic. I find Ebay really exciting (sad, I know) and get a real buzz out of logging on and seeing if there have been any bids, how many people are watching my item and so on. Currently I have received 8 bids (yay!) and no fewer than 39 people are watching (even bigger yay!) so hopefully it will sell and at a reasonable price. It hasn't reached the reserve price I set for it yet but with that many people interested it hopefully won't be long before it does. OK, off to see if there any more bids...

Oh, and I have some LOs to post which I will try and get around to in the next couple of days.

*19 hours to go: 9 bids, 42 people watching...
*15 hours to go: 13 bids, 44 people watching and my reserve price met & raised!
*6 hours to go: Situation static...
*5 hours to go: No change...
*4 hours to go: Getting bored now...
*3 hours to go: Blah...blah...blah...
*2 hours to go: Falling asleep...
*1 hours to go: Comatose...
*0 hours to go: Sold! 14 bids and £70 over my reserve price = result.

Hit Refresh... Again!

OK, you will all have to hit the refresh button again as I've changed the blog header/site. It was just too darned bright! I liked the zing of it and the colour combo but it was really 'in your face' and that's just not me so I've gone for a soft, subtle Spring look.

What do you think?

New Blog Header

About time too I hear you say.

I know, I know, the page is a 'little' on the bright side but hey, I felt like bright! It's been beautiful this week, typical gorgeous spring days. Crisp, bright blue skies, a slight chill in the air. Beautiful. So beautiful it deserves a bright new header. That and the fact I've been putting off posting anything in the hope that it would spur me on to actually create one.

I've had a go this time at playing with digi brushes and really like the effect you can get with them. These are a set of japanese ones (downloaded free from somewhere...).

OK, now I've got a new header there is no excuse for me not to post so hopefully I'll get my blogging swing back. That and I will have a lot more time now as I've now stopped work - Yay!

Later.

***Edited to add: If you can't see the new look page (you know who you are!) just try hitting the refresh button and it should all become brighter!!!***