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| Photo copyright Aji, 2018; all rights reserved. |
A change to the order of things today: Wings's post will appear later (possibly as early as midday, but possibly much later). He's very nearly done with two of the really big pieces that he's got in the works, and I'll be posting one or both of them later. If all goes well, one of the two will be the featured work for today (because it fits with the week's theme thus far), but I'll also put up the other one separately just because it's new and amazing, too.
Bitter cold here. Last night, his clan brother called; the heat in their place had gone out, and the landlord wouldn't be up until today to check on it. You can't live without heat in this kind of weather, so he came over and picked up our most powerful electric space heater; we've got a couple more packed away from our time in the RV that he's going to pick up today once we find them. I don't actually have words to describe how wonderful it is when, after an overnight low around zero, I can get up in the subzero-to-single-digit predawn dark, turn on the hot water, and have it actually come out of the tap. For seven full years, temps like these meant no water before 10 AM, at the absolutely earliest, and that was only with me on hands and knees with the hair dryer thawing out the water hoses in that tin can. With the wind chills we've had lately? This would've been one of those episodes where we had no running water at all for days on end, forget hot (sometimes for two weeks at a stretch). Every single day, I am so profoundly grateful for this warm little house (not least because it means I'm still alive to appreciate it, and that would manifestly not be the case if we were still in the RV).
Still. Having sunk every penny into getting it built, and having nearly died twice in the process of getting it habitable, the medical bills are overwhelming. I'm still waiting on certain testing to be scheduled, without which there's no chance of a diagnosis in any kind of timely fashion (okay, well, so a year on isn't timely at all, but with the way so-called health care is here, it'll be a lot longer if I don't get this done now), and thus, no hope of actual treatment (and potentially, survival). Yes, I live with this fear every moment of every day, and have for more than a year. It is what it is. And it's all going to cost in more ways than one, but the monetary cost is the one that's adding to the killing levels of stress I carry every day. So as I keep saying, I also have to spend today (EVERY day) on work that brings in actual scratch, sales or subscribers or otherwise. We're nearly at the end of the year, winter is fully here already, and I have to worry about how we're going to make it. We've got to make more sales, and soon.
On top of that, we got hit with a $700 bill Friday that I wasn't expecting and can't put off, so I have to make enough sales this weekend to allow me to pay that on Monday (current total: $0, but it's getting paid out of my Patreon, which means certain medical bills are not). Ordinarily, the sales and commissions we get this time of year are what see us through six long hard months of winter (but that has not the been the case the last couple of years); on top of ordinary winter cost of living and now this construction mess, I have more tests upcoming soon on top of the tens of thousands of dollars' worth of medical debt already trying to drive me into an early grave. Time is short for the holidays, so if you have special orders, get them in to me now so he has time to create them for you. He's got several small pieces in the works, plus two or three large ones (at least one that falls into the "extremely high-end" category), and I'll be posting those as they get completed, so some days will have more than one post for the day. For now, though, I'm so far behind on this day (and on the week as a whole) that I'll never catch up, so most of the rest is cut-and-paste.
There's also a change to the links in the list: I've moved the gift cards for Lowe's and Amazon back up to the top of our Amazon wishlist, because we're at the point where more things that need finishing on the house require purchases we can't afford. Finally, if you're contemplating commissions for holiday gifts, now is the time to get hold of me, because the creative process takes time. Wings can create something spectacular for you, unique to you or to the recipient of it. Also, briefly, a note on the site itself: In an effort to get current inventory up front, I've reordered the first pages of several of the galleries, so you will see a mix of high-end pieces, some of which have already sold, plus inventory currently on offer, both new pieces and less so.
Most of my attention has to be focused on bringing in money, through sales or subscribers or any other means, because the bills don't pay themselves, either, and the heavy burden I'm carrying on that score is inhibiting my ability to heal in a not-insignificant way. Please share these routinely:
- My new Patreon, The Interstices (Writing Between Worlds) (and if you subscribe today you won't be billed until January 1st for December);
- Wings's site, for sales, with new items posted;
- Wings's direct PayPal link;
- A way to buy me coffee (which actually goes to all of our medical bills, which continue to mount);
- Amazon wishlist, which mostly consists of animal and household stuff;
- Partial registry #1, from Bed, Bath and Beyond. There are new kitchen-y things on it now, stuff that I didn't realize we'd need to replace (either because the RV ruined it or because we gave it away when we had to downsize).
Please share the links. We're now officially into holiday order season, because commissions take time, so if you're planning on holiday gifts, please keep Wings's work in mind. And given what we're up against, we won't turn away donations, either, because we simply can't afford it.
All content, including photos and text, are copyright Aji, 2018; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.
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