I'm so far behind.

Photo copyright Aji, 2024; all rights reserved.

Elk tracks.

They look like tracks from sleigh runners. They came back last night, as I expected, because of the snow. At one point, Wings got up, and right then a giant bull elk set off the motion-sensor light; he got a perfect view of the big guy's full rack of antlers. They left shortly before dawn, probably because they heard the dogs yapping to be let out. They have extraordinary hearing.

It's a beautiful day, but it's been a difficult one on multiple fronts. Thus far, the only things I've accomplished are getting the beans in the crock pot and cooking [thirteen-bean soup] and getting cornbread made to go with them. I was going to rearrange the living room [I always have to rearrange it for Christmas because of the tree, and this was going to be my day to put it back; then again, so was yesterday, and that didn't happen, either]. I'm so far behind. On everything.

As of last night, we're even on enough sales to average out to one a week for the year so far. Now, I need to replicate that for the next eleven months. One sale a week doesn't seem like much, but last year, we went months at a stretch with none at all, and we're dealing with the fallout from that still. And for this year? Taxes are due in a few weeks. That's non-negotiable. But we are also cursed with this septic system mess, and the guy who does the work of fixing these kinds of disasters [who we know; he's a good guy] 1) is unlikely to be able to do it before well into March, and 2) is convinced, based on our description and what the septic cleanout guys have told us, that it's going to require digging a whole new leachfield. We don't have that kind of money.

On top of that, my laptop is dying, and I don't have the kind of money I need to replace it [the image work I do means that it has to have a certain level of power]. It's been on the decline for three or four months, but I thought I had more time; last night, it became clear that it's going to be a very big problem sooner rather than later. If I can't replace it, I can't work; if I can't work, there's no income. 

Oh, and at some point, I'm going to need a power wheelchair. 

My Patreon down $250 again; that's both January's payout and now February's. That's a huge hit for us, but it's even worse right now, since we're already paying out $200+ every 8-10 days to have the tank pumped, because the water has nowhere to go [and believe me, we're conserving as much as we can]. We checked it this morning, and the next pumping will probably need to be Tuesday or Wednesday [I had no choice but to do laundry, a lot of it, last week]. All this nonsense comes in one of our two most costly months of the year as it is, and in the same quarter as taxes, and no amount of tearing my hair out is going to make all this reconcile, but here we are. Amid the constant, unremitting physical pain and the ugly new developments and complete and utter lack of an immune system in a place where no one mitigates the pandemic in the slightest, leaving me almost entirely housebound.

Which is why the only way out of this is SALES.

I got the Wings's four new pairs of earrings up yesterday: here, here [this pair sold now, too], here [and also this one], and here [and this pair already sold too; he has more planned in this size/style]. The other works were posted the day before: the ring and four pairs of earrings, here, here [also sold now], here, here, and here. These are all more moderately priced than most of his work, and the silverwork and stones are absolutely incredible . . . and Valentine's Day is only two weeks away, so go look. This week's sales won't begin to cover what's waiting for us, but it'll keep basic monthly expenses paid. As always, all the links are listed below, and sales are the most important:

• Sales here; 
• Testimonials here; 
• Amazon wishlist here (priorities now are the liquid soaps and the descalers that I can't get here; 
• Patreon here;
• Ko-fi here.

There's lots of fabulous work on the site about a dozen all told over the last three weeks or so, cuffs and earrings and pins and necklaces and more earrings [and soon, new Warrior Woman pins, too]. After such a grim 2023, we really need to get this year started off on a better footing, so please share all of the links. 

All content, including photos and text, are copyright Wings and Aji, 2024; all rights reserved. Nothing herein may used or reproduced in any form without the express written permission of the owner.