Rest of the Month Wrap Up........Or I'm a Slacker

My biggest month so far as far as actual after fees and shipping profits since I started selling was last November.  I am happy to announce that I was less than $100 from reaching that mark this month.  I am excited that sales and profits are increasing as I put in the time and effort to make my business grow!  May is so far my highest grossing month of 2012.....which is kinda weird cuz it felt really slow for some reason. 

Here is the sales rundown for the last half of May.

OVG Etsy:
Travel Bar Sold $32.00
Get Well Card Sold $3.50
Chalkboard Sold $10.00
Geological Maps Sold $10.00
USA Pottery Mugs Set 2 Sold $10.00
Congress Playing Cards Sold $8.00 (Always sell and usually very quickly!)
Baby Shower Invitations Sold $8.00
JV Orel Vulture Sold $225.00
Silver Fade Lowball Glasses Sold $25.00
Little Golden Book Sold $1.44 (Clearance)
Happy Anniversary Card Sold $3.00
Survival Series For Kids Books Sold $40.00
Piggy Bank Sold $12.00
Pewter Pitcher Sold $10.00
Rocking Horse Planter Sold $12.00
Metal Tissue Box Sold $4.38 (Clearance)
Copper Animal Plaques Sold $7.59 (Clearance)
Nordic Ware Bread Pan Sold $3.32 (Clearance)
Snoopy Plastic Popcorn Decoration Sold $14.00
Happy Anniversary Figurine Sold $9.00
Oh Hell! Game Sold $9.00
Clown Squeak Toy Sold $8.00
Chalkboard Sold $10.00

CraftnSupplies Etsy:
Quilt Book Sold $10.00
Quilt Book Sold $10.00
Painting Book Sold $7.00

Amazon:
My OOPS sale!
Rug Making Book Sold $11.50

Assemblage of Treasures eBay:
Sonlight Map Personal School Stuff, Sold $15.99 (Free Shipping)
200+ Basketball Cards Brother's Stuff, Sold $12.99
Knifty Knitter Set Purchased $3.00, Sold $15.99
Anchor Hocking Solar Tea Jar Purchased $0.50, Sold $24.99
Knitting Book Purchased $0.21, Sold $14.99 (Free Shipping)
Band Aid Tin Purchased $0.25, Sold $14.99 (Free Shipping)
Quilt Book Purchased $0.21, Sold $5.99 (Free Shipping)
Quilt Book Purchased $0.21, Sold $14.99 (Free Shipping)
Book and Tape Set Purchased $1.00, Sold $12.99
Quilting Magazine Purchased $0.21, Sold $5.95 (Free Shipping)
Sonlight Book of Time Personal School Stuff, Sold $12.99
Gap Denim Skirt Purchased $2.00, Sold $19.99
Slatkin and Co Candle Purchased $3.00, Sold $15.00
Women's Blouse Purchased $2.00, Sold $16.99 (Free Shipping)
Dick Tracy Action Figure Purchased $1.00, Sold $16.99
Cat Jigsaw Puzzle Purchased $2.00, Sold $24.99 (Free Shipping)
Chenille Book Purchased $0.21, Sold $9.99
Coffee Mug Purchased $0.25, Sold $9.95
Painting Book Purchased $0.21, Sold $12.99
English Practice Wookbook Personal School Stuff, Sold $7.50 (Free Shipping)

I was very glad to see the pick up in sales on eBay!  I am looking into making my goal for the rest of the year to be to get my store up to 500 listings.  Might as well match my Etsy shop!

How were your May sales?  I hope they were great!

It Was....................

A bird.  One of those little swifts (barn swallow, house martin...something along those lines). I went to pick up DH from work around 4:30 last night and by the time we got home, it had made it's way up into the lint trap.  DH was able to remove the screen and out popped his little head.  DH tried to grab him, but he was off like a shot down the hall and into our bedroom.  He did a few laps around the room and pooped on the floor before crashing into the window.  DH was able to scoop him up and take him outside.  The little bird chirped loudly (with joy?) as it flew away.  We never did hear from maintenance but DH called to let them know we need a new dryer vent cover outside as ours has totally disappeared. 

In other news, I made my first really embarrassing mistake today.  I sold a card game and it was complete......or at least it was when I did my original game inspection, when I looked it over before photos, and when I took photos of it.  Somewhere between the photos and being put into a bag for storage, I lost one of the cards.  I was doing a game listing marathon that day and believe that it probably got dropped into one of the other games I took photos of.  Wouldn't you know it that those other games are long gone.  

Thankfully I do a preshipping inspection to make sure all is well with everything I send out.  I realize that things happen even when items are in storage.  Glasses bang together, stuff gets dropped and not reported to mom, items shift and tip over, clothing gets snagged.....that sort of thing.  I am thankful I caught it, but the sale was to a big, successful, well known Etsy shop who has never purchased from me before and I was SOOOOOOOOOO embarrassed to have to message them and tell them the game is not complete.  They ordered two games from me and after fully refunding for the one, I left it up to them whether or not they want the other one. 

*Sigh*  Feeling like a total heel is not a great start to the day........

Feeling Rather GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

Do you ever have those days?  You wake up and are looking forward to getting your to do list done, anticipating a productive day, when BAM- unforeseen circumstances change your WHOLE BLOODY day!

Hello Mrs. Crabby!

Because of the circumstances of this past weekend, I haven't gone grocery shopping yet.  I hadn't even made a list yet.  So I sat down this morning around 7:30 am to get that done so I could go around 9 am this morning.  I have two teenage boys who need to eat HUNDREDS OF DOLLARS worth of food every week or so and I haven't kept up my end of the bargain to keep the trough full.

My computer sits in the hall and to my back is a closet where the washer and dryer are located.  I'm typing away finishing up the menu and grocery list when I hear a commotion behind me.  There is a lot of scratching and banging.  An animal of some sort has made it's way through our dryer vent and is now in the tube behind the dryer.  The commotion was it falling the 9 feet through the vent tube that extends from the ceiling to the floor. 

I am assuming it is a bird.  I can here the pitter patter of little feet running in the vent along the floor.  Back and forth from the dryer to the upward angle in the vent tube.  It can't climb up to get out.

I know how to remove a dryer vent.  I have done it before and it's no big deal.  I am 90% sure what is in the tube is a bird.  BUT there is a small part of me that hears the pitter patter and wonders if it is a BAT......or a RAT......or a MOUSE.  There hasn't been any bird like chirping either. So I called maintenance.  We pay a pretty penny to live here and one of the perks is I don't have to find out WHAT sort of critter is in the vent.

The maintenance guy tells me he will have to check into whether that sort of thing is something they are responsible to take care of.  Really?!?  They called back and said that yes it was their responsibility and someone would be out to take care of it.  They want to remove it before it dies. 

I took that to mean that someone would be right out.....you know, within a couple of hours.  Then I could salvage my day, grocery shop, AND get the laundry done that is sitting wet in the hall because I don't want to fry the said critter (unless it's a bat.....then it can just die for all I care).

I have been trying to work, but I have been listening to the thing run back and forth, back and forth, back and forth for going on 7 hours.  It's driving me nuts! I have almost worked up the courage to take it out myself......almost....

Never mind.

So, basically, my whole day has been shot to hell by a bird/bat/rat/mouse and waiting for the maintenance people to get here who I don't like being in our apartment without someone over the age of 18 being here.  Not that I don't trust them......ok, I don't.  

My sons will just have to eat carrot sticks and share the last banana...........

Update on Holiday Weekend "Festivities":

My niece is doing well.  She is handling the pain well and is doing better now that she is at home and can rest in familiar surroundings.

My grandmother has surprised everyone by having absolutely NOTHING wrong with her, as far as all her testing goes.  They are looking into it possibly being a med or oxygen issue.  She should come home sometime this week.  

Crappy Summer Holidays

Summer holidays (Memorial Day, Fourth of July, and Labor Day) have been LOADS OF FUN for our family/extended family for about the past five years.  (Said in a snarky, sarcastic voice....)

I would love to say that this photo sums up our holiday weekend:

Or even this photo:

Unfortunately, the photo that sums up at LEAST one of our summer holiday weekends is this:

We take turns with whose time it is to have the "Summer Holiday Curse".  Sometimes it's our family, sometimes my sister, my brother, my mom and dad, my grandmother........you get the picture.  We have had everything from severe dehydration, food poisoning, norovirus, infections, allergic reactions, spider bites, etc.

This year is no different.

Saturday my three year old niece had emergency surgery for gangrenous appendicitis.  Her appendix didn't rupture but she had infection present in her abdominal cavity.  She is doing well and gets to go home today but she's not out of the woods yet.

This morning my grandmother has been rushed to the hospital with signs of a stroke. 

I'm on my way up to the hospital to sit with my mom.  I think it is safe to say we are all stressed to the max at the moment.

I hope your holiday weekend has been GREAT! 

I need a vacation from mine......

Dangling Carrots

eBay has been furiously dangling the Top Rated Seller carrot in my face since last month.  Emails and even a mailer in the actual mail to remind me of what wonders await me when I make it to that glorious seller level.  Birds will sing, pixies will dance, and there will always be rainbows in the sky........not to mention more cash in my wallet.

I haven't been stressing about it.  I really don't care if I make it to TRS or not.....at least that's what I tell myself anyway.  The fact of the matter is that I do care a little bit.  It would be cool to see that badge and the higher ranking in search would be nice instead of eeking out sales here and there when someone happens across my listings.  And the Final Value Fee discount would be nice so I wouldn't be so angry every time I enter that ridiculously high fee eating a monstrous portion of my profit in my sold spreadsheet. It would be a nice notch on my eBay seller belt.

I have been on track with no trouble at all and I have been checking in with my dashboard a couple of times a week.  I ALWAYS ship out either the same day or the next day using eBay to print my labels so the tracking is automatically uploaded, so no trouble in that department.  I have a "No Return" policy on items in my shop that are under $10, which make up a very small portion of my listings. 

Imagine my surprise when I went to my dashboard this past week and found out that I no longer qualify for TRS.  eBay claims that I did not upload tracking on 2 of my items within the 24 hour time period and I sold 2 items with my "No Return" policy making my percentage just under the 90% required for TRS.

I agree with the two "No Returns" and eBay can just kiss my rosy red patooty on that one.  I refuse to offer returns on items where I made only one or two dollars.  I don't understand the two shipping violations though.  One violation showed up after I received an order that paid with an e-check.  I waited for payment instead of shipping within the 24 hours.  If that is going to be a violation, eBay can jump off a cliff on that one too.  The other showed up this week as well and I can't figure that one out.  I am planning a call once I can speak to the foreign customer service rep in a calm manner while repeating everything I say three times trying to get them to understand what my problem is..........

And the carrot moves just out of reach.........CONVENIENTLY. 

I'm not planning on changing anything with my eBay business.  I just figure if TRS happens, it happens.  If not, oh well.  It does bug the crap out of me though that it really has nothing to do with me.  I follow the rules and jump through the hoops as the way I choose to run my business.  eBay has moved the carrot and I don't know what happened.  (I have heard of Seller Dashboard glitches that are widespread.  I think it is highly unlikely that it is not an intentional glitch meant to slow the pace of those who will qualify for TRS.  Can't have too many people getting discounts at once....)

How has your Seller Dashboard been?