Betsy got a cold on Sunday, after just one week back at school.  Larry and I didn't feel so great today, either.  Fortunately I was working at home today and could rest as needed.  When I called Betsy's school, I found out that lots of kids are sick.  It seems so early for this! 

I took the dogs out for a walk today because Larry was feeling sick and tired when he got home from work.  I noticed that my old cat Stewie no longer follows along on the dog walks.  He only goes as far as the house next door which is on a corner, and he doesn't cross the street to follow us on the next block.  He is very old, about 18 now, I think. 

I have a garage full of wooden rocking horses, and even a rocking reindeer, that I'm refurbishing to sell in the antique mall for Christmas!  I also have some doll furniture and child's furniture.  Mostly I'm just going to sand them and paint them, but I will try to add some decorative details, too.   

I'm up to my rearend in alligators!  Har! 

Not literally...that would be painful, and I'm actually enjoying myself.  Today was the first day back at school--not for me, for my kid!  Joy, joy, joy!!! Maternal joy!!!  I worked all day, but with no worries.  I did my editing work at a coffee shop.  It was so pleasant.  I need to remember to bring earplugs next time, though.  It's funny...here I am going deaf, yet those baristas talk so loud they distract me from being able to concentrate on my work and my Grande Sumatra Drip.  (Normally I am a Tall Drip, but today was extra special!) 

My husband and I went out on a date tonight.  Boy, it sure was nice to get out and do something different.  We went to an Indian restaurant called Cinnamon's Grill and had some really good food.  I had chicken breast stuffed with spinach and served over a rice pilaf with a yummy tomato sauce.  Larry had a Mediterranean lamb dish. 

Afterwards we went to Barnes & Noble.  We both had gift certificates to spend.  I got a really cool book called "Spiffy Kitchen Collectibles."  I found out that some of the kitchen utensils I've bought at thriftstores are worth quite a bit!  Tomorrow I am going to take some of them out of my antique space and put them on eBay instead.  Now I have some good terminology to use in describing some of these utensils.  (Like who would've known that this one odd thing is an EggWedger, used to slice your hard boiled egg into six perfect pieces?) 

Betsy's school starts next Monday and she is sure looking forward to it.  She hasn't had much of my time or attention this summer, because I've been working several jobs in order to afford private school tuition.  She's spent most of the summer hanging out at home alone, doing artwork and playing games and chatting with cyberpals.  It's going to be really good for her to be with more humans.

I think the drive to and from school will be good for us, too.  That's a great time to listen to music or an audiobook, talk about the day's events, etc. 

My financial goal is to become a successful enough antique dealer by next summer that I won't have to work the hourly sales job anymore and can spend next summer at home.  It would be nice to get back to just having one part-time job, the one with the University that pays a better hourly rate.  We'll see how this goes.  So far, I am doing pretty well for a novice antique tycoon.  Having the sales position at the antique mall is a time consuming pursuit, but it is also teaching me a lot about what sells and how to price stuff, etc., which I can use in my own business as an antique dealer.  So for the time being, it's sort of like going to school and getting paid (a little!) for doing it. 

Is "tycoon" a verb?  I dunno, I'll have to check.  But Larry and I use it a lot.  Yesterday (Friday) I tycooned nearly all day.  In the morning, I priced a bunch of new old stuff for my antique space.  In the afternoon, I went and sold a bunch of furniture to another antique dealer and taught her how to use eBay.  In the evening, I was back at the antique shop, putting out my newly priced stuff.  In between tycooning activities, I took a nap and made a nice dinner of chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy (or "gwaby," as we often call it at my house). 

My second month of being an antique dealer was not quite as profitable as the first, but then I am still in the process of acquiring stuff to sell and I had a larger rent because I have two spaces instead of just one now.  I am getting better at this, though!  I am finding ways to get more for less by learning how to bid for "lots" on eBay and by figuring out which thriftshops have the best prices.  I find it also helps to get outside the metropolitan Seattle area, into the smaller towns, to do some buying.  When we went camping last week, I hit a couple of small town thriftshops and they were great!

A very funny thing happened this week.  A few days ago, my husband told me that sometimes when he isn't sure what to do, he thinks to himself, "What would Sue do?" and then makes his decision.  (Note:  The BusDriver's real name is Sue!)  Then today, my best friend told me she does the same thing!  She was planning some grocery shopping and thought of some ways to be frugal like I usually am.

The even funnier part was discussing this further with Larry.  He says the answer to "What would Sue do?" is usually either (a) Take a nap or (b) Go shopping at the nearest thriftshop.  Har-har!  He's right!!!!