Mark Twain's Autobiography?

Thank you to Philip DeFranco. I found out that Mark Twain wrote an autobiography that he didn't want released for 100 years! But now that time is up and the first volume has been released. Here is an article from the New York Times about it, enjoy.

The price people expect to pay.

Being an artist and a fan of local small businesses, I hate going to Wal-Mart or most other large corporate shopping centers. However, with the state of the economy and the less than fabulous wages I am paid,it is some times necessary for me to shop there because the prices fit my budget.

The reason I dislike going there is because the prices are so low that they disillusion people into believing that that is the price they should expect to pay for anything.

We learned in class that the price of an object is not just some random number that you pull out of the air, it is a calculated number that is fair to both the maker and buyer. When trying to price a piece of art work the equation is price of materials + (# of hours put in the the work x your hourly wage) + mark up (optional) = price of art work. For instance when making a scarf the price of a skein of yarn is generally $6, you need about 2 to make a scarf so $12, a scarf takes about 2 hours to make and I charge $10 per hour, and I don't mark up my scarves. So a custom scarf from me would cost you $32. Why would anyone want to pay that when they can go to Wal-Mart and buy one for $5?

This video makes me laugh, it reminds me of every art fair I have ever been to. Please share your comments, I would love to hear them.

Saturday November 6, 2010 Aprox 2:00 AM

2:00 AM
Pain. At this point all I know is pain. Lots of pain. I feel like I'm going to vomit. I just crawled into bed, didn't even get to shut my eyes yet.

4:30 AM
Pain is finally subsiding but it is still there. Could it be another cyst?

6:30 AM
I am awake. The pain is still lingering....

7:30 AM
I wake up my boyfriend and tell him I am going to the hospital. He reluctantly gets out of bed and drives me in.

8:10 AM
We arrive at the hospital, I am checked in and taken straight to room number 19.



8:45 AM
Nurse finally arrives to take down my information. Still in pain.

9:05 AM
First sign of my doctor. He is older, long silvery gray hair. "we are going to get you an IV, draw some blood, give you some drugs, and do a pelvic exam to start off with."

9:30 AM
Dark blue and bright blue come in to the room. (the names my boyfriend gave the nurses based on their scrub colors) IV is in and blood is drawn followed by anti-nausea medication and Morphine.



9:35 AM
Pelvic exam.......

9:45 AM
Blood is re-drawn from my other arm because the IV catheter broke all the blood cells when they drew the first time.

10:45 AM
Blood results are back. I am healthy. But they still don't know what happened. Ultra sound department is called and I will be getting one done at 11:45 AM.

11:30 AM
I am hungry and thirsty. Boyfriend goes to ask nurse if I can have anything to drink. "No because we don't know if you need surgery or not yet so just sit tight."

11:32 AM
I am crying. My boyfriend wipes the tears from my face. "Everything is going to be ok sweetie. I am right here for you." Tears run down my cheeks and I breathe in heavily and pain rips through my stomach up my spine and into my chest. I am crying uncontrollably, pain continues to shoot through my body. He rolls me over on my side and runs his fingers though my hair. "I love you. Everything is going to be ok. I am right here."

11:45 AM
Nurse comes in and offers me more morphine. As she is getting the syringe ready another nurse comes in and wheels me off to ultra sound.

12:30 PM
Ultra sound is done, I am back in my room. The nurse comes in and gives me more Morphine. I ask her if I can have some water because I am thirsty. "They still don't know if you are going to have surgery today. But I will get you some ice chips to wet your mouth."

1:00 PM
Doctor comes in. "We are calling in an OB-GYN to look at your ultra sound pictures because we think it is either a ruptured hemorrhagic cyst or a twisted ovary."

2:00 PM
OB comes in. "Hi I'm going to go look at your ultra sound pictures and I will be back in a little bit to tell you whats going on."

2:20 PM
OB comes back. "It looks like you ruptured a cyst. I don't think it is twisted because your not sick enough for it to be twisted. Call me and schedule an appointment in two weeks so we can put you on hormone therapy so this doesn't happen to you again. I am going to discharge you with some pain meds. Feel better!"

2:45 PM
Nurse comes in and removes my IV and I am finally released.

Discover the Earth from your computer chair!

TrekEarth is a website with pictures from all over the world (even Green Bay Wisconsin!) Their moto is "Learning about the world through photography." It is a very interactive site, you can become a member and favorite pictures, share on Facebook, Twitter, and other sites, upload your own photos, comment on photos, and the list goes on! You can even search specific themes like fog, lakes, or sheep and it will bring up all the photos on the site with those images or themes.

If you choose to post your own photos be ready for some constructive criticism! This community takes photography very seriously and will critique everything from angle to lighting to composition. And if you alter your photos make sure you do it right as the Terms of Service has strict limitations on how you can enhance your photos in photo shop.

It is also a very diverse community. Users from all around the world are on this site and they comment in their own language sometimes.

Here is a link to one of my favorite photos from this site 3 Frogs and 4 Lillies I hope you enjoy exploring!

Musical Glasses

All I have to say is amazing!

Musical Glasses!

"The Art of Social Media"

Jason Falls, founder of social media explorer, was interviewed and he lists some key points for businesses to look at while using social media.

Jason Falls Interview from Michael A. Stelzner on Vimeo.

He talks a lot about things we have already said but I feel like this is a good tool for us to look at when evaluating Social Media uses by Not For Profit Art's Orgs. Maybe even a model for an evaluation? What do you think?

Re Doing your bathroom? Check this out!

This is why I want a house!!!

I love these tiles!

Images courtisy of picsroll.com

Click the linkk to see more epic tiles!

The storm thats taking over....

THIS is a fantastic article about community arts organizations using social media in different ways to gain a crowd. But while reading the article on Mashable I was shown a new social media website MediaStorm. In the article "How Community Arts Organizations are Using Social Media" they said, "For users, being able to spend as much time as they like poring over work on sites like the still photography and multimedia showcase MediaStorm is a better professional and amateur photography viewing experience than having museum crowds push them along."

What do you think? Would you rather be "pushed along" in a museum or stroll through an online gallery?

Personally I like both. It would be nice to view art online in a museum like online gallery when I can't make it to the gallery itself.

a map of musicians

Now THIS is cool! I have discovered quite a few new favorite bands using this map. Plus it is pretty awesome to see who they like to put in the same music group! Enjoy!

Weird things my cats do...

I have two very awesome cats...but they are very strange.



The gray and white stripped one is Zeke. He likes to sleep on or next to my face at night, jump on top of the counter to get to the refrigerator to jump up finally on top of my cabinets. His favorite napping places include the back of my computer chair, my boyfriend's pillow, and the cracks between the cushions of the sofa. He also likes to curl up in little balls and tell me that I can't go to work....



Xander is the brown and black stripped one. He covers his eyes with his paws when he sleeps. He also sits, fetches and gives high fives! on command. He likes to drink water out of the toilet and lick condensation off of soda cans, bottles, and the shower walls. We have a ritual every time I wash my hands in the bathroom he jumps up on the toilet seat and waits for me to shake all the water off of my hands on to him so he can lick it off....



As weird as they are, I would not trade them for any other cat in the world! They always keep me on my toes and are highly entertaining!



Do you have any animals? If so, do they do strange things also? Please tell me about it and upload a picture if you have one! To my fellow arts management seminar classmates, who ever has the best story gets a prize on Monday and if everyone participates maybe I will make something special for the whole class!

Relaaaaaaaaxxxx

Just a little something to help you relax after a long day of work or school. It is totally customizeable and it loops indefinately!

Wal-Mart on Facebook....

Social Media...

Sigh...

So I go to Wal-Mart the other day (I know you can all crucify me later) and on my receipt it says "Find Us On FaceBook!" I almost died. Wal-Mart is on Facebook.

Having big companies like Wal-Mart on Facebook makes the Not-For-Profit Arts Marketer's job more difficult. Facebook is free and efficient tool for NFP's to use to communicate with their clientele. Wal-Mart has all the money in the world. Why on earth do they need to be on Facebook? Look around you, Wal-Mart probably has ads in your local news paper, on your local television stations, billboards, on the internet, I wouldn't be surprised if they have radio ads!

Maybe I'm just crazy but I hate being spammed with Wal-Mart advertising as it is I don't need them on Facebook too. What do you think? Should major corporations have Facebook pages? Is it worth it for NFP's to try to compete with them for space in the social media world?

Domestic Engineering

We are not housewives anymore we are "Domestic Engineers"

What the hell is that supposed to mean anyway? Is it a way of empowering men who choose to stay at home? Forget about what Urban Dictionary says I want to know what this term really means. Does it encompass people who work part time but are also homemakers?

I get really frustrated when I tell a fellow female that I like to bake and they scoff at me. I was in studio last week and we were talking about what was new in our lives. My Professor asked me how living with my boyfriend was going. I responded that it was going great, I wake up with him every morning and pack his lunch for the day and make him breakfast.... I was then confronted by my Professor and one or two other students with a very negative attitude. "What are you Suzie Home maker from the 1950's?" One girl even replied that her boyfriend is the one who makes her lunch and her breakfast because that's the way it should be.

This conversation made me completely irritated!!!! Why is it that feminist extremist have to hate me because I enjoy doing things to make my partner's life easier? He doesn't MAKE me make his breakfast and lunch, I choose to do it because it is more convenient for him and it also forces me to get out of bed at 7am. My boyfriend doesn't look down on me because I make his lunch for him; instead he text messages me at 12:30 pm to tell me how much he loved my sandwich and that the cookies I baked him were just what he needed to get him through his day. Don't get me wrong, I will not stand for a guy telling me what to do, say, think, or wear. But a female who does the same thing in a reversed roll is just as bad! So what makes a feminist any different from a chauvinist?

Why is it that in order for you to be feminist woman you have to act like a chauvinistic man? I have chosen to be domestic because I enjoy the process and in all actuality it is a dying art. So many of my friends do not know how to cook, bake, or even sew a hem in a pair of pants. You can save SOOOOO much money if you learn these simple tasks! For instance, if I didn't make my boyfriend lunch and breakfast every day he would be spending on average $15 a day for breakfast and lunch. After his 5 day work week that's $75 a week, $300 a month! (which by the way is only $55 less than my rent!) Not to mention if we had to go out to eat every night for dinner.... Instead I make his breakfast and lunch spending about $20 a week on milk, waffles, cereal, bread, lunch meat, cheese, lettuce and the occasional replacement of a missing condiment. That's only $80 a month.

I love making my boyfriend sandwiches. I do it because he respects me and treats me like I deserve to be treated. And there is no greater high than seeing that look of appreciation on his face when he comes home and says thank you for the amazing lunch you packed me! I'm not oppressed, I do it because when two people are in a relationship they should strive to do things to make the other person's life easier. For a relationship is firstly a partnership of two people who are dedicated to each other.

So call me a domestic engineer if you want. Or even Suzie Homemaker...I don't care I am still going to make my boyfriend sandwiches.

If only all people were so considerate!

If only everyone was this sweet! I hate feeling like a jack when I accidentally cut someone off in traffic because they were in my blind spot, or not being able to say thank you to the person who slowed down to let you into their lane. The Sorry.Thanks. Road Rage Reduction Project is just amazing! I'm sad I didn't think of it!

Social Media Marketing...Are we doing it right?

We have been talking a lot about how to use social media to market our organizations but are we doing it right? How should we measure the success of our internet marketing in dollars? clicks? fans? ticket sales? Chad M. Bauman is the Director of Communications at Arena Stage who has a fantastic blog about arts marketing issues in the United States. In his blog post "Measuring the Impact of Social Media, he poses that we measure the success of our endeavors in the "engagement levels of our online community" rather than ticket sales.

I had never really thought about social media marketing like this before, but now it totally makes sense! I think that effective social media marketing would create a place where people can go to find out what the organization is about and what it is that they do for the community who views it. Mr. Bauman refers to another blog where the writer relates using social media as only a means to sell tickets to virtual junk mail.

People are all about try it before you buy it, especially with new or unique things. If a theater company was trying to market a new play written by an unknown playwright, they might want to "sell" it by having videos of rehearsals on their page along with a biography on the playwright or director and maybe even a discussion board where people could ask the cast and director questions about the play.

What do you think? Would you rather go to a social media site for an artist that is set up solely for selling their art or would you prefer a site where you get to know the artist as a person before ever being asked to make a purchase?

Re-Direction

I created this blog earlier this year in an effort to keep a diary of my life... didn't really happen. So now I am repurposing this blog for my Arts Management Seminar on Social Media.

I find that more and more I rely on social media for news updates about things that matter most to me. I am a fan of the "NO H8" Campaign on Facebook as well as the "BP Oil News" site.

I have been following the BP story all summer and have been inspired to create art out of the events (thats right plural there was more than one) that occured in the gulf. My hope is to create something beautiful out of this disaster to remind us of what has happened. I feel that too many people have forgotten about the incident and that we all need to be reminded how fragile that ecosystem really is. Not to mention the thousands of people who lost their lively hood like the oyster fishermen in this article fromt the Sun Herald.

http://www.sunherald.com/2010/09/01/2446838/dmr-gulf-sample-shows-abundance.html

Purge

I am currently in the process of purging my apartment of things I don't need. The goal is to be rid of 1/3 of the things I own. This purge, I believe, is necessary for my own personal and spiritual growth. I have lots of things that I don't need or use but keep them for sentimental reasons. It is time to let go of some of those things especially the ones that I have no connection to other than a brief memory. I have been making good progress so far, my closet is looking nice, but other things are proving much more difficult to get rid of. I have decided that my cat Ashes would be better off in a new home where she isn't being picked on by other cats and has someone who will spend more time with her. I don't have the time to give her the love and attention she deserves. This has been one of the hardest decisions I have had to make in my young life. I love her very much but I know this is the right decision.

In other news one of my co-workers was held at gun point in a convenience store across the street from my apartment this weekend. This just scares the shit out of me. I don't want to leave my house.... I wish I didn't live alone anymore.

Florida

It is my first day of spring break and after a very stressful plane ride I have arrived in sunny Florida with my family. We spent our first day checking out the hotel walking along the beach and shopping. I forgot to bring my hairspray shampoo and other body wash stuff so I'm frustrated. I also forgot my phone charger so when my phone dies so will I...