Wednesday, December 28, 2005

It's official!

I don't have all the actual papers in my hot little hands yet, but I am now officially a company!

Take a look-see at Sunbiz

I'm planning my first business trip for mid-January. Wheeeee!!!! The ball is rolling!

Cat

Wednesday, December 21, 2005

Now I'm really a professional

Things are moving along here.

I filed my paperwork for incorporation, and I'll have everything back by Jan. 5. I have a consultation scheduled for Wednesday next week with an importing specialist from the SBA to give me some much-needed guidance in that area.

And I bought a fax machine. Now my desk really looks like a professional office, haha. The fax was only $29.95 at Staples. No bells or whistles, but all I really needed was something to send and receive faxes, and it does that just fine.

I should be getting my festival tent soon, too. Then I can practice setting up my displays! How exciting! (at least to me it is)

Happy whatever-you-celebrate,

Cat

Wednesday, December 14, 2005

Me? Recycle?

Factoid: Recycling an aluminum can saves enough energy to run a TV for three hours.

Now, there's a jarring thought. I've probably thrown away thousands of hours of energy, and not into the recycling bin.

Recycling just always seemed like so much trouble, another chore, a pain. It's enough that I pick up other people's litter and put it in the trash.

Though when you put recycling in that perspective, well, it sounds different.

It's not that hard, I guess, to keep the little yellow and blue baskets next to the garbage. Added bonus----> I won't have to carry the garbage out as often as I do now because it won't fill up so fast.

But I'm still not recycling the other people's litter....that stuff still just goes in the nearest trash.

Cat

Tuesday, December 13, 2005

Missing socks

I found out where all those socks go when you wash your clothes. I caught one escaping!

It was halfway in between the wash-barrel (is that what it's called?) and the outside wall of the washer, just the toe-end sticking out. I pulled it out, and I had no leftover socks that load.

I wonder how many socks are stuck in there, though, and if there's a way to get them out. Hmmmm....

Cat

Saturday, December 10, 2005

Drunken Rabbits?

Well, now that the cat's out of the proverbial bag about my starting a small business, I may as well blog occasionally about how things are going with that.

I still don't have a name. I've become attached to Drunken Rabbits Imports, because of the whimsical nature, and because it seems that every time we begin brainstorming business ideas, we come up with more of them under this name than under any other. The downside of the name is that it doesn't say much about the business except that I will be importing something. I could add the word Mexican.....Drunken Rabbits Mexican Imports.

Half the people I ask love the name, the other half think it's dumb. I've always been one to ask all my friends for advice about something, and then do exactly the opposite of what they say, so chances are I'll go with that name. I do have one or two others on the back burner, just in case I change my mind.

I signed up for a Small Business Administration class on "The Basics of Importing and Exporting", so I will take that (next week) before I begin contacting customs brokers. Hopefully I will learn in the class how to choose a good one, and exactly how much I can expect them to do for me. If not, I will be asking the instructor after class how to locate that information.

Also, I took a survey on the SBA site, and I won a prize! A $30 gift certificate towards any paid classes the SBA offers. Most are free, but some do cost money, so this is great!

Cat

Wednesday, December 07, 2005

Yippee!!! Yippee!!!

Guess what I saw when I looked out my door this morning?

ROOFERS!!!

The cavalry has finally arrived, and they've started on the building across from mine. I believe mine is next. Let's just cross our fingers that the rain holds off long enough today for them to get some work done.

I'll be so happy to get rid of the maze of bowls and buckets catching dripping water all over the house!

Cat

Monday, December 05, 2005

Earthquake?

It looks like there was a minor earthquake outside my doctor's office. Darn, though, I forgot to ask her what exactly it was when I was in there!

The cement sidewalk has a 2-inch wide crack in it all the way across, and directly corresponding to that, another part of the sidewalk is raised up and has slid over the block next to it.

I really don't think we get earthquakes in Florida (do we?), but what else could that be? I know the hurricane didn't do it, even though everything else in Florida is blamed on Wilma. ;-)

Cat

Friday, December 02, 2005

A contest!

Since I've been laid off from work, I decided to use the time that I'll be on severance to set up a business for myself. I'll be importing handcrafts from Mexico, and selling them at retail here. At first I'll sell from festival booths, the flea market, and online. Hopefully, I'll make enough money that I'll be able to open a small store eventually.

I have spent hours online and on the phone researching everything that needs to be done to get this going. I'm excited! I'm ready to make it happen.

But I can't think of a name for it. I had chosen a few, but when I researched them, they were already in use.

So, I figured the more people brainstorming, the better. And that's where you come in!

Send me suggestions that I can use for a name (One that I had chosen was Mayahuela Imports, but there is already a Maya Imports, and it's just too close), either by using the comment field here or e-mail me direct at catnpr@aol.com. If I use your suggestion you won't get any financial reward, but I will send you a small hand-crafted item imported from Mexico as a prize.

If you use the comment field here, you have to type in the word-verification to make it post. I know that's a pain, but I was getting way too much comment spam on the blog. Sorry.

So, put those thinking caps on, and let's come up with a name for my business!

Cat

Leapin' lizards!

Why do cats think that bring home dead, or half-dead, animals makes their owners happy?

Today it was a big lizard, right on my doorstep. If it had been dark when I opened the door, I would have stepped on the thing. It was still alive, so I threw it out on the grass, in the hopes that maybe it was just stunned and it'll be OK.

Booger just keeps bringing these things home, dropping them proudly in front of me, as if it were a grand gift of some kind. I really don't have any use for dead snakes or lizards though. They're better to have around alive, since they both eat other pests.

Guess we'll have to get her a bell to wear. That might give the animals a chance to get away before she gets close enough to them to do any harm.

Cat