One of the items in my shop appeared in The Storque, Etsy's official blog! I didn't realize it until way after the fact. I was too busy during the Olympics to check the google analytics stats, and when I finally did yesterday I saw that my store had over 500 hits a week and a half ago. I've been hoping very badly that my shop would be recognized by an Etsy administrator and it finally has. Yay!

Anyway, sales have picked up in the past month, which is really encouraging. I probably just jinxed myself by writing that and will have no sales for the rest of the month. Whatevers.

There's a Harvard Business Review blog post about becoming an entrepreneur that totally spoke to me, and I took it as a sign that I'm heading in the right direction.

What a hectic three weeks it's been! From working at the ever chaotic la superboutique olympique to going on a 4-day road trip to Yakima, WA and meanwhile trying to run my online shop left me utterly exhausted. And I might add, we did a lot of standing in line to get into the different pavilions around town and catching the games in various pubs. Working in downtown allowed me to see the city come alive, and let me tell you, it was a party every night. And the Canada-USA hockey game yesterday was not only exhilirating, but the celebration that broke out everywhere after Canada's victory was even more fun to experience.

The Dude and I unexpectedly caught Olympic fever and we enjoyed the whole experience. Now we're hoping to actually go and catch some of the upcoming paralympic games live (tickets are quite affordable - yay). And we've thoroughly fallen head over heels for the Olympic mascots (particularly Quatchi and Mukmuk) to some chagrin because initially we deemed them really lame.

In all seriousness though, I must add that I was disappointed and a bit miffed that Celine Dion was not included in neither of the opening and closing ceremonies. I'm being serious. Did the producers decide to pass on her or did she decline to participate?

Valentine's Day isn't really a big deal for the Dude and me. Last year, we were planning to have a dinner romantique at Aphrodite's Cafe, but we got sidetracked by a fish and chips joint on Granville Island. And this year, we decided to make a tradition out of it, and so we had a greasy basket of fish and chips after our country 2-step lesson. The restaurant was loud with chatter and fussy babies, so it wasn't the greatest place to stare at each other with googly eyes and whisper sweet nothings to each other. We did plenty of that already while we were dating.

I've recently found some super-duper goodies for my shop. Can't wait to list them!

Now that I have a day job, I don't understand how people can run an Etsy shop while working full-time. I have very little spare time to run my shop, and I feel bad for neglecting it.

Did I mention that the Dude and I are taking country 2-step lessons? I love this dance! I think it's my favourite. Really. It's too bad that there aren't many venues in Vancouver where we can go dance country 2-step.

Today was my first day working on the sales floor of the Olympic Superstore. And oh my goodness, they just threw me into the deep end! Thank God I had previous cashiering experience, so I was able to pick it up quickly. On the till next to mine my co-worker was ringing up Jamie Salé and David Pelletier, 2002 gold medalists in pairs figure skating. They were there for a media thingy. I wouldn't even have noticed if the the customer I was serving hadn't pointed them out. The 2002 Winter Olympics was the last time I ever watched the Olympics. The scandal that erupted in the pairs figure skating competition totally turned me off to the games. But it's kinda hard to ignore the Olympics when it's happening in the city where you live, and especially when you're employed by it. So I think this year I'll make more effort to watch some of the games, on TV of course.

Anyway, each time I pass by the Quatchi stuffed doll, one of the Olympic mascots, I am this much closer to buying his plushy ass. I can't contain it any longer: I love Quatchi!

I've become a part of the Olympic machine. I'll be working for the rest of the month in the most visited Olympic venue - the Olympic Superstore. Ta dah.

The Olympic Superstore is housed within the walls of the The Bay department store. And I suppose that I should be proud that my first legitimate job in Canada as a newly minted Permanent Resident is working for the oldest company in the country, if not the world. The Hudson's Bay Company got its start in 1670 selling beaver pelts to hat makers in Europe because consumers were crazy for beaver hats, and it's been operating ever since. I vaguely remember learning that in history class way back when.

Although I don't know much about HBC, one thing I can say for sure, I love their logo. I love the combination of traditional and modern. It's awesome.

I heard on the CBC the other day that the Haitian kids that were being smuggled by the Baptists over to the Dominican Republic are now staying at the SOS Children's Village in Haiti. That's the international organization that the thrift shop where I volunteer is part of. The SOS Children's Village, that is, not the Baptists. I had a small proud moment.

And yes, I now officially listen to the CBC more than NPR. It took a while to get used to CBC Radio One though. Getting more Canadianized bit by bit...

The other day while volunteering at the thrift shop, I saw a little paperback called Is Sex Necessary? Or, Why You Feel the Way You Do. It's by James Thurber and E.B. White. Intrigued by the title, I had to get it. Having read the respective works of each author, I'm sure this one will be a good read.

I was waiting for my boss to call me with a start date this month, but when I wasn't hearing from him I e-mailed him. He wrote back saying he hired someone else who could work full-time. I was annoyed that he didn't let me know earlier. WTF? In any case, I'm relieved because I wasn't that excited about this job anyway. Several times I seriously thought about telling him that I changed my mind about working for his company. And I even interviewed for another job (which I didn't get) while waiting for this one to start.

So now I have to look for a job again. Bleh. Not only is job hunting a painful activity, but the prospect of working for someone simply does not appeal to me. Hence, this makes me not want to look for a job even more. I would enjoy working for someone only is if it's a job where I get to be highly independent or I work with people I really enjoy.

But beggars can't be choosers.

I've been reading Apartment Therapy: The Eight-Step Home Cure by Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan. It's not just a book about making your home look pretty. It's about creating a home that promotes well-being and doesn't stress you out. What I appreciate most about the book is that the author names the je ne sais quoi factors that make a space work and look beautiful. The author lives (or maybe lived?) in a 265 square foot apartment in New York City. If you're curious as to how he managed to live in such a tiny space with a wife and baby, check it out here. It's very awe-inspiring.

What I find most challenging about decorating our apartment is sticking to just one style. I love so many looks, that it's hard to commit to just one. But I'm going to try. And I'm going to start by sticking to the 80/20 colour rule. Eighty percent neutral colours and 20% strong colours. There's another piece of advice that I'm ambivalent about though and that's not mixing cool and warm colours together. He recommends sticking to either or when choosing strong colours. But I love the combination of red and blue, red and green, orange and gray, yellow and gray, hot pink and gray, which are all warm-cool colour combos. I think I'll follow Dorothy Draper's advice: if it looks good to you, then it's right.