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awwwwwwwwwwwwwwww, so so cute and funny!!!!!!!!!
Thanks Shelli! :crackup: :crackup: :crackup:
You've done a fantastic job, Penny. I love the colours, and the copper edging, and....well, just everything!
To be honest, I haven't seen these before, although I'm family with the raw material 'cos I used to work in a biology lab and it's the kind of thing we'd keep our slides in... Who'd have thought I'd see them again on TT!!!!
Thanks for sharing this Pen. You know you'll be starting a new TT craze, don't you?!
I love Mandie's jewellery and will treat myself one day soon.....
Yes, I would love to talk to Mandie on here again!!! 
I love the vanilla latte colour scheme - creams and browns. It's so mellow!
And it reminds me to put the kettle on..... 
Oh....I don't know whether I should post this or not because this all sounds wayyyy too heavy for me (and I seriously hope we can all find common ground in this discussion!).
But just for the record - I've been heavily into researching my family history over the past few years, and have gained a whole new perspective on the way my ancestors lived during the last two to three hundred years. And while I appreciate the simplicity of life back then and know I can learn lessons from it, I am also grateful to live in the present and appreciate our modern world with all it's advantages and disadvantages. Sometimes I could cry for the situations my ancestors found themselves in. I'm not saying they weren't happy or didn't lead fulfilling lives, but the high rate of child mortality, the grimy industrial conditions (in our area), the poverty and disease, the long & hard working conditions with very few social support systems etc etc., all these things have really opened my eyes. The good things of course include a greater sense of family and community.
Times are just changing, that's all. I worry for my daughter, growing into the kind of youth culture that is prevalent today. It's scary! I daresay, though, that my great-great-grandparents worried just as much for their children, who were generally working in the mills by the age of ten and much more likely to contract a serious disease before they reached their 'full age' (21).
I am so, so sorry to hear about your dad Julia - that is just terrible and I'll be thinking about you and wishing him a full and speedy recovery :hug:.
I love Myst too, Kim - so beautiful and addictive . Adventure games are my favourites.
Unfortunately my 5-year-old daughter is beginning to fight me for the keyboard. She's so computer-literate it's scary, and loves to play (educational!) games too. So now I'm having to get used to sharing my computer time, and sometimes I feel like a kid and just want to scream 'but it's MYYYYYY computer!!!!'..... 
Lovely Paula - what a great idea! I really enjoyed my walk with you, thanks!
I really can't believe the magazine published this, at least without consulting you first. How awful. I'm glad you made your feelings known to them - and I hope they know not to do this again.
:hug:
42 here....I think I used to be more like the catagory below that but I must be getting more lively as I get older!
:doh: toilet seats, toilet seats, Please do not get me started, but
Anyway over the Christmas holiday's he had gone to the bathroom and I heard the usual crash, bang, wallop, it was especially loud, but after so many years you learn to ignore it. However when eventually he did come back to bed I soon reallised that when he had fallen to sleep standing in the bathroom he had pulled the whole seat from the toliet, not only that but he brought the toilet seat back to bed and he was trying to hide it under his pillow. Well imagine, I was horrified and all the shouting in the world never woke him up, furthermore he only just recalled it in the morning when I told him about it. I was so angry about the whole thing, so now when he gets up in the night I don't rest until he is back in bed.
So now I have tears of laughter rolling down my cheeks and my family thinks I've gone hysterical.... 
:clap: :clap:
Lots of great advice here....I hope you find a solution that's right for you and enables you to get more rest :hug:
I have vivid dreams too, and like Renae I'm sometimes watching myself on TV or in other situations. However, I enjoy my dreams and experiences for the most part and absolutely don't let them add to the stress I already feel! Something I can vouch for is writing things down. If I'm going through a bad patch I'll write two or three (small) pages of 'stuff' as soon as I wake in the morning. I know people who do this at night too. Stream of conciousness 'stuff', literally anything that pops into your mind with no censorship allowed (hide the pages or burn them so no-one gets to peek!). It really helps to clear out the clutter and enables you to focus on the things that are really important.
My own anxiety has really improved since starting this little writing exercise. I also see a homeopath. It works for me!
:hug: :hug: :hug:
Gosh, they are beautiful....I waaaaant one!!!! They look like Daddy, Mummy and Baby to me. 
The list is endless - Cadburys (of course!), Nestle, Lindt, Green and Blacks, Bournville (yum!), even that cheap cooking chocolate if I'm desparate!!!!!
Can't think of any chocolate I wouldn't scoff..... 
Hi, if I were you I would take the plunge and try selling on eBay. It's good to be aware of the pitfalls but please don't be put off by them. Many of us here have had good eBay experiences too!
Also, have you thought about setting up a website? Or perhaps you could put your bears on Bearpile (www.bearpile.com) or Bid4Bears (www.bid4bears.com) which are equally good selling venues.
Word of mouth is also a good way to sell - I have sold bears to friends and acquaintances too, although I usually end up giving discounts!
Good Luck!!!
Marmite - yum yum - I eat it on toast most mornings!
The more adventurous Americans among us can buy it from www.amazon.com....you have no excuse not to try it!!! 
Wow, wonderful picture Kim! I'm full of admiration. The most athletic thing I ever do is frog-march my daughter to school before the doors close..... I did go to the ballet quite recently though and was reminded how much strength it takes to look so graceful. I hope you do take that adult ballet class and enjoy your talents!!!
:hug:
Huge hugs coming your way, Shantell :hug:. We all need to complain sometimes, lean on one another's shoulders...it really does help :). But I also hope you'll be feeling much more positive very soon, because a positive attitude also helps. Either that, or eating chocolate!!! 
Take care
Paula, like everyone else I also research the neg feedback by going to the other person's feedback too, to get a fuller picture. So I am definitely not influenced when I can see the neg has been retaliatory.
As for eBay's system....someone else on a different thread (sorry, I forgot who!) suggested that feedback should be hidden until both parties have left it. I think this is an excellent idea and would go some way to avoiding tit-for-tat. And feedback should then be mandatory (so that the guilty party can't just hold off leaving feedback). Just a thought :|.
Anyway, hugs to you :hug:. Being honest is always the best policy!!!
Fantastic - congratulations!!! Hve you stopped sobbing with pride yet?! 
Fantastic Bobbie, thankyou - I agreed with pretty much everything you said (except the private auctions - I'd take a lot of convincing about those!).
What I find most interesting are your poll results...I’ve polled a number of bearmakers and collectors and was very surprised to learn that the collector bases are 2 entirely separate groups, with very little mixing of the purchasing styles and markets. Most eBayers don’t attend shows and most fair attendees like the camaraderie of meet ‘n greet and feel eBay is too impersonal. And the group that subscribes to the bear magazines is about equally divided between these 2 camps. I had suspected this, and it does make sense when you think about it.
Sylvia...many, many happy returns to you (as we say in the UK!). Have a wonderful time, and eat cake!!! :cake: :bday: :cake: :bday: :cake:
I'm so pleased to here your dad's in a better situation, Daphne (and at home!). Please make some time for yourself during all this - I know how exhausting the emotional upheaval is, and sometimes we just don't realise until we're completely worn out....
Sending my best wishes to you and you family :hug: :hug: :hug:
Yay!!!! Congratulations - it's well deserved :clap: :clap: :clap:
Aww Louise....I hope everything's ok....you take care and please come back to visit us!!!
:hug:
:hug: Hugs to Pen and Judi :hug:. It seems harsh of eBay to just pull listings without a warning period first. Maybe because of the size of eBay they just don't have time to mess around like that....but still.... 
Pen - I think eBay UK has changed it's policies: http://pages.ebay.co.uk/help/policies/l … s-faq.html . It says you may not link to your home page or website anymore .
As for the people/person turning you in - I know from reading the community boards at eBay that there are folks who make it their business to patrol eBay for rules violations. So it was probably just the turn of the 'dolls and bears' section, and nothing personal within the bear world. I hope knowing this might help a little.... :hug:
