Mundane Entertainment

What I learned in 2020

noreply@blogger.com (Shannon Green) — Sat, 02 Jan 2021 20:07:00 +0000

Remember last January when World War III nearly broke out? I remember thinking, "Oh this could be bad..." but so much has happened since then that I honestly can't even remember why I felt that way.

I vaguely remember murder hornets because each of those words on its own is terrifying but when you put them together it makes a special kind of nightmare.

Black Lives Matter made a huge impact on me because it reminded me that no matter how not racist I think I am, I'm still a privileged white girl who has no idea what people of color really go through on a daily basis and I'm horrified at what I've learned.

I am now more politically educated than I've ever been in my life but I haven't decided if that's a good thing or not. I generally don't discuss my political opinions because that's a divisive topic and I tend to avoid conflict at all costs. Besides, I really don't fit with any of our major political parties so I just smile, nod, and pretend to be Switzerland.

And then there's Covid-19. That's a topic that has become almost as divisive as politics, I guess because the two got so tangled up in each other. And even though I just said that I don't like to discuss divisive topics, I'm going to make an exception here knowing that not everyone will agree with me and that's okay. I promise to be respectful of your opinions and I hope you'll do the same with mine. I'm also going to talk about Jesus, yet another divisive topic, so feel free to tune out now if you don't want to hear it.

I do think the pandemic is real and I think that our country has not handled it as well as it could have. I'm not sure that a new president is going to fix all that but I am hopeful that things will improve over time. I'm tired of our new normal but I'm trying to be patient, knowing it will take some time for our lives to return to pre-pandemic normalcy and I believe that following the CDC's guidelines will help.

I've never been fond of large gatherings so that wasn't a problem for me until my daughter's wedding had to be cancelled. I was not okay with that but we had no choice.

Social distancing isn't a problem for me since I've never been fond of sharing my personal space with anyone else.

I wash and sanitize my hands more often now than ever before and I tell everyone that's why they're so dry and crusty and wrinkly, even though the truth is that they're just regular old-lady hands.

I have to wear a mask all day every day for work and I truly hate it but I wear it, I wear it properly, and I will continue to wear it for as long as Dr. Fauci tells me to.

I don't wear the mask for myself since I have no fears whatsoever of catching Covid-19. That doesn't mean I don't think I'll catch it, I very well could. But I doubt it will make me very sick because I don't get sick. Ever. Well, hardly ever. I get a little upper respiratory thing about once every 4-5 years and that's it. I've never had the flu and never had a flu shot. But I never leave the house without my mask and 2-3 backup masks because I live in fear of catching Covid, not realizing I have it, and accidentally making someone else sick...really sick. That would destroy me.

I love my Jesus and I try to imagine what he would do if he was in our shoes. Well, obviously he wouldn't have to wear a mask because he can't get sick. But would he go maskless to show everyone that he's the son of God and immune to earthly diseases? Or would he wear one anyway to show that he's also human and he walks alongside us in good times and bad? Knowing what I do about the character of Christ, his humility, and his love for every human on earth, I think he would mask up. Since my goal in life is to be more like him, that makes it easier for me to put on my mask.

Following the CDC guidelines about wearing masks and avoiding crowds is not easy, especially when we, as Americans, are very protective of our individual rights and freedoms. Plus I'm a native Texan and in general we really don't like to be told what to do. But this year I learned that as much as I value my right to do pretty much as I please and my freedom to make my own choices and even be a little rebellious now and then...I value YOUR health more.

That's why I will follow these rules for as long as necessary. And that's why, even though I have reservations about the new Covid vaccines, I will roll up my sleeve and get vaccinated as soon as it's my turn. That's also why I will continue to wear a mask all day every day even though sometimes I neglect my personal grooming since my face is covered every day so sometimes I pull my mask off to discover that I've grown a full beard...plus they're hot, they're uncomfortable, and they make me feel like I can't breathe.

But...it's a small price to pay to keep someone else from truly not being able to breathe.

Shannon Green's Abandoned Treasures & Mini Spinner Rack

noreply@blogger.com (Shannon Green) — Fri, 21 Oct 2016 14:42:00 +0000

I've been a little busy over the past few months including moving to NW Arkansas and adjusting to some pretty major life changes. But I know things happen for a reason and in the end it's all good!

Over the years I've had lots of requests to sell my creations or excess supplies and I've done a little of that on Etsy from time to time and will continue when I can. But I recently came across another opportunity that I'm very excited about!

I work part time for Canvas Corp Brands here in NW Arkansas which has been a blessing, a source of fun and inspiration, as well as a learning experience as far as the craft industry goes. The CCB warehouse and manufacturing facility contains quite a bit of inventory that is discontinued, outdated, scrap pieces, items that were misprinted or cut incorrectly, surplus merchandise from other companies, weird random stuff that everyone forgot about, etc. In other words...treasures!!

I have been allowed to dig through these treasure boxes to search out things that inspire me or that I find useful. Most of the time there is so much of it that I am able to offer it for sale at deeply discounted prices. This is VERY exciting for me because it's almost like we're all shopping at a thrift store together!

The things I find that I feel are worthy of offering up will be available in the Canvas Corp Brands online store under the ByShannonGreen brand label. They are called Abandoned Treasures and will include scrap packs, project kits, ephemera packs, tools and supplies, storage solutions, and random stuff that we can figure out together. Everything is hand-picked and curated by me. I'm not just sticking my name on stuff, I'm much too picky to allow that!

When you order over $5 from the CCB online store you will receive free shipping in U.S. CCB will also ship internationally but you will have to pay the shipping charges on those orders. Keep an eye on my Facebook page for new products, projects, and classes(!) that will be coming up soon.

The first item in my Abandoned Treasures collection is this Mini Spinner Rack I found tucked away inside a forgotten crate.

It's great for storing and displaying your craft supplies, projects, works-in-progress, craft fair goods, finished art pieces, or anything else that can be hung from the hooks. You can also paint or decoupage the plastic pieces to match your decor. Watch this video for more information, a demonstration, and assembly instructions:

There are quite a few of the spinner racks available but once they're gone, they're gone for good. Stay tuned for more goodies on the way!

Canvas Corp Brands New Social Media Team

noreply@blogger.com (Shannon Green) — Mon, 06 Jun 2016 15:53:00 +0000

I have some exciting news!

I got a little part time job that I wasn't even looking for! It sort of found me and I swear we are a match made in heaven.

I am now the Social Media Connector for Canvas Corp Brands, LLC. No, that doesn't mean I get to play on Facebook all day long but it does mean that I get to do what I already do and use what I've already learned to help a company that I've fallen in love with. Everybody wins.

Canvas Corp Brands (CCB) is the parent company of 7gypsies, Tattered Angels, and Canvas Corp (or Canvas Home Basics). It is based in Springdale, Arkansas and owned by Randy and Christine Meier. Most of the products they carry are made at their facility in Springdale while a few things are sourced globally for more variety.

CCB has a fantastic blog that provides a daily dose of inspiration, an online shop where you can pick up one of each of all their product lines, and an actual outlet store there in Springdale where you can find some incredible bargains on craft supplies or attend classes and workshops such as Ken Oliver's very first Pop-Up Workshop featuring his incredible Color Burst Watercolors!

I joined CCB's design team (The Creative Crew) last fall and got to know their products a lot better. I was impressed with the quality, style, and variety of their offerings. Then in the Spring I met Randy and Christine at NAMTA's Art Materials World trade show here in Houston. That's when I learned more about the company, their philosophy, ideas and the way they do things. Again, I was impressed.

Through a series of unexpected and fateful circumstances, I recently found myself part of Christine's new plan for a social media team. Here is the team and all of our roles:

Christine Meier - Team Leader and Storyteller
Shannon Green - Social Connector
Lynne Forsythe - Projects Champion
Marie Johansson - Game Runner
Jorunn Langås and Lena Holmström - Gypsy Brand Warrior
Marie Heiderscheit - Canvas Brand Warrior
Erin Reed - Angel Brand Warrior

Together we make up CCB's Social Media Brandwagon...or as I like to call us "The Crazy Eights"! Heh.

We have some exciting things planned including lots of challenges, giveaways, contests, and games that anyone can participate in.

(I dangled that participle on purpose, don't judge me.)

If you're worried that this might change some of the things I'm already doing you can rest easy. I will still be making YouTube videos and carrying on my own social media antics as usual. This is just an opportunity for even more antics!

You won't want to miss out on all the fun so make sure you follow/subscribe/stalk all the brands on all their social media outlets. I'll provide a nice tidy list of links for you below. Then fasten your seat belt for what comes next. We're making this up as we go along so there's no telling what could happen!

CANVAS CORP BRANDS
Blog (The Creative Studio): http://blog.canvascorpbrands.com/
Shop: https://shop.canvascorpbrands.com/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/CanvasCorp
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/canvascorpbrands/

CANVAS CORP (CANVAS HOME BASICS)
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/CanvasCorp/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/canvascorp/
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/canvascorp/boards/

7GYPSIES
Website: http://www.sevengypsies.com/
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/7gypsies/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/7gypsies/
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/7gypsies/boards/

TATTERED ANGELS
Website: http://www.mytatteredangels.com/
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/mytatteredangels/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tatteredangels/
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/tatteredangels/boards/

THE CREATIVE CREW
Facebook Group (The Collective): https://www.facebook.com/groups/1124592877561970/
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/canvascorpbrand/boards/

CANVAS CORP CRAFT OUTLET
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/CanvasCorpCraftOutlet
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/canvascraftoutlet

DecoArt Easy Abstract

noreply@blogger.com (Shannon Green) — Wed, 23 Mar 2016 17:38:00 +0000

Get ready for the easiest awesomeness ever! Okay maybe that's overstating it a little bit but this video shows how you can get spectacular results with minimal effort and just a few inexpensive DecoArt products:

Here is the list of supplies used this video, all from DecoArt:

DecoArt Media Gesso-Black

DecoArt Media Gesso-White

Crafter's Acrylic-Tutti Frutti

Crafter's Acrylic-Pure Pumpkin

Americana Acrylics-True Red

Americana Neon-Sizzling Pink

Americana Neon-Thermal Green

Americana Neon-Scorching Yellow

Andy Skinner Stencil-Hippy Chic

Craft Twinkles Writers-Gold

You will also need:

Text weight paper, any size

Inexpensive 2" chip brush like these

Sponge or other applicator for stenciling

Optional: Americana Stencil-Scribble

Talk about a lot of bang for your buck! What you do with your finished piece is up to you. I'm using mine as journal covers but you can collage with it, frame it as abstract art, use it in a scrapbook layout or on an art journal page, decoupage with it, use it on handmade greeting cards or embellishments, make ATCs, inchies, twinchies, DaVincis, whatever!

Pick up your supplies in the DecoArt Online Store and don't forget to browse through the categories. You might accidentally find some hidden clearance items if I haven't snatched them all up already.

Some of my favorites (and not so favorites) from #NAMTA

noreply@blogger.com (Shannon Green) — Thu, 10 Mar 2016 17:47:00 +0000

I was very fortunate to have been able to attend NAMTA's Art Materials World here in Houston last week. It's a trade show similar to CHA but caters more to those in the fine art world. The show was held in conjunction with CAMEX, the Campus Market Expo for college stores. NAMTA occupied one exhibit hall in the George R. Brown Convention Center and CAMEX filled up the other four so there was lots to see.

The amazing folks over at Canvas Corp Brands had a booth at NAMTA and so graciously allowed me to attend with them. I helped them to set up and tear down their booth as well as demoed some products and helped out where I could. I've pimped myself out for way less than that so I think everybody won!

I thoroughly enjoyed spending some time with CCB's Randy and Christine Meier as well as all my other best friends who I just met. Erin Reed and Heather Kindt were on hand to help in the booth and I had a great time getting to know them. Ken Oliver Crafts shared booth space with us which means I got to hang out with Anita Houston and John Cox. I know, try not to be jealous.

I took some pictures which you can see in my NAMTA album on Flickr and I filmed a few short videos that you can find in my NAMTA playlist on YouTube. There are a few companies I want to specifically mention because they stood out for one reason or another.

Amodex is by far the best product I've ever used to get paint and ink stains off my hands. I don't ever want to be without it. Amodex is a family owned company and I got to visit with two of the family members: Beverlee and Marica. Can I just say I love them? I truly do, they're incredible women!

Mauricio Velez in the Hemptique booth taught me more about hemp than I probably wanted to know! I honestly had no idea how strong hemp is but now that I know I will be binding all of my books with hemp rather than waxed linen.

Did you know that you can buy hemp paper? And there are crocheted and knitted items made with hemp that are as soft as cotton but much stronger and heavier. Plus hemp is available in any Pantone color. There's just no reason not to use it.

Casting and mold making really caught my eye for some reason so I was drawn to the ComposiMold booth where Stan and Shawn were showing off their heat and pour mold making compound that is reusable. Let me repeat that. It's REUSABLE! I kid you not. You make a mold, use it all you want to and when you're finished with that mold and don't need it anymore you just stick it in the microwave to melt it down so you can make a different mold from the same material. And as if that isn't awesome enough there is also a ComposiMold YouTube channel. I knew I liked these guys!

Go ahead, ask me about frontal polymerization, I dare ya. Thanks to Dr. John Pojman I can now hold my own when the topic comes up at dinner parties. I could have visited with Dr. Pojman all day long without losing interest for a single minute, and y'all know how tiny my attention span is. His company is called Pojman Polymer Products or 3P...which makes him the 3P CEO. Get it?? And if that isn't delightfully cheesy enough for you he also rocks a bow tie and boasts the world's largest collection of pocket protectors. Plus I repeatedly called him Mr. Pojman because I didn't realize he was a Ph.D. and he didn't correct me one single time. Walter White wishes he could be as cool as this chemist!

Pojman Polymer Products makes 3P QuickCure Clay which is a little tub of magic. You can mold with it or you can mold from it. You expose one end of your clay piece to a heat source and within a matter of seconds the remainder of the piece starts generating its own heat so after a minute or two the entire piece has literally baked itself.

After his demonstration I went back to the CCB booth and told Anita what I had just witnessed. That girl rarely abandoned her post at the demo table but she literally dropped everything and went to visit Dr. Pojman. When she came back we both agreed that we love him.

I will have more demonstrations of these products coming up soon but in the mean time I hope you will visit their websites, subscribe to their YouTube channels, follow them on Facebook, etc. They all get the Shannon Green Stamp of Approval...whatever that's worth!

One company did not get the coveted Shannon Green Stamp of Approval. I'm mentioning it here with the hope that they will see this and take steps to improve their customer relations. There was a product in the Filofax booth that caught my eye and the nice girl in the booth gave such a good demonstration of it that I was dying to feature it in a video where I could encourage 20K of my closest friends to rush out and buy this product with me.

I asked Demo Girl if she would mind repeating her whole speil so I could film it to share on YouTube. She was delighted to do just that but felt like she should run it by the boss first. That was totally understandable so I waited while she asked The Boss in the back of the booth. I didn't think there would be a problem since no one ever turns me down when I ask to feature a mass produced retail product. Videos are often prohibited in stores that sell handcrafted items but manufacturers of mass produced items usually jump at the chance for free advertising and promoting.

That wasn't the case with Filofax. The Boss apparently was not "the boss" and felt like he needed to call corporate before giving me permission to make a video where I tell people to go buy their product. Okay seriously?! My jaw literally dropped open and I was speechless for maybe a whole second or two. When I recovered I told him that was fine and maybe I would stop back by later. I had no intention of doing so and I did not. I have no desire to endorse a company who has created an atmosphere where the person in charge of their trade show booth can't grant permission for free advertising on social media without asking corporate first. That's just messed up.

Filofax is one F-word you won't be hearing on my YouTube channel.

7Gypsies Wanderlust Artist Book

noreply@blogger.com (Shannon Green) — Fri, 26 Feb 2016 21:33:00 +0000

This videos shows a detailed flip-through of the Wanderlust Artist Book I made for Canvas Corp Brands. Following the video are lots of photos. Enjoy!

Polished Stone Technique With Tattered Angels Paints

noreply@blogger.com (Shannon Green) — Mon, 15 Feb 2016 19:51:00 +0000

This is a simple technique for making paper look like polished stone or pieces of agate! These are the supplies I used in the following video:

Glossy pages from a magazine or travel brochure (request free US travel brochures here)
Polycrylic Gloss Varnish diluted by half with water (available from Amazon)
Rubbing alcohol (or surgical spirits) diluted by half with water (available from Amazon)
Water soluble graphite pencil (available from Amazon)
Tattered Angels paint as follows (available at Canvas Corp Brands)

Plain Jane Baseboard Mist - Purple Pansies & Sunburst
Plain Jane Simply Sheer Mist - Peony & Safety Orange
Chalkboard Mist - Seven Seas & Ruby Slipper
Glimmer Mist - Key Lime Pie
Glimmer Glam - Tinsel & Cupcake
Glimmer Glaze - Blue Cheese
Decor & DIY Paint - Crystal

Check out these gorgeous results!

**affiliate links provided where available

Coloring the Trashy Junk Mail Journal

noreply@blogger.com (Shannon Green) — Fri, 12 Feb 2016 16:57:00 +0000

I recently made a fun junk journal out of junk mail that was destined for the trash. In this video you can see how I added some color to all those fun junky pages!

Here are some of the products I used:
White Gesso

Golden Heavy Body Acrylic Paint in raw sienna applied with an old gift card

Golden Heavy Body Acrylic Paint in primary magenta, diluted and brushed on as a wash

Homemade spray ink in some kind of blue

Something sort of purple, may have been another homemade ink
Oil or wax pastels or crayons (I'm not exactly sure) from a kids art kit
Gamsol Odorless Mineral Spirits and an old rag

More Citra Solv & NatGeo Fun!

noreply@blogger.com (Shannon Green) — Tue, 09 Feb 2016 21:16:00 +0000

These gorgeous papers are the impressive result of not very much effort! All you need is some Citra Solv Cleaner/Degreaser and a National Geographic magazine.

Check out these awesome results:

Canvas Corp Brands Creative Crew 4 x 4 Canvas

noreply@blogger.com (Shannon Green) — Sat, 23 Jan 2016 21:52:00 +0000

My first project for the Canvas Corp Brands Creative Crew is this 4 x 4 canvas that we were asked to decorate in a way that reflects our personal style.

My style is lots of layers but not a lot of dimension or "fluff" so I chose to create depth by making gel medium decals from paper pad pages and images.

The transparent decals were layered over the canvas which had been randomly painted with a variety of Tattered Angels paints.

Visit the Canvas Corp Brands website to find the following products I used:

7gypsies
Ordre du jour 8x8 Paper Pad
Gears: Industrial (14 pieces)
Mini Ephemera - Receipts

Tattered Angels
Walnut Gold- Glimmer Mist 2oz
Sangria- Glimmer Glaze 1 oz
Seven Seas- Chalkboard 2oz
Olive - Stained Glass 1.35oz

Canvas Home Basics
Ticking Fringe 1 Yard - red
4 x 4 Stretched Natural Canvas

Other products used:
Omni Gel
Perfect Paper Adhesive

*Note: affiliate links provided where available.

How to Participate in an Inspiration Conspiracy Video Hop

noreply@blogger.com (Shannon Green) — Thu, 07 Jan 2016 03:26:00 +0000

Christmas is over but I've just started making my list and checking it twice for the Spring Inspiration Conspiracy Video Hop!

Inspiration Conspiracy is a mentoring program I started where 3 or 4 large or more established YouTube channels get together with 9 small channels and we have a video hop. Our viewers are treated to 13 10-minute process videos where they can see projects being made by some of their favorite creative YouTubers as well as some new channels they might not be familiar with. This creates a lot of new traffic and exposure for the small YouTube channels, giving them a little help to establish a viewership. Since the hop is designed in a way that makes it easy to hop from one channel to the next during one viewing session, it increases our watch time which is a huge benefit for the larger channels. I love it when everybody wins!

I frequently get asked how a channel can participate in an Inspiration Conspiracy event. The bad news is that it is by invitation only. But the good news is that I frequently seek out channels to invite.

Why is it invitation only? Are we snobs or something? Absolutely not! The way our video hops are structured makes them very successful for all of the participants...hoppers and host channels. Part of that structure is limiting the groups to no more than 13 participants. The small group atmosphere helps the participants to get to know each other better and provides a more comfortable environment for asking questions. It also makes it possible for our viewers to watch all of the hop videos in one viewing session which is beneficial for the participants as well as our viewers.

If you have a craft related YouTube channel and you have fewer than 1000 subscribers, you are a potential Inspiration Conspiracy candidate. Obviously I can't choose every channel with less than 1000 subscribers so there are some things you can do to increase your chances of receiving an invitation.

1. Make process videos. There is nothing wrong with project shares, flip-through and show-and-tell videos, I make a lot of them myself. But the only way for me to know if you are willing and able to make process videos is if I see some examples on your channel. Any kind of process video is acceptable: real time, speedy, voice overs, music background, etc.

2. Upload consistently. You don't have to upload videos daily but I do check to see that you upload consistently even if it's just once a month. I tend to avoid channels who upload sporadically or have large gaps between uploads. I really want to work with those who are committed to growing their channels.

Yeah, that's pretty much it! It also helps to provide your Facebook link on your channel home page or at least be familiar with how to check for private messages on YouTube. On a couple of occasions I've had trouble making contact with someone I wanted to invite. We do all of our planning in a private Facebook group so you do have to be familiar with that.

You don't have to have high quality professional videos, just make sure you can be clearly seen and clearly heard. And, obviously, I have to like what you do! I look all different kinds of art, crafts, and creative content, not just those in the mixed media/art journaling realm.

Be on the lookout for upcoming Inspiration Conspiracy events! We have groups in place and ready to hop on January 14, 2016 and April 7, 2016 and we have tentative plans for a summer hop in late June. Whether you are a participant or a viewer you are in for a special treat!

You can visit my YouTube channel here: byShannonGreen

En Masse Collection Journal 2016

noreply@blogger.com (Shannon Green) — Fri, 01 Jan 2016 12:00:00 +0000

My first obsession for 2016 is my En Masse Collection Journal inspired by:

Kagedfish's Scavenger Hunt Glue Book

Keri Smith's Wreck This Journal

Keri Smith's The Pocket Scavenger

DeDe Willingham's Magazine Journals

Shannon Green's Journals For No Reason

Shannon Green's En Masse Pinterest board

I want 2016 to be the year that I use my stuff and I'm starting with a fun glue book/junk journal/art journal. I will use the categories below to fill my journal with items from my collection that I'm hoarding but not using. Then I will use it as a guide to keep an eye out for more potential journal fodder as the year progresses.


I started with 2 2015 Oklahoma travel guide books

Some pages got a little gesso, others were collaged with wax paper scraps.

This page is for #32, washi tape

Blue things go on this page for category #50

A random art journal page for no reason

Postage stamps, category #17

Watch my YouTube video for a more in depth explanation:

Down the Collection Journal category list.

The Prince of Tides Lunch

noreply@blogger.com (Shannon Green) — Sun, 27 Dec 2015 18:18:00 +0000

I have a really sad story to share which is unusual for me since I like to keep things light and happy, but I feel the need to write about this so I'm going to do it here.

I was back in my home town over the Christmas holiday and had lunch with a friend from school who I haven't seen in 31 years. We weren't close friends and didn't hang out together after school, but we did have classes together off and on from 1st-12th grade. I was very shy and socially awkward in school (okay fine, I still am!) and Debi was very friendly and outgoing but she was always kind to me and I appreciated her very much for that.

We had a really nice lunch, gave each other a brief synopsis of the past 31 years, and reminisced about a time when our thighs were smaller. We both had the same homeroom teacher in first grade but when Debi asked who my homeroom teacher was in second grade I couldn't remember. This has always been an issue for me because I used to be able to list all of my homeroom teachers from 1st-12th grade except for my second grade teacher...never could remember who it was.

Debi informed me that I had Mrs. Beelzebub because she did too. Obviously her real name is not Mrs. Beelzebub but you will see that it's an appropriate pseudonym.

When Debi asked if I could remember any specific incidents from second grade I couldn't come up with any. I do remember an incident in first grade involving another student being injured but other than that I can't recall anything specific until maybe 6th grade. Debi has a memory from second grade that involves me but it's not a pleasant memory and she was reluctant to share it for fear it might upset me. I'm sure I have forgotten more than one unpleasant memory but I remember a lot of them too so I assured her it was fine.

Debi's first memory of me was when we were sitting in Mrs. B's class and I raised my hand to ask if I could go to the bathroom. In first grade we had a bathroom in our classroom that we could use as needed but in second grade we were given scheduled bathroom breaks. It was not time for the bathroom break so Mrs. B told me no. A few minutes later I raised my hand again and asked if I could go to the bathroom. Again, Mrs. B said no, I would have to wait until the bathroom break.

You can see where this is going, right? Mrs. B wasn't very bright and clearly had no idea how a child's body works.

Debi said the third time I raised my hand I was bouncing in my seat, I seriously had to pee. And for the third time Mrs. B told me no, I would have to hold it until the bathroom break. Obviously I peed my pants. It happens, right? When a kid tells you they need to go, they need to go!

Evidently Mrs. B somehow thought that peeing my pants was my fault and I should be punished for it. She made me go get a mop from the janitor then she made me clean up my own pee in front of the whole class while still wearing my wet pants. Debi asked Mrs. B if she could help me but she was denied, I had to do it by myself.

Debi said the whole incident seriously traumatized her and apparently every other kid in the class as well. She said everyone was so affected by Mrs. B's cruelty that no one ever made fun of me for it. That says a lot. Kids rarely pass up an opportunity to make fun of one of their own.

Absolutely horrifying, right?! The whole time Debi was telling me this I was thinking...oh my gosh that's horrible! I feel so bad for that little girl! Oh wait. It was me.

Nothing Debi said triggered any kind of memory for me, which is probably a good thing. And I know she's still wondering if she should have kept it to herself but I am SO glad that she didn't. It actually explained a lot, including why I never could remember my second grade teacher's name!

This happened around 1973-74 and things were a lot different then. Can you imagine that same incident happening today? That teacher would be facing criminal abuse charges if the parent didn't kill her first. I don't know what happened to Mrs. B but picturing her in this scenario brings me comfort:

Hortus deliciarum manuscript

After our lunch I texted my sister since she is the keeper of our memories. She had no memory of me peeing my pants but she remembers peeing her pants in first grade and having to wear someone else's clothes for the rest of the day. She said it's a miracle we weren't known as the Pisser Sisters. I nearly busted a gut. My sister is the funniest person I know.

I texted my mom and asked her if I peed my pants in second grade. I believed every word Debi said but was hoping to maybe get more information or another perspective. My mom's response was, "I think so. OMG I tried to forget."

Okay, so it pretty much traumatized everyone involved and clearly my mother is extremely proficient in teaching her children the art of the repressed memory!

I was always shy and quiet in school and Debi wondered if that incident had something to do with it. A second grader peeing her pants at school is bad enough but the way that teacher handled it is sure to leave permanent scars. I told Debi that I feel sure it did have an impact on my social development or lack thereof. But compared to what I experienced at home as a child it was really pretty minor. How sad is that?!

I experienced a lot of terrible things growing up but at the time I honestly didn't realize that they were not "normal". I thought every family was like mine so if you ask me if I had a good childhood I would say yes. I didn't understand how messed up it was until I was grown but I don't have any regrets or remorse about my family's dysfunction. We're all half-baked and that's okay. All those traumatic childhood events were necessary for me to be the person I am today. I am still shy and socially awkward but I'm perfectly comfortable in my own skin. The messed up person I am today is necessary for me to become the person I will be tomorrow.

Life is like puzzle where each piece is an event from our lives. It takes all of those pieces, good and bad, to complete the puzzle. That means that we sometimes have to pull our skeletons out of the closet to see where they fit in our puzzle.

So thank you, Debi, for taking that skeleton by the hand and gently guiding it out of the closet. I didn't even know it was there but I'm a big proponent of freeing all closet skeletons.

I don't know who said this but it has always been one of my favorite quotes:

I am a portrait of my past, a painter of my future.

Prem Ratan Dhan Payo aka Elvis Does Disney

noreply@blogger.com (Shannon Green) — Thu, 19 Nov 2015 04:15:00 +0000

I needed to get out of my own head for a little while this afternoon so I went to see Prem Ratan Dhan Payo. It's a 3 hour long Bollywood musical comedy subtitled in English. It was like the love child of a badly overacted Elvis movie and a live action version of a Disney cartoon. I wouldn't call it a good movie but I loved it.

The fairy tale story has been done half to death so it was predictable, the acting was bad, it didn't even attempt to be half way intelligent, there were a few witty moments but way more eye rolling ones, and I sat there for 3 hours with a goofy smile on my face.

The sets and costumes were spectacular and fit well with the ridiculous fairy tale plot. I was even tapping my toe to the badly lip synced song-and-dance scenes. If they had been subtitled I probably would have sung along...against my own will.

Apparently I live under a rock because I had never heard of Salman Khan but I read that he is something like the 7th highest paid actor in the world. I guess he's sort of a big deal, at least in India. I will admit that I can sort of understand that. He is rather pleasant to look at, has a nice smile, expressive eyes, and the dude is ripped. I mean RIPPED. He can't act, at all, but he really doesn't have to. I spent the first hour of the movie trying to reconcile him in my head because for some reason "hot Indian bodybuilder" seems like an oxymoron to me. Ya just don't see that very often.

Why did I enjoy a movie that I'm so critical about? I have no idea. Maybe it was the unapologetically outdated happy fairy tale story. Or it might have been the Elvis-does-Disney song and dance numbers. It could have been the gorgeous colorful royal costumes or the over-the-top sets like the Place of Mirrors. Maybe it was the simplicity of entertainment for entertainment's sake: the good guy wins, he gets the girl, and everyone lives happily everafter.

Inspiration Conspiracy Continues!

noreply@blogger.com (Shannon Green) — Wed, 14 Oct 2015 18:59:00 +0000

On October 8, 2015 we had our second Inspiration Conspiracy video hop and it was another screaming success! When I left the first hop group (Genesis) to create the new group (Lazarus), the Genesis group decided to add another host channel to replace me. They very wisely chose Gina Ahrens to join Mike Deakin and PackerDi. The rest of the group stayed the same. Their results weren't as spectacular as the first hop but that was to be expected. Each channel still saw more growth in less time than ever before!

I decided to add an extra host to future groups so each time I move on to a new group they'll barely notice it. Heh. The graciously giving and infinitely inspiring Host Channels for the Lazarus group are Cat Hand, Patti Parrish, and Kelly Donovan.

These are the talented hopper channels we had the pleasure of hosting:

Audrea Gustafson

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4GtdLOa6g3EZH2Gu0J8DTA

Wendy Mason

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkWy5_Oy7w7XVQWI8CqdqOA

Ina Solsbery

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCpMQ6gHsfYiGlau9xoiJXlg

Almut Olsson

https://www.youtube.com/user/NOSSLOLA

APG Jamie

https://www.youtube.com/user/ArtistPoetGirl

Cindy Utter

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYxjVJwr0XYjYD-jg_30zCA

Louloupurple Crafts

https://www.youtube.com/user/louloupurple

Babs Rolle

https://www.youtube.com/user/barbantboys

Amy Love

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChW3qIJnd5A2p53C6ttwyiA

Since this was the Lazarus group's first time to hop together, they had the same kind of success that the Genesis group had on their first go round. Each of the channels in the Lazarus group started out with less than 800 subscribers. Within the first 48 hours of the hop, ALL of the hopper (not host) channels in the Lazarus group gained over 100 subscribers, two channels more than doubled in size and two channels got over 1000 views on their hop videos. Amazing!!!

If you missed the October hop you can watch it here: Inspiration Conspiracy Hop-Paper Bead Flowers

I've already created our third hop group, Inspiration Conspiracy-Trinity, and I am extremely excited to be hosting along with Leanne Lafleur, Rachel Doohen and Lindsay Weirich this time! Once again I can't reveal the names of our hoppers but I can tell you when you'll find out:

January 14, 2016

1:00 p.m. CST

At that time you can start the hop on my channel or any of the other host channels. You will be treated to a variety of art and craft process videos, each one no longer than 10 minutes so you can hop seamlessly in 1 viewing session. The hop is designed so that each viewer will see the hop videos in the same order no matter where they start. At the end of the hop rotation there will be a link that takes you to another hop group so you can watch all the videos in their rotation.

Since we've established that this hop format actually works, it is my desire to see it start duplicating itself. I have more to say about that, a LOT more, but it will have to wait.

I suppose I could leave you with a teaser. My idea is 1 part spider, 1 part Alcoholics Anonymous. and 2 parts starfish.

I know, I practically gave it away.

The Inspiration Conspiracy

noreply@blogger.com (Shannon Green) — Wed, 02 Sep 2015 22:39:00 +0000

I'm obsessing over a new project. It's called The Inspiration Conspiracy and it's a mentoring program where larger, more established YouTube channels help smaller channels by increasing their exposure and providing support. This is only for those channels who produce creative content...mostly arts and crafts related.

Exactly how does this work? Well, I've only done it once but that one time was very successful so I'm now planning to do it again. And again, and again for as long as it continues to work!

It is basically just a video hop where you watch one video then click on a link that takes you to the next one and so on until you find yourself back where you started. I like working with about 13 channels, some are hop hosts and some are hop participants.

For our first hop I had the pleasure of working with PackerDi and Mike Deakin as my co-hosts. The hop participants were all YouTube channels with fewer than 1000 subscribers:

Creatively Amy-Amy Rhodes

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2f_CVOBKtdaECUMkZHsRTQ

Auntbecscreations-Becky McAuley
https://www.youtube.com/user/AuntBecscreations

Hanny Tromp

https://www.youtube.com/user/Trompke1

Juna Biagioni

https://www.youtube.com/user/junabiagioni

Linda Ann Smith

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC84lipWz8oYs3pCUpfK3w8A

Mimi's Musings-Maryanne Mott

https://www.youtube.com/user/mottmaryanne

Pink at Heart-Rebekka Hay

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCTErpI2Yv8pgXObxJNO-EZA

Sheri Whitfield

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeA4YHJFalak2ljXS45fKVg

Vicki Ross

https://www.youtube.com/user/vickiartist

Yva Lovee Arts

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCiMXOl315zeLfAj48xXNeEw

I hand picked them because I liked their art and felt they were serious about working to grow their channels. As luck would have it, I chose well...maybe a little too well.

My original plan was to assemble this group and do a hop. Then I planned to disband the group, assemble a new one and do a hop with the new group. That plan didn't really work out since the first group got along so well and enjoyed the experience so much that they refused to disband! No problem, I just shifted gears a little bit.

I decided to leave the first group in tact and create new groups for future hops. These are private Facebook groups that you can only join if invited. The reason for that isn't exclusivity since anyone who knows me knows that I have no tolerance for that kind of thing. The reason is because the size of the group is crucial to its success. Plus, the thing that everyone in the first hop liked best was the small group atmosphere so we're preserving that.

The first group is called Inspiration Conspiracy-Genesis because they were first. Get it? The new group I have just put together is called Inspiration Conspiracy-Lazarus because I decided that the project will live on. I'm hoping that this will eventually become a "thing" where more established arts and crafts channels will jump on board to help out the new channels. From my own experience it's a win-win for everyone including the entire creative community on YouTube.

Since our first hop is over, the Genesis group is free to do their own hops or collaborations as they see fit but they will also be participating in tandem with the Lazarus group. Each group will be doing separate hops but they will be released on the same day and time with links provided so that viewers can hop from hop to hop.

That makes perfect sense in my head but since we haven't actually tested this particular theory we'll just have to wait and see if all that hopping works!

When I created the Lazarus group I added a third co-host. This time I'm working with Kelly Donovan, Patti Parrish, and Cat Hand. We have 9 smaller channels participating, all with fewer than 1000 subscribers. I can't tell you who those channels are but I can tell you when you can find out:

October 8, 2015

1:00 p.m. CDT

At that time you can start the hop on my channel or any of the other host channels. You will be treated to a variety of art and craft videos, each one no longer than 10 minutes so you can hop seamlessly in 1 viewing session. The hop is designed so that each viewer will see the hop videos in the same order no matter where they start. At the end of the hop rotation there will be a link that takes you to the other group hop so you can see all the videos in that rotation.

The order of the videos is very specific and is the key to the success of the hop. Just how successful was it? I'll tell you. I compiled this data 48 hours after the Genesis hop was released:

Average number of subscribers gained in 48 hours for all channels, hoppers & hosts: 118 per channel

Average subscriber increase for channels who started with 100 or less: 108% increase

Average subscriber increase for channels who started with 100-200: 80% increase

Average subscriber increase for channels who started with 700-900: 19% increase

Average subscriber increase for the host channels: 1.8% increase

Average number of hop video views in 48 hours, hoppers only-no hosts: 788 views

Two hopper channels more than doubled in size.

One hopper channel gained over 200 subscribers in 48 hours.

One hopper video got over 1000 views in 48 hours.

Those are absolutely phenomenal results! I honestly didn't expect much for the host channels since our goal was to funnel our existing viewers to these smaller channels. I was extremely surprised to find that the hosts, myself included, had a significant increase in subscribers and views. Those of us who monetize our videos also saw a spike in our estimated earnings the day after the hop. I did not expect that either.

If you have an established YouTube channel (3000+ subscribers) and are interested in co-hosting a future Inspiration Conspiracy video hop, please contact me and let me know. As a hop host you will join a Facebook group with your co-hosts and hop participants. Participate in the group as time allows, the only requirement is that you check in at least once a week so we know you're still with us. You will make a process video no more than 10 minutes long and release it on the day of the hop. The rotation and all other little details will already be taken care of. Easy, right? I know...we should talk:

shannnongreeen@gmail.com

I'm a firm believer in The Golden Rule, Karma, what goes around comes around, etc. In the end, everybody wins. I know this for a fact because the more shout outs I do and the more time I spend helping smaller channels, the more my own channel grows. It's all about sharing the love!

How Not To Buy Insurance

noreply@blogger.com (Shannon Green) — Sat, 22 Aug 2015 03:34:00 +0000

You don't have to be elderly, uneducated or naive to get taken advantage of. It happened to me yesterday. Although I am not uneducated in general, I am uneducated when it comes to details about health insurance. Fortunately I was able to get educated before any serious damage was done but I am absolutely stunned at how easily I was duped. This is really long but I hope it's helpful for someone out there.

If you find yourself unexpectedly unemployed and needing to secure new health insurance within a matter of days, I have some tips to offer.

First and foremost, do NOT use this website for your search:

https://www.clearchoicehealthinsurance.com/

If you do, your phone will ring approximately every 5 minutes from sun up until sun down for at least 2 solid days. Every incoming call will display a different number so there is no effective way to block the calls. Don't do it. Trust me.

I didn't know that when I used this website yesterday to help with my health insurance search. It seemed harmless enough, the design was simple and pleasant. All I had to provide was my zip code, name, email address and phone number. Normally I never put my phone number in an inquiry form but I was certainly not opposed to receiving phone calls since we needed to get new insurance pronto.

I clicked on the button that said "Get Quote" and was immediately taken to another page where all kinds of different insurance policies were listed for comparison. I was staring glassy-eyed at all the options when I heard Jayson say those all too familiar words "let me let you talk to my wife". I was barely even aware his phone had rung.

I took the phone and the person on the other end said they were calling in response to the insurance inquiry I made online. I asked them if they were talking about the one I had just done literally 2 seconds ago...the one where the page still hadn't finished loading. They said yes. I said that's really freaky and borderline scary. They agreed.

I guess I should explain the reason I put Jayson's phone number on the form instead of mine. First of all, we have no land line, just cell phones and we like it that way. Second, I have no experience with shopping for insurance. We've always had it provided through Jayson's job where he is the insured and me & Taylor are the dependents. That is my mindset when it comes to insurance so not only did I put his phone number in the form but I put his name as well!

After a few preliminary questions I was transferred to Craig Schneider who introduced himself as a licensed agent with Health Benefits Center. I explained my situation and told him I wanted to see what my options were. The first thing he asked me is how much we're able to spend. The response on the tip of my tongue, the one I was barely able to bite back, was, "OMG Seriously??! Do you really think I'm stupid enough to tell a salesman how much I'm willing to spend?!"

Apparently I'm a lot stupider than that. Okay, maybe not stupid but most definitely uninformed. I told Crooked Craig that since we have no income we aren't able to spend anything at all but we still need insurance and I would like to know what's available. He explained that he has 16 different companies to choose from so he was confident we'd be able to find a good fit.

He began with a package that he said costs $332.83 per month. I don't know much about insurance and I know even less about Obamacare but I knew that sounded unreasonably low. However, I was willing to forgo some benefits in order to save money since that's something we're short on right now.

Crooked Craig started describing what sounded like the top of the line package. It was what he called a MultiPlan PPO with a huge network from which we could choose our doctors. We've always had a PPO so I liked the sound of that. When I mentioned the low price he explained that a MultiPlan is like a big group which helps to keep the costs down.

That sort of made sense to my unemployment traumatized brain so I let him continue.

He explained that it's through Companion Life which is well established and reputable. I've never heard of them but then I've never had to shop for health insurance so I have no idea what's out there. He also said our coverage is good nationwide, not just in Texas. That sounded great.

Then he said it includes dental and vision coverage, which sounded perfect but I began to expect the other shoe to drop at any moment.

He started rattling off all the benefits, copays, etc., which all sounded fantastic, but I had to cut him short since I really had only one major concern: prescription coverage.

Crooked Craig explained that it's a 3-tier system that will cover up to 80% of the cost of the prescriptions. He kept wandering off that topic and I had to bring him back a couple of times. I told him I was familiar with tiered plans and asked if there was a set copay amount for each tier. He said no, it's a percentage of the cost up to 80%. I wanted to ask if there was a different percentage for each tier but he kept wandering away from the topic and assured me that all the details would be forthcoming once we got signed up.

Again, I was about to let him know that I needed those details BEFORE we signed up but then he started telling me about the 30-day "free look" where we could take our time to read all the documentation and if we decide it's not going to work we will get a refund.

Getting a refund for something like that is generally a pain in the backside but we didn't have time to waste and overall it sounded too good to be true. So I told Craig that. I said, "It sounds too good to be true, what's the catch?"

He assured me there's no catch. He said one of the reasons they're able to keep costs so low is because it doesn't offer maternity coverage. I later found out that should have raised a big honkin' red flag but it didn't because I am uninformed when it comes to insurance and I pretty much ignored all the talk about Obamacare because we've always been insured through Jayson's job therefore it didn't apply us.

I know, I know. That was very foolish and I realize that now.

I told Crooked Craig I was ready to sign up and wanted more details on what it would cost. He said he would spell everything out but basically all it would take to get it started is the first month's premium plus the enrollment fee of $155 so the total would be $487.83.

Again, if I had a clue I would have known that there is never an enrollment fee when you apply for insurance but I didn't have a clue so I said okay. He did make sure to specifically ask me if any of us would be needing any kind of surgery within the next 12 months. He explained that there is a 12 month waiting period before we can receive full benefits on surgical procedures but that didn't include emergencies. If an appendix burst or one of us broke a leg, we would get our full benefits. I assured him we had no surgical needs that we were aware of. I reminded him that my one and only concern at this point was prescription coverage and he assure me I would be happy with it.

I completely failed to see anything wrong with what I was told, other than the fact that I was missing some detailed information. That didn't bother me too much since I knew I could cancel and get a refund if the details didn't please me.

I was transferred to Mario in the verification department of Health Benefits Center to complete my application. He said he was required by law to read several pages of "fine print" and to record the process. If I stopped him at any time to ask a question he would have to restart from the beginning and it would take at least 20 minutes to get through it all.

At that point I had been on the phone for over an hour already so I wasn't looking forward to another half hour of crap I wasn't even interested in hearing. Then Mario asked if I happen to be calling from a smart phone. I told him I was then he said we could save tons of time if he sent me a link to the documents and let me sign them electronically by phone.

I told him I'm a big fan of saving time so he sent me links to the documents and gave me very good instructions on how to sign by phone. He did warn me that there were a lot of pages and I would have to sign 8 or 9 times. I was good with that if it meant I got to avoid 20 minutes of listening to insignificant legalese.

I fully intended to browse though the documents because I never sign something that I haven't read and don't fully understand. That didn't really work. I was overwhelmed by the number of pages and the "fine print" is bad enough when it's full size but on a cell phone it's practically just squiggly lines. I gave up trying to read and just crossed my fingers that I wasn't signing something I would regret. Like an Amway membership.

At the end of it all Crooked Craig assured me I would be receiving email copies of everything as well has hard copies of all the detailed benefits. He said that he is my agent and he is available at any time if I have any questions whatsoever. He gave me his phone number and stressed that it was his direct line. It was an 800 number which is rarely a direct line so I asked him for his extension. He stumbled over it a little but did give me a 4-digit extension.

That whole process took over 2 exhausting hours so I relaxed while I looked over the documents that were emailed to me.

There was some confusing strangeness in the documents but really the only thing I was interested in was getting the details for the prescription coverage. I finally found the link, went to the website and began entering in each one of my prescriptions to see what my savings would be. The prescription that gives me the most trouble is the one I take for narcolepsy. Without insurance a one month supply would cost me around $600. It's like swallowing a $20 bill every day. I can get it cheaper at Walmart, it's only $594 there.

Right now I pay around $250 per month out of pocket but I was pretty sure the new insurance would be higher. I was correct. With my new insurance I would be paying $1106 per month for my prescriptions. Not ideal but still better than trying to pay for them without insurance right? That would cost me $1200 per month.

Clearly this wasn't going to work so I began to try to get in touch with Crooked Craig to cancel my policies. This proved difficult since the only options I was given when I called the 800 number were for customer service or for the operator. There was no way to enter his extension. I tried the operator, several times, and each time she connected me to his extension there was a weird artificial sounding busy signal.

I intended to try customer service but Jayson's phone was still ringing off the hook so he asked me to please answer some of the calls and make them go away. Since I decided that the policies I had just signed up for weren't going to work, we still needed insurance so I didn't mind talking to some people anyway.

I answered the next call and spoke with Sheridan from Fortegra. She was really nice and ended up being extremely helpful. I explained our situation to her then told her that I signed up for insurance that morning but found out I'm going to have to cancel it because the prescription coverage, the one thing I need most, is pretty much non-existent.

Sheridan groaned then asked, "Did you by chance sign up for a MultiPlan?"

I said, "Yes. Is that bad?"

She said, "It's not necessarily bad but it's not insurance."

Then she asked if we were asked to pay a huge enrollment fee. I told her I didn't really consider it to be huge but we were asked to pay $155. She said there is never an enrollment fee for insurance.

I did not realize this.

She then went on to explain that she talks to at least one person a day who has done exactly what I did but they usually don't realize it until they go to use their benefits and find out that they don't have any. She said it's nothing more than a discount program. She said it's really not bad to use for supplemental insurance with your major medical but if it's the only coverage we have we'll get penalized at tax time.

Awesome.

I told her I was shocked that I was so easily deceived. I consider myself a pretty savvy shopper and I'm not stupid so I never thought I would have been capable of falling for something like this. Sheridan said she doesn't know how these people sleep at night. She assured me that it happens daily and can happen to anyone since insurance is so confusing and most people aren't aware of the details they need to know.

She was surprised they actually sent me the documents they promised then advised me to read all that fine print. Somewhere in there it would clearly state that it is not insurance.

She was right.

I was stunned.

I told her I hadn't cancelled yet but intended to and she told me to make sure I demand a full refund or else I would report them to the Texas Department of Insurance and to the BBB. I told her I would say that then go ahead and report them anyway ;)

She did get us signed up for some actual insurance with United Health Care (the first company name I've recognized through this whole ordeal) which will work just fine. She specifically checked for how much coverage I would get on my narcolepsy medication and it was acceptable. Our premiums are about 3 times what Crooked Craig the Criminal quoted me but that's what I was expecting to pay in the beginning.

Once I got everything squared away with Sheridan I went back and started reading through Crooked Craig's documents and doing some Google investigating. Everything Sheridan told me was spot on and then some. I discovered, much to my surprise, that not only had I signed up for what I thought was major medical, dental and vision insurance, but apparently I also signed up for life insurance and an accidental death & dismemberment policy through something that looked a lot like Amway.

I knew it.

It took some digging but I was finally able to figure out what they did and the cost for it all. Crooked Craig told me I was getting medical INSURANCE along with dental and vision for $332.83 a month. Here's what I actually got:

Principle Advantage Limited Benefit Health Insurance from Companion Life Insurance Company for $181.43 per month.

Group Accident Insurance from Unites States Fire Insurance Company where Med-Sense Guaranteed Association is the policy holder and I am the certificate holder. I didn't understand what that meant but there was a glossary of terms in the paperwork. It said, "”Policyholder” means the entity shown as the Policyholder in the Schedule of Benefits." I am totally NOT making that up! Anyway, that costs $36.95 per month.

Med-Sense Guaranteed Freedom Spirit Plus Membership. Apparently I'm at the coveted Topaz Level. At first glance it looks like another insurance policy but it's actually a membership program where you can get discounted services on stuff like cell phones and car rentals and magazines and vitamins. The price for that membership that I didn't know about and don't want is $48.40 per month plus $16 per month for administration fees for a total of $64.45 per month.

Discount Medical Plan from Careington International Corporation but only the dental portion. There is a one-time enrollment fee of $30 then it's $50 per month.

That all adds up to $332.83 per month plus $155 in enrollment fees. From what I can tell I have something that calls itself health insurance from Companion Life Insurance company but is not health insurance because it clearly states that preexisting conditions are not covered for the first 30 days and hospitalization, surgery and anesthesia benefits resulting from a preexisting condition are not available for the first 12 months.

Then I have the coveted Topaz Level membership in the Med-Sense Guaranteed discount club Amway-thing. My membership includes a free $100K life insurance policy, eyecare discounts from Outlook Vision and prescription discounts from Agile Rx. For an additional charge I also have an AD&D policy from United States Fire Insurance Company. That's why Med-Sense shows to be the policy holder...they bought it from the insurance company and sort of subcontracted the benefits to me.

The AD&D policy is "signed" by Andres Canal, Agent #890000 in the state of TX. Insurance licenses are available to the public and easy to find so I did a quick search. Not surprisingly there is no agent #890000 in the state of Texas. However I did find this Texas agent:

ANDRES HUMBERTO CANAL
5300 BROKEN SOUND BLVD NW SUITE 200
BOCA RATON, FL 33487
Agent #1854877

The dental plan from Careington calls itself a discount plan and makes it clear in the fine print that it is not insurance. However it is also signed by our friend Andres Canal. The Florida license number on the document was false, of course, but I did find that his actual license number is W156369 and he's in Boca Raton, FL.

Pieces of the puzzle were starting to fall into place. I did a Google search for Health Benefits Center, where Crooked Craig said he was calling from, and found that it is located in Hollywood, FL but earlier this year they expanded their operation to Boca Raton. I learned that Steve Dorfman is the CEO and the BBB gives them an F rating.

I Googled the name of the company where all of my emails came from: Health Insurance Innovations. I found nothing interesting on the website other than the same vague insurance service offerings I've been seeing everywhere else but in their "about" section they do list their association with Med-Sense Guaranteed. A quick BBB search showed that the company has issues.

I Googled Steve Dorfman and discovered that he is also the CEO of a company called Simple Insurance Leads. More vagueness on the website but there is a BBB Accredited Business link on their website. I clicked it and it went nowhere. I searched for them on the BBB website and came up with nothing. Clearly the BBB isn't aware they have accredited this company.

From what I can tell this looks like a very large scam operation that uses licensed agents to deceive people and maybe even some legitimate insurance companies. Andres Canal has insurance licenses dating back to 2013 so I'm willing to bet that when he gets his license revoked they'll just replace him with someone else.

I called Health Benefits Center back to try to get in touch with Crooked Craig and was once again connected to a busy signal. I called back and chose the option for customer service and got a recording that gave me another phone number to call. I called that number and found myself speaking to someone at Health Insurance Innovations, where my policy emails originated.

I informed the representative that I wanted to cancel all of my policies that I just got the day before. She asked why I wanted to cancel and I told her because I was told they are insurance but they're not Obamacare compliant. She said the enrollment period doesn't start until November 1 so I can't buy Obamacare insurance right now. I told her I most certainly can buy it right now because my husband just lost his job. She stumbled over that then confirmed my cancellation and told me it could take 3-5 business days for my refund to appear in my bank account. I thanked her and hung up but couldn't understand why it would take several days for a deposit to show up when the withdrawal came out of my account the minute I gave Crooked Craig my account information.

Just to make sure all my bases were covered and I have a paper trail, I found the email address for cancelling policies and sent the following to Health Insurance Innovations:

Effective IMMEDIATELY, please cancel the following policies and any other associated policies that I am not aware of. I revoke my electronic signature and any use of it to authorize further payments will be considered fraud and prosecuted as such.

Principle Advantage Member ID xxx (this includes Dental and Vision)

Freedom Spirit Plus Member ID xxx

Accident Insurance Member ID xxx

I signed up for the Principle Advantage plan which was presented to me by Craig Schneider as a major medical health insurance policy for my family. I later discovered that it is not health insurance therefore my signature was obtained fraudulently so it is now considered null and void on that policy as well as any others that I wasn’t aware I was signing up for.

I expect a FULL and immediate refund of the charges totaling $487.83 that were deducted from my bank account August 20, 2015. If this FULL refund is not back in my bank account by Friday, August 21, 2015 at midnight CDT, I will proceed with my complaints to the Texas and Florida Departments of Insurance and to the Better Business Bureau against Health Insurance Innovations, Health Benefits Center, MultiPlan, Companion Life, Med Sense Guaranteed Association, and Craig Schneider. Just to be thorough I will also include Steve Dorfman as well as Simple Insurance Leads.

I will then use my social media reach to publicly reveal the details of how I was defrauded into signing up for a non-Obamacare compliant discount program because I was told by a company representative who claimed to be a licensed insurance agent that it was major medical health insurance for my family.

I would appreciate your immediate action in this matter.

Shannon Green

Today is Friday but it's not quite midnight so guess what? I lied. That's okay, I'll use my extra special Topaz Level Med-Sense Guaranteed Association Amwayesque membership to send them a discounted bouquet from 1-800-Flowers.

The good news is that I'm still medicated.

noreply@blogger.com (Shannon Green) — Fri, 21 Aug 2015 20:16:00 +0000

My husband lost his job yesterday which is pretty much a bummer. Yes, that is an extreme case of minimizing a major tragedy. Right now I am a little temporarily insane like that.

We went through this 2 years ago when he lost the job he'd had for over 17 years. That was our first experience with unemployment. It was frightening but fortunately he got a generous severance package so we didn't have to worry too much about how to survive until he found another job.

It took 3 months to find that replacement job and we thought it would be the one he retired with. We were wrong. He got terminated yesterday because "they decided to go a different direction with supply chain". That was their reason for termination...'we changed our minds'. I think what happened is that he implemented an effective supply chain process, completely revamped the warehouses and put procedures in place to keep things running smoothly so they decided they were done with him. Of course it won't take any time at all for them to work themselves back into the mess they were in before he got there so good luck to 'em!

Since they didn't offer him any kind of severance package (jerks) we are scrambling for ways to make ends meet until the next replacement job can be secured. Hopefully it won't take as long as last time but you never know.

By the way, the first time he was laid off was August 15, 2013. The second lay off was August 20, 2015. We've decided that August has nothing of value to offer us so from now on we will not be doing August anymore. We're just going to skip it.

The upside of all this is that since we've been there-done that I have more of a clue about what needs to be done. First thing...unemployment. I had it taken care of within 20 minutes of getting the news. The next thing I started tackling was health insurance. We were fortunate to have a very good major medical, dental and vision plan through his company but we'll lose that at the end of the month so I got busy trying to find a replacement.

The last layoff was shortly before Obamacare took effect and I have some preexisting conditions that pretty much rendered me uninsurable at that time so we had no choice but to use COBRA. Going without insurance and crossing our fingers wasn't an option because of my prescriptions. I take several each day and without insurance they would cost us well over $1,000 a month.

I had to mortgage a kidney to pay for COBRA last time but I can't do that this time because I'm pretty sure I need at least one kidney. We do have other options...let me weigh them here:

The good news is that I can't be turned down for my preexisting conditions this time.
The bad news is that the open enrollment doesn't start until November 1.
The good news is that since we've had a qualifying life experience we can apply anyway.
The bad news is that we don't qualify for subsidies.
The good news is that we should be able to access some retirement funds to cover the expense.
The bad news is that we will have to pay a penalty for early withdrawal.
The good news is that we can avoid some of the penalties if we reinvest a portion of it.
The bad news is that reinvesting a portion could delay our cash-in-hand by a couple of weeks.
The good news is that we still have my YouTube income.
The bad news is that it isn't enough to cover the rent that's due in 11 days.
The good news is that our property manager is awesome and said to just let her know if it will be late.
The bad news is that I might not know that it will be late until after it already is.
The good news is that I'm still medicated.
For now.

Dear Emoji Makers

noreply@blogger.com (Shannon Green) — Wed, 29 Jul 2015 20:34:00 +0000

Dear Emoji Makers,

Thank you for your fun little characters that we can use to express ourselves in our Facebook PMs when words fail us. I know that half my friends would have no idea how I was feeling without a couple of dancing minions to demonstrate.

I especially love it when I'm in a group PM with several other people and 2 of them start an emoji war. The notifications make my cell phone sound like someone just rolled triple 7s on a slot machine in my purse.

I check my phone, expecting to see thrilling conversations happening but instead it's a string of sweet little emoji interspersed with seizure-inducing animated GIFs. Oh the joy they bring.

In an effort to maximize that joy, I would like to offer one suggestion if I may. You see the problem is that your emoji are small and on mobile devices they are even smaller. This causes a slight problem for those of us with not quite so young eyeballs. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that the emoji I just sent to a friend was not 2 hugging minions but 2 fighting minions. And the emoji I thought was just a happy hotdog was actually a flasher hotdog, holding his bun open to reveal his....hot....dog.

I am aware that there are some options available. The smiley face emoji are usually easy to see but I don't like to use them because those are the ones that old people use. I am not old. I am just slightly visually impaired due to my advanced...maturity.

Therefore I would like to request that you make some emoji that are large enough for not old people like myself to see and use correctly. If it was just about the size of my mobile device's screen that would be great. It would certainly save me future embarrassment brought on by something called a HamCat.

I don't know if you are also the people responsible for the inflatable thumbs up on our mobile devices but just in case I will share my thoughts about that with you as well. First of all, I didn't even know the feature existed until a friend showed me and explained to me how it works. She told me to just touch it and hold until it starts growing then let go when it gets to the size I want. That's a concept I'm familiar with so I gave it a try. My friend warned that if I hold it for too long it will explode and go back to small. Again...familiar territory.

I touched the icon and watched it grow and grow, then just at that moment when it was almost where I wanted it the dang thing went small again. Story. Of. My. Life. It took several tries before I got the hang of it but finally discovered that mine prefers a light touch. Now I find it easy to apply just the right amount of pressure to get that little satisfying "pop" at the end.

The only problem is that now I can't stop touching it. I touch it four, maybe five times a day just to watch it grow. I'm even touching it in public. Now it's to the point where I don't even have to look at it, I know precisely the point at which it will "pop" just by the sound it makes.

Surely it's a harmless habit, right? Although...I am having trouble seeing all those little emoji and I seem to recall my mother saying something about going blind....

My Favorite YouTube Comments

noreply@blogger.com (Shannon Green) — Mon, 13 Jul 2015 04:06:00 +0000

These comments left on some of my YouTube videos are among my favorites. They're mostly negative, sometimes snarky, but always entertaining. Most of them were left on a video that has over 700,000 views despite everything these folks said I did wrong.

And before you complain that they're hard to read...I know, I know. I wasn't about to manually retype them so this is the best I could do. Just go ahead and leave me a comment complaining about it. I have lots of experience with that sort of thing!

Four on The Pelvic Floor

noreply@blogger.com (Shannon Green) — Thu, 21 May 2015 20:56:00 +0000

Sometimes I run across stuff on the internet that I just can't ignore. I know I should ignore it but I just don't have the strength.

Today I was browsing through the opportunities on a couple of the sponsorship websites I belong to. These sites match brands with influencers. In other words, they pimp out social media addicts such as myself. They're legit, I've actually done a couple of promotional videos through them but it's not my main focus so I don't do them often.

The offer that caught my eye today is from a company called Intimina. They are offering $100-$250 through Famebit for a YouTube review of their product. The product is called the Laselle Exercise Routine. It's not a craft product nor is it something that I think my viewers would be interested in so I won't be doing a video review.

However, I can certainly do a review here on my blog and I will even do it for free. You're welcome, Intimina.

--------------------too lazy to look for a cute separator----------------------

Does your pelvic floor have loose boards or creaky joists? Have I got a solution for you! Introducing the Laselle Exercise Routine by Intimina.

With the Laselle Routine, a 3 pack that gives you the full benefits of Laselle Exercisers in one simple package, you can take your pelvic floor training to new heights.

I didn't realize there was a chance that my pelvic floor training could reach a plateau. Who knew?!

Easy-to-use, discreet and completely body-safe, the Laselle Routine will help you to reach the peak of your intimate health.

Nudge, nudge...wink, wink.

Are you still wondering just exactly what this is? Let me explain:

This complete workout set includes 3 exercisers of varying weights that can be used individually or combined to effectively build strength and tone. Worn internally, the spherical shaped weight provides a solid object to flex your muscles around and emits subtle vibrations during movement to confirm that it is correctly placed.

It's not what you're thinking. This is legitimate exercise equipment to help tone your floppy Kegels. The vibrations are subtle and necessary to confirm proper placement. If you're concerned that the vibration might be TOO subtle you could always just attach your exerciser to one of these:

That would leave no doubt as to your exerciser's placement. And you would likely finish your routine much quicker.

Ahem.

Are you wondering exactly how this works? I will tell you and then I will demonstrate for you.

Laselle™ Exercisers allow you to start with a weight that best suits your current level of strength and progress from there.

• Light Resistance (28g/1oz) is ideal for women who have a weaker pelvic floor or for beginners.
• Moderate Resistance (38g/1.3oz) is perfect for those experienced in weight-free exercising.
• Higher Resistance (48g/1.7oz) is best for women experienced in weighted exercising for the most advanced training.

Sounds reasonable. Let's give this a try. Here's me doing my first set with the Light Resistance Exercisers.

Here's me doing my second set with the Moderate Resistance Exercisers.

Here's me doing my third set with the Higher Resistance Exercisers.

Clearly I'm in better shape than I thought. Fortunately the Laselle Exercise Routine is fully customizable, even for those of us who clearly qualify for the Kegel Olympics.

With this complete workout set you have the option to either use your exercisers individually or combined to effectively build pelvic floor strength and tone.

Here's me doing my first set with my exercisers linked together.

It took some trial and error but I was finally able to get some results after linking my exercisers together in a configuration that resembled a cluster of grapes.

Since my pelvic floor has never felt better, I want to help you get yours toned and creak-free too. I'm all about cheaper alternatives so here is my solution for a DIY Laselle Exercise Routine. My system is better because it has 4 different levels, not just 3. That gives you more options for a more complete pelvic floor workout. I call it Four on The Pelvic Floor. Here's what you get in the complete set:

For the Beginner. Don't forget to breathe.

Intermediate Level 1 includes a charging station for your not at all inappropriate subtle placement confirmation vibration.

Intermediate Level 2 can even be used outdoors. Who's gonna know, right?

This is for advanced exercisers only. Clearly this girl is an amateur.

Genius, right?! I know. After my routine I was able to unlink my exercisers then neatly weave each cord into an intricate Celtic knot before removing them. Thanks Intimina!

This is how I shop for groceries.

noreply@blogger.com (Shannon Green) — Wed, 22 Apr 2015 19:48:00 +0000

Monday: I really needed to get groceries today but I had to film a quick video for Daddy Van's since it's already overdue. I thought I might get groceries afterwards but it ended up taking all dang day. I'll make the grocery list so I can get them tomorrow after my doctor's appointment.

(Didn't make the list.)

Tuesday: I had to fast for bloodwork this morning so naturally I got a headache. By the afternoon it had turned into a migraine so I laid down for a few minutes then fell asleep. I woke up 3 hours later and still had the migraine. Since I won't be going to bed early I'll make the grocery list so that I'll be ready to get groceries tomorrow morning.

(Didn't make the list. Again.)

Wednesday: I need to get groceries today but I should pay bills first. That didn't take long. I noticed that my Tom's were looking pretty yucky so I decided to wash them. I promised myself I would NOT use the excuse of wet shoes to get out of grocery shopping, that would be immature. I could just wear tennis shoes. Then I saw it was awfully cloudy outside and sure enough, there's 80% chance of rain. I am NOT buying groceries in the rain. Been there, done that, it's miserable. I'll make the list and get groceries tomorrow for sure.

(Still didn't make the list.)

Thursday: Okay, Thursday isn't even here yet but I just remembered it's mine and Jayson's anniversary. I can't possibly buy groceries on our anniversary. We don't have any big anniversary plans but still, it's a day to celebrate, not buy groceries. I'll get them on Friday so that we'll have a full fridge for the weekend.

Friday: Friday isn't here yet but Friday is Funday. It sets the tone for the whole weekend. Grocery shopping isn't fun so I shouldn't ruin my Funday, and potentially my entire weekend, with it. We'll just order pizza and get groceries sometime over the weekend.

Saturday and Sunday: Since we don't pay for electricity on the weekends I've got to get all the laundry done before Monday. If I go to the grocery store I'll get distracted and lose my laundry momentum. I'll just start the week off right and get groceries on Monday. We can make do one more day with stuff we have on hand. I think I saw a can of pork and beans and I'm pretty sure the flour canister is full.

Monday: Rinse and repeat.

Spirograph aka My Super Fun Hypotrochoid and Epitrochoid Maker!

noreply@blogger.com (Shannon Green) — Fri, 13 Mar 2015 20:00:00 +0000

Yesterday I pulled out my 1967 almost mint condition Spirograph and sat down to play. I bought this little gem on eBay a few years ago because it was one of my most favorite things to do when I was growing up. I was looking forward to revisiting this old friend since I was certain that as an adult I would be able to eliminate some of the things that frustrated me about it as a child.

As I prepared my work surface I remembered how my uncoordinated child fingers always had trouble coaxing the little map pins out of their container. I discovered that my arthritic adult fingers have the same problem.

As I pinned my ring in place on the official Spirograph corrugated cardboard work surface, I had trouble identifying the holes in the ring that were meant for the pins. There are 4 of them and they're smaller than the other holes, which I still don't know the purpose of. Later I was reminded that it doesn't really matter which holes you stick the map pins into. They will eventually wiggle loose on your last rotation, causing a single misplaced mark on your otherwise perfect geometric creation.

I wonder if the modern versions of Spirograph include a work surface made from something better than corrugated cardboard. Even as a child I can remember thinking it was a poor choice. The corrugation lines sometimes show up on the large Spirograph doodles, not to mention the fact that the pin holes leave behind potholes that your pen will most definitely fall into, causing you to poke an irritating and unwanted hole in your paper.

My vintage Spirograph came complete with the original pens but, alas, the ink didn't survive the decades. I thought I would be really smart and use my Slicci gel pens with the .25mm tips. The tips are so fine they're like writing with a needle which I thought would be perfect for the tiny holes they have to fit into.

The tips did indeed fit nicely in the holes but I discovered that after 3 or 4 passes over the same area, those needle tips acted like little razors and sliced right through the paper.

One of the most frustrating things I remember about my Spirograph was when I got a big misplaced mark across my otherwise pristine creation when the gears accidentally slipped. I was certain this wouldn't be a problem since, as an adult, I would naturally be more careful so that those little plastic teeth stayed perfectly engaged. Okay that didn't happen. The gears slipped and I made a big misplaced mark. The only thing that changed was the string of colorful expletives I let loose when it happened.

I can't recall ever reading the instruction booklet when I was young so I flipped through it to see if maybe there was some helpful information that I might need. There may have been, I'm not sure because the whole thing is written in some kind of mysterious code. I would imagine it's similar to what a crochet pattern looks like to someone who doesn't crochet.

The only helpful information I was able to get from the instruction booklet was that the holes on the rings and on the wheels are numbered and it matters which hole you use and how you line them up if you're going to try to duplicate one of their suggested patterns.

Actually that would have been helpful information if I could actually SEE the tiny clear numbers next to the tiny clear holes on the tiny clear wheels.

And what exactly are the patterns that a Spirograph creates? I usually just call them doodles but according to Wikipedia they are actually "mathematical roulette curves of the variety technically known as hypotrochoids and epitrochoids". Well, heck! What child wouldn't love that?!

But how, exactly, does it work? Thankfully, Wikipedia also offers this pictorial mathematical explanation for how the Spirograph works:

I just love it when things are demystified like that.

My First Visual Zibaldone

noreply@blogger.com (Shannon Green) — Thu, 05 Mar 2015 16:29:00 +0000

Today I am commonplacing in my first visual zibaldone....and trying to define exactly what that means as I go. Since a zibaldone is such an obscure type of book and by definition it means hodgepodge, I feel like it's okay to just make stuff up.

Therefore, my zibaldone will be similar to my Journaling By 5s journal but without the limitations. I will work on the book as a whole instead of going page by page as in traditional art journaling. I will limit myself to about 20 pages since working on any more than that can get overwhelming or tedious. I will loosely follow the JB5 sessions and media recommendations but in no particular order and with more substitutions and repeats.

Some of the JB5 principles that I will continue to follow are that I only use things I have on hand. I will not buy and kind of media or embellishment specifically for my visual zibaldone. That doesn't mean I'm on a spending freeze. I'm a very thrifty shopper anyway but I will occasionally pick up some fun new stuff and I will use that stuff in my zibaldone but it won't be purchased specifically for that purpose.

Another JB5 principle I will adhere to is leaving my brain out of the process. Of course I will have a rough idea of what I want to do and how I want my pages to look but I will not plan out every detail of the book and I will not end up with a book full of perfect pages. To help with that I will work quickly but without a timer.

My plan is to end up with a book full of experiments, trial and error, "I wonder what would happen if...", do-overs, "What was I thinking??", etc... If I end up with a book full of awesome art pages, that would be a disappointment to me. That would mean that I played it safe and stuck to what I know and I don't want to do that. I want to push the envelope, make mistakes, learn from them and keep going.

As I continue to play in my first visual zibaldone I will come up with a more specific definition for it. Join me in the JB5 Facebook group to keep tabs on the process and see where it ends up:

Journaling By 5s Facebook Group

Visual Commonplacing in My Zibaldone

noreply@blogger.com (Shannon Green) — Wed, 04 Mar 2015 02:57:00 +0000

I've decided I don't like the words 'art journal' anymore. Art journals have expectations. They want you to fill them with beautiful works of art. Sometimes I'm okay with that but sometimes I'm not.

'Sketchbook' doesn't work for me because I don't sketch.

I don't do 'scrapbooking' because all those pictures of my family just got in the way of what I was trying to create.

'Notebook' isn't the word I want either. Those have lines in them and want you to write important stuff on their pages.

I think Strathmore made a wise marketing decision with their 'Visual Journals'. That phrase doesn't have the same expectations as 'art journal' or 'sketchbook. I can glue a picture of a dog wearing dentures into a visual journal.

But I'm still bothered by the 'journal' part of it. That word makes me think of a diary...a written account of thoughts, events, plans, dreams, etc. I journal on occasion but not regularly and seldom do I combine it with art. I just don't want to, it's not my thing.

And speaking of art...if I make an art journal does that make me an artist? Does scrapbooking make me a crafter? Where do I stand on the artist vs. crafter debate? I stand firmly planted on the I-don't-give-a-crap side of that debate. Sometimes I call myself an artist. Sometimes I call myself a crafter. Sometimes I'm a crafter who makes art. Lately I've been calling myself an arter or a craftist just so I can thumb my nose at the ridiculousness of it all.

Recently I stumbled upon commonplace books. These books are part journal, part notebook, part sketchbook, part scrapbook but not wholly any of those things. Early commonplace books from the 14th and 15th centuries contained medical recipes, poems, prayers, proverbs, notes on the best time of year for blood letting, etc.

The invention of the printing press started overwhelming people with information so they used commonplace books to keep track of it. By the mid 17th century everybody was doing it. Commonplacing was the Pinterest of the Age of Enlightenment. Since books were where it was at back then, most commonplace books contained literary quotes, thoughts, sketches, lists and similar marginalia related to the books being read at that time. I just learned "marginalia" today and wanted to hurry up and use it before I forget it.

Unlike a diary or journal, commonplacing is not chronological nor is it written as a narrative. Often times the writing is organized by categories throughout the book. A commonplace book is not a notebook because it may contain sketches or pasted in articles, receipts, letters, etc. It is not a sketchbook or art journal because it usually contains significantly more words than pictures. Although a commonplace book may contain photographs or ephemera, it is not a scrapbook because scrapbooks are "outward". They are meant to be shared or displayed or available for others to see. Commonplace books are "inward". They are for their creator only.

In 15th century Italy a new type of commonplace book was developed. It was called a zibaldone which means hodgepodge. Zibaldones contained the same type of information found in most commonplace books but they weren't as organized, the information was much more random or scattered. They also contained more sketches, poetry, and creative elements than the typical commonplace book.

Because of my newly acquired distaste for the words 'art jounal', I have decided to replace them with 'visual commonplace book' or 'visual zibaldone'. I haven't decided for sure which one I like better. Visual commonplace book would probably be easier to use since commonplacing is a legitimate verb that I can use with it, despite the dreaded red spell checker dots that usually accompany it. Since zibaldones were a form of commonplace book, I suppose it would be accurate to say I'm commonplacing when I'm working in my zibaldone since zibaldoning just doesn't really work at all.

So from now on I will be doing some visual commonplacing in my zibaldone instead of art journaling. How is that going to be different from the art journaling I was doing before? It's not. It's just a mental thing. But it does make me feel way cooler than everyone else.

Huge thanks to Google and Wikipedia for supplying me with all of this newfound useless knowledge that I spent hours and hours acquiring and will lose after one short nap.