It wasn’t. The bird twitched and contorted on its back for hours. The city girl in me couldn’t do the right thing. Going to bed was the only option, turning off my brain; not thinking about the right and wrong of it. Layla couldn’t sleep with the questions she had, “What if the bird is still alive in the morning?” ‘What does ‘let nature take it’s course mean’?” “Is there something we can do?” With Greg out of town, it didn’t take much convincing to let her snuggle up with me for the night.

I woke up this morning and looked out on the deck relieved to see the bird was gone. It probably got better and flew away!

You can tell yourself whatever story you want.

Auctions end tonight.

 Also a big thank you to The Union for this great article about my time in Hell by Brett Bentley additional photo generously provided by John Burnett

All bids are greatly appreciated and I’m happy to answer any questions you may have. I am here and I am a true story.

52 Pieces (3 didn’t make the cut)

All works on paper starting at .05

All works on canvas starting at .10

10 Days

No reserve

No “buy now”

Free US Shipping

Had to make some changes to

Hell #25
30″ x 30″
Mix Media on Canvas

Hell #53
30″ x 30″
Mix Media on Canvas

Hell #54
10″ x 10″
Mixed Media on Birch Board

Hell #55 “The Homemaker”
16″ x 20″
Mixed Media on Canvas

 If you would like to read the tale from the beginning start here. 

eBay sent this message to Cameron, Sheila (hollywoodkit). Your registered name is included to show this message came from eBay. Learn more about how to tell if an email is really from eBay

	DO NOT REPLY – Regarding the Status of your eBay Account SR# 1-XXXX

eBay sent this message to Sheila Cameron (hollywoodkit). Your registered name is included to show this message originated from eBay. Learn more. Information about your eBay selling limits – hollywoodkit Dear hollywoodkit (sheilacameron@me.com)Our goal is to make sure eBay is a safe and trusted marketplace. In our continued effort to help meet our goal, we have account limits which allow us to learn about your selling activity and make sure you’re adhering to our selling practices policy and performance standards. Limits vary by seller and can change over time.  You can now sell up to 500 items monthly and up to $15,000.00 monthly. If you currently have more items (active items for sale and sold items) this month than your limits allow, you should reduce the number of listings you have on the site. Any listings that place you over your current limits may be automatically removed.  – Related help links – Limits on eBay sellers:  http://pages.ebay.com/help/sell/sellinglimits.html  Selling practices policy: http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/selling-practices.html  Seller performance standards:  http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/seller-non-performance.html  We appreciate your cooperation. Thanks, eBay Please don’t reply to this message. It was sent from an address that doesn’t accept incoming email.

June 1, 2013

Dear N—,

Thank you for getting back to me about my documents. I am resending with an increase in the size of my driver’s license and faxing my credit card statement directly.

I am still not entirely clear on why I have triggered a freeze on my account as I am a long-time eBay seller in good standing. It would be much easier to email you this information clearly if you happen to have an email account I might use? If for some reason this document is not satisfactory, can you provide a better way to contact you directly?

I am also looking for clarification on the $15,000 monthly limit on my account. I am currently in the process of listing 52 original works of art in a 10 day auction and would very much like to earn as much money as possible. I know $1.5 million sounds like a fairy tale but I think it is some of my best work and would truly not end an auction unless there was life-changing money offered. Again, I’m not sure why I can not dream big since I am not engaged in anything fraudulent and it is an honest assessment of what my work, this auction, and the project as a whole means to me.

That said, is this $15,000 limit on only the “buy now” portion of the auctions or is it a limit on all earnings and bids? Should a rich benefactor choose to invest more than $15,000 in my work, would that trigger an end to my other auctions? I have invested 3 months and countless hours in this project and want to be sure that I am doing this correctly. I am also a big fan of eBay for artists. I know art online is a long shot but isn’t art everywhere a long shot?

Can you please help me move forward with my idea by June 5 by clarifying the limits on the account and/or increasing them?

I assure you I am not any more deluded than any other artist out there and would gladly discuss this with you or a supervisor to clarify my goals. I am requesting this in the spirit of good will and good business. 

Most Sincerely,

Sheila Cameron

I’m willing to take a big dive to make sure it finds a place in the world but I also wanted to ask for the outer limits on the high side in the form of  a “buy it now” price. This is not a reserve but merely a stated value in the form of a wish for any artist that lists on eBay.

I am an artist. I am worth less than the first, free, helium balloon Layla let go in the Trader Joe’s parking lot and more than an entire mini mall. I thought there were no gatekeepers but even eBay has an inside alarm that sounds when someone is audacious enough to ask for more. Granted, I asked for $1.5 million but why the fuck not?

Okay I know why not but I didn’t think just the act of asking would cause so much drama.

From eBay

Attention Sellers: It looks like you’re listing a really valuable item. Before you continue, we’d like to talk with you about your selling plans and make sure you can meet buyer expectations. Contact eBay Customer Support to speak with an agent.

I spoke to a super nice customer service guy who addressed me like he was talking me off a ledge at the asylum. I felt a little bad for him because the questions I asked didn’t have an answer but I was truly curious not combative. He said I needed my work appraised to put a high “buy now” price on it. I asked who might appraise it? He told me to google “appraisers”. I asked if eBay had a list of art appraisers that are approved by them or if anyone would work that I googled. He told me to look in New York City or maybe I could find a local appraiser.

I went back to my computer to continue my auction listings humbled but hopeful.

eBay sent this message to Cameron, Sheila (hollywoodkit). Your registered name is included to show this message came from eBay. Learn more about how to tell if an email is really from eBay.

	DO NOT REPLY – Regarding the Status of your eBay Account xx-xxxxxxx

As part of our efforts to keep eBay a safe and enjoyable place to buy and sell, we may sometimes ask members to verify the information registered with us or provide us with more information about the items being sold. These actions are not necessarily meant to be a reflection of your account’s activity, but rather a preventative measure. 

In order for us to review your account, I need to ask you to submit all of the following information by fax (fax number below):

- A readable copy of your driver’s license, front *and* back, or other government-issued ID.

- A copy of a recent credit card statement, bank statement, or utility bill. Your name and billing address should be visible, and consistent with the information registered to your eBay account.

- A copy of the appraisal for the item that you wish to list on the eBay website.

 – Important –

 - Make sure that your name and User ID appears on each document that you submit. If this information is not included, it cannot be processed.

- Be sure your submitted documents are current, valid, and legible.

Fax all documents to:

eBay

ATTN:  Seller Vetting

US number: 1-801-xxx-xxxx

International number: 001-801-xxx-xxxx

If you don’t have access to a fax machine there are many places that will allow you to fax documents for free or for a small fee. Some of these places include Fedex Office, Staples, or local libraries. There are also some websites that will allow you to transmit a fax electronically.

After you submit the above information, please allow 3 business days to have this information reviewed but once that process has been completed we’ll contact you by email regarding the status of your account.

We appreciate your cooperation in providing us with this information. We look forward to partnering with you in order to establish a strong selling history and successful business on eBay.

Kind Regards,

B——–

I love eBay! I don’t want to break up. I sent this fax (yes a fax).

May 30, 2013

Dear B——-, 

Thanks so much for your help this morning.

 I am attaching the following information per your request minus the appraisal, as it isn’t clear to me who can tell me what my art is worth. I am an artist that uses the Internet as a medium and the auctions I am trying to create are part of this art.

I would like to create 52 art auctions as the finishing piece in a larger work called “Jerry Saltz PERSONALLY Invited Me to Hell and I’m Going!”.  Mr. Saltz is an internationally known New York art critic who challenged my work on Facebook and invited me to create 55 pieces of art based on his critique (I am only listing 52 as 3 aren’t good enough to share). Over 3 months I documented the work and shared it with my readers. I completed the work and would like to auction it off on eBay with a very low starting bid and high “buy it now” price.

The high “buy it now” price is not an attempt to deceive eBay buyers but a comment that fits in with the larger creative thesis. I would like to make that comment but if that precludes me from doing the auction at all, I will forgo that piece of the project. I honestly didn’t realize that putting a high buy now price would trigger so much concern but I understand how it might in hindsight.

Mr. Saltz reviews shows and auctions where work regularly sells in the millions. He has not appraised my work but I am hoping he will take a look. I have no idea how to put a dollar amount on a Facebook comment and tag from Mr. Saltz.

I am an internationally known Internet Artist.  If you recall “Free Katie” I created that and received worldwide attention for it. I was also the Director of Integrated Media for Live Planet where I oversaw and co-produced Project Greenlight for Matt Damon and Ben Affleck. Again, I have no idea what any of that is worth in art terms so I thought I’d aim high. I will gladly forgo the high “buy it now” price if I can skip the step of seeking an outside appraisal and have my eBay account back.

I have never had a bad transaction on eBay and believe it is a great resource for artists who are outside the mainstream art world. Please advise on how I can move forward without triggering concerns. Feel free to call me to discuss so I can directly address any concerns.

Very Best Regards,

 Sheila Cameron
Hollywoodkit
Sheilacameron.com

We’ll see what happens next. I have a stomach ache. Thank you Shannon for sending me this yesterday.  I need some today.

Then I remembered I’m a good mommy and had photos and found them tucked neatly in to my files. I love when past versions of myself remember that future me can be a little distracted. Still on track to finish up next week.

Sorry babies, here’s your turn in the spot light.

Hell #28
7″ x 5″
Mixed Media on Canvas

Hell #9
12″ x 13″
Mixed Media on Cardboard

30″  x 30″ Work in Progress

Time to take a break from the yammering and make some decisions. I’ll be around if you have any questions or comments but no more posts for now.

I’ll see you June 5.

Hell #40-51 9″ x 12″ Mixed Media on Paper

Hell #52 9″ x 12″ Mixed Media on Paper Canvas

GREG: Did you get dishwashing soap?

SHEILA: I forgot. I’ll get some tomorrow.

(Pause)

SHEILA: I’m stressed.

GREG: (typing furiously on a live sound message board, feigning attention) hmmm…

SHEILA: I’m a little freaked out. I’m afraid I’m not good enough to be bad or bad enough to be good. Do you know what I mean? I can’t tell…you know?

GREG: (Looking up with a smile) I have no idea what you are talking about. I don’t get any of it. I just don’t want you to get hurt. Art people can be mean.

SHEILA: (happy to engage) I can’t get hurt because if I fail, I want to fail big. I just feel this urge to attack, to go hard. If I go strong at least it will be interesting.  If I flail around with everything I’ve got, I succeed no matter what anyone else thinks.

SHEILA: (pausing to consider the implications, working out what she means as she speaks)I can do that. I have nothing to lose and even getting punched in the face is interesting…figuratively speaking. The only way I fail is if I simper.

GREG: (Calmly) Oh well that’s just Punk Rock.

SHEILA: (Feeling energized) Yeah!

Pause. Greg goes back to his laptop as Sheila debates saying the next thing that pops in her head, afraid of the answer.

SHEILA: Do you think I’m going to get hurt because you think I’m not good enough?

GREG: NO!

SHEILA: Sorry. Okay. I’m just stressed.

GREG: Is the washing machine still leaking?

SHEILA: I don’t know.

GREG: I’ll call the guy.

END SCENE

I may have online swagger and balls as big as Cadillacs but that only makes them easier to kick. I’m still vulnerable, still grateful, still humbled by this life we’ve built. Sometimes I forget to sip from the cup of creative energy we have in our own home. I’m so glad it’s there for me when I need it.

How I love that drummer of mine and the life we have.

Marc Spitz Freestyle – “Donny”

Wow, like life, the 30′s are going fast. Hell #29 and Hell #30 are 5″ x 7″ Mixed Media on board. The rest are Mixed Media on 9″ x 12″ Paper Canvas. If you feel like commenting on a piece, I would be very grateful if you stopped by my Facebook event to do so. I’m already getting lots of helpful feedback and would welcome more.

Hell #39 12″ x 9″ Mixed Media on Paper Canvas