SHIPPING GREEN! HOW TO SAVE ON PACKAGING

Everyone's talking about Going Green around the house and other places. For those of you who sell online or anywhere else, or even if you're just shipping out gifts and other packages, here's how you can cut down on your packaging expenses & Ship Green!

The following items are recyclable: Bubble Mailers, Padded Mailers, Boxes, Mailing Tubes, Envelopes, Bubble Wrap, Packing Peanuts, Tissue Paper, Air Bags, Plastic Bags, Junk Mail.

The most important thing to keep in mind is to make sure all items are Clean & Odor Free. No one likes to receive anything in dirty packaging or packing materials that reek of smoke or other odors.

Mailers & Envelopes that have labels that are close to impossible to remove can be covered up by a piece of plain paper with a label in place. Or in some cases, all you need to do is place your label over the old one. Junk mail envelopes are great for mailing things in provided you be sure to cover up the Sender's address. Junk Mail also makes good packing filler when once it's been run thru the shredder.

When you get a package & your item(s) have been wrapped in bubble wrap and/or tissue paper, have a big plastic bag, box or storage container on hand to save & recycle these items. The same thing goes for air bags & packing peanuts. Store them in a big plastic bag or storage container for future use. This comes in very handy when you are shipping items that require these. Very cost effective too.

Clean plastic bags are great when you're shipping out clothing & wish to protect it in packages.

Bubble and Padded Mailers may also be cut down to size when necessary. This is great if you need an odd size. Also cost effective if they are in good shape - you don't have to spend money on any.

The USPS offers Free Priority Mail Boxes & Envelopes in a variety of sizes. Shipping by Flat Rate Priority Mail can sometimes be cost effective for both Sellers & Buyers alike. Just keep in mind that there are weight limits.

When shipping small items that are not fragile, cereal boxes, frozen food boxes and almost any other small grocery item box works well. Shoe boxes and cardboard boxes from other items are also great to ship things in. All you need is a heavy duty black Sharpie or Marker to block out UPC Codes or any wording on the outside of cardboard boxes.

Ship Green & Save Money!

Guidelines for Buyers

Buyers a friendly reminder it is very important to treat Sellers with the same kind of courtesy & respect you expect to be given. If you have a problem with a Seller after you've received your purchase(s), please do not threaten, demand and fabricate problems. Stick to the facts. Those of us Sellers who are honest, are not only willing to work with you but will also do everything possible to correct any problems.



Lying and saying that "it costs this to repair, re-size, alter, etc." and then getting nasty with your Seller will get you nowhere. Don't forget that Sellers are have many of the same resources that you do & are able to verify fact from fiction.



When you purchase anything at all, whether it is online, via catalog or phone, do not demand, in fact do not expect that you are entitled to have your S&H Fees refunded to you. You are not entitled to S&H Fees Refunded. In fact, you are not entitled to have return S&H paid for by a Seller. Check this with your local post office - they will inform you that any Seller is not legally bound to refund and/or pay S&H costs. This is your responsibility. Keep this in mind BEFORE you make that purchase.



Do not threaten Sellers with leaving Negative Feedback. Do not even think of trying to bribe Sellers by saying: "If you do this, if you refund me this, I will leave you Positive Feedback". This is Feedback Extortion. This could come back to haunt you in other ways. Don't forget that Sellers communicate with other Sellers concerning Buyers. If you are demanding, disrespectful, nasty and unreasonable, if you threaten a Seller in any way or try to bribe a Seller, chances are very certain that you will not only find yourself being blocked from that particular Seller, other Sellers will also block you from buying as a bad risk.

Tips for Sellers on Handling Problem Buyers

Every once in awhile, just when things are running very smoothly, along comes a buyer who, after purchasing one or even more items, upon receiving their order has a sudden case of Buyer's Remorse. Maybe they simply changed their mind & don't want to admit it. Perhaps they decided they really shouldn't have spent any money and feel guilty. Or in some, unfortunate cases, the buyer in question decides they are going to try to see if they can successfully pull a scam or con the Seller into either getting more money or even something for nothing.

Sellers must at all cost remain Professional, Calm & Courteous. If one acts in haste & is not extremely careful with handling a buyer as described above, you have more to lose. Sellers have the right to legally refuse to reimburse any & all Shipping & Handling Fees. There is no single mail order catalog and/or mail order company that will issue a refund for Shipping & Handling Fees. Some companies but this is rare, will ship a credit item & absorb the S&H Fees. But none of them will ever absorb S&H for an item or items to be returned to them. Especially if the description of said item is worded clearly & carefully.

I often wonder how many Buyers even bother to read Sellers' entire policies regarding returns and exchanges. And Sellers must be very clear & concise as to exactly how their policies are worded. Honesty in all business dealings is very important. Honest Sellers as well as Honest Buyers will maintain a sterling reputation. Once a Seller or Buyer is dishonest, word travels quickly.

Sellers do not allow a Buyer to bully you or make demands. Stand firm, hold your ground, especially if you suspect that a Buyer is less than honest.

SNOW MUCH CREATIVITY!

After having been bombarded by one blizzard after another & a 3rd, although smaller one on the way, some times cabin fever just gets the best of even adults.

I was showing my teenager some photos online of re-creations of snowmen made by Calvin & Hobbes fans, which happened to spark a bit of genius on his part. At first, we were going to create our own 2-headed snow monster. And as we set out to do so, when we finally reached the poin where the head & face was under construction, my son's artisitic "genuis" came up with a very different idea. Having used a piece of red plastic for the nose & carving out "fiery burning holes" for the eyes, adding an old pair of plastic vampire fangs brought this unusual creation to life. But there was one little thing missing - blood!

What to do, what to use, on the spur of the moment. AHA! Wilton's Concentrated Red Food Coloring. made great red fiery eyes & blood dripping from the vampire fangs! But one small lesson to be learned. Never, ever again use Wilton's Concentrated Red Food Coloring without first using a pair of disposable or old household rubber gloves to protect one's hands.

By the way - the snow vampire does look very scary!

Good-Bye Kitty - Tribute to Our Wonderful Sable

Our Beloved Sable ~ May 22, 1994 - Feb. 8, 2009

It is so difficult to even think of our Sable as no longer being with us. This is one of my favourite photos of him, when he was a young cat. He not only took over the dog's bed but didn't hesitate to claim the dog's hedgehog toy as his own.

Sable was known by a variety of names: Grickle Grackle & Capt. Hook were the only other 2 he'd answer to on occasion. I raised him from birth. His parents were 2 young feral cats. Neither of them overly friendly, but his mother trusted me with her babies & brought all 5 of them to live under the back porch. As the kittens grew, a couple of them found other homes, a couple eventually left for parts unknown but Sable chose to stay on. Sable was the only marmalade kitten in the litter. When he was quite small, his fur was bright orange & white. As he grew older, it deepened to a more tawny & white colour. He was a handsome fellow.

The first 6 months of his life, he mostly stayed outdoors. Then the weather grew chilly & I would open the doors to the cellar from the inside & call Sable. And he'd coming running from wherever he was, more like a dog responding to his owner. I kept him in the cellar & set up a litter box, food & water for him. At the time, I had an older, angora cat & a peke-a-poo. My angora cat was declawed & even though Sable was used to being around my dog outdoors, i didn't want to risk my other pets being scratched even by accident thru play. In the mornings, I go down the cellar, open the door & Sable would run out, seeking adventure. Until one day it had snowed a little overnight.

The following morning, I opened the cellar doors for Sable as usual. He sat at the very top of the steps & looked around at the snow. He then tentatively placed one paw on the snow & pulled his paw back to the step. He looked at me as if to say: "If you think I'm going out in that, you're crazy!" And back down the steps he ran. After that, I just knew that Sable wasn't going to go outdoors anymore. I then had him fixed & declawed. When he was declared fit by the vet, I started bringing him upstairs & introduced him to my other cat & also to let him get used to being around my dog indoors. As far as my dog was concerned, he liked having his buddy inside. Ah, but my cat was not very pleased with this. She walked up to Sable, smacked him across the nose with her paw & sat back, glared at him & the expression on her face said it all: "I am in charge around here, mister! Don't you forget it." In time she accepted Sable but always smacked at him with her paw when she felt he deserved it. Or to just remind him that she was "the boss."

Sable was always a member of the family and not just a pet. When Sable started becoming ill over the last few months, it was so hard to accept what would be the inevitable. All of our pets mourned his passing. He went peacefully. Right to the end, he was loving and fought a good fight to survive. It's not the first time we had to say good-bye to a much loved pet and it won't be the last. Our lives were that much richer for having our wonderful Sable in our lives. While some will say that 15 1/2 years is a long time, to us it was all too short.

Holiday Aftermath!

All the preparations, decorating, cooking, shopping, wrapping - all over & done with until the next occasion. New Year's is almost upon us. This year, we were saavy & bought our champagne in November. Yes, we avoided the increased prices on champagne this year. Not to mention going for champagne now & discovering that they're out of stock on all the good champers & all that's left is the "el cheapo turpentine" or "California gasoline". And as this year draws to a close, it's also time to keep my fingers crossed & hope for a few more good sales to end this year. So starting tomorrow, I'll be discounting some items & listing new ones at what I hope are hard to resist prices.

And once all the holiday decorations are put away for another year, maybe, just maybe, I'll be able to have some time of my own & relax (wishful thinking!) & enjoy a cup of fragrant tea. So Happy New Year to all & to all Good Buys!

We're getting down to the wire now. We had our first snow storm on Sat. Snowed all day & all night - trapped in the house, impossible to go anywhere! Roads were a bit slick on Sunday but managed to get out & do a couple of quick errands.

Of course, who would have ever thought we'd run out of wrapping paper today?! So tonite, need to have hubby get wrapping paper. And OMG! Just discovered I have around 3-4 cards left to write & mail! Could be worse - history could have repeated itself & I could've been like my (late) mother, writing out cards at midnight on Xmas Eve.

Baking is almost all finished. But I'd love to know who the culprit is that made off with my gingerbread man cookie cutter! Necessity is the mother of invention. I made gingerbread snowmen & dusted them off with powered sugar & they are now nestled in a snowman tin, all ready for the trusty schoolbus driver.

Hopefully the 2 last minute Xmas pressies I ordered will be in the mail by Xmas Eve.