My sweet niece....entered the convent in August, 2005

Hi everyone and welcome to my life!!!!  I am 56 years old now, and really looking forward to the Senior Citizen's discounts!  If you had told me 20 years ago that I would be saying that now, I would have accused you of being totally insane!!  This age thing...I don't know...I really don't mind it anymore.  At 21, all my friends got married, and I thought sure that I was going to be an "Old Maid".  Then I met my "Knight in shining Armor" and got married at 26.  Turning 30 didn't bother me at all, didn't mind 40...I loved those years, the 40's...they were the best.  Then 50...YIKES....I kept saying it over and over and it just sounded terrible.  I HATED turning 50!!  I swear the day of my 50th birthday, the doorbell rang, and there stood "menopause".  Then came hot flashes, mood swings, etc......everything was all done 6 months later!!  I have no hormones left, but I feel okay, I guess!  Anyway, I don't care about age anymore, but always love it when someone says "You're 56...no way"!!  It's a female thing!!

So....I have been married almost 30 years now (OUCH!!), have 2 lovely step-daughters, and 6 wonderful grandchildren.  Right now I have 2 aquariums of tropical fresh water fish...a 55 gallon and a 60 gallon.  I have 4 empty tanks just waiting for me to set them up.  I love the fish.  They really do have personalities.  One of these days, I'll get those other tanks set up.  I also have 2 "I'm-so-in-love-with-them" pussy cats!!  These 2 sweeties are so much a part of my life, especially now that I am home with them.  I have always loved cats.  They are just so furry and cuddly, and independent.  Face it...what's a cat gonna' do if you throw a frisbee and tell it to fetch??  It's gonna' walk the other way, look back at you like you are out of your mind, and if it could talk, it would tell you to get it yourself!!  That's what I love about a cat!

HOUSEWORK??  Hate it!!  Now that I am home all the time, you'd think that my housework would always be done.  HAH!!  I hate it more now than before I retired.  Not sure why...maybe just because I don't have the excuse of "not having the time".

HEALTH??  Well, I'm a "whacko"!!  Not really.  Actually, I was medically retired due to depression/anxiety.  Never got better enough to go back to work.  I am on meds to keep it in check.  Still have lots of problems with insomnia.  I am either up all the time, or sleeping for hours.  Just can't seem to get that adjusted.  No complaints though...could always be worse.  I'm alive and not terminally ill.  I can handle this.

BEARS!!!  A very good friend got me interested in bears, particularly Boyds.  Let's see...it's been about 10 years now, I think.  Now, you gotta' know this about me...when I do something, I do it big.  So, when the "bear fever" really took hold, I bought LOTS of bears, and this went on for a LONG time!!  I put up shelves in both guest bedrooms and put bears on them.  Shelves in the kitchen with bears.  Shelves in the bathroom with bears.  Bears on chairs in the living room, on top of the entertainment center, hanging from plant hangers in the dining room, on every step of the stairs....they were literally ALL OVER THE PLACE......until I ran out of room!!  Then...they went into storage, but I kept buying, and they went into storage, and on...and on...and on!!!!

And then came....OVER THE RAINBOW, my ebay store.  Well, I was only going to do this for a little while until I got the bear population down to a manageable number.  But, remember what I told you...when I do something, I do it BIG!!  I went from bears to Franklin Mint items to a few dolls to collectible plates and anything else "gifty".  Two and a half years later, here I am, still at it.  I love working on ebay, and meeting people from all over the country.  Yeah, it gets hectic, and I'm human and make mistakes.  Most people are all forgiveness when that happens.  Afterall, that's why they put erasers at the end of pencils, right?!!  Every once in a while, you'll get that one that just likes to complain, and an apology is not enough...you could offer to turn the world upside down for them, and that's still not enough.  Those people are very few and far between....thank heavens!!

WHAT'S NEXT??  Ever since I started selling here on Ebay, I have wanted to include some of my "home-made wares".  I love all kinds of needlework and anything "arty".  I am hoping that I will be able to find the time to do some of this and get them up as auctions.  I find that working on any kind of craft is very rewarding and relaxing.  Let's hope I can get to it!!  I have tons of ideas for needlework, candles, etc.

AM I EVER GOING TO SHUT UP??!!  Yep, real soon!!  Just want you to know that I have some of the nicest customers on ebay.  I tell them to email just to chat if they want, and a lot of them do.  I chat back.  I'm a little slow sometimes....all right, I'm a little slow all the time...just be patient!!

Rest assured that I stand 100% behind everything I sell.  If there's somethin' wrong with it, I'll tell ya.  I pack everything with loving care,  I want you to receive it the way that I would want to receive it.  Your questions and comments are ALWAYS welcome.  I promise I'll answer...if you have the patience, I have the answer!!

Thanks for taking the time to find out about me.  If you should happen to stumble over something about me that I am not aware of, feel free to let me know......I'm really not crazy....I just like to have fun!!

Once again, I thank all of you for your support..  I want to continue to please all of my buyers........I want to be the very best that I can be.  In my business, I have two rules of thumb:  Always, always, sell a quality product at a fair price and always, always, always please the customer.  If at any time you feel that I have failed at either of these rules, don't hesitate to let me know.  I also welcome any ideas on product that you would like to see and I will do my best to carry it for you.  I am always available at toots52@rochester.rr.com and I will always reply.

God bless all of you who enter here.  I wish you all a wonderful life.

Big bearhugs to you all..........Sue (bearsburpalot)