I Don't Want Your Money - Really

I've written before about the flurry of activity surrounding those stupid pirate hats last summer. Everyone loved them, everyone wanted one, and I was sick to death of making them. But one nice lady from Delaware really wanted one for her goth granddaughter, and I said I'd make it. I said I'd send it to her, and then she could send payment back when she received it. I did that because subconsciously I was (am) really sick of the pirate hats, and if I didn't take her money up front then I wouldn't feel as committed to a particular time frame for the project.

I've had this problem before. Rick ran into a VERY unfortunate situation a few years ago on a handyman side job, where the customer insisted on paying for everything up front and then was perpetually unhappy thereafter when the timing of the project (and the multiple changes she required) weren't completed as quickly as she wanted. I mean, really - I lost a friend over it. So other than maybe supply money, please just wait to be sure you're happy before you pay me.

Anyway, the Delaware grandmother insisted. And I took her money, and her address, and promised to mail the hat soon. And then I went home and made the other 4 or 5 pirate hats on request, and in the ensuing chaos of my life I lost the nice lady's address. I felt very guilty. I looked at the hat, and felt more guilty. I decided to make some matching hand warmers as an apology, should I ever find her address. I started another hat, in warmer fibers, since the granddaughter certainly wouldn't want cotton in November (even in Delaware). The guilt was constantly nagging me.

Today, she called. I didn't remember her having my number, but apparently she came across it and figured it was time to nudge me about the whole thing. Thanks, Lynda! I still feel very guilty, especially since she was so nice about it. But I'll have them in the mail by the weekend.

In other news, Tasha informed me last night that I needed to take her photo for the yearbook. I took a bunch of them 6 weeks ago, of course; but the low evening light resulted in photos that her yearbook advisor thought were too grainy. Then Tasha was just going to have her friend Sam take a head shot with the yearbook, so I figured we were all set and forgot about it. But last night at 6:00, 1 hour before choir practice and with the best part of my lighting and studio equipment set up down at the hair salon, Tasha desperately needed a head shot by today.

We managed something. The backdrop is a bed sheet and I made some color adjustments to compensate for the cheap florescent lighting I was using. Tasha's not really happy with it, for all the reasons that a teenage girl is usually not happy with her own looks. But hopefully, it will get the job done.