Poetic Shutterbug

First I want to sincerely thank Amanda (Self Sagacity) this week for the feature. I so appreciate you and thank you for your friendship. Shopping for gifts is something I enjoy. I normally do not buy that much for myself anymore but I love buying gifts for others. My two questions this week are: 1. When you shop for gifts do you normally shop online or in a store. 2. What do you normally purchase as a gift item. As a special promotion, I am offering a giveaway for everyone who follows my new blog with Google friend connect at http://collectiblesmercantile.blogspot.com From now until April 13th, follow Collectibles Mercantile which is my new eBay store blog. On April 13th I will pick one name from my followers out of a hat and that person will receive: $20.00 cash, a Sony Holland CD of my choice and will have the opportunity to choose any one collectors plate (with the exception of the sets that are shown) from my store . Tell your friends. I will email the winner on April 14th

Originally produced between 1368 - 1644 during the Ming Dynasty period, these Baoding Chinese Exercise Balls employ chimes inside the spheres which are used to heal the mind, body and soul. One ball will have a low sounding chime while the other a higher pitched sound which are maintained to balance peace and harmony. These Baoding Balls are considered national treasures because of their capability to enhance the users health and well being. Manipulating the balls with your fingers will stimulate the acupuncture points on your hands to improve the circulation and vital energy of blood to the body. These are mind, body and spirit healing techniques that have worked for centuries. This is not my video nor is it me but I wanted to show you how these work. I also understand that they are not suppose to touch each other while in your hand. There is obviously an art to this. It's fascinating to me. For more information, visit our store at Jo's Collectibles Mercantil

Mom on her high school graduation day - 1942 Happy Birthday Mom - RIP 3/29/24 - 7/9/94 I Love You & Miss You... Me and Mom about 25 years ago Mom adored little birds, especially canaries of which I don't have any photos so this will do :) Some of her favorite flowers

Visit Lisas Chaos for more Macro Monday fun. Visit my new blog Collectibles Mercantile .

This item has been sold. Visit our store at Jo's Collectibles Mercantile for more music box treasures.

Visit Hey Harriet for more Shadow Shot Sunday fun. Visit my new blog Collectibles Mercantile .

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Visit Skywatch Friday for more skywatch contributions. Visit my new blog Collectibles Mercantile .

With camera in hand, I am always looking for beautiful subjects to post on this blog and bring to you. I enjoy walking the different neighborhoods and photographing people's front yards and decorations. I am however a bit apprehensive in getting too close. I sometimes feel as if I am invading their privacy by conducting a photo shoot. My two questions are: 1. Do you often photograph neighbors flowers, homes and yards? 2. If so, do you feel as if you are invading their privacy? Click the above widget for more Thursday Two ?'s fun. Visit my new blog Collectibles Mercantile

Packing and shipping is an integral aspect of retail sales. It is becoming more important due to online shopping sites where 99.9% of sales are shipped to destinations around the world. Working in the retail sales business for a couple of decades both in brick and mortar stores and online, we have extensive experience in the art of packing. The point to this post is to give a short tutorial on the packing and shipping experience as a direct result of an extremely poorly packed shipment I received the other day. I bought two beautiful Asian collectors plates on eBay from a large store who specialized in coins. I received the package on Tuesday and was shocked at the packing of this box. It arrived in a large flat rate box which measures 12 x 12 x 8. I opened the box and found at the very top an empty priority mail flat rate envelope and underneath, the two plates which were loosely wrapped in bubble wrap broken into dozens of pieces. At the bottom of the box was another empty prio

Aberdeen Fishing Village Hong Kong Island 2005 Stanley Bay Hong Kong Island 2008 Victoria Harbor in Hong Kong 2008 Fountain @ Hong Kong Botanical Gardens in 2008 Click Here for more Watery Wednesday fun.

For More Participants Visit Ruby Tuesday Visit my new blog Collectibles Mercantile

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A week or so ago I brought you the Mojito plate and recipe so this week why not follow it up with a Bloody Mary plate and recipe from Retro Bar Ware. For more info on this plate and other items visit Jo's Collectibles Mercantile . Friend connect on this blog for more news, listings and contest giveaways. Click the above widget for more Mellow Yellow Monday fun .

For more macro fun, visit Macro Monday Check out my new eBay store blog Collectibles Mercantile .

Click the above widget for more Sundays In My City fun. Visit my new eBay store Blog at Collectibles Mercantile .