Sticking

We've had a convivial evening, the Sage and I, putting catalogues together, next door with Dilly and Al.

Now you will probably think that we are provincial and not a little amateurish, but we think that the end result is what matters, the china, the service and, er, the low cost. We charge a very low rate of commission for what we do. Our catalogues are illustrated, but colour printing is too expensive for a free catalogue when we need to keep the total cost, including postage, down to £1 each (an arrangement is come to with a friend who owns a stationary company and we get cheap envelopes). So we have 400 catalogues printed plus 400 copies of each photograph and we stick them on. Three photos, of fifteen lots, and each to be stuck on.

The four of us made a production line. I took through the half of a bottle of red that I hadn't yet drunk, though Al was already on red and Dilly on pink. In an hour and a half, we'd completed 125 and done two thirds of another hundred. We've called it a day. Tomorrow, I'll print the address labels, we'll stick them on the envelopes, stick on the stamps, stuff the envelopes and then we can breathe a sigh of relief.

Oh, I've also got to send the catalogue to go on the website, take photos of each piece, send them, examine each item very very carefully, write a condition report for each piece and post that on the website.

It will be done by the end of the weekend. Easter will be celebrated, but not by stopping work. However, I don't grumble about it. We only have two sales a year after all. We don't exactly work full-time at it. I've had enough for tonight though. I'm listening to B-daddy's Pearl Jam and I'm going to make coffee and then have an early night.

I must take more notice of the phases of the moon. I always used to be aware of this, when I had several dogs to walk each night. Now I only have one she gets let out in the garden and I don't notice. But sometimes I sleep badly and am awake for hours each night. Maybe I am a lunatic after all?