Spiritual and Inspirational Sunday - June 24, 2012

Today's post doesn't exactly follow our normal Sunday's Inspiration but, for whatever reason this morning, I was thinking about the changing times and how our economic situation may seem very dismal to some it still really does not completely mirror the Great Depression. 

 People still spend $600 to go see Justin Beaver and by Coach bags so apparently we are not quite as poor as we think we are.  But it has been very tight for our family (maybe we just have a more frugal personality) none the less it has changed our entertainment habits. 

This of course led me to the look into the differences and similarities of this era to the Great Depression's era and (for my own curiosity's sake) I would like it if you would join me in answering my poll at the end of this post.  

Movies from the Depression Era, 1929 – 1942 (roughly,) were attend at an astonishing rate of approximately 60 – 80 million people each week according to www.digitalhistory.uh.edu.  This is an astounding rate considering that at the peak unemployment was at 25% and the average income of most people was around $1,300.00 a year for the family.  Comparing this to the average income in the USA currently of approximately $30,000 – $40,000.00 annually makes me wonder about our movie going habits during this generation’s economic downturn. 

'Going To The Movies - Classic 1930s' by ButterflyInTheAttic

Vintage Maine Postcard ... VintagePlum $5.00	Gambling Ship Cary Gran... nukes $1.00	The Invisible Man H. G.... nukes $1.00	Esther Williams Classic... iowajewel $19.99
Vintage Sepiatone Print... leewidener $6.00	REDUCED PRICE - Custom ... ARTbyDKS $200.00	Classic Movie Stars - C... GhostsofGrandm... $7.00	Old Movies Gone With Th... OldPaperAndPag... $18.55
Classic Movie Monster K... ihazabag $50.00	Vintage Sepiatone Print... leewidener $6.00	Halloween Retro Movie M... HopePhotoArt $2.98	R53 "Red River Ran... MontanaMoviePo... $40.00
Karloff in The Mummy - ... StephenBurger $15.00	Gone With the Wind with... aBeesCreations $7.50	Original Pastel Pencil ... HollywoodPaste... $25.00	CALIFORNIA photo art BR... VintageBeach $44.00

Treasury tool supported by the dog house

At that time the movies were .15 (nothing to sneeze at) but people were willing to pay this to escape the real world and to forget about how scary the future seemed at the time. 
During that time movies would often show dramatizations of the little guy coming out on top, heroes saving the nation, and the theatrical antics of comics like the Marx Brothers.   It was the great escape of The Great Depression and people were willing to pay for it. 

The difference today is that we have so many different ways of “going to” the movies:  we can actually go to the theater, stay at home with a rented video, pick one from the on-demand system or just watch a free one. 
So the question of the day for me is do we, as a society, still physically go to the theater to escape into another world?  Do we stay in our homes and find our own private little escapes? or do we not rely on those wonderful heroes and comedians on the screen at all anymore?

'Movies - Recent Releases ' by ButterflyInTheAttic

Hollywood Sign Matted P... WesVanDykeART $35.00	Steampunk Optimus Prime... kyoob $25.00	Black Swan Natalie Port... nukes $1.00	Limited Edition Signed ... Bogies $50.00
The Princess and the Fr... nukes $1.00	Twilight New Moon - Bel... anna6454 $14.99	BOGO SALE - One Free Pr... TheRekindledPa... $8.98	Alvin and the Chipmunks... MyGlitterShop $6.00
Journey to the Center o... outwardbound $9.00	Madagascar 3 Birthday I... PortlyBallerin... $10.00	Men in Black magnet-mov... PopCultureChar... $5.25	Battleship movie keycha... StylishEncount... $5.99
NEW RELEASE MOVIE Chimp... AardvarksInPet... $1.50	Titanic Movie Notebook ... Momsmedia $22.00	Printable THE SMURFS Bi... therandompanda $20.00	Rise of the Planet of t... nukes $1.00

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Saturday's Gem - Onyx & Tophatter Auction Reminder!

Good Morning.  Just a quick reminder about the Team Venus Tophatter Auction that will be starting this morning around T - 6 hrs 30 m (lol just like saying it that way it starts around 9 am Pacific Time)  I hope you can at least stop by and check out all the amazing goodies they are offering at a very low starting bid at http://tophatter.com/auctions/3562  I already have my eye on about 10 different things!  Here is just a very brief snapshot of the 100+ items that are entered into the auction.

Our Gem for this beautiful Saturday is Onyx.  I used absolutely love black Onyx as a teen but never realized that it came in so many different colors.  Shades range from white – gray – black and cream colored - tan – brown.  Onyx is porous so it can take on dye easily and can be colored many variations.  It is most commonly seen in black. 

Onyx is a Chalcedony quartz and is a microcrystalline (meaning it has very tiny crystals) and is botryoidally or mammillary shaped.   Onyx is made from a silicate solution that slowly fills the spaces and cavities usually in low temperatures the gradual time gives it layers and the banded look.  It is often used in making carvings like cameos because of the layered colored can give most art pieces a striking look.

These beautiful Vintage Cameo Earrings can be purchased from Etsy Shop CamanoIslandVintage at  http://www.etsy.com/shop/CamanoIslandVintage

All Chalcedony (including Onyx) is smooth; sort of waxy looking, and very hard.  Because of these characteristics it makes it a great medium for carving as mentioned before, making cabochons, beads, and even larger items like boxes and bowls.

These are great examples of Raw Black Onyx and can be purchased from ETSY shop KKGemStones at http://www.etsy.com/shop/kkgemstones

Metaphysically Onyx was thought by the Ancient Egyptians to be able to divide lovers and disrupt the harmony within the relationship to point of splitting them up.  Onyx is a stone that is related to negative energies; it will cause a discord within oneself if used in abundance and keeping your own energies bottled up.  But on the other hand can be useful to get rid of bad relationships or to protect you from any people that are going to be problematic, so it is suggested to have a small figure or amulet for those purposes.  It is also said that once the Onyx is dyed it seals the cells and seals in the energy.

I love the look of onyx and any of the banded agates and chalcedony.  They always have their own hidden shapes often resembling other things.  It is fun to look at the patterns from a cross piece and find land or seascapes sometimes even silhouettes of animals and flowers in the beautiful bands.

Here are some wonderful collections of Onyx and items made from Onyx:

Freaky Fun Friday - TGIF Let's Just Have Fun In The Big Top!

Good morning on this fine Fun Freaky Friday and for me it is truly TGIF since I am going to be off for a normal weekend this week, Yeah!  

We have a winner of our TGIF Giveaway from the wonderful artist Ray at the Museum Shop on Etsy: Natalie Lee won with Option: Follow @butterflysattic on Twitter.  Congratulations Natalie!

Yesterday I heard a commercial on the radio for one of our local fairs.  It is funny how when you hear the ad it conjures images of fun fairs of the past and images that are probably much more fun than the actual fair has to offer.  But putting all of the Carnivals and Fairs of our past would make for one grand party. 

I would love to see the old trains pull in with the animal's heads sticking above the roof and the wild cats madly pacing back and forth as to say "let me at them...Let Me At Them..." 

I would go see the strange anomalies, like the living mermaid and bearded lady (unfortunately now that doesn't seem so amazing since we can see that at our local Walmart) but none-the-less it seems like a good old fashioned carnival is just what our country needs right now. 

I know we have our fairs but I really don't want to spend $10 - $15 per person to see a cow and ride on a roller coaster that is missing some rivets and is driven by a man straight from the shining. 



So here is mine: The Carnival Extraordinaire! by Colleen the Magnificent!

2 Great Promotions Wrapping Up Tomorrow - Don't Miss Out

Next Thursday Aromatherapy Thursday will return but I wanted to make sure I reminded everyone about the two great promotions that end tomorrow and give you a chance to join in .  I was also in several treasuries this week so I would like to share those also at the end.

www.etsy.com/shop/museumshop

Ray's Giveaway is valued at $9.99 and he is offering both US and International shipping. Giveaway ends 6/22/2012 at 11:55pm.  If you would like a chance to enter the giveaway go to http://butterflyintheattic.blogspot.com/2012/06/featured-artist-giveaway-on-this-fun.html  there is only 1 manditory entry and several optional entries to increase your chances.

http://www.etsy.com/shop/museumshop?ref=seller_info

Second Time Sensitive Promo is the following which RSVPs need to be in by tomorrow and when you do make sure to enter the drawing using the link below and also tell them that PostcardsInTheAttic Invited You and your RSVP number.  Thanks.  Here is the information again:

TEAM VENUS AND OUR GROUP IS GETTING A FRONT PAGE FEATURE ON TOPHATTER'S HOME PAGE!
JUNE 23 SATURDAY
9am PST / 12 EST

RSVP FOR US AND GET ENTERED TO WIN $10- $50 GIFT CARD PACKAGES FROM OUR TEAM SHOPS! You will need to make sure to look in the right hand corner for your RSVP number and give that to them to confirm that you replied. When you let them know that you RSVP please also let them know that you seen it on this blog and/or are responding to my invite.
... http://tophatter.com/auctions/3562

TO ENTER THE DRAWING:
*COMMENT ON THE TEAM VENUS FB PAGE (http://www.facebook.com/teamvenusfanpage)
*OR CONVO ON VENUS ON ETSY (http://www.etsy.com/people/VenusTeamCurator)
*OR EMAIL (venusflytrap44@msn.com)


PRIZES LISTED HERE:
http://www.etsy.com/teams/9932/team-venus/discuss/10439428/

Tophatter is an Online Auction House that has the sophistication of any Auction House you could physically attend. They have a head auctioneer named Sir Wendell. You have an Avatar so that you can virtually join in the bidding and selling process and can attend auctions just as if you were really standing their. They have a catalog of their upcoming auctions that you can view ahead of time. So essentially you will have almost the same experience as going to an actual Auction House. What a fun way to get into the piece of the action!

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