TICKLEBERRY STRIKES AGAIN!

TICKLEBERRY TELEGRAMS - ALL-OCCASION CUSTOMIZED SINGING TELEGRAMS

For those of you don't know, besides A2Sea Creations, I also perform Singing Telegrams. I have a singing telegram to perform in Duncan this Saturday, in fact. The poor girl! She has no idea what's coming!

I recall my very first singing telegram. Few people know how it all started. Well, I'll just tell you!

It all began in Mackenzie BC, back in the fall of 1980, when a mother of a friend of mine called me up and asked if I had ever performed a singing telegram. I hadn't. So she asked me if I would consider doing one for her daughter's birthday. She wanted this birthday to be very special and unique. I told her I would try but I couldn't promise anything, seeing as her birthday was that very day!!!

So I spent the next hour hunting and scrounging up anything I could find that, if put together, might resemble a clown costume. And seeing as it was my friend I, too, wanted it to be special. So I wrote down as many things as I could about my friend. I took those notes and made rhymes for it all. Then I proceeded to put the poem to music, utilizing a song I had already written considering my time was so short.

So somehow, by some miracle, I managed to get it all together by 8:00 that evening. I arrived at my friend's door with guitar in hand, a funny outfit, a big grin and I sang her a song all about her. She loved it and was deeply moved, actually!

MY VERY FIRST CLOWN OUTFIT (Dig the eyebrows! And so skinny! Sigh..)

Word soon got around (small town) and the next thing I knew, I had another gig! The only problem was, I had come down with laringytis! What bad luck! But I figured I'd better go anyways because if I cancelled, that would have been worse for my reputation. So I managed to croak out my song. Next thing you know (as if things could get worse) my clown nose fell off and rolled under the restaurant table! Good grief! Well, much to my amazement, everyone thought it was part of the act, as I am under the table trying to rescue my nose, and they are laughing like crazy! And no one seemed to care or notice how terrible I was singing!

So I continued doing telegrams and I soon found myself singing in the post office, in stores, pubs, homes, convention centres... once, I even found myself singing down at a log boom!

I am quite picky about my telegrams... I love making them very personalized and unique for each person. I so enjoy making people laugh. I will probably do it until I 'croak'! In fact, I saw this tv documentary where they showed a headstone you can buy that laughs as you walk by it. Talk about having the 'last laugh'! I gotta have one of those!

I also compose and record wedding songs for couples. It brings me a lot of satisfaction to be able to take part in a couple's lives in such a special, memorable and personal way.

A New Friend

'A Cheeky Wave' - PhotoArt by Micki Findlay
The Singing Photographer

If there is anything I have learned, it is to bring my camera wherever I go because you just never know what you will see! I met this gorgeous, funny macaw at the Marine Swapmeet in Coombs... A2Sea Creation's first local sale. There was a man walking around with him on his shoulder and I asked (of course) if I could take pictures. What I didn't expect was his owner placed him right on my arm with no warning! I was a bit freaked out, I must admit, but fascinated at the same time. Here is a photo of him waving at me... so cute!

We were out of our element at the swapmeet... our lovely, feminine, sparkly glassware creations seemed a little out of place amongst the myriad of used boat parts, anchors and old, seasoned fishermen. I had to laugh when one of them asked 'How much?' for the strap ties we were using to put up our banner. (Oh brother!) But, in spite of the fact that we were completely out of place, we didn't do too badly. My hubby David said to me, "If you sold 10 things there, just think how well you will do when you are in a more appropriate venue!" Bless that man!

The Errington Farmer's Market was much more suited to what we are selling. We will return for sure... especially in the summer months when the tourists show up. We will be ready for them!

Well, tomorrow I am off to Victoria to spend the weekend with my niece and great niece. We will celebrate our birthdays as they are all so close together. Hopefully this glorious weather will continue! Thanks to my dad for my birthday cheque... good timing! And I see cheesecake in my future... man I love birthdays.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY NAOMI!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY NAOMI! - Photoart created by Micki Findlay

Today I would like to dedicate our blog to a dear friend and wonderful human being... Naomi. Many of you know her from her Etsy Shop called Art by Naomi - Studio Treats, where she has a delightful variety and vast array of scrapbooking embellishments, cards, journals, paper weights, magnets and her original art. My personal favorite is her 'Life of the Party' done in acrylic paints and embellished with pencil sketching. It is truly yummy!

She also has another Etsy shop called Art by Naomi - Ornamentals where she sells a whimsical and delightful variety of jewelry and keychains. So today I would like to wish this dear lady a fantastic birthday! She has helped me immensely in setting up our own shop; patiently, I might add, and I would like to publicly thank her for that. She has a ton of wonderful feedback on her site from satisfied customers and there is a reason for that. Her products are top quality, yes, but her personality is wonderful also and people appreciate that. And I love how she takes the time to do that little bit extra to make things special.

So, dear friend, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!! You deserve it!