Wait for it...

Dormant: BFA Culminating Exhibit

2010-04-29T21:06:00.000-07:00

Well a lot has happened since my last post on here. A huge weight has been lifted since my BFA Culminating exhibition a few weeks ago. This show was up for a week, April 19-23rd, and the reception was well received and all of the food was gone by the end. My grandma flew in for this show instead of my graduation ceremony and trust me when I say that this type of event is more exciting than any graduation ceremony. I have included a few pictures from the show but feel free to check out my website for more images...

Critique

2010-03-22T21:47:00.000-07:00

Right now I feel as though I am this container that is pictured. I am balancing on this edge and every now and then I feel as though I may fall off, but that hasn't happened yet. Only two months, 60-something days, 1400 + hours until my undergrad college chapter comes to an end. I am excited but I admit it feels weird not to worry about registering for classes this fall...I am not sure what the future holds yet.

Chico State has returned from the St. Patrick's spring break and most the students in the art department have had to hit the ground running, or maybe they kept working all through break. Mid term cirtiques have either arrived or will be arriving soon - and many student and faculty are off to Philadelphia to attend the print conference or the national ceramic conference (NCECA). Last year I was fortunate enough to go to Phoenix for NCECA, but let me tell you what - I wish I could travel to Philly and not worry about graduating right now. Agh..o well.

Earlier today our advanced ceramic class had our 1 of 2 intense critiques. I will stop writing soon and flood your eyes with some pictures of the work. I felt out of all the advanced ceramic classes I have taken, this critique with this class has been one of the better ones. Many times students find crits to be just an uncomfortable blanket in the room of silence while the teacher calls on students at random to comment and sometimes you wonder why the class bullshits their way through an hour dissecting the tree-wire sculpture. With that said - I am glad our class was at such a comfort level where we can give genuine feedback and everyone participated in questions and concerns.

10 10 20

2010-03-12T23:25:00.000-08:00

Well this past week was the reception for the 10 10 20 art show

held at Chico State. Our shop tech Dave Barta came up with the

show as a way for students to get their art out to the public,
have a chance to show in a gallery setting, and best of all,
allow for people to purchase some great art work for
20 dollars. Many people take advantage of this sale

and stand in line for hours to get the panel that they
want. The first guy in linearrived at 9:30 am and the panels
did not even go onsale until 12:30 pm!

Not only was it a great reception but there
was an amazing amount of food to eat.
This event has been one of the best fundraisers I have seen

for the art department. Here are some pictures!!

You can see my panel - the top row second from left (above)
Checking out panels...(below)

Midnight Radio

2010-03-05T19:03:00.000-08:00

About a week ago I attended a reception at the 1078 Gallery for an international juried MFA show. As I was leaving the studio the moon looked quite amazing in the sky so I grabbed my camera to take a picture. The show was well received by fellow Chico artists and was followed with a juror talk and award announcements.

Trevor Koch's piece...he won first place and will have a solo exhibit at 1078 sometime this year.

Two MFA candidates at Chico State

Earlier this week I purchased a 10 10 20 panel. The panels are made by our shop tech and sold to students to participate in the 10 10 20 show. The blank panels are 10 x 10 inches and cost 3 dollars, and then sold at the reception for 20 dollars (hence 10 10 12). This is a great fundraiser for the art department and this will be the second time around this show is happening and the last time I can participate as a student. The panels were due today and this coming week all of the student panels will be up in the B-SO Gallery Space in Ayres. Below is a picture of my panel. I rolled out thin slabs of paper clay and layered them inside the panel after staining the wood.

I slumped a glass plate the other day in glass class and I was very happy with how the plate came out. I crushed up blue plate glass and ran the particles through a fine screen so I had the finest powder to use for the iris color. I used a laser decal for the pupil and it is an image of my dad as a child.

Also...I have updated my website with some pottery that I got out of the kiln! I finally had an overcast, non-rainy day that I could take pictures outside.

Black Cat

2010-02-22T21:35:00.000-08:00

The past week has been hectic with celebrating a friend's 30th birthday and finishing up applications to various residencies and classes.
I have been at work testing Cone 5 and 6 glaze recipes and believe I have found some good bases to work with. I will post more on that information later. It has been 5 weeks into school and we still have not had a high-fire done yet, there is finally enough work to fill the kiln and that should be fired off Wednesday. I cannot wait because I'll have more pottery to add to my website.

The past week brought sunny days and cold nights - I was walking to school the other day and encountered a cat just eating some grass. I thought a picture would be an amusing thing to add. He, or she, just stood around chomping on the grass. Below I have included pictures of a recent piece I have finished - I am having quite a love affair with paperclay. It is just something else...I have some pieces that have come out of a bisque firing but will wait until I get the pieces finished before displaying them on the website.

(33)

2010-02-14T19:38:00.000-08:00

It has been a long weekend with two furlough days, one February 12th and the other is February 15th. The furloughs completely fucked up the glass furnace, in the moment that our teacher decided to finally get the furnace turned on - we found out that the school was using the Friday furlough to shut down the power on the side of campus where ceramics and glass are located...so after 3 weeks and 200 dollars in lab fees there is still no hot glass yet. I know I could cast a bunch of the furnace glass - but until you have blown glass and had that experience - well..you don't know the pain some of us are going through.

There has been a group of us art kids going out during the week - it has been enjoyable. There seems to be phases of groups and friendships formed in ways that allow you to get out of the studio every now and then and enjoy a beer with people. This past Wednesday we went to two different bars - enjoying PBR and some others enjoyed their Maker's shots.

Last night I went to a friend's house for her boyfriend's birthday gathering and was lucky enough to run into some old friends that have since graduated the Chico Art Department. It is always nice running into them because once our studio friends graduate they usually disappear into their after life of college and work and what was once a familiar face is someone you see every now and again. There was an adorable puppy at the party that I took a picture of. This pup just kept sleeping while I pet him - he was a cutie. I threw in some random photo of balloon animals from a store window and cups I made earlier today. I have yet to get more in-progress shots of work. Stay tuned for more awesome to come around....

Nostalgia

2010-02-09T23:46:00.000-08:00

Okay! Well it has been a few days since my last entry and things are definitely starting to roll along. Class projects, gallery sitting, glaze formulating, studio time, reception attending, music listening, entering shows, loading and unloading kilns, reading, and almond croissants are just normal activities that occur about 8 days a week for me.Yes. 8.

I just attended my BFA graduation meeting earlier today and received information for my exit show and all the fun goodies that go along with that circus. Considering this exit show is a smaller space than my BMU show was and I have started on my current show sooner than I did for the first one - I feel that I am on a good track - doesn't mean I will start slacking in any way - I actually have to write my artist statement ahead of time and normally I enjoy busting that document out a few hours before the gallery doors open.

The funny thing about art students is that most of the true-to-form artist really spend most of their life in the studio: I only go home to sleep...shower...make sure everything is ok on the home front. My weekends are not spent sleeping in (well sometimes) or running out to stand in line for the bars...no sir not anymore. Last semester when I worked on my BMU show I was on a strict 7:30 am-8-9pm studio schedule Monday-Sunday. Not even kidding you. From Aug 25th-Oct 19th 2009- when I set up my show - I was lucky if I even went to attend other openings or spent a night doing anything different. I loaded and unloaded kilns immediately and just worked while kids were out in glass bbq'ing and having fun...but I needed this show and it was probably the best thing I could have chosen to do - and I [surprisingly] lived through it!

Application deadlines for classes and residencies are coming up and I just stumbled across images from summer sessions on the Pilchuck Glass School site. I am reminded of the amazing experience and amazing people I met up there, and have been reminded how badly I want to attend another class there this summer.

Either way I will leave you with some pictures from the studio. It has been days and nights filled with harnessing nostalgia: listening to Talking Heads, watching Queen at Wembley Stadium, South Park, pictures, good and bad memories - I suddenly start to recount all of my semesters and Chico State and how each has been so different yet started to form together - Pictures...enjoy!

Our MFA student Sandi, working on a HUGE tongue. Really. HUGE.

Meaghann and her crazy rabbit/horse/puffer fish chimera!

Rose cups I am making - with cone 5 black clay and cone 10 B-mix w/grog.

"It was this big"

Down Time

2010-02-04T23:25:00.000-08:00

While driving back to Chico the other day I was lucky enough to score this image of the Buttes. No rain, no wind, just a wonderful photo op moment. Of course as I update this the rain has been pouring outside for more than six hours here.

Earlier my friend Meaghan and I were in the studio working - and this semester has been quite different as there are not as many people working at night anymore. Of course I write this as I am sitting at home but I am only here because no one is in the studio and sometimes you need that other person as motivation while working in the studio. I figure I can get a better night sleep and work a lot over the weekend. It is an interesting relationship one develops in the studio. Most of my friends and I are at school 95% of the time - and either leave to sleep...eat...maybe run an errand and then come back to the studio. Our weekends are spent in the studio and drinking is saved for more week day and week night times. Here are some shots of my in-progress work and how I approach making some of my work - more specifically the other big pieces that I showed in my previous blog entry.

Meaghan throwing

Goodbye January

2010-02-02T22:33:00.000-08:00

The first week of school has been quite interesting. The classes I am enrolled in include advanced ceramics, glass, art history, Pate de Verre independent study, interning at Laxson Art Gallery, working three days a week at my job AND taking a belly dance class....it has been an intense experience so far. I am venturing down to Alpha Ceramic Supply in Sacramento tomorrow to pick up specific clay they have and other items I may need.

Our glass teacher attempted to light up the furnace today so we may be blowing glass soon! Or so I hope - with hot glass added into the equation of my life it will definitely be a busy semester! Plus trying to graduate and get everything in order is more of a process than I thought.

I have been involved in a love affair with paper clay and have made two large pieces - the two pictures I am including below. I purchased another type of paper clay that had a more intense amount of mold in it and my sinuses became irritated later after working with the clay for a short amount of time....hence I am staying home in Sutter tonight to make the trip to Sacramento tomorrow and then back up to Chico for class!

Earlier today I ventured into Yuba City to get dinner with my mom and do a small amount of shopping. Walking through Target in Yuba City on a Tuesday night and having absolutely no one around in the store felt really weird - I swear that no matter where you go in Chico [be it any store] there are always a large amount of people around. That is why I absolutely dread going to such places when I need to get items! I put the errands off until the last minute. But I will admit that it was almost weird to be in Target and actually not be completely annoyed.

I have nothing more of actual substance to divulge at this moment but I hope to get more a rhythm going about my classes, art work, shows, etc.....as time goes on - Hello February! I leave you with these pictures...

It was like Prison Break

2010-01-26T23:43:00.000-08:00

I am tired....but I do not care I have to record down this dream because I rarely keep note of the dreams I have. Throughout my life I have had certain dreams that have stayed with me since I was as young as 5 years old (or at least I would swear on my life I had these dreams). I have had a dream where zombies were attacking my house and wanted to take me to the 6th grade (mind you I was extremely younger than a 6th grader). I have had dreams dealing with bleeding gums, me being sucked down in a mud hole in my backyard, dreams of people who have died coming back as if they were hiding elsewhere in the world. Dreams that included flooding water, swimming around in the ocean, jumping and flying...but the dream I had last night I feel will be included in this list of dreams I'll always be able to recount - and I want to share and analyze with the amazing dream dictionary my friend gave me. Nerdy, you may think, but in the past I have used this book to look at certain elements of my dream/current state in life and amazingly the dictionary seems to work for me.

My dream was in the mode of what seemed to be a movie or some type of 3rd person perspective. I will write what I can in the story line but I know it won't make as much sense - I woke up from this dream at 2:30 am this morning and was just..winded. Anyhow, my dream started with a friend of mine (who doesn't exist, but was a friend of mine in the dream) or someone that was being sentenced to death in the eletric chair. In the first part of my dream it shows someone in this prison setting and then walking to the electric chair. They sat in the chair and I saw/knew that a gross amount of eletricity was about to kill this person. Then I had a second coming of this dream [like an immediate second dream scenario]- where instead of the friend going to the electric chair - some other people and myself were hiding elsewhere in the building and we started breaking open pipes that were letting out an extreme amount of gas. We were going to blow this place up.

I also poured alcohol all about and then went about to light a match. And as soon as I went to strike the match I could tell what happened in the split second but then suddenly my scene went black [and why would I light a match right at arm's length infront of my face?]- like as if you have died or just suddenly pass out.....I thought I may have really died. I realize that I have later awaken after a 10 year coma or some crazy thing like that, and I have extreme burns and disfigurement on myself. I can remember weird marks of blisters on me, and my face just looked...so insanely weird - I woke up for real though at 2:30 am. Extremely relieved that is was a weird ass play on my mind.

Who ever may read this can draw their own 'read in' into the meaning of this dream, but without knowing anything about my mind, my current situation in life, I turn to my trusted dream dictionary which has, in the past, seemed to reflect the recent situations I have been dealing with and plus it is fun and it's my favorite book I have for dreams. The book is by Lady Stearn Robinson & Tom Gorbett and is titled The Dreamer's Dictionary. My friend Lindsey has this book and I used to look at is all of the time, so she finally bought me one for my birthday back in high school, here is what it says:

Burns: You'll be lucky if you dreamed of burns, especially of the hands or feet. After this kind of dream is a good time for a little speculation, but stay well within your means.

Escape: A straightfoward obstacle dream. The interpretation depends on the details, but: From prison or similar type of confinement means a rapid rise in the world. From fire or water indicates success but preceded by a period of anxiety (not sure if i really escaped fire, but i sure got blown up).

Explosion: Is a forerunner of lasting improvement in all aspects of your life

Disfigurement: A dream of contrary if it featured your own disfigurement; you will have unanticipated joy.

Awaken: This rare dream is a most fortunate omen whether it was your own awakening or that of some other person.

Pipes: Plumbing pipes, gas pipes, or chemical pipes indicate that your pessimistic outlook tends to make you a victim of circumstances; try trading your worm's-eye view for a bird's-eye view.

There were no entries for coma or electric chair, and I did not come up with other 'elements' that I could remember from my dream that I could look up. I was never in the hospital but suddenly I was conscious and out and all f'd up.

So it begins.....

2010-01-25T13:07:00.000-08:00

Yes....January 25th....the countdown begins for the series finale in 'college,' granted I pass all of my classes and just make it through the semester. But that should be a breeze. Here is a picture of my studio area - lucky me at my little office corner. Come May 20-something I will have to empty this wall of memories and clean out 5-6 lockers of 5-6 years worth of stuff...I plan to use ALL of my clay this semester. I threw some forms today...way to get back into the mojo of clay making.

Below is a view from where I sit most of the day...it has been raining since I can remember as of 1 am this morning. I had trouble sleeping and went to bed way to early only to wake up at 1 am, 3:30 am, 5 am, and finally...6 am...more rain.

And lastly, I would like to leave you with two images, well three: one is from the 3-d mural at the 46...a tiger..that when seen through special glasses, appears to want to jump out and say 'hello.' And the other two images are from the show Ceramics by Cameron Crawford and Sue Whitmore at the 1078 Gallery in Chico. The reception is Wed. 1/27 - Hope to see you there!

Development Arrested

2010-01-21T11:10:00.000-08:00

Well....January 22nd will mark the last episode of The Tonight Show with Conan. Tom Hanks will be a guest on the show along with Will Ferrell, I don't think Conan could have two better guests on his last show. Hopefully Conan will be able to work at another network and continue his shows, I was excited that he came to LA because that meant I had an easier chance to make it to one of his tapings in the future. Unfortunately that will have to wait. This isn't the first time a network has completely screwed up though...

With the excitement from the news of an Arrested Development movie in the works, I found myself rediscovering the show that -to me-set the bar to a new high when it came to comedies and how they were produced. The subtle, quick humor, single camera shots, call backs, and lack of your 'audience laugh' track made this show unique to me. The all star cast, Davis Cross, and great intertwined stories made it impossible to dislike - but Fox cancelled it. So what the fuck happened?

If I remember correctly, AD used to be on Thursday nights but then the show was moved and shared the same time slot as Monday Night Football...total crap move. There were claims that the ratings were not as successful - but there was an outpur of fan support from the few of us who could appreciate amazing writing from Mitch Hurwitz and his crew - there was a petition to not cancel Arrested Development. I still find the whole situation similar to an Area 51 conspiracy, I will never know the true information of what went on. Some guys in black suits just cut off the best show out there.

But we can't be mad forever [or can we?], there is a movie coming out and with Mitch behind it - I know he won't fail the AD audience out there and I anxiously wait for the previews. So with the sadness that comes with Conan being let go by NBC, I guess it's good to know that every network gets their chance to fuck up a good thing.

Snake Charmer

2010-01-15T15:34:00.000-08:00

It has been a few days...almost a week for any new updates. I am introducing a movie to a friend as of now - she hasn't seen 500 Days of Summer, should be a crime for those who haven't seen the movie by now.

The week has been sluggish as I have not gone into the studio yet to work - I made a mix of different albums to listen to when I am in the studio or blowing glass. Someone asked me the other night what music I had been listening to recently which got me thinking, "yea...what am I listening to..."

Recently soundtracks have been my main stream of music. I enjoy soundtracks that have a more solid collective from the movie. Every so often a soundtrack seems to be just randomly picked songs throughout the movie...soundtracks are extensions of the movie and while many songs may be threaded in the film, the songs picked should best represent the feeling of the film. Some soundtracks that have never failed me: 500 Days of Summer, New Moon, Marie Antoinette, Into the Wild, Wicker Park, and Edward Scissorhands.

When it comes to artist and albums - I feel that my preference of music depends on my mood or current state of affairs. I do not listen to the radio much, and generally find my music through a movie or a recent show I've watched and of course Pandora helps me. A year ago I was blessed with a roommate who had cds upon cds that he let me copy onto my computer - and some of that music was life changing! Just as the few amazing movies that exist out there...the ones that, after you see, you think about it hours after leaving the theater - the story line, the effects, the concept to it - these artist have taken me to other places and helped me get through to where I am now.

'You are here'

Arcade Fire
The Beatles

The Black Keys

Bob Dylan

Boston

Buddy Holly

Calexico

The Clash
Colin Hay

The Cure

Danny Elfman

The Doors

The Drifters

Elvis

Fleetwood Mac

Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons

Hank Williams

Holly Golightly & the Brokeoffs

Iron & Wine
James Brown

Jenny Lewis
Joshua Radin

Kings of Leon

Neil Young

Nirvana

Old Crow Medicine Show

Pink Floyd

Queen

The Ramones

The Raveonettes

Robert Plant & Alison Krauss (Raising Sand)

Simon & Garfunkle

Smashing Pumpkins

The Smiths

The Temper Trap

Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers

Townes Van Zandt

I know there are so many that could be added to this, but just looking through my Itunes I decided to add these artists....I take recommendations.

Books and Borrowed Time

2010-01-09T13:39:00.000-08:00

Over the last few months of what remained in 2009, I began reading more than I had in the first years of being in college. In elementary school, even highschool, I can remember the responsiblity of reading and keeping a time log that your parent would sign off to know you did at least 20 minutes of reading each night. Once college hits, depending on your major, classes, extracurricular activies, the time set aside for pleasure reading seems to dissipate and ultimately your personal library doesn't grow. This is not true for everyone but it was true for me. I hadn't read a book for fun since...well since I was forced to read a few books senior year of highschool and even then I could not appreciate Beowulf or Farenheiht 451. I blame it on the atmosphere of class, uncomfortable desks, forced to read aloud student by student and random trick questions to fill out along the way. There have been books I read in school that still stick with me and I continue to look for these childhood books to add to my own library.

Many of my college courses were spent with that oversized textbook that you just skim through to find the answers. I read my biology book word for word in h.s., but I can sure tell you I did not read every single paragraph in my Anatomy book. I had the occasional marathon reading of a few books including The Da Vinci Code, The Family that Couldn't Sleep, The Monster of Florence, and The Coroner's Journal. Yet it really took one of my past roommates to make me realize that instead of popping in my dvd of whichever show I was watching at the time, that maybe I should read instead. Having him and another friend who was staying with us, sitting on the couch, just silent, reading, made me want to find a book and join the adventure. I started to check out books at the library (something I had not taken advantage of in the first few years attending CSUC), and hit up The Book Store to look for my favorite books at a lesser price. This had to be done because my book collection was so stagnant that I needed to add something.

Borrowed Time

As much as I would like to go into my connection with disease and specific interest in viruses, that will be saved for a later time. Browsing Amazon to look for books about HIV, AIDS, bereavement, art, anything related to these topics, I came across Borrowed Time: An AIDS Memoir. Since then I have read my fare share of books relating to artists, AIDS, HIV, death, gay men, children, mother, friends, anyone imaginable that could have died, so much that I almost felt that I should be dying of the disease or wake up in the chaos that was more prevelant in the 80's. The saddest stories I read were about the abandonment HIV positive people had from their families. As much as I love Tom Hanks and praise the movie Philadelphia, the chances his family [in real life] would have been so wonderfully ok with his disease/sexuality in that time would be slim to none. Yet with Tom Hanks [who is such a likeable person] playing a stereotyped HIV positive character, who could turn their back on him? For the record, I love all that is Tom Hanks and appreciate the movie.

Some people have lost groups, masses of friends to this disease, I have only lost 1 person but it was painful enough to feel like 100. Beside this book, David Wojnarowicz's books/art have had an impact on me and I am still getting through reading his other books, his diaries and stories are amazing.

Unfortunately, Chico State did not have Borrowed Time, so I requested a loan from another Library. This memoir is something that I could have never done and something most people will never do. The book states, "Borrowed Time is a personal documentary about the AIDS virus. The first such memoir to be published, it is as vividly detailed as the best novel and as lucidly observed as the strongest journalism...[it] is a cry from the heart against this contemporary plague and against the intolerance that surrounds it." Paul Monette was born in 1945 and died Feb 10, 1995, and in this memoir he details the downs, ups, and inevitable death of his beloved friend, Roger Horwitz. "From the quiet onset of the illness...up until Roger's final blindness and death, the story is told without sentimentality or sensationalism." Reading the books that I have, that account the details of how HIV...AIDS..takes over the body leaving it's mark through lesions and Kaposi's Sarcoma...I didn't realize that blindess could occur and that the most frightening part was when the disease had effect to the brain. I have learned so much through reading this book and would love for anyone else to inquire about the book. Whether you have lost someone in any other way, or want a good, real, non-romanticized book to read, I highly reccomend it. Some people cannot take reading such sad material but for my purposes I have to harness the past and environment that this disease has created. If anyone would like more reccomendations on books I have read, [I didn't realize how many artist/aids books were actually out there] feel free to ask.

Steak Sauce

2010-01-08T15:20:00.000-08:00

Well, now is the time to relax...the past few days were spent back-to-back uploading of images and updating information on my website. After traveling home for a few days, a trip to the Roseville Galleria (where I saw a vending machine for baby items like diapers, wipes, etc...it was truly the weirdest vending machine I have seen, maybe not weird to a baby's mama, but it was to me), and a casino, it is nice to be back in Chico. It was 'senior day' at the casino, so it felt even more like a fancy nursing home filled with cowboy hats, cowboy boots, walkers, cigarettes and flashy jewelry. The big banner that said 'super senior Wednesday' gave way to the unusual crowdedness that bestowed a casino at 3 pm on a foggy cold Wednesday. I also had my first experience going into a Tiffany's store...talk about some fancy sparkly prettyness.

The great thing about heading to the Roseville/Sac area is getting a chance to pick up some clay at the Alpha Ceramic Supply store. To some, this may be less than exciting, but to a clay enthusiast it can mean valuable time looking through items and options of different clays, slips, kilns, wheels, the works! I have six bags of clay that can't wait to be turned into something....but they will have to wait until this weekend.

I have had the exciting experience of contacting a few artists that have inspired me. I wrote some a few weeks ago and continued writing other artists today. To hear back and get to have a conversation with someone whose work you admire is great and I wish I had done this sooner. I am in the process of researching art classes to apply for over the summer and feel quite a pull between Pilchuck, CSU Summer Arts, Penland and Haystack. Hopefully this summer will allow me to take a class and hopefully I can receive a scholarship to attend one of the other classes.

A beautiful scenic image from Pilchuck!

1.5.2010

2010-01-05T13:54:00.000-08:00

January...a perfect month for taking pictures of your artwork if you are lucky enough to catch an overcast day without rain and enough time for setting up your backdrop. Sometime in December my backdrop arrived and ever since I have been waiting for my moment to get images of my artwork. My website: http://www.charleneabinante.com/ will have more images of my work from my October 2009 BMU Gallery show, including other information relevant to myself as an artist.

I have currently been working at Lulus.com **check out the site if you are not familiar :)** which used to be a great fashion botique in downtown Chico but has now relocated to a warehouse and functions as an online shopping store. It has been 4 weeks into my job and I absolutely love it and I have met some wonderful ladies that I get to work with. I help process the orders that are shipped out and make sure each order that I process has the correct items in it. Let me tell you the holiday time was extremely busy! Many people opted for the comfort of their home and computer to shop instead of dealing with the traffic, cold, and hussle of stores. I find both aspects to be a part of the holiday deal. Here is a picture of everyone working in the warehouse-

Talk about freezing also...I am lucky I received some handwarming packs for my birthday!