What I bring to a craft market

This weekend I'll be back at VivoCity, Singapore selling my bags and stuff. Go here to find out more. I have lost track of the number of times I've gone out to sell at craft markets. I know it's a lot. One thing though - I always forget to bring something. Today I decided to do a checklist of what I bring to a craft market. I'll simply refer to it in future.

1. Signboard

My brother made this signboard for me a few years ago. It's made of cardboard and printed professionally. It's been trampled on, sat on, grabbed at, and once, the wind tried to take it away.

2. Name cards

I forgot my name cards the last 2 times I was at VivoCity. And people kept asking me for them. If you bring a ton, no one will ask for it!

3. Table cloth

I forgot my table cloth just once this year in February. I didn't know how crucial a table cloth is until I tried displaying my pouches on a uncovered surface. There was no friction and my pouches kept sliding down and wouldn't stand proud.

4. Props and hooks

I have an assortment of props which I use to either prop up my items or add height to the display. I find boxes rather useful too.

This time I'm trying out my new carousel which I'm using to display my brooches. Do you think this way of displaying will lure more people to come check out my brooches?

5. Plastic carriers

No, I did not go green. Why? Paper carriers are more expensive. Most customers refuse my plastic carriers anyway.

6. Mirror

Once I offered a customer my mirror and then I couldn't find it. So embarrassing.

7. Receipt book + working pen + calculator + list of item codes

Here at VivoCity, I don't need to bring my cash change as we have a cashier. But I need to write out the invoice with the correct item code and price.

8. Items I'm selling

Once, a long time ago, I packed everything except my bags and pouches. hahahaha

9. Camera

To take photos for my post-mortems.

10. Medication
- panadol and anti-histamine

11. Stuffing for the bags

12.  Little things but they're important
a. scissors
b. scotch tape
c. stapler
d. string
e. extra price tags
f. sewing kit
g. energy bar
h. a book
i. notebook

I'll be back on Monday with my post-mortem. So see you then.

Singapore Falling

On Tuesday I read in the news (here) that there is a new rule taking immediate effect:

Indonesian maids coming to work in Singapore will no longer be allowed to clean out-facing windows or hang laundry outside high-rise homes.

This year alone, 8 maids have fallen to their deaths while cleaning windows or hanging laundry.

To understand how this happens, you have to know our living quarters.

Most locals live in HDB flats built by the government. These are high-rise flats. Can you see laundry hung outside each flat?
 

hanging dripping mop is a big no-no

When the government first built public flats in the 60s, it came up with an idea for the residents to dry their laundry. Short metal cylinders were soldered to the wall outside the kitchen windows. Each flat gets around 6 cylinders. The residents buy long bamboo poles which are shoved into these cylinders and that's basically how laundry is hung in Singapore. Now it's 2012 and the method of hanging laundry hasn't changed!

The danger of hanging laundry via bamboo poles has always existed. Somehow, by some miracle, few people fall to their death while doing it.

When I lived in my mother's flat before I was married, I had to hang laundry this way and I was terrified. It requires unusually strong upper body strength which I do not possess. So my mother had to manoeuvre  the bamboo poles most of the time. She was quite clever about it. Firstly, she would only use the front portion of the bamboo if the laundry is heavy. She would also not hang laundry when it was windy. We lived on the 12th storey. Death was a certainty if we fell.

Now, back to the ruling. Since this is the way majority dry their laundry, I can't imagine how the ruling will be enforced because many locals are resistant to indoor drying. I think the solution lies in government officials going to the flats which employ Indonesian maids and removing the metal cylinders which prop up the bamboo poles. That is the only way the rule can be enforced. 

Some of the maids died while cleaning windows. This is so sad. Why are locals so obsessed with clean windows? They face outwards and are high up in the air, no one cares! No one can see! How will the government enforce this rule?

As for my family, since we moved out of my MIL's flat in 1997, we have agreed on 2 things:
1. Indoor drying - we hang our laundry in the laundry area and yes, slowly but surely the laundry does get dry.
2. Dirty windows - our windows are god awful filthy. I clean the inside from time to time. But the outside? Never! Why would I risk my life to do that?

And that's how I stay alive in Singapore.

My last Pinterest rant, I swear

Yes, I solemnly swear. Today's post will be the last time I rant about Pinterest. Ah yes. I've only stopped posting for 1 day and already I'm bursting to tell you what's on my mind. It seems I can't simply keep things to myself anymore.

Back to my rant. Some of you may remember (some of you may want to forget) I wrote a post "Why I Deleted My Pinterest Boards." Here. You may like to know the updates. I deleted my boards on April 22nd 2012. Today is 2nd May 2012. By now Pinterest should have sufficient time to remove all remaining shreds of my images. Right?

Wrong. The spammers who repinned my images (which I've since deleted) still have my images sitting in their boards and these images still point to their dem spam sites.

Do you know why my repinned images still exist in Pinterest even though the originals have been deleted?

First, what do you think happens when someone repins your image on Pinterest? In my mind, I had the idea that I hold the key because I am the one who uploaded the original image. In that case, if I delete the original image, then all repins should no longer exist. That is how I see repinning.

Guess what? I'm wrong.

I went to Pinterest Terms of Service and suddenly I see that I had agreed to the following:

1. Pinterest and anyone can repin, MODIFY, re-arrange, distribute my images.

2. After termination of my account or deletion of my images,
a)  Pinterest will retain my images for a "commercially reasonable period of time". (what does this even mean?)
b)  Pinterest and anyone who has repinned my images can "continue to display, reproduce, re-pin, MODIFY, re-arrange, and distribute" my DELETED images.

Hello?

This doesn't sound right to me!

I am no longer on Pinterest.
Pinterest is dead to me.