Waving Hello Again

It's been so long, and I forgot I even had this blog. Here it is, still loving me after so many months of neglect.

I've flown on two different buying/business trips in the last month (January), and boy are my arms (and legs and feet and brain cells) tired. It will be awhile (at least four more days) until I'm ready to see the inside of an airplane cabin again.

I purchased somewhere around $500,000 in costume & wig-related merchandise for my store, including three (3) models of the Big Gay Tinky-Winky seen to the left. I'm taking a big chance on you, Portland... I'm trusting that you are, in fact, the middle-school-humoured drunks that I've assumed you to be for all these years. I've done all of this for you.

It really was a great couple of shows. It puts me in an alternate universe where rubbing elbows with gold-chained lotharios from New Jersey and accepting free Drambuie on the rocks all makes Good Business Sense. It's magical. So I stay in my fancy hotel room, get some complimentary slippers, meet some Canadian costume store owners, then come back to Portland to live my life. Nothing too traumatic or skeevy, and I've built a shit-ton of character.

The first trip was to Fabulous Las Vegas, NV, which becomes slightly less fabulous when it's your third trip there in twelve months. I sometimes long for the days of late 2007, when I had not yet set foot in Sin City, and it remained a glittering mystery in the Western desert.


No Tom Jones concert at the MGM or 42-oz. daiquiris for me this time around; it was strictly business. With a Star Trek-themed opening banquet. JEALOUS?

I know. The life of the Party Store Manager.


Trip #2 was to Houston, TX. Yep, Houston, TX. I felt like a special princess whose life-long dream was finally coming true. Lucky for me, to add to the already tumbling heap of excitement I had over this trip, a friend was able to hook me up with some valuable Texas "do's" & "dont's". I'm not sure if I listened properly or followed through, but I had a great time. Mostly based on room service with beer, and grind-dancing on the president of one of the Major Costume Companies. To "Single Ladies".

Thank you and Goodnight! I'll be here all week! More to come.