So... we got jobs. (Copper Canyon!)

On a chilly mid-November morning, we blasted off in our new home

WOW!  It was 1 year ago this week!!! that Joel and I left Mpls, 'the corporate world', and stationary house living behind.  We headed south into a new lifestyle with no solid idea of what we were gonna do for an income... Other than keep our minds open, and enjoy the daylights out of all our new experiences!!  and WoW- talk about an adventure)

We sailed along pretty well on savings for several months, but one day our desire grew bigger for a plentiful, fun flow of money coming in again.

i thought about going into town and filling out a job application somewhere, but that didn't ring my bells at all.  For numerous reasons, i'm most-enjoying giving massages still, but just as a hobby and for fun, so, that didn't feel like an option for me either.  Joel was looking here and there for something he could do web-wise, but nothing really called to him.  "What i'd really like is to own or work for my own business." he told me one day.  And he'd thought about doing private contract work, but he wasn't moved to take on anything yet.  So, after several days of feeling-out some different options, i myself decided to give it a break and stop thinking about it.
Then something exceptional happened.

Joel's friends, Michael and Courtenay, have been running a small and successful rock-cutting and crystal-selling business here in town for 10ish years, called Copper Canyon Lapidary.  One evening they suggested we meet up with them for dinner. 
Mike asked Joel a bunch of questions about his web expertise, then went on to tell us about a huge business prospect he had up his sleeve.
He and his wife were seriously considering buying a colleague's 20+ yr, well-established, online rock-sales business, based out of Tuscon, AZ.  Not only that, but they knew of another guy in the middle-of-nowhere, CA, looking to retire from his rock equipment-cutting business.  So, they were looking to expand Copper Canyon Lapidary, BIGTIME.  But they couldn't do it alone.  Mike is a rock guy and just wants to cut rocks.  Courtenay has little experience with online, tech-y stuff, and already run their little crystal shop at the local arts & craft fair on weekends.  So they would need someone to manage a bunch of websites, photograph new inventory to put up on them, and learn to how to ship out the materials they'd sell.  And of course, these new businesses would have to be physically moved: one up, and the other over, to Sedona. 
They were asking us if we had any interest in maybe helping them.
blah blah blah, fast-forward a couple weeks, and we strongly felt "yes!"

stick a big rock in there!

We've spent the last several months preparing a new warehouse space right in town/only 10 minutes from where we live, to accommodate Mike's cutting equipment (he's been working out of his garage for years), all the new inventory we'd be taking in, and to house an entire office.  Amidst all that, Joel helped write up contracts & purchase agreements, dealt with lawyers & accountants, established bank accounts, figured out various legal things, and designed us a new logo.  Throw in the purchases, our building inspections, and oodles of other details, and... now we're IN it 😄 

moving day, just before Halloween

A couple weeks ago we all drove down to Tucson, loaded up a moving truck with desks, packing materials, shelving, boxes of pretty polished things, buckets of chunks and heavy rocks, office supplies, etc. and hauled it all up to it's new home.  The guy letting it all go came up with us, too 😁 (Rob.)  He's helping us find our bearings and train us in on how all this works.  Joel is now managing a bunch of different websites, taking orders, and figuring out their shipping logistics.  I'm pulling stuff off the shelves and packaging it up to be shipped, as well as learning how to photograph our back stock and edit pictures, to be added onto the websites.  Mike and Courtenay have one more weekend of running their crystal-selling shop at the local arts&craft fair, then they'll have the winter off, starting it up again in March.  Courtenay will be assisting me with the photography thru the winter. 

As some of you saw on FB earlier this year (Spring/summer), I shared pics of Joel and I helping Mike cut and polish stones.  It was so much fun!  But we're not really doing that anymore.  At the time, it worked out so great, since the new biz and salaries were not yet established, we were able to quickly learn a fun and fascinating new skill, and receive some cash for our time to boot!  Plus what an eye-opening experience! to see how to take a boring chunk of WTF?, slice it up, cut that into smaller pieces, soften or shape the edges, and put a polish on it... *Wha-La!*  "this thing is gorgeous inside!"
it can be a rather lengthy process.  I now better understand all the energy that goes into the pretty little bits we all see set into jewelry, or sold at a crystal shop, for hobbyists and 'healers'.  It's a delightful way to spend some time!  And i can see why some folks have such a passion for doing it.

Malachite/Azurite cabochons that we cut

Somewhere amidst all that, Joel and I made several mini road-trips down to Tucson (Saguaro-land!) so we could meet this Rob feller and start learning how to do what he does.

 Rob used to have a huge warehouse space with employees, but he's a solo act these days, running his shop solely online, out of the converted garage attached to his home.  We got to meet his wife Joanie as well. They are such LOVELY ppl!  Like all rock-hounds we've been meeting lately, Rob is such a character 😄 and we love him to bits.  He's quite laid-back, with a fun sense of humor, yet very serious about seeing his business go into caring and capable hands.  (He was all-for passing it off to Mike and Counrtenay, but it was gonna be a lot to take on for just the two of them.  They'd prefer to see them have some help... and then Life brought Joel and I onto the scene!)  Joanie and Rob have so lovingly opened their home to us on several different occasions.  the first time we met them we pulled our camper with us and lived on some fun BLM land, and spent a whole week.  Over our following, shorter visits they had us spend the night at their house, made us meals, took us out on the town a few times, and one evening we played a spirited game of Rummikub. (i forgot how fun that one is!)  Joanie even took me with her one Sunday morning to something kind of like Dance Church (in Mpls.) !!!  We had a lovely time together!  I've so much enjoyed spending time with both of them.  Now that everything is moved, i'm not sure when we will see Joanie again, but Rob said he'll be only a phone call away for months to come, once he leaves us to man our new ship mostly on our own.

Ginormous Quartz crystal at the Denver show

On another note, one of the great things about this business for us all is getting to TRAVEL!  and experience these GINORMOUS rock and gem shows (with GINORMOUS crystal specimens!) that happen in Arizona and Colorado, mainly.  There's a big one we'll attend every September in Denver, and another one every January/February in Tucson and Quartzsite.  Mike has suggested we take our little arts&craft fair shop to Cortez this spring and try vending there for the first time (WooHoo!!  we love CO.)  There's also interesting places where we can go dig out our own crystals and rocks from the ground.  (not to mention we still have a trip to Cali to do, for sealing the deal on the equipment buisness.)
YEAH, it's true, we're gonna be hunkered down here for a while, but i can't imagine a better place to be "stuck" (HA!) than this little town!  I really love Sedona.  I love and do miss my family, and friends. 
I love my husband so much!!!  I LOVE this opportunity we attracted (thanks, Universe/God/All-That-Is!).  I love our new business partners, we all get along so well.  I love our tiny home on wheels!  We've been living in an RV for a full year now and i'm still finding so much satisfaction in it.  It's just perfect for us right now!  and quite a while to come, we both feel.
 
I'm really stoked we're gonna go to Quartzsite for our first time come the New Year.  If you don't know yet, it's a HUGE RV/camping gathering that goes down every year in an area of AZ i havne't been to yet.  There's also big gem show that goes on in conjunction with the camper event, so Mike and Courtenay plan on going to that as well.
 In February we'll go to Tucson, where we'll buy up more inventory to sell at the local Spring show season.  And every September we'll go back to Denver, to restock for the Fall show season.  ...such is our ebb and flow of the crystal-sharing world.

 Joel will eventually launch an all new Copper Canyon website.  Right now we are doing business off of Colorwright.com.
What we sell at the arts & craft show is different from what we sell online, with the exception of Shungite products.  Colorwright caters mainly to lapidary and faceting (rock-hound) folks.  But we also offer beads, some polished items, jewelry, etc.  (A whole LOT!)
If you ever see me post pics from the show and you see things you like, let me know what you're interested in and we'll figure it out to ship it to you.

Our latest hike/climb

We get out on a hike much more seldom these days, but we did go last week on a trail we'd never been, made quite a climb, and caught a spectacular sunset view of Thunder Mountain.  I told Mike and Courtenay that we ALL have to do a group hike once a month together.  it will be great to clear our heads of business-y stuff, get exercise, fresh air, and bask in the energy/nature down here.  They're all for it.  The first hike isn't on the books yet, but it's coming.  As are all good things!  (For anybody, EVERY BODY! no exceptions 😉  ALL OF THE TIME!  Well-Being flows to you~)

Hello! from the new Copper Canyon Lapidary :)

TallyHo!  👋