Mr. Liu Xiaobo's Sentence - After 10 years, can we still enjoy freedoms & rights we have ?

It isn't the first time, Chinese being in jailed for what they've said / what they've written.

The Chinese government claims itself to be a civilized country.
A civilized country, which doesn't allow voices against the government.
A civilized country, which allows one party ONLY to be in power.
A civilized country, which limits access of the Internet of her people (include popular community web sites e.g. facebook, twitter, youtube etc).
A civilized country, which puts her people into jail simply because of some peaceful expressions on their political view.
A civilized country, which judges with closed doors.

I feel ashamed to be a Chinese, honestly. Whenever I'm asked about my nation, I just simply say 'I come from Hong Kong'.

First they came - Martin Niemöller (1892–1984)

When the Nazis came for the communists,
I remained silent;
I was not a communist.

Then they locked up the social democrats,
I remained silent;
I was not a social democrat.

Then they came for the trade unionists,
I did not protest;
I was not a trade unionist.

Then they came for the Jews,
I did not speak out;
I was not a Jew.

When they came for me,
there was no one left to speak out for me.


If we do nothing and just sit back, we or our next generations may face the same problem one day.
Can we still enjoy freedoms we've after 10 years ?
Can we still have the rights we've now after 10 years ?
Can we still strike on every 1Jul after 10 years ?

I'm not sure what I can do at this moment. I may throw a boom to Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in Hong Kong Special Administrative Region one day, perhaps >.*

There are things I'm pretty sure, I will NEVER go to the mainland until it's completely open. I will send the related news about Mr. Liu Xiaobo to people in the mainland. I will try my best not to buy things made in China. These don't help anything, just some silly and silent protests to make myself happier.

News about the sentence of Mr. Liu Xiaobo
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8430548.stm

Chapter 8 in different languages:
http://knol.google.com/k/%E9%9B%B6%E5%85%AB%E5%AE%AA%E7%AB%A0-08%E5%AE%AA%E7%AB%A0-%E7%AE%80%E4%BD%93%E4%B8%AD%E6%96%87%E7%89%88-%E7%B9%81%E4%BD%93%E4%B8%AD%E6%96%87%E7%89%88-%E6%97%A5%E6%96%87%E7%89%88-%E8%8B%B1%E6%96%87%E7%89%88-%E6%B3%95%E6%96%87%E7%89%88#Charter_08_(28)English_Version(29)

Featured Seller: donnapool

www.donnapool.etsy.com

Feb's featured seller is donnapool. Do you want to have buttons / magnets which are customized for you ? Donna makes custom buttons and magnets.
I love cats and just found that there are lots of pretty photos of cats.

New Year's Goal

Here are my new year's goals of my shop, and I will try my best to archieve them.

1. open another shop for supplies
Currently I sell my handmade products and supplies together on dorothywyn.etsy.com and www.dorothywyn.com . I'm going to move the supplies to dreamsupplies.etsy.com .

2. create new products
I would like to make some useful and cute stuffs which can make people smile and people can use them daily at the same time. I don't have any idea yet, but I really hope people can still live happily under bad economic situations.

Featured Seller: kstreasures

www.kstreasures.etsy.com
Jan's featured seller is RoseWorksJewelry. I blogged about this shop before. Hence, I'd like to blog about Ruthie's another shop which was just started in Dec2008.


You can find different kind of products in this shop. Bookmark, cell phone charm, cell phone bag etc.
My favorite one in this book mark. The scalloped pattern is quite. If you want a different color, you just need to tell Ruthie as custom order is welcome.

Christmas Spotlight

I didn't make any Christmas items (luckily I didn't), because I have joined Etsy for a few months only and there hasn't been much traffic. I believe Christmas isn't a magic and I will not be busy because of Christmas.

However, I did find some wonderful Christmas gifts. Although I didn't buy one because of the expensive shipping to Hong Kong, I recommend you to buy one if you are in the U.S.

This is a shop I featured before. There are lots of stuffer for Christmas. The duckies, turkeys etc are lovely.

If you love duckies, this gift set is a perfect one.

Featured Seller: spottedcowsoaps

www.spottedcowsoaps.etsy.com

If you're still thinking Christmas gifts to your fathers, brothers, husbands, boy friends etc, you may visit this shop. There are some nicely packed soaps for men.

Apart from soaps, you can find massage oils, bath accessories etc. If you want to find some ways to relax yourselves or people you love, you must visit this shop.

Featured Shop: Sweet Lollipop Shop

www.duckysoaps.etsy.com


The ducky in this shop is lovely. I am considering to buy the Santa Claus duck as Christmas gift for my husband ^^

1. What is your shop name ?
My official business name is Sweet Lollipop Shop, however I have 4 stores currently on etsy, DuckySoaps, SweetLollipopShop, BodyBeautiful and Kinky.

2. Can you introduce a little bit about yourself and what you make ?
Well, my name is Louise although I am nicknamed by most people that know me 'Louissa'. I was born in the United Kingdom and have lived here in the United States now for 5 years. I'm married to a fantastic guy who is awesome at making anything out of wood which is very handy when you have as many hobbies as I do and need storage, and I have 4 great kids aged between 9 and 18, my oldest two both being in the military here and in the UK. I began making candy approximately 4 years ago and then began making soaps seriously about a year later. I love creating for children most of all and seeing the reactions on their faces when they see what I create for them, there's something really special about watching a childs face just totally light up with a smile. Having 3 daughters, the younger two also being very artistic we love to make things together and they are definately my drive and my inspiration and both love to help out.

3. What is your shop URL ?
We have a few:
http://sweetlollipopshop.etsy.com (crystal barley candy lollipops and jewels)
http://duckysoaps.etsy.com (ducky and animal soaps)
http://bodybeautiful.etsy.com (a little bit of everything)
http://www.sweetlollipopshop.com

4. When did you start selling handmade ?
I officially opened Sweet Lollipop Shop in November 2006

5. How did you start selling handmade ?
My husband and I purchased our first home together in 2005 with the intention of us both working full time, however shortly after I was diagnosed with a chronic health issue that made it impossible to work outside the home, so we decided to sell the house the following year and move somewhere a little smaller and more affordable until my health improved which unfortunately didn't happen. I still really wanted to feel that I could contribute financially as I've always been stubbornly independent. A close friend suggested I should be making the candy I made at holidays for get togethers and selling them at craft shows and online because she thought they were so unique and that other people would actually buy them and enjoy them. I did my research and once I realised how popular handmade had become and then I found etsy, my creative juices were totally sparked and I began going off in all different directions, taking every hobby I'd ever enjoyed or been tempted to try and went a little crazy with it.

6. Why do you like crafting ?
I love to create and I get bored very easily so enjoy doing multiple different crafts especially ones that I can do with my children, sometimes I think I have the mind of a 5 year old but maybe that's just the kid in me! Being able to make something and see the positive reactions of others when they eat it or use it has to be one of the most rewarding experiences and just makes you want to keep on creating more and more. Also being lucky enough to work from home, be my own boss, set my own hours and do something that the whole family can enjoy together is amazingly fun. I honestly wish I could just do nothing but simply create 24/7 and the magic listing and packaging fairy would do all the administrative and cleaning up after me, who knows maybe one day when I'm rich and famous!

7. What is your favorite product in your shop ?
Oh my gosh, I don't think I have an absolute favorite but I do think my elephant ducky soap is the most adorable of my ducky soaps. I couldn't think of a color scheme I was happy with for so long and I felt that grey would look dull and icky as a soap color, so was pleasantly surprised when I tried it as the base color with the pink and clear and now I totally love it. My favorite candy currently is the peppermint flavored crystal candy jewels, they're perfectly bite sized and have just the right amount of delicate minty flavor and no nasty preservatives!

8. Do you sell offline ? If yes, where ?
For the last 2 years the whole family has taken part in local craft shows including NH Made Try It and Buy It Expo, and we also now have our products in a couple of stores, the most recent being Freetown Yankee Market in Raymond, NH.

9. Do you buy handmade ? What are your favorite stores ?
I love to buy handmade, I have purchased so many things for my girls in particular including jewelry, cupcakes in a jar, unique cuddly bears and I love doing trades, especially around the holidays. I have tons of favorite stores, a few of them include britishcreamtea, pandys, Boodlebub and my favorite jewelry creator BonnyJewelry whom I just purchased a gorgeous triple heart necklace for my daughter for Christmas from.


10. Any interesting things about your shop you would like to share ?
I currently have over 160 animal & ducky soaps listed in my ducky soaps store and I still have at least that many I haven't even managed to get listed yet! I also was lucky enough to become part of The Little Black Boxes (http://www.thelittleblackboxes.com), which are a great way for indie artists to get their creations out there and let the world see they exist whilst providing a great box of goodies every month on sale for everyone that loves to buy handmade!