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HoofPrints Newsletter
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February 8, 2015
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WHAT'S WITH THE CRAP?
Why would we put a page full of products dedicated to
HORSE MANURE on our website? The fact is, if you've got horses, you've got manure. And lots of it. Most of us accept this as a not-all-that-unpleasant aspect of horse ownership. City folk pay to go to the gym. I can clean stalls for free! It's a great fitness workout routine - 7 days a week. Do kennel owners have an endearing relationship with dog poop? I doubt it. Do cat lovers speak of litter box cleaning as "therapeutic"? Uh, no. But for horse folk, it's all part of the lifestyle. We've got the MANURE MOVERS OF AMERICA logo (shown) silkscreened on a sturdy aluminum sign AND a heavy grey sweatshirt. Enjoy our humorous selection here
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HoofPrints CRAPPY PRODUCTS
First, an explanation: Horse keeping is the only hobby I know of - that for the most part the cleaning up is not considered revolting drudgery. When I started paying attention, I realized that there are lots of products that make reference to that equine by-product - horse manure.
Shown here is HoofPrints' exclusive
SAME SH*T, DIFFERENT DAY mug.
If you're like me, you're not exactly "Little Miss Sunshine" in the morning. Enjoy your morning coffee with this little anti-pick-me-up, and get your crappy thoughts out of the way for the day. Actually, if the worst thing that happens is the same horse manure as the day before, then we've all got it made! This mug holds a full 16 ounces. I've had rave reviews about how nice and heavy it is. The handle is thick and substantial so you can get a good grip - on your coffee and your day. To order click here
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A CRAPPY BOOK for Farriers
Farrier/Author Ray Legel's book
TAILS OF A HORSESHOER includes a crappy chapter; "Road Apple Assault".Ray's candid account of his attack on his now ex-brother-in-law is not something that many folks would be brave enough to put in print about themselves: "...He took off with juicy, green horse s**t smeared from sideburn to sideburn. I really do not think he was licking his lips..."
Click here to order - and find out what happened after Ray meted out the deserved punishment on his good-for-nothing brother-in-law.
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That's a CRAPPY THING TO SAY:
"Eew! Horse poop. How do you walk around here?"
Several of the phrases on our popular
THINGS NOT TO SAY TO A HORSE OWNER series make reference to horse manure and that aspect of horsekeeping;
"Did you step in something? Your boots stink."
"Why don't you train him to go outside like a dog, instead of in his stall?"
"If you kept the house as neat as the barn, we wouldn't have to look for things."
Click here for the rest of the Things Not to Say to a Horse Owner.
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A RANT ABOUT CRAPPY COMMENTS
I've talked about this before, and it bears repeating...
I am so frustrated by the rude and negative interjections into otherwise interesting and informative online conversations. What's up with these people? If they contributed to real life discussions like that, they'd quickly find themselves all alone. And I find it particularly concerning that many folks that I hold in high regard as far as what they have to say and share, are telling me that they are keeping thoughts and ideas to themselves because they don't want to deal with the "haters". What a huge loss for the rest of us. Why do we have this technology that gives us so much power to exchange ideas, and instead (as the meme above illustrates) we use it to argue with strangers?
It happened to me a while back. A farrier asked a question on Facebook about an alternative therapy device they'd encountered in a booth at the AFA Convention. This person was curious - asking if anyone else had experience with this therapy and if they found it to be effective (or not). The discussion started off great. Some people contributed that they'd not found it to be effective. Others said they had seen promising results. One person cited an example of a prominent equine athletic program that was using this protocol with great success. Ironically, I had personally seen the effects of this mode of treatment just a few days prior on one of my own animals. It really was somewhat miraculous and I was excited to share my experience. Somewhere along the way a handful of folks with not one thing (other than negativity and snide comments) to add had joined the conversation. Other people tried to stay on track with actual adult contributions (both pro and con) but in the end it just became too tedious with all the nasty remarks. After a couple jabs aimed directly at what I'd posted, I deleted my comments, picked up my toys, got out of the sandbox and went home. I felt bad for everybody who was trying to share and learn. I sent a private message to the farrier who'd started the thread - elaborating on my personal experience with the therapy so they could have more details if they found them worthy of consideration. I explained my reasons for deleting my original comments, and this person issued to me a blanket apology for their farrier brethren's rude behavior, which I thought was an incredibly classy thing to do.
I don't know the answer to solving this problem. I suspect the folks who are so free with the snotty comments are NOT reading this newsletter anyway. However, I've come to know a lot of you somewhat personally over the internet, and cherish the collective wisdom that's held in this group of people I call my friends... Please don't stop sharing your thoughts and ideas. We don't all have to agree. But we can be nice.
 I wasn't prepared for what happened after I sent the newsletter
In came a flood of relevant and supporting info from a myriad of sources. First a note from my friend Michael Johnson, he's also the author of Healing Shine - A Spiritual Assignment:
"Read your newsletter today, and that part about "haters" really spoke to me. I know you were talking about online experiences, but this has been a sore spot with me in other areas as well. For example, the "old guys" at the coffee shop where I live have this rant going every morning about how awful everything is - the government, the president, the students at the university where we live today, the police in the town, how ruined everything is, and on and on. I sit and listen to these people who simply cannot find one good thing in the entire world, and think, "These people have never even had a job that required them to work outside!" I'm not na�ve enough to think everything is peachy, but my goodness, there are still cardinals and wood ducks, BBQ sauce and deviled eggs, and it won't be long before winters over, and the hummingbirds and the martins will be back. I've stopped going to that coffee shop. It's bad for my soul. The key to being happy is to appreciate what we have - not to bitch constantly and be so full of hate."
Another friend sent me a link to Tim Ferriss' video talk entitled Love The Haters. It's about a half hour long, but chock full of information and inspiration. You can watch it here
And a rather shocking account of the power of nasty remarks: the story of a lawsuit involving a reality/makeover show, unkind words spoken out of context and a resulting suicide:
 We're told that architect Frank Lloyd Wright had his own ideas on the power of words. He once said, "I'm all in favor of keeping dangerous weapons out of the hands of fools. Let's start with typewriters." (That gives me pause each time I sit down to write.)
But words alone can effect great good as well as evil. A few apt words have swept candidates into office, ended as well as started wars, paved the way for peace and carried with them both hope as well as despair. Words alone have ruined lives, but have also brought forth healing. It is well known the harm words can cause, but the good they can bring is equally impressive.
Your words of encouragement at the appropriate time can lift a person from hopelessness or build a lasting bridge of friendship. They seem little things, but carry with them tremendous power." The rest of that story is on Steve Goodier's Life Support System blog here Then came this quote from Martha Beck:
Criticism is an alluring substitute for creation, because tearing things down, unlike building them up, really is as easy as falling off a stump. It's blissfully simple to strike a savvy, sophisticated pose by attacking someone else's creations, but the old adage is right: Any fool can burn down a barn. Building one is something else again."
All this got me to thinking about all the wonderful books that I feature on the website, and how a great many of them are the result of someone's ability to write down their story, submit it to be published - and printed in actual BOOKS for the whole world to read. It was easy enough for me to delete my Facebook post regarding the alternative treatment that became a topic of ridicule for a handful of "haters". How scary would it be to put something out there that could NOT be deleted? Considering that, I'd like to highlight a few of my favorite, gutsiest and most inspirational books here.
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A CRAPPY SIGN tells folks where to go
If you are going to act like a TURD - Go lay in the YARD...
This goofy wood sign is a big hit every holiday season. It's surprisingly nice (if you can say that about something that refers to a turd). It's made of solid wood, screenprinted in multiple colors for a rustic look, and then framed with a raised edge (also in wood). It's got a hanger on the back, and measures an impressive 8.5" wide x 14.5" tall.
This is actually the first thing I go to when needing to choose an item for a White Elephant Gift Exchange; it's a good price (just under $20.) It always gets a chuckle, and is usually coveted by multiple gift openers before the game is over. To order click here
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"Tell them that we will take it."
- A Chapter of My Stubborn Valentine.
February always finds me sharing Valentine's Day stories, and this year is no exception. Most folks view the adjective "stubborn" as a negative trait. And indeed the very first word of dictionary.com's definition is " unreasonably". However, option two and three are much more flattering in that they tell us a stubborn person is: fixed or set in purpose on opinion; resolute
and
obstinately maintained, as a course of action
These describe my Valentine (husband Rob) to a T.
Historically, he's proven his mettle at seemingly insurmountable projects, the house remodel endeavor being one, and the pond construction another. Along the way there have been many, many others. It's not for the faint of heart, I can attest to that as I have stood on the sidelines many times wringing my hands about HOW things are going to get done. While. He. Does. Them.  This latest chapter is not a unique situation. Last time I shared some cool barn photos and alluded that there would be more stories about the barn coming. And as promised, the latest installment is here.
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Clutter busting continues at HoofPrints
My efforts to clear the warehouse (and my house- house) of accumulated oddball products continues to gain momentum. I've written about it before. The point continues to be, sometimes the space becomes more valuable than the items that are occupying it. So this is where most places say... "our loss is your gain!" Well, check out this super-cheap stuff and BUY IT. And your gain will be my gain, too. Because I need that space on the shelf. The VALENTINE'S DAY PINK SALE Page is here - it features my very best discount on a couple dozen products that will make great Valentine's Day gifts. Sale prices end 2/14/15 - no coupon code to use - sale pricing is applied automatically.
The Half Price Page is here - check this often as they're one-of-a-kind things that will sell quickly and be replaced with whatever else starts to get on my nerves. I am currently going through a large stash of samples* - so many wonderful things, it's hard to choose just a handful for the catalog. And the rest have got to go! Only one of each available so act fast if you see something you like.
*A note about the samples - Someone made a comment on the HoofPrints Facebook page that the samples are free to me and implied should thus be priced accordingly. Just to set the record straight - I pay for almost every sample I acquire. Occasionally an author or publisher will send me a book unsolicited, but I prefer to buy these anonymously so if I review and don't think it is a good fit for the product line, I don't feel guilty about not including it.
Half Price PRINTS are here - there are a lot of lovely prints languishing in drawers here that really should be hanging on folks' walls making them smile and beautifying their homes. Fall/winter is busy season here and I don't encourage print sales then - I don't have the extra time it takes to wrap these carefully for safe delivery. Now that Christmas is past, I've marked them way down now to sweeten the deal.
ALSO New is Half Price JEWELRY here
The more I got to digging, the more I found. Jewelry doesn't take up much room - suffice to say there is a LOT of lovely stuff that needs to find a new home. Then there's that whole problem I have with the beads. It's getting worse. Stay tuned for details on that.
Newest is Half Price Books & Magazine Back Issues here
This represents a major turning point for HoofPrints owner Gina Keesling. This treasure trove of magazine back issues has been lovingly collected and hoarded for many, many years. It's getting to be a space problem, keeping them all stored AND due to the sheer volume of them, along with my busy schedule, they rarely get any attention. But even now, as I go through them to write sales descriptions, I am feeling sad at the prospect of letting go of this vast collection of pictures and articles about all the things I love - Horses, Dogs, Farriery and Blacksmithing, The West, Pretty Western Clothes and Jewelry, Awesome Country Homes, Recipes for Hearty Food, Healthy Living, Spirituality and more. I'll do my best to mention the content that stands out to me in the descriptions. Prices on these back issues reflect the fact that I am still very much in love with them, however they are at or below what the publishers are charging. The current sales list is small, but I'll be adding more as I am able; going through these is a slow process, as you can imagine, I get sidetracked frequently by all the fascinating content that lead me to hoard these in the first place.
The Closeouts Page is here
It features items that are being phased out - still lots of good deals to be had there, too.
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Here's what we talked about last time
Last newsletter is here ALL newsletters are here
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Mule & Donkey items
Check out this brass longear charm and more here
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PINK SALE
Woman's Place is on a Horse Vest
Personal climate control! It's on sale for ONLY $23.95 here
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PINK SALE
Heart Zipper Pull
A great way to dress up any vest, jacket, sweatshirt, or purse. Just $3.96 here
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PINK SALE
Thermal Sherpa Hood
Is a customer favorite! It's on sale for $12.00 OFF here
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PINK SALE
Woman's Place Is On A Horse Gift Bag
This metallic pink gift bag is sturdy, durable, and UNDER $4.00! It measures a handy 9 "x 4" x 12" (not counting the handles) When I posted a picture of it on HoofPrints Facebook page, a customer chimed in: "I love this bag! It's just the right size for my lunch, or shoes + a big bottle of my favorite flavored water. And, since I carry a giant tote anyway, it takes up no room to have it folded and available when I need it, Plus -- it's pink; what more needs to be said?"
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PINK SALE
TUFF CHIX GLOVES
"Best. Gloves. Ever!" ~HoofPrints customer testimonial. More info here
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PINK SALE
Courage doesn't always roar...
sometimes courage is that quiet voice at the end of the day saying, "i will try again tomorrow." To order click here
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PINK SALE
American West Purses
Hill Country Collection here
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PINK SALE
2015 Equestrian Day Planner HALF PRICE!
2015 Gypsy Vanner Engagement Calendar just $8.98 here |
PINK SALE
LIFE IS TOUGH
BUT I AM TOUGHER
See the complete selection of inspirational jewelry here |
PINK SALE
Leather Heart Bracelet
This spiffy leather bracelet is loaded with details without being gaudy. It's rich brown tooled leather, finished edges with stitching, and braided rawhide accents on either side of a floral embossed silver heart. Closes with a fancy silver buckle, complete with silver keeper and tip. Regular price is a bargain at $19.95 - it looks like it should be a lot more expensive. But it's A STEAL as part of our Valentine's Day PINK SALE at only $15.96. Hurry - sale ends 2/14/15. You can see this and the rest of the horsey heart jewelry here
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This Hug's For You
Equine Sympathy Cardshere
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Message
I love hearing from customers. You can contact HoofPrints owner Gina Keesling via email at gina@hoofprints.com |
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Find us on facebook
Be sure to LIKE our facebook page - it's where we announce special sales, breaking news and everything else we find interesting. To see it go here |
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WHAT'S UP WITH THE PINK SALE?
January has historically been the month for HoofPrints Customer Appreciation Sale. For new subscribers, the Customer Appreciation Sale consisted of a storewide discount on every product HoofPrints sells. The sale pricing was activated by entering a simple coupon code in the shopping cart. Easy-peasy, right? Well, not really. My dear subscribers (that's you all) would read about the cool stuff I was featuring, click the links and place their orders. WithOUT remembering to put in the code. No matter how BIG, BOLD, BRIGHT COLORED, whatever, my reminders were - most didn't remember to do that part. Because so many of you have taken the time to send me personal comments over the years, I recognize your name(s) when you order. Soooo - with each order that was missing the awesome discount, I'd go back in and manually apply it when I processed the paperwork.
However, with the change to the new, improved website (details here) it's a lot trickier to be changing up pricing on orders once they're submitted. So, this year, instead of the storewide discount, I'm giving you my VERY BEST DISCOUNT possible on a whole lot of customer favorites.
No coupon codes to apply - all you have to remember is to order BEFORE February 15.
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ABOUT THE COMPANY AND THIS NEWSLETTERFarriers Greeting Cards was started by Gina Keesling in 1986 (in a very small way) to provide helpful promotional materials for farrier husband Rob. Along the way the company became HoofPrints.com, too, adding a selection of fun horse and dog products geared toward women of a certain age. This newsletter is emailed to subscribers a few times a month, depending on how often I have something to share. Watch for special sales, interesting stories, uplifting quotes and more.
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Share our emails
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Viral marketing... it sounds bad, doesn't it?
You can ask my husband - a frequent topic around here is that of forwarded emails - and the psychology behind them - just WHAT prompts people to decide; "I am going to send this to everyone I know!".
We receive a lot of them. Some are pretty good, and others are dumb. Dumb in a myriad of ways... Alarmist email rumors that have been around forever - that folks keep sending "just in case it's true" Pictures of someone's butt (or worse) - don't even get me started about the firecracker butt - but at least that one was timely when it showed up around July 4. Christian messages that are uplifting - until you get to the end and you're threatened "if you're not ashamed that you love Jesus, forward this - if you are, then delete." Pictures of cute puppies and kittens (awww)
I enjoy writing these newsletters - and sharing all this stuff with you all. But the fact is, it's also a way to help us stay connected with customers and sell products during the time between catalog mailings (which is only once a year) So I really, really like it when someone new stumbles upon the newsletter and is excited to "discover" our company and the products we offer.
In all my efforts to make the newsletter interesting and forward-worthy - it never occurred to me to JUST ASK you all to send it! Duh. Sometimes the obvious is elusive, I guess. So here goes - my request to ask you to forward our email newsletter to your horsey friends. All we ask is that you please be judicious and only send to folks who might be interested. Otherwise we are no better than the "firecracker butt". Click to get started. (please note - using this form does NOT subscribe anyone to our list - it is a one-time only forward)
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