Who is Dustytoes? This is Pam's Wizzography

by dustytoes

This is the first article I have written about myself, but it's about time since I've been writing at Wizzley almost since the site began.

I came to Wizzley and began writing because of an invitation from a nice lady named Paula. I had met Paula while writing online at Squidoo. When I began writing at Wizzley, I still had a lot to learn about writing quality articles which could also potentially earn me money. Fortunately the Wizzley community is full of experienced writers who love to share their knowledge with other writers. I've learned a lot from the kind and helpful people who hang out here and from the wonderful articles they have written.

I've been hesitant to write a page about myelf as I don't think I have much to say about me. Now that I have many pages written, I can at share the ones that are closest to my heart, which help to introduce me.

I've Moved Around A Lot

I've lived in 16 places during my lifetime, and hopefully I am settled now for good.

After living in New England for the first 22 years of my life, I headed to Florida.  After getting married and raising four kids in the Sunshine State, we decided it was not the place for us any more.  Our family moved back to the Northeast, where we planned to stay for good.

My plans never come to pass, and I ended up living on my own, due to a series of unfortunate events. During those tough years, I began a business and became successful enough to buy a house of my own, and began sharing my gardening experience, which was for me, "learn as I go".  

Eventually I could no longer afford to stay in the North, and had to move back to Florida.  

Because I have lived extensively in both areas of the country, my blogs and articles reference both locations.

I was born in the northeastern US and I love it there, but couldn't keep up with the expenses on my own.

Winter in New Hampshire
Winter in New Hampshire
My photo

Hardy Souls Live in New England

I found it difficult to spend winters in New Hampshire.  I bought a snowblower when it became apparent there wasn't enough space in my yard to have my driveway plowed when we got lots of snow.  

So on top of working full time, raising my son, keeping up the house, building fires in the wood stove, and everything else that goes with dealing with life, I had to go out and snowblow the driveway whenever a storm hit. I realized that without a man in my life, living in the Northeast was going to be tough.  

This winter photo was from a particularly snowy winter.  I had to have my roof shoveled, for fear of it collapsing under the weight of snow.  But I did a nice job with the snowblower, don't you think?

My Life in New Hampshire

I began an online business, bought a house and planted hydrangeas and grew vegetables in my New Hampshire yard. I also learned how to run a snowblower and start a woodstove.
The New England area is a great place to explore the great outdoors, and families with kids can find lots to do in New Hampshire.
Here you can familiarize yourself with the varieties of hydrangeas available to beautify your landscape.
Fabric garden bags come in a variety of sizes from small to extra large. Once the dirt is ready you have a very easy garden to care for.
I've been selling products on the Zazzle site since 2007, and my earnings continued to increase to the point that I was able to buy a home in 2011.

Lush Gardens in Mid-Summer New England

Summer Garden in New Hampshire
Summer Garden in New Hampshire
My photo

HydrangeasBlue is my Gardening Blog

I write about Florida gardening now, but I have many posts about my northern gardens and hydrangeas.
November is the month to see changes for the good in a Florida vegetable garden. It is still hot in central Florida. Our air-conditioner is still running day and night...
Planting and re-planting in Fall for a good vegetable harvest. Bugs, weather, and animals can make things difficult.
Sweet potatoes are not difficult to grow where I live. In fact, once planted, they may be around forever. I’ve dug my sweet potatoes, but little shoots keep on s...
It was a long, sleepless night – October 10th – spent listening to extraordinary wind. Hurricane Milton traveled across Florida from somewhere around Tampa...

In the north, I grew beautiful hydrangeas!

I feature my own photos on products in my BlueHyd store.
Endless Summer Hydrangea
Endless Summer Hydrangea
My photo

The Subject of Seashells

I've become quite the seashell collector and advocate for the mollusks inside.

Believe it or not, I began taking an interest in seashells after I moved back to New England from Florida.  When I started working online at the Zazzle site, I used photos of my Florida seashell collection to sell products.  Without any tropical beaches to visit, I was limited to the shells I already had.  I began a blog about identifying seashells, and wrote an article at Squidoo which was my most popular / money-making article.  Once the Squidoo writing site was no more, I transferred my successful article here, and it is still very popular.

Now that I live in Florida again, and am close to the beach, I can regularly update my blog and write posts about local events with information for visiting tourists.  I can also take more pictures of seashells to use on my Zazzle site.

Collecting and Identifying Seashells on Florida Beaches

A look at some seashells you may see on Florida beaches with photos of my own personal finds.
I blog and write about seashells and purchased the Florida's Living Beaches book for seashell identifying, but I got so much more.
With a little care taken, your trip to Florida and the beaches can be a happy memory.

Beachcombing is my favorite pastime!

I share my photography and stories on my blog, SeashellsbyMillhill.com
Large "True Tulip" seashell found in the Florida backwaters
Large "True Tulip" seashell found in the Florida backwaters
My photo

Seashells by Millhill

Boating and camping blog.
My review of time spend camping at Kelly Park in Apopka, Florida and paddling the Emerald Cut.
Our yard is not very large but we had to store our camper next to the house. We also have a drainage ditch along the front of the house, and a drain pipe beneath the d...
Our third camping trip to Long Point Campground and staying at a beach front site. July camping has it's problems, but there was a lot to enjoy here.

My Time With Zazzle

Zazzle is an online print-on-demand store where anyone can open a store and upload artwork and photography designs to sell for a royalty.  In 2007 I was desperate for any type of income, and started my first store at Zazzle.

Earning at Zazzle has been up and down for me, but overall it's been a success.  I sit at my computer every day and do my work from home.

 

Writing to Help Other Zazzlers

I had a lot to learn when I began with Zazzle, so I try to help others who are just starting out there.
Zazzle sellers have a few options when it comes to pricing their products for sale. This page explores them.
Updated: 11/19/2024, dustytoes
 
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blackspanielgallery on 06/07/2017

I also started on squidoo, and am on Zazzle. Zazzle is often passive for me, since I create few new products. It earns some, but is not a huge money maker.

frankbeswick on 06/06/2017

Today where I am it has been pouring rain all day. I would happily send some over to you.

dustytoes on 06/06/2017

In general Florida is tropical, with plenty of rain, but it's been unusually dry here for nearly a year, although lately the storms are increasing. Summertime usually means storms every afternoon. There is a sprinkler system installed in my lawn, and many people have those. Where I live, that outside water is recycled and comes from the town water plant. You don't drink it, and it's cheap compared to the water we use inside the house. I am a little hesitant to use in on my growing crops! But, supposedly you can.
Hurricane season is upon us, and no doubt the water supply will be refilled over the coming months.

frankbeswick on 06/06/2017

Interesting wizzography. I am interested to know how you cope with the dry conditions when you are gardening in Florida. My interest is due to the fact that Florida seems so different from where I live in North West England, a place known to be wet and predicted with global warming to become wetter.

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