Attention parents of future Kossaks
There is a new blogin town......but it's a little different than what we are used to.
First a little background....I'm a teddy bear artist, sounds cute and a little weird, but I am actually a known name in the teddy collecting world and my bears sell for hundreds and sometimes thousands of dollars. I'm not meaning to brag, I'm just trying to put it in context for those who have no familiarity with the teddy collecting world.....which is pretty much most people.
Last week I designed and created BEARack, a 28" one of a kind bear with a needlefelted face that looks like Barack Obama, which sold on Ebay (where I sell most of my work) for $2002.00.
Although some of my one of a kind designs often garner a lot of attention and high bids, I like to think it is because Barack Obama is so popular that it generated the most interest of any of my previous work. Most of the feedback was very positive. A few messages sent to me were downright nasty ( Imagine saying mean things about a teddy bear!)
The Freepers got a hold of it and went to town posting pictures of the auction on their forum, berating Barack and BEARack with the usual snark. Some of it was actually clever, but most was nasty. They quieted down quite a bit when they saw what he sold for.
( I was thinking I should make a McSame bear so they would feel obligated to bid more than the Bearack bear got! I could make enough to pay for two month`s health insurance!)
If you want to see the old Ebay listing that got them all worked up it's here
It must have been all those inspirational Obama photos and quotes I included.
So, inspired by the lovely vitriol in Freeperland, I decided to take BEARack even further and maybe do some good in the process. He now has his own blog. At first I was going to have him speak in my own voice with my own opinions (snarky and dripping with sarcasm,so un-teddy like!) but then I eventually came around to the idea of making it non-controversial,family friendly and geared to the younger set. He is a teddy bear after all and the teddy bears I have known are extremely polite. ( It's easier than I thought it would be to be nice!) Before the bear left for his new home in California I took lots of Photos to use on the blog.
So nowBEARack's blog will speak in his own voice, following Barack Obama's campaign and informing the young readers of why he would be a terrific president. I will hardly even mention John McSame. I can only go so far in my bear persona and I wouldn't be able to say anything polite about him...so best to leave him out of it......and that's how I usually get into trouble anyway, so I will just keep coming here for my daily dose of partisan progressive politics and occasional snark.
Anyway, I thought some of you with children may like to show your kids the BEARack blog as a good way to get them interested in the presidential race. It will consist of BEARack following ( thanks to Photoshop!) Barack Obama on the campaign trail and reporting on Obama news. There are also kid friendly links to sites about Obama and American History and Government. I'm not selling any bears from the blog....it's just for fun.
And since I hardly ever post a diary and rarely comment, I want to take this opportunity to thank all of you who do so. I've been a member here for over four years and I come here several times a day. I don't post much because I see so many people who express exactly how I feel much more eloquently than I can. But I follow action items, donate to causes, write and call editors and I have become the go to person for information on politics for all my less involved friends. ( and I think I may have even brought some over from the dark side!)
So, I hope with BEARack's blog, I can start a few young'uns on their way to becoming Kossaks someday.
And if any of you who have children have any ideas or links to add to his blog, let me know.
By the way, Bearack wears a 1-20-09 button : Bush's Last Day"
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