A re: letter to a recent Guest Post contributor pitch (to me)

A re: letter to  a recent Guest Post contributor pitch

" If you would like to write guest posts for Locomotion of Expressions that's great!

But I have several expectations.

• #1 I am the final editor.
• #2 Any sexual (or other for any reason) links might be removed, as will any in the beginning of posts.
• #3 Also, I have a maximum three link rule. Any more looks spammy.
• #4 Any links I remove will not be put back or the whole post will be removed.
• #5 When in doubt, refer back to Rule #1.

"I have had some major issues with my guest posters.. they seem to forget this is my blog and to keep their manners when in someone else's home. They get their feathers ruffled and very bossy.

Do NOT do this. I'm like the hulk, you won't like me after you get smart.. I make this a PROMISE! 

Also, I am open to topics that are relevant to my site. Just look over my label/tags on the right sidebar to browse and see what you can offer me.

I do appreciate your invitation and do not intend to come off snotty, however this has been a serious issue that I feel needs to be addressed. In fact, this reminds me, I need to blog about it, and direct my guest posters to the link from here on out before I post for them.

Anyways if all this sounds good then we will proceed. If not, thank you anyway!

Thanks,

Casey Colette

Locomotion of Expressions
http://1caseycolette.blogspot.com "

Monte Carlo review -- Thanks Fox! (*sarcasm*)

http://1caseycolette.blogspot.com/2011/09/monte-carlo-review-soon-top-5-sister.html

Gigi and I got to watch Monte Carlo the other day and I gotta say- we loved it! I was a little disappointed however. For some reason I had it in my head that we would be receiving an actual copy with a case to keep forever and I got a burned disc in a paper envelope. Gigi didn't seem to mind, but it bothered me a little bit. I mean, this is a Fox review, and you'd think FOX could come off of an actual DVD in exchange for posting... BUT I guess not. it's strange though.. because Lionsgate does.


Even worse, they sent it to me on the day of the release, so it wasn't like we even really got a heads up. I could've just as easily went to Blockbuster and rented it and not been obligated to post about it! 



Wow Fox. Thanks so much. Hopefully the other DVD's I have already agreed to review for them are not like this, but I have a strange feeling they will be. I guess I am grateful.. well.. kind-of! 



But like I said, FOX Studios should have enough money to where coming off of 100 discs in actual cases for bloggers does not break the bank. This is advertising being taken for granted and ripped off at it's best.


Buuuuttt.. I guess they don't care! I will remember this when Fox sends me more oppurtunities for movies to review. I don't have time for this stuff. Its so time consuming, and it's not that I don't love it! I would just like to be compensated for my time. 


The product is my payment. Dare I say my time is valuable more so worthy than a burned disc of a movie I could've went and rented for 3$.. actually for free, since I subscribe to Blockbuster Online.

Penny Pinching at it's best!

LOL!


In any case- please see the links included in this post (of mine and this blog) related to Monte Carlo.


           Our opinion?


Well I don't post my opinion for less than 10$!  No I'm just kidding.
Really, it was great. It was better than I thought it would be.
Very interesting if less than original. I mean this has been done over and over again; the whole "swapped identity"?
We've got:

• A Walk in My Shoes
• All Of Me - Female client into attorney, then into a jar of water, then into his buddy musician, then into her stablekeeper's daughter, the daughter finally into one of her horses.
• 13 Going on 30
• 17 Again
• Seventeen Again
• 18 Again! - George Burns and his grandson.
• Like Father Like Son - Father and son.
• Vice Versa - Father and son.
• A Saintly Switch - National Football League quarterback and his wife.
• Alison’s Birthday - Young girl and old crone.
• Body Switch - Old scientist and teenage boy.
• Freaky Friday - Mother and daughter. Disney has produced several versions: 1976, 1995, and 2003.
• Dame Tu Cuerpo - Football team coach and young female ex-model.
• Day Watch - Anton and Olga.
• Dating the Enemy - Boyfriend and girlfriend.
• It’s a Boy Girl Thing - Teenage Boy and Girl.
• Switch - A promiscuous man (Perry Firestone King) is murdered by his lovers and reincarnated as a beautiful woman (Ellen Rona Barkin).
• Sister Switch - Sisters: Ashleigh Cole and Taylor Cole.
• Wish Upon a Star - Sisters Alexia (Katherine Heigl) and Hayley (Danielle Harris).
• L’anima gemella (Soul Mate)
• The Hot Chick - Clive (Robert Michael “Rob” Schneider) and Jessica (Rachel Anne McAdams).
• Two Struck by Lightning - Mother and daughter.
• Lovey-Dovey - Married couple.
• Lovey-Dovey 2 - Married couple and their children.
• Lovey-Dovey 3 - Married couple and their parents.
• 32 December
• If I Were Him
• If I Were Her
• The Secret
• Give Me My Skin
• Dogmatic — a man and his dog.
• Dream a Little Dream — elderly man and young teenager.
• Every Dog Has His Date — a man and his employer's dog.
• Eine wie Keiner — boyfriend and girlfriend
• Face/Off” — FBI agent and terrorist (technically not a true switch; each had plastic surgery to look like the other, to infiltrate the other's life and learn his plans).
• Help, I'm a Boy” — boy and girl.
• Holiday Wishes” — Britney and Rachel
• “Identity Theft” — male Lottery winner has his body stolen by an attractive female.
• “Just Follow Law” — supervisor and subordinate.
• “Mulholland Drive” — Multiple characters share names and appearances.
• “Pon un Hombre en tu Vida” — male sports coach and female singer.
• “Prelude to a Kiss” — bride and mysterious old man.
• “Sex, Drugs, and Natalie Portman — teen neighbors
• “Scooby-Doo — Shaggy, Fred, Daphne and Velma accidentally swap their minds after demons use their bodies as hosts.
• “Secret Garden_ A South Korean drama: A stuntwoman and a rich CEO.
• “Shrek the Third” — Donkey and Puss in Boots
• “Soowitch” — man and woman (short film).
• “The Immortalizer” — Mad scientist swaps rich elderly people with young kidnap victims.
• “The Skeleton Key” — hoodoo thriller film starring Kate Hudson.
• “The 10th Kingdom” — Prince Wendell and a dog.
• “The Change-Up” - A married guy and his friend/co-worker.
• “Turnabout” — husband and wife
• “Xchange” — multiple
• “Se eu fosse você” (2006) and Se eu fosse você 2 (2008), from (Brazil) — former husband and wife.
• “Memory Run” (1996) Andre become to Josette (renamed to Celeste).

Buuuutttt..
It's in good company as the majority of those are really great movies.

http://1caseycolette.blogspot.com/2011/09/first-time-traveler-tips-brought-to-you.html

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5 Things You Think Work, But Actually Don't

by Matt Brownell
Sunday, October 9, 2011

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Most people are well aware of the placebo effect as it pertains to medicine. The idea is that simply thinking that a treatment will cure your symptoms is sometimes enough to make that treatment take effect. For instance, a patient who thinks he's taking Advil for a headache may see his headache go away even if he's swallowing a sugar pill meant to look like a painkiller. The effect is powerful enough that control groups in scientific studies of a treatment's effectiveness will be given a dummy treatment to control for the effect.

More from MainStreet.com:  • 5 Things You Buy, But Never Use • The Weirdest Product Names Explained • 10 Ways Smartphones Drain Your Wallet

But the placebo effect is by no means limited to medicine. In our daily lives we constantly encounter situations where products or services don't work as promised. Yet far from stomping off to complain to someone, we instead come away convinced that the button we were pressing was doing exactly what it said it would. If a button says it will close the elevator doors but doesn't appear to have the desired effect, we still find a way to convince ourselves that it was doing what it said it would.

"Don't assume self-delusion is always willful or conscious," says David McRaney, author of You Are Not So Smart, a book about self-delusion. "We often engage in something called confabulation, which is basically making up a story we can believe in to explain away behavior we don't understand... We are very good at pattern recognition, and whether or not we have the story correct as to what is causing the pattern, we naturally learn to associate cause and effect."

In other words, if the button says it will close the elevator doors, and the elevator doors don't close until we've been pushing it for 20 seconds, we still manage to convince ourselves that our actions brought about the outcome. It's just like the guy who takes the sugar pill labeled "Advil" — when the headache goes away on its own after a couple of hours, he convinces himself that it was the pill that did the trick.

Here a few examples of how this phenomenon affects us on a daily basis.

The Elevator "Close Doors" Button

Let's start with the most obvious example: That pesky "close doors" button on the elevator. It's a fairly well-established fact that on most elevators it's what essentially amounts to a dummy button.

But it's not as if elevator manufacturers are installing an extra button just to give you an illusion of control. Indeed, McRaney says the button can be activated, but only by certain people.

"The close buttons don't close the elevator doors in most elevators built in the United States since the Americans with Disabilities Act," explains McRaney. "The button is there for workers and emergency personnel to use, and it only works with a key."

Sure, they could put a sign on the panel explaining the situation to elevator riders, but as McRaney points out, it's hard to justify the time and money it would take. And besides, we'd probably keep pressing it anyway, convinced that this time it will work.

"HD" TV

We're not suggesting that HD TVs aren't really high-definition, though the various technical terminology might make it hard to determine just how good the picture quality really is. But for some people, simply seeing the "HD" label on the TV is enough to convince them that the picture is better, even if they don't have the proper connection or they're not watching an HD channel. Simply being told that it's an HD picture is enough to convince them that the picture is better, and it isn't until their grandkids come over and show them how to find the HD channels that they realize they'd been deluding themselves.

This isn't just anecdotal, though. Dutch scientists conducted a study in 2009 in which 60 people were shown an identical video clip on identical TVs. However, half of them were told that the clip would be in high-definition, and the scientists even attached an extra-thick cable to the back of the TV to complete the charade. The control group was told to expect a normal DVD image.

Afterwards they were asked to describe the picture quality. You can imagine which group thought it was watching the nicer picture.

Of course, at this point HD TVs are ubiquitous enough that most people know when they're seeing a high-definition picture or not. And as one of the scientists explained to New Scientist magazine, the gap between standard definition and high definition is smaller in Europe than it is in the U.S., so it wouldn't be as effective here.

Still, it's a good reminder that an assurance that something is "high quality" doesn't just make it more likely that you'll buy the product — it may also subtly influence your enjoyment of it.

Walk Signal Buttons

Many cities and towns have buttons at crosswalks that allow a pedestrian to speed up the arrival of a walk signal. And in many places, they do exactly what they promise to do.

But not everywhere.

The City of New York admitted several years ago that most of the "push button, wait for walk signal" buttons were no longer active, having long ago been replaced by automated systems that keep all the lights on a set timer. That makes them placebo buttons just like the close door buttons on an elevator.

"Just as with the elevators, it would be expensive to replace or remove all of the non-functioning buttons or to inform the public through some sort of media campaign," explains McRaney. "There is no obvious harm in letting the people in your town keep impotently jamming crosswalk buttons."

And many people will keep pushing away — perhaps a holdover from a time when they remember the buttons working, or perhaps because occasionally they'll get lucky and the light will change right after they push.

Again, in many municipalities these buttons actually do work. In 2008, an investigation by Canada.com found that there weren't any such placebo buttons in Victoria, Canada, though city officials admitted that the buttons varied in effectiveness.

Butt-Toning Shoes

In the case of elevator and walk signal buttons, there's no deliberate deception involved — technology just changed, and nobody bothered to inform the people who were still pressing away in vain. But sometimes you have the classic case of a company making claims that it can't back up.

Case in point: Reebok was just ordered by the Federal Trade Commission to pay $25 million in refunds for claiming that its "toning" shoes would strengthen and tone the thighs and butts of people who wore them. The FTC also banned the company from making similar claims in future advertisements.

The decision is a potential shot across the bow of other companies marketing similar shoes, whose rounded soles supposedly make your thigh and butt muscles do more work as you walk. Despite the big claims by companies like Reebok and Skechers, some experts are skeptical; USA Today last year quoted a professor of medicine who called such claims "utter nonsense" and suggested that their only effect could be to destabilize the Achilles tendon.

Despite these doubters, many customers are quite pleased with their purchase. In a statement responding to the FTC decision, a Reebok spokesman insisted that the company had received "overwhelmingly enthusiastic feedback from thousands of EasyTone customers." And while that's probably a bit of corporate over-exaggeration, we don't doubt that many customers did indeed come away feeling like the shoes had improved their butt. Maybe the shoes really did the trick. Or maybe they just thought it did.

Office Thermostats

We hate to break it to you, but big companies aren't just going to let a chilly employee crank the heat up whenever he or she pleases. But if they simply locked the thermostat or put the controls out of reach, the employees would constantly complain.

The solution: A thermostat that doesn't actually do anything but placate the chilly masses.

"In many offices the controls on the wall don't do anything," says McRaney. "Some bosses and landlords feel like they can't trust people not to fiddle with the temperature all day and thus cost them money, so they install dummy thermostats which give people the illusion of control. They work really well, as most people fool themselves into believing they feel the change."

When pressed, most technicians tasked with installing the devices admit that they're merely window dressing. A 2003 investigation by The Wall Street Journal quoted one HVAC technician who estimated that 90% of office thermostats were completely fake (though other technicians gave lower estimates).

We haven't seen any study confirming that people feel warmer after fiddling with these props. But let's be honest: If they didn't work, offices wouldn't bother installing them.

___ 

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Thanks I Stock

Today I found out one bad bad bad thing about IStock. I was unaware when you paid 40 something dollars for a picture, it wasn't  yours and someone else could put it on their blog. Golly gee, that's freaking lovely!
Now I feel cheated and ordinary, average & boring. Like I need to change my header. But I don't want to! (Crosses arms huffily!) I don't know who had it first, but it doesn't matter because there is nothing I can do about it. Short of changing mine.. which is unique to my blog and makes it recognizable. Luckily, at least her blog is a Spanish blog. I signed up for this blog button promotion, I can't even remember the name.. But had it not been for that- and sheer chance.. I wouldn't have even known. Wonder how many of you reading this right now have someone who has your very same header. You are probably sitting there, thinking "NAH!" I am thinking, yeah right. The site is a banner exchange and you have to post the html on your sidebar and your button code, and the site has a flashing button that revolves through it's members. I don't know how many members, how often it cycles.. but I rarely pay attention to it. I was editing my "button love" box and noticed my blog button picture in it, and thought, "Yay!" (There's mine!) Then.. dismay... wait! No! That's got writing on it, mine doesn't! So I click it, and it takes me here: http://www.esposaperfecta.com/ On her twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/EsposaPerfecta and yes, even on her facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EsposaPerfecta

Here's the screenshot as I saw it this morning. Again, let me re-iterate how crazy it is that I chanced upon that. I am pretty sure they have a ton of members and that button changes frequently. How ironic is it she happens to be on the same site as i? Strange. What to do now? Advice? THOUGHTS? Please share them!

KimmyShop Calliou mini BackPack giveaway! 10/11 ***CLOSED!!!***

***CLOSED!!!***















KimmyShop is an online retailer that has all sorts of popular brands of children's products! 
You can see all the Caillou toys KimmyShop has! The best Calliou selection anywhere! I like the site a lot because there are a ton of great products!

 But- I'm not too pleased with KimmyShop's customer service representative. To be honest this backpack is not what we wanted to review. It's cute enough. If you want to read my previous post about what happened between KimmyShop & I, you can read all about it here: 
http://1caseycolette.blogspot.com/2011/09/blogger-pet-peeve-well-this-bloggers.html

I

~Good Luck!~






The winner will receive the same thing I reviewed, the Caillou toddler backpack!
Measures approximately 8 H x 8.25 W x 3.5 D inches.

Any of the tasks below will gain you entry- you can do one, or do them all. Pick & choose!

Thanks for being a reader of Locomotion of Expressions!

• Comment on any non-giveaway post (1 entry = 1 comment)
• Enter any of my other giveaways (no limit, just comment below on this post which ones you entered!)
• Write on KimmyShops Facebook wall that you found them on/by Locomotion of Expressions OR "Thanks for the giveaway at Locomotion of Expressions." (2 ENTRIES) PLACE 2 SEPARATE COMMENTS
• Like their Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kimmyshop (4 ENTRIES) PLACE 4 SEPARATE COMMENTS
• Visit http://www.kimmyshop.com and tell me your favorite item you found there! (4 ITEMS MAX) PLACE ONE COMMENT PER ITEM YOU FIND! 4 max!)
• Follow their Twitter @kimmyshop (4 ENTRIES) PLACE 4 SEPARATE COMMENTS
• Follow my twitter @1caseycolette (2 ENTRIES) PLACE 2 SEPARATE COMMENTS
• "Like" my Facebook fan page! www.facebook.com/LocomotionOfExpressions (2 ENTRIES) PLACE 2 SEPARATE COMMENTS
• Grab a blog button - tell me where you put it (Grab from my right sidebar) (3 ENTRIES) PLACE 3 SEPARATE COMMENTS
• Blog about this giveaway! (share a few sentences, not just a link!) Don't forget to put the ending date or your wasting your time. Share the URL of your blog post. (2 ENTRIES) PLACE 2 SEPARATE COMMENTS
• Follow me on Networked Blogs (Share your Facebook display name) (1 entry = 1 comment)
• Share this giveaway on Facebook! Click the Time-Stamp underneath your share and cut and paste it into the comments on this post! May share 1x a day! (2 ENTRIES) PLACE 2 SEPARATE COMMENTS

Tweet this giveaway: " #calliou #lover ? #win a #backpack for your kid! on this fab #blog #giveaway! Ends 10/11 #sprout 

@1caseycolette http://1caseycolette.blogspot.com/2011/09/kimmyshop-calliou-mini-backpack.html " May share 1x a day! (1 entry = 1 comment!)

Giveaway will be over on Oct 11th at noon eastern. Winner will have 48 hours to confirm shipping address before a new winner is chosen! Winner US/CAN only. ages 18+. 


*Disclaimer*  Sponsor is responsible for fulfillment of prize. I will expedite communication between the two. I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention/review it on my blog. I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” The opinions expressed in this post are entirely my own. Your experience with the product may differ from mine. 

Our mothers screwed us

You know.. I have given this a lot of thought. My husband told me one day that he wanted his meals "hot on the table when he came home". I looked at him dumbfounded, like- "I know he did not just boss me around!" First of all, he never gets home at the same time everyday. Sometimes I do have his meals "hot on the stove" what am I? A damn slave? Or a partner? Sometimes I cook after he gets home. But seriously, sometimes its a waste of my time because he works so late he ends up having already eaten the meal the submarine kitchen made (Which he complains about) or the food is 4 hours old (as it was yesterday) by the time he finally gets off work.

We have our bickering when it comes to sharing the household chores.. no doubt. I am not wonder woman. I cannot do everything. There is nothing wrong with needing help! I have to raise our two kids, take care of our pets, clean the house, run the errands, plus keep me looking good. It's no easy task. Just ask anyone with kids. Especially more than one kid. Each kid adds its own struggles and frustrations and money + time required to the mix and jumble that is our crazy life.

Since my husband deploys every 3 months or so for 3 months or so. He is basically only here half of the year. Even less if you count duty days where he has to spend the night on the boat every two days and stay at work the next day. On duty days, he is only home 1 weekend day a week. Only one weekend a month will he end up with the whole weekend off. I know it sucks for him. But like- when he has duty, he goes to work that morning, works a normal shift, has to stand watch and keep guard of the submarine all night. He sleeps for 3 to 4 hours on the submarine. Then, continues his normal work schedule the next day. If he has duty on Tues, for example; He goes to work works Tues, sleeps on the sub, does his duty that night , gets up Wed on sub , continues work next day.. they sometimes can keep him til 7 or 8pm. Last time I saw him was Monday night because his duty starts at 6 in the am so he has to be up by 430! *Egads!* So I wont see him at all from Tues the whole day- til late Wednesday. Repeat it on Friday and like so every two days. Yeah - it sucks. (But they pay him good.. it's definitely a sacrifice he makes for us. I appreciate him and thank him all the time for it!)

He comes home dog tired and has a few hours to help me and get up and start it all over again. Then, the poor dude when hes deployed doesn't get one single day off. For three months. You'd think I'd feel sorry for him, but its hard to. He has to have another guy relieve him of "Duty" my mom calls it "Doodie".  (like hes taking a crap.. haha, thats funny. Idc if you think it is or not!  :) And just like he gets relived, because someone always has to be guarding the Sub. He's my relief, someones always got to be guarding the kids. I yearn for him to come home. SO I can be "off work". When he does he wants to relax. Sorry dude, relax when your dead, we've got kids.

Like I was saying at the beginning of this UBER long ramble. He actually told me one day, "What do you do around here?" (Yes, he's still alive...) and was bitching because a lot of the time.. I don't cook dinner every night.
We just grab a sandwich or whatever.

Which got me to thinking.. our parents royally screwed us. I don't know about you, but the Daddy never helped.
Mom did everything (and usually worked too.. how unfair)
AND cooked hot meals every night.
Screw that.
I'm telling you, you have probably noticed (and if you haven't take another look at the pictures in this blog) our house is always clean. Cleaner than a lot of folks I know. I always feel like there's more to do.
He's always helped me.
But now its an issue.
When he's here- I make him help (yes make- and bitch until he does) but I wish he would just do it without letting it sit for 2 days. I am too OCD to have it sit. Maybe he thinks I will do his chores? If so, he's dead wrong.
Here's what I expect out of him.
To do half of the laundry (my MOST dreaded chore)
Half of the dishes
and half of the floors (my 2nd most dreaded chore.. have you seen the tile in my house?)

The laundry is a big issue.
We don't have a ton of money to waste on clothes or doing laundry. Detergent is expensive. As is running a washer and dryer. So I maximize this issue. I only wash about 4 loads every ten days. We have a ton of clothes, so we never "run out".
We have a ton because I take care of them.
I have had so many clothes get ruined by not separating loads.
I wash like colors together.
I have my "pinks" which consist of reds, yellows, oranges, and naturally pinks.
I have my "darks" (which consist of gray, brown, green, blue and black)
I have my "whites"   (duh .. whites)
and my towels.
I never wash towels with my regular laundry that will ruin your clothes.
Like I said, no money to replace clothes. I told you I was OCD, didn't I?     Just slightly.
Also being that I hate laundry- well.. you finish the sentence,
OK, so keep in mind, my laundry dryer, holds like 3 loads, and my washer is EXTRA capacity.. so I wait til I have enough to wash. I will NEVER was a half a load, and will raise hell if I see someone washing one item. Why in the world would you do that? Not in this house. No way!
Anyways- so we do it all at the same time. So my 4 loads of separated colors are really equal to 8 loads. It's a LOT of laundry, Yes, I have contemplated doing it as it comes. But the thing is, it takes a long time to get enough of each "load" the way I separate them. So we wash them all and do it at the same time. He always helps. He usually doesn't complain too much. It goes a lot faster with his help. When he's here, there is less laundry though. But still a lot.
The floors....
Oh the floors. I always vacuum and mop and he always sweeps. Its the way it always has been. I can't do my part- til he does his. I am always nagging about that. He will literally put it off for like 3-4 days at times. I feel like I am walking at the daggum beach up in here!
Then the dishes.
Same thing split down the middle. He loads better than I do. I unload better than he does. So that is our little system and it has always worked.
Until- he bitched about it.
I didn't make this family by myself!
Keep in mind; he only helps with the three things: floors, laundry & dishes. That's not all it takes to keep this household running and afloat! I have to pick up after the kids, cook, (he never does) clean up that mess. Clean the fridge, the microwave, sweep the floors, take care of the cat, the dogs, and the hermit crabs, dress and bathe the kids, take the one to school, come back home and take care of the baby all day, go back, pick the big kid up. Come back home. Plus this blog, dusting, windex-ing, scrubbing the tub and toilets.... I am sure I could come up with more if I tried!
The only other chore he has is gardening and we have small yard. LOL!

Do you know what I said to him?
I said, basically; "..listen here buddy, I love you, but you only help with less than half of the chores. That 40 (him) 60 (me) that's being generous to him. It is probably really more like 30 and 70... *ahem* like I was saying..
So then hes gone 6 mo out of the year- and I have no help. No friends here are going to come take the "daddy stand in spot". I barely even have a baby sitter - you have no idea what its like not having your kids grandparents you can call to go have fun or take a break. I don't have that luxury. I am not entrusting my children's care with a stranger.
So being that he's gone half the year his 40 gets knocked down to 20. SO he helps with 20% around here.. still think I am asking too much?


I have to do everything when he is gone. Mine, plus all his chores. Yet hes always bitching at me to "get  a job". Why? So someone else can raise my kids? I would work for little to no pay and be really miserable.
I am not complaining about raising my family.
I love it, and it keeps me busy. Without it, I would have no purpose. I am just saying our mothers screwed us. They didn't ask for help.
They cooked every night.
Damn them! They are making me look bad!
I cant live up to that expectation.
Nor do I want to!
This is a different generation men!
Do you know how to turn a stove on?
I envy women whose husbands help without being nagged. Who cook for them and take them out to eat often . I don't have that luxury.
But I do know if he ever says that shit again, he'll be cooking his own meals from here on out.

Blogger pet peeve.. well this bloggers pet peeve at least!

Can I just say this without making you guys mad? 

Actually scratch that- I really don't care.

Some PRs rock!
Some suck..

Can we pause and take a moment of silence for the PRs who are not going to make it out of this thing alive?
I have a new respect for them. I know what they do is just as daunting as what we do. It's gotta be, responding to emails.. keeping up with what has been shipped.. what's been written, what has ended- whose prize has been shipped. I know how my head is reeling sometimes. I have to do the same, pitches, who has responded, who denied, who told me to wait a while, remembering to write them back.. Getting the stuff reviewed, some of it is not assembly and/or craft free, plus pictures.. don't get me started again on my camera issues.. then there is writing the post, sending them the link, promoting it.. moderating entries, picking a winner (or two..  or three..) and waiting for their reply. Forwarding their info, announcing the contests end.. This is a lot of work!  So I know my twenty to thirty companies I might be dealing with in any given month is nothing compared to what they have to deal with. Sometimes it can take me up to three weeks to get around to reviewing a product for them. I hope they do not get exasperated with me. But I always respond to emails.
Lets applaud the PRs who everyone loves to work with. You'll know if this is you:

1. They always respond to emails immediately.
2. They always respond with a nice word about the review, even if it was less than favorable.
3. They always respond when you tell them the winners info.
4. And lastly they even will tell you when they have shipped to winner.
5. Extra points- when the winner says they didn't get their product, they respond to that email, and re-ship!

What got me to thinking about this is a few in particular that have always been a pleasure to work with, like:  Nicole Egan www.rlapr.com !

When the PR takes weeks to email you back..
that is not fun.
When they say they will ship the review item.. and it never shows up.. and you email them- and they never and I do mean NEVER respond. What is up with that?
SO RUDE!
But sometimes, they do ship.. eventually. Some of them end up on my *** list because I write their review, and I spend a lot of time on it.. and send them the link (Just like I agreed to do/am supposed to always do) and they never acknowledge that they even read it. Which doesn't leave me with high hopes that the winner will receive their prize.

Once, long ago.. when I first learned of blog giveaways, there's a story here.. wait for it! I happened upon them on Online-sweepstakes.com and (That- btw- is the BEST online listing site for your giveaways!) I get tons of traffic from that site! Sometimes.. it will be the ONLY site I list on! If.. I am super busy (especially) anyway I am off track. Um, what was I saying? Oh yes- I probably wasn't entering them right. But for newbies, you can get a great idea on how to enter, by just reading other people entries on the giveaway comments...

It took me literally FOREVER but I finally won a few. Some of which never showed. One were going to touch on came from a blog called MamaNordy... anyway.. I kept emailing her it never showed.. and she never even emailed me back. My proof, look here! Apparently it was going to her spam? IDK, which she wasn't checking? Or she didn't care and kept the prize to herself, gave it to a friend. I don't know. All I know is I never got it. Granted, it might have been the sponsors fault. Perhaps they refused to ship another. She could have at least said that. And if it was going to her spam.. shame on her for that- I always check my spam. Even today- if you email me and I don't get it, you can always DM me on twitter or post a comment on my Facebook wall. Anyways point of this ridiculously long ramble... it's because of her that I am such a good blogger. So even though I despise her (and I really do) for never helping get my item, which I was soooooo excited to never receive. That was two years ago.. I am like an eleephant, I don't forget these little peanuts you see! WTH, right? I can thank her.. because I treat my readers so much better than that. So point is- some PRs do suck. That might have been her PRs fault. TO BE fair.. I did email her way more than once.  I was so new to blog giveaways I didn't know how to DM someone back then, and this was way before Facebook blog fan pages. So if the PR never replies that they got the winners info. It troubles me because I don't want someone hating on my blog like I do hers. I hope that ANY PR reading this can learn form this post, and please stop doing that.  I/we understand how busy you are.. we are too! But it only takes a few seconds to reply to an email.

Lets touch on the 2nd horrible thing I cannot stand that PRs do.
You have a whole inventory/webstore.. so why do you insist on sending me something I don't like?
If you have a whole selection of items, why send me the ugliest thing you have? Is it because you have a ton of them and want to pawn them off? Am I supposed to be nice about it? It kind of sucks. Again, not pointing fingers.. but I have been scratching my head about this for a while. You would think they would send you the cutest, and sometimes they do! Sometimes they are just oblivious I guess.

I wasn't going to throw a ton of PRs under the bus here.. and I should! But one has to be talked about. Because this was simply ridiculous.

I was so excited to find an email address online for KimmyShop's PR/customer service. His name i'll opt to leave out. Bloggers beware.
This guy- he takes the cake.
First of all. Keep in mind, you are working with a blogger. Even though my follower number may be small... those aren't the only people who read this blog. And even though 35,000 hits a month may seem small in comparison to some blogs.. that is an awful LOT of traffic. I think it is.
So why in the world would you want someone with that kind of KLOUT (another great website of course! Love them and been with them since the beginning!) to have anything bad to say about you?
Everything he could have done wrong he did.
 I tried so hard to be nice.. but in the end. I gave up and I might have been rude. But not without reason! I hate to send them traffic of any kind.. but take a look around their site. Some really nice stuff. Overpriced stuff, but nice, nonetheless. Kimmyshop is the go to for Calliou products. They have more than anyone. But that's not all they have! They have all sorts of kids products. So needless to say- I was ecstatic.

Giana used to LOVE Calliou. So on August 1st the day before my birthday- he tells me they are going to send me a Calliou lunchbox for review/giveaway. I was less than thrilled but agreed. I thought Giana would be glad. Nope. She came home from her new private Christian school a few days later saying that kids make fun of her Backyardigans lunchbox and she cant carry it anymore. So I tell her about the Calliou one (I was going to surprise her) and she is very upset. I show it to her and she says it looks like its for a boy, shes too big for Calliou (DUH mom,. shes is first grade now!) and that the kids at her new school make fun of her because of the spoons I put in her lunchbox have animal characters at the tip and she can't carry them anymore. *sighs*  So I think, I'll hang on to it, for Devonny (yeah- in like 3 years when she needs it. lol.. ) or give it to my nephew for Christmas. I wait- and wait- and wait- and wait-- it never shows up! On august 30th.. yes almost 4 weeks later...
I write to him. He says it was shipped and he will reship. UPS/FedEx this time. I say in not so few words " is there any way I can get something else? and I also explain to him Giana's less than enthusiastic response and tales of being teased about her lunchbox and spoons, and the lunchbox being "babyish and boyish" (I told him that, keep that in mind as you continue reading on)  He says and I quote: "Which one would you be interested in reviewing ?

--
name withheld
Customer Service"

I email him, and tell him about 5 things we really like. I keep them all under 20$ since he was trying to send me a 10$ lunchbox I should have never agreed to review anyway..
And he never replies. Shocker, right?
Then, when I finally get a response from him, I say;  "What item are you sending?" curious which one he picked from my list.
He says "A Calliou Backpack." Shaking my head- no really I am shaking my head.
So I tell you my daughter will get teased for a Calliou lunchbox, and you send her a Calliou backpack? That freaking great, according to him it was already shipped. Strange, because I still haven't gotten it. But I am glad, because honestly i was going to write return to sender on it.

Why in the world did he ask me what I was interested in reviewing then? Which (naturally) I asked him.
He acted like he never said that- so I forward him his message. Long story short. Me bringing this stuff to you- sometimes comes in frustration already laid as the groundwork for the post.

Just saying.

Have you had similar experiences?