If you have a baby or a toddler, make sure to visit my website MamaDivas.com and enter the contest 
Book Review & Giveaway - For Babies & Toddlers: The Cleo Series by Caroline Mockford
Technorati Tags: giveaway, contest, baby books, toddler books, free stuff, mommy, blog giveaway, motherhood, baby, toddler
As an update to my post from yesterday, I was able to cancel my Netfirms account—- quickly and painlessly — but only after moving my remaining site from their servers, of course. I had already paid for my next billing cycle which was supposed to start on the 17th, so the rep issued me a credit. True to her word, it was right there when I checked my credit card account activity.
I’m grateful for that, at least. Too bad their sales/tech support/customer service reps aren’t nearly as accessible or helpful as their billing reps.
In other news, I’m still sick. I don’t have a fever or anything, but I can hardly talk. My throat is all sore from coughing, and my voice is pretty much gone, and if I’m not whispering, it’s difficult to understand anything I’m saying. Hopefully this clears up by later this week 
Oh, I was watching Paula Deen’s Paula’s Home Cooking yesterday evening while littleQ lay curled up next to me on the couch, napping. Everything Paula cooks looks like it tastes like pure, unadulterated comestible heaven. Heaven’s where you’ll end up though if you recreate and eat too many of her recipes because Ms. Deen sure as hell doesn’t create her artery-clogging flavor sensations with Weight Watchers, South Beach or Atkins in mind. Anyway, the episode I watched was a Thanksgiving episode from a few years ago, and she went through how to fry a turkey. I feel fatter (and oily) just thinking about it, but oh my freaking gosh what I would do to eat some fried turkey after watching that episode. My mouth has literally begun to water at the thought of it. I would so cook that this Thanksgiving, but then I’d have to buy one of those big ol’ turkey fryers that must be set up in the backyard. Do I really need a turkey fryer? This is a pretty difficult decision, let me tell you.
Technorati Tags: netfirms, netfirms customer service, still sick, paula deen, food, thanksgiving, turkey
I forgot to mention that I switched green tea ROCKS over to a different host… because the host it was on (netfirms, cough) totally sucks butt. At Netfirms, customer service is pretty much NON-EXISTENT, but you’re in luck as long as you’re looking for a SALESPERSON (so you can buy hosting services and not get the advertised 24/7 support when you need it!) and you’re definitely in luck if you’re NOT looking for help from tech support, or any sort of support for that matter!
.. Maybe you’ll be luckier than I was today, but don’t expect even the sales rep to be nice to you.. I mean, I hope the sales rep you get is friendly, but I’m just saying, don’t count on it- the one salesperson I finally got through to via live-chat was super-not-nice-or-helpful, and apparently it’s his job to TYPE LIKE THIS TO CUSTOMERS WHO ARE SIMPLY ASKING WHEN THE DATABASES WILL BE FUNCTIONING NORMALLY AGAIN AND IF HE COULD POSSIBLY LET YOU KNOW BECAUSE NOBODY IS PICKING UP THE PHONES, AND THERE’S NO NOTICE OF SUCH AN OUTAGE ON THE SITE, NOR WAS AN EMAIL SENT OUT REGARDING IT! Well excuse the shit out of me if I’m just trying to get an answer out of SOMEONE from the company about the issue. Yes, Yonathon (if that is your real name, seriously), I’m talking to you.
Jeez I wasn’t even mad, or rude, for that matter, at least not until he yelled at me in the TEXT chat. I just wanted an answer as to when the database issues would be fixed. A simple, “I’m sorry, but we really don’t know” would have been better than simply ignoring my question and then proceeding to USE CAPS TO YELL AT ME VIA LIVE CUSTOMER SERVICE CHAT THAT THIS WAS SALES . Yelling at current customer in the sales chat? Not the best thing for you to do. Paying customers like me don’t like to be treated like boils on your bottom, especially because I didn’t start the chat with some rude smart-alecky remark about how much you must hate your life because your company sucks. Besides, I think I have a right to get a straight and honest reason for WHY the damn databases aren’t working.
I still have one site hosted with this craptastically crappy host Netfirms, but I’ll be moving that one very, very soon. It experienced the same problems that green tea ROCKS did, but I didn’t move it yet. It’s fine right now, but this isn’t an issue of just uptime or just databases or just whatever. This is about the whole package-> and halfway decent customer service is part of that package. I know I’m just one single blogger in the humongous world wide web, and I’m not asking you to kiss my ass, but you could at least instruct your amazingly rude salespeople to be nice to customers. Oh, and answer the damn customer service phone lines once in a while. With all the money you make ripping customers off, Netfirms, you’d think you’d at least be able to keep the customer service lines manned, 24/7, as is stated on your website. Why is it that the few times I have tried to call, I ended up waiting forever and not talking to anyone at all?
I know you’re not so expensive, and that’s mo-fo-ing great, but you know what? The other host I use offers cheap plans too, and sometimes I get irritated with disruptions in service, but at least every time I have a problem the customer service reps are NICE to me. They don’t type in ALL CAPS TO SHOW ME WHAT BIG STRONG MORE-IMPORTANT-THAN-YOU MEN THEY ARE. Niceness goes a long way. It really does. I bet you never heard the saying, “You’ll catch more bees with honey than vinegar.” Well, either you never heard it, or you must think it doesn’t apply here.
..Well, it serves me right for succumbing to their lure without doing a little bit of research first. You’d think they’d work hard show you how GREAT it would be to stay with them and pay the regular prices after that deal expires. The deal actually ended for me months ago, and in retrospect, I guess that’s why I never really let the little issues bother me before: because it was practically free. It’s a whole different ball game once you’re paying monthly, and when it’s free or close to it you tend to ignore the fact that you can never get straight answers from anyone in the company, or the fact that the databases will randomly go down, or that your sites will randomly go offline, and then magically reappear. If they were nice and apologetic about it, and maybe acted like I was at least somewhat valuable as a customer, I would have overlooked those, and well, I wouldn’t be writing this entry. So if you caught a deal and you were using them practically free, Netfirms is fine, but if you have to pay their regular rates, they’re NOT a good company to work with.
I didn’t check around for feedback before I was pulled in by the $10 for a year sale, and when I did go looking for other customers’ experiences, I felt so stupid for not doing so beforehand; but I didn’t cancel my account, because I decided to simply make the best of the situation.
I’ve had itty bitty problems before, but I did not throw myself a pity party over them. Do you want to know why? In addition to the fact that for the first year it was only $10, I also didn’t bother calling in, ever, figuring that these issues (random downtime, databases not connecting, pockets of ultra-slow connection speeds, mod-rewrite in Wordpress NON-existent) would work themselves out. And whatever, because, it was practically free. Not calling in is probably part of the reason why I stayed with this host that I do not recommend (cough netfirms) for so long, because if I had actually gotten through to a customer service rep every time I tried to call, I probably would have been treated incredibly shabbily at least 50% of the time, and I probably would have canceled my practically gratis account anyway.
Netfirms is not the biggest hellhole of a company that you can deal with, but they definitely need to improve their customer service, and pronto, or else it won’t just be my piddly little account they’ll be losing. I’m not saying that the customer always has to be right, but you should at least treat them with a little bit of respect when they call in regarding the quality of the product they are currently paying for… all those horrible testimonials aren’t exactly helping to increase my confidence in this company, either.
Moral of the story? Do your homework before buying hosting. Oh, and if you plan on using Wordpress on your host, make sure you can use clean urls on that host (if you want those, and who doesn’t! They’re search engine friendly!), because you sure as hell can’t do that on Netfirms unless you mess with the .htaccess file and you add /index.php/ into the permalink structure, which really is not a big deal, but I know that many bloggers out there don’t even know what an .htaccess file is, let alone what would go in it.
Netfirms gets a big thumbs down from me and, apparently, a lot of other people (check out the links I added above to read everything from tiny complaints to complete HORROR stories about them.. and it’s all pretty much related to horrible customer service).
If not for their inability to provide even a semblance of quality customer service, then I wouldn’t have switched. Seriously, sometimes it’s as simple as being nice and at least pretending like you want to help a (paying) customer who wasn’t being rude or argumentative in the first place.
Maybe Yonathon the rude sales rep was on the rag, or maybe he got kicked in the balls earlier in the day, I don’t know, but as I told him/her at the end of the conversation when he/she got rude, right before I Xed out the window: “You shouldn’t get a blogger angry,” (yeah, I know, SUPER FREAKING corny) because what happens is, that blogger will post all about how much Netfirms sucks, using such keywords as SUCKS and BAD CUSTOMER SERVICE and CRAPTASTIC, and that post is just bound to show up in someone’s search for feedback about Netfirms, and you know what? This post just may make that person think twice before buying anything from your company, just to save himself from the potential aggravation of dealing with you and the headaches that go with it.
Here’s a list of the sites I linked to from this post that show feedback regarding Netfirms:
Technorati Tags: hosting, webhost, web host, netfirms, sucks, netfirms sucks, crappy customer service, CRAPTASTIC, worst customer service, bad web hosting, horrible
I’m actually quite upset about this, because I’m still feeling crappy, congested and sick. (But littleQ isn’t sick, so that’s good!) But that’s no excuse! I’ve failed NaBloPoMo! … and only by like half an hour!
Woe is me…..
Now I’ve just got to make sure I get my novel to 50,000 words by the 30th, or else I’ll really feel like a failure 
Technorati Tags: nanowrimo, nablopomo, feeling sick
Three years ago, I still lived in my parents’ home. I wasn’t the sloppiest teenager around, but I sure wouldn’t have won the award for having the neatest, cleanest room, either. It wasn’t until I had moved out and was forced to clean my own space, without my mother trailing behind me every day to pick up the slack every time I didn’t clean my room, wash my own clothes, wash the dishes, etc., that I learned to appreciate the fine art of cleaning one’s home and the satisfaction that doing so brings.
Now, I can’t possibly live without my Swiffer mop and that toilet wand thing from Clorox, because I sure do hate a dirty toilet. Seriously, who likes looking at gunky buildup and various stains? Ewww… and don’t try to tell me that your toilet, if left unchecked, won’t get like that.
Okay, okay, well my point is, I absolutely hated to clean before I became all domesticated by all these wifely and motherly duties. It still isn’t my most favorite thing to do, but in our world today, there are so many innovative products that help people streamline and expedite their housekeeping duties, that it just borders on silly to not get in the cleaning mood once in a while. Not only that, but products like the Swiffer mop I love so much and the toilet wand thingey also help to keep a home more sanitary and germ free. I’m far from a germaphobe, but I definitely appreciate Purell in all it’s waterless sanitizing goodness and glory.
Sometimes to get the job done right, we do just have to get down on our hands and knees and scrub with a little bit of elbow grease added in for good measure, but for everyday home-upkeep related tasks like mopping, dusting and cleaning the bathroom, I think it’s so worth it to use the new products that are designed to just make tasks easier. Oh man, and if got a Roomba
(P.S. - I’ve witnessed the Mr. Clean magic eraser just do WONDERS on EVERYTHING, so if you haven’t tried it, let me tell you, the commercials do not lie!)
What cleaning products are you just lost without? …Well, that question’s obviously assuming you do clean that is
[This post is part of this week's Carnival of Red Hot Bloggers, hosted by Kristi]
Technorati Tags: cleaning, housecleaning, housekeeping, Red Hot Bloggers, blog carnival
It’s no surprise that right when the Indian summer came to an end, I got sick. It was unusually warm right up until the very beginning of November, and a few days after it suddenly got chilly I woke up with gross phlegm stuck in my throat, which has seen fit to go on ahead and keep manufacturing more and more and more. I’ve also started coughing a little bit, which I hope doesn’t persist.
littleQ has caught whatever the hell it is I have, which I was hoping he wouldn’t, considering I haven’t been feeling 100% for a few days now, but my poor baby woke up at about 6AM this morning and vomited on the bed , so it’s off to the doctor for us both on Monday if we’re still feeling icky by then (or sooner if he starts feeling worse.. I hope not…). I hope it’s not Strep =\ Right now littleQ is sleeping, so hopefully when he wakes up he’ll be his usual loud, rowdy and bubbly self.
Anyone else out there with a ridiculous immune system that decides to take a little break at the change of season, EVERY season? Seriously! I would move our little family to Florida if I wasn’t so in love with the fact that NYC so kicks ass (LOL) and doesn’t get crazy hurricanes (well not usually, at least). But I guess the hurricane issue would only be a problem if we lived near the coast, right?
Ah whatever it doesn’t matter I highly doubt we’ll ever move out of New York, and mrQ doesn’t even want to move out of the city. He’s acknowledged that it could be an option, but it would have to be somewhere relatively close to the boundary. I grew up on Long Island, so really, I don’t have that weird aversion I’ve noticed some people get about moving to the ‘burbs. As far as our nabe, it’s actually somewhat suburban-ish… but that changes if you go about 5 blocks one way. Really - there’s this main road somewhat near our house that acts as a boundary… and you can tell the difference right away. Silly city.
Technorati Tags: sick, illness, autumn, fall, change of seasons
Okay, I posted this up over at MamaDivas and Tips from the Money Goddess, so I figured I might as well post it here, too. Basically, I’m looking for people who work from home, specifically work at home parents, but that is not a requirement… as long as you work from home, I want to hear from you.
Here’s the post:
If you’re a work at home mom or dad, please contact me! I’m looking for work at home parents to interview for my website all about legitimate work at home opportunities, legit surveys, legit sites to get freebies, and more: Tips from the Money Goddess. Please contact me by November 25, 2007 if you would like to be featured, along with your business (if applicable), on Tips from the Money Goddess (and syndicated right here on MamaDivas.com), please contact me with the following information:
- Your name and your online alias (if you use one)
- A brief description of your job/business
- The URL to your business website, if applicable
- Answer this question: Why do you want to be featured?
I’m hoping to feature at least 4-5 work at home parents, each from a different industry. In fact, if you work at home but are not a parent, I’m interested in hearing from you, too! If you have a blog or a business website (or both), this is a great opportunity to get some exposure, whether or not you need it, lol.
Please pass this on to other work at home parents whom you feel may be interested!
So, if you’re interested in being interviewed and have your business website(s) and/or blog(s) featured, just give me a holla (lol).
Technorati Tags: work at home, wahm, work at home mom, work at home dad, work at home parent, interview, home business, freelance
Here’s a little tidbit of disturbing news for ya: The National Children’s Museum’s Chief Operating Officer is busted for child pornography.
What the f***?
The Time Out Kids Blog asks:
What’s your reaction to this story? Should Singer get the max? Did he deserve to lose his job? Do children’s museums need stricter background checks?
I answer:
My reaction is, well, he sounds like a messed up dude. He’s 49-year-old father of two, described by a neighbor as “perfectly nice”.. bet nobody ever guessed what his secret hobby was. He should get the max penalty that he can get for this offense. Yes, he deserves to lose his job.. it’s a CHILDREN’S museum for chrissakes… even if it’s been closed since ‘04 and isn’t opening till 2012. What else would they do… let him keep his job and hope that by 2012 everyone’s forgotten about his secret hobby? As far as background checks go, I think every job where a person will be working with children or people of ANY age for that matter in a trusting environment like a museum needs a nice, strict background check… as strict as they come.
Of course then the following question must be asked: what do you do for those people who fall through the cracks? The people who haven’t been convicted and so don’t have records that prove their depraved ways?
Technorati Tags: National Children’s Museum, Children’s Museum Chief Operating Officer, perverted people
Patrick Moberg has found his dream girl. Ah, the power of the internet.
Technorati Tags: romance, nyc, 5 train, Patrick Moberg
I was making meatloaf for dinner tonight, but I didn’t have enough beef, so I added a whole ish-load of tofu, as well as basil, and some previously canned Chinese mushrooms I had leftover from when I made Cha Gio the other night. I didn’t really follow any recipe, because well, I usually don’t need a recipe for meatloaf. I suppose I should have looked one up though, you know, before I added all that tofu, before I kneaded in all that basil I probably shouldn’t have added and before I mixed in those Chinese mushrooms that just didn’t go with the Worcestershire or the ketchup.
I tried it with bread, and it tasted yucky. I tried it with rice, and it wasn’t as yucky, but still quite gross. So, though I feel kinda bad about it, in the end it went in the garbage. It’s a good thing we had some leftover Ziti from my mom.
Technorati Tags: recipes, meatloaf, food disaster
Well, my story and its characters are slowly but surely taking form. Maybe in a few days I’ll post an excerpt so that people can mercilessly critique my work in progress.
Technorati Tags: NaNoWriMo
I just came across this website, NYGirlOfMyDreams.com, which is one page with a single image that lists details about a missed encounter on the NYC subway system’s 5 train. It also looks to be hand-drawn. (click on the images to see screenshots)
Apparently, a bloke named Patrick Moberg saw the girl of his dreams on the subway yesterday, Nov.4th, 2007 at 9:30 p.m., and then he came home, bought the domain name and then uploaded the picture on his site. According to the whois information, this domain was purchased just last night. It piqued my curiosity because this guy just met saw this girl last night, and instead of posting about it on his MySpace blog or on every one of his friend’s profiles on Facebook, he went ahead and created a website…dedicated to finding her. Awwwwwwwwww.
So… it is romantic…. but in today’s day and age, it can also be classified as….. well… odd. I do have a theory though that this could be one of those “fake” things designed to get bloggers like me writing about it…. like lonelygirl15 before all the secrets were uncovered….
For the sake of romance though….I hope it’s not fake, and I hope, Patty my boy, I hope you do your drawing justice… you know, regarding the claim that you are not insane.
If this is not a joke, and you are not crazy, then good luck finding your dream girl ;-).. and I hope she’s not crazy, so that if you do find her, all this wouldn’t have been a waste of your time
Oh I’m a sucker for romance.
Technorati Tags: nyc, new york city, subway, 5 train, union square, bowling green, missed encounters, Manhattan, Patrick Moberg
I am really so grateful that my parents are as generous as they are and are nice enough to babysit :-).
Last night two of cousins and I, the same ones who were with me when we met Tila, went to a Japanese restaurant that turns into a karaoke bar on Friday and Saturday nights from the hours of 10PM and 2AM. They advertise having over 17,000 songs to choose from, but that is no exaggeration on their part.
Apparently one of my cousins actually goes there quite often. She has an amazing voice, and has captivated the management, bartenders and bouncers so that not only did we get all of our drinks on the house, we also had our songs bumped up, hehe. Ooooh VIP treatment LOL.
I know, I know, you’re dying to know if I sang, and what song I sang. Well, first my cousin with the connections sang the Grease classic “Summer Loving” with the bartender. At this point, her sister and I still hadn’t worked up the courage to sing, but two Malibu bay breezes later, we relaxed and were pretty pumped to go. The three of us belted out our rendition of Lady Marmalade(Xtina, Pink, Mya, and Lil Kim version), complete with my cousin rapping Lil’ Kim’s part, and I sang “Total Eclipse of the Heart” (Old School style, of course… you’ll get it if you watched that movie, lol) with my cousins backing me up.
All in all it was a pretty entertaining evening. With the patrons’ song choices ranging from “Paradise by the Dashboard Light” to “Detachable Penis” to some song by P!nk to “Defying Gravity” from Wicked, as well as a few relatively bad obscure song choices, there really was a wide diversity of musical tastes in the crowd, and it was fun!
Now it’s back to the keyboard though… I’m so naughty I only wrote about 200 words yesterday :(… so I’ve got to catch up. NaNoWriMo is definitely not for the faint of heart… (or the LAZY, lol)
Technorati Tags: karaoke, bar, singing, nanowrimo
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