Dear Silhouette

14 blog posts in one day.  That's how many posts on the Silhouette tattoo paper I saw today.  You know what effect that has?  I skipped all of them.

I wanted to write and give you a little feedback on your marketing, now I realize that you obviously know more about it than I do, I'm not an educated Marketing professional but what I am is an avid blog reader.  I subscribe to 152 blogs, most of them craft blogs and many of them (at least 14) promote your product.  I know for me it would be far more effective if those 14 posts were spread out over the month, I'd probably read them all and I'd probably want to go buy a Silhouette instead of feeling bitter than I don't get one for free since today it feels like I'd be a sucker to pay for one.

I know you have an awesome product, most days I'd want to own one but today instead, I say "stupid Silhouette" every time I come across another post on tattoo paper.

I actually did send this email directly to Silhouette, thought they should know how they come across to some of us in the blog world, they responded the very next day with this very polite response

"Thank you for your email.  We appreciate your feedback and will certainly have this passed on for further review.  Let us know if you ever have any further feedback you may wish to share so that we can continue to improve.

Thanks"

Blogging Blues

Remember when I used to blog?  Yeah, me niether.

My husband just graduated from University which meant we immediately moved back home to Calgary.  Only since he's job hunting we couldn't really commit to paying rent somewhere so we opted for the nicest basement we know, my in-laws.  We kept only the essentials and put everything else in storage.

Of course essentials included my entire craft shelf and my sewing machine, I wanted to be able to keep up this hobby while we're here.  I was sure we'd move in and I'd just pick right back up where I'd left off on my crafts, I hadn't expected to feel in such a creative slump.  I tried to work on a couple projects but just really wasn't feeling it.  Tonight though I had finally pulled myself out of it and was excited to work on a baby gift I started weeks ago.  I pulled my sewing machine out of the trunk of the car (where it's been for the past two weeks) and went to grab the necessary additional parts only to discover that the power cable is missing.  I'm pretty sure it's somewhere in our tightly packed storage unit in some random box.  If I knew what it had been packed with I'd go find it but I don't have a clue where to start.


My Mother-in-law has a sewing machine that's far nicer than mine and she's very willing to let me use it but it's not the same.  I'll use it eventually and be happy for it but for tonight the missing cord took away all of my incentive and now I'm feeling crummy.


I'm sure there will be no new posts for a while, I hope your crafts are all doing better than mine.




p.s. Is anyone else starting to hate the Silhouette after all the ridiculous amount of rhinestone projects they've seen in the last week?

Project Frustraion

I've just had one of the most frustrating project experiences I've ever had.  It's a problem that defies all logic and no matter how many times I try it won't work.  The fix is going to require a ton of work, lots of adjustments and more supplies; I'm mad.  Until this point this was a project that I was super pleased with.  Lots of little individual parts that get put together to make an awesome finished product.  Not only am I re-covering something truly ugly but I'm completely re-designing the style at the same time, that is if I can ever make it fit like it should.  Mad! Mad! Mad!

I needed to vent, I needed it off my chest, I needed to share with you.  Tomorrow I'll start with renewed stamina and things will be great but tonight I'm just upset.

Halloween Scrooge

I openly admit it, I'm a Halloween Scrooge, specifically when it comes to decorating.  I decorate minimally for Christmas and that's the only season I decorate for.  I suppose part of that comes from always living in rental units with limited storage but it's not something I plan on changing any time soon.

The problem though is this, I read a whole lot of blogs and I can't even begin to estimate how many Halloween projects I've seen.  They're very cute but I have no use for them and I'll be so happy when this holiday is over so I don't have to look at another craft project involving ghosts, spiders, skeletons or pumpkins for another year.  Also I feel I have no place calling myself a crafty blogger since I don't have a fireplace mantel to decorate, that seems to be required.

(I am quite concerned that once Halloween is over the Christmas projects will start and I'll be just as sick of them)

Please forgive my Halloween rant.

Blogger Issues

Is anyone else having a hard time with Blogger? I'm so frustrated I'm about ready to go to Wordpress, let my share my annoyances.

I use Firefox as my browser of choice, I'm very happy with it and it works great until recently. Anyone else notice how the way you upload pictures is different? Well when I try to upload a picture is says "Server Error".  Every stinking time.  I figured it was a problem with Firefox so I switched to Internet Explorer and it worked okay.  I'm not a fan of IE though so I didn't want to use it all the time until I read a glowing review of IE 9.  It's still in the Beta stage (testing) but I thought now big deal.  Apparently it's a big deal because in the IE 9 none of the buttons on my editor work.  So I click on the button to add a picture and nothing happens.

So now I can't use Firefox or Internet Explorer.  Brad uses Chrome so I switched to his profile and used Chrome and it sort of functions though pictures are miserable to upload.  So lately I've been composing in Firefox and then switching to Brad's profile so I can use Chrome to add photos.  A ridiculous set up.  Something better get fixed soon or I'm outta here.

An Update

So I've always thought Apple was a good company and then there was the gift card incident.  The whole thing has been cleared up so quickly that rather than being angry at Apple I'm impressed.

Brad sent one email of complaint and we were offered a full refund for the gift cards.  I also received a very nice response to my letter.  I'm impressed that they contacted us so quickly and that our money is not stuck in gift cards. 

Thanks Apple.
L

So Angry

Dear Apple:

My husband and I have been long time iTunes users.  We have both owned iPods and have been very pleased with them never having experienced a problem.

Recently we both made the switch to iPhones and again have been very pleased.  This switch was made shortly before my husband’s birthday so he requested gift cards to iTunes.  He received $90 in iTunes gift cards and was excited about all the new apps he could buy.  It was only after our credit card was charged that we discovered that iPhone applications cannot be purchased with gift cards through the Canadian iTunes store.

We are incredibly angry over this discovery.  We do not purchase music or movies through iTunes and we have no desire to but we now own $90 in gift cards that we won’t use.  It isn’t clear anywhere on the cards that applications can’t be purchased with them though it does state that they are only valid in Canada so we can’t even sell them to someone in the US.

To not include this information on the cards is dishonest and I’m sure I’m not alone in this complaint.  It gives me serious doubts about the way Apple runs it’s business.

L

Superstore

I was bored at work so I start doing a little blog hopping. I was led to the Baker Family blog where I read a post on a not so pleasant Superstore shopping experience.

As I'm reading I'm having thoughts like, "Well of course carts are a dollar." And "Bagging your groceries is so normal". Not understanding her pain and honestly feeling a little superior for my big city living. Someone even left this comment regarding the entry, "I don't think anyone ever leaves that place happy" and I was thinking how untrue that was and I'm often satisfied there.

I blame it on the fact that Brad does the majority of our shopping, especially the Superstore shopping, because it took me a while to remember that I HATE Superstore. I always leave there angry and I can totally relate to her experience. You do walk down the same aisle three times and still can't find what you want and they're always out of the most random things. Like one day I wanted icing sugar and was out of luck, or yesterday it was green peppers.

So I apologize for my snooty attitude and I'm with you Mandy, that place is awful! Too bad some of their prices are so awesome.
L

Luck or Strategy

If you know me you know that I love board games or card games and I get addicted really easily. I'll play a new game with friends once and that's it, I'm hooked and must own the game so I can feed my addiction.

I made a discovery this weekend, there is no game I hate more than Sequence. Yet I can't stop thinking about it and wanting to play all the time.

I don't understand how we lost so badly every time, it's a game of mostly chance! Yet somehow Brad and I are really terrible at it and Jane and Ken are awesome. Out of the 4 games I forced us to play we managed to win once, the other 3 we lost pathetically, we weren't even close. It infuriates me to not understand how to be better, how to win more often.

I'll accept tips if you have any.
L

Attention Grabber

How did this come about, how many people had to approve this and who makes the decision that this would be a good ad.

I find it a little appalling really. And it also sounds sincerely disgusting. Honestly, peach cigars? Blueberry cigarettes? It's not right, but don't worry, It's Healthy!
L

Humph...

I am ridiculously grouchy today.

The last couple nights have not included enough sleep and the discouraging softball loss didn't help either. Today I'm unfriendly and grumpy. I recognize it yet seem helpless to change my mood.

A few words on softball. We try to be a fun team to play, we try not be too picky about calls and in general we're happy to let things go because we're all in this to have fun, but when you start making up rules and then try to enforce them we're going to be cranky. When you give yourselves 4 outs in an inning we're not going to happy. We gave up a bunch of plays just to avoid confrontation. Looking back, as the team captain I really should have gone over and cleared things up, so I learned a lesson for future games.

So here's to surviving a very long Thursday.
I hope your day is going better than mine.
L

I'm disappointed...

I present you with this wonderful holiday, a holiday that's a joy to celebrate and I get such a tepid response. But it's Middle Name Pride Day... the third annual Middle Name Pride Day! Does that mean nothing to you? You've been invited to become part of my tradition, I want to share it with you. You mock me with you're lack of a response...

There's still time, it's not too late... you still have almost a week.
Let's come together and spread the joy and love of the season :)
L

Standing For Something

My angry letter is in the mail, I refuse to say nothing.

CityTV
535-7th Avenue SW
Calgary AB T2P 0Y4

To Whom It May Concern:

After a long day at work my husband and I were looking forward to a quiet, relaxing night at home. We turned on the TV and were utterly shocked by what we saw.

We happened to flip past your station at 9:30 and came across a TV program named, The Girls Next Door. We did not watch for long because we were appalled at the blatant female nudity we saw. It was only 9:30 at night. That type of programming is not appropriate as any age group could be watching. We would expect such shows on a cable channel but yours is a channel easily accessible by anyone.

As taken from your website, “Each of our television stations telecasts the flavour of the community: the serious commentary, the passionate oration, the opinion, the celebrations, the unpredictability. This is the essence of CityTV's open, inclusive, accessible style of broadcasting.”

The flavour of our community is not pornography, though I will give you credit for being unpredictable.

“CityTV, owned by Rogers, is a family of television stations that strive to enrich and celebrate the communities we serve.”

In no way does this type of programming enrich our communities and I think it’s an outrage.

“With stations in Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton and Winnipeg, CityTV is proud to be a part of your community.”

With programs such as this Calgary is not proud to have you as part or our community.

Sincerely,


Laura Wiebe

(I realize it's not a literary masterpiece, it was quickly written but it gets the job done)
L

A Night at the Movies

I was standing in the longest line there ever was waiting for popcorn and I looked over and noticed a woman. She was at the counter ordering and she had a tray to put her food on, she noticed some stray popcorn kernels left over from the last person so she tipped the tray and spilled the old popcorn onto the floor. Why is it that this sort of thing is acceptable at a theatre? If she were at home or even a restaurant she wouldn't dump the food she doesn't want on the floor.

Example number two - look around a theatre after everyone has left, food containers everywhere! Why is this a place where no one feels like they need to clean up after themselves?
I don't understand how people's behaviours change so much once they enter the movie theatre.
L

Next Year

Only 20 minutes left and then I'm officially on Holidays!

I'm excited yet at the same time have this fear I've forgotten to do something at work.
I've taken care of my emails and even remembered to set my Out of Office message, everything should be fine.

This Christmas season has been so busy. Busy with good things but so busy that I don't feel even a little bit of Christmas spirit and I can't believe it's in 6 days. It snuck up on me this year. There's been no time to decorate the tree or go see the Nativity Pageant or go to the Zoo lights (we'll go in January for sure). I haven't done even a little bit of Christmas baking and there were no cards to my neighbors. I'm relieved every night when I can cross tasks off my busy schedule, I've wished away the whole season!

I pledge that next year will be different, it has to be. Even if everything I'm invited to sounds like fun, I can't do everything without feeling rushed and annoyed.

So from this Grinch,

Merry Christmas

I wish you friends and family and treats and gifts and gift giving and game playing and cozy nights with slippers and hot chocolate and skating and anything else you've been hoping to do.
L

Conversation with a Telus Agent

So she asks when I want the change to take effect

I say immediately. She responds with, “Did you have a date in mind?”

What? A date in mind? I just told you I want it immediately... would that not make my date as today?
L

Discoveries

I discovered something about myself on Monday night and I’m ready to declare it...

I don’t like Dairy Queen!

I know, shocking, me who likes all desserts but I’m ready to declare that I don’t like them. I think they’re super overpriced and I don’t think they use quality products. Their ice cream is okay but it’s the chocolate I don’t like, it’s cheap and waxy. Other products aren’t much better, like their whipped cream and brownie chunks; they’re just not that good. I’d rather go somewhere for a good scoop of quality hard ice cream or maybe some gelato. Even a carton of Safeway ice cream is preferable.

It doesn’t help that the DQ by our house is really, really hot every time we go in. I don’t know how the employees handle that heat all day, it’s awful.
L

SYTYCD

There’s this tv show... this magical tv show. A show above all other shows. It’s the one and only tv show that I can’t stand to miss.

So You Think You Can Dance

It’s the kind of magic that you can only watch over the summer. It’s a reality American Idol-esque show but features dancers. These really incredible dancers. Every week you get to watch these performances that are so good, these partnerships that work or don’t work. They have judges that are honest but not horribly mean. If someone stunk they’ll tell them but there’s normally some good they can find to mention. They feature all sorts of dances and in the end America votes which couples should be in the bottom 3. The judges take it from there and each week they vote off 1 boy and 1 girl.

So this show that I’m so enamored of... it’s on twice a week. On Wednesdays you get to see the dances and on Thursdays you get to see who’s voted off. So that’s two nights out of a week, that’s not a lot. You’d think we’d be able to arrange it so we can watch this one favorite show but somehow the majority of the time we end up missing it. We forget or we go out. We’ve, pathetically, even set the show to tape yet often forget to make sure the VCR is actually ready to go. It ends up feeling so tragic when I miss Shauna being voted off... but I loved Shauna! I wasn’t ready for her to go. And to finally see them get rid of Cedric. Hopefully as the season continues we’ll be more organized and will find the time to watch this favorite of favorites.

If you have yet to watch, give it a try, you just might love it.
L

One Shoe, Two Shoe, Red Shoe, Blue Shoe

A couple years ago I was a bridesmaid at a friends wedding.
As is usual the bride had a specific set of clothing in mind for us to wear so she provided a skirt, shirt, earrings, necklace and shoes. I lucked out and the clothing provided was all really cute, something I was comfortable in.

Let me talk about the shoes for a minute.
They were flat, and black, rounded toe with this cute “leather” bow that came across. They were cute, I liked them. I wore them to the wedding and was comfortable all day; my feet didn’t hurt, even after standing in the receiving line.

So why now and every time after, when I try to wear these shoes again are they incredibly painful?! I can go for about an hour, and that’s a stretch. But I wore them all day! With no complaints! I don’t’ understand.
L

I'm Not Alone

I Hate Facebook!

I REFUSE to join, don't try and convince me!!!

It's a fad, that's all, I don't think it will last. I have a blog and email addresses, I'm good. I don't need more.

People always say, "I joined Facebook and reconnected with all these people I haven't talked to in years." If I haven't talked to them in years then I don't need to start now.

I feel very strongly about my hate of Facebook and it turns out I'm not alone!

Thanks to CATTY, I found this great article

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20070330.facebook31/BNStory/Front/home

A quote to sum up my general feelings on Facebook

"Facebook brings back behaviour that went out with plaid shirts, Tuffs boots and Nirvana. From competing over who has the most friends to sending snide notes to “check out so-and-so's ‘friends,' ” it's Grade 11 all over again.

“Facebook gives people the ability to maintain the high-school mentality,” says Tracy Cohen, a 28-year-old television producer in Toronto. “You judge others based on the number of friends they have, and the people who were nerds or losers in high school try to say to the cool high-school people, ‘Hey, look at me now!' ”

I don't need another invite to your Facebook page so that you look like you have more friends. I want real friends, not electronic friends.
L