Tales of the Jumping Moose

Criminally Crappy Service Gets Patrons Arrested

2009-11-23T06:54:00.000-08:00

John Wagner and Leslie Pope visited the Lehigh Pub in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania as part of a party of eight. They ended up leaving in a police car. They never thought their service would be bad either.

Pope and Wagner went to have a night out with a group of friends. They ordered wings, salad, and drinks. There food came over an hour later and they had to get up to refill their drinks at the bar. According to some reports, their lousy waitress spent most her time outside the restaurant smoking. When the bill came, they refused to pay the 18% gratuity that accompanied the bill because of the poor service which amounted to $16.00.

The Bethlehem police were called and the couple was arrested and charged with theft. Who's the most useless here? The police who arrested someone who refused to pay 118% of their bill? Or the lousy waitress who couldn't take the criticism that smoking wasn't equal to good service?

I am getting tired of a world where bad businesses can try to arrest people who don't like their crappy customer service.

See the video of the incident with Laurence Tierney playing the waitress

HIMYM Joke

2009-04-13T20:33:00.000-07:00

What's the difference between peanut butter and jam?

Highlight to read:
I can't peanut butter my dick up your ass.

Credit Card Primer

2009-03-11T22:56:00.000-07:00

With all of the credit hub-bub, it seems like high time to talk about credit cards. What do you need to know before you get yourself in hawk?

Free Food at Denny's

2009-02-03T07:37:00.001-08:00

As Peter Griffin said best, "I'm angry at you, but I'm going to punish myself. Let's go to Denny's"

From 6AM to 2PM, Denny's is giving away free Grand Slam breakfasts-- while supplies last.

Buy online while in-store to save.

2009-01-13T09:03:00.000-08:00

[from Lifehacker] This great tip works for Best Buy -- anyone tried it elsewhere? Basically, if you have a web-enabled cell phone, you can shop online and pick-up "in store" -- where you are standing -- inside about 20 minutes with a few clicks and emails. I can see where nervous staff might be wary of someone clicking around on their phone while shopping, so one might need to step outside or into the mall to continue, but overall, seems like a no-brainer.

Auction Notice from BC Auction

2008-12-05T23:38:00.003-08:00

Auctions matching your BC Auction Profile have been posted on the BC Auction Web Site.

Household Goods: A31489 Endless Night Print with Frame

Vehicles & Automotive: A31510 1973 UBILT TANDEM UTILITY TRAILER S/N BC6261

Vehicles & Automotive: A31515 1988 UBILT TRAILER W/TILT DECK S/N K53MBG

Household Goods: A31524 Large Quantity of Used Windows & Doors

Vehicles & Automotive: A31533 2002 GMC Jimmy, VIN:1GKDT13W52K168744

Household Goods: A31534 New - 31 Inch Granite Vanity Counter Top with Backsplash

Household Goods: A31539 New - 49 Inch Granite Vanity Counter Top with Backsplash

Household Goods: A31542 New - 37 Inch Granite Vanity Counter Top with Backsplash

Vehicles & Automotive: A31544 1995 GMC Sierra 4x4, VIN:1GTGK29KXSE507616

Household Goods: A31545 New - 37 Inch Granite Vanity Counter Top with Backsplash

Vehicles & Automotive: A31547 Aluminum Truckbed Toolbox

Household Goods: A31550 New - 49 Inch Granite Vanity Counter Top with Backsplash

Household Goods: A31552 Bamboo Table and Chair Set - 5 Pieces

Household Goods: A31555 Bamboo Table and Chair Set - 5 Pieces

Household Goods: A31557 Bamboo Screen Divider

Household Goods: A31569 iPod Nano

Household Goods: A31570 Norco Wolverine Bicycle

Household Goods: A31572 BMX Stunt Bicycle

Auction Notice from BC Auction (2)

2008-12-05T23:38:00.001-08:00

This is an automated message from the the BC Auction Notification Service.

Auctions matching your BC Auction Profile have been posted on the BC Auction Web Site.

Household Goods: A31573 Rocky Mountaine Element Race Bicycle

Household Goods: A31575 Opadx Cannondale T2000 Bicycle

Household Goods: A31576 Giant Terrago Off Road Bicycle

Vehicles & Automotive: A31581 1979 GMC Sierra 6000 Utility Truck VIN-T16DD9V592842

Vehicles & Automotive: A31582 1997 Ford E250 Econoline Van VIN-1FTF424L2VHA12154

Household Goods: A31586 Clothes Washer and Dryer

Household Goods: A31595 New 4 x 6 Graduation Photo Frame

Household Goods: A31596 New 5 x 7 Graduation Photo Frame

Household Goods: A31597 Yamaha Generator

Household Goods: A31598 Sewing Machine Table

Household Goods: A31602 Poulan Chainsaw

Vehicles & Automotive: A31603 Polaris Xplorer 300 ATV

Household Goods: A31605 2008 HomeTech Handyman Cost Estimator Book

Auction Notice from BC Auction

2008-12-04T19:04:00.001-08:00

To: Michael DeWolfe

This is an automated message from the the BC Auction Notification Service.

Auctions matching your BC Auction Profile have been posted on the BC Auction Web Site.

Vehicles & Automotive: A31379 1993 Chevrolet Corsica VIN:1G1LT53T3PY254118

Vehicles & Automotive: A31385 10 Bus Windshields

Vehicles & Automotive: A31446 Truck Bed Extender

Vehicles & Automotive: A31465 22" Rims for Dayton Bus

Household Goods: A31474 Gemstone Globe Lamp

Household Goods: A31484 Coffee Maker - DeLonghi

Commercial Kitchen/Restaurant Equipment
: A31503 Whiz Bang Commercial Popcorn Maker

Vehicles & Automotive: A31510 1973 UBILT TANDEM UTILITY TRAILER S/N BC6261

Vehicles & Automotive: A31515 1988 UBILT TRAILER W/TILT DECK S/N K53MBG

Vehicles & Automotive: A31517 Mirrors, 8.5 " Convex, Heated - quantity 2

Vehicles & Automotive: A31518 1993 Toyota Corolla VIN:2T1AE04E2PC008290

Miscellaneous
: A31521 Puppet Theatre - Centre Stage

Household Goods: A31524 Large Quantity of Used Windows

Household Goods: A31528 Large Lot of Misc. Lighting and Plumbing Fixtures

If you have any questions with respect to the email notice, please contact our application administrator.

To discontinue email notification Click HERE.

Fwd: Auction Notice from BC Auction

2008-12-03T21:35:00.001-08:00

This is an automated message from the the BC Auction Notification Service.

Auctions matching your BC Auction Profile have been posted on the BC Auction Web Site.

Miscellaneous
: A31410 Plastic Shopping Baskets - One Lot

Miscellaneous
: A31419 Ultra Soft 400 Water Softener

Household Goods: A31423 Six Piece Oak Living Room Suite

Vehicles & Automotive: A31428 1995 Buick Regal, PARTS ONLY, VIN:2G4WB52LOS1406169,

Household Goods: A31430 Panel Television Wall Mount - New

Household Goods: A31431 Ceremonial Tea Set and Tray

Vehicles & Automotive: A31432 1995 Ford Mustang, PARTS ONLY, VIN:1FALP42T3SF166543

Household Goods: A31434 Espresso Machine

Household Goods: A31435 Laser Mouse

Miscellaneous
: A31436 3x8 Digital Multiswitch

Miscellaneous
: A31438 Navigation System

Household Goods: A31439 Drywall Tape - 2 Rolls

Household Goods: A31441 PlayStation 2 Console

Miscellaneous
: A31444 Executive Humidor

Miscellaneous
: A31447 Humidor

Household Goods: A31456 Wood Frame Military Cot

If you have any questions with respect to the email notice, please contact our application administrator.

To discontinue email notification Click HERE.

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Me - http://mike.dewolfe.bc.ca/
Blog - http://mikedewolfe.blogspot.com/
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Sites - http://www.prefabsite.net/ - have a website in MINUTES

Look, Ma, no kernels!

2008-08-03T13:28:00.000-07:00

From Lifehacker comes this useful tip: before you fully open a bag of freshly-popped microwave popping corn, open it just enough to let through the kernels. Up-end the bag and shake vigourously until all the kernels have been removed then open and enjoy kernel-free popcorn! Now if only you could do the same at the movies.

Staples : Surf the Web on their dime

2008-07-21T16:41:00.000-07:00

We were in a Staples store in Campbell River BC. The computers' access was locked. What was the access code-- the password to get past the lockout for the screensaver? "s130"-- or, "s" followed by the store number (in this case, store# 130). Try it out--surf the web or do anything else you want to do, while the spaced out red shirts wander aimlessly.

A Financing Alternative For Business Owners

2008-06-22T10:54:00.000-07:00

Unsecured Lines of Credit are an excellent financing alternative that business owners can utilize to replace their frozen home equity lines of credit. These lines of credit will be more advantageous than business loans because, like credit cards, interest is paid only on the outstanding balance. With two years in business and a 680 or above credit score, business owners qualify for up to $1 million with full documentation. Applications can be approved for up to $350,000 with no documentation.
Unsecured Lines of Credit can be obtained in roughly 4 to 6 weeks but should never be applied for directly by the borrowers themselves. The borrower, although qualified, cannot simply walk into a lending institution or bank for an unsecured line of credit and automatically be approved. Companies that specialize in unsecured lines of credit are available and should be contacted to assist with the substantial preparation that is necessary. Professional business finance consulting firms maintain contacts and affiliations with lending institutions that offer unsecured lines of credit. It is extremely important that the business owner work with one of these firms instead of approaching the bank directly. The application process is somewhat complicated and documentation must be properly formatted and compiled to avoid unnecessary rejections.
Business owners can no longer rely on the equity in their real estate holdings to finance their business expansions and growth. Despite the fact that they paid high fees for the availability of home equity lines of credit, even business owners with excellent credit scores and excess equity in their properties are finding it impossible to access their credit lines. The main reason is that banks have virtually stopped providing homeowners access to the equity in their properties as lines of credit. Home Equity Lines of Credit have been frozen by most major lenders because declining property values have made these cutbacks necessary. IndyMac, Washington Mutual and other major mortgage lenders have made decisions to rescind these credit lines, according to the terms of their contracts with borrowers.
Business owners have been especially hard-hit by these recent eliminations of their access to funds for their businesses. Many of them have used home equity lines for working capital during slow periods or as sources for cash during periods of expansion. The net result is that expected funds for business uses are not available, although they are still very necessary. The lack of time to make other arrangements because of this sudden policy change can severely impact a business owner's ability to survive a shortage of funds. Many business owners routinely paid back their lines of credit so that those funds are available for them to use at some pre-determined time in the future. That option is no longer available, leaving them without their usual funds.
In summary, Unsecured Business Lines of Credit are methods of financing that are still available to qualified borrowers who are also business owners. Firms that specialize in acquiring unsecured lines of credit should always be involved in this application process. The applicant will need assistance in properly preparing and organizing his documentation for submission to lenders. A firm that specializes in this type of financing will be able to present the borrower as the "perfect applicant" because its business is to assure that all aspects of the application adhere to the current credit, submission and underwriting guidelines of each individual bank. This very important initial step in the process will greatly enhance the business owner's potential to be successfully approved for an unsecured line of credit.

Milton Franklin, a graduate of Wharton Business School, is a business financing consultant with twenty-four years as a specialist in financial services. He is currently a Founder and Managing Member of Nationwide Equipment Leasing LLC, an equipment leasing company that also offers Unsecured Lines of Credit as one component of its Business Financial Products Suite. His company focuses on providing solutions that help business owners overcome the obstacles created by the current economic and financial crisis in the United States. He can be reached at 800-395-4908. Request a free copy of his Special Report, "The Solution: Unsecured Line of Credit" from http://www.neleasing.com/application-form.cfm by selecting Unsecured Line of Credit Information.
Article Directory: EzineArticles

Home Loan Scams

2008-06-20T18:13:00.000-07:00

With the thousands of people, each looking for the perfect home loan to fit each of their individual and financial needs, it might not be surprising how fraudsters have found their way and infiltrated the mortgage market. Nowadays, there are a number of mortgage scams and the number of people getting victimized has increased.
Who are susceptible to home loan scams? Mortgage scam experts usually effectively target those who are desperate to get a mortgage by all means or those who are not well-informed. These include those with bad credit, the elderly, the minority, those who have low income, virtually anyone who wants financial relief without being aware of what they are getting into. Know that mortgage scams are one of the most undesirable scams, if not the most, as it can lead to the loss of your home.
Here are some home loan scams you need to be aware about:

The Hidden Balloon Payment Term. Be wary of lenders who offer to save you from the risk of property foreclosure and refinance your mortgage then suddenly impose a hidden lump sum balloon payment at the end of your mortgage term. Once you can not pay for your principal at the end of the term, you will most likely lose your home.

Sign Over Deed. This is when a lender contacts you and offers to help you avoid foreclosure. This new lender asks that you sign over your property to him and insists that it is a temporary measure to avoid foreclosing your home. Before you know it, he already has put your home as collateral to his own loan or even has sold it to someone else. Never sign your deed to someone else.

Slight of Hand Signings. Some scam lenders are just great at confusing you with paperwork. They have tactics to convince you to sign without having to read the documents. Before signing anything, make sure you understand and have read the documents carefully. Be wary of those who will rush you in, or coerce you to sign that very moment.

Scam. Some fraud lenders offer to help you by buying your property. They promise to sell your home back to you when your finances are stable, but you never do. Never attempt to sell your home, unless you are sure that you are willing to give it up.

Loan Flipping. This happens when a lender offers you home loan refinancing time and again to get more cash for a vacation, for a new appliance, or a new car. They lure you to refinance time and again but charge you high points and large fees each time you agree. Before you know it, your interest rate has increased and you may lose a lot of money from paying off pre-payment penalties. Make sure you know the refinancing terms first before agreeing, and refinance your home loan only for the right reasons.

Equity Stripping. A lender will tell you that you can easily get a home loan even if you do not have a stable income to manage the monthly payment. They encourage you to exaggerate your income in the application form to increase your chances for approval. This most likely will lead you to fall behind on your monthly dues and face foreclosure very soon. No matter how tempting, never go for mortgage that you can't afford.

Afraid of facing foreclosure? You are not alone. You have to act now before it becomes too late. Start by visiting Home Loan or FREE Home Loan information for financial advice.
Article Directory: EzineArticles

Pick a Fake Psychic

2008-06-18T19:11:00.000-07:00

As a true psychic, it pains me to no end to see the scams that are constantly perpetrated on the public. It is no wonder that psychics get a bad name. The problem is, how do you tell the true psychics from those who are just after a quick buck? The truth is, it's not very easy. The best psychic cons are very hard to detect because these people know what they're doing and they pray on the fears and desperation of those who need help. However, there are a few glaring signs that the psychic you're about to get involved with is nothing but a con artist. This article is going to reveal the most glaring of these.
The first sign of a con is when you go to have a reading done, and it doesn't matter if it's a Tarot reading, Astrology reading or whatever, and you're given a price quote for the reading and then suddenly towards the end of the reading, the psychic says they see something that will require further interpretation, however to do that, there will be an additional charge. That is the first sure fire sign to say, no thanks, pay for what's been done so far and get out of there quickly. Yes, the information you've just been given is most likely a load of bull, but at least you've saved yourself additional expense.
Another big psychic scam is the phone psychics. I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but no psychic is so good that they can tell you you're future over the phone. A true psychic needs to be in contact with the subject and phone consultation, or whatever you want to call it, is not contact. Also, the person you're speaking to when it comes to these phone sessions, is many times just a hired hand who is reading off a script. So do yourself a favor. If you can't sit face to face with your psychic, don't fall for the pitch, because most likely, that's all it is.
Finally, if you're going to a psychic, take note of the appearance of the establishment and the way the psychic is dressed. If everything looks like something out of a bad B movie, then most likely this person is not a psychic and just a scam artist. When I do a reading, I wear a suit and tie. I don't put on all this fancy garb and I don't have garlic and shrunken heads hanging from the walls. If you see anything that looks cliched, don't fall for it. A legit psychic will not go through all the stereotypical nonsense.
Like I said, it is sometimes hard to pick out the scam artists, but some things are very obvious. Hopefully, these few things that I have mentioned will save you a lot of heartache and money besides.
To YOUR Divination Fulfillment,
Steven Wagenheim

Please visit Occult's Squidoo Lens on the World Of The Occult located at http://www.squidoo.com/the-world-of-the-occult/ where you can learn a little bit about me and pick up some tips on just about every form of divination that there is.
Article Directory: EzineArticles

The Ol' Reverse Mortgage Scam...

2008-06-16T20:09:00.001-07:00

Reverse mortgage scams are business propositions that may sound good at first, but turn out to be a huge waste of money. Reverse mortgages are the most popular home loans among Americans above age 62 who own a home. These mortgages help older homeowners in America convert the equity of their home into cash. Even though many reverse mortgage sites and organizations are employed in the task of serving people, a whole bunch of them are fraudulent sites and firms.
Reverse mortgage scams are traps laid by fake sites or reverse mortgage companies who try to charge a huge amount to people going for reverse mortgages. As with other scams, telemarketing is the most popular mode used for cheating. Senior citizens are often contacted via telephone and goaded into disclosing personal information. Information on reverse mortgages is actually provided free of charge by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
Sometimes these fraudulent companies ask six to ten percent of the loan amount for just offering the name of the lender companies who provide reverse mortgages, or for helping to fill the application. Even before applying for a reverse mortgage, it is important that one consults the right organization for information. Make sure that no contract is signed under compulsion from an agent.
Signing the contract either before one's children or in the presence of an advisor can help avoid some of the tactics laid by the deceiver. To avoid reverse mortgage scams, it is best not to make any dealings through the Internet or phone.

Reverse Mortgages provides detailed information on Reverse Mortgages, Reverse Annuity Mortgages, Reverse Home Mortgages, Benefits Of Reverse Mortgages and more. Reverse Mortgages is affiliated with Second Home Mortgages.
Article Directory: EzineArticles

Equifax Scam

2008-06-14T21:02:00.000-07:00

I thought Equifax was a scam-- but it looks like its a scam of a scam at play
There are credit reports produced yearly by consumer bureaus national. Equifax is one of the three companies that provide this report. In fact every American is entitled to three free copies of these reports yearly from the different consumer bureaus. The benefits of the Equifax credit report cannot be overstated - it is very important. But, you should be very careful about scams, guide that at all cost.
For instance there is only one website provided by the consumer companies for the application too receives a free copy of the annual credit. But, many other sites claim to give the free copy and even some sell these free copies to ignorant consumers that do not know this. You should get the right information to avoid being fooled by these scammers. Learn to tell the fake from the original copy.
Many methods are used to con ignorant consumers these days. For instance, a thief can apply for your credit report using your identity, with the purpose of knowing your Equifax credit report to process loans with your identity. They will not definitely escape with the money collected from the loan leaving the debt for you to pay. So, it's always good to be informed about your credit report and always make sure you apply through the right channel whenever you do. Because if you visit a site that claims to help you get your credit report, you are only risking your personal information to fraudsters that can use it against you. The only website for the application of credit report is www.annualcreditreport.com beware of scams.
When you visit the wrong site offering you a free copy of the Equifax credit report any other one credit report, you'll be asked to type in your personal information, after you do that you will not see your report instead they have gained access to your credit report and you know the rest of the story. A way out of this is to apply for a fraud alert that will keep you informed of any addition on your credit report but, we all have to apply the greatest caution when dealing with financial issues to avoid bankruptcy. BE WARNED.

For more information about Equifax Credit Report, feel free to visit us at: http://www.about-credit-reports.com/article-1-Equifax-Credit-Report.html
Article Directory: EzineArticles

Make Money-- well, Never Make Money -- Home Business Scams

2008-06-12T22:00:00.000-07:00

While there are many legitimate home based business opportunities available today, there are also no shortage of home business schemes and scams. It can be quite difficult to know the difference at times. Here is a list of several well known home business scams. Hopefully this list will help you from losing your hard earned money to these scammers. Envelope Stuffing
This scam has been around forever it seems, and don't worry, it's still as popular as ever to those who don't know about it. You typically answer an ad that looks something like this:
"$500 - $1,000+ a WEEK working only 1 hour per day from the comfort of your home stuffing envelopes! All supplies included. FREE information"
It sounds very appealing doesn't it? What an easy way to make a living. But what is the real story. You will most likely be required to send in $20 -$40 for a kit to get started. Usually, you'll get nothing in return and that's the end of the scam. But, if you do get something back it will tell you to place small classified ads (like the one you responded to) and use your address to collect money from the next batch of unsuspecting people. The cycle continues.
Or, you may actually get some materials and send out mailings, thinking you will be getting a check, only to find out that you didn't do them properly and there will be no check, or, no one ordered anything from your mailings so there is no pay coming back to you. Envelope stuffing is complete scam. Don't let yourself fall victim to it.

Get Paid To Surf Companies
Here is a favorite Internet scam that has been going around for a number of years. The idea is that you get paid to click on various website ads. The more time you spend clicking on sites, the more money you supposedly make. How can this be? The get paid to surf company charges fees to its advertisers. The advertisers in turn hope that you will see their ad and then buy their product.
Of course, you may never be paid for the time you spend surfing, but if you do you can expect it to be very little. Perhaps $20 a month if you are lucky, and that's after spending hours upon hours a month clicking on ads.

Get Paid To Take Surveys Online
This sounds like an enjoyable home business. Take a survey every day, express your opinion, and get paid for it. Let's look a little closer at how it really works.
You have to register with one of these survey clubs or sites to get started. They all charge you a fee to join, some as much as $49 or more. You get access to their database of survey companies. They will usually email you a list of surveys every day to look over. What you will then find out is that you are not qualified to take 95% of them, so it can take a while before you even get qualified for one survey. Next, when you do take a survey the company will most likely pay you with "credits". It may be something like 25 credits for each completed survey. Then, when you have for example, 500 credits, you can redeem them for cash, generally around $10-$20 per 500 credits. This can easily take you 3-6 months to just make $10, if of course you get paid at all.

Mystery Shopper
This business opportunity sounds really cool. You get to go out shopping at a retail store or eating at a restaurant and get paid for it after providing a review of the experience. It sounds great, so what's the catch?
There is a huge list of companies offering jobs as mystery shoppers. The pay rate varies, and is generally $10 or a little more. You must be willing to travel where you are sent. With gas prices so high, this can easily eat up your pay, because you are not reimbursed for travel expenses. If you are sent on an eating assignment, many times the meal will become your pay.
There have been numerous scams over the years involving the Secret Shopping industry, which include advertisements that seek to attract applicants by offering lucrative pay and Secret Shopper Jobs. These ads will charge a “small fee” ranging from $20 to $50 for registration and promise you the best Secret Shopper positions available in your area. To convince you further, they will also post “testimonials” of previous applicants who had “made it big”.
Victims of such scams who responded to the Ads are likely to receive worthless information regarding Secret Shopper companies. There is not much one can do because there is no refund and phone calls or emails are never answered. One should remember that genuine Secret Shopping Companies never charge fees to the applicant.
There have also been reports of scam where already employed Secret Shoppers are requested by some “company” to send or divulge information regarding completed shop reports, companies worked with and pay slips etc, with the promise of more rewarding positions. The actual intention here is not known but it’s best to never disclose personal Job information to anyone.
While applying for a Secret Shopper Job, if you come across a hiring company Advertisement with the promise of instant riches, beware. You cannot and never will make millions with a Secret Shopper Job, which is only meant to be part time. Earnings, for example are rarely more than $20 to $40 per assignment, especially if you are a beginner.
Remember, a genuine legitimate company will never promise you the moon. Only scammers do. Do not deal with people on the phone who will not disclose their names or the name of their enterprise. If you visit any website, find out the kind of information and how much is given, and build your judgment accordingly.
The number of assignments are few and far in between, and unless you live in a major metropolitan area your chances of getting any assignments are zero. If you make $25 a month, consider yourself lucky.

Get Paid To Read Emails
One of the biggest scams on the Internet are the get paid to read email companies. Supposedly you are going to be paid to read emails by the company you signed up with. The emails are really just ads, and the company gets paid by the advertisers, but it doesn't really matter. The fact is, you will never be paid! You can jump up and down and shout all you want, but you'll never get any money from them. Eventually these scams get shut down by the government.
But, let's pretend though that you do find a legitimate company and actually get paid. The standard pay rate is around 1-2 cents per email read. You might get 10-25 per day. That comes out to around $3.00-$10.00 per month. Is that anyone's idea of making money? If it is, then you can do a Goggle search and find tons of these home business opportunities.

Internet Research
This is more like a job than a home business, but I wanted to include it nonetheless. As an Internet researcher your job is to search the web for information and provide it to the company paying you. Sounds easy enough, but there is much more to it. You will practically need a Masters Degree in order to get one of these jobs. The subjects will be highly technical in nature. You will also need to have excellent search engine skills. Finally, the pay is not good. If you're lucky enough to land one of these projects you may get paid $20 for an entire days work. Not exactly a good way to make a living.
Home Assembly Companies
I saved the best (or worst as I should call it) for last. Perhaps the worst scams to be found anywhere are home assembly companies. They have been scamming people for many years now and continue to do so. Here is how it works.
You answer an ad and get sent a letter in the mail. The letter contains instructions on getting started making small crafts and sending them in to the company for approval and payment. You will need to purchase a materials kit from the company that can cost from $20 up to $75 or more in some cases. You could easily buy these materials for a much cheaper cost at Wal-Mart, but you must buy them from the company. You may also be required to pay an up-front registration fee to set you up in their system.
When you complete your first project and send it in you will be credited with the cost of your kit along with payment if you have been approved. And that is where the scam begins. You will never have your work approved! It doesn't matter if you followed every instruction to the letter, you will never be paid. You will receive a letter from the company telling you that your work was not approved no matter what. All of these home assembly companies sound good from reading the ads, but the truth is they are scams. Don't give them your money.

Discover more information on Home Business Scams as well as information on home businesses at http://www.Home-Business.InfoFromA-Z.com
Article Directory: EzineArticles

Take a Smoke Break-- a Jail Break too, While You're At It.

2008-05-11T09:48:00.000-07:00

On the surface, this story seems pretty innocuous. Underneath it, there is a funny collision of BC Anti-Smoking laws, criminals and police behaving stupidly.
The prisoner was wanted a smoke. No smoking in BC Buildings means that locked up prisoners cannot smoke indoors. So, they took the prisoner outside... and he ran away.
So the lesson: if you want to break out of jail in British Columbia: go for a smoke break.

Jumping Moose Website

2008-03-09T11:14:00.000-07:00

The Jumping Moose website is alive! After a long delay, I have added a website to this domain. It will continue to feature the tips you see here, as well as those from other great sites.

Enjoy!

Gift Card = Credit Card

2008-01-03T13:01:00.000-08:00

Did you get a gift card to a mall, but the mall doesn't have what you want? Good news: you don't need to use the card at that mall after all. There are many card specific to a store. There are also a lot of prepaid credit cards masquerading as gift cards. While a gift card can only be used at a specific merchant, a credit card can be used ANYWHERE that accepts credit cards and where the clerk at the cash register is willing to take the card.
In January, retailers are hard up for sales. Credit cards companies would kill their grandmothers over a 2% transaction fee. So, try to use your gift card anywhere as a credit card: you might get lucky.

18 Stupid Human Tricks

2007-06-17T22:05:00.000-07:00

1. If your throat tickles, scratch your ear!
“When the nerves in the ear are stimulated, it creates a reflex in the throat that can cause a muscle spasm,” says Scott Schaffer, M.D., president of an ear, nose, and throat specialty center in Gibbsboro, New Jersey. “This spasm relieves the tickle.”

2. Experience supersonic hearing!
If you're stuck chatting up a mumbler at a cocktail party, lean in with your right ear. It's better than your left at following the rapid rhythms of speech, according to researchers at the UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine. If, on the other hand, you're trying to identify that song playing softly in the elevator, turn your left ear toward the sound. The left ear is better at picking up music tones.

3. Overcome your most primal urge!
Need to pee? No bathroom nearby? You are male? Then fantasize...
Thinking about sex preoccupies your brain, so you won't feel as much discomfort, says Larry Lipshultz, M.D., chief of male reproductive medicine at the Baylor College of Medicine.

4. Feel no pain!
German researchers have discovered that coughing during an injection can lessen the pain of the needle stick. According to Taras Usichenko, author of a study on the phenomenon, the trick causes a sudden, temporary rise in pressure in the chest and spinal canal, inhibiting the painconducting structures of the spinal cord.

5. Clear your stuffed nose!
The easiest, quickest, and cheapest way to relieve sinus pressure is to alternately thrust your tongue against the roof of your mouth, then press between your eyebrows with one finger. This causes the vomer bone, which runs through the nasal passages to the mouth, to rock back and forth, says Lisa DeStefano, D.O., an assistant professor at the Michigan State University college of osteopathic medicine. The motion loosens congestion; after 20 seconds, you'll feel your sinuses start to drain.

6. Fight fire without water!
Studies have shown that patients who sleep on their left sides are less likely to suffer from acid reflux. The esophagus and stomach connect at an angle.
When you sleep on your right, the stomach is higher than the esophagus, allowing food and stomach acid to slide up your throat. When you're on your left, the stomach is lower than the esophagus, so gravity's in your favor.

7. Cure your toothache without opening your mouth!
Just rub ice on the back of your hand, on the V-shaped webbed area between your thumb and index finger. A Canadian study found that this technique reduces toothache pain by as much as 50 percent compared with using no ice. The nerve pathways at the base of that V stimulate an area of the brain that blocks pain signals from the face and hands.

8. Make burns disappear!
When you accidentally singe your finger on the stove, clean the skin and apply light pressure with the finger pads of your unmarred hand. Ice will relieve your pain more quickly, Dr. DeStefano says, but since the natual method brings the burned skin back to a normal temperature, the skin is less likely to blister.

9. Stop the world from spinning!
One too many drinks left you dizzy? Put your hand on something stable. The part of your ear responsible for balance, the
cupula, floats in a fluid of the same density as blood.
“As alcohol dilutes blood in the cupula, the cupula becomes less dense and rises,” says Dr. Schaffer. This confuses your brain. The tactile input from a stable object gives the brain a second opinion, and you feel more in balance. Because the nerves in the hand are so sensitive, this works better than the conventional footonthefloor wisdom.

10. Unstitch your side!
If you're like most people, when you run, you exhale as your right foot hits the ground.
This puts downward pressure on your liver (which lives on your right side), which then tugs at the diaphragm and creates a side stitch, according to The Doctors Book of Home Remedies for Men. The fix: Exhale as your left foot strikes the ground.

11. Stanch blood with a single finger!
Pinching your nose and leaning back is a great way to stop a nosebleed if you don't mind choking on your own O positive. A more civil approach: Put some cotton on your upper gums just behind that small dent below your nose and press against it, hard.
“Most bleeds come from the front of the septum, the cartilage wall that divides the nose,” says Peter Desmarais, M.D., an ear, nose, and throat specialist at Entabeni Hospital, in Durban, South Africa. “Pressing here helps stop them.”

12. Make your heart stand still!
Trying to quell firstdate jitters? Blow on your thumb. The vagus nerve, which governs heart rate, can be controlled through breathing, says Ben Abo, an emergency medical services specialist at the University of Pittsburgh. It'll get your heart rate back to normal.

13. Thaw your brain!
Too much ice-cream too fast will freeze the brains of lesser men. As for you, press your tongue flat against the roof of your mouth, covering as much as you can. “Since the nerves in the roof of your mouth get extremely cold, your body thinks your brain is freezing, too,” says Abo. “In compensating, it overheats, causing an icecream headache.” The more pressure you apply to the roof of your mouth, the faster your headache will subside.

14. Prevent nearsightedness!
Poor distance vision is rarely caused by genetics, says Anne Barber, O.D., an optometrist in Tacoma, Washington. “It's usually caused by nearpoint stress.” In other words, staring at your computer screen for too long. So flex your way to 20/20 vision. Every few hours during the day, close your eyes, tense your body, take a deep breath, and, after a few seconds, release your breath and muscles at the same time. Tightening and releasing muscles such as the biceps and glutes can trick involuntary muscles like
the eyes into relaxing as well.

15. Wake the dead!
If your hand falls asleep while you're driving or sitting in an odd position, rock your head from side to side. It'll painlessly banish your pins and needles in less than a minute, says Dr. DeStefano. A tingly hand or arm is often the result of compression in the bundle of nerves in your neck; loosening your neck muscles releases the pressure. Compressed nerves lower in the body govern the feet, so don't let your sleeping dogs lie. Stand up and walk around.

16. Impress your friends!
Next time you're at a party, try this trick: Have a person hold one arm straight out to the side, palm down, and instruct him to maintain this position. Then place two fingers on his wrist and push down. He'll resist. Now have him put one foot on a surface that's a half inch higher (a few magazines) and repeat. This time his arm will cave like the French. By misaligning his hips, you've offset his spine, says Rachel Cosgrove, C.S.C.S., coowner of Results Fitness, in Santa Clarita, California. Your brain senses that the spine is vulnerable, so it shuts down the body's ability to resist.

17. Breathe underwater!
If you're dying to retrieve that quarter from the bottom of the pool, take several short breaths first essentially, hyperventilate. When you're underwater, it's not a lack of oxygen that makes you desperate for a breath; it's the buildup of carbon dioxide, which makes your blood acidic, which signals your brain that somethin' ain't right. “When you hyperventilate, the influx of oxygen lowers blood acidity,” says Jonathan Armbruster, Ph.D., an associate professor of biology at Auburn University. “This tricks your brain into thinking it has more oxygen.” It'll buy you up to 10 seconds.

18. Read minds!
Your own! “If you're giving a speech the next day, review it before falling asleep,” says Candi Heimgartner, an instructor of biological sciences at the University of Idaho. Since most memory consolidation happens during sleep, anything you read right before bed is more likely to be encoded as longterm memory.

How to Screw Over The Extended Warranty Process

2007-06-11T21:46:00.000-07:00

If you do get an extended warranty, push for a lower rate. Nearly half of the cost is profit, so if you're buying a 2 year plan for you laptop that's running you say $200, you could easily talk them down to $170 or less.
What if you don't want an extended warranty? Make sure there is a cancellation clause to the warranty plan. If you want to try and save money, get an expensive protection plan then refund it. Ask them to give you a big discount on the unit itself and you will pay full pop for the expensive protection. Expect up to $150 to be knocked off the price of the computer. Then as soon as possible, return the protection plan, and keep the discount on the computer. All discount will always be applied to the product, not the protection plan itself. This only works in there is a cooling off or refund clause for the protection plan.

Here's How You Voice Your Dissatisfaction

2007-06-01T12:38:00.001-07:00

For quite some time, we have experienced incomplete service in using Bell Mobility service.

For more than one year, we have seen that calls going into these numbers (250-6x1-xxxx, 250-8x8-xxxx, 250-8x8-xxxx, 250-8x8-xxxx and 250-6x1-xx) or coming from these numbers to other telephones have not completed their calls. The first three of the above numbers were part of a single plan. The fourth number was held by [Screwed Customer]. This has led to great deal of miscommunication. We have, as we detail below, attempted to find a remedy to the problems to our dissatisfaction through your customer support network. To limit the damages that your incomplete services caused, we have been forced to discontinue service for two of the phones (661-4xxx and 661-6xxx) through the Bell Mobility. Since that time, those two phones have suffered no loss of service.

In these cases, the caller will either hear a ringing until the call goes to voice mail; or we will receive a caller is not available; or the call will go directly to voice mail). After detecting that this was a problem, we began attempting calls through to the numbers while the caller and receiver were in each other's company. There is a lot of variability to this issue. On a given day with a given phone, the range of failed calls exceeds 75%. Three of the phone were of one brand and two were of another. Three of the phones had message center features and a different two of this did not. The only common feature and point of failure was the Bell Mobility network.

In May, we contacted the technical support for Bell Mobility. We feel the experience was poor, but the representative supposedly opened a trouble ticket 0004942xxx (6019xxx). We waited until June 1st for resolution or some form of an update. On June 1st, I called back. I learned that the trouble ticket was improperly prepared. The representative could not transfer me to the technical support staff. She collected my home number that I could be reached at that time-- the same land line I was using to place the support call. I was assured that a technical support representative named, "Enza", would call back directly. She did not. We have found the technical support and customer service to be very poor. In April, we discovered that email messages sent to our phones were not longer going through. Upon discussion with your technical support staff, they said that they problem had been going on the Greater Victoria area for approximately three weeks. We were not informed that an important feature of service was faulty. This caused damages as some of the emails were critical notices that I needed to receive. When we asked why we were not informed, the representative had not reply. When we brought this matter up to sales associates at the Bell retail outlet at Hillside Mall in Victoria, they were largely confused and they claimed that they did not hear.

We are dissatisfied with both the quality of service and persistent technical problems experienced while using the Bell Mobility network. These constitute incomplete service and void the terms of agreement. Going forward, what follows are four options to pursue. If both parties can have a dialogue regarding this matter, we feel that all parties would benefit from Option B. If Bell Mobility cannot respond, we will exercise Option A as that clearly ends this agreement with no interaction from Bell Mobility. We require that a representative from Bell Mobility respond via written correspondence to the above address. We view this as a serious matter that requires your immediate attention.

Option A) We pay the balance indicated on the most recent statement that we have on the most recent statement in our possession (Bill Date: May 1, 2007) of the outstanding remainder of $284.55. This will end all agreements between our two parties. In this option, we both agree that no more monies or products will expected or exchanged between either party.

Option B) We pay the balance for our regular service as indicated on the most recent statement in our possession (Bill Date: May 1, 2007) of the outstanding remainder of $284.55. Should another bill for regular services be received by our party before the conclusion of this discussion, we will pay for those regular services. We will surrender the two telephones we possess to a Bell retail service outlet; in May of 2007, a third cellular telephone was stolen. If you can convey the depreciated cash value of that telephone, we will pay that as well. This will end all agreements between our two parties. In this option, we both agree that no more monies or products will expected or exchanged between either party after this return of the equipment we hold.

Option C) Bell Mobility offers up a significant sum of relief and credit our account. A majority of calls we have attempted to place and the majority of calls that other have attempted to place to our cellular telephones have not been received, we feel it is fair to excuse a majority of the amounts billed for basic service. As we have been suffering with Bell's incomplete service for an excess of one year, it is a fair compromise to credit us for 51% of the last three months of regular services (approximately $235); and agree to work to resolve the technical issues that have spawned the incomplete service we have experienced. Should Bell Mobility agree to this Option, we would continue to use our Bell Mobility service on the good faith that the incomplete service we experienced was a thing of the past.

Option D) We resolve this matter via litigation through the Small Claims Courts. We feel this would not be productive for either party, but we do need a decided resolution to this matter. Should we be forced to exercise this option, we are content to canvas the general public for Bell Mobility users and introduce any of those who agree to testify that they have had experiences in common with our own. Given the dissatisfaction that we have discovered from an informal survey, we are confident that we can introduce a very large number of Bell Mobility users who have also experienced incomplete service. While we would not ask all of them to resolve their matters of incomplete service through our approach, many of them may do so after learning that they are not alone in their situation; should any of them do so and request our aid, we would be willing to offer testimony, et cetera. We cannot provide an estimate of the damages we would seek, but they would amount to closure of the agreement, a significant refund for the services we paid for but did not receive, and any other damages that we would be advised we could seek for the protracted inconvenience we have experienced.

If we do not receive a written response postmarked no later than July 10th, 2007, we will carry on and exercise Option A as outlined above. Should your billing department view anything outstanding that we have resolved by exercising this option, and should they attempt to collect money they may view as outstanding, we will need to resolve the matter via Option D. Should your billing department pass this matter onto third party collection, we would be forced to launch immediate litigation against that third party; dependant on that outcome, we may also be forced to carry out litigation against Bell Mobility after that time.

Safeway: Thank You For The Identity Theft

2007-05-30T22:58:00.001-07:00

Safeway is so horny for consumer data that they will collect it any which way. When you make a purchase and you don't have a Safeway Club Card, they will allow you to provide your phone number. Heck, they will allow you to provide any phone number. If you have a phone number and no name attached, roll the dice. Go to Safeway, make some lame purchase and provide this phone number that you want fleshed out. Voila, your receipt will show 'your' name at the bottom.
Safeway could prevent this by leaving this name at the bottom, but will they? Not a chance.

Control Traffic Lights with a Universal Remote

2007-05-27T14:23:00.000-07:00

Use a cellphone to unlock your car

2007-05-26T08:23:00.000-07:00

Need to get on the ferry? No Cash? No problem.

2007-05-06T23:11:00.000-07:00

Here's the scenario:
- You have to take a BC Ferry
- Your credit card is maxxed out
- You don't have cash

When you go to the ferry terminal and use your credit card, BC Ferries will not check if you have room for the charge. So, a transactions that would otherwise be declined gets approved. They won't approve stolen cards; nor expired cards. Otherwise, it's accepted. Oops.

"We Are Not Responsible For Lost Data"

2007-04-08T07:48:00.000-07:00

Have you ever taken your computer into a shop for a repair or an upgrade? If so, you will likely see their terms and conditions. A fixture is the phrase "We Are Not Responsible For Lost Data." That means that if your hard drive loses its data or a meteor hits the bench or EMP knocks out your drive, the techies can shrug and hand it back. What computer repair shops do not understand: there is a HUGE difference between loss of data (through forces outside of their control) and negligence (the techie Ghosted a blank drive image over your existing drive).
When the computer makes you agree that they are not responsible for lost data you can agree. If the techie sheepishly reports that they've nuked your drive, get the details in a quiet way:

Techie: "I'm sorry, but we lost the data on your drive."
You: "Gee, that sucks. Hey, what happened?"
Techie: "I was Ghosting your drive image when I found that I was Ghosting the blank image onto your old drive."
>>AWESOME<<

This is the moment that the techie is on the hook and so is the repair shop. They didn't lose the data, they took a negligent action that destroyed your data. While they thought they were off the hook for the tens of thousands of dollars of intellectual material that you put onto the drive, they are not.

A friend of mine took his computer to a local computer shop for a hard drive upgrade. He got a call from the shop admitting that the data was lost. They weren't willing to do anything for him. What they didn't realize: he's a lawyer and he knew the difference between force majeur and negligence. They offered him a free computer vaccuuming to placate him. He countered with a lawsuit for the lost intectual property he created and stored on the hard drive. Oops.

I guess computer repair shops will have to add disclaimers like "Not responsible for the knuckle draggers we hire." or "We will blank out your hard drive."

A Current List of Contests

2007-03-28T18:35:00.000-07:00

Found from My Contests.ca:

cTV your choice of one of three northern vacations, daily, exp april 15

oral b diamond necklace of an approximate value of $1,000, or (8) (Instant Win) 6.0 MP Digital Camera,daily , exp june 30

yTV Roundtrip for four to LA and five days, four nights accommodation in LA, Rental Car with Collision/Damage Waiver (CDW) insurance and daily road taxes, Four night hotel accommodations , VIP Behind the Scenes Universal Hollywood Tour for four, Lunch for four people at Pinks Restaurant on Melrose, One-day admission for four to Raging Waters and $5,000 (CDN)- spending money , or (25) case of twelve 170 gram bags of LifeSavers Gummie Fruit Splosions candies, or (3,700)(instant win) individual instant song download prizes, daily, exp may 7

yTV flight for four to Iverness, Scotland; seven nights accommodation at Dornach Castle Hotel, Dornoch, Scotland; Minivan rental for seven days including comprehensive insurance, VAT, 2000 mile limit and drop off fees; breakfast and dinner for seven days in the Dornoch Castle Hotel's Garden Restaurant ; on the ground support of High Road Golf Expedition office in Edinburgh, Scotland; local taxes on pre-paid items will be paid for in the package,Ten thousand dollars in spending money in the form of a cheque ,Two District high-end Cycle Devinci bicycles , a Melbourne District high-end Cycle Devinci bicycle ,a Moonracer Cycle Devinci bicycle and four bike helmets, or (10) one month supply of Cheestrings (8 packs of 8 Cheestrings cheese snacks), and three 12-packs of Astro Smooth N'Fruity yogourt, or Hectik Cycle Devinci bicycle and a bike helmet, or (instant win)(2,500) Shrek Plush Toys, (295) pairs of Cineplex movie passes (movie passes expire on May 31, 2008) -not valid for VIP Room Admission ((Varsity only)) or for IMAX DMR presentations ((Digitally Remastered)), (34) Viewsonic, VA902B, 19" color LCD Computer Monitors; or (8) Viewsonic, N2050W, 20" color LCD TV ,one per pin, exp july 13

knorr 52 coupons for Knorr ready-to-serve soup (500 mL cartons), daily,exp april 1

tribute Nintendo DS™ system and a TMNT™ video game for Nintendo DS™,or (4) TMNT™ video games for Nintendo DS™, unlimited, exp june 2 TRIVIA ANSWER: Leonardo

tribute (10) peter pan platinum edition dvd ,unlimited,exp may 3

tribute (25) Barbie Fairytopia: Magic of the Rainbow on DVD,unlimited,exp april 26

tribute (10) "Robin Hood" on DVD,unlimited,exp may 17

dempsters (50) $150 gift certificate, daily, exp april 2 UPC: 068721002253 , 068721300434

corporate express prize valued at $250, daily, exp ?

clark beans a trip with a value of $ 10 000, one per pin, exp november 30

maxtrax Celtic Woman's A New Journey cd, daily, exp april 5, no quebec

mocka sofa (2)form-flattering WonderBra wardrobe including 10 bras valued at $350., daily, exp april 3

cmt (5) Taylor Swift "Taylor Swift" CD , Doc Walker "Doc Walker" , Taylor Swift t-shirt , Taylor Swift key-chain , and a Taylor Swift pencil, daily per site, exp march 30

experience to ROM tshirt and hat, Peruvian bag, catalogue, Rotunda Cafe gift certificate and four passes to see Ancient Peru Unearthed: Golden Treasures of a Lost Civilization at the ROM , or Passes for fourto see Ancient Peru Unearthed: Golden Treasures of a Lost Civilization at the ROM, daily, exp april 2, no quebec

wish mag Mighty Santoku from Mac Knife Canada, winning recipes will also be published in the September 2007 issue of Wish magazine, one per recipe, exp april 15, no quebec

gm canada 2007 Chevrolet Cobalt LT (colour: “Laser Blue”) for the winner, and a “Let’s Go” Road Trip package for three, three MacBook notebook computers (2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo 80GB hard drive) , three iPod shuffle digital music players 1GB, of three $20 iTunes Music Cards, three Sony 1GB Memory Sticks, and three Sony CyberShot 6MP digital cameras.At the time of delivery the winner will also receive the following: $500 Adventure Gift Card from Shoppers Drug Mart, $2,500 prepaid MasterCard credit card, $1,000 Esso gift card, three National Parks of Canada and National Historical Sites of Canada Adult passes , $100 in gift certificates from Tim Hortons, Chevrolet merchandise and miscellaneous road trip items such as maps, journals, pens, beverages and snacks daily, exp april 23

home made simple cheque in the amount of $3,500 Canadian, or cheque in the amount of $1,500 Canadian, daily, exp july 1

teletoon two contests currently up , daily, exp ?

sympatico trip for two to Cannes, during the Cannes Festival in May 2007 includes: $200 worth of L’Oréal Paris products ; $1,000 in spending money ; Round trip economy class flight for two to Nice, France; transportation from airport to hotel at time of arrival and departure; Hotel accommodations for four nights, daily, exp april 9

dose two Nights Hotel Accommodation, two Tickets To The Police show in Toronto, Return Flights to Toronto for two, Police CD/DVD Library and $250 CDN spending Money, daily, may 4

natural handyman 5-CD Set on Building Your Own Custom Spa, Hot Tub or Swim Spa, plus a Bonus $75.00 Cash Discount on a Complete Spa Parts Package, daily, exp october 1

eq3 EQ3 Commander Chair in your choice of available colours,unlimited, exp march 31

iag $2,000 in purchasing services from Internet Acquisition Group, Inc, daily, exp april 18

moms menu (10) Eloise Prize Pack containing a copy of Eloise in Hollywood DVD and a copy of Eloise in Hollywood Book, daily exp april 6

celebrity cafe (5) Pope John Paul II DVD , daily, exp april 15

celebrity cafe (5) signed copy of Shannon Moore's Evaporate CD , daily, exp april 15

celebrity cafe (5) National Lampoon's Spring Break on DVD, daily, exp april 15

tide (2-one for canada, one for us)$5000 cheque, or (3 daily) $25 gap card, or (weekly)10 coupons for a 26 load bottle of Tide with Bleach Alternative Liquid, daily, exp july 3

bass player one-of-a-kind Peavey Cirrus bass guitar,daily , exp april 30

spa addicts three night stay for TWO people at La Playa Beach and Golf resort in Florida. Includes Beach Front Accommodation, two Balinese Massages, two Euro Glo Facials, two Classic Manicures, two Classic Pedicures, two ritual baths, breakfast, and $500 towards round trip airfare courtesy of Spa-Addicts.com, daily, exp exp april 30, no quebec

spa addicts assortment of Jane Iredale Mineral Cosmetics including the new Spring Collection, daily, exp march 31, no quebec

atnzone (5) BORAT on DVD,daily, exp april 1

atnzone (5) Fast Food Nation on DVD,daily, exp april 1

atnzone (5)“THE SHIELD” Season Five DVD,daily, exp april 1

atnzone Set of four TMNT Character Hats – Michelangelo, Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael, Set of four TMNT Character Kids Tees – Michelangelo, Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael, Movie Poster Tee Shirt from GIANT: an Adult soft cotton tee featuring the official movie poster artwork, TMNT PC Video Game, Nightwatcher Stunt Rider and a TMNT Action Figure from Playmates, or (4) random grab bag of the following items: TMNT Manhole Men’s Black Tees, COWABUNGA! Women’s Black Tees, TMNT Pencils, TMNT Tattoos,daily, exp april 2

she knows (3) Sesame Street TV Episode Fun Packs (Vol. 1 & Vol. 2),daily, exp march 31

she knows Veggie Tales DVD, CD and portable DVD player,daily, exp march 30

febreze check for $3,000 or (5 per day) A bottle of Febreze Allergen Reducer , daily, exp april 29, no peurto rico

elite bloodstock Monte Carlo Vacation Sweepstakes, includes: round-trip business class air transportation for two to Monte Carlo, Monaco; Hotel accommodations for two for six nights at Hotel Hermitage; $3000.00 US in spending money and
Airport/hotel transfers via helicopter, daily, exp august 5
mmorpg (3) zboard keyboard and four keysets, one per 5 logins, exp april 7

happily handmade (50) gift baskets, enter thr the sponsors sites, unlimited, exp march 31

girl.com (10)50mL De-chlorinate My Hair shampoo and 50mL My Vitaliser leave in conditioning treatment , daily, exp?

backyard living Massey Ferguson GC2300 Sub-Compact Tractor, or (one per category) $300.00 , nothing on entry frequency, exp september 7

health first 36 month lease of a 2007 Toyota Prius (model #AAKB2OUP) 5 door hatchback including automatic transmission and all base model standard features, may take $15000 instead ,weekly, exp april 21

aol Apple® iPod - 60 GB and Bose SoundDock™ Digital Music System for Apple iPod,or (4) Sony PSP™ (PlayStation® Portable), or (5) Best Buy Gift Cards, weekly, sports picks,exp november 18, no quebec or peurto rico{link is now fixed, thanks for the emails!}

ONE TIME ENTRY

PLEASE USE THE BACK BUTTON FOR THESE- LINKS WILL NOT BE CHANGED!

glad (3) Whirlpool Gold® Kitchen Appliance Set including a Whirlpool Gold® 22.0 cu.ft. Side-by-Side Refrigerator, a Whirlpool Gold® Ceran Top Range and aWhirlpool Gold® Stainless Interior Dishwasher, exp may 15

UPC: Glad Forceflex garbage bags 012587780473 ,Glad Press n Seal 012587704417

http://www.gladtohelp.ca/promotions/chatelaine/contest/

nintendo Wii video game system and a copy of SSX Blur, or (3) a copy of SSX Blur for Nintendo Wii, exp april 2

http://www.nintendo.com/sweepstakes?id=4lKCutviAx8aYKQq7pFBLef1LHyvA3o8

benjamin moore $5,000 gift certificate for William Ashley China tableware. may be used for the purchase of William Ashley china, crystal or flatware based on the National Suggested Retail Price. Grand Prize orders must be placed at the toll-free number, 1-800-268-1122. does not include shipping and handling or applicable taxes, exp may 15

http://www.benjaminmoore.ca/colours/stylish_contest.aspx

maple leaf (3) Apple® iPod® nano (2GB) & iPod® nano armband with $175 Roots® gift certificate, exp march 30

https://global.mapleleaf.com/Contests/InTuneWithYou2007/dempsters/en/

big star trip for two to the Coachella Music and Arts Festival, April 27th, 28th & 29th, 2007 in Indio, California. The prize includes: two concert tickets, 10 gift CDs, 4 night's hotel accommodation for the winner and his/her guest in Palm Springs, California and $500 spending money for the winner ,exp april 10

http://www.bigstarcanada.com/2007/contest2.asp

tSN $100,000, or $5,000 to the contestant that finishes first overall, $2,500 to the contestant that finishes second overall, $1,000 to the contestant that finishes third overall, $500 to the contestant that finishes fourth overall and $250 to the contestant that finishes fifth overall, or (3)$250 to The entrant who accumulates the most points in each section of the tournament, sports picks , exp april 5

http://www.thescore.ca/fantasy/

lifefest 2007 Subaru Forester, exp april 30

http://www.lifefestcontest.com/phone.asp

fashion mag $1000 "Mexx" Gift Certificate or $500"Mexx" Gift Certificate , or $250 "Mexx" Gift Certificate, exp april 30, no quebec

http://contests.fashionmagazine.com/mexx_07/index.jsp

chatelaine (2) Kitchenaid Stand Mixers, or (6) "Chantelle" Lingerie Sets, or (10) "Talika" Prize Packs, or (10) "S.C. Johnson" Prize Packs, exp april 11(note the english version gave me a form expired message)

http://www.chatelaine.qc.ca/pourvous/

henrys Lowepro Stealth Reporter 300 AW Camera Bag,exp march 31

http://www.henrys.com/contest/

wish mag Juno Gift Bag, exp appril 2

http://contests.wish.ca/juno07/register.jsp

costco $1100 costco cash card exp april 1

http://www.costco.ca/en-ca/service/featurepage.aspx?productno=10299633&cm_re=1-_-smallfence2-_-ksdiapercontest

wrangler two night trip for two to attend the 42nd Annual Academy of Country Music Awards in Las Vegas, Nevada on 5/15/07. includes: roundtrip coach air travel ; two-nights standard hotel accommodations; two tickets to the 42nd Annual Academy of Country Music Awards show; two tickets to the 42nd Annual Academy of Country Music Awards' All-Star Jam and New Artists shows; ground transportation between Las Vegas airport and hotel; two pairs of Justin boots (non-exotic only); three pairs of Wrangler jeans; three Wrangler shirts;and country music cds, exp april 2, no quebec

http://www.wrangler.com/pages/promotions/promo_acm07/default.asp?srcid=wranglerhighlight

bhg trip prize package for two to Ireland, which includes two economy-class tickets on Aer Lingus to Dublin, Ireland, departing from one of the following major U.S. airports: Chicago O’Hare, Boston Logan, JFK, or LAX; lodging and meals for four nights/five days (dinner, bed and breakfast are included—lunches are excluded), three Ireland garden visits, and ground transportation transfers from/to airports and Ireland gardens, exp june 15, no quebec or peurto rico

http://www.bhg.com/bhg/file.jhtml?item=/contests/IrelandSweeps/IrelandSweeps_Land

columbia $500 travel voucher that may be used towards air or ground transportation expenses, an apparel/gear package, a voucher for $500 that may be applied towards the cost of three night's lodging, and a 2-day guided fishing or rafting excursion for two adults, or (5)an apparel/gear package with theme (beach, fishing, or river) selected by winner, exp may 15

http://adventures.columbia.com/

How to scam an ATM machine

2007-03-20T02:03:00.000-07:00

You need to see this video slideshow: http://www.scribd.com/doc/13483/penjahatATM. It shows how scammers use a strip of plastic and a good old fashioned con job to scam an ATM user out of their card, their PIN and their cash. It's really easy. Dangerously easy. You need to contact your bank to get them to change their ATMs to be immune to this attack.

Get Credit Card Companies to Stop Calling You

2007-03-19T22:32:00.000-07:00

I have a few credit cards. The cards are in good standing, so apart from a monthly statement, I shouldn't have any contact with them. I'm getting calls from these credit cards companies making special offers. "Do I want expanded coverage?" "Do I need insurance?" "Have I tried their stupid new card?" How can I get it to end? Change of address.

Along with your monthly statement is a "change of address" form. If you want the offers to stop, submit the change of address and change only your phone number. Once they take in your change of address, they don't keep old information-- or more to the point, they keep it but they don't do anything with the old information unless you skip out on your bill and have to get a skip tracer to track you down. Once the change of address is in place, these spam calls will go to the dead phone number.

Make sure you record this new number. Should you have to contact the credit card company, they will ask for this phone number as part of your personal information.

Bad Cop, No Donut

2007-03-17T22:48:00.000-07:00

Are you tired of bad cop stories? Share your stories with Bad Cop News. Bad Cop News is sharing news of lousy cops from all around the world. This is a great way to expose the Chief Wiggums of the world.

How to record Customer Service call

2007-03-16T07:29:00.000-07:00

This from The Consumerist:

It's good to get into the habit of recording customer service calls. It gives you proof if they mess up and maybe you'll get a really bad one that you'll want to submit to The Consumerist. Here's some tools to help you.
• From landline to headphone input on recording device: 302-902 TRKIT
• VoIP: Skype plus HotRecorder or plus PowerGramo.
• Outbound only: 3-2-1-Call-Log
• Inbound: Sign up for Grand Central and press 4 when receiving a call

Wanna Enter A Contest?

2007-03-04T19:42:00.000-08:00

Bloggers have the inside track on contests and prizes. Do you want in on the same contests? Easy: use Google. By searching for recent posts that involve contests you can see what's out there.

How to Get Direct Buy to Stop Calling

2007-03-04T16:15:00.000-08:00

Direct Buy used to call us all the time. I told them to remove us off of their list. I told them I would never buy their crap. I told them I was going through bankruptcy. Several times I told them I was dead. Nothing stopped them.
When they called last time I spoke with them and went something like this:
"Hi this is Joe from DirectBuy."
"Hi Joe."
"We'd like to offer you some terrific {blah-blah-blah}"
"Joe? What's your last name?"
"My, uh? It's [Jonesly]."
Let him go on for a while, then kill the call. Just hang up. Then go to the phone book and look up your Direct Buy representative. If you're lucky, you'll get a hit. Phone them right away. If they're pitching to you about the wonders at Direct Buy, they won't be at home, so you'll get their voice mail. Leave a pithy message like this:

"Hi, Direct Buy sales associate [Joe Jonesly]. Thank you for calling us uninvited. We have an important offer. You're not home, so we'll call later. We'll be happy to call again and again until we can tell you about our special offer. Thank you, [Joe Jonesly] of [123 Example Street]."

This will give Direct Buy some important information: you know where their associates live and you can contact them as often as you wish to discuss things with them on your terms. Soon after I made this call, Direct Buy stopped calling. By putting yourself on a 'weirdo' list you take yourself off of their prospective clients list. They didn't listen when I said stop. They didn't listen when I said I could buy their stuff. They didn't listen after I told them the person they were calling was dead.

If the phone number look-up trick won't work and you really want them to stop calling, go into their offices. The salespeople will have their business cards readily available. Find the salespeople with the odd names (eg. the further from Smith or Lee the better). Then, write a polite letter asking that Direct Buy ceases calling them, find the home address of the salespeople and mail that to the home address of the salesperson.

Make you own Cola

2007-02-18T11:57:00.000-08:00

this from Wiki

Soft Drink Formula
Version 1.1.3
Disclaimer:
Making soft drinks is not for the faint of heart, nor the dirty of finger. It is a solemn enterprise not to be entered into lightly, as with marriage or buying used farm machinery.
With any food-prep, failure to observe basic hygienic principles, follow directions, and exercise common sense can have grave consequences. OpenCola assumes no liability for any problems that arise out of the use of this document. Proceed at your own risk. No one's putting a gun to your head, so don't bother if you can't boil water.
Improper use of cola might result in blunt trauma, puncture wounds, physical illness, mental illness, caffeine dependency, dental necrosis, acid reflux, death, devastation, and random tax audits. Or it might not.
A list of warnings has been provided below. We did not include them for our health – we included them for yours.
Read them. Know them. Follow them. Tattoo them to your backside.
Just in case you have any doubt: following the directions below may be hazardous to your health and property.
You assume any and all risk arising from the manufacture and consumption of cola.
An important note: this is not the recipe for “OpenCola” – that is, the canned beverage from OpenCola that you may have received at a trade show, or other venue or outlet. Making canned cola requires millions of dollars in abstruse gear and manufacturing gizmos. It's easier to make nerve gas than manufacture cola. This is a kitchensink recipe that you can make all on your own. It is our kitchen-sink recipe. We figured it out somewhere between coding the COLA SDK and debugging the Linux build of the clerver.
Anyway, we've tried to be nice about the disclaimer. If it's not good enough for you, here's what our lawyers have to say about the whole shootin' match.
By copying and/or distributing the Program, you hereby agree to the following:
Indemnity: You shall indemnify, defend, and hold harmless OpenCola, its affiliates, directors, officers, and employees from and against any third-party claim, demand, cause of action, debt, liability, cost or expense(including, but not limited to, reasonable attorneys' fees) arising out of your use of the Recipe, or any derivative thereof, including, but not limited to, any claims arising from your distribution of soft drink based on the Recipe or any derivatives thereof.
International: OpenCola makes no representation that the Recipe, or any soft drink based on the Recipe or any derivatives thereof, may be appropriate for use in locations outside of the United States or Canada, and accessing
them from any location where their use is illegal is prohibited. If you choose to access this Recipe from any location outside of the United States or Canada, you do so at your own risk, and are responsible for compliance with all local laws.
License:
OpenCola soda is distributed under the terms of the General Public License (GPL), a copy of which is appended to the bottom of this document. Please check out Richard Stallman's Free Software Foundation. He wrote the GPL and has plenty of interesting documentation on the site.
Version History:
1.1.3
2/20/01
Added sterner caffeine warnings, link to Material Safety Data Sheet – thanks to Tom Swulius. Added contributors
section.
1.1.2
1/31/01
Fixed Amanda's email address
1.1.1
01/30/01
Even more disclaimer, this time to differentiate this recipe from the stuff in the cans.
1.1
01/29/01
Fixed typos. Made disclaimer scarier. Removed snotty references to Americans.
1.0
01/27/01
Original text
Introduction:
Contained hereunder is a HOW-TO for brewing up kitchen-sink OpenCola. Amazingly enough, every soft-drink
vendor we spoke to acted like the preparation of cola was some kind of deep, dark trade-seekrut™ . With much
reverse-engineering and creative shopping, the research kitchens at OpenCola have coopered together the
following makefile for brewing up The Black Waters of Corporate Imperialism™ in the privacy of your own home.
The basis for the whole thing is the 7X, Top-Seekrut™ formula. Our sources tell us that 7X is the internal Coca-
Cola codename for their syrup. You'll note that the 7X formula contains eight ingredients: still more evidence of the
deviousness of the Soda Gnomes.
As it turns out, mixing up a batch of cola's pretty easy. Finding the ingredients is damned hard. Most of this file is
about finding and handling ingredients so as to produce a tasty bevvy without blowing up your kitchen, melting
your flesh off your bones, or poisoning yourself. As with all undertakings of great moment, read and understand the
instructions before attempting to commit cola on your own. Pay special attention to the "Warnings" section.
This recipe is licensed under the GNU General Public license. It is "Open Source" Cola, or, if you prefer, "Free"
Cola. That means you're free to use this recipe to make your own cola, or to make derivative colas. If you distribute
derivative colas, you're expected to send email to the recipe's author, Amanda Foubister (amanda@opencola.com)
with your updates. In the future, we expect to have a CVS server up to handle additions, bug-reports, etc.
The Formula
7X (Top Seekrut™ ) flavoring formula:

3.50 ml orange oil
1.00 ml lemon oil
1.00 ml nutmeg oil
1.25 ml cassia oil
0.25 ml coriander oil
0.25 ml neroli oil
2.75 ml lime oil
0.25 ml lavender oil
10.0 g gum arabic
3.00 ml water

OpenCola syrup:

2.00 tsp. 7X formula
3.50 tsp. 75% phosphoric acid or citric acid
2.28 l water
2.36 kg plain granulated white table sugar
0.50 tsp. caffeine (optional)
30.0 ml caramel color

Preparation
7X Flavoring:
Mix oils together in a cup. Add gum arabic, mix with a spoon. Add water and mix well. I used my trusty Braun mixer for this step, mixing for 4-5 minutes. You can also transfer to a blender for this step. Can be kept in a sealed glass jar in the fridge or at room temperature.
Please note that this mixture will separate. The Gum Arabic is essential to this part of the recipe, as you are mixing oil and water.
Syrup:
In a one gallon container (I used the Rubbermaid Servin' Saver Dry Food Keeper, 1.3 US Gal/4.92 l), take 5 mls of the 7X formula, add the 75% phosphoric or citric acid. Add the water, then the sugar. While mixing, add the caffeine, if desired. Make sure the caffeine is completely dissolved. Then add the caramel color. Mix thoroughly.
Cola:
To finish drink, take one part syrup and add 5 parts carbonated water.
Scavenging and Handling Ingredients
7X flavor:
Measurement: I used a dropper purchased at a Shoppers Drug Mart (normally used to measure infant portions of medicine, I believe).
Oils: Oils can cause skin irritation. Wear latex food-prep or surgical gloves. If oils come in contact with skin, wash with soap and water.
I purchased all oils from health food stores and the herbalist store, Thuna's (see notes on gum arabic). Everything could have come from the herbalist's. Try for 100 percent pure, undiluted oils. I used oils from the following companies:
? CK Solutions, Ft. Wayne, IN 46825
? Aura Cacia Oils, Weaverville, CA 96093
? Aromaforce Essential Oils
? Frontier Natural Flavors, www.frontiercoop.com
? Karooch, Peterborough, ONT K9J 7Y8
When I purchased the oils, I specifically asked whether they were food grade or not. All persons said that they were, one person said she used them internally all the time.
Neroli is a very expensive item, be prepared (US$48.52 for 5.00 ml).
All others were a more reasonable price (US$2-9.30).
Gum Arabic: It is very important that you get only food-grade Gum Arabic. There is also an art-grade, which is readily available at art supply stores – never use art-grade Gum Arabic! Art-grade Gum Arabic is toxic. It will make you ill. You'll be sad. We'll be sad.
I found food-grade Gum Arabic at an herbalist store in Toronto called Thuna's (416) 461-8191. I purchased 112g
for US$12.46, which will make more than 11 batches of flavoring formula.
Syrup:
Water: good old tap water will do, if you trust your tap. I used spring water.
75% Phosphoric Acid: Due to its acidity, this product is corrosive to the eyes and skin. Handle with gloved hands,
and use extreme caution. If comes in contact with the eyes or skin, immediately flush with plenty of water for at least 15 minutes. Get medical attention. Rinse any spills on clothing or other surfaces thoroughly. Store in a secure area. Do not store more than 50.0 ml.
Try finding phosphoric acid at a compounding pharmacy in your area. There are pharmacies that still mix their own individual compounds and still stock phosphoric acid.
Citric acid: Very easy to find. I found mine at a Shoppers Drug Mart (Rougier Pharma Inc, Quebec, Canada J7J
1P3). Says right on the label, "For the preparation of acidulous drinks and effervescing draughts, and preservation of jams and jellies." According to the Coke history book, citric acid was used first in the formula, but they now use the phosphoric.
Sugar: Basic granulated white table sugar found everywhere. Buy from a bulk store to save some money.
Caffeine: It's best not to store caffeine in any amount. Caffeine can kill people in relatively small doses. The median lethal dose for an adult human is around 10 grams, or approximately one third of an ounce. You can find out more by reading the Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) for caffeine at http://www.jtbaker.com/msds/c0165.htm. Don't yeild to the temptation to create a "Super-Jolt™ ," adding tons and tons of the white stuff to your cola, our you'll be in a world of hurt. If stored, store in a secure area away from
children. Toxic by inhalation and ingestion: If inhaled, remove to fresh air, If ingested, call a physician. Possible teratogen and mutagen. If product comes in contact with the eyes, flush with plenty of water. There is some great information on caffeine and it's over-consumption at http://www.thecaffeinepage.com.
Caffeine is completely optional. I used part of a caffeine pill (MVP, www.mvpnutrition.com), ground up in a pestle with a mortar. According to information on the pill bottle and on the Web site, the pills are 100% caffeine. As an extra safety precaution, I strained all of the syrup through a 4-ply of cheesecloth, in case any of the caffeine wasn't dissolved.
Caramel color: I found mine at a bakery supply store (World of Cake Decorating, 1766 Weston Road, Toronto,
Ontario, Canada 416-247-4935). I was originally told to use double strength caramel color, but couldn't find it
anywhere (retail or wholesale). It really only adds color, so it makes it a bit paler than we are used to coming out of a can or bottle. No other difference that we could discern during our taste-testing.
Cola:
Soda Water: I purchased a soda charger and CO2 cartridges at Nikolaou's (629 Queen Street West, Toronto,
Ontario, Canada 416-504-6411) to deliver the soda charge needed to make the cola fizzy. At testing, no one was
impressed. What worked best was adding canned sodium-free (very important!) soda water to the syrup.
If you would like to make soda water yourself as well, here is a recipe from a great Web site on beverages (http://www.upl.cs.wisc.edu/~craft/bar/section7.html):
Soda: Carbonated Water

5 U.S. gallons of water
1.5 cups sugar (or sugar syrup)
1 teaspoon dry bread yeast (rehydrated)

I fill each bottle 2/3 full, screw on the top, and leave for one or two weeks. Each weekend I measure and add the syrup to a few bottles, top them off with water and stick them in the fridge.
This is a very quick operation. I had experimented with adding dry sugar, but this caused an excessive amount of foaming.
Warnings:
These are all associated with each of their ingredients, but they're repeated here just to make sure. We're not making this stuff up. Cola is a harsh mistress, and she is quick to anger. Heed the warnings below or proceed into certain peril.
Oils: Can cause skin irritation. If oils come in contact with skin, wash with soap and water.
Gum Arabic: It is very important that you get only food-grade Gum Arabic. There is also an art-grade, which is
readily available at art supply stores – never use art-grade Gum Arabic! Art grade Gum Arabic is toxic. It will
make you ill. You'll be sad. We'll be sad.
75% Phosphoric Acid: Due to its acidity, this product is corrosive to the eyes and skin. Handle with gloved hands,
and use extreme caution. If comes in contact with the eyes or skin, immediately flush with plenty of water for at
least 15 minutes. Get medical attention. Rinse any spills on clothing or other surfaces thoroughly. Store in a secure
area. Do not store more than 50.0 ml.
Caffeine: It's best not to store caffeine in any amount. Caffeine can kill people in relatively small doses. The median lethal dose for an adult human is around 10 grams, or approximately one third of an ounce. You can find out more by reading the Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) for caffeine at http://www.jtbaker.com/msds/c0165.htm. Don't yield to the temptation to create a “Super-Jolt™ ” adding tons and
tons of the white stuff to you cola, our you'll be in a world of hurt. If stored, store in a secure area away from children. Toxic by inhalation and ingestion: If inhaled, remove to fresh air. If ingested, call a physician. Possible teratogen and mutagen. If product comes in contact with the eyes, flush with plenty of water. There is some great information on caffeine and it's over-consumption at http://www.thecaffeinepage.com.
Thanks, Acknowledgements and Afterward:
The 7X that I experimented with comes from the great Coke history book, For God, Country, & Coca-Cola, by Mark Pendergrast, Basic Books, 1993, 2000, ISBN 0-465-05468-4. I know, I know. I list 8 oils, not 7. It notes in the book
that many believe lavender to be part of the 7X formula, so I tried it. We liked it in testing.
Special thanks to Pharmacist David at the IDA (Queen West near Jameson, Toronto) for advice on phosphoric
acid and chemistry.
Thanks to Barb Holland and Rose Murray from Foodland Ontario for advice on various ingredients and general
soda making.
Contributors:
The following people have contributed refinements to the formula. Thanks to:
Cory Doctorow (cory@opencola.com)
Tom Swulius (swulius@ih2000.net)
GNU GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE
Version 2, June 1991
Copyright (C) 1989, 1991 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
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Everyone is permitted to copy and distribute verbatim copies of this license document, but changing it is not allowed.

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11. BECAUSE THE PROGRAM IS LICENSED FREE OF CHARGE, THERE IS NO WARRANTY FOR THE PROGRAM, TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW. EXCEPT WHEN OTHERWISE STATED IN WRITING THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS AND/OR OTHER PARTIES PROVIDE THE PROGRAM "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. THE ENTIRE RISK AS TO THE QUALITY AND PERFORMANCE OF THE PROGRAM IS WITH YOU. SHOULD THE PROGRAM PROVE DEFECTIVE,
YOU ASSUME THE COST OF ALL NECESSARY SERVICING, REPAIR OR CORRECTION.
12. IN NO EVENT UNLESS REQUIRED BY APPLICABLE LAW OR AGREED TO IN WRITING WILL ANY COPYRIGHT HOLDER, OR ANY OTHER PARTY WHO MAY MODIFY AND/OR REDISTRIBUTE THE PROGRAM AS PERMITTED ABOVE, BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR DAMAGES, INCLUDING ANY GENERAL, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF THE USE OR INABILITY TO USE THE PROGRAM (INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO LOSS OF DATA OR DATA BEING RENDERED INACCURATE OR LOSSES SUSTAINED BY YOU OR THIRD PARTIES OR A FAILURE OF THE PROGRAM TO OPERATE WITH ANY OTHER PROGRAMS), EVEN IF SUCH HOLDER OR OTHER PARTY HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.

Want your videos up fast? Use Quicktime

2007-02-17T14:50:00.000-08:00

For just over a year, I've been adding videos to YouTube. My goal was to once-- just once-- get my stuff onto the "Most Recent Videos" page. It seems do-able. I add it, it gets processed and it goes up as one of the most recent pages. Easy huh? Nope. I was cheap and I had a glitch on my computer that barred me from using Adobe Premiere, so all of my videos were created as Windows Media Videos (WMV) via MS MovieMaker. I have come to sad realization that MS Moviemaker is the Paintbrush of the video world. When I uploaded my videos, I tried some experiments and all of my videos took 40-50 minutes to appear available. The "Most Recent" list is stuff made from the first 20 minutes or less, so my stuff never made it.
Eventually, I cleared my glitch with Windows XP that was jamming up Premiere. It was an audio problem-- a dud driver. So, I sprung for a copy of Premiere Elements. It allows you to export movies in one of many formats-- including MWV and MOV formats. I had a short green-screen experiment I wanted to post, so I decided to output it as MOV and WMV. Then prep both and post them both at the same time in different windows.
This is an eight second long video. The MOV file was larger than the WMV file-- 853kb vs. 420kb-- so, bandwidth-wise, the odds of the WMV file getting up first seemed likely.
I hit Submit and Submit. A few seconds later, both were up.
- The MOV file got a screenshot preview window 30 seconds
- The WMV file gave me a screenshot preview in 35 minutes
- The MOV file was generally available within four minutes
- The WMV file took over 55 minutes import and make available on the Youtube site.

So, the lesson: if you want to upload it to Youtube, upload it in Quicktime format.

Quicktime MOV file - 853kb

Windows Media MWV file - 420kb

UPDATE: I am not sure if YouTube wants you to know this. When I uploaded these comparative tests, they continued to appear "Live" but they are not viewable. Go figure.

The Complete Ownage of a Woman

2007-02-15T15:07:00.000-08:00

This is a great story from, JE 07, but the Army of Digg attacked and wrecked his site. Please go there for the story and if you cannot, then continue reading.

I’ll try to sum up a funny story that happened a few years ago: I got a vasectomy. I met a girl soon afterwards. She was nice and attractive but with a selfish streak that raised a big red flag. She was 32 at the time and I could practically HEAR her biological clock ticking. Regardless, she was a good lay, easy on the eyes, and reasonably good company.
I did NOT tell her about my vasectomy and I always used a condom with her to protect against STDs. She assumed, obviously, that the condom was only used for birth control. Silly girl.

We date for a few months. I never made any move towards commitment but she brought it up ocassionally. For me, this was a casual but pleasant relationship. For her - as I was to find out - it was part of life-changing series of events that she was planning very carefully.

Four months into dating, I get the “I’m pregnant” talk. She’s going on and on about how the condom must have broke and now we really need to think about getting married “for the baby”. She’s positively giddy. She has a baby in her and she thinks she’s gonna have a good meal ticket (me) to go along with her new 7lb annuity.

At this point, I’m just as giddy. I get to pull the reverse “oops” on her. I figured that she slept with some bad boy and got knocked up. Good thing I was using condoms! Better still that I have a serious mistrust of women who can’t think beyond their own uteri.

So I wait a couple of days to “think about all this.” I meet her again. I say I don’t want kids and that she should have an abortion. I know where this is going and sure enough it goes there. She goes completely batsh*t insane on me. There were the usual insults about my manhood. There were threats of legal action. It was all very ugly and I was loving every minute of it.

Well, I let her stew for a few days. She leaves me nasty messages on my phone. She sends awful emails. I’m laughing hysterically.

It was time to drop the hammer. While she was stewing I was busy. First I get a notarized copy from the urologist who performed the vasectomy. Next I get a notarized copy of the TWO test results indicating a “negative test result for sperm” to show I’m sterile and shooting blanks. Finally, I get a letter from a shark attorney stating he has seen the other documents and is prepared to litigate against this woman if she continues to communicate with me in such an unpleasant manner. Also, the letter states that we will insist on DNA testing to show that the baby is not mine. I’m ready.

I meet with this woman at her place. I bring flowers and a small bit of jewelry to show I am willing to reconcile and assume my responsibilities as a new father. I also have stuck in my pocket the documents I have prepared.

She’s all giddy again. Her plan is going perfectly - or so she thinks. We talk about our future. We have some pretty good sex. Then, as I am about to walk out the door, I ask her the $64,000 question. “Are you sure that this baby is mine?”

Well, she goes batsh*t insane again. Hell, she ought to. Her plan could completely unravel if there is ANY question about my paternity. Oh, she’s really screaming now. How dare I question her morals. Do I think she’s a slut. I’m just trying to weasel out of my responsibilities… blah, blah, blah, yadda, yadda, yadda.

I’m not really mad. I’m kind of embarrassed for her. But since she won’t shut up and the neighbors can hear all of this, I ask her to step back inside and sit down. She sits on the sofa and calms down a bit. She is glaring at me with all the moral self-righteousness that only a woman can muster up. She thinks she has me trapped. She is 100% convinced her plan has worked. Oh, the tangled web of lies and deceit she has wrought around herself and I am about to hack through them with a few pieces of paper.

I reach into my pocket slowly. I extract the three pieces of paper and unfold them slowly and deliberately.

I tell her simply, “You’re screwed”.

Her look doesn’t change. There is no way she can fathom what I have prepared.

I continue. “I am sterile”

Her look changes just a bit. Something is beginning to sink in. Naturally, she reverts to women’s logic. “You’re full of sh*t. You’re trapped and you know it.”

I hold up the letter and the test results. “Three months before we met, I had a vasectomy. Here is a notarized letter from him stating what I had done. Here are two test results showing that I tested negative for the presence of sperm. Blanks. I am shooting blanks. That baby inside you is simply not mine.”

This woman is not to be swayed by logic and clear documentation. “Bullsh*t, those are fakes.”

I was ready for that. “No, they are real. This last piece of paper is from my attorney. It’s a simple letter to you that states if you pursue any kind of legal action against me for child support that I will insist on a DNA test to prove paternity, that is, to prove that your baby is not mine.”

I give the woman all the documents. She reads them slowly, deliberately. With each passing second she can feel in her soul that she has made a very bad mistake. With denial swept away, she started to cry. It’s a small cry at first. Then it becomes deeper and more painful. By the time she gets to the letter from the lawyer she is sobbing.

I had no sympathy for her. I turned and walked out the door. Even after I closed the door I could still hear her sobbing.

Epilogue -

I never heard directly from this woman again. I did hear through my friends that she did indeed have the baby. I also heard that the real father was some guy in a band she had met. I assumed that after 30, women stopped going after musicians, bikers, criminals, and thugs. Silly me for thinking the best of American women.

The Moral of the Story -

Get a vasectomy but keep it a secret.

Funny story. My Dad had the same thing happen to him 25 years ago. The irony: he screwed around on my Mom then his second wife screwed around on him.

How to Get Pestered By Realtors

2007-02-15T07:45:00.000-08:00

North America is locked is skyrocketing real estate market. Realtors are driving up the prices like crazy. How do you know how much your house is worth? Go to http://www.housevalues.ca/. But wait! Will this site give you the price of houses like yours that have sold? No. You put in your details and the website promises to let you know how much your house is worth. That never happens. Instead, a sessile realtor like Suzy Hahn starts to bombard you with emails and try to get your house on the market.
HouseValues.ca gives your personal information to realtors who contact you so that they can sell your home. You never get a relative idea of recent sales in comparison to your site.

Cheaper Mocha....

2006-11-29T09:50:00.000-08:00

If you buy Cafe Mochas from Tim Hortons but don't like the added calories from the whipped cream, here's a tip: don't order a "mocha, hold the whip." Instead, order a "coffee with hot chocolate" -- you'll be charged less.

Buy One : Get One Free For Empire Theatres

2006-09-05T12:12:00.000-07:00

Did you want a two for one coupon for Empire Theatres? All you have to do is download this PDF and print off of a copy. These are useable until October 15th and I think there is no limitation to how many of these you may use.

Enjoy. Fall looks to be a decent season for movies.

Circuit City : Charging For A Freebie

2006-09-04T13:35:00.000-07:00

This isn't a shortcut, but an industry "shortcut" you will want to avoid.

Circuit City scams Xbox 360 customers by charging for free service; this from from Joystiq:

Circuit City is stealing money from those who are dumb enough to give it away. A quick-witted Kotakuite (that's what they call themselves ... ) spotted a poster at a Newport Beach, CA Circuit City. They offer to install backwards compatibility into an Xbox 360 for the low, low price of $28.99.

Backwards compatibility is available through Xbox Live or via a disc you can request from Microsoft. Circuit City brags that "every* game will be backwards compatible." Beware the asterisk (*). The fine print notes that one should "refer to the original Xbox games list to ensure compatibility on the Xbox 360."Riiight.

When To Buy A Car Part I

2006-08-17T07:37:00.000-07:00

Here are some quick tips that will shave down the price.

Comparison Shopping
First caveat: Find a car you want at a decent lot. Check out the lots and find the vehicle that fits your bill. Get an idea of its condition, its price, its make and its model.
See if you can find the same make and model for less.

Research local: Go to the other car lots. Who cares if they wheels are about to fall off of this 1999 Cherokee, if it's less than your ideal one at another lot, who cares.
Research online: Go to online sites like Craigslist and eBay.

Then, go back to the dealership for that ideal vehicle, armed with the price and location of the cheaper car. When you are bargaining, this is your lowest price. Test drive your preferred vehicle. Allow yourself to fall just a little in love with it. Then start to haggle. Let the dealer sell you on the vehicle. Then, pause and consider; say to the salesman: "I like this one, but Weezel Motors has the same year and model for $2000 less. If you can match their price, it's a deal." What can they do? If they say no, you can go to the competitor and haggle for an even lower price there.
Remember the cornerstone of this: you want to find a cheaper car elsewhere that is something you would not take. If its cheaper and better on another lot: go there instead.

Shop On Quota Day
Most dealerships have monthly quotas and cut-offs. Sell X cars by the 31st of the month and you'll meet your quota. On the afternoon of that cut-off day, the salesman has either sold his quota and he can be cavalier; or he needs more sales so he needs your sale bad.
Usually, the end of the month is the cut-off. If you can get some inside knowledge from a mechanic or one of the clerical people that will help. This is something a salesman will ever tell you, they always want your business today.

Really win an iPod?

2006-08-01T21:45:00.000-07:00

When iPods starting coming out everyone and their mother had a way for you to win one of these white Mp3 belching devices. Every site had a banner and a link at the top. Did anyone ever see one of these show up in the mail? I don't think so.
Gulfstream Internet Group (www.GulfstreamInternet.com) is looking to spread the word about it's site, iPod-Sweepstakes.com. There are lots of offers out there to get a free iPod, but most of them have a lot of fine print and many hoops to jump through. iPod Sweepstakes.com gives away a free iPod every single day. There's nothing to buy and no credit card needed. You don't even have to refer your friends. In addition, members can choose to earn a free iPod by completing advertisers' offers, like taking a survey, requesting free information or printing a coupon. It's very straightforward and easy to do. To date, they claim to have given away more than 1,000 free iPods so far.
If you check out iPod_Sweepstakes.com and manage to win one of their purported iPods please do me a favor: don't put any Nelly Furtado on your iPod. You can put on Christina Aguilera, Gnarles Barlcay even Danger Mouse but please no Nelly.

How To Pay Less Than Prime On Your Credit Cards

2006-08-01T07:36:00.000-07:00

A week ago, MBNA sent my wife a "pre-approved" credit card with an introductory 3.9% interest rate for balance transfers. Cool. With the banks' best rates hovering around 6.5%, even six months at this low interest rate is a deal. She filled out the application, it got lost in the shuffle. Then another offer showed up from MBNA. I said, "If it's any more thatn 1.9% tell them to screw themselves!" She opened it and... 1.9% for six months!
MBNA makes the requirement that the balance transfer cannot transfer your balance from an other MBNA card. Most of the credit cards require this of balance transfer. That's not a big deal: between Dejardins, Scotiabank, Capital One, HSBC and MBNA, there is no reason for two cards to collide.
So how do you get below prime?

Start with a debt. The best idea is to not be in debt in the first place. Getting out of debt on the cheap is the next best thing. Do a good job maintaining your debt. This means that these low interest offers will flood in.
Sign up for a low interest card and move your balance over to this interest holiday (usually 6 months).
Cancel the card that had the high debt.
Pay down the debt as quickly as possible-- ideally pay 12+% of the balance per month.
Four months into it, apply for the same deal from a different credit card company.
When your second card arrives, transfer your balance over to this new card. Your interest holiday will kick in on the new card for five or six months allowing you to clear up your balance at less than prime.
Cancel your previous low interest card.

Do NOT use this as a way to juggle and lower your debts. That's what the banks are hoping you will do.

Mmmm.... Free Steak....

2006-06-13T19:02:00.000-07:00

The Bud Light / M&M Steak "In-case" promotion. You don't need to purchase a case of Bud. Instead, you can write a letter to M&M for a steaky coupon.

Offer:
At participating BC retail locations, a coupon can be found in specially marked cases of 15 can packs of Bud Light, to be redeemed at any participating M&M Meat Shops location for two free 6 oz Pepper or Barbecue Sirloin steaks. Coupon must be presented at time of visit and there is a limit of 2 coupons redeemed per customer per visit. Coupon has no cash value and must be redeemed by August 6, 2006. Promotion closes July 30th, 2006. While supplies last. Must be of legal drinking age. No purchase necessary.

No Purchase Necessary:
To receive a Bud Light M&M Meat Shops Steak coupon without purchase please send a written request to Bud Light Steak In-case Promotion, P.O. 850, Moncton, NB, E1C 8N6. Limit of one request per household. All requests must include a one hundred word original essay on “Why I love to barbecue” along with the sender's name, return mailing address, the statement "I am of legal drinking age in my province of residence" and your signature. You must also enclose a self addressed stamped envelope with sufficient postage. Requests must be received before July 30th, 2006, the promotion closing date. While supplies last.

Must be of legal drinking age and a resident of BC.

Please allow 3 to 4 weeks for delivery.

Thank you for visiting www.budlight.ca.

Optimum Point Gathering.

2006-06-06T22:33:00.000-07:00

Shopper's Optimum card offers its users points in exchange for meaty demographic marketing info. Here's the thing: at the end of key aisles, Shopper's Drug Mart offers an array of Gift Cards from restaurants to phone service, to Shopper's Drug Mart cards. Can you see where I'm going here? So far, there is no restriction on earning points when buying a Shopper's Drug Mart Gift card. Buy a card, get points. Use a card to buy stuff, get more points. Bonus.

Thanks to Brian for pointing out this Jumping Moose.

How To Get Out Your Cellphone Contract Through Roaming

2006-06-04T08:35:00.000-07:00

This post is from http://roaminghack.blogspot.com/:

There is a little known secret about your cell phone contract that your wireless service provider doesn't want you to know.

You can cancel whenever you want without paying a termination fee.

Plenty of people have tried arguing with a customer service rep. Some have tried threatening legal action. Others just flat out refuse to pay and several months later find that they are being pursued by a collection agency.But there actually is a way to terminate your contract early AND avoid the early termination fee. All you have to do is get them to cancel you.

There is a very simple way to do this. Become unprofitable.
If you're paying them $50 a month but costing them a few hundred - They most definitely will cancel you.

So how is it done? A couple of years ago you might of noticed that everyone stopped paying roaming fees. One wireless giant started the "no more roaming charges" program, and the rest followed like the sheep that they are. But just because you are no longer paying the $0.69/min doesn't mean your provider gets off scott free.

Even though you stopped paying for roaming charges years ago, your wireless service provider has been eating the costs. This is done to keep complaints to a minimum, and of course, you as their customer.
So let's do the math.
At $0.69 a minute, a 2 hour long call in a roaming spot just cost your carrier almost $83.00
Even with some of the higher end plans, this would still be quite a hit. But would it be enough to cancel you?

To find out, we just need to take a look at the contract you signed.
Using Cingular as an example: it states: "Cingular reserves the right to terminate your service if less than 50% of your usage over three consecutive billing cycles is on Cingular-owned systems. Customer must (1) use a Cingular GSM dual-band handset programmed with Cingular Wireless' preferred roaming database; (2) have a mailing address and live in the immediate geographic area in which subscription is made."

Now, in plain English.
For 3 straight months, make sure that more than half of your calls (51% or more) are done in roaming.

If you've used 400 minutes this month, then you find a roaming spot and place a 401 minute call to MovieFone. Do this on your weekends of course so you don't use your minutes.

After the 1st month you'll know you were successful because you will receive a letter from your carrier suggesting that you switch to a different provider that can better accommodate your cellular needs.

Keep in mind that some roaming partners can take two months to send the records of your roaming calls to your wireless provider. It's possible that your provider won't even know that you were roaming until they receive the bill.

Just for my sake and possibly others I'll mention this: Don't make a 5,000 minute roaming call just because you're mad at your wireless provider. Only use this tool if all other resources have failed you and use it in moderation.

I'm hoping that this information will make termination fees pointless and one day get rid of them altogether.

Also, check with your own provider's contract terms. They may differ. This page is only referencing Cingular.

Oh yeh. This is for educational purposes only. Don't sue me Cingular.
I have been adjudicated mentally incapacitated in 49* different U.S. states so nothing I say can be taken seriously in a legal sense. That should be enough to protect me, right?

*If you're wondering which state doesn't acknowledge my handicap - It's Texas. That way they can still execute me if need be.

UPDATE: Wow, this is really taking off on Digg. Just posted this three hours ago and already on the front page.

Some people find it in bad taste to digg to their own blog, but they'll notice I don't have any other entries here to plug. Blogger was used for this bit of information alone due to how quickly it is to create a free page. If google page creator was available, it would of been used instead.

Some other people noticed that it takes quite a bit of time for this cancellation without fees trick to work (3 months). They were able to catch onto this because they have at least a 2nd grade reading level.

Some things they may not of taken into consideration because they only use digg to start flame wars.

Where in the world do people come up with this magic number of $150 for a termination fee. You think that just because that's what the sales rep. told you it would be two years ago when you got your phone, that it hasn't jumped up in price without your knowledge? Guess what. It has. Sprint, Cingular, Nextel and Verizon all charge $175-200 now, and they didn't ask you for permission when they changed it. And they still won't ask the next time it goes up.
Cellphone Carriers really do have to pay outrageous fees for roaming. $0.69 is the average rate they pay. Av-er-age. This means that some charge more. Like BlueGrass Cellular in Kentucky. They treat their towers like they're made of gold and charge heavily to anyone that crosses their path. Some Verizon customers might remember how up until a year ago they couldn't use their phones anywhere in Kentucky. It's not because Verizon forgot to put towers there. It's because they didn't want you to be on their network one minute, and on bluegrass the next. Verizon instead showed no service in Kentucky on their service maps and wouldn't sign up new customers there until they could strike a deal with bluegrass. In fact, if you look at Verizon's pre-paid maps, there is still no service shown in Kentucky.
Wireless providers being billed thousands a month because of one person actually does happen although it is very rare. For most wireless providers it doesn't exceed more than two dozen of their customers per market, but it does happen. Because of this rarity it is merely an afterthought to these giant carriers. But paying more for your customer's roaming fees than what they are paying you each month means you are loosing money on them. Hence, the little known secret to getting out of your plan.
Which brings me to one more thing. If your wireless provider cancels you, you do NOT pay a cancellation fee (unless you decided to stop paying your bill and that's why they cancelled you, of course). Unless you request your cancellation, you do not pay. Period. It's as simple as that. Feel free to call your wireless provider right now and ask them that. It's already beyond stupid to advertise a no roaming plan that has so many potential flaws in it for losing money. It's another thing to cancel your subscribers because they actually use it the way you advertise it. And it's just plain mean to charge them a fee after their forced cancellation.
It's not some unproven theory that may work. It does work. It shows it in your contract which there is a picture of just above. (If you're with Cingular)
Let's presume that you are the kind of person that can't live without a cell phone. You really hate your wireless provider and want to switch to another company but you know you'll have to pay your last bill plus $175 termination fee all at once.

You're in luck. You just read this blog entry and found a way out. It will take three months, but it's not like you won't be able to use your cell phone like you usually would anyway during that time. And you know that once your done, you'll be able to start fresh with a new company. And most importantly, get the good deals on a cell phone that they only give to new customers.
All you had to do was press a few buttons on your phone to change it over to "roaming only" and make enough calls for your wireless provider to get sick of you and kick you out of their little club.

Tags: cellphone contract roaming charges
Categories: Cellphones

A Second Use For Laundry Baskets

2006-05-31T20:56:00.000-07:00

Ever have to cart a load of grocery bags into the house and you don't want to have those plastic bags dig into your fingers?
Ever have your groceries boogie around the floor of your car on the trip between the store and home?
The solution: take an empty laundry basket with you and leave it in the car. You can likely load up six bags of groceries in a single basket. They won't migrate while you drive. When you carry the groceries into the house, you can use your hip as spare hand to steady the laundry basket.

Tags: groceries laundry labour saving
Categories: Household

How To Get A Refund For A Defective Game or DVD

2006-05-27T16:20:00.000-07:00

This idea comes from this website: Confessions of an IT Hit Man

In short here's the process:

Get a game or DVD. If it's defective return it.
They won't let you do a refund on an opened product. They will let you do an exchange for the same copy of what your purchased.
When you have your unopened copy and your receipt, then do the refund. It's not opened, so you should be able fight your way to a refund by citing their own rules.

Tags: retail sales customer service
Categories: Retail

Business Revenge: The Super Sale

2006-05-27T15:38:00.000-07:00

People love sales. People love those crazy 1-cent sales. What if you have a business that despise? What if you could punish by giving them business?
You could go to some crappy neighbourhood and pamphlet it with flyers: $1 haircuts; $5 blue jeans; first fifty people get free video rentals-- you name it. Remember: poor people are both budget conscious and scrappy. You tell that something is free and they'll be there. Tell them they can't have it and there will be hell to pay. When they show and find out there's no sale, they'll be pissed. And, they'll be pissed at the shop they're standing in.

Tags: business sales customer service
Categories: Business Revenge

You Deserve A T-Shirt Today

2006-05-27T14:18:00.000-07:00

Go to your favorite secondhand store and cruise for employee secondhand golf shirts. You've seen the poor schmucks who wear those. Eventually they quit and toss their shirts into a giveaway bin. Gather a bunch of shirts of one type, then organize a public demonstration of "affection" for your target business. Think about how people would feel if the fast food staff of a restaurant were chowing down on their product then started to roll around in agony. Not a ringing endorsement.

A troupe of people did something like this at Best Buy to great effect

Tags: jokes customer service
Categories: Practical Jokes Culture Jamming

Blame The New Guy

2006-05-27T11:04:00.000-07:00

Primo coupons are out there, but the better they are, the harder they are to cash in. Take for instance these great coupons we got for $3 off at the movie concession stand. They were valid Sunday to Thurday. What do you do on a Friday when you want to use these coupons? Look for the new guy.
The new guy is confused. He doesn't have any extra swag (like the little pins the theatres give their staff when they don't sneeze in the food). He's pushing a broom or trying to figure out where the 4'x4'x4' popcorn machine is. He's dumb. Newbie break into one of two subsets: the dim and hesitant. The hesitant are no good. They will ask someone who knows what's going on and you'll be busted. The dim will see $3 off and accept your coupon as cash.
It's about time we starting using idiots to our benefit.

Tags: coupons customer service
Categories: Theatres

Movie Popcorn

2006-05-26T18:20:00.000-07:00

Ever want butter on your popcorn? Theatres now charge extra for that. How do you get extra butter for same amount? Ask for it in the middle. The concession drones always put butter on the top. If you ask for it in the middle, they will put it in the middle and on the top.

Tags: movie popcorn
Categories: Theatres

Sony BMG class action settlement

2006-05-26T18:17:00.000-07:00

Did you buy a BMG/Sony CD then put it into your computer to play it? If so, Sony gave you a bonus. A bonus so profound they didn't even mention it. They installed a rootkit on your computer to counter copying. If they make you angry, join the class action settlement vs. BMG. The settlement isn't worth much, but it's worth more than nothing.

Sign up here:
https://secureweb.rustconsulting.com/sonybmgcdtechsettlement/Claim.aspx

If you bought one of these CDs:

Artist	Title	UPC
40 Below Summer	The Mourning After	79301828982
A Static Lullaby	Faso Latido	827969277225 or D161263
Acceptance	Phantoms	696998901629 or D161429
Alicia Keys	Unplugged	82876674242 or 82876731662 or D165215
Amerie	Touch	827969076323 or D161365
Amici Forever	Defined	82876688832 or D161495
Angie Stone	Stone Love	82876562152 or D153051
Anthoney Hamilton	Coming From Where I'm From	82876521072 or D150669
Art Blakey	Drum Suit	827969363720 or D162083
Babyface	Grown & Sexy	82876705682 or D162090
Backstreet Boys	Never Gone	82876696112 or D165187
Backstreet Boys	Never Gone (Target)	82876705342
Backstreet Boys	Never Gone (Walmart)	82876702442
The Bad Plus	Suspicious Activity?	827969474020
Bette Midler	Sings the Peggy Lee Songbook	827969510728 or 828767481524
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club	Howl	8287671601 or D162369
Bob Brookmeyer	Bob Brookmeyer & Friends	827969429228 or D162087
Britney Spears	Hitme - Remix	82876740622
Buddy Jewell	Times Like These	827969287323 or D161532
Burt Bacharach	At This Time	827969773420
Cassidy	I'm A Hustla	82876687072 or 82876680732
Celine Dion	On Ne Change Pas	827969773628
Charlie Wilson	Charlie, Last Name Wilson	82876694292 or D162168
Charlotte Martin	On Your Shore	82876606762
Chayanne	Cautivo	037629681921 or 37629681822 or 37629588626
The Chieftains	Live From Dublin	82876671372 or D160913
Chris Botti	To Love Again	827969482322
Chris Brown	Chris Brown	82876733222
Citizen Cope	Clarance Greenwood Recordings	82876521142 or D154185
Clay Aiken	Merry Christmas	82876626222 or D161935
Cook, Dixon & Young	Volume One	82876673342 or D162089
The Coral	The Invisible Invasion	827969474723
Cyndi Lauper	The Body Acoustic	827969456927
Dave Matthews Band	Stand Up	82876687962 or D165167
David Gray	Life In Slow Motion	82876710682 or D165217
The Dead 60's	The Dead 60's	827969445327
Deniece Williams	This Is Niecy	827969381427
Dextor Gordon	Manhattan Symphonie	827969358122 or D162084
Dido	Dido Live	82876658099
Dido	"White Flag" W/Enhanced Features (Maxi Single)	82876603552-0
Dion	The Essential Dion	827969267028 or D161439
Earl Scruggs	I Saw The Light With Some Help From My Friends	827969279328 or D162399
Elkland	Golden	827969203620 or D161431
Emma Roberts	Unfabulous And More: Emma Roberts	827969395028 or 827969768426
Faithless	Forever Faithless/ENH	82876710142 or D162102
Flatt & Scruggs	Foggy Mountain Jamboree	827969280126 or D162400
Foo Fighters	In Your Honor (Bb Version)	82876705282
Foo Fighters	In Your Honor	82876680382 or D265002
G3	Live In Tokyo	827969768525
George Jones	My Very Special Guests	827969256220 or D200250
Gerry Mulligan	Jeru	074646549827 or D162086
Horace Silver	Silver's Blue	827969385623 or D162082
Imogen Heap	Speak For Yourself	82876725322
Jane Monheit	The Season	827969772126
Jim Brickman	Grace	82876679792 or D161456
Jim Brickman	Grace (Provident Version)	82876687952
J-Kwon	Hood Hop (Edited)	82876583672
J-Kwon	Hood Hop (Ex)	82876576132 or D152470
Jon Randall	Walking Among The Living	827969208328
Judd & Maggie	Subjects	82876692492 or D161949
Kasabian	Kasabian	82876664282 or D161062
Keith Anderson	Three Chord Country	82876662942 or D161674
Kings Of Leon	Aha Shake Heartbreak	82876645442 or D160912
Leo Kottke/Mike Gordon	Sixty Six Steps	82876689092
Life Of Agony	Broken Valley	827969351529 or D161228
Maroon 5	Live	82876709742 or 82876699522 or D200606
Mary Mary	Mary Mary	000768353721 or 827969294826 or D162005
Montgomery Gentry	Something To Be Proud Of: The Best of 1999-2005	828767532424 or 827969498224
My Morning Jacket	Z	82876710672
Natasha Bedingfield	Unwritten	827969398821 or D162095
Neil Diamond	12 Songs	827969477625 or 827969781128
Nivea	Complicated	828766715620 or D161353
Nodesha	Get It While It's Hot (Maxi Single)	82876566902
Our Lady Peace	Healthy In Paranoid Times	827969477724
Patty Loveless	Dreamin' My Dreams	827969448120
Pete Seeger	The Essential Pete Seeger	827969283523 or D161441
Raheem Devaughn	The Love Experience	82876537232 or D161600
Ray Charles	Friendship	827969456422 or D161917
Rosanne Cash	Interiors	827969365526
Rosanne Cash	King's Record Shop	696998699427
Rosanne Cash	Seven Year Ache	696998699724
Sahara Hotnights	Kiss & Tell	82876626892 or D153473
Santana	All That I Am	82876597732 or D165199
Sarah McLachlan	"Fallen" W/Enhanced Features (Maxi Single)	82876601432
Sarah McLachlan	Afterglow Live	82876644942 or D260346
Sarah McLachlan	Afterglow Live	82876645432
Sarah McLachlan	Bloom (Remix Album)	82876697982 or D162345
Shel Silverstein	The Best Of Shel Silverstein	827969472224 or D162100
Shelly Fairchild	Ride	827969035528 or D161531
Silvertide	Show & Tell	82876644022
Silvertide	Show & Tell (Ex)	82876609892 or D154573
Soundtrack	Xxx: State Of The Union	82876679222 or D161437
Soundtrack	Xxx: State Of The Union	82876681092
Stellastarr*	Harmonies for the Haunted	82876688812 or D162194
Susie Suh	Susie Suh	827969244326 or D161094
Switchfoot	Nothing Is Sound	827969653425 or 827969643723 or 827969458129
Syleena Johnson	Chapter 3: The Flesh	82876610932 or D162447
Teena Marie	Robbery	827969381724
Tha' Rayne	Didn't You Know (Maxi Single)	82876566882
T-Pain	Rappa Ternt Sanga	82876734472 or 82876732002
Trey Anastasio	Shine	827969642825
Van Zant	Get Right With The Man	827969350027 or D161459
Various	So Amazing: An All Star Tribute To Luther Vandross	82876624722
Various	Songs Brown Hotel	82876714112
Various	Relaxation: A Windham Hill Collection	82876629422
Velvet Revolver	Contraband (Bb Version)	82876665102
Velvet Revolver	Contraband (Ed)	82876605242
Velvet Revolver	Contraband (Ex)	82876597942 or D153163
Vivian Green	Vivian	827969076125 or D161824
Wakefield	Which Side Are You On?	82876685072 or 82876681352 or D161648
YoungBloodZ	Everybody Know Me	82876733402 or 82876731752
Yung Wun	The Dirtest Thir(Ex)	82876607672 or D154246
Yung Wun	The Dirtiest Thirstiest	82876609492

Tags: BMG Sony CDs rootkit
Categories: Lawsuits CDs spyware

How to Make A Lawyer Very Expensive

2006-05-25T14:21:00.000-07:00

If your opponent hires a lawyer, bury the lawyer in paper. Product every last document possible in a slow trickle. This onslaught of relevant but insignificant paperwork will make your opponent's legal bill hefty. The lawyer may not be able to discern the wheat from the chaff and miss relevant information. The sensible lawyer may tell their client to defend themselves. But then, lawyers are not always sensible.

Tags: lawyers small claims money
Categories: Law

Business Revenge: The Super Sale

2006-05-24T14:30:00.000-07:00

Tags: business sales customer service
Categories: Business Revenge

How A Lawless Town Can Have Low Crime

2006-05-23T15:39:00.000-07:00

Springfield's Chief Wiggum once said: "We can't go around 'policing' the city." Most police have that mindset. I've heard police suggest that victims of theft do go looking for their stolen property in pawn shops as that would only make for trouble. They once told a break-in victim that they couldn't press charges because they didn't have proof that the accused committed a crime (they said this in their first conversation with the victim). When a semi truck driver ran a solid red light and nearly killed several cars full of people, the police said they couldn't do anything because they didn't see it happen. Why is this laziness so rampant? Crime rates. Police have to address reported crimes. Solved crimes are a percentage of reported crimes. If they get 10,000 reports and solve 100: they have a 1% success rate. If they get 200 reports and solve 100, they have a 50% success rate. Cases they can shun that could be hard to solve, they will stay away from. Sometimes they will give you lip service, listen to your case, and say something like "We'll get right on it." In other words, "Go away. It's a almost coffee time again."

Remedy:

Demand to fill out a complaint. Police don't destroy their own paperwork. If you haven't put your name on a complaint and signed it, it isn't a reported crime.
Go over their head. Complain to the government body that oversees your police (usually this is the police board). Tell your story to the media. If your crime involves (or may involve) other victims, get the name of the resistant officer and tell them that you will pass their name to all of the other victims. He won't want to go through this 5 or 10 or 20 times, so he may act on the complaint now.

Tags: police crime law
Categories: Law

How To Piss Off Fast Food Places

2006-05-22T15:42:00.000-07:00

All of these tips work better during the lunch rush.

Ask for sandwiches with half sauce. They will have to make it from scratch, guaranteeing it's fresh.
Ask for fries without salt. Because they have only one chip bin, they have to toss the fries, clean the bin and make a new order sans salt.
Get your lunch and if service is not ideal, complain to the manager. They will give you a credit for a free lunch if you mention their name and explain that it's a make up meal for bad service. There's no clear connection to the complaints and free meals, so there's no clear indication that you can do this only once per complaint.

Tags: fast food customer service
Categories: Fast Food Restaurants

Wheel & Deal Canadian Tire Money

2006-05-21T15:44:00.000-07:00

Wheel and Deal Canadian Tire money. $1 in Canadian Tire coupons is worth $1 of Canadian Tire merchandise and nothing in the real world. You can go into Canadian Tire with $1000 in these stupid coupons and walk out with the goods. Decide what side of the fence you want to be on: the Canadian Tire money seller or buyer. Then, go on eBay (http://search.ebay.ca/Canadian-Tire-money). It's a win-win situation regarding of who you are. Either you get a discount money for use at Canadian Tire. Or, you get cash in exchange for coupons.

Tags: retail sales customer service
Categories: Retail

Tales of the Jumping Moose is alive!

2006-05-20T21:48:00.000-07:00

What is this?
This is a site devoted to shortcuts through modern day life. I have a lot of tips.

Why is the Jumping Moose the mascot, the symbol of our site? Years back, a friend told me this great story that he had to relate to an insurance adjuster:

"He was driving down the road one day. A moose jumped in front of the path of his truck and totaled it."
"The moose jumped?" the insurance adjuster asked.
"Yes"
"They you're totally covered. Had the moose walked onto the road, you would be at fault. When the moose jumped it became a flying object and drivers are not responsible for impacts of flying objects that strike their vehicles."

Because that moose was airborne a second before the accident and a second after, the driver got a mulligan. Our world is full arbitrary, stupid technicalities. People who make the most of those technicalities get to slide through life. Why shouldn't you? This blog is devoted to all of life's shortcuts.

Dell Discount Codes

2004-09-15T10:26:00.000-07:00

Psst. Want a deal on a Dell, dude?

20% off select Inspiron $999+ (Excludes 1000) ... JR$6G50XBXSR3B Exp 12/20 6am CT
$300 off Dimension $1199+....................................... 30FLBQ?X?ZM42R
$500 off Dimension $1849+...................................... ?N2M0QT3PJ34M$
$700 off Dimension $2299+...................................... G04C5Q?R?VLSB$