It's Giveaway Time

I think that title could be read a couple of different ways, some worse than others, but this isn't the government trying to give away my money...this is me giving away some beautiful jewelry (and it's not even my own jewelry!).

Head on over to my jewelry blog, Casto Creations Jewelry, and see how you can enter to win a stunning completely handmade copper necklace, earrings, bracelet, and ring in a gorgeous handcrafted jewelry pouch made by my good friend Dana of Dana's Jewelry Designs. She's so talented! I wish I had half her talent...though instead of trying to pull her down and suppress her gifts I want to help build her up even higher. Sure, she's 'technically' competition but competition is good for us!

And at least this giveaway is completely voluntary. =)

So Who Wants To Buy Some Insurance?

ROFL

I PASSED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I cannot tell you how excited and relieved I am. While I realize that my hard work isn't over, at least this horrible state exam process is over. When the guy was printing the results last night I thought I was going to throw up and I almost cried when he said "Good News". =)

Now I need to get fingerprinted and apply for my actual license ... and then start doing training with Aflac. WOOHOO! AFLAAAACCCCC!!!!! I'm really good at imitating the Duck.

My last day with my current company is April 23, though I admit my brain has already left. :) As soon as they hire my replacement I'll start training them. HR is agonizingly slow. They have a candidate who they want me to meet with and I was supposed to get a meeting request for today or tomorrow and so far nothing. I wish they'd hurry up. I'm ready to move on!

More Woes for Toyota

Heard on the radio this morning that Toyota is having even more issues...now with the Toyota Corolla. They also mentioned people having problems with sudden power steering jerks to the side.

This caught my attention immediately because my car (Toyota Rav4) has ALWAYS pulled to the left. I can be on a totally flat and straight stretch of road, regardless of speed, and it pulls to the left. Sometimes this is more obvious than others and I have to really adjust my steering to stay straight. But it's something that I've lived with because it didn't seem that abnormal to me and I think I'm just used to driving that way.

It's not like my accelerator sticking issue several years back.

The radio guy was talking about how the "fix" Toyota is coming up with for the accelerator/brake issue isn't really a fix. It doesn't solve the problem of the sticking accelerator, it just creates a new way to stop the car if it does stick. Kind of like a bandaid on a wound that requires stitches but won't kill you immediately.

My faith in Toyota as a safe car is definitely and perhaps permanently shaken. Which is really sad. Because I've always thought of them in very high esteem as a quality car company. My next car might just be a Ford. God bless capitalism that I have so many choices and can 'vote' with my pocket book.

I'm Sure It's A Scam

I love my family...really...I do. My aunt sometimes tries my patience. She believes in ... things. Like crystals. And ghosts. *sigh*

And apparently Oxygenated water.

Yes...Oxygenated.

Water.

You know...water...otherwise known as H2O...and the O stands for...

Anybody?

OXYGEN!!!

It's called "Perfect Water" and my poor, sweet, naive Aunt bought some for my Mother in Law, who's cancer has returned. She will not be getting any treatment other than blood and plasma transfusions. Her doctor gave her between two and six months.

It's not the news we wanted to hear but we're all dealing.

This so called improved water just preys on people's fears and desire to be healthier...just by drinking water. But it's crazy expensive.

So color me skeptical.

This is also the aunt who believes that Democrats are "for the poor". I guess that's true if by "for the poor" she means that Dems want more people to be poor.

I am not a fan of marketing something as a health tonic (aka snake oil) with little to no scientific proof. God bless the capitalist system...but it isn't without it's flaws.

I Still Love My Toyota

Toyota is having a rough week. :)

And the government is piling on because they smell blood and are hoping that the injured Toyota will allow for Government Motors to move in and take advantage.

The thing is...even with all of their issues, Toyota is STILL a better company with a better product than GM or Chrysler. Just is.

I LOVE my Rav4. No, mine is not involved in the recall (it's a 2004) but it wouldn't surprise me if they expanded the recall to include it. On the other hand, I've already been through the sticky gas pedal situation and lived to tell the tale. If my accelerator stuck today I would know what to do and how to safely shut my car down without crashing or killing myself. Any GOOD driver should (even when I was a not so good driver, somehow I managed to survive the incident).

So let’s set the record straight about how a perfectly normal Toyota, or any other car, truck, or SUV, can accelerate wildly “out of control” with an even reasonably competent driver behind the wheel. Can’t happen. Period. End of story if the driver simply puts the gearshift in neutral (that “N” just above “D”) and safely steers over to the shoulder of the road. And if the engine races until you shut it off, so what? All you really care about is keeping you and your passengers safe.

Duh!

And don't tell me that if GM were having brake or accelerator issues that the government would be making ridiculous statements like 'just don't drive them'. They would be praising GM for taking action and letting people know about the issue, reassuring the public (and stock holders) that everything was fine.

"...Michigan Congressman Bart Stupak, a senior member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, wants to hold hearings about how Toyota has handled the recall. Let’s see, a Democrat from Michigan who represents a government that owns a good chunk of Toyota’s automotive rivals. What could go wrong?"

Maybe it's a good time to buy Toyota stock. I don't think the company is going under and I'm sure that they will recover from this (eventually) and continue to build good (non-union!) cars. Since the government helped the stock plunge yesterday it is basically on sale. :)

When I'm ready for a new car I will be looking at Toyota, but I admit that this incident has shaken my faith. So I'll probably also look at Ford...an American company not sucking at the government tit.

Could This Work?

Turning Detroit from the Motor City into the Farm City? It seems a rather fascinating idea and I think it's more constructive than the current direction Detroit is in (which seems only to be down).

Detroit was once the 4th largest city in America and it held the title of Motor City because most of America’s cars came from there. Flash forward 40 years, and Detroit’s population has dwindled from a high of 2 million people to just over 800,000. The average price for a home in Detroit is $15,000, the lowest in the country. With so many empty spaces, criminals have no shortage of hideouts and drug factories.

...

There is a lot of unused land in Detroit. This John Hantz thinking about how to use all of that vacant land. He is pitching a proposal to turn Detroit into a modern farming community.

People gotta eat right? It would provide jobs in a city with a 25%+ unemployment rate. Not to mention the feeling of accomplishment people have when they are part of something and produce something ... and earn something instead of being handed welfare.

I can't imagine the overwhelming logistics of this proposal, but determination and American can-do spirit can generally accomplish anything. I wish this millionaire all the best.

Pimping

It's Friday. I'm tired and busy at work. The news is pissing me off.

So I'm just going to pimp some stuff.

=)

If you need to send out newsletters for any reason (business or personal) I totally and 100% recommend Mail Chimp. I've been using them for over a year now and have always been happy with their service.

Their pricing is excellent because they allow you to pay per e-mail address. I used to use Constant Contact and they were way more expensive...you had to pay a monthly fee even if you didn't send out a message at all...and then if you went above a certain number of e-mail addresses in your list you got charged more.

So I really love Mail Chimp.

I think if you sign up through my affiliate link you get a bonus to start you out, and I'll get a special credit too! :)

Plus, their monkey mascot is totally cute. :)

The next thing I'm pimping is Swag Bucks. I learned about this one from Jana at Speak Dog Speak. And I'm really glad that I signed up.

So far I've earned 80 "Swag Bucks" ... doing nothing more than searching as I normally would. You use their search engine, which pulls from major search engines like Google, and you can earn Swag Bucks. You don't earn them every time but you do earn them consistently.

Those Bucks can then be used to buy actual stuff like gift cards to places like Amazon.com. I'm saving up. :) I don't know how much, but I do get some swag bucks if you sign up through my referral link.

Anyway, it's super easy to use and I think it's worth it if you're just going to be searching anyway - might as well earn a little something at the same time.

Okay...pimping over for now. =)