Weather...Or Not July 2009 Blog Entries - Wandtv.com, NewsCenter17, StormCenter17, Central Illinois News-
Member Center:
7/29/9
I wasn't going to get into this on the blog, for a variety of reasons. Yesterday I mentioned to keep Tara Barrett and her family in your thoughts. I was going to leave it at that, mainly because I figured it was a private matter. But yesterday morning we ran the story on the news...so I will go ahead and mention it.
You may have noticed that Tara hasn't been working for about a week. Last week her brother Cory was in a motorcycle accident. He ended up in the ICU at Carle. Monday night of this week Cory died.
I've mentioned here before that I think the world of Tara. We both grew up in Central Illinois. Tara has that "real world" down-to-Earth quality that is so common in people from this area. It is one of the things that I like the most about her. She also has a tremendous sense of humor, and is a blast to work with "just about" every day. I am sad that Tara has to go through this pain right now. Dying is what we are basically born to do...but Cory was only 32, and that is just too damn young.
Anyhoo...I don't want to bring everyone down on this blog. I am off the rest of the week after today. And yesterday my A/C broke! Thank God it is not going to be very hot for a while. I think we will manage, and it could always be worse.
Tomorrow and Friday I will be home taking care of my pooches, since Em is out of town. I don't have any other plans (aside from trying to get my stupid air conditioner to work)...so there is a chance I will still blog this week. If you have some thoughts to share, send me feedback and I will probably still post it Friday. Otherwise...enjoy the rest of the week...and I will see you bright and early Monday morning!
7/28/9
On yesterday's blog I bloviated about Sarah Palin, and her decision to step down as Governor of Alaska. Obviously Sarah Palin is a "hot button issue", and gets a lot of attention. So obviously I knew that you would also have some thoughts on Sarah Palin and her decision to step down as Governor of Alaska.
There are many things I love about doing this blog. One of the best things is that it allows us to hash out and share some ideas with one another. This is a very political issue with Sarah Palin, and I try not to bring this blog down to the partisan level of Conserves and Libs telling each other they are stupid. And with the Palin issue I was careful not to make it political. And I thank those of you that have sent feedback so far for also not lowering our discussion to that level!
So here is a bit of feedback so far. As always if you have a thought/opinion/question you wish to share just use the feedback form above. Or...you can just send me an email with "Blog Feedback" in the subject line so I know you would like me to post it on the blog.
From Phil in Cissna Park (7/27/9):
Greg, today's blog was well-written. I can tell that the early departure of Sarah Palin from her office as Alaska's Governor has left you wondering about the "state of that State", if you will. However, when I clicked on your last embedded "glass house" link and found it pointing directly at Uncle Rod's corruption scandal....I almost lost a full mouth's worth of coffee on my laptop! That was great!!!
Ha! Sorry about the loss of coffee, Phil. If I see you around sometime I will buy you a new cup!
As I was finishing up my rant yesterday on the blog it dawned on me that maybe Illinois is not the best state to question what other governors are up to these days. Maybe we should just sit on the sidelines for a while and let other people do what they do. We don't exactly have a moral high ground when it comes to corruption in our state!
From Tara in Bethany (7/27/9):
I think she did the right thing. From what I have read, it wasn't just about being a lame duck. The Freedom of Information Act was allowing people to file tons of baseless claims on her that the state had to pay to investigate. 150 such claims had been filed recently costing the state over $500,000. Of course, almost none of them turned out to be true....I think she did the fiscally responsible thing stepping down.
See, Tara! That is why we do feedback on this blog. Obviously I am not the smartest person in the world. And you have offered up a nugget of information that I had yet to hear.
Could it possibly be that Sarah Palin is doing her state a favor by getting out of office?? Tara certainly provides proof of that possibility. And if this information is true...perhaps I am wrong to think that Sarah Palin is dumping out on her state. But has Mrs. Palin actually said this is why she is leaving? If it is why she is leaving...why is she partly blaming it on the "lame duck" theory?
From Tiffany in Woodland (7/27/9):
Yeah, and the pot calls the kettle black... :) I talked to somebody during that height of the Stupid Scandal Impeachment Trial that visited another state and somebody bought them a drink because they felt sorry for him because he was from Illinois...
Heh. My wife travels out of state a bit for her job, and she has seen/heard similar things. I think things are getting better in our state...but our string of corruption is so long I wonder if we will ever be able to get past it!
From Randy in Decatur (7/27/9):
Greg:
Quite a rant, my friend!
I had to chuckle when you finally mentioned "glass houses" because I was thinking that as I read your piece. "Stupid Alaskans, electing a self-interested idiot for Gov."
And while she is not an "idiot" I guess, not in the sense that Blago has apparently become a media idiot. And I don't feel a need to defend her at all, as I did not vote for her or e, ither major ticket really, At LEAST she didn't use that tired "to spend more time with my family" shinola.
Because Shinola comes in a can and you can shine your shoes with it.
Keep up the excellent social beration.
Yours in cynicism,
Randy
I don't believe that Sarah Palin is a bad person. It would be arrogant of me to presume to make that kind of judgment in the first place, let alone for someone that I have never met. My thought is just that there is more to why she is stepping down as governor than what she is saying. I guess it is her right to not tell us the whole story. But the fact that she thinks we are gullible enough to buy whatever she sells us just tells me that I am right to not want her in a national political office.
By the way...tomorrow is my last day of work...for the week. Emily is going out of town through the weekend for work, and I am staying home to take care of the pooches, and myself.
Also...without being able to give details...please keep a good thought for Tara Barrett and her family.
7/27/9
Up front...I was never a fan of Sarah Palin. I am sure she is a nice woman, and she appears to love her family. But I was never a fan of the possibility of her being the second most powerful person in the world. She just did not impress me as someone that would be good leading the free world.
This is not a woman issue for me, either. Honestly I think we might be better off as a planet if women had been in charge from day one. Think back on MOST of the wars of this world...and they were generally started by men, for one reason or another. I should hope someday soon in this country we have a woman as President. (And I also do not think Hillary Clinton is the right person for that job, either.)
What Sarah Palin did yesterday is just more proof to me that we are better off not having her as a Vice President. During her final speech as Governor of Alaska she stated that she just does not believe in being a "lame duck" for the remainder of her term as governor. She just doesn't think it would be best for her state to put them through the final 1.5 years of her term.
Who does that? Since the beginning of our country the people elected to public office have mostly served out the rest of their term, lame duck or not. Why do they do this? They stay in office because the people elected them to complete a job. Bottom line...we vote you in, so you stay until the job is done or we throw you back out. Sarah Palin is folding early.
Really...this is none of my business. It is between Sarah Palin and the voters of Alaska. Maybe they are glad she is stepping down. Maybe they are not glad. I really don't know. But , looking at the situation from an outsider's point of view...I just don't think it is right. If she is stepping down to cash in on her notoriety, like the kid who knocked up Palin's daughter suggested, then that is her right as an American. But don't try to feed us a line that she is stepping down in the best interest of her state.
She also suggested that she can still fight for the state as a citizen. While that is absolutely true...wouldn't she have much better influence on her state as governor than as an every day Joe the Plumber? If she really loves her state as much as she claims, and if she still wants to do good for her state, then wouldn't she actually be in a better position to impact the state as the leader of that state? That excuse really confuses me.
I actually feel sorry for the state of Alaska. Those poor people elected a person as their governor that is now making their state a joke. Really. How sad that must feel to know that...people...laugh...at their...state...
Excuse me. I need to clean the windows on our glass house...
7/24/9
Meteorologically speaking...I feel like I have had my teeth kicked in this week. The past few days we really had a decent chance for rain to pop out at any point, especially in the past three days. But it just did not come together. It is an interesting decision to make when it really looks like rain could happen...but you just aren't quite sure. Do you tell everyone that it is going to rain, or just not mention it and hope for the best?? Throw in the beauty of live TV...and sometimes you just don't know what words are going to spew out of your mouth!
The joke is always that we are little more than "weather guessers", or can be wrong most of the time and still keep our jobs. But the fact is that technology these days, and a little intuition, allows us to be surprisingly accurate. This week, however, might just skew my stats a bit! Fortunately for me...I don't keep track of those kinds of stats.
"F, eedback Frida, y"!
From Phil in Cissna Park (7/20/9):
Thoughts?
Greg, I have been quietly following your escapades with this scammer. Why Quietly? Because I did the same thing, basically, up to a point. When they ask for contact information is when I sent all the correspondence to:reportphishing@antiphishing.org.
I never heard another word....LOL! But yes, play it up...tell them you heard that her funds were confiscated by Somali pirates or something...it's hilarious how stupid they think some of us are. Sadly, some of us ARE and will fall victims to these predatory animals.
Phil, Cissna Park, IL
Since Phil had sent me this feedback I have actually replied again to the scammers. I am not sure where this will lead, but I will not give those people any information that they could not otherwise get. Maybe I can even get them to start reading this blog?? That might be pretty cool.
From Trish in Decatur (7/20/9):
Greg, I think if you were to keep replying to these emails, that would just add fuel to the fire. Although you did not give out your personal information, they can still track you by the server of your email address.
Fortunately for me, Trish...I love BIG explosions!
But seriously...I have thought about possibly making this situation worse by playing with these folk. And honestly...it just seems like too much fun to see how far we can take it.
I am only using my work email and contact information with these people. So if they want to track my work email, etc, they are more than welcome! But I will not let it get far enough that they get anything they can really use...like cash.
From Pam in Clinton (7/20/9):
Greg, my 11 year old son went to visit my parents in Peoria, last week. One of his jobs was to shuffle the cards for my parent's card night (with the electric shuffler of course). When he got home, I asked him what he did with Grandma and Grandpa. The first thing he said was, "I met Greg Trumbold's Aunt and Uncle". I said, "Oh, Vicky was at Grandma's?". He said, "Yes, do you know her?". I told him yes and he said, "Then what is her husband's name?". I told him. He then said, "What do they look like?". I told him. I think he was very disappointed that he didn't know them before me. I just wanted to tell you that "meeting your Aunt and Uncle was one of the high points of his trip". Even above the new African Safarri addition to the Glenn Oak Zoo and going golfing with Grandpa.
Awww...Pam. That is a great story. I have a lot of family around Peoria. My Dad was born in Washington, IL, and grew up in Chillicothe. We lived in Knoxville when I was growing up, and after my p's split Dad lived in Peoria for around a decade. I have a couple of aunt/uncle's around there, and a Grandma. Several cousins, too. Thanks for sharing this story. It is always good to be reminded of family!
By the way...next time you speak with my Aunt Vickie, call her "Didge". That's what we call her in my family! Duane is just Uncle Du...but both peeps are terrific people. And please tell them I said hello! Tell your boy I said hi, as well. Maybe you should bring him to the station some morning for a tour.
From Mark in Decatur (7/21/9):
This past Sunday marked the anniversary of the rail yard explosion that hit Decatur. I'm writing to tell of my experience with the tragedy that day.
I was fourteen at the time of the blast and was on summer vacation from school. I had finished the eighth grade and was anticipating starting High School. I was sleeping at the time of the blast and felt a tremendous thump. Thinking it was our next door neighbor going to work, I drifted back to sleep.
Later that morning, my brother and I saw the news footage of it on television and saw that Lakeview High School was severely damaged. After everything calmed down, it was determined that Stephen Decatur High School (Civic Center) would house the students from Lakeview. So, my freshman year was half days, starting at seven in the morning until noon.
Thanks for your perspective of that blast, Mark. We ran some stories on the anniversary early this week. The explosion happened about a year after I was born, so I have no personal recollection of the event...but we have heard a few people's account of what happened, and it sounds like it was a huge event.
Here is a link where you can find a story that we ran. When you hit the link just look for the story that starts with "34th anniversary" if you are interested.
From Tiffany in Woodland (7/23/9):
I can tell you're they type that will stir the pot a bit just to see what comes out, aren't you! :) I'm laughing every time I read one of your scammer emails. Too funny!!!! :) LOL
Me? Nah.
I am pretty curious to see where this goes, if anywhere at all. If the lady responds to my last email to her I may just start sending completely incoherent and crazy emails back to her to see what she does. I also might take her email address and enter it into a lot of websites that produce spam. Or I could download a virus and send it to her email address. Is that illegal? I'm not even sure if it is illegal to send someone an email virus.
Thanks for the feedback this week, all! Anytime you have something you would like to say or ask...just fill out the feedback form above. We do this every Friday, but you can send in your feedback any day of the week. And don't forget to sign up for email alerts so you never miss a blog update. The email alert form is up above on this page, as well.
Have a great weekend!
7/23/9
I am not sure if you can tell from what you have read on this blog...but I am the type of person that has a hard time lettings some things go. I get fixated...and can not stop until something within is satisfied. Such is the case with this email scam I have been documenting here. I just can't let it go yet.
There was another email from "Angel" asking if I had received the money yet. It came in on Saturday. Here is the email:
"My dear brother greg
iam sorry for my long silence,i have being operated upon for sometime now and was under suivilance.
I have just check my email today and did not get any responce from you,i have also sent an email to the delivery company,please let me know if you got the funds in your possesion now.
Use the as i instructed.
Thanks for your understanding.
yours truly
Angelica"
Yeah...I know. A spell check might help the scammers be taken more seriously with their emails. Even if there is a language barrier at work here...if they can type something in English chances are good their email program has an English spell checker. Oh, well.
So here is how I replied to her on Tuesday:
"My Dear Sister...
I hope you are recovering well from your surgeries. It certainly must be a large burden you carry.
Unfortunately I have yet to receive the funds from your agent. Is it possible that he is not trustworthy? Perhaps he has absconded with the funds to keep them for himself? He made contact with me, and I replied. But I have not heard from him in a short while. I worry about his use of your funds.
Please heal well.
Greg"
I figured I would reply with the sister because she now apparently feels that we are pretty tight. That is great. I like to feel tight with the people that are trying to scam me out of some money.
So now I am trying to insinuate that the guy she gave her money to is trying to steal it from her. I figure she will either reply with something assuring me that he is not trying to steal from her, or they will just drop it. But the curiosity in me is building!
I will continue to keep you posted!
7/22/9
For those of you that have some time under your belt in Central Illinois, you might remember a cat that worked at this station by the name of Marcus Thorpe. Marcus started as a weekend anchor back when we were with ABC. By the time MT left us he was the 5 o'clock news anchor with his wife, Mikaela, and we were full-blown peacock-feather wearing supporters of the National Broadcasting Company.
In Marcus' current gig he is a reporter/anchor for an NBC station in Columbus, OH. His wife Mikaela is one of their morning news anchors. MT and MT are still two of my close friends, and we still keep in touch...although not as well as any of us would like. That's life, I suppose.
Recently Marcus was asked to start blogging on his current station's website. In trying to decide how to structure his blog...he came to an obvious choice of topics. Those of you that might know Marcus probably know that he is a freak when it comes to movies. I have seen that kid sit through the worst movies ever made just because he was happy watching a movie. So Marcus has decided to do a movie review on his station's website.
His first couple of posts are up, and he is reviewing the new Harry Potter movie, plus the Sasha Cohen flick. I just finished reading his reviews...and it is vintage Marcus. You can check it out by hitting this link: MT at the Movies
But remember...only hit his blog if it does not deter you from coming back to mine! (I mean...I don't like the kid THAT much!) Heh.
7/21/9
One of my favorite things about this blog is that it has opened up the communication between you and me. You can read my thoughts, and respond to me with your own. The TV doesn't allow for that kind of two-way interaction. I love coming in to work in the morning to see what kind of email I have from people that comes from the blog.
Many of you have been sending me links to various things for a while now, and I have shared a lot of the links on the blog. Last week someone sent me another link that I just finished watching...and I want to share it with everyone else. It is about a woman that has had one car since the 1950's...and she is still driving it today. Pretty amazing stuff...
7/20/9
--My day in the sun is just about over. Over the weekend I went to Indy with some friends for a bachelor party. We had a great time, and we successfully sent another young man into the rest of his life. Typically I would be one of the people making sure everyone had a great time. And sometimes the night would end with debauchery and craziness.
Saturday night I got us kicked out of a bar. But...it was not due to debauchery and craziness. I fell asleep. I fell asleep in the bar. The manager came over and said I would either have to wake up or we would have to leave. I fell asleep while he was telling us this...so we had to leave. So the boys walked with me back to the hotel, and went back out to finish their night.
Last week I joked that I would probably be asleep by 9. Well...I did at least surpass that expectation. But it was only around midnight when I started nodding off in the establishment. Mmmmm. Gotta love that morning shift and what it does to your schedule! Heh. I guess I am at the age that when this body is tired and needs to sleep...it just falls asleep. This week I am calling to reserve my bed at the retirement home.
--I heard back from the email scammers. The lady sent me an email yesterday. Here it is:
My dear brother greg
iam sorry for my long silence,i have being operated upon for sometime now and was under suivilance.
I have just check my email today and did not get any responce from you,i have also sent an email to the delivery company,please let me know if you got the funds in your possesion now.
Use the as i instructed.
Thanks for your understanding.
yours truly
Angelica
So now I am wondering if I should respond to this, or just let the thing die. I was thinking of replying that the guy delivering the money was scamming her, and took off with her cash. I want to reply with some crazy story to see how she replies.
Thoughts?
7/17/9
My buddy Garrett is getting married at the end of the month. This weekend is his bachelor party. We are headed to Indy tomorrow. It should be a blast...I just hope I survive. With my schedule...bedtime for me, even on weekends, is usually around 9 or 10. Once in a while I can grab some stamina and make it to midnight, though. I am hoping I can do that this weekend!
"Feedback Friday"!!!
From Teri in Decatur (7/13/9):
Greg:
What kind of weather will El Nino mean for winter?
Now, Teri...had you actually hit the link I provided you would know! Alright...I'm just playing with you. For us it COULD mean a milder Winter. But you have to remember that this is a forecast, and it depends on specific factors, like how much warmer the ocean water becomes, etc. And many of the determining factors are tough to nail down right now.
From My Little Sister (7/14/9):
You could give all of your readers this guy's phone number so we can all call and bug him. :)
What my little sister is suggesting is that I give you the phone number that the scam artist gave me to call to get the large sum of money. That way you could call the number and drive the scammers crazy.
What my little sister is missing is the fact that I actually did post the phone number that the scam artist gave me to call to get the large sum of money. Read closer, Little Sister! Frankly I am surprised. After last week and your harsh critique of my grammar I figured you would read everything I write much closer!
Love you! By the way...the most recent pics of you that I have seen...Good Lord, woman...your belly is HUGE! My niece is gonna be a linebacker!! And I think that is REALLY gonna hurt on the way out...
Love you! Heh.
From Kelly in Maroa (7/16/9):
Good morning Greg!
This is in regards to your tale of woe with the cable company. We had similar issues with the cable company in Maroa. We switched to Directv 2 years ago and love it. We started out with the basic package but when we moved last October we upgraded to the HD receiver and satellite and it is great. The only drawback is when it rains heavily the satellite goes out. As far as getting a phone line for it, we do not have a home phone either. The only time you need a phone line is for pay per views or movies. Also, I have never had a bad experience with their customer service. They actually speak our language and solve your issues very quickly and very professionally. Good luck!
I am not a xenophobic person by any means. This country is made of people whose families mostly came from other countries (at least since the founders of the country cleared out the natives...but that sad story is best saved for another time). It does not infuriate me when someone in this country has a hard time handling English. I mean...we get people crossing our borders every day, a, nd in our melting pot it just comes with the territory.
However...I know what you mean, Kelly, by your reference to speaking to someone that speaks English. I have degenerativ, e hearing loss, along with tinnitus. So when I can actually hear something, many times it is just the ringing in my ears. There are days where I have a hard enough time hearing Emily talk to me. But many times when I am speaking to someone with a thick foreign accent I can barely catch a word. Factor all of that PLUS trying to deal with a customer service agent that does not live in our country, like India, and many times I am just plain hosed!
I don't mean to bag on the cable company as much as I have on this blog. But they pretty much have a monopoly, and from my many experiences with this particular company's customer support personnel...they just aren't afraid to let you know that they simply don't care if you are their customer or not. And that bothers me. Of course...it does not bother me enough to actually shut off the cable and read a book. Heh.
From Cindy in Macon (7/16/9):
Hi Greg, I don't think you complain too much, you have every right to have your problems worked out to your satisfaction. It is their job to be kind and courteous to all their customers, if it weren't for the customers they would have no job. We have Directv but Verizon for our internet service. We like Directv but their policy for satellite service is 99.99% no rain fade. If it gets cloudy or rains we have rain fade more then we have satellite. They have sent people out and adjusted the dishes but nothing works, thank God for converter boxes, at least we can watch some TV and still have the Doppler radar. So as paying customers we deserve respect and if someone hung up on me I would do the same thing you did. The price of cable and satellite are getting stupid, my mom has basic cable, no premium channels and she pays $55.00 a month. I think they should give seniors a break.
We had DirecTV when we lived in Decatur a few years ago. A heavy rain can blow up the reception. But the cable goes out occasionally, too. Whatever we decide to do it won't be until that lower internet rate expires!
And I agree completely that service should be cheaper for elderly people.
From Kristen in Maroa (7/16/9):
Hey there Greg. It's been awhile since I have had anything to say, but I have been reading the blog faithfully. I have probably been a tad jealous of you with all the vacationing you have done!!! Just kidding, glad you had some time away. Anyhoo...I thought I should mention to you that you don't need a landline for dishnetwork. They have this thing that plugs into the wall and then the phone line plugs into it. It costs a little extra each month (as it naturally, would, like they would do this free of charge), but it is cheaper than a regular phone bill would be. Just thought I would let you know about that, and it seems like they do have the "on demand" programming too. Good for you for getting a discount for your cable/internet though. That's the least they could do...geez! Have a great weekend!
Huh. I will have to look into Dish Network, too. The biggest reason we have not switched to satellite already is that they have not had on-demand service. But if Dish Network has it...that is certainly putting them in the lead! As I have mentioned...in this economy our TV is a huge source of entertainment for us...so it is important that we have something that we like.
And we have noticed your lack of blog involvement, Kristen. Honestly...I think a lot of people have been taking time away from the blog. It is Summer. Maybe people are actually going outside...
Have a great weekend, all! Hopefully I will survive the bachelor party. I think most of the guys are a bit older, so it shouldn't be like a bachelor party from the movies. Frankly...I will probably be in bed by 9!
7/16/9
Yesterday when I got home I started watching a movie on cable. In the middle of the show the cable went out. So I went over to my computer and found that the internet was out. It was no big deal, but Emily has been out of town and I have not had much to do. So I called the cable company to kill some time. If you have been reading this blog for a while you know how fond I am of our cable company and their "stellar" customer service.
So basically I had idle time, and I did want to know how long the cable/internet would be out. It surprisingly did not take long to get to a human this time, and the guy was very friendly. He was in the tech support department. He looked at my account to see where we were located. Quickly he told me that there was an issue in our area and it should be resolved within an hour or so. I completely understood...and the guy was friendly and helpful.
Recently the cable company jacked up our internet bill by about $10. While I had the guy on the phone I asked him to transfer me to billing so I could ask why our bill went up. So he transferred me to a woman by the name of Mary. I could tell right away that Mary was not all that thrilled to be at work. But I asked her about the price increas, e anyway.
Mary told me that when the cable company took over the previous cable company's territory they rolled in everyone at the customer's current price. The plan was to keep that price for a year, and then bring everyone up to the new company's price, which is about $10 more a month than our old cable company was charging. Mary also told me that the current company decided to extend that deal for an additional year...so they gave us 2 years at the old company's price.
That seemed like a nice thing for the current cable company to do for those of us that were brought into their coverage. But I asked Mary why I would stick with their service after the price increase when every day DirecTV and various DSL internet companies are knocking on my door to get me to switch for lower prices. Mary responded by telling me that cable internet is 70 times faster than DSL, and the service is more reliable.
I then said, "You mean the cable internet service that isn't working right now?" And I followed that up with explaining to her that cable internet is indeed technically faster, but we are ta, lking about such fast speeds that the 70 times faster for cable internet only amounts to an extra second or two of download time over DSL. I again asked her why I should not switch service since they raised my bill.
At this point Mary became audibly frustrated with my questions. She asked me to hold for a second so she could get an answer for me. I then heard what at first sounded like the click of being put on hold...until I quickly realized that Mary had hung up the phone.
Again...loyal readers here might remember what a stickler I am when it comes to customer service. Especially in a down economy there are not many businesses that can afford to crap all over their customers. We should be happy and thankful if we have a job right now...and companies should be happy if they have customers right now, and treat those customers with the respect they deserve. That kind of respect does not include hanging up on someone trying to find some answers. I was not mean or rude. I was just asking questions.
So I called the cable company back and spoke with someone named Miranda. I told Miranda my tale of woe, and said that at first I just wanted to find out why my rate went up...but now I am pissed because someone from her company hung up the phone on me. So I asked Miranda why I should stick with the cable company when there is now a cheaper alternative AND the cable company hangs up on me. Miranda was very nice and apologized. The long and short of it is that Miranda said she would give me the best current deal they had...which is an introductory rate of $24.99 a month for 6 months.
So basically Miranda cut $20/month off of my internet bill for six months. I was happy with the price...but still had bad feelings about Mary's horrible customer service. I thanked Miranda for doing what she could do and got off the phone. While I was on the phone with Miranda the internet came back up, so I went to the cable company's website. I found the feedback email, and sent an email detailing my experience with the shoddy customer service that Mary gave me. I told them they had two business days to respond or I will cancel my cable and internet service with them and switch to DirecTV and DSL. Still no word from them, but I assume I will hear something today. My goal is not to get Mary into huge trouble. But I want to see what they will give me to make up for the slight.
So my plan now is to do the sixth month deal at $24.99 a month. After 6 months I will probably drop their internet service and get a wireless card for around $30/month, which then will save me about $15 a month and I can take that card anywhere I go to get online. I've used a wireless card from Sprint before, and it is a little slower than cable internet, but not enough to really bring me down.
We are also thinking about switching to satellite. I think the HD packages are better with satellite. The only drawback is that we would have to get a phone line, and I don't think satellite offers on-demand yet...which is huge in our house. I know it seems like a lot of fuss over non-essential services like cable. But in our house we don't go to movies but once or twice a year, and we don't have much entertainment expense. The TV/internet is a big part of our entertainment. It saves us money, and we get to stay in the comfort of our home. Plus Emily's job is mostly internet based these days...so we have to have reliable internet.
Tomorrow is "Feedback Friday"! It has been a while since someone has laid the smack down on me around here. Since The Hiatus of the blog there was a lot of love thrown my way. I need someone to slam me on the blog to bring me back down to Earth.
I'm just sayin...
7/15/9
Pretty wet way to start a morning, if you ask me. We have had some nice thunderstorms moving through for most of the morning, giving us heavy rain and some strong initial wind gusts. But not to worry...things will be settling down through the rest of the , morning and into the afternoon!
We might catch a little more rain late tomorrow into tomorrow night...and after that we will be in for a very nice stretch of great summer weather. We're talking mostly sunny with highs around 80. That is not shabby at all...and for me, personally, it will finally give me a dry stretch so I can finish staining my deck!
Don't forget to sign up for email alerts for this blog! You can do that by filling out the email alert form above. I've had to keep the blog low key for a bit to fly under the radar of The Suits...but I think we're about to break out again. And when we do...you won't want to miss an update! So sign up!
Also...if you have something you want to say or ask...use the feedback form above. It is a painless process. Here is the rule of thumb: if you want something posted to the blog then use the feedback form. If you have something to say that you do not want posted on the blog just send me an email. Friday's around here on the blog are known as "Feedback Friday". Basically Friday is about you and what you think, and I will post feedback on that day.
As a follow up to yesterday's blog...I think the scammers have given up on me. We will address this again on "Feedback Friday", but I wanted to give you an update! Of course...they are probably opening up credit accounts all over the country in my name...
7/14/9
We've gone through some email scams on this blog. Most of us get those "you just won 10 million Euros" emails. When you follow up on the email someone tells you that to claim your money you have to put a deposit on it, and then they take your money and you get scammed.
Recently I received an email that said the woman that sent the email was dying. And she had 10.5 million dollars that she needed someone to distribute to various charities before she dies. For some reason...perhaps boredom...I responded to this email saying that I would help. Here are the emails that have been sent back and forth for over a week now, starting with her reply to my original reply.
"My Dear Mr. Greg,
Assallamalikum
Thank You for your response, I am very happy with your response I have been through some surgical operation and I have been responding to treatment very slowly. I know how the story is going to end for me. I have accepted this with the help of God, I know it would be so surprising and shocking to you why I would want to WILL my funds to someone I do not know or ever met before, it's a long story and experience and I will try to share a bit of my experience with you.
My problem started two years ago when I was diagnosed of esophageal cancer, I tried all that could be done to have the problem resolved on time before my Beloved mum who i inherited this fund from met her untimely death in one of her numerous business trips abroad thereby leaving me alone with my problem, so far I have undergone several operations, I have spent thousand of dollars, I have been to India, Maldives, and to other countries too numerous to mention all to no avail.
I have decided to surrender myself to God for healing, as I have done all humanly possible to treat this ailment but instead it is getting worst every passing day.
The reason I am contacting you now is because i do not have anyone around me i can completely trust or rely on,As I lay on my sick bed, I can see death drawing nearer.
I have never being married and I do not have kids of my own, but I want to help other kids so that God will be happy with my soul, so when I decided to look for a stranger to help me, I decided to turn to the internet. This was how I got your e-mail and decided to e-mail you for your assistance to carry out my last wish.
Presently, I have a total amount of 10.5million dollars,I am very scared that if I die the money will be taking by an unknown, or the money will be confisticated, I am very confused I do not know what to do as regards to this, I am very pale and I don't think I can spend much time on earth again, I just want to make sure the money is given to a nice family and the Charity home so that God can have mercy on my soul.
I am really happy that you are such an understanding person, and I really have hope on you, I will tell you all you need to know, and will this funds to you, as soon as i get a positive and willing feed back from you.
Let me have more details from you as soon as possible, this should include your full names, telephone numbers, home and office address.
I have attached my picture to you, though is not very clear, i will be glad to get yours if you don't mind.
Waiting to hear from you.
sallam
Kindest Regards,
Angel Luz"
I responded to this email by giving this woman my name, work phone number, and work address. This is all information she could have found anyway, because I am doing this through my work account. A simple Google search can figure out where I work. My goal is to see how far I can get with these scammers without giving them the information they could use against me. (I do know that if someone wants to steal an identity...they could already, anyway.)
She replied with this.
"Dear Greg,
I hope my email meets you well and in peace, i have tried to reach you on your phone number today to no avail.
Please i want you to treat this email as very urgent.
I have discus with my manager today and explained everything to him.
He has no idea the real content of this deposited as it was made by ma late mum, as containing family valuable items, underneath it she hide this funds inside the same bag as it is shown in this pics.
So all they will do is send this luggage to you, without knowing its true content.
Do not on any account reveal the content of the luggage to them as funds, until it gets to you, my people are somehow greedy when it comes to issues like this, and the can run away with it for themselves.
The manager said he has assign an agent who will make the delivery to you in your country, Am sure he will be leaving Colombo tomorrow noon like he said, and will call you before he leaves.
I was thinking do you have a Mobile phone he can call you directly? just in case you are not in the office.
I want all the arrangement's to go on well, Am doing this because i cant do it myself, i wanted to use this funds in opening a Non gov org for motherless kids and the less privilege, but as it stands i do not have much time to do this again, due to my health. Am sure due to your understanding you will archived this goal in my behalf.
I had to rush all of this, because of my deteriorating health.
let me he, ar from you as soon as you get this email.
Remain bless
Angel"
This email came in when we were in California. So naturally I did not take the time to respond. It was not long before I received this email.
"My Dear Brother,
I have being so worried with your long silence, i called the office yesterday and the told me the agent had already left colombo and has some deliverys to make in dubai, they said he will get in contact with you on the phone before proceeding to your country.
I will prefare if i can have a direct mobile number of yours, for easire communcation, since you do not work at all times.
Let me hear from you as soon as you can,
remain bless
Angelica"
I actually ignored this one, too...because I was still on vacation. But soon, while still on vacation...I heard from the "agent".
"Dear Mr. Greg Trumbold,
This is Mr. David West the delivery agent from Global security Company colombo who is coming to United States with your luggage, I left colombo 5days ago and i am in New York right now, i have been trying to get intouch with you on the phone when i was on transit in Dubai U.A.E but always on answering machine. Please call me urgently on this phone number: 718-705-4021 I am in New York with your luggage, please call me as soon as you receive my mail.
Best Regards
David G. West"
I did not call the number that this guy gave me. But I did respond to his email asking him if he could just ship the "luggage" to me.
"Dear Mr. Greg,
I have been having difficulties with the customs over here. They are requesting for the non-inspection certificate of your luggage and police report from my area of transit, which is Dubai United Arab Emirate, that was where i transited before coming to United States.
So we need to get the certificate urgently for to submit to the customs here in New York in other for them not to inspect ur luggage. Get back to me
David G. West.
--- On Fri, 7/10/09, Greg Trumbold <Greg.Trumbold@wandtv.com> wrote:
From: Greg Trumbold <Greg.Trumbold@wandtv.com>
Subject: RE: From David G. West (Global Security Company)
To: "DAVID G. WEST" <davisgwestt@yahoo.com>
Date: Friday, July 10, 2009, 1:21 PM
Hi, David...
I don't have a cell phone or home phone number for you to call. Can you just put the luggage in a big box and ship it to me at the address I have provided?
Greg"
I am dead set against giving these people my personal information. And if I had any doubts that this was a scam before I got the above email...the above email confirmed it. You can not bring 10.5 million dollars in cash through customs without huge hassles. Now...I am not sure about this ""non-inspection certificate"...but there is no way I am getting a piece of paper that will somehow get the TSA to not inspect that piece of luggage.
I have not replied to the last emails from either of these people...but I still have both of them emailing me. The Angel person is just asking how the process is going, and the David guy just says he is waiting to hear from me.
So should I call this guy's number just for kicks? They have been apparently calling the TV station, because that is the number that I gave them. But when they call here I am no longer in the building. (It can be tough to get me on the phone at work because of my schedule.)
I know the end game to this one. They ask me to put up some percentage of the overall take in order to release the funds to me. But when I give them several thousand dollars to release the funds the money will never make it to me. And this dying Angel will never be heard from again...at least not by me!
It may be stupid to string these people along...but I can not help but get a little smirk from wasting their time.
7/13/9
Hope your weekend was a good one! Mine was pretty relaxing. Emily had been sick for a few days, so she mostly slept. And with Emily sleeping so much we just stayed home...and it was great! She is feeling bett, er, too.
It was a big weekend for Cards/Cubs fans. Of course we had the pre-All-Star series, and it ended with game 2 of a double header last night. They split the four game series, for those keeping track at home. Now the attention turns to the All Star game in St. Louis. My gut feeling is that if Albert Pujols was not getting enough national attention before this week, things are certainly going to change after what he does during this All Star game.
By the way...can we start playing some of these games before it gets dark? I have not seen a playoff baseball or basketball game in years because they only schedule them at night anymore! Whatever happened to an afternoon playoff baseball game??
The folks that spend their lives figuring out our global weather patterns have come out with their El , Nino report. I try not to cram weather down your throa, t on "Weather...or Not"...so I will just post the link.&nb, sp; Here it is!
7/10/9
It's "Feedback Friday"!!!
From Jackie in Champaign (7/4/9):
Thanks for being such a great sport at the fundraiser! We raised a lot of money for CASA! You Rock Greg!
No problem at all, Jackie. The event was a blast, and we raised money for a great cause.
In case you missed it...Matzner Chiropractic in Champaign had a fund-raising carnival the other weekend to help get some money for CASA. CASA is an organization that does a lot to help kids. I climbed into a dunk tank for the event, and we raised a nice amount of cash!
From Angie in Charleston (7/6/9):
So many people don't realize that these cuts will cost much more than a small tax increase...and the tax payers will foot that bill. What's really sad to me though is that it feels like the only way to get anyone's attention is to talk about it in those terms: the financial cost and not the cost in terms of human life, pain, and suffering. I'm so glad you are talking about it. I hope it gets through to others!
Sometimes the only way to get people's attention is to show them how it hurts their own specific pocketbook. We hear about human tragedy so often...every freaking day...that we are numb to it. We see these almost hourly commercials showing us starving children, or abused animals, that the true message is lost in the "glaze" that we get from being bombarded.
The news on any given station is filled with these horrific events that most of the time do not directly impact us...so we grow an emotional callous to it. So hopefully breaking it into individual and personal financial loss will help people to realize just how bad this situation is becoming.
But you know what? If there is no money...there is no money. And right now it does not matter why we are broke. We have to fix it first, and figure out how to prevent it later. I'm not saying that the state is making the right decisions here. But I will say that those are decisions I certainly would not want to have to make.
From Teri in Decatur (7/7/9):
I am back from vacation also and I do not want to be here. I think we are all just plain burned out. I will be okay after a couple of days and then it will be the weekend. Luckily I have more vacation time to take before Oct so will be off some more. Hope you had a great time sounds like it.
I'm feeling you, Teri. For me personally, it is not , , like I hate my job. In fact...I like it very much. But...honestly...it is better to be on the ocean than in an office all day, in my opinion!
And I agree about an overall sense of burnout. With the economy weighing heavily on us all...especially those that have lost their jobs...things are stressed. Maybe we need a group vacation week where everyone with a non-essential job gets a week off to whatever they want for free. Crazy? I don't know.
From Denise (7/8/9):
Hello Greg, I saw briefly the comment about the state's budget. I work for an agency that offers services to children and adults with developmental disabilities. The state's cuts were horrible for us. Not only for the staff who were laid off but for the clients, who one day had people helping them go to the store, or cleaning, checking their meds, taking them to the doctor and so many other things that we take for granted so many times during our lives. Then they wake up and no longer have anybody. It's sad. We spent countless hours writing letters, making phone calls (Madigan's office actually hung up on some of our clients), going to Springfield to rally in the Capitol. Illinois needs to step up and take care of the people who can't take care of themselves. Thanks, Denise
Word, Sister. Again...if there is no money, there is no money...and I certainly don't want to have to make those tough budget decisions. But the government is supposed to be working FOR us, in OUR interest. And that includes people that can not necessarily pay into the system.
This kind of leads into a healthcare discussion...but I will try not to drive us into one. But I relate this budget situation to our healthcare system.
I don't want to pay for the healthcare of some 50 year old morbidly obese person that never took proper care of himself. His decisions were his decisions, and he should have to pay for his own poor decisions. But give me that same 50 year old morbidly obese person that had some deficiency in his system, either physical or mental, that caused him to have such poor health...and I will kick in to help him out.
There are humans on this planet that simply can not function without the help of other humans. And one of the things that is supposed to separate us from our animal cohorts is our ability to shuck the survivalist nature and help one another. Some of these upcoming budget cuts are going to keep us , from being able to more effectively help these people that can not function on their own...and that is a TRUE human travesty.
I doubt that our new governor is happy with this situation. I am sure that most of our state politicians are unhappy with the cuts. But for crying out loud...can we put some pettiness aside and just get this crap figured out? If these politicians truly got into public service to serve and help the public...there is not a better time to so personally and positively impact a large portion of their constituency.
That's just my opinion.
From Randy in Decatur (7/9/9):
So you and your brother, Emily, saw Bob Gunton taking out his trash and you actually knew who he was? (knowing wink, sly nod) You were closer to a star in Pujol's shirt.
, Jes kiddin' wit' yas Greg, I don't want you to get TOO serious.
Glad you had fun, man.
The trip was a blast. And we did know who Bob Gunton was because we are big fans of Shawshank! Did you also know that Bob, as I like to call him, also did a stint on "24"? Pretty good character actor...
From LeeAnne (7/9/9):
As for peeing in public, as long as: 1. It's not in a walkway or patio dining area, 2. Children are unable to see said reliever-of-pee exposing themself, and 3. Pee-reliever takes safety precautions when standing along roadways, let 'em pee! What's it gonna hurt?
I thought the jersey looked good on you. But I'm sure Emily doesn't think so. By the way, how romantic- fans of rival teams put their differences aside and are brought together by love, in spite of the nagging desire to shout, "In your face!" on game day.
I tend to agree with the peeing business. While you don't want everyone peeing just anywhere...if some dude that is driving a truck across the country needs to step outside for 20 seconds and relieve himself on the side of the road...what do I care?
Ummm...romantic? If only it worked that way. As a matter of fact...Emily made a crack when I got home Wednesday morning that she wasn't going to touch me for a year, just to make sure that Albert's DNA had time to get off of my body! This chick is a serious C, ubs fan.
From Mark in Decatur (7/9/9):
I remember years ago when I was growing up, I took a trip to Busch Stadium to see a Cardinals game. I'm partially disabled and the trip was paid for by A.E. Staley and ADM. It was memorable because we had seats just passed third base and it stared pouring rain! We were stuck there for one and a half hours! Needless to say, we got back to Decatur around 2 a.m. and our rides were not too pleased about it, but we had a great time!
That is a great memory, Mark! Isn't it funny how something that SHOULD put a damper on something like that actually ends up making it more memorable? Your story would not be as good if it didn't rain on you guys.
From Julian in Decatur (7/9/9):
BRENT FITCH CAN THROW HIS CIGARETTE BUTTS WHEREVER HE WANTS
Julian...you strange, strange little man. Why are you yelling? Did it make you angry that I called someone a slob because they dumped their car ashtray out in our parking lot? Frankly I thought people were done doing that in the 80's. And do you have proof that it was this Brent kid?
I know this Brent kid. He is not the type, I wouldn't think, that would be so lazy. I mean...if he takes that same tray 50 yards to the north he could just throw his ashes/butts into the trash bin. I just don't think Brent is that careless.
Here's what I think, Julian. I think it was you that left your trash in the parking lot. That is why you are yelling about Brent doing it. So next time, my friend, why don't you do yourself and everyone else a favor, and just walk the ashtray over to the trash bin and dump your crap out there.
From Denise (7/9/9):
I thought the jersey looked nice, but I gotta tell ya, you are looking a little too thin. Are you eating like you should?
Dude...I am actually heavier now than at any other point in my life! But I was surprised at how small the jersey was, compared to how big I thought it would be. I mean...Albert Pujols stands at about 6'5", and I think is around 230-ish. Sure...the jersey still did not fit me well, but I figured it would be like putting on a tent. But it wasn't that bad. And yes...I eat better than I should! I just don't really gain weight, Denise. I've tried.
By the way...Wednesday night after I had put on his jersey Albert went 0 or 4 at the plate. And he hasn't hit a home run since I donned that jersey. I'm just saying...
Have a great weekend! It looks pretty wet. Stupid El Nino.
7/9/9
On my way to work...just about 20 minutes ago...I was driving on the 72 to 51 South off ramp. I passed a truck that was parked on the side of the ramp. Many times at that time of the morning there are semis parked all over the place. But in front of this semi was the driver...standing there...peeing.
I don't personally have a problem with this. There are not bathrooms on semis, as a general rule. And the guy obviously had to go. Even though it is against the law to urinate in public...I think this guy should get a pass on this one! Now...the person that dumped his/her ashtray in our parking lot at work...that is a different story. I say throw the book at that slob...
So did you happen to catch the news yesterday morning?? On yesterday's blog we spoke about the memorabilia auction company that was in-studio during the news yesterday morning. Scotty England had already told me the list of things Dan was bringing with him...and it was impressive. But actually seeing some of this stuff was phenomenal.
This Dan guy brought a picture of Babe Ruth standing next to Lou Gehrig...and it was signed by both men. That picture alone might grab up to 50k in the auction this weekend in St. Louis. Dan also had a bat that was used by Ty Cobb, and it had Ty's name burned into it...I assume when the bat was mad, e. So it really was Ty Cobb's bat. The thing even had ball marks on it. Dan also had a National League Championship ring from, I believe, the '87 championship season. Tremendous.
But the absolute coolest piece that Dan brought, in my opinion, was the autographed jersey worn by Albert Pujols in the 4/24/9 Cards/Cubs game. It was this jersey that Dan let me wear to do the weather a couple of times yesterday morning. The jersey had not been watched since that game, and it still had dirt on it. And...this is kind of gross when you think about it...I could still smell sweat on the jersey. But you know what...it was Albert's sweat...so I don't even care.
You already know I am a Cardinals fan if you read this blog. But my personal man-crush on Albert Pujols is made fun of almost daily during the baseball season by my Cub-fan wife, Emily. Wearing Albert's dirty, sweat-stained jersey while doing the weather was a highlight of my professional career. I said on the air that I was actually nervous about it, and it was true. I've done this long enough now that I rarely get the jitters.&nb, sp; The last time I remember having the jitters is when I did the weather while Barack Obama was in the studio when he was running for the US Senate. But I had the jitters yesterday morning wearing that jersey. Weird.
Here is a picture of me wearing the jersey during a commercial break in the studio...
7/8/9
We have some pretty cool stuff coming in this morning during the news. I'm not sure how it got set up...but there will be very valuable baseball memorabilia in the studio around 6 this morning. The run down of stuff is pretty incredible, including an autographed picture of Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig standing together.
The MLB All-Star game is in St. Louis this weekend, which is why this stuff is making the rounds this week. I'm really looking forward to seeing this stuff. Apparently Albert Pujols signed a jersey that he wore in a Cubs/Cards game this season, and it will be here this morning. Also with us this morning will be the World Series trophy from the 2006 season. You remember who won that World Series? I do. It was the St. Louis Cardinals.
There was a rumor that they were also bringing the World Series trophy from the last time the Chicago Cubs won...but they are still looking for it! Ha! (That one ought to get me sent to the couch tonight...)
On a much more serious note...state organizations are starting to feel the crunch from our budget woes. I am not sure what can be done to improve our state finances...but I am sure that these budget cuts are going to cost us a lot more than just jobs. The Boys/Girls Club is starting to shut down facilities. That is going to put kids on the street...and that is never good. I have a feeling that crime will be going up soon.
Is this current atmosphere really the payback for years of greed?
7/7/9
So I am back from vacation. I am refreshed. I am energized. And I absolutely don't want to be here! Heh. Coming back from a great trip is always tough, isn't it? Real life settles back in...and you have to jump on it. So that is what I will try to do!
We spent our 4th holiday with family friends in Laguna Niguel, and Dana Point, California. Our friends have a boat at Dana Point, and every year for the 4th there is a huge party on their dock...and it is truly a blast. We took the boat on the ocean, and watched fireworks from the dock over the ocean. Not a bad way to spend the holiday.
One of the nights...some friends of our friends, who are now our friends as well, had a party at their condo. It overlooks the ocean, and is absolutely tremendous. Emily, , my brother, and I (see...I learned!) were out on the walkway so my brother could smoke...and we saw Bob Gunton taking out his trash. We went to the same condo the next morning for a great breakfast, and my brother said he saw Bob Gunton brushing his teeth out on his deck.
Apparently the guy is our friends' neighbor. It was a pretty cool moment, as we are big fans of "Shawshank Redemption", and of course Bob Gunton has a key role in that flick. Now to us it was huge...but to everyone that lives out there it was not a big deal at all. Apparently you have to be a HUGE star to impress some of those people...cause they see actors all the time. Ho hum.
I am assuming today will be filled with Michael Ja, ckson.&nbs, p; I don't know if I have already mentioned this...but I am neutral to the entire experience. I don't feel good that he died, and I don't feel bad that he died. But after having several days to think about it...losing MJ is certainly a hit to our musical culture. Everything else that he MIGHT have been put aside...the guy truly changed and reshaped music not only in our country...but the entire world. And given that he was never convicted of anything...the tributes are probably well deserved and necessary.
Like everything else of this nature, though, I think the coverage of the events will be exhaustive and overblown. While it will be nice to hear the music that will come out of these events...it will get old hearing what everyone in the world thought of MJ. Have you listened to some of the old Jackson 5 stuff lately? MJ was mind-blowing at such a young age. I think the saddest part of his entire story is that things got so twisted we probably missed out on some tremendous things that he had yet to show us.
7/2/9
--I am not sure why this blog has been more serious since "The Hiatus". I certainly do not intend for it to be. But I am going through a stretch right now where I am not laughing as much. Not sure why, exactly. But this blog is written with honesty...so what I feel at any given time is what you get!
--This state budget situation sucks. It flat out sucks. Should we blame the lawmakers of our state? I mean...if you can't get your job done do you get to keep it? I know I will lose mine if I stop performing my basic functions. And yet lawmakers are allowed to go home before they work out a budget. That means that OTHER people could very well lose their jobs. Yet our lawmakers will still get their paychecks. I'm all for legislation that states if our elected leaders can not balance the budget 1) they do not get to go home, and 2) they don't get paid until the new, BALANCED budget is approved. I have a feeling that would clear up a lot of these delay issues.
One of the state funded organizations that will be hit by this is DCFS and the foster care system. My family has been heavily involved in fostering kids for over a decade. Foster families need the state funds to help pay for the care of the kids they bring into their homes. Anyone that has kids will tell you they are not cheap! And these families that open their homes to children that need a place to crash for a while might have to stop taking in kids because of the cost...without the state funds. Lawmakers...who wants to be the one to tell some kid that is abused at home that he/she can't stay somewhere else because you can't get your act together??
--A friend of mine pointed out to me yesterday that I should be careful announcing when I am going out of town. This friend brings up a very good point. With so many networking sites like MySpace, Facebook, and Twitter...and not to mention blogs...people have announced they are going out of town only to return home and find things missing. That is why when Em and I leave town we have someone stay at our house. This does a couple of things for us. First...it keeps the house secure. But it also allows our pooches to stay in the comfort of their own home while we are away!
We have an agreement of sorts with some of our family and friends. In an act of old school neighborhood solidarity...when someone goes out of town we all pitch in to watch over things. In the other place we lived in Champaign we lived next to a cop. Our new neighborhood has some cops living close by. It certainly helps neighborhood safety when people see squad cars around all the time!
--By the way...I have started using ( -- ) this mark as a way of breaking up thoughts. My writing tends to get scattered, and I don't want it to be tough to follow because I flow from one topic to the next!
So we are going out of town this weekend (but our house will not be empty!), which means no blog tomorrow. So we do "Feedback Friday" today! This grammar/sister situation has received a lot of attention. I have never claimed to be the smartest person in the world. As a matter of fact...I sometimes claim to be one of the stupider people in the world. Some of you agree...
From Phil in Cissna Park (7/1/9):
Hi there Greg;
I won't say anything about being smarter than anyone else, but I know what MY answer would be to your grammatical dilemma. I would not use the word "My" with "Mom and I". When you say "Mom and I" the fact that she is YOUR Mom is already a given. So, rather than say "My Mom and I went shopping", I would just say "Mom and I went shopping". See? That implies YOUR Mom and not mine or someone else's is part of your subject. Hope this helps.
Yeah...that does help, Phil! Thanks for the input! I see what you are saying about the potential redundancy of saying "My mom". But what do you do if you have a few moms? While not physically possible...it could be that someone has many motherly figures in his/her life that might lead to the need for further description. What about a mother-in-law? What if Emily was asking me a question involving both of our Mom's...and I respond with "No, my dear Lover. It was clearly MY Mom that made the turkey casserole"? How would you handle that situation, Phil?
Yeah...I know, Phil. I might just be an idiot...
From Shelley in Decatur (7/1/9):
Your sister is right, Greg. It is "My mom and I..." (Grammar was one of my better subjects.) Hope your holiday weekend is fun and safe!
Shelley
Thanks, Shelley. But I will tell you why it stinks that you are right. It means that my sister was right. I hate that! (Not really...but kind of.)
From Bruce in Decatur (7/1/9):
Hi Greg,
I have to side with your sister on this one. You wrote "Me and my mom took the flight." The proof is always to remove the other person. You would not say "me took the flight." I is also more polite to put the other person first. "Mom and I"
Your AM Director, Bruce
AAARRRRGGGGHHHH. Yeah...Little Sister, wa, s right. Okay! I got it!!
Heh. Bruce is our director in the morning. He's been at the game for a long, long time. Honestly...not many people could do his job as early as he does it, and as well as he does it. He has way too many things going on while we are on the news. If you saw the buttons in front of him that he has to separate and push it would impress you, I think. Not to mention all the noise going on around him.
Thanks, Bruce!
From Shannon in Decatur (7/1/9):
Sorry Greg, buy your sister is right, it should've been "my mom and I".... Have a safe trip!
Ugh, Shannon. Ugh. Thanks for chiming in. This is going to make for some painful conversations with the rapidly growing little sister that used to be wrong ALL the time.
From My Mom (7/1/9):
Greg,
I know that I raised very intelligent children, that's what has made life so interesting. This time, your sister is right, it should have been "my mother and I"; I saw that error right away but wasn't going to fuss over it. I'm glad your beautiful, smart little sister set you straight on this little matter.
LOVE,
Mom
It is official. This blog has just jumped the shark.
But on a sincere note...I am glad that I have the kind of relationship with my sister that allows us to dog one another in a very public forum without actually causing any lasting emotional damage! By the way, Little Sister, thank you for popping the cyst on my back while I was at your house the other weekend! You sick, twisted little biologist...
Hey...we still live in the best country in the world, despite our current struggles. Don't forget to wish the United States of America a happy birthday this weekend, and try to remember how we got where we are! Have a great weekend...I may or may not post to the blog over the weekend...sign up for the email alerts if you don't want to miss anything!
7/1/9
Today is my step-father's birthday. Happy birthday, Jerry!
I mentioned the other day that I will not be here Friday. We are headed out of town for the holiday. Given that fact..."Feedback Friday" will not be on Friday. There is one piece of feedback that I want to post today because I need some help with it.
My sister was the target of some "malicious" com, ments on this blog not too long ago. It is okay, though...because they came from me. But in making those comments I have gained her attention. My little sister is a smart woman, and has now begun proof reading my blogs, apparently. Here is some feedback:
From my Little Sister (6/27/9):
Greg- In the 06/24/09 blog...Should it be 'me and my mom' or 'my mom and I'? It really doesn't matter but I thought it should be my mom and I. I know you really don't make errors like that so if you are right (as you usually are), let me know. My reasoning is that you wouldn't say 'me took a flight.....' you would say 'I took a flight'. Please school your sister on this. XOXO
Cripes, Little Sister. Is this because I said you were fat?? In your defense you are five months pregnant! It might be the only time I ever get to make fun of you!! Being perfect, obviously, as you are in almost every single way...the moments to take shots at your expense are few and far between.
Okay...I don't really know the answer to your question. I think you are right that it should me "Mom and I"...but frankly I am just too lazy to scroll down and see what I originally typed.
When you are talking about the subject you use "me", and when it is not the subject you use "I", right? And as my sister pointed out...a good way to tell is by removing the other person to see if it would be correct. I don't know. I am so confused...
Someone that is smarter than me and my little sister please use the feedback form up top and solve this li, ttle mystery! The fate of the free world might just rest in the balance...
 | 
All content © Copyright 2000 - 2013, WorldNow and WAND. All Rights Reserved. For more information on this site, please read our Privacy Policy and Terms |
