In my business, I’m technically an independent contractor. That means that I don’t get to have holidays off, unless I’m willing to go without the pay. So, tomorrow, the day off for Veteran’s Day, I can’t really take off. One, I don’t think any of my clients will be taking it off, and two, I can’t really afford it. I do take off major holidays, such as Christmas and Thanksgiving – mainly because I simply can’t work and make the holiday work for my my family. And so. Tomorrow, I will be working with both the kids home from school. Between trying to keep them happy and fed and not fighting and quiet so their dad can sleep for work, and you know, working, it should be an interesting day.
Is This for Real?
I get a lot of pitches. LOTS of pitches. I chuck them daily, and only read the ones addressed to ME, not “Dear Ms.,” “Hi,” or “Dear Mommyblogger.” You see I’m pretty clear on my blog, if you know where to look (and I would think PR folks would know where to look), that I do have a review blog, where to contact me, who I am, etc. I tend to only read the ones from networks I belong to and work with, or the ones addressed to, “Dear Michele.”
This one was addressed to ME. So I opened it. Here it is in all its glory.
Dear Michele,
Happy Holidays!
We’d love your opinion on our new e-book/app for kids, “The Worst Book Ever!” The description is below.
Thank you!
[REDACTED]
———————————The Worst Book Ever!
(available for iPhone and iPad via iTunes)Does your child love to eat mushrooms, apply sunscreen, do chores, and go to bed early? We didn’t think so. But they’ll still love this highly misguided story, filled with all the things your kids dread doing. The interactive format allows them to experience:
* the excitement of extracting splinters
* the exhilaration of flossing teeth
* the thrill of portable potties
* the adrenaline rush of a piano recital
* the hilarity of visiting the doctor
* and so much more!If you’re not convinced already, take a look at what readers are saying:
“Whatever you do, don’t buy this book.”
“I thought it would be bad, but I had no idea.”
“Lives up to its title.”
“If you’re looking for fine children’s literature, keep looking.”
“It was worse than even my very lowest expectations.”
There was no link. There was nothing else. I was thinking… Joke? Clever marketing attempt? Frankly, I don’t get it and am left scratching my head in a WTF moment.
Monday Love
Nothing is wrong, per se. My father and assorted clients are just making today a real Monday, with a capital M, you know? I needed a break, so I thought I’d post something that Carmen posted on her anniversary that really spoke to me. She found it on Pinterest, so hopefully the attribution is correct.
He’s not perfect. You aren’t either, and the two of you will never be perfect. But if he can make you laugh at least once, causes you to think twice, and if he admits to being human and making mistakes, hold onto him and give him the most you can. He isn’t going to quote poetry, he’s not thinking about you every moment, but he will give you a part of him that he knows you could break. Don’t hurt him, don’t change him, and don’t expect more than he can give. Don’t analyze. Smile when he when he makes you happy, yell when he makes you mad, and miss him when he’s not there. Love hard when there is love to be had. Because perfect guys don’t exist, but there’s always one guy that is perfect for you.
~Bob Marley
With that said, I love my husband.
Blargh
So… Today, I have to somehow balance work and pre-cooking/baking for tomorrow.
Work isn’t going well. I have gotten a lot ready on Poe’s old computer… But there are certain things. Such as I need a .pdf editor. I have one, that works, on disk. Except that the CD drive on the old computer won’t, you know, OPEN. I tried downloading a free one, except that it didn’t do what it said it would. I would convert something to .pdf, save it on a certain filename, on my desktop – and then it wouldn’t be there, and a search on the system shows that filename not existing. I cannot believe I’m going to have to PURCHASE a downloadable, when I have one, and this computer is merely temporary.
And then I have to do the setups all over again when my new computer, Daisy comes.
I’m so frustrated.
Mercury is supposedly going into retrograde. I’m blaming it.
The Last Couple of Days
So… Why did I sort of disappear? A migraine, yes. It was a sort of confluence of events that led that way.
First, the headache itself had been coming on for days. I’m very sensitive to weather pressure which I think is something to do with my ears and sinuses. Since we’d had rain “coming” for days, I was feeling it, and I knew I wouldn’t get relief from that until it actually did, indeed rain. Which it did all day yesterday.
Then Friday. Oy. Around 3pm, I was working, and I went to reach from my soda. I was paying attention to what I was reading on my screen, and my hand swept my soda across my laptop (pink, named Betsy). A full 12 ounce glass, and I spilled it ALL. I’ve owned a computer, as well as used company computers, for 20 years. Aside from feeling old, I have never ever ever spilled on my computer. Frantic paper toweling. Frantic drying and opening and tipping to actually POUR out the soda. After all that, my poor Betsy wouldn’t even turn on.
I work from home. All my work is on my computer. I wasn’t worried about my files – I use Carbonite, and my stuff is constantly backed up. But the physical computer itself… I need it to work. So I was faced with two problems. 1) Could I pay for a computer. 2) How soon could I get it, as I had to work Monday for sure. I actually still had work to do Friday, but could be put off. Since I’m taking off Thursday and Friday, I HAD to work Monday – Wednesday. I had enough money in my save for taxes account. Hate to use it, but frankly the computer is more important for the moment. Phew. OK, so can I access it right away? Call ING, since I leave that money in that account, since it’s a no-touch account. Yes, I can, here’s how. OK. Phew. So now… How do I get a computer fast.
My normal M.O. is to take time to figure out what it is I want, best price for it, search for additional coupons, and order online. That’s all well and good, but I can’t get it to me by Monday if I do that. Which means a Brick and Mortar store. ::shudder::
I don’t like people, crowds, or salespeople. So I made Poe come with me. We went to the nearest store Friday night. I made a decision. They didn’t have any in stock, but they could ship it for free! That didn’t help me solve the whole issue of being able to work on Monday. Oh, but look at this one – $200 more – not in stock… After the 4th not in stock, the salesman trying to jury-rig something together, Poe looked at me and said, “Let’s go home. We’ll try somewhere else tomorrow.”
I was terribly disappointed. By this time it was dark, and lights can trigger my headaches as well. We stopped for dinner, and then went home. On a whim, Poe tried to turn Betsy on. And she did. Sigh…
But I can’t trust her. I have no idea the extent of damage that might have been done and I need reliability. So, I went ahead and shopped online for what I want, and am waiting for shipment. So, I just need Betsy to last until then. Her sister will be named Daisy.
Friday night I went to bed, a little upset, and with the nagging headache I’d had for a week. At 4am, I awoke to a full-fledged migraine. I downed medicine and staggered back to bed. When Poe got home from work, I let him know what was going on so he could handle things. I ended up sleeping until 5pm. Sleeping isn’t quite the right word. Twilight sleep, I guess, getting up every three hours or so for more medicine. The only thing that helps is trying to stay unconscious, a cave-like atmosphere, and physical counter-pressure. In this case, as usual, it was my right temple. So I slept on my right side with the pillow wrapped around my head. I got up around 5pm with the headache gone, and in the hangover phase, where I’m not quite there, and dealing with a fog. But since I slept ALL.DAY.LONG… That night I couldn’t get to sleep again until 4am. Which made the next day, Sunday, a difficult day to get anything done.
So… I’m grateful. Why? I found to money to replace my machine. I can work today, Monday. The migraine, and after effects, happened when I didn’t have to work. I’m grateful.
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