Suck!

My new job ended just about as quickly as it begun, I lasted a whole six days there.

Let me tell you why.

I was given three days of training (Wed, Thu, Fri). Everything the trainer went over, he told us to write down but followed by saying, “You’ll never need to know this, but write it down anyway.” I filled a legal pad full of things we were never going to need to know.

I was told that on Monday morning, we would have a quick review and a short lesson on soft skills (aka, how to handle angry people), and then we would be on the phones, with coaches to help us when we got stuck. We were all very nervous and didn’t feel ready what-so-EVER.

So, Monday rolls around. We sat in a small room for 8 hours, waiting. We were told they didn’t have any computers or headsets for us to use. The quick review and soft skills lesson never happened.

Tuesday: We sit around for most of the day, and the other half we spend sitting by an agent taking calls. We have no way to hear the customer because we still have no headsets. All we can do is listen to the agent, and watch what they are doing on the screen. Not very helpful when you can’t hear the customer’s issue.

Wednesday: We sit around for about two hours and finally they give us headsets. They paired me with an agent who was having a bad day and it was obvious he did NOT want to train me. I heard him take TWO calls before they threw me on the phones by myself. I had a total of 10 calls all day, and on each one I needed help. I stood up and raised my hand, as they told us to do when we had an issue. Nobody came to help. I had no idea what to tell these poor people. On top of that, they pissed around and never told me what my schedule was going to be.

I found out from other agents that they never got their 50 cent raise coming out of training. Other agents had not been paid at all yet. And there were also a few who had worked a slew of overtime hours on weekends and were still waiting for their time and a half.

Thursday: I fucking quit.

There is enough confusion in the United States over Medicare, health insurance, premiums, prescriptions, etc … I refuse to contribute further to that problem. I refuse to lie to people.

Today is payday and I’ve yet to receive my direct deposit. I have no idea what time it should be in there, but if it’s not there by tomorrow, I’ll be making another trip out there (40 minutes round trip), to figure out who in the hell dropped the ball THIS time.

So, back to the drawing board. Back to trying to find an ethical job. I’m not even sure one exists, at this point. Really.

(sorry my comments are sometimes off. I have been using Chrome for my browser and for some reason it’s not cooperating well with Wordpress. I’ll figure something out soon.)

WP Remix!

Although I am a graphic designer who occasionally creates graphics for the web, I am always impressed by the amount of visually stunning premium wordpress themes that are available.

WP Remix is the ONLY theme on the internet that offers WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) page editor, over fifty page templates, dynamic codes, smart-drop menus, and more to help you build your website easily.

And with their affiliate program you can earn 50% on every sale, which is impressive as well because it is up from 20% at the start of last week. Be sure to check out the FAQ page for answers to any questions you might have. You can also visit the support tab or the forum for answers to specific questions.

Cellular Woes

Does anyone know an easy way to get out of a cell phone contract? We are paying so much per month for ours, and for the amount that we use them, it’s just not really worth it. We have looked around and found much cheaper options but we are currently bound by a crappy two year contract and we still have a year to go, it’s not up until next year in January.

Any suggestions? I have a feeling it would be pretty expensive just to quit the contract.

I’ve been shopping around for a better deal on cell phones … my current provider is AT&T but I’m thinking of switching. Who is your provider? Why do you like them? Who has the best offers?

Any information you have on the subject is greatly appreciated!

Bullets!

• I haven’t been keeping up with my diggs (on my main blog) or reading many blogs lately. Still sort of in that blogging funk that I described before. Just isn’t much to say right now.
• I’d like to go somewhere. A quick roadtrip. I have no idea where. Somewhere I’ve never been.
• I’m making use of the fitness center daily now. If I miss a day, I feel like crap. So, I just go everyday for about an hour and I’m usually the only one there. The privacy is nice. Three weeks ago, when I first started going I could only do 3 minutes on the elliptical, now I am up to doing the hills interval workout, 25 minutes on level 3!
• Still waiting on that call, or any call, for employment. Bleak. But still searching every single day.

How’s you?

Follow Ted on Twitter!

Do you Twitter?

Then check out Ted on Twitter, the founder/CEO of IZEA, which is the most wonderful site for paid blogging. I am an active member and I absolutely love being part of it. It's a great venture for me right now, since I am in between jobs and need to make some money in my loads of spare time.

Ted calls himself a serial enterpreneur who is passionate about innovation, a social media addict, an Apple fan and an owner of three pairs of pants.

His Twitter page is also a lovely shade of orange hues which is my favorite color!

So go Twitter away and don't forget to follow Ted!

10 Great Green Ideas

For those who think you can't afford to go green, think again. Here is a list of ten great green ideas that are easy and cheap. Check it out!

1. Each degree you turn down the heat saves 3 percent of heating costs, while each degree you raise the temperature of your air conditioner saves 3-4 percent of cooling costs. By changing the temperature by 2 degrees all year, you can save about 2,000 pounds of C02 a year.

2. Cook with a slow cooker or a toaster oven (or even a solar oven!) to reduce electrical use from kitchen appliances. For a meal that requires one hour to cook in an electric oven, and which uses 2.7 pounds of C02, a crockpot uses 0.9 pounds of C02 for seven hours, a toaster oven takes 1.3 pounds of C02 for 50 minutes, and a microwave only 0.5 pounds of C02 for 15 minutes of cooking. A solar cooker requires NO C02!

3. Switch to a laptop instead of using a desktop computer and cut three-quarters off your electrical use. Turn off the laptop at the end of the day.

4. Switch to cold water washing and save 80 percent on energy used for laundry and save an estimated $60 a year. Hang dry your clothes instead of using the dryer and save 700 pounds of C02 a year.

5. Plug anything that can be powered by a remote control or that has a power cube transformer (little black box) into a power strip, and turn it off, and/or unplug, when not in use. (Power cubes are 60-80 percent inefficient.)

6. Turn off the lights when you aren’t using them and reduce your direct lighting energy use by 45 percent. Stop using heat-producing halogen lamps (they can also be fire hazards). Install occupancy or motion sensors on outdoor lights.

7. Switch to compact fluorescent from regular incandescent bulbs and use 60 percent less energy per bulb and save 300 pounds of C02 a year.

8. Wrap your water heater in an insulation blanket and save 1,000 pounds of C02 a year. Insulate your hot water pipes.

9. Use public transportation whenever possible, carpool, shop locally, and ideally switch to a hybrid or energy-efficient car (if you haven’t already).

10. Keep your tires inflated to improve gas mileage by 3 percent. Every gallon you save also saves 20 pounds of C02 emissions.

source

Obama Rally Signs!

If you are interested in purchasing an Obama Inauguration sign, please visit obamainagurationsigns for more information. I will definitely order one, as my husband and I have collected all sorts of Obama memorabilia from the election.

The signs are 9.5 inches wide by 39 inches tall and have been printed full-color. The cost is only $9.99 each, which includes free ground shipping via 1st class USPS. The sign will ship within 24 hours after purchase, and you can pay through PayPal or Google CheckOut.

Own a part of history today!

I thought I left the snow in Ohio?

I woke up this morning to about two inches of snow here in Raleigh.

Bahhhh! I hope this is a rare thing or else we will have to move even further south, haha.

I hope everyone was able to catch the Inauguration and hear Obama's wonderful, inspiring speech. I hope this feeling can be carried even into the tough times ahead.

Yes We Can!!

Long term storage solutions

We recently moved to NC and I'm trying to downsize on the amount of furniture we have. We're also now trying to purchase things that match whereas in my last apartment, it was sort of a melting pot of different colors and styles.

I was glad to find this site which has tons of information on long term storage. Check them out if you are in the market for a place to store your extra things.

What are you reading/watching?

My husband and I just found a cool used bookstore near us called Edward McKay's. Not only do they have books at good prices but they also have a large selection of used dvds. What is best is that we can sell or trade our stuff after we've read/watched it. Nice idea for recycling!

I picked up these books and movies yesterday:

The Picture of Dorian Gray

Memoirs of a Geisha

The Awakening

and I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

for movies, we got:

The Good Son

The Girl with A Pearl Earring

and Owning Mahowny.

Starting your own business?

Click here to request your free copy of Retailers Forum Magazine, a magazine published monthly which provides offers and ads from U.S. wholesalers and online retailers.

Retail store owners and managers use this magazine as a main source of products and services for their operations. Perhaps it can give your business a boost too?

You can choose a single sample, or request a year's subscription.

Retailers Forum magazine has been published since 1981 as a source for small businesses to find real wholesale suppliers various kinds of merchandise to resell at their stores, flea market booths or internet businesses. A completely free digital version of the publication is available now, and at the first of each month a new magazine is published, and includes ads from wholesalers of jewelry, apparel, gifts, novelties, etc. along with informative business articles.

Work it Out

The fitness center in my apartment complex has finally re-opened. This is great news for me.

They only have four machines: elliptical, stair machine, treadmill, and a nautilus .. but they have a ton of free weights and really, to be able to work out there for free … you just can’t beat it.

So, I’m on the lookout for some good workout music to add to my iPod. Here are a few of the songs I have and it’s pretty good but I’d like some new stuff to change it up a little.

Live - All Over You

Coldplay - Viva la Vida

TLC - Ain’t too Proud to Beg

Blind Melon - No Rain

Timbaland - The Way I Are

REM - Orange Crush

No Doubt - Just a Girl

Katy Perry - I Kissed a Girl

Bon Jovi - Livin’ on a Prayer

Kanye West - The New Workout Plan

Gorillaz - Feel Good Inc.

Eminem - Lose Yourself

So what do you listen to during your workouts? Share your playlist .. I need some more upbeat stuff. Thanks! =)

Help Reinvent America

The past eight years have been rough, now just days away from Obama becoming our new President, there is some hard work to be done to bring real change to America. We worked hard to get Obama elected, and now we must work even harder by supporting him and helping as much as we can.

If you are interested, check out Ubercool and read about Reinventing America, where founder Michael Tchong, trend analyst and founder of Ubercool writes about what we can do to help reinvent America.

If you want to be the change you want to see, then read his site for information on virtues and values, transparency, recommendations for frugality, and more.

For the love of Harmony Farms ...

If you are in the Raleigh, NC area and are interested in natural food stores then you must check out Harmony Farms Natural Food Store, located at Creedmoor and W Millbrook Rd.

My favorite part of the store is their huge selection of wheat and gluten free foods and snacks and a large selection of teas.

Their vitamin and supplement selection is pretty awesome too. I could spend all day looking at everything they have to offer! They also run specials quite often and sometimes have events and classes that look interesting. The staff are super friendly people and really helpful when you need information.

Don't forget to sign up for their e-newsletter while you're at the site!

Attention paintballers!

I've never had any experience with paintballing but I know some friends who are into it, and their stories make it sound pretty fun!

If you are interested in the sport and want to find some information about paintball online, then you should check out pntball.com. They have a huge selection of paintball guns and accessories for unbeatable prices. Their best sellers are guns like Tippmann A-5, Tippmann 98 Custom, Smart Parts Ion, and Spyder Pilot.

They also offer free shipping.

Check them out if you are in the market for paintball equipment!

Healthier meals in 2009

I've started off the year cooking vegetarian meals for my husband & I more often. I guess I used to think that meatless meals would be boring but there are so many alternatives and possibilities out there. I am always on the lookout for creative new recipes for us to enjoy. Here's one I found online that I will have to try soon. It sounds pretty good!

Avocado Reuben

Give beef the boot and try our take on the classic reuben sandwich—made with creamy avocado and a tangy, easy-to-make Thousand Island dressing.

2 slices rye or pumpernickel bread
Mustard
Thousand Island dressing (recipe follows)
1/2 avocado, pitted, peeled, and mashed
1/4 cup sauerkraut

• Spread one slice of bread with some mustard, the other slice with Thousand Island dressing.
• Place the bread slices, dry side down, in a lightly oiled skillet. Top one slice with avocado, and the other with sauerkraut.
• Over medium heat, grill the sandwich until lightly browned and hot, about 5 minutes. Put the sandwich halves together and enjoy!

I found it on vegcooking.com =)

Promises Drug Treatment Center

If you or maybe some one you care about is having a problem with drug addiction, it can be a terrible thing for all involved. It is also important to know that their are destructive addictions can be an addiction to anything, whether it be alcohol, illegal drugs, or prescription drugs.

If you are seeking drug treatment help, you might want to check out Promises, a drug treatment center that treats a variety of addictions. Treatment can be arranged for 30 days to 90 days and beyond. Offered is residential treatment (which includes detox services), extended care and day treatment, outpatient treatment, and sober living.

This is particularly for those who reside in California because the locations are in Malibu and West Los Angeles. They have a core treatment team, one-on-one therapy and also family counseling, private time, support groups and continuing care ... anything you need to help get you on the right track. Promises has even been featured in several news publications as being not a resort rehab center but a real rehab center focused on making your life better.

If you are suffering or know somebody else who might benefit from this information, please pass the word. You can also reach someone there to talk about the Promises Center twenty-four hours a day by calling 866.871.3149.

Don't Abuse the Photoshop.

Lately I’ve noticed people who like to label themselves as graphic designers or graphic artists just because they like to play around with Photoshop and make cool, killer grphx to post on MySpace or wherever.

All I have to say to that is: Pthhhhbtthhbth!! Go get your degree and we’ll talk. Design is not easy. It’s a tough, competitive thing and takes much blood, sweat and tears.

It’s laughable to see someone using a Photoshop filter on a photo and calling it art. Not cool. I did that when I first began using Photoshop but now that I’m an actual graphic designer (and have the degree and work samples to prove it), I have seen the error of my ways and it makes my skin crawl to see how badly Photoshop is abused. In my classes in college, the only filter we were permitted to use was the Gaussian blur filter. And even that we could only use sparingly.

So here’s a cool article for everyone who is interested in learning to use Photoshop more effectively. I couldn’t have said it better.

12 Common Photoshop Mistakes and Malpractice

Read it over and then go do some tutorials! There are a ton of good sites out there where people have submitted quality tutorials to for using Photoshop in a professional way.

Superchargerpros.com

I've written on this subject before as you might or might not remember. When I was having some issues with my rebuilt Pontiac I was looking for ways to make it better and more powerful since I do a lot of traveling within mountainous areas, and I ran across this site Superchargerpros.com.

It looks as if since my last visit they have given their site an overhaul and the design looks sharp! They offer great prices on their products and also excellent customer service to help you find just what you are looking for to soup up your vehicle.

Anything from a Buick supercharger to a Mercedes supercharger (and Pontiac too, which I'll be looking at) .. they have what you need!

Check them out if you are in the market.

Lil Wayne Concert recap.

If you are a fan and have a chance to go see Weezy .. by all means, GO. He puts on an awesome show. Out of all the rap concerts I’ve been to, he is truly the best I’ve seen thus far. He really puts his whole heart and soul into his performance.

He had an awesome set complete with a dj, a full band and an awesome back up singer whose name escapes me at the moment but she was really good.

TPain put on a great show too with the stage set up like a circus to promote his new album Thr33 Ringz. He is an excellent dancer and even had circus performers … a girl dancing on stilts, a midget Britney impersonator and a mime who shadowed him around the stage. I guess what surprised me most about TPain’s performance is when he sat down and started playing piano … it was really good and completely unexpected.

Lil Wayne played for quite a while … coming out and doing almost every song from Tha Carter III and also some old stuff, from his Hot Boys days and also Tha Block is Hot. There was talk during the show of Tha Carter IV and also a collaboration album called T-Wayne (TPain & Lil Wayne together) in the works. His show had lots of explosions, smoke, and fire. He disappeared for a while and came back out and did A Milli for the encore and it was awesome.

When he came out and did Lollipop he wore the same black suit he had on in the video =) Sharp!

A new site for finding hot products.

Perhaps you need some assistance getting your hands on the hottest products and services on the internet? I ran across this site when browsing for restaurant management positions in my eternal search for employment. Guides to Manage a Restaurant was the first thing that directed me to hottestproducts.net.

This is a new service packed and organized with categories ranging from addiction help to writing opportunities and everything in between. They also offer a quick search feature so you can find exactly what you are looking for even faster. Just to name a few other categories you can find there: credit repair services, alternative and renewable energy, customer service software, exercise training programs, how to save money online, and information on creating your own website.

I will make use of their employment section for sure, which offers resume creators, job finders, and lists of government jobs. Since I'm searching high and low right now, I am glad to have found this site.

Also offered on the site are links to other cool sites, like Flickr Music, Essential Web Tools for Internet Businesses, and other links you might find interesting. You can find those just by scrolling down the page a little to the bottom.

Check them out if you are looking for something in particular or just want to browse around and run into something cool.

Decor.

It’s our first piece of art in our new place. A Kandinsky print. I love it.

I’m currently addicted to home design shows on HGTV and I’m learning a lot from them. The mantle isn’t decorated the way I want it yet but now at least I have some colors to go by =)

What I’m going for is a minimalist style throughout the apartment so it looks more open. I like the sleekness of minimalist decor and I also like tribal type pieces in bold colors. I’ve found some cool things so far on this site in the clearance section.

Any suggestions for decently priced art/sculptures/decor of whatever type? We may go thrifting tomorrow. Perhaps I can find something cool then.

Free calls!

Do you make a lot of calls? Would you benefit from a free calling service?

CallingAmerica.com allows you to make free calls and is the first complete ad-supported VoIP that lets anyone with a broadband connection make unlimited VoIP calls to any landline or mobile phone in the U.S. or Canada.

So, I tried it out and it works really great. I called my cousin in Duluth and it was easy and the sound quality was clear as a bell. And since it is purely web-based, there is no software to download or install. Anyone can simply visit the website and start making calls right away. However it is important to register, because then you can make calls without any limitations. Only non-registered callers have a duration limitation on their calls.

We currently use Skype in our household often since most of our friends and relatives live in other states and we all don't have the same cellular phone services, and we do from time to time have to purchase credits to be able to use the service. So in that case, we will use CallingAmerica instead to save us some money in this difficult economic time.

Click here to read what the New York Times had to say about CallingAmerica.com and the great service they are offering.

Warn me first, please?

Last night my husband and I walked out of Rachel Getting Married because the way it was filmed made us dizzy and sick.

The same way I like to know if a 3D video game is going to make me sick, would it be too much to ask to label movies the same way? It’s worse than any badly filmed home movie I’ve ever seen. The constant, whirring close-ups leave me feeling a way I’ve never felt before: it starts with dizziness, moves on to nausea and all-over warmth, to feeling like I’m going to collapse if I don’t get some fresh air. And when I finally do, it takes hours to feel like I’m back to normal again.

We wasted $13 on what I’m sure was a decent movie if we would have watched it on a smaller screen. If we would have known, we wouldn’t have chosen to see it in the first place in the theater. The same thing happened when we watched Cloverfield. I left the theater shaking, feverish and feeling as if I might puke, collapse or go into a seizure.

I’m researching to see why this happens to some and not others. I read some comments online where people have issues with the shaky camera action while others are not affected.

Is anyone else bothered by this? I would like to know if it’s related to migraines, epilepsy, or just a bad case of motion sickness. Please share if you have any personal stories or information on the subject.