To Be A Maven Or Not?

I recently received an email from a woman who is running a site very similar to mine. I guess you could say that we are running a site similar to hundreds of others.

She wrote me an email telling me that she wants me to change some words from my twitter profile because she's going to trademark her blog name and the fact that I have been using these words on my account for quite some time might keep her from getting the trademark.


The thing is that my blog has been around longer than hers. I really don't want to relinquish those words but I am concerned that this may become a "mean girls" flame war. It seems that there are many people out in the blog-o-sphere who want their way and they want it right now. If they don't get it they bad mouth you.

I wrote her back with the facts and offered her a change in the spelling. Well she wrote back and her is what she said:

Hi Cathy -
Thanks for responding. I did not mean to imply you knew I even existed or was
trademarking. I am in the application process currently. I was just surprised to
see it as I thought I had done an extensive search before I even chose my name last
year - wanted to make sure it was not already out there. So when it popped up I was
just surprised, that's all.

I did not think rewording would be a big deal since it was only in your bio and not
on your blog - so I was not meaning to ask you to make a big change in how you
operate, but if it is, i apologize, that was not my intent. Your change in spelling
is fine if you are comfortable with that.

I suppose I will make the change

Big Event For The Thrifty Maven

After posting all my things on ThriftyMaven and doing my tweets, I checked my email. I saw an email that had the word "about your post" in the subject line. I didn't know what to say. Was this something that I should be worried about. Was someone going to tell me to cease and desist? I just didn't know. I was pleasantly surprised to see the following:

Hi Cathy. I've been checking out your blog and saw your post about Home Depot's
Garden Club and coupon offerings and wanted to introduce myself. I work for Home
Depot's PR firm.

We're actually working to promote the Garden Club for Home Depot right now. Wanted
to see if you were open to running a giveaway or contest for a Home Depot gift card
on your blog?

Let me know if you're interested, and we can discuss the details.

OMG!!!!!!!! A sponsor contacted me. I was hoping this would happen. Guess you never know who is reading your blog.

I felt so good that I didn't even fret about the person who asked to unsubscribe. Not only that but right after one person subscribed another subscribed. Call that a red letter day.

It only seemed to get better. Darryl and I have been sweating about the whole job situation. Then yesterday Darryl's brother wrote him to tell him about a recruiter he knows who is looking for someone with rail experience. That would be Darryl. I told himm to send off his resume right away.

At the end of last week his resume had been sent to the hiring manager at Heil so we thought he would have heard from them by yesterday. There was still no word. Then it turns out that a recruiter contacted Darryl about a job located in Athens, AL. Darryl might actually have an interview. We'll know tomorrow. I'm keeping my fingers and toes crossed. Say a little prayer for us.

The luck didn't stop there. I asked Darryl to drive me down to the Publix because I had a question about a new contest they have going on right now. Just as we were leaving I noticed that the mail carrier had already come. In the box was a big padded envelope and inside was the book "Beloved Counterfeit" autographed by the author Kathleen Y'Bara.

I was on a big high with the whole Darryl might have an interview thing and now with the book win I felt that the day couldn't get any better. I was wrong. VERY WRONG.

We went to Publix and I took a quick walk around the store. I asked about the new Publix sweep and the customer service person had no clue what I was talking about. That was a good sign. I still had $1.26 on a gift card I won so I figured I'd blow that and then be done with it.

While I was up at customer service I saw all the lottery tickets and I asked about the Lucky 7 tickets. When she said they were $10 I blanched. I don't usually buy many scratch offs. Darryl asked if I wanted one and I said no because I was really just asking because they've been advertised so much. Darryl then bought me one. I was afraid to scratch it.

Would you believe the very first game I scratched had two 7's on it. That made it a $40 winner. I was thrilled enough quadrupling my money. These tickets have five games though so I wasn't finished. On the second game you had to roll either a seven or an eleven to win. I rolled another seven and an eleven. Each of those was worth another $20 each. So now I was actually up to $80. I just knew that was it but seriously that was the most I EVER won on the lottery. The next game had to be a 7 and you only had one chance. I scratched off a 2 and laughed because I expected as much. The next game you had to scratch three sevens in a row in order to win and I won another $20. This was great. One more game. I almost hustled it up to the counter to cash it in without playing the last game. Darryl wanted me to play the last game which gave you a win for any sevens. I got one more seven and that win brought me an extra $150. Altogether that one ticket was $250!!!!!!!!!

As you know I will be going to Chicago and I was wondering how my trip would affect our budget as far as me eating. How much should I ask for? Money is tight. Now I have my answer I will be using this money to buy my food while in Chicago and Darryl gets $50 out of the win. Not a fair split but one that makes sense.

Bea Arthur Dies at 86

Spokesman Dan Watt says the 86-year-old Arthur died at home early Saturday. He says Arthur had cancer, but he declined to give further details.

Lady Godiva was a freedom rider
She didn't care if the whole world looked.
Joan of Arc with the Lord to guide her
She was a sister who really cooked.

From September 12, 1972 until April 22, 1978 you could almost count on my family tuning in to watch Maude. She drove my mother crazy, my father constantly commented about how you "never see any beautiful women who are feminist." Then there was me, a girl on the cusp of becoming a woman watching as this strong willed woman made her way through life. She was never afraid to have her own opinion and didn't seem to sugar coat it for others. I wondered how it felt to do that because I so desperately wanted to be liked that I constantly allowed others to stifle my beliefs and dreams. "God will get you for that..." I'd wanted to say sometimes but I was a bit afraid that God would get me for being a bit of a bitch.

In 1985 I rediscovered several of my favorite actresses who gave me hope that my life wouldn't be over when I got older. My father would often retort that once a woman was thirty the "bloom was off the rose." The girls though never seemed to have lost their zest for life or love.

Thank you for being a friend
Travel down the road and back again

That song would begin our weekly get together as mom and I would watch the show together. Beatrice Arthur played Dorothy Zbornak and she was still a strong female character who really did have a heart and cared about her family. Her "mother" Sophia Petrillo lived with the girls and they seemed to have a relationship that was loving without being sappy. You could tell Dorothy would never abandon her mother no matter what.

I understood Dorothy having a difficult time being over her ex Stan. She had been with him for years despite his cheating. She would often seem to be over Stan and be glad he was out of his life but then Stan would show up and she seemed to lose that distance and become vulnerable, inasmuch as she could become vulnerable to Stan. Stan continually saw Dorothy as a comforting, reliable figure, even though he was the one who destroyed their marriage. Even in her last episode Stan was there. Stan, though saddened to see Dorothy move on to her new life without him, gave Dorothy his blessing while disguised as the limo driver who took her to the wedding.

And then there's Maude
And then there's Maude
And then there's that old compromisin, enterprisin' anything but traqulizin'
Right on Maude!!!
Right on Dorothy!!!
Right on Bea. I will miss you.

Another sad story involves a college professor here in Georgia. Three people were killed Saturday at a community theater near the University of Georgia, and authorities were searching for a professor in the shooting deaths.

The school's Web site said police were looking for George Zinkhan, a marketing professor at the school in Athens, which is about 70 miles east of Atlanta.

Darryl may not care but I do. I still can't believe this. Thrifty Maven was sited in an article on this website.

Thursday, April 23, 2009 (was the date)
Save Money, Save Energy, Save The Earth–Green Tip of The Day
By The Thrifty Maven
Styrofoam ones are made from something called polystyrene, a non-renewable petroleum. Help the earth by taking your own reusable mug with you the next time you go out for coffee. Many places even give a discount for doing just that. ... What kind of content would you like to see more of on ThriftyMaven.com? Job Search & Career Green Living (Alternative energy, Gardening, etc) Personal Financial Personal Anecdotes & Human Interest Saving Money by Making Stuff. Loading . ...
Thrifty Maven - http://thriftymaven.com/

Darryl says it's a ping back but still I'm thrilled beyond belief.

I worked a little on my container garden. Our cauliflower is really coming in great. I planted some of those free winter sown seeds. Most of them turned out to be flowers but one of the packs is for tomatoes and one is for cayenne peppers.

Here are the blog contests I entered today:

Prizes (5): Free night at any Hyatt hotel [excluding Quebec].

Prize: Hoover cordless stick vacuum.

Prize: The Mixer gift basket with Betty Crocker mixing spoon, spatula, measuring spoons and cups, whisk, liquid measuring cup and Betty Crocker Magazine.

Prize: Document wallet, three durable file folders, three document sleeves, document envelope, set of colored clip tabs, erasable marker, Post-It Cube, two OfficeMax rubberband balls and DiVoga product package with notebook, document envelope, file folders and jumbo binder clips from OfficeMax.

Prize: Brita Water Pitcher, Bissell Little Green Floor Cleaner, Tide Coldwater, White Cloud paper towels and Clorox Green Works cleaners (ARV $130).

Chili's Guiltless Grill entree free product coupon.

Prize: Pantech Matrix Pro smartphone and $100 AT&T gift card.

Prize: Earthopoly game from Late for the Sky Games (ARV $24.95).

Prizes (3): Hannah Montana: The Movie soundtrack CD.

On Any Given Day - Part One

During the school week you can almost always follow my schedule to the minute. I sometimes think of it as the part of Cheech and Chong’s Sister Mary Elephant skit where the student reads his essay about his summer vacation.

TEACHER:
Yes. Read your essay, please!

STUDENT:
Uh, I don`t have it finished yet.

TEACHER:
Well then, read what you have, young man!

STUDENT:
Okay. The first day on my vacation, what I did on my summer vacation, the first day on my vacation, I woke up. Then, I went downtown to a quiet job. Then I hung out in front of the drugstore. The second day on my summer vacation, I woke up, then I went downtown to look for a job. Then I hung out in front of the drugstore. The third day on my summer vacation, I woke up...

TEACHER:
Now that`s fine, young man!

STUDENT :
...Then I went downtown to look for a job...

TEACHER:
Now that`s fine, young man!

STUDENT :
...Then I got a job, keeping people from here and out in front of the drugstore. The fourth day on my...

TEACHER:
Young man? Young man? Young man!? SHUT UP!!!!! Thank you.

For me, my day begins right around 5 in the morning or so. I take the dogs out to do their business while I fill their bowls with food and water. I must be prepared to open the door, treat in hand, or a look of what can only be interpreted as disappointment comes across the big dog’s face.

Only after the dogs are taken care of can I pop the top of my MUST HAVE, caffeinated soda. I can almost feel the caffeine as it begins to course through my veins trying to circulate through my clouded sleep addled mind.

I fix something to eat. Since I go through over kill phases of eating the same food, I throw a bagel into the microwave by rote. No thought process involved. No decision making to think of. What’s for breakfast? Oh, I know, bagel with cream cheese.

I walk into the dining room and flip on the news and it’s Murder, Mayhem, and Piracy on the side. If it bleeds it leads. I stare blankly at the screen and for a few seconds as the buzzer on the microwave cuts through my morning grog. If I wasn’t hungry before I am now. I’m like Pavlov’s dog. The bell has rung and it’s time to eat.

I come back to the table and turn on my laptop. With bagel in one hand I check two of my email accounts. Some of the email accounts get checked once a month and another gets checked once a week. I scan the subjects hoping for the words “Winner” or “Congratulations”. Instead my boxes seem perpetually filled with emails promising to make me bigger and last longer. This is not to say that I don’t also receive emails that do congratulate me for being a winner. The problem is that usually these emails come to me from Kenya and tell me that my email was randomly selected and I won millions of pounds. All I have to do is let them know my name, address, and social security number and they will send me the money.

This morning I notice that I actually did win a couple of things. It’s been a few weeks since I have and I’m thrilled to hear the great news. One of the prizes is a $30 Pizza Hut gift card which is great because that means Darryl and I can eat out a few times this month. The other prize will help us wash our second story windows and I was hoping I would win that too.

Once I’ve checked my email I head over to www.thriftymaven.com. I check the web for any last minute freebies for Tax Day that I may have missed. Still disappointed to see that neither Starbucks nor Krispy Kreme are giving ANYTHING away. I type up my findings and locate and appropriate picture. Then it’s off to Twitter where I tweet about my tax freebie article using both my ThriftyMaven account and my teechbiz account. Then it’s off to Digg.

I really didn’t know if anyone found my site from that site. I hoped they did but I just didn’t know. Trust Darryl to be able to tell where my readers were coming from. I noticed that some people actually came from the Digg site to mine. I also noticed that I now have someone following my Digg posts. I didn’t even know people did that. This means that posting a Digg about my article is a MUST.

Not finished yet though because now it’s on to StumbleUpon. This is a pretty easy site to post a link to your article but still all of this posting takes time.
Since I woke up this morning earlier, trust me not on purpose, I should have had an hour and a half before my shower to get my contests done but no such luck. I check the clock and realize that I only have a half an hour maybe to enter sweeps before I head back upstairs for my shower.

So over to Online-Sweepstakes I go. Being a creature of habit I glance at the forums. Some headlines catch my eye but there’s no time for that now. I want to click on each link and read what people have to say but I just know that the sands of the hour glass are slipping through faster than usual.

End Part One. Come back tommorrow to find out the way I enter contests.

Blog Contests I entered:

Prize: Twilight DVD and popcorn from Shmoop.

Prize: Disneynature Earth-branded prize pack with canvas tote, reusable grocery bag, biodegradable tumbler, tree seedling, and more.

Prizes (3): Yogurt, water bottle, pedometer, kitchen scale and fitness journal.

Prize: Kodak ESP 7 inkjet printer (ARV $199.99).

Prize: Alex top and Andy dress from Trove (ARV $240).

Prize: $100 Men's Wearhouse gift certificate.

Prizes (3): Coupon good for one 100 oz. or smaller size bottle of Gain laundry detergent.

Got My New IPod Touch Yesterday

I won it a few weeks ago and I'm just so very thrilled. It took forever to sync it and figure it out, etc. My computer kept being stubborn. I still can't believe I won one. I've been trying to win a really nice IPod for awhile. This one even lets you watch TV shows on it. Way cool.

I've also been working on Thrifty Maven. I'm writing a series of article to help people who are looking for a new job. Each night I work on my posts so that in the morning I can just uplodad them.

Tommorrow is an important day. Contracts go out. I will sign mine and race up to submit it so they can't change their mind.

Here are the blog contests I entered:

One lucky winner will receive 3 Krispy Kreme Gift Certificates good for 1 dozen original glazed doughnuts

In support of Pamper's "One Pack = One Vaccine" campaign with Unicef, one randomly selected winner will receive:
* 1 six month supply of Pampers diapers
* 1 three month supply of Pampers wipes
* 5 "One-Pack = One Vaccine" campaign baby body suits
* “One Pack = One Vaccine” bear with branded onesie
* Thank you letter from UNICEF

Win a free ad spot on the popular blog for the month of April.

Prize: Fairhaven Health Dreambelly Stretch Mark Cream, TOKI: The Collagen You Drink, and AminoGenesis’ Tripeptinon

Prize: 10" Chocolate Chip Deep Dish Cookie Pie from David's Cookies (ARV $44.95).