Well, I got the call today.  My daughter and her boyfriend/technically now fiancee will be getting married at 5:00 pm on Friday, at their little cottage they rent in Louisa, VA.  I will be making the three hour drive to witness this moment, and in attendance will also be one of their good friends, and their landlords! 

I asked Jen what I should wear for the occasion and she said, "well, I just bought MY wedding dress from Goodwill."

"Oh, that's great!" said I. "What does it look like?"

"Well," she said, "it's like an old lady's night robe."

OMG...OK...never mind, I'll see it when I get there!  I have no doubt she will look lovely in it, but I cannot imagine it myself! 

So, a bit concerned that this was maybe going to be a PAJAMA PARTY, I asked what she wanted ME to wear.  She said I could wear whatever I wanted...but just not to worry too much about it...after all, HER wedding dress cost her $3.50! (yeah, that's my daughter!)

"Oh, and by the way," she said, "I was thinking maybe on Monday....."

I cut her off, "I won't be here Monday, hon."

"Really, where will you be?" she asked. 

"On my way to California for a couple of weeks." 

"Oh, " she said, "I was going to ask if you would help me with my taxes."

LOL!  So, the current plan is to show up in time for their wedding.  Witness the event. And then.....spend the next couple of hours filing her taxes! Now THERE'S an alternative to a honeymoon!

So, how was YOUR day?

As a youngster, and even as a young adult, I was always able to rely completely on my memory.  I was blessed with an excellent memory that allowed me to read things once, and remember them, where others had to "study" them.  Well, certainly, REMEMBERING and UNDERSTANDING are two completely different things, so eventually I DID learn that study was for a purpose OTHER than simply to memorize...but I digress. So, I got through life, relying on my memory...never carried a "pocket planner," never had to consult a calendar to see whether I was already booked for something.  I just knew.

Lately, though, I have noticed that my memory is best used for another important task...it is now NOT a memory of true KNOWLEDGE, so much as a reference to where that knowledge resides.  So, I know I can find the answers in this book or that, on this website or that, etc.  But when it comes to things I hear that I don't want to forget....things that I THINK that I want to capture, I know better than to simply rely on my aging memory to accomplish the task.  I have to write it down.  (Next stage of my evolution is BOUND to include actual ORGANIZATION of these little snippets of ideas and such.)

So twice yesterday during church, I found myself "taking notes."  This is not a place I would normally consider one in which notetaking was typical, or even acceptable, but it was either write it down, or miss the "rest of the message" while focusing on ensuring I didn't lose that bit that had intrigued me.

Last night, when I looked through my music for next Sunday, I saw my chicken scratched note and was reminded by it that I wanted to

• look up a hymn we used to sing as kids, but that I haven't seen in years....Breathe on me Breath of God, Fill me with life anew....is how it started.
• Ponder the thought about having the courage to push back the rock of life that traps us in our tomb and let God shine through...

They are on my to-do list today............
Hope your day is memorable in a good way...but, in case you are like me, take a few notes...they can help jog the memory when you eventually discover the notes! LOL

This afternoon my phone rang.  My daughter, on the other end of the line, lived up to her reputation, asking me a completely off the wall question.

"Mom, do you or John have any men's wedding bands lying around?"

Sure, why not?  I had to laugh....I guess this was her way of telling me they are DEFINITELY getting married this week! (she'll call me tomorrow to let me know the time and place to witness the event.)

I got to thinking about this time last year, and took a look back in my posts on this blog.  Sure enough, it was just a year ago that she was heading out to see HIM in France.....

Funny how time flies....I recall when she was just learning to walk....

From one year ago...repost.

I'm glad she's the one doing the traveling! -- jcarolek

When my daughter called last night, I could hear the excitement in her voice.  The trip she had been panning, the one to go see her boyfriend was on the horizon.  She was to be picked up at her house this morning at 10:30 am to begin the journey. 

As I write this, she is en-route to Paris, France, where Benoit will meet her. They will visit with his sister and her family, and his parents and visit with friends.  They will drive to Madrid, where they have friends and from there, two weeks from now, she will fly to NYC.

Another friend will meet her at the airport in NY and she will spend the weekend visiting with her friend, before catching a ride with yet ANOTHER friend to VA.  She will visit with us and her friends here for a few more days before returning to San Francisco!

She is her mother’s daughter -- that is for sure.  Her entire transportation for all of this cost under $800!  She will probably be exhausted when she returns home, but hopefully, it will be a happy exhausted!  I sure am glad she’s the one making this whirlwind trip!  At 23 I guess I could have handled it, but today, well, if I’m not traveling for work, I’d just as soon go fishing on my pond!  (Of course, I am not in love with a handsome young Frenchman, either!)

Good morning...may this be a wonderful one for you.  As I head out, I share with you the song that was in my head as I awoke...one that always give me pause.  I have the hardest time with verse 4, but it is also my favorite.

Summons Verse 4 2a...

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The Summons

1. Will you come and follow me if I but call your name?
Will you go where you don't know and never be the same?
Will you let my love be shown? Will you let my name be known,
will you let my life be grown in you and you in me?

2. Will you leave yourself behind if I but call your name?
Will you care for cruel and kind and never be the same?
Will you risk the hostile stare should your life attract or scare?
Will you let me answer prayer in you and you in me?

3. Will you let the blinded see if I but call your name?
Will you set the prisoners free and never be the same?
Will you kiss the leper clean and do such as this unseen,
and admit to what I mean in you and you in me?

4. Will you love the "you" you hide if I but call your name?
Will you quell the fear inside and never be the same?
Will you use the faith you've found to reshape the world around,
through my sight and touch and sound in you and you in me?

5. Lord your summons echoes true when you but call my name.
Let me turn and follow you and never be the same.
In Your company I'll go where Your love and footsteps show.
Thus I'll move and live and grow in you and you in me.

I wish you the a wonderful day, and hope that you will, indeed, be able to "love the 'you' you hide."

When we moved to Virginia at the end of 1988, we moved into a house that was in the middle of the woods.  With a gravel and dirt (heavy emphasis on the DIRT) road, a quarter mile long and too narrow for two cars to pass, as the access to our new home, we definitely got to know our neighbors well...immediately.  Three houses were serviced by this road, ours being the "end of the the line", not because the road itself ended, but because it became such a bog just after our driveway, that passage beyond was impossible.  The occupants of the other house on that road had to use the other end of the road to access their driveway.

So, it was quiet back there.  We had a little over six acres, and each of our neighbors had that much or more.  We had the occasional horse with a courageous rider venture down our dirt road, but otherwise, whenever the sound of tires on gravel filled the air, we knew we had "company." 

And in this peaceful setting, my children flourished.  They had more freedom to explore than I would have felt comfortable allowing them, had we lived in a neighborhood.  And in the spring, from early March, actually, they would spend hours in the woods picking daffodils.  Our little county of Gloucester, VA is or was at one time, the "Daffodil capitol" of the U.S.....well, maybe it was one of those self-proclaimed honors...I really don't know, but it is true that everywhere you look this time of year, the fields and the woods are fairly bursting with their bright yellow heads.  Friends of mine here actually grow and develop new strains of this spring favorite, a feat they have explained, takes seven years to accomplish.  Their creations are then sold to the bulb growers in Holland, and folks the globe over order their new varieties....carefully "encouraged" by Brent and Becky. 

It was not unusual for me to get home from work, to find my children returning from their latest foray into the woods, arms brimming over with their bounty of jonquils.  And we'd fill the vases with them and enjoy their beauty, indoors as out.

Two weeks ago, as we prepared for our final performance of our play, one of the other actors looked out the window from our upstairs dressing room vantage point at the American Legion Hall.  He said, "hey, there's a girl coming up to the building, carrying a bunch of flowers!"....Well, I looked out the window, already knowing who it would be.  It was, of course, my daughter...now quite grown, and a floral designer, by trade.  Sure enough, she carried with her a beautiful arrangement of spring flowers, and in the mix were some of those vivid yellow daffodils.  My mind rushed back to those memories of the children, emerging from the woods, laden down with their yellow beauties...and I smiled.  When she gave me the flowers during intermission, she informed me that she had brought most of them from her home in Charlottesville, but, when she and Benoit had arrived in Gloucester, the daffodils were so abundant, she just HAD to stop and pick some, to add to the arrangement!

Today was the annual Daffodil Festival and Parade here in Gloucester, VA.  I did not attend, as I had to go into the office to complete some work that was hanging over my head.....but I missed attending, as it also was a favorite of ours through those growing up years.  Imagine my surprise when, a friend, one who lives quite far away, someone who could have no clue about my "history" with this flower, sent me today a gorgeous photo of a stand of daffodils....not that crazy, naturalized look to which I am so accustomed, but a stand of maybe five, heads all facing different ways...a hand in the photo to steady their sway long enough to capture the shot.  A perfectly lovely thought. A perfectly lovely feeling.  And again, a door that opened the floodgates of memories.....

And I am left wondering at life's little coincidences.....why that photo?  Why today? Interesting. Beautiful.  Touching.

Many more on sale for only one penny at Judy's Corner.  Take one or many.  I always combine shipping to save you money on multiple items purchased and shipped together.

Have a great day!

Only a Penny -- Take a Few - qsell

Soccer Chick LadiesT Shirt L NWT White Cotton NEW Sport $0.01 WASNT ME SKUNK T SHIRT M NWT MEDIUM HUMOR NEW GREY $0.01 Thousand Forests T SHIRT T SHIRT M NWT NATURE Acorn $0.01 Liz Claiborne Collection Wool Top Blouse 14 Tan Paisley $0.01 Limited Too Plush Fleece Sweatshirt 14 Orange NWT NEW $0.01 JONES NEW YORK DRESS PANTS 4P 100 SILK BEAUTIFUL $0.01 KASPER AND COMPANY A S L BLACK BLAZER SIZE 10 EUC $0.01 LINEN BLEND LADIES SKIRT FULLY LINED EUC SIZE 10 $0.01 Well Behaved Women T shirt S NWT Purple Red Hat NEW $0.01 LE MODA SHORT SLEEVED SWEATER SIZE SMALL NICE $0.01 MENS SHIRT Button Front St Johns Bay Stripes Large $0.01 FASHION OPTIONS LADIES LINEN JACKET BLAZER 10 Green $0.01 DALLAS Ladies Skirt Suit 8 9 Black Yellow Lined Career $0.01 Lot 200 Baseball MLB Trading Cards 1990 Mariners Padres $0.01 SLATES MENS DRESS PANTS 36 X 32 TROUSERS SLACKS TAN $0.01 LEVIS TRAVELLERS MENS DRESS PANTS 36X31 TROUSERS BROWN $0.01 REED ST JAMES MENS DRESS PANTS 32 X 30 TROUSERS GRAY $0.01 JEFFERSON GREY WOOL DRESS PANTS 33 X 31 EUC TROUSERS $0.01 Beautiful Porcelain Ballerina Doll NEW NIB So Sweet $0.01 LADIES LINEN BLEND DRESS MAGGY LONDON SIZE 8 EUC Blue $0.01 PANSY HUMOR FLOWER T SHIRT S S NWT White NEW LARGE $0.01 CASUAL CORNER SKIRT SUIT 10 M Floral on Black Outfit $0.01 IVORY BILLED WOODPECKER T SHIRT M BIRD BLUE NEW NWT $0.01 KASPER A S L PETITE NAVY W SILVER BLAZER SIZE 8P NWT $0.01 Impressions Womens Ladies Formal Skirt Top 2 pc Dress 8 $0.01 Beautiful Atrium Skirt Suit Size 6 Summer Blue Ladies $0.01 HAGGAR MENS PANTS 32 X 30 TROUSERS CHINO KHAKI SLACKS $0.01 AMANDA SMITH DRESSES Full Length Jumper Size Small NWT $0.01 LIZ CLAIBORNE COLLECTION LADIES BLAZER SIZE 4 NICE $0.01 Sag Harbor Petite Ladies Pants 10P Pink NWT Belted NEW $0.01 Lot 4 Blouses Tops Koret Limited Chinos Baxter Wells M $0.01 LADIES BLAZER JACKET TAILOR B MOSS SIZE 8 PERFECT $0.01 HAGGAR MENS DRESS PANTS 38X29 TROUSERS BROWN POLY WOOL $0.01 Fundamental Things Womens Ladies Blazer Jacket 10 NWOT $0.01 LOT JUNIORS PANTS LEI A BYER SIZE 3 VERY NICE $0.01 St Johns Bay Cardigan Sweater Red Large EUC Ladies $0.01 LADIES SKIRT SIZE 10P Blue Lined EUC Petite $0.01 LOT JUNIORS SIZE 7 LEI Pants Jeans Limited Top Blouse $0.01 ST JOHNS BAY COTTON SWEATER LOVELY SIZE LARGE $0.01 WORTHINGTON WOOL BLEND GREY SKIRT SIZE 10 EUC $0.01

When WILL I quit making mistakes????  I have to wonder....I mean, business has been SLOW of late.  Not like before Christmas when I was enjoying a relatively crazy pace for my store.  No, today, I'm lucky to have one item per day going out in the mail.

So how IS it that, I get an order for two T-shirts...size Large, fill the order promptly upon receiving cleared payment....get the package in the mail.....leave positive feedback for my customer (a relative newbie)....purchase shipping insurance from U-PIC...and go back to listing everything I own for a penny a piece......and then.....two days after shipment, I get the CALL.

"Hi, this is (customer name), I bought two T-shirts from you and they arrived today.  One is the right size and the other is a 2XL." 

Oh, great...the DUMMY was on duty that day during fulfillment! 

So, I apologized for the dummy's error, assured her the RIGHT size would be in the mail that afternoon (yesterday) along with a postage paid mailer in which she could return the WRONG one.  She was very sweet, and I HOPE she will not be too badly impacted by the delay this DUMMY'S latest acheivement caused!

Oh, yeah, and I left follow-up feedback for her too...so she knows when the RIGHT shirt was shipped, and has absolute PROOF for anyone who reads her feedback, that the error was MINE!

Hope y'all are having a great day!  Check out Judy's Corner where over 60 items are listed for 1 penny......

Bloggers always enjoy free U.S. shipping and handling on Buy It Now T-shirts and Sweat shirts.

 Last week, in preparation for my trip to CA in April, in which I will combine a trip for work with a little personal R&R, I decided to get more memory for my digital camera.  I plan to take lots of pictures and only want to have to worry about offloading them at night, after returning to my hotel room.  I was presented with a couple of challenges.  My digital camera is about four years old, and as such does not take some of the larger memory sticks now commonly available.  And the memory sticks my camera takes were typically offered as "used" and as single items.

So I found a seller who had a listing for 3 512MB memory sticks that I knew would fit my camera.  They were listed as new.  He wanted $4.99 each and with a combined shipping for the three of $9.00.  Well, I also noticed he had specified that potential buyers could submit a Best Offer.  So, with nothing to lose, I figured I would do just that.  My offer was for all three at a cost of $4.50 each with a combined shipping of no more than $5.00.  I knew the postage on this package would be under $2.00.

I wondered if my offer would offend the seller.  No offense was intended, but I did think it was a nice way to sort of "share" with the seller what I thought to be realistic shipping and handling for this very lightweight item.  Within 24 hours, my offer was accepted and I received my invoice, reflecting precisely the offer that had been accepted.  I paid immediately and went about my business.

Two days later I was notified of the item being shipped.  Two days later (Wednesday) my package arrived in the mail.

• My seller had included some freebies that added to the weight of the package, and hence the cost of shipping...very nice, but hard to know when dickering on prices.
• My seller had shipped three memory sticks, two of which were the 512MB and one that was a 16MB one.

OK, so, now I was faced with a dilemma.  My GUT told me, the seller did not realize this error. My review of his feedback indicated this was maybe NOT too unusual.  Still, the guy had given me a great best offer (I thought) considering he had accepted a best offer that was about $5.50 less than he had wanted.  And all of the memory sticks worked fine....so.....

I logged into eBay with my buying account and sent him an eBay message.  I thanked him for accepting my offer, delivering the goods, well packaged and padded with freebies, and noted that there was a minor error with one of the memory sticks, but I was not overly concerned.   I just wanted to know whether he had any more of the 512MB sticks for sale.

From there, I went and left him feedback.
"Thanks! Smooth transaction. 1 minor error but great deal on best offer. Thanks!"

(Besides being redundant, LOL.....)

So, the next day I logged into my buyer's account and found a message from the seller.  He apologized, thanked ME for my kind words, and assured me he is sending me another 512MB memory stick at no expense to me....and I should keep the 16MB stick.  The seller has not yet left me feedback.  But that is not of concern to me.  The seller is clearly handling this with a good eye to customer service....and as I had already left him his positive feedback... he COULD have just apologized and carried on.  He COULD have presumed I was trying to scam him and challenged me on my notification to him.  Instead, he chose to do what I am certain he'd like to have done for him under similar circumstances....he made it right.

I know there are a lot of folks who have very strong opinions regarding feedback, when and how it should be left, and by whom first....but I am happy to "be first" as either the buyer or the seller in a transaction....because, before I LEAVE feedback I have made certain I would not change the feedback based on some eventual outcome.  If my feedback is still contingent in my mind...well, I just wait.  I have even waited nearly 90 days to leave feedback for non-paying bidders, struggling with WHAT I should leave, under the circumstances presented.  And when I finally left my feedback, or, in some cases decided not to leave feedback at all, it was with an understanding that I was happy with what I was leaving.

In my book, this seller deserves the positive feedback and glowing 5 stars ratings I gave him.  And I did not need to know WHAT his response to my notification was before I left him feedback.  He WILL have a return customer.

When I was a kid, we had a monkey....well, actually, we had two over my childhood, but the monkey of which I write is Chico...the number two monkey....the capucian.  When we moved to England in 1968 Chico had to go into quarantine for a period of months.  While in quarantine, Dad arranged for Chico to have a little "dental work."  Unlike our first monkey, Impy, a squirrel monkey, born and raised in the wild, but instinctively gentle with children, Chico reacted to all, children, adults, family, strangers, in similar fashion....if he was scared, he BIT.  And with those canine teeth in place, the bites were wicked!  So, Dad had the monkey dentist extract Chico's most dangerous weapons.

After the surgery, recovery and eventual release from quarantine, Chico was a different monkey from the one he had been prior to his Atlantic crossing.  He was decidedly NOT fond of Dad.  Now Dad was the owner and as such, was to enjoy a certain amount of respect from Chico.  But, as is often the case with animals, the more we try to be "friendly" with them, the more they prefer others.

Still. Dad found a way to "encourage" Chico to like him again.  He "established" fear of others, in Chico.  After a while, all Dad had to say was, "Chico, Look, See!" and Chico was on guard, bearing his canine-less, most fierce, "grin" at the latest bogyman.  We were all bogeymen in the beginning, but eventually, we learned to use Dad's trick to ensure Chico would crouch up against US, fiercely grinning at whomever we had indicated was the latest bogeyman!

This little tactic was quite useful in such things as catching Chico when he had "escaped" and was racing around eluding capture.  It was also a rather "fun" trick to show guests.....(we actually THOUGHT they were impressed with Chico and our tricks with him....when, in later years I SUSPECT, they were simply taking notes for what they surely suspected was an eventuality....the news reporters asking about "those Fletchers" after some newsworthy craziness had occurred....Yeah, I remember them....they were NEVER normal....I ALWAYS thought there was something REALLY weird about THEM").

But, eventually, the game of making Chico scared of others, to ensure he "liked" us better grew old. Chico though, was still inclined to go into his defensive grin stance whenever someone new crossed the threshold....and we spent a fair amount of time then, soothing him....assuring him that this was a "good person." 

Years later, as an adult, and parent of two children, children who had never lived through the "infamous Fletcher monkey experiments," I watched as my children and their friends vied for the loving attention of our animals....and I watched as the cat and dog always seemed to choose who they wanted to be with, rather than the one who wanted them the most....and I watched my children as they learned how to ensure the animals would seek THEM out, rather than the other way around....if they just went about their business, and did not chase after the animal's attention, the animal came to them of their own free will......but then again, these were not monkey's...animals closer in the tree to us....they were just dogs and cats....

And I learned from the animals something that I also find true for humans.  I will never successfully convince someone to "like me" by making them dislike/fear someone else.  And if I go about my business, living as I know I must to be true to myself, those who like me will naturally be there to share my world, and those who don't, well I couldn't enjoy convincing them to do otherwise anyway....so.....no matter how much I think I'd LIKE THEM, it is not something that can be forced......


...........unless we are all just monkeys.... and have been subjected to months of quarantine.... and had our canines removed.....

I took a nap tonight....I was up "late" last night and needed a little rest. OK, sure, I slept just about my full four hours for the day, in my "nap," but....we'll not go there!

When I awoke, I found I had sold some shirts (always a good thing).  In this case, it was three shirts....to a single customer...all the same design, but in different sizes.  Their selection was "Advice from a Sea Turtle"

Swim with the current, be a good navigator 

Stay calm under pressure, be well traveled

Think long term, age gracefully 

Spend time at the beach!

I like that one!  Actually, I like all of the advice from series (which is why I sell them).  I am trying to envision the family of three, all donning their Advice From a Sea Turtle shirts.....

I had a similar order before Christmas...it was for I think, 8 of my Advice from an Owl and 1 Advice from a Wolf....a variety of sizes.  So, I shipped as ordered and the customer was happy...BUT....it turned out, she had made a mistake in ordering the Wolf shirt...she had wanted all Owls....it was an easy exchange on my end and she was thrilled......

and I kept having that feeling....you know the one.....where all of the EYES are watching you???

Owls have a way about them!

Stay focused, be "hoo" you are 

Trust in a wise friend, live off the land

Glide through the dark times, be observant

Life's a hoot!

When I was a senior in high school, I, and my best friend, sang a song in my senior recital.  She was actually a year behind me in school, but all members of the advanced choral class participated in the senior recital.  Becky sang the melody and I sang the harmony. We are/were both sopranos so, the song we chose was one that suited both of our voices. "Today"....sung originally, I think, by John Denver.

Before the recital began, Becky and I were "running late," a not-too-uncommon occurrence for us.  Becky and I still had our purses on our shoulders and we KNEW we could not go on stage with them.  So Becky said she'd go put them up for us, while I told Mr. Gustin that we were "just about ready."  Thankful, I did my part, and had confidence in her to do hers.

We sang our song and it was well received.  Funny thinking about those words coming from the mouths of 17 and 16 year olds...LOL...they imply wisdom....something of which I am here to assure you, we were NOT major stockholders!

"Today while the blossoms still cling to the vine
I'll taste your strawberries, I'll drink your sweet wine
A million tomorrow will all pass away,
'Ere I forget all the joys that are mine today..........

.............

I can't live forever on yesterday's glory
I can't live on promises winter to spring
Today is my moment and NOW is my story
I'll laugh and I'll cry and I'll sing."

But you know, at that age, it was all about the "sound" of the song...and we liked it.

Immediately after the concert, I asked Becky to retrieve my purse (from her locker, was my assumption.)  Imagine my surprise when she informed me she had "tucked our purses under a table in the senior lounge...." What??? Even I knew that was insane!  Even in a relatively SAFE school environment in 1976.....

We ran down to the senior lounge and, as any sane person might have anticipated, our purses were GONE.  Well, the long and short of it was that our purses WERE recovered a few days later, and the money (all I had to my name at the time) was recovered because I had never moved it from the bank envelope to my wallet and the thieves were hasty in their examination of the contents of the stolen purses. From me, they got a single one dollar silver certificate, which I had carried for a couple of years as my "lucky charm" and four pennies!  LOL....the HUNDREDS of dollars in the bank envelope went undiscovered.

Why do I tell this tale?  Well, this morning I awoke with that song in my head.  the lyrics make much better sense to me more than 30 years later, and that song is forever tied in my memory to that perfect example of

• Poor decision making and
  
• Someone watching out over me!

So, today, while the blossoms still cling to the vine......

I hope you are ABLE to enjoy the strawberries, and the wine that IS the moment and let the moment live in you.

"I'll be a dandy and I'll be a rover,
You'll know who I am by the song that I sing
I'll feast at your table, I'll sleep in your clover,
Who cares what the 'morrow shall bring."

May your day be wonderful....and may your poor decisions be minor. And may you have someone "watching out over you!"

I believe I was in second grade when I learned the song in school. 

"He flies through the air with the greatest of ease
 That daring young man on the flying trapeze
  His actions are graceful, all girls he does please,
  And my love he has stolen away...."

Funny, I'm sure the words I recall are not precisely correct, but they are how I learned it and how I remember it....and I wonder WHY it was a song taught in second grade???

Another I recall, learned at about the same time, was about a train called the "Dummy"

"I got on the Dummy but didn't have my fare,
 Conductor hollered, "whatcha doin' there?" 
 I jumped up and made for the door,
 But he cracked me on the head with a 2 by 4!

On the Dummy,
On the Dummy line
Rise and shine
Step in line and pay your fine
If you're ridin' on the Dummy on the Dummy, Dummy Line!"

Again, I'm sure the words might not be exact, but that's what I learned....
In Tulip Grove Elementary School.....
In Bowie, Maryland....
In the year 1965...or so....

What on EARTH were they thinking?

Heading out now to "fly through the air with the greatest of ease".....or to catch a ride on the Dummy line....

I'll let you know!

How easy it would be for me to just say, "hey, this new feedback policy is no big deal."  For me, personally, on the surface at least, it represents little additional threat to the way I do business.  I have always left my paying customers positive feedback as soon as I print their shipping label.  I have "dealt with" the one or two scammers who have taken advantage of my practices over the years with honesty, and have never been hateful toward even these scammers.  For I truly believe that the victim in any such hateful exchange is me.

So, it isn't that I think buyers are inherently likely to slam me after May 1.  They could be slamming me today, if they were so inclined.  I offer them this opportunity of my own free will.  It's just the way I do business.

HOWEVER.....it bothers me immensely that other sellers with JUST as viable positions on how to use the feedback system, are having THEIR choices removed.  Add to this the fact that so much is now being based on the feedback and those anonymous DSR's and it makes the whole new policy one that seriously stinks like three week old garbage.

My PERSONAL distaste for the new policy is primarily centered around two issues:

1. Taking away the seller's voice entirely
2. Allowing non-paying bidders to affect our DSR's

eBay....
Where are you?
You are PEOPLE too...
What, pray tell, ARE YOU THINKING????

So Mom just called.  It seems she has been wondering what we have been "up to."  It's been a couple of months since I called, or since we chatted on the phone.  And my travel schedule has not been conducive to visiting her in her Maryland home.  And, I could hear the tone of voice that suggested I should feel a wee bit guilty that my 24 year old daughter has not yet told her grandmother what her current life "plans" are.

OK, Mom, I AM guilty of not communicating as often as I should...(Mom IS my "favorite" spammer, so I have a "feeling" we are communicating, even though I never forward, or respond to the spam).  But, I think the adults, who are my children, deserve the right to share their lives with whomever and however they please.  (I informed her nicely.)

"Mom, Jen is VERY busy trying to figure out her OWN life right now....she is WORKING a bazillion hours a week....she is WORKING on a relationship with a wonderful young man who is not a US citizen and therefore presents MANY legal hurdles...and she is WORKING to afford the medical, and dental bills that are a reality of living without insurance....she has no Internet access in the cottage she is renting and she really has no time to write anyway....when her life settles down, she'll share with everyone, I'm sure.  So, for now, just know that she will share HER information, when she is ready to and I don't think it my place to share it."

Mom agreed and assured me she wasn't trying to play the role of the neglected Grandmother. I guess it's hard when you are retired and more sedentary than not.  The whirling dervish that WAS your life, is somehow replaced with the routines, the trips to the doctors, the trips to the grocery store, the trips the the doctors, the Sunday morning outing to church, the trips to the doctors.....and all the while, about two hundred miles away, your granddaughter, in the midst of HER whirling dervish life, is thankful to be able to rest her head on the pillow at night and catch a few hours of sleep.....

I guess it's all a matter of perspective, but I also noticed she didn't give me the third degree about Stephen...LOL...when I mentioned that he and Kristen are doing fine and are on target for their October wedding, she responded, "Oh, yeah, I already have THEM on the calendar!"  So, then I knew the truth....the whole call was about finding out whether Jen and Ben will be wed any time soon....LOL....I told her that maybe...next week....and then again....maybe not!

So, this, in my convoluted family, is known as the "information chain." 

The QUESTION remains....how strong of a link am I?

Last night, upon reading the day's announcements in which I learned that ALL items which CAN be digitally transmitted to the buyers will have to be listed using the "classified ad" format, I posted looking for opinons. I, personally, found this to be in direct opposition with the eBay stated "purpose" behind the other recent policy changes.

I quote from the January 28, 2008 announcements, "Our goal for these changes is to continue to improve the overall experience for our customers – both buyers and sellers. That's why we've decided to make fundamental changes in big areas like pricing, seller standards and incentives, and Feedback."

So, I wondered, how is this most recent change supposed to improve either the buyer's or the seller's experience? Requiring the transactions advertised in the classified ads, requiring the transactions themselves to take place OFF eBay means, to me at least, a larger opportunity for scamming both from buyers and from sellers.  At any rate, I posted, asking for comments and I got an earful. 

Something that seems askew to me is the presumption that those challenging the changes to the policies are being "negative."  That somehow a "positive person with a positive outlook" will succeed where a "negative person with a negative outlook" will fail.  Well, first, let me say that I think it our OBLIGATION to discuss and challenge changes being made to our ability to earn money on eBay....from a seller's perspective, and our ability to find unique and creative items on an secure trading forum, from a buyer's perspective.  Nothing about challenge is inherently negative.

I, for one, am rather thankful that my forefathers challenged "beliefs" and policies, from "the flat earth" to "the right to die."  I think this is NOT negative.  I think it is HEALTHY.  I also think I learn a great deal from those willing to discuss intelligently.  I'm not into name calling or put downs of any sort.  But how can it be construed as negative that I would like to understand WHY I will no longer be able to go to an "eBay certified" store front designer to customize my store, with the protection of eBay for buyers and sellers?

I understand that each member's experience is different, and I DO learn from their willingness to share.  And, while it MIGHT seem negative to some, it certainly FEELS a lot more positive to me than slamming one another, which seems to be a favorite pastime on the blogs of late.

So pardon me, if I appear negative.  I am actually TRYING to find a positive light to shine on this most recent change.  And I KNOW that we can make a difference, however small, if we at LEAST discuss the topic and consider viable solutions to the stated problem eBay is trying to correct with this change.

The stated problem, " Digital goods are often reproduced at little to no cost to the seller. On eBay, this creates the potential for Feedback Manipulation (both real and perceived). To preserve the integrity of the Feedback system, effective March 31 all goods that can be digitally downloaded or transferred electronically must be listed using the Classified Ads format."

The reality....the ease of reproduction of the goods have absolutely nothing to do with it.  It IS the willingness to SELL the items for pennies that is the problem...So, FIX the PROBLEM eBay....don't continue to push the creative members, those willing to put forth the HARD work to create their ebooks, their website designs, their storefronts, their screen savers, their music, their software, out to door....how hard is it to decide what PRICE an item must sell for in order to earn feedback???

Positive, or negative...you decide...I'm all ears.

This new policy, effective March 31, 2008 is not exclusive to eBooks, as I read it, but to ANY product CAPABLE of being digitally delivered.  SOOOOOO...  this mean that storefronts, blog style sheets, auction templates, screen savers, software, and other digitally delivered items will have to be sold via the Classified Ad listings, right?

"To preserve the integrity of the Feedback system, effective March 31 all goods that can be digitally downloaded or transferred electronically must be listed using the Classified Ads format.

Using the Classified Ads format, sellers receive a 30-day ad at a fixed price. This solution enables sellers to continue to market their digital goods on eBay; however, because Classified Ad listings are a lead generation tool and do not result in transactions that go through eBay, Feedback cannot be exchanged between buyer and seller.

Sellers who wish to continue to offer digital goods can do so by selecting the Everything Else>Information Products category in the Sell Your Item form and choosing the Classified Ads format (not auction-style or fixed price)."

Very interesting indeed...

Tho