The New Spam

It seems like the Spam I've been getting lately has reached a whole new level. The products haven't changed much,
as the bulk of them are usually related to male enhancement, rolex watches, or debt reduction. But I have seen some emails in my inbox lately that are a bit more sophisticated than the standard Spam.

The scams are essentially the same, mostly looking for verification of my passwords and account numbers. Some also try the approach of offering a job. (Working just 3 hours a week sitting at my computer receiving payments into my bank account does sound tempting.) The classic is still out there, of course: the exiled Nigerian royalty that needs help getting $80 million dollars out of the country. But this one that my junk filter didn't catch today is a different twist on that approach, and it just struck me as really funny.


Dear Friend,

You do not know me and neither do I know you. I am not desperate nor in
need of help.I only want to be sure you are the kind of person I can trust
with the following proposal.

I have been very careful in my selection and have taken pains to ensure I
will be dealing with a person that has the intelligence to understand what
I am getting myself into. From the little I have been able to deduce, I
cannot make you agree to partner with me on this but I can assume that
when you are in, I can trust you completely.

I am a UK based lawyer and I am bringing everything I have to the table;
my reputation and all I have labored for my whole life. The least I ask
of you, is for you, after hearing the proposal to honestly tell me if
you are up for it or not, without acting maliciously. That way, I get to
loose nothing and can walk away with my proposal and reputation intact
without actually divulging full details.

I bear the full brunt of any risk involved in this business which I cannot
do alone and you can be rest assured that you will be duly compensated
financially for your involvement. The thing is, anyone can serve but I
chose you. I pray you don't let me down. For more details if interested
by email(richardbillingham2009@gmail.com)

The fact of the proposal involves access to millions of Tax-Free United
States Dollars. It is up to you to accept or decline. I am waiting to hear
from you.Time is of the essence.

Yours faithfully,
Richard Billingham
richardbillingham2009@gmail.com
+44702 406 7973


Although as he states right in the beginning Richard doesn't need help, and even though he has carefully selected ME, I left his contact information in case anyone is interested. If it works out for you you owe me a finder's fee.

Dear Santa:

For Christmas this year, all I really want is new toys. Lots and lots of new toys. My stash is running really low right now, as low as it has ever been. I admit that I can be a little tough on them sometimes, but that's doesn't mean I shouldn't get them. Check out the pathetic state of my toys right now, you'll see how badly I need some new ones.

These are probably my best ones.




It's all downhill after those.




I'm a big fan of bunnies. I use them for training for bunny patrol.





I've been a really good girl this year. (Does "this year" include just the time between last Christmas and now? Because this:

happened before last Christmas. So did the incident with the tree.)

If I get some new toys for Christmas this year, I promise to be extra good all year long. And I'll try my best not to totally destroy them all the first day I get them. Thank you in advance, Santa. You're awesome.

Love,
Luna

PhotoHunt: Blue

I had to go with a picture from my trip to San Diego last week, because the sky there is just SO blue. Cloudless and just endless, gorgeous blue. The ocean isn't too bad either.

Someone there told me that they have 300 perfect weather days every year. I guess that's makes it easier to handle all of the other crap they have to deal with (freeways, forest fires, earthquakes...)

Not Intended for Children Under...10?

I Am Legend is on HBO this month, and I just recently finished watching it. I say "finished" because the first time I sat down to watch it it started to freak me out and since I was planning on trying to sleep soon, I decided to Tivo the rest of it and watch it later. It took me a few more nights to get through the whole thing. Not because it was a bad movie, but because it was seriously creeping me out, and watching something that makes my stomach all tight and my heart pound right before bed doesn't generally lead to a solid night's sleep for me. Once I got past the scene where--*spoiler alert if you haven't seen it, but it's not like you can't see it coming*--the dog dies, I did relax a bit. That was just something that was building and the anticipation and dread of waiting to see what happened to her put me totally on edge.

In a discussion at work the other day about the movie (after everyone finished laughing at me), someone casually mentioned that her son loves the movie and probably knows every line from it. Her son is just a few weeks younger than my daughter who is NINE. We also talked about horror movies in general, and several of the movies that were brought up I remember as being pretty scary when I saw them as a teenager (Halloween, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, When a Stranger Calls). I would never let my daughter watch them now, but again, my friend with the 9 year-old boy thinks nothing of letting him watch scary movies like these.

I think part of her logic is that he is a boy, and boys view that kind of scary, gory stuff differently. That may be true, but I still think there is a certain basic maturity level that should be present before a child is exposed to certain things. Trust me, my daughter is WAY more mature than this kid, and there is no way she is viewing some of the stuff he might be allowed to see.

When I was a kid I was never allowed to watch R rated movies. I don't think PG-13 existed yet. When we first got HBO I remember sneaking down to the basement to watch some movies in the middle of the night. I kept the sound really low and stood right in front of the TV, ready to shut it off if anyone came down. (Pre-remote days, of course.) My parents might have been a bit extreme, as by junior high I'm sure I could have handled at least some R rated films. But I think I'm glad I wasn't allowed to watch them at age 9.

Even though I'm not a huge fan of horror movies, I still think this quiz is really cool. After 7 minutes I only had 21 out of 50.

I Never Win Anything

Do you know anyone who always seems to win things? Someone who whenever there is a random drawing at an event, they always seem to have their ticket drawn? The person who knows nothing about sports yet just happens to win the Super Bowl pool? I think everyone knows one of those people. I am definitely NOT one of them. I usually don't even bother to stick around for drawings at the end of things, because I know I won't win. Just doesn't happen for me. I'm OK with that, I'm used to it. So I'm not really sure why I'm bothering to take a chance with this contest. Maybe it's because I didn't post anything about 9/11, and this is sort of my chance to do that. Or it could be because I have writer's block and have nothing else to post. If you click over and decide to enter because you saw it here, take pity on me and split your prize with me.

Baby Steps

I admire the way that some of my favorite bloggers really put themselves out there with some of their posts. From sharing a diary, to details about a colonoscopy, to intimate thoughts and experiences, it is amazing how open and honest they can be. While I'm perfectly comfortable writing about sports, my garden, my dogs, or Nintendo, I can't imagine being able to write about really personal thoughts and experiences like that.

I didn't even really want to post a picture of myself, until I was Simpsonized.
Baby steps.

Wild Wonderful Web

The internet has become so much a part of most people's everyday lives by now, that I think we sometimes take for granted just how great it is. This week alone there were numerous tricky and important questions that we asked the almighty internet:

1. How do you get chewed gum out of the pocket of a pair of shorts that have just been washed and dried? (This totally worked, by the way.)

2. Tomatoes are taking over the kitchen, what ELSE can we do with them? Decided not to do this, but tomato jam isn't too bad.)

3. Is there any chance I can get PSU tickets for just one decent game this year? (Answer: Yes, if I'm willing to pay a LOT for them.)

4. If I'm not going to a Penn State game, will I maybe get to see the Phillies in the playoffs? (Answer: An optimistic "Yes!", because that's what Philly teams do to you--make it to the post season, THEN crush your hopes.)

5. Will the Eagles beat the Steelers this week? (Answer: Yes. We should have won the Cowboy game on Monday night, and the Steelers are nowhere near as good as....I can't even type that the Cowboys are good. Monday's game took my hatred of them to a whole new level. Let's just say that after Monday's game I feel like we can beat the Steelers. If you aren't from PA you might not appreciate this take on the game, but I liked it.)

Isn't the internet handy?