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More stalker action

But NOT by the Bumpkin. Well, not the original bumpkin, anyway, it remains to be seen of what ilk the current stalker may be. I’m still getting heavy reads from Pelzer SC at IP 71.14.96.# (CHARTER COMMUNICATIONS). Pelzer, you really should aspire to be more than a lurker.

Other than that, it’s the usual suspects but I do have several unique pings from othersky.com. It is some sort of login portal. Anyone ever used it?

The mystery stalker for now is definitely Pelzer, SC.

Personal message to Pelzer: YOU! Yeah, YOU, lurking around misangela.com! Post a comment for cryin’ out loud! STALKER!!

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PSA: Avoid Yahoo stores [update]

I just ordered a Neat Receipts scanner from a Yahoo store. This is the second time I’ve bought something from a Yahoo store and there was something a bit off with the transaction.

In today’s mishap, they overcharged me for sales tax. I think these people (ipaperlessoffice.com, let’s just go ahead and name names) are double dipping for sales tax. You know, it’s only a few dollars, but if they overcharge thousands of customers $5 each, it really adds up! I sent an email to their sales email addy, but it will not surprise me if it bounces. I got a notification from them that the order was placed, but nothing from the complaint email yet. I’m not going to call them unless the email goes unanswered for 24 hours. THEN we’ll get into it.

UPDATE: They did, indeed, get back to me and they fixed the problem. They gave some excuse about their order personnel having to do blah blah blah by hand because of Yahoo, etc., etc., and “someone missed it”. Yep, and how much ya wanna bet that it gets missed more often than fixed? If Yahoo is that bad, dude, then WHY do you stay there, hmm? eBay is right over here. They would still have my money had I not checked the math myself. They can blame Yahoo all day, but they ultimately benefit, which is why they are still there. THAT is easy to figure out.

The other Yahoo store I had a run in with was EliteXtreme.com. They are total wankers and I had to practically threaten a lawsuit to get a refund for a couple of phone cases that they took my money for, then “forgot” to mention that they never have these items because they are “backordered”. Riiiight. After several calls to their bitch ass people in Florida, I finally got a full refund. But, again, if you gyp thousands of people out of $10 each, it really adds up.

Yahoo Stores has absolutely no rules. Ripped off consumers have no way to complain to the provider, Yahoo, about these sketchy stores. Yahoo offers no customer service, no email address, nothing. Only sketchy companies use Yahoo for their “ecommerce” sites because they can get away with screwing people over and there’s no recourse.

I’d forgotten all this when I placed the order with ipaperlessoffice.com today, but afterward when I was checking the numbers, I remembered Elite Xtreme and realised that the common thread was Yahoo Stores. Great. :-(

Do not buy from a Yahoo Store. EVER. Stick to eBay. At least if anything goes wrong on eBay, you have some sort of feedback and support system to back you up. There is a reason certain companies choose Yahoo storefronts. It’s because they are rip off artists who give internet shopping a bad name.

I just hope I actually receive the scanner and don’t end up completely ripped off. ::fingers crossed:: :-[ UPDATE: see above!

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Funny how things turn around

After our massive planning session last night, I think a thank you is in order! [This is not a snarky thank you, it’s 100% sincere. I swear!]

We have a ton of comics already planned out for the Drama Llama arc** and I’d like to say THANK YOU to all the chicks in my life who’ve driven me mad over the years with the Riding of the Llama. If it weren’t for you crazy bitches, I would have never gained the insights that in turn gave us such rich fodder for our comic. Also, I’d like to thank Caroline for introducing me to the Llama in the first place. :-) [She was NOT riding it at the time, BTW. Just pointing it out to me from afar.]

We couldn’t have done it without you!

Here’s to crazy Drama Llama riding chicks everywhere!! HI HO! ::raises glass::

** You may want to review Thank You Mask Man for this story arc!

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Drama Llama, indeed!

OMG, I was sitting talking to my Weasel about my epiphany about advice vs validation tonite and he said something that was so profound… He said, “You know this is the problem guys have had FOREVER, right?”

Well, now that he mentioned it, I guess so! I’ve been suffering for YEARS with this problem of not being able to tell when a chick wants advice vs when she wants validation.

When the bell rang in my head (BONNNGGG!!!) I had to laugh.

I am such a guy!! OMG, I knew I dealt with shit in a guy like fashion at times, but in this respect I’m a total GUY. This is what happens:

Chick blathers on about some DRAMA that is going on and asks “What should I do??”

I instantly register “OMG, she needs a PLAN!! I can totally do PLANS!!!” And skip over the validation part.

I then proceed to outline the plan I’ve thought up, but then suddenly realise that the chick has mounted her Drama Llama and is galloping off screaming WOOOO HOOO!!, waving her hat and generally ignoring everything I have to say.

Rather than STOP right there and wait for the chick to do a couple of laps on the Drama Llama and perhaps then be able to listen to reason, I plunge forth with my most logical, awesome plan…

THAT is the problem!

You canNOT try to talk to sense to a chick who is riding her Drama Llama. No way, no how. It’s friendship suicide. Yet, this is what I DO! OY!! Why did it take so long for me to realise this??

So, Nick has given me some great GUY advice on how to deal with the Drama Llama and its rider – which I thank him for IMMENSELY!! OMG, this epiphany has totally given us some awesome fodder for the Weasel comic! SQUEEE! It’s gonna be GREAT!!

Keep your eyes on Thinkweasel.com for the story of the MANual and the Drama Llama!!

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Birds and words

I think I’ve finally identified the mystery bird with the loud two note whistle: Eastern Towhee. It’s a male and this must be some sort of special call. Normally these guys say “dreenk your teeeeeee”. This call has been driving me batshit for weeks!

And for my thought of the week:

No one ever wants advice. It’s just a way to start a conversation. – Angela

I’ve been thinking about how many times I’ve mistaken a request for advice to be an actual request for advice. Too many to count. When I ask for advice or an opinion from someone, I kinda, like, want to hear it. But I’m finally beginning to understand that this is not the case for most people [chicks]. Most people [chicks] ask for advice but what they really want is validation.

Perhaps it’s a misunderstanding of the terms? Let’s ask the interwebs for help:
ADVICE
Main Entry: ad·vice
Function: noun
1 : recommendation regarding a decision or course of conduct

VALIDATION
Main Entry: val·i·da·tion
Function:noun
: an act, process, or instance of validating ; (see validate)

VALIDATE
val·i·date
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Form(s): val·i·dat·ed; val·i·dat·ing
2 b: to recognize, establish, or illustrate the worthiness or legitimacy of <validate his concerns>
synonyms see: confirm

I think the synonym says it all, don’t you?

MORAL: Don’t ask for advice when you want validation and you won’t get what you don’t want, which is actual advice.

Ask for validation when you want confirmation and agreement!

It’s confusing to very literal people such as myself [and guys] when we try to do as we are asked and end up in the shit for it. Seriously. I have this problem so often that I thought perhaps other literal people like me [and guys] might get something from my explanation of what I think the issue is.

Disclaimer: This is just a realisation that I’ve had recently, no need to get up in arms that I’m secretly mad at anyone – I’M NOT. It was ONLY a sudden insight, nothing more. Geeze.