Saying GoodBye to Paid Posting

I have been with PayPerPost since January, and until recently I could find 5 or 6 opportunities a week to write about. But now, something has changed. It has been 30 days and counting since there have been any opportunities available for me. I think I know why. A few weeks back I accepted an opportunity. The description was a little vague, but I can make most topics work with this blog. It is only after I accept the job that I find out I am supposed to blog about a para-military gun accessory site! There is no way I can make that fit into this blog! So I didn’t write the post and now I am not getting any more offers. So I am saying goodbye to all paid posting services. Goodbye to Smorty, goodbye to Blogvertise, and especially goodbye to PayPerPost. Goodbye to writing posts that no one really wants to read. goodbye to $5 for 30 minutes worth of work. And, hopefully, goodbye to PageRank 0.

Now, I know it wasn’t all that long ago I wrote PR0 and Proud of It. In that post I wrote that I wasn’t going to let Google tell me what I can or can’t do with MY blog. And that is still true. I think what is happening here is I am evolving as a blogger. I am finding that you can’t depend on other people/companies/websites to help you make money or succeed as a blogger. If you do you have to play by their rules. I am not that kind of person. I like to make my own rules. So now I am putting into play what I always knew was true.

This blog is about me and what I want. I just need to decide what that is.

I’d like to hear about your experiences with Paid Posting. Good or Bad.

I Love Contests!

I love Blogging contests, because it is so easy to win prizes. Earlier I blogged about the Hochstadt’s Party Contest. I got lots of entries just for writing a blog post about the contest, and for commenting on the blog. Well, I just found out that I won 3 prizes! Woo Hoo!

I won a One Buck Wiki pages from Max at SiteHoppin. My page is Webmaster-Blog, more about that later!
Plus I won a signed book by Robert G Allan from Leisa Watkins at Dream Act Plan Believe. (The book is in the mail, I can’t wait to read it! And, from Martin Russell at Word of Mouth Marketing I won an account with 10 cards from SendOutCards.com. (I’ll be sending one to you Mom!)

This is the second time in as many months that I have won prizes in blog contests. Last month I won $10, so you know I’ll be posting about more contests as they come up.

Cheers!

The Joy of Long Term Goals

Several years ago I was talking to my Pastor. We were talking about education and I was bemoaning the fact that I wasn’t going to be able to get a college degree. I had married young and had children. I was running a very successful business, I had an active family and social life. “With everything I have going on I could only take a class or two a year.” I said to him. “It would take me 10 years just to get my AA (2 year) degree!

“That is true” he answered,”But ten years are going to go by no matter what. And in 10 years either you will have that college degree or you won’t”.

Well, it only took 6 years, but last night I took my last final and I have now completed all the requirements for an AA degree in Accounting, and an AA in Business Administration!

Why is it, that people, including myself, think that just because something will take a long time, it isn’t worth doing? I do a lot of financial counseling with people and they are always saying things like, “I have so much credit card debt, it will take years to pay off, so why even try?” Or conversely, “It would take forever to save up the money for that vacation, so I’ll just put it on the credit card.” By thinking this way people find themselves 5, 10, 20 years later in the same spot they are now AND, they are missing out on the joy of delayed gratification.

Yes, I said the JOY of delayed gratification. Today everybody seems to want everything right now, and they are willing to take on outstanding amounts of debt to do that. So once the fun of the impulse purchase is over, all you are left with is the stress of trying to pay the debt.

For our 25th wedding anniversary (no I’m not that old, I told you I married young!) my husband and I wanted to take a fabulous vacation. First class all the way. We could have used the credit cards, or taken out a loan to pay for the vacation, after all, we deserved it! Staying together for 25 years isn’t easy! But instead we decided to save up for our vacation.

For 2 years I planned and saved and saved an planned. I had a great time researching where we would go and what we would do. It was exciting to see our savings grow. And it was easy to bypass all those little extras, so the money could go towards our vacation. I had a great time planning the vacation. In some ways, the anticipation was more fun than the actual trip itself!

While I was researching, planning and saving for our vacation, my husband was doing the same for a great camera to take with us. We ended up with a great deal on a fabulous camera.

In the end we spent 2 marvelous weeks in Belize. A country I didn’t even know existed before I started my research. And the best part is, when we came home there were no bills to pay. I don’t even have any credit card bills to remind me of my vacation, all I have are some wonderful photos!

So the next time you think you aren’t going to do something because it will take too long, just remember, the time is going to go by anyway! 10 years from now will you still be bemoaning the fact that you don’t have a college degree, or your credit cards paid off or…?

Random Thoughts About Steamers and Food

bamboo steamer and peas

Today while I was blog surfing it seemed like every blog I stopped at had pictures of food.  It seemed like today was  a good day to go along with the crowd.

What you are looking at are two great presents that I got last week while my parents were visiting.  My Dad brought fresh peas from his garden, and my Mom bought me the bamboo steamer that I have been wanting forever!

The steamer is fun because it cooks the peas quickly while retaining their good flavor and nutrition.  It came with two baskets so I can cook two different things at once.  Previously I steamed chicken and cabbage potstickers in one basket and some leftover pork roast in the other. A full meal was ready in no time , and the steaming helped keep the pork moist.

Tonight I steamed some red snapper and that also worked well.  If you are thinking of steaming fish, here is a tip I learned from the  Cook’s Magazine that my Mom bought to go with the steamer.  Take slices of lemon or lime and put them on the bottom of the steamer. Then set your fish on top of the slices. The lemon/lime slices keep the fish from sticking to the steamer, and the steam carries the flavor of the fruit into the fish.  I used lime slices tonight and it was very good!

Do you have a steamer?  Any good steamer recipes you would like to share?

The Hochstadt.com Party Contest!

Party Contest Banner

Last week I found out that I won not one, but two prizes on The University Kid’s Blog Contest. Now I think I could become a contest addict. Entering an online contest is easy, and your chances of winning a prize (or two!) are pretty good. So in the last contest I entered I won $15 and a One Buck Wiki page. With this contest all the prizes are great, and of course I wouldn’t turn down the $50 in cash, but I think I would really like one of the signed Robert G. Allan books. That would be cool.

If you would like to enter the contest click on the banner at the top of the post and you’ll find all the rules there! But first, check out this list of cool prizes.

Without further ado, let’s get to the “Party Contest Meat”—or in other words, what YOU can WIN at this Hochstadt.com Party Contest!

NOTE: This is none of those Internet Marketing niche contests… The Hochstadt.com Party Contest features prizes from a broad range of industries and categories. Meaning, there is something for EVERYONE:

Men’s Interest, Women’s Interest, Sports, Internet Marketing, Make Money Online, Technology, Hobbies, Marketing, Self Improvement, Computers and Internet, Art, Environment, Finance and Investing, Web Development, News and Media, Entertainment, Graphic Design, Religion and Spirituality, Blogging Resources, Parenting and Family, Technology, Mixed Bag, Home and Garden, Health and Medicine, Trends, Personal Diary, and Writing and Literature!

Now, take a look at these amazing and unbelievable contributions… the Who’s Who of Entrecard and other friends of mine:

Continue reading “The Hochstadt.com Party Contest!”

3 Reasons I Hate Your Blog

…And I’m Not Coming Back!

Normally I try to stay on the positive side of things. There are plenty of bloggers ranting out there! But today, I don’t know, I’m in a mood, and I just can’t hold it in anymore. Today I am ranting! Here is why I HATE YOUR BLOG!
You have any type of auto play audio.
I don’t care if it your favorite song ever, or if you think it adds to the “ambiance” of your site. I don’t like it. I have my own music, or more likely, I like it quiet. If you have those audio ads on your site that’s even worse. The minute I hear something coming from your site I am jumping for the back button. Hopefully, never to return.

You have “sexy” pictures on your site. And I don’t mean sexy in a good way. I don’t care how good your content is, if I have to look at boobs and butts I’m not staying. Number One. I’m not a 14 year old boy. Those pictures just don’t do anything for me. (And if that is your ad, there is no way I’m going to click on it!) Number Two. I have kids, and parents, and a husband. If they happen to see what I’m reading on my computer I don’t want to have to do any explaining about how those are only ads for other sites, and really, I just read it for the articles.

You try to trick me to click on your ads I hate being tricked. It also tells me that there is no reason to believe anything you write so why should I visit your site?

OK, I know I said 3, but I have one more, a bonus rant if you will.
I can’t find your content for all the ads. I understand making money. I have ads. Ads are great! But if everything above the fold is ads, why should I keep going? And don’t annoy me with flashing, neon colored ads. They give me a headache.

Wow, That was fun! Maybe I’ll do a rant of the week! But enough is enough. What do you hate about my blog?

New Camera

litton trail with ditch

Litton Trail, Grass Valley, CA

(Not a Paid Post!) Today I bought myself a new camera. I didn’t need a new camera, I just wanted one. Specifically, I wanted a camera I could slip in my pocket and just take with me everywhere. I read a bunch of reviews and then just ignored them. I don’t usually indulge myself this way, but I wanted a “pocket camera” and I wanted it right now! So I went to Staples and bought a Kodak Easy Share camera because it was the cheapest small camera they had. Then I went for a walk and snapped a few pictures like the one above. I am very happy with it so far. It isn’t much bigger than my cell phone and it takes pretty decent pictures. Plus it connects to my computer and charges itself with the USB port. My old camera didn’t. The camera has a bunch of settings that I haven’t a clue how to use. Later I’ll read the manual and try to figure it all out. But for now I have everything set on auto and it seems to be working pretty well.

The downside to buying the camera is I used up all my “pocket cash”. I guess I’ll just have to give up my skinny latte’s for awhile!

Do Me A Favor, Do Yourself a Favor!

I would like to ask a great big favor of you. There is a contest going on, and I would really like to win it. And you can help me. You don’t need to stumble anything, or write a blog post. I’m even willing to bribe you, just so I can win this contest.

What I need you to do, is go on over to Bloggeries Forum and register. Please be sure to use that link, or click on a red bloggeries button, so I can get credit and win the contest. Then I need you to do one more thing, please put a short post in the Intro section and be sure to mention that Kat sent you. If you do that, and you’re an Entrecard member, I’ll send you 10 Entrecard Credits!

While you are there check out the forum. In my opinion Bloggeries is the best forum out there for bloggers. There is lots of lively discussion on blogging topics, a market section where you can buy or sell all things related to blogging, and for the theme addicts such as myself, their is a section where some incredibly talented designers post some awesome WordPress themes, free for the taking.

I am going to thank you so much in advance for helping me to win this contest! If there is anything I can do for you, just leave a comment on this post and I will do my best!


Happy Stumbeling April Fool’s Day to Me!

Since I completed my 30 day blogging challenge I have taking a break from blogging. I’ve been spending time with my family, Saturday we watched 3 movies in a row, ate pizza, and then went out for apple pie. It was great.  I’ve been spending some quality time with the latest Dean Koontz novel, so far so great, as usual. I’ve even been outside and started thinking about what to start in the garden.

I was planning on getting back to work on the blogs tomorrow, April 2. You know you can’t believe anything you read on a blog on April Fools Day. I’m not good enough to come up with a prank so I just didn’t see the point in posting anything. So tonight, just before heading off to bed, I took a quick look at my stats!  SURPRISE!  Either someone is really good, or I have been totally and wonderfully stumbled.  YEA!  Thank you, thank you all you Stumblers, and feel free to keep it up!

I’m so happy about this I think I’ll put off going to bed for awhile and find some blog posts to stumble, try and make someone else’s day!

Oh, and my next 30 day challenge, getting exercise every day? That will have to wait till tomorrow.  I don’t think I can fail if I haven’t started, and I didn’t get any exercise today.

30 Day Challenge Evaluation

I was going to write today that I was ending my 30 day blogging challenge early. (The challenge was to blog every day for 30 days.) I have a couple of real exciting projects in the works and I would like to focus on those projects, plus do a better job keeping up with my other blogs. However, I was please to find that I started my 30 day challenge exactly one month ago today, on February 27, 2008. So today is officially day 30.

So how did I do?  Well, if you want to be strict, I failed.  I posted 26 posts in 30 days, and two of those posts were on the same day.  A few of those days I just posted a quote, or a contest, or some “easy” type of post.

But I am not too strict with myself, and in my mind my 30 day blogging challenge was a big success.  I have become a better writer, and a better blogger.  I spend a lot of time thinking about what would be interesting to post.   And, what I am not including in this challenge, are all the posts made on my other blogs. They have also benefited by having more frequent posts. (Although not a post a day.)

I have also decided that I am most definitely a blog addict.   I am constantly coming up with new ideas for blogs.  I have bought a few domains, just for “someday” when I have time to work with them.  I have to pull myself aways from the computer to get some exercise, or to say Hi to my family. Now I just need to find a good way to monetize all these great ideas!

I liked the idea of a 30 day challenge, and I think I’ll go for another one April 1.  But this challenge won’t be related to blogging.  I will challenge myself to get some form of exercise everyday.  I’ll let you know how I do.  Would you like to join me? What do you challenge yourself to do every day for 30 days?