I just want my 5%

So after looking around for options on the savings route, turns out my bank (WaMu) offers a special savings offering of 5% to customers who have their Free Checking they call it “Online Savings” and it looks good, however I am hitting an issue with it, see I signed up ages ago, and my account claims to be a “Free Checking” however its not the right “kind” of Free Checking, so thus, I am playing the game to get it.

Yesterday a telephone banker instructed me to sign-up for an Online Savings account sans the linked checking, this she claimed would allow her to link that savings to my personal checking within my online banking login, so I did that, the micro deposits came in, I confirmed and called back to get things linked today, however - after 2 online bankers I made it to a Online Banking Manager - which said:

“I don’t know why they would of asked you to do that, that will not work at all, your current Checking account is not the newest version of “Free Checking” - so you are no eligible for this offer, so what you need to do, is sign-up for the linked accounts, then call us back, and we’ll get you squared away.”

So as it stands, I know I am going to be calling back Monday, and I know its going to be even more fubar’d that before - don’t get me wrong, I love WaMu, they’ve treated me good, they have some very nice options for business, but somehow I know calling on Monday with now not 1, but 2 savings accounts, and now a 3rd checking account to my name, they are going to say “Uhm, we can’t do this either” lol. To me now that I let it simmer in my brain, the best course of action would of been to do this:

1. Upgrade my current “free checking” to the new “free checking” thus giving me all the fancy new addons.
2. Tell me to apply again, thus the form reads the right checking account, and lets me sign-up.
3. Tell me “Mr Brown, you are our hero, thank you for banking here… here, have a taco”.

Seems like the best course of action, so I am going to call them back and suggest that as a solution and see if it works, because to me, it seems like it’d be the perfect solution, it’d get me to the proper checking account (the reason probably it wouldn’t let me go in the first place) and then I can sign-up and be online the same day with the online savings.

Ah what I go through for a savings account, I just want to save some money is that too much to ask? Monday I’ll probably be closing 3 WAMU accounts (the new checking + 2 savings) and having the simple 2 second fix applied that I just thought up, who knows, if I get really excited, I may just call today and suggest it.

Big Excitement! …. Then the let down….

Well some things came across my desk about a week ago with some potential on a new hosting platform which could really benefit both myself in the realm of time spent monitoring servers to the size of accounts customers could have - and needless to say I was stoked. The profit margin was nice, and would give me a little pad in the pocket to help pay off some investment bills in the company, and also have some for savings - so I wanted to get a test drive in to see how this wonderful system worked!

It didn’t.

Even with several positive reviews by companies I trust, I must say my experience has been anything but stellar, and I recall now all the reasons, that I decided to get going in hosting myself. Many functions were simply not there, things were made more complicated by not having features like PHP running in Suexec mode, and shotty FTP server which at times even prevented me from deleting files - and this new “control panel” functionality was very much lacking, and I found myself barely 9 hours in, regretting putting down the money to test the system, so I emailed the company asking for a refund, as even this morning similar issues were still around, and I am still barely 24 hours in.

So what I had hoped would be a nice benefit to myself, my customers, was indeed too good to be true, and thus I am back where I started, a few other avenues I plan to explore of course, as the world of hosting tech is always changing, and while I am very blessed with my current setup, I am always wanting something more for my customers, more stability, more enhanced infrastructure, etc. and while I would love to sink another couple 10’s of thousands of dollars into totally revamping things, I simply don’t have the money to throw that into, with the above system, it was set, it was created, you just leased the space - so much cheaper than doing it myself.

So the search continues, I really want to find a system that I can migrate customers to that will give them the greatest benefit, and I can provide them with greater resources, security, stability, and value, granted there are hosts out there now officially offering terabytes of storage space - I would at this point settle for giving customers standard sizes like 500MB and 1GB for affordable pricing, but sadly for now, that’s a ways away it seems.

The day goes on, aside from work research, had a fun dinner with Dan last night, tonight I have a meal with Kynan, and Wed. I have a meal with some un-named people possibly (long story) - but things are going good, getting some fair personal time in too, so trying to find/keep that balance of work/play Anywhoo - 9am, back to it, been up since 6am… ah the joys of being me Have a Good Tuesday Folks.

Finally Stopped?

59 MySpace spams/friend requests for porn sites later, the flow has slowed/stopped - sometimes I just want to remove my profile and think happy thoughts.

When do you become a “Web Power”

Some would say to keep my mouth shut on this, and not “stir things up” and that the risk of a lawsuit is a bad thing for “slander” or “defiling someone’s character” but in this instance, I can safely say:

“Suck it.” (going to love hearing that one in court!)

Over the last few days some things have transpired at a place I used to work, let’s call the place something out there so no one can figure it out, let’s call it CMCentral or CMC for short (see how clever I am) - but before one can go into that arena and say “Why do you care?” lets rewind a bit to when I worked for CMC - like several other “Christian” businesses your job was more “ministry” than “work”, when you were asked to do something more, it was for “the ministry” not the “job”, the site owner, and again being clever here - we’ll call him Sean or “Sean.v.T” for short (seems longer, but it just looks that way.) is a nice enough guy you’d want to help him, and you feel part of something, you want to see it do well, so you go above and beyond.

In my own history for CMC I helped out sometimes getting wrapped up in things and missed a wedding setting up a chat for Mercy Me, wrote software that a YEAR after the fact was nit-picked to death, and in the end due to extreme difference in opinions on the “best” way to do something, we parted ways and my time suddenly freed up greatly, allowing me to swing back into full tilt on my own business and workings - so not a bad end for me, and after a few months Sean.v.T and I worked on some projects as by the great advice of at the time senior editor let’s call him BdG (Simple, clean, its short enough), I picked up some side jobs here and there doing software updates, and server moves etc. so a good end to the story for the most part, right?

Well fastfwd back to the the happenings of late, BdG is outed as editor of CMC, to me a position that was really more of a burden to him vs. a blessing, granted CMC can open some doors to media contacts, but at what price? Some of you can say “Sean is a ________” you can say he’s wrong, and in a lot of ways you’d be right, and in some you’d be wrong - don’t get me wrong, I think here Sean has a lot of splainin to do - goes without saying, it was handled poorly, and a post not to JUST the forum, but on the main site, needs to be done - I don’t care how “un-professional” that might look, were human, companies are run by humans and humans make mistakes, and in good faith I think the new editor should make an apology as well, I don’t know her, but I highly doubt she meant this on purpose, but a simple apology is not too much to ask.

I would say to those of  you who are truly though wasting your breath on the forums @ CMC spend your energies elsewhere,  while I wish I could say “keep up the posts, Sean will break soon!” bottom line is Sean see’s CMC as a fore front in Christian music, and I don’t deny the site has a big following, and does a lot of things, and with a presence in TN it has a closer hook up to many Christian artists compared to other websites of a similar nature - but prove that the site is powered by the people, support BdG’s site and help promote it, heck if it needs its own server due to growth, I’m happy to stand behind it and make it happen, I’m that Crazy.

Brenton is not only a client of mine, but I do consider him a friend - we have done business, worked side by side @ CMC during my final time there - but while my leaving was one of a quiet breeze (I was the man behind the curtain), BdG’s will be felt for a while, but I applaud those of you who have really put out a real sense of caring here for BdG, threads like:

1. Here’s My Feedback
2. Sean, Step Up Or Step Aside
3. The Changes At Cmcentral

While some of those are actually deleted, I read through them before I de-admin’d myself (people started to think I worked there again), you guys are awesome - but I encourage each of you, link to TRuDatMusic on MySpace, your blogs, your websites, add it to your signature, put the word out, and help it truly become a “web power” that commands the same if not more level of respect like that of CMC.

Life goes on in the end, and I’d encourage any of you who have media contacts or know someone in a Christian group, set them setup with BdG @ GMA Week, I know some of you who read this know folks, heck I know a few, and I’ll be sending out an email or two, maybe even a phone call or two if I can be awake at a normal hour but there it is, support TRuDat - and with that, I am going to call it a night - but above and beyond anything else, keep both sides in prayer. Night!

Vacation? Oh yes.

What a month, what a crazy couple of months - not saying its bad, just taking a toll to say the least, mentally, physically, emotionally - and the newest, financially - but its all settling out, slowly but surely, but I’d really love a nap, a cold drink, and a swimming pool.

So why am I awake? Oh the usual old story with me, I took a nap trying to get a headache to stop, and woke up rested, but of course, way off schedule in the realm of normal hours and sleep, and of course with once again a almost fully functional brain that is doing what it likes to do - think (stoopid brain!) so here I sit, sipping a glass from the bottle, my poison of choice, Martinelli’s Sparkling Cider - oh yes, I know how to roll.

But today brings some possible good news I hope, get to see if a new company I am dealing with will be good to work with long term and are business people that are honorable - if not, probably time to find a alternative - just one of those things in business I suppose - probably not a major deal, but just one of those things.

Can’t decide now to goto sleep, go for a drive, go for a walk, or just sit here pondering what to do with my day - part of me wants to make it a day around the house, catch up on some laundry, maybe re-arrange the room a bit, and make it a tad more livable - who knows…. time shall tell. Have a Good Tuesday All.

What’s in Your Wallet?

Okay - I got a irk when I got home (actually had a few today - but thats another blog all-together) - but I got home and there’s this very important envelope from my credit card company, it’s padded, its big, its scary. So I open it, and what is it? A invite to get their BUSINESS CARD! Oi!

So to ALL credit card commpanies out there, save some bubble wrap, a tree, and your breath, look if someone is an exsisting customer, save money on mass mailing out exsisting customer pointless offers marked as IMPORTANT INFORMATION which has NOTHING to do with the one card they have with you - honestly I am considering canceling cards if they keep doing this, and only keep the 1 line of credit which DOES NOT send odd notices like that.

As my always effort to offer a suggestion to a company I am nocking on a practice they have, try this: Make the Offer via Your Web Banking. I login, make it a popup when I get in, or even better yet take REAL demographics on me, and I a business owner? am I looking for a line of credit? am I a home owner? do I have 8 toes on my right foot? You know the important stuff.

Anywhoo - day ended differently than I planned, might blog on it later, always on IM if your curious and I haven’t posted yet, but I think I need to draw more lines - again, vauge, and a long story. But I did have a nice lunch.

No Business like… oh what was it again?

Well today ended a chapter in companies I have worked for - the previous chapter in this saga ended when I sent a email like I did yesterday to this client, we then agreed it was probably a good idea for me to leave, which at the time I really had mixed feelings, but now I have had more freetime, more jobs, more stuff to keep me busy - same thing this time, and welcomed with a message towards the end which said:

“As far as doing future business with you, I’m sure you can understand that at this point I would not exactly feel comfortable with that, but that seems to be your intent.”

Well in the last few months they had “one more thing” for me to do, I did it, and in doing that I recieved the same treatment I got while working there, always “This is your fault, fix it” even about a week ago I got an email about something that had been how it was for over 3 years was somehow my fault - and I needed to drop everything and work on it - so I did what I did at the end of the previous chapter, and stood my ground on a issue, could I of done “one more nice thing” sure I suppose, but with folks like this, one more thing leads into a lot more, so it was stand my ground now, or be lost in endless freebies, even a recent quote which I cut the prices as low as I could go, and they came back “How about…” and shaved off $100 from the job, even after me saying “Hey, best deal I can give you”.
I have dealt with this 2 times now in dealing with Christian “Ministries” - I don’t say that to mark all Christians, as I do business with many other Christians ministries/business owners, etc. and no problems, just so far 2 groups have really stuck it to me, using every ounce of freebie I’d offer, then when I say no, or am too tired to continue, say “Well brother… its time” - sad stuff, gives Christians another stumbling block with people who look at Christians already in a poor light.

A lot has changed in me since I originally started with this company, and from talking to employees I worked with in the past there, and even currently, its just common place stuff, heck in both instances I talked with people who had similar experiences like mine, but for me I think I came to realize it even more when I started to branch out from sitting in front of a terminal 24/7 and focusing a bit on having a life away from the screen - and instead of screen names used to identify people, I looked at faces and said “Oh hey!” over a pizza, drinks at Sonic, etc.

But life goes on I suppose, there is one check still supposedly enroute to me, and I think I am going to tear it up, and wish them well (it’s for software purchase) - but it’s sad stuff, and life must move forward - its sad but this will probably continue, but I do pray it does not, and instead of just offering a blessing, thrust it upon them even if they say “No it’s no problem” - it’s one of those things I try to live by, Bless Others - I mean God Blesses me, who am I not to share that blessing, if only every one followed that the world would be a happier place - one could say I am not living that by saying “No” to this client, but honestly a ministry which simply uses up Christians and spits them out, thats not a good thing.

Anywhoo - back to my light Friday, first mellow day this week, and I am going to use it to clean and file some paperwork. Have a Good Friday Folks & A Great Weekend!