Another Round of Funny Keywords That Brought People to My Blog

A few months back, I posted some funny keywords that showed up in my Google Analytics account. To those unfamiliar with the e-commerce tool, Google Analytics pretty much tells you everything about your site- where people are coming from, etc. I have it on my site just for shits and giggles to see how much traffic I get and how far visitors are from- but what I find most entertaining is HOW people find the blog.

There are some expected keywords, like my name (people search for me for some reason)- various spellings of my name and blog name, too. I also must have blogged about a few well-searched topics like Office Space, Green M&Ms being an aphrodisiac (about 40 different versions of a search for that appeared), expired driver's license and bars (almost 100 searches for versions of that), fecal matter in ice (about 30 different keywords phrases on that), lots of Pocono and Wilkes-Barre businesses since I blog a lot about what I do and where I go... But here's some strange ones-- somehow my content must have looked good to the search engines when people searched for:

are you supposed to rotate in a tanning salon
beer internet publicity tattoo (My comment: WTF?)
cats for cakes
cool laundromat names
dive bar dancer blog
donna l. white naked (My comment: Thank goodness is wasn't my name with naked!!)
elmo drink trucks
hoochies guitar
health issue, i smell a mold smell everywhere, my house, my car, my office (My Comment- that's a long search term!)
how to use a pooper scooper (My comment- freaking hysterical)
my cat is eating too much
my boyfriend caught me smoking
nightmare cat eating body
screw the banks
status orgasmus
where did okie dokie come from

Maybe I'm a complete dork- but I love this stuff!

The Reasons it Hasn't Been a "Daily" Dose

Last night, I received an e-mail notification that I had a new blog comment. It was from an anonymous reader who made the point that I now have an Internet connection at home, yet am blogging less. On the surface it doesn't make a hoot of sense. But, here's why.

I'm a slacker by nature, like a lot of creative people are. I realized that I was quite behind where I should be with my memoir draft- and with the help of my mentor I had to set a VERY aggressive deadline to get the draft done in time to graduate-- without having to take an extra semester. She made the comment that I blog a lot. If I had put this much effort each day onto my memoir, I would not be in this perilous situation. She's absolutely right. There are other, more personal reasons, I've been struggling with the memoir, but I wanted to check in and let the folks who read by blog regularly why I haven't had a new post in a while.

What's worse, is that as soon as I got my Internet connection- I was infected with something. I thought I fixed it- until today when the same thing happened. For that last hour and a half, I've rebooted six times. I think I am killing this computer in Office Space fax destruction styles. Or, if you watch family guy, the way Brian and Stewie destroyed the "Bird is the Word" record.

I keep the Internet closed, and Word up (haha, that sounded funny) to focus in my story. But the porn and loan and other advertisements still pop open. The only way to prevent this is to unplug my Internet. But in some cases, I needed research-- in going through the draft today, I wanted to add some stuff about George Carlin and "A Place for my Stuff" since that was a big part of my family's nomadic life. I wanted to get the wording just right, so I came to my blog where I had posted the video several months ago. That's when I realized that I no longer had flash. I tried to download it. Firefox wouldn't let me. Something must have happened when I wiped out all of my viruses and tried to increase my security settings. So, after spending an hour with help files, I got it to work. And that's how I came back to my blog- to see if the video was there. And then I decided, what the hell, let me take a break, vent and blog for a minute.

Please wish me well- I don't have much time to finish this. It won't by any means be publishable by next week, but it will have a beginning, middle and end and be able to get me to graduate. I have a lot of work to do to really finish this, but this is only the beginning.

Relief!! I Feel Like Me Again! Finally! Internet at Home!

The lack of Internet saga got even better. I was notified Friday that my Internet was ready. I didn't have time to mess with it Friday since it was Halloween, so I got to it Saturday. I was so exctied! I thought all I had to do was plug in everything and install the software from Verizon. No signal. I went through all the trouble-shooting with no luck. I tried it on the three jacks in the house. No luck. So, I called tech support. I explained to her that I just moved and was patiently waiting for two weeks for this date, and told her that I was unable to connect, and that the DSL light was not staying static green, instead, just blinking.

After hearing that, her first question was, "When was the last time your Internet worked?"

Duh! No listening skills whatsover. Then, she tried to look up my account info. She kept saying she can't find me. I repeated to her how to spell my name:

T-A-L-A-R-I-C-O

"Okay. I-R-C-O she said back," to which I corrected her again twice.

"I still cannot find you. Are you sure you ordered service from Verizon?"

"Yes. The number on the screen says to call you."

"Okay, it's T-A-L-A-I-R-C-O, right?"

I wanted to kill myself. She FINALLY got it right.

Then, she proceed to ask all the dumb questions like if my power was on (yes) and if I plugged the filter between the wall jack and the modem.

"No. I am not an idiot. I can follow directions, and plus, there is a huge red sticker on the modem that says not to use a filter between the wall and the modem," I told her back. "The problem where is that the DSL is not present..."

Thank goodness the call with her didn't last terribly long, but I was on hold for quite a while to get over to their dispatch department. I got to another lady who was able to help me. Luckily, Verizon has technicians that come out on the weekends. So, she scheduled me for Sunday, which is today. Chuck from Verizon just left and I know have Internet at home! The problem was that the inside line was not connected to the outside or something like that. A big thank-you to him for taking care of things!

So, I can now do all the things I couldn't do for over a month. I am so overdue on all those Facebook requests, e-mails that I needed to reply to that I didn't want to from my phone (takes too long), playing online word games, getting reconnected to WebCT for my MA at Wilkes, doing work from home, blogging, and more. I've managed to do some blogging from wi-fi hotspots, but no much else.

And the funny thing is- I am so tired from last night that I really want to take a nap instead of play online....

Barely Connected at Wegman's, But It's Better Than No Connection At Home

October 30th. That's the soonest I can get hook-up at home from Verizon. Ugh. Who do I have to blow to get service quicker? Or how much extra do I have to pay? I'd do either at this point. Seriously! I can't stand this wait. I'll be living there about seven weeks without phone or Internet. My cell just doesn't cut it.

I came up to Wegman's today to TRY to do some work/play online. I was up unusually early today. Around 8:23 to be exact. I hit the sack last night right after work. I had kind of a late night Thursday and was just dragging all day. I knew if I took a nap I wouldn't wake up again to go out later, so I just caught up on sleep-- about 14 hours of it. So, I woke up and made scrambled eggs with cheese and whole wheat Eggo waffles and set off to run some errands during part of the week I always miss-- before noon on a Saturday.

I was amazed at how many people are awake before noon on a Saturday. I mean, really.... I just assumed everyone was lazy like me. I headed to the bank first, where I had to wait in line-- again, hard to think this many people want to wake up early on a weekend to run errands. I got my security deposit back from my old place and am stoked about that. Hello new washer and dryer!

Next, I went to Spirit Halloween store by the Wyoming Valley Mall and was helped by two friendly gals who helped me try on various costumes. I settled on Viking Girl but will absolutely need tights for underneath. Anyone behind me in the bobbing for apples line will thank me for those tights. It's amazing how small Halloween costumes are. I wanted to be Wednesday from the Addams Family because I really liked the wig, but they only had the outfit in a small and I am most definitely not a small.

Then, I needed a new lamp for my nightstand- I've been wanting something Eastern-themed with a red shade and I knew TJ Maxx would have one. So, I headed up to TJ Maxx and lo and behold, they had EXACTLY what I pictured in my head. I have to remember to get an extension cord, too. I can't wait to light it up and read by it. I can't wait to hang the rest of my Asian stuff up and have a really cool bedroom.

While in the aisle I saw these cool minisculptures that were inspired by Leonardo Da Vinci's Virturvian Man. They are a combination of art and history and a tribute to the way the human body moves. I went to a great lecture a few years ago at Wilkes by Leonard Shlain (who I also got to interview!) and have been since marveld by the combo of art and science. At any rate, I got one of the human hand making the peace sign, very fitting for me. I got one of a human foot with a wing on it, no doubt referring to Icarus and finally one of a man huddled up in the fetal position with wings- I will have to look that one up. But I think they are really cool and different. I was trying to find a picture of them online, but I don't remember the name of the company, but I did Google "Virturvian Man Collection TJ Maxx" and a Washington Post shopping editorial came up, but the page will not load here at Wegman so I don't know if it is about these figurines, but I'll link to it anyway....

That brings me to here, Wegmans, where the Internet is unbelivably slow, just like when I was here last week. I am struggling to load pages in other windows right now. Last time I was here, I could not upload pics to my blog. So, for three weeks now people have not been able to share the rest of my San Fran pics or see my pics from Solid Cactus Boot Camp. This makes me sad. I may have to unplug and go to Panera Bread, but that place is way too small and always so loud and busy, and so is Dunkin Donuts. They just aren't the right atmospheres to be in to work. The cafe at Wegmans in Wilkes-Barre is huge and I have a private corner and access to a great coffee bar, sushi bar and more. And if you did not see the beer selection here- oh my goodness! I am happy they got the license to sell six packs. I am going to buy an assortment of beer when I leave - Harvest Moon by Blue Moon is out. Mmmm. So much good beer in the fall! And, I am surrounded by it all right now and I am getting thirsty!

Regarding the net, I asked for help, but the guy said there is nothing wrong. Wi-Fi works fast for me everywhere else so I don't really know what the problem is, but I am growing frustrated- for example, like last time I was here, it's going on 40-minutes for 20 pictures to be uploaded. It's insane. So, here I am. Still alive without the Internet at home, but it's like I am on life support. Barely breathing. Barely connected. I miss the Internet.

Things Slip By When You're Busy

The past three weeks have been unbelievably busy. I've moved. I was super sick. I went to San Fran for four days. I had a busy work week with our semi-annual Boot Camp. So, it really was the worst time EVER to move. I have a to-do list, a very long to-do list.

1. I still do not have internet at my new place. I've become a frequenter of the areas in Northeast PA that have free wi-fi. Sure I have internet at work, but I really can't use it for the personal things I need to, like watch porn. Not, just kidding. I mean, my blog, my Facebook and work in stuff for school. And in general, e-mail. The only link to the outside world when I am at home is my Q. But the mobile apps for the things I use suck. I really should have listened to my friends and got the iPhone when I needed to get a new cell phone the other week.

2. I still do not have a television at my new place. I made the concession in May when Dave and I split up to leave him the TV and then to NOT get a new one until I am done my memoir draft for the M.A. Turns out, I am quite lonely without a TV. Not that I ever watch it, but it's so quiet. Just for background noise, or news in the morning. Or to lure someone over to watch a movie... I will probably not get cable, but I think I need a TV. The TV stand is lonely. The DVDs and VHS tapes (yes, I have those) are lonely. And the living room just looks funny without one. Everyone is telling me to wait until Black Friday and thereafter to get one so I probably will. I trust the people who have more electronics than I.

# 1 and #2 make me feel like I am in the Stone Age. (But when I think about the Flintstones, even that prehistoric family and their neighbors had some kind of TV thing.) I get bored when I am at home, which leads to a lot more productivity at work because I work late. But when I am at home, I have nothing to do. I love to read, but sometimes I need a break. Sometimes I actually will call someone, but it feels so awkward talking on the phone these days.

3. I still do not have a washer and dryer in the new place. This means I must go to the laundromat. Ugh. I have only had to go once so far because I was between both places until last week. The good thing is that the one I must go to is a block from Hops and Barley's in Luzerne. Rather than sit there and watch the timers go, I went and put a load in the washer, went to Hops for dinner with two friends from work, went back to put then in the dryer, went back to Hops to have a few beers and then went back to the laundromat to fold the clothes. It made the chore less like a chore. Because of #1, I was dying for a laundromat with wi-fi. I will try to find one, but I highly doubt the ass-old laundromats would think of that, nor would the majority of the population who would need to use a laundromat would actually bring a laptop with them.

I would have Internet at home if it wasn't for the stupid hours Frontier has. They are only open until 6pm. I tried several times to call them on lunch, but I was on hold for 15 minutes once in the queue-- so I hung up. I rarely take a full lunch at work and I really don't want what little break I have to mean sitting there with the cell to my ear listening to crappy music. So, I get irritated and hang up. I usually work until 6-7pm, so by the time I leave work and try to call, I get the message that they are only available until 6 p.m. I forgot. Then, I did get a guy one day and after telling him everything-- he said, "Since you are coming from rural to city, you actually need to talk to someone else." I asked if I could be directly transferred. No. I had to dial back into a new number. Then, I was going away for a week and then last week was tied up with work events-- they told me I had to be on site to get the new phone and Internet hooked up-- well that just sucks. So, I decided not to call since I couldn't be available for two weeks anyway.

I really take being connected for granted now that I've been disconnectd for a while.

My Geocities Page: An 'Ancient' Internet Artifact that I Dug Up on Google Today

It's kind of funny that I ended up, "working for the Internet" as I said, buzzed during a Sunday happy hour last week. So, I don't work for for THE Internet, yet an Internet company, an ecommerce company to be exact. (But it was funnier the way I said it when I was tipsy....)

In 1995, my friend Jenn G. and I started a column, which I came up with the name for, in our high school newspaper: Nothing But Net. We both fell in love with this novel idea of interconnected computers and reviewed websites each week. I am in the process of moving so I do not have those papers with me-- but I should see if any of those sites are still around!

The Internet was still pretty new to the common household user, but Jenn and I were hip and with it. So hip and with it that we made the front page of the Sunday Pocono Record story about young people and the Internet. They interviewed us about the 'net, computers, and whatnot. We were famous for a Sunday and everyone at school was talking to us and everyone at school wanted us to help show them how to use it and how to create email addresses. Jenn was amazed at Yahoo and the directory they were building. I can't take credit- she built a Geocities site before me- but once I got off to Wilkes, I started my own site.

Anyway, back to high school. Jenn even knew was SPAM was back then and was quoted in the Pocono Record talking about it, which is hysterical-- she put her email address on something and got "spammed." She ventured into computer science and while we fell out of touch, I know she worked for some big time companies in the Internet industry and am sure she still does. She got more into the technical stuff that I am not smart enough for. I've dabbled it in as a hobby. She is a whiz.

Now that I work "for the Internet," I am up with the latest trends, at least within ecommerce and also all the Web 2.0 stuff- or at least I try to be. So, when I see someone who has a really old school site, I chuckle and think of my first website- a Yahoo Geocities website. No business's site should look like that! Haha. I am not a programmer now either- I work in sales- but it's cool to think back then how I learned HTML myself and how to create tables and make links and create email links, etc. I should be quite proud of myself that I learned all that back then before there were all these online resources od Dummy/Idiot books published and out there.... But of course by today's standards- my Geocities site blows-- you can still do Geocities, but they have SiteBuilder and all these other WYSIWIG editors to build a personal site. But it's still a very fun trip down memory lane to see this site- and it's funny that mostly everything still works on it, althought the mail address is long gone- and I cannot log into geocities to change anything- but I don't think I want to. This is an ancient artifact that should be preserved.

So, for shits and giggles, check this out. Check out the backgrounds, the animated gifs and all the old school personal website stuff.

Looking back at my content, it's actually funny because I still drink at the bar I did back then. I started the site in 1997 and I guess the last time I updated it was after I turned 21. Now, I'm about 30.

http://www.geocities.com/Nashville/Stage/3464/

Be sure you visit the about me page: http://www.geocities.com/Nashville/Stage/3464/stats.html

The "guest book" which is pretty much an obsolete thing nowadays, is pretty funny too-- it brings back a lot of memories-- it's before SEO was really big and there is this one guy who searched for "donna radio" because he was from some foreing country and that was a station there, and I came up. So, I had searchable keywords back then! hehe

Cheers to Yahoo Geocites!! Haha. Anyway- just wanted to share it. Laugh with me, because it is funny.

I created a podcast about sleep and dreams

Call me a dork. I know.I made a podcast to go along with a new website, TheDreamDrawer.com- to make it more fun.

I just made a quick introductory episode, which also has a review of a cool sleep tea, but the 'grand opening' will be on Nov. 19. about lucid dreams.

Check it out and let me know what you think!! Please?

Also- if you like to learn about dreams, want herbal sleep aids, etc. check out the site!

I finally got knocked up & some book news

First of all- my headline. Let me explain. I am a direct mail sucker and signed up for the Columbia House DVD club a few months back. I usually check the "Do Not Send" box for the monthly selection... until last month when the movie was Knocked Up. So-- yep. I got Knocked Up. Found out yesterday. Haha. I've been wanting to see it- I always go for horror and thriller movies when I rent or go to theaters, so this will be refreshing. Plus, I like Elizabeth Hegel.

I am in a procrastinating mode so I decided to Google and search Yahoo for my book ("Kids, Have You Seen My Backpack?" and Other Inspirational Stories of Non-Traditional Students: An Adult Learner Anthology) to see what I could find. It's been out a few years and sold a few copies, so I just like to search every now and then to see if there is anything new online about it. Here are some tidbits I found:

1) It sells for over $30 in Australia.
2) It is availabe at BooksFree.com which is like a Netflix for books. That's pretty cool. I should join and "rent" it and write a note in it. Haha.
3) It's used as a textbook at Drexel University for an adult learner's program- a class called Strategies in Life Long Learning. That is awesome that the 22 people in my book get to inspire other adult learners- I want to e-mail the professor and see what kinds of assignments she has with it... that'd be cool. I'd like to try them, too! (I'm a nerd; I LOVE homework!) By the way, the Goodwin College at Drexel has, since the book came out, used book snippets as testimonials, as two of the essayists attended the evening program. Coolness. Read them here.
4) And this one- I found a few weeks ago, but figured I'd share here. I am nobody, but this guy somehow got a signed copy and it's going for like $70. Can you believe that?! Who would by that? Haha! (Who else but me would search for that?!)
5) You can do a search by what Barnes & Noble stores have it in stock, and one on 555 5th Avenue in NYC has it! And, there is one left at the Arena Hub one too.
6) Google Books is the coolest thing- I didn't even know this, but I guess through the publisher they have a deal to show previews... Check it out here.
7)You can do a national library search at Google Books too- my book is available at 13 that were found, from Penn State Scranton to schools in Florida, Ohio, Washington, Cali, and Colorado.

--I just get a kick out of this stuff. I don't have a lot of money to put toward marketing my book, so this is pretty cool that it got to all these places with minimal effort- I am thinking about putting out a revised edition soon. What do you think?

Screw the Banks! Have you heard of person-to-person lending? Read this if you need money-- or want to invest money.

Todays blog-- for once-- is not a rambling about my views on something. Today, I am providing a public service to those looking for money-- or looking for a great investment opportunity.

On NPR this morning I learned of this wonderful concept of person-to-person lending. I mean- borrowing money from friends, family and neighbors- and loan sharks- has been happening since the beginning of currency. However, this person-to-person lending has stormed onto the Internet, and there are some great success stories on both ends, lender and borrower.

The company that NPR profiled this morning is called Prosper. The site allows people to lend or borrow money- and manage payment, etc. all from one place.

Loans from Prosper:
Users can ask for a Prosper loan from $1000 to $25,000 (certain states have limitations)-- those borrowing on Prosper can create a listing- just like they would on an auction site- explaining their need. Pictures can also be uploaded as well, which I think is a great option especially if the loan is for a house-related purpose. Then, the loan is listed in the listings section and lenders can "bid" on your loan- a $50 minimum. So- this is not like one person out there is giving another $5000- more like a community of people chipping in.

When the Prosper loan is fully-funded- after everything is reviewed- the money is automatically put into your bank account, minus the fees associated. How cool is that?

Lenders get to ask questions to verify anything. Credit score and debt to income ratio is displayed on your listing, but only to registered lenders. One thing I did notice was that people really failed to proofread their listings. My take is that people want to lend to smart people-- and if someone wants to "CONSALIDATE" their loan... or promised the loan will be "PAYED" on time-- they will be ignored.

There are forums, webinars and other help areas to assist borrowers to create successful listings.

Investing in Prosper:
People who are looking to get a good return on investment may want to look into Prosper-- when people get into the high DTI or low credit score area, interest rates go up-- some people in states that allow it will pledge they will pay 25% interest! So, the ROI for lending money on Prosper can be very lucrative. I did not read too much into the lending part, but I believe what happens is that a portfolio of investments is created and the lender is paid by Propser monthly.

How does Prosper make out? They charge an origination fee off the top of the loan and then take 1-2% of each loan, while the lender gets the rest.

This is a sound company with huge financial backing, as well as a community of 450,000 people
and has thus far loaned over $93M.

I did it
I have been wanting to sell dream items on line for a long time now, but just didn't have the start-up money to get an intial inventory-- so I created a listing. Let's see what happens. Here is a link if you want to try it too.... either borrow some money, or make some money!!

I love the Grammar Girl! Why didn't I listen sooner?!

I have heard of the Grammar Girl podcast, but I never listened. While on Digg.com tonight, I stumbled upon it and listened to a few podcasts. Now I am actually fighting the melatonin I took.... This is such a cool, cool show that will really help me with grammar issues. There is a comma podcast I want to listen to. I've been writing for papers for so long and the rule there seems to be less commas; however, in my creative writing class some of my peers add commas everywhere when editing my work. I think those are comma splices though... I'll listen and she what gets ironed out.

The Grammar Girl episode I listened to first included a few questions from listeners that wouldn't make a full podcast. One thing I am EXTREMELY happy that she covered was nauseous v. nauseated. People say, "I feel so nauseous." And that's not correct. I've tried to win arguments on that in the past. Nauseous thing make us feel nauseated!

Another question was about the plural of octopus, hippopotamus and cactus. The proper American way is to end with an -es. How about that?! I guess we are not Cacti where I work, but Cactuses. (<--- and that was picked up as wrong by blogger's spell check program. This is why we cannot trust spell check.) Each podcast (which is audio only, no video) has room for comments. Also, the Grammar Girl invites you to submit questions and ideas for podcasts. I think I am going to write her about people in NEPA adding an "s" to everything and also saying "no more" instead of anymore, as in this example: "I don't like her no more." Ack!!!

She also has a FaceBook game.... Cool. Grammar Girl is produced by Quick & Dirty Podcasts, who also hosts Money Girl and several other quick tip type podcasts. And Grammar Girl, if you stumble upon this blog- don't be too hard on me for unnecessary uses of elipses and dashes and whatever gramar goofs I made.

I like new things. (and a call for comments)

Since this blog is named Daily Dose o Donna, I figured I needed to get more daily.

B&N Gets a Make Over
This morning I noticed that Barnes and Noble's website has a brand new look. Oh boy does it look good. Looks a lot more clean and slick, and is more user friendly. Of course, I am on Amazon nearly every day spending my bill money on books, but I really do like the new Barnes & Noble site.

Donna Launches Bookstores
Speaking of bookstores- I created four new stores-- if you are looking for gifts for people, help a sister out:

The Dream Drawer- sells sleep aids, dream books and lots of cool stuff
The Reporter's Store- for the reporter and freelance writer- DVRs, style guides, pens
MA in Creative Writing Store- books for all genres of creative writing
80s Music & Movies Store

Leave Your Mark!
I have Google Analytics on this blog. I know I have visitors. In fact, I can drill down to where you are from. Ha! Big Brother is watching! But my point is- and my pal Andee will agree- it's nice to have comments. So, leave me comment. Let me know what you think!

XS Blast Energy
I admit-- I have an energy drink addiction. I try every last one I can get my hands on. I really want to try 5-Hour Energy. But, a client of ours sent a few cases of XS Energy - there are some cool flavors. They are a selection of colas and teas in the same size can as the smaller Red Bull. My favorite flavor so far is the Root Beer. Yummy!

So- that's my post for the day!! Back to work. Lunch is over.

Hello. Today's post will be about some random website things. First of all, the Wilkes University book I wrote does not seem to be on Amazon right now, however, it IS available at College Prowler- and they made a cool page and added some additional content re: Sex in the City. I think this is great copy! I also found out that if you go to Wilkes and you register with the site, you have access to the online version of the Wilkes book for free- but I'd love it if you bought the print version... here is the link:

http://campuslife.collegeprowler.com/guide.asp/1427402779/index.html

Also- I've been a member of Amazon Associates forever now- however I learned a little while ago that they have this cool Web Store option, so I decided to play around with it. I created two online stores- check 'em out and let me know what you think:

The Dream Drawer- a sleep and dreams store
I had this up previously as an old astore, which was just a big widget pasted to a Yahoo geocities page- check this one out-- looks a little better now. At any rate, it has dream dictionaries, dream journals, sleep aids and things like that.

80s Music & Movies- self-explanitory, however I also have some TV shows and pop culture stuff thrown in. I also bought the domains 60smusicandmovies and 70smusicandmovies, so look for some sister decade sites, soon.

Wow- how is all that for shameless promotion?! Have a nice day and thanks for reading!

Cool site where you can win prizes

I was just cruising through the blogging community and came across a pretty cool blog from someone with a similar name to mine, LaDonna. At any rate, I followed a link from a button on her site that said, "Win with me on Blingo."

I was curious. I like to win prizes. I buy raffles every time I get a chance. I love Chinese auctions. I guess in those "how many X-things are in the jar" contests. You get the idea.

Blingo is run by Publisher's Clearing House-- it's a search engine powered by Google-- each time you search you have a chance to win a prize-- movie tickets, iTunes gift certificates, etc. And, every time someone you refer wins, you win the same prize. It's a pretty cool site- I joined. Hopefully I won't be blasted with Spam, but I don't think they do that. I added that same button to the right over there, at the top of my nav bar. Check it out!