Shift Happens

Bogus e-Cards Still Bothering You?

  Still getting all those “You’ve Received and e-Card” emails?? A reader asked how she can tell if someone is sending her a real e-card - or if it’s another one of those fake ones. So I thought I’d share a few pointers on how to tell if an e-card notice that you’ve received is valid or not:
* The Subject Line - bad ones usually say something vague, like “You’ve received an ecard from a class-mate!” or “You’ve received a postcard from a family member!”. A legitimate card should have the sender’s name and/or email address in the subject line.
* The ‘From’ Line - most often bogus senders just put the name of an e-card site (egreet.com or greetings.net, something like that). A legitimate e-card most often mentions the senders name and/or email address in the from line.
* The body of the email - Two things: 1) A legitimate e-card email will mention a card ID number and some sort of time limit… the phony ones I’ve seen just want you to click their link. 2) On the ‘View your e-card’ link itself, you can mouse-over the link and (depending on your email program you may have to right-click) you see the website address of the link… a legitimate e-card will show something like “http://www.EcardSiteName.com/show-card/sender-bob1235@aol.com-123546-52145412.php” or something like that, which indicates that it’s one card of thousands…. a bogus link, on the other hand, usually looks something like this when you mouse-over it: “http://121.521.655.010/” or maybe “http://121.521.655.010/play-card.exe”, which is just plain scary…
  What to do if you’re not sure it’s safe ~ if you’re not sure of the sender, it’s better to not risk it. Just ask my daughter; her PC had serious problems after she clicked on a fake e-card link.

My Friend’s New Site

My pal Terry, (The guy who wrote “Living Within Your Means - The Easy Way”) has a new site where he sells high-quality ebooks for only two bucks each (even less if you want several and get them in a bundle). It’s called, appropriately enough, Two Dollar Online Books, and he’s got a bunch of good cookbooks, craft & how-to books, money-saving & money-making books… and at two bucks (or less) each, that’s a huge savings off retail! I’m very happy with my books and I’m sure you will be too ~ check it out.

Yes, But Will it blend?

A friend of mine sent me this link - - Some people might say it’s not a very smart idea to throw 6 lighters into a blender. Those people would be right…. see the video and try not to laugh out loud.

First free issue of American Cheerleader…

Got the first issue today - actually I ordered it as a surprise for my kid, she’s the cheerleader in the family… those days are looonnng past for me.

My daughter was delighted with it though. Now she can learn ‘How to have Lean Legs - in 7 steps’ and about ‘The Cutest Clothes Ever’, plus how to ‘Be a Pep Rally Pro’, not to mention an assortment of hair and makeup tips. The cover reads something like a Cosmo for stuck-up preppy teens.

Considering the price (Free) for this, compared to what she has spent on other magazines, I’m really quite pleased.