Monday, June 26, 2006

Seattle Sunshine - Wahoo! Bring it!

Ahhh, what a weekend. So, it's dang hot (by Seattle standards anyway) out this weekend. I'm not complaining, I'm just telling you that I'm enjoying it by getting the first sunburn of the season. Seems that walking in the sunshine to the beach, sitting at the beach, and then going home a few hours later warrants a little sunscreen. Bah, why not live on the edge? Heh heh, ow.

Sunday included an early morning 3 mile stroll on the annual Shore Run/Walk benefiting Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. My good friend HoneyBee finished 180th overall in the 5k run "without even trying." Phew, that's 4.95k more than I can run! :-)

Once again, I joined Team Torch of Life in carrying the names of friends, family, and aquaintences who have been affected by cancer. What a great way to honor these couragous people while helping to find a cure.

We also sat by my parent's community pool, along with a few dozen small children splashing in the water, on Sunday. Ahh, the good life, I tell ya.

I had to laugh today because the Yahoo weather report on my RSS feed was reporting that Seattle had a "severe weather" alert -- seems that hitting 90 degrees in Seattle is "severe." I'm a weather weenie, so I guess it is kind of severe... but it kind of makes us look like pansies to the rest of the country... I'm here to say that for the most part, we can take the heat. And unlike the rest of the country, air conditioning doesn't come standard with anything, so we're really roasting here!

Don't blink Seattle -- we're experiencing summer a week early. (Normally the sun shines on July 5th...) Enjoy it while you can!

Thursday, June 15, 2006

Oh! The Irony!

So earlier this week I wrote in my blog about American Express' lack of thinking about credit card security and their marketing promotion requirements. What should land in my inbox this morning but this:

Subject: SecuritySnapshots: Tips for Avoiding Credit Card Fraud

Dear KermitFan,

American Express is committed to educating you on ways to protect yourself against fraudulent activity. Did you know that you can get a free copy of your credit report every year? Information on credit reports, along with other helpful ways to manage your credit, can be found below.

  • The Free Annual Credit Report Program

  • Stay on top of your American Express Card accounts

  • CreditSecure® from American Express


  • Seriously folks, you can't make this stuff up. First they want me to provide all of my account information -- including the "security code" from my card to register for a promotion (how do I really know that the e-mail isn't a phishing scam?), and now they want me to believe that they're committed to protecting me against fradulent activity? Hmmm... seems like they should be a little better coordinated in their messages over there...

    Tuesday, June 13, 2006

    Shame on You AMEX!

    So, I'm a Delta SkyMiles AMEX card holder. I get double miles on a lot of things when I use my card, which is cool. But I have a beef with AMEX that I'm taking public (I've already lodged a complaint with AMEX). In an age where Internet security, privacy, and phishing scams are of the utmost importance, a credit card company should NOT be sending out promotions that require you to go to their web site and register for double miles using your FULL account number, card identification number, and e-mail address.

    Seriously folks, as a marketer, I can tell you that there are safer ways for AMEX to go about signing me up for their promotion. I should be asked by a credit card company to potentially compromise my security with my account information... information that they already have if they simply cross-check their sophisticated (and hopefully secure) systems.

    Do I really want double miles all summer that badly? Get real, AMEX.

    Tuesday, June 06, 2006

    Girl Power!

    Got this in my inbox this morning, and I thought that it was a great way to start the day:
    “Remember, Ginger Rogers did everything Fred Astaire did, but backwards and in high heels.” —Faith Whittlesey

    “Women are like tea bags; put them in hot water and they get stronger.” —Eleanor Roosevelt

    “I may be compelled to face danger, but never fear it, and while our soldiers can stand and fight, I can stand and feed and nurse them.” —Clara Barton

    “The work of educating the world to peace is the woman’s job, because men have a natural fear of being classed as cowards if they oppose war.” —Dr. Aletta Jacobs, (1851-1929) Holland’s first female doctor and founder of the Dutch suffrage movement

    “If you want anything said, ask a man. If you want something done, ask a woman.” —Margaret Thatcher

    Read the whole story: Women Take Over At Last!