Telegram!

We're putting together a song for Jed, one of our favorite people...We'll be singing it in April as a surprise. He has called us the "singing telegram girls" ever since we did one for the front men of Air Supply back in 1999. Here is a 'making of' video for Jed's song. Shhhhh - don't tell him we're planning this!

Pardon the language...

But I saw this bumper sticker on a car today and laughed out loud...

Image borrowed from: http://donusa.blogspot.com/

The great phone caper

I just wanted a simple trade...An average, everyday happening in the world of retail.

Not completely satisfied with my choice of the Sony Ericsson W350 I had chosen for my AT & T upgrade, I decided to take advantage of the 30-day return policy and get the perty little LG Shine that I had seen at Best Buy. On Sunday Steve went with me to the AT & T store to see about returning the phone - in case he needed to be passive aggressive with them on my behalf.

(OK, Steve isn't really passive aggressive but there's a funny story about that - ask him sometime).

The ATT dude said a return would not be a problem. They had the Shines live and on display so Steve and I took it for a test drive. I really liked it. All I needed to do was go home and get the fixins that came with the Sony, return it to ATT then jaunt a mile or so down the street to Best Buy to get a Shine.

YAY!

Now, is anything REAALLLYY ever that easy??

Of course not!!

Here is a bullet-point summary of the next couple of hours:

* First went to Target to return the Bluetooth I bought for the Sony. This would cover me for any 'restocking fee'. That process took almost 20 minutes because they had to call for an approval.

(By the way, if you ever want to return something purchased with a gift card at Target, make sure you don't do an exchange with it...If you then return the exchanged item, you'll never see your gift card money again)

* After Target it was off to AT & T. As I was standing in line I realized I better make sure that Best Buy would still honor the Shine purchase as an upgrade since I had used my upgrade for the Sony. I stepped out of line and went to Best Buy to ask.

* The guy at Best Buy said "No problem - they reverse your upgrade."

YAY!

* Returned to ATT. Phone return no problem. No restock fee.

YAY!

* Returned to BB. Found the guy I talked to before. He was all set to help me but his supervisor informed us that it might not be that easy. Apprently ATT likes to be funny about these kinds of things. Sure enough the upgrade had not been reversed. The reversal could take days. The BB supervisor had fought the battle before and there was no way to reverse it on BB's end. They contacted someone they knew at ATT who thankfully agreed to match the BB FREE price.

YAY!

*Back to ATT for my new phone - finally!

* Walked into ATT and explained the deal only to be told that the chick who approved the deal wasn't in the store and she apparently couldn't approve something like that without proper codes and blah blah blah. My patience started to wear a little thin but I realized I was the one who initiated the whole thing by wanting to trade in the Sony. The lady at ATT was able to reverse the upgrade in the system and said I was now good to go...

Yep - that meant 'good to go BACK to Best Buy' to get the phone there. I asked her to please first call BB to assure me that the issue was fixed on their end as well as hers because I didn't want to make another journey back up Glenway.

* Returned to Best Buy. Got phone. Love it.

Thank you, Jesus for a crazy distraction to keep my mind off of less wonderful things in my life at this time!

Heeeeeerrrre's my new phone!





pic borrowed from techdigest.com

Now for real...

YAY!!!!!!!!

Loving enemies...

I know, I know...I am so lame blogging these days...But it will be worth it in the end and then I'll be back to rambling. My favorite VCC senior pastor, Dave Workman, wrote a really great blog about the challenge of loving people who have done awful things to us...As always he brings it home in a way that makes ya go...WOW...And reminds me that I am so blessed to know our Creator God.

I send you to him...

Enjoy! I especially love the last line!

For a friend...

I am posting this from my personal prayer journal for a friend...It is what Jesus showed me the day that my aunt Helen passed away last August after a battle with cancer.

August 5, 2008

Goodbye, Aunt Helen...

I was in the shower and needed some time with Jesus. I closed my eyes and invited Jesus to take me somewhere or talk to me. He appeared in front of me. It was like he was standing in the middle of space with darkness and stars behind him and around him. Then a woman stepped in beside him. She was wearing a white skirt/blazer combo with a pill box hat. It was Aunt Helen. She was in the dress she is wearing in mom and dad's wedding pictures. She seemed really small next to Jesus. He put his hand on her shoulder. She waved to me and smiled. Then Jesus lifted her up and she became a little girl. He turned and was carrying her so that her chin was resting on his shoulder. She was looking back at me. Then she kind of sat up a little. She smiled again and waved. She was wearing white gloves. Jesus looked back over his shoulder, too and gave me a reassuring smile and nod, then looked at Aunt Helen, smiled and then turned again, continuing to carry her away into the heavens. Aunt Helen started to wave really excitedly with both hands like kids do when they are waving to their families as they pull out for camp on a bus or something. I waved back and smiled and blew her a kiss. She blew kisses back at me with both hands and she said (I could read her lips but couldn't hear her voice) "Carry on!" And I knew she meant to carry on the message of Jesus. I realized that mom was now with me along with Carla and Rick. I knew the whole family was standing with me though I didn't see them all. We were all waving. And we all started telling Aunt Helen we'd see her soon. She nodded and kept waving until she and Jesus became a tiny little white dot in the distance and then disappeared. Then there was flash and some color and then a white stream in the darkness like a shooting star that lodged into the sky...As if God had created a new star for Aunt Helen. I was reminded of when God told Abraham that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars. She is certainly one of those spiritual descendants of Abraham. Her faith has been the catalyst for the faith of so many others. Including myself. I am so blessed and thankful to have known and to share kinship with this wonderful woman of God.

Thank you for sharing this with me, Lord!

New Toy!

I ordered a new cell phone today...I had my eye on more of a Blackberry type device that I was going to get from Best Buy for $50 with my AT&T Upgrade. But I am trying to be more fiscally responsible, seeing as how I am taking Financial Peace University and all that. Plus I really was going to miss my flip phone...So here is my new toy which should arrive this week!

It's a Sony Ericsson W350 Blue.

It has MP3, photo and video capabilies and all that jazz. Maybe next month I will finally get a Bluetooth and look all important and stuff!

I paid an $18 service fee for the upgrade. The phone was free! YAY!

Just call me Mighty Bargain Hunter!

Now I have to get Robin to teach me how to stretch a buck at the grocery store!