Foreverpurple

Remember this? I had intended to follow up and blog about our Enneagram results but I got sidetracked…for like 2 years lol OOPS

I started gathering our results and discovered that even though I had recorded my primary types, my test was gone. So I retook it. My top two types didn’t change but instead of being identical scores one was higher. Matt and I both did this, once for ourselves and once as each other. Our counselor recommended this to help us understand each other better.

My results:
Type 8 (22 points)
Type 8 (20 points)

My Hornevian group: Assertive

I’m still not sure on how to score or read the Three Triads. I haven’t figured out the ‘wings’ yet either.

Matt for me:
Type 2 (23 points)
Type 9 (22 points)

My Hornevian group: Dutiful

Matt’s results:
Type 6 (25 points)
Type 9 (24 points)

Matt’s Hornevian group: Dutiful

Me for Matt
Type 6 (28 points)
Type 9 (23 points)

Matt’s Hornevian group: Dutiful

So I’m a

Matt sees me as a

This makes sense if you read that a Type 8 goes to Type 2 in growth.
Type 2 goes to Type 8 when under stress.

Matt is a

I see Matt as a Type 6 also.

I’ve been asked to bring to your attention the case of a trend that’s been going around for a while, faking news/stories/videos/pics/etc of people and posting it on the internet. Because I agree with the point of view being presented, I’m going to post about.

While in 99.9% of the cases its harmless and the fake work is clearly outlined and spotted, in other cases some people take this stuff seriously and cause real damage.

So while it may be funny to create a fake mugshot of your friend and an accompanying ‘news’ story about your arrest, it becomes less funny when you see that Google and other search engines are indexing these sites. For many people, if they read it on the internet it must be true.

What happens when (non tech savvy) friends Google your name, or when a secretary in HR is doing background check on a potential hire? Can you see the potential damage?

From the site:

This is a prank script written for the sole purpose of confusing, embarrassing, and angering your friends or enemies. Simply fill out the form below and it will create a link to a fake news story of your choice. You then give them the link to the fake story, which will look 100% authentic.

So you have found your name on this site and you are a little concerned about your faux arrest becoming an internet truth? The site has a ‘Remove your name’ option. Great! Except they expect you to pay $45.00 to have your name removed. For a prank. $45.00 for something you didn’t agree to! That only removes it from the site. It has no impact on existing search engine records.

The site also gives out their script for free to allow others to run their version of it. I doubt the $45 fee extends to any of these other spin off sites.

As a lone individual on the web you may not see the issue here. But if you are someone who is building their brand, you understand how important it is to protect your brand image and integrity. Getting slapped for $45 to opt out of something you never wanted any part of to begin with sounds a little like extortion to me. This site needs to take a little more responsibility and be more proactive about protecting people’s identity and/or brand. They certainly shouldn’t be charging $45 to have your name removed!

I’m not posting links to the site for obvious reasons. I’m sure you can find it on your own. Maybe if enough people contact them to demand they put tools in place to block your name/brand from showing up their site (free of charge), they will listen.

Last week someone left a legit comment on my blog and I accidentally deleted it instead of publishing it. If it was you, I’m sorry! It was absolutely an accident.

Little Scooter passed away last night. Something was clearly wrong but I wasn’t able to get her to the vet last night. She was eating Thursday night and active so something happened pretty fast. She was with me for 4 years and was was fully grown when I adopted her. So I’m estimating she was at least 5 years old. Guinea pigs typically live 5-9 years but can live beyond that in some cases. She got sick a few months ago but seemed to fully recover with meds. Tess has never been sick. Maybe being older she wasn’t as hardy, I don’t really know.

Matt buried her in the yard this morning. I was thinking that I would let Tess live out her life with me and then no more guinea pigs. Guinea pigs are really not meant to live alone though and human interaction doesn’t replace their need for socialization with their own kind. So leaving Tess to her remaining years completely alone doesn’t seem right either. She was at least a year old when I got her in early 2008. Matt said he wants to adopt another pig. He has been helping me taking care of them and cleaning their cage for the most part over the past year. I told him we need to make sure Tess is healthy first. I would like to adopt from the rescue who took Tess’s baby boys (she was preggo when I adopted her) but they are several hours away and I’m not sure how we would test out the compatibility with a potential new life partner.

Little tiny black ants. It never ends!

It started out they only came in the house in the spring. Last year when summer rolled in the ants stayed. I tried several earth friendly remedies but finally called the exterminator again when I saw them swarming on the foundation around our bedroom. I HATE ANTS. I mean really, really, really fucking hate ants.

Guess who’s back?

So I’m back to researching online ways to rid myself of these heinous bastards.
I use the Terro bait around the kitchen and that seems to help but they don’t seem to deter the ants in the bathroom and bedroom.

I found a recipe to make my own version of ant bait.

First I cleaned everything especially the counter tops and bathroom with vinegar and water, place some in a spray bottle and use it to clean. Ants hate the stuff and it destroys there invisible trails they leave behind. They leave a trail so other ants can follow it.

Next I went to the grocery store and bought some Borax. Take 2 table spoons of borax, 2 cups of sugar and 1 cup of water. Place the mix in a pan and boil it for 3 minutes. It will reduce down and become clear and thick when it cools, Looks just like Terro ant bait.

Put some in a small lid or just place some dime sized blobs where ever you see ants. They love the stuff. After I placed mine within 5 min. I had a steady stream of ants coming to get it. I just checked a spot I did outside and they are all over it.

It will not kill them right away. The idea is for them to take it back to there queen and it will kill her. No more ants!

Diatomaceous Earth is another popular solution but its more for sprinkling around stuff. I believe the ants are already in the foundation or walls so I can’t see how this will be much help.

I’m liking the sound of this. I just have to remember to place the bait in something that is ant accessible but not cat/bunny/squirrel accessible. Hopefully we can cook up a big pot of ant genocide this weekend. :)

I have a concrete flower box that runs the width of my living room windows. It only receives morning sun and not a lot at that. I believe it has a concrete bottom so drainage is minimal. The soil is not great in there. Photo below:

Over the years I have planted some sort of annuals in this bed but I’m tired of dealing with that. I need to know what I can plant in this place that meets the following requirements:

Low maintenance
Hardy
Drought tolerant- I’m a lazy waterer and it gets no rain water due to an overhang
Heat tolerant
Perennial

I want to plant something that only requires I water it from time to time.

Suggestions?

So I haven’t written about cell phone recycling and donating in a long time. I needed some current information at work and started Googling and decided to write an updated post on the topic. This is not a complete list of all the possibilities but it should get you started.
[adsense:]
Donate it to a good cause:
Cell Phones for Soldiers
Cell Phones for Charity
Cell Phones for 911
Cell Phones for Life
Verizon’s HopeLine? Program


For the third year in a row, Verizon Wireless collected more than 1 million no-longer-used wireless phones through its HopeLine® program. Throughout 2009, consumers and businesses donated nearly 1.1 million phones. With the help of these donations, the HopeLine? program awarded $1.6 million in cash grants to domestic violence prevention and awareness programs and donated 23,000 phones with 69 million free minutes of service to almost 600 shelters nationwide.

Verizon Wireless’ HopeLine? program collects no-longer used wireless phones, batteries and accessories from any wireless service provider at our Communications Stores nationwide and puts the nation’s most reliable wireless network to work in our communities by turning these unused wireless phones into support for victims of domestic violence.

You can sell it here:
Cell for Cash
Recellular

Recycle or Donate it:
AT&T Recycling or Donating Options