This Reminds Me

Archive for the ‘Cyber Life’ Category

Rachel has been our next gen early adopter of all shiny objects with buttons.  Here’s a four-minute jaunt through her technology graveyard.  Of course, she’s the one I took to the office at age 12 to help with a volunteer project -  mailing T-shirts.  At lunch she asked me, “Mom, have you ever heard of a typewriter?  It’s kind of like a printer but it’s just text.”

Lately, I’ve been reading about “nomophobia,” or the acute fear of being out of cell phone contact.  At first I thought, “That’s just one more twitch of the psyche for people without enough real problems.”   But Hannah’s question made me think, and I see that I, too, have succumbed to nomophobia. My AT&T iPhone is either in my purse, in my hand, on my desk or charging on the kitchen counter.  I’d be lost now without it – literally, and figuratively.

Last month, I represented AT&T at the Ft. Lauderdale  She Streams vlogging conference.  I shot this picture with my iPhone.  From a cab window!  In years past, I would have taken a camera with me.  Photobucket has a lovely app for direct upload.  You don’t lose your pixel quality like you do emailing and then uploading shots from a p.c.

My phone is my entertainment (Words with Friends).   Before I get to work in the morning, I’ve scanned my office and personal email using the WI-fi on the bus.  If I’m lost, I either use its GPS, or call Keith to direct me from his.  I use a credit card at Sam’s for the rebate, but don’t like the big bill at the end of the month.  Before I leave the store, I’ve logged into my bank account and sent a payment to cover the charged amount.  One of my older girls has an unexpected expenditure – I can move money to her account.  I don’t carry my bible to church any more – I use the app.  I text my “MyCokeRewards” now.  Heck, I text with my older girls all day.  Keith gave me directions within a building once using Facetime – I could show him where I was.  We’ve stopped printing Groupons, etc. – we use our phones.  The trip to Ft. Lauderdale was the first time I used an electronic boarding pass – swiped my phone, got on the plane.

I am not a fantasy book lover.  Hardly ever read the stuff.  But I did read Stephen King’s “Dark Tower” series, and there was a recurrent phase that totally resonated with me:  “The world has moved on.”

Our world really has moved on.  I have noticed that those most folks contemptuous/suspicious/irritated  of or by wireless smart phone (smart phone + has an operating system, uses a data plan) usually live in a very well-defined niche.   That’s not saying a niche is “good” or “bad” – simply that “it is.”   When we lived in Houston, I was more “niche-y” than anyone I know now.  If you’re in a niche, you know that one place to stop and get directions.   Email is something you might check daily – or not.  You carry paper pictures tucked in crevices of a wallet still sporting a check book.  You don’t shop much – if ever – online because you go to the same stores which likely feature paper coupons.   Your friends may be in the same type of niche, which works well.   The rub, of course, is that tricky next generation, and the one after that, and the one after that.  Because the next generation never goes backward on connection methods, and they don’t wait.  The world keeps moving on.

Because the world keeps moving on, I’d watch for nomophobia to become more and more prevalent – in fact, I think it’ll be the norm.

You could call your doctor about it, of course.

Just don’t try to use a pay phone to do it.

One of the tricks of managing a family is to offer “separate but equal” rewards, gifts, acknowledgements, etc.   With four kids in a wide age range – that’s easier said than done.  As I am fond of saying while explaining why we can’t do this or that, “You can’t do for one what you can’t do for four.”  But, of course, you don’t have to provide identically for the four – hopefully, though, you provide comparably.  I stress hopefully because really – who knows about tomorrow?   The best plans can be derailed with a lay-off, car repair, medical bill, etc., as all of us adults know too well.

Rachel, Lois and Hannah each got a special trip for their ninth birthdays.  I took Rachel to American Girl Place in Chicago.  Keith took Lois whale watching in Seattle, and Hannah to San Francisco.

Keith took my very favorite picture e-v-e-r of Hannah on her special trip.  He had a full day planned, but she saw the Pacific ocean and begged to stop.  That’s where they spent most of the day.  This pictures captures “her” – joy and abandon.

But for Julia’s ninth birthday – the trip just didn’t work out.  We had first-year college expenses for Rachel, plus we were saving vacation time and every dime for the family cruise in December.  Julia wasn’t home to hear about the trips of Rachel, Lois and Hannah so I’m not sure her being shorted was bothering her as much as it bothered me.

One day, Keith and I would like to take her back to Russia to visit.  Let her see the beauty of St. Petersburg.  But that is a few years away, sooooo….

To celebrate her recent (12th) birthday, I took Julia to Space Center Houston to have lunch with an astronaut.  Rachel and Hannah couldn’t afford to miss work, school, Girl Scouts, etc. but Lois – grinning wickedly about “senior spring” – tagged along.

Julia’s fifth grade teacher  has their room decorated in “Early NASA.”   They’ve held several video conferences with NASA’s educational staff, and next week – they’re studying the moon.  Great timing for this trip, no?

When we lived in Houston, we visited often.  Lois (center) was only five years old in 1998 when “Space Family Woodworth” shot their Christmas card photo on site.

The three-story playground – a huge hit.   I, however, preferred the stairs to return to the ground level.

The older girls tease Julia about having a “six pack of abs,” but those weren’t much help lifting a planetary-adjusted weight.

While Julia spun around 360 degrees in this capsule….

…Lois and I could watch her on this exterior screen.  Omigosh!  Good that we did this before lunch.

Before enjoying lunch with astronaut Ken Cameron, we heard him speak for 30 minutes in the Blast Off Theater.  He spent a year training in Russia with cosmonauts.  My favorite Russian had a million questions for him – until he sat down at our table.  Then it was all “nodding of the head” and “chewing of the chicken strips.”

One small girl; one giant Saturn V rocket – part of the tram tour.  You may be asking, “Where are all the other people?”  Answer:  We went on a rainy Friday.  We had the place virtually to ourselves.  We never waited in line,  or had to elbow someone at a display.  It was awesome.  The perfect time to go!

The Saturn V building made great use of QR codes.  Lois and I got a huge kick out of scanning the codes for more info like…..

….a photo of and links to more info on the third stage.  Don’t have the AT&T scanner?  Well, heck - get it now!

The magic of a green screen!

We ended the day (5 p.m.) where we began (10 a.m.) – in the play area.  Julia absolutely loved building motorized “lunar rovers.”   This is my favorite picture of the day because it captures her fascination and concentration.

Next year, Julia will be a teenager and we’ll start those delightful adolescent experiences.

But for this year – I’m glad to still have a child to enjoy an out-of-this-world birthday.

As 2012 approaches, our family is undergoing a fundamental shift in its #1 pastime – reading.

Keith and I come from families that read constantly.  I remember Mom and Judy swapping grocery bags stuffed with books.  My mom always had a book going – in fact, several:  One each in or by her chair in the den, bedside, car, purse and yes, one in the bathroom.  No Christmas or birthday was complete without a new book.  Or two.  Or three.   My first external validation of childhood responsibility was acquiring a library card – from a Houston Book Mobile that camped in a grocery store parking lot, long before Meyer Branch Library was built.

Keith and I love to read.  Our 1992 “Three Wise Woodworths” Christmas card plus….

…the Christmas card insert.   I’ll bet I read “Muppets in my Neighborhood” to Rachel 500 times.

But over time, what do you do with books?  Swap them around, sure.  Sell an occasional load to Half Price Books, maybe.  Build/buy more shelves, assuredly.  I quit keeping any but the most rare of freshly-acquired books soon after we moved here, simply because our den and bedroom shelves overflowed.

Enter the e-Reader.

I am not a technological early adopter.  I love technology – when it works for me.  But I have no interest in being “first.”  I am more than willing for someone else to work out the bugs and let the price drop before I buy a new toy.

Keith is a technological early adopter.  The financial constraints of providing for a six-person family, however, mean that he can’t always “be first” as he usually was when he was single.  He has to weigh purchases with their value for six people, not just one.  But when he buys – wow, he knows what’s doing.   He’s been a forums user since the 90′s and scours scores of tech sites daily.   He is our family’s source for knowledge of all things that must boot.

Keith switched to an e-Reader – specifically, a Barnes & Noble Nook – about two years ago.  His motto:  “No more dead tree.”  He carries his scri-fi loaded Nook everywhere he might have a chance to read on it  He no longer buys – and very seldom reads – paper books.

I downloaded the Amazon Kindle, Nook, Borders Kobo and iBooks apps for my iPad last Christmas and slowly began to read e-Books, enticed by a great holiday sale at Borders.  I liked e-Reading fine, but still refused to chant “no dead tree.”  After a year of e-Reading mixed with paper reading, I can see advantages/disadvantages to each – especially since Lois, Hannah, Julia and my sister Judy got Nooks for Christmas this year.

Lois’ Nook on its charger amidst her desk clutter.  The best books I read this year were “Empire of the Summer Moon,” and “The Immortal Henrietta Lacks,” and I read them digitally.

Advantages to an e-Reader

1.  Portability.  You can carry multiple books with you easily.  When I traveled with “dead tree,” I always carried three books – the one I was currently reading, my next planned book and a third, just in case the “next planned” was a dog.  Now I just slip my iPad in my carry-on and I’m done.

2.  Ease of reading.  As I’ve – ummm, “matured” – I’ve noticed font sizes getting smaller.  Any decent e-reader allows font size change, brightness change (if back lit), etc.  One exception:  Most e-readers have small screens.  As Judy has pointed out – “I wish there was more on a page.”  Tablets have the bigger screens, but are also pricey.

3.  Familiarity.  My kids have always lived in a digital world.  They are more comfortable with electronics than other media.  Rachel bought her own Nook a few months ago and has more than doubled the amount of time she reads for pleasure.  We’re hoping an e-Reader will do the same for Julia, who seldom reads for fun unless goaded.

“The Magic Tree House” reads better digitally, I’m told…..

4.  Convenience.  Want that book?  Just log in and download it from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, etc.  No wasting gas driving to a b&m (bricks and mortar) store, or waiting on UPS to deliver the box.

5.  Storage.   Look around.  Enough said.

Advantages to “Dead Tree”

1.  Personalization.  An inscribed bo0k means something – at least to me.  I don’t think an Amazon gift card for a Kindle book is nearly as personal as an inscribed tome.  More practical, yes, but not as personal.

I find it difficult to give away any book my mom inscribed to me.  Ridiculous, because she was more than pen and ink.  But still difficult.  I met author Robert Massie at a luncheon this fall.  He inscribed a copy of his new “Catherine the Great” to Julia.  After I read it, I’ll place that “dead tree” copy in her room.  She’ll appreciate it one day.  I hope.

2.  Ease of sharing.  Amazon plus Barnes and Noble have very limited sharing ability.  99.99% of the time, if you bought the book, it can only be read via the device associated with your account.  You can’t – as I have done for so many years – throw that book in a closet for your next trip to Houston to hand off to your sister.

3.  Annotating.  You can digitally annotate, but my fat fingers don’t like tiny keyboards.  It’s easier for me to grab a yellow highlighter and a pen to mark up whatever devotional our Wednesday night bible class is studying.

4.  Better choices in the public library.  At least in San Antonio, the digital choices are slim compared to paper.  And who has time to drive to the library?  I just don’t.  I grew up an avid library user (both public and school) but found that after I had kids, I simply did not have time to work in non-essential car trips, or patience for one more due date.  Sounds whiny, but true.

Neutral Factors

1.  Cost.  Sure, there’s an entry cost to e-Readers, but devices have gotten much cheaper – and prices continue to fall.  I don’t think entry cost is significant any longer if you’re buying an e-Reader.  Now if you’re buying a tablet with e-Reader apps – that’s different.  Tablets definitely carry a significant entry cost.  Also, the cost of e-books versus paper books has narrowed to about $1 for new releases.  Of course, used paper books and/or late release paperbacks are cheaper.   Commensurately, late release paperback prices for e-Readers  are lower, too.  I know there are a million variables, and I am generally pretty frugal with entertainment money and – ceteris parabis – I think the costs are closing in on “equal” for most purchases.

As part of cost…..if you lose a paperback book, it’s usually an annoyance, but not a big deal.  I’ve left them on the bus, at the doctor’s office, etc.  Irritating, but not devastating.  If I lost my iPad, I’d be crushed.  Crippled.  Inconsolable.  In addition to being without my best friend, it’d cost $500+ to replace it.  So I do not carry my iPad on the bus, where I none-too-gently sling around my “blue bag.”  If/when I see a killer deal on Nooks, I think I’ll get myself one strictly as my “leave the house” reader.  I tend to take care of my possessions and wouldn’t plan to lose it or break it, but if I did, I wouldn’t tear my clothes and cover myself in ashes like I would if it were my iPad.

My “bus bag, ” souvenir of working the 1992 Republican Convention.  It will wear out one day (as the numerous small holes enlarge) but in the meantime, it carries my lunch, an umbrella and my current “bus book.”  I have an entire section of a wall unit crammed with a diminishing supply of paperbacks ($.50@) and hard backs ($1@) we bought in April at the NEISD used book sale.  We’ve gone every year but I wonder if we’ll go in 2012?  I kind of doubt it.

2.  Inventory.  If it’s new, a classic or sold well in the last 50 years, chances are there’s an e-version.

I hope your 2012 is filled with life, laughter and lots of good books – however you read them.

A group of friends at AT&T asked me to document my favorite bottom-feeding online shopping tips.  Any mother of four daughters has them.  

It’s been a few years since I’ve posted any, so, I thought I’d do so again.  And again, I must credit Sharon Durham with many of them.  Sharon and I spent many chuckling afternoons in the original SBC e-channel “tricking shopping carts.”  I still remember her talking about a $50 credit she finangled in the early days of Shutterfly and how she “ate off it a long time.”  My hero!

Here goes….feel free to add your own in the Comments…..I’d love to give ‘em a try!

Online Bottom-Feeding

Turn Me Loose – I Hear e-Shopping Music!  (Part Deux)

Join Online Loyalty Programs

Online loyalty programs reward you for clicking through from their site to an e-commerce site. The rewards accumulate, and the programs are free – so why not?! My personal favorites:

www.upromise.com – Perhaps the most famous. Started by the guy who birthed the American Express program. SBC was a member 2004 – 2006. Grab your wallet and spend about 15 minutes to register all your credit and debit cards. When you click through from Upromise to a member site, a timed mechanical feed updates your account with $x% of the amount you spent. Many restaurants and some B&M (bricks and mortar) stores rebate, too, so, when in doubt – pay with plastic. Be sure to get the Upromise credit card, not because you need another, but because they offer great promos, especially on Exxon gas. The marketing hook is “money for college,” but that’s bogus. It’s your money – for anything – and you can withdraw it any time. You sure don’t have to invest it in any of their college savings plans, but they’ll keep pushing them.

www.mypoints.com – Really growing the last few years. U-verse has had offers in its permission marketing emails. Points are awarded – each point is worth roughly $.008 (not quite a penny.) Redeem points for gift cards. Get points by (1) clicking thru from their one-time, daily emails – you get usually get 5 points just for clicking – don’t have to buy anything (2) clicking thru from their daily or weekly e-mail summaries of the day’s or week’s best deals (some are quite good!) or (3) going to their site and clicking thru to an e-tailer. Be sure to enroll in their daily and weekly email programs.

I always check both Upromise and MyPoints to see who’s offer the better incentive. 4% on Upromise = 5 points per dollar on My Points.

Lots of other loyalty programs, of course like www.shoprunner.com

 ALWAYS Look for a Promo Code

Even if you click-thru from a loyalty site – check for a promo code! Favorites (of scores):

www.retailmenot.com www.naughtycodes.com

No luck? Google for one. Surprising what you’ll find.

Daily Deals – They’re a “Must”

Register at these sites for their daily emails. Also, you can “like” many on Facebook and get their deals in your feeds.

www.woot.com One deal, one day – unless it’s a “woot-off.” In a woot-off, the one item changes as soon as the inventory is depleted. $5 shipping. Deal changes at 12M CST. Worth checking if you’re up anyway – don’t wait for the email!

www.dailydeals.target.com – Not fabulous but truly good and all have free shipping

Amazon  - The Big Kahuna

Groupon – Watch the expiration dates. They’re getting kind of snarky.

Living Social - As good as Groupon but not as well known.

http://deals.mamapedia.com – Mostly baby/toddler stuff

www.kgbdeals.com – Heavier on services than on products

www.midnightbox.com – Heavy on electronics

www.grouppigg.com – Heavy on services

http://www.dealofthedaysa.com/ – Lots of restaurants

www.urbandealight.com – Heavy on personal services like spas

www.dealster.com – All over the board

www.midnightbox.com – Heavy on electronics

www.angieslist.com – (“The Big Deal”) Major home services

During the holidays, www.samsclub.com has a daily deal which is excellent w/free shipping

MyPoints, Upromise & Daily Deals – An Sweet Marriage

Daily deals are sweet, but they can be even sweeter if either (1) the deal site itself is a standing member of MyPoints and/or Upromise or (2) the daily deal is being given MyPoints or Upromise credit. So don’t just “rush” buying a daily deal. Look at Upromise and MyPoints first to see if the deal site itself is a member and if so – click through to buy. If the deal site itself isn’t participating as an entity in MyPoints or Upromise – and you’re a MyPoints member – wait until the daily email arrives just to see if it’s got a one-day point assignment.

Just this week, there was a Groupon for Quiznos. Great! My family likes Quiznos. But by waiting a few hours for the MyPoints daily email, I also got 8 points per dollar by clicking through from it to buy the Groupon for Quiznos. Like that better!

Show Me The (Saved) Money

These sites all feature a variety of deals.

www.slickdeals.net This is my home page. I check it several times a day. It’s a bulletin board site for every kind of deal. The most-clicked deals float to the top, but you can search, too. Fabulous during the holidays. You know the lame “My Coke Rewards” redemptions? Well, sometimes Coke has good ones, like Home Depot cards – but you won’t find them poking around the Coke Site. You’ll often find that someone has posted the URLs in slickdeals.net, however. I <3 slickdeals.net.

www.theblackfriday.com Don’t stand in all those lines!

http://www.dealsofamerica.com/indexc.php Less user-friendly than slickdeals, but still good.

Favorite e-tailers? Register for Their Permission Marketing

Might as well get their coupons, etc. and if you’ve not bought in awhile, they might send you a tasty offer. Remember that your email address is almost always your Account ID. So if there is some great offer out there and you want multiples – you need a few throw-down email addresses handy to establish multiple accounts and take advantage of the offer multiple times. You can have 9 active subaccounts with a Yahoo! Primary account…just saying…..

Buy Gift Cards?

http://www.plasticjungle.com/ – They don’t always have what you want in stock but when they do – nice! You can also sell unwanted gift cards here.

The Best-Kept Secret in Online Shopping

www.auctions.samsclub.com – If I never set foot in a Sam’s warehouse, I’d keep a membership just for the auction site. Their prices are good anyway but add an auction layer – wow! Powered by eBay, but run by Sam’s. Terrific in the weeks after the gift-giving holidays. You pay $1 over the next lowest bid for what you purchase. (So if I bid $100, and Barbara bids $75 – I get the item for $76.) Their shipping charges are very reasonable. My strategy:

• First check http://www.google.com/prdhp and/or http://thisfind.com to find the going price.
• If I’m mildly interested, I’ll bid 1/4 – 1/3 of that price just to see what happens.
• If I am very interested, I’ll bid half.
• If I really want it – I’ll bid 2/3. And I’ll make sure I check my email frequently, because Sam’s will tell me when I’m being outbid.

 Now you do know that any price in a Sam’sstore ending in “1” is below their cost? Right? So be sure to cherry-pick through the store as well as sniffing around that dark back corner.

While We’re Chatting

www.restaurant.com has skyrocketed in popularity. Two things to remember about it:

• Never, ever buy a certificate without a coupon code. Register at their site for permission marketing, and/or check slickdeals.net. There’s almost always a 40 or 50% promo code floating around.
• They’ve gotten really restrictive the last few years. So check the restrictions carefully before you buy. The certificates are a good deal only if you use them.

 http://www.visitsanantonio.com/visitors/save/VisitSaveOnlineClub.aspx – If you host out of town company, you can save a few dollars with these coupons. They’re not great, but they’re better than nothing, especially when people show up without much notice. You need to register and start getting their permission marketing emails before you can get the discounts.

www.squaretrade.com – I totally swear by this company. Great warranty deals and their service is incredible. Yes, I’m raving. They deserve it. Be sure to “like them” on Facebook for exclusive offers. Also register for their permission marketing. They give a 90-day grace period on purchases, so, if you’re planning to buy expensive electronics, start watching for a coupon code, because they’re usually in the 20 – 30% range. After my first SquareTrade warranty purchase, they sent me a paper letter w/a code good for 50% off my next purchase. You do pay extra for breakage, but hey – AppleCare doesn’t cover that at all.

Happy e-$hopping!  And do post your favorite tips in “Comments,” okay?!