I’m able to start running ads again.
And life has stopped being so chaotic so I will actually be able to begin writing again.
Happy June, everyone!
personal
What a wild week.
The world has been watching for the past week as Russia encroaches on Ukrainian territory, and it has been a wild ride. First, we got to listen to a speech given by Putin where he opted to revise history, then we watched as “peacekeeping forces” were sent into the region and troops were drawn to the border on both sides. It all culminated in the Russian forces surging into the countryside, where they found multiple pockets of resistance.
It seems surreal. I feel like the news has the conflict plastered front and center for all segments, yet many other issues still need to be focused on. Is anyone else drowning due to inflation? I can’t seem to stop spending at least $70 every time I pop into the grocery store. Milk is up almost two dollars from a year and a half ago. Meat prices are astronomical. Let’s not forget that gas is bound to skyrocket once the full effect of this Eastern European conflict is felt around the world. Meanwhile, the people in power just keep spending more money on everything they can think of.
Covid has been placed on the backburner. We just watched Canada trample citizens over the issue of Covid vaccine mandates, and yet the threat of war has caused a fog to settle on this issue. The medical industry is still shedding employees due to burnout and requiring a vaccine that might prevent severe symptoms.
Hopefully, something slows down. We need cooler heads to prevail in these matters, and we need to remember that war is something we do not need to be involved in.
FedEx really dropped the ball this time.
On Wednesday, I made a rash decision to upgrade my laptop, and I found this sweet deal at Dell. Due to the upcoming holiday, the laptops I perused were up to $500 off. I picked out this lovely laptop from the G Series that will seriously upgrade the specs that I’m working with. The main reason I got it, though, is because I am hoping to get started on a job with Arise. The problem is that I need to have the correct specs and get all the other pre-employment items completed before Monday. So when Dell offered a next-day delivery option for free, I gladly took it.
Everything was going great. My laptop shipped out at about 6 am, and I was looking forward to getting my new item set up by Friday night. I cleared my schedule so that I could accept the delivery. Friday was a pretty nice day in terms of the temperature, and there was a lot of ice melt contributing to turning my deck into a giant puddle. Once the clock hit 2 pm, I thought it was a good idea to keep a closer watch at the door so that my delivery wouldn’t have time to touch the water. I was so anxious and impatient I actually tweeted a photo of myself standing at the door. It was just before 4 pm when I decided to check my alerts. There was something there! It was a notification letting me know that the driver had attempted to deliver the package, but no one was home to receive it. Naturally, I was confused and more than a little irritated.
It turns out that it’s like pulling teeth trying to get a real human being on the phone when you call FedEx. The automated voice sent me in circles for a couple minutes before I was finally allowed a chance to speak to someone. I end up talking to this lovely lady who obviously doesn’t live anywhere near Iowa. She has no idea how to get ahold of anyone in an Iowa location and can’t really do anything except send over a request for same-day service.” to the center in Ames. I had her add to the message that I live in kind of a tricky spot to find, with directions on how to see it, and I crossed my fingers. No package. Even though I let them know that something was wrong within fifteen minutes of the mixup, the driver never brought my box back around.
I took to Twitter and received basically the same response. I was told it would be dropped off the next day. I got an alert saying it would be delivered today by 4:30pm, which did not happen. I know I won’t get it tomorrow, and I’m not even sure if they will deliver it on President’s Day. I can only hope that I get it earlier on Monday as opposed to later.
My bad luck never fails me.
Facebook/Meta Banhammer for 90 days
A year and a half ago, I chose to post a funny meme on Facebook. Today, that meme came back to bite me in the ass, and it resulted in a ban from posting ads on Facebook. It’s one of the only ways I can hope to gain traffic to my site, and now it has been squelched.
To be completely transparent, here is the meme in question:
It is ridiculous that something like this gets flagged. It is no wonder that the site is hemorrhaging users.
Speak it into existence.
The fear of failing is powerful. It can hold the brightest and most ambitious back from success. Sometimes, all we need to do to combat this failure is speak of our goals aloud. Instead of keeping our dearest thoughts and dreams locked inside our minds, we need to release those ideas and let the rest of the world hear about our endeavors. I am ready to be successful, I am prepared to build a business in my home, and I am prepared to move forward.
I have been on this planet for 33 years, and I have gained knowledge on various topics in that time frame. My hobbies are multifaceted, as are my talents and skills. I am always willing to learn something new, and I crave finding a work atmosphere that feels inclusive and warm. I realize that all jobs will have stressors, but my former employment had too many all at once.
I’m tired of moping around and whining to myself about why things aren’t working out. I will never change things if I continue to feel afraid of failure. Perhaps the universe is keeping me from finding another 9-5 job because It recognizes that I am meant for more than I currently have.
It is time to start something new. I don’t care what I start working on. I just know that I need to complete some sort of project. I need to prove that I have what it takes to get the kind of career I want.
Down and out, but not defeated. Yet.
2022 has already been a wild ride, and I’m starting to wonder why I chose to go down this path. I can handle rejection. My issue stems from how much time I have spent just to find yet another seemingly insignificant hiccup on the road to working for myself.
Once I realized I needed a bachelor’s degree before doing anything related to editing, I turned my attention back to the work from home industry. I got cold feet when looking into a job with Omni Interactions, and I’m still kicking myself for letting that one go. Tonight, I finally decided to set up an account with arise. I did the assessment, watched the videos, gave them all my information, only to have them turn around and reject me due to my equipment. My laptop’s processor isn’t up to snuff, and now I have hit another dead-end. I just bought this computer at the end of 2022, and already it isn’t capable of handling the kind of work most of these places require. I would be lying if I said I had the money to fix this: I don’t. I do not have the means to make that big purchase again.
I’ve spent the last month getting things set up to work from home. Now it seems as though all of that money has been wasted. I’m also looking for a standard 9-5 job, and even in that respect, I have been hitting numerous dead-end roads.
Local Review: Mornin’ Glory Coffee
If you are a food and coffee lover, you have to read this review.
In the small town of Webster City, Iowa, you will find a gem of a coffee house: Mornin’ Glory Coffee. I discovered this small shop back in June when I switched clinic locations, and it has quickly become my favorite place to stop when I’m hungry or looking for a caffeine buzz.
They’ve got the menu posted on the wall, and it is clear that their specialty is coffee, that does not mean that their food is substandard. There are always protein bars and sweet treats like cinnamon twists and rolls near the register. When you visit for the first time, it is required that you try one of the local favorites. If it is breakfast time, the recommended item is the Hatch.
One of the half or whole sandwiches will hit the spot if you’re stopping for lunch. They come either cold or toasted and are tagged with chips or a really excellent soup. I recommend the roast beef because it comes with this horseradish mayo paired with aroma tomatoes and provolone cheese nestled on rye bread. A genuinely scrumptious item that never loses its appeal.
The prices at Mornin’ Glory are reasonable, given every restaurant’s hit due to recent inflation. They certainly stand up well compared to the costs of the nearby Scooters. They have a variety of special flavors that will suit any mood and season. You’ll never find the atmosphere of this coffee shop in some franchise stop. They decorate for the seasons, they’ve got a beautifully decorated interior, and their fluorescent open sign is a welcomed sight to all. The employees working there are always cheerful, even when they are busy. It is nice to be able to stop in and chat with someone for a few minutes before heading off to work. It can be a quiet place at times, but it can also be full of people having quiet conversations or listening to music on their earbuds.
No shame in the truth.
There’s no reason for me to deny it. I am a very unhealthy and out-of-shape person currently. Two years ago, I had big plans to use the new decade to spark my motivation to change certain lifestyle habits. A month and a half into my goal of walking/working out every day when Covid took hold of the country. I used it as an excuse to stay inside, stop working out, and no longer eat healthily.
I have struggled to get out of this rut in the past two years. I want to be healthy. I know that if I want to be around as my son grows up, I need to change my way of thinking about food. Food used to be a comfort to me, and now I am repulsed by the amount of money and time I spend on food-related items. Now seems like a good time to start making a change.
I always encourage people to start small. Your first steps need to be tiny enough to keep you motivated to reach for more, no matter the final goal. Start out with these small weights if you’re looking to get started with a workout routine, but you’re living with minimal space. I love them, and I love having the small weight because I can add it to cardio workouts and feel like I have worked out my whole body.
I am ready to feel better. I am prepared to embrace the old view of myself because that was one that I was happy with. I have changed my parameters for what will make me “happy,” and I will gladly settle for being able to experience and enjoy more of life’s little moments.
My home office is complete.
Finally, I have added a printer, scanner, and copier to my home office. A few years ago, I bought a brother’s printer brand, and I was never able to get my laptop to recognize it. I wasn’t very keen to get burnt again, so I did my research this time. I wanted something simple to set up and small enough to fit in a small space. This one is perfect. It’s wireless, so I don’t have to waste port space for it, and it is connected to my wifi in two simple steps. I also opted to take the deal on ink so that I get free ink for 6 months, and then each month after that, it will cost only $2.99
The ink colors pop out with the test page, it isn’t smudged, and the machine didn’t try to eat the paper. Initially, I wasn’t sure that it would hold the paper I’ve already got, but you can load it with a decent amount. I don’t think this thing would be able to print a massive amount at one time, but for a home office, this is perfect.
This desk is essential for small spaces.
About a month ago, I bought a desk for my apartment because I was tired of using a cardboard box (literally) as a computer stand.” I wanted to get a desk that was small enough to not take up a ton of room, but I also needed something that could hold more than just a laptop.
This desk fits in my bedroom without making the space feel cramped, and I even have enough room that I was able to purchase a computer chair to go with it. I also wanted something that would give me the option to stand up if I wanted to. One of the local ads around here talks about how “sitting is the new standing,” so I thought it best that I make an effort at being a little bit healthier. I stand just under 5’7, and this desk is perfect for me. It has wheels that you can lock in place, and it is super easy to adjust the desk’s height. I also love how easy it was to put the thing together. I’m not much for construction, no matter how small the task, but I was able to put this together in under an hour, and I didn’t need any help other than the instructions that came in the box. This desk has a handy shelf underneath the main table, and it’s wide enough to hold books, headphones, etc.
I’m so glad that I went with this desk over the other advertised ones. It doesn’t tip towards me, but I’m not looking to use this for drawing or for using a tablet. If I owned a clinic for nearly any specialty, I would use multiple desks just like this one.
The Redd Blog 