A new breakthrough secret is all you now need in order to get your Google AdWords pay-per-clicks FREE!
A gentleman from New York discovered what he calls an "oversight" on the part of 99.9% of all marketers that allows him to get otherwise paid-for advertising at Google as well as all other search engines that allow sponsored ads.
And no, nothing about his "secret" is illegal - nor does it require that you know someone on the "inside" at Google, Yahoo, MSN, Overture and others.
Instead, the New Yorker boasts proudly "...this is something that I caught onto just before 2000 when there was so much search engine craze running around, and started doing small just to test things at first ... but which I later expanded on after getting the hang of it."
This same fellow went on to start and operate sixteen separate online companies selling everything from pet food, DVDs, children's toys & games, books, software, and sold not only his own manufactured products but became an affiliate for other web businesses - all the while applying his mastermind secret.
Over the course of nearly eight years the New Englander confesses "I've actually gotten over $87 million in advertising that using my secret I never had to pay for ... and the largest share of which was more recently in Google pay-per-clicks as well as other forms of pad advertising at search engines ... all of which I got for free ..."
So powerful is his secret that he's able to monopolize any niche online, and can always secure the top premium spots just above the usual organic results featured at most search engines.
He still has to set up an account with the search engines - but after applying his secret he is removed from having to pay for all the costs otherwise involved.
Again, nothing about his secret is either illegal or robs from the search engines.
One spokesperson from one of the most popular search engines said chuckling after being made privy to this amazing secret "Wow! Ha! This is really unique ... and in my expert opinion it would only serve to enhance and bring more business to us at [name of search engine withheld for legal & confidentiality reasons] and not cause us to lose business in the slightest. Amazing!"
The northerner revealed that in this nearly eight years' period of time since applying his secret he's done well over $300 million in sales revenue with a most diverse line of products, and most recently in the last two years netted nearly $166 million after really "buckling down and pressing my secret to its fullest potential."
Now to everyone else's fortune, the city slicker is releasing his secret for getting an unlimited amount of pay-per-click ads to the general public. But he's not promising any of us for how long.
A bit of an eccentric, the gentleman says "We'll see just how long I can make it available before it saturates things."
One famous public web guru pointed out that although this man may gain economically more so as a result of the publication of his secret "he's already so amazingly rich that whether he continues or discontinues its sale will neither make nor break the man, but not grabbing it for yourself while it's still available could prove disastrous for you as you may only have one chance, and a very limited one at that, to get this."
It is currently available here
...so you may want to head on over there now and get it.
It's in a very easily readable format and is quickly and readily understood and mastered by anyone with even a 4th grade reading level.
While you're there, why not scroll down and review for yourself the huge successes others are now having with this incredible breakthrough in targeted advertising now made freely available to the rest of us?
To your success
Steve
Friday, 26 October 2007
Monday, 11 June 2007
Is it time our Police in England were armed?
Well - depending on which story you read in the UK first - the answer could be yes or no.
Look at the story of PC Jon Henry, in Luton - stabbed to death while attending an incident early this morning. He was wearing the standard anti-stab vest, but it still didn't protect him. If he had been carrying a gun, would he still be alive now?
Everyone cites the USA as being a shoot-now-ask-questions-later Police state. If PC Henry had shot first and asked questions later, when he was confronted by a stranger with a knife - who, we're told, had already knifed a window cleaner - would that have been right? Would he still be alive?
Yet another news story today is the incident in Sevenoaks, Kent, where a woman was shot by a Police office while supposedly carrying a gun through the centre of the town in the early hours of this morning. Not much detail seems to be available on this one, but why should she be in the centre of a town carrying a gun?
If she was carrying, and the Police officer shot her because she wouldn't put the gun down, or because she pointed it at him, who is at fault? Put yourself in the Police officer's position - what would you do if someone pointed a gun at you?
And yet the media in England all seem to be focusing on the fact that three other women have been shot by Police in the last 27 years - and all of those were accidents. Isn't that presuming that this shooting was an accident as well?
Oh - and one last question while I'm feeling controversial - a few weeks ago, a small girl was (we are told ) taken from her bed while on holiday in Portugal. Her parents seem to have been provided with an endless stream of money with which to go jetting around Europe (and at the same time gaining access to very high-profile figures like His Holiness The Pope) trying to "...raise public awareness..." of her disappearance.
I really hope that you are all praying - to whatever God is meaningful to you - that the little girl is found safe and well - but - what about all the other children that go missing all around the world, every day of the year?
Much love
Look at the story of PC Jon Henry, in Luton - stabbed to death while attending an incident early this morning. He was wearing the standard anti-stab vest, but it still didn't protect him. If he had been carrying a gun, would he still be alive now?
Everyone cites the USA as being a shoot-now-ask-questions-later Police state. If PC Henry had shot first and asked questions later, when he was confronted by a stranger with a knife - who, we're told, had already knifed a window cleaner - would that have been right? Would he still be alive?
Yet another news story today is the incident in Sevenoaks, Kent, where a woman was shot by a Police office while supposedly carrying a gun through the centre of the town in the early hours of this morning. Not much detail seems to be available on this one, but why should she be in the centre of a town carrying a gun?
If she was carrying, and the Police officer shot her because she wouldn't put the gun down, or because she pointed it at him, who is at fault? Put yourself in the Police officer's position - what would you do if someone pointed a gun at you?
And yet the media in England all seem to be focusing on the fact that three other women have been shot by Police in the last 27 years - and all of those were accidents. Isn't that presuming that this shooting was an accident as well?
Oh - and one last question while I'm feeling controversial - a few weeks ago, a small girl was (we are told ) taken from her bed while on holiday in Portugal. Her parents seem to have been provided with an endless stream of money with which to go jetting around Europe (and at the same time gaining access to very high-profile figures like His Holiness The Pope) trying to "...raise public awareness..." of her disappearance.
I really hope that you are all praying - to whatever God is meaningful to you - that the little girl is found safe and well - but - what about all the other children that go missing all around the world, every day of the year?
Much love
Friday, 1 June 2007
Where has the time gone?
Is it really three months since I last Blogged? Well, I'm so sorry, loyal follower. I have been so wrapped up in 'real life' that I seem to have forgotten my 'on-line life'.
What's been happening lately? To be honest, loads of good and a very small bit of bad. To get the bad out of the way, my Pop took a tumble a couple of weeks ago and shattered his hip. He's OK, had a full hip replacement and is well on the road to recovery.
What's been happening lately? To be honest, loads of good and a very small bit of bad. To get the bad out of the way, my Pop took a tumble a couple of weeks ago and shattered his hip. He's OK, had a full hip replacement and is well on the road to recovery.
Thanks to everyone at EAST SURREY HOSPITAL
If anyone reading this blog knows East Surrey, knows anyone IN East Surrey, or knows anyone who WORKS at East Surrey, please point them at my blog. I want to say thank you!
What about me and the money problems?
Well - in chronological order:-
I dumped my Insolvency Practitioner because he was going to cost way too much.
I walked into the County Court on 14th March - and walked out bankrupt. All it cost me was £475.
My Case Manager at the local Official Receiver's Office is wonderful and she has been really looking after me.
Look - don't criticise me for going bankrupt and getting out of debt the 'easy' way. It's not an easy way, believe me. People I know walked up to me and said, "I saw your name in the paper last week. Didn't know you were in that sort of trouble."
Hey, I'm bankrupt. Not spreading some terminal disease among the population of the South Coast. It happens. Get over it.
My employers were wonderful. They understood what had happened, then told me not to worry.
My bank - dumped me. Expect that from Abbey. They don't let bankrupts have even the simplest current account. I kept my Savings Account with them, though. But I can't use it for Direct Debits.
However - after much web searching - I found out that HSBC will give Simple accounts to bankrupts. No cheques (who needs them?) No credit card (That really is the very last thing I need!) Just a simple account that I can use to receive my salary and pay standing orders and Direct Debits.
I've got a Maestro card for shopping and HSBC do great online banking, as well.
So I'm pretty much set up. All the phone calls and threatening letters have stopped coming from my creditors. No more 'visitors'. They have all left me alone.
If you can handle the stigma of being bankrupt, don't mind not being able to get credit for a few years and really have reached the end of your financial tether, in might be right for you.
BUT don't take my word for it. Please do your own research.
Whatever happens in your future - stay happy.
Much love
You are wonderful people and I love you all.
If anyone reading this blog knows East Surrey, knows anyone IN East Surrey, or knows anyone who WORKS at East Surrey, please point them at my blog. I want to say thank you!
What about me and the money problems?
Well - in chronological order:-
I dumped my Insolvency Practitioner because he was going to cost way too much.
I walked into the County Court on 14th March - and walked out bankrupt. All it cost me was £475.
My Case Manager at the local Official Receiver's Office is wonderful and she has been really looking after me.
Look - don't criticise me for going bankrupt and getting out of debt the 'easy' way. It's not an easy way, believe me. People I know walked up to me and said, "I saw your name in the paper last week. Didn't know you were in that sort of trouble."
Hey, I'm bankrupt. Not spreading some terminal disease among the population of the South Coast. It happens. Get over it.
My employers were wonderful. They understood what had happened, then told me not to worry.
My bank - dumped me. Expect that from Abbey. They don't let bankrupts have even the simplest current account. I kept my Savings Account with them, though. But I can't use it for Direct Debits.
However - after much web searching - I found out that HSBC will give Simple accounts to bankrupts. No cheques (who needs them?) No credit card (That really is the very last thing I need!) Just a simple account that I can use to receive my salary and pay standing orders and Direct Debits.
I've got a Maestro card for shopping and HSBC do great online banking, as well.
So I'm pretty much set up. All the phone calls and threatening letters have stopped coming from my creditors. No more 'visitors'. They have all left me alone.
If you can handle the stigma of being bankrupt, don't mind not being able to get credit for a few years and really have reached the end of your financial tether, in might be right for you.
BUT don't take my word for it. Please do your own research.
Whatever happens in your future - stay happy.
Much love
Monday, 19 February 2007
All it took was a phone call
Well, I phoned him and explained that if I had £2115 sitting in my bank, I probably wouldn't need his help. He blustered a bit and asked me how much would I be able to pay.
I hesitated and nearly said that I couldn't pay anything - that's why I needed his help. However, courtesy got the better of me and we agreed that I would pay him half now and half once the IVA was set up and running.
Looks like that was the best deal I could get.
Be careful with fees - they are all different. By the way, I found a great forum about IVAs. There are loads of people with loads of problems just like mine (and, perhaps, yours) Take a look here
There is also a terrific blog by the IVA Mole that's well worth a look. (Thanks for your support, riters bloc)
Stay happy
I hesitated and nearly said that I couldn't pay anything - that's why I needed his help. However, courtesy got the better of me and we agreed that I would pay him half now and half once the IVA was set up and running.
Looks like that was the best deal I could get.
Be careful with fees - they are all different. By the way, I found a great forum about IVAs. There are loads of people with loads of problems just like mine (and, perhaps, yours) Take a look here
There is also a terrific blog by the IVA Mole that's well worth a look. (Thanks for your support, riters bloc)
Stay happy
Strange that I blogged about giving blood - Now it's the turn of the Insolvency Practitioner
Friday, I gave blood - willingly because it's something I believe in. This morning I feel as if my whole heart has been ripped out.
I have just received an e-mail from the Insolvency Practitioner who I have asked to prepare my IVA. He asked - straight up, no messin' - for a cheque from me, on account, for £1,800.00 plus VAT ( that's £2,115.00 in total)
I'm rolling in more than £80,000 of debt that I can't repay - where am I supposed to get that sort of money?
No invoice from him, no explanation. I'm just about to phone him - this should be interesting!
I have just received an e-mail from the Insolvency Practitioner who I have asked to prepare my IVA. He asked - straight up, no messin' - for a cheque from me, on account, for £1,800.00 plus VAT ( that's £2,115.00 in total)
I'm rolling in more than £80,000 of debt that I can't repay - where am I supposed to get that sort of money?
No invoice from him, no explanation. I'm just about to phone him - this should be interesting!
Friday, 16 February 2007
One thing I can give - and feel very good about.
It's just after lunch on Friday afternoon - and I'm off to do something that I believe is so very worthwhile .
I do it once every four month - usually after work, so the boss can't complain. (I'm on holiday this week, so am going in the middle of the day.)
It doesn't cost me anything, so the debt mountain doesn't get any bigger.
It doesn't hurt.
It's nothing to be afraid about.
The people who do it are a great, friendly bunch - both the givers and the takers.
I'm off to give blood.
If you have put all or any of the above obstacles in your way, remove them now and register for your nearest donor session.
Get a life and save a life. It's easy.
I do it once every four month - usually after work, so the boss can't complain. (I'm on holiday this week, so am going in the middle of the day.)
It doesn't cost me anything, so the debt mountain doesn't get any bigger.
It doesn't hurt.
It's nothing to be afraid about.
The people who do it are a great, friendly bunch - both the givers and the takers.
I'm off to give blood.
If you have put all or any of the above obstacles in your way, remove them now and register for your nearest donor session.
Get a life and save a life. It's easy.
Stay happy...
Another sadness
I've just been woken up at 05:30 by a high-pitched squealing in the kitchen, then the sound of one of my two cats running upstairs. As I opened the bedroom door, he presented me with a small, wild rabbit.
I've done a lot in my long life, seen and heard many sad things, but that rabbit, dying from shock and fear in my hands has just made me cry.
Can the day get worse?
I've done a lot in my long life, seen and heard many sad things, but that rabbit, dying from shock and fear in my hands has just made me cry.
Can the day get worse?
Thursday, 15 February 2007
Look - Ads again!!!
Perhaps you have all been screaming at me for days, but I have only just realised it.
AdSense (like size) isn't everything. In my Blog a few days ago, I told you that my AdSense account had been shut down by Google - unfairly, I thought, but what the hell has fair got to do with it?
I left the side of my Blog plain and thought that was that. No more ads making a bit more interesting reading than this Blog.
Then it dawned on me - at 11:30 at night, on a cold, wet February 15th, that I could put other things in the side bar. So I started playing. I've used Better Text Ads on some of my other sites, but have only just realised that I could add them to my Blog as well.
So here they are. Standing up proud and being counted. Perhaps they won't make me a millionaire overnight but we all need goals.
Sweet dreams.
AdSense (like size) isn't everything. In my Blog a few days ago, I told you that my AdSense account had been shut down by Google - unfairly, I thought, but what the hell has fair got to do with it?
I left the side of my Blog plain and thought that was that. No more ads making a bit more interesting reading than this Blog.
Then it dawned on me - at 11:30 at night, on a cold, wet February 15th, that I could put other things in the side bar. So I started playing. I've used Better Text Ads on some of my other sites, but have only just realised that I could add them to my Blog as well.
So here they are. Standing up proud and being counted. Perhaps they won't make me a millionaire overnight but we all need goals.
Sweet dreams.
By getting help, I'm getting deeper in debt!
A couple of days ago, I thought everything was going to be OK. I had decided that the best way to deal with this stupid amount of debt that I have wrapped around myself was to go to the Courts and get an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA) in place.
An IVA is where I promise to put a monthly amount of cash in a .....trust fund is the best way of describing it (perhaps we can call it a big piggy bank) Anyway, this fund (piggybank, whatever you want to call it) is looked after by an Insolvency Practitioner and he watches the fund grow. All of the creditors (the people I owe money to - creditcards mostly) trust this Insolvency Practitioner and have agreed to receive just a small percentage of what I owe them.
In return, I must be truthful about how much I have to spend each month just to live (rent, council tax, gas, electric, food and so on) and what is left I have to put in the piggy bank. Every so often, the Insolvency Practitioner decides there is enough in the piggy bank for everyone to have a bit of a share-out. So, every year he takes out the bung, lets the cash drift across the table and has a count-up.
OK - I know I'm making it all seem very simple - but I really am a simple kind of guy. It was the complexity of living that got me in this mess in the first place!
Now - watch this carefully - which cup is the ball under?
If I owe £80,000 and offer to pay my creditors at the rate of 25 pence in the pound (that's 25 pence I pay for every pound I owe) over five years (and only if they all agree - for an IVA to be acceptable they all have to vote on it), then that's £20,000 I pay back - over 5 years that comes out at £4,000 per year that I have to promise to put in the piggy bank. Right?
Wrong. Because nobody works for nothing! Least of all the Insolvency Practitioner.
Every year - as soon as that bung comes out of the piggy bank - the Insolvency Practitioner lets the first £1000 spill across the table top and into his open drawer. That's right - he takes his fees first. Fair enough, I guess. I can't expect him to help me out of the mess that I'm in and not charge me for helping, can I?
So, instead of me promising to put £4,000 in the piggy bank each year, I must put £5,000 in. Easy, huh?
Think about it - £4,000 per year breaks back to £80 per week - each and every week for five years. Now it seems that I must find another £20 each and every week, to cover the Insolvency Practitioner's fees. Not only am I down to cold baked beans every night, I can only have the small cans!
Perhaps I shouldn't joke about it. After all, I was stupid enough to spend more than I was earning. I was stupid enough to use credit cards. If you want to really know - I was stupid enough to draw cash off of one card to pay the monthly payment on another. Now that is King Stupid - and I did it!
But I didn't know that my gas and electricity costs were going to double in 2006, did I? I didn't know that I was going to be made redundant in 2006, did I?
Whoa - I can hear you. All credit cards offer insurance against loss of earnings - Joy and Jubilation, I'm protected!
Forget it - just read the small print. I did - but too late. I can only tell you about the insurances that I took out - there were six of them - but I expect all the others are pretty much the same.
You can only claim on the insurance after you have been registered unemployed at the Job Centre. I was told that I could not register until I had been out of work for 6 weeks. You need the Job Centre to fill in a form and send it to the insurance company. You also need your old employer to fill out a similar form and send that off, as well.
All of that registering and form filling takes ten to twelve weeks. So you are out of work for three months, no money coming in and the debts still need to be paid. The insurance company won't pay out immediately so what happens? You do what I did and pay one card with another one, just to make the payments.
Look - I'm sorry. I'm going on too much. But please be careful with repayment insurance - I didn't get any help at all. Only you can decide if it's worth it for you.
I'm going to stop now and open my tin of beans. I'll Blog on in a couple of days.
Thank you for being there - I need you.
An IVA is where I promise to put a monthly amount of cash in a .....trust fund is the best way of describing it (perhaps we can call it a big piggy bank) Anyway, this fund (piggybank, whatever you want to call it) is looked after by an Insolvency Practitioner and he watches the fund grow. All of the creditors (the people I owe money to - creditcards mostly) trust this Insolvency Practitioner and have agreed to receive just a small percentage of what I owe them.
In return, I must be truthful about how much I have to spend each month just to live (rent, council tax, gas, electric, food and so on) and what is left I have to put in the piggy bank. Every so often, the Insolvency Practitioner decides there is enough in the piggy bank for everyone to have a bit of a share-out. So, every year he takes out the bung, lets the cash drift across the table and has a count-up.
OK - I know I'm making it all seem very simple - but I really am a simple kind of guy. It was the complexity of living that got me in this mess in the first place!
Now - watch this carefully - which cup is the ball under?
If I owe £80,000 and offer to pay my creditors at the rate of 25 pence in the pound (that's 25 pence I pay for every pound I owe) over five years (and only if they all agree - for an IVA to be acceptable they all have to vote on it), then that's £20,000 I pay back - over 5 years that comes out at £4,000 per year that I have to promise to put in the piggy bank. Right?
Wrong. Because nobody works for nothing! Least of all the Insolvency Practitioner.
Every year - as soon as that bung comes out of the piggy bank - the Insolvency Practitioner lets the first £1000 spill across the table top and into his open drawer. That's right - he takes his fees first. Fair enough, I guess. I can't expect him to help me out of the mess that I'm in and not charge me for helping, can I?
So, instead of me promising to put £4,000 in the piggy bank each year, I must put £5,000 in. Easy, huh?
Think about it - £4,000 per year breaks back to £80 per week - each and every week for five years. Now it seems that I must find another £20 each and every week, to cover the Insolvency Practitioner's fees. Not only am I down to cold baked beans every night, I can only have the small cans!
Perhaps I shouldn't joke about it. After all, I was stupid enough to spend more than I was earning. I was stupid enough to use credit cards. If you want to really know - I was stupid enough to draw cash off of one card to pay the monthly payment on another. Now that is King Stupid - and I did it!
But I didn't know that my gas and electricity costs were going to double in 2006, did I? I didn't know that I was going to be made redundant in 2006, did I?
Whoa - I can hear you. All credit cards offer insurance against loss of earnings - Joy and Jubilation, I'm protected!
Forget it - just read the small print. I did - but too late. I can only tell you about the insurances that I took out - there were six of them - but I expect all the others are pretty much the same.
You can only claim on the insurance after you have been registered unemployed at the Job Centre. I was told that I could not register until I had been out of work for 6 weeks. You need the Job Centre to fill in a form and send it to the insurance company. You also need your old employer to fill out a similar form and send that off, as well.
All of that registering and form filling takes ten to twelve weeks. So you are out of work for three months, no money coming in and the debts still need to be paid. The insurance company won't pay out immediately so what happens? You do what I did and pay one card with another one, just to make the payments.
Look - I'm sorry. I'm going on too much. But please be careful with repayment insurance - I didn't get any help at all. Only you can decide if it's worth it for you.
I'm going to stop now and open my tin of beans. I'll Blog on in a couple of days.
Thank you for being there - I need you.
Sunday, 11 February 2007
AdSense - No Sense!
Look at this Blog page - what do you see?
Nothing, right?
Well, nothing but my Blog, anyway. Why? Because Google have shut down my AdSense account.
Ah, you say. You've been self-clicking! WRONG! I haven't so much as touched any of the AdSense appearing on any of my Blogs or websites (and I've got quite a few).
So - what happened? A couple of years ago, I worked for a big travel agent, built a big, personal travel web site with loads of AdSense links and logos and started advertising it. The people I worked with found out, looked at the site and liked what they saw. It was relevant to them and their work. So they started using the AdSense ads as well, to get even more information about travel deals. I didn't know at the time, but everyone who clicks on an AdSense ad - any ad - has their IP address recorded by Google. All of my co-workers, visiting and clicking on my site from the office, all sent the same IP address, the office gateway router. Google looked at the stats, and WHAM, I was shut down.
No amount of explanation would convince Google that I hadn't been sitting at a computer all day, just clicking my ads. So I left it alone.
Two years later - I have moved postal address, shut down the travel website, changed e-mail addresses and generally forgot all about AdSense.
That is, until just before Christmas 06, when I found BANS (Build A Niche Store)
This quite brilliant piece of software uses all sorts of clever links to create a money-making web site, ready for you to start promoting. Part of it includes AdSense ads.
Now, do you see my dilemma? I thought about it and decided to re-apply. After all, the only thing about my new application that had stayed the same was my name and date of birth - No I didn't lie about either of them!
I completed the on-line application and was immediately accepted. Wonderful. Things seemed to be getting better. I created lots of BANS stores and started to make a few cents.
Day - weeks - months went by, then an e-mail from Google dropped into my in-box:-
"Your AdSense account was found to be related to an account previously disabled for invalid click activity and we have therefore disabled your account. Publishers disabled for invalid click activity are not allowed further participation in AdSense and do not receive any further payment. The earnings on your account will be properly returned to the affected advertisers.
As outlined in our programme Terms and Conditions, Google reserves the right to terminate any publisher's participation at any time."
So there you have it. Beware - don't dare upset the mighty Google. You might be terminated through no fault of your own!
By the way - Google still take a fair amount of money off me for my AdWords account - but I suppose that's OK!
Stay Happy, everyone.
Nothing, right?
Well, nothing but my Blog, anyway. Why? Because Google have shut down my AdSense account.
Ah, you say. You've been self-clicking! WRONG! I haven't so much as touched any of the AdSense appearing on any of my Blogs or websites (and I've got quite a few).
So - what happened? A couple of years ago, I worked for a big travel agent, built a big, personal travel web site with loads of AdSense links and logos and started advertising it. The people I worked with found out, looked at the site and liked what they saw. It was relevant to them and their work. So they started using the AdSense ads as well, to get even more information about travel deals. I didn't know at the time, but everyone who clicks on an AdSense ad - any ad - has their IP address recorded by Google. All of my co-workers, visiting and clicking on my site from the office, all sent the same IP address, the office gateway router. Google looked at the stats, and WHAM, I was shut down.
No amount of explanation would convince Google that I hadn't been sitting at a computer all day, just clicking my ads. So I left it alone.
Two years later - I have moved postal address, shut down the travel website, changed e-mail addresses and generally forgot all about AdSense.
That is, until just before Christmas 06, when I found BANS (Build A Niche Store)
This quite brilliant piece of software uses all sorts of clever links to create a money-making web site, ready for you to start promoting. Part of it includes AdSense ads.
Now, do you see my dilemma? I thought about it and decided to re-apply. After all, the only thing about my new application that had stayed the same was my name and date of birth - No I didn't lie about either of them!
I completed the on-line application and was immediately accepted. Wonderful. Things seemed to be getting better. I created lots of BANS stores and started to make a few cents.
Day - weeks - months went by, then an e-mail from Google dropped into my in-box:-
"Your AdSense account was found to be related to an account previously disabled for invalid click activity and we have therefore disabled your account. Publishers disabled for invalid click activity are not allowed further participation in AdSense and do not receive any further payment. The earnings on your account will be properly returned to the affected advertisers.
As outlined in our programme Terms and Conditions, Google reserves the right to terminate any publisher's participation at any time."
So there you have it. Beware - don't dare upset the mighty Google. You might be terminated through no fault of your own!
By the way - Google still take a fair amount of money off me for my AdWords account - but I suppose that's OK!
Stay Happy, everyone.
Thursday, 8 February 2007
I've made a decision
Hi - this is just a very quick post to tell you that I have made a decision about my financial position. I have spoken with an Insolvency Practitioner - he knows all about bankrupcy and debt and loads of other financial matters.
I'm just about to leave for work, but I thought I'd update you about it. He seems to think that bankrupcy is not right for me - I'm working and can aford to make a small regular payment to my creditors. He seems to think that a thing called an Individual Voluntary Arrangement would be the correct path to tread.
I have to list all my income and living expenditure - and then list all my debts. The Insolvency Practitioner then tells all the creditors how much I can afford to pay them and offers to oversee the payment deal. He becomes my Financial Minder. If I have a problem, he has to tell all the creditors. They can trust him, because he has posted a 'bond' to guarantee my payments.
It's all done through the Courts, so everyone knows it's legal and above board and - in three years time - I'm out of debt, with a clean slate and a good name again.
It all looks like a good option - the man is away for a few days - so I'll let you know what happens as soon as I know.
In the mean time, I'm trying a new web page building software called
BANS (Build A Niche Store), it's all about connecting with eBay and building a niche store to sell anything that's listed by eBay and getting a cut of the eBay charges. It works really well, it's dead simple to use and - even after just a few days - I'm making money. Not much just yet - but it's a start. Take a look at Computing Step by Step to see the software in action.
Take care in the snow.
I'm just about to leave for work, but I thought I'd update you about it. He seems to think that bankrupcy is not right for me - I'm working and can aford to make a small regular payment to my creditors. He seems to think that a thing called an Individual Voluntary Arrangement would be the correct path to tread.
I have to list all my income and living expenditure - and then list all my debts. The Insolvency Practitioner then tells all the creditors how much I can afford to pay them and offers to oversee the payment deal. He becomes my Financial Minder. If I have a problem, he has to tell all the creditors. They can trust him, because he has posted a 'bond' to guarantee my payments.
It's all done through the Courts, so everyone knows it's legal and above board and - in three years time - I'm out of debt, with a clean slate and a good name again.
It all looks like a good option - the man is away for a few days - so I'll let you know what happens as soon as I know.
In the mean time, I'm trying a new web page building software called
BANS (Build A Niche Store), it's all about connecting with eBay and building a niche store to sell anything that's listed by eBay and getting a cut of the eBay charges. It works really well, it's dead simple to use and - even after just a few days - I'm making money. Not much just yet - but it's a start. Take a look at Computing Step by Step to see the software in action.
Take care in the snow.
Tuesday, 16 January 2007
Stage-Managing Amateur Dramatics
It may be an obvious thing, but the Stage Manager must know the play – inside out and sideways. Read the script, time and time again. Attend as many rehearsals as you can – watch the actors, learn from them how they interpret their character. Watch how they make their entrances and exits: remember where they come on and go off, so that you can make sure any props are ready for them.
Your crew should also be encouraged to attend as many rehearsals as they can, because they need to be comfortable with their tasks. In a small society, this is not usually a problem, everyone wants to get involved. Meet with your crew, regularly. Even if it is only a ten minute catch-up, it will help to create a cohesive unit, with everyone knowing what is expected of them – and what everyone else in the crew is doing. Communicate and confirm everything. The more they know, the easier your job will be.
The technical rehearsal is your chance to see that all your planning is paying off. Make sure that the Producer / Director and the cast are aware that it might not be possible to run the play straight through, because you need to fine-tune a critical set change or re-time a costume change. Use a stop-watch to get the feel for the timings.
Showtime
During the performances, the Stage Manager is in control. The Director has done their job – now it’s all up to you. The play’s success is in your hands. Get to the theatre early – very early. Have a list of everyone involved, on-stage, back-stage and front of house. Get everyone to sign a Fire List when they arrive, and keep that list in plain view on your table.
Have some bottles of water and plastic tumblers on your table, as well. Perhaps, also, have a box of tissues and some small mints. Anything you can do, in fact, to make the actors feel more comfortable.
Check the crew. Are they all in place and comfortable with their tasks?
Check the cast. Have they got everything they need? Are all the personal props on the table by the correct entrance and are they clearly marked. I have used masking tape to mark a grid on the props tables, with the props for each character being assigned an area. It helps keep things in place for entrances and exits. Don’t let an actor leave the back-stage area with a prop. When not on stage, the props must live on your props tables. That way you don’t loose track of them.
Give the cast plenty of time calls – but don’t make a big thing about it. Fifteen minutes, ten and five are enough.
Concentrate – right through the performance. OK, so you have been through the show 173 times, in rehearsal. So what? You mustn’t wander off once the performance starts, thinking it will all take care of itself. Perhaps it will – perhaps it won’t. Be there, whatever happens.
Finally, enjoy a job well done. When the cast have taken their curtain calls – you did give them enough time for their curtain calls, didn’t you? – take the time to thank and congratulate your crew. They worked just as hard as the folks on stage.
Working in black might not be as glamorous as acting – but it can be just as rewarding.
Don't forget to turn of the lights when you leave the theatre!
Monday, 8 January 2007
Monday 8th January 2007
No wine, tonight. I'm trying to be good - but there are times when I just want to blot it all out. Good day at work - rained like hell, but that's OK. At least I got out a bit. I had ten years of being stuck in an office - working as an IT and Telephony Manager for an international travel company - till the company got taken over by its most arrogant competitor, who promptly lied to all the staff, raped the client database and shut the office down. I don't understand what happened; why my boss should sell his thriving, brilliant company to his arch enemy. There were 35 or so staff all dumped after Christmas 2006. I was lucky, I got another job after just a couple of weeks - some of my ex-colleagues are still on the dole after almost a year.
Losing my job did nothing to help my debt problem. Ok, so I got a bit of redundancy, but it just got gobbled up - living expenses don't stop, just because work does.
The new job gave me an extra few pounds at the end of each month, but it didn't help. I still used the cards - mainly to draw cash out to pay other cards each month. What a mug!
Drawing cash out on a credit card is probably the VERY worst thing you can do with plastic. You start paying interest the moment the notes come out of the machine. But the cards still had to be paid, didn't they? Where do I go now? All I seemed to be doing was paying banks. I had three loans, an overdraft and six cards. It all colapsed when I was earning less than I needed for the minimum monthly repayments. That was when it all went wrong. My mind just refused to accept it and - I carried on spending.
I didn't want anyone to know just how bad it was.
Losing my job did nothing to help my debt problem. Ok, so I got a bit of redundancy, but it just got gobbled up - living expenses don't stop, just because work does.
The new job gave me an extra few pounds at the end of each month, but it didn't help. I still used the cards - mainly to draw cash out to pay other cards each month. What a mug!
Drawing cash out on a credit card is probably the VERY worst thing you can do with plastic. You start paying interest the moment the notes come out of the machine. But the cards still had to be paid, didn't they? Where do I go now? All I seemed to be doing was paying banks. I had three loans, an overdraft and six cards. It all colapsed when I was earning less than I needed for the minimum monthly repayments. That was when it all went wrong. My mind just refused to accept it and - I carried on spending.
I didn't want anyone to know just how bad it was.
Sunday, 7 January 2007
Sunday 7th January
Well, I'm half way down a bottle of red wine, sitting alone in my cottage. This is my first attempt at a blog - so it may not be as slick as more experienced bloggers - Hey, but I'll learn.
Why alone? My wife and I split up a while back and I moved out. I work for a landed estate - you know the sort of thing - the farmland and forest we all drive through, every day. It is usually owned by someone, a family or trust or something. Well, I work for a family who own a good bit of the south coast. They were very good and let me rent a farm cottage - so here I am.
Why am I blogging? Well - firstly because I wanted to see what the fuss was all about. Blogging has been high on the media radar for a long time and I needed to find a way to add my own few thoughts to the on-line world. Well, why not? Thousands, hundreds of thousands of people are doing it. Why not me? I don't live in a depressed area, I don't live in a country where the media is opressed and blogging is the only way of getting news out. But I still have something to say.
I love writing, I love using words, but could never get anything together with a publishing house. I tried starting my own, and wound up doing vanity publishing for other people, never for me. That was long before the Internet developed the strength and power it has now. I recall trudging the streets of a big Wiltshire city, trying to encourage large bookshops to take a few of the books I had produced for local writers and poets. They were priced to allow the retailer to make 100% profit on his outlay - and still that wasn't enough for some of them. Seeing the books on the shelves and being looked at by punters gave me a hell of a buzz. I had produced that product for the poet and it was selling. Several months later, I saw some copies in the 'Final Reductions' bin - and that hurt!
That was a long time back - almost 20 years ago. Now everything is instant. The Internet has made everything easily accessible and information is there at everyone's fingertips - thanks to Google and the other search engines.
What have I got to say that could possibly be of interest to anyone else?
A four-lettered word - DEBT
Got you hooked? Well it ought to have. I thought I was OK. I thought I could manage - but I just did the ostrich thing and stuck my head in the sand. I ignored all the warning signs - Lord knows, there were enough of them! I didn't want to know - I just applied for another credit card or loan - and got them! Easy Peasy! Move balances around, playing one off against another. Always looking for the 0% interest offers - and still spending. Bank loan, credit card - "Hey fella - we've just upped your credit limit."
What a bloody fool. It don't work. Credit is a killer. I know - I tried that as well.
What I want this blog to prove is that my parents were right. Don't owe anybody anything. It makes for a happier life. I want you to follow my journey through the debt minefield and learn from me. I want to help you out of the same pit I'm in - How far? Almost £90k without a mortgage. Read it and watch me weep.
I have made two resolutions this year:-
1) I will not go bankrupt - it's too easy and proves nothing.
2) No more credit.
Help me - follow me and we will see how I do.
Why alone? My wife and I split up a while back and I moved out. I work for a landed estate - you know the sort of thing - the farmland and forest we all drive through, every day. It is usually owned by someone, a family or trust or something. Well, I work for a family who own a good bit of the south coast. They were very good and let me rent a farm cottage - so here I am.
Why am I blogging? Well - firstly because I wanted to see what the fuss was all about. Blogging has been high on the media radar for a long time and I needed to find a way to add my own few thoughts to the on-line world. Well, why not? Thousands, hundreds of thousands of people are doing it. Why not me? I don't live in a depressed area, I don't live in a country where the media is opressed and blogging is the only way of getting news out. But I still have something to say.
I love writing, I love using words, but could never get anything together with a publishing house. I tried starting my own, and wound up doing vanity publishing for other people, never for me. That was long before the Internet developed the strength and power it has now. I recall trudging the streets of a big Wiltshire city, trying to encourage large bookshops to take a few of the books I had produced for local writers and poets. They were priced to allow the retailer to make 100% profit on his outlay - and still that wasn't enough for some of them. Seeing the books on the shelves and being looked at by punters gave me a hell of a buzz. I had produced that product for the poet and it was selling. Several months later, I saw some copies in the 'Final Reductions' bin - and that hurt!
That was a long time back - almost 20 years ago. Now everything is instant. The Internet has made everything easily accessible and information is there at everyone's fingertips - thanks to Google and the other search engines.
What have I got to say that could possibly be of interest to anyone else?
A four-lettered word - DEBT
Got you hooked? Well it ought to have. I thought I was OK. I thought I could manage - but I just did the ostrich thing and stuck my head in the sand. I ignored all the warning signs - Lord knows, there were enough of them! I didn't want to know - I just applied for another credit card or loan - and got them! Easy Peasy! Move balances around, playing one off against another. Always looking for the 0% interest offers - and still spending. Bank loan, credit card - "Hey fella - we've just upped your credit limit."
What a bloody fool. It don't work. Credit is a killer. I know - I tried that as well.
What I want this blog to prove is that my parents were right. Don't owe anybody anything. It makes for a happier life. I want you to follow my journey through the debt minefield and learn from me. I want to help you out of the same pit I'm in - How far? Almost £90k without a mortgage. Read it and watch me weep.
I have made two resolutions this year:-
1) I will not go bankrupt - it's too easy and proves nothing.
2) No more credit.
Help me - follow me and we will see how I do.
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