Life in progress

Category Archives: Opinion


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The Harsh Reality

So I read WordPress’s Terms of Service. Fun times. Basically they cover their “assets” by saying they can do whatever they want – we agree to this when we sign up. Feel safe? Check section 16.

  • Termination. Automattic may terminate your access to all or any part of the Website at any time, with or without cause, with or without notice, effective immediately. If you wish to terminate this Agreement or your WordPress.com account (if you have one), you may simply discontinue using the Website. All provisions of this Agreement which by their nature should survive termination shall survive termination, including, without limitation, ownership provisions, warranty disclaimers, indemnity and limitations of liability.

Here’s the link if you’re interested in reading the rest: http://en.wordpress.com/tos/

HarsH ReaLiTy’s access to “follow” and “like” blogs was suspended. This is why, and I quote from a letter made public in the forums:

Hello,

We have noticed unusual behavior in your account, and have disabled several social features of WordPress.com, such as liking and/or following, as a result.

You have agreed to our Terms of Service which specifically says your “blog is not getting advertised via unwanted electronic messages such as spam links on newsgroups, email lists, other blogs and web sites, and similar unsolicited promotional methods”.

Your rapid pattern of liking or following has exceeded our hourly limits many times, which caused your account to be flagged.

Your ability to follow other blogs will not be restored. If you genuinely need to follow so many blogs, we would encourage you to use an external RSS feed reader (eg. Feedly.com).

Lisa | Community Guardian | WordPress.com

As a result of this, Jason Cushman, aka Opinionated Man, owner of HarsH ReaLiTy, has said he will close down his site – and I can’t blame him. He has done more for bloggers on WordPress than anyone I know: what enabled him to do so is the very thing they are accusing him of doing wrong.

One would hope that the above is at least in part a form letter, sent to those whose blogs are flagged. One would also hope that there is a real human being investigating these automatic flags – a human being with compassion, common sense, and an eye for discerning what is truly malicious and self-serving and what is genuine human interaction, as evidenced by the comments here: Save HarsH ReaLiTy!!.

It is with this hope that I will send the above link to the Terms of Service people. I can’t help but believe that they will see that their automated systems have picked up on a unique situation and that the matter needs to be dismissed as a non-issue.

Please – I ask you one more time, if you haven’t commented on Save HarsH ReaLiTy!! do so now. The more support this gets, the more chance there will be to get Opinionated Man back.

Don’t let this be a Harsh Reality!!!

Other posts on HarsH ReaLiTy:

https://idiotwriting.wordpress.com/2015/01/15/je-suis-opinionatedman-we-have-the-power-to-care/

THIS IS A VERY SAD DAY FOR BLOGGING

https://ahillbillyblogger.wordpress.com/2015/01/15/free-harsh-reality-from-wordpress-jail/

and of course: http://aopinionatedman.com/2015/01/14/closing-harsh-reality-going-private/


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Save HarsH ReaLiTy!! – SUSPENSION LIFTED!!!

No one likes spam. In internet terms (as opposed to the stuff you find on the grocery store shelf) it’s the bane of our existence. Its sole purpose is to get our attention and once it does, it either begs us to buy something or gives us something we would never pay for – something like a virus.

Then there is the exception to the rule. In fact, there is only one exception that I’ve found in over a decade of browsing the web. It may have seemed like a “spam follow” at the start, but when I followed the cookie-crumb trail that led me back to its source, it ended up benefiting me beyond my wildest dreams: it was HarsH ReaLiTy.

Jason, also known as Opinionated Man, has a huge (over 50,000 blog, twitter, and Facebook combined) following on his blog, HarsH ReaLiTy. His passion for connecting with other bloggers is instantly recognizable by the way he interacts in the comments. How did he get such an audience? By following other blogs. By doing the exact same thing our self-serving spammers do. The difference is, Jason gets the attention of other bloggers and once he does, he helps them! Not by selling them things they don’t need – by guiding them to find followings of their own.

He has dedicated hours and hours to create places for bloggers to find their communities:

http://aopinionatedman.com/2014/12/29/wordpress-meet-and-greet-3-all-bloggers-welcome/

To help them draw attention to themselves:

http://aopinionatedman.com/2014/11/13/share-your-blogger-profile-all-bloggers-welcome/

To help them promote themselves:

http://aopinionatedman.com/2014/08/06/share-a-post-all-bloggers-welcome/

The trickle-down benefits alone are nothing less than astounding. If you have ever read any of my helpful hints on blogging, you can thank Jason – he taught me three quarters of what I know.

Why am I telling you all this? WordPress has seen fit to suspend HarsH ReaLiTy’s ability to follow and “like” other blogs. It’s a crime. WordPress is taking away one of its own biggest assets – a service provided to its own patrons, FOR FREE, and out of the goodness of one man’s heart. I wrote a post myself about how hard he works to help others grow their blogs here: https://lindaghill.com/2014/09/23/wordpresss-own-welcoming-committee-harsh-reality/

If Jason C. Cushman has ever helped you, if you have ever read any of his blogging advice, if you have ever guest posted for him, if he has ever re-blogged you, if you have ever commented on HarsH ReaLiTy and met another blogger there, please sign below.

Comment – leave your words of support or just write the words, Save HarsH ReaLiTy. I will make sure the WordPress powers-that-be see this post and all the support that goes with it.

Re-blog – make sure this goes out to every corner of WordPress that Jason has reached.

HarsH ReaLiTy is not a spam blog. It is WordPress’s shining star.

Edit: I’m purposely NOT responding to comments here so as not to dilute the message: WE SUPPORT HARSH REALITY AND WHAT JASON DOES TO HELP BLOGGERS!! Thank you to all who have shared and commented so far, and thanks in advance to all who will. Please keep commenting and re-blogging! Let’s keep this at the top of the Reader!

Edit: Now that HarsH ReaLiTy’s suspension is lifted I’ll turn off the comments here. This post will remain, however, as testimony to what Jason means to us! Long live Opinionated Man!!
Thank you SO MUCH to everyone who commented and re-blogged. Your support is both overwhelming and heartwarming.
Now pass around the cookies!! 😀

Edit – April 20th: Jason re-blogged this with the following comment:

I actually didn’t read this until now because I was moody at the time. I feel the love from this post and the comments here. Thanks bloggers. -OM

I’ve turned the comments back on. You’re very welcome, Jason. It was the least I could do for all you’ve done for this community. 😀


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SoCS – Poles and Double Negatives

Maybe I was dreaming of my prompt this morning but when I dreamed this morning it was of the poles changing direction. I dreamed of the end of the world. The water in my house didn’t work, the sewers were running backwards as was a natural spring in my house that reversed and became muddy and the electricity went out. Several times I think I woke a little (because Alex was coughing) but I drifted back each time into the dream, knowing I was dreaming but unable to stop it. I don’t remember if I was awake to imagine the end of the world but I stood with my children and told them I loved them as the world imploded…

And so then I was thinking I should tell Alex’s dad that he’s still sick but I may send him to school on Monday regardless since he doesn’t seem contagious, which led me to think of the word “irregardless” which shouldn’t be a word. Should it? Spell check likes it. But it makes no sense. To “irregard,” one would think, would be a negative meaning “not to regard” and so putting a “less” on the end turns “irregardless” into a double negative meaning to regard. So sending Alex to school regarding his cough would be senseless… (Yes, Doobster, I looked up the Webster’s definition of “irregardless” but the looking up of it was ruining the flow of my writing which is why I didn’t copy and paste it.)

And so this is an account, really, of my morning so far. Not really stream of consciousness thought (though it was at the time) but I have written this unedited and as it came back to me, which is kind of a double negative in and of itself.

The good news is, if you have made it to the end of this post, at least the world hasn’t ended yet. Hooray!

This post is part of SoCS. Join in today! https://lindaghill.com/2015/01/09/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-january-1015/

Badge by: Doobster at Mindful Digressions

Badge by: Doobster at Mindful Digressions


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JusJoJan 7 – The Importance of Pop-Culture

I used to hate people who told me, with their nose seemingly turned up in disdain, that they didn’t watch TV. That was back when I used to do barely anything else when I got home from work at night. Knit and watch TV. Every single night.

Fast forward to now: I never watch TV. I don’t turn my nose up at people who do – I understand that their leisure time is as valuable to them as mine is to me – they just choose to do something different with it. But I do have to say that I’m really feeling the effects of NOT watching it. Why?

Pop-culture can be very important in any work of art. It has the ability to connect the artist to his audience in a unique way, like, remember where you were when the last episode of M*A*S*H was aired? Or when we heard those famous words, “One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind”? Can you? I can. But do I know a damned thing about what’s going on on “The Office”? No.

While there is much to be said for spending every minute of my spare time creating fiction, there is still that value in watching TV. My own fiction is evidence in itself. Read this: http://lindaghillfiction.com/2014/11/18/43-scenes-from-the-second-seat-on-the-right-sylvester-and-harry/ and tell me you “get it.” Please. Okay, so maybe you do, but it would still be nice to have something current to refer to.

So I’ve decided to add one more thing to my list of New Year’s Resolutions. Watch more TV.

I am so freakin’ backwards.

P.S. Please leave suggestions in the comments on what’s on that’s good. I’m totally lost.

This post is part of Just Jot It January: https://lindaghill.com/2015/01/01/just-jot-it-january-pingback-post-and-rules/ Jot something down and join in the fun – it’s never too late!!

JJJ 2015


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JusJoJan 6 – Say Anything

In the spirit of my prompt for these first ten days of January here on Just Jot It January, I decided to allow my mind wander along the thread of inspiration endowed upon me by this post by Opinionated Man on HarsH ReaLiTy.

My question for the day: when is it okay to say anything?

I once worked for a woman who owned a wool shop. It was an interesting job in that I was in a position to help people with their knitting and crocheting projects; this included aiding them in getting the right yarn for their pattern. While I worked hard to make sure they would meet with the maximum amount of success with their finished article, my boss would say anything to make a sale. Not happy with the colours the proper materials come in? Sure, that other one will work. No. It won’t, I used to think to myself. But how can you argue with the owner of a store in front of a customer? She did this knowing full well that in 99% of cases the customer wouldn’t come back and complain because they would think it was their fault for not doing something correctly. The patrons who would complain were knowledgeable enough not to buy the wrong product in the first place.

When I did say something to my unscrupulous boss, she brushed it off, insisting that the project the poor customer was about to embark upon, their hours and hours of work, would come out fine.

Honesty is one of the virtues I hold in highest importance. Bad sales practices are not confined to the retailers you might think they are. Keep your eyes open and do your research.

Just Jot It January is something anyone with a blog, a page, or a pencil can participate in. Do it today! It’s never too late to start! https://lindaghill.com/2015/01/01/just-jot-it-january-pingback-post-and-rules/

JJJ 2015


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It’s a SoCS/JusJoJan 3 Twofer

Twofer the price of one, that is. I think I got about two hours of sleep last night with Alex’s coughing, and I’ve had no more than two minutes to myself at any given moment all day. Looking after a sick kid is very demanding on the attention. He’s sleeping peacefully at the moment and so far my two minutes have extended all the way to about twenty.

Still, all day I’ve been thinking about what I could write for SoCS today, given my own prompt, but nothing really stuck out as a good word that started with ‘t.’ Concentration has been a rare thing though, although I have managed to get a lot of blogs read during my minutes between being asked to do this or that, or pay attention, or simply rub his back – not easy to type whilst rubbing someone’s back. So I’ve been here but I haven’t.

I’m seriously ready to drop off to sleep any minute now. Just waiting for the other teenager to go to bed. *sigh*

I have quite a few blog posts lined up in my head for the coming weeks. I still have dozens of pictures to share, and I kept a journal while I was gone as well, though I have to re-read it to see if it’s exciting enough to copy out – perhaps I can spruce it up a little without straying from the facts.

Lots to do, but much of it depends on the kids going back to school next week. It’s supposed to rain all day tomorrow and then on Monday the temperature is supposed to drop to -10C. I hope the rain dries up in the meantime, otherwise we’re going to have a repeat of last year. No fun at all. I shall certainly try not to fall and almost kill myself this year on my paper route.

I’m tired just thinking about it. …who am I trying to kid? I’m just tired. And that would be my whine for the evening.

Oooh, wine! *runs to the kitchen*

This post is part of Just Jot It January: https://lindaghill.com/2015/01/01/just-jot-it-january-pingback-post-and-rules/

JJJ 2015

And Stream of Consciousness Saturday: https://lindaghill.com/2015/01/02/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-january-315/

Badge by: Doobster at Mindful Digressions

Badge by: Doobster at Mindful Digressions

Join in to both now!


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One-Liner Wednesday – YOLO

You only live once – make the most of it.

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Anyone who would like to try it out, feel free to use the “One-Liner Wednesday” title in your post, and if you do, you can ping back here to help your blog get more exposure. To execute a ping back, just copy the URL in the address bar on this post and paste it somewhere in the body of your post. Your link will show up in the comments below.

As with Stream of Consciousness Saturday, if you see a ping back from someone else in my comment section, click and have a read. It’s bound to be short and sweet.

The rules that I’ve made for myself (but don’t always follow) for “One-Liner Wednesday” are:

1. Make it one sentence.

2. Make it either funny or inspirational.

Have fun!


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SoCS – Total Consumption

It seems to me that we all must consume things. We eat, for instance, consuming the nutrients we require to survive. But yet, the word “consumed” has so many negative connotations. Being consumed is, at the moment I write this, the most complete thing I can think of. By complete I mean absolute. It goes against the grain of thought for me, because I don’t believe anything is absolute.

The feeling of being consumed is to me almost absolute. Consumed by guilt, consumed by the feeling that I must do something – writing for instance – is so overwhelming that it feels … consuming. The all-consuming feeling that falling in love brings; it permeates every thought, every action.

Of course there is also being consumed, like the pie right down to the last crumb. Is that not absolute?

With one word – with one prompt of my own making – with one blog post I have managed to skew my philosophy on life. How does this happen?

You witnessed it here.

This post is part of SoCS. Click here:  https://lindaghill.com/2014/12/26/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-december-2714/ It may change your life.

Badge by: Doobster at Mindful Digressions

Badge by: Doobster at Mindful Digressions


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Sneaky Business

Before I went to Japan I dropped in to my local cell phone provider’s store to inquire about a package deal that would allow me to use my mobile in the event I couldn’t get online while I was away. They were offering a deal that included something like 40 minutes talk time, 150 texts and 20mb of data for $70. I asked what would happen if I wasn’t able to use my phone in Japan and was assured that it wouldn’t be a problem – if I didn’t use the service, the company would refund the $70. What could I possibly lose? So I went for it.

Today I called the company to let them know I hadn’t been able to connect to a wireless provider while I was in Japan and could I please get my money back. No, I was told. There was no way they could refund the money. They don’t do that. So I asked to speak to a manager.

Armed with the fact that I have 6 phones on my plan, and have been with the company for about 20 years, I formulated my response to the next guy I was to talk to while I waited on hold. After five minutes my speech was at the ready. The gentleman who answered was polite – he said he’d check in to the matter, and would I please hold for a moment longer. Eventually he came back and told me that they don’t normally give refunds for travel packages, and the store shouldn’t have told me they do, but he would make an exception for me since I was a long-standing customer and he agreed to remove the $70 charge from my bill.

Now call me suspicious, but I wonder why I had to go through all that. The store told me I could have my money back. Was all the tension-building just a strategy to make me believe that the company is, in fact, wonderful and cause me to tell all my friends to go to them because they are kind and forgiving if you’re loyal?

I smell a rat.


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Nano Poblano – Day 30: Something Profound

For my final Team Pepper post I really wanted to find something profound to write. Something to uplift and inspire. Something that people far and wide will remember for years to come. Something from my own mind, rather than words regurgitated from the world wide web. Something barfed up from my own mouth… in a delicate way. A burp almost. But tangible. Something that my readers can latch onto and hold close to their hearts.

Here it goes.

Are you ready?

…
…

…

Get off the damned computer and go outside already! The internet isn’t real life! Real life exists when you get off your ass and live it!!!

How did I do?

This inspirational piece of originality has been brought to you in conjunction with Mr. Wonderful’s Soon-To-Be-Defunct-But-Never-To-Be-Forgotten-Marktastic-Roadshow

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and NaBloThisMoUpAlready

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