Make (a little bit of) Money (sort of) Fast

So I haven’t updated this blog in EIGHT YEARS, and a lot has changed since then; but never mind all of that for now.

As I post this, the WORLD is currently in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, and a lot of people are stuck at home (and I know a lot of people, myself included, are also worried about money).

Meanwhile, just to make a bit of side money for myself, I’ve been participating in surveys (and other “beer money”-type activities) on various survey and get-paid-to (GPT) sites since November 2019. Even adding all of these survey sites together, what I’ve made from them in a few months wouldn’t even pay one month’s worth of my current rent (though it would come very close!); however, each month since December, I’ve still earned (and “cashed out”) a decent-enough amount from several of the sites. This little bit of extra money has definitely helped me out!

So while I (and many others) have some time to kill, I thought I’d share which of these sites are worth pursuing, in case whomever stumbles upon this might be interested. Note: I’m including “referral” links where applicable (because, where else am I supposed to use those?) but also including just the regular links.

Sites Where I’ve Successfully Redeemed Money/Rewards

Amazon Mechanical Turk: I’ve been working on mturk (which some call “turking”) since the middle of December 2019, though I signed up for it a few years ago. I believe that you have to be approved after signing up before you can participate; but since I signed up, promptly forgot about it, then ignored it for several years, I have no idea how long the approval process actually takes.

Once you’re approved, however, you can immediately start working on various Human Intelligence Tasks (HITs) — though you have to wait something like 10 days before Amazon pays you. These tasks can take anywhere from 30 seconds to over an hour to complete, and payment ranges anywhere from a literal penny to $20 (possibly higher, but $20 has been my highest payment so far). Note: you might have to complete a lot of penny hits before you start qualifying for the “better-paying” hits. For me, that didn’t take too terribly-long; I started in December, and my $20 hit was in January (however, there are still a lot of HITs that I supposedly don’t qualify for).

What exactly are the HITs? Well, there are a LOT of surveys, plus a lot of data entry, random short assignments such as transcribing recipes or business cards, rating music or photos, and more. My $20 hit involved taking  a couple of surveys and playing an online slot machine game for 5 minutes each day over the span of a week! (The combined time for this particular HIT, including the surveys and slot games, was maybe 90 minutes; but because the HIT stretched out over 8 days total, it never felt like it took very long.)

You’ll want to try to avoid making any errors on your HITs because “requesters” (the people who assign the HITs) can reject you, which hurts your overall score and means that you don’t get paid. Sometimes they’ll reject you even if you don’t make any errors, which is really annoying. I currently have three rejections (a 0.26% rate); technically, I’ve received four, but one was reversed — which occasionally happens, if you’re lucky.

I think the only two payment redemption options right now are having your earnings directly deposited into your bank account, or having them added to an Amazon gift card (I chose the latter, but can change it to bank deposits if I ever want to); you can also decide if you want the payments every 3 days (which is what I do), every 7 days, every few weeks, or whatever amount of time you’d prefer.

To date, since December, I’ve completed 1149 HITs and earned $385.36 (plus a small amount that’s still pending and will be part of my 2-days-from-now payment). Not stellar, but bear I mind that with mturk (and all of these sites, really) I’ll spend anywhere from zero to roughly 120 minutes per session working on them — sometimes more, but usually falling somewhere in the middle of that time range.

Swagbucks:(the only site besides mturk that I use on a daily basis) If you’re even remotely familiar with survey and GPT sites, you’re probably already familiar with Swagbucks. It’s been around for years, and is one of the most established of these types of sites. So I won’t waste a lot of time describing it, but in short: you can earn “SB’s” (one SB equals approximately one penny) in various ways — such as completing surveys and Daily Polls, searching the Internet, watching videos, shopping and earning SB’s back, visiting (sometimes shady) affiliate sites, etc.

There are many opportunities  to earn bonus SB’s, too, such as meeting a “daily goal”; you can even play Bingo SWAGO there. I’ve earned the majority of my SB’s completing good old surveys, but have attempted many of the other ways to earn, to varying degrees of success.

The surveys can definitely be frustrating, because you’ll get disqualified a LOT (and not always immediately); sometimes you’ll earn absolutely nothing back for your time, often you’ll get a whopping one consolation SB, and occasionally they’ll give you a higher random amount (as many as 20-something SB’s) even if you’re disqualified. Even when you’re not disqualified, the surveys generally don’t pay very much; but on rare occasions, you’ll luck out and qualify for a “Remesh” survey. Which means that on some date in the near future, you’ll have to spend an hour chatting with a moderator and other Swagbucks users (which really just means answering questions from the moderator and voting on the other users’ answers) about skin care or some other product — but, in return, you’ll get at least 2000 SB’s back (so, $20) for your efforts. I’ve completed Remesh surveys twice, and have been disqualified from the initial (“screener”) surveys a handful of other times (these screeners are found with the other Gold Surveys at Swagbucks, and it’s pretty obvious which ones are Remesh surveys).

Anyway, however you might earn your SB’s, all of them eventually add up; and it usually doesn’t take much more than a week or two to earn enough to be able to redeem them for at least a $10 gift card.

On that note, as far as rewards go: PayPal is an option, but I don’t use it because my PayPal address doesn’t match my Swagbucks address (which is a requirement here) and — well, I don’t really feel like changing either address. Visa Reward cards are another option, and there are MANY gift card choices: you can redeem your SB’s for $5-$50 cards at stores such as Amazon, Target, and Wal-Mart; chain restaurants such as Starbucks, Panera, and Reds Lobster and Robin; and even Southwest Airlines gift cards! You can also donate your SB rewards to charity.

To date, since November 2019, I’ve earned 253,36 SB’s (aka $253.36) and cashed out 10 gift cards (one for Wal-Mart, two for Target, and the rest for Amazon), about half of which were for $25 and the rest for smaller amounts. (I’ve also donated a couple of dollars’ worth to charities, though I have to confess these were just to mark off specific squares in SWAGO games.)

Finally, it’s also worth mentioning that Swagbucks definitely has the best customer service department of all the survey/GPT sites I’ve tried. Once in awhile, there will be issues such as completing a survey and not getting credited right away; but as long as I provide enough detail and some sort of screenshot, Swagbucks has always given me full credit within a few hours. (Swagbucks referral link)

Survey Junkie: I don’t think that this is everybody’s favorite GPT site, but I’ve been using it since November and have never had any major issues. It’s pretty straightforward, and (as the name implies) it’s all surveys (no videos or Internet searches here).

My only minor gripes are: as with most marketing-oriented survey sites, you’ll get disqualified/screened out of more surveys than you’re able to complete (and receive anywhere from zero to, more often, two or three consolation points if you’re screened out; like Swagbucks and its SB’s, one Survey Junkie point equals approximately one cent); customer service isn’t the greatest (if you complete a half-hour or longer survey and don’t get credited, feel lucky if they give you 20 consolation points, even after you’ve sent details and a screenshot); and the company sends a LOT of email.

That last one is more like a half-gripe, especially considering that I believe you can opt out of the email. I haven’t opted out of it, however, because I believe email is the only way that you can receive the “guaranteed” surveys (which are very short — anywhere from two to six questions long — and only pay about ten points each; but these do add up). Still, be prepared for at least 5-6 emails a day if you don’t opt out. Even using a throwaway email address, this can feel excessive.

On a positive note, Survey Junkie only requires a $5 balance to be able to redeem (which is a lot less than some sites); and even if your PayPal address is different than your Survey Junkie address, you can still cash out with PayPal (which is exactly what I do, though I believe Survey Junkie also offers gift cards). And while rewards tend to be on the low side (a dollar or less), I did luck out one time and successfully completed a $15 survey.

To date, since November 2019, I’ve earned $80.66 at Survey Junkie (of which I’ve redeemed all but one dime).

Prolific: I signed up for Prolific, a U.K.-based company, in December 2019, and it was slow at first; I only received about 5 survey invitations. Then, one day in January, I realized that (duh) I’d barely filled out my profile! Once I finished that, the opportunities became more plentiful.

Like Survey Junkie, Prolific revolves entirely around surveys; unlike Survey Junkie (but similar to most of the surveys on mturk), the surveys are “academic” (gathered by colleges and universities), rather than “marketing” (gathered by marketing companies, or whatever). So there’s less surveys; but on the flip side, you’ll waste much less time answering the same old questions only to get disqualified halfway into the survey.

(Actually, I’ve found Prolific surveys to be better than even mturk’s surveys in that regard; while similar in content, it’s unfortunately not that uncommon at mturk for either a requester to screen you out after you’ve accepted the task, forcing you to return it, or for a survey to be missing the completion code at the end — both of which basically amount to getting disqualified. But I’ve never been screened out of a Prolific survey after starting one, and only one survey lacked a completion code at the end; and after notifying the requester about that, I was paid anyway. Technically, Prolific requesters can reject your completed surveys and not pay you; but after submitting almost 90 surveys, this has yet to happen to me.)

Other than it not having as many opportunities as some of the sites (and there seems to be virtually nothing available on weekends; weekends are slow for all of these sites), I don’t have any complaints about Prolific. Reward amounts aren’t the highest (and, from my experience, tend to range anywhere from 10 cents to about $3) but at least you’re pretty much guaranteed to at least get your reward, and not waste any of your time answering questions only to be disqualified or land on some error page (another common occurrence at marketing survey sites) and not get a penny back.

Oh, and PayPal is an option for redemption (possibly the only option at Prolific? I’m not really sure, but, in any case, it’s how I receive my payments there), and a reasonable $5 is needed in your balance before you can cash out.

To date, since December 2019 — well, really since January 2020 — I’ve earned £60.61 (or $70.51 in USD) at Prolific, plus a small amount in my balance that I haven’t yet redeemed.

Qmee: I joined Qmee (another survey site; you can also complete “offers” there, i.e. buy things and get money back, though I haven’t yet done this) in January, and my participation there has been more sporadic than any of the above named sites. Qmee’s surveys are definitely of the “marketing” variety, and you’ll get disqualified from them even more here than at Swagbucks or Survey Junkie. And you don’t always get consolation cents back for your time, either, though occasionally you’ll get a few.

All of this being said — I’ve certainly qualified for plenty of Qmee surveys (most of which pay less than a dollar, a few of which pay slightly more). You can redeem your earnings via PayPal (which is what I do), donate them to a handful of charities, or trade them for a gift card (the gift card selection is much smaller than Swagbucks’s, but includes many of the usuals: Amazon, Target, Starbucks, Old Navy, AMC Theatres, etc.).

Probably the best thing about Qmee is that you can redeem whenever you’d like; there’s no minimum balance requirement! (Gift cards start at $5, though, so this is really only a benefit if you choose to redeem via PayPal or donate to one of the charities.)

They also have a pretty good customer service department, albeit slower to fix issues than Swagbucks’s (I’ve only had one actual issue, though, which Qmee did eventually take care of).

To date, since January 2020, I’ve earned $19.86 at Qmee, with a whopping $0.34 still in my balance (again, my Qmee participation is sporadic — I’ll go weeks sometimes without logging in — so my experience isn’t necessarily an accurate representation of one’s “earning” potential there). (Qmee referral link)

MyPoints: One of the original GPT sites, pre-dating even Swagbucks! (Which now owns it.) I actually first used this site over 20 years ago, when it was still pretty new; I earned enough at the time for a $10 Target gift card (which I used to buy the game of Life!).

I started using it again in November 2019; however, it’s definitely not one that I utilize on a daily basis, as it’s very similar (and in some ways, almost identical) to its “parent” Swagbucks — only it pays much less, and disqualifies you from surveys a lot more.

One key difference, though — and this is how I’ve earned a good majority of my MyPoints (which equal less than a penny per Point) — MyPoints will send out spam email from its affiliate partners (well-known stores and businesses), which pays you a very small amount if you click on it. This is called “MyPoints Bonus Mail”; and, again, it adds up — quite slowly, in this case, but it does add up. Also, you don’t have to do anything more than click to earn your points, though you can earn more if you choose to take advantage of whatever deal is being offered in each spam message.

To date, since November 2019, I’ve earned 3321 MyPoints (with another 1731 currently in my balance). I have no idea what that amounts to in dollars, only that it’s not $33.21. But it was enough for me to redeem for another $10 gift card, this time for Amazon. (MyPoints referral link)

GetPaidTo: I believe this very straightforwardly named GPT site has been around for awhile; I think I joined it in December, or possibly November? But I don’t use it much; while it’s a legit site (meaning that it does really pay when you’re able to redeem), there are definitely issues. Namely, the VERY small amount that one can earn; I’m not exactly sure how the points convert, but let’s just say that, since about December 2019, I’ve earned 7802 points — which I was able to redeem exactly once, for an Amazon gift card of exactly $1. 2080 of those points are still in my balance (and aren’t even enough to trade in for another $1 gift card).

In fairness, the tiny amount that I’ve earned came almost entirely from just playing games (Solitaire, Mahjong, etc.) on the site. There are other opportunities — such as surveys — from the same old companies that you’ll find on all of the other (better-paying) survey sites (thus, I’ve only completed one, and have been disqualified from a few others), but from the one survey that I successfully completed, I do know that these surveys pay slightly more than the games.

The customer service is lousy, though; there’ve been many times where the games didn’t properly credit, so I sent in the required ticket to customer service explaining this recurring issue, and was basically blown off.

I’d say that this one’s only worth it if you want to make a few pennies for playing some fun games. (GetPaidTo referral link)

MSN Rewards: I can’t tell you much about this one; I joined — well, I thought it was a few years ago (I know for sure it was back when the program was still called Bing Rewards), but apparently (per the website) rewards expire after 18 months, and I definitely still had some reward points in my balance. So I must have joined more recently than I can recall? Either that, or perhaps they let everybody who joined in the Bing Rewards days keep their balance, then implemented the 18-month rule after the name change? (*shrug*)

In any case, it looks you can earn rewards through various typical GPT-type activities (answering questions, shopping, searching Bing, playing Xbox?). However, I haven’t done any of these things recently; I’ve basically only logged in long enough to redeem (most of) my balance, which was enough for another $10 Amazon card (according to the MSN Rewards website, 5000 points equals approximately 5 dollars; I have about 6000 points — or, $6 — still in my balance). Not a lot — but not bad, considering that I have virtually no memory of actually earning any of it!

Probably Legitimate Sites That I’ve Used, But Haven’t Yet Redeemed From

The following sites have all received enough positive reviews for me to (cautiously) recommend them, even though (for various reasons) I haven’t yet redeemed from any of them yet, and thus can’t 100% vouch for them.

InboxDollars: Earn pennies — or in some cases, as much as a dollar (surveys will occasionally be offered promising a few dollars, or even as much as 20-something; yet I’ve never qualified for any of these higher-paying surveys) — answering surveys, playing games (some of which are kind of fun — especially Word Wipe!), searching the Internet, watching videos, clicking on spam, or taking advantage of offers. I haven’t done that last one yet, but have tried all of the other options (I mostly stick to the spam, games, and occasional searches and surveys).

By all accounts (well, at least most accounts), this is a legitimate site and not a scam; that said, there’s a (ridiculous) $30 minimum balance requirement before you can actually cash out. So it’s… not the best use of one’s time (perhaps people who complete the offers get their $30 more quickly than people like me, who stick to the lower-paying options? I don’t know.)

To make matters worse, apparently InboxDollars for some reason (“processing fees” or whatever) keeps $3 of your earnings when you do cash out. So you really only get $27 (though, in fairness, you supposedly get a $3 credit back toward your next payout; there’s also the option to wait until you’ve earned $40 before you cash out, and if you choose this option, then InboxDollars doesn’t keep any of your earnings).

Anyhow, since November 2019, I’ve earned $23.84 from InboxDollars. In another half a year or so, maybe I’ll have enough to actually be allowed to cash out my $30 $27; or, in another year or so, maybe even the $40! (InboxDollars referral link)

InboxDollars also has a nearly-identical “sister site” called SendEarnings, which I joined in January or February, but have barely used because there’s the same “$30 minimum” — yet somehow it’s even harder to earn your pennies on this site. I do click on its paid spam, but that’s pretty much the only thing I’ve done at SendEarnings. (SendEarnings referral link)

Both InboxDollars and SendEarnings will give you $5 right away just for signing up (probably because they know it will take forever to earn the rest of your minimum balance), so there’s that. My SendEarnings earnings since February-ish 2020 are a whopping $5.85 (meaning I’ve earned 85 cents for clicking on roughly 3 emails per week). At that rate, in about three years, I should have enough to redeem my $30 $27 balance!

PrizeRebel: As far as I can tell (from reviews and such), this is another legitimate site. I don’t use it very often, however, because I’m not really interested in “offer walls” or videos (and if I was, I’d do them at Swagbucks; or maybe, in the case of the latter, at InboxDollars). Which leaves surveys.

And far too many of PrizeRebel’s surveys come from Your-Surveys.com, which is NOT my favorite survey company (among other reasons, their surveys are very slow; they also keep an insulting “score” tally, from which they’ll deduct points for no real reason, which could theoretically get one banned). I’ll even take Sample Cube and Peanut Labs (other survey companies that I don’t exactly love) over Your-Surveys.

So I tend to avoid PrizeRebel (which also sends a lot of spam, and not even the kind that can earn you points just be clicking on it, a la MyPoints and SendEarnings — or by clicking on it, then taking a 30-second “guaranteed” survey, a la Survey Junkie. PrizeRebel’s spam is just spam).

Still, some people like PrizeRebel. To date, since November (December?) 2019, I’ve earned 976 points there; and (while I haven’t yet redeemed anything) it looks like one point is equal to one penny, so approximately $9.76 currently sits in my balance. In PrizeRebel’s favor, it doesn’t look like the minimum balance to redeem is very high; glancing at the rewards, it seems that one has the option to get a gift card for as little as 200 points/$2. (PrizeRebel referral link)

E-poll Surveys: I actually signed up to this site a few years ago, participated for awhile, forgot about it, annoyingly lost 3150 points for “inactivity”, then started participating again in November 2019.

Unlike many other survey sites, you can’t just go to the website and click on listed surveys; you have to wait for E-Poll to email them to you. Which happens, oh, perhaps three times per month.

If you like entertainment, though, then these surveys might at least be a little more fun to complete than the ones at some of the other survey sites; virtually all E-Poll surveys are about movies or television. You’re never disqualified from them, either, which is definitely a plus (though you do have to accept them fairly quickly, as they fill up fast).

To date, since November 2019 (so, not counting the 3150 points from before that I lost) I’ve earned 13,350 points at E-Poll Surveys. Which amounts to somewhere between $15 and $20 in gift card money; or just over $20 in PayPal money. I’m 150 points (or about one survey) away from the $20 gift cards (E-Poll offers Amazon, Starbucks, and a lot of the other usuals), so I’m waiting until then before I attempt to redeem, though I don’t know why I haven’t just redeemed for the PayPal (especially since it requires slightly less points?). Charity donations are also an option.

___

Two other things worth noting: 1.) I can’t for the life of me recall which site I came across the one that I completed on, but if you ever come across a “Quest Mindshare” music survey — which offers a $40 check (at least, that’s the amount I got) for listening to music clips for about an hour and ranking them — it’s legit. This is the only occasion since November in which I’ve received a literal check for completing a survey (rather than having some amount of points deposited into a balance) and it did take several (6? 8?) weeks for the check to reach me (which Quest Mindshare warns you of). But I didn’t have any issues when depositing it — other than a teller having to call over another teller to help, because the check was apparently “foreign”.

2.) I’m a 40-year-old, “separated” white woman, which means that my survey demographics aren’t exactly rare (which, in turn, probably leads to many of my screenings out/disqualifications). Those with different demographics could conceivably fare a lot better at these sites (or worse — I’m not really sure how that all works, but I do know that demographics play a role in whether or not you’re approved for surveys).

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There are TONS of other GPT and survey sites out there — some of which I’ve tried, but none of which have impressed me enough to include them here.

In short: I highly recommend Swagbucks, mturk (if you can get accepted), and Prolific; and I slightly-less-highly (but still) recommend Survey Junkie and Qmee.

As for the other listed sites: “recommend” might be a bit of a stretch, but they all should be legitimate sites (based on my own experience and/or several positive reviews and high scores at various survey-review sites) and might be worth looking into, as well, if you have the time.

Have fun!

 

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by tamarahaskett on 03/18/2020  •  Permalink
Posted in Uncategorized

Posted by tamarahaskett on 03/18/2020

https://shotgunangel.wordpress.com/2020/03/18/make-a-little-bit-of-money-sort-of-fast/

The week…

So much for blogging on “at least” a monthly basis. But actually, I have been blogging! If you haven’t already, check out my new genealogy  blog. The topic is one I really enjoy reading (and writing!) about, and I think I’ll do better at keeping that blog updated, at least for awhile. Which is not to say that I plan to give up on “Writin’ Shotgun.” (I know that was a collective sigh of relief I just heard from the Internet public, now that you all know that I don’t plan on abandoning this blog… oh, wait. It was just my dad’s Chion, snoring in the doggy bed next to me.)

Henry the CHIhuahua-PapillON.

How come my dad’s Chion is in a doggy bed next to me?  Don’t worry, Daisy the Silky Terrier is alive and well (she’s in Olympia with her dad). I, too, am alive and well — but 40 miles away, in Gig Harbor, at my parents’ house. That’s because this week is the dreaded… Scans Week. Which means that, for the first time since February 2011, my oncologist ordered some “routine” scans (specifically, a chest/abdomen CT Scan and a full body bone scan) to see whether or not my cancer has progressed.

Yesterday, my wonderful mom drove me up to Seattle Cancer Care Alliance (she and Merwyn are both great about that) for the scans themselves. Tomorrow morning, I find out… the results.

I pick "anxious."

How did the tests go? Alright, I suppose. There’s nothing particularly traumatic about either of the two scans I had done. (That would be the pelvic ultrasound — a procedure I’ve only had once, and hope never to have again!) The worst part is always waiting for the pathology report.

 That said… I hate, loathe, and DESPISE that stuff they make you drink before a CT scan! I’ve had different variations of it; sometimes it’s white and milky looking (sometimes they try to give it some flavor, like berry or apple… as if that will help). Sometimes it’s called “Barium Sulfate Solution.” Yesterday, my lovely beverage looked like water and was called “Oral Contrast” — and came in this HUGE jug that I had an hour to finish. I left behind 100 ML of it (gasp) but managed to chug down the rest. It pretty much tasted like water, too…except, it was unusually thick and therefore reminded me of… I dunno, spit? Or something else just as gross. Stupid Oral Contrast!

The jug looked something like this, with the words KEEP REFRIGERATED! on the label in big red letters.

Fortunately, the actual CT scan went by very quickly. As usual, I just lay on a table and stared at the two smiley faces on the CT scan machine, while a deep man’s voice instructed me to “Breathe in — hold your breath” (doing so turned one of the faces orange and made his cheeks puff out) and then to “Breathe” (this turned the other face green; he had a “happy playface”). The whole process took maybe 10 minutes. I didn’t exactly love having to wait in a chair “for observation” for 30 minutes afterward, but at least I’d thought to bring some reading material along with me!

When that was done, my mom and I took a lunch break before my bone scan (unlike the CT scan — which required 4 hours of “fasting” — there are no dietary restrictions before a bone scan). Not that we had much choice; lunch break or no, we had to kill some time so that the radioactive stuff they’d injected into me earlier that morning could finish doing… er, whatever it does to make a bone scan effective. (For some reason, it takes 3 hours.)

But finally, an hour or so after lunch, they called me back to the bone scan room — where I got to lay strapped down on on that bed/table thing and stare at a picture of a tree on the ceiling, while my body moved verrrrry slowly through a machine that looked something like this:

Actually, I think this is an MRI machine, but they all look more or less the same. At least a bone scan is quieter than an MRI.

Those machines aren’t as intimidating as they look, by the way. I even got a nap in toward the end of the bone scan. (It was certainly a relief to be done for the day, though!)

Hey, notice how I didn’t (yet) say anything about needles? That’s because — where once upon a time, the thought of having a needle jammed into me was in my Top 5 list of biggest fears — these days, it’s such a nonevent that it barely warrants a mention. I’m not sure if this is a good thing…

Anyhow, the “technician” in the radiology lab knew her stuff, and got the needle into my vein on her first try (and it barely hurt!). I made sure to drink plenty of juice and water in the morning before I rode up to SCCA, just in case (certain liquids were “allowed”, despite the 4-hour fast). Somebody — I think my mom? — told me about that “drink water before they stick a needle in you” trick once, and it really does seem to work!

Everybody on the radiology floor was nice, and seemed to know what they were doing. This made up for the “team coordinators” (aka schedulers) at SCCA; yesterday, I had yet another encounter where a scheduler messed up. This time, she “misread [my oncologist’s] order”, which COULD have resulted in my missing both lab work and my every-3-months Zometa infusion. The Zometa is now scheduled for tomorrow — but only because I noticed it was missing on my paperwork, and asked about it. (I got the lab work done yesterday.)

All in all, it wasn’t the hugest of deals; however, it DOES make me wonder how many other orders those schedulers have “misread.” Plus, this is not remotely the first time I’ve had issues with a scheduler. At least, my onc’s current scheduler is marginally better than the one she replaced — who was notorious for her flakiness, so much so that a random person at the YSC boards knew exactly who I was talking about once when I ranted about one of her mistakes there (I said nothing that would “give her away”, either. The person just knew!)

Anyway, I like SCCA overall (and am definitely pleased with my oncologist) but their “team coordinators” sure could use some improvement!

That about covers yesterday.

As for tomorrow… I mean, today (just noticed that it’s past midnight!) I don’t have much to say about it. I don’t really believe in things like “jinxing”; however, I want to be careful about expecting either the worst or the best. I know what my “gut” tells me the pathology will say. But that’s the thing about cancer. There’s just no way to predict. Stupid cancer.

Finally… all things considered, my “scanxiety” hasn’t been as bad this time around as in previous years. Sure, I’m a little nervous (who wouldn’t be?) but I’ve done a pretty good job these past few weeks distracting myself with genealogy, trips to Poulsbo (Merwyn and I enjoyed a day in Washington state’s own “Little Norway” this past weekend!), and books and pets and comfort food… and sushi! (Thanks, Mom!)

With that, I’ll leave you with a picture of Herbie the Papillon/Shih Tzu. Who needs scanxiety when you have THIS face to peer at?

 

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by tamarahaskett on 03/14/2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Mr. so-called Big C
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Posted by tamarahaskett on 03/14/2012

https://shotgunangel.wordpress.com/2012/03/14/the-week/

January Recap

I’m not going to worry about style or skill this time, for it’s already 10:39 PM and I only have one hour and 21 minutes to fulfill my goal of posting at least two blog entries per month. Granted, this post will make the bare minimum, but … better two than one (or none!).

 

  • Starting right off with some hardcore drama! We have these “Indian meal moths” that keep flying around our laundry room and kitchen. Occasionally they venture into the living room, and once one of them tried to be bold and fly back into the bedroom (I saw it lounging on the wall and … ended its life). Another time, I was eating a piece of pizza and one of the pests LANDED on it. (Needless to say, I did not finish that piece of pizza.) Fortunately, they’re not a huge problem; I’ve yet to spot more than two at a time, but even after one is caught, another one usually appears out of nowhere about five minutes later. Ugh! Someday, we will buy a trap and hopefully take care of the little annoyances once and for all (we looked for a trap the other day at Target, but no such luck).

 

  • Yes, much of my January has consisted of watching pesky meal moths cruise around the house in groups of two. Well, I don’t stare at them intentently or anything, but one might as well take up moth-watching for as exciting as is January in Washington state!

 

  • Actually, a few noteworthy things did happen this month. On January 8th-9th, Merwyn and I took an overnight trip up to Victoria, B.C. This was a Christmas gift from my parents, and a very lovely one at that (you should have seen the basket my mom made up to present the gift; it came with not just the trip itinerary, but a bottle of sparkling cider, a whole bunch of chocolate, bath salts, even a little angel ornament!). We had a fantastic weekend! One of the things I LOVE about living in Washington state is our proximity to the Canadian border. It’s so easy and (relatively) cheap to just drive — or, if you’re headed to Victoria, take the ferry — to a whole different country. Not everybody who lives in the USA can claim that!

 

  • Merwyn and I are planning to return to Victoria for another weekend getaway on April 14th, which happens to be 3 days after our 3-year anniversary. It also happens to be my 33rd birthday, which means I get to ride the ferry for three … I mean, free.

I wanted to include one of our Victoria pictures, but Merwyn's camera is back in the bedroom and he's asleep in there right now, so ... this picture of a Coffee Crisp bar will have to do.

 

  • Mmm, Coffee Crisp! I had one for the first (?) time while we were in Victoria. (The packaging looked familiar; however, I couldn’t remember ever trying one, and evidently they’re not available down here.) Yeah … we went a little hog wild with the candy this time. I also had a “Wunderbar” and a peanut-butter O Henry. (Merwyn had Turkish Delight and some other stuff that I didn’t sample. He offered me a bite of the Turkish Delight, which was good!) What can I say? It’s fun to try things you can’t find in the local grocery stores! And I haven’t even mentioned the poutine — seafood poutine, which was part of our dinner, and which must have been swimming in at least 456 grams of fat, but was gooooood!

 

  • I’m now on a bit of a “rare candy” kick. Not the healthiest habit, but I think it will be short-lived. It started with our Victoria visit, but was also inspired by my recent discovery of The Candy Blog (see Blogroll; WordPress keeps screwing up my attempt to link!), which proved a fun way to while away those dull January hours.  (I wish I had a candy blog!) My newest love:

    Divine. Totally worth the with-any-other-bar-it-would-be-overpriced $1.49 at CostPlus World Market!

     

 

  • Besides candy (from our “neighbors up North” and elsewhere), I’m also on a general “Canada kick” — the fulfillment of which involves browsing CBC.ca, watching episodes of Degrassi, and skimming Canada guide books. I’m currently in the middle of a book about British Columbia and the Yukon. It’s not just for amusement, as Merwyn and I are (tentatively) planning a road trip to either the Yukon or Northwest Territories this summer!

 

  • Okay …  enough about Canada.

 

  • Here’s something scary that happened in January: one of Merwyn’s back molars grew infected; this actually started before our Victoria trip. He got some Penicillan and hydrocodone and was fine through that weekend, and for about five days after. But the pain didn’t go away — in fact, by the end of those five days, it had grown significantly worse. So he went to some quack of a dentist and asked them to pull the tooth, but (despite the still-present infection) was given an appointment for several days later for a root canal (plus a handful of extra hydrocodone) and sent away.
  • Two days later, Merwyn went into shock and had to be rushed to the hospital in an ambulance! True story! And, fortunately, one that ended well: an ER doctor at St. Peter Hospital “lanced” the abscessed tooth, and Merwyn was fine — even joking about the incident — within a few hours. As you can probably guess, it was quite frightening watching my husband shake uncontrollably, although (like with most crisis situations, at least those involving others) I managed to maintain a sense of calm. But I felt so bad for him. And while I was sitting in the ER, (for once) in the role of caretaker … even knowing Merwyn was going to be fine, some of the scenarios that went through my head, well … I’d rather not get into. I’m just REALLY glad that it all turned out okay!

 

  • Throughout all this, we — meaning western Washington state — were in the middle of another crisis (or rather, “crisis”). We had an unusual amount of snow. Like 12 inches, which might not be a true crisis but (for us) is pretty rare! Truthfully, this didn’t affect Merwyn and me much; he had to miss a few days of work (but got paid for them anyway) and we lost power for a few hours … which was nothing compared to many of our friends and neighbors, who lost power for several days. (No sarcasm with the “crisis” there. Power outages are not fun.) I think everyone’s power has finally been restored. Thank goodness. I used to love when the power went out when I was younger … NOT so much anymore. (For one thing, unlike my parents, Merwyn and I don’t have a fireplace!)

 

  • And that just about sums up my January. Well, throw in some fun stuff like taking down (most of) our Christmas decorations, doing my usual volunteer shifts at KAOS and the Crisis Clinic, playing ungodly amounts of Words With Friends on Facebook, beginning the laborious process of reapplying for SSD — and, of course, working on my book (surely, but verrrrry slowly). I guess the month could have been a lot worse! (Still, the Victoria trip, which was just over three weeks ago, feels like centuries ago.)

 

  • I doubt that February will be much more exciting, but … who knows. Something I thought would happen in February that instead has to wait until March = my scans.  Part of me would have preferred to get these over with in the dull winter months. At the same time, I’m not especially sorry that they’re still several weeks away. I’ll undoubtedly blog about the joys of “scanxiety” and everything it encompasses when that time comes.

 

  • Meanwhile, stay tuned for at least two new posts in February! (Hey, isn’t this a Leap Year?)
5 Comments
by tamarahaskett on 01/31/2012  •  Permalink
Posted in Life
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Posted by tamarahaskett on 01/31/2012

https://shotgunangel.wordpress.com/2012/01/31/january-recap/

This has no point, and is not profound.

Oh, Writer’s Block.

 

If that’s in fact the proper name for the somewhat-conflicted feeling running through me right now … where part of me feels the urge to update this blog, while the other part of me worries that it won’t be interesting enough, or that I MUST recount each and every second that’s occurred in my life since the last time I posted an entry (including detailed recaps of Christmas and New Year’s Eve) or I’ll lose all my readers (because, of course, everyone who has ever clicked on this blog has been SICK with anticipation wondering about my holiday!).

 

And if I do post an entry: should I include a “profound” anecdote, or do I need to talk about cancer…?  Or will anyone care if I just list all my DVD’s (because sometimes I like to be simplistic that way)?

 

I know …  it’s just a blog, right? Technically, I should be able to write about whatever I want, right? But, STILL!

 

Anyway. The point to all my rambling above, and a big part of why writing is sometimes a struggle for me: it’s not always that I don’t know what to say. It’s more like “will anyone actually give a crapola?” about what I’m saying. Plus that whole bit about worrying whether every sentence “sounds” right, or if it’s too awkward or too flowery or too … whatever.

 

But I’ve decided to give in to tonight’s urge to write … because if I can’t post a frickin’ blog entry because I’m worried it might fail in some way, how am I ever going to finish a book? Just be warned, all four eyes that might actually still be reading this: some entries of “Writin’ Shotgun” — like this one, for example — might contain … well, they might contain a whole lot of nothing! (Sandwiched between a healthy sprinkling of quotation marks and parentheses.) Okay?

 

(Hmm, “a whole lot of nothing”… now I can’t help wondering, is that too much of a cliché? Was it proper to use ellipses before “just be warned” and dashes before “including this one” — or does my NEED to use ellipses and dashes mean that I’m too wordy, or…?)

 

(Just kidding.)

 

(Sort of.)

 

Well, now that THAT’s out of the way. How are you? How was your holiday season? Good, I hope!

 

I definitely had an enjoyable (if a bit chaotic at times) Christmas Day. Now, I know not everybody is a fan of the holidays; I do enjoy them, but I have to admit that Christmas Day is perhaps my least favorite day of the season. I much prefer the weeks leading up to the 25th… particularly the very beginning of the season. At some point, it always just starts to go by so FAST!

This actually bothers me in a way that I’m too fatigued to really go into detail about right now. And it doesn’t just apply to Christmas — although the holiday season is a prime example of something that starts out with such promise and hope and possibility, until life and fatigue set in … which makes me want to stop the clock just long enough to take a nap and get my energy back and my “Christmas spirit” back, because this is CHRISTMAS, dang it, and it’s almost over, and how can I enjoy it if I’m busy with such-and-such not-even-Christmas-related thing, or I’m just too tired (more of a problem for me this time of year)? But next thing you know, it’s the 23rd, then Christmas Eve, then the big day … and suddenly my spirit’s back but now Christmas is almost over, and where does the time go, and WHY DO THE HOLIDAYS ALWAYS GO BY SO FAST? (And, trips, too, for that matter?)

Yeah. If I felt more confident in my ability to write something “profound”, I’d elaborate on wanting to savor every second of every day — especially times like the holidays and other events that revolve around loved ones and “making memories”, and … oh, I dunno. Well, I do know, but I don’t want to go on and on for fear of sounding like an idiot. (How did I even get off on this tangent? Am I even making sense?)

And yes, sometimes I think living with cancer exacerbates these anxieties about how too quickly time passes … plus there’s the fact that I’m rapidly approaching my mid-30’s! But more on that some other time.

Meanwhile, I might as well tell you at least a little more about my holidays! As per usual, the “this go by too fast” feeling kind of took away from Christmas this year … BUT not enough to keep me from enjoying the time with my husband, with his family (on the 22nd and 24th), or with my parents and most of my siblings (lucky Missy was in Germany) on the Day itself.

The only part that was just TOO chaotic was the present-opening (NEVER AGAIN will we open gifts with 20 people milling around in a tiny space … haha, right!) but at least I can look back on it “fondly” now. Heh.

As for New Year’s Eve, I had a pleasant one. Pleasant and low-key, which was fine with me!

New Year’s Eve never was my favorite holiday, but I don’t hate it or anything… and I certainly can’t complain about this one. We didn’t go to any parties or do anything crazy. Instead, Merwyn and I went over to my brother’s in Milton in the late afternoon, and spent a little time with him and my folks, plus Angie, Doug, and my nephews Cooper and Jonah. Afterward, Merwyn and I drove through Fantasy Lights over in Spanaway (which is UTTERLY charming, and which next year I want to do before Christmas!) then came home and carried on our sometimes-tradition of eating chips and dip and watching that ball drop in Times Square. (Only this year, since we no longer have cable as of mid-2011, we had to “listen” to the Times Square festivities on the laptop, while watching a New Year’s countdown clock in another window. I’m not sure why two separate windows were required; you’d have to ask Merwyn about that one.)

Of course, Merwyn and I also kissed at midnight; then he had to go back to consoling poor Daisy — who absolutely LOATHED the fireworks show our neighbors were so kind as to put on, and barked her head off all night long. (Richard, meanwhile, while a little bit scared, took the loud booms and bangs pretty well for a sensitive Siamese.)

We didn’t celebrate New Year’s Day (does anyone? the closest my family ever came was my mom for some reason cooking corned beef and cabbage every January 1st…); however, since it was Sunday, we got to do the Think Tank, specifically a “Best of 2011” show (programmed by yours truly). Later, perhaps inspired by the many cheap DVD’s we scored during the holiday season, and in a rare burst of energy … I decided to re-organize Merwyn’s and my 10 billion-50 trillion-6037 DVD’s, books, and CD’s. Surprisingly, I made a decent amount of progress on this yesterday; but my energy did not return this morning, and now we have paperbacks and other assorted media scattered across half the living room floor. I’m confident I can finish the job, though; the clutter is nothing compared to when we first moved to this house!

That brings me to tonight — and my urge to update this blog. I’m sure the resulting entry has THRILLED you, but here it is: I updated! I wrote! Now I’m that much closer to getting back into the writing habit, and finishing my book, and … and not finding it necessary to turn every other sentence into a list of “and’s”, like I’m doing with this one. (Who cares, though? I’m writing, aren’t I?)

Finally: for succinct,  witty, thought-provoking, sometimes snarky, occasionally downright controversial writing from an author who doesn’t find it necessary to italicize half of his blog entries, I encourage you to visit my husband over at Kalhoun. Seriously, he’s a very talented writer and I’m very proud of him for getting back into blogging himself!

And he can cook! On that note, he just gently placed a steaming bowl of fish stew on a pot holder next to the laptop, so I must say goodbye for now, and go enjoy some white ruffy, butternut squash base, potatoes, carrots and general soupy goodness!

5 Comments
by tamarahaskett on 01/02/2012  •  Permalink
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Posted by tamarahaskett on 01/02/2012

https://shotgunangel.wordpress.com/2012/01/02/this-has-no-point-and-it-is-not-profound/

Happy 3rd mets-aversary to me…

Yesterday Merwyn drove me up to Seattle Cancer Care Alliance for my treatment. I prefer to go up there on the weekends whenever possible, since not only does no one have to miss work to take me, it’s also nice and quiet and FAST!

Yesterday was no exception. They “accessed” my port — meaning, a bored lab technician rubbed alcohol over the port/catheter-thing in my chest, then jammed a needle full of Lidocaine into it so that the REAL needle wouldn’t hurt, then jammed the big needle in (it didn’t hurt), then, took some blood, somehow got an IV in there, and just generally hovered awkwardly over me for about five or ten minutes. After my “labs” (which I didn’t even have to wait in the lobby for!), Merwyn and I rode the elevator up to Infusion on floor 5. Again, I didn’t have to wait; my little Olive Garden-esque pager buzzed almost immediately after I sat down in the waiting room, and I went right back to Bay 15, one of SCCA’s 35 or so private infusion rooms, for my Lupron and Zometa.

This is always the most boring part of treatment, in part because I often have to wait seemingly forever for both my medicine to arrive and my bloodwork to come back. But neither took too long this time.

Actually, the worst part about yesterday’s treatment was the Lupron. Which isn’t uncommon … even after “getting used to” shots, I still loathe them. Even Lupron, though, I tend to only think about in the brief moment it takes to give me the stupid shot. (Then, later on, it’s “why is this Band-Aid on me? … oh, yeah.”) However, I was sore up until this morning at my injection site, which … let’s just say, didn’t surprise me much after I saw my nurse reading an instruction manual before she finally gave me the injection. I think she was just trying to determine how long to warm up the medicine; still, I’d rather my nurses not find it necessary to glance at “how to” books for ANY reason when they’re about to jam a needle in me! At least it wasn’t as bad as my first Lupron shot (which is a horror story for another time).

As usual, the Zometa infusion proved uneventful … Merwyn and I sat for 20 minutes while a machine dripped Zometa into my IV. Then (after the machine beeped it was finished), the nurse came and unhooked it; then she flushed and de-accessed my port (i.e. cleaned it with saline and took the IV out), and Merwyn and I were on our way! Before I went to bed last night, I took my Femara (the pink pill I take every night); like the Lupron, it suppresses estrogen, whereas Zometa keeps my bones nice and strong.

That’s it; that’s treatment for me, except I only get the Zometa and Lupron every THREE months now. Most days, you can take out everything above except for:

“I took my Femara”

… and that’s my treatment. Pretty boring, right? Now you know why I can’t keep up a cancer blog!

Actually, today is a significant day in my “cancer journey.” It was exactly three years ago today that my horrid then-oncologist broke the news to me over the phone: both the spot on my spine (revealed in a recent routine CT scan) and a second spot on my pelvis showed evidence of metastatic disease. In other words, not only had my cancer returned, because it had spread to my bones I was now Stage IV. The “worst” of the stages. “Beating cancer” was no longer an option for me. Once somebody has Stage IV cancer, it’s pretty much established that they can be treated, but never cured.

Well … for whatever it’s worth, that treatment sure seems to be working in my case! Three years later, I still haven’t had any progression. Not only that, the spot on my pelvis seemed to disappear almost instantly (it didn’t show up on my first follow-up scan, and hasn’t shown up since) and even the spot on my spine has remained stable. Granted, it’s been ten months since my last set of scans; but that’s only because my current oncologist (who’s great; I started treatment at SCCA about three months after my “mets” diagnosis) determined that I only need scans once a year for now. I’ll get my next ones sometime in February.

Honestly, even with bone mets (which are generally considered less threatening than mets to the organs) it’s pretty unusual for somebody to be doing this well after three years. Not that I’m complaining! I won’t go so far as to say that having Stage IV cancer doesn’t affect my life (or, on the opposite side of the spectrum, that it’s been some great “blessing”) but I WILL say that I feel lucky (for it’s sure not for any great effort on my part that I’m doing so well!) and blessed (in life, not by cancer!), and that I must have one heck of a “shotgun angel” riding with me all this way.

Speaking of blessings and angels, I must log off WordPress and go get ready … Merwyn and I are going down to the Washington Center for the Performing Arts to see Handel’s Messiah in less than an hour!

7 Comments
by tamarahaskett on 12/19/2011  •  Permalink
Posted in Mr. so-called Big C
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Posted by tamarahaskett on 12/19/2011

https://shotgunangel.wordpress.com/2011/12/19/happy-3rd-mets-aversary-to-me/

Gasp, a Kickstarter update!

Other than some Facebook updates from the road, I haven’t posted much about my epic Kickstarter journey (remember this ?). I’m hesitant to go into much detail about the actual trip for fear of  repeating myself in my upcoming book (and it’s probably “unprofessional” or something to admit that, but, technically, so is my book! Unprofessional, I mean. Sincere and written with love, yes. Professional, not so much.)

Also, while I’m a fan of Kickstarter in general, I’m not such a fan of their formatting style. I don’t know enough about HTML/formatting to explain what I don’t like; but, for example, if I push the “back” button to delete something, here on WordPress the text will disappear like it’s supposed to … whereas, on Kickstarter, if I push “back” some weird square will appear and entire paragraphs get moved to where I don’t want them. It’s rather annoying!

Still, despite my disdain for posting on Kickstarter, I realize that some who aren’t connected to me via Facebook might be wondering at this point how the trip went, or did I even go on the trip? The answer to the latter question is, of course, yes! I survived the journey! (The first question was more rhetorical, but to sum up the journey in one word: productive.)

For the most part, Heather and I followed our itinerary as planned, at least for the first four weeks. We did make a few tweaks here and there, such as adding a day in one town or cutting a day from another (and we had to eliminate Springfield, MO entirely); however, we at least visited the rest of our scheduled stops in the same chronological order that we’d intended.

Besides Springfield, the biggest change to the original itinerary is that both Heather and I (at different times, and for different reasons) unexpectedly ended our trips early. Heather made it to New Orleans before she had to fly home to New York. As for myself, I continued for another week after that and had just finished a 3-day ride on the Texas Eagle when my husband called me with some devastating news. I was hanging out at Union Station, waiting for check-in time at my motel so I could drop off my bags and proceed with my brief return to L.A., when I decided to check my messages. There were at least five of them from Merwyn. He sounded frantic. I called back, and Merwyn told me that Katie (our 13-year-old Yorkshire terrier) was in advanced kidney failure and might not survive through the weekend.

Now, there’s a LOT more that I want to write about Katie; however, at this point, I’m not yet ready. I will say that as as soon as I learned what was going on, no way could I just casually continue with my journey. Merwyn, bless his heart, managed to book an afternoon flight on Southwest Airlines (he even found a reasonably affordable “first-class” seat, with the intent to make my flight as comfortable as possible; he did this without any prompting from me, in the middle of a workday and in the midst of his own grief and worry over Katie, whom he loved to pieces. She wasn’t “just a dog” to him; she really was his “little girl” … mine, too, but point being, my husband’s heart is the size of ten Union Stations … times googolplex.)

I made it home by about 5 that evening (October 26th, to be specific — just four nights earlier than expected) where Merwyn and I spent a bittersweet last evening with Katie. We brought her here the next morning, where the extremely compassionate staff (who’d both informed Merwyn of her prognosis and taken great care to make her as pain-free and comfortable as possible the day before) helped her transition peacefully over to Rainbow Bridge.

(We now share our home with Daisy and Richard, the terrier and the “meezer” mentioned in my last blog entry. You’ll hear more about them in future entries, I’m sure. We certainly feel Katie’s absence every day, but Daisy’s presence helps a lot … and Richard even helps, too, in his own crabby old Siamese way!)

A few weeks later — beginning the day after Thanksgiving — Merwyn and my sister Missy (and Daisy) and I all rode down to Sonoma County, CA for a quick-yet-enjoyable weekend, to visit the area where my dad grew up and officially conclude my journey.

Missy and I at the Charles Schulz Museum in Santa Rosa. No one ever accused us of being cool.

Meanwhile, Heather, my filmmaking colleague, plans to continue documenting my overall journey (the trip is just part of the book, remember!); however, after much feedback and consideration (and screening all the footage she shot in our time together) she now wants to extend the filming beyond her school year. So, “I’m” no longer Heather’s “thesis”; however, I know she’s committed to this film and I wholeheartedly support her decision to proceed with the film in a more natural manner, rather than rushing it for the sake of school.

Believe me, Heather and I went through a LOT in our four weeks on the road together (heck, even before that); our journey is a story in itself! I won’t lie; as you might expect after four weeks of almost nonstop company, we also went through our fair share of stresses. Still, we survived, our collaboration remains intact, and (most importantly) I know that she treasures my friendship as much as I treasure hers.

I very much look forward to traveling future roads with Ms. Fisch! That said, it’s a lot harder for us to communicate from a 3000 mile distance  … especially when we both hate the phone. 🙂 Right now, though, for the time being I think Heather’s focusing on school while I focus on that book I keep talking about. (Provided Heather’s okay with it, I’ll certainly keep this blog updated with any “film” news on her end  … well, provided I actually manage to keep the blog going!)

Heather and I, about halfway into the journey, at Song restaurant in Brooklyn. (I think that's what the restaurant was called!)

So. The book.

It’s a work in progress, and my tentative hope is still to have it ready it before the end of 2012. To be honest, that seems really, really far off right now (and, like Heather, I’d rather not rush things just for the sake of finishing within a specific time frame) but I think I can make it happen without “forcing” myself too much … although I’ve given myself some flexible deadlines. (This might not be a professional project, but Kickstarter is still its own sort of “contract”, which I intend to honor —  for one thing, I owe it to the many generous people who supported me!)

Basically, by this time next year I’d like to have a few actual, published copies of this thing floating around (at least enough for everyone who pledged at Kickstarter!). I still have much to learn about the process of self-publishing, but if I’m finished writing by, say, my 33rd birthday (in April), I’ll have 8 months to turn what is now a mere Microsoft Word document into a real book, with pages and a (probably cheap-looking, yet constructed with love) cover and everything!

There’s one big hurdle I’ll have to cross fairly soon … maybe somebody reading this can help?

I’m a little shy about sharing these first drafts of my letters; and I guess I don’t have to share, yet I wouldn’t mind if at least one person could read over what I’ve got and let me know if I’m on the right track or if what I’ve written is  … well, crappy. The trouble is, I’m not sure who that person should be. I’d prefer this kind soul be somebody who’s both honest (but not brutally honest) and gentle (but not overly gentle). I guess a better way to put it is that I’m seeking a non-biased opinion … yet I also wouldn’t mind if that opinion came from somebody I know personally, at least on a casual basis.

Still with me? Any volunteers? 🙂

Last but not least … Kickstarter incentives. I haven’t forgotten about them, although I admit that my “postcard from the road” idea sort of bombed, due to various factors (limited time in certain areas, lack of post offices/mailboxes, the trip’s unexpected ending, fatigue … I even sent a stack of written cards not to their intended recipients, but — accidentally — to myself, when mailing some excess stuff home from Virginia. Or, I should say, my lovely hosts mailed the package; but I’m the one who “brilliantly” stuffed the postcards, which I meant to drop in a big blue box, into the package instead … which they later generously sealed and sent my way.)

If you haven’t received a postcard yet, it might have been in that stack (which means it’s currently … er, sitting in my living room), or I might have purchased it later in the journey (which also means it’s stiting in my living room). You’ll still get a card; obviously, the postmark will read Olympia, WA (or Tacoma or wherever they send our mail from here) instead of the city the card represents, but I can at least guarantee it was purchased in that city, and (in most cases) written from the road! I apologize for this delay and thank you for understanding!

I also thank you for your patience, and faith in this project, as it might take awhile to receive the other incentives. To save on postage costs, I’d like to mail as much of the items together as possible — meaning, you might have to wait until the book’s ready for most of your prizes … if you don’t mind holding out that long!  (I’m also still working on T-shirts and coffee mugs.) However, there are some smaller prizes, such as a CD that anyone who pledged at least a dollar is entitled to. If you’d like CDs, postcards, or even bookmarks sooner rather than later, I think we can make that work … just shoot me an email!

(And if you pledged $40 or more, which means you’re eligible to program and even co-host The Think Tank if you so desire, you don’t have to wait so long; I plan to get the ball rolling on that shortly after the new year, if not before.)

Okay … bedtime now. I’m not tired, but Merwyn and I are riding the Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad tomorrow, and I want to be nice and rested for my first time on the rails since … the journey!

Merwyn on last year's Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad trip.

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by tamarahaskett on 12/17/2011  •  Permalink
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Posted by tamarahaskett on 12/17/2011

https://shotgunangel.wordpress.com/2011/12/17/gasp-a-kickstarter-update/

Hello, Blogosphere … I’m back!

Welcome to my 474849275th attempt at a “blog”!

I think the biggest problem with keeping most of my previous blogs up-to-date was that they were often limited to just one theme (i.e. cancer, childhood stories). Not this time! Here, I plan to blab about whatever I feel like sharing with my two readers on any given day. If you’d like to follow the progress of my in-the-works “memoir”, you’ll find those updates here! If anything changes with my cancer treatment (which, let’s hope it doesn’t) I’ll post about it on this very blog! Prepare to read about such thrilling topics as my genealogy (my list of ancestors and distant cousins is pretty fascinating, if I do say so myself!); The Think Tank (that’s the radio show I host with my husband, in case you didn’t know); road trips; train trips; quirky Silky terriers; moody “meezers”; awesome antique store finds; TV or book snark … if you’re lucky, I might get really provocative and post about what I ate for lunch that day.

Seriously, I hope I can keep this blog going. Especially since I’ve started the process of Officially Writing A Book (it’s too late to back out now!); however, conquering writer’s block (not to mention worrying for way too long about whether each word I put down “sounds right” or not)  has proved challenging most days. We all know from English class that the only way to get past writer’s block and improve one’s writing is to WRITE. Right?

So do you think I am up to the task?

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by tamarahaskett on 12/16/2011  •  Aside  •  Permalink
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Posted by tamarahaskett on 12/16/2011

https://shotgunangel.wordpress.com/2011/12/16/welcome-to-my-4/