Mokka mit Schlag

A few months ago I switched my phone service to Vonage from Verizon, which promptly cut my phone bill by about two thirds. Yesterday I got snail mail from Verizon offering me unlimited local and long distance for $29.99 (plus the usual unadvertised fees, which would probably raise the price to about $40. Vonage lies like this too. Their $24.99 plan is really a $30 plan.) The real kicker is that Verizon offered to send me a $25 check if I switched back to them. I haven’t gotten an offer like that since MCI, Sprint, and AT&T were duking it out in the early 90’s.

If Verizon had offered me this deal six months ago, even without the check, I probably would have stayed with them. As is, Verizon is still more expensive than Vonage (though it does offer somewhat better service) and switching back would be way too much hassle. Moral of the story: it’s cheaper to keep your existing customers happy than to reacquire new ones later.

I’ve never been convinced by the hypotheses that the Lost survivors are either in the future, on another planet, in another dimension, or on some sort of Holodeck. After last night’s season finale, I am more convinced than ever that they are on Earth, in the present, probably on an island in the South Pacific. Minor spoilers follow.
Read the rest of this entry »

Gee, after years of marching in goose step with multiple administrations to gut the Constitution and take away our rights, Congress finally decides to take a stand when the president starts coming after them. Cue Martin Niemöller.

A few random things I’ve noticed that I didn’t know when I was first playing the game that may be helpful to newbies:
Read the rest of this entry »

Citibank has launched a service that I’ve wanted for a long time. You can now create a unique credit card number for each and every transaction that can only be used once. Perfect for those sites that want to charge you $9.95 for the first month and then rebill you every month until the second coming.
Read the rest of this entry »

Kittens are naturally popular and usually the first to be adopted at most animal shelters. At some times of year it can be hard to find one. However, I’ve just received word that the New York Center for Animal Care and Control currently has a surplus of kittens ready for adoption, so now’s a great time to add a friend.

Apparently the surplus is directly related to the time of year. Cats tend to time their pregancies to the Spring. Thus, if even if you’re not in New York, chances are very good your local animal shelter also has kittens looking for a home. Don’t wait. By the time summer rolls around, it will be too late.