What A Slacker!

Preparing for Christmas Shopping Already

Add comment August 29th, 2008

School has barely even started and it is already time to begin preparations for Christmas. If you work retail you know what I mean. Halloween will be here and gone. Quickly followed by Thanksgiving then Christmas. As for retail Halloween won’t even be here by the time stores are filling up with holiday decorations and stocking shelves for all those shoppers out there buying gifts for their friends and loved ones. This quarter of the year really flies by. For retailers it doesn’t even really start until black friday (the day after Thanksgiving when all heck breaks loose). Personally, I have never been able to experience the whole Black Friday experience. I have always had to work that day. There seems to be a bit of madness that goes on that day. In a way I would like to see the other side of it at some point.

I would definitely set out on Black Friday with a plan. Find out what stores where offering what sales and special deals well in advance of the big day. Set up a game plan and stick to it as best as I could. The best way to find out ahead of time which stores are having the best sales or offering almost free merchandise is to use a website like BlackFriday.biz. It is their job to find out what is going to be in the Wal-Mart, Toys R Us or Circuit City ads well in advance of Black Friday. Oh and the best part is they even have links so you can buy some of those great deals online without going out and fighting the crowds. I remember last year Wal-Mart was practically giving away laptops to those who were willing to get there early in the morning and wait in line. I have already book marked the site and will be working on my plan of attack for the Toys R Us specials this year.

My Car Tried to Die on Me Today

Add comment August 29th, 2008

Today started out very iffy, but it turned itself around (a little bit at least). I was on my way to work when my check engine light came on. My car is only three years old. It does have almost 93,000 miles on it due to my daily commute to work. My big fear is that it will die before I even get it paid off. Thank goodness the light came on close to where my parents live so when it started hesitating I was too scared at least I wasn’t on the turnpike! I borrowed my parent’s car and headed off to work secure in the knowledge that my dad would take care of finding out what was wrong with my car. I still don’t know.

But to add insult to injury (so to speak) the guy at the turnpike when I went to pay my toll was a bit of a jackass. I handed him my ticket and $20. His response was to stand there like a big idiot holding my twenty and telling me that the toll is only 75 cents. As if I did not know how much it was after driving this route for nearly five years. I looked back at him and just said, “I know. That is all I have (and it was too or I would have given him something else).” Was he that dense or just that lazy that he did not want to count out my change to me?

So I finally get to work and everything is business as usual. Nothing too taxing, which made me happy. Plus the added bonus of a free lunch. Even though I still don’t know what is up with my vehicle my day wasn’t a total pile o’ pooh.

While I was writing this my mom called they fixed my car and I can take theirs back tomorrow. It was the camshaft position sensor, whatever that is.

Low Cost Credit Card Processing for Merchants

Add comment August 29th, 2008

So, you have decided to try and make a buck online. Maybe open an online store. And why not the world of eCommerce is wide open and easy to get started. All you need is a website or host with a shopping cart to get started. Add a few products and a way you go. Of course you can start out having payments emailed to you and pay the high fees involved for the convenience or just have them send you an old fashion check, but eventually you will want to be able to accept credit cards therefore keeping pace with the internet.

A lot of people are afraid of setting up a merchant account or don’t think they could afford it. Guess what? They’re wrong. Merchant Advisors is there to help and they offer free credit card processing with a low per transaction fee that really does beat the other guys. They are the smart choice for both virtual and brick-and-mortar stores. You’ll want to check out their merchant services for more information about their merchant accounts for both physical and online stores.