What happened to “Helen, Sweetheart of the Internet”? According to the Salt Lake Tribune:
The syndicate that carried Helen has canceled its contract with Helen’s cartoonist, so we cannot purchase the comic strip any more.
The last time Helen will appear on Tribune pages is Sunday, Christmas Day.
Gaaaah!
Come back to the web, Helen, where you belong! We need you! Now, more than–
–sorry. Got carried away.
(pleeeeeeease…)
Okay, so you didn’t get any days of posting. Just think of them as the Mystery Days.
It’s not that there wasn’t stuff to add, oh no. Some truly inappropriate gifts were out there– my favorite examples are these books. Nothing shows care for a loved one than a gift that says, “If you’re going to insist on going to work in drag, at least shave your legs first” except a gift that says, “Honey, I don’t think you look all that good naked. Here, do something about that. Please.”*
There were a LOT of candidates. Heck, just choosing from any number of bad Christmas albums could keep me busy for weeks, though I admit to a warped fondness for A Partridge Family Christmas. And the videos! Eeek!
But we’ve reached the end of the list. And what better way to say “But” and “The End” than by highlighting the end of Butt-Printing Artist, Stan Murmur.
I suppose it’s an epiphany of sorts. And Happy Epiphany to you and yours. Join us in 353 days when we start with a whole new list of disasters.
…a gift card.
Wait a minute. What’s so bad about a gift card, you ask? Read: Gift card fees still playing Scrooge – The Red Tape Chronicles:
How much is that $50 gift card really worth? Well, it’s hard to say. The art of irritating and sneaky fees has reached new heights in this 21st century version of gift certificates. There are sign-up fees, transaction fees, dormancy fees and outright expiration dates. Poorly timed use of the cards could make the $50 gift worth more like $40, $30, $20 … or in some cases, nothing….
Gift cards have been called the gift that keeps on taking, and for good reason. In some cases, only a few months after purchase, the cards slowly begin to lose their value, through “dormancy” or non-use fees. Some cards lose their value entirely after a year or two. Companies count on a certain number of consumers who drop the cards into the sock drawer and forget about them. It’s easy money….
Two of the worst examples cited by a recent study conducted by the Montgomery County, Md., Division of Consumer Affairs include the iCARD Visa Gift Card and the Good2Go MasterCard. The iCARD comes laden with a $25 maintenance fee after six months. After that, it can cost $25 to get the balance refunded by check. Refunds cost $75 after two years. The Good2Go card costs $9.95 to purchase and $4.95 each month for maintenance.
Read the article for a few ways to avoid the bite.
…yet another head scratcher. As near as I can tell, the “Record Your Own Voice Bottle Opener” is for when you get an idea after having so many beers that you can no longer operate a pencil.