seyDoggy Birthday Bash 2010
March is always a big month in the seyDoggy camp, we almost always release a new theme and always, without fail, have the years biggest sales in celebration of my birthday. This year will be no different, in fact we’ll be taking it one step farther and taking the celebration to club!
On Saturday March 13th I invite you to join us at The Flying Dog on Marsland Drive in Waterloo for wild night of dancing and crazy antics. Come out and help me celebrate my 36th birthday in style!
Who:
Anyone
When:
Saturday March 13, 2010
9:00pm – 2:00am
Where:
The Flying Dog
341 Marsland Drive,
Waterloo, ON N2J 3Z2
[map]
Add to calendar:
Time Passes
Time passes and few will notice.
Until it’s passing becomes a comfort,
A reminder, this life is not eternal,
Our trials and triumphs not forever.
Tears fall and few will miss them.
Until their falling from cheeks of others,
Heralds a time hardly remembered,
When emotions ran deep and daily,
And tears flowed with ease.
Friends will visit and few will cherish those moments.
Until mobility gives way to agony,
Faculty gives way to confusion,
Ease gives way to strain,
Chairs at kitchen tables give way to pews before caskets.
Emotions run raw and few will relish them.
Until loss becomes commonplace,
Demise becomes expected.
Until the end is anticipated,
Hoped for, welcomed.
Time passes and few should notice.
Until passing be our comfort.
In loving memory of Marie Rellinger.
This was written after attending the funeral of my wife’s Great Aunt Marie. At the age of 88, she willingly embraced her diagnosis of cancer and fought it with passion and grace. But just as Marie accepted the battle such a diagnosis brought with it, so too did she accept it’s eventual and inevitable outcome at 89.
Neither path was right or wrong to her — to suffer in therapy was almost an honor, a badge for her 89 year of service to this world and her lord — to slip away at the end surrounded by family was Marie’s sweet reward. She was ready — even if we weren’t.
At the funeral I watched a whole generation of her friends share her views — proud men and proper ladies, born a decade or two into a new century past. They were not saddened by the loss, but comforted that Marie had been ‘received’. They were happy to be celebrating her life together, as friends, while there were still friends to share it with.
There were tears at Marie’s funeral, but not from her peers. The tears came from those of us too caught up in the moment to be able to reflect on what one can accomplish in 89 years. Too caught up in what it means to lose a loved one and unable to see what it means to rest after a long and fulfilling life.
I will cherish the tears while the thought of death still terrifies me. I will relish the heartache while loss still hurts. But I will bring away with me a new understanding of what it means to celebrate life and the passing of time.
Pictured in the Rellinger family portrait, clockwise from top left: Gary Rellinger, Todd Rellinger, Audrey Merrifield, Tanya Merrifield, Mary Rellinger, Marie Rellinger, Grace Merrifield.
Haiti Tweetup
Last night I got the chance to attend a local geek meetup — Haiti Tweetup — put on by StartupDrinks.ca. It was, as you’ve probably guessed, a fund raising event for the people of Haiti in their time of need. It was good to get out and and chat with familiar faces and meet some new ones as well. But the true benefit was doing what we could for disaster stricken Haitians.
All told, $430 dollars were raised for Red Cross, with every little bit counting to help with the relief efforts in Haiti.
The Kitchener-Waterloo, Cambridge and Guelph areas are rich with technology meetups, tweetups, demo camps and the like… if you happen to run such an event, or happen to know someone who does, please ask them to consider taking donations at the door, or pass the hat around to raise funds for the earthquake relief efforts.
seyDoggy.com Gets a New Look
It’s finally done… I think. After spending more then a year at it, I think I have finally consolidated all of the web properties and blogs that I’ve wanted to for quite some time.
Probably the most notable changes are to seyDoggy.com. It’s no longer a portfolio site for past work since we don’t actually do client work anymore. It’s now just a calling card, if you will, or a hub I guess.
Also, the seyDoggy blog has been moved over to this blog. All of the original posts have been maintained so all the posts on RapidWeaver tips, AppleScripting, browser hacking, etc, are still available.
And last but not least, I’ve brought the Merrifield Photography blog over here as well. There are some pretty old stuff in there that I didn’t want to let die.
So there we are… my web-life is a little tidier, a little cleaner, a lot simpler. Now I just need to give the layout here a little tender loving care.
RW Updates Gets a Dust-Off
Here is a site that’s been in need of attention for a little while now, and being as we are between themes right now I thought what better time to give RW Updates some love. RW Updates (now called RapidWeaver Updates) was started a few years ago to offer those wishing to track all the latest RapidWeaver developer goodness in one main point. It’s served that purpose well.
The most notable change is the width. I’ve all but given up on narrow sites — I’m over the skinny… and the scroll. The second most notable change is the boxes. Each new article shows up in a box — small, compact, easy to get through in a hurry.
Ok, I lied… the MOST notable change is that the site is just plain sexy now! Don’t you think?
Let the renovations begin
One kitchen cabinet removed, baseboards removed, door casing pryed off, wallpaper stripped, stove pulled out… it smells like renovation to me. One of the joys of owning a home is being able to remodel at will (or as finances allow).
While I am not all that quick with the renos, what with all the kids running around, I still do enjoy when a new project gets underway.
One of My Old Favorites All Fresh and New
The postman just delivered my fresh copy of Build Your Own Database Driven Web Site Using PHP & MYSQL, 4th Edition. It’s not that there was anything wrong with my previous copy, but it was getting a little dated. Plus I am a little nostalgic for this particular publication.
With a quick glance I can already see that the book has been restructured quite a bit moving chapters around. I am really looking forward to reading this book again with renewed purpose and updated perspectives.
What is success?
At the last Waterloo Region Web Design & Technology Group I attended I had the opportunity to talk to a lot of people who were waiting patiently to ask me the same thing, “How did you start your own company?”
I don’t know whether I started seyDoggy in any traditional sense or not, but it seems my answers didn’t completely satisfy most people who asked. The process seemed too safe perhaps, or too long. I’m not really sure. But the common thread I could see each time I was asked, which seemed to be what they were really getting at was, “How long did it take you to become successful?”
So for weeks now I have been thinking about both questions and how, or if they are even related. I’ve decided the two do not belong on the same line of sight. Since I am no authority on the right or wrong way to start a business (I’ve really only started one and it seems I did it right), then I will address the other question here, “How long did it take you to become successful?”
First, let’s define success as the accomplishment of an aim or purpose. I think that’s where many young people are getting it wrong today. They think success is getting rich. If that is your aim then I suppose getting rich would accomplish that but that’s not what success is to me.
For me, my professional successes as they pertain to this company, have come in stages. For starters, I wanted to start a serious company that would some day be my sole source of income. I wanted to be able to make as much, if not more then I was at the day job. I called it my 5 year plan.
That was in the summer of 2005. By September of 2005, seyDoggy was a registered company and by November of 2006 I was no longer on anyones payroll. The 5 year plan was truncated to a little over 1 year… that was a success to me.
But I had more aims that evolved as the company grew. I wanted to make a living doing what I wanted to do, not what clients wanted me to do. I wanted to have a product based company, not a service based company. This was my next 5 year plan. Within the next two years, however, I was able to realize that goal as well. I was able to limit or eliminate all client based contracts, consulting contracts and service contracts and focus solely on the RapidWeaver theme distribution devision of seyDoggy. Again, for me, that was another success.
And how about the bigger picture? That all encompassing notion of success? That question, “Are you successful?”
That depends on what you consider successful I suppose. I am able to fulfill the needs of the family, pay the mortgage and the bills, pay my taxes, pay my contractors/employees, entertain and buy the little extras. We, as a family, don’t want for anything. But those are just the financial gains, a measure of which I have little use for. What’s more important to me, and perhaps what you could aim for as a measure of your own success, are the financial freedoms that I have earned with my company.
Here are my top 10 measures of my own success:
- I attend my daughters school assemblies in the middle of the afternoon.
- I take my children to their doctors appointments.
- I take the Fridays off that my wife doesn’t work.
- I take a few weeks worth of holidays and still make money.
- I go for an hour walk every morning and I am never late for work.
- I can take lunch at 10 am, 12 pm or 2 pm (or take lunch at 10 am and 12 pm and 2 pm).
- I can take a sick day and not call in.
- I stay home with the kids when they get sick.
- I can take 20 minutes out of the day to play a video game and call it professional development.
- I haven’t worked a weekend in over 3 years.
But do I stop here? Absolutely not. I want to be able to travel more, work less and hire more people. I keep making new goals, new levels of success to achieve and I have no intention of ever stopping. And maybe that is how I should have answered the first question, “How did you start your own company?”
I kept redefining my own measure of success. I kept setting higher goals and greater aims. I kept myself honest and my company genuine. I had a focal point for the company and at the end of the day, if I was happy with what I was doing then I was successful.
How about you? What do you consider to be success?
Flickr Quietly Backpedals out of Their PR Blunder
When is an apology not an apology? When it comes in the form of a sheepish form letter and omits any explanation as to what went wrong. Late last week flickr/Yahoo! and Rogers seemingly dissolved a long standing relationship that gave Rogers Internet subscribers a free flickr Pro account for as long as they remained Rogers subscribers. Why this agreement is no more is a little unclear as the only source of the news came from flickr.com when I logged into my account and was presented with an AJAXIAN notification bubble informing me that my free Pro account would cease to be free and/or Pro by July 1, 2009. This information was additionally corroborated by my account FAQ page to which this notification directed me.
I have to admit I am fond of flickr and enjoy the service so I opted to renew then and there for another 2 years of service. Upon verbalizing my dismay to these recent events on Twitter I quickly learned that no all Rogers subscribers were reporting the same experience. Some were being told their accounts would expire on November 1st 2011, nearly a full 2 years and 4 months after the date which was originally given to me.
So I went back to check my account, and there is was, the same notification bubble now displaying November 2011, not July 2009! Oh the FAQ still said 2009, but the notice now said 2011. So armed with these discrepancies (and the screen shots to prove them) I sent flickr/Yahoo! a scathing support query:
This morning I get a notice from you (not Rogers) that my Flickr pro account that I enjoy as a Rogers customer will [no] longer be pro after July 1, 2009. This was confirmed but not elaborated on in the FAQ. After feeling I had no other choice I paid for the renewal. Shortly thereafter, and after hearing contradictory reports on the internet, I noticed the new warning that now says November 1, 2011. However the FAQ still says July 1, 2009.
This is a fairly sizable blunder on your part and I think it was handled very unprofessionally. As a company who is one of the corner stones on the internet I would expect that you of all companies would know not to publish anything to the net before making sure you’ve got it all right down to the letter.
I want my money back (or my in progress transaction canceled) if indeed my pro account is still valid until November 1, 2011. I expect a response of confirmation of action.
Thank you.
Adam Merrifield
To which I got the ineffectual and less then sympathetic response (pay close attention to the fourth paragraph about FAQ and discrepancies):
Hello,
Thank you for contacting Yahoo! Billing.
I understand that you are contacting us to request a refund for your Flickr Pro account that you recently purchased.
Any changes to your Flickr account pertaining to your Yahoo! Hi-Speed service package with Rogers are set to take place due to changes made by Rogers. Please contact Rogers regarding further details of this change.
As per the FAQ found on Flickr.com, the Flickr Pro account included with your Rogers Yahoo! Hi-Speed service will change to a free Flickr account on July 1, 2009. There is not other information from Yahoo! that would support a November 1, [2011] date. I understand that this situation may be frustrating and apologize for the inconvenience.
Unfortunately, as stated on the order page there are no refunds on pro accounts. If an account has been closed before the pro term is up it cannot be transferred to another account and the unused portion is non-refundable.
Thank you again for contacting Yahoo! Billing. If we can provide you with any further information, please reply to this email.
Regards,
Unnamed Female Support Personnel
Yahoo! Billing
This just infuriated me! I proceeded to make a spectacle of them and myself by posting about there response in as many places as I could. I sent them a short and to the point letter and supporting screen shot:
Uhhh… you work there right? And you can’t see what EVERYONE ELSE ON THE INTERNET SEES? See attached and don’t insult the intelligence of your users. Thanks.
Adam Merrifield
I guess this sent the message in the tone required to get some action on the matter for today I got what I assume to be the last and finalizing letter in response to this whole fiasco:
Hello Adam,
Thank you for contacting Yahoo! Billing.
I understand you have contacted us regarding your Flickr Pro service on your Yahoo! ID: xxxxxx@xxxx.com.
After reviewing your account we have issued you a full refund for your Flickr order from 05/15/2009 for $47.99. Please allow 7 – 10 business days for the credit to post to your credit card.
To view your billing history, please visit:
https://billing.yahoo.com/
and sign in to your account. Once you’ve signed in, you will be able to view all billing details regarding this Yahoo! account.
We apologize for any inconvenience this issue has caused you.
Thank you again for contacting Yahoo! Billing. If we can provide you with any further information, please reply to this email.
Regards,
Unnamed Male Support Personnel
Yahoo! Customer Care
What is the moral of the story? Don’t take it lying down! $50 is still $50 and I shouldn’t have to pay it because of a Yahoo! PR blunder and neither should you. Did you get burned by this? Does anyone know what the hell is going on yet? The notification still says November 2011 while the FAQ insists it’s July 2009. Will my account go dead in July? Who knows? We’ll fight that battle when the time comes.
Complete Flickr FAIL!
HAHAHA! Yahoo! You FAIL! In a response from Yahoo! about my outrage at there obvious inconsistencies and how they suckered me into paying for 2 years of Flickr service, 2 years PRIOR to the time that I should have, they had this to say:
“As per the FAQ found on Flickr.com, the Flickr Pro account included with your Rogers Yahoo! Hi-Speed service will change to a free Flickr account on July 1, 2009. There is not other information from Yahoo! that would support a November 1, [2011] date. I understand that this situation may be frustrating and apologize for the inconvenience.”
There is no other information that would support a November 2011 date? LOL, how about EVERY PAGE I CLICK ON, YOU TOOL!