Telephone Marketing & Do Not Call Lists

On Monday at dinner time (as usual), we received another phone call from a duct cleaning company. I asked what the company name is and told them I don't appreciate getting a call everyday at dinner time. I promised to get my ducts cleaned by anyone other than Frontline Duct Cleaning because they call too often and don't respect "no" for an answer.

This morning I received another call from a duct cleaning company (Aqua Duct Cleaning from Toronto). Considering our number is on the national do not call list and we have been telling every caller for at least a year, to take us off their list, I think I was justifiably angry when I told the man I will be blogging about their company violating my right not to be contacted.

Almost every day for the past several years, we have received at least one phone call from telemarketers selling something. For every call I would nicely say we weren't interested and to please take us off the calling list. At one point the man on the other end said to me in his heavy accent that he didn't know what that was, so I calmly explained what the "do not call" list means.

For several months this year we had fun with the telemarketers. Regardless of the product they mentioned, we would say we didn't have any. No ducts, no windows. The one I confused the most was calling for Bell (who also don't take no for an answer). I told him I didn't have a phone and paused for a minute to listen for his reaction but obviously that man was too confused to say anything at all. Victory for me on this day.

I know everyone is trying to make a living but short of cancelling our phone, I'm not sure what to do to stop this type of harassment. So this morning I registered my number again through The National Do Not Call List. After the registration on the following page was this message,

"Important information for consumers Do not expect calls to stop immediately.
Telemarketers have up to 31 days to update their lists and to make sure they do not call you. You could still receive calls within those first 31 days.
Registering on the National Do Not Call List (DNCL) will not eliminate all telemarketing calls. There are exemptions within the Rules that may allow calls from organizations such as charities, those with whom you have existing business relationships, political parties and newspapers.
You can further reduce unwanted telemarketing calls by asking these organizations to place your number(s) on their own do not call list."

You can check and register your own phone number on this page or by calling 1-866-580-3625. Check this page for more information as well as to file a complaint for Unsolicited Telecommunication.
Remember to renew your registration every 6 years.

Good luck to us all

Self-Serve Has Killed Thousands of Jobs

We were at a gas station tonight and it occurred to me once again how automation is robbing us of jobs for people.

My husband was a gas station attendant at a time when service with a smile was the standard all employees reached for.  As newlyweds that job was what paid for the roof over our heads and the food on our table.  Later on, as we were preparing to have a family, that job paid for all our baby products.  His boss at that time was so spectacular, he paid extra so I would get semi-private coverage in the hospital.  To this day, my husband looks back fondly on the work and the employer.

Is it realistic to ask people to stop using self-serve gas bars and force the business owners to hire gas attendants?  I'm willing to pay an extra couple of cents per litre if that means a few more people get work.  Personally, I only go to full-serve stations and they are few and far between  The Tecumseh Big Chief is full serve and they smile, wash the windows and wish you a good day - the way it always was and how it should be once again.  Also, the Shell at Central and Tecumseh has one section that is full serve and that man is also very pleasant to deal with.  He always smiles and let's you know he values your patronage.

At gas stations, I opt for full serve.  I'm hoping to get more people willing to support full serve gas stations to put enough pressure on the corporations and owners as to help put more people to work.  Overnight we can have several hundred jobs created in our area alone.
I say let's do it!  Who's with me?

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Let me know where the full-serve gas stations are by posting it in the comments section.
Thanks :)

Black Friday, eh?

Black Friday is the name given to the day following the American Thanksgiving.  Traditionally it's the beginning of the Christmas shopping season.  On this day, most major retailers open extremely early and offer promotional sales to kick off the holiday shopping season, similar to the post Christmas Boxing Day sales here in Canada.  It has routinely been the busiest shopping day of the year.

The day's name originated in Philadelphia by the Police Department, because the heavy and disruptive pedestrian and vehicle traffic which would occur on the day after Thanksgiving.  The term has been in use prior to 1961 and began to see broader use outside of the Philadelphia area around 1975.  As time went on, the term received an alternative explanation.  Black Friday began to indicate a point at which retailers begin to turn a profit, or as bookkeepers call it, be "in the black".

As Canadians in a border city, this explanation should help make our decision easier to keep our money in this city.  Knowing now what the term "Black Friday" means, which merchants would you like to see "in the black", the ones across the border or the ones in your own hometown?

Let's make our own Black Friday  a success.

Happy shopping Canada, eh!

O Canada eh, Clip Art by Phillip Martin

Copied from Windsor Business Networks

Earth Hour 2012

About
Earth Hour 2012 - Dare the World to Save the Planet. Switch off your lights on Saturday 31 March at 8:30pm to be part of the world's largest voluntary action for the environment

Mission
Earth Hour is a universal message of hope and action to protect the one thing that unites us all – the planet. Together our actions add up.

Join the world for Earth Hour 2012 by switching off your lights at 8.30pm on Saturday 31 March and sharing the positive action you will take for the planet beyond the hour.

Overview
Earth Hour calls on individuals, businesses, communities and governments to go beyond the hour by committing to a positive action for the planet and celebrating that commitment with the people of the world by switching off their lights for one designated hour.

From its inception as a single-city initiative – Sydney, Australia - in 2007, Earth Hour has grown into a global symbol of hope and movement for change. Earth Hour 2010 created history as the world’s largest ever voluntary action with people, businesses and governments in 128 countries across every continent coming together to celebrate an unambiguous commitment to the planet.

In 2011, Earth Hour’s iconic global ‘lights out’ event which has seen some of the world’s most recognized landmarks, including the Forbidden City, Eiffel Tower, Buckingham Palace, Golden Gate Bridge, Table Mountain, Christ the Redeemer statue and Sydney Opera House switch off their lights, will again bring the world together in a global celebration of the one thing that unites us all – the planet.

Earth Hour 2012: 8.30pm, Saturday 31 March, celebrate your action for the planet with the people of world, and add more to your Earth Hour. Sign up to earthhour.org, switch off your lights for the hour, and share the positive actions you will sustain for earth beyond the hour.

Earth Hour