A Possible Way to Avoid DirecTV Cancellation Fees

I'll save you the long and boring story and just provide you with the happy ending.

A firm email sent to directvcustomerhelp@directv.com and ellen.filipiak@directv.com regarding a $320 cancellation fee that was being incurred despite their tech testifying that we could not receive a "line of sight" to a satellite from our building.   Within 24 hours I got a response saying the fee was waived.

Remarkable considering the extensive and heated phone conversation a day before, which I am still sparing you.

So, if you have DirecTV issues, which I know many of you do after looking around online for a solution, try sending an email to those 2 addresses. 

Seriously, I was surprised it was wrapped up and resolved so quickly.

Vudu Box goes from $299 to $99!

After reading this blog post by David Pogue, I was SO excited to get a Vudu Box. It's the perfect solution for us. We just moved and were not able to transfer our DirecTV service because the building mgmt doesn't allow satellites to be installed. And most of our favorite shows are on NBC and FOX anyway.

So we decided to get an HD antenna and a Vudu Box. My favorite feature is the ability to search by actor and see a list of movies in which they appear. The database of over 13,000 movies is the largest offered by any similar service and is still growing.

According to the BestBuy sales rep, they are planning on buying out Vudu once a bigger consumer base is built. Because BestBuy is one of the main retailers of DVDs, movie studios are especially cooperative in doling out rights which is why the Vudu database is growing and will continue to grow after the takeover.

Other cool things about Vudu:

- no subscription necessary, you pay as you use
- competetive pricing (new rentals in SD are $3.99, older movies are anywhere from $0.99 -$2.99; purchase price is approx. $19.99)
- watch movies without leaving the house or having to mail them back
- really nice interface and ease of use

Of course, download speed depends on your connection. If you have over 2mbps you can watch the movies "instantly". I will test this tonight.

I should seriously get some commission. But I'm just happy to share this lovely news with everyone. Not sure how long the Vudu box will stay at this price but it's definitely a good deal.

Buyer's Note: The promotional price for buying the Vudu box online with an obligatory $50 movie credit is $149. However, this deal is NOT available in BestBuy or other retail stores. The in-store deal is $299 for $200 worth of movie credits and the box ($99).

Last night, because the Vudu website said nothing about a different in-store deal, I contested the $200 movie credit when they ran me up for $299 plus tax. So the rep called the CFO of Vudu (apparently, he's either "got it like that" or Vudu is seriously small). CFO apologized about the confusion and offered an additional $50 worth of movie credits in addition to the $200. So I basically paid $50 for the box and $250 for $300 worth of credits. Normally, this would all cost $550, so we saved $250.

OK, I'm done now. Go Vudu!

Let's hope I'm not disillusioned once I spend more time with the thing.

Cop Out Post

I've already posted these to my Facebook, that's why this is a cop out but I want it to be here on my blog as well.

Some sketches I did in high school....

Not sure how I would categorize my style, or if I can.

My Cat on iChat

He also takes excellent meeting minutes.

The Power of Palsy

So my mom calls me today and says that she's been having a headache and earache for the last few days and this morning she woke up with one half of her face drooping. OK so of course we think it's a mild stroke. Mild because she didn't complain of any other symptoms or numbness, thank goodness.

I left work, picked her up. She wanted to take an ambulance because she was having an anxiety attack. I was reluctant because she doesnt have insurance and i know the cost of an ambulance service is riDICulous. But she insisted and it was probably best anyway so they could give her oxygen. Plus, my cell phone died the minute I sat in the ambulance, so I had to borrow the EMS guy's phone so it wasn't all bad.

Anyway, the Dr. said because she had no other symptoms, he strongly believes it's just Bells Palsy.

So, we were relieved that it wasn't a stroke or something more serious. The Dr. said it should go away in a few weeks. So we celebrated our relief by doing "Rocky" impersonations and taking pictures of my mom making faces that accentuate the droopy side as much as possible, and then sent it to the rest of our family.

Yeah. We're odd.

Scrappy Memories

So we're cleaning out all the debris we don't need and I ran into this (the re-discovery of old paraphernalia that means absolutely nothing to almost ANYbody else is my favorite part of moving)

I took a scrap booking session with some friends one night and this is what I made.  It was a far cry from the usual family photos in floral frames and little triangles in every corner, but it was mine.  And I'm proud of it.  :)

The pics were taken in or around 2001.  Those were fun times.  :sigh:  Sadly, they're gone and all of my close friends and I have changed so much and we never even see each other anymore.  Drifted apart in more than one way.

This still makes me smile, though.  Good times.

Movin' on West...

We saw a really nice apt in Bloomfield last night. The one in Teaneck wasn't as promising. But this Bloomfield one has these benefits:

- cheaper than what we're paying now but one less bedroom (that we don't need anyway)
- has nice clean laundry room downstairs
- elevator- rent includes garage for 1 car

- heat / hot water included

- huuuuge living room/dining rm area

- bedroom is bigger than our current bedroom

- in a bldg where most apts are condos 

   so tenants are vested in property and take good care of it
- can paint it whatever colors we want!
- our cats can come!
- 13 miles closer to his job, about the same distance for me as it is now

- beautiful neighborhood, lots of shops, cafes, quaint little stores

***UPDATE: After agonizing over it together and then discussing with my brother and Joyce, we decided to move! Also, I found out that i won't have to pay a toll on the parkway when i get to work.. confirmed by my coworker. We're going to sign the lease and drop off the checks, right now!!!! Yay, I'm excited.

I really hope they give us keys early so we can bring our stuff over in trips, before the 1st.

Also, I told my sister about us moving. She's cool with it. Will miss us of course, but we'll still see her.

****Other UPDATE:  We signed the lease.  It's official.  New place on Jan. 1st.

Any paint color ideas?

Here are some pics....