When I called to cancel, the guy offered me a new ‘promotion’ they’ve started that has their unlimited calling plan for only $12.50/mo. This is the type of savings I was looking for, so I switched and I’m pretty happy about that. It still comes to about $180/yr (and Magic Jack is $40/yr) but it’s reliable and I won’t have to change my number.

Just a quick post to let all of you out there who have Vonage know about this promotion so you can call and attempt to get it. You may need to ask to cancel to get it offered to you. And if you’re using a regular landline, but have been thinking about Vonage, let me know and I’ll send you a link that will give you and me a free month if you sign up.

In December or so I realized there was something not right and in January I finally made a doctor’s appointment. At the end of the month I found out it was a tumor in my ovary and had it removed. That surgery was probably the worst experience in my life, and I wish it on no one. It changed my life in a few different ways, but mostly negative. I’m not fully healed yet, but I’m to the point where I feel pretty normal most of the time. I’m getting back into design work and other things I used to enjoy.

If you happen upon this site, please leave me a comment and let me know you were here. And I’m looking to get back into the swing of things, so I’m offering some incredibly low priced and/or bartering services. If someone wants to trade me advertising on their site for some web design and coding, send me a quick message. Not all the pages are up yet because I got sick in the middle of creating the site, but the contact form should be ready. If you want examples of my work and they’re not up on the site yet, just let me know.

I currently only have one design client I’m working with because of my hiatus in the online world, so I have time for some projects. Just let me know if you need me.

I’m sorry I haven’t been available lately, but I’ve had a few content ideas and I’m going to finish the portfolio and order sections of the website in the coming days. I’m looking forward to taking on some new work and working with some fresh faces. If you know me, or would like to get to know me, please friend me on Facebook. At the bottom of the sidebar there’s a section to follow this blog on Facebook, too, so please check it out.

This fixes a bug that is available to users who are logged in and have posting privileges. Hopefully you trust all the people allowed to post to your Wordpress, but just in case you don’t, upgrade now.

I found a brand of clothing, Lucky Brand, that has quite a few inspirational pieces. They’re not just great clothes, but their retro style gave me some great ideas for new designs. They’re an American brand with a strong influence from rock ‘n roll music. Personally I have to say that’s my perfect style.

Clothing isn’t the only spark of inspiration I’ve gotten from them. Accessories also give me some great ideas for layout accessories. The current design on Radkitten has a ‘necklace’ of its own with the stars at the top linking to my sites (color coded to match the designs on those sites).

I’ve grown up loving vintage, hippie-style clothing and I really wish I’d found this company sooner. I’ve got a real soft spot for the great design style they’ve produced and I like to reflect that part of my personal on my sites and in my designs as well.

Have you ever been inspired by clothing (without actually using the clothing in your creation) in your own creative designs, ideas, etc? Tell me about it in the comments.

If you were a victim, or haven’t upgraded your Wordpress yet, you may be interested in taking a step to secure your blog by joining the newsletter. You will also want to subscribe to the blog RSS.

The first step to securing your website is you. Don’t blame your host because your outdated and insecure scripts infected your site. Everyone on a server has different needs and to run the scripts you want to use, and the other clients to run the scripts they want, there has to be flexibility in security. You cannot expect to run any script with any insecurities and for your hosting company to be able to block off all attacks. If you’re looking for a host tailored to your specific security needs and no one elses, it may be time to go dedicated. If you’re cheap and need to keep paying $20 a year, it’s time to learn to keep regular backups of your own and expect problems now and again.

Just the other day I stumbled across a link to ShopWiki, which is a site that will list the price of a product at stores online and offline so you can pick the best deal. It’s almost kind of like Froogle, but it lists a lot more stores and it’s much more accurate. It lists the pan set I bought ranging from $114 to $149 and includes the store where I bought it for $119. I was so relieved to find that I had gotten a good deal, I tried again for my computer. Turns out the computer I kinda got shafted on, this site could’ve saved me $300. Next time I have a purchase, I’m checking ShopWiki first.

They also have a directory that will help you pick a product when you’re not exactly sure what you’re looking for. If you click Desktop Computers it brings you to a list of the types of desktop computers with information about them and their Pros and Cons. Personally, I suggest the HP Touchsmart All In One. They have a site for those of you in the UK and Australia as well.

I like the fact that the site’s design doesn’t distract from the content and that it’s not covered in graphics or banners. Not everyone thinks a site’s design is as important as its content, but I do. If a site is too busy, has too many graphics ads, or has an unattractive design I’m not likely to stay and much less likely to come back. The simplicity of the site makes it incredibly efficient. What will you do with all that extra time you’re not comparing prices?

You can use it with a lot of different blogging platforms including Wordpress (hosted), Wordpress.com, Blogger, Livejournal, TypePad, etc. Imagine having all your blogs accessible in one spot. The only thing you need to do to switch between them is pull down a drop menu and choose the blog name. It definitely makes keeping up with multiple blogs much easier. When your blog is your income, like mine, you need every advantage you can get to update quickly.

I’ve actually signed up with the whole suite of Windows Live programs, so I’ll be trying them all out this week. If you have Windows Live, come find me.