Naughty philosophy Part II

Well, after waiting longer for my order than I would have had the Pony Express delivered it, the above photo is how it arrived.  Yes, the hole in the box is large enough for a hand to reach in and grab stuff with.  The product I ordered was not in the best of shape either, and somehow an over-sized white with black accents beach bag morphed into a smaller totally black with white accents tote bag.  I sent a letter to the President/CEO of Philosophy and we'll see what if anything he has to say.  I have definitely been unimpressed with both shopping experiences I have had with philosophy.com.

Coming soon:  Photos of the photo book I made for my neice's wedding with Picaboo,com (the book is on its way to her now and I want her to see it before I post).  Thanks for your patience.  I have also ordered a medium paperback book for my hubby and his friend from Picaboo of their latest trip to the new Shea (yes, I know that's not what it's called, but it should be) stadium a few weeks ago - will post pictures of those as well with my review.  Right now, through 9/28, Picaboo has a special offer: buy one book get one free with this code:  BGFSEPT   .

Have fun!

Naughty company alert

Well, I won't be shopping with philosophy.com again.  I placed an expensive order on September 1, and it qualified for their "free shipping", so I took it.  They took two days to ship it out, and then FedEx "smartpost" sends it from AZ to CA, which wouldn't be a problem except for the fact that I live on the EAST COAST.  The original arrival date was supposed to be September 13, but now it's been moved to September 15.  Why?  Because for some unknown reason, FedEx has been keeping my item in its Los Angeles location for 2.5 days - weekdays that is, not weekends:  September 7-September 10 it hung out in the LA warehouse or hot truck, who knows.  In either case, not a good place for cosmetics to hang out.  I called philosophy.com and their attitude was "Well, you can upgrade to faster shipping."  My question is, what would that shipping be, because the Pony Express used to get things from coast to coast in 10 days, so from AZ to CT would have been 7-8 days.  Are they resurrecting the Pony Express to move things faster than FedEx "smartpost"?  What an ironic name for the service, because it seems less than smart to me.

As I tried to explain to the woman at philosophy.com, no one needs their product -  it is a luxury.  So, in the future, I will be buying my luxuries from another company - one that does not waste their clients' time or money by sending them product that can be damaged by extensive time in heat via a method that moves slower than a snail.  And one that does not patronize me by telling me that 1) it's not their fault (um, yes, it is, you chose the shipping company and method when you offered me free shipping if I spent over X amount), and 2) I can pay more (I already did).  And customer service is sorely lacking, especially since I had to call 4 times today (and stay on hold for 15 minutes) in order to get through to them because they didn't have enough people to answer the phones (I can only guess other people wondering why it was taking so long for their purchases as well).

Nope, philosophy is not a company I need to deal with again.  Nor will I shop with anyone who uses FedEx "Smartpost" either.  I'll be doing all my shipping through UPS and the USPS.  All I can picture is that for the past two and a half days the gorillas from the old Samsonite luggage commercials have been playing catch with my package.

As for why I am posting here, well, I would have written a letter directly to the corporate CEO, but that information doesn't seem to come up at all on Google searches (just a corporate address), and I also thought people should hear about my experience.

As good as free (almost) Freebie!

Hey, I recently found out about this website that lets you make photo books.  Yes, I know there are lots of them around, but this one was new to me.  And, even better, is the fact that for all new customers, through August 31, you can use the code FREEBK to get a free large book, including leather bound, worth $39.99.

I've used several other well known photo sites to put together photo books, and I was impressed with Picaboo's so far.  There seems to be a lot more choices and flexibility.  It did have a slight learning curve, but last night I finished up a wedding album for my niece's wedding that we attended last month.  3-4  business days to process and 3-4 days for shipping (yes, you do pay shipping with the above code, but it was $8.99).

Even though I obviously haven't seen the final products, I thought I'd pass this along to you so you could give it a try for $8.99 yourselves!  Good luck and have fun.  Once you get your books, back, post on here what you think of them.

Oh, yes, it would help if I actually give you the website:  www.picaboo.com !  (the exclamation pint is mine, not part of the URL)

I know, I am a bad girl for staying away for so long

That's why I am hoping you will forgive me because, in a way, I come bearing gifts.  I am so excited.  Corel is running a great promotion now on its photo editing software - see here:   http://store1.corel.com/corel/?storeKey=us&trkid=NASEMGglBR  You can save 30% on Paint Shop Pro X3 - the latest version.  Instead of paying $99.99 for it, you pay $69.99 for a full version, or like me, $59.99 for an upgrade.  But, wait, like the Ronco commercials say, there's more - you get a $40.00 Photo Restoration and Retouching book for free, and, if you wish, with any purchase, you can add Corel Paint It! to your order for only $10.00 (normally $39.99).  that's what I did yesterday.    But, they also gave me free shipping (saving me another $9.99 - if you don't get it automatically, sign up for their emails - you may need that link).  The piece de resistance I am giving you, however, is the code I used to get $20.00 off my order  BONUSBUCKS20. 

So, instead of paying almost $200 full price when you add in shipping, I am paying $49.99 total for all of the above.  Hurry, though, the sale, I believe, only runs through August 15.

Have fun!

Wedding photos

Remember I told you that a while back I won a Sony DSC-W22012.1MP Digital Camera with 4x Optical Zoom with Super Steady Shot Image Stabilization in silver?  Well, after playing around with it, we took it to a family wedding a few weeks ago. As promised, though, I gave it to my hubby to use.  I gave him a short, 10 minute primer on how to use it just before the wedding and he took some really nice shots.  

Instead of bringing my Sony alpha (DSLR) with me as it was going to be very hot and I am still recovering from back surgery, I brought my Sony DSC-H20 with me, and, in addition to taking pictures, I video-ed the entire 14 minute wedding ceremony.  Now, I managed to do this from the front row seat and without a tripod.  The Super Steady Shot Image Stabilization worked great - without a tripod, the image was nice and steady, and even when I panned around to get the dog walking down the aisle (unexpectedly, of course) and then sitting on my feet, everything was super steady.


Don't get me wrong - I still LOVE my Sony alpha.  It's just that after surgery, these two cameras were the perfect cameras to have with us to take pictures given the conditions of our backs (did I happen to mention hubby's back went out the day before the wedding?  No surgery required, but poor guy couldn't move that day!  So the nice, light DSC-W220 really came in handy, and was his first real use of a digital camera - yes, hubby rarely used digital and was still in the *gasp* film age!  Not that there is anything wrong with that, as I still sometimes use my Minolta SLR.).

New Sony DSLR

Have you all seen the new Sony alpha series cameras?  They look like a cross between a point and shoot and a DSLR, with the ability to attach multiple lenses to it.  It's the Sony a-NEX camera line.  I find them interesting because, in addition to taking interchangeable lenses, they can also take HD movies.  Check out the Sony website here for more info:  http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CategoryDisplay?catalogId=10551&storeId=10151&langId=-1&categoryId=8198552921644718498&N=4294952674&Name=%26alpha%3b+NEX+Digital+Cameras#/nex5Section , or take a look at them through the Amazon links here.

I have yet to have a chance to see or try these out in person.  Drawbacks I can see, at least for my use, include the following:
1) The cameras take an "E mount" lens.  If you wish to use your Sony alpha or Minolta "A mount" lenses, you need to purchase an optional adapter sold separately Sony LA-EA1 - Lens adapter Minolta A-type - Sony E-mount.  Check out this link, which shows the present lowest price for this as about $154.95  http://www.google.com/products/catalog?client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&channel=s&hl=en&q=LA-EA1+lens+adapter&um=1&ie=UTF-8&cid=6843298615254164316&ei=-NRBTPzKMoP58Ab74dEO&sa=X&oi=product_catalog_result&ct=result&resnum=3&ved=0CCsQ8wIwAg#  (Amazon does not seem to have it in stock as of today http://www.amazon.com/Sony-EA1-adapter-Minolta-type/dp/B003QK1VK4 )
2) Even after the adapter (yes, I'd have to get one, after investing hundreds if not thousands of dollars in Minolta and Sony A-Mount Lenses, I am not buying a slew of E-Mount lenses), I can't imagine how balanced, or unbalanced the a-NEX would be with my larger telephoto lenses on it. 

The above said, I do think it's a very cool idea - sometimes I don't like lugging my Sony alpha DSLR around, and I have taken to bringing my Sony DSC-H20 and/or my Sony Cybershot W-220 with me.  The Sony a-NEX sound like it just might bridge the gap (IF they lower the price on the lens adapter!).

Update to the memory card debacle

Just so you know, Amazon came through.  After arguing with the original Amazon Marketplace seller, Chitek/CTCStore that yes, the "Sony Memory Stick PRO-HG Duo HX 8 GB Flash Memory Card with USB Reader MSHX8G" did indeed come with a USB adapter/reader as indicated in the item name and product description (they actually argued with me that what I ordered was a "promotional item that did not come with an adapter/reader"), I filed a claim through Amazon's A to z guaranty service and they found in my favor and refunded my money to me.  In the meantime, I ordered the MSHX8G from another Amazon seller, Dependable Resources, and which was "fulfilled by Amazon", and lo and behold, I actually received what I ordered today.  Excellent - just in time for a family wedding.

Now we have to see if Chitek/CTS Store actually refunds my return postage as they promised.  I am waiting to see - if they refund it I will not leave awful feedback - if they fail to, well, they can just wait and see what I leave.

Kudos to Amazon, though, for stepping up and doing the right thing.

Have a happy Fourth of July all, and take lots of photos!