I’ve been a loyal Directv customer for over 3 years and every once in a while I call them to inquire about any promos/specials I might qualify for (if you don’t do this with your cable provider,you really are leaving money on the table).Anyway,they always give me some type of discount until last month.I called and the representative I spoke with informed me I didn’t qualify for anything.I didn’t believe her but I didn’t argue with her either.I have worked for a cable provider before so I know every customer qualifies for some kind of discount.I didn’t disclose this to her either.I merely thanked her and hang up.I decided to call back today,exactly 48 hrs later and I politely asked to speak to someone in retention and after politely explaining to her why I was calling,she told me to hang on while she checked out my account and then came back on the line and told me she could give me a $50 credit.Is it alot?No.Did I take it?Heck yeah.So thanks alot Directv!

Talking about companies that take care of their customers I also have to give kudos to AT&T (cingular).I called them because of overrages on my account (silly oversight on my part) and after reviewing my account,not only were the overrages taken off my account but the representative,who has obviously been trained very well was able to talk me into upgrading to a package that suits my needs better and one that actually ends up saving me money in the long run.I initially signed up with AT&T because of their roll over minutes but I renewed my contract with them because they truly have some of the best customer service representatives.

So the moral here is sometimes all you have to do is POLITELY ask people for stuff – politely being the keyword.You just might get it.

Well technically up until early this week,it was a big lie but now when my mom reminds me to eat my veggies,I will say “yes mom” and actually mean it.Why the change of heart?Well I’m glad you asked.A few weeks ago I decided to embark on a healthy lifestyle that involved cutting out diary products.I’m lactose intolerant and my doctor had recommended this dietary change but I ignored him.Anyway,feeling low on energy one afternoon,I decided to just go ahead and give it a try.This meant I’d have to pretty much throw everything in my fridge out and stock up on veggies and fruits and a few other healthy items.

I hit publix and after spending all of 5 minutes in the frozen foods section,I decided I hated everything they had to offer but as I was leaving,a few small boxes with a green giant caught my eye and being the curious person I am,I stopped to check them out.Long story short,I spent about 2 hrs checking out all the veggie choices offered by Green Giant.I ended up buying 5 boxes just to test them out and I would be lying if I tell you I came home and immediately tore into one of the boxes with uncontained excitement.No,the truth is I threw them in my freezer for over 8 days because I just couldn’t bring myself to eat them.

Then yesterday I decided to try one box.I was absolutely convinced I was going to hate it.I popped it in the microwave and in 4 minutes,I had a nice bowl of steamed veggies laid out before me.I closed my eyes and held my breath and took that first bite and before I knew it,I had worked my way through the entire bowl.And thats not even the shocking part.The shocking part is I actually enjoyed the veggies so much I had them for dinner and today I’m having another box for lunch and another one for dinner.Actually this reminds me,I need to head down to Publix and stock up on some more of the veggies.Where has this Green Giant stuff been all my life?I’m so hooked on it its not even funny.The portions are perfect,the veggies are delicious and hey all you have to add is some chicken and you’ve got a perfect meal for less than $10!You know with me it comes down to saving money and time while still eating right and with Green Giant,I’ve accomplished just that.

My mom isn’t going to believe her ears when I tell her I now truly do love veggies but next time I see her,I already know what I’m going to prepare for us to enjoy while catching up and you bet it starts with V and ends with S!

The first time I glimpsed at the cover of Find Your Strongest Life: What the Happiest and Most Successful Women Do Differently,I literally rolled my eyes and thought “who is this man and what gives him the right to think he can write a book about women finding their strongest life?”But still I had the book and I’m very curious by nature so I dug in.

A few pages into Find Your Strongest Life: What the Happiest and Most Successful Women Do Differently,I found myself literally screaming-yes,I can totally relate to that and that and that and darn it,that too.Everything Marcus Buckingham wrote was on point,backed by research and statistics and at the end of it all meant to empower women everywhere.

The only negative for me about this book was that it was filled with percentages and figures to explain situations and like I mentioned earlier,I’m not a numbers kind of girl.If you’re like me,fear not because Marcus Buckingham breaks every percentage and number into “regular language” so you don’t feel like you’re missing out on some important data.

I love the fact that Marcus Buckingham filled Find Your Strongest Life: What the Happiest and Most Successful Women Do Differently with examples of real women struggling with real issues we all deal with on a daily basis and most importantly how the women dealt with these issues and succeeded in finding some kind of healthy balance and fulfillment in their lives.

Marcus Buckingham has proven with Find Your Strongest Life: What the Happiest and Most Successful Women Do Differently that you don’t have to be a woman to actually write about women’s strength and happiness.Simply put this book is about that very old cliche:”….life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it” in my opinion except Marcus Buckingham breaks it down beautifully in a book guaranteed to give you many “aha” moments and open your eyes to the endless possibilities that lie before you if you have the courage to follow your instincts.

Okay,so I hate statistics but I don’t really hate Marcus Buckingham because he knows his stuff and deserves a standing ovation for such an awesome book.Find Your Strongest Life: What the Happiest and Most Successful Women Do Differently should be on every woman’s reading list.

Cartoon Network Prize pack:

Redbook CD:

Hanes Brief:

Music Downloads (over 30 in this contest):

This is just a very,very tiny sample of all the goods I’ve gotten from my sweepstaking hobby and you can too!It doesn’t cost you a single cent to win this stuff…start by visiting Freebies City where you’ll find a whole bunch of sweeps and freebies just waiting for you.

Anyone who knows me knows just how much I detest hunting for apartments.The whole process stresses me out entirely way too much.I hate looking through apartment magazines that show glossy pictures of apartments but neglect to tell you that those pictures where taken over 2 years ago and that the apartments have never been repainted since then.I hate that on the phone the apartment managers tell you you’ll pay XX amount per month in rent only for the price to go up a few more hundred dollars when you get to the actual complex.I hate how magazines never tell you about the neighborhood the apartment complex is in until you waste your gas and drive there only to find that the complex is in crackhead paradise…I could go on and rant here but thats not the purpose of this post….

…A few weeks ago,I decided to downsize and move into an apartment.I went to the supermarket and picked up one of those apartment guides and went to check out about 3 of the apartments listed.As expected,they over promised and under delivered and needless to say I was very,very angry and extremely frustrated.I was about to give up on the whole apartment search thing for the day when my friend and I happened to drive by the Atlanta Promove office (we were lost trying to find our way back to the interstate!) so anyway,I figured why not just stop in and see what they have to offer.I was very skeptical.

The mood in the office was professional but laid back.They had representatives all over the place…some helping clients,some on the phone,others on computers.The receiptionist took me to an empty meeting room and told me a rep would be in shortly to assist me.To make the long story short,in walked this tall,very polite and professional guy who introduced himself as Blake.After exchanging pleasantries,he asked me which areas I was interested in living in,how much I was willing to spend,what kind of apartment I was considering and all that good stuff.I told him and he was able to quickly put together a few apartments for me to look at based on my needs.

Blake also followed up with me via email and phone from the day I walked into the Promove office to the day I finally signed my lease….yes,thanks to Blake and Promove,I found a nice apartment in a very nice neighbourhood.My apartment is close to everything I need so no more ridiculous commutes for me.Plus,I was able to get $300 off my rent for the first two months.The leasing person had forgotten to mention this promo to me but good ole Blake knew about it and he called the leasing office and inquired about it on my behalf!Now if thats not good service,then I don’t know what it.

Oh,did I mention,I never paid Blake or Promove a single cent for their service??

Thats right,they helped me find an apartment for FREE…free as in I did not pay them a penny.So,if you’re looking for an apartment in Atlanta,Georgia or Dallas,Texas..hit up promove!

He’s funny.He’s talented.He’s kinda cute but most importantly,he’s possibly one of the best entertainers today.When you see Ludacris performing,you know he’s giving you 110%…he doesn’t waste alot of time with small talk.He doesn’t do unnecessary wardrobe changes.He just raps.He entertains you.

I got lucky.In August Ludacris was scheduled to perform as part of the Samsung/at&t Summer Krush concert series.Price for the concert?ZERO dollars.You read that right,absolutely free if you could figure out a way to get your name on one of the numerous guest lists–or if you were lucky enough to win the tickets from v-103 (thats an atlanta radio station).I was surfing around the web when I came across a site with a form saying all I had to do was register to get on the waiting list…I figured I didn’t have anything to lose so I registered both my name and my hubby’s name and a few weeks later,we woke up to find a copy of this email in our mailboxes:

Congratulations – you have been added to the Samsung/at&t Summer Krush guest list for Tuesday, August 21st! Please arrive to Center Stage, located at 1374 West Peachtree Street, at 8:00 pm to see Ludacris live in concert!

Thanks! We look forward to seeing you there.

I literally screamed until my head hurt!Long story short,the concert was off the hook….Ludacris killed it!Chingy was there too (chingy has got nice arms!),so was Bobby Valentino.My favorite “thug” I-20 was also in the house…he’s got the cutest dimples.The rest of the DTP family was there too.

Everything but the beer was free…popcorn,icecream,funky tee-shirts…..I had such a fantastic time at this concert.A huge thank you to Caila Healy Ball of BNC – Bragman Nyman Cafarelli.I know the pics aren’t of the best quality but enjoy them anyway….

Ludacris Performing Live

Bobby Valentino performing

Ludacris at the Summer Krush Free Concert

The DTP family performing

Ludacris having a good time with his fans