Bathing in sunlight
These packages of summer
Biting into joy
The Joy’s of wandering the Farmer’s Markets.
Blog
The IRS and 21st Century Annoyances
So, one of my current projects is helping a non-profit get up and running. One of the things we need is an EIN (Employer Identification Number…the organizational equivalent to a Social Security Number). So, I go to the IRS page to request this, and keep getting the old “Can’t connect to the website. Please try again later” error. I don’t think too much of this, but after a couple of hours, it’s getting to me. So, I explore a bit and find this.
Really? A website that’s only useful during “business hours”? It’s a WEBSITE! Why on earth is this not available 24-7? I guess that there’s some manual approval that happens during the process. Even so, I should be able to apply and be dropped into a queue that’ll be checked Monday morning, or whatever. A website with office hours just boggles my mind.
Ok, this clearly is a 21st Century problem. But it’s just so antithetical to the zeitgeist.
Today’s #Haiku: #Fear
We all have our fears
Character demands that we
Never let them win
Ah, Modern Life!
Here’s a new Twenty First Century challenge I ran into today.
I need to mail a check. Nothing dramatic here. I know exactly where the check book is, address, etc. However, it took several minutes to:
a) find my envelopes
b) find a stamp (I think it’s the last one in the house, btw)
c) I never did find the return address labels that I’m sure I have
What strikes me with all this: at one place mailing stuff was so commonplace that I not only knew where these things were, I had used them recently. I realized today that I have mailed anything in months.
Subtle changes, these things. But substantive, nonetheless.
A #Hiking #Haiku
Upon this mountain
The clouds are protecting us
From brutal sunlight
A Summer’s Day Haiku
A moment rain-free
I move across the sidewalk
While summer calls me
Tech Research Pet Peeve
Currently, I’m looking at an online service for the Snohomish County Youth Chorus (my son sings with them, and I’m on the board). One of the first things I always want to do is look at pricing. I want to avoid spending hours of time researching features and whatnot, when the product doesn’t fit into the org’s budget.
When it’s not available, or not easily findable, I get annoyed. I don’t want to sign up for a “free trial” to answer the most basic of questions. A couple of thoughts with this:
- If you won’t tell me the costs plainly, I expect that I will need to worry about being “sold” to all the time. Sure, it might make it easier for you to sell to me, but it both annoys me and erodes my trust.
- If you won’t tell me upfront so that you can apply high pressure sales, what other things will I need to endure to get basic service.
Anyway, if you craft content for a business, these are a few things to keep in mind.
How Good Am I At PowerPoint?
Summer’s Finally Here
Standing by the shore
Summer’s glory is now here
Sunlight warms my soul
A #summer’s day #haiku
On this summer’s day
Sunlight flowing down to me
And gluttonous bees