Different Drummers

Making it happen

Another year has started and this one is full of promise... 

Some of the good news:

1) Mom is past the first 100 days of her bone marrow transplant and she is doing great.  We still fret with every virus that comes in the house during the winter season and we still go back to Mayo frequently for check-ins.  But, overall she is regaining some of her strength, her hair is beginning to grow back and I think we are past the worst of it.  What a miracle to say you've battled cancer twice and won!!!

2) I'll be starting a corporate blog for Gettington within a week or so.  What that means is that I will have the opportunity to communicate more about Gettington in a setting that is more appropriate than a personal blog.  It also means that I will have more focus on sharing our progress and what makes Gettington unique.  I will still post here about professional and personal topics, but, most things Gettington will be shared on the company blog. 

3) I've anointed this year as the year that the entire family gets in shape.  Both Michael (hubby) and I have started fitness programs at the gym.  He is working with a personal trainer to set up a program that he would enjoy.  I've joined a group fitness class to create the accountability to get myself up at 5:15am every Monday, Wednesday and Friday to do cardio training.  It is still in the painful stage of creating this habit as I would much rather sleep for another hour.  But, it does feel great at the end of the session.  I'm looking forward to the 90 day mark when this has become a new lifestyle.

So bring on this new year.  This will be the year of making things happen. 

Being Thankful

It's Thanksgiving and I'm about to head out the door to make the 1 1/2 hour drive down to Mayo.  Yes, mom is back in the hospital.  We think she has an infection but, we don't know what it is yet.  They are running a lot of tests as well as ensuring that she doesn't have Graft vs. Host disease.  That is when the transplanted stem cells begin fighting her body (the reverse of rejection when he body would fight off the transplanted cells).  Its been a long, bumpy road aleady.  The transplant seems to be going well, we are now in the phase of trying to repair her body that has gone through so much in such a short amount of time.  I can tell you that it is scary seeing someone who is very vibrant and active become frail and weak over a matter of months.  It's harder for her.  I know she is wondering if she will ever become the person she once was before the Leukemia.  At times, we all ponder the signs of aging - this has been 10 years of aging compacted within 3 months. 

However, I'm thankful.  We still have hope that she is going to pull through this ordeal and recover well.  It may not be 100% of where she was before, but, I think we would all be thrilled with 70%.  I'm thankful for my in-laws who have been staying with me since this happened in June.  It's been six months of their lives that they have given to us.  I know they have received so much back being around the grandkids, but, its still been a blessing.  And I'm thankful for my husband who left his job in Kansas City to come up here and be not only caretaker for the kiddos, but, has been my mom's caretaker too.  He's made sure that she takes the 13 different medicines at the right time during the day and gets her back and forth to Mayo and meets with the doctors.  Starting a new job and relocating is hard, but, having this situation on top of it would be impossible if it weren't for the support of my family. 

Happy Thanksgiving.

Seeking a Miracle

Yesterday my mother was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia.  She had cancer before.  It was a stupid cancer that is not a big deal for most women who get regular check-ups because it is easily treated.  Unfortunately she is like many women of her generation and did not have wellness check-ups for 10 years.  So the cerivical cancer that is easily treatable grew into a pretty severe stage of cancer that required intense chemotherapy and radiation.  She moved in with me shortly after her treatment ended.  We needed a change in lifestyle to support her healing.  That was five years ago and all her check-ups were coming back clean.  We were almost in the clear!

The last winter season was a tough one for our family.  We all seemed to get sick with the worst of the stuff going on.  My mom was no exeception.  In February, she ended up in the hospital with pnemonia.  We found out that her white blood cell counts were low which meant she had no immune response to fight off the infection.  The fear of cancer came back as she underwent a series of tests including a bone marrow test.  The bone marrow test came back bad, but, the sample was from her hip which was where she had all the previous radiation.  Her blood counts were showing improvements so the doctor went into watchful waiting versus running another bone marrow test.

Fast forward a few more weeks and we relocate from Kansas City to Minneapolis.  All was going well until mom started feeling bad last Thursday.  She felt a little better on Friday, but, no better over the weekend.  She went into a doctor who immediately put her into the hospital for a blood transfusion.  From there, a bone marrow test was run from her sternum (not the hip) and the diagnosis of Acute Leukemia was confirmed.  They immediately transported her to the Methodist Hospital in Rochester, Minnesota which is part of the Mayo Clinic.  They will perform another bone marrow test today (quite painful) and most likely start chemotherapy.

I've done a little research on line about the disease.  I learned that under 60 is still classified as young, that acute leukemia is easier to treat than chronic leukemia and that without treatment her life expectancy would be counted in months.  It is all a little hard to take in.  I'm not sure what I should be feeling at this point.  The only thing I know to do is to be strong for her and try to hold everything together.  God has performed miracles in my life before.  My daughter is an example of that - but that is another story.  I'm not sure what the lesson is that we need to learn, but, I'm looking for the miracle that is going to get her through. 

Prayers and positive thoughts of recovery are welcome!

More Craig's List Fraud

I seem to be on Craig's List just long enough to find all the scams.  It is really sad that a great utility is marred by cheats, crooks and even murderers.  For those doing searches to see if you are being scammed, here is another one.

Scenario - Looking for a place to rent via Craig's List

What is happening - An unbelievably great deal is posted.  You respond to get more information.  The poster sends you a long email explaining an intricate situation and why he is outside of the country at the time.  He lets you know how much the deposit will be and sends along questions to fill out for the application.  I imagine for those who continue forward, the next step would be to wire his bank account with the money for the deposit. 

This happened to me twice by apparently the same person.  He pulled some rental listings off another person's website and posted them on Craig's List for an unbelievable price.  When I inquired about the properties he responded with the emails below.  The sad thing is that he even used the property owner's name.  Here are two of the fraud responses sent to me.

Hello,
 
   Please excuse my late reply but I couldn't respond earlier. I'm using 4  years in West africa ,so I'm not giving it out for month alone but for  years and will be relocating else where when i am back from my trip.I and my wife had an accident when we were in state,and i lost her during the accident,And also i almost lost my hearing along the inccident so please if you know you are going to rent my house kindly take good care of it... The House has 5bedrooms. The rent is $1000 /month and it includes the utilities.my name is Mr Ted.Slathar.I am the owner of the House, Now I live in West africa  and I came to West Africa under (WHO) World Health Organisation(WHO). WHO is the directing and coordinating authority for health within the United Nations system. It is responsible for providing leadership on globalhealth matters, shaping the health research agenda, setting norms and standards, articulating evidence-based policy options, providing technical
support to countries and monitoring and assessing health trends.Visit our website for more information if you also want to make an impact to
the world. http://www.who.int/about/en/. I hope you will promise me to take very good care of the House. The House is very big and nice and it is in a nice area I have received many proposals today for my property, if you wish to rent the House you must cover rent deposit which is $600 will be paid at the beginning of the contract and you will begin to pay the rent normally from the 2nd month of your staying.

So get back to me on how you could take care of our house or perhaps experience you have in renting home. Hope you are okay with the price of $1000 with utilities. I look forward to hearing from you ASAP so that we discuss on how to get the house for rent, also are you ready to rent it now or when? I appreciate your expression.

  i want you go and view house and get back to me.
thanks and God bless.here is the Address of the house:<address removed>
go and view the house And get back to me and  fill out the rental application form below.
                          RENTAL APLICATION FORM
FULL NAME?
CURRENT ADDRESS?
MARITAL STATUS?
NUMBER OF PEOPLE THAT WILL BE LIVING IN THE HOUSE?
WHEN DO YOU INTEND TO MOVE IN?
HOW MANY YEARS DO YOU INTEND TO LIVE THERE?
HOME PHONE?
WORK PHONE?
CELL PHONE?
OCCUPATION?
AGE        ?
Await your response so as to further our  discussion.
 
Here is my contact number...(+2348021235547...)
Thanks God Bless You.
Ted.Slathar.

Number 2

Greeting! And thanks for contacting me in respect of my advert published on craigslist.com
 
I am Smith Slathar, A nationality of United States of America, a Project Manager To Abuja Community Development Based on Urban development previously credited for the great work done in the Federal capital (ABUJA) for the re-construction of a mega-city now working on the same project in Republic of Kogi under the supervision and provision of the World Bank .The project which due date was supposed to be in July 2009 was expanded with extra works in two other states such as Ibadan and Ogun states neighboring states this will last for a period of Four Years, I have been in Abuja since January 2009 and my last visit to the State in March was awesome but I was not happy with the condition I met my house in and my colleague gave me a good advice which he is also rendering he told me that while we are in Abuja we can rent out our house in order for good maintenance and caring from the tenant this is the reason while I published my house for rent on the website popularly known in the state for any interested person to contact me, The home you are request for is a 5 Bedroom 5 Bathroom, Locate at 26370 Arbour Creek Ln, Shorewood, MN, 55331. Sq. Footage: 5000. Close To: Block Away From Lake Minnetonka (boat Slip Available) Rent Includes: Water and sewer  Garbage pickup, Rental Features: Refrigerator  Washer and dryer. Monthly Rent: $1800 and a Damage Security Deposit of $1000, total amount requested is ($2800) for you to secure this home and move in!
 
Interested leaser/renter should kindly write me back with these requested information for proper record and documentation such
 
Rental/Lease First Name :
Rental/Lease  Last Name:
Rental/Lease  Spouse Full Names:
Rental/Lease  Kids Full Names:
Rental/Lease Relatives or Friends Full Name:
Rental/Lease Mobile/Cell Number:
Rent al/Lease  Telephone Number:
Rental/Lease Present House Address:
Rental/Lease Present Work place name and Address:
Rental/Lease Present work Tel. Number:
Rental/Lease Numbers of Cars:
Rental/Lease  Pet type:
Rental/Lease proposed date of Move in:
Rental/Lease months budget to deposit before move in:
Rental/Lease Reference contact info:
Rental/Lease present Landlord Contact Info:
==============================
Rental/Lease comment:
==============================
Please only providers of these information I will lease/rent my house, and then forward I will forward a copy of C of O, Lease contract by email and other paper works by parcel delivery for authentic signatory and of the leaser/renter.
Please get back to me if you can comply with these conditions mentioned above.
 
Thank you.

 

Smith Slathar

Fax:- +1206-888-2297
Cell:- +23470-6589-4437
Website:- www.devex.com//project 

What should you do?

• DO NOT provide any personal or bank account information
• Flag the posting in Craig's List so these scam artist can't continue ripping people off
• Respond directly to the person letting them know that you flagged them and reported them to the authorities for investigation.  I did this and have not heard anything else back.
• If you can, find the listing owner and let them know that their rentals were being used by a thief to swindle money from people on Craig's List.  While they can't stop anyone from doing this, they can be more aware and potentially flag fraudulent listings too!

My Welcome Post

It was time to start a blog.  I've been thinking about it for a long time.  However because I work in a very competitive environment, I've put it off for a few years.  I'm putting it off no longer.  Welcome to my first blog.

Why is it important that I blog?  I'm a firm believer that if you are going to use new media in business, you must have an intimate knowledge of the medium.  This is the reason why I have a family channel on YouTube, a Facebook profile, a Twitter account and a Second Life avatar.  But, I had not taken the leap to creating my own blog.  I was afraid that I would provide too much information for the competition to read, get too personal, or just not have anything worthwhile to say. 

So as I pondered my dilemma, I also tried to think about what I would name my blog.  Most everything I thought about was too narrowly focused or didn't have enough meaning to make me excited about sharing my thoughts.  It wasn't until I started getting some calls for interviews about the social media marketing activities I'm driving that I found my calling. 

The desire to help others understand and learn from my experiences is the inspiration behind "From the Inside".  I'm a wife, a mother, a parent to a parent, and a marketing/e-commerce executive for a Fortune 500 company where I'm championing the use of social media.  So "the inside" can represent the inside challenges of blazing new paths in corporate America, the inside of a relationship with my husband, children or parents or even the innermost inside thoughts of my soul. 

I doubt I will get this right the first time through.  I guarantee you that I will make mistakes. It will take some time to learn my voice.  But , I promise that I will be honest and transparent and share where I can.