Wildflowers and Songbirds of Summer

It's summertime and I can't think of a better place to enjoy it then outside admiring all that around you when you are immersed in nature. 

The warm air is thick and humid. It smells so good, the aroma of sweet hay and damp forest decay surrounds me.  Everywhere, the vegetation is lush and there's a million shades of green.  Wildflowers abound, bright yellow honeysuckles, familiar white daisies, pink and purple clover blossoms, vivid orange and red fire-flowers; everywhere, even more wildflowers:  purple, white, yellow tiny flowers peeking out from the tall summer grasses.

The sun is shining strong in a cloudless hazy blue sky.  The morning dew still lingers in the shadow filled forest.  The warm breeze rustles the leaves as the trees sway back and forth on this perfect start to the day.  The wind rises and howls briskly and then dies down to blow soft and gentle again.  It rushes past me, kisses my cheek and then it's gone. The wind and trees dance and play together like old friends in perfect unison.

In the wilderness, I am surrounded with the sounds of many different songbirds.  The chirps, chatter and tweets fill the forest with life. From somewhere in the tall trees, they call out to each other and to the world. It makes me so happy to hear the birds sing - it fills my heart with joy.   Butterflies flutter lazily around, big ones and small ones - white, yellow, brown and my favorite are the baby blue butterflies.  Dragonflies  gather by the dozens on logs to soak up the hot afternoon sun.  The cicadas complain in the background... it's going to be a hot day.

Little chipmunks scurry along gathering seeds, red squirrels leap from tree to tree - it's a bustle of activity.  A jack rabbit nibbles on some clover in the far corner of the yard.   Life is exploding all around me - it's great to be alive and in the midst of all this beauty.  I feel fortunate to be here, part of it all.  Being outside with nature is so wonderful, it feels so good; it nourishes the soul. 

I Want Change

Originally posted June 2012

When I found Occupy, I was thrilled to find so many people who shared my way of thinking.  Worldwide, people were gathered  together; and finally, it looked like change was coming. I heard so many inspiring messages and, for the first time, I was filled with hope.  Messages just like this short clip were shared all over:

But, as quickly as the crowds came, they subsided - there are so many reasons why that happened.  Ignorance and fear are the main ones.

Occupy has so much promise, especially because it became about so much more than just Wall Street.  It became about solving all the world's problems -  there's so much that needs to be addressed: the environment, the economy, human rights...  Reality is: the problems facing civilization are very real and very serious - our future is at stake.

The world has been overwhelmed with the same problems and we have been complaining about the same things since I was born.  Occupy gave us hope, a chance for a new beginning; for me it was an inspiration and a huge learning experience.  I learnt so many things at Occupy - the amount of knowledge I have gained is remarkable.

And after all the tents have gone...what I have realized is that change will never happen if we all just keep doing what we've always done.  The most important thing I am taking away from this experience is that I learnt that if I want things to change - I need to make change happen.

Aren't you tired of being manipulated?

Originally posted Jan 6, 2011

Ever since I can remember I have felt like this world of ours is just heading down the wrong path.  I have tried to stay optimistic and positive about life and the future, but I am finding it more difficult as days go by. I try to remain honest and I have certain "golden rules" that I live by.  I always strive to treat others as I wish to be treated; I want to be a positive influence in this world.  I believe in sayings like: "an honest day's pay for an honest day's work", "it takes a village to raise a child" and "what goes around comes around". I also believe that we are all here together on this planet and everybody's actions affect all of us to one degree or another.  We need to learn to come together and focus on what really matters:  health and happiness.  Could you even try to imagine a world where these two things were everyone's priority?  Wouldn't it be nice if we could learn to work together?

Growing up, I had dreams for a wonderful life filled with security, prosperity and hope.  I was raised a Catholic and I used to believe in God, now I don't know what to believe about all that.  Would God not be freaking out by now?  My feeling about religion nowadays is: I think someone, way back when, saw where society was headed and created a story to scare people into being good.

Religion has turned into a political money making marketing outfit out to serve it's own purpose - it is responsible for so many wars and so many deaths, it is plagued with corruption.  When I see televangelists like Benny Hinn dripping with gold asking for money so he can go and preach at another exotic location - I have to ask myself how we got to this point and how people can be so gullible?  People seem to want to believe just about anything, it's in our nature to want to believe anything and everything - it's just a matter of how it's presented to us.  We are even being marketed to believe that we can have it all - even eternal life!  Cryogenics is a huge business based on the desire of us all have wanting to live forever - people pay extraordinary sums of money to have their bodies frozen.  Meanwhile, science has proven that our bodies suffer too much damage from being frozen, but we buy into a technology that doesn't exist yet - it's all about the marketing... and marketers are having a field day with us!

The rich are getting richer...

"It takes money to make money" - you've heard that saying before - but you have also heard: "money does not buy happiness" - so why the money race?  Everyone wants financial security - being poor can make your life miserable - but it shouldn't be that way.  We should be able to survive and thrive without money really, this planet freely provides all we need to stay alive and be happy.  Governments have decided that they own the land - which in reality they don't - they just make us believe that.  Taxation has gotten way out of control and yet people's needs are far from being met.  Here is an interesting link on the origins of taxation, how it works and how the money is spent:  http://www.prolognet.qc.ca/clyde/tax.htm

Politicians are the master manipulators of today's society.  We have heard the campaign promisses so many times, many of us don't even bother voting anymore.  Most of us are at the point that we just assume all politicians are crooked.  We see how government squanders our hard earned tax dollars and we feel hopeless in the face of the all the corruption.  The double standards they keep setting and the way they keep making up the rules as they go along makes me wonder how they keep getting away with it all.  How come we keep putting up with it, as a society, should we not demand more of civil servants?  Ever wonder how come they are entitled to have such outlandish benefits packages?  Aren't our tax dollars paying for their dental plans, their (way too many) sick days, etc.?  Shouldn't we all be getting the same treatment, since we are all paying for it?  Ever wonder about that?   How come any government sponsored projects always costs many many times more than in the private sector?  The difference between the cost of private sector and government contracts is ridiculous.

Part of my dream as I child was to make this world a better place, I had envisioned myself making enough money to be a very charitable person.  It's been my experience however that without money to begin with, it's been so hard to get ahead.  It seems I started out in debt and I find making decent money is harder and harder to come by and yet it disappears so easily.  The more time goes by, the less money can buy.  It's costing more and more just to get by.  The cost of living is just getting out of control and so many people are living off of credit in order to survive.  Forty years ago people had the opportunity to buy a double lot on the Ottawa River in Ontario for only $500!  The properties alone have increased in value by a whopping 100% in 40 years putting them at a modest value of $250,000 - an achievement my generation just could not dream of copying - these opportunities just no longer exist.  It makes me worry for my kids' generation - what kind of a world have we created for them?  Government and banks work together setting interest rates, they change the lending rules to curb inflation or increase public spending.  It's all money game and we are the pawns.

Nowadays banks are coming up with all kinds of creative ways to make more money. Their profits are in the billions and yet sevice charges keep rising. Is that really fair?  Our government regulates and so it must think so!  You can take out a mortgage for super large sums of money and not even ever be expected to pay it all back in your lifetime. As people cannot afford the over inflated prices of homes - banks are offering mortgages for periods up to 60 years. Why buy a house, if you'll never own it? Each bank now offers it's own credit cards - credit cards are one of biggest money making schemes of all time. Credit cards are creatively offering all kinds of rewards to entice us and all the while raising interests rates to ridiculous amounts making it almost impossible to ever pay back any large purchases you charge on them. It used to be very difficult to get a credit card - now, getting approved for a $5000 credit card is common place. Did you know it takes 33 years to pay off a $5000 credit card making the minimum payments suggested by the lending company?  And how many people do you see charging their basic necessities on credit cards?  You shouldn't have to feed your family on credit!

Marketing and advertising have always interested me, I find it challenging to try and get the word across of just how good a products is. Using marketing practices to paint a picture and to entice buyers to buy products always seemed like something I wanted to do. I began to see marketing and advertising in a new light though when I tuned to the late comedian Bill Hicks: Totally Bill Hicks the documentary

Advertisers and marketers have also gone too far in their efforts to make money. Honesty and integrity used to be the cornerstone of every good marketing company - now it's how much money they can make for their clients, that's the bottom line. It used to be that we could believe in advertisers and good products could speak for themselves - we used to have trust. Now, we are bombarded with commercialism every second of the day. We are constantly being lied to and manipulated - anything to make more money. More and more often we, as consumers, need to read between the lines in order to find the truth. The more we get lied to, the more we lose trust. The biggest problem is, for those of us who know better, we don't know who to believe anymore and so we have doubts. Advertisers and marketers, with their greed, are helping to create a world of mistrust.   They have even gone as far as to create fake worlds and sell fake things to fake people - they are now selling us a second life!: Link to the site : Second Life 

People are losing faith in each other - after all, we know deep down that it's people lying to us and we are putting up our guards. We don't know who is being honest and not anymore, the more we get lied to the more we doubt - who can you trust? And those consumers who are less aware of the manipulation keep buying into these lies and are spending money foolishly and usually with regret. Usually money they don't have, as they bought into the credit card scheme as well...

We, as a society, need to say: Enough!  We need to come together and create change.  We need to speak up and we need to try harder to make this world a better place for our children and for us all. 

Consumers are getting tired of being had, they are tired of buying junk, they are tired of getting ripped off.  Consumers are getting tired of being manipulated, more and more people like me are speaking up.

I am only one voice, but I want to make a difference.  I believe if we can come together to make one voice louder and stronger, a unified voice, we can speak out and be heard and we can begin to change the world.  Bit by bit, the crowd will gather.  Bit by bit, our voice will grow and reach everyone and bit by bit we can change the world.

My YouTube channel - gerrystiling

Earth Song by Micheal Jackson

This is a song of love - a song for humanity.  We need to listen to this song and let it move us to the point where we stand up together and demand change.

Michael Jackson, may he rest in peace, was a pure soul.  He was the personification of love.  One of the few true artists of our time.  The world is a better place because of the gifts that he shared with us.  He was truly a remarkable man.

When he was alive people laughed at him and ridiculed him.   His pure soul was damaged by an ignorant and cruel world but yet he managed to overcome his pain and shortcomings and contribute to this world in a way few can ever even dream of.  He was truly an inspiration.  Having the courage to face his persecutors must have been very difficult for him, his success should prove to us all - follow your heart and your dreams will come true.  Be brave, be strong and be yourself.

Asking Nestle about thier PureLIfe bottled water - is it pure? Really?

Have you noticed that most bottled water now contains fluoride and chloride?  I have.  Many studies have been conducted on the effects of fluoride on our bodies and specifically, our brains.   Most studies indicate that these chemicals are harmful to us.

It is common practice in America to add Fluoride and chloride to tap water.  It is even said that because your skin absorbs water, that if your water is chlorinated you will absorb 70% of the chlorine they put in tap water.just by taking a shower.  It is recommend you get a high tech water purifier because this amount of chloride can be harmful to us, especially children.  The controversy is huge, but yet the practice continues today.  It is not a subject discussed by mainstream media very often..

In Europe, the general public opinion is so against adding fluoride to water that they have managed to even keep it out of tap water.  People don't have any more cavities either. This is one of the excuses they use to add it to our tap water.

Tell me this... how come if you water a plant with water containing fluoride and chloride it adversely affects it and sometimes it even dies?  If it harms plants, it cannot be good for us to consume on a regular basis.  Put regular tap water in your fish tank and see what happens to your fish - they'll be floating on top!

Chemicals accumulate in your body and are often difficult to get rid of.  The more natural things are, the more I like them.

I want natural and pure water, I don't want any chemicals added to it.  Period.

I went to the Nestle Canada PureLife website and contacted them.  I want to why they are adding these chemicals now to our bottled water.  I had to giive my name, address, email.  I can't wait to see what their response will be.  I will post their response on this blog when I hear back from them, if I hear back from them.

I found this on their website:

"We hold our products to high standards of quality and safety. Water begins in nature, clean and safe, and we take precautions to make sure it stays that way so the natural minerals and unique taste of the water from each source are preserved as nature intended. Nestlé® Pure Life® natural spring water is bottled at the source, a naturally protected spring within an ecosystem that includes areas of forests, wetlands, wildlife and surface waters. Our natural spring water is tapped from an artesian source, deep underground, protected from outside pollutants and industrial development. We manufacture our bottles on site, fill and then cap them making the whole process about 20 minutes from the artesian source to the bottle for the entire Nestlé® Pure Life® water process."

This is what I wrote to them
:
"I would like to know how you can call your water PureLife and make all these claims about it being pure and natural when you put FLUORIDE AND CHLORIDE in the water.  Fluoride in water is unnecessary and unhealthy.

Since I have seen that you do that, I have switched to distilled water.  I don't want fluoride in my water, nor do I want chloride.  The least you can do is give people a choice!

I have a following on many social media sites and I am looking forward to your response." 


I will keep you posted!

Cash Makes More Cents

This post is short and sweet.  

Do you like to save money?  So do I.  That's why I do not use my debit card and I do not own credit cards, either.  I pay with cash!  Good old cold hard cash! 

Did you know that when shopping with a credit card you are likely to spend 12 to 18% MORE than if you were using cash.  . This is an important fact to remember when you are shopping.

With both debit cards and credit cards it's very easy to lose track of how much you spend, a coffee here, a magazine there; by the end of the day, the week or the month you have no idea how much you have spent.  If you are looking in your wallet - you see how much you have left - it's right there in front of you.

By shopping with cash you have better control of your money.  You are much less likely to overspend.  You can put aside a certain amount of money each week and easily stay on budget. The other thing that happens when you use cash instead of debit cards or credit cards if that you start noticing how much you are spending.  Instead of just blindly swiping a card at the checkout and not even paying attention to the amount, you notice the cost of things when you are dishing out the bills and receiving exact change.

Try it - you'll see what I mean!  And don't forget to save your change - it adds up fast - in a month I squirrel away a cup of change.  (pays for my gas)

Sources:

http://www.investopedia.com/articles/pf/08/pay-in-cash.asp

Make your own Website Review: Wix, Godaddy, WordPress and Blogger Comparasion

I am a forty-something Mom who created her own websites without having any previous training at all.  It's just me, my laptop and the world wide web.  I like having my own websites,  places where I can share my thoughts, photos, stories and experiences with others.

 

It's been years now that I have been on the internet and I now have 4 websites which I have created myself with the help of the provider's designing software.  Three of my websites are free: Wix, Blogger and Wordpress and I chose try and pay for a more professional site and tried a Godaddy website.  As I talk about each one in detail, I will link them, so you can see what each one looks like.  These were all designed by the same person (me), the only difference is that each has it's own unique design options, templates and other tools at my disposal.  I will tell you which I like best and which I like least and the reasons why.

 

BLOGGER: The Crowd Will Gather:   

This is my first website right here - Blogger. Thecrowdwillgather is the name of my site.  This is just a personal site where I share experiences, projects and my views.  I have had it the longest.  It was very easy to open up.  All I had to do was create an account with Google, go to Blogger and then choose which template I liked best and then start adding posts.  Not knowing ANYTHING about computer language and programming, it took some trial and error and clicking on everything to know how things worked.  I never lost anything major and I never had any real issues with Blogger.

On Blogger, I can chose to revert a post to a draft if I change my mind and would prefer not to have it seen publicly.  That happens sometimes over the years.  I can also change templates anytime I want - without losing anything or having to start over.  If I get bored with how my website looks or if I want to try something new I can change how my looks completely.   I really this about Blogger.

One of the downsides of Blogger though is that if you do need help, you need to find the answers yourself.  Blogger does not provide direct customer service at all. In fact, Google (who owns Blogger and Gmail) is unreachable.  You can also go to the support pages and forums for help.  I have had a few technical difficulties and would have really liked to be able to reach someone to find answers quickly, but that is not the case with Blogger.  You are on your own.

It is very easy for anyone to find my blog.  My blog can be found on search engines by either looking up The Crowd will Gather - thecrowdwillgather - or if you search for a topic that I blogged about - that might find me as well.

It does not cost me anything to use Blogger and if I want I can choose to allow Google ads or not to appear. 

I always have used Blogger as a blogging website.  My Wordpress is also more of a blogging website.  On the contrary, my Godaddy and my Wix are more  traditional website than blogs.

I highly recommend using Blogger to open a blogging website.

Here is a link to the Blogger website: https://www.blogger.com/

WIX - Canadian Voyageurs : http://celinegerry.wix.com/canadianvoyageurs

 This is a website that was created to promote a cross Canada expedition.

Here is the link to the Wix website if you want to go check it out yourself:  www.wix.com/

Wix uses different formats and different templates, but it was very easy to open a website here also. Wix has many templates to chose from and it's free.  Wix runs small ads sometimes on your site in exchange for the free service - I have never found these to be a problem.  If you want, you can chose to upgrade your Wix website - this gives you access to better templates and better tools to design a nicer website (supposedly).  By paying for a site, Wix will not run ads on your site - you also get more storage and better support if you pay for your website.  These are the main differences on Wix between a free site or one you pay for.  My site is free - I do not own any of it.  Notice how the name of the website includes a lot more than just the name "Canadianvoyageurs" (which is the name of my site - Canadian Voyageurs)

With Wix I was able to add music in the background and many different interesting "widgets".  Widgets is a term used to describe applications that you can download and that have different functions - such as playing sounds, songs, counting down a clock, showing a calendar - things like that.  Many widgets are free - there are more advanced widgets that you can purchase as well.

My Wix website is easy to find - but I have to search for "Canadian Voyageurs Wix" - in order for search engines to find me.

You just point and click - drag and drop to add different things to your site.  You can add pages, add text boxes and shape them to the size you want.  You can add borders and chose what colors and fonts. You can add photos and videos.  It's a lot of fun.  If you do something wrong - you can undo your last moves.  You can even start over from scratch if you want.

I highly recommend using Wix to open a free website - if you want to upgrade to a more professional site - stay with Wix.

 GoDaddy - Canadian Voyageurs:  http://www.canadianvoyageurs.com/

GoDaddy is the website I pay for and to be honest it's the one I like the least.  I regret opening it and paying for it.  In hindsight, after working with Wix and with Wordpress, subsequently to opening this site, I would have been better off never going with GoDaddy.  It's been a headache.  On Godaddy I have purchased the dot com CanadianVoyageurs.

It costs me about $100 for a year to have that site.  That is very cheap in website terms and I guess it's true you get what you pay for because I would have to pay to upgrade my site with Godaddy to get it more like I want it.  I don't have the cheapest package though, I have the Business plan - you would think that would suit my needs, but no.  I have been in touch with their customer service department many times - I have told them how dissatisfied I am with their product. 

I have had to start over my website 3 times with Godaddy - that is extremely frustrating and takes a great deal of time.  The first time was because their template kept freezing up and not working properly - I got a 3 month credit when I asked for a refund after this happened.  I should have insisted on a refund though because months later I still do not like my site and have had to contact customer service on numerous occasions for assistance because their templates don't work or because it's not EASY like advertised!

Godaddy has been very glitchy.  Boxes do not close when supposed to.  My photos take longer to load.  I often have to reload the whole project to get things working properly again.

Another thing I am very displeased about my Godaddy website is that search engines cannot find me unless I type "canadianvoyageurs.com"!!  Godaddy wants me to upgrade and pay for their SEO package so I can let them let search engines find me.  I have complained to them many times about this, but I am told it's is the fault of the search engines or it just a matter of time...  It's not - my site is being "prevented" from being searched - all my other sites are very easily found without paying any SEO (Search Engine Optimization).  That is a scam - Godaddy is very deceiving on how they sell you their products.  They do NOT have live chat support only live chat sales support - but if you need help with your website you have to call and sometimes you have to wait a long time.  I hate waiting on hold.  When I need help with someone I am working on, I would like help right away - not in half an hour.  I have had to call back again also sometimes because the problem was not solved.  What used is it to have a website if it cannot be found on the internet!  Especially one you are paying for.

You cannot change templates - well you can, but it means starting over from scratch on Godaddy.

I do not recommend using Godaddy to open a website.  In hindsight I should have bought the dot com from Wix and upgraded to a paid site there instead or better yet just pay for the dot com and stay free with Wix.

Here is the link to the Godaddy website if you want more information: http://ca.godaddy.com/

Wordpress - My wild Canada:  http://mywildcanada.com/

I was looking for a place to make a professional looking website - I kept seeing people using Wordpress - I had tried it before going to Godaddy but I thought that if I paid for a site it would look better - wrong!  Wordpress is the site that convinced me that you don't have to pay to have a nice looking site.  I bought the "mywildcanada" dot com.  I have set up the Wordpress site so that only mywildcanada.com appears in the address bar.  You can also do that with Wix - you can buy your dot com through them. 

Wordpress is a bit different from Wix and Blogger.  You just have to get used to the layout and the program.  With Wordpress you can use the free templates or pay for just the template to get a nicer one to work with.  You have more options.

Wordpress is very user friendly.  You can contact support directly by making a support ticket to get an email response/chat going and I have done that a few times and gotten really fast responses.  You can also use social media to get assistance with all of the website providers. Tweet them or post on their Facebook pages - they will respond quickly.

One of the big differences between Godaddy and Wordpress/Wix/Blogger is that you can change your template anytime and as often as you want.  With Godaddy if you change your template - you start over.  So if you are trying out a template - you might be halfway through working with your content and realize that this may not be the best template for you.

With Wordpress I can add pages (or delete them) I can save drafts before I publish them (Blogger also).  What impresses me most about Wordpress is how professional my site looks and how easy it was.  Wordpress is well linked with social media - my site is very easy to find on search engines.  Wordpress is designed with bloggers in mind it seems.   Photos load very quickly.  Wordpress is also set up so that you can link Tweets (Twitter) easily.

This is the link to the Wordpress website: https://wordpress.com/


Conclusion:  Working with all these different website providers has broadened my knowledge when it comes to making websites.  I now understand terms like SEO, tags, embedding - words that were like Chinese to me a few years ago.  I ask a lot of questions - I do not like getting lost in forums - when I have a question I ask support or I ask for help on social media.  "Googling" questions is also very helpful - by asking a question on the Google search engine - you can be directed to a blog or a post that can give you the right answer.

Building websites is fun and easy - anyone can do it.  The more I "play" with it, the faster I get, the more I understand and the easier it gets.  I used to get frustrated a lot, but not anymore - now website building is fun. 

So go - open a FREE website - go and have fun - go be seen and heard on the world wide web. Go share with everyone!

Can you really make money online with Google Adsense?

Google Adsense is a product//service offered by Google which allows you to earn revenue by placing their advertisers ads on your website. These advertisers pay Google money to promote their products.  Google in turn give you a share of these earnings when people click on these ads.  According to Google it is easy to do; they have over 2 million publishers of all sizes using Adsense. Google claims using Adsense is a hassle free way to place relevant ads on your website to help you earn revenue.  According to Google's testimonials publishers can live their dream lives thanks to using Google Ads with Adsense..

Well, I had a Google Adsense account for years, I had several different websites with Google Ads and now I can answer these questions based on my own personal experience.  Is Google Adsense a real way to make money online or is it a scam? Can you really quit your job and make a living using Google Adsense? Can you really live your dream using Google Adsense to make money?
 

I have first hand personal experience and I will share what I learned by trying it for myself.  I created three websites, I had a Youtube account and a Blogger (this one) site all on which I placed google ads - all sites were linked to the same Adsense account.  I taught myself how to do it, I spent a lot of time researching and studying and trying to improve my site, my ads, and of course my earnings.  .

In my opinion Google Adsense is a huge scam, I will tell you why I think that..  The only people who make any substantial money is Google itself and a few webmasters who have a enormous amount of visitors to their websites.  IMany of those large sites are promoted which means that publishers pay to have their websites pushed.  One of the first things Google Adsense invites you to do is promote and advertise your site(s) with Google Adwords where you pay Google directly to promote your site and therefore increase your odds of making money with Google Adsense.  See how it works?

Although I consider myself an intelligent person, I always did extremely well in school... but when it came to making money online with Google Adsense I found myself feeling stupid a lot of the time.  I found it a very difficult and tedious process.  I could rarely find answers to my numerous questions.  I found Google's information to be confusing, incomplete and often even misleading.  I used all the tools available to me like Google Analytics  and Dashboards, but there again I found these sites and tools too hard to follow, incomplete, misleading.  I often ended up with more questions than answers.  I was very frustrated. So may times I just wanted to ask a question and get an answer, it would have been so good to be able to contact Google directly for help - but that option was not ever made available to me.  I always felt like Google is just raking in the money, so it doesn't care if I don't make a lot of money - IT is making money off my content.  You know the old saying, it takes money to make money, that's what I feel is true with Google Adsense.  You need to create a website that will appeal to the masses and you need have the money to promote it, otherwise I don't feel it's worth even bothering to put Google ads on your blog or website.  The only one that is really benefiting is Google.  In 2011 Google made $9.71 Billion Dollars ($9,710,000,000.00).  Google does NOT disclose how much it pays it's publishers, does not tell you how much they make on each ad, does even tell you how YOU make on each ad.  Many people who use Google Adsense find that their numbers (page views, clicks) do not match Google's statistics.  It is a fair statement that Google is not forthcoming in how it manages and profits from Adsense.  I find that Google's business practice are questionable and I find that it's advertising of it's products is deceiving.

Another problem I had with Google Ads and this is a real deal breaker in my view is that Google promised to place relevant ads on my website, you do not chose which ads were placed on your website just what type.  When you create your website, you place labels and key words in a box to direct search engines (like Google (the biggest search again, Ask.com, Yahoo, Bing). to bring people to your site when they are searching for a specific topic.  Google is supposed to match your content to their ads.  I was often quite angry as the type of ads that Google  places on my website, they were not relevant at all, no wonder people did not click on the ads, in fact it may have deterred visitors from staying or returning to my site.  I have a blog that talks about living life with less and Google places ads about applying for credit cards or looking up your credit score with Equifax.  I had stories about poverty and beside them advertisements for new cars.  I even often had 3 identical ads on the same page, right beside each other.  I really was not impressed with Google at all.  I fond it very scammish.  Google seems to big and seems to making too much money to care about individuals and small publishers like me.  "Your account is not qualified to reach customer service directly please use the help forum for assistance or try our help section"!  That's the best customer service Google Ads ever gave me.

Some webmasters create website for the sole purpose of creating "content" and lure the search engines to these sites in order to get "clicks" on their ads and therefore earn money.  This is one of the reasons the internet is overloaded with websites that have duplicate information, bogus and inaccurate content and why the word spam is common place.  Many internet marketers sell programs, videos, discs, templates, how to get rich quick schemes to promote making money online.  These people pray on the average web user with false promises of making easy money online.  There are also make pyramid type scams out there, where only the one selling this information is going to make any substantial amount of money. Another way people can make money online is by collecting information (and then selling it of course).  Newsletters, people finders, sites where you are required to sign in and create accounts.  Publishers sell email lists to generate revenue, I think this is an invasion of privacy.  I do not like it when I get advertisements or spam in my email inbox.

You cannot contact Google directly or indirectly for assistance.  Google does not have an email address, they do not offer live chat support, no phone numbers - basically you are making money for them and if you need help trying to figure out how to improve your odds at making money for yourself you cannot even ask them for help.  You are directed to use their online help pages or to join a forum and ask others customers for assistance.
So how much did I make on Google Adsense and how much does Google Adwords cost?  It's hard to tell you how much Google Adwords really costs, Google is very good at not giving you specific and accurate dollar amounts, you can spend as little as $10 a month (when researching this amount, I now notice that if you need help getting started with Google Adwords they now have a toll free number you can call, I guess people were just giving up - it's a difficult and time consuming process to get started)

I do not trust Google and I did not have a good experience at all trying to make extra money on the web, I never fell for the get rich quick and easy gimmick.  I know that nothing is for free and with hard work only comes rewards.  Well I did a lot of hard work and I had very little reward.  Google does not send you any money until you have made $100 (I think that too is a scam because I am sure many people give up before making their first hundred dollars and then Google just keeps that money).  It took me over a year, yes, over a year to reach the $100 threshold - I had two of my own websites (a how to install tile (with videos and pictures and 10 pages of information), a website about camping and the outdoors (again lots of photos and videos - with links to camping equipment and tons of advice).  A Youtube channel about how to tile and other nature clips on it (that is the only one that made any money really - I think Youtube is your best bet for earning money through advertisement, it has a jhuge audience, but unless your videos goes viral, you won't make much money at all.) and this blog that never really made any money at all (mainly because the ads were irrelevant and the website views are very low).  I never paid for Google Adwords - I found it too expensive.  So in the three years I used Google Adsense I only made $119.00 total.  I spend countless hours designing my websites, working on my videos, taking pictures, uploading, doing research , teaching myself how to use Adsense and how to interpret their analytical statistics which in the end I found not very helpful and was a very difficult application to navigate through.

 That's what I did, I removed all ads from my sites and I closed down my Google Adsense account.  I think Google should have been paying me way more to place ads which they were already getting paid to promote.  I am the one who created the relevant content and I am the one attracting visitors.  Google is just another corporate greedy pig thatwants to hoard all the money for itself and use the little guy to do all the work.

 


Links for information about this post - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google_Adsense

The Collapse of The American Dream Explained in Animation

Exceptional work.  A must see. Not only is this entertaining, this clip completely explains everything in a way we can easily understand why we are where we are today.  It's my favorite video to date.

Feeding the homeless of Victoria on Christmas Day - "The greatest gift they'll get this year is Love!"

 Originally posted December 26, 2010.

"Can someone help me please, I need a friend." The homeless we met all have one thing in common - a simple wish - they want someone to help them. We spent Christmas Day feeding the homeless of Victoria giving the best gift of all: Love.

This year, we chose to spend the money on food for the homeless instead of spending it on a Christmas tree for our family; Gerry, my husband and I, did not exchange any gifts - times are tough this year. BUT, we are very fortunate, we have a great life together and the future is bright.

It was our life's dream to move to BC, and for the past three years we have tried to stay afloat working for ourselves in Victoria. We are finding it very hard to earn an adequate living in this very expensive city, especially competing with the "cash jobs" . Decent pet friendly rentals are almost non existent and finding a reasonably priced home for us has proven to be a challenge difficult to overcome. Our present accommodations are affordable but there is always a trade off, it seems. It is the best we can find and at least our family is together and we are managing by ourselves.

We also saw many homeless that now call the streets home - those that have given up. We saw people feed themselves out of garbage cans, sleep in large metal garbage containers, and make shelters of just cardboard and pieces of plastic. We saw people who just drink all day long because they have no hope left at all. Most of these people never thought this would happen to them, it is not the life they envisioned for themselves. Most of them are here because of circumstances that are of no fault of their own. Every one of these poor souls that we talked to had a story and a wish. They just want help, someone to care. Most of the people we met want to do better and be better they just don't know how and need someone to take them by the hand and help them. They need guidance. Most probably because they never had that in their life.  The only difference between them and you is a lack of support - they do not have anyone they can turn to for help and so they are outcasts.

So, instead of spending Christmas alone just the three of us, we decided to cook extra Christmas meals and bring them to the less fortunate. We wanted them to know that: Someone still cared about them. It's the most important thing - to feel loved - it gives hope. We observed people shop at the malls, we saw them buy useless and stupid gifts. People were too busy to notice or care about the homeless and the poor. Shopping was so important; we saw people laden down with packages look down on the begger and tell him to go get a job. We remembered how easy it is to get carried away with the season and forget about the less fortunate. We fell into that trap in the past, we overspent on Christmas and indebted ourselves also - no more of that.

It cost us so little to prepare a few hot meals to bring to the hungry. We bought an extra turkey to cook, not a huge one either, an 11 pounder. We made mash potatoes, corn, gravy, stove top stuffing (never made real stuffing and did not want to kill anyone!), pillsbury croissants and sugar cookies and a couple of candy canes, a can of soda, and VOILA: spread the Christmas Joy. We bought a few containers to serve the food in and we hauled the food in warmed coolers to keep it nice and hot for the folks to enjoy. We made 15 hot home cooked meals at a cost of approximately $40 (at the most) - and we changed the lives of 15 people a little for the better - if only for a day.   With the help of our wonderful 16 year old daughter, the turkey, potatoes and corn were all cooked up in short time.  Croissants and cookies were baked with love.  Our girl willingly and lovingly helped us prepare meals for the homeless.  She was very proud of all of our efforts.  We are extremely proud of her for helping out!

Once we had the coolers loaded in the VW, we headed for downtown Victoria to find some people needing some Christmas cheer . We saw a man lying on the ground at the entrance of the Swiss Chalet, he had a pile of stuff beside him. I get shy, it's hard to ask if someone needs help - you don't want to insult people and I get afraid of being told to mind your business. But that's never happened. Gerry, my husband, offers: "Hey Buddy - I have hot meals for the homeless, are you hungry?" The man groggily shifts himself and slowly gets up. "Ya, ya man, thank you, thank you, I am hungry. This is a good place", he says, "lots of hot meals in the dumpster in the back - they throw alot of good food out a night". Gerry introduced himself and asked the man his name. Mark. Mark was very proud to show us a little shot size bottle (like you get on the airplanes) of Baileys Irish Cream that a stranger had given him for Christmas. He had also gotten a pair of socks. He was very pleased to receive these things and was very very appreciative. When Gerry asked him if he had anything to say to the world, if he had a wish what would it be, he answered: "Why does it have to be Christmas only that makes people come out and help him", he wondered why on any other day, he did not matter. Mark was quick to say that he was really really happy for the help today though. He could not thank us enough, and a pattern would start - we got many, many thanks - for the food, but mostly the thanks was for us CARING ABOUT THEM. Gerry asked if Mark had a wish what would that be? Mark's wish was to have a friend. Gerry and Mark shook hands and wished each other a merry Christmas.

At the corner of Cook St. and View St. we saw a man and woman and wondered if we should approach them, he looked like he may be homeless while she did not. Gerry stopped the van, got out and said: "I have hot meals for the homeless, are you hungry?" They immediately jumped up to their feet and happily came to get a meal. They asked if we had a third meal and invited their shy friend to join them. Gerry asked them if we could take their photo (we want to spread the word that people need and deserve help and we want to raise funds to help those in need). The men agreed have their photo taken (photo at top page). Gerry asked if they had a wish what would it be. The older gentleman was something of a celebrity and had been in the papers 4 times before - he wished for world peace. The younger shy friend only wanted to get back on his feet - such a touching wish.... The woman preferred not to have her picture taken, it looked like she and I could just switch places, she looked like she could be a nurse or an office worker, she wanted a job, as her wish.

We fed a young man with long blond hair walking alone with his belongings on his back in a backpack. He was very high on something. When we asked him if he wanted a hot meal, his eyes showed signs of life and he stopped and gladly took our offerings. He did not speak to us. He walked away and started singing: "Merry Christmas to me, merry Christmas to me" in the tune of happy birthday. We silently wished him a better life.

In the back alleys behind the Bay Center in downtown Victoria we came up on two young men smoking a joint. We stopped and asked if they needed a hot meal. They were very surprised we were talking to them but gladly accepted the hot meal. It seemed to be awhile ago since they had seen a square meal. "Awesome, thanks alot".

It was early afternoon when we came upon a woman dancing by herself on the sidewalk. She was very disoriented and had no clue what was going on around her. She could barely hold the container of food as she swaggered around in her sad condition. "Thank you very much", she managed in a slurred speech. Hopefully the hot meal would help her regain some of her senses. What's happened to her in her life, to send her on such a path?

The last man we helped yesterday was named Ron. Ron had been on the streets 61 days and told us of this trials and tribulations. He spoke of 2 former wives and "wished he could do it again and get it right this time". He spoke of this 3 daughters and how he missed his family in Quebec - he had not seen his 2 sisters in Montreal in 30 years - how he wished he could see them again. He felt like he was not a good example to his daughters - the father is the only one on the streets.... You could tell Ron was a good man, with a huge heart - he talked and talked - for over a half hour Gerry stood on the sidewalk and listened to this poor man talk about his life. Ron wanted what every single person we met yesterday wanted most: a friend to talk to.

Ron had alot of good things to say to us and the funny thing is we probably needed to talk to Ron as much as he needed to talk to us. He said alot of things we needed to hear. Funny how life is sometimes.

We all need people in our life, and we all need help sometimes.  You can make a difference, a significant difference in someone's life.  Give a little, give a lot.  Don't be afraid to reach out and help someone,  the world will be a better place because you did.  Be the change you want to see in the world...

Sometimes people need a friend, sometimes they need hope. No matter how rich or how poor YOU are, you can always give someone HOPE.

Wishing all our new friends all the best!

Celine and Gerry

We may be contacted at celinegerry@gmail.com .