With 770,000 visitors last year, this blog generates a lot of e-mail. Usually around 100 a day. Much of it is from readers with comments and questions, which is always fun. But there is also a lot of trash.
Besides the spam that slips through in spite of my filters, the never-ending forwards that I immediately delete without opening, and the occasional crank, in the last three or four months I have been getting a lot of requests to post links to Go Fund Me pages. This really irritates me. Yes, a few people have legitimate needs, but who is to say if one is real or just a scam? And then there are the those wanting something for nothing, like this one I want to share one with you, along with my response.
Hello, we are reaching out to you hoping you will help us achieve our goal of traveling in an RV for a few years as we raise our two girls, exposing them to all our country has to offer. We are both 27 years old and our girls are ages 6 and 4. We have always wanted to see America by RV so we have set up a Go Fund Me page that I hope you will share a link to with your readers to help us buy an RV. I know to rich people like you living in luxury RVs we may seem like beggars but that’s totally not the case. We don’t want something expensive, just a reliable home on wheels for our family of four. We have to start somewhere. We are unemployed so there is no better time than now to do it and we don’t want to wait until we are too old to enjoy it. Colleen and Raymond
I replied: Colleen and Raymond, I wish you luck in your quest, but I’m too busy to help you out right now. I’m about to leave my luxury motorhome, get in my SUV that is paid off, and drive to a beach to fly the $350 kite I bought by WORKING for a living. Nick Russell.
We went to the beach yesterday afternoon with Nancy Kissack and Dan and Patty Chance to get some kite flying in. Nancy was flying her new full vent Revolution kite and I gave her a few tips on launching it and some basic maneuvers, but she’s a natural and it didn’t take long before she didn’t need me bothering her.
Dan was zipping through the air with his Prism Snapshot 1.9 speed foil and Miss Terry was working her Revolution EXP but the wind was flakey, and by the time I got my kite in the air it was fading away and results were not all that great so we didn’t fly long. There will be other days. Lots of other days.
When we left the beach we stopped at the post office to mail out an order, and then at Northwest Winds Kite Shop. And who should we run into there but Nancy, feeding her addiction with a new Revolution ultralite kite! Of course, she’s not the only one with a monkey on her back. While we were there I spotted a beautiful John Barresi Signature Series full vent Revolution kite that I fell in love with, and the manager allowed me to return the full vent that I bought at their shop in Lincoln City on Sunday and never used, in exchange on this stunning red and black beauty.
I also found something else there that I was planning to order from Amazon, a WeatherFlow Wind Meter that plugs into an Android smart phone or device, or an iPhone, iPad, or iPod. I’ve found that the weather apps I have on my phone are good but not all that reliable when it comes to current wind speeds where I am. These are great not only for kite flyers, but also boaters, kayakers, and anyone else who spends time in the great outdoors. It would even be good for RVers who want to know what the wind is like before they hit the road.
It’s Thursday, so it’s time for a new Free Drawing. This week’s prize is an audiobook of my friend Ken Rossignol’s Pirate Trials: Famous Murderous Pirates Book Series: THE LIVES AND ADVENTURES of FAMOUS and SUNDRY PIRATES. To enter, all you have to do is click on this Free Drawing link or the tab at the top of this page and enter your name in the comments section at the bottom of that page (not this one). Only one entry per person per drawing please, and you must enter with your real name. To prevent spam or multiple entries, the names of cartoon or movie characters are not allowed. The winner will be drawn Sunday evening.
Thought For The Day – Friendship is one mind in two bodies.
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Nick Russell
World-Famous, New York Times Best Selling Author, and All-Around Nice Guy!
Good for you Nick you said what I was thinking!
Nick we’ll probably need a new RV some day. Can you help fund me? LOL
Probably that “27” y.o. couple are sitting in Nigeria at a PC, raking in the $$$$ on this scam.
Good response Nick
What is it with all the mooches in the world? I get 2 or 3 of these things every week in my e-mail. And last week at a campground in southern Minnesota there was a family of 4 or 5 going door to door asking for money.
27 and unemployed?Wasting time begging for money instead of looking for work??
Yeah! I will jump right to FundMe, I am sure my Social Security will go a long way towards their RV, right Nick? Wish I was 27 again, employers do not want us old senior citizens who have no choice but to look for work.
Nick seeing how I’m on Social Security and I have an IRA an 401(k) and a Roth
And the sale of my home in the bank I occasionally go over to the freeway with my sign that says ( please supplement SSI,,, bless you) you notice I didn’t say homeless
now I really don’t want to spend that money Because it’ll dwindled down so I was just wondering if maybe somebody could fund me so I could buy one of those fancy red kites,,, and I promise not to put it on eBay at half price
And as for the wind meter they’re great for checking methane gas volume
Now honestly you didn’t hear that from me
And let’s not hear any more excuses about being finicky on the beach
So go fly your kite and enjoy your day
I get those in my email daily, too. There have been times in the last 3 years that I “thought” about making one of those pages, but I never did, and we didn’t starve. we managed to go full time RVing at a younger age than most, but we did it on our own and didn’t ask for handouts. I am sorta retired now, can’t work due to disability but I do bring in a bit of $$ by writing and publishing my blog. I know it looks like an ad machine most days, but a girl has to do what a girl has to do. Thanks for still being friends with me, and even though I’m not working.
I am sure the government can give him one of those thousands of FEMA RV’s and also a free Obama phone along with a year’s supply of Independence Cards so they can teach their kids that America is all about no work and a free lunch.
I agree with you concerning the air conditioner. I was self employed for 45 years at a job that had continuous education in order to keep my license. I paid for electric, supplies, rent, among other things. Most people don’t stop to think you have to factor all that into what you charge for services. $ 200.00 to fix an RV air conditioner…..I think she got off easy and should be grateful she actually found someone who knew what they were doing.
What about some of those RVing sites that ask for donations? Is that any different?
Yes, it is different. Those sites are offering something in return, be it information, entertainment, or encouragement to follow your own dreams. And there is a cost to produce a blog or website that has to be offset in some way. They didn’t ask anyone to buy their RV for them and to fund their lifestyle