Craig’s List, SCAMS and just plain silliness

Attached is an email conversation regarding my Craig’s List listing. I listed some baby formula rebate checks hoping someone would want to trade them for a different brand. I found it funny and strange; more strange today than any other day because I received a non-related scam check for $3500.00 in the mail. It’s interesting the amount of scamming there is today. Are people beginning to have less of a moral compass or are they getting more desperate. OR better still maybe ALL of us are getting a bit naive and greedy. Now back to the emails. On top of EACH email sent or received through Craig’s List is a scam warning from Craig’s List. I will let you read it at the end of the conservation. I do this because apparently the person inquiring about my listing failed to read it THREE times…ENJOY and be careful out there!

Here is my listing:

TRADE similac CHECKS for Enfamil CHECKS

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Reply to: sale-317225549@craigslist.org
Date: 2007-04-23, 10:48AM PDTI have 4 $5 Similac checks to TRADE for Enfamil checks. Please only checks allowing “any” Enfamil formula. We use regular Enfamil with Iron (Lipil gives baby gas, fert!) I will meet you in Ventura to trade, no mailing, no scamming!Expiration dates: 5/09/07, 5/18/07, 6/6/07, 7/31/07

NOW here’s the first of Ms. Astorino’s emails (is that pronounced ASS to Rino ?? ok now I’m just being mean)

> On 4/24/07, MAR… ASTORINO
> <m…916@yahoo.com > wrote:

I read your posting. I have traded with people all over the US, I have Never and Never been scammed. I mail them out that day and they do the same, and I have never had any problems.

— < linuxgrl> wrote:

> I’m sorry, did I miss something? Do you want to make a trade or are you telling me how to trade?
On 4/24/07, MAR… ASTORINO <m…916@yahoo.com> wrote:

You said you wouldn’t mail, I am in CT

— < linuxgrl> wrote:

> so you do have something to trade?
end of emails…maybe she FINALLY read the WARNING from Craig’s List at the top of all her emails. This is what every Craig’s List email starts with, I have not altered it in any way. Pay close attention to the BOLD statement in the FIRST line, duh!!

**CRAIGSLIST ADVISORY — AVOID SCAMS BY DEALING LOCALLY
**Avoid: wiring money, cross-border deals, work-at-home
**Beware: cashier checks, money orders, escrow, shipping
**More Info: http://www.craigslist.org/about/scams.html

Oh and about that $3500 check I’ll be mailing it to the FBI in the morning. No joke!

Posted by linuxgrl Posted in: Uncategorized 8 Comments » April 2007

Scary :0

Dang the wind was scary last night, then there was the noises out side the spooky old Dudley House. Some tall skinny guy was carrying a black bag the size on a BODY. It was about midnight…ever since I started this stay at home mom gig my imagination is in high gear. Anyone see that movie “The Burbs” yeah that’s how I’m feeling.

Posted by linuxgrl Posted in: Uncategorized 2 Comments » April 2007

tax time, yippy freakin doooo

Every year about this time I start sucking down alcohol, smoking cigarettes and taking St. Johns Wort capsules by the handful. I make a mad dash through piles of receipts, picking through to find every known write off. Every year Jason and I have had to pay. Our tax man (who we fired two years ago) would say “have a kid or buy a house. ” Well most of you know how we feel about housing here in California and we’d been trying for a baby for years. IT FINALLY HAPPENED thanks to little Pierson!!! We will get some cash back from “the man” this year. But it did take some tooth pulling, Quicken checking, Quicken changing, Quicken reloading, Quicken checking again, then finally some TurboTax inputting and some attempts (a dozen or so) at transferring last years return (Turbo as well) then about 2 days worth of answering STUPID questions like did your child live with you last year? HELLO the question right before that was his age and the one before that was our marital status, and the one before that adoption? GEEZ for $63 you’d think a product made from a Company who’s name is “Intuit” as in INTUITIVE would be able to I don’t know BE INTUITIVE or at least know that some standard information doesn’t change through the tax form process. SO once all that was done I had to do the same sh*t fOR state filing, then calculate, fix errors, etc. Etc. ETC…and to think we used to pay someone to do this for us.

Tax Man $150

TurboTax $97 (that’s each year) $63 for the software PLUS e-filing 16.95 for state and 16.95 for federal. For the savings of $53 and not knowing if I screwed anything up, I’m not sure it’s worth it.

Note: for those of you who get to file EZ, my tongue is extend out to you in jealousy.

Posted by linuxgrl Posted in: Uncategorized 3 Comments » April 2007