Blog of Josh Hall

You don’t need to be the best. You’re already the best -you- there will every be.

Don’t ever buy from Skate-buys.com.  Ever.  Kallie is a size 11 figure skate and no stores carry that size.  I couldn’t even find a decently priced pair on amazon.com.  On Monday, Januar 17th, I bought a pair through Skate Buys for ~$80.  I was billed the next day. 

On Friday the 21st, at 2pm in the afternoon, I received an email that said the skates were on backorder and to let them know if I want to cancel my order or if I just wanted to wait the estimated 2 weeks to receive them.  I replied expressing my frustration that it took all week for them to tell me that, but then I asked for my options, ie free expedited shipping when they come in.  I received no response.

I emailed them again on Feb 2nd, telling them I never received a response or options.  I received no response back from that either.  I called them on Feb 5th, after hours, and it just said “no one can answer, good bye”.  No message system or anything.  I called back during business hours the next day, and the person who answered was so offensive and rude, raising his voice at me that he just checked with the manufacturer and the skate will ship directly from them.  He offered no explanation or solution or estimate on how long it would be.

I waited a few days, and filed with the BBB for poor customer service.  Now, I’ve left a voicemail for them during business hours saying I want a refund and also sent them an email saying I want a refund and have yet to receive a response back.

ridiculous.

Today, we’re going to talk about tri-tip.  It’s a popular cut of steak in the Central California area.  It was originally prepared with “Santa Maria Seasoning” (of Santa Maria, Ca), but it’s basically just a great streak to use on grills.  The popular use now is in a tri-tip sandwich covered in barbecue sauce.

Kallie has been talking about it a lot since I’ve met her, but I got to try an authentic sandwich at Firestone Grill in San Luis Obispo, Ca.  It truly was a unique sandwich and definitely worthy of praise.  Something about it was very familiar though, and I’m fairly certain i’ve had *something* similar to it here on the east coast.  I’ve head some other possible names for the cut, like “tip steak”, so maybe it’s just known by something else here, but I haven’t been able to find a restaurant in the area where you can get a tri-tip sandwich.  If you can, let me know!

There are some crazy things going on in Montana politics right now.  Something about tea party, republicans, blah blah blah.

here are just a few:

1.  Legalize hunting with hand-thrown spear (Senate Bill 112)

2.  Create fully-armed militia in every town (House Bill 278)

3.  Allow legislators to carry weapons in the Capitol (Senate Bill 279)

4.  Create an 11 person panel with authority to nullify all federal laws (House Bill 382)

5   Allow guns in schools (House Bill 558)

6.  Eliminate educational requirements for persons seeking job of State Superintendent of Schools (HB 154)

7.  Lift nuclear ban for purpose of building a nuclear reactor in the Flathead Valley (House Bill 326)

8.  Withdraw the United States of America from the United Nations (Senate Joint Resolution 2)

9.  Eliminate all state incentives for developing wind power (House Bill 244)

10. Omit Barak Obama’s name from the 2012, ballot because his father was born outside of America (House Bill 205)(this guy was on CNN this week)

11. Compulsory marriage counseling for people seeking a divorce (House Bill 438)

12. Give sheriffs authority over the federal government in terror investigations (Senate Bill 114)

13. Legalize hunting with silencers (House Bill 174)

14. Lift the prohibition on carrying concealed weapons in bars, churches and banks (House Bill 384)

15. Eliminate law that requires landlords to install carbon monoxide detectors (House Bill 354)

16. Require the federal government to prove in court that the National Parks were lawfully aquired. (House Bill 506)

17. Officially designate the “Code of the West” as the “Code of Montana” (Senate Bill 216)

18.  Declare that global warming is good. (House Bill 549)

read more :  http://mtcowgirl.com/2011/02/17/nutjob-bills-in-the-montana-legislature/

You don’t need to be first. No one cares but you.

A tip of the hat to Amy for this gem!

Dispatch Work is an artist’s project to repair city landscapes around the world with LEGO bricks. Click on the cities on the right hand side of the site to see all the different locations. People simple volunteer to build LEGO creations to fit into the cracked, broken, or missing tiles or bricks.

Rest assured, Pittsburgh will be featured here soon…