Greenville is a little less than an hour away from our home in Hendersonville, North Carolina. We like to visit the Zoo there, as well as to swim and play in Reedy River Falls Park. Neat shops and eateries help make a day of it.
When we were up here, the breeze was KICKING something fierce, which was lovely on a very hot June day!
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Love the colors of this card, which I picked up yesterday when we visited Caesars Head.
“This can be a quick one. Don’t take too long to think about it. Fifteen books you’ve read that will always stick with you. First fifteen you can recall in no more than 15 minutes.”
(Note from Renae: This meme comes from Shelly’s Bookshelf at http://shellysbooks.blogspot.com/2009/05/memorable-books-meme.html; she reports that she got it from somewhere else. I know others have only posted LISTS of book titles rather than adding book descriptions, so you can do that, too, if you want!)
1. A Room for Cathy, by Catherine Woolley. I read this many, many times as a child and still remember it to this day. It is the story of a young girl who desperately wants her own bedroom. And as the oldest of four girls, I totally related!
2. The Phantom Tollbooth, by Norton Juster. Milo is bored, bored, bored with his life. Until one day, when he comes home from school, to find a strange package in his bedroom. This book dazzles with pun after pun after pun, such as when Milo suddenly jumps to Conclusions (an island). I’ve read this aloud to my children … and think it’s about time for another family read-aloud of it about now!
3. Mars, by Ben Bova. A young Native American’s dreams come true when he finds himself on humankind’s first expedition to Mars. What’s that he sees? Could it be the remnants of a Martian society? Read it to find out! I bought this in hardback because it’s well-loved and well-read.
4. Rendezvous with Rama, by Arthur C. Clarke. Wow! The ultimate hard sci-fi tale. Someone is gazing through a long-range telescope when they notice a strange object whose destination appears to be earth. It’s man-made. Cylindrical. Like nothing we’ve ever seen before. This is the story of the people who venture inside the mystery to discover a strange, new, exciting and frightening world.
5. The Incarnations of Immortality, by Piers Anthony. My sister Maria turned me on to this many years ago! From Wikipedia: “The first seven books each focus on one of seven supernatural “offices” (Death, Time, Fate, War, Nature, Evil and Good) in a fictional reality and history parallel to ours, with the exception that society has advanced both magic and modern technology. The series covers the adventures and struggles of a group of humans, called “Incarnations”, who hold these supernatural positions for a certain time.” I look forward to when my kids are old enough for this series, too!
6. The Doomsday Book, by Connie Willis. A scholar from the year 2025 travels back in time to what she thinks is the period right before the Black Death pummeled Europe. But something goes wrong and she winds up arriving in the village only two weeks before the plaque hits—and she doesn’t know it until people start dying. This book opened my eyes to the fact that people throughout the centuries were people just like me—they laughed, they cried, they lived, they died. It also shed light on a fascinating era I knew little about. Because Willis has a way of making you really connect and care for the characters, it’s hard not to feel for and with them—which is why I’ve read this book many times.
7. The Lost Race of Mars, by Robert Silverberg. This was the first science fiction tale I’d ever read, a story about a brother and sister who have to go to Mars to live because their parents are scientists who get stationed there. The children must give up their beloved dog, fight prejudice (they’re only Earthlings, not real “Martians” like the children born on Mars), and learn to live on Martian time. And to make the story really interesting, they also discover the very thing their parents are studying: living aliens, true Martians, what people considered “the lost race of Mars.”
8. Passage, by Connie Willis. Passage explores near death experiences through the eyes and experiments of two scientists. It is most memorable because the haunted, desperate desire to “know” and “understand” experienced by the protagonist became real to me as reader; the feeling builds during the reading and lingers for days after. In fact, I picked up Passage again not because I remembered the story, but because I remembered that feeling and I wanted to experience it again.
9. Believe That I Am Here: The Notebooks of Nicole Gausseron. In these writings, translated from French, a Catholic woman living in Chartres, France records her conversations and experiences with Jesus over a several-year period. This moving, thought-provoking three-part series is a permanent part of my collection.
10. Fine Things, by Danielle Steele. I confess: I love a good Danielle Steele novel, which I can usually gobble down in a few hours. This one, though, about a husband who finds and then loses love, is a heart-breaker; I’ve read it many many times — and I always cry! Maybe that’s part of the charm!
11. Daddy, by Danielle Steele. My next-best DS novel, also about love but this time lost and found.
12. The Mother Tongue, English and How it Got That Way, by Bill Bryson. Given to me as a gift from my college English professor.
13. The Elegant Universe, by Bryan Greene. A look at string theory, M-theory and other quantum mysteries for the layperson.
14. This Present Darkness, by Frank Peretti. Opened my eyes to possibility of a spiritual reality unfolding all around us, impacting us yet unseen.
15. Hinds Feet on High Places, by Hannah Hurnard. A Christian allegory about a girl named Much Afraid who travels to High Places, meeting many others along the way, including cousin Pride, Mrs. Valiant, Mercy, Peace and others.
What are yours?
I’m torn.
On one hand, I’m THRILLED to be going back to school for an online graduate degree. The classes sound fantastic so I can’t wait to dig in.
On the other hand, at this writing, I’m UNHAPPY with where I must get my degree. So far, too many of my experiences and interactions with the school have been negative. But for financial reasons, I need to attend a state university. And this particular school is the only one that offers the program I want online. I have considered other programs … and now I am seriously considering changing because I am so frustrated already … and I am not even officially accepted yet!
I so want to write a letter to the Dean to express my dissatisfaction. But I can’t get to the Dean’s page since Web troubles seem to plague the school on the front-end, which doesn’t give me much faith in its back-end–especially considering this is an ONLINE program.
Plus, I’m not sure if the Dean would even care … or be able to do anything. But since I must vent, vent I will.
1) Web Issues. The school’s Web site has major problems. Pages fail to load completely no matter how long I let the little circle in upper right corner of my Firefox browser spin. The message at the lower left continually says, “Transferring data from….” When I first began exploring this program, I sent a message to the Webmaster to let someone know about the problems. They still exist now, several months later. Lack of people? Lack of funds? I don’t know. But it bugs me. This is the school’s public face. Don’t they care enough to do something about their crappy Web site? Especially considering that they offer ONLINE degrees and certificates? This does not give me confidence in taking this program.
2) Unprofessional Program Pages. Web issues at the grad school are mentioned on the program’s page as well. You read comments like, “Your application sometimes seems to go into a black hole so be sure to follow up.” And “Read carefully because the format is very confusing.” The program page itself is seriously in need of an upgrade as well. First, in appearance it is very 90s. Second, information is hard to find. Third, links are inconsistent among pages. Fourth, in reading, you find yourself being asked to click “here” to a page that asks you click to “here” and “here” and here”–and each of those pages also ask you to click to “here” and “here” and “here”–until you’re so far away from your original page that it’s hard to remember where you started. Also, between the program and the grad school pages, there does not exist ONE clear description of the application process. It’s a nightmare for someone like me who prides herself on reading carefully and getting things right. Because it means that despite my best intentions, I still get things wrong.
3) Inconsistent, Unclear, Disorganized Information. Case in point. The site says to send transcripts. So I did. My transcripts from the university also list my coursework from the community college, so I sent only transcripts from the university. I must have missed somewhere in the small print or in one of the dozens of pages where it says, “Transcripts are needed from all schools attended, INCLUDING those whose coursework is listed on other transcripts.” Guess what … I don’t think it says that at all. This information comes from an e-mail I received today from someone at the grad school.
4) Rude and Slow to No Phone and E-mail Responses. Which brings me to another problem: rudeness in and slow response time for both e-mail and phone communications. After I received my transcripts from the university, which I had sent to me instead of to the school by mistake, I noticed that the “seal” on the envelope was broken, like it had been applied before they licked it or something? Since there was a note right there along with the seal that said “NOT OFFICIAL UNLESS SEAL IS UNBROKEN,” I thought I better call the grad school to make sure it would be ok. The gal who answered the phone sounded totally disgusted that I was on the other line — like I totally disrupted her day and “would you please hang up now you stupid b&@&!.” I could not believe how rude she was! At the time, I chalked it up to a bored or frazzled grad student earning her keep. No big deal. But when you add it to the other communication problems, it becomes a big deal.
a) The director of the program had me e-mail the program advisor who would help me get registered for upcoming summer classes. But it took a week to get a reply. About halfway through the wait, I e-mailed the program director again to be sure the advisor was in and that I had the right e-mail. Am I wrong? This is an online program. A week is simply too long to make someone wait for a reply.
b) I have been checking my application status daily, waiting for the grad school to update my online application page to say that they received transcripts from the university. I waited the required/requested two weeks and then, a week ago, sent an e-mail. I did not get a reply. All week. So this past Monday, I think it was, I called. Another rude individual answered, listened to my troubles, and then passed me on–WITHOUT A WORD (I thought she hung up on me)–to someone else’s voicemail. I left a message, per instructions, explaining the problem, and included my e-mail and phone number. Needless to say, she did not return my call or e-mail me back. Then Wednesday, I sent a second e-mail to the grad school, asking again for help and saying that this was my second e-mail and that my call had not been returned. I was going to call again at the end of the day today when, lo-and-behold, I finally received a reply by e-mail.
c) Which brings me to another communication bugaboo: rude e-mails. Now I realize that you can’t tell what a person is thinking or feeling from an e-mail. But there is such a thing as basic e-mail politeness, such as starting off a reply with “Dear Renae,” or even just “Hello.” Instead, I get this:
Your application is incomplete due to the following missing items:
Transcript: CC
Recommendation Letters
Statement of Purpose
Transcripts are required from all institutions attended. Transcripts are required from all undergraduate, graduate, professional and foreign institutions that you have attended even if it was only for a single course or college credit awarded while you were in high school.
I happened to be on the computer when this came in. So I immediately replied, with a warm “hello” and “thank you,” even though the person sending was not friendly toward me. I mentioned that my coursework from the community college is included on the university transcripts … and also that I don’t think I need to send the letters and statement since I’m starting off in the certificate program.
A few minutes later, I get this:
Official transcripts are required from all institutions attended. Transcripts are required from all undergraduate, graduate, professional and foreign institutions that you have attended even if it was only for a single course or college credit awarded while you were in high school. Transcripts are needed from all schools attended, including those whose coursework is listed on other transcripts.
Ok, like I could not read that myself the first time? And, as I said earlier, that last fragment there, “including those whose coursework is listed on other transcripts,” is not found anywhere on their Web.
So. Am I wrong to be upset? Am I too picky? I think I am talking myself out of attending this university and obtaining this degree. I could just as easily get another degree at another program, although the degree would be different. And that might be a problem–or not. It depends on what the future holds.
My Recommendations?
And my point in this post is not merely to complain. I wish I could affect change, too! Here’s what I’d do:
1. Require student-facing, grad-school staff to take either an in-person or online seminar in “customer service” to address the rudeness over the phone and in e-mail and the delays in response. There is simply no reason why people can’t treat the person on the other end of the computer or phone with respect, dignity and human decency.
2. Hire someone to fix the grad school Web site. Perhaps students could do it as a project to get rid of the “black hole” and make the “confusing” layout NOT confusing anymore? Sounds simple enough to me.
3. Create a new program Web site, bringing the site into the 21st century, including a new information architecture that makes it easy to navigate and find what you need. Again, I’m thinking grad students could do this. I could do it myself … and if I take the program, maybe I will recommend it as one of my grad projects.
4. Do not require transcripts from a community college if that coursework is already listed on the university transcripts. It simply saves resources–mine and theirs.
5. Require that teachers of online programs respond to student/prospective student e-mails within 24-48 business hours when school is in session. Or, if not, at least ask them to use an auto-responder so students aren’t kept waiting in the dark for a week.
I’m not sure who’s reading this, if anyone. But it sure feels good to get it “out there,” anyway.
P.S. The grad school application page, which I opened before I started this post, is still not loaded. It says, “Read www.xxxxxxx.edu” — and that little circle on the tab on my Firefox browser is still spinning, spinning, spinning.
{Update, June 28th: Despite even more hassles and mis-communications, which I will not detail here, I am finally and “officially” in the graduate program. And I’m so excited to be here! My professor and the other faculty with whom I’m in contact seem very helpful … the first batch of reading I’ve done is fascinating … and I am really looking forward to interacting with others in the class and becoming a “master” in my field. In re-reading this post, I worried that it is too harsh. Minor issues turn major when many of them are added together; criticisms flow easily when I’m riled. That’s probably not such a good thing. I contemplated deleting this blog post–“What if a professor or fellow student from the class finds it?”–but after pondering the issue, I felt it wouldn’t be honest to do so. I still believe the issues raised are valid and need to be addressed, but I just wish I would have initially communicated my frustrations in a more professional way. My goal in this program–from here on out–will be to always take the “high road” by assuming first that others mean well and have good intentions, even if things don’t always turn out the way they or I want. So I toned down my initial “irateness” and left the post here as a reminder to me of a good lesson learned.)
Surely you’ve heard the phrase, “Don’t sweat the small stuff.”
That’s all well and good … in principle. But in practice, a life of “not sweating the small stuff” must be a life in disarray, a life filled with late appointments, unmet expectations, shoddy work.
I confess, I DO sweat the small stuff. When the small stuff goes right, then everything goes right. When I take time to write an excellent, error-free paper, I’m minding the small stuff. My clients will tell you: they’re glad I do. When I take time to clean the house thoroughly, I’m minding the small stuff. What good is vacuuming the rug but leaving that big, nasty “unvacuumed” spot that shouts, “Hey, you forgot me!” When I push myself to get out the door ten minutes early so I can be on time for my appointment with you, I’m minding the small stuff.
So the small stuff does count.
However, what is needed, in addition to sweating the small stuff, is flexibility. Otherwise, you’ll go crazy wondering why others DON’T sweat the small stuff.
Case in point is when I applied for my passport. Because time was of the essence, I sweated the small stuff, or so I thought, reading every jot and tittle on the application form to avoid possible delays. Yet despite my sweating the small stuff, I still got it wrong. Ultimately I did receive the passport in time, but not without headache and heartache.
Another case in point is when I flew cross country to Los Angeles and then internationally to New Zealand. I sweated the small stuff by reading and abiding by the airlines’ baggage rules, even though it meant I had to buy new travel gear to do so. Then, when I traveled, I quickly learned that the airlines don’t sweat the small stuff, even though they wrote the rules. So many people were breaking the rules that I felt like a fool for trying to follow them, even to the point of spending money I didn’t have.
In any case, I’ll continue to sweat the small stuff on my end. But I won’t sweat it too much when others don’t.
Up until not too long ago, this was my online photo:
Now there’s nothing really wrong with it, other than it’s ten years old! Nowadays, and for the last several years, I’ve had very long hair. But I’ve been over it for a while … and I’m tired of all the breakage caused by wearing it up in a ponytail, which is just about the only way I can tolerate it.
So I need your help. Which hairstyle below do you think would look best? I created the images below using a WONDERFUL service that I’d highly recommend: www.thehairstyler.com. Pay $9.95 for 30 days, upload your photo and try on different hairstyles. I love it. It’s worth every penny!
So here are the styles. You can vote for more than one if you’d like, or tell me you hate one or whatever. Please VOTE by using the comments.
Thanks!
DO NUMBER 1
DO NUMBER 2
DO NUMBER 3
DO NUMBER 4
DO NUMBER 5
DO NUMBER 6
DO NUMBER 7
DO NUMBER 8
And here are a few for fun … to make it worth your while for visiting this site and helping me by casting your vote 🙂
Thanks for looking! Now please cast your vote through the comments!
Image courtesy of my husband’s Photoshop-loving dad
Well, despite a pretty good stay at La Quinta North in Charlotte on my way to New Zealand, the stay on the way back disappointed.
Picture this. It’s 10:30 pm. You’ve been traveling for nearly 24 hours, with very little sleep. You’ve just gorged on four slices of Pizza Hut pizza after not eating for a long time. About 30 minutes ago, you took your nighttime meds so you’re feeling the sleepy effect of that as well. And you’re feeling dirty, nasty, smelly, like the toilets on a bus, plane or train at the END of a very long journey.
Gross.
You’re at a hotel, and exhausted. But you know you’d feel oh-so-good if you took a shower before crashing. Come on, you can do it … tough it out. You won’t have to bother showering in the morning … you can sleep later.
So you give your child strict instructions on NOT to answer the phone or open the door or even respond to anyone while you’re in the shower. You gather your belongings, not sure you can do this. You’ve never been so tired in ALL YOUR LIFE.
You enter the bathroom. Lock the door. Start the water. Take off your nasty clothes. Know you’re making the right decision, thinking of how good you’ll feel to fall into a clean bed when you’re nice and clean.
Then you sample the water, ready to adjust the temperature.
It’s splattering out all over the place, spraying you and the floor because someone left it on a strange setting.
And it’s COLD.
So you think you didn’t work the knobs right. That’s ok, you’re exhausted. Try again. Splatter, splatter, soak, soak.
Grab a towel throw it on the floor to sop up this water.
STILL COLD.
So you wiggle it again. Splatter some more. Wait some more. Still cold.
You try the water in the sink.
COLD.
You can’t believe it.
This is a hotel. How can you NOT have hot water? And how come NOW?
So you grit your teeth, try not to have a breakdown (remember, no sleep, carb overload, sleepy meds), turn off the water, put your clean pajamas onto your nasty, smelly, dirty body. Skip the undies … don’t want to dirty those as well.
You call the front desk to explain the problem.
And this is what you’re told: “Oh, I have to come up and fix the water pressure; I’ll do it before I leave.”
You don’t even reply because you have no idea what it is this guy is saying. He is obviously from the islands and has a thick accent. “Water pressure? It’s the hot water. I have NO hot water,” you repeat.
He says, “Yes, I need to turn it on. I will do it before I leave.”
You are stymied. Stupefied. Befuddled. Before he leaves?
“When are you leaving?” you ask, not even sure why you have to be asking this question. Aren’t hotels supposed to have hot water? Isn’t this like a given?
“At 11:00,” he tells you. “I’ll come up there before I go home.”
You can’t believe this. It’s like a really, really, REALLY bad joke. This just doesn’t happen at hotels. How can the hot water not be on? You suddenly realize that it’s going to take a good while for the water to heat up AFTER he turns it on, for whatever inane reason it’s off.
You croak, “I’ve been traveling for more than 24 hours. I’m exhausted. I need a shower.” He said, “I’m sorry for the inconvenience, there’s no one here but me so I’ll come up before I leave.”
You hang up. Dumbfounded. Defeated. Still dirty.
No shower for you.
So you wash your face with cold water. Brush your teeth. And crash.
When you awake at 4:00 in the morning, you suddenly wonder, “Do I have hot water?!?!” So you get out of bed to check. If there’s no hot water, you’re going to be raising cane because you MUST have hot water. You are imaging the conversations you’re going to have with the front desk people, asking to speak to the highest person in corporate, demanding another room just for a shower as there’s no way you’re moving all your stuff.
You stumble into the bathroom in the dark. Turn on the light. And turn on the hot water tap at the sink.
Hot water.
You relax, knowing a hot shower without more hassle is in your near future.
And then you go back to sleep.
This was a true story.
La Quinta, are you listening?
UPDATE: March 6, 2009
After contacting LaQuinta about this incident, the general manager quickly responded. They are refunding what I paid for the night’s stay–something I did not expect–and offered me an upgrade should I return the next time I’m in Charlotte. I’m pleased with this outcome and will certainly give them another go. I liked LaQuinta Charlotte Airport North except for this unfortunate incident. Thanks for making things right!
A few posts ago, I covered a list of new travel gadgets and gizmos I bought in preparation for my trip to New Zealand.
Now, on this sleepless North Carolina night (still must be suffering jet lag), I’ll share my opinions of those products for you to help you decide whether they’ll be right for you on your journey.
Note that I’m not affiliated with any of these firms … no one is paying me to do this. I’m not an affiliate collecting a percentage or anything. I’m doing it simply because I like to read reviews like this to help me make decisions. Plus, I guess I just like writing 🙂
The Travel Products
1. Eagle Creek travel pillows from BackCountry.com
If travel pillows help you sleep sitting up, then this is a good pillow to buy. Pros: It looks and feels like a quality piece. It’s soft. I inflated it quickly with 2-3 breaths. I deflated it quickly simply by pushing in the air valve and squeezing — the air zips right out. It has a removable, washable cover.
Cons: Several reviews I read warned about the material making you sweat. I felt this just a tad, but it was pretty cool on our Air New Zealand flight so it wasn’t much of a problem.
I don’t consider it a product con, but I still wasn’t able to sleep sitting up with this pillow. But I don’t anything beside a really potent drug would work for me. Next time, I may ask my doctor for that very thing as I couldn’t sleep even with an over-the-counter sleep aid.
Good buy? Not for me; I probably could have used a $4 plastic affair with the same non-result. But don’t let this stop you from buying if a neck pillow helps you. I’ll still keep this and use it for long car rides and on future trips.
2. Coolmax travel blanket from BaseGear.com
I purchased this after reading many people complaining about the filthy, awful quality of the blankets provided by airlines. I didn’t want to wrap a dirty piece with unknown blobs of goo and stains all over it around myself. But the Air New Zealand blankets were wrapped in sealed bags. They looked clean and didn’t smell funky. They were large. They were thick and warm. So I didn’t even use my travel blanket inflight, although I did use it at my sister’s place since she had very little stuff yet, her container still being in transit.
Good buy? Not for me. The blanket is very thin … I’m not really sure how warm it would be. But it is larger than the average travel blanket, so that’s something.
3. Baggallini ticket organizer/wallet from Amazon.com
Ok — I initially felt a little scammed here. One reviewer for this product said how she fit “all of her children’s passports” in this product, which cinched it for me. After all, I would only be carrying two passports and boarding stuff and money and one credit card. But it was a tight fit with just two passports; I really had to cram the other papers in.
Also, the reason I bought this was because the airlines say, very clearly, that you’re allowed to bring on-board ONE CARRY ON and ONE SMALL PERSONAL ITEM. Well, I already intended to bring a laptop (for which I had to buy yet another gizmo to ensure it counted only as a “small personal item”) AND a backpack — which meant I couldn’t also carry-on a purse.
So I figured I’d buy a thin travel wallet I could tuck under my vest or jacket — it’s so small that it wouldn’t count as anything at all.
And this wallet, although it certainly won’t hold more than two passports, fit the bill.
Beyond the fact that the airlines obviously don’t pay attention to their own rules .. I could have easily carried on a purse and a regular laptop bag and my backpack without a problem and could have saved my money … I did like using this bag. I left me hands-free and I felt very secure with my cash and credit card and travel documents safely tucked away yet easily accessible inside my vest.
Good buy? Yes. I really liked this, although I could have gone for a more stylish color 🙂 I will use this again, even locally, so I can shop with my money and credit cards at hand without worrying about or carrying a larger purse. I recommend the Baggallini.
4. Panasonic portable waterpik from Amazon.com
Good buy? Yes. I’m glad I had this … if you want to do a really thorough job you need to fill it twice, but it’s easy to do. The unit is small and convenient. And, for a unit that runs of batteries, it’s got a pretty powerful jet, so it gets down in gumline and in the cracks and crevices like you want it to. I recommend this waterpik and will get much use out of it while traveling!
5. Skooba skin laptop sleeve from CSN Stores (in the lovely shade of plum you see here)
First of all, as I mentioned, I bought this for two reasons: 1) so I could go through security without taking my laptop out of the bag and 2) so it would count as a small personal item on the flights. But I didn’t need it for EITHER reason since I had to take the laptop out of the bag at every security checkpoint … AND since I saw plenty, and I mean PLENTY, of people boarding the flights with regular briefcase-style laptop bags … just like the one I had at home to begin with.
So the product was a waste of money in that regard.
But, even if I could have used it to get through security without taking the laptop out … and even if the airlines stuck to their posted rules and required small bags like this for a laptop to count as a small person item … then it still would not have been a good purchase.
I don’t know who designed this thing, but it’s AWFUL to carry, even for very short times. My hands were KILLING me even while getting to the gate at Charlotte. It’s like the carrying handles dig into your hands in the wrong way … very painful to carry. I actually looked in a Brookstone shop at the airport hoping to find padded cushions I could wrap around the handles to make it easier to carry. I dreaded the thought of carrying this around LA and then in New Zealand, so much so that I kept stopping at luggage stores and ogling regular laptop bags. But I just couldn’t bring myself to buy a new bag when THIS was already a new bag and I had a very nice laptop bag sitting in the closet back home.
So I toughed it out.
I do NOT recommend this product, even though it looks cool.
6. Blackberry Storm from Verizon
I have to say … despite a few technical difficulties when I first arrived in New Zealand, I LOVE LOVE LOVE my Blackberry Storm. Since I work on the computer, it seems natural to me to want to extend my “connectedness” to everywhere I am. It was a delight receiving e-mail day and night, wherever I was in New Zealand. And being able to do Facebook updates, basic Web browsing, check weather, take and immediately send slice-of-life-at-the-moment photos to family, talk via GoogleChat …. anytime, anywhere … was truly amazing. And while traveling, I saw LOTS of people with iPhones and Blackberrys and other smartphones, so it seemed like an “in” travel product. Very happy!
Good buy? Yes!
