A letter from...

... my daughter's teacher. She is only in grade 2, and if you have kids, you know how influential and important that role model can be! We have had the most wonderful teachers these 3 years, this last one really going above and beyond. He is creative and involved, and I feel like he does his job with passion because he loves it!

I visited him today on the picket line, brought them coffee, Timbits, buns. They all looked so sad and defeated - they are NOT enjoying this at all! Then just now I opened my email to find this letter to the parents from this teacher:

"Dear parents:

I just got home from my shift at the picket line and I thought I should update you on what is happening. (If you're in a hurry skip the legal rant stuff, and jump to the last paragraph!)

As you are probably aware, teachers will be voting on Monday and Tuesday on whether to escalate the current 1-day-a-week rotating strike to a full-scale strike across the entire Province. This is not a decision any of us will take lightly. The impact this whole mess is having on the kids and parents is sadly very present in our minds. It also greatly impacts non-teaching staff who are not crossing our picket lines in solidarity. Of course it also affects teachers, emotionally and financially.

There is frustration, anger and sadness at a time when we should all be celebrating the past year. In our school alone, teachers have had to cancel trips,concerts and sports events that they had spent countless hours planning, rehearsing and training for. 

You may remember the BC Supreme Court's scathing ruling earlier this year that ruled that the  

Government had illegally removed class size and composition from the teacher's contract in 2002 and 

repeatedly bargained in bad faith to try and push teachers into a full-strike, which never materialized. The Court effectively ordered that the pre-2002 situation be restored; it also ordered the Government to pay $2 Million to the Teachers' Union in legal fees for the 10 year battle. 

Of course, hiring thousands of teachers and reopening the hundreds of schools closed illegally over 10 years has a huge cost, and the Government decided to appeal the ruling for the second time, this time to the Supreme Court of Canada. The hearing is scheduled to start in October and will very likely take months.

You can read about the Supreme Court decision here or read the actual ruling.

Since February we have been expected to bargain with a Government that has been exposed by the Supreme Court as manipulative and deceitful. They are fully aware that at the heart of teachers' preoccupations is the restoration of class size and composition into teachers' contract. Yet, since 

appealing the ruling in February, they have not made a single offer to restore class size and 

composition. The Government is desperate for teachers to sign a deal before June, before the appeal 

goes before the Supreme Court in the Fall. This time their tactic is to lock out teachers during lunch and recess, and forbid us to be at school more than 45 minutes before/after school. This is an unprecedented move to put financial pressure on teachers and push them to agree to a deal before the summer. But I can assure you that as long the offers will not include class size and composition and specialist teachers, we will not sign it.

If you are not sure how class and composition affect your child, I encourage you to visit http://afairdeal.ca/. The teachers' demands are quite clear, although the Government always seems to focus the attention on teachers' wages. 

You will likely hear about the vote results next Tuesday. Our school will be on strike on Wednesday. A very realistic scenario would have teachers going on strike again from the Monday June 16 to the end of the year. This means I may only have 4 days with the class... I was going through all our  

photos together last night, and I cannot say how much this "rushed goodbye" saddens me. I deeply regret that your child and family had to experience this. Believe me it is not what any of us would 

choose to do.

I want to thank all of you for your incredible support in the last few weeks. I sincerely hope to have time to see all of you together before the end of the year, and I would really hate to have to email you my heartfelt gratitude for your incredible support and kindness this year.

On a more positive note: I have been collecting our class photos and videos. If you would like a copy please give G a flashdrive (there's about 4-5GB of stuff) this week.

Live every week like it's our last."

I just want to say that I support the teachers and will help them in any way I can. If anyone has any ideas, please let me know. This teacher is amazing and it would be an awful shame if my daughter didn't get to say goodbye to him (she gets home after the full strike would start).

:(

Summer Doldrums

Is it just me or are things slow around here??

It's been so frantic all winter - JRFM and Peak had me listening at 7, 11, 2, 5, and 7 for what seemed like an eternity, and Jack had me tuning in at 10:10, 11:10, and 2:10 for months! The Beat also roped me in for 7:10, 11:10, and 3:10 (which was a superior pain in the ass when I had to pick my daughter up at 3!) And Zed Effect had me at 8, 12, and 5! GAH!

I was so strapped to my radios that I couldn't seem to get anything else done. Now that things have slowed down to a mere drizzle, I'm exhausted. Burnt out. So thankful for this breather... and chomping at the bit for a new wave of contests!!!

My kids are happy, I actually have time to sit and snuggle with them in the morning, and don't have to rush home every few hours so I can have 3 radios going at once. But I'm at a loss. I don't know what to do with myself! I've changed my furniture, hung the screen door, mowed the lawn. I've baked muffins, washed my cupboards, cleaned out the basement. The sheets are changed, the desk is cleared off, and old clothes have been donated. All that's left is to groom the dogs... and play with my kids, of course!

Hubby and daughter are on their pilgrimage to Germany, they left yesterday for 2 weeks of visiting the Old Country (hubby hasn't been there since he was 11, and then only once!) My little guy and I are just hanging out and he is so much less demanding than the others, I'm really enjoying this quiet. But it's only been one day, 17 hours in fact. I have a feeling we will be missing them soon...

In the meantime, let's hope that one of these wonderful stations steps up with something fun to carry us through the summer! Give me a reason to listen. Please!! I change stations according to my mood, but a contest will often sway my mood. LOL!

If you hear of anything, let me know. I probably only need to put out one schedule per week (Monday) since nothing needs updating daily. Also I will now have time to do up an Online Entry Contests post probably today, possibly tonight. This might be a good time to drum up some of our OWN contests... I'll see what I can put together...

:D

Number crunching...

...today I got to thinking: what are the odds that I could win one of those online contests that I blog about?

The answer: slim to none

Here's why:

Too many others want to win too! Though the radio stations have no shortage of contests and prizes to be won, they have a finite number of giveaways.

Let's take News 1130 as an example of a station with only a few giveaways. How many people have an account and use their points to enter the draws? 500? 5000? 25,000? They have 67,000 Twitter followers, and over 7500 FB likes, so as a conservative estimate let's say that 10,000 people enter the online raffles. With maybe 5 prizes per week, that's 260 per year. If no one wins twice, that's 260 people per year. So if they wanted to spread the love and make sure each of their account holders won at least one prize, it would take 38 years to come full circle so someone would win again.

Let's look at CFOX: 13,000 Twitter followers and 5800 FB likes. Let's say 4000 people regularly enter their online contests (concert tix, movie passes, etc) and they give away 20 per week, that's 1040 per year. It would take about 4 years to come full circle, during which time new people have signed up.

I didn't include the plethora of call-in prizes because they have no control over who wins those - as long as a person hasn't won in the past 30 days, they can win (up to 12 times per year!) With the raffles, I suspect they have some say in who wins...

I only say this because when I first signed up for News 1130's club, I won concert tickets within the first month. Same when I signed up for CFOX - a MAJOR prize within the first month. And nada ever since from either (in YEARS!) So it would seem that new members are more likely to win these raffles...

Have any of YOU won more than once from the same station's online contest??

Get out!!!

Have you ever heard of a place in Richmond called Exit? The first of its kind in Canada (popular in Asia) it offers 4 theme rooms and you PAY them to let you try to escape. For people who love challenges and games, this is an awesome adventure!

You can choose from the lost ship, prison cell, Egyptian crypt, and laboratory. There is only a 1% success rate (!) with the laboratory being the most challenging. Each session can take up to 6 people, and if you book it with a friend ($45 per couple) you may end up in a room with 4 strangers. This can be awkward and daunting if you are shy or just wanted some quality time with your friend, but the advantage of having more people is that there are now more ways of thinking about the clues.

I had called and asked if I can book an entire room and just put my husband in alone - I thought it would be cool to kidnap him and have him wake up in a room and try to figure a way out. I was looking for a unique 50th birthday adventure. Turns out, you need at least two people to get out of three of the rooms (need four hands??) so they said it might not work. Plus, they don't actually LOCK you in, and you can open the door and walk out anytime. I could see someone having a panic attack as the spaces are quite confined and it gets hot in there...

You are given clues and 45 minutes. If you get super stuck, you can ask the hosts to give you a hint, but only twice! You aren't allowed to bring in any accessories - no pens, paper, cell phones, flashlights, etc. Your belongings and those of your game-mates are locked in your room's assigned locker, and you take the key in with you. I stuffed mine in my bra - ain't nobody gettin' in MY locker! LOL! (Actually, the pockets in the pants I was wearing were super shallow and I didn't want it to fall out if I had to do any crawling around. Which I didn't.)

We decided to do this yesterday on the spur of the moment, as my sister-in-law was in town for hubby's birthday and was taking the kids to Extreme Air Park. (So THAT'S what it's like to have family in town!!! It was so amazing to have a free afternoon!) When I went to book it on line, everything for the next two days was booked, with only one space available in a smattering of rooms. BUT there was ONE room that only had two people booked in it, and that was the Lost Ship (the easiest one, apparently). So we signed up (you only register on line, you pay when you get there), and had an hour to get there. The timing was perfect for us!

The room was surprisingly small. The clues were fairly easy, but there was some confusion with the memory sticks (we found 2 in the room, which you plug into a machine and it plays you a clue). There was already a memory stick plugged in when we walked in, but none of us thought to turn it on and see what it said! So when we found the second one, we played it and got the next clue, but they were numbered 1 and 3, so...if there was a 2, we never found it! LOL!

We ended up not being able to figure out the code for the second door, so we had to ask for a hint with only ten minutes left in our game. The others had wanted to ask for help after 20 minutes because none of our codes would open the door. I dissuaded them because I didn't want our adventure to end when we still had 23 minutes left! When we finally got the hint, we were easily able to open the door, only to find....another room!!! WHAT?!?! WTF?!

If I had known there was another room to escape from, I would've asked for that hint at the 20 minute mark! For SURE! Damn, how disappointing. So now we had less than ten minutes to decipher this room, and when we only had 4 minutes left, we asked for our final hint. That got one lock open for us, but our game ended with still one locked box and an unfound treasure. BLARGH!!!

But with only a 1% success rate I don't feel too bad. It was totally, TOTALLY worth the $50 (total, not each)! We will definitely go back! This is a great team-building exercise, and would be a really fun and creative first date too. The props and special effects were simple but so very cool, and now that I've been there once, I know what to expect next time.

The trouble is that now we know how to get out of that first room - if we are in there with people who have never done it before, I don't want to ruin the experience for them by rushing through to the second room. So I will try to book it on the spur of the moment again, and hope that no walk-ins join us if we do the Lost Ship again.

But I really want to check out the crypt room!!!

Back at it!

Apologies...

I don't know if you've noticed or not, but I have been slacking off in my contesting posts lately. As my husband's 50th birthday neared, the burden of keeping the surprises a secret really weighed me down! I couldn't concentrate on anything else and couldn't wait for the date to pass. Now that the party is over (and he was SUPER surprised!) I can once again put a greater effort into the contests...

First up: the online contests! I will write that up today while my little guy is in preschool. Then I'm going to step it up a notch and do some posts about other, non-radio contests. I am suddenly re-energized and pumped!

So if you see any contests online and you feel like sharing, send me a link and I'll post it. Even if it's not something I would want to win for myself, I always share in case someone else might be interested.

Let's slap on our WINNING smiles and get busy!

:D

Weekend Rap-Up May 12th

Well, I'm up early so let's do this!

Friday night I crashed your party,
Saturday I said I'm sorry,
Sunday came and... Oops! Let's start over.

Saturday was the Sonic Escape party
Had a great time
Didn't win the car but that was alrighty
Maybe next time

The KCS were looking fine
Randi sure is pretty
That Andrew is a looker too,
Charming and a little flirty

Ball Buster Suzie is surprisingly short
She packs a lot of punch in that frame
And Kid of course was handsome as ever
I wonder if that's his real name?

When I was in high school
I called myself Kidd
Two Ds 'cause I was cool
Nicknames is what we did (?!)

Mother's Day was disappointing
Just wanted to be alone
But hubby was busy in the morning
It was noon before he got home!

Then he took kids to Playland
So I spent the day cleaning
Which for me is super relaxing
When kids aren't around screaming!

:D

Can I get a HELL YEAH?!?!

Oooooh, how I love, love, LOVE JRFM!!!

Firstly, let's all give thanks to the promo peeps for laying YSIWPI to rest. Yes, they gave away a ton of money; yes they helped a lot of deserving people; yes, it kept us tuning in; and yes, yes, YES, we got to know many of the listeners better. There were so many NICE things about this contest that I don't want to say anything bad about it.

So I won't.

But what's THIS?!? Another awesome and exciting prize for the Best Call of the Week, that's what! Man, these people really know how to treat their listeners...

But wait! It's not quite as simple as it seems... you still have to wade into shark infested waters. So roll up your pant legs and make sure you don't have any open wounds - they can smell blood, and even more ominously, they can smell fear. Do not call unprepared, as a simple hesitation can get your call cut off. I can just see Karen ROLLING her eyes at the dead air...

So if you do go wading into those waters, you'd best take some shark repellent - a damned good story! Witty comments and interesting stories are welcome, but please, please, PUH-LEEEEEASE don't sing! Making them laugh is a sure bet so a great joke or anecdote (even a lymeric) might do it.

Oh! And here's what you win: a trip to Nashville for the CMAs, plus a meet and greet with Rascal Flats! Rascal frigging Flats!!! Eeeeeeeee!!! Their song "Broken Road" was our wedding song 8 years ago and still brings a tear to my eye... *sigh*

I look forward to hearing the winner squeal with delight on Friday!

:D

Oh Seth...

Last night we went to a movie for the first time this year. The passes were given to us by a kind person who had won them from Breakfast Television but couldn't go due to work. I put a shout out to my friends and one offered to babysit, so all of the stars aligned to make this happen. So now I'm going to a FREE movie, we have a babysitter we trust, and the movie (Neighbours) was purported to be "the funniest movie in a loooong time". I was SO excited!!

For some reason, I'm a big fan of Seth Rogen. Maybe because he's from Vancouver, maybe because he's so down to earth, maybe because he's goofy and endearing. But when I think about it, I can't actually name a single one of his movies that I thought was great, or even good. His role in 40 Year Old Virgin was my favourite! But as a lead, I don't think he can carry a movie.

Zac Effron is in this, and I've never seen him in anything so I had no idea what to expect. I didn't expect to be blown away, but I did hope to be entertained.

And I was! But only in a few guffaw-inducing memorable scenes. Overall the movie was disjointed, and I think the editors were stoned. There were scenes that left us wondering WHY they were even included in the movie, were they just filling space? Most notably, the Robert DeNiro party scene. And what was with all of those overly-repeated I Love Yous near the end?! Did they run out of lines? I can't imagine the director telling them "say it again!" Strange and irrelevant. Awkward.

Speaking of awkward, Seth's sex scenes were exactly that! Cringe-worthy and uncomfortable. Filled with too much dialogue (does he really say that stuff when he's actually having sex?? "Oh yeah, this is happening, it's happening right now, on this chair, oh yeah" Ugh! Stuff a sock in it!)

Zac Efron was a surprise to me - I had no idea he was so pretty!! And his acting was really good, for what it was. I will definitely go see another of his movies...

My favourite character was their divorced friend. He had the best lines and his comedic timing was perfect, though he ended up being sucked into the black hole of unfunniness in the end.

It had its funny moments for sure, but overall it was disappointing. It didn't live up to the hype (in my opinion) but I still love Seth. My husband said it was "Jackass good", which means it wasn't a blockbuster but it was good for the genre - a cross between Porky's, Animal House, and American Pie. But as my husband so eloquently put it, "a hot dog is still a hotdog, even if it's the best hotdog at the BBQ."

LOL!

Weekend Rap-Up, April 27th

I put the computer away, closed my eyes, then realized I hadn't written my Weekend Rap-Up yet! If I don't write it now, I will literally dream about it, so may as well put in an effort before sleeping...

Before I met hubby
Friday nights were the bomb
Now they're Early-to-bed
Because I'm a mom

Saturdays are for classes
And piano lessons
Fodder for their adulthood
Psychotherapy sessions

Saturday night I babysat
So friends could go out
They will pay me in kind
There is no doubt

I worked there in peace
Their house is so quiet
At ours, 2 kids, 2 dogs
There's always a riot

Sunday the runners got rained on
Stayed inside
Kinda felt bad
I was all snug and dry

When the sun came out
So did We
Worked hard, now my yard
Is dandelion-free

Pulled out my neighbours' too
But I'm not altruistic
I'd probably say
More pessimistic

If I didn't pull them out
They'd go to seed
End up in my yard anyway
And I'd have more to weed!

:D

Easter Weekend Rap-Up

Kid Carson is off but we can still do the weekend rap-up:

Friday was blah day
Did nothing of note
Made it through bedtime
That's all she wrote.

Saturday we garage-saled
Bought more crap
Beware of loss leaders
They're a trap!

The library is my favourite kind of fun
It's free!
Books and videos for the kiddos
Nada for me

Sushi for lunch
The kids just love it
Edamame and California rolls
Gotta have it!

Dinner at the Keg
Was a real special treat
Triple baked potatoes
Can't be beat!

The gift certificate exhausted
We took our leave
Went bowling at the Zone
Fun like you wouldn't believe!

Easter Sunday started at 6
The bunny had come
Left chocolate eggs hidden
Plenty for everyone

Another egg hunt
And brunch with friends
Kids always whine
When that fun ends

Protect the grass
By mending the fence
Hey, it's 4/20 today!
The smoke downtown is dense...

:)

Solitary parenting

I sent a text to a friend asking if her kids were available for a play date today. She just texted me back and said her parents were coming to take her boys for the day. Tears stung my eyes as I cringed in envy.

Never has anyone offered to take my children for an afternoon. Never.

It's not because my kids are bad kids, and hopefully it's not because people don't like us. But all of the people we know have "people". They either have family nearby or live-in relatives or church/community helpers or a nanny or money to pay a babysitter. We have no one, not even a distant cousin, and certainly no money to pay a sitter!

Well, the solutions seems simple - trade days with another family! We take their kids for an afternoon and they take ours on another day. Each set of parents gets a much-needed date to reconnect, while the kids get to have a nice long play date. But there-in lies the problem - no one we know NEEDS us!!! Why would they take MY kids for 3 hours when they don't need me to take their kids in return? They already get plenty of breaks - an hour here, a day there, sometimes entire weekends. So they see no reason to inconvenience their quiet afternoon with a three hour play date...

But despite their reluctance to help me, I am always available and willing to help them - pick up kids, drop off kids, take their kids when they aren't feeling well. Maybe the problem is that we have two kids - it's easy to find a play date for the older one, but the younger one doesn't have any of his own friends. The only time he gets a play date is when the older one has a friend over! And we all know how much fun it is to have your little brother bothering you when you have a friend over...

They say it takes a village. Man, I wish we lived in a village! Everyone would know each other, look out for each other, know instinctively when someone is at the end of their rope and needs help.

Who wants to start a village?!?!

:-/

JRFM Proposal

At some point last night while I was sleeping, the Idea Fairy came and bonked me on the head! I prefer it when she just whispers in my ear because the bonk woke me up...

She told me it would be really great if JRFM had a Community Page, akin to Craig's List but for members only. It would be easy to set up as an extra page on their website - call it, I dunno, JRFM Community Pages or something - and only Online Insiders can post there.

What would they post there? All manner of things!

- announcements
- things for sale
- help needed (eg. Barn raising)
- garage sales
- offers (free things, babysitting, etc)
- horse stuff (lessons, supplies, etc)
- country music (song lyrics, original songs, etc)

The coolest format would be like a peg board where there are a bunch of posts with categories. Each peg could lead to another peg board full of pegs about that subject. Or simply a Craig's List type of layout where they can filter items - For Sale, Free, key word search, etc. or maybe Instagram or Pinterest might be a better venue, but I don't know anything about them - do you have to be a member of a board to pin to it?

Wherever they put it,  I am SURE it will get plenty of use! How many times have you wanted to get a message out to other country music fans but didn't have a roof to shout it from?! "Hey, anybody got a rototiller I can borrow?" "Hey, anybody selling a pair of black cowboy boots?" "Hey, anybody hear the 2 pm YSIWPI name?" "Hey, anybody going to Sunfest and got room in their car??"

Maybe this has already been tried, but I feel like now is the time that this could really work. If you look at the JRFM FaceBook posts, some of them would've been perfect for the Community Pages! I would post there all the time, and visit it multiple times per day. I love helping people so would check the Help Wanted section daily. I may not have much, but I probably have something that somebody needs, even if it's just a helping hand...

Thoughts??

The Zed CARS

So... did any of you catch the new Z95.3 morning show??? What did you think? Feel free to speak (or email me) candidly...

The following paragraph(s) are my take. Please stop reading now if you think you might be offended or insulted. This is an opinion piece, and reflects only my own personal reality. Your experience may have, and undoubtedly was, different.

Meh.

I was expecting more, I think. I had visions of the Friends gang chatting over coffee at Central Perk, or at least some warmth or...or...I don't know what! But maybe I had unreal expectations - after all, these people had only just met each other (from what I gather). They will need time to settle in, get to know each other, get comfortable and familiar with their new audience.

It might be a good idea to lock them in a room at Exit in Richmond so they can do some team building and then have a shared experience they can laugh about on air...

Of course I will give them another listen, probably a LOT of other listens, as it's not fair to judge a show or its hosts after just one day, a measly four hours. But I feel like I didn't get to know them at ALL today! This is an odd complaint - and probably completely opposite of most radio show complaints - but they played too much music! LOL! I was waiting for more get-to-know-us banter. The few exchanges I heard were a bit contrived, even awkward, and they sounded like they were trying too hard.

Ruby and Cruise both have somewhat high and exuberant voices (can I call a voice exuberant??) so their conversations seemed rushed and overexcited. Maybe they will calm down in the coming weeks once they find their groove.

There was a time this morning when I left the room to do something and when I got back I thought my husband had changed the station to The Beat! GAH!! So they brought in a Beat-ish crew to compete with The Beat - makes perfect sense, actually. They are looking for a younger, hipper, cooler audience that can relate to them.

I may now be too old for this station...

:(

Monday April 7th

I will be setting my alarm for 5 before I go to sleep - I want to get up early to get my coffee ready and settle in to listen to Cruby (Cruise and Ruby) on Z95.3! I love new beginnings...

Also at 5:40 Clay and Karen (Claren??) give the secret word, and that's always a fun phone call - people are not their sharpest at that hour and there can be awkward silences and miscommunications... great radio fodder! LOL!

5 out of 6 Mystery Laughs on Rock 101 have been guessed. Today could be the day they give away $10,000!!!

They are still taking qualifiers on Jack for that trip to Portland and 2 awesome concerts (so sweet!!) and on Sonic for the trip to Las Vegas (yahoo!!).

Z-FX is back and starts at 8 am. Guess the sound effect for cashola! Sooooo excited!!

5:40 - JRFM, give the secret word (?)
6-9 - JRFM, tix to Blake Shelton

6:30 - CFOX, Stump the Show (tix to an event of your choice)

7-9 - JRFM, Secret Word is said (invites to see Jess Moskaluke in the JRFM Fan Jam Lounge?)

7:00 - JRFM, You Say It, We Pay It qualifier name
7:35. - Z95.3, Cash Quiz for up to $1000

7:40 - Rock 101, IQ Test

7:40 - Jack, qualify for trip to Portland
8:00 - Z95.3, Z-FX (guess the sound effect)

8:00 - CFOX, Every Second Counts

8:00 - Rock 101, Famous Laughs

8:09 - QMFM, Beat the Bank

8:10 - Sonic, qualify for trip to Las Vegas to see Marianas Trench
8:10 - Beat, qualify to win a car

8:20 - Jack, No Time to Google 

9:40 - Jack, qualify for trip to Portland

10 - 10:30, Jack, Win at Work name (after Your Love by The Outfield)
10-3 - QMFM, Safeway auction prize (headphones, gift cards, etc)
10:10 - Beat, qualify to win a car
11:00 - Peak, secret Bastille private show location announced 

11:00 - JRFM, You Say It, We Pay It qualifier name

11:00 - Rock 101, Famous Laughs

11-11:30 - Jack, Win at Work name (after Poker Face by Lady Gaga)

11:40 - Jack, qualify for trip to Portland
12:00 - Z95.3, Z-FX (guess the sound effect)

12:00 - CFOX, Every Second Counts

12:10 - Sonic, qualify for trip to Las Vegas to see Marianas Trench
12:10 -  Beat, qualify to win a car

12:15 - JRFM, Lunch Bite ($25 to Subway)

2:00 - JRFM, You Say It, We Pay It qualifier name

2:00 - Rock 101, Famous Laughs

2-2:30 - Jack, Win at Work name (after Carry On Wayward Son by Kansas)
2:10 - Beat, qualify to win a car

2:40 - Jack, qualify for trip to Portland

4-5 - JRFM, U-Turn (invites to see Jess Moskaluke in the JRFM Fan Jam Lounge)

4:00 - CFOX, Every Second Counts

4:09 - QMFM, Beat the Bank

4:10 - Sonic, qualify for trip to Las Vegas to see Marianas Trench
4:10 - Beat, qualify to win a car

4:40 - Jack, qualify for trip to Portland
5:00 - Z95.3, Z-FX (guess the sound effect)

5:00 - JRFM, You Say It, We Pay It qualifier name

5:00 - Z95.3, Fresh Five at Five ($50 for Subway)

5:00 - Rock 101, Mystery Laughs
6-10 - Beat, tix to The Wanted
6:10 - Beat, qualify to win a car

6:40 - Jack, qualify for trip to Portland

7:00 - JRFM, You Say It, We Pay It qualifier name

8:10 - Sonic, qualify for trip to Las Vegas to see Marianas Trench

Good luck!

:)

Z-FX is BACK!!!

Do you remember when 95.3 on the FM dial was Z95.3? Do you remember their awesome, exciting, often infuriating sound effects game?? It's baaaaaaaack!!!

For the next month, every weekday at 8, 12, and 5 they will play the sound effect and caller 9 will have a chance to guess what it is. The jackpot starts at $200, and another $200 is added every time somebody gets it wrong. So in the first day the jackpot will go from $200 to $600 provided nobody guesses what the sound is.

Among the previous sound effects they used, the most memorable for me were a credit card running across stubble on a cheek, a scale, and the sound of a propane tank on a BBQ opening. Impossible to guess?? You would think so, but after days and sometimes weeks of guesses, with the jackpot rising each time, somebody would get it right. And after they said it, you'd think "YEAH, that's exactly what it sounds like!!!" I remember standing at a pay phone dialing frantically trying to get through and listening to a portable radio while they took call after call, trying to end the game and give away the jackpot. I believed it was faster to use a pay phone back then, as my cell phone was old and useless. These days I think my smartphone will do fine!

The bonus of this first round of the reintroduced game is that everyone who plays gets invites to the Z95.3 Launch Party! Eeeee!! I don't even care what the sound effect is - I'll call in and make a lame-ass guess just to get into the party!!! I don't know when it is or where it is, I just want to be there! While some May view this as the icing on the cake, for me this IS the cake. I love a good party, and I'm super excited about meeting the new hosts.

Speaking of the new hosts, Ruby and Cruise (with Simone and Producer Art) will be hitting the airwaves at 5:30 Monday morning. I'm just going to go ahead and name them Cruby now, if that's okay with you. Or we could call them The CARS, or SCAR, or ARCS, or CRAS, or...? Of these, I think I prefer Cruby...

I have high hopes for this foursome! Let's review after the first week and see how they did. Send your thoughts and comments to contestsvancouver@gmail.com and tell me how YOU think they did.

ZED IS BACK!!! WOOT!!!

Angst and confusion

Is anyone else feeling this way about JRFM's new contest?

I wrote about it earlier in the week expressing my disappointment and sadness over the You Say It We Pay It contest. After the first two days it was clear that this was not going to be a feel-good type of contest...

In most radio contests there is an instant solution - you were either caller 9 or you weren't. You frantically dial your phone(s) and don't have time to think about What Ifs - what if you get through, what if you're not the right caller, what if you don't get through at all, what if you WIN?! There's no time for stewing, you just jump into action. And you know the results within minutes.

With this YSIWPI contest, there is ONLY time - time to wait for your name to be called, time to wait for voting to start, time to watch your votes rise (or more agonizingly, NOT rise). First it gives you hope, then like a lobster it lets you sit in the pot on the stove while the water slowly comes to a boil. You don't feel a thing and before you know it, you're cooked! Blech, that was a weird analogy!

Anyway, I'm sure you get what I mean. Unlike the "qualify for a trip to Stagecoach" contest, this one has nothing to do with luck. And that makes it more personal. We feel like we are being judged by strangers - it's like high school again!

- Is my hard-luck story not hard-luck enough for strangers to vote for me?
- did I sound like I didn't need the money when I spoke on air?
- did I make my entry too fun?
- don't I have enough friends who will vote for me?

Now that the voting has started, it's even worse. I feel bad voting for one and not the other, and that makes me not want to vote for anyone. After this first 12 hours of the voting phase, it is clear that Ryan will win - his story of fertility struggles touched us all deeply and we want he and his wife to have another chance at starting a family. And unlike some of the other entries, no one can help them with this journey. Only money will help, unless you own a fertility clinic!

So, while the other contestants watch the gap between their votes and Ryan's votes grow ever wider, how are they feeling? Do they feel like their story was frivolous? Do they feel undeserving? Do they feel pushed aside?

If YOU were one of the other contestants, I want you to know something: I think your story was equally deserving, and I hope someone steps up to help if you don't win.

Kaitlin - I hope somebody has a brand new bed in their garage that they aren't using.
Tina - I hope someone has extra Luke Bryan tickets.
Janet - I'm certain there are a dozen unused dirt bikes in garages waiting for riders.
Courtney - who owns a restaurant and can help with a nice dinner? And concert tickets?
Heather - anyone have one of those cool hockey beds or materials for building one?
Rhonda and Darcie - I hope a contractor steps up and brings a crew to your house one weekend!
Kimberly and Michael - someone with air miles could help these two.

If I had the means to help any of them - plastic surgery, BMX bike repairs, a new car - I would. And what's worse is knowing that NEXT week's entries will be equally heart wrenching and deserving! GAH!!!

This type of contest would be better around Christmastime, when people are feeling generous and looking for good deeds to perform. In the coming weeks there will be many opportunities for helping people out! Let's see...what could I help somebody out with...is anyone in need of slightly used baby or toddler clothes? Or a fish tank with 3 little silver fish that nobody feeds and the kids lost interest in a year ago? How about a used scooter bike (no pedals, for little kids). Not fancy but functional. Kinda like me! :D

I'm undecided on whether I will go back and vote more this weekend. Probably. I tend to pull for the underdog, so will likely vote for those with the lowest numbers because I don't want them to feel bad. But I think they probably already gave up the fight...

I love, love, LOVE JRFM! They do SO many good things, for their listeners AND their community! The country fans are among the world's most generous and caring people! I just wish they had made this a draw rather than a voting game. It would've been easier on all of us. It's nicer to know that the losing wasn't personal, just random. It's a softer blow to the ego...

Finally Friday!!!

The JRFM YSIWPI game is heartbreaking. I hope they don't call my name till the last week! More about that in the post here.

The Beat should be making an announcement about an exciting new contest tomorrow, which will likely start on Monday. 

Z95.3 is starting some exciting things on Monday - new morning show hosts, and an old game brought back to life! Remember Zed-Effects??? O.M.G., I'm so excited!!!

4 out of 6 Mystery Laughs on Rock 101 have been guessed. I have a list of people I think the others could be, but it's impossible to get through... Want to see my list in case YOU get through?? ;)

5:40 - JRFM, give the secret word ($50 C-Lovers GC)

6:30 - CFOX, Stump the Show (tix to an event of your choice)
7-8 - Shore, tix to The Fray

7-9 - JRFM, Secret Word is said (invites to see Jess Moskaluke in the JRFM Fan Jam Lounge)

7:00 - JRFM, You Say It, We Pay It qualifier name
7:05 - QMFM, Fleetwood Mac tix
7:35. - Z95.3, Cash Quiz for up to $1000

7:40 - Rock 101, IQ Test

7:40 - Jack, qualify for trip to Portland

8:00 - CFOX, Every Second Counts

8:00 - Rock 101, Famous Laughs

8:09 - QMFM, Beat the Bank

8:10 - Sonic, qualify for trip to Las Vegas to see Marianas Trench

8:15 - Peak, Fast Romantics tix

8:20 - Jack, No Time to Google (Fleetwood Mac tix)

9:40 - Jack, qualify for trip to Portland

10 - 10:30, Jack, Win at Work name (after All Apologies by Nirvana)

10-3 - QMFM, tickets to see The Fray

11:00 - JRFM, You Say It, We Pay It qualifier name

11:00 - Rock 101, Famous Laughs

11-11:30 - Jack, Win at Work name (after West End Girls by Pet Shop Boys)

11:40 - Jack, qualify for trip to Portland

12:00 - CFOX, Every Second Counts

12:10 - Sonic, qualify for trip to Las Vegas to see Marianas Trench

12:15 - JRFM, Lunch Bite ($25 to Subway)

1:15 - Peak, Bastille tix to caller 102!

2:00 - JRFM, You Say It, We Pay It qualifier name

2:00 - Rock 101, Famous Laughs

2-2:30 - Jack, Win at Work name (after Hey Soul Sister by Train)

2:40 - Jack, qualify for trip to Portland
3-7 - Sonic, Kootenay prize pack (BEER!) and Whistler lift tix (4)

4-5 - JRFM, U-Turn (invites to see Jess Moskaluke in the JRFM Fan Jam Lounge)

4:00 - CFOX, Every Second Counts

4:09 - QMFM, Beat the Bank

4:10 - Sonic, qualify for trip to Las Vegas to see Marianas Trench

4:40 - Jack, qualify for trip to Portland

5:00 - JRFM, You Say It, We Pay It qualifier name

5:00 - Z95.3, Fresh Five at Five ($50 for Subway)

5:00 - Rock 101, Mystery Laughs

6:40 - Jack, qualify for trip to Portland

7:00 - JRFM, You Say It, We Pay It qualifier name
7:15 - Peak, $50 to Hard Rock Casino

8:10 - Sonic, qualify for trip to Las Vegas to see Marianas Trench

Good luck!

:)

Rock 101 Mystery Laughs updates

Find the updated post here:

http://www.contestsvan.com/2014/04/rock-101-mystery-laughs-round-3/

See you there!!

The audio of the Mystery Laughs is on my iPad but I can't seem to post it in the blog or on Twitter or on FaceBook! Technologically challenged, I guess. So email me and I can send you a copy of the audio (which is just a video of my radio as I recorded it. Again, technologically challenged.) contestsvancouver@gmail.com

Below are the clues and guesses for each day:

Friday, March 21st

Clue: #1 is a Rock star.

8 am: Gene Simmons, Kimmy, Alece, Willy, Nikki, Frankenstein. 0/6

11 am: Brad Pitt, Steve Harper, Alice Cooper, Eddie Lack, Tom Cruise, Willy. 0/6

2 pm: Mick Jagger, Seth Rogen, Paul Walker, Rob Ford, Axl Rose, Tom Hanks. 0/6

5 pm: Jack Nicholson, Keith Richards, Tom Cruise, John Travolta, Oprah, Julia Roberts. 1/6

Jack, Keith, John, Oprah, or Julia is right! Which one is it?? One sounds like John Travolta to me, so I hope someone guesses that again so we know for sure...

Monday,  March 24th

Clue: among other things, #4 is known for a game of golf.

8 am: Red Skelton, Jack Lemmon, Angelina Jolie, Goldie Hawn, Bill Murray, George Clooney. 0/6

11 am: Keith Richards, Tommy Chong, Prince Charles, John Glen, Jennifer Anniston, Jim Carey. 1/6

2 pm: Keith Richards, Sting, John Goodman, Jason Day, Jimmy Fallon, Eddie Murphy. 1/6.

5 pm: Heath Ledger, Gregor Robertson, Jay Leno, Adam Sandler, Micheal J. Fox, Kevin Spacey. 0/6

Tuesday, March 25th

Clue: #1 shares a birthday with Steven Spielberg.

8 am: Keith Richards, Leonardo DiCaprio, Donald Trump, Justin Timberlake, Woody Allen, Samuel Jackson. 1/6

#1 is Keith Richards. Who are the others???

11 am: Keith Richards, Sean Penn, Sandra Bullock, Brother Jake, Matthew McConaughey, Travis Lulay. 1/6

2 pm: Keith Richards, Tiger Woods, Steve Carrell, Bruce Jenner, Jimmy. Kimmel, Steve Martin. 1/6

5 pm: Joe Biden, Trevor Linden, John Candy, Brett Michaels, Alan Arkin, Bill Gates

Wednesday, March 26th

Clue: #2 had a 70th birthday LAST year.

8 am: Keith Richards, Jerry Springer, Meryl Streep, Bob Barker, John Mellencamp, Steven Tyler. Same 1/6 right.

11 am: Keith Richards, Chevy Chase, Jimmy Fallon, David Duvall, Jake Gyllenhaal, Tom Hanks. 2/6

2 pm: I heard these but was out so couldn't write them down, and the site isn't updated yet. One of them was right - which one was it?! (Jennifer Lawrence, Robert DeNiro, Jim Morrison, George Harrison, Joe Pesci, Sammy Hagar are what are on Rock 101's site - is that right??)

5 pm: Keith Richards, Christopher Walken, Vin Diesel, Patrick Swayze, Piers Morgan, Donald Sutherland. 1/6

I MISSED THE 2 PM NAMES!!! Anybody?? Anybody???

Thursday, March 27th

Clue: #4 was an SNL cast member.

8 am: Keith Richards, Robert DeNiro, Billy Crystal, Norm McDonald, David Spade, Will Ferrell. 2/6 right and in the right spot!

11 am: Keith Richards, Robert DeNiro, Matt Damon, Bill Murray, Robin Williams, Jerry Seinfeld. 2/6 right, in right order.

2 pm: KeithRichards, Robert DeNiro, Alain Vigneault, Gilda Radner, Martin Short, Cameron Diaz. 2/6 right, in right order.

5 pm: Keith Richards, Robert DeNiro, Dan Aykroyd, Rob Schneider, Woody Harrelson, Quentin Tarantino. 2/6 right, in right order.

Friday, March 28th

Clue: #6 was in a movie with Will Ferrell.

8 am:  KR, RD, Eddie Murphy, John Lovitz, Vince Vaughn, Will Arnett. 2/6 in the right place. 

11 am: KR, RD, Jonah Hill, Randy Quaid, Oprah, Sasha Baron Cohen. 2/6

2 pm: KR, RD, Phil Hartman, Jason Sedakis, John C. Riley, Zach Galafinakis. 2/6

5 pm: KR, RD, Bono, Chevy Chase, Tortorella, Owen Wilson. 3/6 right.

So #1 is Keith Richards, #2 is Robert DeNiro, and #4 is Chevy Chase. Do you agree?

Monday, March 31st

Clue: One of the giggles is from Down Under

8 am: KR, RD, Hugh Jackman, Kevin Nealon, Rob Sneider, Owen Wilson. 3/6, 2 in right spot!!!

11 am: KR, RD, Keith Chevy Chase, Arsenio Hall, David Spade. 3/6 in right spot!!

2 pm: KR, RD, Keith Urban, Mike Meyers, Bono, Paul Rudd 2/6

5 pm: KR, RD, Arsenio Hall, Jim Belushi, Tortorella, Mike Tyson 2/6

Tuesday, April 1st

Clue: laugh #1 is a Rolling Stone. 

8 am: KR, RD, Jim Morrison, Tiger Woods, Meryl Streep, David Spade 2/6

11 am: KR, Mel Gibson, Anne Arquette, Danny Glover, Mike Tyson, Arnold Swartzenegger 1/6

2 pm: KR, RD, Johnny Knoxville, Chevy Chase, Chris Hemsworth, Owen Wilson 3/6

Wednesday, April 2nd

Clue: there are no height restrictions on being a laugher.

8 am: KR, RD, Bob Seger, CC, Angus Young, Queen Latifah. 3/6

11 am: KR, RD, Paul Hogan, CC, Gordon Ramsay, Vern Troyer. 3/6

2 pm: KR, RD, Danny Devito, CC, Steve Irwin, Ben Stiller. 3/6

5 pm: KR, RD, John Travolta, CC, Danny Devito, Russell Crowe. 3/6

Thursday, April 3rd

Clue: #3 and #5 have both played the same character in multiple movies.

8 am: KR, RD, Mel Gibson, CC, Jason Bateman, Peter Dinklage. 4/6

11 am: KR, RD, Johnny Depp, CC, Keanu Reeves,bPeter Dinklage. 4/6

2 pm: KR, RD, Kristian Bale, CC, Micheal Keaton, Peter Dinklage 4/6

5 pm: KR, RD, Christopher Walken, CC, ? Galecki?, Peter Dinklage 4/6

Friday, April 3

Clue: #5 is not North American.

8 am: 

Thursday the third

Due to some WordPress issues, I'm posting on this site for now. Sorry for the confusion, hope you can follow along...

The JRFM YSIWPI game is heartbreaking. More of that in the post here.

Today is your last chance to win $15,000 from The Beat. I look forward to their next contest - hopefully they spread the wealth a bit.

3 out of 6 Mystery Laughs on Rock 101 have been guessed. I have a list of people I think the others could be, but it's impossible to get through... Want to see my list in case YOU get through?? ;)

5:40 - JRFM, give the secret word ($50 C-Lovers GC)

6:30 - CFOX, Stump the Show (tix to an event of your choice)

7-9 - JRFM, Secret Word is said (invites to see Jess Moskaluke in the JRFM Fan Jam Lounge)

7:00 - JRFM, You Say It, We Pay It qualifier name
7:05 - QMFM, Fleetwood Mac tix
7:35. - Z95.3, Cash Quiz for up to $1000

7:40 - Rock 101, IQ Test

7:40 - Jack, qualify for trip to Portland

8:00 - CFOX, Every Second Counts

8:00 - Rock 101, Famous Laughs

8:09 - QMFM, Beat the Bank

8:10 - Sonic, qualify for trip to Las Vegas to see Marianas Trench
8:10 - Beat, $15,000 to caller 94

8:15 - Peak, Fast Romantics tix

8:20 - Jack, No Time to Google (Fleetwood Mac tix)

9:00 - Shore, tix to The Fray

9:40 - Jack, qualify for trip to Portland

10 - 10:30, Jack, Win at Work name (after Sweet Home Alabama by Lynyrd Skynyrd)

10-3 - QMFM, tickets to see The Fray

11:00 - JRFM, You Say It, We Pay It qualifier name

11:00 - Rock 101, Famous Laughs

11-11:30 - Jack, Win at Work name (after All I Wanna Do by Sheryl Crow)

11:40 - Jack, qualify for trip to Portland

12:00 - CFOX, Every Second Counts

12:10 - Sonic, qualify for trip to Las Vegas to see Marianas Trench

12:15 - JRFM, Lunch Bite ($25 to Subway)

1:15 - Peak, Bastille tix to caller 102!

2:00 - JRFM, You Say It, We Pay It qualifier name

2:00 - Rock 101, Famous Laughs

2-2:30 - Jack, Win at Work name (after Let's Dance by David Bowie)

2:40 - Jack, qualify for trip to Portland
3-7 - Sonic, Kootenay prize pack (BEER!) and Whistler lift tix (4)

4-5 - JRFM, U-Turn (invites to see Jess Moskaluke in the JRFM Fan Jam Lounge)

4:00 - CFOX, Every Second Counts

4:09 - QMFM, Beat the Bank

4:10 - Sonic, qualify for trip to Las Vegas to see Marianas Trench

4:40 - Jack, qualify for trip to Portland

5:00 - JRFM, You Say It, We Pay It qualifier name

5:00 - Z95.3, Fresh Five at Five ($50 for Subway)

5:00 - Rock 101, Mystery Laughs

6:40 - Jack, qualify for trip to Portland

7:00 - JRFM, You Say It, We Pay It qualifier name
7:15 - Peak, $50 to Hard Rock Casino

8:10 - Sonic, qualify for trip to Las Vegas to see Marianas Trench

Good luck!

:)

This JRFM contest SUCKS!!!

And I'll tell you WHY it SUCKS: not everyone can win. :(

In the beginning, before the game actually started, it was all light and fun, with pictures of rainbows and fuzzy bunnies. I even wrote a post about writing a silly entry. Then the game started and reality hit: people REALLY need help!

Just hearing the entries read and hearing the qualifier explain their reason further on air isn't enough. Ooooooh no. Have you read any of the comments on JRFM's FaceBook page?? Not only are there dozens of people sharing their stories on the YSIWPI posts, they have also posted directly onto JRFM's wall. You could easily spend an hour reading all the tales of woe.

And I don't say that in jest - they TRULY are tales of woe. Dying relatives, disabled children, sick ones needing medicine, poor families needing simple basics (food in the cupboards, bus passes, clothes). Some ask for little (concert tickets, a dinner out), some ask for more (plane tickets, renovations, vehicles).

When they announced the contest, they encouraged people to ask for what they wanted. Ask for $5000 for shoes and purses, ask for $9,999 for a dream wedding. So we did. And now the shamers are chiming in, making us feel like we SHOULDN'T have asked for ANYTHING. The morally superior listeners asked for money to donate to shelters, SPCA, children's charities, third world countries, the food bank. All honorable and admirable. That is what THEY would do with the money. But I don't think they should be throwing stones at others who chose to ask for the money for themselves (which is what the contest was originally meant for).

Yes, of course we want the man and his wife to have money for fertility treatments or adoption papers. That goes without saying! But what about the single parent who was widowed and needs to feed their children? Now you have to make a morally challenging decision: do you support those wanting a family, or those already struggling with a family?

DON'T MAKE ME CHOOSE!!!

Let's be honest: $9,999 is probably not going to change anyone's life. It will put a bandaid over cracks, but will not fix them. It will buy one car or two family trips or three dirt bikes or four months of rent or five months of medicine or maybe one year of tuition.

And yes, everyone deserves that money. We are only on the second day and already I am waffling!

This sucks.

How will YOU choose?

Wednesday April 2nd

Due to some WordPress issues, I'm posting on this site for now. Sorry for the confusion, hope you can follow along...

The JRFM YSIWPI game is heartbreaking. More of that in another post.

3 out of 6 Mystery Laughs on Rock 101 have been guessed. Now, who are the other three??

5:40 - JRFM, give the secret word (1 month to Oxygen Yoga)

6:05 - QMFM, Wake Up and Win words (Fleetwood Mac tickets)

6:30 - CFOX, Stump the Show (tix to an event of your choice)

7-9 - JRFM, Secret Word is said (?)

7:00 - JRFM, You Say It, We Pay It qualifier name

7:40 - Rock 101, IQ Test

7:40 - Jack, qualify for trip to Portland

8:00 - CFOX, Every Second Counts

8:00 - Rock 101, Famous Laughs

8:09 - QMFM, Beat the Bank

8:10 - Sonic, qualify for trip to Las Vegas to see Marianas Trench

8:15 - Peak, Fast Romantics tix

8:20 - Jack, No Time to Google (Fleetwood Mac tix)

9:00 - Shore, tix to The Fray

9:40 - Jack, qualify for trip to Portland

10 - 10:30, Jack, Win at Work name (after 

10-3 - QMFM, tickets to see The Fray

11:00 - JRFM, You Say It, We Pay It qualifier name

11:00 - Rock 101, Famous Laughs

11-11:30 - Jack, Win at Work name (after Viva la Vida by Coldplay)

11:40 - Jack, qualify for trip to Portland

12:00 - CFOX, Every Second Counts

12:10 - Sonic, qualify for trip to Las Vegas to see Marianas Trench

12:15 - JRFM, Lunch Bite ($25 to Subway)

1:15 - Peak, Bastille tix to caller 102!

2:00 - JRFM, You Say It, We Pay It qualifier name

2:00 - Rock 101, Famous Laughs

2-2:30 - Jack, Win at Work name (after 3 am by Matchbox 20)

2:40 - Jack, qualify for trip to Portland

4-5 - JRFM, U-Turn (?)

4:00 - CFOX, Every Second Counts

4:09 - QMFM, Beat the Bank

4:10 - Sonic, qualify for trip to Las Vegas to see Marianas Trench

4:40 - Jack, qualify for trip to Portland

5:00 - JRFM, You Say It, We Pay It qualifier name

5:00 - Virgin, Fresh Five at Five ($50 for Subway)

5:00 - Rock 101, Mystery Laughs

6:40 - Jack, qualify for trip to Portland

7:00 - JRFM, You Say It, We Pay It qualifier name
7:15 - Peak, $50 to Hard Rock Casino

8:10 - Sonic, qualify for trip to Las Vegas to see Marianas Trench

Good luck!

:)

The schedule and links...

In case you missed it, I have a new website! Wheeeee!!!

Here is the link: ContestsVan.com

There you will find the daily schedules and other posts. Bookmark the site and come visit often - updates daily!

I will be adding pages in the coming weeks which will highlight contests in your area, so keep an eye out for THAT! Imagine winning a gift certificate to a restaurant just down the street, or your favourite coffee shop, or the theatre in your neighbourhood! Awesome!!!

Here are direct links to the posts you might like:

Rock 101's $10,000 Mystery Laughs contest clues and guesses here.

JRFM's You Say It, We Pay It contest post is here.

Jack. FM's Win at Work info and registration is here.

If you're confused about the QMFM/Virgin shake up, commiserate with the post here.

If you would like to join us on FaceBook for even MORE contests, you will find us here.

If you would like to contact me, you can do that at contestsvancouver@gmail.com

As always, GOOD LUCK!

:D

You say it, JRFM pays it!

Squeeeeeeeee!!! This is so fun! And hard. Here's why:

- the first thing you have to do is tell them how much money you need (want!) The maximum is $9,999. The temptation is to ask for the maximum, but I'd be worried that asking for it would make me seem greedy. If you ask for only what you NEED though, that defeats the purpose of the contest - FUN! So ask for what you WANT! Be brazen! Be honest! Be greedy! We understand...

- you only get 100 characters to tell them what you want the money for. 100 characters!!! I've already used 100 in this post! I suggest you use point form if there's more than one thing you want the money for... For example:

~dentures

~boat

~vacation

~boob job

- you only get 150 characters to tell them WHY you want it. 150!! GAH! Make it short but make it memorable. For example (as related to above):

~I miss chewing

~the fishing is better off shore

~I need to get away from/revisit my family

~I need a confidence boost

- once you have submitted your entry (must sign up to be an Online Insider, it's free and they don't send you crap), now you listen at 7, 11, 2, 5, and 7 from Monday the 31st to Friday April 4th. If for some reason you can't listen at some of those times, send me an email with your phone number and I will call you if I hear your name. (People wonder why I offer to do this for strangers and I say "why WOULDN'T you? I'd want someone to do it for me. Do unto others, etc.") So if you need some help, I'm happy to help: contestsvancouver@gmail.com

- once they call your name, you have 9 minutes and 37 seconds to call them back. This gives your friends (or me) about 4 minutes to call you, and gives you 5.5 minutes to steady your hands and fumble with your phone to dial 604-280-9370.

- once you're in, that only means you are QUALIFIED to win. Which means that your entry will be up on their site and you have to get your friends to vote for your entry. Some nice strangers may vote too, though at this point there's no incentive for them to vote at all... maybe all voters should be put in a draw for some concert tickets to entice them to vote? But ask your friends to vote just in case...

Voting opens Friday night, April 8th, at 8 pm. You can vote ONCE per hour per entry (so you can vote for 3 different entries every hour if you want) until 8 am. If you stayed up all day and all night to vote for yourself, you would amass 60 votes. If we get into the final round, this will be my husband's job...heh, heh...

If everyone whose name is called manages to call back within the allotted time, there will be 25 entries in the final round. Those are incredible odds for such a BIG prize! There's a 1 in 25 chance that you could win what you asked for! CRAZY!!! If someone doesn't call back, the odds are even better!

Things you need to know:

- must be 19 to enter

- one entry per person (don't use a different email address to enter again)

- BC residents only

I will be following this game closely, and tweeting all the names that are called. You can follow me on Twitter (@ContestsVan) or watch my FaceBook page (https://www.facebook.com/pages/Contests-Vancouver) for updates. If you want to send me your name and phone number, you can PM me on FB, send a DM on Twitter, or shoot me an email at contestsvancouver@gmail.com.

Now I must begin planning my entry carefully... this contest should not be entered in haste. The Waking Crew's discerning taste will determine whose entry will be read - make it clever! No one wants to hear about your broken heart, health problems, or the loss of your home, family, leg, etc. As sad and serious as those are, this contest is meant to be uplifting! So while you WILL be using the money to buy an iron lung, just tell them that you will be using the money for hiring the salvage divers to bring up the DeLorean you drove into the lake when you were 15. Or whatever.

Good luck!