First it Was Cookie Monster, Now Ronald McDonald

I cannot believe that there is a movement afoot to do away with Ronald McDonald. According to consumer activist groups good old Ronald is responsible for hooking children on greasy, fattening, unhealthy food. They are blaming Ronald for childhood poor health and obesity. Hmmm, I don't think that Ronald McDonald is forcing greasy burgers and Chicken McNuggets down our kids throats. I do see the Ronald McDonald houses that are scattered across the world, helping families to stay near their critically ill children. The Ronald McDonald House Charities support many programs that directly improve the health and well being of children. Local McDonald Restaurants generously fund portions of the operating costs of the Houses. It was about two years ago when we said goodbye to the Cookie Monster that we all knew and loved. Cookie bent to the pressure and gave up cookies for the better things in life, like vegetables. Ugh! I guess I am confused as to why people feel the need to lay the blame for obese children on anyone but the children's parents. I don't think an occasional meal at MCDonald's or a couple of cookies is going to make a kid fat, and whose fault is it if the child eats more than an occasional Happy Meal? At the end of the day parents need to step up and take responsibility for what their children are putting in their mouths and stomachs. Leave Ronald alone. Be a responsible parent, set limits on what your children eat. Stop the blame game and look in the mirror.

Spanx - A Scam - I Think So!

I received an e-mail from a friend telling me that Spanx by Sara Blakely was having a one day promotion. They were selling the Bra-llelujah $62 bras for only $4.95, the cost of shipping. It was an online offer. You were supposed to put the code "LaurieannBRA" in the code section when ordering your bra. Wow, what a deal. I e-mailed my 3 daughters and told them about this great deal, then I went online and ordered my bra. Sure enough, I paid with my debit card and my order for a $62 dollar bra for $4.95 went through. I got a confirmation and a thank you e-mail for my order. All was well until the next day, when I got an e-mail from Spanx thanking me for my order, but telling me that there was a mistake. The code, LaurieannBRA, was a private code to be used by the CEO of the company for her personal use, but the code leaked out and they could not fulfill all the orders for free bras that had come in, however, they would be happy to give me 30% off on my next order, as long as I ordered it by April 4th. Very disappointing and even worse, the $4.95 had been deducted from my debit account. Hmmmm - suspicious, a scam? Yes, I think so and even if this were a legitimate mistake, at the end of the day Spanx should have honored the orders. This was no fault of mine or any of the other people that ordered. It was the fault of sloppy management.