Bogus Barclays Bank Bilking

This was in my spam folder earlier; it's not the first similar one I've seen, but it got me to wondering just how many people fall for this scam

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Important Security Message !!

Barclays Bank Plc.
security@barclays.co.uk

Dear Customer, Your account is suspended due to the number of incorrect login attempts. For your protection, we've suspended your account .

To reactivate your account please download the document attached to this e-mail to review your account activity.

If not completed until February 07, we will be forced to close your account .

Note: If you received these e-mail in your BULK/SPAM section please add to your address book member@barclays.co.uk

Thank you,
Customer Support Service.

Copyright © Barclays IBank Plc. Limited.
All rights reserved.

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Of course, I don't live in the UK nor do I have a bank account there. I guess they just use a "shotgun" mailing, sending to harvested email addresses in hopes they'll find a few who DO have an acct. with Barclays. Note the official copyright notice - added there to put someone at ease and convince them it was an "official" mailing.

I wouldn't open up that attachment for a hundred bucks...or pounds, even. They can just go ahead and "close" my account.  I'm probably overdrawn, anyway.

50-50 Weather

This was today's question at StartSampling, one of the websites I visit every day. I've posted about it before, but for anyone who isn't familiar with the site, it features recipes, contests, trivia and a daily poll. (which is great for me, because those are among my favorite things) Today's poll question is about the weather and as you can see, the responses were equally divided.

I reluctantly voted for the hotter temperature; I'd rather it be somewhere in the middle, even an avg. of the two - somewhere around 70 degrees. Even though 105 deg. is too warm, I'd rather suffer through the heat than sub-freezing temps.

OTOH, my grandpa worked out in all sorts of weather and he always said he'd rather work in the cold than the heat.  His reasoning was you could always put on more clothes, but there were only so many you could take off. 

I never cared for working in either extreme; during frigid weather I've worn so many clothes it was hard to move and during really hot weather I sweat like crazy, pouring down into my eyes where I can't see.  (I've heard people say they "sweat like a pig" or dog, but pigs and dogs don't sweat) I've never worked at a job where I could take off nearly all my clothes, but if I did, I think I'd like to work with a bunch of women.

Vive les femmes poilues!

Saw a photo of a beautiful fighter jet earlier today; it was identified as a French Dassault Rafale
 

I'm not so sure it's a French plane, though.

There's no hair under the wings.

Late Arrival for the Soul Train

I was saddened last night to hear of the suicide of Soul Train host Don Cornelius.

Soul Train was a favorite Saturday afternoon program of mine and I liked watching it more than I did the popular American Bandstand. The dancing was better and I preferred Motown over the mostly pop music featured on Bandstand.

Thinking of Cornelius made me think of Soul Train which in turn made me remember a black guy I used to know.  I had known him (lets call him "Freddy") since high school; he was an excellent basketball player and all-around athlete.  He lost a chance at a big school scholarship when his team was playing its biggest rival and one of the opposing players called him a racial slur.  Freddy knocked the guy on his butt and was immediately ejected from the game - the other team's intent.  Later, the player apologized to Freddy and told him his coach had told him to say what he did. 

After high school, Freddy got mixed up with drugs and lost two very well-paying jobs and it was after getting fired the second time that he approached me for a job.  At the time, I was drilling the daylight shift on a rig;  my immediate boss was a mutual friend of Freddy's and I figured he had told Freddy that I needed another hand.

With much misgiving, I told Freddy that I'd hire him, but he needed to know that the drilling superintendent was of another generation and had many of the prejudices of his era.  Oh, he wasn't what I'd call an extreme bigot, because he had hired a crew of Hispanics, but he did make some inappropriate jokes behind their backs.

Freddy said he didn't care, he really needed the job and that he'd work hard and would, when possible, stay away from the boss and try to prove himself. 

I nodded, but went on to warn him that I expected him to be on time when I picked him up in the morning.  I told him we left very early, leaving in plenty of time to allow for a sensible driving speed and time enough to stop at the store before leaving town.  He asked when we left and I told him the time - he winced, but still was steadfast that he needed the job.  Again I warned him that I wouldn't wait on him, that I'd leave town without him if he wasn't ready and that I'd fire him if I had to wait on him more than once.  He assured me that he wouldn't let me down.

I'd roughnecked with Freddy before and knew he had drank beer on the job.  I warned him that wasn't tolerated and neither would be drug use on the location.  He promised he wouldn't do either.

We stood there in silence for a minute, me wondering if he would hold up his end of the bargain and I think he was wondering the same thing.  He then asked what time we got back to town after work.

"Depends." I replied. "If the relief gets there on time and everybody doesn't dally around and no one has to stop to use the bathroom or get beer or a coke on the way home, we roll into town around four or so." (It was a long drive) I went on:

"Since you live closest to me, I would pick you up first and drop you off last, just makes the most sense and saves me time and distance picking up/dropping off the crew. You'd probably get home around 4:30."

Freddy didn't hesitate. "I can't work for you." he said with an abrupt turnaround. "Why not?" I asked, incredulous with his change-of-heart.

"Soul Train starts at 4." he said. "I can't miss Soul Train."

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Edit to add: I bumped into Freddy's cousin the other day while getting water. We exchanged the usual pleasantries, asking about one another's families and all that and I was pleased to hear that Freddy was living in another state and was clean and drug-free and had a family. The guy told me he (him, not Freddy) had been working in a local grocery store and had thought he had seen me there, but wasn't for sure if it was me. I told him "Well, you know all us white boys look alike." He laughed and said "You still crazy, for sure!"

Happy Groundhog & Garazon Day!

A"bump" since I'm too busy celebrating Groundhog Day to actually put up a new post about it.

 

(have to use a graphic because Blogger won't let me put in those special characters) means "grin" in IM chat or forum posts, but it in this case it also stands for "Garazon", one of my best and long-time online pals. The G for grin was first used by our mutual friend, Brad and I guess Garazon and I picked it up around the same time. It became a "nickname for the nickname" for me with Garazon and that's how I started abbreviating his screen name.

Garazon and I "met" in MSN Groups, but started to become good friends when he made a flashy Halloween page for his group, complete with embedded midi sound file and some other special effects. Making a page was one of my goals when I first got online and I was determined to learn how to do it, so I started asking Garazon all sorts of questions. I'm sure he grew weary of me bothering him, but he should have been flattered if he had only known how hard it was...and still is...for me to ask for assistance. 

I hope we don't ever lose touch, but even if we do, I'll always remember Garazon because of our time in Groups and that he once said Groundhog Day was one of his favorite holidays. I don't remember exactly WHY he said it was, but I thought that was very funny and every year since we met a dozen years ago in Groups, I always think of him on this day.

The 1993 Bill Murray movie Groundhog Day is also one of my favorite flicks and I try to watch it whenever it's on. I link to IMDb often when I post about movies, but sometimes I get so annoyed when reading posts about my favorite movies; the site is full of argumentative and insulting posts.  I can understand contention when discussing politics and religion, but movies?  Good Grief.  It gets extremely nasty when a movie contains plot elements of either of those two subjects and sometimes people try to interject one or the other into the discussion when there's no reason to do so.

Anyway...just heard on the news that the groundhog saw his shadow and there will be six more weeks of bad weather.  That doesn't mean much here in the Texas Panhandle; it was a beautiful, fairly warm day yesterday but this evening is supposed to bring freezing temps and rain and possibly snow. 

What It's Like

To Be Me