All posts by ariah

Blog

Odds and Ends

12 Comments

Sorry, this week hasn’t been the best for constructive thought, but I do have a lot of odds and ends bouncing around in my head. Hopefully you find one of them interesting…

  • While working on my taxes I started brainstorming ways to ‘beat the system’ you figure if the uber-rich can figure out all these tax loopholes maybe there is one or two I could utilize. Everyone has different opinions on taxes, and to the degree that they found things I’m in support of, I like them too. At the same time, I’d rather be taxed on how much we’re living on, rather then how much we make. I know you can get deductions for donating money, but I’ve wondered if there is some way to funnel money, pre-tax to an organization you support or something like that. Any ideas?
  • We are going through some exciting changes in the Fine household. Sorry for not sharing more details, but this being a totally public page, I’m just not sure what’s okay and what’s not. If you want the inside scoop you’ll have to contact me.
  • I finally got the Archive page on the site to work. Just so you know it’s a HEFTY page (5mb) so don’t check it out if your on dialup. But if you’ve got a fast connection, it’s a nice visual layout of my blog’s archive. I’m gonna try and slim it down in size and content a little but that will come later.
  • After successfully reading a book a week last year, I’ve managed to read zero books in 2.5 months this year. I need to set some sort of goal to start reading again. Maybe a set amount of time, like 15 minutes a day. Seem reasonable?
  • On the reading note: I’d really love to read essays (and possibly books) from people who have completely different views then me. If anyone out there has an essay that you think will really challenge my thinking, I’d love if you sent it my way. It could be about anything, politics, religion, money, food, etc. If enough people could send me stuff I’d love to do a weekly post in summary and response to what I read.
  • I was considering getting a new digital camera this week. Mainly because the video on our current one has this high-pitched hissing sound on all the audio. So, I started looking for a digital camera (currently have a Canon Powershot). Then I thought about just getting a separate video camera, then I thought about a DSLR. Now I have no clue. What do you have (if any)? Do you like your camera/video camera? Is a separate video and camera worth it? Superfluous? Too much to carry?
  • Lastly, I was considering doing a series on money saving tips. Just suggestions based on our experience on what we do to save money on day to day purchases, etc. Any interest?
YouTubesday

YouTubesday: Coal Freshener, Hip Hop Sunday, and OBEY

4 Comments

(If You are reading this post via email the videos will not show up. If any of the titles are interesting to you please visit the site and view them here, just click on the link above)

 

A commercial for the ever exciting, new and improved, Clean Coal Air Freshener

 

This is a typical Hip Hop Sunday at my church

 

And lastly, if you ever wanted to know where Shepard Fairey got his inspiration for the Obey posters, here’s a ten minute snippet of the movie that sparked it.

 

Technorati Tags: Shepard Fairey,,
Blog

Open Thread: Let’s Chat

5 Comments

I’ve seen this done on some big blogs, but never on tiny little things like mine. I didn’t have anything profound or worthwhile to write for today so I thought I’d try to just leave it completely open. If you have something you always wanted to ask me or say on the blog, or ask other readers, or just put on the “internet” then go ahead and leave a comment about it. I’ll do my best to further the dialog.

Being Dad

Help Bring Autism Therapy to South Africa

1 Comment

I know I’ve been doing a bit of promoting random causes lately, but I really wanted to share this and I think a handful of you readers might be interested in lending your support.

In the fall of 2000 after I graduated high school I went and did a Discipleship Training School at YWAM in Denver. Part of the program was a two month trip to Mauritania and Gambia in northwest Africa. I had the good pleasure of having two great leaders on that trip, James and Caz Collins, who brought along their new baby boy, Malachi, who I think was just a month or two old at the time. Their decision seemed like such a commitment and dedication to service to me at the time, and I know it had an impact on me and my family. I still have a picture of me holding Malachi during that trip:

Malachi and Me, January 2001
Malachi and Me, January 2001

Not really sure how to explain my feelings about it, but I feel like that moment had an impact on me and my desire to love and care for kids (my own and others). Fast forward to today. I still keep in touch with James and Caz, through email updates of their growing family and their dedicated ministry. They moved to back to South Africa last year and have been doing some incredible work there. They are such dedicated servants and loving parents, so when I received this email I felt the need to respond. Caz explains things well, so I’ll just include the email below:

As you know our oldest son, Malachi has Autism and while we lived in the USA he Was able to undergo the latest therapy, which together with prayer has enabled him to Mainstream at school and overcome the bulk of his disorder. When we moved back to South Africa last year I was stunned to find nobody in our state -and yet to find someone in the whole of South Africa- who is properly trained to continue the therapy he needs. So I became his therapist, drawing on the training workshops in Autism I attended while in the USA. I also started helping other families who have children with Autism but have nowhere to turn. I realise I need more training and Malachi needs more input, but this is not available in South Africa at this time.
So I had an idea:
I asked one of Malachi’s therapists from Colorado if she would come to South Africa to work with Malachi for 5 weeks and further train me. She said yes! The catch is it will cost us $3000- or R30 000 for air fares and accommodation. She won’t charge us for the therapy. As you know in YWAM we do not earn a salary, but our income is from the generous support of people who want to be part of our missionary work.
So would you pray about giving towards bringing Heather, Malachi’s therapist, to south Africa to help us.

I really want to help Malachi. Though unspoken, I feel like being a part of those first couple months of his life, I have a commitment to look out for him. You know, “it takes a village to raise a child.” Here is an opportunity for me to help, and you as well. And the impact is far reaching. Caz will be able to help other families, and Heather, the therapist, plans on speaking at schools and other opportunities while she is there sharing about the impact of autism and the therapy techniques available. It’s a great opportunity to spread the knowledge and therapy available to children with autism to an entire region. I’ve set up a donation page on Trying to Follow and I hope you’ll prayerfully consider making a donation. Thanks.

Send Heather to South Africa! (Find out more info at this donation page, including updates and total donation amount)

Or, simply donate here:

[donateplus]

Money & Stewardship

Customer Complaint: T-Mobile’s TLC Companion Flight Promotion Is a Nightmare

56 Comments

(regular readers: please excuse me a moment while I vent)
You know when you have great customer service? It’s great, and yet we take it so for granted. I actually emailed a Verizon rep the other day thanking them for how helpful they were, having been reminded of it because of the terrible customer service I’ve had recently. Let me tell you about it.

In December, T-Mobile ran a promotion that if you renewed your contract you would receive a free companion flight when booking a plane ticket. I browsed the fine print, they had the destinations I need, didn’t blackout the dates I needed, you have to book through their agents, but they would price match competitive sites like Orbitz. Everything cleared and so we went ahead and renewed our contract. That’s when the headaches began. Here they are in chronological order:

  • 1/4/09 Calling to renew my contract took almost an hour. I was disconnected multiple times and was given three different phone numbers till I reached a customer service rep who could actually renew my contract for me. Why I got disconnected and why they couldn’t simply transfer me to the right person, or put the specific number on their website, is beyond me.
  • 1/10/09 A few days later and I receive an email saying I couldn’t register for the companion flight promotion because my contract was not renewed. What?! I called again and had the same painful process of being passed around multiple times. T-Mobile said it was their booking partners (TLC) mistake, TLC said it was T-Mobiles fault. Eventually, I found a T-Mobile customer service rep who took the time to look at my account and saw that no one actually renewed my contract. Fortunately, the rep saw that I had called before and went ahead and renewed my contract effective the date I had called, so I was still eligible for the promotion.
  • 2/4/09 I receive my booking PIN after their 30 day waiting period and promptly send in a price match request, complete with screenshot for a US Airways flight for $268 round trip. They respond requesting my booking PIN so that they can proceed and I send it to them. The quick email response assures me I have the write email address and there appears to be smooth and quick communication, I rest easy (Big mistake). Their website says it will take two business days to get a response. No response comes.
  • 2/15/09 I submit the request again including screenshot. It’s met with an automated reply.
  • 2/19/09 I’ve still not heard anything back so I submit a price match request again. This time the automated reply says I need a screenshot of both the T-Mobile booking site and the price match site I found. I take screenshots and send them in. Now the matching site I found has the ticket listed at $312.39. But, compared to the $414 ticket at the T-mobile site, I figure it’s worth waiting to hear back.
  • 2/20/09 I start calling. One of their requirements is tickets have to be booked 30 days in advance. I’m trying to get tickets for April 2nd, so that only leaves a week before the 30 days cut off. The customer service rep informs me that it will actually take 5-10 business days, not the two originally promised on the website. There is no manager available to speak to and they apparently do not have the contact info for the price match department. I simply need to wait for their call.
  • 2/24/09 I call again. I’m informed now that it will take 10 business days to get a reply. They assure me that my original request will be honored and I don’t need to worry if it’s past March 2nd. Again, there is no manager available when requested.
  • 2/26/09 I call again. This time I’m told it’s 10-14 business days.  I explain my situation, my frustration, the run around I’ve been getting. I ask to speak to a manager. Again, none is available, however, they appearently have a voicemail box. I leave a message.
  • 3/1/09 Unwilling to trust random customer service reps, I attempt to book the tickets on the T-mobile companion flight booking site. Though over $100 more then what I was expecting to pay, I attempt to book the tickets. The tickets, though listed as available in the search, come up with an error stating they are not available. I try the four different ticket options listed and each one has the same error. My suspicion is that somewhere in the computer code for the booking site they didn’t account for March having 31 days and started listing April 2nd flights as unavailable, just a guess.
  • 3/2/09 I call again. I speak with Brian (ID#64024). He says there is nothing he can do. His supervisors are not available, he can only book tickets through the same site that I can, he has no contact info for the price match department and his only explanation for the computers is that they remove flights at 8pm EST. When asked for a supervisors name, he says there is a bunch of them, he mentions “Kim” and “Leah”. He puts me through to the same voicemail box I was given the previous week and I leave a message.
  • 3/2/09 I call again the same day and the supervisors are never available.
  • 3/3/09 I start early. I get a hold of Eric (ID#LS48), turns out he is one of the supervisors, lucky me. He has quite a bit of attitude, but he gives me a little more information. Kim is apparently the lead manager for that TLC location. TLC stands for Travel Leisure Corps or TLC Worldwide Marketing. He also promises me he’ll send an email to his supervisor about the situation. Why could none of the other customer service reps could do that?
  • 3/3/09 I continue calling and asking for “Kim”, finally I reach a gentleman named Caren (ID#64044) who is very helpful. He tells me that Kim is actually in their Boston office, and the number I have is to the South Dakota office. He doesn’t have the Boston number, but he’s given me enough information to try and find it myself. He also looks at my account and sees that “Ashley” is listed as my booking agent, however she and the whole price match team are also located in Boston. He sends her an email explaining the situation.
  • 3/3/09 I google TLC in Boston and find a listing. But the numbers don’t work. I google the building their address is listed in and get phone numbers from the operator. I call the number [617-788-9600] and reach an automated directory, no receptionist. Punching in “Kim” shows that there is only one Kim listed in the directory, a Kimberely Sley (sp?). I try the extension, no answer, but I leave a message. I try again and try “Ashley” again one person listed, Ashley Survelle (sp?). Her extension also has no answer. So close, but yet so far.

And that’s where I currently am. Still no plane ticket. And while early February I was looking forward to two plane tickets for $268, a happy trade for a renewed two year contract with T-mobile, I’m not so happy anymore. If I can’t get this resolved in the next day or two I’ll have to bite the bullet and pick up those two plane tickets for about $700+. But you can be sure I’ll be sending the bill to TLC and T-Mobile to reimburse the difference. I have no clue who TLC is, but T-Mobile’s name is being quite tarnished by the terrible customer service people are having with this promotion. Just Google TLC Worldwide Marketing to read others horror stories.

Hopefully this story will have a happy ending…

[I’ve opted against posting my screenshots]

YouTubesday

YouTubesday: Support Team Awesome!

Leave a comment

Hands down, two of the cool and most creative people I know are my brother, Keane Fine, and my friend, Zach Swee. Besides being incredible and loyal friends, they are fun and adventurous. Take for example their 24 hour trip down to the Dominic Republic on $20 plane tickets. Or their European backpack excursion. Or you might be intrigued by their Superior Human Being competition. Needless to say they are awesome people.

Anyways, they have both created videos for a contest by STA Travel for a world traveling summer internship. So, as you can see, today’s YouTubesday will be highlighting their cool and creative videos. Take five minutes and learn about the two coolest people I know. And feel free to use the links to go straight to youtube and rate, comment and share the videos there.

Keane Fine – Team Awesome I http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jI1_rKWeXXg

Zach Swee – Team Awesome II http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srBHtViOy74

considering church, Headline

The Church and the Wage Gap

11 Comments

Wage Gap Church Marquee

There are few forms of discrimination that have as much wide-spread and consistent impact on success then the wage gap. The wage gap references the statistical gap between men and women’s pay for equal work. To date, all skills and experience being equal, white women earn 77 cents on the dollar that white men earn. Men and women of color fare worse.

The Equal Pay Act was signed in 1963, making it illegal for employers to pay unequal wages to men and women who hold the same job and do the same work. At the time of the EPA’s passage, women earned just 58 cents for every dollar earned by men. By 2006, that rate had only increased to 77 cents, an improvement of less than half a penny a year. Minority women fare the worst. African-American women earn just 64 cents to every dollar earned by white men, and for Hispanic women that figure drops to merely 52 cents per dollar. –InfoPlease

And if you don’t think those pennies add up, consider that a college graduated women will lose over $1 million in wage earnings compared to her male counterpart due to wage discrimination.  This sort of discrimination is intolerable and even more so because there is a lot that we can do to address it.

How can the church begin to address this issue? There is much we can do, and plenty of resources to guide us. The following is a simple plan for taking action in your church.

  1. Document and Research
  2. Collaborate and Learn
  3. Talk to the Boss
  4. Celebrate!

1. Document and Research – There are some compelling reasons to make our salaries known. The taboo on sharing how much you make is one of the reasons this sort of discrimination can thrive. Knowing what others in your field make will help you be aware of if you are being unfairly paid.  Churches as communities and action centers are a perfect place to coordinate this kind of sharing. Researching wages within your field and if you are being appropriately paid is something many people already do individually. While individual research has benefits, imagine the collaborative ability a church body has to gather this type of information and keep it shared and public within the community. Within the church, opening conversations about our incomes could have all kinds of other implications as well. Documenting also means letting it be known when you feel you were mistreated or unfairly dealt with as it relates to your wage. If any place should be a safe haven and a place to share those things, it should be the church.

2. Collaborate and Learn– Caring after the orphans and widows in their distress has to do with a lot more then providing clothing and shelter (though that’s good too). Acts of charity are good things, but wouldn’t it be amazing to see the church as a collaborating force to ensure women were treated and paid fairly? The church, as a unified body, is just the sort of community that can provide the resources and preparation for demanding fair wages.  If someone had concerns about their unfair treatment at work, the church should be able to provide contact information and resources for learning how to negotiate, rather then just an offer to pray for the person.  An African American women earning the dollar (rather then 64 cents to a white males dollar) she deserves for her work doesn’t need to depend on the charity of others to survive and she can have the pride of standing on her own two feet, rather then being the victim of oppressive discrimination.

3. Talk to the Boss– Probably the most intimidating and daunting task of many people’s jobs is asking something of their boss. Especially for single-income households, talking to your boss about your pay, or any acknowledgment of being unsatisfied with work, can be a very scary task as there is probably a great fear of getting fired. Once again, the church has an important role in this step. The churches role is to be a supportive and loving body in the midst of injustice. So, not only do we help empower and prepare people to ask for equal wages, we are also there to support them should their demands be met with resistance. It’s much easier to stand strong against mistreatment and discrimination if you have a loving supportive community around you.

4. Celebrate!– I’d urge churches or small groups to have Wage Parties, or maybe Against Injustice parties. When my house mate paid off his last school loan and became debt free, we had a celebratory party. It was a beautiful thing. Like a celebration after finding a lost coin or sheep, we should celebrate when unjustly stolen salaries have been given back. The church should be a place of praise and celebration, for fair wages as much as anything else.

______

source:  The steps used are based loosely on an article, Mind the Wage Gap, from the fall 2005 issue of Ms. Magazine.

(This post was originally posted in April of 2007)

Money & Stewardship

Ask The Readers: How Does Your Annual Spending Compare?

3 Comments

I figure a lot of folks are doing their taxes these days, so it might be a good time to ask a budget and spending question. I’m curious as to how your annual spending compares to the Federal Poverty Guidelines. Here are the 2008 stats, find the number of people in your family and look at the column on the right.

2008 HHS Poverty Guidelines

Persons
in Family or Household		 48 Contiguous
States and D.C.		 Alaska Hawaii
1 $10,400 $13,000 $11,960
2 14,000 17,500 16,100
3 17,600 22,000 20,240
4 21,200 26,500 24,380
5 24,800 31,000 28,520
6 28,400 35,500 32,660
7 32,000 40,000 36,800
8 35,600 44,500 40,940
For each additional
person, add		 3,600 4,500 4,140

I don’t know how many of you keep close track of your monthly spending, have a monthly budget or anything like that, but if you do, follow the steps below and fill out the survey questions.

  1. Find the Poverty line for your household size on the chart.
  2. Take your monthly or annual budget.
  3. Subtract from your monthly or annual budget any school loans.
  4. If you have a mortgage, subtract the Principal and Interest portion, and only include the taxes and home insurance. (Anything you’d continue to pay even after you no longer had a mortgage and completely owned the home).
  5. No compare your budget and the Poverty Guideline.

How do they compare? Fill out your answer in the survey below (it’s anonymous).

I know, kind of a bizarre question. I’ve posted on this topic before, but I’m working on some more financial related posts/articles and wanted to do a quick reader survey. Thanks for humoring me. Definitely post comments if you have any on the topic.

YouTubesday

YouTubesday: Rare Repentance

Leave a comment

(If You are reading this post via email the videos will not show up. If any of the titles are interesting to you please visit the site and view them here, just click on the link above)

I was going to skip Youtubesday this week, trying to slim down the number of weekly posts, but I didn’t want to pass this up. Just one video today, and it’s a interview format so you might not get the fullness of the story. Here’s a brief write up about it. It’s sad that these stories are so rare, but we should cherish the ones we are able to share in.

Rare Repentance (ht)

considering church, Headline

“Least of these” ≠ “Unsaved”

2 Comments

(This is the first in a series of posts I’m considering for publication. Please take a minute to read the post and if your willing, leave a comment or use the stars at the bottom right of the article to give it a rating, your input will be extremely helpful. Thank You)

There is a dangerous and common misconception that is used in the church today. We use religious language and Biblical reference, but we do it in a way that gives us a dangerously inaccurate picture of the people we interact with.

We use the language of “Least of these” a lot in the church, especially when we are talking about “ministry” and “service.” This is not bad wording as it’s the language Jesus used when he told the Sheep in a parable why they were allowed to enter into His kingdom:
“I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.”

Primarily we say the “Least of these” when refer to people in need, whether that be the homeless, poor, low-income, etc. This seems like a good interpretation since Jesus himself describes the least of these as people with real physical needs: Hungry, Thirsty, Needing clothing, Sick, in Prison.
The desire in the church to care for the “least of these” is an extremely important and worthwhile use of our time. In fact that passage appears to be the longest and most direct words of Jesus about Heaven and Hell. As a church that is frequently discussing the after-life this should be a priority.

The misconception and the wayward understanding too often heard in the church is an equating of the “Least of these” as “unsaved.” No where in the Matthew 25-where our language of the “least of these” comes from- is there any mention or inference that the people whom the sheep provided for where somehow “unsaved.” If anything Jesus says they are “brothers of mine,” implying they are part of the kingdom if they are anything.

Yet, in our churches today we talk about “ministries” and we tie so closely the idea of providing for folks physical needs with that of “saving people.” We create this idea that when you go to the soup kitchen you need to “tell people about Jesus,” as if they are unsaved, unchurched, and in need of your gospel. To be clear, there are a lot of people who do not know the love of Jesus, but there are just as many in the church pews and suburbs around you as there are in the homeless shelters and housing projects. Just because someone can’t make ends meet to put a roof over their head does not mean they some how do not know God or haven’t experienced the Holy Spirit.

We, the church, need to stop treating the “least of these” as “unsaved” and start treating them like the sister’s and brother’s in Christ that many are. Even more, we should be treating them as the Kings and Queens that they are, since according to Jesus, “Their’s is the Kingdom of Heaven.”

Conclusion: Don’t stop the soup kitchen and homeless shelters, Christians need to continue providing for our sibling. If anything we probably need to step it up a couple notches since the most tangible way you can interact with Jesus nowadays is not in a church service or a song, it’s feeding him and clothing him (”When I was hungry you gave me something to eat.”). Yet, we need to stop coupling our service with our evangelism. We need to step off our high horse in service opportunities and recognize that many of those we help have deep and intimate relationships with Jesus and there is a great deal we can learn from them. Quite frankly, maybe we are the ones that need “saving.”