Yesterday, Blogger locked my blog because they thought it was a spam blog. Blogger says spam blogs are characterized by irrelevant, repetitive and nonsensical text with many links often to the same site.
Consider yourself warned: irrelevant, repetitive and nonsensical text is coming right up.
The day started out shit, literally, when our cat shat on our bedroom carpet, and continued that way. After work, Swee'pea had a meltdown at the daycare when I tried to put all his winter clothes on for the 10-minute walk home, and I couldn't cave because it was minus 13 celsius without the wind chill. His screaming rached boiling point when I wrestled him into the stroller against his will and bumped over the barely plowed sidewalk. He literally screamed all the way home. That does wacky things to an already stretched-too-thin mother: I joined his screaming from time to time in my finest mothering moment yet. I just panicked, because it was the only way home and I wasn't convinced he was dressed warmly enough and I didn't want to waste time putting his toque back on over and over and over again or pleading with him to stop crying so the tears wouldn't freeze on his cheeks.
I was pretty drained and ashamed by the time we made it home and Swee'pea melted down again, screaming for his doodoo then screaming louder when I brought it to him. Finally, he collapsed into my arms, doodoo in mouth, and I checked my email with him on my lap. Which was when I found out that Blogger had locked my blog:
Dear Blogger user,
This is a message from the Blogger team.
Your blog has been identified as a potential spam blog. For an explanation of what spam blogs are, please see Blogger Help: http://help.blogger.com/bin/answer.py?answer=42577.
You will not be able to publish posts to your blog until we review your site and confirm that it is not a spam blog. To request a review, please fill out the form found here: http://www.blogger.com/unlock-blog.g?lockedBlogID=31853698
We will take a look at your blog and unlock it within four business days. Please note that if we do not hear from you within 20 days, we will remove your blog. If this blog does not belong to you, then you do not have to do anything. Any other blogs you may have will not be affected.
Since you are an actual person reading this, your blog is probably not spam. We find spam by using an automated classifier. Automatic spam detection is inherently fuzzy, and occasionally a blog is flagged incorrectly. We sincerely apologize for this erroneous result. By using this kind of system, however, we can dedicate more storage, bandwidth, and engineering resources to users like you instead of to spammers.
Thank you for your understanding and for your help in our spam-fighting efforts.
Sincerely,
The Blogger Team
I responded immediately, because I'd already posted four posts using their visual verification test AND requested a human review to remove that damn visual verification. When I went to their little help page and saw that my blog got caught by some sort of filter for irrelevance, repetition and nonsense, I just felt hurt, betrayed by the very people who encouraged those qualities. Although I gave Blogger 24 hours to respond before I left them, I just don't think I can live with them after that kind of betrayal.
Work is already underway to move to www.writeabouthere.com using wordpress. I'll let you know when it's set up.
* * *
Today WAS a better day, apart from being unable to post. I just got word that my blog has been reviewed and cleared of all spam blog-related charges.
And as a side effect, not being able to blog freed me up to try out an online service to sell some of my prints.They ship anywhere in the world, offer a range of paper and print qualities (with the most affordable option still offering great quality), and I will donate 50 percent of any proceeds to the Stephen Lewis Foundation. I've just uploaded my very favourite images of 2007 so if you've seen a photo on here that you'd like to buy, and you don't see it in my imagekind gallery, just email me and I can set it up. The site's a bit hard to navigate but if things go well, I will set up a better, more navigable online gallery that just links to imagekind for the actual purchasing.
25 comments:
ooof. They tag YOU when there is some crapola out there that is just ridiculous.
Oh, c.g.--I've been so frustrated along with you at this nonsense. Hugs heading your way...
And I'm so excited about the chance to buy your photographs and to recommend them to others! You know I have all along been amazed by your talent...
Oh what a giant pain in the arse blogger can be. Don't worry about keeping swee'pea warm enough - if he were too cold he'd get quiet and as his mum you'd be able to catch it before anything went wrong. Hope you have a much deserved glass of wine to relax to tonight.
Heather in the 'shwa (new blog)
i want to take a look around on the photo site, but searching under 'cinnamon gurl' yields nothing.
advice?
your prints are FANTASTIC. i had to purchase one immediately. a little piece of the world through Sin's eyes. whoohoo.
SM, sorry - I'm under "dreamer of pics" on imagekind. The link in the post *should* take you directly to my gallery. There are only 18 images up there right now.
blogger bastards.
and i would have screamed too, i gotta say. there is nothing more helpless than fearing your kid isn't protected and having to fight him to make it happen.
i'm clearly going to love the teen years.
you are not spam. you are awesome.
Gee, one of my goals for this year is to get some art up in our new house since we've usually taken forever to hang things. And now I have access to new art. Hmmm...
So that was a swell day, then?
What beautiful, beautiful pictures! I'm looking forward to really admiring them at my leisure!
I've had that exact same trip from daycare. Many, many times.
How could anyone think you're spam?
Just a thought: now that you can post, please do not move until after the CBA's wrap up.
Oh man, what a day. Grr. I'm sorry about your walk with Swee'pea. That ambulatory wailfest is the kind of thing that pushes me right over the edge, too. You can't get home any faster and you can't stop and the screaming doesn't help and you want to push everyone off a bridge. Or you do if you're me.
I'm sorry, dude. Glad that today you're not spam. Phew.
what the hell!?!?! you? spam?
stupid blogger.
and i have mothering moments like that almost daily. we can share the best mama prize.
Running on empty
You will love WordPress. I promise. Moving to WP was the best thing I ever did as a blogger!
So sorry you had such a shitty day. I hate those kinds of days, especially the ones that make me feel ashamed as a mom. Sadly, they have been happening a bit too often around here. Hope the rest of this week is much better.
Blogger Beware. What ridiculousness is that?
I made my way to imagekind yesterday and couldn't find you, so I'll try again. What an excellent idea, CG.
Oh, those stellar mothering moments - been way too many of those than I'd like to admit to these last few weeks. You are golden, though...I've seen you.
Mad, I have thought of that (I am so going to pimp my blog for votes, just you wait), but Sugar D says he knows how to make it redirect from here to there. Hopefully, it will be seamless for everyone.
Ha, Sage, having seen you in action, I have a very hard time believing you ever raise your voice like me.
oh Cin, I am so sorry you were greeted with that insult at the end of a long day.
I know it is so far from a true description of your blog it is funny, but I am sure it did not feel that way last night.
I'm clicking over to look at the photo site. What a great use of your down time.
Nice how they picked on you, yet nine times out of ten when I select the 'next blog' randomizer, I wind up at a porn-for-profit (vs for charity?) site on blogger.
Ugh, I'm sorry about the spam hoops you had to jump through. But HOORAY for selling your prints! That's awesome. Go, you.
Blogger can be such a pain in the ass - sorry you're having trouble!
Just popped over from Niobe's place. We read and comment on a lot of the same blogs.
So sorry about the Spam blog debauchle. Sucks. Off to look at your photos.
We have a similar screamfest when we leave day care, but mine involves wrestling Pumpkin into her car seat so that we can drive home. All I can say is that my girl has some great abs! She can hold a plank position, while wailing, for minutes. (I can't even hold it for 30 seconds....) Nothing makes you feel more like a loser mommy than sitting on the floor of daycare arguing with a screaming 9 month old about the merits of the car seat!
Wow - a spam blog? I can't figure out their rational at all... Grrr.
Good luck setting up the new site!
I'm surprised we all didn't get marked as spam blogs after our new year's posts. LOL. I know that mine linked back to my own blog several times.
How weird that they marked you that way. Keep us posted on when the big move is, and tell me how you like Wordpress...I'm interested in maybe switching.
My blog http://wilsonsalmanac.blogspot.com/ has been locked for TEN days and Blogger won't respond!
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