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Living a virtual life, my inbox if constantly inundated with spam… now it seems my mobile phone isn’t safe either. For fellow Australians, you get a call on your mobile from one of the numbers below, the phone only rings once or twice before hanging up. If you call the number back (becauase some people do phone back missed calls) you get a recorded message telling you you’ve won $40 worth of ringtones (or something like that) and to phone a 190 number. Of course you part with a sum of money once you get your phone bill….. The guys over at 4wisemonkeys.com have taken up the crusade against the marketing masterminds behind this little activity - so visit and bookmark their site for more info and updates:-
http://www.4wisemonkeys.com/dc-phone-scam/
YES - I have received a few of these calls, and I’m certainly pleased that I haven’t phoned back…. warn your kids and friends!!
The list of phone numbers you may be pranked from:

* (02) 8219 0500
* (02) 8303 8320
* (02) 8303 8321
* (02) 8404 2201
* (02) 8404 2203
* (02) 8404 2207 <– 15th June 2006
* (02) 8404 2213
* (02) 8404 2216 <– 15th June 2006
* (02) 8404 2215
* (02) 8404 2216 <– 15th June 2006
* (02) 8404 2235
* (02) 8404 2236
* (02) 8404 2242
* (02) 8404 2245
* (02) 8404 2296
* (02) 8404 2298
* (02) 9011 6324
* (02) 9011 7038
* (03) 8102 9565
* (03) 8102 9573 <– 15th June 2006
* (03) 8558 0556
* (03) 8558 1441
* (03) 8558 1442
* (03) 8558 1443
* (03) 8558 1444
* (03) 8558 1445
* (03) 8558 1446
* (03) 8558 1447
* (03) 9245 0012
* (03) 9540 2950
* (03) 9540 5100
* (03) 9540 5101
* (03) 9540 5187
* (03) 9540 5189
(source: http://www.4wisemonkeys.com/dc-phone-scam/)

I’m pleased to say that the new ‘big screen’ tv arrived on Wednesday without any problems. It was delivered by a really nice guy from TNT who kindly brought the box up to level 3 and into our lounge room. Yeah! Of course, hooking up the TV proved slightly more problematic - you all know the deal, crawl under here and there, feed plugs and wires around.. Ack! But, time was of the essence, after all the State of Origin Rugby League game was on the tube on Wednesday night and so we REALLY wanted to have the TV going so that we could sit back in luxury and watch the game on the big screen.

Now, I can pull apart a computer and put it back together - most of the time without many problems. In fact, I’m outright dangerous when armed with a phillips head screwdriver, but I don’t like playing with televisions, or foxtels boxes, or dvds, or video players. I don’t know why - I suspect it’s because I’m always the one called upon first to fix the computers, network, etc in this household. So, I decided to try and keep out of the TV hook up as best I could, content to sip on champagne and enjoy the dramatics.

Of course, my man being a typical man, didn’t feel the need to read any instructions booklet and so proceeded to hook everything up. Looked the goods, but pressing the ‘On’ button didn’t seem to do anything. Hmmmmm…. Some time passed, and a couple of drinks were consumed (who drank all my champagne!).

Still with no luck getting the TV going, I did what women around the world know to do when faced with electronical gadget dillemmas… I decided to take matters into my own hands. I called the kids out of their bedrooms, they’d been banished during the set up so as to remove hindrances, dragged the man of the house outside for a beer, shoved the remotes into the hands of the kids and said ‘Here, get this going will you?’.

It ahh.. took the kids approximately 30 seconds to have the TV up and running, Foxtel working, all good. They pronounced us ‘Dufuses’ and smugly reminded us of the age gulf that apparently makes them experts at such matters, and us bumbling bone heads with fewer clues than Blue. Rotters! I think they’re good at that stuff because of all the training they’ve had - getting Nintendos, Play Stations, game boys, associated paraphenalia going has had to be good for something other than fine tuning fine motor skills.

That done, the night was all good, with Queensland whooping the NSW butts in an awesome display of State of Origin footy. I’m a happy camper - with a fab telly Very pleased to have saved $1000 off the retail price as well - thanks Deals Direct.