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Karen - Are You MIA?

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Bratty View Drop Down
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    Posted: June 07 2003 at 4:20pm
Karen,

I have to say that I love your posts so much here at HairBoutique.com. I am a big reality show freak myself. Your posts are funny and insightful and your hair tips are so helpful. I have learned so much from lurking here at all the various topic boards.

I was disappointed to note that your posts have been missing lately? I hope you are doing OK? I just found out that besides HairBoutique.com that you also run a software company and write several for several magazines and newspapers. I hope your absence just means that you are just busy.

Anyway, I wanted to say that I miss your posts here and to show a brief bit of appreciation.

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uzma View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote uzma Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 07 2003 at 4:36pm
Likewise...I miss you too, Karen.

Hey Bratty - maybe Karen is off holidaying somewhere??

Anyway, I hope Karen is not ill or anything.

Uzi
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Lyris View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Lyris Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 07 2003 at 6:28pm
Me too! We shall await your valiant return Karen!
Look for beauty, and you will find no intelligence. Look for intelligence and you will find both.Proud member of the Cult of All Soft
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote SuperGrover Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 07 2003 at 6:52pm
I miss Karen, too. I've noticed she's been missing. Must be busy. I hope she's on vacation!

Karen, I've been wondering: Are these boards expensive to maintain, storage wise? I worry sometimes that we all are a financial burden to you. If we are at all, even in the least bit, I imagine us regulars wouldn't mind making a small donation to help you out. And maybe with those donations, we could expand to include more topics? (I use we because I'd volunteer to moderate of course.) Someone mentioned a philosophical discussion board, which I think sounds good, and I'd like to suggest a fashion/clothing board.

It's just an idea, not necessarily a good one. I know you have plenty on your plate as it is.

You develop software, too? What kind?
"Hair is a part of you. It is not a part of me, because I am a frog." - Kermit the Frog on Sesame Street1b/N/ii ~ ??"/27"/32"
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Karen Shelton View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Karen Shelton Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 07 2003 at 7:38pm
Hi all,

Thank you all (Bratty, Uzma, Lyris, SuperGrover) for your kind words. I have been lurking here every day but a series of technology snafus (starting w/ last month's viral attack on our HB home page with several other related disasters) kept happening. I don't want to go into all the details (of past things) but it eventually happened that about 10 days ago my hard drive crashed and burned at HB.com taking my Voice Mail system down w/ it (I have a Voice Butler system). They (my tech gurus) decided it was the PC's hard drive. They took about 3 days and built me a new and bigger PC with new drives. The new hard drive worked for about 4 days. Then my PC crashed 8 times in a row - just in one day. I learned new curse words very quickly. LOL. The gurus decided to just dump the old PC and build me a brand new PC. Unfortunately it took them a few days for them to get the parts and build it and test it.

Anyway...I am (knock on wood) using my new PC that they installed just yesterday (Friday). It is very fast and has lots and lots of space (since I am an email hog).

And Uzma...I just wish I was on Holiday. :-) Actually Saturn just conjuncted my Sun (you are next) and I have been all achy - mainly from working in our HB warehouse and lifting boxes and pushing racks and sweeping and cleaning like a fiend. We are going to have to take photos and put up an AVI file. I am so proud of everyone's hard work on this reorg project. Everything is now in matching see-through giant plastic waterproof containers organized by individual product lines and SKUs and UPC codes. We even have a new HB SKU database to generate new labels for any new products we add.

Everything is up and neatly arranged on large metal racks and we are in the process of numbering each rack, each shelf and each container. WHEW. You can not imagine how much work it was to redo the warehouse, but it makes things so much easier now to find and track. The floor is so clean and completely uncluttered you could rollerblade from end to end (Hey that just gave me an idea).

Anyway....while my PC was on fire (well almost) for about 2 weeks, I was bidding my time organizing....and cursing.....

SuperGrover...you are so kind in your offer. Actually when we started HB.com so many years ago, we quickly realized that it would be quite costly to run w/out some way of generating some revenues. Initially we charged advertising - which helped a lot to defray the costs. Then we decided to pay our own way with our Marketplace store and run it as a hard core business to drive the HB site. One thing we absolutely never wanted to do was charge anyone for visiting us at HB.com or the Messageboards. They are our way of giving back to the Net community for their friendship and loyalty through the years. And of course it fuels our own personal love of hair topics.

Anyway, long story short, thank you so much for your offer. However, our Marketplace does generate enough revenues to pay for the rest of the site and to keep it 100% free. :-) We still take advertising but can be picky about what we take since the Marketplace is our primary funding source.

Finally...sorry this is sooooo long....but I feel like I haven't talked for about one week.....the new messageboard threads are under way. Look for them to be up soon. I have convinced Brigid to moderate the fashion board and someone else to do the philosophy board. We will try to get those up by next week (maybe sooner). If anyone wants to mod a board, please let me know and I would love to do it. I know the current moderators seem to really love the freedom of managing their own topic worlds. And they are all doing a fabulous job I might add (thanks to all) :-)

We also have been redoing all our HB customer service processes and redesigning the software guts of the HB.com Marketplace. Yes, the store is new as far as the exterior but we are going to be implementing lots of new internal user shopping options.

Finally, we are going to eventually upgrade the messageboards (but will be careful not to lose any current features) but we are looking to add some sort of instant chat or ICQ capability that LiliBeach requested.

OK. I am going back to my corner now. LOL.

Big hugs to all,
Karen



That which doesn't kill you makes you stronger or drives you totally insane. :-)
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tina m View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote tina m Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 07 2003 at 8:45pm
Wonderful Karen! Looking forward to the new boards!
tina
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote SuperGrover Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 08 2003 at 12:10am
Yeah Karen! Good to hear from you! Sorry about all the hassle! That rots! I hope it's all ironed out now.

I volunteer to moderate the fashion board if Brigid wants to give it up! I didn't mean to suggest it and then dump it on someone else.
"Hair is a part of you. It is not a part of me, because I am a frog." - Kermit the Frog on Sesame Street1b/N/ii ~ ??"/27"/32"
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uzma View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote uzma Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 08 2003 at 4:11am
Hi Karen

I am relieved that you are OK.
That PC on fire business is scary!!

Yeah, I can't wait for depressing ol' saturn to hit..

Anyway, you must take some time out soon. I think a vacation is long overdue for Ms Shelton, CEO. The sea is beckoning you so longingly, even I can hear it :-)

Make sure you get plenty of zzzzzs, eat properly and get some fresh air in the meantime.
Don't burn yourself out, Honey.

Lots of love

Uzi
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Karen Shelton View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Karen Shelton Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 08 2003 at 11:09am
Hi all,

SuperGrover...if you would be willing to moderate the Fashion board that would be totally awesome. I am getting ready to launch it today (Sunday). Brigid said she would do the mod gig but she does go back to college in August and I would love, love, love it if you would be willing (who better than a Pisces). We are also doing a shoe board that Brigid said she would co-mod with me (I am a shoe fiend). Giles (from the Diet board) is doing the mod for the new Philosophy board and we have a couple of surprise threads that people have volunteered for (Bratty is going to moderate a small thread for me - thanks Bratty). I am so excited. More fun reads eh?

SG please email or bmail me today if you really are interested. My head is already full of topics for these new threads. I have been jotting notes for days. :-)

Best wishes,
Karen
shelton@hairboutique.com
http://www.hairboutique.com


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Karen Shelton View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Karen Shelton Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 08 2003 at 11:14am
Hi Uzma,

Yes...I need a break. I went to my accupunturist yesterday and he deemed me "a workaholic mess". LOL. So I promised I would start going to see him once a week and taking better care. My accupunturist is a Cancer (yeah) with Virgo ascendent so he is very good at pulling in the reigns when I start to get overstressed. He got me off Diet Coke 3 years ago and now I only have 1 cup of coffee w/ lots of herbal tea.

We should take the Saturn topic to the other thread. I will post there later.

If I ever do get time off I am catching a flight to New York City, California, London and Paris...not necessarily in that order. LOL. I have so much play stuff to do there. Maybe this year or early next I can take time to play a little more.

Hugs,
Karen
That which doesn't kill you makes you stronger or drives you totally insane. :-)
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uzma View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote uzma Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 08 2003 at 5:43pm
Karen WOW!!!

You have been busy - all these exciting new boards.

And a place to talk about Philosophy, too.
I mentioned this to Elissa as a joke on another thread, saying it would never materialize on HB. How wrong can a girl get.

I think you are building an amazing construct for this community, Karen and Jeff. Now all our tangential discussions will be catered for!!!

Thank you both so much.

Uzma
Uzi

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Karen Shelton View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Karen Shelton Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 08 2003 at 8:18pm
Hi Uzma,

Within reason.....all of your wishes are our commands. :-) If enough people ask and are willing to support the threads...I am there willing to try it.

In fact, we are going to upgrade the boards to include new user features as a result of LiliBeach's request for the ability to ICQ/Chat (which others have also requested in the past). Lili...are you reading this? :-)

Thank you for your kind words Uzma but it is all of you who visit us that matters to us. We welcome you and appreciate you all more than you will ever know.

(((((Hugs))))))
Karen
That which doesn't kill you makes you stronger or drives you totally insane. :-)
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Starburst Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: June 08 2003 at 8:26pm
Hi Karen,

I agree with Uzma. You guys are doing a great job for all of us. Thank you for all the new topics. I have learned to never count you out. :-) You are always fulls of new surprises.

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