I know you love me but....

Okay, I want to sit with you and talk with you about something. You see, I love that you think of me. I really do. It makes me smile to see your name in my e-mail inbox. I get so excited! I think, "Oh cool! I wonder what she's/he's up to!?!?" and then, devastation...

a chain letter, a virus warning, an urban myth

I think to myself, well, the intention was good but you know that saying, "The road to hell is paved with good intentions."

So let me tell you a little about my day... really, a little about my life in the virtual world.

I run a charity. It is the world's largest and oldest online charity. It is not an exaggeration that I get HUNDREDS of e-mails from that a day as we all work together to try patterns, talk about needs, and work out how to help others. Important e-mails. Pertinent e-mails.

I homeschool. I have e-mails coming in from lists to help me do this. I have newsletters that come in that help me educate my children, let me know about upcoming events that will enrich all of us, newsletters that keep me aprised of local happenings and national laws. Very important. Very relevant.

I am a youth leader. Girl Scouts, 4-H, Book Clubs, Sunday School. E-mails fly in from and about these organizations so that I can make sure we're all on the same page. Timely e-mails. Necessary e-mails.

I work. My bosses in New York and Virginia rely on e-mails to get in touch with me, schedule, and relay information important in keeping me employed and paid.

That's just my virtual world and even then, only a small part of it.

In real life, I have four children, a husband, a job, a charity, and I work with children. I am always busy. Time spent in leisure is well planned for the optimum result.

Time with my friends is precious. Hearing from you is very important. But I want to hear from YOU.

That is why I plead with you - visit this site: Thanks, No

Once you've read that, I'd like to invite you to visit THIS site. I ask you to go there because you've OBVIOUSLY got a lot of time on your hands and you're itching to do something with it. Learn to knit. Make something for a homeless person who is freezing. Make a burial gown for a preemie that has died. Make a blanket for a veteran in a VA nursing home. Heck, I don't care if you make a willy warmer. But do something productive.

... and one more thing? Snopes is your best friend. Before you send me another story about people hiding under cars or peeing in Coke, check it out.

I love you too but...