Non-Domain Related

Can You Spare a Domain Registration?

RMDHI don’t like asking for favors, and I hate asking people for money, but  I am happy to do it to help the Ronald McDonald House.  I know that donating money is difficult when times are tough, but this is an organization that helps kids going through very difficult situations.

It’s with great happiness that I can tell you Karen and I are more than half way to reaching our goal of raising $5,000 for the Ronald McDonald House. However, half way there just means that we have to double the amount we’ve currently raised. It will be a tough task no doubt, but I think we can get there with your help.

Today I am asking you to donate $8.00 to the Ronald McDonald House, roughly the cost of one .com domain registration. It might not seem like a lot of money, but I can tell you that if everyone who visits my blog today would donate $8.00 each, I would raise much more than the $5,000 goal today alone! I know not everyone can or will, but I would really appreciate it, and here’s why:

The Ronald McDonald House  helps kids who are fighting cancer. Instead of having to worry about  hotels, food, and other important considerations while undergoing  cancer treatments in New York City, the Ronald McDonald House provides  an inexpensive home away from home for these kids and their families.

RMDH also provides fun activities, coordinates school enrollments, and  makes it easy for kids to focus on one thing – beating cancer. Let’s say, heaven forbid, you live in New Jersey and your child is diagnosed with cancer. The doctor would likely send you to NYC, where you could see some of the top cancer docs at hospitals like Sloan Kettering or Weil Cornell.

Think about where you might stay if you had to be in New York City for a week or a month. A very inexpensive hotel would likely cost you close to $200 a night, and food would probably set you back quite a bit, too. If you have to do this several times a year, you could literally go broke paying for hotels and transportation… what a horrible thing to think about.

The Ronald McDonald House offers pediatric cancer fighters a place to stay for very little money, and it’s located just up the street from some of New York’s best hospitals. Families are encouraged to use the kitchen and  refrigerator  to cook as if they were in the comfort of their own home. RMDH staffers and volunteers help organize fun activities, study time, school enrollments, and counseling services to ease the burden of fighting cancer. They make it easy for kids to focus on one thing – beating cancer.

So I am asking you to help support this great organization with an $8.00 donation. Don’t buy that long tail, hyphenated, brandable .com domain name today, and please help us help them 🙂

I don’t ask you for much (if anything) other than common courtesy when reading my blog and commenting. It would really mean a lot to me if you’re able to help an organization I support with just an $8.00 donation today.

Karen and I are half way there, but the second half is always the most difficult. Please help us help this great organization today. I can’t do it without your help. If you can’t donate $8.00, please think about posting a link to this request on Facebook or Twitter to help spread the word.

THANK YOU!

New Facebook Page for My Blog

On my personal Facebook page, I have been reluctant to accept friend requests from people I don’t know or with whom I haven’t done business. I figure I am open about my business and my life enough on my blog, so there’s no real need to do that on Facebook, too.

I did set up a business page on Facebook from my blog, and if you “like” the page, you’ll get wall posts and updates when I write an article, and you are welcome to discuss the article on Facebook.

As Facebook continues to grow, I may integrate it further on my blog, and I may enhance my FB page. I know Techcrunch recently changed their comment section to Facebook comments, meaning that people can only post via their Facebook account. I like that idea because it can help eliminate anonymous comment trolls that seem to thrive on posting BS without any credibility.

If you are an avid Facebook user, please follow along on Facebook!

We’re Raising Money for the Ronald McDonald House Again: Please Help

RMDHLast year, my wife Karen and I participated on “Team Ronald” for the 42-mile, 5 Boro Bike Tour, and with your help, we raised nearly $4,000 for the Ronald McDonald House of New York City. On May 1, 2011, we are doing it again.

This year, we’re starting a couple weeks earlier, and we’ve raised our fundraising goal to $5,000. In addition to riding and raising funds, my company is also a sponsor of Team Ronald (via DogWalker.com and DogGroomers.com). RMDH is a great organization, and we are going to do what we can to support it.

If you aren’t familiar with this non-profit organization, the Ronald McDonald House provides support and care for families who have children battling cancer. The people at Ronald McDonald House help make the lives of child cancer patients and their families better (and easier) when they need it most – as they fight cancer.

According to the RMDH website, the organization’s mission is to “support each family and coordinate emotional and physical services, psychological care, ministry support, wellness programs, tutors, music, art, transportation, activities for siblings, holiday and birthday parties and camaraderie for parents struggling with their child’s cancer diagnosis.

I ask you to please consider making a donation to the Ronald McDonald House of New York to help us help them. No donation is too small (or too big!). I know they will really appreciate anything you can give, and I personally appreciate your generosity and kindness.

Lebron James’ New Nike Television Commercial

This isn’t domain related, but have you seen Lebron James’ new Nike tv commercial yet? It’s pretty dramatic and mixes some old school Charles Barkley with some new school Tiger Woods. Nike always comes out with interestingly dramatic commercials with their star athletes.

Lebron James and his marketing company own LebronJames.com, and the website has been “coming soon” for quite some time. I’m somewhat surprised they haven’t launched a new website on it yet with the Heat’s season opener game against the Celtics happening tomorrow.

Congrats to Karen!

Every once in a while, I sprinkle in some personal tidbits on to my blog, and I hope you don’t mind. This morning, I want to congratulate my wife on successfully defending her doctoral dissertation yesterday afternoon.

Karen has been in graduate school earning a Psy.D. in Clinical Psychology for the last 4+ years, and she is currently in the midst of her 5th year internship. Karen worked hard on her dissertation (and for the last 4 years of grad school), and I am very proud of her accomplishments!

Now we’re off to Florida to celebrate.

Sunday, Muddy Sunday

I ran in my first “Mud Run” this morning. It was a 5k race in the Bronx sponsored by Merrell shoes company as part of their Down and Dirty National Mud Run Series. We ran through a series of obstacles, like wood hurdles, rope wall, ocean run, and of course two mud pits. Lots of fun!

Anyway, here are some updates:

September was a pretty solid month for my company. I made a few pretty decent sales, including NassauHotels.com, which had been listed for sale on my blog. I don’t know if the economy is turning a corner, but I do know if you are willing to sell solid domain names at good prices, there are buyers.

Rick Schwartz has been posting quite a bit on domain sales and acquisitions, and I think the articles are good reads. If you didn’t see the sponsored headlines on Domaining.com, you should check out Rick’s Blog when you have enough time to read a few articles. I agree with much of what he says, although I’ve made my living primarily by buying and selling quickly, which is something he doesn’t recommend. It’s something you should keep in mind because there are many different business models in this biz.

I am going to be at the Traffic conference in Miami for a day if you’d like to connect. I am extending a previously scheduled Florida vacation, and I’ll be traveling an hour or so south to Miami for the conference.   I already have a couple of meetings scheduled on Monday, but if you think there’s a reason we should meet, drop me a note and I will try to make some time.

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