TRA Holdings scam!!

Today I almost got scammed. I posted to Craigslist that I was looking for a 3 bed, 2 bath in the DC area. I got an email a couple hours later from "Karen Williams" offering me a deal that sounded too good to be true. Here is what I received:


kelly williams (http://by122w.bay122.mail.live.com/mail/ApplicationMain_11.09.0000.0127.aspx?culture=en-US&hash=2972200423#)
To: AT@msn.com
Subject: I HAVE A LOVELY PLACE FOR YOU

Hello, My name is kelly williams I am 27 years old and i am an Australian hard working single lady.I come to the states once in a while mostly for business purposes cos i deal mostly in artwork since I was a small child.That gives me about few years of experience.I majored in art in high school and took a few college art courses.Most of my work is done in either pencil or airbrush mixed with color pencils.I have recently added designing and creating artwork on the computer.I have been selling my art for the last 3 years and have had my work featured on trading cards,prints and in magazines.I have sold in galleries and to private collectors from all around the world.I bought a house last year in USA here in washington,DC in Alexandria,VA cos i love it there .It is peaceful and with a oving neighbourhood.Unfortunately my father is very sick and i have to go back home to take care of him cux am the only child he has and i realised that it will be very difficult to supply artworks to my clients again in the United states while am away and it will definitely cost me a lot to come over if i want to receive payments cos they pay mostly in checks and money orders.So to run the business from there it will be difficult and will be impossible especially the aspect of payment and i dont also want to lose my clients or customers there .So what i intend doing is that i am looking for some one to stay at my house free of charge without paying a dimme.I dont want to sell or lease the house cos i just bought it and i will have all the rest papers Very soon but i have ALL the keys to the house with me now.I am simply looking for someone that is honest and trustworthy and clean for two reasons:
1.To maintain the house when i am away and
2.To help me receive payments from my clients within the USA on my behalf in your own name and have it cashed cux they pay mostly checks and money orders and have the funds wired to me here inQueensberry North Melbourne thru money gram transfer/western union transfer.You dont have to pay me a dimme for the accommodation okay? its just for the purpose of keeping my business going on in the United state.and if you wanna keep this assignment as a job you shall be entitled to 10% of each payment you receive on my behalf or a fixed salary of $3000 a month if that is what you prefer and this shall be a continuous process let me know and if atall you dont wanna live in the house or if you are far from the house its okay i could still afford to pay for your rent anywhere you want it if only you will help me with the above task,well my house is a great one with clean bathrooms,walk in closet,A gym ,All rooms and living room furnished with electronics .I will send the keys to you via courier as soon as i can gain trust in you with the first payment that you received and send to my manager,So that you can go and see the house. It is a very lovely house and there is no way you wont like it.If you are interested in handling my business in the state and keeping the house neat,i will want you to get back to me pretty soon okay
Regards
Kelly Williams


I replied back asking for more information about the house, not fully realizing at this point that the email was a scam. This is what I got in return:


kelly williams (http://by122w.bay122.mail.live.com/mail/ApplicationMain_11.09.0000.0127.aspx?culture=en-US&hash=2972200423#)
To: (my email address)
Subject: GET BACK TO ME FAST

Hello,am happy you are interested in handling my business in the state and keeping the house neat okay.I will like you to tell me a little more about yourself,the kind of job you do and where you precently leave in okay.you will need to fill a form which is below and get it sent back to me asap cux i will have to forward this to my lawyer cux its a legal buisness am oppreating okay.The name of my company is TRA HOLDING if you care to know okay and my house is located a nice area okay if you really want to stay in there,that is all i could tell you about the discription now until i can gain trust in you with the first payment then we will continue from there.i would have love to attached pictures of the house to this but i dont really have any picture for now okay and i must tell you handling this for me will not take much of your time doing this for me cux its just like a part-time job okay and all you have to do is to be honest with me and take it as a part-time job offer cux you will have 10% of the total payment sent to you for yourself or if you preffer to collect $3000 every month its okay by me if am less busy i will call you but for now i need to vist the hospital everyday cux my dad really needs me around so pls fill the form below:Please, fill out the form accurately with correct information cux it will be legally keept by my lawyer for future reffrences okay

APPLICATION FORM
Refrence No:- LSLCA/2031/ 8161/07
Batch No:- R4/A313/2-60

First Name:.............................................
Middle Name:............................................
Last Name:.............................................
AddrressLine 1:.................................................................................................
AddressLine2:..........................................
City....................................................State.....................................Zip...........
Home Phone..............................................
Cell Phone..............................................
Gender.............
Marital Status.......................
Age.....................................................
Nation Of Origin........................................
Drivers Lincence #:.............................optional
State...................Expiration Date..................

ATTESTATION
I ___________________________________hereby accept the job as a representative of the above named person here in the United States,to receive payments on behalf of the above person named Kelly Williams.and all Payment received by me shall be processed,make deduction of 10% as agreed and forward the balance payment via to any of the managers name that will be given to me later.I shall also inform my employee a week ahead,if eventually l want to discontinue this job, so as to terminate all payments coming my way to avoid conflict.Signed by me__________________

Thanks
Kelly williams


By now things were really getting fishy. I did some searching on the web and found a very similar scam: http://jobscams.blogspot.com/2007_02_25_archive.html (search for TRA holdings).

Everyone beware! Apparently they're out searching for victims rather than mass emailing everyone!

Creepy Locker Room Guy strikes again

Monday and Wednesdays I have my weights class. On Friday I go during my lunch time as well. After my class I ran into Creepy Locker Room Guy (CRLG). He was listening to his cell phone as I was changing out. I noticed him walking by the shower area and then coming back after I was out and starting to get dressed. What is this guys problem?! And what should I do?

I figure I have three options:
(1) confront the guy
(2) avoid the guy
(3) forget about it and stop worrying

I am thinking about trying #3 first. There's nothing he could do to hurt me, etc. (he's not a big guy), and I really don't feel like confronting him. I don't think I should feel like I have to hide from him either. This is his problem, not mine.

Creepy Locker Room Guy

For a couple of weeks now, I've noticed a guy in the locker room doing a lot of 'peeking' and walking aimlessly around the locker room. I've seen him peering around the ends of the lockers and circling back around after leaving the locker room. At first I just passed it off as someone looking the wrong direction or being in the wrong place at the wrong time. But then I started seeing him regularly.

One day I was coming back from the weight room and he was leaving the locker room with his bag. Two second later I see him coming back into the locker room. Then he proceeds to walk past me 10 times in the next ten minutes! At this point I'm positive that I'm not imagining things.

Things only get worse when a few days later I passed him in my office building. Now I find out that he works in one of the offices here. I've continued to see him in the locker room and now I see him around work every once in a while. I've contemplated confronting him and saying something to the effect of "You have a problem and you need to talk to someone about it". Everytime I get the chance though I chicken out. I keep seeing him at unexpected times and it catches me off guard.

This morning my wife drove me to work since I missed the bus. As I was getting out of the car I noticed him getting out of his car in the parking lot. I gave my girls hugs and kisses and grabbed my bag. As I shut the car door and headed to the building, creepy guy got to the building door, opens it, and turns and stares at me for a second. AUGH!!! I just wish this guy would go away. I suppose I only have 6 1/2 weeks until I graduate and then I probably won't ever see him again.

To live here or not to live here...

No one moves out of the three-bedroom units at this apartment complex. For the past three months, I have been waiting for a vacancy to happen, but no luck. Nothing. Only the one and two bedroom places seem to turn over.

It's not that this complex is the ONLY place for us to live, but it is the only place that works for our budget, for my commute, and the size of space that we need. Having lived in an 825 square foot, two bedroom apartment in a four-plex with NO ammenities and only a 15 by 50 patch of lawn, I am looking for something more. This place has everything at a great price (mostly because it has income qualification restrictions for its tax credit program). I check the website at least three times a day (most of the time more like 6) to catch a three bedroom unit as soon as it comes open. Unfortunately, there hasn't been anything. Everyone in the apartment offices says they usually come available every month or two, but I'm starting to think that is an exageration. So, the question is, do I continue to hold out for an apartment there, or do I move on? Our second and third choices would probably necessitate a part-time job for Steph. And how long should we wait?

With me going to DC before the girls, I am hoping that eventually time will be on my side and a place will open up sometime before JULY! In the meantime, I'll try not to run while all my eggs are in one basket.

203

I've been in this weights class for 6 months now and I actually have a chest now. For the first time in my life I feel kind of athletic. Not the coordinated, team-sports, competition type athletic, but physically fit, healthy, motivated to stay that way kind of athletic.

A big part of getting there has been changing the way I eat. I don't have the cravings for snacks like I used too and eating a doughnut makes me feel queasy now. The working out and eating right has gotten me down to 203 as well! Not that I'm trying to loose weight necessarily, but the excess weight is dissappearing while I'm building muscle which has helped increase my metabolism. I sleep much better, feel lighter on my feet, and feel better about myself in general.

I think most people have a tendency to think of weight lifting as a vanity activity and that weight rooms are dominated by meat heads. While some of this is true, weight training is excellent exercise because it (1) strengthens muscles you use for everyday tasks, (2) increases your metabolism (muscle burns more calories at rest than other tissues) which means more calories burned, and (3) helps protect you against injuries from over-strained muscles.

47 days

There are only 47 days left until I graduate. April 27th at 8 am I will be walking and receiving my graduate degree!! The moment is already so close that it's hard to focus on my school work. As long as I pass all my classes, I'm not too concerned what happens with this final semester.

I decided to pay the $35 cap and gown rental fee -- hey, you only get once chance to graduate from college for the first time (and hopefully the last). This is it for me: no more college!


I've been counting down the weeks and days ever since last October. I actually have an automatically updating spreadsheet that counts it down for me; I guess I've had too many "free" moments at work lately. I gave my 12 weeks notice at work back in January. My coworkers think I've become "trunky". "Hey, if you're going to find a replacement that will do as good a job as I did, you're going to need 12 weeks!" At least my boss thought it was funny.

The Monday after graduation Stephanie and the girls are flying to Texas. They'll be staying with her parents in Keller while I get the rest of the house packed up. I'm driving our car out to DC on my own and will meet the moving van when it gets there. Hopefully I'll be unpacking into our new apartment, but it might be a storage shed. We've been waiting on a three bedroom unit to open up at a really great complex, but everything in DC stays rented or fills up quick. Until we can get something that will work, Steph will stay with her family in TX and I'll stay with some friends in DC.


I can't wait to get to DC! I am so excited to get on with life and start full-time work. It'll be nice also to leave behind the 825 square foot apartment for something a little bigger. It'll also be nice to feel somewhat "settled" in a place knowing that we'll be there long term. We plan on getting out once a month at least to go see things in DC. With so much to see and do that's free, we've easily got a couple years worth of family activities lined up.


When I get to DC, I'll only have a few days to get set up before I start work. KPMG has an office downtown on 20th and M streets in NW. After a day or two in the office, I'll be on my first client. While I'm excited to find out who that will be, I am also excited about some of my long-term prospects. With KPMG auditing so many of the government agencies, I have a good chance to get on some interesting engagements. I just filled out some security clearance paperwork that I hope goes through. Once that clears, I can be involved in some really 'interesting' auditing. I have a friend who audited the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA). He tells some interesting stories about verifying 'inventory' kept until the trials were completed.


As crazy as it sounds, I can't wait to ride the Metro again. I like public transportation. I like not having to drive in commute traffic. I liked being able to read a paper, read a book, or watch a movie on my laptop going too and from work. Maybe I also like the idea of working in a big city. I guess there's an allure to being surrounded by lots of people working in high-powered jobs helping to shape the direction of the country. I'm not saying I want to be in politics or anything, I just like the atmosphere.


The distance from here to there still seems too large to bridge. I have from now until April 27th to finish all my course work. Now until then to find an apartment. Now until then to squeeze the last drops of entertainment and enjoyment out of living in Provo. Now until then to prepare for living in the real world. It all begins/ends/continues in just 47 days.

4 months left

It's the third day of school of my final semester at BYU. It's hard to accept that this really is my last semester because I've been attending school since, .... well, for a long time. I'll have 234.5 credits when I graduate, a Masters degree in Accountancy, undergrad in Accountancy, and two minors: Horticulture and Information Systems.

I've spent a lot of time in Provo at BYU, and I can't say that I wish I could stick around. Provo has the feeling of school attached to it, and I'm ready to be out of school. At the same time, I can tell I'm going to miss campus and the people I've worked with and gone to class with.

This summer we'll be moving to Washington, DC to start full time with KPMG. We'll probably end up living somewhere in Fairfax county, Virginia if we can find a place we like.

My wife and I are both excited about new places and new activities. Maybe we're both a little ADD? We haven't stayed in any one apartment more than a couple of years, and it hasn't bothered us to move. DC seems like the next big adventure!

This final semester of school seems more like a transition into my full-time job. I'm working more hours, taking less credits, and my mind is mostly in DC. I'm more concerned about finding an apartment and setting up utilities there than worrying about when my first big papers are due or when I need to start studying for midterms. I guess the good news is that I would have to try to not pass my classes in order to not graduate. Still, I'm looking forward to the time when I get paid to go to work and don't have to take work home with me.

Wicked

So amid all the school work that I've had to do, I managed to read Wicked by Gregory McGuire. Hmmmm... Not a huge fan. It was an interesting read. The plot focused around trying to define what was really wicked. It gave a new dressing to the story of the Wizard of Oz portraying the Wicked Witch of the West as a victim of her upbringing and of society's odd treatment of her because of her green skin. It was a mind-broadening take on the original story, but perhaps I'm far too romantic to appreciate the message the author was trying to get out.



I did find it interesting how the author implied that evil is manifested when someone pretends to be good or puts forth a good front but has selfish or less than virtuous intentions. But I wasn't won over by the stoic and martyr-esque persona of Elphaba (aka the Wicked Witch of the West). Yes, at times I felt pity for her, but I didn't identify with the person who had become skeptical and even cynical with the world. Maybe I have rose colored glasses on, but I believe that the Aristotlean mean of moderated virtues (not heroic dramaticism and not pessimistic cynicism) is of more benefit to man to emulate than of making a statement through extremes. And I just can't accept the proposition that people are to a considerable extent a product of their enviroment. I say, only if they choose to be. I choose not to and I've changed, so I can't agree with McGuire's point. Then again, I don' have green skin.

In addition, the Babylon-esque level of morality was a turn off. Sure sex is a part of life, but I have no interest in reading about others' experiences with it, thank you very much. And it was pretty base descriptions -- not just uncomfortable descriptions. Worth skipping a few pages.

I've heard some of the music from the musical Wicked, and that sounds somewhat interesting. I'll have to listen again after having read the story to see what I think. I'm not sure how true to the book the musical is.

So yes, the world doesn't have a happy ending to every story. Still, I'm not convinced that reading stories with tragic endings makes me an incrementally better person than reading stories with happy endings.

So there you have my opinion. Take it or leave it.

Fall Family Outing

This past weekend we spent the entire day on Saturday out at Thanksgiving Point in Lehi, Utah. We started off the day at their display gardens. It was the perfect time of year to go. We saw maybe 10 other people the entire morning, the roses were still in full bloom (they love warm sunny days and cool nights), and the trees were all in full color. The girls had a great time feeding Koi in the lake, smelling roses, racing to the top of the "lookout hill", playing princess in the Italian garden, and exploring the secret garden. There was so much room to roam that we definitely strayed off the path to kick up some leaves.

After lunch, we headed over to "Farm Country" for some animal petting. The girls were completely captivated by the goats who would lick and nibble the corn right out of their hands. They were interested in the peacocks and the rabbits, but nothing could top the pony ride. Two times each just wasn't enough. After looking at all the animals, we decided to head over to the Fall festival in the field next door. Cornbelly's had a huge hay stack with slides, a giant "air pillow", cow train, and pig races. It was a great time. Steph and I even ventured into the Creature, but it was a bit too scary for the girls inside (loud noises) even in the daylight. Didn't even try the corn maze -- too big for a stroller.

After a great day, we had to finish up with a McDonald's run. We were all pretty tired and the girls were asleep before we got home.

To finish up the night, we caught the highlights of the BYU vs San Diego State game on TV. Awesome! 4-2! Go Cougars!!

Summer Landscaping Project in DC

While staying with Seth and Susan Stewart in Vienna, VA this summer, I managed to convince them to let me help them relandscape their yard. Susan posted several pictures from the project so you can see what we did. The blog posting can be found here:

http://seth-susan.blogspot.com