Wow!! all I can say is WOW!!

So those of you who read this know that I love scrapbooking, and you know the store that I happen to shop at. Well I defiantly will not be shopping there anymore.

I've been having some issues with some of the things that have been happening with the online forum associated with the store.

First is a 'game' that is formatted something like survivor. There are weekly challenges and you have to post pictures of what you create, by a deadline of course. Then there is open voting, and the person with the least amount of the votes gets kicked out of the competition. That's the part I have an issue with. Scrapbooking is a creative venue -- I love that I can do whatever I want with pictures and bling and paper, and I love that what I create has meaning -- at least to me. So I think openly voting on someone's creative outlet is completely wrong. Let alone the fact that some of the people in the forum are new to scrapbooking and will be totally turned off by the fact that some people may not like what they have created.

Second is a huge contradiction! We are not allowed to post links to our blogs anywhere on the forum, as they can not control if we have information or product from another store on our blogs. I can totally understand that. However this past week we were asked to put a blinkie promoting their store on our blogs. Does anyone else see the contradiction?!?!?! I know for a fact that the Design Team Leader has other stores on her blog, and her blog is promoted from the stores' blog. How is that inline with the rules of the forum if the DTL can have informaiton and product from another store on her blog and have it promoted, but I am not able to ever reference my blog anywhere becasue I may have product from another store. There was an incident wheresomeone asked a question regarding blogs on the forum, and was openly criticised by the DTL for not reading the rules, and belittled in the process. If I were in that situation, I would have dealt with it in a private message, and then put a basic quote of the rules on the thread before shutting it down, not openly stating that the person 'had better re read the rules of the forum before posting another question'. In my opinion the DTL's head is hardly big enough to fit in the store.

I have been oh so quiet about things that I have been noticing but I can't be quiet anymore. The owners of the store will know my opinion, and they have lost a valuble customer. One that honestly brings in a lot of revenue for their store. I guess I'll be shopping in StJ's more often, maybe not as close to my house, but at least I can avoid the drama, and avoid the forum.

I guess I've learned my lesson. If the DTL showes up at another store I shop at and get's involved, change stores. She's not worth the drama again.