Thursday, May 28, 2015

Cleaning up the mess..........

There has been such a mess to clean up both on the internet and in my home.  I am only sorry I tackled my home first because it would have been very therapeutic to get rid of so much after the mess with Little Buddy.  As you can imagine I have been a bit distraught.  I have been consumed with trying to find his image out there and stop it from spreading.  I have had my dear sister, her husband, my oldest son and all of his friends on the chase. We have been somewhat successful, but as you know once it is out there, it is out there.  

I can't thank you enough for all of your support.  You have left me so many wonderfully supportive messages.  I have gotten back to most of you, but if you are a no-reply blogger please know I read your heartfelt words and appreciate you taking the time to contact me.  Many of you have emailed me separately and joined in my search or have listened to me rant.  You are all the best, each and every one of you are so wonderful, positive, and caring, and felt almost as much outrage as I have.  

This is an unfortunate situation, and really is so pathetic the lowness some people will turn to.  What I do know right now is that the gofundme,com site where Little Buddy was first listed was taken down about 20-30 minutes after I reported it and has not gone back up.  They did a wonderful job at that organization stopping this bogus story and stopping the person trying to make money off of Little Buddy.  Twitter has not been quite as successful, but I think the original tweet spread like wildfire and was re-tweeted so many times it can't be fixed.  But the link back to gofundme is still disabled so that is good.  I will have to say I had to join Twitter to log a complaint and they were not the nicest about helping me.  I will only keep my account to check on things like this, not to tweet, it just is not my thing. 

So now I have to find a way to move past this and to be honest I am still struggling with that.  Blogging has lost a bit of its luster for me, I can't trust it and I am nothing if not a trusting person.  I am sure it will pass so I appreciate it if you would hang in there with me while I try to work through this.  I have read your blogs and am so happy for all that you have posted.  I have not commented as I really have not had the energy, but I am reading.  I don't expect you to comment here if I am not commenting with you, please know that I am totally fine with that.  

I plan on using many of your suggestions such as marking my photos.  It really is easy and even if it can all be photo-shopped out it is still more of a hassle to do that than just stealing an untouched photo.  I still plan to feature my little guy, but right now I am feeling a bit shy about it.  He is so precious and thankfully will not know what has happened, but it has scared me and I want to keep him safe.  

I am taking the rest of the week and weekend off.  I hope you understand.  I need to get my groove back and it seems to be missing in so many areas right now.  I am even having difficulty settling down to knit or crochet, so I am back to cleaning out things.  I have had 6 bags already sent to Goodwill, with 3 more ready to go.  I have two big bags of yarn ready to donate to the lovely people who accepted Mrs Josephine's yarn.  The person I need to take the yarn to won't be back for a few weeks so I am adding more and more all the time.  I have been a bit ruthless getting rid of it, none of the yarn was from the yarn I counted up, just the odds and ends I had in my closet.

So for now I leave you and wish you a wonderful weekend.  I have the greatest love and respect for all of you.  I especially want to thank you for hanging in there with me.  And of course I want to thank the brilliant reader who notified me in the first place, I can't imagine what would have happened had she not been so alert and proactive. 

See you soon.


41 comments:

Anonymous said...

It is amazing that someone was able to find LB's picture and that you could get a start on removing it.

I'm NOT surprised about Twitter. There doesn't seem to be much oversight and I pulled my account a long time ago.

I hope that you've found all the offending stuff and that pretty soon it will all be over.

And, I AM very glad that you will continue to blog. :-)

Christina said...

It is totally understandable that you do not feel much like blogging just now Meredith. I hope you'll enjoy your weekend with your beautiful family. Sending you a big hug. Cxx

Linda @ A La Carte said...

Meredith, you take all the time you need to process all of this. What a mess. I'm so thankful for the reader who first saw the gofundme and alerted you. I have a 'twitter' account but don't use it. Facebook is about all I can keep up with. Take care and extra hugs for you and all of your family.

Linda

Annie Cholewa said...

Oh my friend, what a nightmare time you're having. I could have sworn I commented on your last post when I read it, but apparently not, or perhaps my words got lost in the ether. Words that seemed entitely inadequate mind you so they're no great loss. I know that you and your family will weather this storm but I am just so sorry you are being tested by it. Wishing you a calm and restoring weekend x

Home Meadows said...

Hi Meredith, a little break is understandable. Thinking of you and wishing you a peaceful time away from the computer. Heather

Teresa Kasner said...

Hi Mere.. take all the time you need to process and heal from that rotten deal. I can only hope that karma will dump on those creeps that stole LBs photo and used it to make money.. what lowlife cretins.

I'm glad you're not letting them "win" and hope you'll be back to your old sweet bloggy self soon. You have LOTS of friends on here that love you.

((hugs)), Teresa :-)

My Garden Diaries said...

Ah friend you do not need to explain....I completely understand! I have been struggling with having my beans on my blog for the same reason as I am putting them out there and like you said once they are out there they are out there and that is something that is nerve racking for me as well. I hope that this time away gives you clarity and peace. I will keep my eye out as well and I will let you know if I see anything on my end regarding this situation.......hang in there Meredith! Thinking of you! Love Nicole xoxo

Chris said...

You just take as much time as you need. There is no need for explanations or apologies . Period. We all care a lot for you and your family and as all good friends are, we will be there for you as needed. We all have your back. Take care Meredith

Summer said...

I don't blame you for feeling the way you feel at the moment, it's a horrible feeling to know someone has violated a member of your family. The thing to remember is every time you post a photo to your blog it is stored on googles search engine and is "out there" for anyone anywhere to use from google images. The best thing to do is watermark the WHOLE photo of LB, it will make the job of removing the watermarks very tedious to a would be thief.
sending positive vibes and hugs your way.
Summer

Unknown said...

Of course I am going to hang in there with you! I don't care so much if people comment on my blog. It is nice if they do, but... I know people don't all have the time. Or sometimes the energy. I hope that you will get your 'groove' soon. I can't even imagine going through that. I hope you have a great weekend and the weather cooperates and you can get out and enjoy some me time. At least Little Buddy will keep you entertained! Such a sweetheart!

Tammy@T's Daily Treasures said...

Dear Meredith, I just sent you an email. So very sorry that the bad people of this world have managed to extend their greedy little hand through the virtual world to put a strangle on your joy of sharing. I would love to know who that person is so that I could personally wring their neck. I'm glad Claudia was able to guide you in the right direction. You take all the time you need to process this path you are on and how you will proceed. You know we are all here for you. Bless you ! Tammy

mamasmercantile said...

Take all the time you need, it is such an awful thing to do. Sending you all a hug and hoping you will feel restored soon.

CJ said...

Meredith, I'm so sorry that this has happened, it is truly despicable. I completely understand your disillusionment with blogging, take some time away if you need to and don't feel you have to post if you don't want to. Well done for sorting yarn, it's always nice to have a good sort out of things isn't it. I've never used Twitter either, and I certainly don't plan to now I know how unhelpful they've been. I hope you're able to have a good weekend. CJ xx

linda said...

Take your time Meredith it's not easy to let go of something like this, you know that we all love you and wish you well, sending hugs. xxxx

moonstruckcreations said...

Take as long as you need dear Meredith, we will be thinking of you and yours. Enjoy the weekend, the internet can be, and is fantastic but it certainly does have a very dark side too, and I am so so sorry that this has happened to you.

Much love, Helenxx

Lilbitbrit said...

Dear Meredith, I am so sorry this happened to you. The internet is such a two edged sword. It is a wonderful place of sharing knowledge, ideas and meeting wonderful people world wide. And yet there is the other side of people who take advantage. This makes one feel vulnerable and invaded. My thoughts are with you and over time maybe this will all fade.

Take care,
Christy

Suzan said...

Take care and heal Meredith!!
It IS amazing how close "knit" and supportive our blogging neighbors are.
My husband has suggested to me to put a signature on the photos that I post -- there's the lazy side of me and there are so many photos like the ones I post - usually of our travels - that I know there are pictures much better than mine!!
Hugs!!

Anonymous said...

Bless your heart! We understand, but hope to see you back soon. And we'll be here when you get back. :) XOXO to little Buddy!

Unknown said...

How on earth did I miss all this? I don't really know, I'm always in such a hurry these days... I'm so sorry about what happened, that's really bad - no wonder you feel the need to take some time off the web! Take care! xx

Wainwright and Wright.Co said...

I am so sorry and saddened to hear what has happened Meredith, it is really shocking and I can quite understand that you might need a break. I love seeing photos of LB, he really has such a happy face and his personality shines through. I hope the sorting out has been cathartic - the goodwill shop has certainly benefited.
((hugs)). Thinking of you all
Caz xx

Heldasland said...

You clean away, take your time and go and hug that gorgeous little man of yours. It is terrible how low people will go.I am so sorry that you have had to deal with this. Im sending hugs

Vera said...

Hi Meredith, take all the time you need to rest and recoup from that awful mess...we will all be waiting for you when you come back. Life is so unfair at times. Do know that we all care for you and support you...and are behind you. Hope you can have a wonderful, relaxing weekend.

Betsy said...

Ah Meredith. We'll be here when you feel ready to come back. I am so computer illiterate that I fear I'm of no use in helping to find the perpetrators. I'm lucky I can understand enough to put up a blog post. I AM SO glad that you have others helping you through all of the internet "stuff". This has all made me think twice of whether I want to continue blogging or putting up photos of my grandchildren and family. I hate the thought that this evil will prevail and possibly put an end to the wonderful friendships I've made through blogging.
Meanwhile, please know that I'm praying for you as you work through this mess. I've never been on twitter and this makes me even more happy that I haven't made that move.
Love and blessings always dear Meredith.
Betsy

kathy b said...

Rest. TRY to believe in the good of the world being better than the nasty. I like your MEREDITH in your photos.
We all have much to learn from this violation.
Hug Max and Lil buddy.
We'll be here when you are ready!

Unknown said...

Take your time Meredith. I am thankful that Little Buddy knows nothing about this and he is safe. Hugs

Annaboo's House said...

Such an awful thing to happen to you, Meredith.
I am so pleased that the blogging community has been such a powerful means of support.
Take time to rest and recuperate...
Sarah xx

Amy at love made my home said...

You already know what I have to say! We have shared. I am just leaving you in peace to come to terms with things, but I will be here when you return and am always on e-mail for a chat. Still hugs to you all. xx

Sweet Posy Dreams said...

I've been out of touch for a little while with family matters. Sounds like you've had quite an ordeal. I have to go back and read your earlier posts. Hang in there!

Caffeine Girl said...

Take as much time as you need. What happened with LB's photo is truly criminal and I am sure you feel terribly violated! I am so glad you are not going to stop blogging! We would all miss you so very much.

Neighborhood Watch said...

I am so sorry this happened to you, and also very happy that someone let you know about it asap! This is a crazy world.
I think you are right that we need to band together and not let this kind of creepy activity win out.
Love and support--

DebbieCPhillips said...

I run a horse and dog rescue on the east coast of Florida and teach horseback riding lessons to kids. I also knit crochet and make jewelry occasionally. I don't read many blogs, don't have time. And comment even more seldom. Usually my social network time is spent with promoting the dogs, or something horse related. I read yours most of the time. I think the first post I read was about your son on the farm. I enjoy what you make and your excursions. It motivates me to do some of the things I enjoy and balance my life so the rescue doesn't totally consume it.

ellen said...

The love flows in from everywhere as it should for all people. Love flows to you and your family, and it is a good thing for all of us to feel that love for you. Is it not that which we should all live for? You would return it in a heartbeat.
May peace come and may your days be filled soon with goodness.
xoxo, Ellen.

busybusybeejay said...

what an awful time you have had.Like you,I am a very trusting person and always think the best of people but it is a cruel world out there and people can stoop so low.Catch your breath and please come back to blog.We love to hear about Little Buddy.Lots of love.Barbarax

Anonymous said...

Hugs to you and little Buddy!
Beth

Grandmabeckyl.blogspot said...

I hope all things are straightened out soon and your heart is calmer now. hugs and have a good weekend please, my friend. Glad you are still blogging. I downsize my photos and put my name or blog name on all my photos so it is harder to steal. Hugs and prayers, to you!

Babajeza said...

Enjoy the weekend! Happy Sunday to you and your familiy. Regula

kristieinbc said...

You have been on my heart and mind ever since I read your post about what happened, Meredith. Another blogger I read just had her garden shed broken into and many things stolen and broken. It has been a horrible experience for them, but in your case it seems even worse. The thief stole your peace of mind. I hope you are able to restore that peace over the coming days and weeks.

yarnandpencil said...

Meredith, I am so sorry to read about the stolen photo. Take all the time you need to recover xxx

handmade by amalia said...

Stay strong, Meredith. Soon this whole unpleasant mess will be but a dim memory.
Amalia
xo

Jo said...

I have been away and missed your news. Sending you love and support Meredith. Love from Jo x

Carla from The River said...

Hi,
Sending you a HUG and support from Wisconsin. I do feel sick about this. You have become a friend and I enjoy what you share. It makes me so mad people have to take advantage.
Take all the time you need. I will be here :-)
Carla