fractalnavel

sounded good...

i got this cardboard insert with the last grolsch six pack i bought, it says:

"to receive your grolsch swingtop bottle opener, go to www.grolschbeer.com"

ok.  the fine print mentions nothing about a contest or drawing; sounded like anyone who sends in gets one, until 12/31/04 or "until supplies last".

well, if you go to the website, eventually you end up at the grolsch promo page, which says only that you'll get "a chance at winning", and only until 9/04. 

not a biggy, just another of those little irks in life.  if you want one, get one, they ticked me off and it's not worth getting on their junk/spam list.  here's the six-pack insert code it mentions from the one i got:  G-04FB0.  i can barely make it out in the fine print.  first come, first served.

speaking of irks, i ordered some tour books and maps and stuff from aaa.  it got here very quickly, and it was in a pretty heavy duty opaque plastic bag. but it had been cut open at one end, clearly not accidentally.  everything was there.  looks like a not too subtle mail check to me.  i wonder if more freedoms/rights would have been left intact after 9/11 had someone else been on the throne.  back to one of my original darker thoughts that day:  there is just the slightest outside possibility that it was an inside job.  at the very least, it was taken advantage of by the administration in ways not optimally beneficial to the public.  and he is continuing to erode american prestige abroad.   i wonder if we can blame the u.s.'s poor olympic showing on him as well ?  ;-)