I’ve been involved further with BzzAgent. The most recent campaign I was invited to was for Smarterer. From their website:

We created Smarterer to provide people a simple, fun, and authentic way to show what they know. Smarterer is a platform designed to score individuals on any and every digital, social, and technical skill under the sun. Using crowdsourced test design and a scoring mechanism similar to the one developed to rank chess masters, in just 10 questions and 60 seconds we can give you a valid score.

 

So far, it is pretty neat. I am ranked 7th with regards to the BzzAgent test. :D

So I have enrolled in a free program through BzzAgent.com. Honestly, it sounds too good to be true. They did not require anything like credit card or Paypal information, though, so I signed up. The ultimate goal of the site/program is to send products out to users to sample and try out so that they then review the products. It is kinda like free marketing.

Users complete surveys about their lifestyles and the products they use so that BzzAgent can tailor what products they send (or Campaigns, as they call them) to the users to review. There’s no obligation except that you take the time to review the products you receive. They also want their users (they call them Agents) to openly disclose their status as an Agent – there is no pressure to provide glowing reviews on products that SUCK, either, which is nice.

The downside is that it takes a while to be invited to your first campaign after joining. I joined in August but did not receive a Campaign invite until earlier this month. I had actually forgotten that I joined it until I got an email from them about the invite!

My first campaign was to review some products from Maybelline…their new Great Lash Lots of Lashes mascara and their new Baby Lips Repairing Lip Balm. They didn’t just send me a tiny sample size of each, either. Nope. FIVE full-sized tubes of mascara and four full-size lip balms.

I’m not normally a fan of black mascara because it makes me look scary, but the applicator wand was such that it was not a thick or clumpy application, so it did not look too dramatic. It is not waterproof. Downside is that it smudges VERY easily (unlike whichever Almay I use). The brush looks a little goofy, it is tapered–thicker towards the handle and thinner towards the tip so you can more easily get to inner lashes and whatnot.

I am a lip balm junkie, though. They’re all SPF 20. Two were tinted – Cherry Me and Pink Punch. The Cherry Me looks nice but Pink Punch looks a little too much like the bright, way-too-opaque pink lipstick you see on Barbie dolls; not my thing. The others were clear – Quenched and Peppermint. Quenched claimed to be unscented, but it had a pleasant scent that reminded me of citrus and well, the other is pretty obvious. All four smell great but taste AWFUL, so keep that in mind if you accidentally lick your lips with the stuff on!

Deleted a bunch of shit.

Since I last posted (in chronological order, or as best as I can remember):

1. Got a promotion to a full-time department lead/coordinator.
2. Moved into the apartment.
3. Got my first credit card.
4. Got kittens.
5. Third anniversary.
6. Purchased the Plymouth Sundance (car) from his parents that we had been borrowing.
7. Turned 19.
8. Parents visited; they were playing gypsy.
9. Otakon.
10. Got fed up with Best Buy due to the insane GM; decided to look for a new job.
11. Got a job with a security company within 3 days. Started the following Monday.
    … Call center. Better pay. Insurance. Benefits. Paid time off. Consistency!
    … … (Did not quit BBY until the following Sunday; got shifts covered, called off to use my sick time, worked weekend &…bye!)
12. Thanksgiving.
13. Worked my ass off, worked overtime.
14. Christmas; my parents came to visit. It was partially a fiasco, as per usual.
15. More overtime.
16. Got the kittens fixed.
17. Tax time.
18. Head gasket on the car we had bought from his parents went. Cost to fix > value of car.
    … Rented a car for 3wks while we struggled to find a decent car & loan. Lenders were concerned about phixious’ and my credit history.
    … … Neither of us have any bad marks, but being young, we don’t have a long credit history.
19. My parents decided to move to PA. They lived with us (…we have a one bedroom/efficiency apt. Separate bedroom, but living/kitchen/dining is one space) for about 2mo.
    … So that was phix, myself, our two cats, my mom, dad, and sister and their three cats. >_<
20. Finally got someone to give us a loan! We purchased a 2004 Jaguar X-Type for $10,143 (including taxes, title & other fees) w\ $2k of it down.
    (Yeeeeeah. Heated. Fuckin’. Seats!)
21. Fourth anniversary!
22. One of my parents’ cats (I take that back–MY cat, but she lives with them, Washu!) had a kitten! Aw! =)
23. My parents got their own house. Finally!
24. phix’s birthday!
25. Went to Tennessee for phix’s cousin’s wedding. It was a nice ceremony and we have ridiculous pictures in Batman masks and I was drunk as hell.
26. Indoor water park! phix hurt his foot on a slide, but they patched him up & we had fun!
    … despite our friends being stupid and not wanting to ride anything because they were being self-conscious because they’re hefty folks.
27. Saw a drive-in  movie for the first time.
28. Turned 20.
29. Washu had MOAR kittens! They all made it this time which is very exciting and wonderful because, you know, KITTENS. (squee).
30. One year with my security company job. Raise!
31. Saw mc chris in concert and it was SO. FUCKING. FUN. :D!
32. Promotion! Raise TBD!

and here we are!