We just hit 110k likes on Facebook.com. As a thank you to our customers, we are having a contest for 110 in Bidz Credit. All that you have to do to enter is respond to this blog post with a slogan advertising Bidz.com and/or one of our product lines before the end of February. You can enter as many times as you like with as many slogans as you want. Once February ends, I will select the 10 that I like most and then our Marketing Department will vote on which ones they like best. The one receiving the most votes will then be declared the winner. The winner will get 110 in Bidz credit, and get to see their slogan used directly in our marketing material.

Everything mentioned above should be pretty quick and easy, but if you have any questions, feel free to email me at facebook@bidz.com for further clarification. Just to get it out of the way, here are the (unexciting) rules:

-All entries must be submitted as responses to this blog post.
-All entries must include an email address, so that the winner can be contacted.
-All entries must be submitted by the end of February
-All entrants release any copyright, claim, and/or intellectual property rights over their entries; and all material entered may be used by Bidz.com in the manner in which Bidz.com sees fit.
-Bidz Credit only applies to item price and can only be used to purchase items being sold directly by Bidz.com on the Bidz.com website. Merchant items and items being sold by our sister companies, both on Bidz.com and elsewhere, are not applicable.

This isn’t a rule, but as a “protip” to help everyone have a better chance of winning, I would suggest that you keep your entries relatively short. If you look at a few banner ads or a couple marketing email subjects, they should give you a pretty good idea of what kind of length is ideal.

Thankfully, that’s about it, in terms of rules and suggestions. Good luck, everyone!

-Jesse

1. A link to an item on Bidz.com that you like.

2. A short description of what you like about it.

3. Your username (so that we know who to give the credit to).

I will then pick 3 random people tomorrow morning and have a credit for 20 put on their account.

Good luck!

-Jesse

This bracelet, believe it or not, is our daily deal today. Yes, THAT bracelet with THOSE stones  is our daily deal today. It is an absolutely wonderful 14k/925 gold plated silver bracelet with breathtaking stones: emeralds, rubies and sapphires. This is a bracelet that will make heads turn! For more details go here!

-Anthony

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Post your most romantic Love poem to enter our “Love. Write. Win” contest. Here is how:

-All that you have to do to enter is to write a love poem and post it in the comments section.
-You can enter as many times you want using different poems, as long as they are all written by you.
-Please make sure to include your E-mail address when posting the comment (it will be hidden from others, but we will need to use it to contact you, if you win).
-Entries must be submitted by August 24, 2011 at 11:59 PST.
-Winners will be notified by Email.

(Note: The contest is now closed and Dunmax is the winner for the poem starting with “Year one was fun, oh you were so lovely to hold in Gold”! -Jesse)

“I truly love Bidz, I truly love all that they are, I truly love all that they do, they are even the best for all my kidz.” -Michael

“roses are red, violets are blue, bidz.com is awesome”- Angela

“I love you guys I get great buys I just think sometimes there are spys I make my bid and just do my best hoping to beat out all the rest!!” -Kathy

“Roses are Red, violets are blue, Bidz is Great, and America is too!”- Charlotte

“roses are red, violets are blue but Bidz.com is loved by Mom’s!”- Christie

“Bidz is great, Bidz is cool, Bidz helps me look hot in school”- Jessica

“I love bidz ,and you will too, they have great deals, online for you”- Selena

“garnets are red, saphires are blue one thing for sure bids is for you”- Wendy

“To make a dream come true, for making me not feel blue, for the bling on my fingers…I thank you XOXO”- Danyelle

“When times are tough and money is short, the best way to save is to use Bidz more and more.”- Joseph

“you want watches? You want rings? Well don’t worry, bidz has both those things!”- Katherine

“BIDZ is cool. They have loads of jewels.To go anywhere else.Would make you look like a fool”- Lidia

Test it and see if you can do better, you never know what could happen!

-Anthony

Here are some interesting images I found…

And here is a little more information on Autore….

This is another luxurious watch from the Rolex! It is a Rolex Oyster Perpetual Daytona Cosmograph watch. Made in Switzerland, this Rolex has automatic movement, a stainless steel band and sapphire glass; making it nearly impossible to scratch or dent. What more could you ask for? This auction is offered at a starting bid of $1 with No Reserve price and, best of all, shipping is included! Check out the auction here!

Another Auction Spotlight currently running is for this pair of Leaderline earrings!

These absolutely beautiful earrings are handmade in Italy. They feature stunning diamonds in two tone 18k gold!  This is a perfect gift for any mom or earring enthusiast! This auction is offered at a starting bid of $1 with No Reserve price and, as with all of our Auction Spotlight items, shipping is included! Check out the auction here!

And, don’t worry! We haven’t forgotten about the rocks!

This week’s third Auction Spotlight item is this luxurious David Currado ring! This particular ring is handmade and comes straight from Italy. It features an enormous amethyst stone in the center along with precious diamonds surrounding the amethyst. The band is made from 18k white gold. Just like the previous two auctions, this auction spotlight item is offered at a starting bid of $1 with No Reserve price and, again, shipping is included! Check out the auction here!

-Anthony

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Post your most romantic Love Story to enter our Summer Love contest. Here is how:
• Post a comment telling us your favorite romantic love story.
• Make sure to include your E-mail address when posting the comment (it will be hidden from others, but we will need to use it to contact you, if you win).
• Three finalists will be chosen on June 30th, and then our Facebook fans will vote for the story that they think is the most romantic.
• Comment by July 7th, 2011 at 11:59 PST to win. Winners will be notified by EMAIL!

So, once again, here is how to enter into the sweepstakes: If you are on our email list, then you are already entered. No need to sign up. If you “Like” us on facebook already, all that you have to do is click the Sweepstakes Tab on the left and fill out the necessary information. If you do not already “Like” us on facebook; click “Like” on the top of our page, and then click on Sweepstakes on the left and fill out the information requested. Once you have done this; you will be entered to win a Louis Vuitton handbag, an iPad, or one of the other luxurious prizes up for grabs! The last day to enter is July 15 2011! Good luck, friends!

-Anthony
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KIM’S HERO

“Although athletic and involved in many sports, when my mother was pregnant with their first-born, my father wanted a daughter. They ended up having 6 kids – 4 boys and 2 girls and I, the third-born, was the first daughter and the only one of the 6 with my father’s blue eyes.

Not many girls had a father so active in their sports pursuits (this was back in the 60′s and 70′s whereas today it is more common). I was the only one on my baseball team who knew how to bunt AND had my own aluminum bat. My father was a runner and in fitting fashion, I too became a track star in high school. He was sure to show up from out of town for special meets – video camera in hand. He has thousands of pictures in his photo albums of his kids and 12 grandkids and dozens framed throughout his house.

My Mother didn’t go into the work force until my youngest brother went to school full day which put incredible financial burden on my father – one that he took on freely without fuss or complaint. At one point, he worked 3 jobs – one of them washing floors in the middle of the night in order to make ends meet and provide all of us with opportunity for extracurricular participation.

After my parents separated, I spent a weekend every 3 weeks with my father since he didn’t have any extra money for a larger apartment so we had to visit in groups of 2. Because we had such limited time together, my father crammed it full of special activities. My father never missed a support payment or spoke ill of my mother and always supported me – through listening and offering guidance but not judgement and financially when I needed help.

Each gift he buys me for birthdays and other occasions is well thought out and geared to my interests not something that he rushed out and got. Sometimes he buys our birthday cards months in advance since he is always searching for special ones in the card shops. He appreciates when we do special things for him although he rarely does anything for himself.

He played hockey until an injury last year while practicing to play in a hockey game for my husbands birthday and took up tap dancing at age 70 complete with an annual recital! He goes regularly to work out and still connects regularly with some of his co-workers even after having retired over 15 years ago.

In recognition of his 75th birthday last year, I had a gladiola re-named after him (his grandfather was an award-winning gladioli specialist who developed a glad in honor of my father when he was born but it is no longer in circulation). I was able to get all the initial history on the original flower and put that, together with a picture of the flower in a frame for him for his birthday. He took it around to his gym – his doctors and showed it off to friends and today, it sits front and centre on the main wall in his house. Such a pleasure to give him something that is just as special as he is!

He instilled in me a sense of responsibility and commitment to obligations with a lot of laughter, sarcasm and good-natured ribbing along the way.

Love you Dad,

Kim S.”

STEVE’S HERO

“Ground is always hard but when you’ve been lying on stony rocks for twelve hours without moving, the numbness somehow creates a cushion. That is, until you move and then all the fires in hell make you very much aware of your predicament. A shallow dugout on rock-hard ground was precious little cover. The protection they did have was a low wall constructed of random stones gathered from the immediate vicinity, enough to shield a man if he kept flat.
“Keep still and don’t wriggle about old chap or you’ll have Jerry down on us quick and lively!”
“What about if we have to advance quickly? Our legs will just give out. We’ve got to get some circulation going otherwise we won’t stand a chance when the order comes.”
“Fred, my good fellow, we’re not going anywhere. The Germans want this hill. It’s raining. There’s no cover. No food, and it’s nearly dark. Relax; keep your head down and dream of getting back to that gorgeous wife of yours and your new son, and the fun of starting another.”
Silence. “Sorry old chap, wrong thing to say!”

Fred, in fact, was thinking of the letter he’d received from Lily the other week full of news about his six-month-old son and wondered how she’d react to the fact that he wanted to hear news about her. His son was precious but he hadn’t even seen him yet let alone held him and he felt no bond. His only love was for Lily. Dear, precious, beautiful Lily. He hated this war and had mentioned it a number of times in his numerous letters. He longed for the old times when they were courting, just the two of them, cycling all over the English countryside. Those were carefree, idyllic times and he yearned to have them back.
“I hope Lily doesn’t misunderstand my last letter about wanting to hear news of her rather than Stephen. I’ll probably be jealous of the attention she gives him when I get back.”
“Just keep your head down old chap or you won’t be going back to have any jealous feelings.”
Hands, ripped and bleeding from scratching loose rocks together for cover, the two Coldstream Guards settled again to wait out another frigid night. During the night of November 8th 1943 the Germans launched an all-out offensive. Under heavy covering fire they forced the Guardsmen to keep their heads down but on hearing the call to improve their positions the Guards rose without hesitation from behind their meagre protective cairns as one disciplined group and drove the enemy off fighting with rifles from the shoulder and Tommy-guns from the hip. The order was to advance to the end of their endurance.
Their’s not to make reply,
Their’s not to reason why,
Their’s but to do and die… ran through Fred’s mind.

Early next morning German storm troopers crawled to within yards of the makeshift forts of stone hurling grenades into them. Fred and John were the only survivors of the assault on their group. Using the rifles strewn around them, they redoubled their rate of fire to deceive the enemy.
Drinking from the water canisters of their dead comrades and rationing their food, Lance Corporal Morgan and Private Rew survived two more days and nights on Hill 819.
Bone-weary, covered in mud, and exhausted from lack of food and sleep, the two men comforted each other with dreams of what they would do when the war was over.
“Fred, what if I don’t make it……”
“Of course you’ll make it!” cut in Fred quickly. “We haven’t come this far together to give it up now! Someone knows we’re here otherwise Jerry would have attacked again. You’ll see. We’ll be relieved before you know it!”
“Yes but if I don’t make it,” John persisted, “would you visit my wife and see that my family’s cared for? Go round and visit. Tell them how it was. How it all happened?”
“You know I would but we’re going to get through this I promise you.” Suddenly becoming aware of his own vulnerability and the fact that this may be his last chance, Fred chose his words carefully. “But I suppose if the worst should happen and we don’t make it,” he said hesitantly, “maybe we should visit each other’s family.”
Both Guardsmen prayed to their own God for a safe return but both held private fears that this was to be the end. No one was coming for them. Jerry held the high ground. No one would be reckless enough to sacrifice an assault to save a few scattered guardsmen. They would be listed as casualties of war. Collateral damage. Expendable. Fred clutched his precious photo inside his battledress jacket, closed his eyes and prayed that he might survive this last ordeal and live to see his wife and son.
On the night of November 10th an allied regiment relieved the Grenadier Guards on top of Bareback Ridge but still had to reach those scattered few stranded on Hill 819. Light Infantry on a mule track attacked the Germans on Hill 819 and against all odds drove them back and the situation was saved. One Coldstream Guard didn’t make it. Struck by a stray bullet he died in the arms of his friend.

~Steve M.”

NORA’S HERO

“You know I wish I could say I have the worlds best father, but everyone thinks they have a terrible father or the worlds best. Some even believe they have a rather average dad. I wish I could say I had a good dad or a great dad, some days I will even go with alright. But the truth of the matter is my biological father and I just never meshed very well. Among his beliefs and the way I was raised I grew up pretty much thinking I didn’t have a father. Then eleven years ago my grandmother died and my world was lost. At the time my mother was dating this kinda “creepy” guy and even all through out the next three months when my mum was rather numb he sat next to her.

When my younger brothers had serious issues in the public school system he was always there and even if it meant him missing out of his college classes he was there for the both of the boys and my mother. A few years ago I had a rather bad fall out with my father and it ended in him kicking me out. I went to school the next day, tears in my eyes and called my mother. Woke her up at six thirty in the morning to ask her if I could come back and later that day I received a note while I was in my last class of the day.

If any of you have been married and had a great memory of the proposal it was kinda like that when I ready the note. Everything inside of me fluttered and I felt as if everything would get better only with just a few words written on a piece of paper. “He said yes” Three words can make a persons life so much better. Three words were the start of my relationship with my step-father.

Even though we were always a low income family we were always happy, they did what they could to help me fight the fear of breathing incorrectly. And my step-father worked on patching the relationship a father and daughter should have. Over two years we grew close and learned a lot about one another, not the my favorite color is green and his is a bluish color. But we learned that we do work out pretty well. He never had a daughter and I never had anyone that cared half of a bit. See the way we all describe my father is he liked to keep his daughters as dolls. Take them off the shelf show how pretty they are and how much they listen the put us back up on a shelf. Well with my step-father, we proved him to be very wrong and at the age of eighteen I did the best thing you can give to any father. I changed my name and took his on.

It was a kind of weird few days, but in the end we sit here three years later happy for my decision. And three years later we sit here on the living room couch watching my ten month old crawling on the floor and give a smile as we both realized that my son will never have a step-father or even father as great as mine. I decided that mine was so great when I was pregnant that I named my son after him, just switched around the vowels.

Does that tell you why I love my step-father, he is one of the few males in this world that can look at a child and love them just for them as his own flesh and blood even though I will never be biologically his and neither will my son I am still his baby girl and my Poshers is still the first grandson that he is so very proud of. Five years and my step father and I have come to a point that most kids my age never come to with their parents in the entire 21 years that they have them, yet from sixteen to twenty-one he has managed to tame a terrified teenage and has managed to find the only daughter he will ever have. And the only one who loves him more then a biological.

Nora”

This impressive Invicta Subaqua Noma3 is a Swiss mechanical movement watch with glass made from sapphire crystal to prevent any scratches and it was made exclusively in Switzerland.  This auction is offered at a starting bid of $1, No Reserve, shipping included, place your bid early! This watch can be seen here!

Also, today’s Auction Spotlight includes is this Fred watch!

This impressive Fred watch is a dated, Swiss automatic movement watch with glass made from sapphire crystal to prevent any scratches. This is a perfect gift for any Dad! This auction is offered at a starting bid of $1, No Reserve, shipping included, place your bid early! Check it out here!

And Don’t Worry! We haven’t forgotten about mom!

This week’s Auction Spotlight also features this luxurious Movado Watch. This particular Movado is from Eliro Collection Made in Switzerland and contains super clean Diamonds. It is a Stainless Steel Watch with Genuine Alligator Leather Strap. This auction has a starting bid of $1, No Reserve, shipping included, place your bid early! Click here to check it out!

-Anthony

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Please tell us why your dad is your hero! This is why mine is:

In order for you to understand why my Dad is my hero, you would have to understand a little bit about my past. I was born to two high school seniors in the wonderful year of 1987. We lived in the San Fernando Valley, a mere 8 miles north of Hollywood, CA. Given their ages, life was tough for the both of them. They had no place of their own, relationship problems and a very clingy child (ME!). Due to this, their relationship didn’t even make it into the 90’s.

The upside to this adversity was that it drove my Dad to work even harder to provide for his family. He finished college with a degree in English, all while working as a teacher’s assistant and doing other odd jobs. Unfortunately, the field he wanted to enter wasn’t a guarantee money maker. So, he decided to make a heavy sacrifice. In order to be able to better provide for his family, he put aside teaching English and joined the LAPD.  Even though it was not his original dream, he knew that a career with the police force would be steady and reliable. That way, he would always be able to provide me with what I needed growing up.

It has been 17 years since he joined the force, and he is still working hard to support me and my 2 sisters. He works 50 hour weeks just to make sure we are all taken care of. Whenever we need anything, he is always there to help. Car problems? He is there! Handyman projects? Of course, he is there! I didn’t realize how much appreciation he deserved until I became an adult and was able to see all the ways that he has been there for me growing up. I can’t thank my dad enough for his hard work, perseverance, and tough love. I have so many memories of “father and son” moments. However, what means the most to me is knowing one thing: no matter what I do or say, he is always and will always be there for me. His love is 100 percent unconditional. That means more to me than anything else.

I love you, Dad. Thank you for all that you have done for me. Most of all, thank you for just being you.

-Anthony
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DEADLINES:
Entries on the blog must be made by or on June 11^th. On June 12^th, we will select the top 3 and post them on our Facebook wall. Then, we will have our followers vote on the ones that they like the most by “Like”-ing their favorite stories between June 12^th and June 18^th. (So, make sure to tell all of your friends to vote for yours, if you are one of our finalists!) Then, we will gather all of the necessary information and announce our winner on June 19th! Good Luck!

This impressive Gucci Pantheon is a Swiss automatic movement watch with glass made from sapphire crystal to prevent any scratches and it was made exclusively in Switzerland.  This auction is offered at a starting bid of $1, No Reserve, shipping included, place your bid here for this watch!
 

Also on today’s Auction Spotlight is this Porsche Design watch!

This impressive Porsche Design watch is a Swiss automatic movement watch with glass made from sapphire crystal to prevent any scratches. It is from the P6612 Collection and it was made exclusively in Switzerland.  This auction is offered at a starting bid of $1, No Reserve, shipping included, place your bid here!

And Don’t Worry! We haven’t forgotten about mom!

This week’s Auction Spotlight also features this luxurious Louis Vuitton bag. It is an Authentic Tivoli PM Monogram canvas bag with elegant curved shape. It comes with a gift receipt issued on May 16 2011 from a Rodeo Drive Boutique in Beverly Hills! This auction has a starting bid of $1, No Reserve, shipping included. Check it out here to place your bid!
-Anthony

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I usually start my day off on the internet with a quick visit to the major news sites (MSN, Yahoo, and CNN) just to catch up on world news and interesting articles about interesting people. Believe me I have seen my share of crazy articles but the one I ran into today was quite simply the loveliest story I have ever heard of in a while. The story is like any other love story that ends in marriage, except the fact that the combined age of the couple is 193 years old! Forrest and Rose Lunsway married last month in a California wedding all on Forrest’s 100th birthday! Yes 100th birthday! They met on a blind date at a ballroom dancing function at their senior center 28 years ago and have been a couple every since. They both came from previous marriages that both ended due to cancer, what they say to be a connecting point for them. They have been getting plenty of media coverage, countless interview requests and even fan mail more than they can ever imagine. When asked about the new found fame, Rose simply said that it its “exciting yet exhausting.” She does however credit the fact that the couple doesn’t own a computer so therefore she doesn’t pay mind to the more attention they are getting over the world wide web. The couple says that the secret to their healthy relationship at this point in age is to ‘be forgiving and patient and say I love you once in a while’ and to keep busy. Forrest claims that the reason why he has lived as long as he has is because of the fact that he has never had a desk job, he is always outside. At the time of one particular interview, Rose had stated the reason why Forrest wasn’t present with her for the interview was the fact that he was outside planting. Aside from being outside constantly, they both enjoy drinking (wine or whiskey preferably) ballroom dancing and have crossed a few things off their bucket list so to speak such as walking the coast in California, and kayaking in Alaska. She says she told him up front that she didn’t want to marry again and he dropped the subject for quite some time until her asked her one day why she hasn’t married him and she responded that he had never asked. So he asked, and she said on his 100th birthday she will, well March 19 was Forrest’s birthday and the day he got married. Just goes to prove you are never too old for anything, especially love.

-Anthony

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