Dear "Viral" Advertisers:

I receive a fair amount of traffic on this oft-neglected blog, an amount that surprises me sometimes, and it always pleases me when someone takes the time to let me know that I've helped them in some way. That's what this page strives to do, ease the hassle and sympathize with an annoying condition.

I enjoy answering questions, I enjoy hearing about lactose-free foods that other people like. Dialogue is all well and good, but here's what I don't like: thinly-veiled advertising.

I know, someone is paying you to sound enthusiastic, and maybe whatever product you're hawking really did work for you. Fine. But don't show up here acting like you're just a regular person leaving a regular comment like anyone else. I'd maybe be less annoyed if you were straight with me. "Hi, I'm so-and-so, and I work for [x]."

When I talk about some product I like, believe me, I am in no way tied to it. No one pays me to do this. It is, at best, a poorly maintained hobby that I think fills a need and it's a subject about which I have things to say. If I like something, I say so. If it's crap, I say so.

Here's the thing. To me, popping up in my comments section gushing about the product that saved your life, all written in considered ad-copy speak, is only one step removed from straight spam. Yeah, you're advertising in a place the relates to your product, but you're also doing it for free.

If you want to advertise your product, you need to pay to do so. Thing is, you'll notice there aren't any ads on here. I have some links on the sidebar relating to products and resources that have helped me, but that's it. No one contacted me about putting those links up; I chose to link them on my own.

If you want an ad, then you're going to need to be selling something pretty special. Something I've tried, loved and for which I don't mind collecting your money. We can work out a rate.

Unless you're that product, any comments that have even the whiff of advertising will be deleted from now on. Maybe some legitimate comments will be lost as a result, and I apologize in advance. Consider this the official advertising policy.