A Formal Apology to Simple Human

Dear SimpleHuman,

Thank you for the stuff you sent me.  I'm sorry I haven't written about it even though it's been a year.  It's not personal.  It's just that I usually write up the reviews about the stuff I either really love or really hate.  It just makes for a much more "Mommy Lite-ish" story.

Your stuff is good.  Don't get me wrong.  I like it.  Not all of it.  Some of it. 

However, last night a blogger set me straight for getting a free dishrack and not writing about it.  She yelled across the table at me "You took free stuff and you didn't write about it??!!!  Did you tell them you weren't going to write about the stuff?! 

I tried to casually explain that I liked the stuff they sent.  That I e-mailed them to say I had planned to talk about it, but that I wanted to wait for the right story to work it into.  I tried to explain that Mommy Lite is a humor site - not a review site - and I try to have a consistent thread throughout my content.  I tried to explain that I'll do a review if I love or hate the stuff and I can work it into a story that's funny, or weird, or disconcerting so that it's consistent with my site content.

And while I was casually explaining my position to this woman I hardly knew she delivered a line that turned this review into a story.  "CAN YOU JUST FOCUS ON WHAT I'M SAYING TO YOU!!!!!  CAN YOU FOCUS???!!!!  ARE YOU FOCUSING??!!!  DID YOU TELL THEM OR NOT!?"

I was beside myself.  And a little afraid.  "Er...no."  I don't think I actually did anything wrong.  After all, Mommy Lite is my site.  I am in charge of my content and have a right to say what works and what doesn't.  I also don't think mediocre reviews of anything do anyone any good.   But, I said "no" to end the conversation.  Fast.

"WELL THAT'S JUST WRONG!"  She shouted across the table and group of people who all looked like they had just stumbled across a naked married couple fighting.  Awkward...

Honestly, I'm not greedy, and I was so grateful to be invited to the event.  Again...I like your stuff.  I just had no idea that a follow-up review (whether or not the blogger liked it) was such a touchpoint. 

So anyway, SimpleHuman, thank you for sending me some of your items to try and here's the review I owe you:

I like my automatic soap dispenser as long as it's clean.  When they get stopped up from the soap coming out, the dispenser reads it as you asking for MORE soap and it continues to pour out whether a hand is there or not to grab the soap leaving a big gloopy pile of soap that needs to be cleaned by hand on your counter.   I also don't think I need so many options for soap dispensing.  Just give me a bit of soap.  I'll ask for more if I want it.  The settings aren't necessary.  Final thoughts:  I think the engineering still needs tweaking, but the concept is good.




My 2-piece recycling trash can:  I love the look.  I HATE how small the recycling bin is though.  I can barely get 3 cartons of milk into it.  Final thought: I would GLADLY take a larger can to have more recycling space.  This one is just useless to me.

Hmm...then there's the dishrack.  I DO like the dishrack.  I like that the bottom pulls out and the little funnel on the bottom that siphons the water off into the sink.  I like the wooden knife compartment that safely holds knives and I like the way it looks.  Good job on the dish rack.  Final thought: "Hey, you moms out there!  If you're looking for a good dishrack, SimpleHuman has a great one."


Oh - and the metal storage containers are good.  The inserts come out so you can wash them.  You need to buy a lot of them though...and they're expensive...to get the look right.  Final thought: They work well, but you need at least 4 for them grouped together to look stylish.

The Shower Rack - Okay, that was almost in three other stories.  I knew one day I'd work it into a fun story but now this blogger chick has spoiled it and I have to talk about it here.  I LOVE my shower rack.  It changed my life.  It is on the floor so I don't have shampoo and other stuff jutting out at my head.  It is spacious without taking up too much space and I love the thoughtful little razor holder and wire soap dish.  No more razor on the floor or mushy soap.  Final thought: GOOD job Simple Human. 

There, blogger chick...focused enough?