There’s a reason that I use a Yahoo email address here on my blog, an email account that I don’t download to Outlook on my laptop. Instead, I usually check it twice a day for reader emails and comments. So I apologize that I’m not always quick on the draw with my replies.

The reason isn’t that I need to focus on work, although I do, so I shouldn’t always be paying attention to your questions and needs during my business day… Rather it’s because once you put an email address up on a blog, you get on lists. PR firm lists. And you get pitches. A lot of pitches.

Some of them are better than others, which is to say they’re at least customized to the blog. They might reflect some understanding of what the blog is about, or the product they’re pitching might kinda sorta have something to do with what I write about.

Most useful are the folks who actually work for travel providers or credit card companies that would love to have their clients or bosses talk to me, and occasionally these are knowledgeable people with news or products, which can even provide useful insight into what I’m writing about.

More often than not, though, they’re something like this one which came in yesterday afternoon.

Subject line: I Have the Ultimate Travel Accessory for You

Oh, ok, I know it’s a product. But hey, it’s about travel, my curiosity is piqued enough to open the email.

The pitch begins,

What’s TSA approved, small enough to fit in your pocket, and the one thing you can’t forget to pack for your next trip?

Guess what they wanted to send me samples of?

Wait for it…

The Mustela Hydra-Stick! Not only does it moisturize and protect dry, chapped lips, but sensitive areas of the skin, such as nose and forehead, as well. Formulated with Mustela’s Cold Cream, a combination of shea butter, glycerin, and beeswax, it provides long-lasting hydration and protection.

Yep, that’s what I get pitched every day. They want to send me samples of lip balm made out of cold cream, and they want me to use it on my forehead.