Friday Nite Check In

                                            Facebook Fiasco

This is the message I now get if I try to log in to Facebook

I wrote and sent this letter below to Meta..., I also emailed it to three of the email addresses listed on Google.  I doubt if I will get any response from the Artificial Intelligence (AI) program that appears to be running Facebook.  I hope that enough of my FB friends realize that I did not "unfriend" them and did not just willingly drop out of sight with no explanation.  If anyone noticed and egregious violation of "Community Standards" or "account integrity" on my account before it was disabled I would appreciate it if you would inform me as to what it was..., because FB refuses to provide me with any details.

Meta Support:

It started on 4/15/25 at 07:56 with an email from Facebook saying:

Scott R., you have 180 days to take action.

Hi Scott R., Your Facebook account has been suspended. This is because your account, or activity on it, doesn't follow our Community Standards on account integrity. If you think we suspended your account by mistake, you have 180 days to appeal our decision. If you miss this deadline your account will be permanently disabled.

Two minutes later at 07:58 I got an email from Meta for Business saying:

Hi Scott R., We've noticed some unusual activity on your Facebook account and have restricted its access to advertising. Any ads connected to your account are currently disabled. To learn more, please review our Advertising policies affecting business assets. If you believe your account was incorrectly restricted, click the Fix issue button below to verify your account. You have until October 12, 2025 to fix the issue before the account is permanently disabled. We used technology to detect this violation and carry out this decision. Further violations of our Advertising Standards may result in your account being disabled or restricted.

Well…, I have never done any advertising on my Facebook page so I kind of ignored the second email but did check out the link to “account integrity” and tried to “appeal” the information on the first email.  The website for account integrity provided this information:

https://transparency.meta.com/policies/community-standards/account-integrity/

Policy Rationale

In order to maintain a safe environment and empower free expression, we restrict or remove accounts that are harmful to the community. We have built a combination of automated and manual systems to restrict and remove accounts that are used to egregiously or persistently violate our policies across any of our products.

Because account removal is a serious action, whenever possible, we aim to give our community opportunities to learn our rules and follow our Community Standards. For example, a notification is issued each time we remove content, and in most cases we also provide people with information about the nature of the violation and any restrictions that are applied. Our enforcement actions are designed to be proportional to the severity of the violation, the history of violations on the account, and the risk or harm posed to the community. Continued violations, despite repeated warnings and restrictions, or violations that pose severe safety risks will lead to an account being disabled.

I was pretty sure that I had posted nothing that was a safety or security risk, but there was no “notification issued to provide me with information about the nature of the violation” other than the very broadly based “Community Standards” or “account integrity”.  The usual procedure is to take down the content of particular post and issue a warning and a “strike”…., and after five strikes you entire account can be suspended.  I received no warning what so ever…, my account was suspended.  I tried to appeal the decision but that link took me to a page that indicated that my account was suspended and I would have to do a “Video Selfie” to confirm my identity to go any further with the appeal.  I didn’t think my lap dog computer had a camera to enable that…, but managed to get on a “chat” with a person/BOT and tried to explain the situation and the reason that I couldn’t do the video selfie and noted that my bank, or retirement account, or investment account or Social Security account was able to confirm my identity without a video selfie and questioned why Facebook need one?  After going round and round with the person/BOT he/it said that he/it did not see any “suspicious activity” on my account and closed the chat and I have not been able to do any more chats.  I assumed that the problem had been corrected…, but that was not the case…, when I tried to log in to Facebook…, I still got the page saying I would have to submit to the video selfie if I wanted to continue.  

On Google I found an email address to “appeals@fb.com" and tried that…, twice with no response either time…, I also replied to the Facebook email with no response.  

On 4/26/25 I got this from Facebook:

Scott R., you only have 168 days left to take action

Hi Scott R., We noticed that you didn't finish the steps to appeal our recent decision to suspend your account. We want to help you get back on Facebook, so we give everyone 180 days to appeal. You only have 168 days left to complete this, before your account is permanently disabled.

I replied to that email…, 

“I have sent two emails to "appeals@fb.com" and have received no response.

I also did a chat explaining that I cannot do the selfie video and was told that my account had been reviewed and no suspicious activity was found..., but my account has not been restored.

I have no clue what the heck is going on over there ????

Scott R.”

Needless to say…, there was no response. So after waiting patiently for over a month I tried the video selfie thing.  My computer actually has a FaceTime application that will enable me to do video calls with someone else who has a FaceTime account…, but I had never activated the app so I had my doubts that it would work for Facebook…, but it did work…, and after just a couple of hours I got this email from Meta Support:

Your review was unsuccessful

Hi Scott R., Your Facebook account has been permanently disabled. You requested a review of this decision, but we still found that your account, or activity on it, didn't follow our Community Standards. You can't request another review. Learn more about why we disable accounts by visiting the Community Standards.

I replied:

“I have never been informed of the specific activity that resulted in my suspension.

The "failure to follow Community Standards" covers a very wide range of possible violations.

I do not believe that I have violated any of those "Standards".

It is possible that a hacker has entered some such violations unbeknownst to me, but I have not seen any such activity on my page.

I have reviewed the Oversite Board Review process and would appreciate the opportunity to request such a review but I was not offered a "reference number" to do so.

I never received any "warning" or "five strikes" that are supposed to be utilized prior to disabling an account.

Please let me know how to resolve these issues.

Thanks,

     SRS”

At this point I am not sure what to do?  I seems obvious to me that Artificial Intelligence (AI)has been used to initiate all the actions taken so far by Facebook.  The posted operational policies have not been followed by informing me of the specific content that has been such an egregious act of “posing severe safety risks”.  If a responsible and logically able human had reviewed my account over the years it would be obvious that I am not the type of person who would issue such content and would see right off that I have not engaged in any “advertising” content.

It would also be obvious to a logical person that I must have been hacked by some sort of pervert who posted some kind of perverted content on my page.  

I would like to believe that Facebook would be as conscientious about protecting me from such abuse as they appear to be about protecting their “community standards”…, but sadly that does not appear to be the case here.

Disabling my account for something that I did not do and not explaining what you think I did does not seem like a proper business model to follow.  Please take a look at the issues…, and at the very least issue me a “reference number for an Oversite Board review.

I am a 73 year old man and lived for the first nearly 40 years of my life in a small northern Idaho town and graduated from high school there.  The remaining 30 plus years of my life have been in western Washington.  Facebook has been a wonderful way for me to reconnect with old friends and family who I had lost touch with for many years…, some of whom I had not seen or heard from since high school.  Many thanks indeed for that Facebook.  It nearly moves me to tears to think that I have forever lost touch with those old friends…, and the tears did roll when I recently read in the on line version of the old Idaho local paper that one of those old friends, classmate and teammate lost his middle aged son to suicide.  I have no way to contact the old friend and offer my condolences now that my account has been permanently disabled for something that I have no clue about…, and reverently believe was none of my doing.

Please help me resolve this issues detailed in this letter…,  as I have had no luck getting appropriate action by other means documented on your support pages.

I am mailing you this letter in addition to emailing support@fb.com, appeals@fb.com, and disabled@fb.com  due to that fact that other emails have been unsuccessful so far.

Respectfully,

Scott R. Spence

scottr@olypen.com

(360) 374-9721

 

Friday Nite Check In

While the weather has been great for The Garden and the grass and weeds in the pastures..., I don't like seeing it growing in the gravel driveway.  Here is a picture from a few years ago..., I should have taken a picture of the more recent attempt of a green grass takeover.  It seems that I have had other priorities these last couple of years.

I finally got after it the last couple of days..., and here is the result after about three miles of weedeater line..., yeah..., that gravel eats up that line at a pretty rapid pace.

 I don't know..., sometimes I feel like I am just thinning out the weeds in the pastures so they can grow all the more..., and sometimes I feel like I am just blowing smoke rings in the dark..., so here's your Friday Nite Music Video...,

Friday Nite Check In

Charlie Horse out by The Pond

Well..., still no Facebook for this cowboy..., and no clue why I have been suspended or if I will ever be unsuspended..., but things are looking good around The Ranch..., the grass is greening up (along with the weeds) and The Garden is putting on a good show.  Speaking of good shows...,  as I gazed out the window the other day watching Charlie Horse graze out by The Pond I see a big Osprey swoop past real low..., I took quick note that my little pups weren't out and about and saw the big bird swoop by the other direction like he was trying to dive bomb Charlie !!!  I ran outside as he made another pass and managed to scare him off..., and then I heard the duck quacking up a fuss from over in The Pond..., and realized that the Osprey wasn't after Charlie..., but Charlie was evidently in his flight path I guess.  I wish I could have gotten a movie of the action.

Anyway..., here is your Friday Nite Music Video...,

 

I really like this video of this song too...,

Memorial Day Weekend

 Well..., the weather has been great for The Garden..., at least so far...,

Looking Good !!!

but I will be thinking about My Mom, My Dad and My Brother..., and here are links to their stories on the blog...,

https://scottrthequillayutecowboy.blogspot.com/2013/05/my-mom.html#more

https://scottrthequillayutecowboy.blogspot.com/2010/05/that-good-lookin-al-spence.html

https://scottrthequillayutecowboy.blogspot.com/2021/10/my-brother-larry-spence-born-february-7.html

       Me                                          Brother Larry
Mom                                                Dad

..., and of course..., My Wife..., and for your Friday Nite Music Video I will leave you with the music video I put together for her a few years ago.

https://scottrthequillayutecowboy.blogspot.com/2025/03/julie-spence.html

Scattering the Ashes

All but one of these pups is buried here on The Ranch

 We had decided a while back to scatter Julie’s ashes around The Ranch on May 17th, 2025.  Her birthday was a little too close to Mother’s Day and the last weekend in May was Memorial Day…, so we settled on this weekend.  Hoping that the weather will smile down on us and we don’t suffer a rain out.  

So…, for your Friday Nite Music Video I have chosen James Taylor’s “You Can Close Your Eyes”.  As I held her hand in the hospital on that day her breathing was getting ever more labored and as she looked at me…, her eyes were not blinking for what seemed like forever.  I knew that if the automatic functions were failing that it wouldn’t be long…, and it wasn’t.

We will try to hit all the spots that were special to her…, especially around the graves of all he beloved pets…,  and hope that she can Rest in Peace now.

Around The Ranch on Julie's Birthday

Born on May 8,  1957
Passed on Dec 31,  2024

Hey Babe..., I think about you every day that I am out doing chores and realize all the work we put in together here on The Ranch.  From cutting, piling and burning the Scotch Broom to stretching wire for fencing in the four pasture areas, to building The Saddle Bar, The Barn, The Gar-Port and The Well House.  It has been many years now since you were physically able to participate in any of the heavy lifting..., or even able to walk around the property to see how thing were progressing..., so I took some pictures today so you could get a closer look than you are getting from high up above us.  We hope that you have found a place as beautiful as The Ranch with a lot less work to make it and keep it up..., and we hope that you have finally found someone who can solve your physical disabilities and make you as healthy and as happy as you were in your younger years.  And I hope you will save me a spot beside you when I come looking to join you.

I was a little worried that I had gone a little too far in pruning this apple tree..., but it seems to be pulling out of it.

This old apple tree is overdue for a good pruning itself.

 

These little volunteer trees seem to be thriving in this high CO2 environment, judging from the length of the new green shoots.

Some of those green shoots are over a foot tall and ready to fall over from their own weight.

A little different type of green shoots on these little trees, but still impressive.

The Rhody in the Pet Cemetery is almost in full bloom.

You have to look close..., but even the Potatoes are showing green shoots.

Here's the other row getting going.

Charlie Horse won't slow down on munching that green grass long enough to pose for a picture.

Yeah Babe..., the only thing missing here on The Ranch..., is you...,  :( 

Friday Nite Music Video

 Well..., still no Facebook access..., so I am posting your Friday Nite Music Video here on The Blog..., along with some pictures of my grand-nephew, Reid Spence..., who is playing T-Ball this year.  His folks sent some pictures via email for me since I can't view them on FB..., and I mentioned that my old baseball mitt was probably too big for him now..., but I would bring it over to give to him the next time I made the trip to Idaho.  His father told him about it and said that he was really excited to hear that..., so I thought..., what the heck..., I will go ahead and mail it on over.  It has been out of use since at least 1987 when I moved to Forks and has just been "on display" in The Saddle Bar(n) for the last 20 years or so.  The leather was pretty dried out..., so I greased it up with Obenauf's Heavy Duty Leather Preservative and sent it over to Reid this week.

Reid in his uniform

Reid at bat

Reid with my old mitt

Another shot with his new mitt

So if you haven't guessed what the FNMV is for tonight..., here's John Fogerty with "Centerfield"...,  :)  

Yet Another Trip Around the Sun

 I guess I could have celebrated my 73rd trip around the sun on the 19th of April…, but I couldn’t think of much to celebrate.  Julie passed away on New Year’s Eve and that has put a damper on any celebratory emotions that creep up on me.   

 https://scottrthequillayutecowboy.blogspot.com/2025/03/julie-spence.html

But life goes on here on The Ranch and I am feeling every one of those 73 years in the muscles that don’t get much work these days.  Yeah…, after a really wet spring…, a week of sunny dry weather getting The Garden prepped and planted has reminded me that I still have some muscles.

I am thinking the two rows of potatoes will be enough.

This row was dry enough to plant the whole row.

This end of row 2 was still pretty wet..., another day or two should be enough.

And I will be posting pictures on this blog…, because Facebook has suspended me for violating  their “community standards”.  They won’t tell me exactly what constituted the suspension…, and insist that I do a “video selfie” and allow them access to my computer before they will communicate with me.  I emailed them and interacted with their AI Bot via a “chat” telling them I did not have a smart phone and could not do that…, all to no avail thus far.  And even if I could do it…, I have reservations about supplying them with even more personal information to include facial recognition data.  Oh sure…, they promise that they wouldn’t use in improperly or share with other entities…, yeah right…, tell me another one Zuckerbugger !!!

Well...., man does not live on potatoes alone..., this Hamburger Casserole turned out good.

A small fridge can be a problem..., if you don't use a flat plate for a lid so you can stack them :)

Anyway…., I hope no one thinks that I have just unfriended them since I disappeared from FB.  Hopefully some friends and family can spread the word that I am still alive and well and can be reached via email at “scottr@olypen.com".

And Charley Horse wants everyone to know that he is pissed about the FB suspension too.

Which reminds me..., it is Friday Nite..., and time for your Friday Nite Music Video..., with special thanks to Dave Watson for turning me on to Jesse Welles and this song....,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWKbxok7Shs

Oh yeah…, and let’s all hold on tight for our remaining rides around the sun…,  :)  

Julie A. Spence

Born      May 8,  1957

           Passed   December 31,  2024

The pain, suffering and misery that has plagued Julie for the last several years due to the insidious progression of the dreadful disease of Multiple Sclerosis is at a merciful end.  With no Hospice services available in the Forks area she din't get to pass on at home on The Ranch as she wished..., but the wonderful Comfort Care folks at the Forks Community Hospital made her transition (and mine) as comfortable and pain free as possible, it was no easy task I assure you.  We owe them an immeasurable debt for their efforts. 

Julie was born on May 8, 1957 in Lewiston,  ID to Maynard W. Anderson (deceased) and Marion Sparks Anderson (deceased).  She spent her formative years growing up in Superior,  MT and her teen years in Orofino,  ID after her parents divorced.

Julie with her friend Dian

 There she married John Faucett (deceased) and they had two children, Jesse J. Faucett of Forks,  WA and Jamie J. Faucett of Forks,  WA.  That marriage ended in divorce.

Julie with Jamie and Jesse

In 1987 Julie and I (Scott R. Spence) started a relationship in Forks,  WA, and three years later we decided that we were ready to exchange vows of until death do we part on August 20,  1990.

Me and Julie with our sheep dog Jennifer

 Julie started working at the Pay & Save Coffee Shop as a dishwasher, and due to her hard work ethic and attention to detail was promoted to the Manager position.  As the spotted owl controversy curtailed logging operation in Forks, I took a job cutting timber in Alaska.

Julie with Jennifer on a big stump in Forks

  A couple of months apart was hard on us both and she put in her notice to quit her job and move to Alaska with me.  It was the adventure of a lifetime, sailing on the Alaska Marine Ferry System up the Inside Passage form Bellingham,  WA to Ketchikan,  AK, and on to Craig,  Ak for the long four hour drive to Labouchere Bay Logging camp, with her daughter Jamie and three big dogs and a very scared Kitty in the back of our little Toyota Tacoma.

Looking down on Lab Bay logging camp

A scenic shot from above camp

Julie with our little sailboat / kayak

 There was a two or three month winter layoff every year and we would choose a little different drop off point in Canada on the cruise home to explore that country.

Here's a map of the ferry route and the ferries 

 We spent four seasons working up there, but the same environmental concerns curtailed that job in 1994.

Julie and I with our friend from Minnesota (who "stopped by" to visit us in AK.  The big black dog was our Great Dane, Khoel..., and our faithful little dirty Toyota Tacoma pickup.  

Upon our return to Forks, we began work on the four acres of undeveloped and overgrown with the noxious Scotch Broom plants property that we had purchased while still employed in Alaska.  We soon began calling our new home The Ranch.  We eventually got a well and septic system and electricity installed, a double wide trailer, a barn, a saddle bar, and a Gar-Port built.

Our first three horses, Surprise, Jake, and Kasha on the home site.

 We have housed three horses at one time, and too many dogs, cats, chickens, ducks, and turkeys to count.

Me and Julie in The Saddle Bar(n) and our little puppies

A shot our our little pond and the home site

That's Julie lifting hay into the loft of our Little Red Barn

 

Our dogs inspecting the progress on the new Back Porch

Yeah..., we have had several turkeys

Another turkey and a chicken

Momma Duck taking her kids for a swim

To give you an estimation Julie's animal fetish, she had 13 ferrets at one time!

The only thing she was more dedicated to than her animals would be her family who survive her.  Her children Jesse and Jamie mentioned above, her sister Danni (Bruce) Babin of Missoula,  MT and her niece Hollie (Brian) Timmons of Missoula,  MT.  There are also several aunts, uncles and cousins as well.

Julie will be cremated and at this tragic time we have no plans for any type of ceremony.  Maybe as the shock wears off and the weather improves we may plan a little something.  For now, please do not send flowers or anything of that nature, if you want to help others afflicted with MS you can donate here, I have no doubt that Julie would appreciate that:

https://mymsaa.org/

Here I a link to a YouTube music video I put together a few years back as a tribute to Julie..., 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVz-r3S9dY8

Cold Turkey

                                                               A sad..., sad message

 No…, not by choice.  An early morning lightening storm over a week ago Wednesday (8/10/22) caused a loss of CenturyLink phone and internet service here on The Ranch.  I am still not sure how big an area was effected…, with no phone or internet access we couldn’t determine if it was just our place or if there was a bigger problem. On a trip to town for mail and groceries I asked a convenience store clerk, grocery store clerk, post office clerk, public utility district clerk, and hardware store clerk if they knew anything about the CenturyLink outage…, to no avail.  That evening Julie had her daughter use her cell phone to call the CenturyLink toll free number and we found out via automated response, that there was “an outage in our area” and it was estimated that it would be repaired by the following morning.

No big problem…, we thought.  But by Friday afternoon we still had no phone or internet access.  I generaIly spend a few hours on the internet every morning with my coffee…, checking the weather forecast, stock market, oil price, Google News, email, several blogs that I follow…, and of course…, Facebook.  I really did not want to miss my Friday Nite Video song posting on Facebook.  I do it regularly because I don’t post much or share much during the week.  So…, I went to town to the local library and asked to use a computer.  I showed them my 20+ year old card…, that I was actually surprised that I still had in my old wallet.  On the CenturyLink website I was only able to get the “canned” response of…, “sorry, there is an outage in your area” and the estimated repair date was…, you guessed it…, “tomorrow morning”.  I wanted to communicate with someone in person so I could find out how large an outage and just what the problem was.  Yeah…, right.

I really didn’t expect the problem to be resolved over the weekend…, but nothing Monday…, or Tuesday.  I began to wonder if maybe the big problem was now solved…, and maybe we had a personal issue.  One lightening strike was particularly close and lit the place right up.  I was afraid that it had fried my computers…, but the power surge just shut them down.  It did knock out the phone and internet service though.  I was missing the internet…, but my biggest worry was the phone.  A month or so ago Julie’s doctor called a couple days after an appointment and said the the lab report on her blood work had come back…, and she should get down to the hospital emergency room right away.  It proved to be unnecessary…, but something like that or a family emergency could occur.  So we went to town to our friends house and Julie’s friend said that she had called five or six times and left messages and was beginning to worry when Julie had not returned any of the calls.  I got on their computer and got the “canned” response again…, “sorry, there is an outage in your area” and the estimated repair date was…, you guessed it…, “tomorrow morning”.  There was a link for…, “if you are not satisfied with our response, you can complain further”.  Of course I hit the link and got a little testy with the verbiage I used.  I got a little automated “canned” response that I didn’t care for…, so I submitted another even more testy “complaint”.