Before today I have never tried to add a public note but I have been really trying today, so how the f&ck do you do that? I went to custom send, did the custom send, added the damn note in the box that says "public note" and still no joy. I even tried all three ways I know of to access the damn blockchain.info site (direcly through the site, using the old chrome plug in, and the new stand alone client). I have tried. What is the secret to getting those notes to appear?
I also tried but it didn't worked

People do this. I see public notes all the time. How is it done?
From the blockchain.info FAQ:
How do I make a public note?
You can embed a public note when doing a transaction with Blockchain.info. Simply input your message in the column below when sending a transaction.