Before. . .After

Our project, completed by the fire. . .

25 Tips To Improve The Conditions Of All

I recently asked the United Way about volunteer opportunities for youth, specifically for the National Junior Honor Society at my daughter's school. They are required to have a certain amount of community service hours each quarter. They provided me with this wonderful list:

*Note: You don't have to be a "youth" to do some of these items. Get started today!

1. Start an anti-tobacco/drug/
alcohol campaign at your school.

2. Plant a garden and donate the
harvest to a group or person in
need.


3. Get some friends together and
clean up your neighborhood.

4. Clean out your closet and donate
your old clothes or toys.


5. Start a canned food, glove,
sock, coat, etc. drive.

6. Make a “feel good” jar for a
friend- write nice things on small
pieces of paper, put them in the jar
and give the jar to a friend.


7. Volunteer for a favorite teacher
at your school.

8. Collect and donate items to the
humane society- cat toys, scoopable
litter and hard plastic dog toys.
Or make and donate dog biscuits!


9. Check out books, CD’s and
videos from the library instead of
buying them. Donate the savings!

10. Ask your parents to buy
environmentally friendly cleaning
products– or make your own!


11. Become a foster parent for a cat
or dog.

12. Offer to baby-sit without pay for a
family in your neighborhood.


13. Make a get well card for
someone who is sick.

14. Get CPR and First-Aid Certified.


15. Adopt a grandparent– offer to
help with yard or house work.

16. Bake cookies for a neighbor or
shut-in. Visit with them when you
deliver the cookies!


17. Volunteer to feed the homeless.

18. Go on a money hunt and
donate the proceeds.


19. Explore wildlife in your neighborhood
and learn how to protect the
wildlife.

20. With your parents, check your
home for energy efficiency. Make
some changes based on what you
learn.


21. Donate a bag of fruit or candy to a
local shelter for an upcoming
holiday.

22. Organize a car wash, dog
wash, yard sale or other fundraiser
and donate the proceeds.


23. Help a friend or younger child
with school work, start a peer
tutoring program, or read to
younger children at your school.

24. Make baby blankets or lap
blankets for the elderly.


25. Make first-aid kits for your
family and friends.

My Gremlin

Part Yorkie, part Gremlin. Happy Halloween.

The Best Music You Never Heard

Found this great site for music lovers called What Is That Song. If you go to the 'Best Music You Never Heard' section, you can find some great music that very few have listened to. Here is one from David Bowie's Tonight album:

37 Million More Males than Females

I received a nice early birthday gift today from my sister-in-law:

Did you know. . .

• There are 37 million more males than females in China
• There are over 5400 islands scattered in the seas off the coast of mainland China
• China straddles five time zones but has adopted a single stand time
• China has many significant inventions - gunpowder, printing, papermaking and paper currency, the abacus, stirrups, the seismometer, porcelain, silk and the compass.
• There are over 1,000 volcanoes in China

Thanks Tammy. This is a great book to help prepare me for the trip!

The Front Fell Off

On August 19th 2007, an oil tanker off the coast of Australia split in two, dumping 20,000 tons of crude oil.
Senator Collins, a member of the Australian Parliament, went on TV to reassure the public that tankers were safe.

Remember When. . .

. . .this was our required reading:

26 Good Reminders

I am speaking to Granville High School students this week on Leadership. In preparation, I thought I would get the thoughts of others on the topic, so I spent some time on a few blogs which continually teach/talk about the characteristics of good leaders. It has been a good refresher for me and has caused me to reflect on where I am on each of the following attributes:

From the always inspiring Nicholas Bate on Leadership:

1. Lead by example

2. Be on time

3. ALWAYS have a notepad

4. Ask questions

5. Dress as you want to be perceived

6. Be loyal

7. Deliver on your promises

8. Be confident that you can lead

9. Just make the decision

10. Be accountable

11. Do what is right

12. Being one of the few is a good thing

From the always interesting Cultural Offering on Leadership:

13. Attitude is everything

14. Preparation, preparation, preparation

15. Tell the truth

16. Ask for help

17. Encourage others

18. Speak, don't just talk

19. Always learn from your mentors

20. Give credit to others

And from one of my 20 Fav - QAspire blog on Leadership:

21. Be generous

22. Take time to get away and re-energize

23. Be persistent

24. Practice humility

25. Be happy

26. Be yourself.

And there you have it.

Internet Fact vs. Fiction

My husband brought home a copy of an email he wanted me to read and it was one I enjoyed. As I was reading it, I thought about posting it on this blog. That is until I read the last line:

"Its estimated 93% won't forward this. If you are one of the 7% who will, forward this with the title '7%' "

Let me first tell you that if you send me something that has that on the bottom of the page, I WILL NOT forward this on to anyone. Chances are that I probably will hit 'delete' right away.

But because I liked this email, I decided to do a little research to see if it was real. Here are my findings:

1. The email said it was written by Regina Brett, a 90 year-old woman who is a columnist for The Plain Dealer. The title was called 45 Lessons Life Taught Me.

Fact: Her name is Regina Brett and she is a columnist for the Plain Dealer

Fact: She is 50 - NOT 90. Just a 40-year mistake.

Fact: The original article was called 50 Life Lessons - Regina Brett's 45 life lessons and 5 to grow on

Lesson - Although I can't imagine operating today without the Internet, I certainly don't believe everything I read. You must have a filter and be willing to do some fact checking if you are planning on passing the information on to other people to read.

And you should check out the list. It is filled with good, solid advice to live by discovered by a 50 year-old.

Cool Stuff

Love the new 'sister blog' to Zenhabits called Zen Family Habits. Check out the list of Simple Family Pleasures. Personally, I like #29.

An Important Message About The Flu

Finally, the truth about the flu here.

Good stuff Jeff.

Member Monday

Today's Member Monday is all about wholesale. Specifically, Gummer Wholesale and Jeffries Supply. Here's the scoop:

Category: Wholesale Distributors

Gummer Wholesale, Inc./ Jeffries Supply

Owners: The Gummer Family

Location: 1945 James Parkway in Heath

Contact information: (740) 928-0415 nogilbee@gummerwholesale.net

Website: http://www.gummerwholesale.net/

Description:

Gummer Wholesale, Inc. Is a family owned and operated wholesale distribution company. They have been servicing the convenience store industry for over 50 years. Their current service area includes Ohio, Northern Kentucky and Northern West Virginia. Items sold include a complete selection of cigarettes, confections, snacks, grocery, tobacco, juices/drinks and more.

The ER

As I write this I am sitting in the ER at Licking Memorial Hospital. No, I do not have the swine flu; just a swollen ankle that I can't put any weight on. I fought with myself over the decision to come here tonight because I figured the wait would be long and there would be a bunch of sick people around. I was right on both counts. I have now been here for over two hours (I am still in the waiting area, although x-rays have been taken) and am surrounded by people coughing, toddlers puking and many are wrapped in blankets.

I actually feel a bit guilty around all these sick people, but I'm not about to leave now. I have been to this new ER a couple of times before and I still have the same opinion - it is nice. The staff working tonight and the other times I have been here are very nice and helpful. I can only imagine the amount of hours they are putting in these days. But they certainly don't show any signs of it.

Kudos to the staff at LMH. It's no wonder why they were named The Best Place To Work.

UPDATE: Been waiting now for almost 4 hours. I hope I am next on the list!

RESULT: I am now wearing a lovely air cast. Bad sprain. Nothing like waiting for six hours to hear that news. Oh well. Could be much worse!

Duck, Duck, and More Duck

Attended the Duck Derby today in Heath. It was a fundraiser for the United Way of Licking County. It was a beautiful day and the kids and I had a great time. Here are some shots from the event:








To see more photos, go here.

Search and Distroy

First it was Fox News and now it is the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Who will be next?




Here's more:

Kimberley Strassel, for the Wall Street Journal, described the Obama Administration’s criticism of the Chamber as a calculated move, executed in order to win health care and climate battles.“What makes these efforts notable is that they are not the lashing out of a frustrated political operation. They are calculated campaigns, designed to create bogeymen, to divide the opposition, to frighten players into compliance.” Strassel warns, “The Oval Office might be more concerned with the long term. It is 10 months in; more than three long years to go. The strategy to play dirty now and triangulate later is risky. One day, say when immigration reform comes due, the Chamber might come in handy. That is if the Chamber isn't too far gone.” (source - U.S. Chamber)

· Charles Krauthammer, for the Washington Post, compares White House attempts to boycott Fox News to similar attempts at marginalizing the Chamber. “While government can and should debate and criticize opposition voices, the current White House goes beyond that. It wants to delegitimize any significant dissent. The objective is no secret. White House aides openly told Politico that they’re engaged in a deliberate campaign to marginalize and ostracize recalcitrants, from Fox to health insurers to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.” Referencing James Madison, Krauthammer argues that “Factions should compete, but they should also recognize the legitimacy of other factions and, indeed, their necessity for a vigorous self-regulating democracy.” (source - U.S. Chamber)

Fields of Gold

Just because I like it. Although I love the Sting version the best, Eva Cassidy sings it beautifully.

Colour-Coded Tweets

Check this out:

GoodMorning! Full Render #2 from blprnt on Vimeo.

GoodMorning! is a Twitter visualization tool which shows about 11,000 tweets collected over a 24 hour period between August 20th and 21st. The tweets were harvested to find people saying 'good morning' in English as well as several other languages.The tweets appear as blocks and are colour-coded. Green tweets are early in the morning, orange tweets are at about 9am, and red tweets are later in the morning. Black tweets are 'out-of-time' messages (sent at times that aren't in the morning at that location).Built in Processing (processing.org) using Twitter4J, and a home-brewed client for MetaCarta's geo-parsing APIs.

2009 Candidate's Night

Thanks to Don Smiley, our 2009 Candidate's Night is now on YouTube. There are a total of six clips. Here are the different links:

Mayor of Pataskala Race:

http://www.youtube.com/user/LCChamber#p/u/3/VcBNEQHYP48

http://www.youtube.com/user/LCChamber#p/u/2/MSHIl_-mz0A

http://www.youtube.com/user/LCChamber#p/u/1/TzPZE0Q6RtI

Newark City Treasurer Race:

http://www.youtube.com/user/LCChamber#p/u/5/91Offx2CXSk

http://www.youtube.com/user/LCChamber#p/u/4/Xi-PPL_uIgA

And here is the clip from the race for Mayor of Heath:




Thanks to all the candidates who participated in this annual event.

A Perfect 10

Got out of the office today for lunch. Had a date with my dog, Lily. We took a nice walk around the neighborhood. It is a perfect 10 day, or as I like to call it - A Chamber of Commerce Day!

I think Nicholas Bate would be proud!

Rule #281

From the blog 1,001 Rules for My Unborn Son:

281. You aren't done raking until you've played in the leaf pile.

Started the never-ending process of raking leaves tonight. Wonder if there will be snow on top of the last leaf pile this year?

Member Monday

Every Monday I am going to do a feature on Members of the Licking County Chamber of Commerce. Here is the first one in this series:

Categories: Winery and Wine Shop

Buckeye Winery

Owners: Kathy & Larry Morrison

Location: 7 North 3rd Street in Downtown Newark

Contact info: 740-788-9463 Winery@BuckeyeWinery.com

Website: http://www.buckeyewinery.com/

Description:

Located in beautiful downtown Newark on the Northwest side of the courthouse square, Buckeye Winery produces and offers more than 30 wines from vineyards all over the world. We make our wines from juices that come from Italy, France, California and Australia, just to name a few. From Dry wines to Semi-Sweet and Sweet, we are sure to have a wine that will satisfy everyone's taste. We even have Ice Wines that are sure to be a favorite! Come in and purchase our wines by the glass, bottle or case. Because we make all our wines at our winery, we are able to provide high quality wines at affordable prices. At Buckeye Winery you even have the opportunity to MAKE YOUR OWN WINE!

Hours of Operation: Tuesday - Thursday 12 - 7

Friday & Saturday 12 - 9

Sunday & Monday - Closed

The Wine Shop at Roots & Shoots

Owner: Kathy Moore

Location: 57 Price Road, Newark

Contact info: 740-349-8611 moore@cgate.net
Website: http://www.rootsandshootstheflowermarket.com/ and http://www.rootsandshootstheflowermarket.com/newark-florist/tour-our-shop-57717c.asp

Hours of Operation: Monday - Saturday 9 - 5 Closed Sundays

Grrrrrrr

I'm getting really tired of the liberal media these days. So it is now okay to say "I apologize" after the damage has already been done?

And if you don't really feel like answering questions from an audience that you agreed to speak to, it is now okay to just shut off their microphone?

What are we really teaching our children?

Thanks for getting me all worked up Todd and Nancy.

Make The Call

This week we have been working on finalizing an event for next month which will give our members a preview of some great holiday gifts under $50 that can be purchased in Licking County. Jennifer and I divided up the list of exhibitors that we would like to participate and began making our calls.

After a particular call was made by Jennifer, she came into my office to tell me about it. (remember the purpose of the call was to invite this store to participate. It didn't cost them anything except their time that day and a door prize donation) The call went something like this:

" Hi ____. It's Jennifer with the Chamber. How are you today? No, actually I'm not calling about your membership dues. I am calling to give you an opportunity to showcase your new items for the holiday season" and she went on to give him all the details about the event.

He was happy that we asked him and agreed to participate. And after they had talked about all the details of the event, he then asked her if he could pay for his renewal membership dues over the phone, which he did right then, AND bought an ad on our website.

Lessons learned here are:

1. It is extremely important to check-in with your customers/clients/members throughout the year. Don't let the only time you have any dialog with them be at renewal time. Our members hear personally from us at least every six months, but usually much more than that for the most part.


2. Make it about THEM and not about YOU. I have read this over and over and have heard it many times at seminars. If your marketing and sales pieces are filled with information about you and what your company can do, you should consider replacing the words "I" and "we" with "you" and "your". People buy when there is an emotional connection to a product or a service.


3. Just make the call. Even if you think they won't be interested, make the call. They can't say YES if they aren't asked.

There is nothing new and exciting about the above lessons, I know. But they are basic and simple. Anyone can do them.

And great job Jennifer!

New Networking Group for Women

About four months ago, I posted a discussion on LinkedIn on the Licking County Chamber group page called Women's Wednesdays.

To date, there have been 33 comments on this discussion. Wendy Hollinger with Phoenix Graphix Publishing Services has taken the lead and has schedule several meetings with interested women around Licking County about the possibility of starting up a new networking group.

Their next scheduled meeting is Monday October 19, 7:30 a.m. at Bob Evans - Cherry Valley Rd. location.

Never Say Never

Saying "Never" hasn't worked very well for me. I said "I will never. . .

1. Run for Newark City Council - Been there. Done that. Won.
2. Run for Mayor of Newark - Been there. Done that. Lost.
3. Buy my children cell phones until they start driving - Did that five years early.
4. Buy a Blackberry - Damn that sales guy was good tonight.
5. Go on a swamp walk in the Everglades with my husband - Have not. Will not. Standing firm on this one.

Heath Traffic Cameras

In our October survey, we asked our members about the traffic cameras in Heath. Here are the results:

1. Are you supportive of the traffic cameras in Heath?

• 57% YES
• 43% NO

2. Have the cameras changed your driving habits?

• 66% YES
• 34% NO

3. Have the cameras changed your commute route?

• 23% YES
• 77% NO

4. Have the cameras changed where you do your shopping?

• 29% YES
• 71% NO

5. IF you own or work for a business that is located in Heath, how have your sales been since the installation of the cameras?

• 71% Stayed the same
• 25% Decreased
• 3% Increased

Although there are too many comments to list, here are a few:

• I live in Heath and wish to have a safer community and this would happen if everybody would just SLOW DOWN and obey the existing speed limits.
• Simple, stay under 45 mph
• I'm very grateful for these cameras. If they can stop people from running red lights and save only ONE life...they are worth it!
• I rarely go to that area now...just because it makes me nervous. I have always followed the speed limit prior and do not run red lights, but the cameras can make mistakes and I do not care to pay a fine for that.
• I only drive on Rt. 79 when there is no other choice.
• My driving habits have been changed because everyone now drives 24 mph instead of 35 mph.
• Another tax on the working class. Our founding fathers would be ashamed.
• I think the cameras have helped the slowing down of speeding cars/trucks. I believe the safety of the traffic in Heath has improved...It is safer in Heath now, better than in the past years.
• Keeping up with traffic now - - -means you drive the speed limit, not 45 mph.
• I don't want Gov't in my face.
• If someone changed their commute route because of the cameras it means they are now speeding on another road.
• It's ridiculous not to shop at a good store because you need to obey the law.
• Now patronize restaurants on 21st North.
• I love to shop in Heath because I feel safe on the roads.
• I try to avoid Rt. 79 if at all possible. The chance of getting "flashed" is always there.
• I don't go to the mall anymore.
• I try to pack my lunch instead of driving through Heath to get it.
• I am not sure that the slow down in business is camera related.
• Received several letters from customers stating that they will not shop or conduct business in Heath.
• Our business does not appear to be affected by the cameras. Our growth rate for this year is ahead of last year.

Thanks to all who participated in the October survey.

Boss's Day

I know you will all be jealous of my Boss's Day gift from my staff:

Yes, this was my pick for American Idol.

Actually my staff took me to lunch today. Thanks to all - Mandy, Vicky and Jennifer!

Election 2009

If you missed our Candidates Night last night, you can find recaps here and here.

Thank you Hopewell Federal Credit Union for sponsoring the event and thanks to WCLT for broadcasting the event LIVE. And a special thank you to our moderator, Kurt Harden.

Don't forget, you can view the completed 2009 Candidate Questionnaires here.

UPDATE: Another take on the event here.

Quote of the Day

Tonight is our Annual Candidate's Night featuring candidates running for Mayor of Pataskala, Mayor of Heath and Newark City Treasurer. For those running for Mayor, this is for you:

“When the burdens of the presidency seem unusually heavy, I always remind myself it could be worse. I could be a mayor.”

--- Lyndon B. Johnson

My Wandering Mind

This is what happens when you let your mind be free and not restrict your thoughts:

I guess my mind was at the beach.

Vote Yes For State Issue 2

At our October Board meeting, the Board of Directors of the Licking County Chamber of Commerce, voted unanimously to endorse State Issue 2.

Issue 2 was placed on the ballot through a bipartisan resolution that passed by an overwhelming majority and has support from Governor Strickland and the Ohio General Assembly. If approved, Issue 2 would create the Ohio Livestock Care Standards Board, made up of 13 Ohioans with broad expertise in animal agriculture. The board will set standards for livestock and poultry care that will take into account such items as best farm management practices for animal well-being; food safety; and local availability and affordability of food. Board members will consider issues in the context of how they impact overall animal health, biosecurity on livestock farms, animal disease prevention and food safety and food production volume and price.

The governor and legislature acted in recognition of the fact that agriculture has undergone dramatic changes in recent years and faces many challenges. New ways of doing things are constantly being developed and it’s important that suggested changes be carefully considered by Ohio experts and supported by science, fact and data.

Special interest groups based in Washington and elsewhere have had some success in other states with emotional campaigns and legislative measures surrounding animal care issues. These groups, with not so hidden agendas of advocating a vegetarian lifestyle for everyone and shutting down large farm operations altogether, pose a significant threat to Ohio agriculture. Ohio has been mentioned as a future target for a similar initiative that passed in California last November.

“Chamber members know better than anyone the value of having people right here in Ohio involved in the critical decisions that impact our businesses,” said Andrew E. Doehrel, President and CEO of the Ohio Chamber. “Issue 2 creates a diverse board representing all interests, including consumers and animal rights advocates, as well as farmers. They will make decisions based on what is best for all Ohioans.”

Agriculture contributes $93 billion annually to Ohio’s economy and has more than 75,000 farms, about half of which have livestock. Additionally, Ohio is home to more than 800 food processing companies and produces more than 200 commercial crops. Of these, Ohio is a leading producer in more than 35 product sectors.

To learn more about State Issue 2, please visit www.OhioLivestockCare.com

A Big, Fat Check

Vicky Crist proudly holds the BIG CHECK - $220,684.31 received from the BWC. Today it was divided and distributed to 140 Licking County employers. To be eligible to receive any of these funds, a company must have:

1. Attended ten or more Safety Council meetings in a fiscal year
2. Submitted two Semi-Annual reports
3. Sent senior-level management to any meeting

The above check represents a 2% rebate on premiums paid to the BWC. An additional 2% can be earned by reducing the severity or frequency of injuries by 10% or keep both at 0.

Congratulations to all of the businesses who received checks today and a big Thank You to Vicky Crist and the BWC for their work with the Licking County Safety Council.

News In Photographs - China

I have decided to take a trip to China, as a guest of the American Chamber of Commerce Executives. I started the passport process today. I would like to go with some knowledge about China, so I am committed to do research over the next few months (my trip is in March).

Came across this great site called Boston.com that has loads of great pictures on a variety of subjects, including some of China. Check out this one, and this one.

Fun Makes All The Difference

See what happens when we add some "fun" to our daily tasks:




Found this at Geek In Disguise.

Dodecahedron What?

This is a homework assignment from Geometry class that my daughter had to create. It is a Dodecahedron. Personally, I have never heard of the word, and I was very good at math in my day. They had to fold 30 square pieces of paper a certain way and then interconnect them without using any type of adhesive. Of course, Miss Extra Credit, added photos to her Dodecahedron.

Biking To Work

Check out this commute to work:




Found it here.

Some "Saturday" Humor

Thanks Mark.

20 Fav

If you are anything like me, then you enjoy finding some good blogs to read. Sometimes I find them by seeing who and what my favorite bloggers are reading. They will usually link to them in their posts or list them somewhere on their page. Other times I just do a search on a specific topic and end up finding a few that I enjoy.

So here is the contents of my "Fav" folder. Hope you find at least one new one to check out.

1. Nicholas Bate


2. Cultural Offering


3. Patrick Guanciale
   
4. Mark's Blog


5. Seth's Blog


6. Community Capitalism


7. Indexed


8. Chris Brogan


9. Execupundit


10. Founding Bloggers


11. Geek In Disguise


12. View From The Ledge


13. mattrutherfordDotcom


14. Problogger


15. Cooking School Confidential


16. 1,ooo Rules For My Unborn Son


17. 2blowhards


18. Kyle Sisk


19. QAspire


20. Giant Impact
    

UPDATE: Thanks for the mention Nicholas Bate.

A Week In Review

It as been a very busy week. Actually most weeks are busy around the Chamber. I thought I would share some of the projects we are currently work on:

• 2009 Candidate's Night is just around the corner - October 15. This year we are featuring the candidate's running for Newark City Treasurer, Pataskala Mayor and Heath Mayor. You can register here. This year WCLT will be broadcasting LIVE! You can listen to it on 1430 AM and 100.3FM HD-3. The program portion will begin at 6:45 p.m. and should end around 8:00 p.m. Read the completed Candidate Questionnaires here. In addition, check out the 2009 Chamber' endorsements.

• Workenomics - Workenomics is a new Affiliate of the Chamber. It is a partnership of workforce and economic developers working together to provide existing companies and those looking to locate here detailed information on what our county has to offer. We advertised a part-time job opening and have received approximately 35 applicants. These will be reviewed and the top candidates will be scheduled for an interview in the next few weeks.

• Annual Audit - Although not required by law, the Chamber contracts with a local Accounting Firm each year to conduct an outside audit for the Chamber. The Auditors will be arriving soon to get this project started. Our Office Manager, Mandy Rector, has been busy preparing for their arrival.

• Safety Council - October 13 is check distribution day for those that were in the Safety Council Discount Program for the fiscal year 2008-2009. The amount being distributed back to Licking County businesses is over $220,000. Affiliate Director, Vicky Crist, has been busy getting everything in place for this highly-anticipated meeting.

• Upcoming Events - Seems there is something happening every week that our members can take advantage of. Here are just some of the events our Communications and Marketing Director, Jennifer McDonald, is promoting:

1. Social Networking For Business - October 22 - Lunch and program featuring Mark Labutis. Details here.
2. Business After Hours - November 5 - Cherry Valley Lodge. Table top displays are available at this popular event. For more information, go here.
3. Gift Preview Event - November 11 - The Place Off The Square - You won't want to miss this event. You will leave with holiday gift ideas UNDER $50, all from LOCAL retailers. Look for upcoming information soon!
4. Deal or Not a Deal - November 19 - The Midland Theatre - Just like the TV game show, the host and secret banker will tempt the contestants to "Deal" for cash. Top prize is $1,000 per round. Tickets are on sale now by calling The Midland at 740-345-LIVE.
5. Business After Hours - December 10 - The Grill Works Deli and Catering - Celebrate the holiday season at the brand new restaurant located at The Works!

As you can see, things are never dull at the Chamber.

Life At Culinary School

Since I ended my personal blog, I no longer have a place to write some personal things that I like, or dislike or that I want to share with others. So from time to time, I will take advantage of this blog to do just that.

Tonight is one of those times.

I made it a goal to try and use Twitter more. So I have been conducting some searches and have increased the number of people I 'follow'. In one of my searches, I typed "love of cooking" and started following a few people that looked interesting to me. One of those is Cooking School Confidential. I was expecting to get some new recipes to try, but ended up finding a wonderful blog created by a writer who turned cooking school student.

She writes about her interaction with the different students, whom she has nicknames for, along with sharing her day-to-day experiences and yes, recipes. It was a great find for me. Thank you Twitter.

Mission Accomplished

Check this out: We had our Mission Statement put on our wall today. It looks great!

Thanks Newark Sign Shop!

Gov Reagan

Great post from Eclecticity:

Lunch Can Wait

The best at what they do have to prioritize.

Kudos to Licking Memorial Health Systems

A BIG congratulations to Licking Memorial Health Systems for being named Best Place To Work in 2009 by Business First.

This distinction is a real honor for everyone who has ties to LMHS. We are proud to have you in our community!

Apple Drops Membership

Interesting action taken by Apple, Inc. with regards to their membership in the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Read story here.

Thanks for the tip, Patrick.

Deal Or Not A Deal

Deal or Not A Deal returns this year to The Midland Theatre on November 19. Tickets go on sale today. Get yours by calling 740-345-LIVE. Ticket price is $12.

Just like the previous two years, contestants will be selected from the audience and will play for the top prize of $1,000!

Stuff To Ponder And Listen To On A Sunday

Thanks to mattrutherfordDOTcom for his Sunday Inspirations post today.

I just skimmed the 1,oo1 Rules For My Unborn Son (great stuff - I will be a returning visitor) and am now listening, as I write this, to Olafur Arnalds – Icelandic rock drummer turned nu-classical. Very beautiful.

Clip Of The Day

Just some early morning humor I found on Founding Bloggers.

It is funny - well, kind of anyway.

Getting My Feet Dirty

Today I attended the groundbreaking for the Job Ready Site (JRS) in Pataskala. And although it was a rainy, overcast day and very muddy, it was an exciting day for not only Pataskala, but for Licking County as well. This is one of the premier industrial sites in the entire state of Ohio.

Remarks were made by Commissioners Bubb, Feightner and Smith and special guest speakers included Governor Ted Strickland, Congressman Pat Tiberi, Connie Klema who was representing the property owners Mr. & Mrs. Howard Emswiler, Megan Gordon with Ohio Department of Development, Pataskala Mayor Stephen Butcher and Marty Savko, V.P. of Savko & Sons, Inc. who can now begin to construct the project.

Licking County has much to be proud of. Congratulations to all who worked hard to make this project happen.

Making The Dreaded Call

Had to make an unpleasant call today with a vendor who we are no longer going to use for a chamber benefit program. I have a good relationship with them, so I wasn't looking forward to the discussion, but knew I would feel better if I got it over with and didn't drag it out. It went fine. No hard feelings. We will still work together on other projects.

Joining Dots has this post about how to have difficult conversations. I especially appreciate the tip on what not to do:

Avoid the 'sugar coated spit ball' approach where you are supposed to start with something nice before delivering the bad news. People will start putting on the armour whenever you start a conversation with something nice... Nice things should be part of every day conversations, not saved up for when you need to deliver some bad news! Are you paying a sincere compliment, or doing textbook 'good news - bad news'?

I always prefer to have the bad news delivered first. That way you can end the conversation with good news, if there really is some to share.

Life = Risk

Excellent video about failure.
Enjoy.



Thanks Kyle.