The exams are drawing near and I needed some place quiet, some place relaxing where I could just destress and have a nice dinner. Privé immediately came to my mind, and this little islet is indeed becoming a favourite spot for both me and Daphne. Away from the hustle, away from the bustle, just enjoying the gentle sea breeze and lapping of the waves.
"200g wagyu patty, melted english cheddar, crispy onions". I've read about this burger on a couple of blogs and I can understand why they like it so much. The beef was very fresh, juicy and tender, even after I asked it to be "medium-done" instead of their usual "medium-rare". The bread tasted a little salty actually, and what's a burger without its fries! Still, a very good burger indeed, even if it's not exactly big on size.
"Breaded chicken breast, Grana Padano cheese and Arugala salad". This was something interesting for the both of us, but it's actually quite flavourful given the cheese and herbs infused in the chicken. The chicken was also very tender, slightly crisp on some sides, and (I know some chefs don't exactly like this coming bit) it goes very well with chilli sauce!
"Medium cut, fines herbes, sea salt". I was playing around with my camera, so the picture of the fries above was a shot with only the yellow meant to be seen, everything else fading to black. Anyway, those type of fries at MacDonald's, they're shoe-string as well. Daphne was expecting something thicker since there was a thin, medium and thick cut choice on the menu. Understandably, she probably thought the thin would be like those at Macs, the medium would be like those at Mos Burger, and the thick probably more like wedges. The ladies at the table next to us had the same thought, and one of them was saying, "It's medium cut right, why are these so... puny?"
And this is a shot Daphne insisted was necessary, since it not only shows the true colour of the fries, but it also captures the crispiness of it all. On taste, it was actually quite good given the salt and herbs used, but at some point I was wondering if the word "sea salt" and the actual marina just outside could have had some form of psychological effect, if you know what I mean. I guess the final question you would have to ask yourself is, would you pay $10++ for a bowl of fries? Well, we did, it was quite good actually, but more would always be good!
Service was really good, they're always so polite and friendly. Makes me like this place even more.
Near Keppel Bay Tower. Entrance before and beside The Casuarina Condo at Keppel Bay.
Operating Hours: 9am to midnight (last order 11pm).
Many restaurants have started their own promotions to attract customers given the current economic recession, and Chicago's Steakhouse at Orchard Cineleisure is just one of them. Coupon leaflets, just like the one you see below, have been handed out in the past couple of weeks with simply enticing one-for-one main course, tapas and dessert offers.
If you do not have the coupons, don't worry, because I remember that there was a chalkboard just outside the restaurant that seemed to be promoting a similar one-for-one offer as well, but probably more in terms of set meals.
You can't go wrong with these fries. Served hot and crispy, these fries tasted really good with the cool tartar sauce.
No rubbery texture, which is good, but somehow seemed to be lacking in taste. I reckon the deep-fried calamari would probably have tasted better.
The chicken was very tender and I really liked the gravy that came with it. This dish would have been better though if the portion was a tad larger (don't be taken in by the picture).
The picture on the menu actually showed two fish fillet slices, but there was only one small one to be seen. Gerald joked that since this was a one-for-one promotion, all the restaurant did was to split the two pieces between two different plates. The fish was really ordinary and comparable to those you can easily find at heartland foodcourts and hawker centres.
Excellent, you could see that the trainee staff was really doing her best to please her customers, being all smiles with good manners.
Ce Zheng has been going on and on about his deep-fried chicken wings at Cuscaden that it was only a matter of time before the whole group of us trooped down to the pub to see (and taste) what he has been raving about. It's a small pub that's oddly placed at the basement of Ming Arcade (just opposite Hard Rock Cafe), but once there you would really 1) smell the scent of deep-fried chicken wings wafting through the air, and 2) see at least a plate of chicken wings on every table. I'm not kidding.
Well, truth be told, it's deep- and over-fried chicken wings, but eating them piping hot with ice cold beer (Coke does fine as well) was simply satisfying. The chicken was juicy and the batter gave it a very crisp outer layer, as you can probably tell from how golden-brown the wings are.
Of course, being a food blogger, I must show some discernment and not be carried away, so I must add and reiterate that the chicken wings were over-fried and oily. It's certainly not something for the health-conscious, but then it's a pub anyway and all health concerns usually go out of the window. There were seven of us that night, so we ordered a couple of dozen chicken wings all to ourselves. Calories and fat concerns all out of the window indeed.
Service could be improved, the staff seemed to be trying very hard to balance between being polite and aloof.
The name itself is unique and deserves mention surely - four cultures under one name, one restaurant. Some of the food in the menu is Thai-inspired no doubt, but most of the rest are your standard, no frills Asian dishes like fried rice and stir-fried noodles. It's certainly a draw for many Muslim patrons, but I realised that half of the tables in the restaurant at Far East Plaza were filled by Chinese customers as well.
Nothing much to review on the food, so it's more or less pictures from here on. The portions are just nice, probably a little too much for weight-conscious young ladies, but it's good enough for me.
"Dendeng" is your Halal, beef-version of the Chinese "bak kwa" (barbecued pork slices), and it fits quite well with the rice here, especially since the dendeng has a slight peppery taste. Looks empty here because I didn't want any vegetables haha.
Young staff, but attentive most of the time.
*The rest of the dishes are around $4 to $6 as well.
Orchard Far East Plaza, #05-34/36.
2. Has a Cafe as well, which serves Western food and snacks.
I would have wanted a single (thick) layer of chocolate at the bottom and a single, equally thick layer of cheese at the top, but my mum had other ideas and came up with a triple layer. I think it was a good call because I can't imagine a thicker layer of chocolate honestly, this was just nice. The biscuit side (and base) was made with Digestives biscuits instead of the usual Oreo cookies because the both of us felt that Oreos are wayyy to common on cakes these days. The picture above would certainly look a lot better if we had a sharper knife, but nonetheless it does go a long way to show you how soft and smooth the whole cake is.
1. Crush biscuits and mix well with butter.
2. Spread the mixture on a 22.5cm diameter aluminium tray and press hard to form a base.
3. Leave base in the fridge.
5. Boil water, add gelatine and turn heat down. Keep stirring on low heat until gelatine dissolves.
6. When mixture boils, add sugar and cream cheese mixture and stir over low heat.
7. Add cream and stir until mixture boils.
8. Pour mixture onto chilled biscuit base in tray.
9. Chill cheesecake until set.
10. Double-boil cooking chocolate and dairy whipping cream until melted and very smooth.
11. Spread chocolate ganache on the surface of the cheesecake, add depending on desired thickness.
12. Cool for chocolate to harden.
For a triple cheesecake layer, just repeat steps 4-9, pouring the cheese onto the hardened chocolate instead.
Cityvibe is a new (read: small) shopping complex beside Clementi MRT and houses at least two Japanese restaurants (Ramen Ten and Sakae Sushi) under its roof. I never really found the time to explore the place eventhough I pass by it almost everyday, but Fromage's banner did catch my eye a couple of times whilst I was standing on the MRT platform waiting for my train. Cheese fries, cheese wedges, cheese sticks... So much cheese!
This is nice! The cheese was not too thick and the batter coating, cooked to a golden-brown, was nicely crisp. The cheese sticks went quite well with the salsa sauce too.
Yes, this was super cheesy indeed, and it was really a bit too salty without any chilli sauce or spices. Eat this fast, because the fries go limp (and then, even mushy) after a while and it would be very difficult to pick them up, much less put into your mouth!
This was very tasty because unlike the (plain) cheese fries, the chicken here had some spicy marinate that the small group of us really liked.
I'm biased. Piping hot and crispy cheesecake with ice-cold chocolate ice-cream and chocolate syrup? It's not exactly great, but it still works wonders for me. Try eating this, and tell me if you can go spoonful after spoonful without smiling. Deep inside, I was reluctant to share this with the rest haha!
Prompt and friendly. It's a very small booth with only a tiny counter for three, so we ate all of our cheese snacks at Subway instead (of course, be nice and get something from Subway, like drinks).
Cityvibe, Level One. Clementi Central.
2. They have pasta and pizzas too!
I have to admit that much of the food from Han's is really standard fare, but you can't deny that their set meals (consisting of a soup, toast, main course, drink and dessert) are quite "value-for-money", so some Singaporeans say.
The fish and chips was quite fresh actually, and I liked the batter used for the fish. The other is Tyler's roast chicken dish, a whole chicken leg drenched in black pepper sauce. The good thing about the main courses from Han's is that they're in a fairly healthy portion, so added together the set meal will fill you up very nicely.
Of course, if you're getting tired of (Singapore-style) "Western" food, there's always locally-inspired dishes for you. This is Daphne's fried rice, very typical, nothing to shout about.
No service charge, which means it's more or less self-service. You've got to get the menu yourself and write down your order in a piece of paper (pencils and order forms provided), bring it to the counter, order, and take back your soups/drinks/dessert. The main course (and other sides that need to be cooked) will be served to you though.
I've read a lot about this dessert place in quite a few food blogs, and have always wanted to give their desserts a try. I was trying to persuade the rest to order different desserts so that I'd have more to blog about. Guess what happened?
All of them were hearing me going on and on about how delicious the chocolate pudding looks that everyone decided to order it. We split into pairs and shared the puddings, and if you were there you would have heard us breaking out from time to time in sounds of delight and pleasure. The pudding, or rather, cake, was served hot in a small bowl, and accompanying it were its cold counterparts - vanilla bean cream and ice-cream.
Added together, it was like a match made in heaven really, it played with your senses and you went spoon after spoon at the cake despite making loud protests that this was too rich and sinful to go on. I have to admit that it was so chocolatey good that we were already high and talking anything that came to our minds when we were only halfway through. I'm glad I had space to enjoy this delightful dessert.
One of the smoothest latte I have ever drank. Delicious!
Very good, friendly staff. They serve iced water here and even add in a couple of watter bottles on the table in case we needed more, which we certainly did seeing how rich the warm chocolate pudding was!
Blk 106 Clementi Street 12 #01-52, Sunset Way.
It was only a matter of time before we finally made our first trip to Sunset Way, especially since it's only a ten minutes or so bus ride from school. I've walked around this place quite a bit in the past few days to have a look at what they have, and only time will tell if Sunset Way will really pick up in popularity.
Megumi doesn't have that many seats in its small (air-conditioned) interior, certainly not enough for a group of nine, but it does offer the option of going al fresco. There are of course a couple of overhead fans to cool the place down amidst the late afternoon - early evening humidity.
Some of them ordered the weekday set dinners ($15.80++ for megumi set, $12.80++ for ramen set) and had the choice of an appetiser. This was what Leon had.
WanHua and Rebecca had this for their appetiser, one of the common favourites for Japanese food here in Singapore. For the uninitiated, "chawanmushi" is a Japanese egg custard dish served hot in a tea cup.
I ordered this not just because it's one of the recommended dishes on the menu, but also because I was curious at how Japanese-style fried rice would taste like. Truth be told, it didn't taste Japanese, but I really liked it for the generous serving of prawns (fairly large-sized too) and well-cooked rice. As you can see, they added a couple of tempura prawn heads for good measure, which were crispy and a delight to bite on.
This looked really appetising when it arrived. Fried thick Japanese noodles with traces of seafood. Justin felt that this was slightly above average, but not necessarily outstanding.
WanHua had more or less the same thing to say about her dinner as Justin did. She felt that Sushi Tei's ramen is better than Megumi's, a sentiment echoed by Khid as well with his Cha Soba (see below).
Teppan-style beef cubes served with rice and miso soup. The three who had this agreed that the beef was good and tender.
Khid ordered this as a side, and liked it for being thick. He would have preferred it if the salmon was colder and fresher though, with an extra (juicier) slice of lemon.
As Khid mentioned, this cha soba isn't as good as the ones found at Sushi Tei (which he added tasted great because it had chicken katsu accompanying it as well). He also felt that the cha soba is "a little soggy, (and) not so springy", and the sauce to dip the noodles in weren't cold enough. If he had to rate this, he would give a 6.5.
And this was what Joy had for her dinner! Cute addition of the flower.
Overall it's alright. Pretty peaceful environment.
Blk 106 Clementi Street 12 #01-38, Sunset Way.


text:
Love Split Amy Off To Rehab?
Rehab? Maybe she should just go, go, go...
Amy Winehouse's dad has admitted his daughter should get help in rehab.
The singer, who's never made any secret of the fact she likes a vino or eight, cancelled two London gigs back to back last week (one of which Elton John was due to attend) to go on a boozy bender after splitting with her boyfriend, Alex Jones-Donelly.
And now her dad has spoken out. Im not ruling out rehab," he told the Sunday Mirror. "Amy needs a break. They dont send you to rehab just because youve broken up with someone. There are other things. Amy needs a rest. Her workload is absolutely manic."
He added, "Shes an emotional girl. Her schedule has caused problems with Alex. He wants to see her. I dont know if thats the reason for the break-up - but wouldnt you want to see your boyfriend now and again?
Just last month Amy admitted Alex's mum had pulled her up on her boozing.
"My boyfriend's mother keeps telling him I have a drink problem," she said. "It's embarrassing. People at work are saying to her that her 'daughter-in-law' is an alcoholic.
"I don't really have a problem with alcohol - I have a problem with me, which probably comes out when I drink."
Let's hope she lays off the Chardonnay at least till she's played her rescheduled Shepherds Bush gigs. Last Thursday's (March 8) will now take place on Monday May 28, with last Friday's gig now taking place on Tuesday, May 29.
All tickets will remain valid for the new dates or refunds will be available from point of purchase - including yours, Elton.
To watch the latest MTV News bulletins in Overdrive, click on the link above...

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Survey respondents said the following were the biggest breaches of workplace etiquette when working in an open office space.
Source: Accountemps survey of more than 450 workers in the United States.
Do people become more or less courteous as they climb the corporate ladder?
Source: Accountemps survey of more than 450 workers in the United States*Responses do not total 100 percent due to rounding.
2014 Accountemps. A Robert Half Company. An Equal Opportunity Employer M/F/D/V.
Older workers are more likely to say people become more courteous as they advance in their careers.
Does Good Courtesy Impact Career Prospects?
To what extent does being courteous to coworkers positively impact a persons career prospects?
Source: Accountemps survey of more than 450 workers in the United States. Responses do not total 100 percent due to rounding.


Ken Nesbitt's background includes over 30 years' experience in the financial services industry with a special expertise in Retirement, Succession and Estate Planning. Over the past several years Ken has helped many farm families in planning for their succession and retirement goals.
It takes a team to develop a successful plan, therefor we would be available to work with your other professionals you may be currently using.
Ken Nesbitt is a certified Member of CAFA, which is the nationally recognized organization for professional farm advisors. CAFA advisors maintain high standards while conitinually increasing farm advisory skills and knowledge intended to provide measurable value to their farm clients.
Establish his professional credibility at a national level with clients based on the unique combination of skills, knowledge and experience he has acquired.
Formally recognizes the specific farm expertise he has gained in his practice.
Verifies the skills and knowledge he needs to provide farm advice.
Allows access to a growing network of farm professionals. Certified members gain opportunities to connect with others in their field through invitations to local chapter meetings and provincial conferences.
Ken is also a current member and board director for the local Perth/Huron Chapter of CAFA and meets monthly with other local members to continue to learn more ways to better serve this industry.


Most developers are familiar with the following scenario. They push hard to deliver on updates and features for an app, website or web service. Before deploying the app to production they realize that they did not load test the app or of it they did the tests do not cover all new features and updates. This article is a guide on how to load test fast, without compromising on the quality of your app.
The first step when load testing on a tight deadline is creating user scenarios. A user scenarios is a collection of web pages and URLs that virtual users will request during load tests. Web developers create different user scenarios based on how they anticipate users will interact with the system. Load Impact, a load testing cloud provider, provides a Chrome browser extension that records a user's actions to create a user scenario. Each scenario is converted into a script that can be used within Load Impact. Visual Studio also provides a method of creating load test scenarios using its Load Test Editor. Another company that offers a load testing editor is DotcomMonitor.
After creating the user scenarios a developer will create and configure the load tests. One must determine the number of concurrent users to test and the number of user scenarios for each test. If you have historical data, use it to get an average for your performance baseline. You can also test different combinations of user scenarios to simulate the fact that different users will use the system differently. If you're looking for additional details, you can refer back to DotcomMonitor's page for more testing information, or also check with the Microsoft Developer Network's load testing page.
After creating the tests you must now run them. There are four basic steps for load testing: run the tests, analyze system performance, optimize on the bottlenecks and repeat the previous steps. Because you are on a deadline you will not be able to perform many iterations of this process but that is not a problem as you can always run more tests after deploying the website.
Finally you should look into automating your load testing process. Most build systems provide methods for automatically load testing a system. Investing in automation will assist you when there is a deadline in the future. Companies such as Load Impact provide an API that automates a load testing pipeline. You can also automate your load tests using AWS CodeBuild and Jenkins.


BALTIMORE, 05-06-09---The prospective field for next Saturday's 134th Preakness® Stakes grew by three confirmed starters when the connections of Musket Man, General Quarters and Terrain committed to the middle jewel of racing's Triple Crown. The $1 million race now has nine definite starters with Big Drama the first to arrive at historic Pimlico Race Course.
Trainer Derek Ryan told Maryland Jockey Club officials that Musket Man, who finished third in Saturday's Kentucky Derby would be Preakness bound. The Illinois Derby (Grade II) and Tampa Bay Derby (Grade III) winner has never finished off the board in seven lifetime starts.
Eibar Coa will have the mount.
Just after noon, owner/trainer Tom McCarthy contacted Maryland Jockey Club stakes coordinator Coley Blind from Kentucky with the news that General Quarters will be making his way to the Preakness. The son of Sky Mesa galloped a mile and a quarter under exercise rider Julie Sheets Wednesday morning.
General Quarters, winner of the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (Grade I) before finishing 10th in Kentucky Derby 135, returned to the track Wednesday for the first time since the Run for the Roses.
General Quarters will leave Louisville Tuesday morning via van.
"That would give us Wednesday, Thursday and Friday to gallop over there," McCarthy said.
Julien Leparoux has the riding assignment.
Terrain galloped a mile and half at Churchill Downs under exercise rider Jimmy Valdez rather than boarding a plane to Texas for Saturday's Lone Star Derby (Grade III).
"We are not exactly sure what we saw last Saturday," trainer Al Stall Jr. said of Mine That Bird's upset victory in the Derby and the decision to go on to Baltimore.
Fourth in the Toyota Blue Grass Stakes (Grade I) in his most recent start on April 11, Terrain vanned to Churchill Downs on Tuesday afternoon from Keeneland where he's had two works since the Blue Grass after a little break.
"He is right where he needs to be," said Stall, who plans to work Terrain Saturday or Sunday and ship to Baltimore next Wednesday.
No rider has been confirmed for Terrain.
Delta Jackpot winner Big Drama arrived at Pimlico at 6 a.m. after a 19-hour van ride from Calder Race Course. The son of Montbrook has won five-of-seven lifetime starts, including a rare sweep of the three races that comprise the Florida Stallion Stakes as a two-year-old. In his last start he broke the seven-furlong track record at Gulfstream Park in the Grade II Swale but was disqualified and placed second.
Trainer David Fawkes said John Velazquez will have the Preakness mount.
Celia Fawkes indicated Big Drama would jog around the Pimlico oval at 6:30 Thursday morning. David Fawkes said his star will breeze Monday.
Papa Clem will be the second Preakness starter to arrive at Pimlico. Trainer Gary Stute said Wednesday morning that the fourth place finisher in the Derby will leaving Churchill Downs for Pimlico on Friday or Saturday.
Longshot Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird galloped twice around Churchill Downs through a light drizzle Wednesday morning with exercise rider Charlie Figueroa up. Mine That Bird is scheduled to ship to Pimlico next Tuesday.
Woolley said he does not feel any extra pressure going into the second leg of the Triple Crown to quiet naysayers who viewed the 50-1 Derby victory as a fluke.
The aforementioned Pioneerof the Nile, who is not a confirmed Preakness starter, was one of the first horses on the track Wednesday morning at Churchill Downs, jogging once around accompanied by a pony.
"Everything is looking good this morning," said Jim Barnes, assistant to trainer Bob Baffert of Pioneerof the Nile's first day back at the track since his runner-up finish in Kentucky Derby 135.
The son of Empire Maker is expected to breeze Monday and if all goes well ship to Baltimore on May 13. Garrett Gomez will have the mount. Baffert lifted the Woodlawn Vase four times from 1997 to 2002.
Undefeated Hull galloped after the renovation break Wednesday morning at Churchill Downs. Now three-for-three after winning the Grade III Derby Trial on April 25, Hull is scheduled to have his first work since that victory on Saturday before heading to Pimlico on May 13. Trainer Dale Romans, who never has had a Preakness starter, was asked what the deciding factor was in opting for the Preakness for the son of Holy Bull.
"It looks like a wide-open race," Romans said.
Miguel Mena, who rode Hull to his Derby Trial victory, has the Preakness mount.
Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas had Flying Private gallop Wednesday morning at Churchill Downs before the renovation break with exercise rider Taylor Carty up. The son of Fusaichi Pegasus returned to the track for the first time since running 19th in the Kentucky Derby on Tuesday to jog. Lukas said no rider has been confirmed for Flying Private, who is scheduled to ship to Pimlico on May 12.
Lukas also will be bringing Kentucky Oaks (Grade I) runner-up Stone Legacy to Pimlico for the May 15 Black-Eyed Susan (Grade II), plus Jazz Nation (Jim McKay Turf Sprint).
Lukas has saddled 32 starters in Maryland's signature race since 1980, the most of any conditioner. He tasted victory with Codex (1980), Tank's Prospect (1985), Tabasco Cat (1994), Timber Country (1995) and Charismatic (1999).
Former Lukas protégé Todd Pletcher plans on running Take the Points in next's Saturday's $1 million race. The son of Even the Score is two-for-six lifetime and finished second in the Grade III Sham Stakes and fourth in the Grade I Santa Anita Derby in southern California. Pletcher will breeze Take the Points Saturday or Sunday at Belmont Park.
Others under consideration for the Preakness are Friesan Fire, Conservative, European invader Sky Gate and Laurel Park-based Tone It Down, who finished third in last Saturday's Tesio Stakes at Pimlico. Trainer William Komlo said the son of Medaglia d'Oro will work Saturday morning and then he will make a decision.
The Maryland Jockey Club announced today that Heather Radford, a student at the University Of Maryland, is the 2009 Miss Preakness. The 23-year-old animal equine studies major will represent Pimlico Race Course at all of the Preakness Celebration activities, including the Preakness Parade and the post position draw for entries at on Wednesday May 13. Radford is an exercise rider for trainer John Melton at the Bowie Training Center.
Judging was conducted on April 29 at Pimlico by WBAL Radio's Keith Mills, the Leffler Agency's Rachel Crawford and the Maryland Jockey Club's Jacqui Nigh.
Read more articles in the Pimlico category.


New Poison Ivy Vaccine in Testing!
A company called Hapten Sciences is starting a test of a drug to prevent poison ivy, oak, and sumac rashes. In the past, there were shots given for this, but they were just tiny doses of the offending chemical, urushiol, and produced iffy results.


text:
Cornelius Petrus Mulder is a South African politician. He serves as a member of the National Assembly of South Africa.

Early life
Corné Mulder graduated from Potchefstroom University, with a B.Juris degree, followed by an LL.B in 1982. He later completed doctoral research at the Institute for Advanced Legal Studies at the University of London and the Max-Planck-Institut für Ausländisches öffentliches Recht und Völkerrecht at Heidelberg, Germany.

Career
Since 1994, Mulder has served as a member of the National Assembly of South Africa, where he represents Western Cape. He is a member of Freedom Front Plus, where he serves as chief parliamentary whip and Western Cape's leader.

References

Living people
People from the Western Cape
Politicians from the Western Cape
North-West University alumni
Members of the National Assembly of South Africa
Freedom Front Plus politicians
1961 births

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


The Queen will be hoping her much-fancied horse Estimate triumphs in Royal Ascot's Gold Cup today. Her thoroughbred filly is favourite to win the prestigious race on Ladies' Day.
Nick Smith, head of communications at Ascot, said: "We are delighted with the standard of dress we are seeing in both the royal enclosure and the grandstand. The new dress code has clearly had a positive impact on that.
He added: "We always said that we would adopt the new rules sensitively using common sense and discretion, especially in the first year of its implementation, and that is what we are doing."
A number of race-goers chose patriotic outfits for the first day of racing at Royal Ascot in celebration of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee.
The week is always a highlight of the social and sporting calender, with the fashion states set particularly high.
Jackie St Clair, a former girlfriend of music mogul Simon Cowell, wore a headpiece made from a giant Union flag bow, created by Siggi at Harrods.
The Queen was greeted by cheers and applause as she arrived for a day at the races at Royal Ascot.
Shouts of "God save the Queen" rang out around the Berkshire racecourse's parade ground as she entered in a traditional horse-drawn royal carriage procession.
The Queen was accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh, who appeared fit and well following his recent stay in hospital that caused him to miss part of the Diamond Jubilee celebrations.
The Queen wore a dress and coat in pale blue by Stewart Parvin with a matching hat by Rachel Trevor-Morgan. She and the Duke were joined by the Viscount Ullswater and Lord Vestey.
Royal Ascot gets underway today and organisers will be keeping a close eye on what people choose to wear.


text:
Q: Necessary Cache Modules in Orchard CMS 1.7 I was going through the caching part in Orchard CMS. The Module: Output Cache is already enabled. Should we also enable the SysCache module ?

Also, going through this link: http://docs.orchardproject.net/Documentation/Caching  it suggests various cache modules to use.
Which of the below Modules should I exactly use and enable in my Orchard CMS ?

*

*https://bitbucket.org/sebastienros/contrib.cache.database

*https://bitbucket.org/sebastienros/contrib.cache.memcached

*https://bitbucket.org/sebastienros/orchard.caching

*https://bitbucket.org/sebastienros/orchard.caching.memcached
Should the Memcached module also needs to be used/enabled ?
Our application is an MVC application only and Not related to Azure in any way.

A: OutputCache is fine. You onlly need this actually.
SysCache sometimes has shown a strange behaviour some times. Not necessary though.
https://bitbucket.org/sebastienros/contrib.cache.database -- It is the ancestor or Output Caching
https://bitbucket.org/sebastienros/contrib.cache.memcached -- Never Used
https://bitbucket.org/sebastienros/orchard.caching -- It is for Orchard > 1.8
https://bitbucket.org/sebastienros/orchard.caching.memcached -- It is for Orchard > 1.8

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Birthday parties!! They have become bigger and pricier since my sweet days of paper crowns and kids meals at Burger King. My daughter, M, and I were dreaming up what would fit her personality and passion for a 9-year old sleepover party with friends. Locally we've had all sorts of group painting stores and party places open up. These are fabulous for unique get togethers, and they are also a little more than we could afford so we decided -- Let's do our own You Paint Party.
It began with the 2 inch canvases that M painted for invitations. She embraced the abstract and each one became its own masterpiece. We glued event details to the back and mailed them out.
M also loves donuts so we decided that the girls would paint canvases of sprinkled donuts on them. We kept our eyes open for great sales on canvases, and we were able to grab a bundle from Michael's for a steal. We chose 12" squares to accommodate our studio space (also known as our kitchen) as well as ease in transporting after the party.
To convert our home into a studio, we prepped the kitchen. Covering the table with freezer paper and removing the chairs was the first step. Creating make-shift easels from canvases propped on coffee mugs worked out perfectly!
Each painter received a thin and thick brush as well as a mini palette of paints. We created our palettes from cardboard sheets, and each artists had her own array to choose from.
To make our guests of every skill and comfort level feel ready to dive into the project, we decided to offer some easy guidelines. Paper plates made a handy outline for the outer edge, and the bottom of paper cups become our stencil for the donut hole.
We began with the background color(s) first to set the stage, and already personality came through!
We then moved onto glaze followed by the cake of the donut. The best part was all the giggling and compliments they lavished on one another. Such a supportive group of painters!
The form of a donut is such a beautifully simple one that painters from all backgrounds can own their own sense of style to it! I was amazed at how many variations we had on the same theme, and I loved that no one felt frustrated in trying to make their painting look too realistic. There's something fantastical about donuts, no?


text:
import { Config } from '../../config'

export class Device {
  DeviceId?: String
  Name?: String
  Type?: String

  constructor(resource) {
    Object.assign(this, resource)
  }

  isNew(): boolean {
    return !(this.DeviceId)
  }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Effect of 'super PACs' proved to be less than expected
Foster Friess, a retired mutual fund executive from Wyoming, said he gave about $5 million to conservative outside groups this election cycle, including Restore Our Future, which promoted Mitt Romney's candidacy.
(Andrew Goodman, Getty Images)
By Matea Gold and Melanie Mason, Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON — In the end, the old truism held: Money isn't everything.
Deep-pocketed "super PACs" and other independent groups dumped more than $1 billion into the 2012 election, largely on behalf of Republicans, injecting a harsh tone into races across the country and driving record spending. But they failed to have the dramatic impact both sides anticipated after such intense saturation of the airwaves.
Tuesday's results challenged the notion that GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney had a strong edge because of heavyweight allies such as Americans for Prosperity, Restore Our Future and the two Crossroads organizations that were cofounded by Karl Rove, the political strategist and former advisor to President George W. Bush.
In fact, groups allied with President Obama claimed more success, even though they were outspent. Unions gleefully noted that they exceeded the number of voter contacts made in 2008 — one result of the Supreme Court decision that allowed corporations and unions to spend money on direct political activity.
INTERACTIVE: Follow the money in the race
The election exposed a limitation of super PACs and tax-exempt advocacy groups: Prohibited from coordinating with candidates, they served primarily as a weapon to mow down opponents, rather than a means to communicate a positive vision. And the preponderance of groups working on Romney's behalf may have overloaded voters.
"There were so many super PACs, it felt like a lot of well-meaning people throwing a variety of ads at the wall to see what would stick," said Republican ad maker Fred Davis.
Charlie Spies, treasurer of Restore Our Future, a pro-Romney super PAC, agreed that "the sheer volume of ads in all races certainly meant that it was hard to penetrate with a message."
MONEY MAP: 2012 Presidential campaign contributions
But he argued that his group broke through with its ads strafing Obama's economic record.
"It would be irresponsible to jump to any conclusion that certain super PAC ads weren't effective based upon the overall result," Spies said. "In the big picture, the impact of super PACs and outside groups in this cycle was to level the playing field."
Indeed, pro-Romney groups sponsored half of all broadcast television spots aired on his behalf between April 11 and Oct. 29, helping bring him to near parity with Obama and his allies, according to the Wesleyan Media Project, which analyzed data from the ad-tracking firm Kantar Media/CMAG. But the outside groups were hampered by having to pay a steeper price than the president, who as a candidate can pay a lower rate.
The heavy investment in ads by many of the groups was viewed with skepticism by some conservative donors.
"I'm not a big fan of the high-altitude approach of mega TV ads," said Foster Friess, a retired mutual fund executive from Wyoming who said he gave about $5 million to outside groups this election cycle, including Restore Our Future. In the future, he said, there should be more emphasis on the kind of on-the-ground organizing that labor unions do.
Despite Tuesday's losses, Friess said he believes donors will open their checkbooks again: "My guess is that four years from now, the financial support will not drop off but may be even higher for the outside groups."
But even better, he said, would be a change in campaign finance rules to allow unlimited donations to candidates — a sign of some of the skepticism among wealthy contributors about how their money was used.
"You have no idea of the financial structuring of a lot of these outside groups in terms of how much went to the actual delivery of a message," Friess said, "versus how many dollars were taken off as fees to the people running them."
In all, outside groups reported spending $1.03 billion on media and other forms of voter outreach as of Wednesday — more than three times the amount they spent in 2008, according to the nonpartisan research group Center for Responsive Politics. That does not include money that tax-exempt groups put into early issue ads and voter contact, activities that could total hundreds of millions more, but do not have to be reported under federal law.
Much of the action was in House races, where both GOP-allied outside groups and liberal super PACs claimed victories.
But when it came to bigger landscapes — Senate campaigns and the White House contest — independent groups had mixed records.
Super PACs were influential in the Republican presidential primaries. Some extended the campaigns of Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum, while Restore Our Future helped Romney eventually defeat them.
Heading into the general election, many political strategists predicted Obama would be swamped by outside spending. His own advisors persuaded him to give his blessing to a super PAC run by two former White House aides, despite his long-standing opposition to such groups.
The group, Priorities USA Action, raised nearly $63 million through mid-October, while Restore Our Future collected $131.6 million; and American Crossroads and its sister nonprofit, Crossroads GPS, hit their goal of $300 million.
Despite its financial disadvantage, Priorities is credited by strategists on both sides with some of the most searing ads — spots that portrayed Romney as a wealthy, job-killing plutocrat. The ads played in heavy rotation in states such as Ohio, where voters cited them as particularly memorable.
Bill Burton, a senior strategist for the group, said its more limited resources forced the group to stick to one message, which it hammered relentlessly. "We were forced to be ruthlessly efficient," he said.
Even as they reflected on their losses, top conservative groups said Tuesday's results would not slow them down.
"We are not about just one year or one election or one issue," said Tim Phillips, president of the nonprofit advocacy group Americans for Prosperity, which spent more than $190 million in the two-year cycle — a large share on ads pummeling Obama on the debt and his energy policies. "It's about building for the long haul, and that's what we're committed to doing."
AFP's contributors are not discouraged, he said. "They tell us this is a long ballgame."
matea.gold@latimes.com


text:
Rich Williams, Director, Straight Line Communications
Read Rich Williams's Bio
Door-to-Door, Consumer Goods, Sales and Marketing, Following
Listen to This Interview Text to speech converter
Rich has a beautiful way of (i) keeping complex concepts simple, (ii) working hard to make things happen, and (iii) being candid and straightforward in his views. After selling books for 6 years, Rich then went into a corporate career with Orbitsound, a new music technology venture. Rich's perspective in this interview – when Orbitsound, at the time, lacked a sales-centric culture – is useful in informing what you should look for and not look for in corporate jobs.
Since leaving Orbitsound, Rich has moving industries and roles, working as a consultant the director at telecommunications firms, and becoming a social media savant in record time, all whilst raising a family and started a business. His storytelling at the end is especially powerful.
You can read Rich's full biography here
Jamie: What have you found most fulfilling about your career so far?
Rich: I think one of the biggest things for me is seeing a business grow from nothing to something. When I started in the business where I am working at the moment, they were selling nothing a week. When you see that you have an impact on selling 1,000, 2,000, 3,000, 5,000 units a week from your blood, sweat, and tears – that is so powerful to me. You evolve from going, "Okay. Well, that seems a really big number," to "That's great. What's the next one?" Now, we're looking at selling into multiple countries and into more premium opportunities.
It's that ever-evolving chain of events that you don't think it's possible at the start, and then you achieve it. Then you go, "Okay, what's the next opportunity?" It's that ever-evolving, "What's next? Who's next? What's the next opportunity?"
Jamie: What's the best thing about being in sales?
Rich: It's the best and the worst – that January starts on zero. That is the scariest thing in the world, but almost the biggest motivator for me. I hate it, but I also love it, because the minute I get that first sale under my belt, it just drives you on from there to move forward. Being scared but also being excited at the same time is really powerful for me.
Jamie: Would you say that generally, you're more away or towards motivated?
Rich: I've been asked this question a lot. I'd say when I look at the fear of being on zero, I'm probably away motivated. I hate being on zero, so I want to move away from that.
Jamie: Do you think that it matters whether salespeople are away or towards motivated? Do you have a preference for either on your team?
Rich: No, I don't. Over the years, I'm not necessarily focused on that. I think the lines blur, and especially having worked with probably more and more millennials, I think it's possible that someone can be both, and perhaps, they don't even recognise it. I think people, salespeople or young individuals now have evolved so much that I don't actually think that's as important.
Jamie: What is important instead?
Rich: Everyone has characteristics that enable them to know what they want at that time. I think we live in such a society now that some people you'll see have a 12-month goal, some people have a 24-month goal, but I actually think a lot more people have a goal for that week or even that day. I think people live by shorter-term goals than they have done before. That's something that I don't necessarily think is right. But I think after working with salespeople over the last couple of years, I've started to think about the here and now, the one-month, three-month, and six-month goals.
Jamie: Can you talk about the importance of goal setting in general?
Rich: Yeah, I think my focus is being aware of what that five-year goal is and what you're working towards, but really breaking it down and crystallising it down to what do you have to do today to move towards that, and not just goal setting in terms of financials. You have to set goals on the real substance, the development, the learning, and the other skills that you need. When I got taught about goal setting, it was, "Let's make it SMART. Let's make sure we're working towards it, and let's write it down." I never focused on what do I need to learn or develop or understand to get to that goal.
Jamie: How do you feel the salespeople in your organisation are treated and compensated when compared to their normal sale peers?
Rich: I would say that the salespeople in our organisation are ostracised, and I think that they do not appreciate us. In my particular organisation, I think they're misunderstood. I think they rank quite lowly if you were to rank the important people within our organisation.
Jamie: Who has those higher positions; people more of a technical background?
Rich: We're talking about acoustic design or web development or photography and marketing. Those may be educated, and maybe some of the more technical roles would look down on someone in sales.
Jamie: What effect does that dynamic have on working there as a salesperson?
Rich: Unfortunately, this may well be a cultural thing, because salespeople are often good at talking and asking a lot of questions, and that is sometimes to the detriment of the influence that salesperson has on the whole of an organisation. I would say part of that
success I've had, going from a salesperson to an MD, is because I've listened a lot more than a lot of my peers. I've learned to be sensitive to other people's needs to sell to 100% of people, rather than 25% of people.
Whereas, unfortunately, I think some other non-sales people have a technical mindset and don't like to be told or encouraged on their part of the business by someone who isn't educated in that area but has an opinion. I think the learning and educated opinion of a salesperson is less regarded than ever before.
Jamie: It sounds like you believe that salespeople can do a very good job of those leadership roles?
Rich: Yes. I think that the core skills of a great salesperson, in my opinion, is the ability to listen, the ability to adapt, and the ability to understand from all sides to provide a solution for that customer.
I often find the way a salesperson thinks is broader and more "outside the box" than most of the technical individuals.
Jamie: If a salesperson were looking for a specific industry or company to join, would you then recommend they look for a company that has salespeople in leadership positions?
Rich: I think so. Yes, definitely.
Jamie: What skills do you think that people should have naturally to want to go into sales?
Rich: An openness to learning. I think you have to understand that you're never going to be the finished article. You have to want to learn. I personally feel as though you have to be extremely self-motivated. Also, more these days than ever before, with the flexible working hours, working from home, all of these are common things that can be supremely affected if you don't have that self-motivation; the ability to do that one more call or that one more meeting.
Jamie: Would you recommend that anyone goes into direct B2C sales specifically?
Rich: Yeah. I think from my experience, I've known a lot of individuals who moved from a sales role to sales role because it's not quite what they had in mind. I imagine what a lot of people have in mind is; they get told that it's not going to be 30 hours a week on the phone, and then they get into it, and it's 30 hours a week on the phone.
The expectations aren't often in line with what an actual sales role is. There has to be an understanding of how bad it can be. Therefore, it can only be better when you actually get into it and can you actually succeed while you're learning and developing.
Jamie: How can you ensure your employer or potential employer is telling you the truth and is being realistic with you?
Rich: I think there is that ability to interview and understand. It's catching up with a couple of members of the team that you're going to be working with, together with real insights into the business, and asking for shadow days to physically see what a day looks like before you accept a job. These would be all things that I'd be a big advocate of, though I haven't always seen them offered or asked for.
Jamie: You mentioned earlier that the whole 30 hours a week on the phone. Would that be typical of the industry you're currently in?
Rich: No, not typical. That would be typical of individuals who I've seen go into sales roles, probably maybe an IT sales area or doing something else. My area of sales is either long term, setting up distribution channels or training in sales, or actually being in day to day roles within a retail sales environment or events.
Jamie: In terms of what you've seen in your industry, have you seen any particular advantage or preferential treatment to make sales results based on age, gender, and physical appearance?
Rich: No, I think I've seen every type of person be extremely successful. I've also seen every type of person fail miserably. Unfortunately, and I think still to this day that there's the old 80/20 rule that applies; 20% of them in my industry make it, and 80% don't. That 20% is made up of every type of person, though.
Jamie: Let's talk about that 80/20. What skills are needed to succeed?
Rich: It goes back to that open-mindedness, so that willingness to know that you're never going to be the finished product. I think open-mindedness is really key, coming back to that self-motivation I mentioned before. I think beyond that is that competitiveness; whether you call it "away" or "towards," whether it's competitive with someone else or competitive with yourself, there has to be that air of "I want to be successful regardless." I think that really comes down to pride.
If I strip it back, I think the individuals that succeed work to have a large element of pride. So when they go to bed at night, and they look at themselves in the mirror, and they think,
"Okay, I've reached two out of three, and I've done everything in my power to reach the third one and it just wasn't possible. Tomorrow's a new day, and I'm confident I can hit three out of three tomorrow."
Another big part is being a conversationalist. I don't think that can be taught. I don't think it needs to be a requirement of those individuals going into sales, but I think that has to be a level of intellect that enables people to get on a level with other people really helps.
Jamie: What are the specific skills that you need to succeed in B2C consumer goods sales?
Rich: The one that I probably haven't mentioned before is passion. I look at many sales roles that I would find it hard to do it myself because I find it hard to get passionate about a deep fat fryer or something like that. I think that's the other area in my industry where going above and beyond the skills needed, the best addition would be passion.
I'm quite fortunate that I work in the music industry, that is perceived as having a coolness to it. It's associated with emotions, and it's associated with things people really enjoy. It allows you to impart your passion to others who are willing to listen. I'd say that passion is probably a key one. I think the other one is probably patience. In the industry that I work within, there are lots of myths and lots of nuances that will lead you down the garden path.
So, I think you've got to be patient and listen to other people's opinions. You've got to be willing to listen, and you've got to be willing to bite your tongue at times when you definitely know that what they are saying is not true. You have to hold back and be patient enough to allow for your opinion and be able to provide service in the right way, regardless.
Jamie: Now, what are the biggest challenges in winning business in your industry and in direct sales?
Rich: Getting in front of a buyer.
Getting in front of a buyer with an open mind. This doesn't necessarily apply to everything, but the business that we work within is full of some extremely big brands that sponsor the Olympics, sponsor the World Cup, sponsor the FA Cup, and the Premiership, all of these sorts of things that are associated with some humongous marketing giants. So, getting in front of a buyer with an open mind, who is willing to listen to an alternative brand.
Jamie: Can you just run me through your products? What are their unique selling points that you're leveraging to get them from this far?
Rich: The cool one is that the way we produce sound differently. For 60 years now, not everyone's listened to two-speaker stereo, which means that it sounds the best in the middle of the room. What we enable customers to do is hear the best sound wherever you are in the room, so, therefore, changing the way that people have listened to the sound for 60 years. Then beyond that, we try to add features and benefits that we think are useful to consumers and also create things from a smaller footprint than most of our competition.
Jamie: How do you deal with organisational complexity? I think you've touched on it, but how do you deal with that organisational complexity in those businesses that you're selling into and get them to try your product on the shelves?
Rich: I think fundamentally, the biggest thing for us in the way we've been most successful in finding the gap in the organisations, where they have a way in and we can create a way in. There are some stores that we work with, and let's say someone sells a speaker at £300 and £500. The gap would be that they don't have a product of £400. It's almost analysing in the world that generally the sales that we do if we're looking at selling into retail and B2B, is what gaps do they have? What products do we have to offer that we can support them with and then once we're, you can then invest, create, develop, and nurture that relationship and go above and beyond what your competition is doing to enable you to put multiple products in, regardless of whether they've got competition at that price point or not.
It's finding the chinks in other people's armour, developing and then sometimes potentially even looking at it the other way around, is creating products for that sales process. So maybe the sales process is to say, "Look, this is what we're very good at. But actually, there's an opportunity here to sell 1,000 speakers here if we change it. Let's build something new," and go back to the whole operation, manufacturing and supply chain, and go, "Yeah, you're really great at doing this, but the sales opportunity is here and let's change what we're doing to cultivate that sales opportunity."'
That really comes back to what I said at the start – listening to the guy on the shop floor, who's in the trenches, to filter down into all those processes and decisions. Otherwise, you're building products that people in a factory or an ivory tower love, but that doesn't filter down to the market.
Jamie: Talk to me about what happens when that connection isn't there and when salespeople aren't being listened to in an organisation?
Rich: I think nowadays, with millennials, I think it's important to note that more people nowadays want to be part of something larger than themselves. So, when the connection isn't there, I think people become demotivated, they believe they don't have a voice, and they get detached from the vision of the business. Therefore, their performance level is poor, and salespeople start doing a job to exist rather than thrive.
Jamie: Would you recommend B2C and/or consumer goods or pharmaceuticals to any salesperson?
Rich: Yeah, absolutely. I think it's one of the more fun ones to get into because most people are a buyer. So, getting in front of buyers who like audio or like movies or entertainment is quite satisfying. You can have a conversation, and you can build your skills, you can develop your skills, you can understand more objections, and you do more demos daily than a lot of other roles. A lot of other roles are cramming the phone just to get to someone who will listen. In my industry, most people will listen; however, most have been marketed to, most people have a preference, and most people already have the desired outcome. That's where you've got to hone your skills to be able to sell to different types of people.
Jamie: What do you like and dislike the most about being a challenger brand as opposed to a market leader?
Rich: Yeah. Over the years, I have had individuals who leave our business not because they get paid more money daily, but because they want an easier job. Nobody who's really successful leaves our business because they ultimately get paid more than everyone else. It's the ones who want the easy job who move to a bigger business. But generally, the ones who are successful have honed all their skills learned, they always stay around because they never stopped learning. Whereas some of our competition, the market leaders don't see learning as important, and don't necessarily prioritise their staff and really build upon their goals and potential and therefore, they only allow them to maintain rather than thrive.
Jamie: How is the sales training in your organisation?
Rich: We're always getting better, always improving, and I think it's always ongoing. It happens almost daily. In my opinion, every conversation should have a training slant to it, whether that's how are you doing or what are you up to? How can we move things forward and improve right away to really structure sit-down events? Unfortunately, we are a geographically dispersed organisation. There's a lot more sort of conference calls and Face-Timing rather than personal get-togethers, but nothing still replaces getting people on Face-Time and getting in front of people. It's far-and-away the most powerful part.
Jamie: So, your organisation does a good job of providing formalised face-to-face coaching?
Rich: Yeah, and in terms of that, we've just created and bought into a new
HR software, which is a structured piece of software that you can focus on people, milestones, development reviews, and to make sure people are listened to every month.
I've just actually activated it last week with my regional sales team, asking them the five biggest wins that they had last year, and also the five biggest questions I had asked last year, that they often haven't followed up on this year, which I've actually found quite interesting to see. The good thing is that we asked the question again in February, instead of waiting for December.
Jamie: How does that compare to the industry?
Rich: I would imagine, in lots of different industries, a lot of reviews get put in a drawer and never get looked at. Often, very few people are asked their opinion on things that can actually affect and benefit the business. I think that we do well in my job, for example, but I'm always willing to listen to see how we can do more.
Jamie: How are your staff up on the shop floor? Are they well compensated?
Rich: They're probably given slightly less than the competition in terms of base salary. But I've always believed in this approach- that everyone who works in a daily job for us wins their own business. So, whether you work one day a week or five days a week for us, you get paid on everything that goes through your business. When I talk about their businesses, if they work in Oxford Street, John Lewis, they would get paid on every single sale that goes to Oxford Street, John Lewis, whether they're in there or not, whether they work one day or five days, so it's telling them to treat it as their own sales business. Therefore, they get paid on every single unit, every single bit of business that goes through that store, however, big or small it is.
Jamie: Do you have a sense of what percentage of the overall revenue of the business goes back to the sales team and sales managers?
Rich: Revenue wise, I think as we move from a sales business more to a branded marketing business, I think it's probably reducing. I think previously, at one stage it would be 10% to 15%, that will be reducing as we move into a more sort of traditional marketing business as we build a brand.
Jamie: How would you describe that dynamic between sales and marketing or in the organisation currently?
Rich: Massively intertwined. I have come from a school of thinking that marketing is just another strand of sales, or actually sales is just another strand of marketing, and I haven't really changed that opinion, as you look at marketing and sales as an umbrella. You've got social media and all of these different forms that probably form that umbrella of marketing.
We have a marketing agency, and we have a PR agency, we have someone who takes care of social media, digital online, and our digital spend. Then we have 25 people who work in sales. I think the difference with sales is, it's always going to be the highest on the headcount, which means that it's been the highest on the management radar and it's highest in terms of the fixed costs.
Whereas, at this moment in time, it probably returns the most consistent ROI and is the number that everyone knows that it returns. You can probably say how you spend "X" this month, I'm going to get "Y", whereas all of the other areas in PR and all the other forms of marketing, I get a blank look on my face when I get ask about ROI. Everyone just looked at me and went, "You know that you're not going to get that figure off anyone." Well, why do we spend it then?
Jamie: How do you get into direct sales and the B2C industry?
Rich: Personally, I think my story's a weird one when someone walked into a lecture and said, "do you want to sell books in America," but that's one for another day. I think I get 10 emails a week with people asking me if they can get into direct sales. I always enjoy trying to go back to all of those and asking why. One of the biggest things for me is that if you want to get into direct sales, you go directly to the company that you want to get into, and you sell them on why you should get into it.
Because in principle, if you can sell me on why I should hire you, then, you're probably not far away from being good in the business. I'd argue that that's a very uncommon thing, and I'd say that people don't think of it like that way. But if someone comes to me telling me why I should give them a job, I'm going to give them a chance.
Jamie: What advice would you give to aspiring salespeople?
Rich: I think being willing to work for nothing. Back yourself and because if you don't back yourself no one else will, and you will become a sponge. Learn from every single person who has been there longer than you, who's seen it, done it, and who's got the T-shirt. Learn from everything. Everyone's got something, no matter how good or bad they are at a job, they've always got something to impart to you. You'd be too naive enough to think that they can't help you out in some way or another.
Jamie: What training would you suggest that an aspiring salesperson look for?
Rich: I think knowing your product. If you said, for instance, that by selling TVs or selling cars, I've become a professional or I am now very knowledgeable in that area, I think you need to know 10% more than your customers but I'd argue that that's probably incorrect or you need to know 20, 30, 40% more than your customers to be passionate and comfortable about selling something.
I'd say learn your industry. I see people who try and sell charity knocking on doors, and I think door-to-door sales is worth doing, regardless of how good you are, I think the principles that you learn are to knock on one more door, have one more opportunity and have an ability to deal with rejection and overcoming that are just things that you cannot learn in everyday life, or in education, or anywhere else.
Jamie: If you were starting your sales career again, what would you do differently?
Rich: I think I would probably look at working in a couple of different types of industry- again, coming back to that learning process. I've been very fortunate that I got into a job where I worked for very little money for a couple of years, worked my way up, and a few things figured themselves out. I think if I was doing this differently, I would look at working for a couple of different industries at that very early stage – £20,000, £30,000k earnings sort of stage. I'd look at options, whether that be IT sales for a year and then maybe recruitment for another year. I'd enjoy learning and understanding how different industries work and build my little black book of contacts across different industries. Because I'll always feel as though you'll get far better job opportunities from who you know rather than what you know.
Jamie: Can you tell me about a time when you failed, but it taught you something?
Rich: Man, my first three days in real sales in Portland, Oregon. This is the most talked-about story that any person who's ever known me or works with me will know. The three days that I worked 13 and a half hour days, a hundred-degree heat and humidity like I've never seen before. Three whole days. I sold absolutely nothing, zip, zippo. Man, did I want to give up?
Looking back now, I can see it. Now I can see the first person who bought on day 4, 4:15pm in the afternoon, they spent $40 with me, and it meant the absolute world to me at that moment in time. It was important to me because during those three days, plus four and a quarter hours that I sold absolutely nothing, and wanting to quit, and being at the bottom of the pile in terms of where I wanted to be then. But the benefit has enabled me to move forward every single day.
Every single day, where I feel as though I'm negative or I'm not happy with things, or I'm dissatisfied, having sold door-to-door enables me to look back at really the lowest point of my sales career to know that it does get better.
Jamie: Can you tell me about the flip side of success you've had in selling, which shows the skills that you've learned throughout your career?
Rich: We went to one of those big design shows to sell soundbars, and that was hugely successful. But when good times roll, you learn to not let your foot off the gas.
I remember once when we worked hard; it was an 18-day show. It got to the last day, and people were visiting, and buying in nice amounts, and that was great. Maybe, our best day before this was, I don't know, 100 units? That's probably about £35,000-pound a day. That's okay.
Then this last day of just putting in all of the hard work, having all those conversations, not compromising, and not go to lunch during the day, because you fear if you've missed an opportunity. During the last hour, I think people weren't even asking for a demonstration, and they were just buying. It was almost as if everyone was walking out with a speaker and people were buying because everyone else was buying. It was a remarkable day – the day you live for as a salesperson.
[END]
Do you like this article? Share this article!
Sign up to receive interviews, excerpts & resources from the Exceptional Sales Career
Kristen Gonzalez, 200k VIP Brand Promoter, Le-Vel 0 comments | posted on September 25, 2020
Joe Pallo, Owner/Founder, Sell Nothing 4 comments | posted on December 8, 2020
Robin Mukherjee, Founder and MD, 2Circles Consulting 2 comments | posted on November 21, 2020
Avi Wiesenberg, CRO and Start-up Advisor 0 comments | posted on November 29, 2020
Gertjan Rossing, Head of Delivery, CRM Partners 0 comments | posted on November 30, 2020
I was lucky to be introduced to John, who became incremental in the project. John
Nazma is an impressive lady, and her poise in this interview matched her exceptional track


text:
Aug 03, 2019 · 09:35 am Updated Aug 03, 2019 · 10:55 am
Former Maldives vice president deported a day after seeking political asylum in India: Reports
Ahmed Adeeb was detained off Tamil Nadu coast on Thursday. His lawyer urged the Indian government to grant him asylum in accordance with international law.
File photo of Ahmed Adeeb. | Ahmed Shurau/AFP
Former Maldives Vice President Ahmed Adeeb, who was detained in Tamil Nadu's Thoothukudi district two days ago, was deported late on Friday by the Coast Guard, The Hindu reported. According to The Times of India, the nine crew members of tugboat "Virgo 9" that Adeeb had used to enter the country were also handed over to Maldivian authorities at the International Maritime Boundary Line. The crew members include an Indian and eight Indonesians.
This came a day affter Adeeb's counsel in London said his client had come to India for political asylum, PTI reported. Toby Cadman, co-founder of Guernica 37 International Justice Chambers, asked the Indian government to uphold the Maldivian leader's asylum plea in accordance with international law. "We remain deeply concerned that he could be returned to the Maldives where his life is at risk," PTI quoted Cadman as saying. "I would remind the Maldives authorities that he has claimed asylum and if they want to return him to the Maldives, the proper course of action is through a request for extradition, not through any other means."
The lawyer dismissed reports that Adeeb had been arrested. "He fled the Maldives due to the ongoing pressures placed upon him to sign an agreement implicating other persons in relation to a corruption scandal," Cadman claimed. "He was forced to sign an agreement and provide false testimony on video."
The Maldivian leader's legal team also said it had initiated contact with the United Nations' Office of the High Commission for Refugees and the UN Office of the High Commission for Human Rights to act with diligence in considering his application and ensure that his rights are protected.
Meanwhile, the police in Maldives said the former vice president was "interdicted during his attempt to flee the country via sea". The police claimed Adeeb was facing an active travel ban by the Supreme Court of Maldives and was facing investigation for "alleged misappropriation of state funds, corruption and money laundering".
Adeeb was sacked and arrested on charges of attempting to assassinate former President Abdulla Yameen by blowing up his speedboat in September 2015. The following year, a court sentenced him to 15 years in prison. The sentence was quashed in May.
Press Release regarding Mr.Ahmed Adeeb Abdul Gafoor's interdiction during his attempt to flee the country on 1st of August 2019 pic.twitter.com/BDRjyQrJ7C
— Maldives Police (@PoliceMv) August 1, 2019
Ahmed Adeeb


If you were to ask me what I consider to be the greatest benefit of being a Canadian, I'd say it's that I get to pass citizenship on to my children. While it's still true for me, its no longer the case for one of my kids who happened to be born in the U.S..
My son was born in Boston because we knew that he would require a life-saving operation right after birth and my wife's Canadian obstetrician recommended a surgeon at the Massachusetts General Hospital. Thankfully, everything worked out and our 10 year old child is perfectly healthy today. However, the fact that he is foreign-born means that he will not be able to pass on Canadian citizenship to his children. If his children are to be Canadian citizens, they will have to be born in Canada or their mother will have to be Canadian-born.


text:
"Blockers is silly and fun from the outside, but scratch just beneath the surface and you'll find progressive messaging."
Title: Blockers
Director: Kay Cannon 👩🏼🇺🇸
Writers: Brian Kehoe 👨🏼🇺🇸 and Jim Kehoe 👨🏼🇺🇸
Reviewed by Li 👩🏻🇺🇸
Technical: 3.75/5
Blockers is not here to reinvent the wheel. It borrows classic, teen comedy hijinks like parental overprotectiveness, gross-out slapstick, and sex and drugs to deliver its laughs. If the film were personified, Blockers would be a frat boy with a heart of gold.
If that's the tone that director Kay Cannon—of Pitch Perfect fame—wants to strike, then she's done it. Besides some slight pacing issues and genre confusion, I really enjoyed this film. Sure, the toilet humor didn't work for me: gratuitous vomiting, butt chugging, and full-frontal dick jokes feel done to death. But when Blockers taps into its emotional core, it shines. I loved seeing flawed Gen X parents who set out to "protect" their supremely well-adjusted kids from the real world, only to learn from them instead. In this current era when teenagers can feel like the adults in the room—while their parents and grandparents have let a major financial crisis, thousands of mass shootings, and a temper tantrum of a president all happen under their watch—Blockers strikes a chord. Something about seeing young, modern women thrive despite the messy strife and insecurities that come with late adolescence simply feels timely.
Blockers hits the trifecta of what it takes to have strong female representation: numbers, depth, and positivity. By the numbers, there are multiple female characters across leading, supporting, and minor roles. On complexity, Lisa (Leslie Mann) enjoys an emotional story arc that equals that of the other two parents, Mitchell (John Cena) and Hunter (Ike Barinholtz). And on positivity, there is so much of that flying around, whether it's the relationships between women as family, friends, or lovers, or the affectionate portraits of each of the daughters in this film: the peppy blonde Julie (Kathryn Newton), tomboy Kayla (Geraldine Viswanathan), or the fannish Sam (Gideon Adlon).
Each daughter has agency over her own life, up to and including the way she wants to lose her virginity. While this setup could have easily been mishandled by another director, Cannon shows her comfort level with writing smart, strong, sex-positive, and vulnerable young women. It's a joy to watch Julie, Kayla, and Sam remain each others' strongest support systems throughout this confusing and tumultuous time in their lives, as they go through senior prom and embark on the next chapter of their lives.
Race: 3.5/5
If Blockers nailed the trifecta of representation for women, it falters slightly on the same three attributes for race. Racial representation is clearly written into the film, but it simply doesn't feel like a priority.
By the numbers, all three parents, Lisa, Mitchell, and Hunter, are white. In secondary roles, Mitchell's daughter Kayla is biracial, as Mitchell is married to Marcie (Sarayu Blue, of Indian descent). Another spouse in a minor role is Frank, played by Hannibal Buress, who is black. But notably, the most complex characters of the three main parents are all white.
Luckily, the characters of color who do exist are worked into highly positive roles. Marcie is key as the superchill, feminist Indian American who "wears the pants" of her marriage to Mitchell. Her refreshing role is noted by writer Radhika Sanghani, who says of the usual landscape of representation:
"The Indians on screens are nothing like me. They are the sari-wearing mums of Bend It Like Beckham (2002), cooking aloo ghobi as their children battle with tradition."
By writing a U.S.-born parent into Blockers rather than an immigrant one—with authentic casting, too, as Blue herself was born in Wisconsin—her daughter Kayla is never seen having to wrestle with her "Indianness". Rather, she's sporty, confident, and damned funny, allowing her to be more than just her skin color. Same goes for Buress' character, who bucks the stereotype of black men by being ridiculously nice and kind of nerdy.
With all this in mind, it becomes jarring to see small-scale stereotyping among some of the kids' classmates. While Blockers is in no way mean-spirited, the film does take poorly executed jabs at geeks, one of whom is an Asian teenager who appears to be a Dance Dance Revolution fan with glowing shoes and a twitchy disposition. He's obsessed with breakdancing and is convinced that prom will be his moment, but he's foiled by one of the parents, Hunter, who accidentally knocks him down and breaks his front tooth. The scene is played for laughs, but the visual of having a cocksure white guy ruin the night of an Asian nerd, then shrug it off as the nerd is left wailing, simply doesn't feel funny to me.
Deduction for Body Positivity: -0.25
Speaking of errant stereotyping that somehow sneaks its way into this heartwarming film, I found the underlying fat-shaming of Chad (Jimmy Bellinger) to be retrograde. While Chad is never overtly ridiculed for his size, he nonetheless garners the ignominious role of being the guy that Sam uses to confirm her sexual preference for women. In multiple scenes, we see Sam wince or make nauseous faces after being physically close with Chad. As with the Asian breakdancer, the film is never outright mean, but still plays into longstanding tropes that feel too soon to reclaim.
Bonus for LGBTQ: +0.75
Sam enjoys a story arc that explores her sexuality, lending a fresh angle to the procession of teenage sex comedies that have tackled similar milestones such as prom, first loves, or first-times. I enjoyed watching Sam grow across the film, as she suspects, confirms, then ultimately comes out as gay. She even gets a tidy romance, and I was so close to giving Blockers a full point bonus for its inclusion. However, that storyline ends strangely abruptly, leaving a metallic taste to what was otherwise an incredibly sweet courtship.
Mediaversity Grade: B+ 4.25/5
Blockers is silly and fun from the outside, but scratch just beneath the surface and you'll find progressive messaging that empowers not just women, but men as well as they are permitted strong but "unconventional" roles. Hunter might be more traditionally masculine with his bravado, but Mitchell is a supportive and sensitive husband and father. The teenage boys, especially, are confident in themselves and completely respectful of their prom dates as the seniors all seek to party, do drugs, and have sex in modern ways where no one feels pressured or exploited.
Yes, the writing of characters of color and LGBTQ feels less natural. But overall, I had a great time watching this movie and am all about its ethos of letting younger generations lead the way into the future.
Like Blockers? Try these other titles that explore young love between women.
Saban's Power Rangers (2017)
Grade: BLi April 12, 2018 Female Creator, Great for: Gender, Great for: LGBTQ
Grade: CLi April 22, 2018


"I think we should get some new pins before we try to complete the mission."
Jack looks down at his 3 pins. 3 different logos on each of them, with each giving a different psych.
"I've only got Pyrokinesis, Force Rounds, and Shockwave. What about you?"
There was an unusual black Noise nearby, running about rather weirdly. In addition, there was also a fox-like Noise close to it. Likely the Progfox. Caliborn and Calliope better be careful.
Maps of the providence were downloaded onto everyone's cell phones, so they could navigate better.
Caliborn threw a rock at it.
The fox hopped out of the way, hissing at Caliborn as it grew a second tail rather suddenly.
The Progfox did not seem to attack as the black jellyfish nearby just floated there. It seemed the rather intelligent Noise was giving Caliborn a condescending second chance, as if it was aware it is well capable of reducing them to dust.
"Um mister progfox, may we possibly apprehend this delinqUent jellyfish? it woUld be mUch appreciated if yoU didn't look qUite so menacing." She nudged Caliborn on the arm for being so quick to attack, and nervously smiled at the progfox. Caliborn simply stayed quiet and eyed it angrily.
The fox bemusedly let its tails rest on the ground and puffed out its chest, allowing Calliope but wanted to antagonize Caliborn a bit more, unintentionally doing the observing Composer a favor.
Caliborn was going to get out his machine gun, but realized he was unable to access it. He cursed under his breath, continuing the staredown with the progfox.
The fox smugly watched Caliborn as the jelly convulsed and dove at Calliope.
Calliope could tell this jelly wasn't playing the easy way! She shot at the jelly and jumped to follow up with a front-flipping drop kick, then shot again, and finished with a special move! The ol' Switcheroo, she tossed up her pistol and drew her brother's machine gun, and struck a badass pose while she pumped it fulla hot lead!
Caliborn got mad that she used his weapon!
The fox laid down and watched the jelly avoid most of the bullets and try to flee.
Calliope tried to grab the jelly.
The jelly managed to slip out of her grasp and fled.
"oh no!" She ran after it. Caliborn finally remembered he was still handcuffed to her and was dragged along. Physics was restored before the fourth wall suffered too much.
Upon regaining his senses Kenta instantly sighted a herd of kangaroo noise approaching at a fast pace. "This is perfect to test your powers!" Kenta shouted in excitement. He took out his flute and did a series of backflips before kneeling on the sandy beach just a bit of distance away from Adalene.
"Here we go!" he yelled. Kenta began playing the legendary song which ended a massive ancient war between giants, "Sadness and Sorrow". Immediately Adalene's new necklace would glow green enhancing her powers by a great amount. She would feel a great relaxation enhancing her physical stats as well.
The Progfox giggled as Caliborn was dragged along the ground, floating in the air as it turned to watch Kenta and Adalene fight a herd of Kangaroo Noise.
Meanwhile, the Jellyfish soon vanished down towards the Touko area. Better give chase!
Calliope dragged Caliborn down to Touko and searched for it.
Cruise walked away from the shop with four pins.


text:
Indian-American gets 66 months in jail for selling stolen Apple product online
Chawla's accomplice James Bender has also been sentenced to a year and a day in prison.
Washington: A 36-year-old Indian-American has been sentenced to 66 months in prison in the US for buying stolen Apple products meant for Native American school children in the US state of New Mexico and then selling them online.
In addition to the sentence, US District Judge Catherine C Blake also ordered Saurabh Chawla, who is from Aurora in Colorado, to pay USD 713,619 as restitution to the Internal Revenue Service.
He is also asked to sign an order of forfeiture requiring him to forfeit a 2013 Tesla Model S, USD 2,308,062.61 from accounts held in his name, and the sale of property in Aurora, Colorado, according to a statement by the U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Maryland on Wednesday.
As per the court documents, Chawla bought Apple products from Kristy Stock, who worked for the Central Consolidated School District in New Mexico from 2010 to 2019 and was responsible for overseeing a programme to provide Apple iPods to school children with the intent of benefitting Native American children living on tribal reservations in New Mexico.
The court also sentenced Stock, who admitted that she stole more than 3,000 iPods from 2013 to 2018 purchased by the school district, to 18 months in prison.
Chawla's accomplice James Bender has also been sentenced to a year and a day in prison, the statement said.
According to the documents, from October 2015 to 2018, Stock and Chawla dealt directly with each other, in emails, texts, and phone calls. Stock repeatedly advised Chawla of the items she had obtained, providing details such as the model, colour and number of Apple products available.
Chawla and Stock then negotiated a price, and Stock shipped the items to Chawla's relative on the Eastern Shore in Maryland. Chawla paid Stock through PayPal.
Stock admitted that she received more than USD 800,000 in illegal proceeds from selling stolen iPods worth more than USD 1 million. After his relative received the stolen goods from Stock, Chawla listed them for sale online through eBay at a substantial markup, the statement said.
Beginning in 2014, James Bender agreed to allow good friend Chawla, and a relative of Chawla's, to sell goods and merchandise through Bender's eBay accounts.
Chawla's eBay account had previously been suspended due to security concerns. From May 2014 through August 2019, Bender and Chawla conspired so that the latter could use Bender's eBay and PayPal accounts to sell stolen goods and merchandise, it said.
Apple Event 2020: 8th Gen iPad launched, iPad Air 4, Watch Series 6, Apple One announced
Life-changing experience to see Earth from Space: Astronaut Sirisha Bandla
Apple's business in India low relative to size, says Tim Cook
Tagged: Apple online products, Apple products sold online, EBay, New Mexico, Saurabh Chawla


Use it to clean. friendly solution that won't harm pets or wildlife but can eliminate a small amount of weeds, such as those growing in the cracks in your driveway or sidewalk, pour straight.
present them with a solution. Got pet hair all over your carpet or floor? Agitate the problem: More pet hair means more time sweeping your floors. You're already busy enough. Do you really want to.
Cat Behaviorist Mieshelle Nagelschneider Solves Your Cat's Behavior Issues. Read more about her cat behavior studies at Oxford University and Dr. Shultz.
Nat what is the protocol you tried, and did it work? I´m a Veterinarian, and was also being treated like a psycho. until a month after all the crazy agony I found the stupid mites and was able to identify them with an acarologist as Ornythonyssu bursa, or in other words Tropical Fowl mite.
The struggle to keep a living space clean when you have a dog who loves to get dirty is real! So, what's a dog mom to do? Cleaning with vinegar. Vinegar cleans pet urine from carpet Due to its.
There are animals that absolutely do better when you limit their options," Arden says. "Sometimes too many options stress animals out because they don't know what to do with themselves." Pro tip:.
Then we'll do our best to clean. apply some carpet stain remover. They usually come in spray bottle form and cost about $5. I've found that the formulas marked "pet stain remover" or similar.
So when making your own cleaning mixtures at home: • Double check the safety of the combination you choose; • Keep all products out of reach of children or pets. And many homemade cleaning.
If you can talk at a moment when he is clean and sober, make it clear to him that you do not want to be with. How you move is what can be the creative solution to a mobile challenge.
Toddlers and pets know no limits when it comes to relieving themselves, so "stuff" really does happen. For advice on handling these messy moments, we asked our cleaning experts. Work the solution.
You'll be surprised how much dirt, dust and hair builds up in your carpet. This can be especially. room or just give it a new look. Pets are a delight to live with, but a menace when it comes to.
We use cayenne pepper. It kills the ants almost instantly and if it gets on pets it is usually just an irritation that makes them drink additional water.
Because they're cats – and cats do what they want. And dogs? Well, they're often just as guilty. But fear not: Where there's pee, there's a solution. carpet, stand on the wet spot (remember to wear.
The simplest solution. and remove pet hair and other dirt from the floor." If it's not possible to do away with carpeting, vacuum daily with a vacuum cleaner that has an air filter to reduce the.
So when making your own cleaning mixtures at home: ∫ Double check the safety of the combination you choose; ∫ Keep all products out of reach of children or pets. And many homemade cleaning.
Our Company offers residential carpet cleaning services in NYC and take pride in providing quick and effective cleaning solutions. to do the job. While this can make carpets look good, it is not.
Carpet is inexpensive, but my boyfriend's dog, an older terrier mix, has a lot of accidents. What do you suggest? A: I understand about wanting a durable, easy-to-clean floor that looks great. And.
This is an index of all the "joke" articles on the SCP Wiki. If you are interested in contributing a Joke SCP, keep the following in mind: Joke SCPs must be funny.
Floor cleaning just got easier with the first-rate Gloss Boss floor scrubber and polisher. Made by Pullman-Holt, a U.S. company well-known for commercial-quality floor scrubbers and polishers used in schools and hospitals, this rugged floor polisher is custom-designed for home use with high-quality results – just spray with your household cleaner and let the floor polisher and scrubber machine.
Peter asked: How do I clean a vinyl bench?This bench was stored in an enclosed porch with a cloth cover over it. When I took off the cover, there was a sticky substance all over the vinyl that won't come off with soap and water.
But what to do about. with the solution until the stain disappears. Then, sponge again with cold water and blot dry. If you need a little more stain fighting power, Forte suggests using a carpet or.
I apologize for not having a tip, rather I do have a question. I had a LCD TV which used to look all nice and perfect. All of the sudden a big yellow stain appeared on it.
Blake Carpet Cleaning in San Diego, California is #1 for using 100% green natural cleaning solutions for commercial and residential. Guaranteed to enhance all flooring types and being environmental.
3. Seal the mixture in a jar or container for future use, and use only what you need in the next steps (and save the rest). It is important that you clearly label the jar, as it will just look like water.Do not leave this where children can get to it.
In my role as a cleaning advice columnist, I'm asked no small number of questions about cleaning up after beloved pets; here. will allow you to get down into the carpet and work the cleaning.
The most popular home remedy for a dog's yeast infection, as reported by Earth Clinic readers and pet lovers, is apple cider vinegar (ACV) and yogurt. Dogs suffering with a yeast infection are just plain miserable from all of the itching and scratching.
I've heard about the grits, but have never tried it. I do know that powdered yeast and sugar, mixed together does cause the ants to explode when the drink water.


Ebele Mbanugo's mother was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2007. The experience changed Ebele in a way that she never thought would be possible, and it motivated her to work to improve the lives of women, like her mother, diagnosed with breast cancer in Nigeria. As she travelled the journey alongside her mother and women she met, she learned and adapted the campaign she has led, now recognised as an international example of change in global cancer care. To coincide with World Cancer Day, Ebele shares why "I am an advocate and I will educate" is her mantra this 4th February.
I knew nothing about cancer. I vaguely remember my father telling me one of my aunts had breast cancer when I was in university. Having never been directly affected by the disease, I couldn't grasp the enormity of the diagnosis. Fast forward ten years and another diagnosis closer to home would change the way I viewed this horrible disease. In June 2007, my mother was diagnosed with breast cancer.
My mother approached breast cancer head on – much like any other obstacle she had encountered in life. By December 2008, it appeared as if she had done just that, overcome breast cancer. Thankful that my mother had survived her first bout of cancer, I was moved to start a breast cancer awareness program in Nigeria, so that Nigerian women could have the same chance at survival. In 2009, I walked into the labyrinth that is breast cancer management in West Africa by starting what is now Run For a Cure Africa(RFCA).
In the beginning, it was just an awareness run. We raised money through donations to purchase mammogram machines for local hospitals. However; two years into the initiative, in 2011, we realised there were many other factors contributing to the high mortality rate from breast cancer and purchasing machines were of no use if the people did not understand the necessity of annual screenings. That is when RFCA truly became a community organisation.
We immersed ourselves in the communities so that we could understand and address their unique challenges and barriers. In the beginning, people were wary of our goodwill and were apprehensive to attend our screening outreach. We had three participants at our first screening exercise, we couldn't find quite the right incentive. I remember someone telling us, 'Nigerian women do not want to know anything about breast cancer'. Discouraged, I started to believe this was true. But we were determined to persevere, and over time, our numbers grew. We became part of the fabric of the community. The participants were so grateful for our program and the value and impact of the programme to them was increasingly clear.
"We soon realised that alongside affordability, knowledge and understanding of how to manage treatment were also significant concerns".
We continued with our annual runs and support for them grew tremendously. Patients started reaching out to us for financial support for treatment. It was then that we started the Pink Fighter's Club, a financial assistance program for economically-disadvantaged patients, which is practically everyone. We were fortunate to be able to offer this support, but we soon realised that alongside affordability, knowledge and understanding of how to manage treatment were also significant concerns.
Out of respect for her family, I will call her Judith. When Judith approached us for financial support, she was an energetic and bubbly middle-aged woman. Although she was diagnosed with breast cancer, she refused to let her current predicament steal her shine. We explained to Judith that we had set up an account for her at the public hospital and all she had to do was show up for her appointments. What felt like over a year later, I received a panicked phone call from Judith telling me that she was instructed to get re-approval to continue her treatment. I wondered to myself, "Why did she need permission to continue her treatment?".
When I met Judith and her husband, I noticed a markedly different Judith. She looked gaunt, stressed and her stomach was noticeably swollen. She narrated to me how she had started her treatment but when she started feeling better, she decided not to continue. Judith said she even went to church to give thanks and celebrate her healing. It was not until her stomach started to swell that she rushed back to the hospital. They told her since she had discontinued treatment, she had to come back to RFCA to get permission to start support again. She was also told that her cancer had spread.
My heart broke witnessing the disappointment and despair Judith was experiencing. I was also saddened by the thought, 'more could have been done' had Judith had the knowledge and tools to effectively manage her treatment after diagnosis.
Judith passed away shortly thereafter. Her husband called to say 'thank you' for our assistance, but I was sure we could have done more.
For World Cancer Day in 2018, we took to Keffi Market in Lagos, Nigeria to do a flash mob skit to raise awareness of the importance of breast cancer screenings. I had reservations about how effective we would be, going to such a busy market and disrupting their routine. But I was surprised. Once the skit started, the entire market came to a stand-still. The skit lasted about 20 minutes, but the audience was so captivated, it seemed like only five.
After the skit, people were clamouring for information. I started to wonder, if information were tailored to patients' specific contexts and cultures, would patients like Judith better understand their diagnosis? If Judith could have seen herselfin these characters, would she have understood the importance of completing hertreatment?
As God would have it, I received notice from the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) about the Astellas Oncology C3Prize® and fortunately for RFCA, the sponsors were looking to effect change in cancer care in low- middle income countries. I decided to produce an entertaining audio series to provide education about breast cancer through real-life characters. After a nerve-racking pitch, I won the C3Grand Prize. I still cannot express how grateful and humbled I am to be chosen, but I do know that I've been given an opportunity to help another patient, like Judith, understand their diagnosis better.
As we approach World Cancer Day 2019, my 'I Am and I Will' statement, has to do with education. Education for every 'Judith' I will meet on this journey.
On January 8, 2016, my mother passed away after her breast cancer metastasised to her brain. Still a very hard pill for me to swallow. I know her life was a catalyst to start my journey in breast cancer awareness and management. I am no longer ignorant to the challenges presented by a cancer diagnosis, but I am also not powerless in providing much needed education to ease this journey.
Ebele Mbanugo, Ed. D (@RFCANG) is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Run For a Cure Africa (RFCA). After her mother's battle with breast cancer, she founded RFCA in 2009 with the vision of providing free breast cancer screenings to the underserved women of Nigeria. This program has now grown into organizations operating in four countries (Nigeria, Cameroon, Ghana, and the United States as a 501 (c) 3 not for profit). She has worked in breast cancer management in West Africa for 10 years. She has a B.A. in Psychology and a Master's and Doctorate in Education. She is married with two children.