July 31, 2014 – It was a sunny, crisp morning, even chilly – not the typical late-July weather for Maryland, noted for its hot, muggy summers. "At midnight before the clinic opened," the piece by Petula Dvorak reported, "there were 1,204 people in line. And over the weekend more will come." I met my friends Cody Kittleman and Paul Owen at a dirt parking lot near the railroad crossing in Sykesville, a tiny town along the Patapsco River, a rippling stream stocked with trout in the spring that remains inviting all summer long...
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There was a disturbing story in The Washington Post July 19 about a free health care clinic held at the Wise County Fairgrounds in rural southern Virginia. By 4 a.m. Friday, July 18, more than 1,500 people with all manner of health problems were in line hoping to see a doctor when the clinic opened in the morning. "At midnight before the clinic opened," the piece by Petula Dvorak reported, "there were 1,204 people in line. And over the weekend more will come."...
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July 6, 2014 – Yesterday I was strapped into Honda's Fastest Seat in Sports Indycar, in a seat just behind the legendary Mario Andretti and within seconds we were rocketing around the tricky triangular track in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania, the site of today's Pocono 500. It was an incredible feeling as we accelerated, engines roaring and tires biting into the pavement as Andretti shifted gears and the sleek blue and white race car shot down the track toward the first turn. As we hit the turn, my body leaned to the right and as we went high up on the bank and neared the wall, I felt only exhilaration...
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July 3, 2014 – The Supreme Court's Hobby Lobby decision has been met with strong condemnation by nurses, primary-care physicians and specialists who say it "intrudes on the patient-physician relationship and will make it more difficult for many women to make their own personal medical decisions." That quote comes from Dr. Robert Wah, president of the American Medical Association (AMA), as he and other groups urged Washington to restore coverage options for all insured women. Joining Dr. Wah in condemning the ruling were the American Nurses Association, the American Academy of Family Physicians and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists...
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June 30, 2014 -- The other day I went to my local supermarket and at the cheese counter saw this tasty looking little tub of Provolone & Chianti cheese spread from DiBrunoBros. It has a nice rosy color, indicating the expected infusion of wine into provolone, two of my favorites. As I love to spread cheese on crackers for lunch, often pairing it with fruit, I thought it would be perfect. So, I spent the $5.99 for that 10 oz. tub of cheese spread and brought it home...
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June 27, 2014 – This morning there were two stories on the Progressive Grocer Daily that reminded me of just how important it is for companies to look ahead and make smart decisions that can help them succeed in today’s increasingly tough business environment in which competitive e pressures come, literally, from just about everywhere. To do that, of course, they must understand industry trends and base their analysis of those trends and conclusions regarding strategic decisions on sound and current information – data that is relevant specifically to their industry. Once they understand what is happening industry-wide and within their own regions, they can strategically determine what they should be carrying both now and in the future in order to maximize sales and profit...
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June 18, 20-4 -- Capt. Mark Kelly (Ret.), Air Force aviator and test pilot, astronaut, and husband of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, who was so gravely injured when she was shot as she met with her constituents in Arizona, presented an eloquent, heart-felt and fascinating, address at a business conference that I attended this week in Dallas. And then, after Kelly, resplendent in his astronaut's flight jacket complete with Space Shuttle emblems, held his audience in a virtual trance with stories of his experiences, he introduced Rep. Giffords, who emerged from stage left and spoke briefly to her audience....
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Just returning from an interesting conference in Dallas, the FARE foodservice expo, where experts examined everything from changing consumer trends to the astounding growth of the Hispanic population in the U.S. and how that influences restaurants, convenience stores, supermarkets – whoever sells prepared foods. Here are some interesting takeaways, in no particular order:...
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The American Wholesale Marketers Association (@AWMAinfo), whose members are wholesale distribution companies that serve primarily convenience stores, is providing its members an incredible tool that is helping users significantly increase sales and profit while engendering customer loyalty like never before. That tool is called #InfoMetrics, a database developed and managed by @InRhythm, www.inrhythm-inc.com, a Pittsburgh-based that specializes in taking a company’s data and producing tangible information that drives competitive advantage...
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For more than a year before my mother passed away at age 93, a team of home health agency direct-care workers provided for her virtually every need, and the work they did enabled her to remain in her own apartment until just two weeks before her death, which came peacefully in a nursing home. These women, from all walks of life, all had families of their own. But for whatever reason, they performed this fairly low-paying work – whether it was to supplement income from another job or, perhaps, to simply fulfill a need within themselves to help others...
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