Schwartz, Cohen and Ginsburg were all close friends since
childhood. They decided they wanted to go into business
together.
Schwartz says, "OK! I'll invest $100,000."
Cohen says, "I will go for $200,000".
Ginsburg says, "All right, I'll put in $1,000."
Cohen says, "If I'm putting in $200,000, I'll be the President
and CEO of the corporation. You, Schwartz, for your $100,000,
you can be Vice President and CFO, and Ginsburg, for your $1,000,
you will be our Sexual Adviser."
Puzzled, Ginsburg asks Cohen, "What is a Sexual Adviser?"
Cohen replies, "When we want your fucking advice, we'll ask for it."
Friday, February 27, 2009
Friday, February 20, 2009
An Alternative Close for a Predictable Ending
Mazel Tovs are in order for the Patrick administration! Because the Governor is way too much of a pussy to make any actual leadership decisions (eg: pension reform), he decided to stick it to the Masaschusetts taxpayer once again by mastering the Alternative Sales Close. Every sales rookie that graduates sales traing (and now our Governor!) learns never to give your prospect the opportunity to say no. Rather than ask the hard working people of Massachusetts whether or not they'd like a gas tax increase, our Governor asked whether we wanted a gas tax increase OR a Turnpike toll hike. Very clever wording for a man who spent 60,000 of our dollars on an SUV this week.
Incidentally, the way you answer this question largely depends on where you reside. When this question was posed by the Springfield Republican newspaper, only 3% of western Mass residents were in favor of raising the gas tax (66% voted for tolls while the rest argued for budget reform). Not surprisingly, 54% of Boston Globe readers are in favor of taxing a gallon of gas to high heaven.
When money is tight for those of us in what Howie Carr refers to as the "dreaded public sector", we tighten our belts, cut back, and do without. When money is tight in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts we spend more, expand programs, and demand that the taxpayers foot the bill. Rather than ask whether we should increase the tolls OR raise the gas tax, we should be asking ourselves whether we continue to make our elected officials legislators for life OR vote them all out of office.
Tax 'Em All Deval should be leading by example, but since he has proven time and again that he is completely incapable of such a thing, we ought to demand that our representatives act like compassionate human beings during this economic crisis. It's doesn't take an economic genius (or even a mediocre governor) to realize that raising taxes should be considered only as an absolute last resort. If that means saving millions by requiring town employees to buy into the state health plan, banishing the time loved tradition of double-dipping, or 86ing unprofitable MBTA routes then so be it. The people out in Western Mass get it and it's about time that their bout of common sense infects the rest of us.
Incidentally, the way you answer this question largely depends on where you reside. When this question was posed by the Springfield Republican newspaper, only 3% of western Mass residents were in favor of raising the gas tax (66% voted for tolls while the rest argued for budget reform). Not surprisingly, 54% of Boston Globe readers are in favor of taxing a gallon of gas to high heaven.
When money is tight for those of us in what Howie Carr refers to as the "dreaded public sector", we tighten our belts, cut back, and do without. When money is tight in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts we spend more, expand programs, and demand that the taxpayers foot the bill. Rather than ask whether we should increase the tolls OR raise the gas tax, we should be asking ourselves whether we continue to make our elected officials legislators for life OR vote them all out of office.
Tax 'Em All Deval should be leading by example, but since he has proven time and again that he is completely incapable of such a thing, we ought to demand that our representatives act like compassionate human beings during this economic crisis. It's doesn't take an economic genius (or even a mediocre governor) to realize that raising taxes should be considered only as an absolute last resort. If that means saving millions by requiring town employees to buy into the state health plan, banishing the time loved tradition of double-dipping, or 86ing unprofitable MBTA routes then so be it. The people out in Western Mass get it and it's about time that their bout of common sense infects the rest of us.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Wednesday Updates
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Restaurant Review: Oishii
Restaurant: Oishii
Address: 612 Hammond Street, Brookline (Chestnut Hill), MA
Website: N/A (you can get a menu here)
Rating: A+
Any sushi lover in Boston worth their seaweed has probably heard that Oishii Sushi in Chestnut Hill is hands down the best sushi in New England. I'm happy to report that is absolutely, with a doubt, 100% true. I've been dying to try Oishii for a while so I absolutely pounced on the chance when my friend Wellesley suggested it last night.
Located on the corner of Hammond Street and Route 9 East, Oishii is a long sushi bar and not much else. Most in-the-know locals opt for take-out while the rest jockey for one of the 15 or so available seats. As an Oishii virgin, I counted on Wellesley to help me navigate the menu. His wise choices combined with the talent of the Oishii chefs definitely exceeded my wildest expectations.
We started off with Oishii Tuna Chips which is a salad of minced tuna and pickled ginger piled on top of 5 homemade potato chips. The chips were pretty small and clearly not designed to hold the heavy weight of the tuna. While trying to balance salad on soggy chip was probably the most awkward part of the meal, this unique appetizer was still better than average. For our main entree we split a Paula's Maki (salmon, wasabi roe and avocado inside and salmon, tuna and lemon on out side), Bluefish Toro Sushi, Sake Sushi, Alligator Maki (ebi tempura, cake inside with crabstick, eel, roe, avo, scallion on top), East Maki (shrimp, avocado, cucumber and roe), and a White Tiger Maki (tuna, roe, cucumber rolled in white seaweed with sauce). We ate a ton, and every single bite was absolutely out of this world. I especially liked the spicy then citrusy taste of the Paula's Maki.
This place definitely isn't cheap (our bill was close to $80) and the stress of getting the evil eye from patrons waiting for a table on Hammond Street gives new meaning to the term "chew and screw". However, despite the challenges Oishii is still a must-try for any local sushi lover.
Oishii is located in the Chestnut Hill area of Brookline, steps away from from the Chestnut Hill stop on the Green Line D train. Those with vehicles will find plenty of street parking on Hammond Street. The extra bonus to driving to Oishii? JP Licks in Coolidge Corner is only a hop, skip, and a few stop signs away.
Address: 612 Hammond Street, Brookline (Chestnut Hill), MA
Website: N/A (you can get a menu here)
Rating: A+
Any sushi lover in Boston worth their seaweed has probably heard that Oishii Sushi in Chestnut Hill is hands down the best sushi in New England. I'm happy to report that is absolutely, with a doubt, 100% true. I've been dying to try Oishii for a while so I absolutely pounced on the chance when my friend Wellesley suggested it last night.
Located on the corner of Hammond Street and Route 9 East, Oishii is a long sushi bar and not much else. Most in-the-know locals opt for take-out while the rest jockey for one of the 15 or so available seats. As an Oishii virgin, I counted on Wellesley to help me navigate the menu. His wise choices combined with the talent of the Oishii chefs definitely exceeded my wildest expectations.
We started off with Oishii Tuna Chips which is a salad of minced tuna and pickled ginger piled on top of 5 homemade potato chips. The chips were pretty small and clearly not designed to hold the heavy weight of the tuna. While trying to balance salad on soggy chip was probably the most awkward part of the meal, this unique appetizer was still better than average. For our main entree we split a Paula's Maki (salmon, wasabi roe and avocado inside and salmon, tuna and lemon on out side), Bluefish Toro Sushi, Sake Sushi, Alligator Maki (ebi tempura, cake inside with crabstick, eel, roe, avo, scallion on top), East Maki (shrimp, avocado, cucumber and roe), and a White Tiger Maki (tuna, roe, cucumber rolled in white seaweed with sauce). We ate a ton, and every single bite was absolutely out of this world. I especially liked the spicy then citrusy taste of the Paula's Maki.
This place definitely isn't cheap (our bill was close to $80) and the stress of getting the evil eye from patrons waiting for a table on Hammond Street gives new meaning to the term "chew and screw". However, despite the challenges Oishii is still a must-try for any local sushi lover.
Oishii is located in the Chestnut Hill area of Brookline, steps away from from the Chestnut Hill stop on the Green Line D train. Those with vehicles will find plenty of street parking on Hammond Street. The extra bonus to driving to Oishii? JP Licks in Coolidge Corner is only a hop, skip, and a few stop signs away.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
DVD's in Pretty Boxes
My Comcast bills have been redonculous, which I absolutely accept full responsibility for. I rarely ever go to the movies and am therefore tempted by the onDemand feature that offers full length films in HD at $6/pop. After wasting 2 hours of my life (not to mention the $6) watching Tropic Thunder, I knew that I needed a more fiscally responsible option. Enter Red Box, stage left.
Red Boxes are located at many supermarkets and McDonald's, and allow viewers like us to see horrendous films for only a buck. Take for example last night's feature film, Private Valentine. I have a pretty high threshold for terrible movies, but Jessica Simpson's latest debaucle made Grease 2 look like an Academy Award winner. Other films that I'm dying to check out (but totally not willing to pay more than $1 for): Changeling, The Family That Preys Together, and Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist.
By setting up an account at redbox.com, you can check out what's in stock at your local box as well as reserve films online. There's also a link for a free rental if you register your e-mail address.
Red Boxes are located at many supermarkets and McDonald's, and allow viewers like us to see horrendous films for only a buck. Take for example last night's feature film, Private Valentine. I have a pretty high threshold for terrible movies, but Jessica Simpson's latest debaucle made Grease 2 look like an Academy Award winner. Other films that I'm dying to check out (but totally not willing to pay more than $1 for): Changeling, The Family That Preys Together, and Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist.
By setting up an account at redbox.com, you can check out what's in stock at your local box as well as reserve films online. There's also a link for a free rental if you register your e-mail address.
Monday, February 9, 2009
The Future's So Bright I Gotta Wear Shades
Circa 1967. If I get married someday, I hope my husband lets me get one of these.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Sales Contests and TARP
I perused the comments section of MSN yesterday regarding the 12 day Vegas trip for top performing sales reps at Wells Fargo and they were quite scathing. After accepting billions in bailout money (which was basically forced upon them by Secretary Paulson - Wells never outright asked for the greenbacks), the powers that be didn't 86 the annual trip. Their spokesperson went so far as to explain to the media that the sales contest was part of the "Wells Fargo culture". After a huge media backlash, the Vegas trip was abruptly cancelled earlier this week.
A few years ago I won a sales contest and got an all-expense trip to Las Vegas. My previous two employers both rewarded their top performing employees with elaborate trips to Vegas, Hawaii, and the Bahamas. Sales contests are designed to motivate and almost encourage employees to pull a couple of fast ones in order to hit the numbers required to win these trips. To be clear here, not everybody is eligible to go on these trips. The Vegas-bound employees of Wells Fargo represent the top performing salesmen in the organization.
Companies like Wells Fargo stay in business because of sales people. If they're not out there doing their jobs, Wells simply does not have the money to pay their other employees. While booking an elaborate 12 day trip at the most expensive hotel in Las Vegas may have been in poor taste, these employees won that trip fair and square. For spectators who have never so much participated in a candy bar fundraiser to complain that these top earners are "lucky to have a job" is ludicrous.
I may be biased, but sales is one of the toughest jobs on the planet. One salesman at Wells Fargo probably supports a dozen other employees. Letting the uber-competitive salespeople have their contest only benefits the bottom line. A lot of people make their livlihood off this one sales person. If all it takes is a trip to Las Vegas to keep this key person motivated then so be it.
A few years ago I won a sales contest and got an all-expense trip to Las Vegas. My previous two employers both rewarded their top performing employees with elaborate trips to Vegas, Hawaii, and the Bahamas. Sales contests are designed to motivate and almost encourage employees to pull a couple of fast ones in order to hit the numbers required to win these trips. To be clear here, not everybody is eligible to go on these trips. The Vegas-bound employees of Wells Fargo represent the top performing salesmen in the organization.
Companies like Wells Fargo stay in business because of sales people. If they're not out there doing their jobs, Wells simply does not have the money to pay their other employees. While booking an elaborate 12 day trip at the most expensive hotel in Las Vegas may have been in poor taste, these employees won that trip fair and square. For spectators who have never so much participated in a candy bar fundraiser to complain that these top earners are "lucky to have a job" is ludicrous.
I may be biased, but sales is one of the toughest jobs on the planet. One salesman at Wells Fargo probably supports a dozen other employees. Letting the uber-competitive salespeople have their contest only benefits the bottom line. A lot of people make their livlihood off this one sales person. If all it takes is a trip to Las Vegas to keep this key person motivated then so be it.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Wine, Wine, Wine, In My Belly
Q: What kind of jerk drives 12 miles in the middle of the snow storm for a bottle of wine?
A: Really? Do I need to answer that????
Bin Ends Wine in Braintree opened last spring to much fanfare. Dubbing themselves the "Filene's Basement of Wine", they offer everyday low prices on upscale wines with an automatic discount system reminiscent of the old Downtown Crossings Basement. Intrigued, Andrea and I just HAD to check it out. We certainly weren't going to let something as minor as a half foot of snow get in our way.
Bin Ends Wine is located on Wood Road in Braintree, just before F1. Bin Ends is set up warehouse-style with hundreds of labels of wine, many of which I had never heard of. Bin Ends buys up surplus wines from incorrect orders, restaurants who went out of business, and distributors extras, which is how they keep their prices so low.
John The Owner came out to introduce himself and asked us about the type of wine we enjoyed so he could make suggestions. While John was very helpful and gave me a bunch of great suggestions (which I can't wait to try!), it was pretty obvious that Bin Ends was not the type of place that wine drinkers such as myself would frequent. I'm not exactly a Neanderthal when it comes to wine, but I generally wouldn't be inclined to spend more than $15 for a bottle of it. The majority of the wine at Bin Ends is a great deal if you're used to drinking the finest high end wine money can buy.
John took our e-mail addresses so he can alert us of different events and specials they have coming up. His computer is some how programmed to e-mail us wine suggestions based off past purchases, which somewhat intrigues me. Bin Ends is the perfect place to shop if I'm picking up a bottle of wine to impress someone, or I'm just feeling like a high roller and want to drop $20+ on some vino.
A: Really? Do I need to answer that????
Bin Ends Wine in Braintree opened last spring to much fanfare. Dubbing themselves the "Filene's Basement of Wine", they offer everyday low prices on upscale wines with an automatic discount system reminiscent of the old Downtown Crossings Basement. Intrigued, Andrea and I just HAD to check it out. We certainly weren't going to let something as minor as a half foot of snow get in our way.
Bin Ends Wine is located on Wood Road in Braintree, just before F1. Bin Ends is set up warehouse-style with hundreds of labels of wine, many of which I had never heard of. Bin Ends buys up surplus wines from incorrect orders, restaurants who went out of business, and distributors extras, which is how they keep their prices so low.
John The Owner came out to introduce himself and asked us about the type of wine we enjoyed so he could make suggestions. While John was very helpful and gave me a bunch of great suggestions (which I can't wait to try!), it was pretty obvious that Bin Ends was not the type of place that wine drinkers such as myself would frequent. I'm not exactly a Neanderthal when it comes to wine, but I generally wouldn't be inclined to spend more than $15 for a bottle of it. The majority of the wine at Bin Ends is a great deal if you're used to drinking the finest high end wine money can buy.
John took our e-mail addresses so he can alert us of different events and specials they have coming up. His computer is some how programmed to e-mail us wine suggestions based off past purchases, which somewhat intrigues me. Bin Ends is the perfect place to shop if I'm picking up a bottle of wine to impress someone, or I'm just feeling like a high roller and want to drop $20+ on some vino.
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Allergic to the South
I went back to my favorite region on Friday - south of the Mason Dixon line - to Norfolk, VA to meet with a prospect. If I'm just having lunch I normally prefer to fly in and out in one day but since I was flying US Air, I figured I could grab a layover in Charlotte and use it as an excuse to visit my friend for the weekend. Anyways, not to be whatever, but I'm pretty sure that I hit it out of the park as far as my business meeting went. Not bad for being severly sleep deprived and hopped up on Tylenol Cold.
My friend Adler relocated to Charlotte with her then fiance a few years ago and recently moved to a gorgeous house in the south side of the city. Aside from having five bedrooms, it also has an outdoor kitchen complete with a kegorator, which is the coolest thing. Ever. She also has the second and third cutest dogs on the planet (aside from Minnie) who woke me up everyday by jumping on my bed and licking my face. I'm really proud of Adler and her husband for creating such a wonderful life for themselves down in NC. Oh, and the trip to Chic-Fil-A was pretty fantastic, too.
Work is going great, bless it's little heart. I've got a lot of wheelin' and dealin' going on. This afternoon I'm set up to close my first of what I hope will be many deals at one of the largest companies in the free world. I go through these love/hate phases with my job and right now I'm loving it. I'm going to ride this for as long as I can.
It's Tuesday and I'm *finally* over this horrendous cold and the timing couldn't be better: I just learned that I have to go to Raleigh at the end of the month.
My friend Adler relocated to Charlotte with her then fiance a few years ago and recently moved to a gorgeous house in the south side of the city. Aside from having five bedrooms, it also has an outdoor kitchen complete with a kegorator, which is the coolest thing. Ever. She also has the second and third cutest dogs on the planet (aside from Minnie) who woke me up everyday by jumping on my bed and licking my face. I'm really proud of Adler and her husband for creating such a wonderful life for themselves down in NC. Oh, and the trip to Chic-Fil-A was pretty fantastic, too.
Work is going great, bless it's little heart. I've got a lot of wheelin' and dealin' going on. This afternoon I'm set up to close my first of what I hope will be many deals at one of the largest companies in the free world. I go through these love/hate phases with my job and right now I'm loving it. I'm going to ride this for as long as I can.
It's Tuesday and I'm *finally* over this horrendous cold and the timing couldn't be better: I just learned that I have to go to Raleigh at the end of the month.
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