text:
Thursday, December 10, 2015
Buybacks And Bonuses
A recent article discusses how buybacks at Humana earned CEO Bruce Broussard a $1.68 million bonus in 2014. Humana was on target to miss its target EPS of $7.50. However, the company announced a stock buyback of $500 million, which increased EPS to $7.51, triggering the bonus. In all, 255 of the S&P 500 companies have executive performance tied in part to EPS. As we have discussed, in our opinion, EPS is not an appropriate measure of performance as it is easily manipulated. Executive bonuses should be tied to measures that better align with increases in shareholder value. As an example of EPS manipulation, the article reports that, in 2012, then-CEO of Humana Michael McCallister received a $1.63 million bonus because the Board of Directors removed litigation expenses from the EPS calculation.
Tuesday, December 8, 2015
Evaulating Corporate Management
One of the most difficult task for an investor is how to evaluate company management. The CFA Institute recently published an article describing one method to analyze company management. First, concentrate on the numbers on the balance sheet and income statement. Of particular interest are gross margins, operating margins, income tax rates, foreign sales and earnings translations, and balance sheet concerns. Second, the company should have well understood and written processes for its critical functions. Finally, you should look at management. In this area, you should look for unquestioned integrity, innovation of products and processes, how well employees are treated, and good control of people and processes. If a company meets these screens, it indicates a strong management team.
Monday, December 7, 2015
2016 CFO Goals
A recent survey by Proviti asked CFOs about top priorities for 2016. At the top of the list was margin and earnings performance. Next on the list was cybersecurity risks, strategic planning, periodic forecasting, and budgeting. Executives are also seeking more precision in cash forecasting, an often overlooked area. From a student's point of view, the list of priorities can indicate areas in which they could hopefully make an immediate contribution to their employer.
IPOs Exhibit Material Weakness
From 2011 to 2014, the number of IPOs on the NYSE has more than doubled, from 128 to 293. However, from a financial reporting view, the IPOs have grown weaker. The percentage of IPOs that reported material weaknesses, or deficiencies, in financial reporting grew from 23 percent in 2011 to 31 percent for 2015 IPOs through September. One reason may be the JOBS Act, which allows smaller companies to raise external capital. Staggering 88 percent of IPOs with less than $500 million in revenue reported material weaknesses.
Monday, November 23, 2015
Retirement And Time Value Of Money
A recent article at Bankrate.com discusses how saving earlier in your IRA can mean big money at retirement, which we hope you already know this. As the article discusses, many people make their IRA deposit right before April 15th each year when taxes are due. However, if the deposit were made a year earlier, the difference under Bankrate's assumptions would be $113,985 at retirement. The assumptions used in the article are a $5,500 annual deposit at 8 percent for 40 years. Check for yourself that if the deposits are at the end of the period, the future value is $1,242,810.85 and if the deposits are an annuity due, the future value is $1,538,795.72. So, Bankrate's article presents a set of calculations that we hope you are already familiar with. Of course, the future value will increase another $30,000 or so if you make your deposits on January 1st of each year, 15 months before the last date April 15th of the following year.
Wednesday, November 11, 2015
Clawbacks And Restatements
A major provision of the Dodd-Frank Act requires corporate executives to certify the accuracy of financial statements, in part to help reduce restatements. Another provision of the Act requires that all public companies have a "clawback" provision that permits the recovery of any incentive compensation paid to executives if the restated financial statements show that the incentive compensation should not have been paid. In 2012, 87 percent of publicly traded companies had a clawback provision. Previous research has found that companies with a clawback provision are less likely to have restatements. This was attributed to executives doing a more diligent job when certifying the original financial statements. However, new research indicates that the drop in restatements may also be due to executives fighting restatements. Often, restatements are the result of auditors disagreeing with the original financial statements because of the accounting choices made. Since a restatement that reduces the company's reported performance can cause the initiation of the clawback, corporate executives appear more likely to fight restatements.
Tuesday, November 10, 2015
Corporate Leverage Increases
According to Goldman Sachs, the level of debt on corporate balance sheets has risen to a level not seen since before 2008. With record low interest rates, companies have increasingly borrowed to fund buybacks and acquisitions. During 2014, about 10 percent of debt issues were used to fund buybacks. And, so far during 2015, about 8 percent of debt issues have been used for buybacks. Meanwhile, goodwill, which is created from mergers and acquisitions, has risen 32 percent since 2010 and more than $1 trillion in goodwill has been added to corporate balance sheets since 2008. While goodwill can represent real value, such as a brand name, it could also indicate that companies have made negative NPV acquisitions.
Thursday, November 5, 2015
WACC And Acquisitions
An article on CFO discusses the WACC for S&P 500 companies and the use of the WACC in mergers and acquisition. An interesting number in the article is that, according to research by Bain & Company, the average WACC for a company in the S&P 500 has dropped from 10 percent in 2010 to 8 percent in 2014. Much of this is likely due to lower interest rates. The article also discusses how companies add a risk premium of 200 to 300 basis points to the WACC (the subjective approach) when analyzing a potential acquisition, plus another 50 to 100 basis points due to conservatism about the WACC calculation. Although the article is not specific, we should reiterate the correct WACC to use when analyzing a potential acquisition is the WACC of the target company, not the WACC of the acquiring company. To clarify terminology, the hurdle rate used in the article is the required return, or cost of capital.
The Market Return For The Next Decade
So what will the stock market return be going forward? John Bogle, founder of Vanguard Mutual Funds and proponent of index investing, recently stated that investors should only expect about a 4 percent annual return from the S&P 500 for the next decade. According to Bogle, he expects a 2 percent dividend yield and earnings growth of 5 percent, for a 7 percent return. However, he also expects the PE ratio on the S&P 500 to fall from its current level of 20 times earnings to 15 times earnings. This decrease in the PE ratio will cause a 3 percent decrease in stock prices, resulting in his estimate of a 4 percent annual return. So is Bogle right? Check back with us in 2025 and we will let you know.
Tuesday, November 3, 2015
Democratization Of IPOs
So you have read about IPO "pops" in this chapter and want to buy IPOs. A major problem is that the majority of IPO allocations are sold to institutional investors like banks, mutual funds, and high-net worth investors who have an established relationship with the underwriter. JP Morgan has decided to change the IPO investing landscape. The company has teamed with online brokerage Motif Investing to allow small investors to participate in IPOs. Motif will allow investors to submit commission-free orders in IPOs underwritten by JP Morgan with a minimum order of $250. One risk of the new process is that while IPOs typically have very heavy trading on the first day, institutional investors tend to hold the securities for a relatively long time. Small investors may be hoping for the IPO pop and sell the stock quickly, which could lead to even larger trading volume early in the life of the IPO, with more price instability.
Monday, November 2, 2015
Bond LIquidity And Yields
Many observers believe that the Federal Reserve may increase interest rates in December. According to a recent article, that could be the worst time for the bond market. During December, bond trading slows dramatically as banks clean up balance sheets in preparation for year-end stress tests. As a result, banks are less likely to enter into large trades. Strategists at RBC Capital Markets argue that the large jump in yields on bonds in late September was due to the lack of liquidity in the bond market because of banks preparing for quarterly reporting. If this is true, an increase in interest rates by the Federal may result in larger increases in bond yields than might be expected due to lack of liquidity, at least temporarily.
Saturday, October 31, 2015
Startup Investing Expanded
Yesterday, the Securities and Exchange Commission approved Title III of the 2012 Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act (JOBS Act). Title II of the JOBS Act, which was approved in in 2013, allowed accredited investors to in startups. The approval of Title III allows anyone to invest in startups, small businesses, and real estate through crowdfunding. The total amount of investment in such ventures is limited to 5 or 10 percent of the investors annual income, which provides protection to small investors from themselves. But, it does allow small investors into startups, which can provide very high returns. However, before you make these investments, remember the lessons from Chapters 10 and 11: The only way to increase your return is to increase the level of risk you take.
Robert Schiller Examines Your Weaknesses
In a recent interview, Nobel Laureate Robert Schiller discusses how companies can mislead consumers and how the media latches on to smalls stories. His comments are based on human behavior, which is the basis for behavioral finance. His last comments are a very interesting take on investing: "We don't know the probabilities of future events. Still, you have to take action and so you do it on gut feeling. That's the world we live in. There's so much disagreement about investing, and it's because nobody really knows." Interestingly, although we greatly respect Dr. Schiller, he is still guilty of making his own market predictions.
Thursday, October 22, 2015
Cat's Good Bad News
Caterpillar Inc., announced lower quarterly profits and that it expected sales in 2016 to decrease 5 percent, the company's 4th consecutive yearly sales decline. On this announcement of seemingly bad news, the stock was up as much as 5.7 percent on the day. So why was the stock price up today? The news in the announcement today was consistent with the company's warning last month.
Wednesday, October 21, 2015
Negative U.S. Interest Rates?
Back in March, we posted about negative interest rates in Europe. And while recent speculation has centered on the Federal Reserve increasing interest rates, at least one member of the Fed has pushed for negative interest rates. Narayana Kocherlakota, president of the Minneapolis Fed, has advocated for the Federal Reserve implementing negative interest rates in the U.S. Although Kocherlakota is a non-voting member of the Fed, he has been joined by other Fed officials arguing for negative interest rates. An extra mattress for your savings account is looking more appealing.
Ferrari Strong Off The Line
Ferrari stock was strong off the line on its IPO. The company's stock, which was priced at $52 in the IPO opened at $60, a 15.4 percent price jump, before closing at $55, a 9.5 percent price increase. The company raised $893 million in its IPO, which could increase to $982 million if the Green Shoe option is exercised.
Friday, October 16, 2015
Buybacks Hit $600 Billion
S&P companies have announced about $600 billion in stock buybacks this year. A major reason for the high level of buybacks is the low interest rate. The dividend payout ratio for blue chip companies is about 3 percent, but the same company can borrow at about 2.2 percent. This means that it is actually cheaper to buy back stock with borrowed money as this will save the company .8 percent per year. Of course, there is a widespread belief that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates soon, which will lessen the appeal of buybacks funded with new borrowing.
Tuesday, October 13, 2015
An Unsystematic Risk
Often, we get asked by students for examples of unsystematic, or firm specific, risks. We are sure that you have heard about Dieselgate, or Volkswagen's deliberate programming of emissions devices in its diesel vehicles to fool emissions tests. Dieselgate is a perfect example of unsystematic risk as it affects only Volkswagen, although it appears that other auto makers may face unsystematic risks as well as several other manufacturers may have similarly created programming to cheat emissions tests. If you think about Volkswagen's actions and the risk, the news will likely greatly affect VW's sales as some consumers will avoid the company's vehicles. And while these consumers will be forced to look elsewhere, the sheer number of alternative manufacturers means that it is unlikely any particular manufacturer will receive a huge spike in new customers.
Control Of GE
Activist investor Nelson Peltz, who has a one percent stake in General Electric through Trian Fund Management has outlined plans that he feels GE should follow to behave like a cash cow, not a growth company. For example, Peltz wants GE to get rid of its finance division, add debt to buy back stock, and cut costs. What is interesting is that GE has recently sold its appliance division for $3.3 billion, sold its vehicle-fleets assets business for $6.9 billion, sold its health finance unit for $9 billion, and today sold GE Capital, with $32 billion in assets, to Wells Fargo. In fact, since April 2015, GE has sold $126 billion of the $200 billion it plans to divest. It sounds like Peltz is suggesting GE do what it said it was going to do.
A Major Cover Up
It seems that cover ups are everywhere today, even in capital budgeting. Today, Playboy announced that it would no longer publish pictures of nude women. The company, which had a peak circulation of 5.6 million in 1975, has seen its circulation drop to 800,000. A company spokesman stated that with so much free porn available that nudity has become passe. As a result, the company exercised its option to alter the format of the magazine.
Wednesday, September 16, 2015
Bond Prices Relatively Unchanged
Bond prices were in both positive and negative territory today, with the yield of two-year Treasuries settling up 8 basis points, the highest level in four and a half years. Bond traders are uncertain of the direction of interest rates leading into the Federal Reserve meetings this week. So will the Fed raise interest rates this week? Yes, No, No, Yes.
Wednesday, September 9, 2015
Correlation With Apple
A recent article discusses the correlation that various stocks have with Apple and some of the stocks are surprising. For example, industrial products manufacturer Illinois Tool Works (ITW) has the highest correlation at .61. Payment technology firm Fiserv and Honeywell have the next highest correlations with Apple. Facebook and Texas Instruments also have high correlations with Apple, which is expected since Facebook is a tech stock and Texas Instruments is a major supplier to Apple. By now, we hope you understand how important correlation is to diversification, but, as with most numbers, we need to apply economic rationale to the numbers. There is no reason that ITW and Fiserv should have such high correlations with Apple, and in the future, these correlations will likely fall. Remember, what we really want is the correlations going forward, not correlations in the past. As Eric Chemi, the author of the article, states in the accompanying video: "That's where the data can get you and I think people need to be careful to not get trapped in these types of numbers."
Macy's Options
When a company makes an announcement, most people do not consider that many of these announcements are in fact real options. For example, yesterday Macy's made two separate announcements that are both real options. First, the company announced that it would close 35-40 underperforming stores, the option to abandon. Next, the company announced that it would open Best Buy outlets in 10 of its stores. While this is a small capital budgeting decision, it is an option to expand as Macy's and Best Buy both hope the combination is successful, in which case more Macy's will feature a Best Buy outlet.
Wednesday, August 26, 2015
Market Efficiency Wins Again
Skeptics of stock market efficiency are always ready to argue "evidence" that the stock market is grossly inefficient. One piece of evidence that has been used in recent years is the performance of hedge funds. An oft reported statistic is that the average hedge fund return since 1996 was 12.6 percent per year. A recent article highlights research that indicates this claim is incorrect. Overstated hedge funds returns are due to the fact that hedge funds self-report returns. So, if a fund has poor returns, it stops reporting returns. Additionally, when a hedge fund is started, it will often not report returns until it has "something to brag about." After removing these biases, the researchers found that the average annual hedge fund return since 1996 was only 6.3 percent, half of the reported average!
Annuity Sales
The stock market crash in 2008 made many investors nervous. As a result, many of these investors have searched for more certain investments, including annuities. We describe annuities as an equal payment at some specified interval for a fixed period. In an investing prospective, annuities are an investment vehicle that can have a fixed rate. Although there is more involved in an annuity, the basics of an annuity are that an investor deposits money into the account and either immediately or at some point in the future receives payments. The payments are calculated like the annuity payments in the textbook. So, the payments are based off the amount deposited, the interest rate, and the number of payments. Since annuities are currently paying below 3 percent, it is surprising that sales of annuities have increased because this lower interest rate results in lower payments than when the interest rate is higher.
Stock And Gold Correlation
Historically, the correlation between the stock market and gold prices is low, or even negative during some periods. Because of this, gold is often seen as a good asset for a diversified portfolio since a low or negative correlation can increase diversification. However, just because it happened in the past does not mean that it will happen in the future. For example, while the market dropped on Monday, gold prices also took a hit. While one day does not a trend make, both the stock market as a whole and gold are down year-to-date. All of this should be taken as a warning. Just because two assets have had a low or negative correlation in the past does not mean that the correlation will hold going forward. In other words, when using correlation, we want the correlation going forward but are often forced to use historical correlation.
CEO Pay Ratio
One of the most controversial provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act is the CEO pay ratio rule. This rule requires that public companies report CEO pay as a ratio of the median employee pay. And while this seems like a relatively easy computation, many large multinationals are arguing that it is a difficult and expensive proposition. Compensation around the world is measured in different ways, depending on government regulations about social benefits, healthcare, and taxes. Additionally, whether part-time employees should be included in the calculation has become a contentious issue. Since wages overseas are often lower than in the U.S., companies are eager to exclude foreign workers. Either way, the rule will be expensive: The SEC has estimated the cost to all companies in the first year will be $1.2 billion.
Monday, August 3, 2015
Greek Stocks Tank
Even though Greece reached an accord on the repayment of its sovereign debt, there are still those who believe the reprieve will be short-lived. Given this fear, coupled with the weak Greek economy, it is little surprise that the Athens stock market nose dived when it opened for the first time in five weeks. Overall, the Athens market fell 16.2 percent today, with several bank stocks dropping 30 percent, the maximum allowed according to Greek stock market regulations.
Wednesday, July 29, 2015
Losing Money At Zero Percent
One thing that can drive students crazy when first learning Finance is that sometimes things seem counterintuitive. For example, a recent article highlights that while a zero percent interest rate on car loans seems like a good deal, it can actually cost the uninformed buyer money. One specific example is the 2015 Jeep Cherokee SUV. The vehicle lists for $27,153, but the buyer can take a $2,000 rebate or zero percent financing for 60 months. While many people would jump at the zero percent financing, the monthly payment under this option would be $452.55. If the buyer takes the rebate instead and finances the vehicle at 2 percent, the monthly payments would only be $440.88 per month. Although the article does not discuss a breakeven interest rate, we hope your time value of money skills allow you to calculate that the breakeven rate is 3.10 percent. So, if you can borrow at any rate below 3.10 percent for 60 months, the $2,000 rebate is preferable to zero percent financing!
Tuesday, July 28, 2015
The Chinese Stock Market Rout
Any market can experience a bear market and the Shanghai Composite, the 144 China-based companies that have a primary listing on major U.S. stock markets, is no exception. The Shanghai Composite lost about 8.5 percent on Monday and is down about 27 percent since its June 12 peak. The result is a loss of about $40 billion in stock value! Another measure of Chinese stock performance, the CSI300, which comprises the largest listed companies in Shanghai and Shenzhen, fell 8.8 percent Monday. As a result, the Chines government has said that it was ready to buy shares of stock to stabilize the market and stop the "systematic risk." Regulators also said that they would harshly punish anyone who was malicously shorting stocks.
Saturday, July 25, 2015
Really Bad Financial Analysis
There are times when we get a headache from slapping our foreheads after reading really bad financial analysis, especially when done by a well-respected S&P 500 company like Boeing. But, after reading this recent article, it may be a headache that lasts for a while. As you can read, the article states that Boeing loses $23 million on each 787 it sells. And while we understand Microsoft loses money on every XBox One, it makes up for those losses on the sale of each video game. So, we were wondering how Boeing was making up the losses on the sale of each 787 until we read this:
"Commercial jetliner programs typically lose money in the early years of production until the heavy upfront investments in engineering and production are repaid. Boeing's accounting spreads those costs over a large block of planes the company expects to deliver."
In other words, Boeing is losing money only because they are spreading the initial cost of the project over the life of the project! Accounting for the initial cost of a project in this manner not only violates a basic tenet of capital budgeting, but gives a misleading profitability number to investors.
"Commercial jetliner programs typically lose money in the early years of production until the heavy upfront investments in engineering and production are repaid. Boeing's accounting spreads those costs over a large block of planes the company expects to deliver."
In other words, Boeing is losing money only because they are spreading the initial cost of the project over the life of the project! Accounting for the initial cost of a project in this manner not only violates a basic tenet of capital budgeting, but gives a misleading profitability number to investors.
If You Don't Like It, Create Your Own
Russian authorities are upset that Standard & Poor's and Moody's, who cited falling oil prices, a recession, and international sanctions due to the conflict in the Ukraine, rated the country's debt as junk. With the mindset "We can do it ourselves and everyone will believe", Russia announced that is starting its own credit rating agency. We are sure that Russian sovereign debt will be AAA rated.
Wednesday, July 22, 2015
Apple's Cash Hoard Grows
Apple's cash balance, which has been enormous by any measure, topped $200 billion for the first time. Cash held internationally has reached 89 percent, or about $180 billion, of Apple's cash. Apple has been reluctant to repatriate the money back to the U.S. as it would be forced to pay the full 35 percent corporate tax rate on the repatriated money. In an effort to pay investors, Apple has issued $50 billion in debt in various currencies around the world.
Tuesday, July 21, 2015
A $120 Million Bogey?
So what affects stock prices? In reality, pretty much everything, possibly even a bogey at the famed Road Hole at St. Andrews in Scotland. For the non-golfers, phenom Jordan Spieth made a bogey (one over par) on the 17th hole in the final round of The Open Championship on Monday, which virtually eliminated him from contention. Shortly after he made the bogey, stock in Under Armour, the company Spieth has a marketing deal with, fell from $89.47 to $88.79. While this is a relatively small dip, it reduced the market value of the company by $120 million. All in all, a pretty expensive round of golf.
Monday, July 20, 2015
An Overconfident Donald
One of the biases often discussed in behavioral finance is overconfidence, that is the belief your abilities are better than they are. Further, many people actually have overconfidence in individuals who tell everyone how good they are. Take Donald Trump. Although his wealth is estimated by Forbes at $4.1 billion, he recently stated that he was worth $10 billion as a self-made man (who started with his father's millions.) And while his companies have filed bankruptcy four times, The Donald will tell you how good of an investor he is. Unfortunately, a recent article disputes this statement. If The Donald had taken his stated wealth of $500 million in 1982 and invested in the S&P 500, he would now have $20 billion, twice his stated worth. We hope you note a couple of important points. First, as we discuss in the textbook, the power of compounding greatly increases the value of a portfolio over time. Second, don't always believe the hype of self-styled investment gurus.
International Corporate Ethics
It often seems that many people believe corporate ethics problems are limited to U.S. companies. Unfortunately, ethical problems are a worldwide problem. Toshiba, which is base in Japan, just announced that it had overstated profits by ¥151.8 billion ($1.22 billion) over the past several years. The CEO of Toshiba, Hisao Tanaka, and his predecessor Norio Sasaki, were both apparently aware of the accounting fraud. It is believed that both men, along with the board, will be replaced.
Saturday, July 18, 2015
Venture Capital On The Rise
Aided by several "unicorns," including Uber and Airbnb, venture capital investment reached $35.9 billion in the first half of 2015, more than was invested during 2013. Although VC investment is growing, it is still well short of the record $85 billion in 2000. During the second quarter, there were 1,034 deals, a slight decline from the same period in 2014.
Tuesday, July 14, 2015
Spirit Grows To Grow
In its recent quarterly report, Spirit Airlines reported poor results. In a sharp criticism of company management, an analyst notes "growth for growth's sake will not be rewarded in this environment." Evidently, Spirit has yet to figure out that growth is only good if the new projects are positive NPV projects. In Spirit's case, the industry is experiencing weakening prices, yet Spirit continues to expand, with an announced capacity growth of more than 20 percent in 2016.
Wednesday, July 1, 2015
Crowdfunding Greece
The Greek debt crisis reached a new level when Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras claimed that the international bailout deal was blackmail. However, one optimistic Londoner has decided that the Greek debt crisis can be resolved through crowdfunding. The Greek Bailout Fund, which was started on Indiegogo by Thom Feeney, is a an effort to raise the €1.6 billion necessary to repay the Greek national debt. As this is written, the campaign has raised about €1.2 million, or less than one percent of the necessary amount.
The Stock Market's Bad Breadth
While we aren't big believers in technical analysis, many of our students are interested in the the topic. So, another technical tool we don't mention in the textbook is market breadth. Breadth is measured by a ratio of stock that are at a 52-week high minus the numbers of stocks. (As with any ratio, the calculation can be different. In this case, another calculation is the number of highs divided by the number of lows.) The idea behind market breadth is that the stock market is stronger when more stocks are increasing in value. A market with bad (low) breadth can be an indication of a weak market. A recent article discusses this point further in that although the stock market is increasing, the market breadth is relatively low, a possible indication of market weakness.
Wednesday, June 24, 2015
A Discussion Of Markets
Alvin Roth, the co-recipient of the 2012 Nobel Prize in Economics, is an expert on markets. In a recent interview, he discusses stock market, as well as other markets such as Amazon and eBay. The interview touches many topics, including more inefficient markets such as the real estate market.
Darden Split
Darden Restaurants was in the news last year when its Board was effectively fired. Yesterday, the company made a big announcement to split up. More than 430 of the company's restaurants will be spun-off as a real estate investment trust (REIT). The company will then lease the restaurants back from the REIT. Additionally, the company will execute a sale and leaseback on 75 individual restaurants. The plan is expected to allow Darden to pay off about $1 billion in debt.
Sunday, June 21, 2015
2015 Working Capital Survey
CFO just published the 2015 working capital survey by REL Consulting. The 967 large U.S. companies included in the survey had $1.0541 trillion in excess working capital. However, low interest rates appear to have led to a level of apathy in working capital management as very little improvement has been seen in the past year. Overall, the companies in the survey have increased total debt by 62 percent since 2007, and the cash balance at these same companies reached $932 billion, a 74 percent increase since 2007. Even with cheap debt, days' sales outstanding increased by one day, from 37.4 days to 36.4 days, although much of this was a one-time improvement in the gas and oil industry.
The best performer in the cash conversion cycle was Anadarko Petroleum with a negative 346 days due to a paypables period of 397 days! Some of the other top performers in the cash conversion cycle were Deere (negative 29 days), Southwest Air (negative 17 days), Intuit (negative 81 days), and SunEdison (negative 52 days). On the other end of the performance scale, some of the longest cash conversion cycles were at Toll Brothers (770 days), Boeing (202 days). FLIR systems (207 days), and Tiffany (494 days).
The best performer in the cash conversion cycle was Anadarko Petroleum with a negative 346 days due to a paypables period of 397 days! Some of the other top performers in the cash conversion cycle were Deere (negative 29 days), Southwest Air (negative 17 days), Intuit (negative 81 days), and SunEdison (negative 52 days). On the other end of the performance scale, some of the longest cash conversion cycles were at Toll Brothers (770 days), Boeing (202 days). FLIR systems (207 days), and Tiffany (494 days).
Tuesday, June 16, 2015
George Zimmer Guarantees It
Proving you can't keep a good entrepreneur down, George Zimmer, the founder of Men's Wearhouse who was let go in 2013, is back. In order for you to like the way you look now, Zimmer as started a new business, zTailors. Calling the business the Uber of the tailor world, you can use the app to set up an appointment with a tailor who comes to meet you, take your measurements, and then brings your clothes back in 5 to 7 days. Zimmer expects the cost of the tailor to be comparable to current cost of going to a tailor.
Mark-To-Market Accounting And FedEx
FedEx announced that it would take a $2.2 billion charge as it would be changing the way it accounted for pensions. The company will use mark-to-market accounting for the assets in its pension account moving forward. Mark-to-market accounting means that the assets are recorded at "fair value", or market value, rather than historical value.
Currency Losses Hit Record
Companies in North America lost a record $28.94 billion in the first quarter of 2015 due to currency fluctuations. The loss was an increase of 55.1 percent from the previous quarter. Of the 820 North American companies analyzed, 279 reported currency losses, with the euro the most commonly cited currency. On average, currency losses reduced EPS by 8 cents.
Friday, April 24, 2015
The Pain Of A Strong Dollar
Earnings season is upon us and companies seem to be falling line in blaming the strong dollar for earnings weakness. And while some argue that the strong dollar excuse is invalid, in reality the strong dollar is hurting most U.S. based companies. Companies in the S&P 500 have overseas sales that average 45 percent of total sales. And things are even worse for Nike, which has sold more shoes this year than last year, but the company's revenue has declined because of the strong dollar.
The Cost Of Unethical Behavior
Finance textbooks do not generally spend a lot of time on ethics. This is because in finance, we generally argue that if the market believes that certain behavior is unethical, the company is punished financially, which means management is not maximizing the company value. This week, Deutsche Bank was fined $2.5 billion for its role in fixing LIBOR and Euribor, and Petrobas was forced to write-off $5 billion due to the corruption scandal that has entangled the company.
Sunday, March 22, 2015
An Uber Valuation
So is Uber ($40 billion) really worth more than insurers Aetna ($38 billion), Prudential ($38 billion), or grocer Kroger ($37 billion)? Probably not, but venture capital valuations can be quite tricky. A recent article discusses some of the fuzziness associated with valuing a private company. In fact, some venture capitalists argue that the valuation of private companies is just a placeholder. Snapchat, the photo-messaging app, has a $15 billion valuation, yet the company has almost no revenues to speak of. One reason for the extraordinarily high valuation of private companies is that VCs often have deals that protect them going forward.
Bondholders Lose Protections
With the recent low interest rates, investors are searching for yields. As a result, borrowers are able to reduce protections offered to lenders. Moody's Investors Services tracks bond covenants and recently the Moody's Bond Covenant Index reached 4.51, a record high. In this index, 1 indicates the strongest covenants, while 5 indicates very weak covenants. In other words, investors are willing to give up protection in an effort to increase yields.
Wednesday, March 4, 2015
Actavis' Bond Price Jump
Actavis completed its $21 billion bond offering yesterday. The bond issue, which will be used to pay for the company's acquisition of Allergan, was the second largest corporate bond issue ever. Although you might think that it was difficult for Actavis to sell $21 billion in debt, the company received offers to purchase $90 billion in bonds. The high demand for the bonds proved to be a benefit to investors in the bonds, as the market value of the bonds increased by $334 million today in the first day of trading.
Exxon Slows Capital Spending
As we mention in the textbook, capital spending is often cyclical. For example, although the recent drop in oil price is welcome news at the gas pump, it is bad news for Exxon's capital budgeting. Exxon said that it may delay some investments if oil prices stay low. Even though Exxon's projects are long-term, a short-term decrease in the price of oil can still affect the profitability of a new project. In a filing last week, Exxon announced that its capital spending in the next several years would only be $34 billion, down from a previously announced capital budget of $37 billion.
Overseas Cash Continues To Grow
Eight of the largest U.S. tech companies increased overseas cash balances by $69 billion last year. In fact, overseas cash held by U.S. firms grew to $2.10 trillion during 2014, up 8 percent from 2013. The high U.S. tax rate is the reason for the cash holdings, although several companies took a tax hit in 2014 to repatriate earnings. For example, Duke Energy repatriated $2.7 billion in foreign earnings, but paid $373 million in taxes to do so. GE still has the largest offshore cash balance, at an astounding $119 billion.
Tuesday, March 3, 2015
The NASDAQ PE
A recent video on Bloomberg might be of interest to those of you who invest in NASDAQ stocks. The video discusses whether the PE of the NASDAQ is too high and if there is a bubble on the NASDAQ.
How Low Can Rates Go?
With companies holding record amounts of cash, banks may be reporting record earnings as the Commonwealth Bank of Australia estimates that about one quarter of bank deposits worldwide are earning negative interest rates. Switzerland and Denmark lead the pack, with savings account rates of negative .75 percent. Previously, zero percent was seen as the lower bound for savings rates, but some analysts argue that the new lower bound is considerably lower than negative .75 percent.
Saturday, February 28, 2015
Negative Rates Grow
Recently, we posted about negative interest rates for savings accounts in Denmark. Now, it appears that negative interest rates are sweeping Europe. Earlier this week, Germany sold five-year government bonds with a YTM of negative .08 percent. Normally, we would make sure to put an exclamation point after that sentence, but Finland auctioned off negative interest rate government bonds earlier this month. The Netherlands, France, Belgium, Austria, and Italy all also have negative YTM bonds outstanding. Even more unique, an entrepreneur in Denmark took out a small business loan at negative .0172 percent! In other words, she is actually being paid to borrow money. Sign us up! The negative interest rate phenomenon appears to have hit the U.S as JPMorgan Chase announced that it would start charging some institutional clients to hold their money.
Friday, February 27, 2015
Sweet Home Chicago?
Moodys' cut the credit rating on Chicago's debt to Baa2, two steps above junk status. The city's debt still has a negative outlook, meaning that another rating drop could happen in the future. The rating cut was caused in large part by the city's underfunded public pension plan. Only Detroit has a lower credit rating than Chicago among the largest U.S. cities, and Illinois is lowest credit rated state. S&P and Fitch maintained their credit rating on Chicago.
Wednesday, February 25, 2015
Shareholders Get Paid
2014 was a record year for shareholders of S&P 500 stocks. Companies in the S&P 500 paid out a record $350.4 billion in dividends during the year. The total dividends paid equals the GDP of South Africa. Share buybacks are expected to reach about $550 billion, the largest value since 2007. So, for 2014, the total payouts to shareholders are expected to be just under $900 billion, topping the $846 billion paid in 2007.
Tuesday, February 24, 2015
Inventory Shortage Costs
What is the optimal days' sales in inventory? It depends! Too much in inventory will result in large opportunity costs. In other words, a company has cash tied up in inventory that costs the company money and does not earn a return. However, too little inventory can be problematic as the company can experience shortage costs. In this article, the costs of inventory shortages are explained. For example, although just-in-time delivery is popular, it does create problems in supply chain management. Not only does a company need to monitor its suppliers to ensure they will be able to meet obligations, but a company must also monitor the supplier of the company's supplier. A disruption at any point in the supply chain can result in an inventory shortage. So, how much does an supply chain disruption affect a company's value? One study indicates that supply chain disruption can reduce a company's value by up to 7 percent.
Saturday, February 21, 2015
RBS Goodwill Writeoff
An expected writeoff by the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is further evidence that acquisitions are an inexact science. It is believed that RBS will announce a £4 billion ($6.2 billion) writeoff related to its acquisition of Citizens Financial. The writeoff will almost entirely erase the company's 2014 profit. RBS has already sold 29 percent of Citizens Financial in a public offering, and plans to sell more of the company. RBS purchased Citizens for $130 billion in 1988, but the current market capitalization of Citizens is a much smaller $13.7 billion.
Mutual Fund Efficiency
In a nod to market efficiency, 2014 was one of the worst years on record for mutual fund managers, with fewer than 20 percent beating their benchmark. In the article, several reasons are given for the poor performance. For example, relative, not absolute skill is what matters. In other words, if fund managers as a whole are getting smarter, it is harder for an individual fund manager to distinguish themselves from the pack. Additional explanations, such as the necessity of small caps doing better than large caps, cash not being a drag on the fund return, and good performance of international stocks, are given as possible explanations for the poor performance in 2014. While we see merit in these explanations, a simpler reason also emerges. In very few years do mutual fund managers as a whole outperform the market. This leads us to the argument that the market is efficient and the reasons given in the article are only reasons that mutual fund managers performed even more poorly than usual.
Saturday, February 14, 2015
Interest Rates Later This Year
It is difficult to make predictions, especially about the future.
- Yogi Berra, Niels Bohr, Albert Einstein, Mark Twain, et al.
As you have seen in Finance what is happening now, while interesting, is not as important as what will happen in the future. Of course, that is easier said than done. For example, knowing what will happen to interest rates later this year can give valuable information about optimal decisions today. So, what will happen to interest rates later this year? Many believe that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates later this year, even though there is a currency war. Of course, this may not happen. In fact, economists at Goldman Sachs can even foresee circumstances that the U.S. interest rate goes below zero!
- Yogi Berra, Niels Bohr, Albert Einstein, Mark Twain, et al.
As you have seen in Finance what is happening now, while interesting, is not as important as what will happen in the future. Of course, that is easier said than done. For example, knowing what will happen to interest rates later this year can give valuable information about optimal decisions today. So, what will happen to interest rates later this year? Many believe that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates later this year, even though there is a currency war. Of course, this may not happen. In fact, economists at Goldman Sachs can even foresee circumstances that the U.S. interest rate goes below zero!
Tuesday, February 10, 2015
Coca-Cola's Currency Woes
Coca-Cola reported earnings in the fourth quarter of 2014 that were down 55 percent from the same quarter in 2013. However, sales dropped only 2 percent over the same period. The reason for the large drop in net income was currency related. Because of the devaluation of the Venezuelan bolivar, Coca-Cola experienced a revaluation of its assets in Venezuela in the amount of $393 million in the fourth quarter alone. Previously, in the first quarter of 2014, Coca-Cola was forced to write off $247 million because of the bolivar devaluation in that quarter.
Saturday, February 7, 2015
U.S. Winning (Losing) Currency Wars
With anemic global growth, most central banks are in a race to the bottom in an attempt to devalue the country's domestic currency. Over the past year, the U.S. dollar has gained 16 percent versus a basket of 26 major trading partners. And U.S. exporters are beginning to feel the crunch. For example, Proctor & Gamble blamed a 31 percent drop in second quarter profits on the stronger U.S. dollar. The stronger dollar expanded the U.S. trade deficit to $46.6 billion, the highest level in two years.
Russell 2000 Facts And Figures
A recent article about the Russell 2000 has some interesting facts and figures about the index. In case you don't know, the Russell 3000 index consists of the largest 3,000 stocks by market capitalization in the U.S. The Russell 2000 consists of the smallest 2,000 stocks in the Russell 3000 index. So, the Russell 2000 is a small cap index. The largest company in the index has a market cap of $5 billion and the median market cap is about $528 million. What we found interesting in the article was several ratios. For example, the current PE ratio for the Russell 2000 index is 22.7, higher than the historical average of 16.2. And, the current price-sales ratio is 1.6, 67 percent higher than its historical average. As for sales, while only 64.3 percent of the sales for all S&P 500 companies comes from within the U.S., 81.3 percent of the total sales for Russell 2000 companies come from within the U.S.
Friday, February 6, 2015
Amazon's Leasing Cash Flow
In the textbook, we argue that cash flows are most often a better measure of company performance than net income. Amazon fully exploits this concept. In most recent quarters, the company has shown an operating loss, but has touted its positive operating cash flow as the measure that investors should examine. Now, it appears that Amazon may have been glossing over a more negative reality for the company. In the company's most recent earnings announcement, it disclosed another cash flow, which is the operating cash flow minus the capital leases. Amazon has a large number of capital leases. Ignoring the cash flows necessary to pay these leases ignores a significant outflow each year to which Amazon has committed to paying.
Monday, February 2, 2015
Saving In Denmark
For the past several years, most central banks have been engaged in currency wars in an effort to devalue that country's currency. The race to the bottom is an effort to increase exports and jump start domestic growth. Denmark is making an effort to avoid becoming the next victim of the currency wars. Recently, the country spent 100 billion kroner ($15 billion) in an attempt to weaken its currency. Now, Denmark has lowered its interest rate. You will pay .5 percent for deposits at the bank!
Saturday, January 31, 2015
Citigroup's Swiss Franc Loss
In 2011, the Swiss National Bank pegged the Swiss franc to the euro, at a rate of 1.2 francs per euro. As recently as December, Swiss officials stood by the peg. Then, on January 15th, the Swiss National Bank unexpectedly removed the peg, sending the Swiss franc up up by 30 percent on the day. Unfortunately for Citigroup, the company had let it's Swiss franc hedge expire the previous week. As a result, Citigroup lost more than $200 million in the hours following the announcement. Of course, not everyone lost: It was reported that JPMorgan Chase & Co. had gained $300 million on the removal of the franc peg. The cost of the hedge was likely a reason that Citigroup allowed the position to expire. During the previous year, Citigroup lost $100 million on a hedge tied to unrest in the Ukraine.
Friday, January 30, 2015
Shake Shack IPO Doubles
Shake Shack went public today, at a price of $21 per share. Evidently investors were hungry for the stock, as it opened at $47 per share, climbed to $52 per share, before closing at $45.90, an increase of about 119 percent. The company, which began as a hot dog cart in Manhattan, is now worth about $1.6 billion.
Tuesday, January 27, 2015
S&P Junks Russian Debt
S&P has downgraded Russian sovereign debt, as the company lowered Russia's credit rating to BB+. Although Moody's and Fitch still have a BBB- rating on Russian debt, both companies are expected to follow suit and downgrade Russian debt soon. The downgrade is due to the bleak economic growth prospects for the country. As a result, Russian corporations will likely have a more difficult time refinancing as the credit markets in Russia tighten as a result of the downgrade.
Skymall Flies Into Bankruptcy
Even though the ubiquitous Skymall magazine reached 650 million travelers a year in the seat back in front of you, the company was recently forced to file for bankruptcy. Skymall famously offered such products as a globe that could be opened into a liquor bar ($189) or a chess set ($212). The company suffered as airlines offered internet access and passengers began bringing smartphones and tablets, which meant they weren't forced to look in the seat back in front of them for reading material. In the bankruptcy filing, Skymall suggested an auction be held at the end of March.
Wednesday, January 21, 2015
An Uber Investment
Mobile car booking company Uber just raised $1.6 billion in convertible debt from Goldman Sach's clients. The company is still in talks to raise $600 million from hedge funds and just raised $1.2 billion in financing in December. An interesting note is the structure of the convertible bond. The bond has a six year maturity, and allows bondholders to convert the bond into equity at a 20 to 30 percent discount to Uber's valuation at the time of the company's IPO. However, if Uber does not go public in the next four years, the coupon rate increases.
Monday, January 19, 2015
A Hip Hop IPO
We love when finance becomes an integral part of a popular television show. The new Fox show Empire is one we can grow to love since it deals with a company undergoing an IPO. And while we know that television and movies often stretch the truth, The Wall Street Journal blog Moneybeat promises to keep track on how realistically each episode portrays the IPO process. For example, in the first two episodes, the company didn't disclose the fact that the CEO has a terminal illness (it must be disclosed), dealing with the dilution that founders typically experience, and a company funded by drug money (disclose, disclose, disclose). Keep up with Moneybeat to see how truthful Empire is going forward.
Saturday, January 17, 2015
The Exchange Rate For Pizza
So what does pizza have to do with exchange rates? Quite a lot if you live in Switzerland. About a year ago, Swiss customs changed the law and allowed food deliveries like pizza to avoid having to pass through customs. However, over the past year, the Swiss franc has strengthened while the euro has lost value. With a strong Swiss franc, the Swiss customs administration changed the law back, forcing pizza deliveries to pass through customs. As a result, bargain-hunting Swiss can no longer have pizzas delivered from Germany or France.
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)


text: Blog Tips and tricks for door replacement February 20, 2017 Whether it's your front door, your patio door, or even a back door; doors play an important role in the aesthetic that guests have when arriving at your Lewes home. When you decide it's time to replace your doors, it typically means you are prepared to enhance your home's curb appeal or that you are just eager for a change in home mood. Either way, replacement doors are a big change and involve a few things to bear in mind. Lucky for you, the experts at Pella Windows and Doors have a few things to take into account before you choose the final new door style: Style with decorative hardware. Complete the style of your doorway with decorative hardware on your door, such as door hinges, bells, and knobs. Add a splash of color. Speaking of curb appeal, why not emphasize your door with a pop of color? Colors that go with your current paint scheme are great and uniform, but colors that provide contrast to your scheme can make your home look unique! Experiment with lighting. People often underestimate the use of lighting in an entryway. Whether you're highlighting specific features, landscaping, or the door itself, good lighting can bring a whole look together and feel cozy and inviting to house guests. Enhance with plants. The function of greenery about a doorway can also make a great first impression. Plants can pull attention to certain door details and shift attention away from other unfriendly aspects of a doorway. Try new accent features. There are many extra features that can improve a door, such as sidelights, decorative glass, small windows and more. With the right accents, your door and home can receive a major makeover. Accept guests into your home with an attractive doorway and make a great first impression. Stop by the Pella Windows and Doors showroom in Lewes, give them a call at 302-257-5544 or arrange an appointment online to work through all the choices for getting replacement doors to improve the look of your home. Back to Blog

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Find out about neonatology and perinatology
When babies are born early or with health problems, it can be particularly challenging to treat them. A medical problem can be especially severe for a fragile infant, as they certainly cannot tell you what's wrong or support themselves in any way. Add to this the alarmingly small amount of time you have to treat an ailing newborn, and you have a situation for a very skilled and specialized doctor.
Neonatology has come a long way, and it continues to make great strides in newborn medical treatment and infant survival rates. Learn about the distinction between a neonatologist and a pediatrician, as well as when they are needed and how to find one.
What is a Neonatologist?
A neonatologist is a doctor that specializes in newborn care, especially for infants who are born prematurely or with an illness. An obstetrician or pediatrician would be able to take care of many minor health problems in newborn babies, but a neonatologist fills an important niche between the two specialties: her highly specialized training allows her to handle birth defects, serious illness or injury and other high-risk situations swiftly and in the best way possible to preserve the baby's health.
From diagnosis to treatment, neonatologists are intimately involved in the care of the newborn. They will coordinate the care and treatment, ensuring they receive the proper nutrition for healing, and consult with obstetricians and pediatricians about conditions affecting newborn infants. Since their specialty is dealing with emergency situations, neonatologists typically work in special care nurseries or the neonatal intensive care unit of a hospital.
When Neonatal Care is Needed
With more couples going through in vitro fertilization, the incidence of multiple births has skyrocketed in recent years. Since you have a 50% chance of delivering prematurely if you're carrying twins (and your chances climb with each extra fetus), this means that more women than ever are giving birth to preterm babies who will need the attention of a neonatologist.
If you discover during or after delivery that your baby will need special attention, your obstetrician or pediatrician will be able to refer you to a neonatologist who can help. In cases where you discover a problem with your baby while you're still carrying her, both neonatology and perinatology, also known as maternal-fetal medicine, applies. In either case, your primary physician will be able to connect you with competent specialists that can improve the outlook for your baby.


text:
Portable Air Conditioner Bangladesh
Gree 1 ton GS12LF portable air conditioner is most reliable high quality room portable ac in Bangladesh. It was manufactured by eco friendly environmentally comfortable product. For that reason, in Bangladesh Brand Bazaar provide lowest price with reliable Warranty and service. Gree all kinds of electronics product is top grade, so you can get it from here. Gree portable 1 ton GS12LF air conditioner is better then split in use due to you can transfer it in your room in any side.So, now…it's only for you. Brand Bazaar also provide Free Installation , Free Home delivery in Dhaka City.
Key Features:- Gree GP-12LF
- Independent dehumidifying.
- Heat pump technology
- Energy level of normal, mild high, high E.E.R and super high E.E.R.
- Easy to clean panel
- Low-voltage starting and wide-voltage operation.
- Auto restart.
- Self-diagnosis & Auto-protection.
- Washable mesh filter that collects dust particles
- Built in timer and memory function
- Castor wheens for ease of moving
- Long outlet hose
- Simple and space saving design
- Sleep function
- Dehumidification of up to one litre per hour
- Certificates: CE CB UL GS and more.
Portable Air Conditioner Price Bangladesh – Gree GP-12LF AC
Free Installation, Free Transportation, Free 10 Feet Copper pipe.
Credit Card কাষ্টমারদের জন্য সর্বোচ্চ 3 – 12 মাস পর্যন্ত কিস্তি সুবিধা –(EBL, DBBL, MTB, SCB, UCB, City Bank, Brac Bank )
2 year compressor replacement guarantee, 1 year spare parts replacement guarantee, 1 years home service.
৳ 65,000.00


text:
Our Building Roots team took particular notice of a garden in Ward 22 with notice from Councillor Josh Matlow.
Why? Because the City passed a motion making the community garden in Oriole Park the first community infrastructure project we've heard of to use Section 37 for food.
It is also the ward's first community garden, helping to fulfill the City's policy passed a decade ago for a public garden in every ward.
When we spoke to Josh he said that asking city councillors to use Section 37 it was a way to implement good food in new and established developments and parks. Section 37 is funding provided as part of the development process to projects that provide community benefits. See our developing Building Roots Toolkit for more info and how to do this yourself.
Oriole Park's community garden being built in May
Councilor Matlow met with residents in Brentwood Towers, Deer Park and Chaplin Estates residents to determine how they wanted to see Section 37 funds used. The majority voted for a community garden. Community town hall meetings also helped to carefully determine the best use of the money for the residents.
This is an excellent example of local decision-making and budgeting – and the people wanted food!
The development at 137, 147 and 35 Merton Street fully funded Section 37, and therefore the garden. Now that Section 37 for the park is allocated there will be a committee of residents who will be part of the design, implementation and maintenance of the community garden.
Perhaps local businesses will donate equipment and other raw materials, such as soil, seedlings and even labour.
We look forward to hearing more about Oriole Park and how the process will create a space that can be used by everyone.
The fact that Section 37 funds were used to create this urban agriculture initiative is a tangible example to city Councillors, planners and developers that urban agriculture and related community and commercial food infrastructure can be accomplished when we all work together.
This is exactly what Building Roots is working to make happen across Toronto. Contact us for support in making this happen in your neighbourhood.
– Lisa Kates, Building Roots consultant


text:
Perhaps you also have been experiencing technical difficulties what with the storms we've been having around Beantown this month (feels more like July/August, no?). Nevertheless, we're going to try to get back on our game here at Pour Favor for some more regular wine fodder - internet outages be damned! This week we have some wine for thought the queue, so we'll keep things briefer on this end.
Check out this new company/wine tasting program out in California. The Tasting Room offers consumers a chance to sample uber premium wines before taking the plunge and buying a full 750ml bottle. Of course this service isn't on offer in Massachusetts what with our liquor laws, no doubt. But the idea raises a couple of interesting questions. Do you think you're more apt to buy a full bottle after sampling wines you have to pay for? Here in MA it is illegal for retail shops to charge for wine tastings so you still have the option to sample for FREE and then make a purchase. Is their program too contrived because there are only certain producers who participate?
And then there is the age-old (lol) question of what the heck the deal is with "Old Vines". Does it matter how old the vines are? And how old does the vine have to be to be old enough? Etc. Etc. Matt Kramer does a good job of starting the dialog on this tricky topic. Check it out! We might have to weigh in one of these days on our own....
What do you think constitutes "old vines"? Are you more apt to buy a bottle if it claims as much on the label?


text:
Tyrone and Courtney have listed a new property at 101 1633 10TH AVE W in Vancouver.
Rare chance to own one of the best ground level condos with a park size backyard! This property checks all the boxes. Private access from the rest of the building, great open floor plan, this 2br, 2 bath home will make you fall in love. The large master br has an entire wall of closet for every outfit you could imagine. Huge master bath 6'tub, separate shower and double sink. Floor to ceiling windows throughout spill natural light through this beautiful home. The large kitchen connects through it's open layout into the living room and dining area, perfect for entertaining. Comes with two side by side parking spaces + two storage lockers. Rentals allowed, pets not allowed. Open House Sat/Sun 2-4 September 15 & 16th DON'TMISS THIS!


text:
Sales Assistant
Chartwell Store
About Number One Shoes
We are New Zealand's largest footwear retailer with 51 stores nationwide with stores from Whangarei to Invercargill. With a team of over 500 people we have been a part of New Zealand's communities for over 30 years delivering shoes for every occasion!
About the role
The Sales Assistant role reports directly to the Store Manager and is at the forefront of providing great service to all our customers! You will be friendly and approachable to all customers who walk through our doors and will keep our store looking its best!
This is a permanent role for approximately 16.25 hours per week working Thursdays - Saturdays.
- Providing a high level of service to our customers
- Assist with in-store displays and new promotional set up
- Keep the store tidy and maintain stock levels on the floor
Are you the right fit?
- You have a willingness to learn and take initiative
- You love to provide outstanding customer service
- You have great communication skills and spoken English
- You have a bright, friendly and helpful disposition
- You are reliable and flexible
Previous retail and merchandising experience would be advantageous
You'll also need to be energetic, enthusiastic and possess a good degree of flexibility as working late nights and weekends will be required. Our jobs can also be very hands-on, dealing with large volumes of stock every day so we're looking for someone who can get stuck in!
- Internal growth opportunities
- 40% off in store product
- 2 free pairs of shoes per year
- Comprehensive training programme when joining the team
- Join a well-recognised and reputable company
So if you think that the shoe fits, apply now!


text:
It's well known that the Houston Texans have one of the greatest tailgating traditions in the country, a fact made more impressive by the team's relative youth. On Thursdays during football season, we're spotlighting groups that make Texans tailgating the pride of Houston.
I was surprised that no one had told me just how great the Texan tailgate is. Maybe it is because they are the newest team in the NFL. The Houston Oilers played here until 1997 when they moved to Tennessee, and the Houston faithful had to wait until 2002 to get a pro team back. Either way, this Texans tailgate has to be in the top three tailgates across the league, and their fans have been continually supportive, bending over backwards for me to return there.
Adam Goldstein, Tailgate to Heaven: A British NFL Fan Tackles America
The quote above from Adam Goldstein was supplied to me by Steph Stradley, known to NFL fans as "Texans Chick" for her popular football blog at the Houston Chronicle. Stradley also belongs to a weekly tailgating crew called the Lone Spot Tailgaters, which was one of the crews to be featured in Goldstein's book on American tailgating traditions, Tailgate to Heaven.
The Lone Spot Tailgaters are a small but fierce crew, tailgating from the Platinum lot and being neighborly to their fellow tailgaters. That generosity often extends to taking people into their own tailgate -- Stradley estimates that, at certain points, the amount of Lone Spot Tailgaters has numbered near 100 -- but the core group remains, formed a few years ago from fellow "tailgate nomads" who were without a group of their own. And that was the beginning of Lone Spot.
On getting your own crew together:
Starting a tailgate group in Houston is easy because the Texans very much encourage tailgating. In some cities, there are very few spots around stadiums, and some teams ban real tailgating. For the Texans, you need at least one parking pass, or as my tailgate calls it, a lone spot. You can make your tailgate as basic or as elaborate as you want. I've done it both ways and have learned that tailgating is much more about the company than it is the setup.
The Texans have their tailgating guidelines on their website, and they are among the most friendly ones in the NFL. The Texans have been ranked as some of the best tailgating in the league.
On thinking ahead when naming your lots as a sports team:
The Texans started the Platinum Lot as a reserved lot in front of the Blue Lot. (Originally it was going to be called Silver, but Blue next to Silver was way too Cowboy-ish.)
On the importance of planning and packing essentials:
Typically, before game day, we send out emails to the main people in our group figuring out what the menu is going to be and who is going to bring what. Sometimes we have theme menus, like fried turkey before a Thanksgiving game or gumbo before a Saints game. We show up early, set up the pop-up tents (essential for Texas blacktop tailgating), grill, trashbags, chairs, music and just have a party. The guys that bring the big items actually put together a spreadsheet checklist of the things they need to pack each game.
On beer for breakfast, Johnny Cash-style:
I've found that with all the Texans noon starts, you get pretty accustomed to early morning beer and BBQ.
On being a "tailgate nomad" and how to make friends on game days:
A lot of folks don't have a tailgate. I started out not having a home one. Usually if you are decked out in a Texans jersey, and bring your own beverages, there's plenty of welcoming public tailgates near the front of lots. Texans tailgating tends to be fairly neighborly. A good place to find particularly welcoming tailgates near your particular lot is to go to the TexansTalk.com Tailgating sub-forum. (It's also a good place to go if you want to meet up with Texans fans going to road games).
On making the kind of guacamole that's so good, it'll elicit a Pavlovian response:
This is Josh Hudson's Guacamole Recipe. It's a total dude recipe. He always brings it to the tailgate, and now I associate home games with fresh guac:
If you like this story, consider signing up for our email newsletters.
You have successfully signed up for your selected newsletter(s) - please keep an eye on your mailbox, we're movin' in!
- 2 small vine ripened tomatoes - diced and drained
- 1 small red onion - diced
- 1 bunch cilantro - diced
- 1 fresh jalapeno - seeded and diced
- 2 ripe large Haas avocados
- 1 packet extra spicy guacamole mix
- 1 lime
Make pico de gallo by combining diced tomatoes, onion, cilantro and jalapeno and set aside. Cut avocados in half, remove pit and remove fruit and place into a medium sized mixing bowl. Squeeze juice of lime, just enough to prevent browning. Mash avocados with a large fork or potato mashing utensil. Stir in guacamole mix. Mix in pico de gallo with a ratio of 3:2 avocado:pico. Stir well to combine into a smooth consistency. Add additional lime juice to taste and for additional preservation.
Follow Eating Our Words on Facebook and on Twitter @EatingOurWords


text:
Contact Us
About Lobby
The 3Rs
Our work
Take action
Cyprus issue
Media watch
Press releases
Lobby for Cyprus is a non-party-political human rights organisation campaigning for a reunited Cyprus.
19 November 2012
Anthony writes…
Anthony Anaxagorou is a poet and writer of Cypriot descent living in north London. His mother is from Nicosia and his father from Famagusta. At our Night for Cyprus on 10 December 2012 Anthony performed his poem 'Two syllables, Six letters' which he wrote especially for the event.
The following is the interview with Anthony which appeared in the Night for Cyprus brochure and also his poem 'Two syllables, Six letters'.
Anthony first became interested in poetry at a very young age when he used to listen to his mother's records; years later at the age of 17 his mother entered him into the London Mayor's Respect Slam competition where he obtained a taste for performance art and writing about issues that are important to him. In a short time Anthony has gone on to have seven literary works published, starting with Card Not Accepted (2009) and more recently, A Sad Dance (2011). As well as writing, Anthony regularly gives lectures and performs to live audiences both in the UK and elsewhere. Anthony speaks more about his writing and how poetry can raise awareness and bring divided communities together.
What is the first poem you remember reading?
I must have been around 7 or 8 years old. I found an old record my mother had laying around our old living room. From what I can remember I think it was Sound of Silence by Simon and Garfunkel. I picked up the record opening the sleeve to find the lyrics of the song all written in poetic verse. Sitting in the corner of the room I studied each word, half of which I didn't really understand but when read with the mood and emotion of the song I could begin to feel its message, its purpose and sentiment. As I often say to people I had little idea at the time as to what poetry consisted of so as far as I was concerned I regarded it all as feeling - common feelings explained in different ways.
'The truth is that freedom is not commonly shared. Some of us are more free than others and that comes at the expense of the less free, the less fortunate…'
What made you want to be a poet?
I don't think I've ever chosen to be a poet. In my view poetry, or art to speak more universally, is a way of regarding the world, a way of operating and interpreting all that is seen, experienced and understood. I did however make a conscious decision that I would be true to the energy that lived within me, to my spirit, which did constantly urge me to make poetry a full-time occupation. I've spent the majority of my adult life working very mundane jobs. If tomorrow people stopped caring for the things I wrote, the way I saw the world, then there's a good possibility I would have to return to that reality and that quite frankly frightens me. Yet I know that whatever job I'll doing, be it delivering pizzas, working on building sites or standing as a security guard by doors, I'll always remain a poet in both heart and spirit, that I am certain of.
What is the first thing you wrote that defined you as a writer/poet?
When I was 17 my mother and aunt both entered me into the London Mayor's Respect Slam. The idea was to write a poem themed around Respect then to perform what we'd written to a live audience. At the end of each round people would vote who they wanted to stay or who they wanted to go based on the strength of the performance and the poem. It was brutal and if I'm honest I've never slammed again, simply because I despise the idea of art and competition sharing the same bed. I did however end up winning the competition which gave imputes to my career as a writer/poet so something worthwhile did eventually come out of it regardless of my dissent.
What inspires you?
Life. Its tragedy, heartache and struggle. Its relentless brutality, its deep love, celebration, enigma and futility. I can't help but take inspiration from such a mysterious yet wonderfully profound set of human experiences. I owe a lot of my work(s) inspiration to sensitivity. I regard sensitivity as the highest form of awareness and in return awareness inspires the highest form of intelligence. To fuse all the various modes of feeling, thought and expression (which is quintessentially art) into one deep algorithm is to have defined the human experience in all its facets. The Chinese poet Lu Chi once wrote, 'the Poet is one who traps Heaven and Earth in the cage of form' meaning to bring the abstract and metaphysical into the palpable and concrete realm of understanding. This is what poetry does or should attempt to do.
Which poets inspire you?
I have different poets for different days and moods. I'm a huge fan of Spanish literature especially the romantics. I'm also a massive admirer of the surrealists poets; those such as Lorca, Neruda and Paz. On days when I'm feeling bitter, outcasted or demagogic I find myself turning to Bukowski. There's also an Indian poet by the name of Arun Kolutkar who captured with incommunicable mastery the poignant, crude and desperate realities of those trapped in India's mass slums. As with regards to American poets I find myself constantly exhilarated by the works of Gingsberg, Wallace Stevens and Theodore Rothke. Adrian Mitchell is also another writer whose work leaves a lasting impression on my thinking. The spiritual writers such as Rumi and Gibran offer an existential solace as do the philosophical and intellectual writings of T.S Elliot, Ezra Pound, W.H Auden and T.S Elliot. I read Shakespeare when I need to, after all there is more to be learnt from a single masterpiece than a thousand ordinary examples.
What are you working on now?
I've just finished writing my latest collection which is entitled
A Difficult Place To Be
Human. I've also been offered an agency deal which means I'll have professional representation alleviating much of the strains and pressures that come with self-publishing. Things are growing and I'm thankful.
What has been the biggest accomplishment of your career so far?
I can't really say. I really see every step forward as an accomplishment as it's those small movements that create the major ones later on. Performing poetry in Australia and New Zealand was overwhelmingly mind-blowing. Working with indigenous people and having them connect with my words was an ineffably rich experience. Performing poetry at the Brixton Academy in front of 1000 odd people will also be something I won't forget. I've performed poetry at The Venezuelan Embassy to mark the 10 year anniversary of Hugo Chavez and the Venezuelan people overcoming the American coup d'état. I've read in street corners in the pouring rain, to a party full of drunk revelers on a rooftop in East London, but I think to have been told that my poetry woke a Native American girl from a coma will be something that sits above the rest. That for me is the crown. That's why I write. Because within the suffering that the words are born from there is something reaching, something full of grace that looks only to heal the wound that the world coldly inflicts.
How are human rights important to you?
If the man next door can't live freely, if the woman across the road can't love who she pleases or a family can't walk down whatever street they want then all freedom is made redundant. The truth is that freedom is not commonly shared. Some of us are more free than others and that comes at the expense of the less free, the less fortunate, the immobilized and oppressed.
How can poetry raise awareness of human rights / and Cyprus issue?
The great thing about language and poetic verse or prose is that it has an incredible ability to connect with an individuals major senses. All art reaches and appeals to that part of us which is hypersensitive and emotive, which is why politicians, spokespeople etc. all use the power of poetry and rhetoric to stimulate revolution and push forward their own personal agendas. If you read the speeches of the great leaders, including the more tyrannous ones, you'll find that they were in fact fantastic poets and performers. I've always insisted that true art should evoke rather than instruct which is exactly how poetry can be used to not just tackle the Cyprus issue, but to also appeal to a wider range of people who may feel disconnected from the mainstream political jargon that surrounds these issues.
Has being Cypriot made an impact on your writing?
From a young age I was exposed to stories of inequality and oppression that emanated out of the Cyprus problem. Learning about Cyprus's political history engendered a thirst to discover more about other injustices and inhumane acts that existed outside of my own country. To be taught about colonialism, to understand its pernicious implications and the effects it has on those living within an oppressive regime was enough to settle my political stance from a young age.
Have you visited the occupied area in Cyprus? How did that make you feel?
I haven't no. For years I've been conflicted as to would I really want to go, what's the purpose of me going and how it would make me feel. I think I will in the near future.
Do you think that poetry can bring segregated communities together?
Absolutely. Poetry that is used a specific way has the capability of breaking down social barriers, of enlightening a people who may have been ignorant to certain things. Poetry has infinite potential. Due to its freedom of expression it can counter the mainstream narrative, hence why many great poets were and still are regarded as being heretics, non-conformists or of the anti stablishment school of thought. Art creates a condition where people can express without fear of public reprisal and that makes it an exceedingly dangerous or on the other hand holy weapon.
What do you hope for the future of Cyprus?
Two syllables, Six letters
by Anthony Anaxagorou
It's better to not go back to the village,
the subverted paradise silent
in the shatter of shrapnel
Ramon Lopez Velarde
Two syllables
six letters
nailed to the sea.
An island at ease
with the cool definite running of waves,
I climb through the smell of its thirsty earth,
its lazy olive trees and lost monasteries
that beguile an unsatisfied God.
Trek deeper, past the cologne of orange groves,
the hacked meats and leaking salads
where a constellation of bruised rocks hurt for its history
and there you'll find it all weighing on the back
of some old donkey forgotten in its dystrophy.
A donkey who took the strain of injustice,
whose hooves quietly bled while
the morally-good gripped the hand of every struggle
but his. While the liberals and philanthropists
helped move every preposterous volcano,
loaded with effort to block the liquid stampede of empire,
of colonialism and genocide, but our dear donkey,
the one who dreamt of a simple clean moon
became too familiar with blood - his journey laden
with misfortune but still
he went on.
United with his brothers
united with his sisters
even when the winter rains ceased to dampen
the heart of the Levant,
the summer sun ceased to shine and started
instead to burn
and the autumnal wind carried within it the puked stench
of a gutted village
still he went on.
Around he saw his island's scabbed pyrite
exposed like the earth's very own entrails.
Wine dripped from wooden tables.
Blood dripped from wooden tables
and everywhere was ending.
But that was then.
In a time when donkey's were slaughtered
for their grieving,
when the pestilence came to test our beaches,
our pride and character.
In a time they would rather have us forget
but way down in our villages, estranged and plain
there were a few
who fought to restore what once was
who craved peace
who sang loud the song in their hearts
that of an island
two syllables
six letters
nailed to the sea.
Take Action
Stay Informed
About Lobby
The 3Rs
Removal of Turkish troops
Repatriation of Turkish colonists
Return of refugees
Our work
Press releases
Take action
Campaign actions
Letter / email templates
Sign up for updates
Contact Lobby
Link to Lobby
The Cyprus issue
Invasion and occupation
Missing persons
Cultural destruction
The enclaved
Personal stories
Media watch
Consequences of Turkish invasion
Cultural heritage
Economic impact
Cyprus facts
Contact Us
© 2010 Copyright Lobby for Cyprus |
Contact us
↑ Back to top


text:
You have no items in your basket.
on orders over £29 before 3pm
Eukanuba Daily Care Senior 9+ Dog Food helps your dog age as best it can by providing it with the specific ratio of nutrients it needs to stay healthy.
Once your dog reaches the age of 9, they need special nutritional care to help them maintain their body in good condition, something that Eukanuba Daily Care Senior Dog Food is designed specifically to do.
At an age where staying healthy becomes more difficult, it provides your dog with plenty of Vitamin E and antioxidants to help bolster their natural immune system, helping them in the fight against germs and diseases.
This dog food has calcium to help maintain strong bones and teeth, Omega 3 & 6 for a healthy coat and prebiotics that help maintain their natural intestinal flora to aid digestion, helped along by the added beet pulp.
The 3D DentaDefence kibble coating on this dog food even helps to clean your dog's teeth, reducing tartar by up to 80% by acting like a toothbrush while your dog chews.
Of course, it tastes great to your dog, ensuring bowls are licked clean and every bite is enjoyed to the fullest.
You can gain pleasure from it too, from the knowledge that your much loved canine companion is well taken care of, and at a great Swell Pets price that doesn't break the bank.
Order before 3pm weekdays and enjoy a speedy delivery service too - Next Working Day Delivery to Mainland UK addresses (excluding Scottish Highlands).
Dried Chicken and Turkey (34%, natural source of Glucosamine and Chondroitin Sulphate), Maize, Wheat, Animal Fat, Rice, Dried Beet Pulp (2.9%), Hydrolysed Animal Proteins, Dried Whole Egg, Brewer's Dried Yeast, Fish Oil, Fructooligosaccharides (0.53%), Potassium Chloride, Sodium Chloride, Sodium Hexametaphosphate, Linseed, Mannanoligosaccharides


text:
Avergan Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that was created by Allison and Tom Barnhill in order to promote awareness and acceptance for autism spectrum disorders and to provide hope to affected families. As parents with a child diagnosed with an ASD, we know how important early detection and intervention are to the success of a child with autism. We also know the financial and emotional burdens are overwhelming. Our goal is to provide scholarships to families who cannot afford to provide private educational services to their children, such as physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy and special education.
Avergan Foundation needs the support of our amazing community to ensure that we can provide hope to families that have been affected by austism spectrum disorders. We know that we were so lucky to have had a fantastic outcome with our son. We know that early detection and intervention were the reason why. We also know that no one can weather this storm alone and we know that if we all pull together and pay it forward, we can affect so many lives in a truly phenomenal way.
Please consider making a donation today, tomorrow and next year. Your support will always be needed. Thank you!


text:
Online "Camp" Registration for Spring '20 will open Sat, Nov 16,2019. Please see our "calendar" page to review the Spring '20 Registration Annoucement or HALO Facebook Page.
Prior to making an appointment for RPM sessions at HALO you must first become a member of HALO and then submit a New Client Intake form for your student/child ages 7-adult. To become a member, click on "Members," and then select "Become a Member." Once you are a member, click "Members" again, and select "New Client Intake." You may be as brief or detailed as you would like on your child's intake.
HALO's scheduling is based on 3 semesters throughout the year. The spring semester runs from January – April, the summer semester from May – August, and the fall semester from September – December. Further information regarding scheduling can be discussed once a New Client Intake has been submitted to HALO. Students are categorized into 3 groups. The 3 groups include: Campers, Texas Clients, and Local Clients. Campers are students who visit HALO from outside Texas. Campers (Age 7-adult) have the opportunity to attend a Soma® RPM camp up to 3 times a year based on the 3 semesters listed above. Camp week is 4 days and we do occassionally offer some 3 day ($600 and requires 1/2 deposit) which is $800.00 requires a non-refundable/non-transferable 1/2 deposit of *$400.00 to secure your camp week (Typically Tuesday-Friday). Campers attend 2 – 1:1 sessions daily (1-40 minute and 1-25 minute appointment).
Texas Clients are students who live in Texas but do not live in the surrounding Austin area (ex. Houston, Dallas, etc). Specific days and times are reserved for our Texas Clients, in which the student has a 65 min, 1:1 session with Soma ($195 is session fee, requires non refundable/non transferable deposit of $110 to confirm,balance of $85 due at appointment) . Appointment availability varies depending on the number of Texas Clients families enrolled in a given semester.
Local Clients attend 1 – 1:1 session (One-25 minute appointment $85) on a weekly or bi-weekly or monthly basis. Local Clients include those living in the Austin and nearby surrounding cities.


text:
Quiara Alegría Hudes is a playwright, professor of writing and theater at Wesleyan University, and native of West Philly, U.S.A. Hailed for her work's exuberance, intellectual rigor, and rich imagination, her plays and musicals have been performed around the world. They are Water By the Spoonful, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Drama; In the Heights, winner of the Tony Award for Best Musical and Pulitzer finalist; Elliot, A Soldier's Fugue, another Pulitzer finalist; Daphne's Dive; The Good Peaches; Miss You Like Hell; and The Happiest Song Plays Last. Hudes is a playwright in residence at New York's Signature Theater and a proud alum of Philadelphia Young Playwrights.
Shows Associated this writer
Songs Associated this writer
News about this writer
VIVA Broadway an initiative of The Broadway League in collaboration with 5000 Broadway Productions and United Palace of Cultural Arts Present IN THE HEIGHTS: IN CONCERT featuring performances from the Original Broadway Cast.Read More
R&H Theatricals announces its representation of the stock & amateur rights to IN THE HEIGHTS...Read More


text:
I don't think that using bitwise combinations in a language that doesn't have constants is a good idea.Helgef wrote:]
The regex options ...) aren't part of the regex pattern, they are parsed and put aside, and correspond to certain option flags, which are bitwised combined to one option number, which is a pretty standard way of specify options for a function in many programming languages. For guis I think it would be reasonable to remove a lot of string options in favor of bit-wise combinations when defining styles for the guis. Methods and properties could set other options. (I'm thinking aloud, rather than making any definite claims on how things should be)
Also RegExMatch is it's own thing from an external language. I have a few complains about it, however RegEx options are not needlessly complex when compared to jeeswgs inStr options.


text: The importance of protein Protein is an important component of our muscles, organs and skin. The protein in our diet also helps repair and form cells. This is especially important for children because they're growing and developing rapidly. Proteins are made up of substances called amino acids. The human body needs 22 amino acids, but is only able to make 13 of them. The other nine must come from food and are known as essential amino acids.When your baby eats food containing protein, it's digested in their stomach and absorbed by the gastrointestinal tract. The amino acids into which it's broken down are then used in a multitude of functions throughout your baby's body – in skin, hair, bone, muscle and just about every tissue. The body also uses protein to produce haemoglobin that carries oxygen in the blood.How much protein is necessary?Once solid foods are introduced and your baby's consumption of breast milk or formula begins to decrease, you should start offering a balanced diet containing legumes, cereal, vegetables, eggs and dairy. Because a baby's body doesn't store protein, a little is needed every day. Therefore, it's preferable to offer small amounts of protein-containing food on a daily basis.A six-month to one-year-old baby needs about 13 g to 15 g of protein a day. Toddlers need 13 g to 19 g. By including one source of protein at every meal, your baby or toddler should receive the adequate nutrition they need.Sources of protein The following are all sources of complete protein. Please note not all of these foods will be suitable for your baby at all stages during their first year and it's best to check with your local clinic or pediatrician. Meat (particularly beef) Poultry Quinoa Soy Eggs Dairy products (milk, cheese, cottage cheese, yoghurt) Buckwheat Amaranth Spirulina Fish LegumesOther sources of protein which need to be combined in order to provide the full complement of amino acids are: Beans Chickpeas Dried peas Oats Cornmeal Rice Rye Wheat PastaMeal ideas Rice and beans Stir-fried tofu and veggies with pasta Chickpea soup with wholewheat bread Mashed beans served with wholewheat tortilla or pittaYou can also combine incomplete proteins with dairy products: Yoghurt with wheatgerm Avocado mashed with cooked egg yolk served on wholewheat toast Warm beans and rice topped with grated cheese Oatmeal cooked with milk Macaroni and cheese-Janine NelSources: livestrong.com, superhealthykids.com, about.com, buildhealthykids.comCome and like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter and pin along on Pinterest.


text:
Last year, I wrote a Thanksgiving post that seemed to speak to a lot of people. That wasn't necessarily the intention, I was just trying to get some thoughts out about my journey in the year thus far, the things I had learned, and what had changed. So much, and yet so little.
And you know what this year has me realizing? The case is still the same.
As I took M on our second annual Thanksgiving morning walk, I thought about where I was last year. What was going on in my life. The wins. The things I thought were wins but were actually losses in disguise. The battles. The highs. The lows. The adventure. When I think about where I was last year versus now, it is easy to brush it off to say very little has changed. It's also easy to say so much has changed.
The events as a whole in the last year continue to reinforce the idea of being pieces of a bigger mosaic of life. There are those splotches where I threw my fists on the painting in sad frustration about not feeling like I'm where I thought I'd be right now. There are the bright and sunny pieces of accomplishments, of happy moments spent with the dearest of friends. It's all a part of life. It's a part of the adventure. I'm equal parts thrashing, singing, serious, happy, sarcastic, playful, studious…I'm living an adventure because I choose to see life that way. In a world where very few people actually LIVE an adventure, I'm thankful for the mindset that lets me do so.
Granted, as friends and family can attest, that doesn't necessarily make me the easiest person to live with. Always pushing. Never settling. Those things can get tiring.
Falling on your face gets tiring.
But you know what's more tiring? Standing still. Whether it's out of fear or complacency or simply because you see no need to push. That doesn't feel like a life to me. What are you learning by standing still? Sure…I fell on my face. There's some red on the mosaic from blood or embarrassment, but I learned something. And I got up and moved forward. Adventure. As Jessie J would say, I'm creating my masterpiece.
I realized last year that I am thankful for the fact that there is a bigger mosaic. That all of these highs and lows of the adventure along the way add up to something. This year I am thankful for those highs and lows in general. It takes courage to live. It takes courage to seek happiness. You have to know, like a toddler learning to walk, that there's a high likelihood of you falling on your face when you let go of that couch. The toddler may not have known that the first time, but as an adult you've let go enough that you know the consequences. It's ingrained in you.
I'm thankful for the mindset and courage that lets me seek happiness, all the while knowing I need to work on the mindset that lets me see the happiness in the day to day. Most of all, this year I'm thankful for the dear friends and family who put up with me. Who chose to love me and live this adventure with me. My mosaic is brighter because of you. In each day, in each moment, you teach me the true meaning of love. Of grace and happiness. In my most thrashing of toddler-esque fits, as I'm fighting and pushing to make things better, you stick with me and show me grace. You stand beside me and know me. You let me know that I am loved and known in those moments. When I let go of the proverbial couch and take a step forward without falling, it's you who I celebrate with. When I fall a couple steps later, it's you who helps me get up and keep going. It's you, your love, that covers me in happiness this Thanksgiving.
You make the adventure worthwhile. Thank you.


text:
Cottage #2
Due to the fact that we try to accommodate people by not requiring a week long stay, this creates unusual time slots that need to be filled. For these sets of dates, we are requiring the whole time be rented instead of just 3 nights. Also, we do not want to leave a night or two in between other reservations that will not get filled. If there are questions regarding this please see below the calendar.
Time Slots:


text:
Chief Research Officer,
Howard Shimmel is chief research officer at Turner, where he oversees all multi-screen entertainment, news, kids and sports research, as well as corporate analysis and insight-led efforts. Shimmel reports to Doug Shapiro, chief strategy officer, Turner.
Shimmel has played a critical role in driving the company's efforts around the consumer journey and insights to better capture measurement for both Turner and its partners. Earlier this year, in partnership with Turner Ad Sales' Turner Ignite team, launched the Turner Ad Lab with a goal to make recommendations about linear and digital video innovations in light of the changing TV landscape. The Turner Ad Lab Advisory Board is comprised of executives from Turner and across the industry, buyers, professors and technologists.
Prior to be promoted to his role in 2014, Shimmel was senior vice president of ad sales and sports research for Turner, where he oversaw television and digital research analysis and strategy supporting the company's news, entertainment, animation, young adults & kids and sports advertising sales units. He joined Turner from Nielsen Media & Advertising Analytics where he served as executive vice president responsible for building out an advanced analytic business focused on issues like cross-platform analytics, advanced media targeting, promotion effectiveness and ROI measurement, for media companies, agencies and advertisers. Shimmel's industry-rich experience includes other leadership roles at The Nielsen Company, America Online, WBIS and MTV Networks. He also served as president of Symmetric Resources, Inc. Over the span of his career, Shimmel has developed research expertise related to technology adoption, methodology and advertising's impact on sales.
Shimmel frequently appears at various industry events. He is a board member for both the ARF and MRC, where he also is actively involved with the ARF Young Pros, as well as a member of Nielsen's Council for Research Excellence. He and his team have been repeatedly honored with industry awards, including Research Business Daily's "Cilent of the Year" for Neuroscience (2014), and a recipient of the VAB (formerly CAB) Jack Hill Award for excellence and integrity in media research (1993) and its President's Award (1990). Shimmel received a bachelor of science degree from the State University of New York at Stony Brook.
Turner, a Time Warner company, creates and programs branded news, entertainment, sports, animation and young adult multi-platform content for consumers around the world. Turner brands and businesses include CNN/U.S., HLN, CNN International and CNN.com, TBS, TNT, TCM, truTV, Cartoon Network, Boomerang, Adult Swim, Turner Sports, Bleacher Report, iStream Planet and ELEAGUE.