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Welcome to part 2 of my recent podcast with Pejman (PJ) Ghadimi. In part one we discussed how he came to the United States from Iran and then France. We also discussed how he became very successful at a very young age with very little help from anyone. Pejman has built multiple multi-million dollar businesses and he discusses much more about how he has done that in part 2 of this episode of the InvestFourMore Podcast.
Here is a link to part 1 if you missed it.
The economic downturn of the 2000's was bad, but PJ saw it coming…
PJ saw a downturn coming in 2004 and exactly how he saw it coming demonstrates his insight (or maybe common sense) into the type of things that cause economic collapses. At the time he was working with a bank and noticed two people trying to get a loan for a flip. The two were cab drivers and together wanted to purchase a 1.2 million dollar house. PJ knew they shouldn't be able to purchase a home of that value based on their income, but within 15 minutes they were approved for the loan (this was in a bank he directed!). When he realized that people all over the U.S. were getting similar loans, he knew it would only be a matter of time before things collapsed. Listen in to see how PJ completely adjusted his investing and real estate strategies prior to the crash on this episode.
How does today's economy compare to the failing economies of the past?
Though PJ Ghadimi accurately predicted the financial collapse of the 2000's, he's not so quick to make the same prediction in our current economy. Many people are saying our economy and housing market will crumble in short order. PJ says the issues are different now, and center mainly around the country's debt load rather than consumer debt. You simply cannot get the loans you could back before the collapse. PJ is quick to remind us the system is set up for many ups and downs because we are a country that wants growth. It is only a matter of time before we see another downturn, but it may be years into the future and who knows how severe it will be. Listen in to hear PJ explain his thinking on current economic conditions.
InvestFourMore Real-Time Stats (as of 9/06/18)
16 flips currently in progress. 159 flips completed. 19 rentals properties.
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How exotic cars can be more affordable than owning a Honda
Exotic cars are a passion for PJ Ghadimi and there's a very interesting story behind why that is. After buying his first exotic car he realized that because of the way rare exotic cars appreciate in value, he's actually better off owning exotic cars than he is typical consumer-level cars. He makes the disclaimer that you have to be able to support the car once you buy it, in terms of maintenance, but believes that his exotic cars are actually a better investment than any other vehicle he could own. Hear more about PJ's passion for exotic cars in this episode of The InvestFourMore Podcast.
What is "Secret Entourage?"
As PJ Ghadimi became successful and began rubbing shoulders with other people who were very successful, he knew those were the people who should be sharing their expertise and knowledge. The problem was many successful people were hesitant to share their knowledge and how much money they had made. Why? Partly out of fear of being judged for having made it big. PJ created his "Secret Entourage" website to highlight those successful people and other in a format and platform where they can honestly share the mindsets, struggles, and opportunities that have lead them to success. You can find out more about Secret Entourage at SecretEntourage.com.
Funding programs to help teens in need of business mentoring
The success of PJ's "Secret Entourage" website has led him to use the profits from it to build into those who need a hand up. He uses the profits from the site to fund his speaking and mentoring engagements aimed toward young people who never get the chance to hear from successful business people. PJ speaks and mentors kids personally, he doesn't just donate to a charity. It's a great way this ultra-successful entrepreneur and business owner is giving back.
- How PJ was able to see the economic downturn coming: a story involving two cab drivers and a 1.2 million dollar home and why he sold most of his real estate prior to the collapse.
- PJ's view of current economic conditions in light of those that caused the economic downturn of the 2000's.
- Exotic cars – PJs interest in them and the cars he owns now.
- How PJs exotic car "habit" is more affordable than driving a Honda or Toyota.
- The story behind PJ's "Secret Entourage" website.
- How Secret Entourage funds PJ's mentoring of teens in need.
- PJ's feeling about those who are very successful being responsible to help those who need help.
PJ's site – www.SecretEntourage.com
[tweetthis]Align your goals with your willingness to attain them and you'll #succeed – PJ Ghadimi[/tweetthis]
[tweetthis]How can an #ExoticCar be more economical than a standard car?[/tweetthis]
[tweetthis]#SecretEntourage funds #BusinessMentoring for those in need. Find out more.[/tweetthis]
[tweetthis]Learn from high level business people at #SecretEntourage[/tweetthis]
[tweetthis]#ThirdCircleTheory – PJ Ghadimi's best selling book[/tweetthis]
Mark Ferguson:
You know, you were able to see an economic downturn coming, and a lot of us in the industry, with the crazy lending and different things going on saw the bubble coming. Now we're hearing similar things, prices are too high, the economy is not really as strong. Are you paying attention to that stuff now? Do you have an opinion on what you think the economy's doing ten years later?
PJ Ghadimi:
Do you know what the indicator was that made me get out the first time?
Mark Ferguson:
No. What was it?
PJ Ghadimi:
You're going to laugh a lot.
I had a neighbor, because I was still in the same house, and it was a nice townhome. It was a really nice townhome. I had a neighbor who was a cab driver. He and his brother lived in this one [townhouse 00:37]. They were cabbies, they both drove a cab and made $50K each, you know, in a year, so it was $100K. They once came to me, and they were like, "We're trying to buy a $1.2 million home." I was like, "I'm sorry, what? What do you mean, a $1.2 million home?" They're like, "Yeah, we have this opportunity to buy this $1.2 million home, and we have an opportunity to actually sell it, like very soon after, so we would like to actually buy it, and we know you're a banker, so can you get us approved?"
I was like, "Okay, two cabbies making $100K, first off, shouldn't be buying a $1.2 million home, period, let alone be investing in a $1.2 million home." Actually, I wasn't working at a bank. I was head of a bank, so I wasn't actually there doing the paperwork. I sent them to one of my managers, and I was like, "Hey, why don't you get them approved, get you some credit on the books, and if it works, I don't know their credit [inaudible 01:32]." He gets them approved in like 15 minutes, and I'm sitting there like, "Get the fuck out of here. These guys shouldn't be in this house."
That's when a light bulb went out. I'm sure you've heard the term, when people say, "Invest when others are afraid, and then run when others are investing" kind of thing. It really hit me. I was like, "If they're getting approved, other people are getting approved with the same bullshit, no Doc, no nothing." I'm thinking to myself, "This is really bad. If a bank's taking this …" I'm like, "We're taking this.
Two things happened. First, I realized that my corporate career was about to go to shit real fast. I was looking five years ahead. I underestimated that one. I thought I'd give myself five years. I really had two-and-a-half, three max. I was like, "This is going to hurt, the bank [whatever 02:24] is going to hurt bad. Then I started realizing, I was like, "You know what? Maybe I should really get out of everything I'm doing, because once regulation changes," and I knew it would change, "the demand's going to go to shit, and the supply's going to be to the roof, because people are building everywhere."
I said, "You know what? Let me just get out now, like I'll get out early," and my uncle was actually like, "Oh, I'm going to get out next year." I was like, "Okay, you do that. I'll just get out now. It's okay."
That's like [inaudible 02:48]. I'd just rather take my time selling rather than try to rush a sale with prices plummeting. That's exactly what I did. I got out early because of that indicator. Then the Florida thing was the same thing. I really decided, "I don't want to be so much in liability, so I need to have more positive assets, so I need to have cash." I dropped everything, and I just got my money back and pretty much sat there.
A lot of the Florida properties I had at the time actually, I didn't make, really, any money. By the time commissions were paid and everything else, [inaudible 03:20] really ended up being washes. A few others were like $10, $20 grand on top, so it wasn't really a million-dollar play or anything else. Most of my money was made in [loss 03:30]. Anything that happened after was really a safe-keeping, to try to get out without losing money. They worked out pretty well, because I got out early, but it wasn't a money play anymore, at that point.
Mark Ferguson:
I know you're not in the industry. You're actually in the credit industry now, a little bit. I don't see those same indicators now, but maybe you might have a different viewpoint on what our economy and the regulations are doing ten years later.
PJ Ghadimi:
Again, I look at the past as the measure of what's going to happen in the future. I think, in any society, the more you increase, obviously, a population, the more you introduce new regulation and [new issues 04:08], the only thing that changes is not what's going to happen, but it's how quickly it's going to happen, and how long it's going to last.
The recession this time was worse than the Great Depression, but the way it was felt was not as bad, because we're a global economy. In other words, poverty lines are very different than what they used to be, if that makes sense. Making $30K here now, you're technically poor, but you're still in a house with a couch and a TV. There's a little bit of a different play on what poverty means today than what it meant then.
As a country, we've evolved so much that the system works so well in preventing major chaos, like an opportunity to devalue your currency. I don't think that our economy is ever at the same risk as it was back then, from a what happens to the public standpoint. I think our economy is in worse shape than it's ever been before because of the debts we have, etc., but I think that the fact that we're a global economy more and more, and the more we continue to go forward, I think this is why before, what happened, the US fell, and Europe fell, and Asia fell, the same order continues, except it's just going to continue in the same exact process. It's just going to happen faster and hurt less every time, because it's going to recover faster.
Again, we're not changing the patterns or the trends. Because, as an organization or as a society, we're not changing the patterns or the trends that allow us to move forward, we're also allowing these things to continue happening, because we have to choose between functioning and growing versus being very conservative, sitting in a room, and saying, "Okay, everybody, let's have a shared problem for the next two years. Nobody grows for two years." In a society, it's been thought for 30 years that everything you do here is about making more money, or growing more. Now you want to tell everybody, "Everybody stop. Let's all take our hands out of the cookie jar. Nobody does anything, and then eventually, we'll figure out how to solve this."'
The problem with an economy like this is that you train everybody to be hunters and hungry and constantly growing, and the only way you can really stop that is if you can organize a hunt and take everybody away and say, "Even though you're hunting better than everyone else, I need you to stop." Someone's like, "Well, screw you. I don't have to stop. Why would I stop? I'm making more money than most of you." There's always that ego play, so I think, as an economy, as long as we continue this way, I don't think we'll ever die. I just think we'll have to adapt different than we adapted then to recessions and how the markets change, the credit markets change
Today, you mentioned I'm in the credit market. Yeah, I'm part of a credit organization that focuses on the [inaudible 06:54] credit, but only on the basis of automotive dealerships. It's a very unique model, it's not really a widespread model to be in a major organization that deals with credit analysis or anything else, but we help people improve their credits when they're at the dealerships trying to buy car and they're unable to do so.
Mark Ferguson:
That's how I first found you and your site as researching exotic cars for a different site I'm working on and found your exotic-car-buying guide, which was very interesting, and then found Secret Entourage, which you started as a coaching, motivational program. When did you first know you wanted exotic cars, and what are a couple of your exotic cars you've got now?
PJ Ghadimi:
When did I first knew I wanted an exotic car? I've always been a car guy. When I was really young, I worked my ass off, I bought my first car when I was sixteen-and-a-half in cash. It was a Firebird, one of those Trans Ams, the earlier big cars. I wanted one, and I bought it cash for like $27 grand. I'll never forget it, because I was working like a slave from like 15, 16. I figured out how to do it, so I eventually made it happen.
Since then, every year or so I upgraded my car to something else. I went through my series of Mustangs and everything else. I'm in an AMG, an E-55 AMG, which is a really nice car, by no means exotic, before someone in your audience tears me a new one for [inaudible 08:15] a Mercedes is exotic. It wasn't exotic. It's just a nice, four-door car. It was $70 grand used at the time, and I realized that I really wanted better. I didn't want to keep buying normal cars.
I was going to buy a 911, and I was like, "Unless it's a turbo, like, I don't want [a KC 2 08:31] or something." I was in banking [inaudible 08:37], and I had a client that was actually getting a loan on her brand-new 911 turbo. She had bought it, she wanted to re-fi, and she got me in the parking lot. She knew I was a car guy. She [inaudible 08:47], "Do you want to see it?" I said, "Sure." I came out, literally sat in the car, and she was like, "Do you want to drive it?"
The minute I put my hands on the steering wheel, it was carbon fiber, I turned on the ignition and said, "Porsche" on the navigation system, and I'm like, "Okay." I knew then, I was like, "I belong in this. This isn't part of 'Maybe I should have this.'" I was like, "This is no different than if it was mine right now. It feels really real. It feels possible, real, and I'm holding it, so there's no reason I have to let it go." I think from that day on, I really put my mind to, I wouldn't operate my car again until I could afford "that car," because that was my dream car. My first dream car was a 911 Turbo.
I came out, and I remember I used to tell my staff, "I'll have one of those soon. It might be before I'm 30." I was young, I think I was 21. They were like, "You're going to have a 911 Turbo before you're 30." I was like, "Yeah," and they were like, "Yeah, okay."
By 23, I bought two of them. Again, this was the whole thing that, if you want something, set your mind to it. You create a possibility for you to make it happen. When I found my first 911 Turbo, I really realized the leverage owing an exotic car had. It was so much more than having a car and driving it. I was like the circle of friends you create, that whole being accepted in groups that you previously were closed off to. You were a spectator of life versus you're a driver now, and therefore, you're let past the ropes.
It was such a different feeling. Actually at the time, I had a car wash thing, a sort of all in one pressure washer kind of like what ToolsMaestro makes, which today is known as the acumotor, but at the time was nothing more than a car wash. Because of that car, and because of my first time in the Turbo, I was able to put wheels on it and stuff like that. I started getting a lot of attention, because nobody was souping up exotics then. That opened up the door to starting to do customizations at my car wash place. Then I started really growing that, and that turned, four years later, into a huge [inaudible 10:39] service.
Just the idea of leveraging, imagine you're writing an article for Business Insider now, called "How Buying a Lamborghini Could Change Your Life," and not just in business. After that, I made a goal to have a Lamborghini in two years, and I had one a year later. I had my first [Gallardo 10:56], and at the time, it was a big deal. Today, [Gallardo's 11:00] no different than [S Class 11:01], but at that time in life, it made a difference. People were like, "Oh my God, you're a [inaudible 11:06], and you're so young."
Every year since then, I've upgraded cars, and now I'm doing it with multiple cars at a time. You brought up my system. I never lose money on these cars, so while people think that you have to be ultra wealthy to play with exotic cars, it's actually more affordable than driving a Honda or something. For me, I'm able to find the right cars, using that system, I'm able to find them, leverage them, and then ultimately, when I'm ready to get rid of them because either I don't want them, or I get bored of them, or whatever it is, I can sell them, either for more money or exactly what I paid for it. I don't actually lose money getting in and out of exotics, which [inaudible 11:44] versus having someone else buy a Mercedes, and then a year later, when they're down $50 grand in depreciation because nobody else wants an S Class when there's 80,000 of them on the road every year. It's a nice car, but it holds no value once it's volume.
I always buy very unique exotics. Today, in my collection, I'm a big Aston-Martin fan. Through the years, I've gone through a lot of different cars, and I've come to the realization that no matter what, I always go back with an Aston. Now I have two really cool Astons. I have a DBS. It's actually currently the world's most modified Aston DBS. It's hammerhead silver and red interior, it's one of a kind, built with [inaudible 12:23] wheels and every possible modification you can do to it, including things that are not out in the marketplace yet. I have the same exact car in one of four built infrared colors, which is a vibrant red that Aston built for its launch in 2009.
The DBS was always my flagship car for Aston. I've always wanted one. When I bought one, I was like, "Why not buy two?" I had an opportunity to buy another one, so I bought it too. One's really a daily. The other one's a weekend [inaudible 12:50].
In my collection, I also have a Mazzerati [inaudible 12:55] completely customized for a daily driver, which I ride around everywhere, but like a Honda Civic. Outside of that, I just acquired a really rare car. It's a 2011 Super Sport Bentley convertible, which Bentley only built a hundred of. At the time, it was like $380 grand, or something insane. It's a pearl white with saddle interior, pure carbon fiber everywhere, and it has white suede in it, which is really unique. I think Bentley only built a hundred convertibles, and only three of them with a white exterior and saddle interior, so it was a unique car. I went through Cars and Coffee one day, saw it, and I was like, [inaudible 13:35]. Too young for [inaudible 13:36], but it's been a good experience so far.
All I can tell your viewers is, if you're planning on playing with exotic cars, you can do so. You can find the system at ExoticCarSecrets.com, but the main thing to remember with any exotic is that despite all the stuff I talk about, about getting in and out of cars and not losing money, you still have to have a cash surplus somewhere so you can afford the oops, because sometimes oops happen. You should know this, Mark, right? Like that one button that stops working, and it pisses you off on the inside, it's like $800.
I'll give you an example. I had a DBS, one of my DBSs started squealing. I was like, "What is this squeal?" It was driving me crazy. I'm one of those really anal guys that hates [inaudible 14:24] little buttons, or whatever. This car starts squealing, and I was like, "Aw, shit." Apparently, someone had spread some kind of chemical on the ceramic rotors. Ceramic rotors, like when they went to the car wash. Some idiot before me actually put that car in a car wash.
Ceramic rotors, people don't know this, are like $6,000 a side. That means that for four rotors, $25 grand. You're like, "What do you mean, $25 grand for brakes?" It's like, "No, no, no. $25 grand for rotors. $700 a side for pads, plus then install, and all that crap." You're looking at a $30 grand brake job, right? If you're not well-connected in the industry, like I have a lot of connections, so I was able to get sponsors and people pretty much [inaudible 15:05] for free, but if you don't have 25 grand, laying around, how do you fix that? You can't, so the only thing you can do is, either you're stuck with a car that squeals that you're not going to be able to resell because nobody wants a squealing car every two seconds, or you're going to have to cough up 25 grand. If you get to a place where you're that experienced and you have a lot of "oopses", it can costs you a lot of money.
I always tell people, even if you can afford to get into a Lamborghini and ride away, with using my system definitely get into something easier, again and give you experience and comfort, with driving and understanding and creating a network, before you go in and buy something more rare like a Diablo, or something that requires maintenance. That may be heavier for someone that's new in the game.
Mark Ferguson:
We'll send a link to your site too, on our page. I have my 90/90 Diablo, and just like you said, I bought it for 126 last year. It's hard to know what values are, but it's probably worth 170? 180 now?
PJ Ghadimi:
I was just going to say, "You're probably going to make 50 grand when you choose to get rid of it," and there's no urgency in you getting rid of it, which is the great part, right?
Mark Ferguson:
Yep, and it's in for service right now too. It needs new front shocks, which are $7,900 to replace those. You get the good and the bad with the car. [crosstalk 00:01:11]
PJ Ghadimi:
You're giving a little bit of that margin away.
Mark Ferguson:
Right. Exactly.
PJ Ghadimi:
But you're also enjoying it right? You get to enjoy it. It does wonders for your business, for your relationships, for just the aspiration for others who aspire to do similar things. That's a lot of value.
Mark Ferguson:
Yeah. I've met an incredible amount of people through that car, just because at car shows, or people who's seen me, or on the blog too. It's just been a ton of fun. I drive it probably 3 times a week too, so it definitely gets it's use. On from cars, one last thing I want to talk about for sure, is "Secret Entourage" and what you're doing with that site and what your goal is? I know it's got an incredible amount of content on it, and how did that start and where's it at right now?
PJ Ghadimi:
So Secret Entourage was …. I used to make a lot of money, I still do. I'm financially okay. I'm not the richest guy on the block, but I'm okay where I don't worry about anything. I don't worry about the cars I drive, the house I live in, and having that comfort financially was fantastic very early on. One day I came to stop, and I had all these cars sitting in my lot, I had this beautiful house, and I started thinking to myself, "What am I known for? If I die tomorrow, like someone got me hit by a car, and went to my funeral, what would people say about me?" And then I started thinking about two groups of people.
First one group, because at that point, remember, I was self-employed, I had my businesses. I was completely out of banking, and I thought two people would say something about me. First, the people that knew me, which were my friends, they would all be like, "Oh my God, he had such beautiful cars, he was always this inspiring guy." But that's it. You would end there. So if someone in the neighborhood had nicer cars, then I would be quickly forgotten, right? I'm sure someone is going to have nicer cars on that block in the next 5 years after I die. I was like, that kind of sucks that your friends would remember you for the cars that you had or the things you had, which don't mean shit.
Then I was like, there's a second group of people that would remember me for something completely different. Those people are the ones that would remember me from back in banking, because I used to take a lot of chances, growing and building people. I hired a parking meter maid once to be a regular sales person in a bank, and in 3 years I made him the VP of business banking. People were like, "This guy used to collect coins. Like, he didn't have any intelligence, barely spoke English," and I was like, "Yeah, but if you invest time and energy in people, they can, first off invest that time and energy in more people, so create a good chain reaction, and then two, just because he wasn't given an opportunity doesn't mean that he was an idiot."
There's definitely value in helping people, and I think that's a chain reaction that we need more people to do. I came to this realization that those people would probably tell my story to their kids, their grandkids, and even their grandkids would tell the story to someone else, about how one guy took a chance on their dad one day and their dad now was super successful and was able to live a better life and provide for their family.
I thought to myself, and I said, "I was really good at training. Why don't I just create a blog where I just share my thoughts about what it takes to be successful and maybe kids who will want to know about it." Especially because I went through a lot, I got fired, I got hired, I moved up the ranks really quick, etc. Then everybody used to ask me every two days, "Like, oh my God, what do you do for a living? You have all these cars. You're young. Like, how do you do this? Like, what do you do?" I got tired of asking that question too, so I just said, "I'll put a sticker on my car or something, and they can just follow it to my website and read on, you know, like marketing." But I didn't think of it as a business, I just was like, "Yeah, let's put it on and kids can learn and everything else."
Long story short, it completely sucked. I wrote a lot of crap on the blog, and I was talking about corporate leadership and shit that kids were like, "What are you fucking talking about, man? Like this is retarded. Like, how do you get the Lamborghini? That's what I want to know," and I was like, "You have to learn this stuff too," and they were like, "Ga, I don't want to learn this."
I realized the reason why there's a huge disconnect in anywhere really in how education is perceived. We think of education as boring, and really something that we don't want to do. We're forced to do because we're going to be successful with it. Nobody likes to learn, but they like to learn once they realize there's a reward at the end of it. They're like, "I'm going to learn, and I'm going to get a [inaudible 00:05:31] out of it." I was like, "We've got to be able to change that, because society's not going to get better, and that situation's going to get worse."
After my blog sucked for a year, it generated good traffic to the articles, but it wasn't targeted traffic, it was just people that were like, "I don't know who this clown is, but I'm reading his crap anyways." I started coming to this realization that maybe this is bigger than just a blog. Maybe it needs to be sexy, and it needs to attract younger people by being better, not just being about corporate leadership. I started putting more thought behind it. I started attracting a few kids that were in internet marketing space, and one of them was a designer, so we started getting together and I said, "Look, I'm not in this space. I don't know what the hell I'm doing. You guys know what the hell you're doing so I'll provide content, you guys just build … like, I'll create vision, ideas, and everything else, one of you will build it, the other one will market it. It should be good to go."
Really what we created or what we wanted to create was the stories of people behind the exotic cars, and really what they did for a living. That how we met and how we talked originally, because you have an exotic car, and people wonder like, "How do you drive a Diablo in real estate?" It doesn't make any sense unless you're a major real estate tycoon, to most people's perception, they don't understand that stuff.
We decided to create a website where we would share the stories of car owners, and what they've done in their life to get to where they are. True to the stories, the one things we would do different than everybody else, we would make learning sexy. We would make sure that the articles are full of beautiful imagery, and that the site is just not an internet marketing site that has, "Would you like to earn a million dollars? Click here now!" And would take you to this video and then [inaudible 00:07:15] bullshit.
Instead, we thought, "Let's create a platform that really creates a ton of value for kids to want to be on there, watch the stories and aspire." One of the things I learned very early on because I was in training a lot of my corporate America time, the best way to teach people is not by telling them what to do, but by influencing them. By showing them what you've done, so they click in instead of being like, "Hey, you suck at what you do, go do something else."
What ended up happening is these concepts were all scattered all over the place, and it took us 3 1/2, 4 years, to really come together and continue to build content and do these things and really understand what we were doing. This is what we were talking about earlier, even with all my experience, with all my, you know, things I was doing and all the money I had, it still took time to understand what the brand was, what we wanted to do, where we wanted to go. If there was even a monetization strategy, I wrote like 9 books, and they were great books but they sucked, like nobody bought them. They were buying a few of them, but it was making 2 grand for the website. I was like, "2 grand for the website is terrible. It's not going to support the amount of time and effort we're putting in this."
What I was doing … I came up with this idea, "Well, I don't really need the money from this, so I'll take all the money we make from this site, and outside of supporting this site, whatever it costs to make it, I'll take any profit the site has, and I'll invest in helping low to moderate income kids across the US in person." Instead of doing speaking engagements where a school pays me 39, as long as the business Secret Entourage is supported. Then what I do is I take the money from there, and I invest it in going out, speaking, and also giving out free books and giving out free academy memberships to helping low to moderate income communities where kids don't have access to education. Where their parents don't support it because they want them to get a job, and nobody knows what to do, so everybody has a choice between either drugs or you're screwed.
I wanted to put an end to that, and long story short, we've become a huge e-learning platform where I interview anyone who's done anything extraordinary. It doesn't just have to be people who have made a million dollars. Anyone extraordinary, and I have them share with the audience their story and their tips to succeed in their industry. It's like self-education for the new century, and I make sure there's the commonality of either exotic cars or lifestyles, where it can be aspiring and also have that valid proof in front of people. The fruit is there for you to see it, so it's not "Oh, you're talking." If you Google me, you can see my whole car collection, etc. It's not like it's hidden behind a wall like I don't want anybody to know what I'm doing.
They say, "Money talks. Wealth whispers." I said, "Fuck that. I want wealth to really start shouting, because we need people who are wealthy and willing to share to aspire. Because too many people that are broke are sharing their stories, trying to accumulate more customers, when really the wealthy guys that should be talking are like, 'Oh, I don't want someone to judge me, because they know I have money.'" I don't give a shit about that. You're going to come out there, and you're going to tell me how you bought a Pagani, what you did to get it, what your life looks like.
If you're not, then you have something to hide, right? I looked at it that way, if you don't want to talk about it, then you're not worth knowing anyways. I really started that, and today we've interviewed over 200 people, and despite my first 9 books not doing well, I finally wrote one called, "Third Circle Theory" which became a huge bestseller everywhere. It was a huge self-published book, currently sold over 150,000 copies, and on Amazon it's doing incredible, greatest top 50 business books in the country. The reason the book became really famous, versus the other ones was that it's focus was not on how to do something in business, but rather how to build self-awareness.
Three years ago I came up with this concept that self-awareness trumps education. I was like, "How do you understand self-awareness? Such an abstract concept." My book broke down all the path, almost like a roadmap, not to being the most successful, but to being extremely self-aware. As a result of that, being able to tackle on more things, like rolling your confidence, your belief system and taking on business, or investments in a way where you're not emotional. You should know best that when you get emotional about investments, you lose a lot more money than when you stay steady.
Well, how do you learn that, because you're young? How do you control your emotions in an investment, when it's your first time investing? By creating this book, I was able to really teach people self-awareness, and I mean, it's just a hashtag, "Third Circle [inaudible 00:11:59]". Instagram has 20,000 people saying, "Hey, it's changed my life." It took 9 attempts at writing books that didn't work, and it took 1 attempt at writing one that did work, because of what I learned in the first 9. The best part is that I've never read a book in my life, so I try that. I don't even like reading, and I wrote 10, 1 of them made it.
It's really, the "Gist" in business, it's not really making it the first time. It's about not giving up and sticking a course until the very end. That's what we did with Secret Entourage, and our goal, as you asked me earlier, is to grow it into a bridge between self-education and formal education. We know that people go to school, come out as survivors.
Everybody wonders, "What do I have to learn that I don't learn in school?" What we are trying to do is create a community of people, which has grown tremendously now, where people who have succeeded, who we've verified who have done something tremendously well in their own path, can now share those trips or things they have done in their industry to succeed outside of formal education. Which enables someone who's maybe in college to start learning so as they expand their awareness in college, they're going to have a much better change of coming out of college with a clear expectation like we talked about earlier, a lot of people don't have that. Also a lot of awareness to know what to do instead of standing there holding their dick in their hand and being like, "I don't know what to do. I'm out of school. I'm going to work. I hate my life. This can't be all that life has to offer."
I hope that makes a little bit of sense and explains what we do.
Mark Ferguson:
Yeah, no, that's awesome. The people you interview, they're high-level people. There are some awesome, Grant Cardone is on there, a few other guys that most people, not just guys who own fancy cars, but multi-multi-multi millionaires who share their story, it's really great.
PJ Ghadimi:
We break it down into two concepts: people who have really made it, that may not be as believable for starting up, they're like, "I can't be this guy because he's done it for 20 years," that's fair, that's fair to say, but we also have the other side which are people who are very successful but still in the grind, who are still sharing, not necessarily saying, "I'm still trying to make it," but are rather saying, "I've already kind of made it, but I'm not to the point where I have an empire behind me and a 100 million dollar, you know, coming in every year." Rather are saying, "Hey, you know what, I'm still working, I'm still doing really well. I have the exotic cars, and I know a lot about the industry because I'm still in it." Versus someone who's out of it.
I don't know as much real estate as you do, because you're in it every day, and you see it and you're part of it. For me, it's not, right? Even if I may have made more or less money or whatever it is before, I'm still not the best person to ask about real estate, if that makes sense? There are better successful people like you in that space that's going to make a better teacher in that space than someone like me, who had an opportunity and at some point jumped in, regardless of what our bank accounts look like.
Mark Ferguson:
I really appreciate you taking the time to discuss your whole story, how you've made it, advice for people. I have a lot of the same mindset, and so much about success is attitude and your attitude, not just education. Hard-work is part of it, but you have to couple hard-work with self-awareness like you said. I'll put up links to your site so people can find you on the car site and Secret Entourage, anything else you want to add before we end this?
PJ Ghadimi:
No, I would just tell people that you have to believe in what you're doing, but you have to align your belief with the work that you're willing to put in to make that belief a reality. I think as long as you stay true to that you're going to be successful, regardless what path you choose in life.
Mark Ferguson:
Awesome. Great ending words. All right, PJ, thanks a lot. I appreciate it, and looking forward to talking to you maybe here soon again.
PJ Ghadimi:
You got it. Thanks again for having me on, Mark.
Mark Ferguson:
All right. Take care.


text:
Star Wars Cosplay Rey Cosplay Costume Halloween Clothing
|Estimated arrival:
| Country:
Postal Code:
|Product Location:
|Product Condition:
Impress your friends and your family with this amazing costume. Attend Halloween parties and theme parties dressed as Rey from Star Wars.
Star Wars Rey Cosplay Costume
Including Parts
Product Information
|Star Wars Rey
|Cosplay Costume
|Men / Women (optional)
|Length Shawl and Coat, Top, Pant, Belt and Gun Cover, 2*Bandages, Waist Seal, Wristbands, 2*Shoes (optional)
|S, M, L, XS, XXS, XL, XXL, XXXL, Customized Size (Please refer to the Size Chart)
|Is customized
|Yes (optional)
|2.3 kg
Men's Size
Women's Size
Customized Size
1.Weight; 2.Height (Total height, bare feet); 3.Shoulder Width; 4.Chest; 5.Waist; 6.Hips; 7.Sleeve Length; 8. Outside Leg;
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1. All cosplay costumes are made upon orders. It generally takes aboout 15-25 business days for making the costumes. And another 4-7 business days for shipping.
2. If you need it urgently, please contact us for a rush order. Additional fee maybe charged depneding on the situations.
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|7-10 Business Days(Standard Shipping: EMS or Special Line)
|10-15 Business Days (EMS for Russia or South America)
|12-20 Business Days (E-packet)

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Why Apple is betting on Light Peak with Intel: a love story
Apple, Intel and the ports business
What Intel has and Apple lacks on its own is the ability to garner widespread adoption of new cabling schemes and the economies of scale that follow. Back in the 80s, Apple largely just ignored the generic PC world and its third-rate port specifications. While PCs shipped with RS-232 serial ports and Centronics parallel ports for printing and slow disk drives, Apple gave its Macs an improved RS-422 serial port that was backwardly compatible but offered the ability to accommodate AppleTalk/LocalTalk networking.
On the other hand, Apple also adopted the high performance SCSI interface for hard drives and printers and scanners, something that was deemed too luxuriously expensive for mainstream PCs. That subsequently kept SCSI and its interface support chips relatively expensive to manufacture.
Steve Wozniak's Apple Desktop Bus was adopted by Apple in 1986 for connecting together a variety of input devices and serial peripherals, from keyboards and mice to stylus tablets, barcode scanners and video cameras. Despite some use outside Apple by Sun and NeXT, ADB similarly never caught on among generic PCs, which continued using two PS/2 connectors, one for the keyboard and one for the mouse. That similarly helped keep ADB peripherals relatively expensive.
Apple then developed FireWire as a high speed cabling system that could accommodate the future needs of digital video and replace SCSI with simpler cabling. This too was slow to broadly catch on among PC makers. Intel delivered its own USB specification as a slow, ADB-like peripheral connection standard to replace RS-232 serial, Centronics parallel, and PS/2 connectors on PCs. While it didn't initially gain much attention among PC users, Apple adopted USB as a way to jettison both ADB and serial ports on the iMac, and kickstarted the market for low speed USB peripherals.
Intel then upgraded the USB standard to 2.0, a move that encroached upon the performance of FireWire (without actually delivering many of the features FireWire was designed to provide). This effectively killed any mainstream market for FireWire outside of niche markets, and again subsequently kept FireWire relatively expensive to implement.
Stronger together
On their own, Apple and Intel had limited success in promoting new standards into the mainstream; together, the pair seemed to be very complimentary partners. Intel acts as the establishment insider, holding down prices with high volume mainstream production, while Apple serves as the vanguard, pushing new technologies into an industry notoriously resistant to change.
Things don't always happen according to plans, however. In 2005, Apple and Intel began working with other partners on a replacement for VGA and DVI video ports which would complement the HDMI standard emerging in home theater applications. The new specification, called Unified Display Interface, intended to essentially be a variant of HDMI for use in computer applications.
Instead, PC makers such as Dell, HP, and Lenovo began adopting VESA's competing DisplayPort specification instead. Realizing that its main customers were lined up behind DisplayPort, Intel pulled out of UDI and backed DisplayPort in 2007. Apple jumped on the DisplayPort bandwagon last fall in its new line of unibody MacBooks.
With Light Peak, Apple and Intel are investing in a major project to deliver a unified new high speed cabling system that remains backwardly compatible with existing protocols and leverages state of the art technology while hitting a mainstream price point. Getting Light Peak to work requires a joint fusion of the core competencies of both Apple and Intel. Its success will benefit the entire industry, and solve a number of existing problems.
Port overload
Many port specifications overlap with others enough to make them redundant for mainstream users. For example, with USB and FireWire already on most Macs, Apple has ignored eSATA, a way to connect external SATA hard drives directly. Even USB and FireWire overlap enough to make it impractical to include both in some applications; Apple eventually dropped FireWire on its iPod line when USB 2.0 became popular enough to use and cheap enough to make FireWire a luxury. Apple also attempted to drop FireWire on its entry-level MacBooks, but recanted after customers complained.
In some cases, multiple signaling protocols can be combined in a single port. For example, DVI ports also supplied analog VGA pins. Apple also combined the MacBook's analog audio jacks with mini-Toslink digital optical ports to create a hybrid jack that can work with either kind of cable. The iPod dock connector combines component and composite video signals, audio, USB, and simple serial signaling into a single port. Apple once bundled DVI, USB and power together on a single cable called Apple Display Connector for its Cinema Displays. The company even developed a specification for supplying FireWire signaling over the same RJ-45 connector used for Ethernet networking, although it hasn't ever shipped on a production Mac.
With Light Peak, Apple asked Intel to develop a single data port that could supply multiple, high speed streams of data capable of carrying virtually any type of signaling: networking protocols like Ethernet and Fibre Channel; standard audio and video signals such as S/PDIF, HDMI and DisplayPort; and serial interfaces such as FireWire, USB, and eSATA. Using optical signaling, Light Peak can achieve very high data speeds over relatively long cables that can be very thin; copper cables have problems with signal attenuation, electromagnetic interference, and bulk.
Light Peak offers the capacity to upgrade existing signaling protocols to work over high speed optical cables driven down in cost by volume production. Additionally, with any type of signal available through a single optical port, both notebooks and smaller mobile devices can shed today's overlapping variety of limited capacity ports for a single pipe that delivers virtually any kind of data at extremely high speeds. This would allow a laptop to plug into a monitor via one thin cable, and then allow the display to offer standard jacks such as USB and Ethernet networking. Currently, Apple's displays need to plug into both DisplayPort/DVI and USB, which together results in a larger, more complex and expensive cable.
Teamed up with Intel, Apple can get a cheaper connector for its future systems, with development costs spread across the industry; Intel can get a partner ready to promote and rapidly deploy the new standard. Additionally, by working with Apple to develop a low-power mobile version of Light Peak, Intel can stay in the mobile business and hopefully someday impress Apple with its roadmap for Atom. Whether Atom can ever catch up to and surpass the industry momentum behind ARM remains to be seen.
Daniel Eran Dilger is the author of "Snow Leopard Server (Developer Reference)," a new book from Wiley available now for pre-order at a special price from Amazon.


text:
What is this page?
This is a collection guide. It is a description of archival material held in the Special Collections Division,
J.Y. Joyner Library, East Carolina University. The materials described here are physically available in our
reading room. None of the original documents in this collection are digitally available online at this time.
Papers (1969, undated) consisting of correspondence, letter, selling of cigarettes, red tape.
Papers (1938-1994) of Captain James P. Lynch (USN ret.) a member of the U.S. Naval Academy Class of 1941, including correspondence, programs and leaflets (1938-67); clippings (1944-94); printed forms (1940-75); and photographic prints (1943-68).
Collection (1942-1969) of photographic prints and photocopied documents relating to World War II service of Tarboro, NC natives Hugh E. Best Jr. who served in the U.S. Army Air Force in Europe, Hugh E. Best, Sr., who served in the U.S. Navy; Glanor Gay Best, who served in the Women' s Auxiliary Army Corps (WAAC); Gaston Gay, who died while serving in the U.S. Merchant Marine in 1942; also relating to Vietnam War service of Hugh E. Best,...
Papers (1968, undated) consisting newspapers - The American Traveler, monthly magazine - TET Forward, TET, photographs of aftermath of a battle, leaflets.


text:
KCSDV Observes October as National Domestic Violence Awareness Month
Topeka, KS - The Kansas Coalition Against Sexual and Domestic Violence (KCSDV) welcomes October as National Domestic Violence Awareness Month. One in four women will be the victim of domestic violence at some point in her lifetime, and, on average, three women are killed every day at the hands of a current or former intimate partner.
"We have made great strides in Kansas, but we still have a long way to go," says Joyce Grover, executive director of KCSDV. "The Kansas Bureau of Investigations reports that 30% of all homicides in Kansas in 2010 were related to domestic violence which translates into an average 22 adults and nine children murdered each year as a result of abuse. We must act as a community to put a stop to this pervasive crime."
The economic downturn has had a devastating effect on local programs working to serve survivors of abuse. While a bad economy does not cause domestic violence, it can make it worse. At the same time, there are fewer options for survivors to escape. According to the 2012 Mary Kay Truth About Abuse Survey, nearly 8 out of ten domestic violence shelters nationwide reported an increase in women seeking help, while the vast majority experienced decreases in funding.
Despite tremendous challenges, domestic violence shelters served nearly 70,000 victims in one day alone, according to the latest National Network to End Domestic Violence Domestic Violence Counts. More than three out of four domestic violence survivors who sought support groups, counseling, supportive services and legal advocacy found these services to be "very helpful," the National Resource Center on Domestic Violence and the University of Connecticut School of Social Work reported.
"We know, even with these disturbing statistics, that domestic violence is preventable," says Grover. "By promoting healthy relationships that include equality and respect, and through large scale community education and action, we can reduce the likelihood that people will turn to abusive behaviors in their relationships."
Special thanks to Governor Brownback for standing with KCSDV and with survivors in Kansas in proclaiming October of 2012 as Domestic Violence Awareness Month in Kansas "to encourage all citizens to speak out against domestic violence, to provide support for survivors of these crimes, to encourage community leaders to hold perpetrators accountable, and to make domestic violence prevention efforts a priority by hosting events, by creating policies at school and work, and by working with your local domestic violence victims service providers."
Throughout October, communities across the country will mourn for those whose lives were taken by domestic violence, celebrate the tremendous progress victim advocates have made over the years, and connect with one another with a true sense of unity to end domestic violence.
Learn more about what you can do, and find a list of statewide events at kcsdv.org or check with your local DV/SA program. Join the conversation at facebook.com/kcsdv.
KCSDV Media Contact: Audra Fullerton
KCSDV Communications Coordinator
o: 785-232-9784
c: 785-409-2006
Founded in 1982, the purpose of KCSDV is the prevention and elimination of sexual and domestic violence through a statewide network of programs providing support and safety for all victims of sexual and domestic violence and stalking, with primary focus on women and their children; direct services; public awareness and education; advocacy for victims; comprehensive prevention; and, social change efforts. Learn more at www.kcsdv.org.


text: Super PolyPixel - The International Toy Fair is currently in swing. In addition to some sweet video game action figures (including some awesome looking ones from Assassin's Creed 3), there will be some new video game-based board games being released. I love board games and table top games. Sometimes there is nothing better than sitting around a table with friends, some drinks, and…"friendly competition."


text:
- Home
- Lawn
- Lawncare Products
- Electric Lawn Tools
Store Credit
You have of store credit. To use it, simply place your order and you will be able to choose store credit as the payment method when it comes time to pay for your order.
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text:
One Minute On Health Care Reform
Mr. PASCRELL. Mr. Speaker, after months of fire and fury and endless rhetoric, after months of staged protests and shouting down honest debate about health reform, after months and months of promising a real plan for the reform we all agreed we need, I stand before this Congress literally astounded by the health reform plan offered by the loyal opposition.
After all this time, this is the best you could produce? It seems that you have backtracked. Now you don't believe in health reform. Instead, the Republicans have embraced a plan that will drive up the cost of health insurance for the sickest and most vulnerable, a plan that will start a race to the bottom where insurers drop the sick and flock to States with the weakest regulations. Yes, that's exactly what I said.
A plan that bails out the insurance companies, relieving them of any responsibility to cover the individuals that need insurance the most. You are going backwards instead of forwards.
I must admit that I congratulate them for somehow turning the status quo into 230 pages of legislative text. I contend there is only one real reform plan, and we will be voting on it in a few days.


text:
Meet us at NATPE 2016
This year, once again the VSI Group will be in Budapest to attend NATPE, the leading marketing and content summit for the international broadcast industry.
If you'll also be in attendance at NATPE 2016, we would be pleased to meet with you and introduce you to our high quality language versioning and content promotion solutions.
Why Choose VSI For Your Next Project?
- Over 25 years of experience in delivering high-volume content for major international clients
- Owned facilities in locations across the entire CEE region, all of which meet stringent technical and security standards
- The only company with owning dubbing studios in France, Italy, Germany and Spain
- Full-service capability, including technical and creative services delivered in-house
- Flexible and personal approach in meeting client-specific requirements, including pricing and turnaround times
- Netflix approved localisation vendor (NPV)
- ISO 9001 accreditation
To arrange a meeting with a member of our team, please contact us on + 44 (0) 207 692 7700
or email firstname.lastname@example.com.
14 June 2016


text:
|March 13, 2006, 12:03 PM
Senior Member
Join Date: July 10, 2005
Location: So. Cal.
Posts: 401
Revo's in IPSC & IDPA
Well, I shoot revolvers mainly because I hate chasing my brass (for reloading). At some point or another I actually have become somewhat proficient in shooting my Revo's in DAO mode (it took some 10k rounds...), proficient enough to think "Hmmmm, maybe I should try to get involved with IPSC & IDPA". I'm leaning towards IPSC - it just seems more, well, fun...
My revo's: 6" GP100 with a HoloSight on it and a 4" S&W 625JM with basic Hogue rubber grips.
So, onto my questions:
1. could I enter IPSC or IDPA with the 6" GP100? I don't think IDPA would allow it (due to being 6" and also with the HoloSight). But would IPSC allow it?
2. IF I could use the 6" GP100, does anyone make a holster for this that's IPSC qualifiable? I know Safariland makes a holster with cutouts for e-Sights but I can only find it for a 4" revo...do they make such a thing for a 6"?
3. How many speedloaders required for a stage? I have some 50+ moonclips for the 625 so I'm not worried there. On the GP100, I have 3x of the Safariland C3's and 4x of the HKS speedloaders.
4. Most important: what classes would each of the revo's compete in? The 625 seems to be well defined, but I can't figure out if the 6" GP100 would work.
I'd rather compete with the GP100 than the 625, but really, it's not that big of a deal. My eye's just plain like the HoloSight a lot more than the 625's standard sights!
(PS: I also have an XD 9mm, a Colt Gold Cup National Match, and a cheapo Thompson 1911 I've had for 20 years that just refuses to die...I just plain like shooting revo's is all.)
Robert N.
"Remember, Eagles may soar but Weasels don't get sucked into jet engines!"
|March 13, 2006, 07:47 PM
Senior Member
Join Date: June 21, 2002
Posts: 2,019
Go for it. IDPA will poo-poo the optical sight and the 6" barrel even if you just want to shoot for fun but IPSC will welcome you with open arms. You will automatically be put in open class, but that isn't a big deal unless you want to win.
The 625 is IDPA and IPSC legal, holster requirements are vastly different but IDPA holsters will work fine in IPSC. The 625 is probably used in 95% or more of the wins in both IDPA and IPSC from what I have seen.
Take a look at Speed Sec and CR Speed for revolver holsters that work with optical sights. www.shootersconnection.com handles both brands.
|March 13, 2006, 11:53 PM
Senior Member
Join Date: October 25, 2001
Location: Alabama
Posts: 15,053
As HSMITH says, your GP will enter USPSA Open Divison because of the optical sight... along with the 28 shot compensated .38 Supers. Do you care? If not, fine. You will want a 158 grain bullet at least 1050 fps to make Major Power Factor for top scoring of hits.
Get some more speedloaders, all the same brand and style. Safariland C III is good. Use the HKS for loading the gun to start the stage at most. Better to discard or swap them off. You do NOT need to be trying to figure out whether to load with a push or a twist with the timer running. Push is faster.
The 625 with 230 RN at 720+ fps will make Major Power Factor and will get you into USPSA Revolver Division and IDPA Enhanced Service Revolver both, where it is THE preferred gun.
IPSC stages can run thirty or forty shots, you need a LOT of speedloaders or clips and the carriers for them. A IPSC revolver shooter usually looks like he has ammo all the way around his belt, at least where he can reach it readily.
IDPA stages are limited to 18 scored hits and you may only carry three loads on your belt; with what you start with in the gun, 24 rounds to get up to 18 hits.
|March 14, 2006, 03:30 PM
Join Date: February 7, 2006
Location: La Mesa, CA
Posts: 30
I never enjoyed shooting revolver in IDPA but IPSC is fun. I like shooting in ICORE more than IPSC because it is for revolvers. Everything is designed around revolvers and accuracy is more important since the penalties are higher than IPSC or IDPA. There is no major or minor power factor just one minimum power factor. There is stock and open. The fun part is you don't have to be really good to shoot at the Internationals and you get to see Jerry Miculik at the shoot offs.
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text:
Here is a meal for the Jewish Holidays from the new edition of American Wholefoods Cuisine: 1300 Meatless Recipes from Short Order to Gourmet – the "vegetarian Joy of Cooking."
- Read what readers and reviewers say about American Wholefoods Cuisine.
- Click here for our EXCLUSIVE DISCOUNT OFFER.
PS. Don't forget to bookmark the Wholefoods Diner and tell your friends about it as we change the recipes all the time.
Eggplant Caviar
Of Russian derivation, eggplant caviar should be served very cold. It can be made well in advance and will keep up to 2 weeks with refrigeration.
1 pound eggplant
½ cup finely chopped onion
½ cup finely chopped tomato
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
Make an inch-long slit in eggplant to release steam and cook by baking in a 350o oven. Or, cut into cubes and steam until tender.
When cooked eggplant is cool enough to handle, peel and chop very fine. You should have about 1½ cups.
Combine eggplant with remaining ingredients and chill.
Serves 8
Matzo Balls
Everyone household has its favorite matzo ball recipe. What distinguishes this from all others is that it is made with whole wheat matzo. Serve in your favorite vegetable broth or in the Tamari Broth below.
4 whole wheat matzos
2 eggs
1 tablespoons oil
½ teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons seltzer or plain water
Crush the matzos into fine crumbs in the blender, processor, or with a rolling pin. You should have 1 cup crumbs.
Beat eggs with oil and salt. Stir in crumbs. Add seltzer and mix to a smooth batter. Chill for 30 minutes or longer.
To cook, bring 3 quarts of water to a boil in a wide 5-quart pot. Add 1 teaspoon salt. Shape chilled dough into 1-inch balls using a light hand. Drop into simmering water. When they rise, cover and simmer for 30 minutes. Drain.
To serve, place in bowls and cover with hot soup. If matzo balls have cooled down before they are served, place them in the soup pot and reheat for a few minutes.
Makes 12-14 matzo balls; 4-6 servings
Tamari Broth with Greens
8 scallions, minced
1 tablespoon oil
4 cups water
4 outer leaves romaine lettuce, coarsely shredded
½ cup soy sauce
½ teaspoon salt
Cook scallions in oil for 1 minute to soften. Add water and bring to boil. Add lettuce and simmer for 10 minutes. Add soy sauce and salt.
Serves 4
Matzo Lasagna
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
6 whole wheat matzos
3 cups cottage cheese
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
½ cup shredded cheddar cheese
4 medium tomatoes, sliced, or 2 cups canned, drained tomatoes
½ teaspoon salt
1½ cups tomato juice
Preheat oven to 350o F.
Place half the onion slices in a shallow 2-quart baking dish generously greased with oil. Cover with two of the matzos, broken into pieces if necessary. Top with 1½ cups cottage cheese, ½ cup mozzarella, ¼ cup cheddar, and half the tomatoes. Season with half the salt and pepper.
Top with two more matzos, remaining onion, cottage cheese, shredded cheeses, tomatoes and seasoning. Pour juice evenly over top. Cover and bake for 20 minutes.
Uncover, sprinkle with additional cheese if desired, and bake 10 minutes longer. Let sit at room temperature for 10 minutes before serving.
Serves 4 to 6
Sweet Ginger Carrots with Raisins
1 pound carrots, diced (about 3 cups)
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon honey
¼ cup raisins
¼ teaspoon ground ginger
¼ cup water
Combine all ingredients in a 1-quart pot. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer over low heat until just tender, about 15 minutes.
Serves 4
Orange-Section Salad
The inclusion of some bitter greens makes this especially appropriate for the Passover table.
6 cups torn greens (preferably romaine with a little escarole or some other dark, bitter green)
2 oranges, peeled and sectioned
thin slices sweet Spanish or red Bermuda onion
3 tablespoons fresh orange juice
2 tablespoons wine vinegar
6 tablespoons oil
1/8 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon minced orange rind
Combine beans, oranges and onion in a salad bowl. Combine remaining ingredients to create the dressing. Toss dressing with salad just before serving.
Serves 4
Coconut Kisses
2 egg whites
¼ cup honey
¼ teaspoon almond extract
½ cup finely ground sunflower seeds
1 cup shredded, unsweetened coconut
Preheat oven to 375o F.
Beat egg whites until stiff. Gradually beat in honey. Whites will soften slightly. Fold in remaining ingredients.
Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto a baking sheet covered with unglazed paper, such a brown grocery bags.
Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until nicely colored. Remove from oven, let stand a minute or two to set, then remove with a spatula and cool completely on a rack.
Makes 6 dozen kisses
Almond Sponge Torte
A light, flourless nut cake.
2 eggs, separated
3 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon maple syrup
½ cup almonds, ground to a meal
½ tablespoon lemon juice
pinch salt
Preheat oven to 350o F.
Beat egg yolks until thick. Gradually beat in honey and maple syrup. Stir in almond meal and lemon juice.
Beat whites in a separate bowl until stiff, adding a pinch of salt when they become foamy. Fold in egg yolk mixture. Spread in a greased, floured 8-inch layer cake pan.
Bake for about 20 minutes, until puffed and brown. Turn off oven, leave door open and let sit for 10 minutes. When cake has settled, remove from pan and cool.
Makes one 8-inch round; serves 6
Recipes from the Nikki & David Goldbeck's American Wholefoods Cuisine ©


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Kirsten Klahn is discussing the pros and cons to traditional bank alternatives over at Wall Street Cheat Sheet® and we like what she has to say.
Maybe you're frustrated with getting hit with high monthly fees each month, or maybe you feel like you're not earning a satisfactory interest rate. Perhaps you're just ready to entrust someone other than a bank with your money. Whatever the reason, there may come a time when you begin to look at credit unions. There are major differences between the two, and you should know what to expect if you make the switch. To help weigh the pros and cons, here is a know-all guide to credit unions. [Click here to read the full article.]


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Finally the Democratic Republic of Congo! :)
Having to wait 40 days to cross a narrow river should tell you something about our world
Yes, so it finally happened! And very much to the credit of others. The list is long: Jérémie, Marie, Nora, Wilfrid, Anael, Gaëtan, Roger, Nelly and probably many more which I cannot remember at this exact moment, have all played a role in getting me across the Congo River from Brazzaville in The Republic of Congo (Congo) to Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Don't get the two countries mixed up, because they are not the same side of the coin although their names are similar. To start with Congo is merely 8 times the size of Denmark, while DRC is 54 times larger. But we will get back to that.
My long wait in Brazzaville has been sprinkled with fond memories of time spent with great people. I frequented a place near the DRC embassy which serves water pipe (shisha). It's owned by David from India who is an accomplished businessman. Shisha is not well integrated into Congolese country, but it's usually available throughout both West- and Central Africa due to the large influx of Lebanese businessmen of which there are many! They generally run all the successful businesses: Shops, malls, restaurants, cinemas etc. But in Brazzaville this particular place is operated 24/7 by David.
Thank you David!
One morning I woke up particularly nervous. I woke up in the same bed I had been sleeping in since I arrived to Brazzaville on February 2nd. I was in my room which the French Red Cross had provided for me and I was very nervous. I had this stupid plan which I had been wanting to realize for a long time: I wanted to eat the hottest chili I could find while being filmed! This idea had evolved to meeting Jérémie at the marché plateau des 15 ans, which is a local market in Brazzaville. Together we would buy this deadly piece of witchcraft and I would chew it, swallow and recite the 100 countries we had now reached within the Saga! That morning when I woke up every cell in my body knew how DUMB AN IDEA that was!! I was due to meet Jérémie at the market the very same day, and my mind was coming up with excuses to tell Jérémie on the phone to explain, why we had to call it off. I physically felt bad about it in the same way you would feel bad about going to the dentist for something you expect will cause pain, or to an important exam which you are not well prepared for...well, I maned up and went. The rest is history and the video is online here: https://youtu.be/nO7oKK5iqzU
It was the Fatalii chili!!! A local chili to Central Africa.
It all came together with the visas within a few days. You cannot apply for a visa to DRC anymore without obtaining a DGM letter from Kinshasa. That in itself is hard to do when you do not already have a visa to go to Kinshasa. So you need a friend on the other side of the Congo River. The DGM is basically an immigration letter which has been introduced in late 2015. In order to get the DGM you also need an invitation letter. And so far we haven't even started diving into the bureaucracy of going to offices, paying fees, getting stamps, wasting time and being treated like a criminal in the process. But I had a friend in Kinshasa...and I had friends in Brazzaville. So one day I had both the invitation letter and the DGM letter in my hand (which you need as originals). You also need to be a resident in order to apply for a visa at the DRC embassy. But we found a way around that.
The Angolan embassy didn't want to give me a visa, because I didn't have enough free pages in my passport. I only had 6 free pages and the minimum requirement was to have 5. Yeah...I know?!? Don't ask. Fortunately I travel with 2 passports, but in order to get the other passport I had to release it from the DRC embassy. Besides, the other passport has a different passport number than the invitation letter for Angola. So that was definitely something I could imagine the Angolan embassy would use to decline the application. Keep in mind that back in October, when I was applying for the Angolan visa for the first time, I was sent away for wearing a t-shirt in my passport photo and not a shirt!
But with some smooth talking from a friend who accompanied me it all went fine. And eventually I received my Angolan visa on a Friday and my DRC visa the next day: On a Saturday. Gold!
The Democratic Republic of Congo
The crossing from Brazzaville to Kinshasa is called "the beach" and it is notoriously difficult to navigate without getting upset and without paying extra. And Kinshasa itself has a bad reputation for being a rough city...especially for new arrivals. But as it happens the Red Cross has people posted on both sides. They wouldn't be working on a Sunday though, so I opted to cross Monday afternoon.
The French Red Cross has clearly demonstrated their strength in the region! Well done!
And it went embarrassingly easy and with very little adventure to speak about. Actually I was treated as a VIP on both sides and didn't even need to speak to any officials at all. That was all done by the Red Cross employees. It kind of feels like cheating.
If you're not claustrophobic then crossing should be no problem.
But it got "worse"! Because Andrew, who is an expat living in Kinshasa, had arranged for me to stay at his place. Andrew is renting a room in Liliane's house and Liliane came to pick me up at the beach and drove me straight to her house where she started mothering me. I had potato soup followed by spaghetti with meat sauce that night.
My "mother" in Kinshasa: Liliane Davin
Liliane, who constantly smiles and laughs, is originally from Belgium but has now lived in DRC for 35 years. She knows everybody and has experienced a thing or two in her lifetime! Her husband passed away 4 years ago and since then the house felt too big. So she now rents out 3 rooms and includes various types of service. You can even pay to have all meals included and free access to liquor. It comes with wifi, a garden pool, 2 dogs, a parrot and a monkey! It's great!
Andrew is currently out on a project so I haven't seen him yet. But we've been writing a lot since October when I first hoped to cross. Yes! Remember that? I originally tried to get my visa and cross before October 10th to make it 99 countries in 2 years flat. That should tell you something about the immense setbacks we have faced in Central Africa. Some of you know! ;) Well, I'm here know and DRC became country 101 instead.
Andrew is due to arrive today, Friday. We plan to go out for some local food and beer tonight and tomorrow we will venture out to see the indigenous Bonobo apes. If you have never heard about Bonobos before then look it up. It's quite extraordinary.
Kinshasa is the capital city and home to over 15,000,000!
So I'm probably leaving for Angola Sunday or in the beginning of next week. "WHAT?!? But you didn't see the country at all?!!" Yes, I know...and that brings me back to talking about size. But before I get cracking on that I can just mention that Francesca, a friend of Andrews, invited me to celebrate Iranian New Year. Yes, I know, maybe not a super Congolese experience, but it was great anyway. Her flatmate, Reza, is from Iran and had arranged for 3 small outdoor fires which we had to jump across while saying: "Red to me, yellow to you". Or for the advanced in the group you could also say it in Farsi which is technically more correct ;) In reality there were also supposed to be 7 small fires but there was no need to get excessive. Afterwards we all went up to their flat and enjoyed a delicious home cooked meal with great conversations.
I was also fortunate to be invited to see a movie about Dr. Denis Mukwege and meet him afterwards. An unbelievable man!!! Have a look: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denis_Mukwege
Expat life is to be found in all capitals and in many cases it completely dominates certain areas in the city. Restaurants, shops, entire buildings are in place to cater for the expats. In DRC a large part of the expat base is tied up into humanitarian work and various NGOs including wildlife conservation.
DRC has an population of over 80,000,000!!
For me the headline of DRC is: ADVENTURE!! You may have read Tintin and about his ventures here? And Tintin was invented by the Belgium artist Georges Remi...and now that I have brought up Belgium I might as well add that this colossal country was in 1885 given to King Leopold II of Belgium as his "private property". The extravagance and cruelty of cultures past knows hardly no end. But that too is tied up into adventure! Because Belgium exploration was first led by Sir Henry Morton Stanley who we know from once having said: "Doctor Livingston I presume?" Start reading about that and you'll never go to bed!! But actually, to go back to the beginning you would have to go at least 80,000 years, back because that's were the earliest human history originates in Congo. And they weren't called Adam and Eve ;) We know about this from the 1988 discovery of Semliki harpoon at Katanda. Let me just add to this that the Roman Empire was at its high 2,000 years ago and the pyramids are only a few thousand years older.
Anyway; volcanos, jungle, mountains, gorillas, war, conflict, cannibalism, Pygmy tribes, 200 ethnic groups, 50 local languages...this place has got it all. And don't forget Jean-Patrice Keka Ohemba Okese, also known as the "African Einstein", who is running the space program, while building rockets that can reach outer space!
Naturally you also have all the internet, smartphones, sitcoms, clubs, families, traffic, universities, supermarkets and everything else which ordinary people get caught up in. But that's not so adventurous to talk about ;)
But let's get into size for a bit. Because Sometimes SIZE DOES MATTER
What are you supposed to do about colossal countries with a project like this? Volcanos are currently erupting in Virunga, in the east of DRC. It's violent and on the news! But it is also 2,000 km (1,242 mi) away from where I am!! ;) DRC is a HUGE country. I will try to put that into perspective for you:
If you are from Denmark then your beautiful country fits inside DRC 54 times! DRC is 2,344,858 km2 (905,395 mi2)!
If you are from USA, China or Canada, then DRC fits inside your country 4 times!! And since you already live in a colossal country you probably know what I'm talking about ;)
France fits inside DRC 3.6 times while DRC fits inside Brazil 3.6 times :)
The Australians have room for DRC 3.2 times! And Greenland is roughly the same size as DRC...although with far more snow, and far less trees :)
I worked out that Russia, the all time big fish, has room for DRC more than 7 times!! WOW!!
Now to round this off; I'm visiting 203 countries. By averaging 7 days in each I will be away from home for 4 years. If I was to average a month in each then it would take me 16 years to reach home! So basically, colossal countries are no natural fit for a Saga like this ;)
Now im on "the right side" of the Congo River.
And get this: With 203 countries on my list I'm just below halfway now, since I've "already" visited 101 countries. This of course means that when I soon reach Angola that will be country 102, which also means that I will be past the halfway marker...and THAT means I will finally be in my way home!!
Best regards
Mr. Torbjørn C. Pedersen (Thor) - almost on my way home!
"A stranger is a friend you've never met before"
Once Upon A Saga


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How Cutting-Edge Technology & Science Are Powering The Future TPM Idealab
Conservatives and Liberals Might Differ In Brain Structure
Kanai and his colleagues at UCL gathered 90 volunteers and used Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) to analyze their brain structures as they answered questions geared towards political beliefs, says a UCL report. Their answer choices ranged on a five point scale from "very conservative" to "very liberal." According to the study, the volunteers with more conservative beliefs showed increased gray matter in the amygdala, an area of the brain charged with feeling and perceiving emotion. Those with more liberal leanings saw increased gray matter in the anterior cingulated cortex, a region associated with rational cognitive functions like decision-making.
Although, the results suggest that personality traits and political attitudes are linked to brain structure, it's still unclear whether the structural differences are the cause of later beliefs or, inversely, that the brain's structure changes as beliefs and traits develop.


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Discovered these at Cupcakestakethecake
Can't wait to make me some...yuuuuum!
Now to find a recipe!
Let's see we have
Others I discovered in my search
Bailey's Chocolate Chip Cheesecake
Mississippi Mudcake - no Bailey's here but would be good with Bailey's Frosting or sauce.
Bread & Butter Pudding with Bailey's Sauce
Mississippi Mudcake - no Bailey's here but would be good with Bailey's Frosting or sauce.
Bread & Butter Pudding with Bailey's Sauce
And While were talking Liqueurs
GiveawayOn the crafting home front we have the opportunity to win a free Quilt Kit
Hot Tutorials
excellent list of crafting info
6 Gored Skirt
Before you gorge yourself on Bailey's cupcakes make this skirt and put a picture of it on your fridge to remember to limit your cupcake intake so you'll still be able to fit in your new skirt!
When I get some time I plan to make this. I love this style & I might even start making these for teens if they don't change the child safety law or at least clarify it to the point of saying homemade goods are not the items in question.
Using a waist measurement of 30 inches, hip 42 inches and skirt length of 30 inches. Remember, when you make the skirt for yourself you simply use YOUR waist, hip, and skirt length measurements instead of these sample ones.
1. Begin with a "T" - top of the "T" = your waist measurement divided by 6.
1. Begin with a "T" - top of the "T" = your waist measurement divided by 6.
I.E. a waist of 30", 30/6=5. 5" across, then the original measure (30) is the length (vertical T-line drawn from the center of the top line)
2. The hipline is normally 8" below the waist (let's use 42" hips),
draw a horizontal line equal to (42/6 + 1/4") = 7 1/4".
3. Fill in the outside lines of the skirt, (so you have a rhombus shape) connecting the waist to hip to the bottom and draw in the bottom line.
4. Start at the top center of the "T" measure down 1/4" and make the slight waistline curve. The outside edges of the bottom are measured up 1/4" each and the slight hemline curve drawn.
5. Make your waistband to equal your waist measurement plus 2 1/8" (includes seam allowance), and the width is 3" (your finished waistband will be 1 1/2).
6. Seam allowance now measure & mark a 5/8" line above top line, below bottom line and to the outside of right and left lines. Now connect the lines (so outline -draw around- your pattern 5/8" from the pattern.)
7. Now cut 6 of the skirt pieces, for a 6-gore skirt. The vertical center line of the pattern will be used as the "straight grain" line, when placing the pattern on the fabric.


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Nice place! We bought a book, we had a beer - a perfect combination. The place seems to be popular with the locals and there are people inside and outside it at all times.
The one thing we didn't care for was a child sitting at the bar, making play-dow sculptures on the bartop. Seemed to be an OK thing here?
Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.


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Five most interesting search marketing news stories of the week
This week, Larry Kim peers into his crystal ball to make some outlandish predictions for SEO in 2017; Facebook is preparing to flip the switch on a mid-roll video ad offering; and AOL is offering up free wireless data as a reward for engaging with ads.
What are the top 10 most popular search engines?
You know, apart from the most obvious search engine. And possibly the second most obvious one too. In fact I'll start again, what are the eight most popular search engines after Google and Bing?
Verizon acquires Yahoo's operating business for $4.8 billion
Verizon has agreed to acquire Yahoo's operating business in a $4.8 billion cash deal, sealing the fate of one of the internet's pioneering giants.
Five of the most interesting SEM news stories of the week
Welcome to our weekly round-up of all the latest news and research from around the world of search marketing and beyond.
Google's CTR Dominance Is a Double-Edged Sword
Google trounces Yahoo and Bing when it comes to ad impressions and CTR, but the numbers are much closer than they were three years ago. Less competition - and lower CPC - is definitely a factor.
Could Microsoft and AOL Take on Google and Facebook?
To compete with Google and Facebook, Microsoft and AOL are training one another on their respective strengths: content and programmatic.
Bing Tests Emoji Keyboard
Not long after becoming the first search engine to allow users to search with emojis, Bing is testing an emoji keyboard.
5 Recent Updates from Bing Ads You Need to Know About
Universal Event Tracking and Shopping Campaigns are just two recent ad offerings from Bing, which now makes up 20 percent of the U.S. search share, according to comScore.
Bing Hits 20 Percent U.S. Search Share in March comScore Rankings
Google remains the runaway leader in comScore's monthly search rankings, but Microsoft continues to gain momentum.
Yahoo's Search Share on the Decline
After partnering with Mozilla in December, Yahoo saw its best share of the search market in years. But by February, that number was starting to fall, according to comScore research.


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DOBSON — Surry Community College students enrolled in Fine Arts in Visual Arts classes along with the Graphic Design students will exhibit their work from the fall semester beginning with a reception on Nov. 30 from 5 to 7 p.m. on the college's campus at 630 S. Main St., Dobson.
The showcase will highlight artwork from a variety of two- and three-dimensional drawing and design media including charcoal, graphite, ink, colored pencil, markers, acrylic painting, printmaking and clay. The work includes a variety of subject matter including still life studies, experimentation with the design elements and some creations from imagination. The work is a result of diligence and creativity from students enrolled in Introduction to Drawing, 2-Dimensional Design, Painting, Ceramics and Digital Photography classes.
To explain the benefits of students displaying their work, Surry's Associate in Fine Arts in Visual Arts Lead Instructor Danajean Mabry said, "When art students display their work for peers and community members, they begin to realize how art connects us as humans, allowing us to share ideas and appreciate the visual world around us."
This semester's exhibition will be the displayed in the new gallery space added to the third floor of the J-Building on the college's campus.
Mabry expressed excitement for the addition of a gallery to the J-Building where many fine arts classes are held.
She said, "I love to see our students stopping in the hallway to look more closely at a photograph or work of art. Sometimes I hear students talking among themselves about a piece that made them laugh or think deeply about something, and this is when I realize how important it is to keep student artwork on display."
During the opening reception, hosted by Surry's Visual Arts Club, the college's art studios will be open to the public along with the gallery space. Student artists will also be on hand to answer questions and provide comments about their work. The exhibition will remain available for viewing in the gallery space during the college's operating hours through Dec. 12.
For more information, contact Danajean Mabry at email@example.com or 336-386-3284. Follow the program on Facebook and Instagram @surryfinearts.


text: So Militant SW called today to let me know that difficult child II is being released from day therapy on Monday. She has spoken to his counselor and at home therapist and I need to know they all are one the same page and this is a "family problem" (which is bologna). Then she proceeds to admitt that difficult child II still goes from 1 - 10 (skipping all numbers in between) and over reacts to the smallest of stressors. Well if it's a "family problem", why does it still happen when he's everywhere else? And I need to accept that I will have to call the police when he crosses the line. This is what my $$$$ get's me? When I as ask about the cognitive distortion, she again blames it on the stressors at home. difficult child II in 1st grade started blowing up in class at school (not home), hitting himself in the head and crying and screaming, this is what started the whole process of "there is a problem". Does this lady ever think that difficult child II may have caused some of these "stressors"? I have always held to consequences and rewards, I am not a yeller (ok well sometimes, but usually no) d/h is intense but rarely involved anyways. I have done everything and anything and it's not like I am in denial that there's a problem here! It's not like the kid is being raised in a crack house where there's physical abuse, but no it's a "family problem" sorry venting, if d/h was not an alcoholic, would she stills say this? I am also offended that she keeps insisting my "anxiety" affects difficult child II. You try to be honest about things and they turn it around on you and there you go a "family problem" sorry venting....good riddens militant SW come Monday!


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EyeSafe 25 Micron Core Holmium-Doped LMA Double Clad Fiber
True LMA fiber featuring a unique low NA (< 0.1) high concentration Ho-doped core design. The Ho-doped fiber can be pumped by a Tm-doped fiber laser at ~1950-nm and can achieve 60% efficiency. The high NA (0.46) large pump cladding waveguide allows for efficient coupling of high pump powers. The large core diameter (25 μm) maintains a large mode field diameter and short device length, thereby minimizing non-linear effects such as SBS and SRS.
Optical Specifications
Geometrical & Mechanical Specifications
Coating Requirements: Low-index polymer coating.
Features & Benefits
- Unique low NA Ho-doped core design — Robust single-mode beam quality
- NuCOAT fluoroacrylate coating — Greater fiber durability in extreme environmental operating & storage conditions
- High pump absorption — Short fiber length, efficient lasing in the ~2 μm window
Typical Applications
- High power CW and pulsed EyeSafe (~2 μm) lasers and amplifiers
- EyeSafe industrial and medical lasers
- Military and commercial LIDAR
- ~2 μm output TEM00 fiber lasers for pumping solid state crystal lasers
Nufern's optical fiber products, including rare-earth doped, gyro, polarization-maintaining, radiation resistant, photosensitive, multimode and single mode, and any other optical fiber product including custom optical fibers, may be covered by one or more of the following pending or issued U.S. Patents, each of which is owned by or licensed by Nufern:
6,779,364; 6,832,026; 6,904,214; 6,950,586; 7,003,206; 7,050,686; 7,062,137; 7,110,647; 7,116,887; 7,167,621; 7,317,857; 7,371,019; 7,386,210; 7,400,812; 7,483,610; 7,634,164; 7,724,422; 5,949,941 (licensed from Furukawa Electric Co. of North America).
Moreover, use of Nufern's optical fiber products, including modifications thereof, combinations with other products, or certain specific uses can necessitate additional customer licensing, particularly with respect to U.S. Patent nos. 5,818,630 (IMRA America, Inc.) and 6,496,301 (The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Navy). See the terms and conditions specific to your purchase.


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In the aftermath of a recent deadly gun battle in Gurdaspur, a district in the Northwest corner of India, residents from cities in the surrounding area were instructed to report any suspicious activity to authorities. So this past May 25th in Amritsar, India, when Harbans Lal Saini saw what looked like an outsider just beyond his property, he immediately did as directed. He alerted the local police.
The police took the shady foreigner into custody, claiming that they were able to confirm alien nativity through discernable physical traits. They then frisked the imposter and found a suspicious ring on its foot and a Pakistani address and phone number inscribed on its feathers. This was far from the first time that a homing pigeon had been detained under suspicion of espionage.
Homing pigeons were first used as a method of communication 3,000 years ago by the Egyptian and Persian empires because their postal swiftness was far superior to that of the human on horseback. And so it was that as other nations discovered the homing pigeon's inclination for long distance messaging, this unlikely bird became a disseminator of some of mankind's most important and historical news.
In 776 BC, for example, a homing pigeon circulated the outcome of the first Olympic Games. In 1815 a pigeon spread the word of Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo. And because they were faster than trains, in 1849 pigeons gave Paul Reuter the advantage he needed to edge out the competition and begin the news wire service, Reuters. By the mid 19th century, however, homing pigeons everywhere were promptly dismissed by the media as developments in wireless telegraphy threatened to replace them. But in due time, the pigeon's innate ability to home with astonishing accuracy and velocity would once again be coveted.
In World War I a platoon of trained pigeons joined the 77th division for the Battle of Argonne. German soldiers had surrounded a missing battalion of Allied forces when a pigeon named Cheri Ami flew through German gunfire and, despite taking a bullet in the breast and sustaining injuries that blinded one eye and nearly took off a leg, successfully delivered a message communicating the missing battalion's position. Because this missing Allied battalion was taking friendly fire, by delivering the message Cheri Ami the pigeon saved the lives of 200 soldiers. Ami succumbed to its wounds shortly after the war, but it can still be appreciated at the Smithsonian Museum of American History where its body is stuffed and on display. Also during World War II, as part of their intelligence gathering, Allied Forces air-dropped homing pigeons behind enemy lines so locals could relay information on troop movements.
When they weren't saving lives, pigeons were–and still are–sources of big money and big fun, too (and big corporate projects as Michael Lowe wrote a blog post about). Pigeon racing has been an international sport for nearly two centuries with substantial cash prizes at stake for the owners of pigeons that are the most efficient in both flying and homing. (Clich here to read Alisa Opar's Post about Mike Tyson's new pigeon racing reality show)
The fact that pigeons have an uncanny ability to find their way has been known for a few millennia, but exactly how pigeons home is still a mystery. In his research study Homing Pigeons: Observations, Experiments, and Confusions, ornithologist Charles Walcott estimates that pigeons are equipped with a magnetic compass. But judging from the title of a study that includes the word "confusion," and by statements in his concluding summary— "Because they generally home successfully from any direction and distance from the loft, without requiring information on the outward journey, it seems likely that they use some form of coordinate system."—it seems that Walcott is still baffled.
In her new book , I am Not a Number Claire Wolfe predicted that because wire-tapping and email hacking has become more prevalent, the day will come when pigeons are once again needed as message carriers - although, given the recent incident in India, it's possible the day has already arrived.
Pigeons have been detained elsewhere too. Two years ago in Iran, two pigeons with mysterious markings were found near a nuclear facility in Natanz and were apprehended by Iranian authorities for suspected spying.
As for the fate of the alleged undercover pigeon in India, when last reported by a Sri Lankan Newspaper, the suspect was transported 40 kilometers to a police station in Ramdas, where it was being held. Even if this supposed Pakistani spy pigeon, or the two homing pigeons in Iran, were falsely accused of espionage–a very likely scenario–it is clear from the attention and suspicion they have garnered that the pigeon still is, and perhaps always will be, far more than just a feckless defecator that entertains old men on park benches.
(Read about another headline making pigeon named Boomerang)