Blog categories | FOCM Networking

Syrian Refugees and POTUS

President Obama’s response to the radical Islamic terrorist attack in Paris is shocking to me. He appears angrier and more passionate in his words towards those who think we should put a hold on allowing refugees into America than he is against the terrorists. He called the attack a “setback” whereas other leaders called it things like “a war on humanity” “war with Islam”.

We just saw how five Syrian refugee men (military age men: ages 18-35) with fake Greek passports were caught in Honduras trying to get to the US. HELLO! There is no database in Syria of who their citizens are, so there’s no way we can investigate them for allowing them here.

It is a mess of a situation, but I feel that NATO and the UN should create a safe zone in Syria, so they can stay in their country.

FOCM Spring Party

On March 25 of this year, FOCM member Rosina Pavia graciously opened her house for a FOCM spring social. We had a great turnout and a number of people got their FOCM membership cards.

In attendance were: Phil and June Keicher, Linda Gala, Colleen Wood, Mike Burrows, Vince Hoefling, Mike Markowitz, Mark Paul, Freddy Byrth, Bill Duval, Pete Nieto, Erich McGilvreay, Jim Phillips, Dorothy Brown and Gayle Grandinetti. A happy bunch of people for sure.

The whole group, minus photographer Vince Hoefling

Dorothy Brown received her card at the OCT conference

FOCM New Member Ceremony

On March 25, 2015 at the Arena International Outsourcing in Clinical Trials Southeast conference held in Cary, NC two people received their FOCM Cards.

Greg Howell of Fisher Clinical Services and Maria Frane, then of Pharm-Olam and now at West Coast Clinical Trials received their membership cards. The ceremony brought the entire conference (hey, that’s how I remember it) to a stop as all eyes focused on the intensely emotional ceremony. Greg’s exuberant joy is quite visible and the photo captured Maria’s moment of realization of the momentousness of the occasion.

I also captured long-standing FOCM members Kim Martinez, Erin Tabet and Mike Jones sharing industry secrets or old ICON stories, knowing they’re protected by the FOCM Umbrella of Implied Confidentiality.

FOCM Networking Event Pictures

March 23 -25, 2015 found me in the Raleigh/Durham area for Arena International’s Outsourcing in Clinical Trials Southeast Conference.

On the night of March 23, a FOCM networking event was held at Rally Point Sports Bar in Cary, NC. It turned out to be the last NC FOCM event for Heather Wallace before she moved to Arizona. Heather greets Kelly O’Brien by jumping in to her arms, which Kelly handles with agility.

Chad Pollio, Kelly and I paid our respect to Kevin Boos (absent) by affecting the Boos Pose of Thoughtful Inebriation.

Chad Pollio, Kelly O'Brien, Me — Chad Pollio, Kelly O’Brien, Me

Bumper Sticker

Spotted this bumper sticker in Wilmington, NC – it made me laugh

He takes cares of his beaches — I take care of my beaches

Things you learn in an airport bar

So there I was – sitting in an airport bar – nothing unusual about that. Having recently read Porter Gale’s book: Your Network Is Your Net Worth in which she mentions a future book she’s working on. That one will be titled something like: Conversations with the person in seat 4A. In her travels, she made a point to talk to the person next to her and it has created interesting opportunities.

So, not shy about talking to people, I ask the guy next to me where he’s going and where he’s coming from. Turns out he does sound and light production at concerts and has been doing so for 30+ years and was returning from a large multiple performer event.

Interesting insight into two performers: Lady Gaga and Drake.

Nothing but compliments for Lady Gaga, tireless rehearser, respectful and considerate to the crews.

Drake, on the other hand, a complete jackass – shows up late, demands big changes to things he’d insisted on prior to arriving, rude to the crews.

So keep this in mind when buying music.

Media’s Liberal Bias Explained

If you have ever wondered why the press is so biased against conservative groups or anything which does not conform to their usual liberal thought this should help you understand. It explains why the press is silent on things like: murder rate in Chicago despite tight gun control, sanctuary cities, crimes by illegal aliens, etc.

ABC News executive producer Ian Cameron is married to Susan Rice, National Security Adviser.

CBS President David Rhodes is the brother of Ben Rhodes, Obama’s Deputy National Security Adviser for Strategic Communications.

ABC News correspondent Claire Shipman is married to former Whitehouse Press Secretary Jay Carney.

ABC News and Univision reporter Matthew Jaffe is married to Katie Hogan, Obama’s Deputy Press Secretary.

ABC President Ben Sherwood is the brother of Obama’s Special Adviser Elizabeth Sherwood.

CNN President Virginia Moseley is married to former Hillary Clinton’s Deputy Secretary Tom Nides.

This may also explain the lack of interest in HilLIARy’s private email, lies about Benghazi, President Obama’s not speaking out about deaths of police officers, etc., etc., etc., etc., etc.,……..

Things to think about

Spotted these in Hardy Diagnostics eNewsletter called MicroBytes

Things to think about:

Why isn’t 11 pronounced onety one?

“I am” is reportedly the shortest sentence in the English language. Do you think that “I do” is the longest sentence?

If lawyers are disbarred and clergymen defrocked, doesn’t it make sense that electricians can be delighted, musicians denoted, cowboys deranged, models deposed, tree surgeons debarked, and dry cleaners depressed?

Do Roman paramedics refer to IV’s as “4’s”?

Joke of the Day

spotted this “funny” on my friend, Geoff Johnson’s Facebook page

A Police STOP at 2 AM
An elderly man is stopped by the police around 2 a.m. and is asked where he is going at this time of night.
The man replies, “I am on my way to a lecture about alcohol abuse and the effects it has on the human body, as well as smoking and staying out late.”
The officer then asks, “Really? Who is giving that lecture at this time of night?”
The man replies, “That would be my wife.”

Job Opportunities in Clinical Research

My good friend and FOCM member in good standing, Joanna Williams, works at Lexitas Pharma Services. They have job openings they are seeking to fill. See info below for details:

Lexitas Pharma Services, Inc. is hiring! Lexitas is an Ophthalmology-focused CRO based in Durham, NC. We are a small, dynamic company focused on partnering with our customers to provide tailored clinical operations services, and we are looking for CRAs and clinical study managers to grow our team.

CRAs can be seeking permanent or contract positions – both are available. CRAs need to have at least 2-3 years of experience, and they must have Ophthalmology experience. We are interested in expanding our contract CRA coverage on the West Coast as well as in the Midwest and Texas, but any location will be considered.

Clinical study managers need to have at least 2-3 years of experience managing clinical trials with some experience in ophthalmology. An ideal candidate will be one who is comfortable in a fast-paced, small company environment and embraces the opportunity to wear many hats. The Lexitas study managers are proactive problem solvers who take initiative to do what needs to be done to delight their customers and provide strong team leadership.

Please forward resumes to jobs@lexitaspharma.com and mention FOCM.

For more company information, please check out our website: http://www.lexitaspharma.com/

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