Blog Categories

Global Warming

Looks like global warming is not all man-made and mankind can actually do something to help.  Cut down the lianas vines and shred them to use as mulch.  Let’s organize lianas vine cutting safaris.  We can form groups to live in the jungles for weeks at a time chopping these down.  Come on everyone, it’s for the future of Mother Earth, we’ve got to do something!  We know we can’t count on Al Gore, Brad Pitt, HiLIARy Clinton, Michael Moore to give up their private jets, so it’s up to us.

Nations around the world are attempting to come up with an agreement to curb CO2 emissions. All the while vines are strangling jungles, reducing their ability to recycle Co2.

The specific plants at blame are lianas vines, which are commonly found in tropical rain forests across the world. ‘Lianas’ is not refer a taxonomic group of specific plants, but instead is more akin to “shrub” or “tree.”  Lianas vines are long-stemmed, woody vines that crawl up trees and into canopies.

Now these vines are threatening to reduce the ability of jungles to store and recycle carbon. Researchers believe that the lianas vines, which are spreading aggressively across tropical rain forests, could reduce the overall Co2 recycling ability of tropical forests by 35 percent.

http://www.natureworldreport.com/2015/10/meet-the-newest-climate-change-villain-lianas-vines/

(Disclaimer: if sarcasm was not detected in the first paragraph, it should have been)

Quotes out of Context

Another series of quotes noted and shared here that are shown completely out of context from the business meeting in which they were heard.

He’s a champion vegetable grower,
– John Schneider

Is it the size of his vegetables?
– Erica Hill

This is the kind of thing you can read on the plane or something like that.
– John Schneider

I probably couldn’t handle 60 emails a day.
– John Schneider

Gonna spend a lot of time herding cats.
– Lee King

You can’t read this.
– Lee King

I’d be a moron if I didn’t talk about this circle.
– Lee King

All we need is 300 RFPs and it will get us to $500 million and we’ll be happy.
– Lee King

The heart – can’t live without it.
– Lee King

Check back for more postings. If your name is mentioned and you’d like it removed, please email me at chris@focmnetworking.com and I’ll give your request strong consideration and may even might possibly act on it. Seriously, though I will remove it if you want me to.

Background: This all started at a US Sales meeting and in order to stay focused on what was being said, I started writing down the business cliches, like “let’s circle the wagons”, “let’s table that”, “always be closing” and then count how many times they were said. As I began paying attention, I would hear a phrase that was appropriate for the context in which it was said, but wow, it sure was amusing to see the phrase just sitting there by itself. That lead me to put them into a slide show show so the phrase was seen in its purest form along with the person who said it.  As this practice became known, the slide set became the unofficial and humorous wrap-up presentation, kind of a summary of the things stated over the course of the meeting.

Job Opportunities – Clinical Data Managers

FOCM Member in good standing, Karen McPoyle heads up Data Management at Bioclinica in Audubon, PA.  They are looking for Clinical Data Managers. CRO experience preferred! Only energetic, hard working, ambitious, ethical, and honest people need apply! Contact Karen.mcpoyle@bioclinica.com

If anyone knows experienced people with the same traits above in IVR/IRT arena please contact Kevin.leather@bioclinica.com

Or if you prefer, you can send resumes to me at chris@focmnetworking.com  and I will get them to them.

Where is the outrage!

Why do they do this?  Dredging up the past that we’re trying to eliminate from our shameful history as a nation.  These cannons were used by traitors to America.   Digging them up to put in a museum is an affront to all peace-loving Americans!!!  Join me at “signmypetition.com” or visit: stampouthistory.com to stop this shameful divisive baiting.

http://www.thestate.com/news/local/article36910053.html

#stampouthistory

#ilovesarcasm

 

Renaming the butterfly

Around Labor Day every year in Wilmington, NC thousands of little yellow butterflies show up.  In the back yard one day, as several were fluttering about, I got to thinking about the name butterfly and I wondered if they weren’t originally called flutterbies and one day someone mixed it up and said butterfly.  I suppose butterfly came from these creatures being the color of butter and they fly.  But for me, I now call them flutterbies, because that’s what they do, they flutter by.

Flutterby
Flutterby

FOCM Remembers Yogi Berra

Yogi Berra passed away on September 22, at age 90.  Yogi is one of the MLB’s greatest catchers of all time.  He played for the New York Yankees and played in 14 World Series.  He is also quite well known for making amusing statements, such as:

  • “It ain’t over till it’s over”
  • “Baseball is ninety percent mental and the other half is phyical.”
  • “When you come to a fork in the road, take it.”
  • “You can observe a lot by just watching.”
  • “All pitchers are liars or crybabies.”
  • “The lousy teams are good this year.”
  • “I’m not going to buy my kids an encyclopedia. Let them walk to school like I did.”
  • “The future ain’t what it used to be.”
  • “Why buy good luggage, you only use it when you travel.”
  • “Nobody goes there any more, it’s too crowded.”
  • “It gets late early out here.”
  • “A nickel ain’t worth a dime anymore.”
  • “We made too many wrong mistakes.”
  • “He hits from both sides of the plate. He’s amphibious.”
  • “I always thought that record would stand until it was broken.”

Coaching Donald Trump

A long-time friend of mine, DJ Mitsch is a Master Certified Coach and along with her husband Barry Mitsch, they run Pyramid Resource Group (http://www.pyramidresource.com/).  DJ wrote the blog below regarding what she would say if she were asked to coach Donald Trump.  I found it to be well-written and if Donald Trump were to listen, it would benefit his campaign.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/what-would-i-say-asked-coach-donald-trump-darelyn-dj-mitsch?trk=hb_ntf_MEGAPHONE_ARTICLE_POST

Ahmed’s Clock

The picture below is of a clock manufactured by a 14 year old Muslim male, named Ahmed Mohamed.  Regardless of his skin color, name and religion the school’s administration had every rational reason to be concerned.  I like how quick people were to attribute it to prejudice, Islamophobia, etc.  Remember Columbine, those guys brought propane bombs to their high school.

On another note – has no one in the Obama Administration watched Homeland or American Sniper??  By inviting the kid to the White House and to Facebook headquarters is just what Carrie Mathison has been worried about.  Now the kid will be on the inside of security just like Nicholas Brody.  Al- Qaeda or Isis merely switches out his clock for an explosive device.  I hope to hell they sweep that case.  Okay, I’m just playing the paranoid conspiracy theorist here to make a point. I don’t actually  believe that’s what this is.

Come on people, if you take a device that looks like this to school, you should expect to be questioned.  Add to that  – if you’re Muslim and your name is Ahmed Mohamed that will not surprisingly make other alarms go off in peoples’ heads. It’s unfortunate, but as long as Islamic extremists continue killing non-Muslims, this is the level of concern we have to live with .

Ahmed's Clock
Ahmed’s Clock

Donald Trump in Texas

What the hell was that Donald Trump speech in Texas about?  It is impressive that he can do all that with a few notes on a piece of paper.  But then again, he spent the first 30 minutes talking about himself and praising or criticizing others.  You gotta (okay, you don’t gotta) admit that he makes it all sound do-able.  But when he described how he’d tell and strong-arm Ford Motor Company not to locate a plant in Mexico, I was reminded that Republicans have been bemoaning that President Obama has been doing just that with miles per gallon requirements, alternative energy, etc. Republicans holler “get the government out of our business” and yet they were applauding Trump’s story.  It sounded more like something Bernie Sanders would say, didn’t it? – making those evil companies do what we say is best for them.

FOCM Member Card Ceremony

On February 24, 2015 at the SCOPE Conference in Orlando, Laura London, an outstanding Business Development Professional received her FOCM card in a ceremony that brought tears to everyone’s eyes who witnessed it.  The joy on her face is evident.  At the time Laura was with WCCT, she has since joined MedPace, where FOCM is certain she is having much success.

Laura London
Laura London FOCM Card Ceremony