Adventures In Fruity Drink Land

[hobie16]

Are bee's banned as well?

Funny you should ask. Bees are everywhere in Hawaii but they're also threatened just like the rest of the world. Local bee keepers are now asking people not to trim seed pods off of palm trees so they have something to feed on.

We have seven royal palms around the front of the house. The seed pods on them are so big that, when they pop open, there are so many bees that it sounds like a chain saw at full throttle.

We were also informed today that a house down the street that has been allowed to go to seed has a hive with approximately 35,000 bees in it. A local bee keeper is going to move the hive next week. If something goes wrong the bees will swarm and possibly take up residence in another house. We're to keep the pooches inside while this is going on. I'm thinking we decamp to the Hyatt until it's all clear.

[hobie16]

Hawaii ranked No. 50 out of 50 states in CNBC “America’s Top States for Business in 2013” — a ranking that took 51 measures of competitiveness into account that were then separated into 10 broad categories, weighted based on how frequently they are cited in state economic development marketing materials.

• Cost of doing business: 48;
• Economy: 41;
• Infrastructure: 50; The roads suck and everything rusts from the salt air.
• Workforce: 45;
• Quality of life: 1; Yeah Baby!!
• Technology and innovation: 45; This drives me kraaazzy!!
• Business friendliness: 40;
• Education: 40; We've probably got more private schools per capita than any other state.
• Cost of living: 50; No kiddin'!
• Access to capital: 39.

[YANXWIN]

I've never been, but everyone I have ever met from there seems friendly. I would think business environment would be pretty high. Have you ever dealt with someone from NYC? There is #50 right there.

[hobie16]

I've never been, but everyone I have ever met from there seems friendly. I would think business environment would be pretty high. Have you ever dealt with someone from NYC? There is #50 right there.

It's not the people it's the government regulations and tax structure that are the issue. As for the New Yorkers, you give them what they're giving and they immediately back off.

I was on a conference call with a New York customer. At our end were engineers, sales guys and our VP of sales. The guy from NY started what sounded like a chant with his demands. We're all looking at each other trying not to laugh. The VP chanted right back at him and he folded like a bad hand in poker. There's a reason our VP eventually became president of the company.

[YANXWIN]

Isn't this the same tactic used in elementary and junior high to combat bullies? I'm on board.

[hobie16]

Isn't this the same tactic used in elementary and junior high to combat bullies? I'm on board.

I believe what you're saying is don't stand there and take it. I'm on board too. You may fight back and lose but the bully will think twice before starting another fight. His dim bulb may be just bright enough to realize you might get a punch in that will do some damage.

[YANXWIN]

Ding ding ding ding!!! We have a winner. There is a little bit of a line to be drawn, and I don't want my kids to become the bully, but I do want them to stand up for what is right and not be pushed around. I want them to be assertive without being aggressive. I want them to share and give people the benefit of the doubt without being walked all over. Hard lessons to teach, but worthwhile in the end.

[bookbabe]

We do a lot of work at my high school on the "stand up, speak up" theme. The idea is not so much that students should themselves fight back against people that are bullying them, but that everyone else around should speak up and let the bully know that their behaviour is not acceptable. Sort of a social/peer pressure approach to the issue...seems to work pretty well from what I've seen so far...

[hobie16]

There's a private school up the road that makes it very clear to the students and parents that bullying will not be tolerated and there will be no second chances. A few kids thought it was an empty threat and got expelled. And, their parents, by contract, got no tuition refund. It's a fairly big chunk of change.

[hobie16]

This is more like a Stupid Parents Who Don't Read Their Email Trick.

We normally hold two junior sailing classes every summer. Add those to adult sailing classes every Sunday for the last three months, junior sailing team every Tuesday and planning for a huge regatta to be held mid September, and I'm pretty busy.

The club secretary informed us that she had a huge backlog of kids who wanted to take the class and was there any way we could do a third. As the Fleet Captain was heading to the Caribbean for a family vacation I caved and said I would head it up but only if registration was limited to 20 kids. We ended up with 22 which was okay.

Monday, the first day of class, the secretary informs me that some woman who just realized class was starting in 45 minutes and had just read the email, wanted her two kids admitted. She was told no. She then announced that she was an event planner, that there were always cancellations and she would be arriving shortly to insert her kids into the vacancies.

Luckily, our secretary, who is very sweet and always has a smile, can also say no in a way that it makes it perfectly clear that no is the answer.

Class starts, we break the kids up into three groups for dry land instruction and I start my module. Right in the middle of it I'm suddenly interrupted by this woman screeching to another woman on the second floor of the restaurant next door, "They won't let my kids in because the class is full! I'm pissed!!"

The kids all start laughing. I don't know if it was the kids laughing or me giving her the stink eye but she got red in the face and beat a hasty retreat.