Groupon, Once A Great Idea–Now, Not So Much
Do you remember getting those daily emails from Groupon back a few years ago? I did too. Boy what a star the company was–the fastest growing company in the history of the US, I was told at a conference where their CFO spoke glowingly, bragging about the thousands of new […]
JC Penney: How to Destroy a Beloved Department Store
Ron Johnson is becoming the laughing stock of retail, as he continues his merry ways, destroying what was once one of the best performing stores in the US, JC Penney. Johnson became the Penney’s CEO last year, after years working for Apple Computer where he ran their retail stores. He […]
‘Food Inc’ Horrifies Us, then Provides Inspiration
We watched the documentary “Food Inc” tonight and it resonated with both of us, thinking back on the dinner that preceded the showing of the film about America’s industrial food production system. I had stopped by M&M Green Valley Produce, a little farmstand and store on Rte 5 in South […]
Tanglewood and Floating the Deerfield: Summer Essentials
This summer I took my companion to two places that to me are what summer is all about in the western Massachusetts. Like the great song by Jonathan Richman, “That Summer Feeling,” what is more summer than a Friday night picnic on the lawn at Tanglewood? Or a leisurely float […]
Mike Re-invented Himself By Buying Low at Tag Sales, Selling High on eBay
I read today’s Recorder and saw the Tag Sale Section. Then I thought about my friend Mike, who lost his job last month. It’s not bad at all–he cursed out his boss, they canned his ass, and now, well he seems lighter on his feet and happier! I asked him […]
Brad Shepard Sings The Songs We Used to Hear
You gotta hand it to Brad Shepard–he’s got a lot of nerve getting up there on stage and singing the songs we all try to croon in the shower live in front an audience. But he pulls it off–he loves the songs, knows the music, and has a fine voice. […]
Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives of North Koreans are Sad Indeed
I’m reading a book that gives me nightmares, yet it’s so compelling a story I have to keep reading. It’s an account of life in North Korea based on interviews with refugees who have defected to South Korea. It’s called Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Koreaby Barbara Demick. […]
The Wall Street Journal: Defending My Newspaper Choice
The other day I was reading my newspaper at my girlfriend’s brother’s new house in Amherst when he turned to me and said, boldly, “you subscribe to that paper?” I answered yes, I get the Wall Street Journal mailed to me six days a week, and it’s one of my […]