28 Days to Christmas?

We warned you that Christmas was on its way and then somebody sent me a notification that we only had twenty-eight days left before Santa would be coming down our chimney.  Well, we've been fooling around with the holidays for a few years now and thought we'd let you know that nobody around here likes to remove the lights from a pre-lit tree!  Check out the GHC home blog to read more.

Georgianna Hardware Corporation

XBOX ONE

The XBOX ONE

Base msrp, $500 USD

Quick heads up for parents with kid/s under 17 check the ESRB here before you buy a game!

Here we are again and we are moving on to the XBOX ONE. This has the same Triple A titles offered on Sony's PlayStation4, Assassins Creed 4, Battlefield 4, Call of Duty Ghosts, Fifa 14, and many more. These games are sold separately at a price of $60 USD each and expansions to these Triple A games are available at addition cost.

There are six Day One exclusives for the XBOX ONE they are, Deadrising 3, Fighter Within, Forza Motorsport 5, Ryse: Son of Rome, Zoo Tycoon, and Zumba Fitness: World Party. XBOX Launch Window exclusives are Kinect Sports: Rivals, and Titanfall. There are the games available for Digital Download, the games available Day One are: Crimson Dragon, Loco Cycle, Killer Instinct, and Powerstar Golf. In the Launch window there is, Minecraft XBOX ONE edition, Peggle 2, and Project Spark. The “Launch Window” that Microsoft refers to is an undetermined length of time.

There will be more titles coming out within two to six months after the game developers have time to work with the new platforms more.

The XBOX ONE comes with the Kinect and one controller and to play online requires a XBOX Live Gold membership at $60 USD MSRP for twelve months.

If you would like to get a second controller it is $60 MSRP.

A cool feature that the XBOX ONE and the XBOX 360 have is SmartGlass that allows a Windows Phone, Windows 8, iOS, and Android devices to be used as a second screen.

The XBOX ONE will be able to stream to Twitch only if you have a Gold membership and the Upload Studio app lets you edit and share clips from the past five minutes of game-play footage that is automatically recorded by the console.

To sum this up it is about the same as the PlayStation 4. It has some good features like the SmartGlass and the Kinect which has voice activation.

The base cost of the consoles will come down in price six to twelve months after the launch. Games will be the same price across all of the platforms and the controllers will stay the same for a while. You will probably be able to find sales on them in a few months.

The final price of the XBox One Console, one game, a second controller, and the XBOX Live Gold 12 Month membership is $680 USD.

Something else to consider is that you can not upgrade either console to get more performance out of it. There is also a limit on the hard drive for the XBOX ONE but the PS4 can be changed out for a larger one.
[Of course, this is subject to change!]

In the next blog I will cover the PC and I will let you know the pros and cons of
 choosing to use it for gaming purposes.

Georgianna Hardware Corporation

PlayStation 4

As we approach the holidays in the next few weeks I would like to offer some ideas for people looking to get a game system for a loved one. This will be the first of three posts that will offer information about each unit. Please remember that although I have grown to prefer PC gaming I did start out using consoles and the information here is only provided to you to assist you in making your own decision.

Lets start with the PS4

*msrp is around $399 USD

Quick heads up for parents with kid/s under 17 check 
the ESRB here before you buy a game!

You can get Triple A titles like Assassins Creed 4, Battlefield 4, Call of Duty Ghosts, Fifa 14, and many more, this is the same for the XBOX ONE and PC. These games are sold separately at a price of $60 USD each and expansions to these Triple A games can be at addition cost.

There are two Day One exclusive titles so far on the PS4, Killzone Shadow Fall and KNACK.

There will also be digital launch titles such as WAR THUNDER, Planet side 2, WARFRAM, and Blacklight Retribution. These are digital downloads but not all games are available as a digital download. There are many games available for the Sony PS4, some as a hard copy disc and others as a digital download. As for game distribution, it's easiest to compare the release of games to the release of movies. The game manufacturer chooses what platforms the game will be available for. There is a bit of rivalry among manufactures but in the gaming world what matter is being able to play the game with your friends. If I don't have the same gaming console and game as my friend does, we will not be able to play the game together. The consoles are not compatible.

The PS4 will also let you live stream on Twitch and Ustream this will vary in the ability to do so on different internet speeds.

The PlayStation Camera is a motion sensing input device much like that of the XBOX 360 Kinect, the PlayStation Camera is sold separately the MSRP is $60 USD.

The PlayStation 4 will require PlayStation Plus membership in order to play online it is an additional $60 USD. With the membership you do get free games and discounts on games in the PlayStation Store, and PlayStation Plus works with PS3, PS4, and PS Vita.

The PS4 comes with one controller. Additional controllers can be purchased separately. Sadly, the controller from the PS3 will not work with the PS4.

Base price for the PS4, second controller, a single game, motion sensor, and a Plus yearly subscription comes to $630.00. In my experience I allow plus or minus ten percent to the purchase price.

There are a few more features that I did not discuss but they of course come at a cost.

To wrap it all up it is good for gaming and watching movies it can play blue-rays/dvds and will for many years until the next PlayStation comes out.

My next blog will cover the XBOX ONE.

When It Comes To Horses, Love Knows No Boundaries

Billie Mitchell has published a book which focuses on horses. Her journey takes us from Georgia where she volunteers at Iron Gait Percherons Draft Horse Rescue in Waleska, GA to New Mexico where she captures the beauty of wild horses. Billie explains to readers that she experienced a fear of horses and through her work assisting with the care of horses at the horse rescue she not only learned to manage her fear but has had the fortunate experience of learning how these beautiful animals have kind hearts and open minds.  The published photos capture the true essence of her love for the horses as well as the love the horses share with her.

Volunteering is not new to Billie Mitchell.  In the past she has volunteered with programs such as the Craft Emergency Relief Fund, the Olympics, the Special Olympics of Atlanta, and she also served as a teacher in Belize.  Her participation at Iron Gait Percherons Draft Horse Rescue includes rescuing and transporting horses, daily care of horses, and fundraising.

Love Knows No Boundaries is available through Blurb, one of our favorite self publishing companies. The author is generously donating all proceeds to Iron Gait Percherons Horse Rescue so they can continue their work of rescuing horses that are in need.   

Autism, Temple Grandin

Off topic again but I have been thinking about a TED video that I watched last night. My niece recommended a movie that she had watched for school entitled Temple Grandin, Thinking In Pictures My Life With Autism. This is an HBO movie and since my niece was so impressed I searched Google and found a link for a TED video. (I have shared the link below.)

So today I couldn't help but to think about folks that I have known that have a child in their life that has been diagnosed with autism. Maybe it was a friend's child, a niece or nephew, a grandchild or a neighbor's child but for some reason I have been involved in many conversations about autism and as memories kept coming back to me today I was glad that I had taken the twenty minutes to watch the TED video but I was still bothered because I know that there are many folks out there that have huge concern for the well being of a young loved one.

Autism is defined as a disorder of neural development. That's a big pill to swallow when you care about a young person. My involvement in home education probably allowed more time for conversations about autism as home education is a decent alternative to public education but all the conversations in the world won't cure a child of autism.

My teenage children laugh at me for having obsessive-compulsive disorder in which sufferers commonly have personality traits such as high attention to detail, avoidance of risk and a tendency to take time in making decisions. Yep, that's me and as I write this I catch myself smiling. For the first ten years of my children's lives I blamed it all on the cat by telling them that the cat found it to be annoying when the house was a mess.

Both diagnosable problems use the word disorder. There are plenty of other disorders too. Wikipedia has a whole list. I don't believe that my wanting a clean house and a happy cat was abnormal and I do not believe that children diagnosed with autism are abnormal.  I've always believed that autistic children were just wired differently. Temple Grandin showed us the proof in her TED lecture. 

Please take the time to watch the video.  You'll have a new perspective tomorrow.

Temple Grandin, The World Needs All Kinds of Minds

Made In America

I'm not so sure how it happened, but it did. For some reason when I visited with #FBLT on Twitter today I ran across clothing companies that are located in America. This is great news for production in the United States! The reshoring effort seems to be paying off and Made In The USA has meaning again.

One business that I ran across is http://www.bluerdenim.com/. Bluer is true premium denim that is Made in America. Their “Buy one, Give One” program offers the buyer an easy way to participate in the Bluer philanthropic program. Bluer also covers each denim product it sells with a one year warranty against damage or defects that result from normal wear.

I also learned about http://www.overunderclothing.com/. Over Under Clothing has premium quality, Made In The USA designs, offers custom sizing and care instructions, and actually prewashes each tee-shirt to assure a true fit. The giving back program at Over Under Clothing specifically focuses on at risk dogs and they personalize each purchase by donating to at risk dogs in your area.

These two companies exemplify the integrity and selflessness that Americans have. They are a true inspiration in helping others to achieve the American dream.  

www.georgiannahardwarecorporation.com

Jobs

I received a notification from Rich Products about the jobs that they have available.  Sadly, not all of the links came through on the notification so I searched for Rich Products to find easy access for you.  If you think you are not familiar with the company, think coffee creamer and you will be right on track.  Rich Products maintains operations in logistics, travel, restaurant, and more.

Rich Products welcomes you to explore their current openings through the Rich Careers page.  I suggest you browse the web site as there is specific information about applying and you'll learn a lot about the company.
If you're the type that prefers to cut to the chase, here's your link: Rich-products/all-jobs/united-states/.  Jobs are available in CA, CT, FL, GA, IL, NJ, NY, OH, SC, TN, TX, VA, and WA.

Feel free to visit our site, Georgianna Hardware Corporation if you want some free resume help.

Snead Ag of Snead, Alabama

We recently saw the folks from http://www.sneadag.com/ and once again it was nothing but a pleasure. Snead Ag is an authorized John Deere dealer for North Alabama, North Georgia, and Central and East Tennessee. They also offer service, parts, rentals, and used equipment.

For those not familiar, Snead Ag is located about fifty miles northeast of Birmingham, AL in Snead, AL. It's obvious from the name that the folks at Snead Ag are there to do their job well and considering Snead, AL has a population of 843 we're willing to bet that word gets around town if you mess up!

Snead Ag has four additional facilities in Alabama and two in north Georgia. We met and spoke with Eric Keals of their Jasper, GA facility at a town function. This was not a scheduled meeting and we felt rather pushy but we didn't want to miss our chance for some insight. The conversation was fairly simple but we got the information we needed. It went something like this: “We told our friend to contact you about a piece of John Deere farm equipment. You probably don't have one here in Jasper but we told them to call anyway.” We continued to list details of what our friend was looking for. Eric's answer was confident and reassuring, “Yes, do have them contact us. If we don't have it, we will find it.”  There was certainty in Eric's voice.  He knew precisely what our friend was looking for and understood their needs. We have no doubt that Snead Ag lives up to their slogan: Earning Your Business Every Day.

Power Solutions Unlimited

We met Scott Fowler of Power Solutions Unlimited, Inc.  at a local fair recently.  There was quite a crowd and though Scott was very busy providing information to potential customers he took the time to talk to us.

Power Solutions Unlimited, Inc. is located in Jasper, Georgia and is an authorized Generac dealer.  They provide peace of mind with a full line of reliable Generac products which are backed by world-class service and support.  We're impressed that they will take the time to find the right solution for your needs.

In addition to generators, Power Solutions Unlimited, Inc. also has Generac power washers for your job.   Whether you're washing the driveway or prepping for a painting job PSU, Inc. has the compact, affordable design you need for both your commercial and residential application.

Visit the Power Solutions Unlimited, Inc.  web site or give Scott a call at 706-253-7737 to learn how PSU can help you with your electricity needs.  

Not Afraid To Have Adversity As a Teacher

We are impressed by Americans throughout the nation and would like to share a story about a friend of ours that refuses to be defeated by adversity in her life.

Our friend, Joann, was forced into retirement after having health problems that left her disabled. In a personal way, my meeting Joann at a neighborhood get-together has always stuck me as odd.

I hadn't lived in my neighborhood very long when I met Joann.  I asked her where she was employed and she responded with the name of the hospital where both of my parents had had their heart surgeries. Her answer took my breath away and I was hit hard by a wave of remembrances. That period of time in my life was nothing other than crazy and was a learning experience for myself and my toddlers. I will never forget telling the children to be especially careful or they would get run over by the hospital staff because the nurses and technicians had the important work of saving lives and come to find out Joann had been one of those people. Though the conversation was a rush of emotion for me, to Joann it was all in a days work!

Things suddenly changed for Joann when she needed to retire.  Stupid health problems. Joann took control, followed doctor's orders and worked to become as healthy as possible. Time passed and she then had to take the advice she had given to others just a few years ago; she looked for positive ways she could influence her situation. Rather than have idle hands, Joann decided to make jewelry. During a visit last week she showed me some of the jewelry she had created.  It is beautiful!  Her hand crafted jewelry is unique and it is certainly above and beyond anything you find in the retail stores.

Now, Joann puts her capable hands to work for a fun purpose and I am proud to invite you to visit Joann's new online shop. We are all sure that you'll be pleased to have the opportunity to see the beautiful pieces of jewelry she has created and we are especially honored to know a great American that has allowed adversity to be a teacher but not the boss.

http://www.georgiannahardwarecorporation.com/

A House Divided Among Itself

We're still in the official shutdown and reporters are providing plenty for me to read. Tonight, my thoughts are with the private sector as I am once again completely impressed by how unselfish Americans are.

We heard about our government failing the families of fallen soldiers. The Fisher House generously agreed to offer the families a appropriate time. The Fisher House will also cover flights, hotels and other incidentals for family members.

The Laura and John Arnold Foundation donated ten million dollars to so that more than 7,000 children can return to their Head Start classrooms.

While the two foundations mentioned above are taking notable and noble action to help America through this difficult time, it is easy to forget the numbers of people that commit to assisting others on a smaller scale. Believe it that every bit of effort and every penny makes a difference.  Each of us is helping build a better America.  The private sector is showing improvement by building more products and improving our infrastructure nation wide.  Keep on, folks!  You're making the world a better place and your neighbors are noticing.  

Don't forget, a house divided among itself, cannot stand.

Georgianna Hardware Corporation (our fun blog)

Health Care Update 3

At Midnight we knew that our government is shut down and most of the problems have come from the argument over the Affordable Care Act. More Americans oppose Obamacare than oppose the Affordable Care Act but the sad part is the Affordable Care Act and Obamacare are one in the same.  It only confirms my thoughts that American citizens are confused and really do not have interest in the nonsense that is going on in Washington.

You can read the final Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act through this link and the good news is it is not sixteen thousand pages like I had been told, but only 906 pages.

I had turned to the news and reports to find answers to my questions and then I turned to the young people that would be living the results of the Affordable Care Act.  Right out of the gate I was met with questions about the cost.  I explained the cost that had been calculated for the average twenty-six year old.  The questions flew at me, "What's considered average?, Is drug or alcohol consumption considered?, How am I to plan for my future without having specifics? How am I to pay fees when I haven't been able to find a job?"

From here the conversation went somewhat as follows:

     Well, you are supposed to sign up and keep in mind that each state is different and your results will be specific to your situation.

     "What am I exchanging and what are they talking about when they say subsidies?"

     Check the healthcare.gov web site and you can learn more about it.

     "What are my options and what is the Marketplace?"

     I told you that it will be specific to your situation.  Did you know the government is officially shut down?

     "Yep, thousands of people are going to be out of a job but why was the national budget and Obamacare
     on the same bill?"

What a frustrating time for citizens of all ages.  It seems that the only people that have gained anything are reporters and even they have said that they will be reporting on a lot of national parks.  So far, I've seen a lot of zoo reports but Capitol Hill will be quiet until the morning.  

       

 

Health Care Update 2

As an update to our blog published yesterday, we would like to share the sites available that will allow you to consider what health care coverage will be available to you.

 The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation has a free online calculator that is easy to use and the site also offers a brief explanation of changes that are made with the Affordable Care Act.  Don't be surprised with the term, "subsidy" being used.

The government web site that you can use is www.healthcare.gov which connects you to the "Marketplace". This site is still not completely up and running but unless our officials leave us hanging it should be operational by October 1, 2013.

Open enrollment begins October 1, 2013; Coverage begins January 1, 2014; Open enrollment closes March 31, 2014.  Remember, everybody needs to be enrolled in a health care program and if not, they will be responsible for all medical expenses and pay a fee.  You can learn more about responsibilities and fees at www.healthcare.gov.

We would like to be able to provide finalized information to you but political officials are still debating the Affordable Care Act.  This is not anything to be ignored.  Your health and well being are at stake.

Health Care Update

There has been a lot of talk about health care so we started to look into the new health care options that are available.  Sad news.  We need to wait until October 1, 2013 to actually read about the available options. The good news is that coverage can start as soon as January 1, 2014.

Whichever state you live in, you will be able to compare your health insurance options in the Marketplace.

We took a look at the "Marketplace" and were not able to squeeze any information out of the site.  We fell into a little loop and lost interest.  You can visit the site at https://www.healthcare.gov/.

The official countdown is listed as 6 days.  We can enroll on October 1, 2013; coverage begins January 1, 2014; open enrollment ends closes March 31, 2014.

The new health care law offers new rights and protections that make coverage easier to understand.  Well, that's what I read on the site but I am confused.

It seems that our political leaders have once again practiced brinkmanship and are putting the cart before the horse.  Good job, political officials.  This is our health and well being.  Fool me once, shame on you.  Fool me twice, you might just be out of a job and will be if we have anything to do with it.

Need A Job

It's hard for us to believe, but even after all of these years there are folks that are still in need of a job.  We have been talking about jobs since we started GHC and it's difficult tell you a total number of people we have been able to help.  Actually, each of those individuals did it on their own! We're only here to offer the helping hand.

There's good news for folks looking for a job.  The jobs are out there!  We've been helping a few friends from different locations in the country seek employment and we're surprised at the availability of jobs.

While helping our friends, we did notice key things you should note:  If you're still searching, don't expect to readily find a full time job.  With Obamacare in the works larger companies are finding it difficult to offer full time employment to individuals.  The flexibility of your schedule will certainly increase your opportunities. We're impressed that businesses are recognizing the need to offer job specific training and not listing extensive requirements of prospective employees.  We had a great deal of success by using indeed.com to do our research.

If you're feeling discouraged, stop that.  Perhaps it is time to start over.  Our web site has free resume help available and we would be happy to have you visit us online at Georgianna Hardware Corporation.

Happy job hunting!

Remembering Last Week's Work Week

On the eve of the great tragedy at the Navy Yard in Washington, we are remembering the victims. It is a small gesture, but victims are too quickly forgotten and we believe they should always be remembered.

We pray for those who were directly affected and ask that He guides us to peace and love.   

The CNN story below lists the victims.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/17/us/dc-navy-yard-victims/index.html

The Messy Desk

Once again, I received an email telling me how to tame my messy desk. It's almost as if the sender had worked with me or is looking over my shoulder! Kind of creepy to me and you can bet I'll be checking under my bed tonight.

As an individual that has stacks of papers everywhere I side with those that claim this is a sign of pure genius. I'm sure you'll agree it's no wonder that few people recognize the symptom of such an uncommon disorder. There are no medications available to correct genius so we that are afflicted by it must suffer.

Anyway, the advice I received today told me to sort my stacks of papers into three labeled stacks; keep, toss, move. I heard my brain's door slam closed. Obviously, I kept it and now I'm moving it. Boom! Two thirds of the job done. I can do this! It's will just take a few minutes!

I suddenly realize that there is help available to those, such as myself, that suffer from this terrible affliction. The final third and the job is done. I straighten the stack of papers knowing that everything that remains is of importance. To the author of the messy desk article: I know you're new to this, but it's redundant to have a stack labeled “toss” since we've been using trash receptacles for years and that paper never would have made it into my stack of papers in the first place if it were trash.

Taming the messy desk is something that you can just forget about. I'm not even sure if the mail has arrived yet but I'm sure there is something that will hang around longer than I desire it to do so. We can read everything ever written but until we take a minute to clear some of that junk off and throw some of it away, we're stuck with the mess. It's simple. What works for me may not be what works for you. If the stacks of stuff are bothering you, do something about it. It will make you feel better.

You Are There, Using Social Networking Websites to Promote Your Business

We've decided to do some blogs that included comments from our

discussions that occurred during the blog writing process.  

We refer to these as our "You are There" blogs!

Though we do not consider ourselves masters of social networking

we do know that we have learned a few things along the way. Our

thoughts are added in italics throughout this article.

The goal of most business owners is to make money. This often results with the selling of a particular product or service. However, to sell that product or service business owners need to alert the general public. Your customer cannot buy a product or a service if they do not know that it exists. That is why, as a business owner, you need to advertise your business.

When it comes to advertising there are many business owners who literally cringe. Are you doing this now? There is a good chance that you are because many advertising methods cost money. As a business owner you want to make money not spend it, right? Unfortunately, if you believe that all forms of advertising take money, you are sadly mistaken. Although you may have to spend money to make your business what you want it to be, there are ways to promote your business and the products or services that you sell without having to spend any money at all.

Perhaps now is the best time to jump in and voice our opinion.

When your company uses the internet to promote products and

services it does cost money! Think payroll, computer, electricity.

Is your curiosity peaked yet? There is a good chance that it is and rightfully so. One of the ways that you can promote your business, without having to spend a dime, is by using something that is readily available online. That thing is an online social networking website. A large number of internet users, in fact millions of them, belong to at least one social networking website.

Our electric bill is more than a dime so the false statement is questionable.

Right.  People need to consider the overall cost of the investment.

When it comes to social networking, there are many individuals who think of online friendships or online relationships. Social networking was first created for business purposes when in 1978 the Bulletin Board System (or BBS) was established. The BBS was hosted on personal computer and required users to dial in through a host computer. In fact, BBS was the original social network.

I have a thought! It's was like ham radio vs. Sirius.

If you are a small business owner, especially one that operates an online business, there is a way that you can use social networking sites to your advantage.

Although social networking websites are traditionally focused on those that would like to make online friends or develop online relationships, there are networking sites that are designed for business owners. These websites will not only allow you to share your business information with other business owners, but it will also allow you to develop close relationships with those that share an interest that is similar to yours. Essentially, this means that you could not only learn valuable business information, but you could also walk away with a new business partner or a new friend.

We looked at both words used in the term “social networking”.

Of the those definitions we most liked, “the exchange of

information or services among individuals”.

As previously mentioned, social networking websites with a focus on businesses, are a great way to promote your business. However, this does not mean that you should completely forget about the other online social networking websites, the ones that are designed to make online friendships. Although you may not learn any valuable business tips by joining Yahoo! Facebook or Google+, you may be able to get new customers and new customers is exactly what your business wants.

If you are looking to join an online community, you will need to create your own profile or profile page. If you are planning on joining a traditional social networking website, to gain access to millions of potential new customers, you are urged to be careful when making your online webpage or profile. One thing that internet users hate is being solicited for business. This does not mean that you cannot use social networking to your advantage; it just means that you need to be careful with how you do it.

Sure you should be careful. We've mentioned this on our web site

http://www.georgiannahardwarecorporation.com/resume-help

in regard to making sure your social networking pages were

non offensive to employers. You also need to be careful that your

personal information is not shared publicly on the business page.

By joining a social networking website, especially one that is popular and has a large number of members, you should be able to generate interest in your business, including the products or services that you sell. Who knows, but that interest generated could turn into sales; thus making your social networking experience more than worth it.

We've noticed that social networking advice almost always

includes something about being human.

It's no surprise that people prefer to interact with

other people rather than a machine.

Junk mail has never been a favorite

so why would junk email be any better?

Social networking is easy. Be human, just like you are.

Have a presence on the world wide web. It is the world's community.

Always remember to consider the return on your company's investment.

www.GeorgiannaHardwareCorporation.com

Help Save The Horses

I suppose there are people that do not care for horses but I am not one of them.  I do not own a horse and I have only recently learned to say that I have not had the best experiences with horses and yet, they are still able to capture my attention. Because of this, when Iron Gait Percherons Rescue had another open house you can bet your bottom dollar that I went to visit the horses that Iron Gait has rescued.

I'm thrilled to report to you that the horses are doing well.  Maybe there was excitement in the air because Eddie Rigney was visiting to perform a jousting demonstration or perhaps it was because the weather was cooler but the horses were all curious to see their visitors and they seemed pleased to welcome everyone into their home.  I am certain that their behavior is heavily influenced by the rescue's Founder and President, Denise Polydor.

Iron Gait is a nonprofit organization and I would like to ask you to take a minute out of your day to read Denise's story about Noah on facebook.  At the end of the story, there is an option to vote.  It's not difficult but facebook does ask to share your information on this one and it will probably mean that you will get farm ads instead of insurance ads for the next few weeks.  I encourage you to vote for Noah and Iron Gait so that they may possibly be the recipient of a grant from Tractor Supply Co.

I hope Denise does not get upset with me for mentioning her name.  She surely deserves credit for saving these beautiful animals, but she won't like my taking attention away from the horses.

Impacts of Sequestration

I can't tell you of all of the impacts that will result because of the current sequestration, but I can tell you that it is not over.  We may notice something in the end of September but it appears that our public officials are not concerned about how citizens of American have been affected.

The Washington Post created a nice state by state list of impacts that has a breakdown by category.  I commend them for compiling the information so that it can be shared nationally.  The information I have linked here may not be the most current, but it sure gives you something to think about!

I urge you to review the information released by the Bipartisan Policy Center (or the BPC as they prefer to refer to themselves) and see what they predict for America's future.  I do not like that the word "assume" is used more than once in the report.  I may just tell bill collectors that, "I assume I can pay"!

I also urge you to contact your elected officials.  Let them know that while they were on vacation you noticed that they were not doing the job you elected them to do.

www.GeorgiannaHardwareCorporation.com

New Lighting Page!

Since we've been working on making changes we're happy to announce that we have changed our website and update it with a new Lighting page.  We've even included a free printable pdf that you are welcome to distribute to customers.  Please let us know what you think of the new page by leaving your comments below.

http://www.georgiannahardwarecorporation.com/

Back to Lean Management

Once again, we are back to practicing lean management!  We would guess that your business already has a program in line to use for lean management but perhaps it would be a good idea to try a different approach and incorporate something a little different. Lean manufacturing optimizes processes and eliminates waste.  This helps cut costs and taking a few hours to inspect a situation more closely can also enhance safety of an operation.

People are constantly trying to make sense of the world the live in.  They form opinions about every interaction and situation they experience.  It is only logical to find that when two people stand in different locations they see things differently and though each has a point of view no two are ever quite the same.
 
We at GHC use the Takt Time formula: available production time / customer demand per day.  The variables can easily be modified and we admit that we quickly learned that activities that do not contribute need to be eliminated as these non-value added steps are a waste.  

Large facilities will prefer to use something that is more sophisticated such as the Six Sigma program.  Six Sigma is a set of techniques developed by Motorola in 1985.  Motorola determined that processes vary over time but the company had years of data that they had collected.  The formula for Six Sigma is:
     Defects Per Million Opportunities (DPMO) = ((Total Defects) / (Total Opportunities)) per million
     Defects (%) = ((Total Defect) / (Total Opportunities)) per 100
     Yield (%) = 100 - (Defect Percentage)
     process Sigma = NORMSINV (1-((Total Defects) / (Total Opportunities))) +1.5

Six Sigma works great when long term information is available to work with but GHC is small and doesn't mass produce anything.

The whole idea of Lean Management is simple and can be applied to any situation.  First, identify the waste. Second, analyze the waste and find the cause of the problem.  Third, correct the cause problem.  Repeat each month or every ten working days.

Both techniques mentioned above are proven solutions for fixing waste within an organization.  Benefits of a company's effort include increase in productivity, reduced space requirements, and improvements in quality.
Visit our This Matters page and find more ideas.   

Using Your Voice

How many of you use your voice in our government? Currently there are 122 open petitions directed to the White House that require signatures to advance to the next level of review. Some seem to be personal but some need our attention.  

One of the petitions that we should be paying attention to asks the president to End His Assault on our Nation's Coal Mining Families.  I can't imagine a world without coal and can't understand why it would be considered a mistake.

What I do see as a mistake is 18 day vacations that are scheduled by elected officials who haven't done their jobs properly while there are two new food assistance recipients for every one job created.  I just don't see this as a job well done that is deserving of reward.

If elected officials want to create a legacy for themselves they should not be doing to at the expense of the hard working, tax paying citizens of their country. 

Please help our coal mining industry by signing the petition so we can keep those 700,000 plus people working.

Gold Rush - an American Dream

We've been waiting to read the article about Dave Turin of Gold Rush in Aggregates Manager's July issue. Today the issue arrived and we were thrilled to see Gold Rush right on the cover!

It was refreshing to read that Dave Turin questioned Todd Hoffman and his vision from the very beginning. I know that as my family and I watched Gold Rush through the seasons I wondered aloud how these guys could simply up and leave the lives they had established to follow a dream. The television series never really showed us how much consideration any one of these men had put in to their decision, but they did think long and hard about their choices.

We were all happy to read that Dave Turin contacted KPI-JCI/Astec Companies not only based on his past experience with the company but because of it being an American company with local ties.  

As a 'Friday evening miner' I will say that I saw many mistakes but these Gold Rush guys were not unaware of their mistakes. They're still willing to take a chance and willing to make mistakes while they are following their dreams.

Don't miss Michelle Cwach's inspiring article, Golden Boy, in Aggregates Manager and be ready to tune in to Discovery Channel on August 2 when the new season starts.

http://www.kpijci.com/

Georgianna Hardware Corporation

Picking Your Dream Design

I read a lot. I jump from subject to subject all day long and even leave the television muted so I can read the ticker at the bottom of the screen. While I was using my computer today I quickly typed in a search and a document entitled, “Picking Your Dream Design” appeared in my search results. I read through the document and decided I would share the key comments with you. The question? What was the article about? (answer below)

     Even though it's popular, many people will end up regretting it.

     Instead of trying to save some money, you should never make

     a choice based on how cheap it is.

     Cheaper companies normally lack in work quality, 

     which is why they are able to charge cheaper prices.

     Instead, you should look for the best company that you can find

     close to your area.  Even though it may be expensive – the quality

     and design will be well worth it.

     Sometimes, it can be hard picking out your dream design. If you have

     an idea in mind but are still not sure what you want, you can always

     do research.

     Use books, magazines, or just research online. By looking at designs you 

     may find something similar to what you would like.

     If you start with a fraction of your dream design,

     you can always finish it up later on.

     You should decide carefully. If you put the necessary time 

     and thought into it now, you won’t regret it later.

We all have dreams and visions of things that we desire. What was the article about? Remodeling a kitchen or a tattoo? The answer: a tattoo. There are times that we should take the time to think about our designs.

Georgianna Hardware Corporation

Do You Need Advertising Ideas?

It's that time of year when we take time to review and see if we've veered from the path that we set out on.   With all of the changes that we've been making it may be that you missed our Advertising Ideas page and perhaps we have an idea that will work for you.  All of the information is available free of charge.

One of our ideas is to have your press releases and ads published in local newspapers.  This idea is simple and low cost, much like the others we have.  Maybe complicated, high dollar advertising packages aren't for everybody.

Shop Local for Equipment

I was listening to talk radio the other night and heard someone say that we have to consciously do things to change the world. The theory is that when people join together in small groups and have like-minded spirits, the group can make changes.

We started Georgianna Hardware Corporation a few years ago because we didn't believe that everything was hopeless.  Since we started the business, we have met many incredible people and organizations and #FBLT came to mind.  The folks involved in #FBLT believe that social media is beneficial to their business. I'm still on the fence about that because I crunch numbers down to the crumbs, but I still believe that we can make a difference!

I am consciously making it a point to remind you to shop local.  In this case, if you are seeking a forklift please contact Toyota Lift of Minnesota, Toyota Forklifts of Atlanta, or Decker Forklifts  of Bedford Heights, OH.  Depending on your situation, you might want to visit Bid on Equipment of Algonquin, IL. BoE has nation wide listings for industrial, process, and packaging equipment.

The businesses we've mentioned here all know their equipment and they will work with you to get you what you need.  

http://www.georgiannahardwarecorporation.com/    

Fourth of July

Today was Thursday, July 4^th.  All week the weather was predicted to be miserable and my husband is expected to be at work on Friday.  Knowing this, I planned meals that did not require us to be outside with the grill and didn't place a lot of expectations on myself to have the best July 4th of my life but I did want to see the fireworks.

From the time I got up I tried to make the best of my day. No need to rush through my morning coffee, my focus was on the planned meals.  I took a few extra minutes to play with the cat.  I kept thinking of the fireworks and started to lay my plans out to the family so that I would have company for the 10pm display. Not going to miss out, I started recruiting about 6pm.  I issued reminders at 7:30pm.  We need to leave at 9pm to arrive in time to get a decent parking space for the 10pm display.  We'll need snacks, drinks, music for the ride, blankets for the grass.

9pm arrives and I am in the car backing out of the garage.  Gosh, a few shimmering drops of rain.  I had checked the weather and it looked like something was headed our way, but we're off to the fireworks!

We got three miles down the road and the sky opened up.  There was no need for music because the violent pounding of raindrops on the vehicle made it so we couldn't hear one another speak.  Somebody yelled something about, “couldn't see”.  The car struggled to maintain its speed as the winds forced it to slow. Amazingly enough the rain turned to a deluge and I could hardly see the lines on the highway.  There was a muffled yell about the reflective markers placed in the highway but we had headed out to see the fireworks and nothing was going to stop us now.

We arrived safely at the church and I pulled into a parking space. The rain had quieted down some and incredibly it appeared as though the display would occur as scheduled.  More cars pulled into the lot. People arrived on foot and more cars loaded with families arrived.  We heard the explosion of a test firework used to announce the anticipated display.  People around us started to get out of their vehicles.  Behind me, a family with young children came and sat on the back porch stairs of the church.  More people exited their cars, some with umbrellas and some braving the drizzle with a light jacket.

We were fourteen minutes into the display when the rainfall increased and the winds picked up. Umbrellas were quickly inverted by the wind. I watched in wonder as small children righted them before their parent arrived to help. The display continued and umbrellas continue to be righted. I saw a few fathers get in their vehicle and noticed that the young children behind me had been safely removed from the porch stairs.

Sixteen minutes later and the Grand Finale occurred as the rain continued to fall. The sky was filled with vibrant colors, and the red white and blue seemed to be given special elevation. The wind calmed enough so that the umbrellas worked properly but it was too late, their users were soaked. The Grand Finale ended and people began to meander back to their vehicles.

Every time I think about the wind, rain, and the inverted umbrellas I laugh so hard that I cry. Today's meals were great, being with the family was great but being in a crowd of independent people on July 4 celebrating our country's independence is awesome!

Independence: a condition of a nation, country, or state in which its residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over the territory.

I'm Taking Over For The Day!

My name is Maria Calderara. I have worked behind the scenes at GHC since 2011. I generally handle accounting but today I decided to take over the blog. My rant follows, please share if you agree!

This past weekend I went shopping for a pair of shorts. After choosing a few pairs that I thought would fit I ended up trying them all on and putting them all back because not a single pair fit. Mind you, I tried all sizes ten to sixteen. The size nor the brand mattered.

I couldn't help but to notice a woman that was wearing a men's handkerchief that had been sewn into shorts. No man's handkerchief is going to go around my hips! I'm Italian and we Italian girls have hips. There's no reason to wait to see what happens after I have a baby because everyone can see how I'm built and everything will probably just be more pronounced than it is now.

I appeal to designers. We're in America and ethnic diversity is here to stay. Though “Vanity Sizing” has been around for many years, it seems that designers have expectations that are not real. I guess they think that the size zero female population has enough money to buy all of those clearance items. It's obvious that many American women have hips and thighs that are strong. When I started looking for help to find a brand that may fit me but I only found suggestions to have my clothes tailor made. If I use Heidi Klum as my representative, even she won't be able to find clothes that fit properly.

Designers, what percentage of the female population do you consider your demographic? We average size women need you to tell us where we can buy our clothes off the rack.

The War on Coal

I tuned in to the news tonight so I could hear what the president had announced at Georgetown University today and I caught that he had made his decisive environmental policies.

The news report fell on deaf ears because the statement was clouded by hearing that this decision was, “for the sake of our children and the health and safety of all Americans”.

I am tired of the president of the United States including my children in every powerful message he needs to make. My children have always been resilient and they speak their minds but I dare say they might see through the smoke and mirrors and suggest that if he feels this is the right decision for our country he should stand up at the podium and accept responsibility for his decisions.

Questions rush through my mind. What employment options are available to people that will find themselves out of work? What resources do we have available to replace the power that we will be losing because of the “war on coal”? What are we going to replace the $16 billion of exported coal with? When will we be able to see the cost-benefit analysis of the plan? Is coal really combative?

My questions are unanswered but I urge you to let the “war on coal” be your reason to contact your representatives and ask your own questions. http://www.usa.gov/Contact/Elected.shtml

Sad News From Iron Gait Percherons Draft Horse Rescue

My last blog told of the wonderful experience we had at the Iron Gait Percherons Draft Horse Rescue's open house.  It's hard to believe that I am passing along the sad news that Iron Gait Percherons announced through their facebook page this past Friday as follows:

I am so very sorry to announce to you...At 12:53pm yesterday afternoon we had to euthanize our dearly beloved Randolph. His heart rate was 80 bpm, we suspected strangulating colic that was causing him unbelievable pain. Even after given pain medication, the meds. did not help him at all. He did not have much time left and would had never survived the trailer ride to UGA. It was the only thing I can do to help him and to stop his pain. I could not bare to see him in so much pain it was heart breaking.

He is now buried beside our Valerie and they can spend eternity running through green pastures together.
Rest In Peace my dear boy...
We all loved you very much and I will see you again when it is my time to leave this earth.

It's strange that some of the horses at Iron Gait Percherons made a big impression on us, and Randolph was one of those horses.  We are sure that he had the best care possible at Iron Gait and we extend our sympathies to everyone within their organization.


 

Our Visit to Iron Gait Percherons Draft Horse Rescue

This past weekend we visited Iron Gait Percherons Draft Horse Rescue.  We expected to see a few horses in a tiny barn and some small fields.  Instead we saw one of the most impressive facilities that we have seen in years.

We are enthralled by draft horses and believe they are one of the most fascinating animals on earth. Years ago while visiting the Clydesdale stables in New Hampshire we set their establishment as the standard for care and accommodations provided to horses. Accommodations at Iron Gait Percherons were not quite the same as the corporate run facilities but these rescued animals have not been slighted in any way.

IGP rescues and rehabilitates horses by means of donations.  No one at IGP receives a salary and one-hundred percent of donations go directly to supporting their cause. The IGP website is set up so that individuals or corporations can easily make monetary or material donations.    

Some of the horses require so much help that they are placed in the Sanctuary Community of IGP.  Randolph is one of the horses that was placed in the Sanctuary and his story is best explained through this video of Randolph arriving at IGP.  

Please take a look at the Iron Gait Percherons wish list help them in any way you can.

The Grandmother Test

When we were in the process of updating our web site we found information that we felt was both timely and important so decided to share it.  

From GHC site:

While seeking employment it is important for you to consider things from the employer's perspective.  It is not unusual for companies and schools to search for concerns that they have about potential employees or students.  I think the idea is best called, "The Grandmother Test".  Most employers are seeking information about drug and alcohol use.  (This is due to insurance requirements.)  Let's face it, even though we might decide to tie-one-on, none of us are stupid to the fact that our grandmother would probably rather not see any of us in that condition.

Employers, just like your grandmother, do not have the desire to see inappropriate photos, nor do they care to read about inappropriate behavior.  Most people decline this offer!

Social media allows for much to be said in very few words.  Employers can and will judge your communication skills by comments you post.  I set a standard for myself on this.  I've always believed that if I had the nerve to write it and send it, I needed to have nerve enough to claim it by putting my signature on it.  The Grandmother Test holds true again.  Simply remember, "If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all."  

You can use the World Wide Web to your advantage but don't forget that everybody else can too.  There are plenty of sites that offer information about this subject but do your own research about yourself before the potential employer calls.  You can do that by searching for your name through any major search engine.  Seeing yourself the way your future employer will might just save you some embarrassment.

~Kara Miller

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Tear Mender Craft - Easy & Fun

We have a whole list of things to use Tear Mender on but this past weekend we decided to give it a try for crafting.  We had seen some primitive flags while we were on vacation a few years ago and have been planning to repeat the idea.  We purchased a set of cloth napkins, a bandana, and a wooden dial rod and set up to craft our artsy replica.

We folded a corner of the napkin over the dial rod to create a pocket and applied Tear Mender to secure it.

We attached the bandana to the dial rod in the same manner.  Then we added another cloth napkin. 

This most difficult part of the craft may have been waiting for the Tear Mender to dry.  It was raining and we had to allow fifteen minutes before the product could be exposed to water but we gained patience by passing the time with snacks!  Finally we were able to hang our flag!  

This is a fun and easy project for children and since the glue balls up when it is not applied to fabric it makes for easy clean up.  We are currently at the 96 hour mark of having the flag hanging outside.  It has been exposed to rain and 90F heat and the Tear Mender is still secure.   Once again, Tear Mender provides great satisfaction.  We suggest that you keep some at work and home.  No more searching for needle and thread!  

Who are/is They?

Tonight I log onto Twitter and six of the first ten Tweets I receive are making comment about how our personal information is being mined by the NSA as well as businesses.  Yes, this is ridiculous BUT...

Remember when you closed on your house?  I remember being a little surprised when the attorney asked me to confirm my alias name.  Fortunately I remembered that many years ago I had received a check that was made out improperly.  I was able to deposit it to my account as long as I was willing to wait the ten days for it to clear.  Yes, I did use that alias and yes, the check cleared but years later "they" still knew.

I'm not sure who "they" are.  I'm thinking "they" are the same as "everybody else's mother" but I do know that there are times this works to my advantage.  There was the time that my credit card company had placed a hold on my account because I used the card for an unusual purchase.  It wasn't convenient to call the company and confirm that I had bought gas and used their card but "they" noticed.  Good catch, "They"!

Facebook, Microsoft, and Google are all on the list of place that tapped into their user's communications.    It raises questions but you need to be aware that this happens and it has been happening for some time.  Remember you read it here and be sure to be nice, polite, and well behaved!

http://www.georgiannahardwarecorporation.com/Pages/default.aspx

The Thing To Do

I happened across an article by Leo Shane III of Stars and Stripes which refered to PTSD. (Ref. link that follows for article in question.)

http://www.stripes.com/what-do-we-need-to-know-about-veterans-1.223351

I have never served in the military but my dad served during the Korean Conflict. I was an adult when Dad was diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress yet it was more than 25 years after he had served.  He didn't romanticize about his time spent in the military and never suggested that he questioned his choices, actually he said that joining the military at that time was just the thing to do.

I recall him telling me the story of arriving home. He was walking down the street and saw his former boss. The man told him that it was nice to see that he was back and said, “I'll see you at work Monday morning.” Years later he laughed about that and told me, “So on Monday morning I went to work.”  I had a ton of questions.  Did you know what you would be doing for work, did you still want to work there, what were they planning on paying you?  He shrugged his shoulders and said, “I went to work on Monday because it was the thing to do.”

When Dad was diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress he was shocked.  He couldn't believe that he had been living with PTSD all of those years and never knew it was a condition that could be diagnosed.  From the time that he arrived home he had kept busy leading his life and suddenly PTSD was demanding his attention.  Recognizing PTSD and acknowledging it was the thing to do.

The article in Stars and Stripes refers to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder but my dad nor his doctor ever referred to it this way. They referred to it as Post Traumatic Stress.  Perhaps these men were just wise l beyond their years and refused to give it a negative connotation.  Reading the article from Stars and Stripes only gives civilians a glimpse of what it is like to come home. We need to welcome these men and women home and treat them well because it's the thing to do.   

Yep. We Would Like To Make Money Too.

We like to save money.  We like to help others save money.  And time.  After all, time is money so they go hand in hand.

We've been wanting to upgrade one of our computers but the budget did not allow.  We guess weren't not alone in having the problem of limited funding but the truth is that didn't make us feel much better to once again postpone something that we've wanted to do since the first of the year.

Good news for us, we re-discovered the Amazon Outlet.  We've been an affiliate for some time but our frustration caused us to take a closer look at what was sitting under our noses all the time!  We ordered the parts from the outlet, saved the 53%, and waited for our chances to be the ultimate critics of the products and services.    We received our items within 72 hours and each item was exactly as described if not better.     

We recommend the Amazon Outlet and are happy to share our little bit of knowledge.  Yep.  We would like to make money too, but it seems unfair not to share the outlet link with you.

Remember, you can search for "outlet" on Amazon's page.

A Bit Off Subject

I was cleaning tonight and got to thinking about inflation.  A report I read claimed there was a 124.5% increase in grocery prices over the last five years.  I'm sure our health insurance has increased by 142.5% and gas is up 140.4%.  I suppose no government official will decide that cleaning is bad and there will not be an amendment to the Constitution stating that cleaning should not be done.  I do believe that gun control would not be a problem if these numbers were under control.  I encourage you to write your representatives!

TEAR MENDER PRODUCTS

We received a sample from Tear Mender the other day and started to look for things we could repair. Tear Mender is suitable for any long lasting and permanent bond and we knew we could put it to good use.  Learning that Tear Mender is water-proof, non-toxic, UV resistant and non-toxic confirmed that this was right up our alley. 

The first thing that caught our attention was a picture frame that had the back of the frame pulling away from the frame itself. We immediately put it on the “we can fix-it” list before a small disaster occurred.  The directions were easy to follow. Shake well before using, spread a layer on the item being repaired, press together, allow to dry.

We chose to try three different types of applicators, a toothpick, a cotton swap, and a small paint brush. Though all three of these choices worked, we found that the paint brush allowed us to apply the product more quickly and evenly.   We could have used a finger, but we wanted to put this product to the test!   

The final result is our picture frame has been saved and once again makes a nice appearance on the wall!  

Important warning:  If you suffer from latex allergies this product is not for you.  Tear Meander is a natural latex compound as reported in the Material Safety Data Sheet.