Feb 28
It’s turning into the greatest Oscar story in years. Lupita Nyong’o’s stolen Oscar dress — which was reportedly worth between $150,000 and $10 MILLION — appears to be all smoke and mirrors.
Feb 28
VATICAN CITY (AP) – Pope Francis’ finance czar has defended the expenditures of his office following reports it had racked up a half-million euros ($575,000) in bills in the last six months.
Australian Cardinal George Pell’s office has been insisting on a spending review elsewhere in the Vatican.
A spokesman for the Secretariat for the Economy, in a statement Saturday, said the expenses were normal for a new operation and below budget.
Italian newsweekly L’Espresso recently detailed opposition within the Vatican to his financial reforms, and cited receipts for expenditures including the salary and housing costs for his Australian aide and clerical tailor’s bill for more than 2,500 euros ($2,800).
The leaks were apparently aimed at discrediting Pell, who has ruffled feathers in entrenched Vatican bureaucracy.
Feb 28
If the return of Frank Underwood stoked a thirst for real drama from the nation’s capitol, perhaps the White House’s late-Friday news dump of the proposed Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights will whet your whistle. Alongside common-sense things like Cong…
Feb 28
The pattern should be clear by now: social networking companies offer their service to users for free, and once they grow to a certain level, it’s time to start making money with advertisements. Well, everyone’s favorite swipe-right-swipe-left dating app Tinder is looking to join the ranks of Facebook and Twitter by showing users ads in the near future. As the … Continue reading
Feb 28
When a new Kickstarter launches for an everyday item with (Bluetooth/NFC/WiFi/solar panels/CNC’d aluminium unibody — delete as appropriate) capabilities on board, I’m normally first in the line of jeering sceptics. But a wallet with built-in Bluetooth actually makes a lot of sense. Pass the Kool-Aid, please.
Feb 28
All the cool kids are peddling Android wearables these days, and it looks like Huawei is no exception: in advance of the upcoming Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, it looks like the Chinese phone giant has revealed its upcoming watch in an ad.
Feb 28
Michelle Forsythe is the Co-Founder and the Chief Executive Officer of NoteStream. A life-long, self-driven learner, she has achieved success through the underrated power of asking “Why not?” Her early years found her working in the family restaurant in such glamorous jobs as food prep and bus girl, giving rise to a respect for team building, diligence and hard work. Since then Mrs. Forsythe has excelled in various roles in a wide range of fields, from mortgage banking to fashion design, and also takes pride in volunteering with different non-profit organizations.
NoteStream was co-founded with her husband, Richard, and was born of frustration with the options to learn about French wine: classes are inconvenient with restrictive time commitments, and books can have a habit of wandering off. The rise of the smart phone presented the opportunity to be able to fit something valuable into the bits of “dead time” scattered throughout the hectic modern mobile life.
Born in Los Angeles, California, she grew up in California and Montana.
How has your life experience made you the leader you are today?
When I was 13-years-old, I lived in a small town in Northern California where I developed a strong sense of community and responsibility. Between seventh and eighth grade, I wrote a Christmas play and not only convinced the school administration to let me direct it using the student body as actors and singers, but also a local-area antique store to loan furniture for the set. Throughout the process, no one mentioned that directing and producing was a lot for a 13-year-old to take on, but the possibility of failure didn’t occur to me. The play was a success, and in retrospect I learned that expectations are often limitations. It is easy to be afraid of all the ways one can fail, but I’ve never been one to take the easy route.
How has your previous employment experience aided your tenure at NoteStream?
Many years ago, I had a custom bridal design business. Working with brides and their mothers during such a special time taught me to listen, closely and carefully. This experience brought home the fact that in order for me to be successful, it was critical to help those brides and their mothers realize their dream wedding. My role was to make those dreams reality. Now, at NoteStream I take care to ensure that everyone I work with is successful in his or her vision.
What have the highlights and challenges been during your tenure at NoteStream?
Technology! Programming and development were not a part of my skill set. I found myself having to ask a lot of questions about what could be done. Along the way, we all discovered that sometimes an outside perspective can galvanize a situation. That said, there were times when my suggestions were the cause of hilarity, and the humor helped to keep things in perspective. Being able to laugh at myself has been instrumental in overcoming various obstacles and challenges.
What advice can you offer to women who want to start their own business?
You must be passionate about what you start. New ventures often face resistance to change, so without passion for your project, you will cheat yourself and your company. Secondly, visualize yourself being successful at each stage. You must be able to see the details! Everything from planning your first product, raising funds, closing your first (and your 100th) deal. Then, envision your future self and notice how much more comfortable you are having achieved your goals. Finally, write out the details of each step, but be prepared to change everything as data and feedback come in.
What is the most important lesson you’ve learned in your career to date?
There are a couple that stand out. First, saying “because that’s the way it is done” is really nothing more than a lazy answer. Also, technology continues to evolve rapidly, so if you get too comfortable, it probably means you are missing something. The upside of being continuously busy and always striving for more? Boredom is never an issue!
How do you maintain a work/life balance?
Being married to your co-founder is a huge plus. We shared various life experiences and challenges well before we ever even thought about starting a company. So even though we have very different approaches to projects, we knew we could work together. We have had to set times when we do not talk about NoteStream. We start winding down the day while cooking dinner, and by the time we sit down to the table, all business is supposed to be “off the table.” We’ll discuss the books we’re reading, adventures we’ve shared and the places we want to travel. Some weeks we can also discuss the San Diego Chargers. We don’t always succeed in avoiding NoteStream, but we do try.
What do you think is the biggest issue for women in the workplace?
Simply put, outside perception is still biased towards men. Most people assumed Richard would be the CEO of any business we started. Only gradually do people accept a challenge to their way of thinking, and while it is unfair, there is no benefit in getting angry. Focusing on the imbalance only wastes time and energy. Instead, it is more productive to be aware of the potential misconceptions and tackle them on your own terms. Be a leader and “help” people see you the way you want to be seen.
How has mentorship made a difference in your professional and personal life?
My professional trajectory has been very non-traditional, and therefore, I’ve never had a real mentor for my career. That said, my father instilled in me the tenacity to always do what is right, as opposed to what is popular. That lesson is something I’ve carried with me throughout my professional career. In my personal life, many people have had an impact. One of my out-of-town bridal clients showed up for the final fitting on her wedding gown with a happy “surprise”: she was five months pregnant! I had 48 hours to completely rebuild the dress of her dreams. One thing that I learned from that is the ability to meet adversity with respect and grace is a very underrated skill.
What other female leaders do you admire and why?
Wow, so many to choose from! Sandra Day O’Connor, not only for her historic role as the first female Supreme Court Justice, but also for her independent rulings on crucial issues. Also, the phenomenal Julia Child. Here was a woman who couldn’t cook and moved to a country where she didn’t speak the language, but was eventually admitted to Le Cordon Bleu. Not only did Julia Child break through the male dominated culinary world, she went on to teach us everything we needed to know about “Mastering the Art of French Cooking” (with such joy, delight and generous pats of butter).
What do you want NoteStream to accomplish in the next year?
Right now, we are focused on bringing new and compelling content to NoteStream while building readership. Over the next year, the NoteStream platform will continue to grow and expand, with an increased focus on the development of a modern social community. Life today has become so hectic it is hard to find the necessary time in the day to nourish our minds. I want NoteStream to become a reliable source of satisfaction and accomplishment for our readers, especially on days when everything else seems to go wrong.
Feb 28
Women in Business Q&A: Mary Pearson, Founder, Pearson Farm's Retail Division
Posted in: Today's ChiliMary is the founder and creator of Pearson Farm’s Retail Division. When Mary Pearson married Al Pearson of Pearson farm, she not only gained the love of her life, but grew to have a great love for the beautiful large trees on the Peach farm. Mary grew up in a family where gourmet, healthy, natural food was a value and cooking together was an event. The union that is now in its 42nd year was the perfect marriage of the recipes from Mary’s childhood and the peach farm that produces what is arguably some of the best peaches in Georgia. In addition to maintaining the image of Pearson Farm through marketing and customer service, Mary now shares some of the old family recipes she grew up on with the world. Some of Pearson’s cakes and pies are inspired by old family recipes and baked with natural ingredients and love, just like the recipes in the memories of Mary’s childhood.
How has your life experience made you the leader you are today?
I grew up in Atlanta in a family of one brother and three sisters and my parents. My father served in WWII, became an attorney, married my mother late in his life, and brought a sense of dedication and character and discipline to our family that impacted me as a child and even more so today. We were taught the values of faith, education, honesty, diligent work, family, and quality of life. Though we were secure monetarily, his experience during the depression formed his approach to our family life. My mother was a constant source of encouragement and gentle correction for her four children. She was a strong, principled woman of faith in God who led us as a family to a life that was centered on a love of God, Church, family, health, and education. I think I made my father and mother happy when I married a farmer and moved to a small rural town. I moved away from Atlanta and my family, but I never left them or the city’s influence on me as I experienced rural life with limited selections in food, clothing, and cultural events. But, I was in a life filled with fresh fruit and nuts, hard work, and seasons of rest. Having been exposed to life in the city, I was not hesitant to ask why could not improve our experience. After college I taught school and consistently fought for improvement in the school I taught in and later in the schools my children attended. Reading, piano, good grades, and household responsibilities were not an option, not an issue, just a way of life.
How has your previous employment experience aided your position at Pearson Farm?
Teaching school exposed me to all levels of dedication, preparedness, respect, and honesty. Whereas all students could learn, it was obvious that those who were healthy, prepared, and interested were a joy to teach and to be with. The children,as you got to know them, could not hide their attention or lack thereof in school, so it was easy to determine what motivated them and see the qualities that inevitably formed their performance. I learned to be observant of others, not to judge too quickly, and to address when I could the issues that troubled them. This experience has proved invaluable to me in the small shop of a start-up business, working closely with employees or family doing things in ways that are important to me, to the business, and to God, always with the knowledge that we are only stewards of this world, not truly owning anything.
What have the highlights and challenges been during your tenure at Pearson Farm?
We began Pearson Farm as a retail extension of the farm, taking peaches and pecans directly to the consumer in any form we thought would work. We began with blind faith that the products would sell themselves, especially during the Olympics in Atlanta. Three years later, we realized that we were not suited for the brick and mortar, 365 days per year retail business, so we closed the retail outlet and maintained the mail-order portion of the business. Since that disappointment, we have concentrated on the internet/mail order platform and have enjoyed the change.
Presenting our family and the farm with its history and beauty and healthful products has been a joy. Once, we had no relationships with our customers, but now we enjoy knowing and serving people from all over who are genuinely interested in us and what we do. Although I don’t work in the production side of the farm, I can form the face, the contact, the lasting impression that tells who we are.
What advice can you offer women who are seeking to start a family run business?
Consider the cost! A dream, an idea, a concept can eventually be rewarding, fulfilling, and successful. Spend all the time you can researching the products, the processes, and the demands of both. I was told early on that to reach profitability, the question was not only how long would your money or credit hold out, but how long would I hold out. I was naïve about the demands on my time and energy. After 10 years we had progressed enough so that I could step back and concentrate on quality, creation, and appearance rather than production. This gave me the flexibility to spend some of my time on grandchildren, parents, and me. The journey to here has been longer than I expected, but I’m proud of where we are.
How do you maintain a work/life balance?
The demands of starting a business will determine the work/life balance if you let it. However, my family is too important to me to let that happen. We were fortunate that our livelihood did not depend on the retail division of the farm. If it had, we would have devoted more support to the effort and pushed it as much as possible. For me, the demands of family outweighed my responsibility to the business, and I was able to attend to both. My husband has always maintained attention to balance in the farm enterprises and has helped me keep that in focus. The balance I strive for involves faith in God and Jesus Christ, family, health, exercise, diet, recreation, education, work, and rest. At times I get out of balance, but I’m aware of where I should be.
What do you think is the biggest issue for women in the workplace?
Equal pay for equal work of course, all things being equal. But more than that, I am a woman and I expect to be treated as a woman and I expect to treat men as men, no better, no worse, just differently. As it applies, I will approach an issue from a different perspective than a man. Neither approach is wrong and both are valuable. I don’t want to be coddled, humored, marginalized or dismissed. I want to be treated as an equal and respected as a woman. I fear some think we have to be a man to compete in a man’s world. I think not.
How has mentorship made a difference in your professional and personal life?
The most important mentor in my life has definitely been my father, Alex McLennan. He taught through lesson and example the things that he felt were important to a person…to exercise daily whether you wanted to or not; to cook and eat healthy foods; to read , anything and everything: to buy things of quality, even at the cost of quantity; to work, hard and often; to be self sufficient; to respect the law and your fellow man; to drive fast; to take a stand for what you believe and be willing to fight for it; to serve your country and community; to garden; to speak your mind; and to love and care for your family. He was a messy but great cook, and early on knew to eliminate fat and sweets from his diet. He knew exercise was key to a sound mind and body. He firmly believed in being totally prepared, for law and life. He loved my mother, and he loved his children. His influence has led me to insist on several things at Pearson Farm. We only use fresh, simple ingredients in our kitchen…no preservatives or additives. We use our best peaches and pecans in our recipes. We make a Mess! And, we clean up! We treat customers as we wish to be treated. We respect and care for our employees. We are grateful for our customers and sincerely want to share with them the bounty from the farm. We expect our customers to be satisfied and are embarrassed when they are not, and we do everything in our power to correct any problem. This is what I was taught.
Which other female leaders do you admire and why?
I admire Laura Bush for her passion for reading and literacy, and I also admire her for the way she handled herself as the First Lady of Texas and the United States. She was responsible for shaping her husband’s character and conduct, making him into a man who would be elected twice to the Presidency. She was and is a strong woman of faith, a wise counselor, a loving wife, and an affectionate mother.
What do you want Pearson Farm to accomplish next year?
2015 hopefully brings Pearson Farm a consistency and a new look to our brand, our packaging, and our products. We have secured the services of At the Table Public Relations to tackle this. Over time our marketing decisions have not been true to a consistent theme which has resulted in a mixed bag of messages and appearances. I look forward to professionals getting us on track. We are also developing new recipes and products built around what we grow to expand our offerings from the kitchen using natural ingredients without preservatives, the same way I make things in my kitchen at home. We hope to see continued growth in sales of pecans all during the year, and with a good peach crop we should significantly increase shipments of fresh peaches by mail. These increases will come as the result of increased funding and effort in the internet marketing of Pearson Farm.
Feb 28
9 Surprisingly Feminist Classic Films, Because Strong Women Have Always Existed
Posted in: Today's ChiliThis post originally appeared on Bustle
By JR Thorpe
We tend to think of classic black-and-white films as pretty bad ground for women’s equality. The ladies in them look fantastic, sure, but the gender politics can be fairly awful: They’re there to look silly, make catty remarks and ultimately do the “natural” thing and bow to love and marriage. Right? Wrong. While that depressing state of affairs does characterize many old-school films, there are several stunning examples in classic cinema of powerful women kicking caboose and taking names on their own terms.
So, what qualifies as a seriously feminist film for this list’s purposes? For one, the focus can’t be on ultimately being “tamed” by a man: the amazing Female (1933) starring Ruth Chatterton, about a tough female boss of a huge automotive factory who uses men and does what she likes, is fantastic until the last 10 minutes, when she’s basically bullied into marriage and children because that’s “what women are born for.” (Yes, that is an actual piece of dialogue.) And complicated, driven women are in, but woman-on-woman “shrewish” competition is out — hence The Women (1939), an all-female romp about competing for a man’s attention, doesn’t make the cut.
Ultimately, it’s all about taking female strength and purpose seriously — and, in some of the films, it’s not even remarked upon that a woman would want to take charge of her own destiny and make her own choices. It’s simply a fact. That’s pretty radical, even in today’s films. Here are nine classic films which feature strong, complex, well-rounded women.
1. Mildred Pierce (1945)
Mildred Pierce was one of the first films to showcase an ambitious career woman as a central character: in this flick, Joan Crawford, as the mother who pushes incredibly hard and sacrifices virtually everything for her nasty little spoilt daughter. Mildred isn’t unflawed — but she’s powerful, and intent on getting what she deserves.
2. The Little Foxes (1941)
This film was actually pretty remarkable for the time, because it featured a Southern aristocratic belle who wasn’t a brat or markedly hopeless. Instead, Regina, played by the awesome Bette Davis, is fighting her brothers for her well-deserved share of their inheritance. Regina inevitably goes too far in her pursuit of justice, but her rage against the confines of her gender is palpable and accepted.
3. The African Queen (1951)
Now mostly famous for pairing Katharine Hepburn with a spectacularly grumpy Humphrey Bogart, this film should be better known for the fact that Hepburn’s character drives the whole thing: She and Bogart get stranded in a German-controlled bit of Africa at the outbreak of WWI, and she hatches a plan to convert their knackered boat into a gunboat and torpedo a German warship upriver. And she’s more than a match for Bogart’s embittered captain, intellectually and emotionally.
4. I’m No Angel (1933)
Oh, Mae West, how we love you. West was one of the first female comedians to get the big bucks and be frank about her sexuality. I’m No Angel, which she also wrote, features her in a lot of romantic entanglements (at least five) as a burlesque dancer, and while she does eventually find true love, she does it with some feminist ass-kicking. She sues her ex-fiancée (who was tricked into breaking off the engagement) for breach of promise, cross-examines all her ex-lovers herself, wins the case and gets back together with him. Score 100 points to West.
5. His Girl Friday (1940)
This screwball comedy from Howard Hawks looks pretty normal on the surface — Cary Grant uses every trick in the book to lure his best worker and ex-wife, Rosalind Russell, back to him — but it’s actually pretty subversive. Rosalind, as Hildy, is clearly the brains of the operation, and she and Grant match wits and ambition all the way to the inevitable happy ending.
6. Queen Christina (1933)
Greta Garbo stars as the gender-bending, completely non-compromising Queen Christina of Sweden, who was renowned for dressing in men’s clothes in an attempt to be taken seriously in the patriarchal environment of the Swedish court. In real life, Christina’s story was more interesting — she abdicated her throne because she didn’t want to marry anybody, for one thing — but Garbo’s Christina is an intensely powerful woman who makes difficult choices for her people and herself.
7. La souriante Madame Beudet (1922)
This surrealist short is regarded as the first truly feminist film: a woman imagines the death of her stupid, humiliating husband, before a twist keeps her imprisoned in the marriage. It’s very much from her point of view, and depicts her as intelligent and fully-formed. It’s both very silly and very sad.
8. The Thin Man (1934)
The Thin Man movies, based on the novels of Dashiell Hammett, are technically all about Nick Charles’ (William Powell) pursuits of criminals and murderers, but it’s his marriage to Nora (Myrna Loy) that got the headlines. And deservedly so: Nora, based on Hammett’s own partner Lillian Hellmann, is an equal, trades wisecracks at every opportunity, and is enraged when Nick, in a fit of justifiable chivalry, knocks her out to prevent her being shot at a crucial moment. “I wanted to see you get him!” she yells. Damn straight.
9. All About Eve (1950)
If you see one film on this list, make it this one. While the terrifying Eve, who manipulates everybody to supplant actress Bette Davis and get all her fame and roles, is a bit sociopathic, it’s the serious Davis who carries the picture: she’s a fully-rounded, highly intelligent, very sad character with huge flaws and high ambitions. That’s what feminist cinema is really about: not perfect women, but ones who try to take charge of their destinies, have real weaknesses and come to know their own strength.
Images: Wikimedia Commons
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9 Perfect Beauty Moments From Your Favorite Cult Films To Inspire Your Next Makeover
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Feb 28
What’s it like to identify as a male and struggle with an eating disorder?
While eating disorders are usually portrayed exclusively as issues that women struggle with in our culture, they also affect a significant number of men.
According to The National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA), the percentage of college-age men dealing with of eating disorders falls somewhere between 4-10 percent.
And while straight men certainly struggle with eating disorders as well, the gay community can especially place unrealistic expectations of how a man’s body should look through body policing and shaming.
In this clip from HuffPost Live, Troy Roness and Zach Stafford share their own experiences with battling eating disorders.
“Even within the gay community, as I came out and I moved to Chicago and went to college, my eating disorder, while I can talk to other gay men about it, was sometimes really celebrated,” Stafford told Huff Post Live. “And even now when I go to bars and talk to friends about it, it’s joked about as a thing that we should all be doing — we should all be obsessed with restricting calories, purging etc. So it’s really complicated and I think the reason it’s so accepted in the gay community, per se, is because so many of us are battling it.”
Check out the video above to hear more about eating disorders among men or head here to watch the segment in full.
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