Two Lefft Feet

So here we are going out for pizza...after a fun day...and so we are walking down to the car...and Kathleen Atchley looks down at me as we exit the elevator...and notices something peculiar...illustrated above...so what does she see?

...She sees a dufus who has put on two different flip-flops to go out on the town...a very proud moment of my life...and not just two different flip-flops but both were the left one...of course our dear friends and my lovely bride have promised to never mock me over this faux pas...but then again they also said they would never mention my other major doofus moment...involving our small group friends in Morro Bay long ago...

...So I figured it would be better to just get it out there...admit I was a knucklehead...and then turn it into a witty story about being an entrepreneur...and that there was some great lesson I will extract and share with each of you...of making mistakes and bouncing back through it...or turning a "sows ear into a silk purse"...or something else...but really I just needed to say that I was a knucklehead...and sometimes that is really all you can say...and not much else...

But on the plane back stateside I had the opportunity to listen to a book summary that was really great...very useful and much that I agreed with...which is high praise for most books on entrepreneurship and small business management that I come across...


Never Bet The Farm was a great "read"...and I will soon read it in its entirety...and if any of you have been through it let me know your thoughts...but I put it right up there "Small Giants" and you all know how I feel about that great little book..

...So anyway, time to sign off...but what was that other great doofus moment...I mentioned earlier it was in Morro Bay...about ten years ago...and let's just say it involved the picture below...and that despite what some say...the price of good friends can sometimes be too much!...especially when you miscalculate the price of crab legs...boy I hope Albertsons found that bundle of legs in the poultry section...where I left it...

Are Christians Social Entrepreneurs?

Well as promised I am posting my recently completed research article on religious and social entrepreneurship. This is a topic that I have been thinking about since I attended the Skoll World Forum at the Said Business School in Oxford in 2007.

Go to this link and you should be able to access it.

http://www.scribd.com/share/upload/13426022/w5e3fy04m9p33sfgcyz

And if you are wondering about the picture...of those handsome and youthful men approaching the lovely young ladies...this is a cover from a magazine I read...a long long time ago...titled The Door...originally known as The Wittenberg Door...edited by (the late) Mike Yaconelli...probably the funniest Christian ever...who diligently labored to create the very small field known as Christian Satire...which few people ever understood...and Mike and The Door had a wit and wisdom that was inspiring to those of us who feel way too many people (aka Christians) have their undies cinched down too much...Yaconelli was prophetic in his own way...and I would highly recommend some of his books to you...

I hope some of you enjoy the article...and feel free to dialogue with me on your opinion!

Breaking all the Rules!

So I have taken a few days off after a long school year and traveled to Kauai...and once again been exposed to that unique delicacy known as "shave ice"...now before you go get your panties in a bunch that shave ice is in many other locales please understand that is not the point of this post...only that it does seem to be very popular here in the islands and that I never really think about it back home...and really I am not as impressed as everyone else seems to be about it...I mean it is very good but not earth shattering...like Silva brand linguica or Summeripe peaches are...but anyway...

Everyone here raves about shave ice and there are fans of various locations and lines everywhere...so I decided to make some observations about three separate vendors in two different towns...two of which I have visited and enjoyed their products...and they all seem to break the entrepreneur rules that I teach...

...the first is in Hanalei as is known as the "Wishing Well"...and the picture below really does more justice to the location than it deserves...shall we say it has a certain rustic ambience...earthy...with a hint of palm trees...and syrup and ice cream...and yet all day long people line up for this particular delicacy...but the most interesting thing is that the owner...a lovely elderly lady...serves customers in a unique way...somewhere between Attila the Hun and the soup Nazi from Seinfeld days...so don't you dare hesitate when you stand in line and finally get to the window to order...do it quick and precise and know what you want...or you are going to get yelled at...all for the privlege of some shave ice...perhaps part of the enjoyment is to watch how she talks to everyone in line...but the produce really is very good..

...And in seat #2 of the entrepreneurial puzzle we have Jo-Jo's Shave Ice in Waimea...and one can certainly not criticize it for inadequate signage...and they are on the main road...so all should be going well...right?...well my dear daughter Rachel desires the Jo-Jo's product...having heard so much about it...and so we stop and what do we find?...that they are all out of the Haupio sweet cream that they pour over the top...right after lunch time...on a weekday...in summer...so go figure...I guess the 60 flavors they advertise must not include the famous topping that makes it unique...

...but to make it really interesting Jo-Jo's is not really Jo-Jo's since Jo-Jo actually sold her Jo-Jo's shave ice shop a few years ago and the new owner kept the name Jo-Jo's since Jo-Jo the person had retired and Jo-Jo's had quite a following...got it?...but guess what happened when Jo-Jo didn't like the way the new owner's were running Jo-Jo's?...so Jo-Jo decided to open another shave ice store...not just in the same town but no more than 50 yards away...and Jo-Jo decided to name it Jo-Jo's Anuenue Shaved Ice...

...so now we have two Jo-Jo's almost next to each other...each with the same products...competing for the same customers...at the same price...how does that make any sense?...thus all the rules are being broken...and especially very slow lines, poor customer service, waiting in the sun, out of products, etc. etc. etc...

Does this make sense?

Not to me it does...at least at first glance...because I always teach that regardless of the business you must always treat customers well, provide for their comfort, have adequate products in stock, clean restrooms, etc....and none of these businesses have that...in fact they have just the opposite...So how do they survive? Why do people line up?

Just to tantalize you, here is a review from a website of one of the sites (does it really matter which one?)...

"The reviews of this place MADE me wait for an hour, in the sun and then in the hell hole that it is.... waited while ONE guy...ONE...waited on about 35 people, at once. Here's the story....you wait...give your order to this moron...he takes about 15 orders at a time...writes them down on post it notes...then...when his notepad is full, he walks over to the otherside of the 100+ degree shop and makes your shave ice treat. He makes about 20....and hands them out to the melted, crancky people...and then goes back to take more orders. Guess what? After practically dying of heat stroke....ANYTHING cold would have gotten 4 stars. This is really over rated, over hyped and extremely poorly run. The shaved ice is simply that. Shave ice with the same old syrup poured over the top. Nothing spectacular...nothing to rave about except that by the time you get it, condensation would have been great. I rate it a negative 5."

...So I must admit I am a bit perplexed about the who Shave Ice thing...a good product delivered in a poor way...and have concluded that these places break all the entrepreneurial rules...and therefore they fascinate me...and require further thought...and comment...over a #3 with mac nut on the bottom...and of course the Haupio Sweet Cream on it...if they are not out of it..Aloha!

Asleep at the wheel...

Portugal? My last entry was Portugal? Arrghh...Ok well after a long absence (was it writer's block or mere laziness?) I return to the foray of blogging...actually having received several comments from people as to why I had grown silent...They didn't actually say that they missed my posts but I am going to hope for the best...

WOW! So much has happened these past months! We have lost Michael Jackson...Farrah Fawcett...ummm...Ed McMahon...and just now I read that Billy Mays died in his sleep...

...now you have to love a world where a guy like Billy Mays can become a celebrity with his own Discovery channel show...countless infomercials...contracts...he really makes me proud to be involved in teaching entrepreneurship...and I really am not mocking here because it is an inspirational story...born to a modest background he was a college dropout from Pittsburg and worked for his father's hazardous waste company...moving to New Jersey (wow, there is a rich vein of material I could work with there knowing a few dear folks from NJ)...and learned how to sell from the rough cut old timers at the boardwalk on Atlantic City...all of this is true...

...What you have to love about the field of entrepreneurship and small business is that it is the authentic equal opportunity venue without the government intrusion...it matters little if you are a PHD or barely made it through grade school...male or female...black or white...in fact the two most identifiable characteristics of entrepreneurs is that it clearly runs in the family, meaning that if your parents or relatives were entrepreneurs it is likely that you will be as well (didn't really work in my own case, but you know, I was always exceptional...a very special bus came to pick me up each day to go to school...the other kids called it "the short bus"...but I liked the seats and the seat belts...kind of felt like Disneyland)...

Well the other key factor of being an entrepreneur is being from a rural area...yepper...none of that "Siliconvalleyangelinvestorhightechturbomaster5000harvardstanfordbluebloodinghighfallutingstuff" for the entrepreneur...if you don't believe me read the book "The Illusions of Entrepreneurship"by Scott Shane to prove my point...

...I guess the impression that entrepreneurs come from or gravitate towards Silicon Valley is pretty much the media's fault...because it is much more interesting to talk about the guy who invented the latest nanotechnology item than Jose and Maria who just opened their fourteenth dry cleaning shop, cleaning the clock of everyone in the region by providng great service at good prices...operationally excellent, intimate with their customers, and leading in products (sounds like a Harvahhd B School article)...Silicon Valley is much sexier than the San Joaquin Valley...but all that does is give Jose and Maria a bigger head start...but I digress once again...

So where have I been hiding these past months? Well the short answer (from the guy from the short bus) is that I have been very very very busy...and focused on some other issues of reading and writing...I have successfully finished a journal article that I just submitted to that venerable academic publications "Camping World" and "Highlights" for their consideration...let's think happy thoughts here...and after I receive the rejection letter from them in the coming months I will send it around to som.e other avenues...so that took time away from blogging...as well as teaching responsibilities and some extended research into international entrepreneurship which is a lot of work but very enjoyable as well...so I am very sorry about the delay...

...and if anyone would like to see the recently completed paper on social entrepreneurship just let me know...Billy Mays was going to pitch it for me but I am back to square one now...

...I promise to return soon and regale the masses with more insight on the business world,politics, observations and of course, some gracious commentary on the loss of Michael Jackson...so stay tuned...

Portugal Update #2

A Pacific Boy Bumps Into the Atlantic

...So here I am born and bred West Coast USA...spent four years aboard a cruiser in the Indian and Pacific Oceans and many seas...and always kind of viewed the Atlantic as a large lake...well except for that pesky iceberg thingy that Leo and Kate bumped into...and those notorious 25 foot seas...but go with me anyway OK...so today over a delicious fish luncheon I watched the crashing Atlantic from about 50 yards away...and let's just say that I have a newfound respect for the "pond" which makes me somewhat glad I was stationed out of San Diego and not Norfolk...

...so at Ericiera Portugal west of Mafra about 45 minutes from Lisbon...my dear friends Joe and Paula (and young Deborah as well!) and Otto and I drove a well-worn Opel...400,000+KM on the odometer...and visited a new restaurant for a traditional Portuguese luncheon...with linguica...bread...shrimp...octopus...and lovely white fish with vegetables...and more bread...and laughter...talking matters of life common to all of us...thank-you friends for the lunch!...

...It was quite an international day with some new Australian friends over pancakes and fruit...now living in Loures Portugal...

...most gracious people are Matt and Kiri and family...and they confirm in me the wonderful nature and friendship of our friends down under...and their talented pet 'roo Abner...quite lovely...check them out at http://www.vanders.org.au/...

...I read the news today, oh boy!...did you see the new Time Magazine cover?...hmmm quite interesting...a special report on the world economy with a cover picture of...(select correct answer below):

A. Vice-President Joe Biden

B. US Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke

C. Karl Marx, Father of Communist Economic Theory

...So with the running banner beneath saying..."The Return of Poverty"..."The Need for New Ideas"..."Citi's Troubled History"...the answer is (drum roll!)...

(hint: His picture is not only on this week's Time Cover but also on Sgt. Pepper)

...Karl Marx...yeahhh!!!!!...whoooooooo!!!!....boy howddddeeeee!!!!...we need some new ideas!!!..

...So Time encourages us in their special report "What Would Marx Think?"... to ponder some important questions...such as..(actual quotations here)...

"Rethinking Marx: As we work out how to save capitalism, it's worth studying the system's greatest critic"...or how about this one..."If you leave aside the prescriptive parts of Marx's writings, there's a trenchant diagnosis of the problems that are even relevant today"...so you see I had to go look up that tricky word 'trenchant' cause I can't say I have used it in the blog recently...and discovered it synonyms...

incisive
keen
penetrating
perceptive
sensitive

WELL THANK-YOU VERY MUCH TIME MAGAZINE! I AM ALL OVER THIS ONE!

Excuse me now...I need to go change out of my clothes...as I think I must have spilled a warm drink on my trousers!...but no fear...the government shall purchase me a new pair!...it gives a whole new meaning to "bail out!"

Greetings from Lisbon!

Where's Waldo? Or Randy?

Bon dia from the long-lost blogger...who has fallen off the face of the earth for the past month...well, not really, but maybe just plain lazy when it comes to blogging...but he has returned with a greeting from Lisboa/Lisbon Portugal...ancestral home of my grandparents...well, at least on the Portuguese side since it would be rather difficult for the maternal Irish side to come from the home of linguica and vinho verde...not that Iwould really know what the latter is...

...but nonetheless I find myself overlooking the town of Loures about 10 minutes north of Lisbon this rainy Saturday...hanging with my dear friend Otto Ekk and enjoying their beautiful home with a great view of an old convent (now a museum) and a new shopping center and surrounding apartment buildings interspersed among ancient agricultural plots...having traveled here on Wednesday...well really Thursday by the time we arrived at 4pm Portugal time on Thursday with a moderate case of jet lag...this now being my fourth trip here in the past five years it is good to reconnect with old friends and to see what the churches and groups are up to these days...and to study and think about new models of community and ideas that are developing in Western Europe...

...yet the big big big news here is that Americans are back on the "A-List" of Europeans these days...all thanks to Mr. President Barack Obama...whom these folks just cannot seem to get enough of...

...This guy is some sort of crazy superhero-messiah-handsome-charming-Euro-magnificent-man...and I thought he was only a President!...Sheesh!!!...silly dumb American that I am...and all the way here and in the airports and on shirts and television and newspapers and billboards and...well, you get the point...BARACK ROCKS!!!...and according to the German newspaper I spied MICHELLE ROCKS!!!...but not only that she is very very sexy...oolala!!!...

...but it is really fun to be back in the good graces of our European friends and brothers and sisters again...and I am comforted to know that he is the answer to all the world's problems now...and it does give me some insight to the view people hold of politicians sometimes...well at least politicians other than your own country's....and how much we really want our leaders to lead...and how people discern leadership and hope and change and more hope and more change and how we are really hopeful about hope and just hoping beyond hope that hopefully hope leaves us now hopeful and...well, you get the idea of what is up in Europe...

...so all we can say is that we need to hope for the best...

...but as for me and my view from Portugal...specifically above a picture of the lovely Tagus River flowing through my family's home town of Porto...and surrounding area...it is a short and sweet trip...and always good to come back...just wishing I had the language skills to converse although fortunately many people here speak English...but it does help me understand better why I am (and my family members as well) are the way we are...because really I was running out of explanations...yet there is a rhythm and poetry to Portugal that is at once confusing and reassuring...that some things really do never change and yet they are always changing...and a life of both sadness and joy wrapped up into one...that is hard to explain but wonderful to experience and consider...so I enjoy Portugal a great deal especially with so many nice people to share a coffee and pastry with...or whom open their homes for a meal with us...very nice...obrigado...

WHAT TO MAKE OF WALL STREET?!? YOWZZA!

...Just when you think it is safe to go back in the water...comes the big ol' great white shark to tear your limbs off...time to put it all...or whatever is left of all...in a suitcase and bury it in the yard or stuff it under the bed...so I am about out of advice dispensing on this one...but what puzzles me is that while the numbers (you know--the numbers, whatever they are) look bad they don't seem to be nearly as bad as we all feel...and it just seems like all confidence is gone in buying, building or spending on anything...and it is global and not just back in the USA...especially for the Brits (GOD SAVE THE QUEEN 'CAUSE THE POUND SURE AIN'T GOING TO DO IT!)...so where does this leave us?

...for the moment I am just going to have to place my trust in God...and wait a few quarters...glad that I am not retiring soon...because if I did I would be practicing my little speech from the only two companies that are doing anything right these days...since we know that GE, Pfizer, Microsoft, Disney, and all the rest are just worthless anymore...so...hang on...let me clear my throat...mmmm....ahhhhhh...OK how does this sound?

"GOOD MORNING--WELCOME TO WAL-MART!" or "WOULD YOU LIKE FRIES WITH THAT?"

...the problem for me is that them darn little paper hats...supposedly 'one size fits all'...just don't sit well on my huge head...so I need to find something else to do...

BUT WAIT! I KNOW THE ANSWER!

GO OBAMA! GO OBAMA! GO OBAMA! NEXT STOP PRESIDENT OF THE WORLD!

Forrest or Benjamin?

Life is like a box of chocolates...you never know what you are going to get...and I really didn't expect to gather as much insight and pleasure from the new film "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" as I did...and whle I don't necessarily swoon over Brad Pitt (unlike someone else in the little household)...he was rather striking at points in this movie...perhaps his best yet....worth the $7 I paid (I know, I know, but it was a small town coastal theater with small town prices)...

...but anyway...while the plot of Mr. Button's Opus is generally well known...umm...see...it is about what happens when you are born old and die young....no, not like James Dean!...but in a physical sense...rather curious indeed...

and I would assume that everyone except for the lost tribes of Israel has seen Gump multiple times...I don't want to spoil anything for anyone but here is your "SPOILER ALERT" (did you hear the "whoop-whoop" of the spoiler siren?)...but I was really struck by the similarities between Forrest Gump and The Curious Case...

(Yes it is Brad Pitt...and this is just one of the lesser transformations he makes in the film)

So here is my list of similarities between the two movies...

*Both feature actors at middle age at the top of their game with the names of their characters in the titles.

*Both feature an unfolding of events throughout the world where the lead actors find themselves in wholly unexpected circumstances of history.

*Both films are narrated by the actors who record and recall these world events.

*Both are raised by single mothers who struggle to "level the playing field" for their sons.

*Both have unique physical attributes that are slowly revealed that both serve and hamper them.

*Both are stories of wandering throughout life but never forgetting home.

*Both are set in the deep South of the U.S.

*Both use a large house as a returning point for the characters throughout their lives.

*Both involve tragic service in wartime with most of their fellow combantants killed or wounded.

*Both involve a boat of approximately similar size and use where each of the actors seems to mature and develop as men.

*Both have the lead actors serving under a gruff, abrasive and yet sympathetic military leader over them who did not fulfill their true destiny in life.

*Both have them finding, losing, finding and again losing a woman throughout their entire lives, whom they met as young boys.

*Both of them are encouraged and inspired by the women at a young age, and these early incidents shape their lives.

*Both of the women they love develop a career in the performing arts but fail to achieve the level of success that they aspired to.

*Both have promiment supporting roles provided by black actors and actresses, all of whom show exceptional insight to life even in difficult situations.

*Both involve having a child and the greatest fear is that the child will have the same physical and emotional problems as the father.

*Both have a reconciliation scene with the child that the child is unaware that they are in the presence of their father.

*Both involve a recurring image and metaphor of a bird and both films close with this image.

...there are more but I think you get the picture...feel free to suggest any that you see (or disagree with me, but be nice please!)...

Anyway there is certainly more to life than just seeing and thinking about a new movie but then again, maybe there isn't...

...I guess I could write about incoming President Obama...but it seems that everyone else kind of beats me to it...he has been named Man of the Year, Captain of the World, America's Gift to Europe, The Fittest President Ever, The African-American Marlboro Man, The Messiah, etc.,..and all I can really say is he hasn't served a day yet! WHAT AM I MISSING?

I want Pres. Obama to succeed, to truly be a great President and leader...but I just cannot figure out the swooning over his "accomplishments" yet...when there just aren't any yet!...

So I wish him (and us) well for 2009...a year I am looking forward to...and hope to recover some of my market losses...and want to close by thanking all of my great students who have inspired me to teach and to write...all of you are great and a huge blessing to me...thanks!