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The Perfect Beach to Forget the Office

The last few hours in the afternoon in the office can really drag by, especially at the start of the week when the delights of the weekend seem like a million miles away. During these moments I start day dreaming. I start to find myself ignoring my computer screen and I catch myself imagining that I’m on a tropical beach. I’ve just got relaxed and I walk slowly into the calm warm water. The warmth nourishes me. Few people are around. I look down and the sea seems like glass it is so clear. I look up and see a few fluffy clouds in a light blue sky. I look to the beach and there are tall coconut trees, and behind tree covered mountains where eagles sport in the thermals. And then someone talks to me and I’m torn from my tropical reverie and back in the office answering a question from a new employee.

It’s always the same beach. It’s Thong Nai Pan Noi beach. It’s on Koh Phangan island down in the south of the Gulf of Thailand. It’s where I met my Japanese wife. The best of times. We try to go back every year. The locals on the beach all know us. We never have to haggle or worry about getting ripped off. It’s as a real beach holiday should be – cheap, relaxed and a million miles away from the office, the cold weather and the pressure of work.

We went for New Year’s Eve last year. We partied all night at the Funky Buddha in Thong Nai Pan Yai. I must have drunk too much as I forgot what happened between 3am and 7am when I found myself alone standing in the sea. It was a moment to savour. The first morning of the new year and I was in paradise.

Next time I want to go in the summer. In July. The weather is really hot and that keeps many of the tourists away. Our last trip we spotted a great holiday villa in Thong Nai Pan Noi to rent. It’s called Sunrise Villa. It is only 5,000 Thai Baht a night. It’s perched on a hill behind Thong Tapan Resort and has a truly awesome view of the bay, not to mention complete privacy.

It’s thoughts like these that keep me sane when I’m working in an office.

Parties in Koh Phangan

Koh Phangan was an obscure island in the Gulf of Thailand until a few years ago. Now every young backpacker and gap year student has heard of the island. It is a place that appeals much more to many young people than the neighboring island of Koh Samui. Although Koh Samui has an airport, better roads, better hospitals and more choice of accommodation, the island is over-developed and over-priced. It is for those who want two week holidays sitting around a resort pool. Koh Phangan is for those who want to party and who want unspoiled beaches.

Until the Full Moon Party became a hit on the traveling circuit Koh Phangan was a well kept secret. It was an island with lots of gorgeous white sand beaches with simple bungalows, a few bars and a relaxed and friendly atmosphere. It used to be nearly as cheap as India.

Nowadays the prices have gone up for food and accommodation on Koh Phangan (but not as much as on Koh Samui) and fewer hippies come to the island. Instead thousands of party minded young people come. They come for the Full Moon Party, the Half Moon Party, the Black Moon Party, the Shiva Moon Party and the Jungle Experience. These are all outdoor parties that are cheap to go to and let young people dance and go a bit wild all night long.

The biggest party on Koh Phangan (and indeed in South East Asia) is the Full Moon Party. It’s only $3 to enter. Drinks are reasonably priced and the experience of partying with 30,000 other people on a beautiful beach all night and then watching the sunrise over the ocean the following morning is an unforgettable one.

The next biggest party is the Half Moon Party. This party regularly draws about 2,000 people. The evening starts with a live band called Moscowfish who play acoustic and wistful triphop songs. They are followed by a house DJ accompanied by live African drumming. From midnight the music is all psy-trance.

The Half Moon Party is held in the jungle near Ban Tai village. At separate locations in the area the Shiva Moon Party, the Black Moon Party and the Jungle Experience are held once a month. These are all trance music parties. On the beach at Ban Tai the resort called Ban Sabai has day parties after all the major parties.

Finally, in the summer there are parties in the jungle next to a waterfall near the northern village of Chaloklum. This is the Paradise Waterfall Party. Again it is mostly Koh Phangan’s version of trance music that is played.

It is only at the Full Moon Party that you can hear other genres of music such as RnB, drum and bass, rock and pop. The band at Half Moon Party is the standout performance for all those interested in original music. The prevalence of trance DJs in Koh Phangan is slightly disappointing. It seems that Koh Phangan is trying too hard to emulate Goa.

On the plus side these parties are held in great locations. Moreover, in Koh Phangan you are never far away from a beach fringed with palm trees. When there isn’t any party going on most of the beaches of Koh Phangan are idyllic havens that are far more beautiful and friendly than the commercialized beaches of Koh Samui.

If only Koh Phangan parties could show a bit more musical variety they might foster a more creative atmosphere to the island. Instead Koh Phangan has a reputation for drunkenness and illicit substance abuse. In a way Koh Phangan has become the Ibiza of Asia, only much better value.

Managing A Retail Outlet That Sells Vaporizers

I have a friend who runs a traditional retail convenience store in the Springfield area. I’ve never been a fan of the retail business model, because of all the inventory you have to carry. He has to spend a lot of time carefully managing the items he has in stock. This distracts from the other aspects of running the business. Personally, I am a high-level manager. So I would not step down to this level of micromanagement. I would just outsource it – hire someone to do it for me! Preferably some kid that I could pay minimum wage.

One retail outlet that really has its inventory management down to science is Walmart. It’s amazing how they maintain their margins while still selling things so cheap. This is due not only to their preferred pricing arrangements with suppliers, but also to their sophisticated inventory management software. That company has continued to do well in the economic downturn. Personally I don’t shop there because I am a high-level manager. I prefer to do my shopping at more sophisticated outlets. All of my suits are from Brooks Brothers of course. You won’t find me wearing an off-the-rack suit from JC Penney’s, that’s for sure. I keep my tailor busy.

Walmart

Anyway, back to my friend who manages the retail outlet. Lately he’s been selling one high-margin item – vaporizers. Since he started stocking them, many people have come into the shop and asked for the best vaporizer. Apart from that, he also sells various furnishings for the home. One item that was a popular seller throughout the fall were fire bowls. The sales of are slowing down a bit now during the winter time. So the store is getting some rapid inventory turns on those. ‘Inventory turns’ is a sophisticated term that those of us in the business world use. If you don’t know what it means, I would recommend you go and Google it. Speaking of good businesses, Google is definitely one of them. Have you taken a look at their financials? Their net margins are consistently above 25%. It’s all advertising revenue too, from people clicking on those little ads. I’ve heard that you can also get your website ranked highly in the normal Google search, but I personally don’t know much about that. If I was going to do that I would just outsource it.

The Importance of Winding Down and How a Dog Can Help

Woman stroking a Golden Retriever in the street
Photo by Ed Yourdon

Why I’m a Stressed-Out Businessman

I have a lot of stress in my life at the moment. We’re going through a prolonged period of change at work, which means we need to adjust the way people are managed, make some difficult decisions about who stays in the organisation and who should be invited to leave, and arranging new accommodation for the entire workforce.

As facilities manager, the accommodation problem rests squarely on my shoulders. It’s a weighty problem to wrestle with because it affects the lives of so many people. Depending on where we end up, some staff will have a longer commute to work each day, which might cause any number of complications with child care, transport arrangements, not to mention the extra cost of fuel which is trending ever higher these days.

In addition to the personal implications for people working for my organisation, the choice of which facility I eventually decide on can impact the bottom line and the very survival of our business. If I go for a prime location, this will cost big bucks and could make our operation less viable economically, whereas if I go for a cheaper option, this will inevitably be further away from our customers and will be lacking in prestige. It’s a tough decision.

How my Dog Relaxes Me

With all this stress in my life during the working day, the last thing that I or my family need is for me to bring the worry and fretfulness of the workplace home with me. It’s bad for the health and bad for the ambience of the household.

So how do I relax?

I spend some time with my dog. This makes me feel better in a number of ways:

My Dog is Always Pleased to See Me

No matter how grumpy I am when I return from a hard day at the office, my dog is always pleased to see me. It’s as if I’ve just come back from a year at sea with the Navy. It doesn’t matter to my dog whether I’ve been away for a month or even for 5 minutes, each time I walk back into the room, he’s all wagging tails and eager to be petted.

This makes a pleasant change from some of the characters I have to deal with at work. Many of these folk try to avoid me or complain and moan to me when they see me. But not my dog, he’s always a sight for sore eyes.

Take the Dog for a Walk

I love taking my dog for a walk in the evening. It freshens me up, blows away the cobwebs and takes my mind off my worries. Not only am I getting a change of scenery and some fresh air, but I getting some much needed exercise and enjoying the company of my old friend.

I Groom and Pet My Dog

Studies have shown that stroking and petting a dog significantly reduces levels of stress – both for the human giving and for the dog receiving the attention. It’s a form of bonding.

There’s nothing that relaxes me more than sitting in my favourite armchair with my dog on my lap, watching a good film and striking the dog and sipping a large glass of red wine. Pretty soon my troubles have gone.

Once a week I groom my dog, which involves a wash with some specially formulated dog grooming products followed by a towel drying and a brush of the coat. This keeps his fur nice and clean, smelling great and crying out to be stroked.

This little routine is what I look forward to every day upon my return home and is what serves to mark the end of the working day and the beginning of my relaxing leisure time. I have no trouble sleeping after unwinding in this way (unlike some of my colleagues who complain of sleepless nights at the moment), and awake the next day feeling refreshed and ready for the day ahead.

Why Playing the Guitar Makes Me a Better Businessman

Smart businessman playing the guitar on stage
Photo by Alex Grant (alextakesphotos)

I’ll bet that got your attention didn’t it? Guitarists are not generally known for their business acumen, right? No, mostly we hear about them throwing TV sets off hotel balconies or trashing their rooms for fun.

Well, it may surprise you to discover that many famous guitarists are actually very astute in the field of business and I can offer some reasons why this might be the case. All in the name of fun you understand, none of this is scientific fact, I just thought I’d lighten things up a little with a change of pace on the blog.

Guitarists are Typically Better Educated

In my experience, guitarists tend to be better educated than their fellow band members, certainly better than the drummers I’ve played with, that’s for sure!

Let’s take Brian May as an example here. Brian is the guitarist with Queen, one of the most successful rock bands of all time. He may have gone a bit soft in recent years and become more interested in saving badgers and foxes than making fans’ ears bleed with the sheer awesomeness of his guitar playing, but he deserves his place in the rock and roll hall of fame, no doubt about it.

So it may surprise you to learn that he is in fact an astrophysicist with a PhD from Imperial College? Well, you shouldn’t be surprised because the study required to excel in the guitar not only exercises the fingers, but also the brain.

The possibilities on the guitar are endless. You have 6 strings, each with up to 24 frets that can be (literally) pressed into action to give a huge number of potential notes, and that’s before you even think about bending the strings to alter the pitch. It takes an able mind to make sense of all those options and mould them into good music.

Guitarists Need a Good Head for Business

This is as true today as it ever was. Without a head for business, you’ll be taken to the cleaners by the record companies, the agents and everyone else who wants to take a cut of your earnings as a musician. With the rise of the internet and the decrease in the reliance of musicians on the record companies to get their music published and distributed, big business is taking a back seat to innovation and the rise of talent over commerce.

A great example of how bands can empower themselves by making radical decisions in how they run their own businesses is Radiohead, who took the decision in 2008 to give away their latest album.

It was a great tactic and operated on the basis of inviting donations from those wanting to download the album. Loyal fans would pay perhaps quite a lot as a way of thanking the band for the music they have enjoyed during the band’s career; others could choose to pay as little as 45 pence, which only just covered the credit card handling fees.

By far the biggest benefit of this tactic, though, was the free publicity that the unusual distribution model generated. That alone would have paid for any loss of revenue suffered because of people downloading after making the minimum donation. Genius!

So, the evidence is clear. Guitarists are better at business…fact!

Why not take up the guitar yourself and see whether the benefits translate into improvements in your own business acumen? I can highly recommend a free website called, Guitar Instructions, where you can find all the information you’ll need to get you started.

Give it a try! You might even enjoy it.

Lesser Known Uses for Bamboo

One common perception about bamboo is that it is only useful for bamboo blinds and mats or for stakes for the garden. This is a mistaken perception because bamboo products can be used in a surprising number of ways. The more ways we can find to use bamboo the better it is for the environment. Bamboo is an incredibly fast growing plant that can be cultivated to keep up with demand; and hence bamboo is a great pointer to how we can put the square peg of consumer society into the round hole of a sustainable future. Below are a few notes of less well known ways that bamboo can be used.

Bamboo as fuel

Bamboo charcoal is a great substitute for normal charcoal. Trees that are used to make charcoal typically take 60 to 100 years to reach maturity. Using such slowly renewing resources for fuel and removing natural habitat (and thus speeding up loss of bio-diversity) makes bad environmental sense. Using bamboo charcoal is the obvious option. It gets just as hot as normal charcoal and it is a smokeless and odorless fuel ideal for BBQs.

Bamboo as pesticide and fertilizer

Bamboo charcoal can be broken up and mixed into soil to provide a natural and organic pesticide and fertilizer. It is full of nutrients that are necessary for healthy soil. Moreover, bamboo charcoal is anti-fungal and antimicrobial and thus is capable of repelling bugs and other pests. Some Japanese farmers have started using bamboo charcoal instead of chemical fertilizers and have seen 40% increases on yields compared to crops without any fertilizer inputs.

It is also possible to plant bamboo next to land destined for cultivation. The bamboo improves the water retention of the soil and helps to aerate the soil better.

Bamboo for cleaning

Bamboo vinegar is a by-product of producing bamboo charcoal. It is a very useful liquid as it is both slightly acidic and antibacterial. As with vinegar it can be used to clean floors, surfaces and windows. Bamboo vinegar is a non-toxic substance that is safe to have in the home and that does not pollute water supplies. It is also possible to use bamboo vinegar to sterilize such things as baby equipment.

Bamboo for flooring

If you do a search on the internet about bamboo flooring you will no doubt come across detractors who believe bamboo flooring is not as hard as hardwood flooring. The truth is that strand woven bamboo flooring has a Janka Hardness Rating of 2,500 pounds force making it as hard as oak and is more than hard enough to be used as flooring. Strand woven bamboo flooring looks like hardwood flooring and performs just as well as hardwood flooring. This makes it a good green alternative to hardwood flooring.

Bamboo as medicine

Bamboo charcoal soap uses the high absorption capabilities of bamboo charcoal to draw out dirt from the skin’s pores. It also doesn’t leave a film on the skin so that the body’s natural oils can moisturize the skin. This makes bamboo charcoal soap ideal for treating acne.

Bamboo vinegar is famed for drawing poisons from the body. In Asia it is popular to use bamboo vinegar foot patches to detox. They are placed on the feet overnight and removed in the morning. It is a simple way to detox the blood.

These are just some of the amazing ways that bamboo can be used. Bamboo is simply a resource too good to not be used. The more society can use bamboo the healthier the future looks.

Making the Home a Green Place and The Triple Bottom Line

Under traditional methods of accounting it was not always cost effective to go green. Environmentally friendly technology and architecture is often more expensive than older technology and architecture. In 1981 Freer Spreckly published ‘Social Audit – A Management Tool for Co-operative Working’. In it he introduced the notion of the Triple Bottom Line. This was a paradigm shift that suddenly made going green a profitable activity.

Under the old system of accounting the bottom line consisted exclusively of income minus expenses. It was this model that decided whether an enterprise was successful. Under the Triple Bottom Line three indices decide the viability and profitability of an activity: they are ‘people, planet, profits’. With this breakthrough things such as green interior design suddenly made sense.

People

‘People’ refers to promoting design that makes the environment healthy for people. In terms of green interior design this means choosing flooring and window treatments that don’t allow dust mites to breed and cause allergic reactions. It also means avoiding paints, thinners, cleaning products, carpet backing, glues, furniture polish that contain harmful volatile organic compounds (VOCs) such as formaldehyde, acetone, chlorofluorocarbons and benzene that cause respiratory problems, cancer and reproductive problems. Under the Triple Bottom Line it makes sense to invest in bamboo flooring, zero VOC paint etc. as it saves hospital bills and keeps people healthy and productive.

Planet

‘Planet’ refers to what most people think of as environmentalism, namely promoting products and practices that stop pollution and resource depletion. Naturally, as we are part of the planet what is good for the environment is also good for us. We need clean water and clean air just as much as other fauna and flora. It makes good sense to use earth friendly detergents or soap nuts for laundry washing. Phosphates in normal washing detergents are causing huge floating algae blooms in rivers and seas that are suffocating marine life. Using vinegar, baking soda and lemon instead of strong acids and alkalies are less toxic for both people and the planet.

One of the greatest man-made problems besetting the planet is climate change caused by high carbon emission levels. These are caused by a variety of causes but especially by humans burning fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas to generate electricity. Products such as digital programmable thermostats, CFLs and LED lights that are approved by Energy Star help to improve energy efficiency and thus reduce carbon emissions.

The planet is also faced with crisis caused by resource depletion. Fresh water sources are being stretched. Already agriculture uses 66% of the world’s fresh water. Although humans need only 13 gallons of water a day the average home in the USA uses 260 gallons a day. Green interior uses low flow showers, faucet aerators and grey water recycling to conserve this most precious of resources.

Similarly, the world’s forests are being chopped down at an alarming rate. One way to stop this is to recycle and upcycle by using reclaimed hardwood flooring. Another method is to turn to renewable resources such as bamboo, coconut and water hyacinth for flooring, furniture and household products.

Profit

The notion of ‘profit’ remains in the Triple Bottom Line. Many things that are good for the environment are good for the finances. For example using a digital programmable thermostat can reduce heating and cooling bills in a home by 30% or $700 a year. Another example is compact fluorescent light bulbs – they last 8 times longer than standard incandescent light bulbs and use 75% less electricity. Changing just 5 light bulbs in the home to CFLs can save $100 a year. Also solar energy costs money to install but turns a profit over a few years. It also reduces carbon emission.

The same is the case for better home insulation or green roofs. They cost money initially but soon turn a profit in terms of savings on heating and cooling bills. What is good for the environment is often also good for the bank balance.

So it can be seen that people, planet and profits are inter-connected not mutually exclusive. Using the Triple Bottom Line, sustainable design and green interior design makes sense for our health, for the health of the planet and for our finances. Looking at accounting in this way is the only way to secure a future that is healthy and sustainable for our children and grand children.

Taling Ngam in Koh Samui

Koh Samui has been a top tourist destination in Thailand since the 1980s. In that time it has developed a comprehensive road system, first class hospitals, and an international airport as well an impressive array of leisure activities for visitors to the island. Amidst all this development there has been those who have expressed concerns for the environment, and there are those are saddened by the decline of traditional island life.

There are, however, still a few relatively undeveloped areas in Koh Samui. One of them is found in the southeast of the island at a place called Taling Ngam. It is a wide bay that is sometimes called ‘the most remote beach’ on Koh Samui. It is here that visitors can discover some of the most pristine natural scenery on Koh Samui, and also experience the atmosphere of a beach that does not rely exclusively on the money from tourism for its economic wellbeing.

Taling Ngam has a long stretch of white sand beach. Behind the beach is a wide piece of flat land covered in coconut palms. There is very little development in the area. There are a few shops and resorts and a small fishing village. The local restaurants in Taling Ngam serve seafood freshly caught for some of the cheapest prices on the island.

The resorts in Taling Ngam are spread out along the beach. There are a few budget bungalows but most of Taling Ngam accommodation falls in the middle range. The notable exception is the newly opened Conrad Koh Samui (Hilton) that offers private pool villas that fan out around the side of a rocky outcrop.

On the beach there is the Sunset Beach Resort. This is one of the few resorts in Koh Samui that makes any effort to be environmentally friendly. Among its green features include a desalination plant that provides clean drinking water free of charge to guests. The Sunset Beach Resort also has a fitness center, spa, sauna and a communal pool.

There is no night life worth mentioning in Taling Ngam. That is also part of the charm of the beach. Those seeking late night thrills and the inevitable sex workers are nowhere to be seen in Taling Ngam. At night the highlight is watching the sunset and then listening to the sea lapping on the shore.

Surfing in Chicama with “Vuelos Baratos a Peru Desde España”:)

Hi, welcome to my super amazing post about surfing in Peru!

But first I will teach you some spanish so yo can learn how to ask your trvel agent for cheap flight to Peru:)

“¿Buen dia señor, me podria decir los precios de ofertas de vuelos baratos a Peru desde España por favor?. Le agradezco mucho, yo quiero ir a Lima”

This way you will be asking the travel agent for cheap plane tickets to Peru from Spain arriving in Lima.

Well, but once you are in Lima my recommendation is to catch a bus to Trujullo city in north Peru, and take a cab to Huanchaco, Huanchaco is a small beach town with very consistent waves as it doesn´t need big swells to work.

So this town is a perfect base while you wait for the big swells, because when they come it´s time to go to the small fisherman village of Chicama, thirty minutes drive from Huanchaco. There you will be able to surf the longest left hander wave in the world. It´s an amazing experience, I went there three years ago and it´s amazing, amazing, A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!!!!!!!

Getting from Huanchaco to Chicama is very easy, most of the surf shops offer
daily tours as Chicama is very small and it´s more comfortable to stay in Huanchaco for the night.

And when you want to take a rest, you can go to visit the Inca ruins near Trujillo city, so you can see this is a perfect surfing holiday in north Peru!

I hope you enjoyed reading this post and I will leave you some pictures from Chicama!

Need Some Help Choosing An E Cigarette?

Although the e cigarette has only been on the market for a few years, and hasn’t been widely advertised in the mainstream media, it’s a product which most smokers have now heard of. It’s unsurprising that many tobacco users are excited about the possibility of finding a cigarette replacement which would allow them to continue using nicotine without many of the detrimental effects, but a number of us are put off making a purchase because we are confused about which of the many brands is the best. Thankfully there are now numerous e cigarette reviews posted on the Internet where we can learn from the experience of others the products worth buying, and those which are a waste of our hard earned cash.

There is a problem with relying on just any old review which you might find when searching Google, and that’s the fact that many of the so called “reviewers” are biased in the scores they give to a particular brand. Why is this? It’s quite simple, and it’s a problem which has gone largely unnoticed for years even in the more traditional forms of media. The fact is that many reviewers are given free e cigarette samples from manufacturers in the hope of getting a positive review. Human nature being what it is, it’s then inevitable that the reviewer is going to feel obliged to say more positive than negative things about a particular brand, no matter how they might feel about it in reality.

There is no easy answer to overcoming this problem if you are completely new to electronic cigarettes and need to get someone else’s opinion about the brands which are more satisfying to use. I can however give you a few tips to make it more likely that you will make the best purchase possible when you hand over your credit card details to a company on the Internet.

Try to find an electronic cigarette review site where the writer states clearly and honestly there relationship with the company who’s product they are reviewing.
Get your information from web sites which have a quality feel to them. Some one who has put a lot of effort into building their blog is more likely to take pride in the information they are providing.
Look for web sites where the blogger has posted an image of themselves and attach’s their real name to the information they provide. Sites with a nameless, faceless reviewer are far more likely to be pushing products with an ulterior motive.
Only use review sites who have tested out a wide range of products. Especially be wary of those which say there is only one particular brand worth buying.
Use your common sense. If a particular review site is signing the praises of a manufacturer just a little bit too much then they are probably doing so because they got a kick back from the company to push that product.

If you stick to these rules when deciding which smokeless cigarette to buy as a tobacco replacement then you can’t do far wrong, and you’ll hopefully find that your purchase is a good one.