Office cafeteria – Coffee, Conversations & more

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2007

Office cafeteria – Coffee, Conversations & more

“Show me your cafeteria and I will tell you all about your organization, its people and how the day’s been for them.”

The office cafeteria is an interesting place to be. It is a melting pot of employees from different departments, different teams & different groups. Between sips of refreshing hot coffee, the discussions and the camaraderie on display tells a lot about the organization, its people & how the day’s been for them.

One of the most visible aspects of the cafeteria is how people gather around & seat themselves. Things to note here are who sits with whom. Most times people from the same team sit together. If it’s a large team they break into smaller groups. It is likely that one group is all male & the other all female. In such a scenario, there is a high possibility of one of the guys to be two timing both the male table & the female table. Then there are these ‘couple only’ tables, where a guy & a girl sit across & talk not realizing probably that ‘they’ are being talked of in the other tables.

The other aspect of the cafeteria is what people do out there. Most talk, some sulk, a few of them come to check out the other crowd there. Those who sulk keep staring into their coffee cup probably trying to count the hole like depressions into the froth of their coffee. Those who come to check out the others, position themselves in strategic locations in the cafeteria from where they could get a glimpse of anyone sitting at any table. They generally hold their mobile phone in one hand & the coffee cup in the other & act like they are busy reading or sending a message it actually seems more like by-hearting the numbers & the spellings in the names. And then the it-moment comes when they lift the coffee cup to have a sip & simultaneously scan the scene around in the cafeteria. Some do this with such style & elegance that you think you are watching a Hollywood movie.

Of course the conversations in the cafeteria take the cake when compared to all the other aspects. Conversations could be about anything. Be it news from the newspapers, be it the discussion on the day’s work, or be it plain gossip they all bring the cafeteria alive. Even if someone isn’t the kind who would initiate a conversation, he surely will get drawn into it. Some of the interesting cafeteria conversations I have been involved in were nicknaming some of the senior people or on a serious side, a discussion on what our company should do to cut down attrition. Once we debated a topic like, “Recruiters don’t have to use their mind to do their work”. Somewhere in the middle of all these conversations some one liners that registered & I could recollect is “Management sucks” & “God should not make Guys fair (appearance wise)”.

Cafeteria = Coffee, Carefree, Casual, Comic, Come-when-you-want-go-when-you-want…well almost.

- SOURCE: came across this story on the net and loved it.

JPMorgan Office Cafeteria Disaster: Everyone Is Fired, The Entire Office Has Been Without Coffee, Food For Months

Courtney Comstock | Aug. 6, 2010, 2:03 PM | 3,617 | 9

The JPM waffle machine is now gone.

Great things are happening inside JPMorgan's headquarters right now as they update everything to make it "green."

Sadly, the positive changes have claimed a victim: The cafeteria.

The JPM office (headquarters) has been making environmentally friendly renovations for awhile now and the effects they're having on the people inside the office are significant, despite how flippantly JPM relayed information about the update to employees.

A little while back, everyone in the office got a memo about the renovations that said, (paraphrasing): the office is going green, the renovations will take about 8 months, and in order to make these changes, the office cafeteria will be closed for 8 months.

The bank closed the Starbucks and the entire cafeteria a little while ago. So right now, there is no coffee and no food (RIP new waffle maker) inside the JPMorgan office and there won't be for another ~6 months.

Someone at the bank tells us:

"The coffee part is annoying as f@#k."

Imagine an office filled with thousands of uncaffeinated, underslept, hungry bankers.  On the upside, now everyone has an excuse to get out of the office for lunch, a coffee, water, waffles, etc.

But someone at the bank also told us: "I think everyone was fired."

Remember that ugly jobs report from earlier today?

The Census firings rocked that one a lot harder than JPM's cafeteria could have, but it's was relevant and now you can go read something really important.

A JPMorgan spokeswoman didn't respond yet to our request for a comment.

---

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/jpmorgan-office-cafeteria-disaster-everyone-is-fired-the-entire-office-has-been-without-coffee-food-for-months-2010-8#ixzz1x7Evg0vz

FASHION FIESTA; CHIGNON STYLE…

FASHION FIESTA; CHIGNON STYLE…

Often dubbed as the “anytime any place hairstyle” and always lived up to its reputation, roping in Hollywood and Bollywood celebs, the “undone chignon” ( pronounced as sheg-non) is uber-trendy, simple to cluster and works effortlessly as a day look as well as an evening updo for that dinner date.

The French word “chignon” comes from the word “chignon du cou” which means nape of neck. The comfortable easy-to-do look is generally achieved by pinning the hair into a knot at the nape of the neck or at the back of the head, to the side of the nape but there are so many different variations of the style. One thing with style is that you have to customize and make your own that is comfortable with you.

Enough with the talking, here are ideas for you to steal…

THE HEALING POWER OF NUTS:

THE HEALING POWER OF NUTS:

“LIFESTYLE DISEASES THAT WERE AT THE BOTTOM OF THE ‘HEALTH CONCERN’ LIST ARE NOW A CAUSE OF ALRM…”- Larissa Brown

-studies show a surge in both diabetes and high blood pressure, with a filling on half of the country’s (KENYA) HOSPITAL BEDS.

-In 2008, a random sample of 4,000 dwellers in Central Nairobi found 700 of them suffering from either high blood pressure or diabetes.

-scientific evidence shows that high blood pressure can be ended in just a few weeks, and the risk of heart diseases set aide by eating just a handful of nuts a day.

-it was in California in 1992 that researchers at Loma Linda University first discovered that people eating nuts daily had up to 60 per cent fewer heart attacks than those who didn’t. The study of 31,000 people, of all weights, ages and both genders, was based on a mix of peanuts, almonds, walnuts and other nuts.

- Prior nutritional advice has always tended towards advising minimal nut consumption on the grounds they are a “fatty” food.

SOURCE: Larissa Brown, Nakumatt Smart Life Magazine Kenya.

THE MASAI MARA- UP CLOSE AND CANDID WITH THE PILGRIM WILDEBEESTS (GNUS)…

 

"T

he seventh greatest wonder in the world". It is now officially known through out the world. Many have come back time and again. They have witnessed this mass movement of wild animals roaming free through unspoiled and savage wilderness. The air fills with the click- click of the cameras tirelessly. You have not seen something like this before.

Africa is changing at a quick pace and human encroachment into the wildlife reserves has continued to erase the traditional routes. In association with development and changes of the way of life, the image of wildlife roaming free is slowly getting erased. Fortunately, Masai Mara National reserve holds on to its charisma of an open, limitless land. It is one of the places in Africa that still prides in wildlife concentration.

Masai Mara is located in the South-western of Kenya, 290 kilometers from Nairobi. The abundance of wildlife and the remoteness of the reserve implants memories that no money can buy.

The Migration is a recent phenomenon (60's and 70's was the biggest boom) with about 250,000
individuals. Gradually, with time the number has risen to the current population of over 3,000,000
individuals. Add to it an estimated 1,500,000 Zebras and the result is one of the most magnificent scenes in the world. The massive display attracts hundreds of big cats as the populations provide abundant prey. The giant African crocodiles lie in wait, patiently, as the big herds come to cross the river or to drink.

It is the Masai community who are not so pleased with the whole phenomenon. The wildebeests compete with their huge herds of boran cattle for the grasslands. To them, it is a big calamity especially because the wildebeests transmit diseases to their herds and poison the waters with their fetal sacs.

This world famous migration is a circle of life which, in simple terms, means that there isn't a
start or an end. Only where the herds are located at a particular time. The big determinant is the
availability of pastures. The plains of Ngorongoro Conservation Area in Serengeti is a favored spot as grass abounds and the wildebeest find a safe place to graze. It is also here that over 500,000 new calves are born and many are taken by the nearby waiting Jackals or Hyenas.

New borns have little time to strengthen their legs. As soon after birth, the “pilgrim" continues. By April, the rains are over in southern Serengeti and the plains have dried up. The great herds then
gather and face the long march northwards and westwards. The natural lawn mowers abandon
the exhausted grasslands of southern Serengeti to head for the already tall grass of the Western
corridor, near the shores of Lake Victoria.

The pioneers of the migration movement are the majestic herds of zebras. They prefer the long
stems of the coarse grass. This way, they leave behind shorter grass which is favored by the wildebeests.

In late June to July the mass start pouring into the Kenya Masai Mara reserve where fresh, tender
and mineral-rich grass is already waiting. Here they meet the resident Mara populations which
add up to about 150,000. Also commonly referred to as the Loita plains herds, they spend most of the season northeast of the Mara. When it gets dry, they pour into the interior of the Mara in search of greener pastures.

The migrating herds spend roughly 3 to 31/2 months in the Mara crossing through Sand River, which is a tributary of the Mara along the boundary of Kenya and Tanzania. They trek westwards and cross the Mara River and sometimes the Talek River. Usually around this time heavy rains on the Mau Escarpment (origin of Mara River) fill the Mara River to the brim.

This is a good time to watch the trunk-looking Crocodiles, while they await the forthcoming feast.
Finally, the gnus (wildebeests) venture into the river. This gregarious coordinated behavior of the herds, usually teamed with zebras, creates an unimaginable scene. Just what the cameras have been waiting for.

They wander along the river looking for a convenient crossing point. This is a moment
filled with tension for both the gnus (wildebeests) and the audience. They survey for a less steep and with no obvious danger. Finally, one takes courage and plunges into the river and magically the rest falls onto the footsteps and in one organized line cross the river.

In addition to the crocodiles, accidents also occur. The river’s current can be too strong for some especially the young ones. Or simply getting stuck between the rocks in the river and breaking limbs, a direct ticket to the jaws of the giant crocodiles. Finally, the crossing is done and the trek to their unknown (or known) destiny continues.

In the month of October, they are already heading to Serengeti where the rains have treated the southern grasslands to lush, green carpet of rich grass. Once again, they are heading to the southern plains, where a new generation will be born to start the cycle of life all over again.

SOURCE: the internet.

NB. If you missed the July migration from Tanzania into Kenya, well the wildebeests will be migrating again on October from Kenya to Tanzania.

 

FIBROIDS: AFRICA’S SILENT INVASION…PART 3

FIBROIDS: AFRICA’S SILENT INVASION…PART 3

TREATING FIBROIDS

ü      HYSTRECTOMY- the removal of the uterus.

ADVANTAGES- the fibroids never return. The best candidates are those who have already had children and do not want any more.

ü      MYOMECTOMY- the removal of fibroids, without removing the uterus. 25- 50 per cent of women have recurring fibroids and 10 per cent of these may need a second surgery.

ADVANTAGES- It preserves the uterus for child bearing and the surgery is less extensive, thus a faster recovery time.

ü      UTERINE ARTERY EMBOLIZATION: here, small beads of a compound called polyvinyl alcohol are injected into the arteries that feed the fibroid. The beads hinder blood supply to the fibroid, starving it of blood.

ADVANTAGES- General anesthesia is not required, there is no blood loss, all fibroids are treated at once, there is hardly recurrence and the healing is fast- you can return to normal activities in 10 days.

-          Other common treatment includes cryosurgery (freezing the fibroids) or using laser therapy. Pregnancy is known to shrink fibroids, while menopause (when the body stops producing oestrogen), usually causes fibroids to shrink.

-          There are a number of herbal treatments that have been linked to fibroids (including sage leaves, peppermint, stinging nettle and blackberry leaves); however, clinical nutrionists say that these should be avoided as they are not scientifically proven. Always see your doc if you believe you have fibroids.

cbn.com...OVERCOMING PORN Kirk Franklin's Freedom By Shannon Woodland and Scott Ross The 700 Club

OVERCOMING PORN

Kirk Franklin's Freedom

By Shannon Woodland and Scott Ross
The 700 Club

CBN.com – Kirk Franklin has sold more than 10 million albums in less than 10 years. He's a three-time GRAMMY Award winner and a seven-time Dove Award winner. His hit "Stomp" from the triple-platinum album God's Property made him a star amongst the MTV crowd. But Kirk's career came to a screeching halt a few years ago when his private-or should we say secret-life was no longer a secret. Kirk came clean and confessed his addiction to pornography in this interview with Scott Ross.

KIRK FRANKLIN: There's always the boy who has the big brother who has the magazine under his bed. That's how it starts. So the first time I ever saw one, I was around 8 or 9. I saw my first magazine, and from there I was addicted.

SCOTT ROSS: Did you bring that into the marriage?

KIRK FRANKLIN: Yes, I did.

SCOTT ROSS: Was she aware of it?

KIRK FRANKLIN: Not the first year but the second year.

SCOTT ROSS: (to Tammy)When did you find out?

TAMMY FRANKLIN (Kirk's wife): Once he realized that he was having problems, he just came to me and he said-

KIRK FRANKLIN: -No, no, no, Baby. Let's aim to make it more real. Let's aim to keep it real. I tried to when we got married because I still had those single male ways.

TAMMY FRANKLIN: I would say in our second year of marriage he tried to implement it into our marriage-'Watch this with me, Honey.' It made me feel dirty. It didn't make our intimacy sacred. I would say, 'I'm not watching.' I would get angry. 'I'm not watching that with you.'

SCOTT ROSS (reporting): Kirk's secret life ran amuck while he traveled to promote his latest releases. At home Tammy had no idea of the extent of Kirk's problem.

TAMMY FRANKLIN: I didn't see any evidence that he was doing it at home. He knew how I felt about it so…

KIRK FRANKLIN: But I was.

TAMMY FRANKLIN: …I would think that he was hiding it from me.

SCOTT ROSS: So you had a secret life?

KIRK FRANKLIN: Yeah, I was doing it at home. When she was asleep, I would go upstairs.

SCOTT ROSS: How did you finally get to a point where this thing has got to be dealt with?

KIRK FRANKLIN: We were in Los Angeles. We were in the bed that morning in the hotel, and we were lying there, and I said, 'Baby, I need to tell you something. I'm struggling with pornography. I mean, it is a struggle and I have a problem with pornography. It's a problem.'

SCOTT ROSS: And your response, Tammy?

TAMMY FRANKLIN: My response was to immediately be sensitive. What blessed me was he did look at it as a problem. A lot of guys, it's normal for a man-

SCOTT ROSS: -It's a man thing.

TAMMY FRANKLIN: Yeah, it's a man thing. The fact that he wasn't coming to me like that blessed me so that I just began to pray for him consistently. I knew that I wanted him to know that this is something I wanted to work through.

SCOTT ROSS: Together?

TAMMY FRANKLIN: Together.

KIRK FRANKLIN: That's what so weird about porn. You have different people even in the Body feeling differently about it. There are some Christian men I know who say, 'I'd rather do that than cheat on my wife.' I've had to shed light on, 'Dude, 'We're cheating on our wives because whatever a man thinketh, so is he'.

SCOTT ROSS: You have a woman now who's willing to walk it through with you. What about the people who are in it now? You are leaving this secret life. You're scared to death somebody will find out about it.

KIRK FRANKLIN: It's weird because you're talking about the dude who was the minister of music at a church when I was 11. I have to check myself because there's an anger that rises up in me. I get evangelically ticked off by the fact that I wished somebody would have taught me a long time ago about the repercussions of sex and flesh and lust and vanity and pride and ego. I wished somebody would have been holding my little behind accountable years ago. But let me tell you what happens to the gifted. The gifted in the church slip right through.

SCOTT ROSS: Why?

KIRK FRANKLIN: Because the gifted are able to naturally and emotionally control the atmosphere of the service.

SCOTT ROSS: So we relate to you based on the gift rather than the man?

KIRK FRANKLIN: There you go, brother. No one asks the minister of music whether he's killing when everyone is crying and speaking in tongues. Nobody asks him, 'Are you going home tonight? How's your marriage? What's going on with you and your wife?' Nobody's holding the gifted accountable in the Body.

SCOTT ROSS (reporting): Even though Kirk's wife knew about his problem and prayed for him, no one held him accountable. That is until he met Pastor Tony Evans, a man who wasn't dazzled by Kirk's celebrity.

KIRK FRANKLIN: When I first went to his church, it was 1998, and I had an album out called Stomp. I was traveling to Dublin, Ireland, doing songs with Bono, I was getting flowers from Arsenio Hall, I was getting letters from Mike Tyson, I was hanging out with Denzel and all these big time celebrities, and I was walking on a TV pilot for ABC.

SCOTT ROSS: I'm impressed, man! I didn't realize you were that famous.

KIRK FRANKLIN: You know it's all that garbage. None of that junk you can take to heaven, but I was bathing in it. And a lot of my Christian community was bathing in it with me.

SCOTT ROSS (reporting): But when Kirk and his family started attending Pastor Evan's church, Kirk didn't receive the same treatment he was accustomed to.

TONY EVANS: You come here the same way everyone comes here-through the Cross. At the Cross the ground is very level, so you're treated like everyone else. We recognize your gifts. We honor people. The Bible says to give honor where honor is due. But there's only one celebrity. That's Jesus Christ.

KIRK FRANKLIN: But Tony Evans, he didn't care who I was. If I didn't get there in enough time, I would sit where everybody else sat. I got mad at it, but then there was something that was pulling me to it. I was crying out to be discipled. I called him one night and told him that I needed help, I have a problem.

TONY EVANS: Since the sexual area so defines men and is so accessible to men, it's easily reached after as a defining point. It has to do with who you are and if you're really a man, all of this wrong definition. Once we can clarify a person's identification in Christ, and once we can help them to understand how to walk in the Spirit, they can discover that the law of the Spirit is indeed greater than the law of the flesh.

SCOTT ROSS (reporting): Kirk told Pastor Evans everything. In turn, this helped Kirk be honest with the people who mattered most in his life.

SCOTT ROSS: (to Kirk) And that started the journey to healing with Tammy.

(to Tammy): You saw the change in the man?

TAMMY FRANKLIN: Definitely.

SCOTT ROSS: And he's clean now?

TAMMY FRANKLIN: (half serious) You clean?

KIRK FRANKLIN: Four years.

SCOTT ROSS: So people can get free, but they have to admit they have the problem and they have to come clean with somebody who'll hold them accountable.

TAMMY FRANKLIN: There's a process.

KIRK FRANKLIN: If I have been set free from this one, anybody can be set free because I questioned for years whether I could be set free. Dude, I was doing albums, albums that people were getting blessed by, and I was struggling with pornography. "Why We Sing" came out in '93, and I was struggling with pornography. Stomp came out in '97, and I was struggling with pornography. These albums God was speaking through and everyone was getting their victory except for me. I used to question and almost began to wonder, What's going on? What was happening, and this might help people: my victory didn't come by my emotional experience; my victory came through truth. When I was taught truth, that's when I got my freedom.

OVERCOMING PORNOGRAPHY…

OVERCOMING PORNOGRAPHY…

There are hundreds of people who get off on pornography, and many are addicted to the movies and images. They find them exciting, erotic and many end up also getting addicted to masturbation as a way of fulfilling their sexual appetites while watching the videos.

Just as there are many people addicted to porno, deep down I know there are just as many people who want out. Who want to get away from the addiction and lead different lifestyles? If you are one of those who want to stop, truth is, the journey can be difficult, and just like any other addiction recovery is. The story of leading gospel musician Kirk Franklin is an example, but he beat his addiction and so can you.

HERE ARE A FEW TIPS THAT CAN GET YOU STARTED ON YOUR JOURNEY…

1.    Destroy all sources of porno in your possession. Delete the internet videos and images. You may be tempted to keep some of the images but if you are genuinely serious about beating your addiction, you should erase and/ or burn them all.

2.    Have a pal you trust come over to your home and block all pornographic sites. Your friend should protect the access with very strong passwords and should be the kind of friend who is strong enough not to be persuaded to tell you the passwords. Install filters for your internet, which is devoid of all sex sites and movies.

3.    Avoid friends who are porn- addicts. Keep off the temptation and you will gradually loose the desires. They may not like it, but it’s for your own good. If you want to re-establish your friendship with them, do so after you have gained the strength to say “NO” to porn.

4.    Remember you are not alone. Google for Kirk Franklin’s story and others like him who were once addicts, but are no longer because they found ways to eradicate the desire. Learn from their stories and let them be your inspiration.

5.    Seek new friends especially those that enjoy other interests such as sports. At the same time, diversify your entertainment so that it includes other interesting activities like drama, the arts e.g. these should consume some of that energy that you have been expending on sexual thoughts and desires. If your pattern is to watch the movies at night before sleeping, start reading books at that exact time or play action games to take your mind off.

6.    If possible, join a youth group within your neighborhood or national youth organizations like I CHOOSE LIFE (ICL) based in Riverside Drive, Nairobi Kenya, among others. This will introduce you to new friends, new ideas and new activities that will take your mind off sex/ pornography. For you to feel fulfilled and expended, make sure you are proactive when you do join.

7.    This may sound old, but stop dating until you are over the sexual urges. If you want to date, seek out a girl or dude whose principal interest in the relationship is not sex, you know, like those who believe in abstaining until marriage.

8.    Lastly and most important, develop a spiritual hunger for God. The closer you draw to God, the less you will want porn. Why? Because the last thing you will want to do is offend God by doing that which He does not like. Learn to seek God every day with your whole heart, mind, body and soul, and you will ultimately triumph over porno.

SOURCE: Straight Talk column, Eve Gal Magazine Pullout, the Standard newspaper by columnist Njoki Karuoya.