#we go to our local pizza place every other week and the owner jokes with my dad a lot we're really friendly with them

[allsassnoclass]

i miss when i used to automatically assess and consider what fics fit which pairing best. now any idea i have my mind screams MASHTON and sometimes i have to take a step back and see what’s actually going on

[dameronology]

to make a house a home {agent whiskey}

summary: just a soft weekend away in kentucky w/ our fave cowboy {for @zazzysseoul - thank u so much for ur support and i hope you enjoy!}

warnings: i think one or two swear words? but nothing else!

enjoy,

- jazz

Jack Daniels was good at reading people.

It was part of his job. He had to be observant, had to have a working understanding of body language and non-verbal signals. He was especially diligent about it when it came to you; it wasn’t a purposeful thing, but rather an instinct to keep an eye on the person he loved most in the world. He could read you like a book and some days, it felt like he knew you better than you knew yourself, and maybe he did. There was really no telling with Jack. Every time you finally thought you had experienced every little quirk and trait he had to offer, he managed to pull something out the bag. Whether it was his ability to predict a bad mood before it happened or the way he remembered every tiny little detail of a conversation, he was constantly proving himself to be one hell of a partner.

It was no surprise; Jack thought you deserved the best and so, that’s what he tried to give you. He didn’t often let people into his life, especially not after so much loss, but from the moment you’d met, he knew he could trust you. He’d always been a brilliant judge of character and he’d been completely right about you. You’d turned his entire world upside down; taught him how to love again and reminded him that the things he’d lost could be found again, just with a little care and patience. The empty house he used to come to was filled with love and laughter and little marks of you and him; photos from your various trips, magnets on the fridge, that he brought home from all the countries his job took him to, the little notes you left on his nightstand when you had to slip out for work before he rose. The first time Jack had come through the front door and almost tripped over your shoes, he’d cried - not out of anger or shock, but at the realisation that he was no longer alone. 

Jack had the innate desire to look after you. He knew you could handle yourself but that didn’t mean that you had to. You’d been there for him in every sense of the world, and he wanted to do the same, to make sure that you felt appreciated every second of every day. In his mind, if you ever questioned his love or loyalty, then he wasn’t doing his job right. That desire translated into little things, rather than grand displays of affection; he’d do your laundry when you worked late, sent you sweet texts through out the day and brought you flowers just because. It wasn’t uncommon to find that Jack had filled up your car with gas without asking, or to come home to your favourite take out. 

His biggest way, however, was in how well he knew you. Every slight change in demeanour and every variation in the tone of your voice was caught by him; he knew when you were okay, and he knew when you weren’t. He could tell when you were half-way between, and he’d do his best to bring you back to the lighter side. You take comfort in the fact he always had your back, no ifs or buts. 

When Jack woke up early one morning to find your side of the bed empty, he immediately knew that was something was up; the second his palm reached out for you, only to be met with a fistful of cold sheets, he knew. You never got out of bed early. There could have been an atomic war happening outside and you still would have refused to move, insisting on five more minutes before nuclear winter hit. The bathroom light was off and there wasn’t anything you could have found in the kitchen. After all, you’d only arrived at the ranch a few hours earlier. You were both tired from a few long weeks at work and escaping the suffocating fog of the city for the rolling hills and fresh air of Kentucky felt like heaven. 

Jack sat up, pausing for a moment. There was a gentle creek coming from somewhere; it was steady and rhythmic, ringing from the porch. His shoulder slumped wit relief - you were outside on the porch swing. At 6AM on a cold, winter’s morning. The relief was shorting lived. 

Pulling on his robe, Jack rubbed his eyes and headed out towards the porch. Sure enough, you were the first thing he saw, shoulders covered by the plaid shirt he’d worn the previous day and fluffy socks gently brushing against the floor with the movement of the swing. The light above you illuminated you in a soft smoulder, a golden glow cast over you, illuminating your tired eyes and disheveled hair. He would have lectured you about the cold, had you not had a knitted blanket around you. 

‘Bit early for you, ain’t it?’ Jack leant against the door frame, gently smiling when your eyes met. 

‘What’s early when you haven’t slept yet?’ You aimlessly joked. 

Lifting up the blanket, you silently gestured for him to come and sit next to you. Jack obliged, dropping down beside you and winding a large arm around your shoulder. He pulled you into his chest, placing a kiss on your temple. His warm body was a welcome feeling against the cold of the January air. 

‘What’s keeping you up?’ He softly coaxed. 

‘I don’t know, to be honest.’ You replied. ‘It’s just been a long week.’

‘I get that.’ His voice was slightly murmured. He pulled you even closer, chin resting on your head. ‘But we’re here now, sugar. I think we both need the down time.’

‘Definitely.’ You said. ‘Plus, the view isn’t so bad.’

The ranch overlooked a large field filled with cows and horses; it stretched out for miles, fading away into the distance into a seemingly endless close. The edges of the green pasture were tinged with the pink of a tonic sun rise, pushing away the dark of the night sky. It wasn’t often that you got to watch the sun come up, and it felt a little refreshing to see a new day come. It was fresh; a clean slate, young and naive, but full of possibility. An ironic thought, given that you and Jack were probably going to lay on the sofa the whole day and order take out. 

‘You’re right.’ He murmured from beside you.

‘Are you doing that thing where you look at me when I’m talking about a nice view?’ You peered up at him, thinning your eyes. 

‘You said it was romantic!’

‘The first five times, Jack!’ You chuckled, leaning up to press a kiss to his jaw.

‘Nothing is sacred anymore.’

You settled back against his chest with a smile. ‘I like it here.’

‘Me too.’ He agreed. ‘It’s nice to get away from the Apple. Everything over there if faster than a knife fight in a damn phone booth.’

‘And it doesn’t smell of pizza and...pee.’

You loved New York dearly; it had been your home for many years, and it was also where you’d met Jack. But, whether it was your permanent home, you didn’t know. There were some days when it all got so much. The city never quietened down and you could never quite escape it, even in the comfort of your own apartment. Out here, you were worlds away from that. Crickets were gently purring in the distance, and the only other sound came from the rustling of the animals in the field across the road. It was peaceful. Serene. 

‘What if we moved out here when I’m done at the Statesman?’ Jack posed, almost as though he were shy about broaching the subject. ‘We could get a couple horses. Maybe a dog. Heck, if you want a zoo, I’ll get you a zoo.’

‘I’d like that.’ You smiled. ‘I mean living here, not the zoo thing - but a dog and horses sounds nice.’

‘Then a dog and horses we shall get.’ He grinned. ‘Oh! I can teach you to ride.’

‘Or I could just watch you do it.’

‘There’s not a single person in this here town who can’t ride a horse.’ Jack said. ‘Unless a pony would be better.’

‘Why not both? We have enough room.’ You reminded him. ‘Maybe we can re-tile the kitchen too. It’s not that I don’t like the green, it’s just it’s...’

‘...dreadful?’

‘That’s a nice way of putting it.’

Because you didn’t live on the ranch full time, neither of you had put too much effort into making it homely. It was liveable, by all means, but the television in the living room dated back to the first Bush administration and the kitchen was a little too lime for your liking. The place had come furnished by the old owners, which had been a big selling point for Jack. He just wanted somewhere he could live whilst he was in Kentucky and this place had been practical. It wasn’t until you and your eye for interior design came along that he realised how retro it was. 

‘There’s a hardware store down the road.’ Jack said. ‘We can get a couple hours sleep and head down there later to see what they got.’

‘Maybe we can find something less green.’ 

‘I sure fucking hope so.’

---

The next morning, you and Jack bundled up into some warmer clothes and piled into the Bronco, heading for the store downtown. The actual city was miles out, but there lots of little local and independent places. There were little cafes and restaurants, as well as farmers’ markets and fresh produce. You had thought about living here permanently before, but you hadn’t verbalised it until Jack had suggested it first. Given everything that had happened in the past, you’d wanted to do things at his pace, but so far, you’d been perfectly in tune with one another. That was a testament to your relationship as a whole. 

‘I just smiled at that woman and she smiled back.’ You muttered to Jack, peering up at the store as you headed through the parking lot. 

‘And?’

‘I once smiled at a stranger on the Subway and they told me to piss off.’ 

Jack chuckled, reaching out to wind his arm around yours. He tangled your fingers together, pulling you flush against his side. It was easier to show physical displays of affection here too. He was always a little paranoid in the city, given how busy it was and how easy it would have been to for an enemy to hide. That was another thing Jack did without thinking; taking tiny little precautions to protect you. He couldn’t even begin to think about losing you. And the thought never popped up here. Never. Only in the city, where everything was loud and overwhelming.

The store itself was pretty big - it was good for you, but confusing for Jack. You had Pinterest boards with inspiration for all your hypothetical future houses, whilst Jack couldn’t the difference between ivory and sand. So, true to character, he let you tighten your grip on his arm and drag him towards the kitchen section, eyes wide like a kid in a candy store. You had a green blank canvas to go wild on, because probably would have agreed to anything. It wasn’t that he was a walk-over, or because he was lazy, he was just genuinely terrible at interior design. Introducing him to build mode on the Sims 4 had been traumatic enough. 

You didn’t have to decide anything immediately - after all, he’d said he wanted to move out here after he was done at Statesman. That was just as likely weeks as it was years. He did complain about his job giving him a bad back but you also knew that he enjoyed it. It was all he’d known for such a long time, and he’d worked hard to get to the top. Unbeknownst to you, he’d drop it all in a second if you wanted to relocate now. Even if he had the best job in the world and all the money he could ever want, the only thing Jack really needed was you.

‘Where do we even start?’ He asked, brown eyes staring confusedly at some paint samples. 

‘We start with the most important rooms - living room, kitchen, bedroom.’ You replied. ‘I’m thinking something midcentury for downstairs. What d’you think?’

‘Midwhatnow?’ His brows furrowed. 

You laughed. ‘Midcentury. So think...Bauhaus. Mid 60s sort of thing.’

‘Right.’ Jack nodded, getting a clearer idea. ‘How about you just to point to things and I’ll either shake my head or nod?’

Yeah, that sounded like a better idea.

And so, you began your trek around the store. Your Pinterest boards came in handy, especially for the kitchen - even Jack was grateful for them, because it meant you moved a little quicker. He did die inside a little when you grabbed a huge trolley and began piling it up with kitchen tiles, counters and cabinet doors, and even more so when you casually asked ‘you’re good at DIY, right?’

He didn’t complain though, not once. The sight of you rushing around the store, face lighting up at lamp shades and paint samples, was one of the best things he’d ever seen. Not only because it was hilarious, but also because it was the first time you really planned for your future. There was sort of an unspoken agreement that this was it, and that you were both in it for the long run, but neither of you had made any verbal plans together. You’d moved in together back in the city, but that had happened naturally. You’d started staying over and over more and more to sleep in his fancy Statesman bed and use his heavenly marble bathtub, and you came over one weekend and just never left. 

After a few hours, Jack finally had to put a stop to your antics. 

‘Okay, darlin’, I think we’ve reached the threshold now.’ He called. ‘We don’t need a new lighting fixture for the downstairs bathroom.’

You huffed. ‘Placing it back on the shelf.’

‘Fine.’

‘We’re gonna have a hard time getting in this car as it is.’ He held his arm out to you, signalling for you to come back to him. 

‘I’ll have to come back for the upstairs then.’ You muttered. 

‘We’ve gone from painting the kitchen to gutting the whole damn ranch, baby.’ Jack replied. ‘We’re only here for two more days anyways.’

‘Damn. I forgot about that.’ Your eyes widened. ‘I guess we better start today, then.’

--

This was supposed to be a relaxing weekend. 

Relaxing! 

And yet somehow, Jack Daniels was stood in the middle of his now half-demolished kitchen, a sledge hammer in one hand and a glass of his namesake whiskey in the other. He couldn’t deny that it had been fun to rip out the cabinets and tear off the tiles. He’d despised the colour of the kitchen for so long that it felt good to finally get rid of them, even if it meant that the tedious process of putting on the new ones came immediately after. You’d gone for simple black and white ones, with some mosaic ones for a...what had you called it? A feature wall or something. Apparently it added character (something he took your word for). 

‘So what’s the paint for?’ Jack frowned, taking a brush as you handed it to him. 

‘For the living room.’ You grabbed him by the shirt, dragging him out the kitchen.

‘But the kitchen isn’t done-’

‘- I’m bored of the kitchen.’ You said. ‘You don’t mind, do you?’

‘Course not, angel.’ He pressed a kiss to your forehead. 

After grappling with covering the furniture up, you and Jack began to paint. It wasn’t too hard of a process; he just sort of whacked it on, whilst you had a much more meticulous process. So what if he got a splash of grey on the light switch? Actually, on second second thought, he should probably wipe that off.

Besides, it only took him five minutes to get sidetracked. The sight of you stood across the room, his red and black plaid shirt hanging from your shoulders, face screwed up with concentration and paint on your nose, was a distraction in itself. It was the sort of moment he wanted to get on a Polaroid, but equally, one that he wanted to savour. He always entranced by you, but sometimes that amplified. You weren’t even doing anything special - just...existing. But that was enough to capture his attention in its entirety. 

He didn’t tear his eyes away from you - not until something cold hit him in the face, and a splatter of grey paint nearly hit his eye. The noise of your laughter pulled him back to reality, practically losing it as you doubled over, holding onto the fire place for support. You were lucky that it was his favourite sound but heck, you coulda dumped the whole bucket of paint on him and he wouldn’t have flinched. 

‘That was rude.’ Jack folded his arms across his chest. ‘I’m gonna get you for that.’

‘No, you won’t.’

You dropped your paintbrush, suddenly leaping over the couch and sprinting out into the hallway. Trying to outrun a highly-trained government agent (a fact you sometimes forgot) might have not been your brightest idea, but you still managed to breeze past him and skid into the kitchen, almost tripping over a strewn tile as you did. 

Jack was hot on your heels, arms reaching out to grab as you circled back into the living room. He managed to snatch you by the waist, pulling you down onto the sheet-covered couch - he was nice enough to use his own body to break the landing at least. You landed on his chest with a thud, still in a fit of giggles as he grabbed your face and planted kisses all over it. His lips were soft and warm, tasting of whiskey when they finally met yours. You tangled your hand through his hair in an attempt to bring him close, as though it were even possible. 

You broke the kiss, rolling off of Jack and onto the sofa next to him, nuzzling into his side. The paint you’d managed to get on him was on you now as well, smeared down the side of your face and a little onto his shirt that you were wearing. Not that it bothered him all that much, because the sight of you in any of his clothes was worth a little bit of paint. You had a sort of rotation, where you would steal various garments and wear them until they lost his smell, before dumping them in the laundry and swiping some more. They were always baggy, scented with his aftershave and the faint smell of the leather from his car. When he was away on missions, it was the nearest thing you could get to one of his warm hugs.

‘Darling, d’you think, just maybe, that we should just pay someone to do all this?’ Jack gently suggested. ‘I can have a guy from the agency come in and be done in like three days.’

‘Three days? For the whole house?’ You peered up at him with a frown. 

‘Their speciality is rebuilding places after we accidentally blow them up so this will be like a walk in the park.’ He explained. ‘Although, the kitchen isn’t far off. the place is lookin’ as messy as the farmers’ market after sundown.’

‘And Champ won’t mind you abusing Statesman resources like that?’ You teased.

‘The man is so rich that he buys a new boat when the other gets wet.’ Jack reminded you. ‘He ain’t gonna notice.’

‘You have a point.’ You nodded. 

‘Besides, they’re better at decorating-’

‘- interior design.’ You cut him off. ‘It’s a house, not a Christmas cookie.’

Jack dropped his head against yours, letting out a groan. ‘You know what I mean.’

‘I know.’ You leant up to press another soft kiss to his lips. ‘I love you.’

‘I love you too, angel.’ 

Even though it was still a little far off, the glimpse that this weekend had given you into your future meant everything to him. He’d brought the ranch as a place to crash on business stays, and now you were helping to turn it into a home. At one point, he hadn’t imagine having a life to look ahead to or a house to decorate or somebody to love. Even though they were small, everyday things, you’d brought so much into his life, and he was never going to let you forget it. 

[workersolidarity]

I feel the need as a true believer in Socialism, as a Marxist Leninist knowing full well the conditions of Neoliberal Capitalism and Imperialism in which we live, to warn people about the rampant Wage Theft Employers are getting away with.

About two months ago I took a job as a Shift Manager at Marco's Pizza in Louisiana. The Franchise Owner gave the interview and hired me at $9.50 an hour with the understanding that my pay would go to $10 once I was trained.

Within a week I knew this job would be a problem. On my fifth day I worked a shift with the Owner who immediately began barking and yelling at me within minutes of clocking in. With utter disdain in her voice she told me she was very "disappointed by my performance" and that after a week I should have "most of the job down".

No joke, she expected that my years of Management experience meant I should have the entire job at a completely different business down pat by my fifth day.

Long story short, I noticed that my pay didn't seem right. My first two paychecks had been higher than subsequent ones.

Well, I just found out that without any disciplinary actions on my record, without any official or even verbal warning, my pay had been cut behind my back. In fact, I still don't even know exactly how much I'm making, but it's closer to the Federal Minimum Wage.

Mind you my last job was as an Assistant Manager at Family Dollar where I earned $11 an hour and never had a single complaint with regards to my work performance.

Well I've been taken advantage of and mistreated by employers one too many times and this is the last straw. According to Louisiana Labor Law (a Right-To-Work State with almost no Worker Rights at all and no Minimum Wage), my employer can lower my wages or hours without reason at anytime. HOWEVER, I MUST BE NOTIFIED BEFORE SUCH PAY CUTS TAKE PLACE.

Therefore I looked at local laws, contacted a Law Firm specializing in local Employment based cases and while I await a response I've decided a plan to get payback and fight back.

I've downloaded a call recording app and tested it. I've set it up to immediately begin recording all incoming or outgoing calls within one second of being answered. I set it to maximize the recording quality and got the Owner's cell number.

Having dealt with this entitled, Pettty Bourgeois woman on a multitude of occasions now, I know her temper and need to always prove her power to do what ever she likes is likely to also be her biggest weakness.

I'm planning out a call structured in such a way as to bring these qualities of hers out and get her to admit on the recording that she violated the work contract by not notifying me of my pay cut.

I plan on filing an official suit against her immediately afterwards and knowing her, she'll likely fire me in a blatant case of retaliatory dismissal, which would raise the matter from a minor local matter, to one that puts the business itself at risk.

I then plan on contacting her Business Partners and alerting them of not only my own case, but various instances I've been witness to of retaliation on employees as well as blatantly illegal violations of minimum wage laws of store Drivers I've witnessed countless times. It's literally a business strategy of hers, not on occasional thing.

I hope that by making it clear just how unstable and reckless this woman is, that her Business Partners will recognize the liability she's become and sue for control over the company as the financiers.

Finally, I very much intend on making my case as Public as possible and involving the Corporation, not because I believe they can be held legally responsible, I'm well aware they can't, but so that the company will pull their licensing agreements with the Franchise, putting them out of Business and thoroughly ruining her life and career once and for all.

Then she can finally know what it's like to work for garbage wages for en employer that treats you like shit.

I'm not interested in getting money out of this. I could give a fuck less. I'm interested in taking out the career of the worst Employer I've ever had in my life, and one who regularly violates the Law and then makes her employees as miserable as possible on top of it.

She is truly the Boss from Hell. If I had the time, I would recount story after story after story of how this woman leverages her position of power over Workers to purposely and obviously make them as miserable as humanly possible. I've never in my life encountered a more horrible human being. And I look forward to thoroughly destroying every aspect of her life.

I would also recount more detail in the various plans I've carefully been making to do just that. But thats the basic gist of my plan. No one should have to live with an employer like this. Especially the most powerless workers in our society.

As if these jobs weren't horrible enough as it is. Someone like this comes along and enjoys making people feel as awful as possible. Her insults, condescension and now wage theft make her the worst human being imaginable.

I will truly truly enjoy ruining her life. Guess she's never employed a Marxist-Leninist before.

Anyone reading this, if you ever find yourself working in Hellish conditions like this, DON'T WAIT TWO MONTHS OR LONGER LIKE I DID! GET OUT OF THAT TOXIC STRESS INDUCING SITUATION AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE, CONTACT ANYONE YOU CAN TO MAKE SURE THAT EMPLOYER CAN'T JUST KEEP TREATING WORKERS THIS WAY. NO ONE DESERVES THAT.

I also understand quite well how trapped a person can feel in a nightmarish job like this. Some resources do exist however and you must do all you can to take advantage of any Social Services you can find in your area to help you escape a bad boss as quickly as you would an abusive partner! Abuse is abuse no matter whom it comes from and you NEVER deserve to be abused by someone in a position of power! No one does!

It's so important people learn not to put up with abuse, sexual or any other kind of harassment, wage-theft or any other form of abuse. In the age of Neoliberalism, Employers think they can get away with anything. And sadly they often do! But most of the time they aren't getting away with it because of the weak Labor Laws, though that's absolutely a HUGE problem, but instead they get away with it because people STAY QUIET ABOUT WORKPLACE ABUSE!

Don't stay quiet if you have any other option! Please? Please, it's going to take all Workers to defend all Workers from these widespread abuses of power. We can only stop it by working together and no longer staying quiet!

I also advise all Workers to LEARN YOUR RIGHTS!

Yes many States in the US have incredibly lax Labor Protections, or none. Or they have laws specifically designed to protect EMPLOYERS instead of Workers. That's why it's so important to learn Federal Labor Laws, State Laws, and even your local city ordinances which may protect you further depending on where you live. And I definitely do not recommend doing anything like I'm doing without first making sure you're not breaking any laws yourself. In some States, recording a person in a phone call without their permission is against the Law and can get you into a hell of a lot of trouble! Don't get yourself in trouble with the Law for any shitty Employer! Make sure you fight back against workplace abuse LEGALLY!!!!

This has been a Socialist/Communist/Labor PSA.

Workers Of The World, UNITE!!!

[prorevenge]

Accidentally put my phone number in a newspaper ad and refuse to fix it? I'll drive you out of business.

The end result of this story, which I will tell you upfront, is that we lost the ability to order from several local Pizza-Huts ...for lyfe...

Used to we had a phone number that was very similar to a Pizza-Hut, their number was (555)455-5575 and ours was (555)455-5515. Now these two numbers are commonly mixed up for obvious reasons. This was back before the days of cellphones and everyone having their own personal number, and we actually had to get a caller ID because of this.

For years we had this Pizza-Huts client base call our house (about 50/50 split sober/drunk) and order pizzas. The thing is people WILL NOT LISTEN when you tell them "Sorry wrong number" we would have drunk people call back 4-5 times and then begin screaming into the phone "I KNOW THIS IS A FUCKING PIZZAHUT YOU ASSHOLE!" or "GIVE ME THE NUMBER OR I'LL KICK YOUR ASS."

This was pretty normal and the pizza hut was even aware of this and profusely apologized when we would call them. (Never giving us anything for free though, despite the massive inconvenience of the phone ringing off the hook.)

Well Pizza Hut Corporate then pays for an advertisement on paper, bill-board, and phone book. And guess what? They botched the number they put OUR number on the things for the phone number as one of the locations in our town for Pizza Huts pizza. Why? Because 1's and 7's are the same number apparently.

The phone calls we get FUCKING EXPLODES. It goes from like 3-5 phone calls a day to like 100-200. Initially we were directing people with a message that simply said "THIS IS NOT PIZZA HUT! THEIR NUMBER IS XXXXXXXX" It didn't end. We would get calls with people screaming into the voice recording "I WANT A FUCKING PIZZA THIS IS BULLSHIT I'M GOING TO KILL WHOEVER DOESN'T ANSWER THIS FUCKING PHONE!" (Aren't boomers great? We got that shit all the time from older people.) I cannot tell you how many times I've been told to kill myself for trying to direct someone to the correct place, and for some FUCKING reason no one EVER listens.

Well upon this happening my Dad calls into the pizza hut and says "look, all we want is to not have to change our number. If you guys will PLEASE change yours, or pay for ours to be changed (it was like a 10 dollar convince fee or some shit.) we will stop getting your damned phone calls." The manager cussed my Dad, who had him on speaker phone, calling him shit load of names and for "getting him bad reviews" as well as losing customers to his branch, which is locally owned. What a fucking joke. Its costing their business a solid 10 grand EASY over a phone number why not JUST CHANGE IT? IDK.

My Dad looks at the phone, hangs up and says "Ok asshole, you want to be like that about it?"

My dad then instructs My 17 year old self (and my sister) to take all calls from now on. If it rings pick it up, take the order, and say "Ok your pizza should be there in (1.5 hours)" Then when they call back to tell them "Sorry the driver just left." and if they call back a third time say "Well I can get you on the phone with my manager but hes probably going to kick your ass if you keep complaining." And then switch the phone with someone else and have them say "Listen here bitch, you aren't getting your pizza and we are keeping your money, fucking get over it."

Or something along those lines anyway.

Two weeks pass and my Dad tries to get said Pizza Hut to change our number for free. Never pointing out that they fucked up their ad, as apparently they were completely oblivious to this fact. Again the manager screams at my Dad saying "I don't have the money to change your fucking number!" We even tried calling OTHER pizza huts to get the issue resolved, and their corporate with no real luck. Fair enough, its game on time now bitch why? For two reasons 1. My dad got a phone with a transfer button and 2. Because summer was rolling around, and me and my sister loved fucking with people over this. It was a really bad influence on us tbh.

We fielded phone calls every day all day long, we had friends come over and they loved partaking in the same thing. We had a general plan:

Every other call would get a pizza "delivery" On the other calls we would get them really pissed off talking shit to them and saying "Ok do you want to speak with my manager?" And just cold transfer them to the pizza hut. It took 6 more weeks of us doing this, and the pizza hut closed. A few weeks before they closed we got a phone call from pizza hut corporate who more or less threatened us with a cease and desist sounded like they didn't really understand what was actually happening as it accused us of "stealing their phone calls." LMFAO. We called their corporate and explained what was going on, and even played our recordings of talking with them before about the issue and ignoring us. All they said is "You had better stop! This is ILLEGAL!" over and over. We didn't stop. They were aware of what was going on and didn't want to do anything about it because to fix their FUBAR.

A few weeks after the owner lost his job he called our house and was trying to argue with my Dad about how "bad of a person he was because I lost money, and got my ass beat several times." ...apparently we had pissed a few people off so bad they actually went in and attacked him and other staff... To this day it cracks me up that a company can be so oblivious, and is the single reason I don't believe we live in anything close to a "Meritocracy" anyone in this position who has any merit would instantly change the number, but not a corporation who has money to sue, and not a middle manager who has an ego problem.

(source) (story by mikemikemike247)

[closetofanxiety]

Fyter Fest: SUCCESS

I liked this show a lot! Not everything was to my taste, but there was plenty to enjoy. Briefly:

* The Cody vs. Darby Allin match was one of the best wrestling matches I’ve seen in 2019. The crowd was a little subdued for long stretches of it, perhaps being accustomed to more of a flashy style, but I loved the whole thing. Cody, who liked like a giant compared to Allin, was trying to wrestle and old-school (dare I say, Southern) style match, while Allin was trying to shift it to a more familiar indie style, which would be to his advantage. It was a genuine collision of two different approaches to wrestling, and it worked incredibly well. Darby took at least two completely insane bumps I’ve never seen anyone do, and after one of them, Cody contemptuously did push-ups in the ring. THAT’S GOOD OLD SCHOOL VILLAINY. I also loved that this was a time-limit draw, another old school story device. Neither guy lost any face in the match, and the crowd was still excited by the end, which they timed very well (Cody hit his finisher with two seconds left, and thus couldn’t get the three-count). Cody, derided in his initial indie run as “The Three-Star General” for his supposedly pedestrian matches, has stolen the show on both AEW events so far. 

* I did not love the post-match run-in by Shawn Spears! Without getting into any of the piping hot takes about unprotected chair shots, I thought it pulled focus from the great wrestling match that just happened, with Darby Allin being turned into kind of an afterthought. I get that they need to advance storylines and right now they don’t have weekly TV to do that, but this felt almost Russo-esque. 

* The Moxley-Janela match was really good! Going into it, I wondered how much different an AEW hardcore match was going to be from the WWE template. Like, would they go full indie and have shopping carts and pizza graters and barbecue skewers? The answer is no: we didn’t see any items in this match that would be outside the bounds of a WWE match (except maybe the barbed wire), but it was how the two wrestlers used them that made the difference. The barbed wire spots were wince-inducing without being truly gruesome, the tables were swiftly destroyed, and the barefoot thumbtacks spot at the end was a stroke of sadistic genius. What a first match for Moxley in AEW!

* The women’s triple threat match was a little sloppy at parts, but the whole thing was redeemed by Nyla Rose totally playing against type down the stretch and hitting a truly insane flying guillotine knee drop from the top turnbuckle. She then snapped off a truly brutal German suplex to solidify her status as the early badass of AEW. Yuka Sakazaki and Riho looked a little out of step a few times, but mostly they did well in the role of competitors who also have to compete against the monster opponent. 

* One thing AEW has managed to do well so far is put on three and four-way matches that don’t get bogged down the way they do so often in other companies. You know: there’s a three-way match and invariably one person spends most of it outside the ring, effectively turning into a two-person match with occasional run-ins. In the women’s match and in the four-way, AEW’s agents managed to produce matches that actually felt like all the competitors were involved throughout the course of the contests. The four-way was particularly good, and should go a fair distance toward making Jungle Boy a breakout star in the company. He’s got a great look, he’s got unique offense, and his friendship with giant dinosaur man Luchasaurus is the stuff of a marketer’s dreams. 

* The six-man tag was fine. I know this is going to sound like I’m complaining that a buffet is too good, but I think I’m full up on matches pitting the Young Bucks against the Lucha Bros for a while. They’re fun, they involve incredible athleticism and exhibitions of timing and skill, but you know what to expect. The bright spot of the match for me was the underappreciated luchador Laredo Kid, who got a lot of quality time as the Lucha Bros’ partner. 

* I really did not like the pre-show. The three-way tag match was very good, and I was really happy to see people online reacting with astonishment at Private Party. Those guys are fantastic, and they’re so young. They’re only going to get better. Everything after that match was extremely not my thing. I appreciate they’re trying to do something different with the comedy, and it’s going to be important for them to have something that connects with non-wrestling fans or wrestling-curious fans who aren’t going to want to watch two hours of matches every week. And I certainly don’t expect a company that has two shows under its belt to have a foolproof formula in place. But if they’re going to do comedy, they should really hire actual comedy writers, as much as the idea of writers has become a taboo in non-WWE wrestling. The jokes were flat and most of them centered around the Fyre Fest documentaries, which are really yesterday’s news at this point. 

* The librarian thing really died a death with the crowd. I don’t watch Being the Elite or The Road to, so I missed the explanation for this gimmick, but it does not come across well. The constant shushing is so bad it feels almost avant-garde after a while, like it’s actively confrontational with the audience over our expectations for a wrestling show. Then Leva Bates cut a heel promo in defense of books and I wanted to check out. Her match with Allie was decent for a match on a Shine midcard, but Leva’s limitations as a wrestler are pretty much what they’ve always been. The match ended with a totally blown spot that was supposed to be the pay off for the whole “the librarians love books” thing. Terrible.

* I hated the last pre-show match. Every once in a while, you’ll see a super local indie show where one of the sponsors gets to “wrestle,” usually meaning the crowd is treated to the owner of a car dealership standing on the apron for most of a tag match, until getting the chance to throw a weak clothesline and cover a hated midcard baddie for the three count. AEW, though, decided they should do that same thing but with the non-wrestler sponsor being put in a 10-minute hardcore match. I’m sure some people liked this. I am not among them. This match inadvertently featured the gnarliest spot of the night (until the Darby Allin coffin drop onto the edge of the apron JESUS DARBY WHAT ARE YOU THINKING DO YOU WANT TO DIE YOU HAVE A LOVING SLEAZY WEIRDO SPOUSE PLEASE THINK OF HER) when the fighting games convention organizer guy did a German suplex that dumped Nakazawa directly on his neck. Thank God Japanese wrestling training involves constant neck bridges! This is why super local indies only let the sponsor guys throw a weak clothesline: because they know that non-wrestlers doing wrestling moves endangers everyone’s safety. 

* Other things: Commentary seemed to be markedly better for the most part, thanks to the addition of “Goldenboy” who might be a video game person? (sorry video game people I am no use here) ... JR is really straying into Grampa Gaffes territory with his praise of “Oriental” wrestlers and blurting out that the women wrestlers all seem like his daughters ... the camera direction still needs work, with the director missing a number of big spots ... Kenny Omega running in to pummel Moxley after the final match was good stuff ... the Super Smash Brothers’ “Dark Order” thing is treading perilously close to Black Scorpion territory ... this was just shy of four hours, counting the pre-show, and I found myself wanting more when it was over ... a friend was over watching with me and we found ourselves yelling at the screen in a way we haven’t done with televised wrestling in a long time 

[hookysblog]

Isreal, Australia and New Zealand.

BARBY CLUB, TEL AVIV, ISRAEl!

MERCH SITES...PLEASE SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL MUSICIAN

https://the-hacienda-uk.myshopify.com/

 https://peter-hook-uk.myshopify.com/

Our second trip to Israel!

Complete with me nursing a really bad sore throat and chest;(

Not too many death threats this time I believe, what a world eh! Quite a long flight, but flies by with the boys. Immigration is easy until our sound guy gets dragged off for questioning about his granddad (who he never knew?).

He is kept for a long time, which is a little worrying, but is eventually let in and never really found out what it was all about?

His Big Bad Grandad sounds interesting!

The road works (in the centre of Tel Aviv at midnight???)  hold up our arrival at the hotel for a couple of hours, with all the roads leading to it closed. What a mess! We end up walking, which with the equipment isn’t easy;(

A lovely day dawns and our wacky little hotel called Hotel Cinema, has film posters and projectors everywhere. I am in the actual projection room at the top of the old theatre, complete with hole for the lens to poke through, really weird. I grab a haircut by the Mighty Zohan and a lovely pizza. The area we are in is very vibrant, in other words …..Rocking! The gig looms and we being joined today by Hadar Goldman, an Israeli violinist from the punk band Ciam, whose other claim to fame is the purchase of Ian Curtis’s old house, 77, Barton Street, Macclesfield. Hadar wanted to open it up as a museum but has not been successful so far, sadly. Could be a job for me in my dotage as a curator, like Night at The Museum eh?;)

Anyway, he is very nervous but the lads are on top form and the gig goes great from start to finish. Hadar is great on Atmosphere and Autosuggestion, and the three hours fly by! The lads are off early the next day to OZ but I don’t follow until the night of the day after, so have a bit of time to kill.

It is Yom Kippur here and everyone seems really worried I will starve to death. So like a real student, I invest in two Pot Noodle’s and a load of chocolate and after raiding the breakfast buffet, I think I will survive;) I sleep again after brekkie and wake and walk down to the beach. Spending the whole afternoon just watching the world go by.

Yom Kippur lasts from dusk until dusk the next day and as the sun goes down the noise levels decrease, until the only sounds you can hear are the children playing in the deserted streets. Breakfast is provided on Sunday for us and my wonderful hosts have hired me a mountain bike for what is called ‘Childrens Day’ here.

I have not cycled for years so am a little apprehensive to say the least. I get the bike on the street and it is really strange…..There are no cars at all! The whole place is deserted with every shop closed. The only problem is my chest….I am like puffin’ Billy.

In the old days there would be no power or phones in the city I am told. The leaves soon settle in the road and it gives a post apocalyptic feel as I cycle along topless the leaves blowing round me. I go down through the deserted market to the beachfront, and there the place is completely alive, with thousands of kids on every size and kind of bike, motorised skateboards and tons of electric scooters everywhere. It is completely magical, it really is.

I AM SPELLBOUND;)

 I love the bike and watching the kids in huge groups cycling along the freeways and empty streets is heart warming, it really is and I only give up because I am worried about getting sunburnt, heading back to the hotel for a hat and a T-shirt and a Pot Noodle. I go back in the afternoon suitably attired and ride and ride, until I have to give up because my arse is so sore (no 50p jokes please!). As the sun sets the city gets back to normal all too soon with the noise level rising to it’s usual roar by 7p.m. On the way to the airport for my flight to Oz the busy, noisy streets seem so coarse compared to how they were a few hours before, what a shame. I sail through Immigration/Customs, my granddad must have been ok? (Didn’t know him either;(

I begin a to long trip to Australia, one of my favourite places on earth.

 METRO THEATRE, SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA

Throat and chest still bad but we persevere;)

I arrive the day of the gig so by the time gig time comes I am completely addled. It reminds me of being drunk, it really does. This Joy Division ‘2 album’ night was added at short notice after our Japanese gigs fell through, but is very well attended. Great to play Closer again, wonderful. Martin our new keyboard player is top from start to finish, a great response. I crawl off to bed exhausted. Not much time to relax because we are off the next day for a gig at….

 CORNER HOTEL, MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA

 Lovely to be back, a beautiful city, very Parisien. It was here that I wrote most of The Hacienda Book funnily enough, when I was Djing at Parklife in 2008, you got the week off in-between so I thought it was a great time to start. Australia looms large in my books lives, as you will see later;)

The on stage sound is tough at this place, which I remember all too well from last time, but the gig goes great and is Sold Out! Too. Great reception for both Unknown Pleasures and Closer, yet again! An almost humane leave sees us off to……

 THE STUDIO, AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND

 Another beautiful country and now we have a lot of English friends living here now. Hi Carol;) Back to Substance tonight, which is nice.

I have to give in here, I am finding it hard to sleep my chest is crackling that much, so a trip to the Doctor’s beckons. Strangely both me and Pottsy have the same problem???

The Doctor says I am ‘crackly’ and he is ‘wheezy’,

 ‘Where’s Grumpy?’ I ask?

 He doesn’t laugh;(

 $350 Dollars light and we are both Amoxcycillined up and off we go.

Gig goes great from start to finish. Still struggling with my throat which is really annoying Grrrrr! I am waiting for the Biotics still to kick in. But I take it easy by cycling all over the place puffing gently. It’s my new thang!

It’s wonderful how both countries are completely suited, and go out of their way to encourage cycling. I follow the river past the Zoo all the way down to the centre of the city. Then get embarrassed because I am the only one topless? So head back. Hard on the chest again but well worth it! Grab a Kebab before the gig and I am ready!

The place is packed and gig goes great. The lads are on fire.

Ecstatic reception to both records!

Catch up with a few old mates, lovely to see you again Platty;) Next stop…

  THE TIVOLI, BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA

 Back to Substance and another Sold Out gig. This getting boring….only joking, after all our hard work it is the best compliment ever, thank you all.

Nice venue and everything goes well, recovering nicely;) Off early tomorrow so after more smashed Avacado we are off to…

 THE GOV, ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA

 Another beautiful place.

Nice, quiet and very suburban. Lovely old theatre venue that is packed and of course….Sold Out! Bit of an altercation with some fans at the front, but it is soon sorted and the bouncer tells me it’s the same guys he threw out last time we were here….go figure? Very cold here at night in spring, so wrap up if you are visting. Up earlish to hop over to …….

 CORNER HOTEL, Concert’s 1, 2, AND 3, MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA

1.I feel marginally better today, thank god!

So have a lovely first day here, visit the Dior exhibition at the Museum along with The Great Wave exhibition by the Japanese Ukiyo-e artist Hokusa

.

  A very cultural day indeed! Enjoy a lovely stroll back to the Hotel and struggle through a short gym session, which does make me feel better.

It’s gig time before I know it and it’s back to The Metro for the struggle with the foldback.

Gig is a struggle and I cannot get the vibe, but it goes down well I must admit. Nice early night.

 2.Have a lovely Big Morning out for breakfast/Brunch with Viv (Big Day Out owner and very old friend) and one Zombie film later am ready for round two.

DING DING! Better gig tonight, great audience, sound still shit. The only place that sounds worse than this place is our very own Fac251 The Factory, where there is nothing you can do to combat it, believe me we have tried everything.

Lovely to see Viv Lees, with his son at the concert too. God we are getting old!

 3.Last night and we turn down a bit onstage and magically it sounds better for it. Play really well and great reaction gives us heart for our long trek to…….

 THE ASTOR THEATRE, PERTH, WESTERN AUSTRALIA

 This is one of my favourite places on earth. It really has to be seen to be believed, and that’s despite nearly dying from food poisoning here once see Inside New Order for details;) I am so happy we are finishing here. Stay in a wonderful Casino Hotel that is HUGE! Great pools inside and out, huge gym and as I am feeling a lot better I get in there and have a great workout, so good to be back to normal. Finish off the day sunbathing with a Virgin Mary and with dinner at their very own NOBU, am ready for whatever the concert brings.

Tonight we are back at one of my favourite venues. It’s an old Cinema complex transformed into a great gig. The dressing room used to be one of the smaller theatre’s but they have normal dressing rooms now….Boo Hoo! Do the meet and greet like a Old Mancunian Santa Claus then it’s the show, Sold Out show did I say? Hee Hee!

The sound is great, the audience is great, band is great!

What a wonderful end. I thank everyone and we are done ready for home, but Oops…… I forget to thank Phil Murphy and Steve Jones and they will not let me forget it either, sorry boys;(

Nice to see Brian Jary (I used to sit next to him at Salford Grammar in 1967) and his wife, along with Ken and Georgina our old friends too;) Wake to a huge storm, which is beautiful to watch.

After a fantastic breakfast with the biggest Las Vegas style buffet I have ever seen, Dan our Tour Manager takes us to the airport for the first of our three planes home.

 Thank you for such a fantastic time…..EVERYONE!

 Cheers Hooky, ’17.

[jigneshthanki-blog]

TOP 5 Food and Beverage Companies who have expanded User base via Amazon Alexa Skills

Are you the owner of a pizza shop, restaurant, coffee shop or an online food ordering/ delivery marketplace platform? If you own any of these, then you must be thinking of bringing in technology innovations to the picture to see off competitors.

Many existing food businesses and startups are facing fierce competition in the food industry. So what can be done? How to make your mark in the market? Of course, adoption of various technology solutions like iBeacon, Internet of Things (IoT) and custom mobile app development has helped a lot.

But the one modest innovation we are looking at for food businesses is the custom developed Amazon Alexa Voice Skills. Smart speakers like Amazon Echo and Echo Dot are gaining popularity leveraging Voice Skill development and businesses have started realizing its potential.

Top 5 Food and Beverage Companies Reaping Rewards through Alexa Skills:

Every single week, the volume of Amazon Alexa Skills development is surging and businesses are adopting customized Alexa skills given the benefits of voice first technology.

Let us take a look at Top 5 Food and Beverage companies who have successfully adopted Alexa skills for their business and reaped rewards.

1. Dominos

Ordering a Pizza from Dominos is a straightforward process in most of the cases. Customers order their favorite pizzas to the same location with the same card (Credit/ Debit) details. This was the perfect case while experimenting custom Alexa skill back in 2013. And guess what? It was bingo.

Alexa is making ordering your Domino’s favorites even easier. With the Domino’s Alexa Skill, you can build a new order from scratch, place your Easy Order or your most recent order. You can ask Alexa for your order’s status with Domino’s Tracker.

To get started, just say “Alexa, open Domino’s.” Alexa will connect you to Domino’s and get you ordering and tracking in no time.

2. Grubhub

Grubhub is a leading online and mobile food ordering and delivery marketplace dedicated to connecting diners with local takeout restaurants. We at Let’s Nurture are experts in ideating clone food delivery apps for Zomato, Grubhub, etc. Hence, we exactly know the nature of the food ordering process and customer demands for the same.

Grubhub Introduces its Amazon Alexa Skill “Reorder with Grubhub” to make food ordering easier than ever before. The new Grubhub skill for Alexa will make it easier for customers to reorder food from Grubhub’s network of more than 50,000 restaurants using only their voice.

You may like to read: Cost to develop Alexa Skills for Online Food Marketplace

Diners can then open the Grubhub skill for Alexa with a selection of prompts such as, “Alexa, open Grubhub” or, “Alexa, tell Grubhub I’m hungry”. Alexa will respond with, “Welcome to Grubhub! Here are the latest orders available for reorder”. Diners can then choose which option they would like to reorder and Alexa places the order for the diner providing an estimated time of when it will be ready.

3. Starbucks

Amazon Alexa skills can also be used effectively to transform the customer experience for cafes too. Now leveraging Amazon Alexa skills, users can tell Alexa to place your favorite coffee or anything else from the shop.

American coffee company and coffeehouse Starbucks does not require an introduction, does it? Starbucks recently released a skill for Alexa – “Starbucks Reorder” which allows you to place your favorite order using only your voice. The setup is quick but requires a little more work than your typical Alexa skill.

To be able to use the skill, you will need to have previously placed an order for a drink using the Starbucks app. If you haven’t, you will need to place an order through the app first.

Just say, “Alexa, enable Starbucks Reorder.” To be able to use the skill, you will need to have previously placed an order for a drink using the Starbucks app. If you haven’t, you will need to place an order through the app first.

After you’ve placed an order with the Starbucks app, you will be able to set up and use the skill. Just say, “Alexa, open Starbucks.” Alexa will then tell you what your usual order is, how much it costs and for which store the order will be placed. You will then need to confirm or cancel the order. Isn’t it that simple? What else could be better for a hands-free coffee ordering experience on-the-go?

4. KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken)

KFC is America’s fast food restaurant chain who also has come up with an innovative Alexa Skill called ‘KFC Chicken Talk’ in KFC Canada. For India, they have come up with custom Alexa Skill called ‘KFC India’ too. By enabling this custom Alexa skill, KFC has been successful in bringing the next-gen eating experience by building on factors like ease of access, digital menus, personalized engagement, etc.

With ‘KFC Chicken Talk’, a finger-lickin’ good conversation starts where Alexa will entertain users with multiple jokes, pick-up lines, random thoughts and musings based on one thing only, Chicken. Just say, “Alexa, Talk Chicken To Me” and brace yourself to get served with whole new experience.

“KFC India” users can ask Alexa to order their favorite finger lickin’ dishes by saying, “Alexa, Launch KFC”. Just sit back, relax and wait for your meal to arrive at your doorstep.

5. Apothic Wines

Apothic Wines are among the most distinctively branded and popular wines among millennial consumers. They have come up with their own Alexa skill with a purpose to create an at-home experience that could deepen consumer engagement with the brand and educate current customers more about other Apothic varietals.

Users can ask Alexa to provide a guided wine tasting led by the Alchemist. Probably the best use of voice first technology for Wine lovers. Exploring Apothic Wines has just been a hell lot of easier than before leveraging custom Alexa skill development.

Why even Big Brands are Adding Voice Skills to their Omnichannel Strategy?

Forbes reports that More than 50 percent of food menu searches will be voice-based by 2020.

Businesses of any size in the food industry are focusing on developing and implementing custom voice skills on the app. There are multiple reasons associated with it:

1) Enhanced and Personalised Customer Experience:

Leveraging custom Alexa skill development and/ or Actions on Google (AoG) development, food business owners can provide a consistent, reliable and quality customer experience. Voice-activated menu access and the ordering process are the biggest factors that will boost sales too because people are loving hands-free customer service experience with almost zero follow-ups.

2) Potential to Increase ROI for Food Businesses

Customers can order online complex menu items involving multiple preparation styles, accompaniments and sides, add special instructions, review their order and place it easily, increasing ROI.

3) Improved Operations & Productivity

Alexa can help staff to be more productive throughout the day and stay focused on orders. Custom voice skills can be built to enable staff to manage calendars, make calls, track to-do lists and find information such as the latest sales data, or inventory levels.

Why Choose Let’s Nurture for Restaurant-Specific Alexa Skill Development?

Let’s Nurture is a leading voice skill development company in India, USA, Canada, UK, Singapore, Kuwait, and Australia offering end-to-end voice services and solutions for Google Home, Amazon Echo and Echo Dot Smart speakers. Having developed multiple voice skills, in-house and for a client, you can hire our dedicated Alexa Skill Developers with different flexible engagement models at affordable costs.

The variety of custom voice skills developed by us, for the smart assistant, back many products from diverse sectors like food and beverages, entertainment, task management, home automation, healthcare/telemedicine and extends much beyond this.

If you own a restaurant, cafe or online food marketplace and looking to have similar next-gen voice solutions to boost ROI, Let’s shake hands to build something awesome!

[thebackroadtourist]

How Do You Say Ljubljana?

Ahhh the city of Ljubljana. (lube-lee-aun-a). The land of mystical dragons, beautiful hills and delicious potica. I chose this destination before I learned how to pronounce it. Why? Because curiosity hasn’t killed me yet! Where the hell is Ljubljana? In the country of Slovenia, of course! Not Slovakia. Not Scandinavia. Slovenia. Formerly part of Yugoslavia along with Serbia, Croatia, Montenegro, Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Albania. With Slovenia’s population just a quarter of New York City it boosts a rich history filled with castles and World War II bombs sunken beneath the surface….seriously. There’s a story of a man who found a large bomb in his backyard with a metal detector. Slovenia borders Eastern Italy and is just a hop and a skip from Venice, though a place where most tourists don’t consider going. To make matters more interesting for myself I decided to spend two weeks here with a host family…from the internet. www.workaway.info, a site I used in Central America where I spent two weeks living in a small wooden yoga hut with three foreigners and a lot of creepy crawly’s. That story is for another day.

“This could go one of two ways” I thought to myself as I exited the bus and walked into the McDonalds down the street, the meeting place where I would meet my host family for the next two weeks. The mother and her 11 year old daughter waved enthusiastically at me as I scanned the circumference of the fast-food joint, noticing how pretty the working women were behind the counter. My first impression of Ljubljana was “Damn it’s hot.” I was greeted by a scorching 41 degrees celsius, global warming was saying hello to the land of Melania Trump (not joking, she’s from this town).

I was greeted by the broad chested father upon pulling into the dirt driveway located 30 minutes outside Ljubljana’s city center in an agricultural development surrounded by green hills and the faint smell of cow manure. The father, a banker, was big dude - standing 6′6″ weighing in around 220 lbs a former truck driver in the Yugoslavian army in the early 1990′s. Intimidated at first I learned quickly that love and laughter was his default state. His goofy, silly outlook on life and his gift of telling jokes and poking fun at those around him lit the room and made me feel at ease. The caring and animated mother, the blonde-hair and olive oil skinned daughter and the 15 year old amatuer kayaker son took me in as one of their own; a warm welcoming that felt as if I truly belonged there. They fed me delicious home-made bio-dynamic food which often consisted of a meat and a starch; they took me hiking, swimming, kayaking and showed me historical sites and look-out points with stunning views of the countryside. We drank local beer, picked blackberries from their yard each day and stayed up late on their patio to talk - just talk, about anything and everything. They grilled me with questions on the social-political state of America and shared their insights and cultural knowledge on Slovenia and Central Europe as a whole, educating me on things I never knew existed. Their curiosity for my points of view was impressive to me considering Slovenia is a bubble consisting of mostly all white people in one of the safest towns in Europe.

Speaking of living in a bubble. Let me tell you first and foremost - Slovenia is LIT. Free healthcare for all. Free college tuition for all (#debtwho?). Where 33 days of paid vacation is the norm and where nobody works past 40 hours a week. Slovenia is the #1 country in all of Europe to be a child - which was proven by the daughter’s math skills and her fluency in Slovene, French, and English. Slovenia is also the greenest and most environmentally conscious country in the continent. Slovenia - WHAT! I was blown away. So much so that I think I subconsciously had to see for myself. In other words, I was struck by a nasty virus half way through my stay. I think the excess accumulation of sugar, alcohol, dairy and gluten (4 things I rarely consume in the States) had caught up to me, plus having previously been in Spain and Italy where gelato and pasta made up 80% of my daily consumption. *watch for my next blog post about eating foreign foods* By the second day of my sickness the mother became concerned with the pain in my ears so she took me in to see a doctor. What I experienced was something quite unfamiliar: immediate attention, no waiting lines, personal care plus an on-the-spot blood analysis including a full physical, pathological and nuerological examination. 1 hour later I was out of there with my diagnosis and a peace-of-mind. And guess how much I paid. 18 Euros. That’s right, 18. For something that would have cost $150 in the States.

I also got the dentist experience. I had lost my night denture in Barcelona weeks prior so I needed something to protect my teeth against my fierce nighttime grinding. I was just as impressed with the dentist as I had been with the doctor: greeted by warm smiles, immediate care, no waiting lines, and get this….they gave me a second night guard for FREE. Two for the price of one. And the price of 1 was about $100 less than what I would have paid in the states.

The parent’s worked during the day and the older brother had daily kayak practice so each day I hung with the daughter. The parent’s didn’t even vet me - leaving me alone with their daughter in their house less than 24 hours after meeting me in person. Each day was a different activity, funded by her parents. One day we walked to the bus stop and journeyed to the pool, the next day we took the bus to the city center and ate lunch at a local food fair, the next was an indoor waterpark. We even went to an escape room. Other days we stayed in the house and sheltered ourselves from the heat while keeping busy with Yugoslavian monopoly, chess, bridge rummy canasta and tarocks (a confusing German card game). We instantly bonded as if we’d known each other for years. By the end of my stay we had our own inside jokes and even our own dialect. Everything was so easy with this family. They put their full trust in me and treated me as their son. They served me first at the dinner table and covered every meal we ate out with no exceptions. Did I mention the food here? They took me to the best spots, the hole in the wall places that food network lovers would obsess over. My first night there we went to a pizza joint in their local village where the waitress taught me how to say thank-you “Hvala” and please “”Prosim”. Another night was an authentic Serbian spot outside of town unreachable by tourists. The owner was a friend of the family, we took shots of “Qunice” an alcohol that’s apparently illegal in Slovenia, and ate our weight in Serbian bread and sausage. We woke up early one Saturday to eat pogača, a traditional buckwheat pizza with smoked ham. They also fed me the finest of sweets: kremšnita, flancat, apple strudel, potica and pumpkin oil ice cream all traditional in Slovenia.

I often thought of the slogan “Pura Vida” used in Costa Rica, a place I’ve explored twice and love dearly. I can say with confidence that Slovenia can also have that same slogan. Besides, Slovenia has the word “love” in it’s name. From the amount of play and laughter the family shared on a daily basis, to the pesticide-free food, to the local villagers up in the Kranska Gora mountains who cooked us a traditional Slovene meal of buckwheat polenta topped with pork fat, sour milk from their cows and pine-butt water from their trees. It was a magical place, as the father and I scaled up the rocks to the reach a gorgeous waterfall as I drank the crystal clean water from it’s stream. From the beautiful lake of Bled where we swam with the fish to the kayaking trip down the warm transparent stream of a Balkan lake.

To conclude, Slovenia has it all - the scenery, the people, and the food. If you come here do not skip out of what nature has to offer. And bring your own vegetables ;)

[thebackroader]

The Alpe Adria Trail

"You're missing a beautiful sunrise" I announce to the three silent tents, dewy and pale in the dawn. No replies. 

"Guys" I say louder. "it's amazing" A grunt from one, I hear Harley turn over in his sleeping bag. We're meant to be up and out of camp in half an hour. Better change tack. 

"You're missing the most amazing 'gram ever guys." I say even louder. That gets them. Alex's head appears out of the tent. Harley, phone in hand, is up. Joanna in her flip flops and socks, Sven with his long hair sticking up in all directions. Know your audience, everyone.

It was a beautiful sunrise though; we were camped high up , looking down on a valley filled with golden mist. The lower hills were navy blue, fading into bands of azure. The high peaks behind are peach and pink, dusted with gold sun, the mist turning bright as the light hit it. The alps wake up beautifully. It was going to be a hot day of climbing, and it was time to get up and get on the bikes.

We were taking a week off work to do the Alpe Adria trail, a gravel route that runs from Salzburg in Austria over the alps and into Italy, ending up on the Italian Coast at Grado- though we were detouring to finish in the more spectacular Venice. The trail took a lot of digging to find, but proclaimed itself to be the “best cycle trail" in Europe. I didn’t need much more persuasion than that. So, with my twin sister, Joanna, our boyfriends Sven and Tim, and two friends- Harley and Alex- we set off in September. 

Flying into Salzburg through a whole series of thunderstorms, we set off to our airbnb in stormy wet darkness, and rolled into camp soaked through. So much for missing rainy season.

 In the morning, we were greeted with the sound of frantic rain fall, lashing against the windows of the airbnb. We peered outside, and then flopped back into bed. It wasn't going to be a pleasant ride today. Two coffees, breakfast and a pack of early haribo later, we climbed reluctantly onto our laden bikes and set off into the downpour. It was mountain rain; heavy and soaking, but not too cold. We pedalled through a gloomy seeming Salzburg, admiring a castle which slid out of the cloud for a few moments, and some pretty architecture. Salzburg is (I assure you) one of the most beautiful cities in Europe, but the cloud cover sat at 5 metres up, so my only recollection of it was greyness and the feeling of my waterproof giving out at the elbows. Then we climbed out of the city and into the mountains. 

The alps are beautiful. The route winds between some of Austria's tallest mountains, prettiest alpine scenery, most stunning villages and down some fantastic bike paths. Sometimes I had to pinch myself to remind myself that I was actually living this. We rolled into Hallstatt on the first day, greeted by scenery so stunning it looked like it was out of Lord of the Rings rather than Austria. The tiny medieval town sits right on the dark shores of lake Hallstatt, tucked under vertical cliffs of granite and sheer pine forests. The lone church tower soars into misty air, reflected by the dark waters of the lake. Even in low cloud and rain, the place is serene and magical. The town itself is a riot of colourful quaint wooden houses on steep streets, with no cars allowed. Even the Spar- where we spent an abnormally long time buying "grobes brot" (big bread) filled with chocolate and poppy seeds and as dense as a brick- was prettified, subtly hidden behind a deaccession.   

This magical experience was cut short by the angry owner of the campsite, who was so furious that we'd want to stay at his campsite that he shouted at our only german speaker (sven) and slammed his door in our face. We googled the campsite later to see that this was that average greeting for anyone who wanted to camp there, with comments such as:  "For some reasons, as soon as the receptionist saw us, he was shouting as us and told us to get out", "The ground keeper was offensive and clearly didn't want us to be there from the moment we started to talk with him"  "the owner is rude and crazy and does not like young people" "The receptionist was utterly unfriendly, quite aggressive and unpleasant from the beginning with no apparent reason." I recommend avoiding Campingplatz Klausner-Höll! 

All was forgiven the next morning, as we rose to see a wonderful misty sunrise over the lake, with sunlight pouring over the peaks onto the serene lake.  We spent a long time having coffee and pasties on the shore of the lake, unable to leave the beauty. Eventually the crowds of tourists shipping in on buses got too much to bear, so we set off out of the valley and over to Werfen. 

The ride was a bit like the sound of music; green pastures and cows with bells, trees just turning yellow, and beyond this all, the awe inspiring granite peaks of the alps- blue-black silhouettes against the blue sky. We spent the day on bike paths, slowly climbing and descending several small passes, and stopping for coffee, cake and ice-cream whenever we came across the next charming town. Progress was slow but appetites were satiated. 

We took a day off in Werfen,a tiny town which sits in the shadow of the incredible "Hochkogel”, a 2000m high mass of sheer granite. Even their stunning Hohenwerfen castle, sitting pearched on a precipice of 600m,  looks like a toy town in comparison. There is plenty to do around there- you can hike up to Hitlers holiday home, or drive out to some spectacular waterfalls. We opted to see the Ice caves, the worlds biggest. It was an epic just to get up to them- a 20min bus up a steep, windy mountain path, then a 15 minute cable car, and another 20 minute walk up and up to a giant gaping hole int he side of the mountain. The ice cave was pretty...cool, excuse the pun- towering ice sculptures formed by cold air getting trapped in the cave. Lit by eerie magnesium, and directed by funny tour guides, it was worth the freezing feet. Bring something warm though!

After this, we cycled over to the incredible Badgastien. The cycle ride spent most of the time on the valley floor, passing ravines and sheer mountainsides, clear waters and immaculate gravel bike paths the whole way. Badgastine is fantastic- other than it's name, which allows for many jokes about farts- it is an unmissable stop. The town sits on a ravine, separated by a waterfall. It was biggest climb of the trip coming up into Badgastien; you edge up a mountainside at a steady pace, winding up through the town with the view spreading out on to one side. We stopped for photos and a great coffee half way up, gazing at the waterfall falling between houses built on vertical sides. After several hours of climbing, you are rewarded with a train journey over the summit, and then an amazing 10km steep downhill, wiggling down alpine paths to the valley floor. We camped just outside of Spitall an da drau, and found the best pizza of the trip in a back alley tennis club pizza joint. If you get a chance, definitely visit Tennishalle, the pizzas were divine.  

From here, we passed through Villach, and off to the Italian border. We had quite a time at the Italian border, I was so excited at getting there I promptly rode into a concrete pillar and fell off, along with all my bags and water bottles, which got the attention of the snoozing border guards. We stopped for selfies and haribo, feeling extremely proud of ourselves. There was a man waiting there who showed us how to gesture like an Italian- it's apparently all in the shoulders.  

We raced off to the first town we could see to get out first Italian Snack (fresh bread, coffee and ice cream) There had been much excitement throughout the trip about reaching Italy and having Italina food. We couldn't wait to carb load with pizza, bread, ice-cream, and pasta. It did not disappoint. From the Italian border, we rode almost of the alps on an 80km downhill which blew my mind. It followed the old Pontebbanna train route,  but it had been perfectly tarmac-ed, so cycling was an absolute joy. It was the stuff of every cyclists dream. A long downhill, perfect surface, completely off road, wiggling through tunnels and over bridges, following a spectacular ravine down to the sea, with views of distant lofty peaks. It was the best day of the trip, and perhaps of any cycling I've done. 

We took a day off in Venzone, at an icy cold, clear glacier lake called Lago De Cavasso. Camping on it's shores, with beer and pizza mere steps away at the campsites restaurant, we spent a perfect rest day chilling out and attempting to swim (but running out screaming after a few seconds in the icy glaciated water) 

From Verzone, we headed out of the alps to Udine, and over the flat (boring) farmland to Venice. We took a ferry into Venice, sailing up the grand canal in a purple sunset. You aren't allowed to take bikes into Venice officially, but we sneaked them in anyway and walked them through the narrow cobbled streets to our Airbnb in the dead of night.

That evening, after a 120km last leg, we gorged on local pizza, sitting on the banks of a canal in the jewish quarter of Venice. All we could hear was water and the noises of each other devouring our pizzas. It was truly a good end to a trip that tested out taste buds as much as our legs. 

If you are interested in a flattish, gorgeous, off road route between two incredible cities, this one is the one for you. More information at : https://www.alpe-adria-radweg.com/en/

[fordsqr-blog]

I gained exposure to real deal Greek life

Across Iowa, people have been gathering in churches, living rooms, their local Pizza Ranch. They come to voice their fears and hopes to neighbors and strangers and members of the press. For Iowa, the caucus is more than a night, it is a season when the corn fed heartland is the hot blooded heart of American politics.

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[preciousmetals0]

Econ Disaster; Tobacco Grows Vaccines Faster?

Econ Disaster; Tobacco Grows Vaccines Faster?:

Would You Like to Know More?

Are you doing your part, citizen?

Yesterday, the White House laid it all on the line. By staying the course on social distancing, we can do more than create a thousand points of light … We can save 2.2 million Americans.

That’s 2 million dreams for the world we’re gonna make! (Excuse me while I break out into song… I think of what the world could be, a vision of the one I see!) Yeah, the quarantine is starting to get to me, why do you ask?

That’s a message of hope if ever I’ve heard one. And we’ll need all the positivity we can get.

The U.S. economy is in trouble … with a capital “T.” When I’m mixing up quotes from George H. W. Bush, The Greatest Showman and Starship Troopers … you know we’ve got trouble.

The leading edge of the coronavirus’ impact on the economy is just starting to arrive — and it looks bad:

The ADP Moody’s Analytics National Employment Report found that private employers shed 27,000 jobs in March. It was the first payroll decline in two and a half years. What’s more, the data also didn’t include last week’s record — 3.28 million unemployment claims.

The March Institute for Supply Management manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) plunged to 44.5%. Readings below 50% indicate economic contraction.

According to the Department of Commerce, construction spending fell 1.3% in February, indicating weakness before the impact of COVID-19 in March.

The Takeaway:

We’re no strangers to the coronavirus. You know the rules and so do I. (So do I…)

Market commitment’s not what I’m thinking of. Great Stuff knows the game and we’re gonna play it…

Despite the market’s massive head fake in the last week of March, the Dow still experienced its worst first-quarter performance in its 123-year existence. That includes the 2008 financial crisis and the Great Depression.

And, yes, that rally off the March 23 low was a head fake. Wall Street still has no idea how bad the COVID-19 situation will get in the U.S. and investors are only now getting a look at the true impact from initial economic indicators.

In the immortal words of George W. Bush: “…fool me once, shame on — shame on you. Fool me — you can’t get fooled again.”

That’s why Great Stuff didn’t tell you to buy into the rally.

It’s why we told you to hold gold, bonds and currencies.

It’s like social distancing or sheltering in place for your portfolio.

Preserving your wealth and investment capital — that is your hope … your light at the end of the tunnel.

We won’t let you get fooled again. That’s why we only recommend maintaining investments in well run and well capitalized companies — ones we know will come through storm stronger than before.

Now, how do you find said well-run companies?

Three rules. That’s all you need.

That’s all that an expert like Charles Mizrahi needs, anyway, to find which stocks are diamonds in the rough and which are pure, untouchable garbage. In fact, Charles just recorded a video that explains all three rules to find which stocks are solid enough to weather the storm.

Click here now to learn more.

The Good: Can You Hear Me Now?

So, you want to know what a well-run and well-capitalized company looks like?

Well, Great Stuff has you covered.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) has it all: stable revenue streams, a 4.6% dividend yield, a strong balance sheet, cutting-edge 5G technology and a consumer base that’s not adversely affected by the pandemic.

How do you like them apples?

What’s more, Goldman Sachs analyst Brett Feldman agrees (no relation to, Corey … I don’t think). Feldman upgraded Verizon to “conviction buy” from just a regular old “buy” rating this morning, citing practically all of the reasons listed above. He left out 5G technology, which we think is a key driver … but no one’s perfect.

Feldman did cut his price target from $65 to $61 in light of VZ’s recent 12% decline, but he remains quite bullish on the company. Verizon’s “services are relatively non-discretionary and will see less of an impact from potential drops in consumer and business spending,” Feldman told clients.

The only reason why VZ isn’t a Great Stuff Pick right now is that the market has some downside from here, and we think you might get a better price in the next week or so. (See, we’re always looking out for you!)

The Bad: Shale Be Comin’ Round the Mountain…

OK, let’s be honest, she’s not comin’ round the mountain anytime soon … at least not for oil companies.

Case in point: BP PLC (NYSE: BP) provided an update to investors, calling the current market the “most brutal environment for oil and gas businesses in decades.”

At least BP didn’t sugarcoat it, right?

BP went on to detail a 25% cut in spending for 2020, including a $1 billion drop in spending on its U.S. shale business. The company also announced that it will take a $1 billion impairment charge in the first quarter due to weak oil demand.

Now, BP will likely come through the current oil market crash just fine. It’s done so before, according to CEO Bernard Looney (hee hee … Looney).

The real takeaway from BP’s announcement is the awful predicament for U.S. shale oil producers. BP is cutting production by 70,000 barrels per day as part of its spending cuts. But large oil companies like BP are well capitalized and can withstand current conditions, albeit, their share prices will take a hit.

Smaller shale oil companies will not be as fortunate.

The Ugly: Wacky Tobaccy

I’m still unconvinced that this last story isn’t an April Fools’ Day joke. But it was reported by Reuters, Bloomberg and MarketWatch, so…

British American Tobacco PLC (NYSE: BTI) announced today that it’s working on a COVID-19 vaccine. Yes, the maker of Lucky Strikes and Camel cigarettes is making a vaccine for respiratory infections. Oh, the irony!

Utilizing “tobacco plant technology,” BTI’s Kentucky BioProcessing division reportedly analyzed the coronavirus’s genetic sequence, developed an antigen and placed that in tobacco plants to develop a vaccine. I’m pretty sure this is how all sci-fi horror and thriller movies start.

BTI’s tobacco-based vaccine is already in preclinical testing. If those tests go well, the company says it can deliver between 1 million and 3 million doses a week.

On one hand, this is really good news on the COVID-19 battle front — if the vaccine works. I mean, if we can grow cures for viruses in tobacco, Kentucky could save the world! (Can I smoke the vaccine?)

On the other hand, when tobacco producers develop vaccines for respiratory infections, I can’t help but think we’ve jumped the shark on vaccine speculation in the market.

Today, I want to hear from all the buyers out there. Yes, I’ve seen your emails come in — I know you’re out there, buying up a frenzy!

I commend your bravery in the face of market peril. Yes, while Great Stuff has recommended to stick with safe havens, we know that irrational markets can make even the most stoic investor, well, irrational at times.

Not to mention, for a shrewd value investor out there, it’s raining deals and bargains.

So, where are you discount-hunting these days? What sector, trend or market are investors missing out on? Let us know in today’s poll:

Great Stuff: What’s Shaking in Stimulus-ville

As Tim M. highlighted in an email last week, “Biggest thing in the relief package is the loans for small businesses to cover their entire payroll for 2 ½ months.”

Yes, small businesses saw a rare victory with the recent stimulus bill. They might not make out like Wall Street bandits, but the real relief in the relief package hits deep in every local market … in every local community … in every state nationwide.

First off, thanks for writing in, Tim!

I don’t have to tell you that it’s a tough time for any business owner, large or small. But the flexibility with business loans to help out payrolls, why, it brings a smile to this cynic’s face. (Mostly because those small business loans are going to help save my local micro brewery!)

Remember what I mentioned above: With the right facilities and capabilities … with right blend of creativity and rational … a well-run business can get by.

(Not sure how to tell a diamond in the rough from a dud in the scruff? You might want to click here pronto!)

Now, it’s not just small businesses like your local brewery and the donut shop down the street that are struggling to pull through. (I swear, a world without local craft beer isn’t a world worth living in.)

Think — The U.S. just had a decade plus of startup after startup wanting to be the “Uber of this” or the “Netflix of that.” So, it’s a tough time in the private funding tank, too, as Shark Tank investor Barbara Corcoran told Yahoo Finance this week.

“The smart ones are shifting their models, they are getting more creative,” “…but the great majority of investments I made, I don’t expect them to make it honestly through this trough…”

One of Corcoran’s “smart ones” includes Cousins Maine Lobster, a food truck turned delivery mobile.

Imagine walking out of your isolation chamber, mystified by the drive-by aromas of lobster trucks rolling through the block. (No wonder Domino’s Pizza Inc. (NYSE: DPZ) is seeing sales drop. I mean, lobster pizza? Your move, Domino’s.)

For me, this is the light at the end of the tunnel. (No, not delivery seafood … perish the thought.)

After we make it through this crisis … when we “get our life back again” … prepare for the roaring comeback of the American small business. The hardworking, passionate American spirit will not die … it’ll just get creative.

On-the-spot innovation — It’s the American thing to do.

Until next time, be Great!

Joseph Hargett

Editor, Great Stuff

[goldira01]

Would You Like to Know More?

Are you doing your part, citizen?

Yesterday, the White House laid it all on the line. By staying the course on social distancing, we can do more than create a thousand points of light … We can save 2.2 million Americans.

That’s 2 million dreams for the world we’re gonna make! (Excuse me while I break out into song… I think of what the world could be, a vision of the one I see!) Yeah, the quarantine is starting to get to me, why do you ask?

That’s a message of hope if ever I’ve heard one. And we’ll need all the positivity we can get.

The U.S. economy is in trouble … with a capital “T.” When I’m mixing up quotes from George H. W. Bush, The Greatest Showman and Starship Troopers … you know we’ve got trouble.

The leading edge of the coronavirus’ impact on the economy is just starting to arrive — and it looks bad:

The ADP Moody’s Analytics National Employment Report found that private employers shed 27,000 jobs in March. It was the first payroll decline in two and a half years. What’s more, the data also didn’t include last week’s record — 3.28 million unemployment claims.

The March Institute for Supply Management manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) plunged to 44.5%. Readings below 50% indicate economic contraction.

According to the Department of Commerce, construction spending fell 1.3% in February, indicating weakness before the impact of COVID-19 in March.

The Takeaway:

We’re no strangers to the coronavirus. You know the rules and so do I. (So do I…)

Market commitment’s not what I’m thinking of. Great Stuff knows the game and we’re gonna play it…

Despite the market’s massive head fake in the last week of March, the Dow still experienced its worst first-quarter performance in its 123-year existence. That includes the 2008 financial crisis and the Great Depression.

And, yes, that rally off the March 23 low was a head fake. Wall Street still has no idea how bad the COVID-19 situation will get in the U.S. and investors are only now getting a look at the true impact from initial economic indicators.

In the immortal words of George W. Bush: “…fool me once, shame on — shame on you. Fool me — you can’t get fooled again.”

That’s why Great Stuff didn’t tell you to buy into the rally.

It’s why we told you to hold gold, bonds and currencies.

It’s like social distancing or sheltering in place for your portfolio.

Preserving your wealth and investment capital — that is your hope … your light at the end of the tunnel.

We won’t let you get fooled again. That’s why we only recommend maintaining investments in well run and well capitalized companies — ones we know will come through storm stronger than before.

Now, how do you find said well-run companies?

Three rules. That’s all you need.

That’s all that an expert like Charles Mizrahi needs, anyway, to find which stocks are diamonds in the rough and which are pure, untouchable garbage. In fact, Charles just recorded a video that explains all three rules to find which stocks are solid enough to weather the storm.

Click here now to learn more.

The Good: Can You Hear Me Now?

So, you want to know what a well-run and well-capitalized company looks like?

Well, Great Stuff has you covered.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) has it all: stable revenue streams, a 4.6% dividend yield, a strong balance sheet, cutting-edge 5G technology and a consumer base that’s not adversely affected by the pandemic.

How do you like them apples?

What’s more, Goldman Sachs analyst Brett Feldman agrees (no relation to, Corey … I don’t think). Feldman upgraded Verizon to “conviction buy” from just a regular old “buy” rating this morning, citing practically all of the reasons listed above. He left out 5G technology, which we think is a key driver … but no one’s perfect.

Feldman did cut his price target from $65 to $61 in light of VZ’s recent 12% decline, but he remains quite bullish on the company. Verizon’s “services are relatively non-discretionary and will see less of an impact from potential drops in consumer and business spending,” Feldman told clients.

The only reason why VZ isn’t a Great Stuff Pick right now is that the market has some downside from here, and we think you might get a better price in the next week or so. (See, we’re always looking out for you!)

The Bad: Shale Be Comin’ Round the Mountain…

OK, let’s be honest, she’s not comin’ round the mountain anytime soon … at least not for oil companies.

Case in point: BP PLC (NYSE: BP) provided an update to investors, calling the current market the “most brutal environment for oil and gas businesses in decades.”

At least BP didn’t sugarcoat it, right?

BP went on to detail a 25% cut in spending for 2020, including a $1 billion drop in spending on its U.S. shale business. The company also announced that it will take a $1 billion impairment charge in the first quarter due to weak oil demand.

Now, BP will likely come through the current oil market crash just fine. It’s done so before, according to CEO Bernard Looney (hee hee … Looney).

The real takeaway from BP’s announcement is the awful predicament for U.S. shale oil producers. BP is cutting production by 70,000 barrels per day as part of its spending cuts. But large oil companies like BP are well capitalized and can withstand current conditions, albeit, their share prices will take a hit.

Smaller shale oil companies will not be as fortunate.

The Ugly: Wacky Tobaccy

I’m still unconvinced that this last story isn’t an April Fools’ Day joke. But it was reported by Reuters, Bloomberg and MarketWatch, so…

British American Tobacco PLC (NYSE: BTI) announced today that it’s working on a COVID-19 vaccine. Yes, the maker of Lucky Strikes and Camel cigarettes is making a vaccine for respiratory infections. Oh, the irony!

Utilizing “tobacco plant technology,” BTI’s Kentucky BioProcessing division reportedly analyzed the coronavirus’s genetic sequence, developed an antigen and placed that in tobacco plants to develop a vaccine. I’m pretty sure this is how all sci-fi horror and thriller movies start.

BTI’s tobacco-based vaccine is already in preclinical testing. If those tests go well, the company says it can deliver between 1 million and 3 million doses a week.

On one hand, this is really good news on the COVID-19 battle front — if the vaccine works. I mean, if we can grow cures for viruses in tobacco, Kentucky could save the world! (Can I smoke the vaccine?)

On the other hand, when tobacco producers develop vaccines for respiratory infections, I can’t help but think we’ve jumped the shark on vaccine speculation in the market.

Today, I want to hear from all the buyers out there. Yes, I’ve seen your emails come in — I know you’re out there, buying up a frenzy!

I commend your bravery in the face of market peril. Yes, while Great Stuff has recommended to stick with safe havens, we know that irrational markets can make even the most stoic investor, well, irrational at times.

Not to mention, for a shrewd value investor out there, it’s raining deals and bargains.

So, where are you discount-hunting these days? What sector, trend or market are investors missing out on? Let us know in today’s poll:

Great Stuff: What’s Shaking in Stimulus-ville

As Tim M. highlighted in an email last week, “Biggest thing in the relief package is the loans for small businesses to cover their entire payroll for 2 1/2 months.”

Yes, small businesses saw a rare victory with the recent stimulus bill. They might not make out like Wall Street bandits, but the real relief in the relief package hits deep in every local market … in every local community … in every state nationwide.

First off, thanks for writing in, Tim!

I don’t have to tell you that it’s a tough time for any business owner, large or small. But the flexibility with business loans to help out payrolls, why, it brings a smile to this cynic’s face. (Mostly because those small business loans are going to help save my local micro brewery!)

Remember what I mentioned above: With the right facilities and capabilities … with right blend of creativity and rational … a well-run business can get by.

(Not sure how to tell a diamond in the rough from a dud in the scruff? You might want to click here pronto!)

Now, it’s not just small businesses like your local brewery and the donut shop down the street that are struggling to pull through. (I swear, a world without local craft beer isn’t a world worth living in.)

Think — The U.S. just had a decade plus of startup after startup wanting to be the “Uber of this” or the “Netflix of that.” So, it’s a tough time in the private funding tank, too, as Shark Tank investor Barbara Corcoran told Yahoo Finance this week.

“The smart ones are shifting their models, they are getting more creative,” “…but the great majority of investments I made, I don’t expect them to make it honestly through this trough…”

One of Corcoran’s “smart ones” includes Cousins Maine Lobster, a food truck turned delivery mobile.

Imagine walking out of your isolation chamber, mystified by the drive-by aromas of lobster trucks rolling through the block. (No wonder Domino’s Pizza Inc. (NYSE: DPZ) is seeing sales drop. I mean, lobster pizza? Your move, Domino’s.)

For me, this is the light at the end of the tunnel. (No, not delivery seafood … perish the thought.)

After we make it through this crisis … when we “get our life back again” … prepare for the roaring comeback of the American small business. The hardworking, passionate American spirit will not die … it’ll just get creative.

On-the-spot innovation — It’s the American thing to do.

Until next time, be Great!

Joseph Hargett

Editor, Great Stuff

[vintageeskimos]

On top of a mountain, nestled between Sorrento and the Amalfi Coast, is a little town that I like to call home: Sant’Agata sui Due Golfi.

The name itself explains the location: Sant’Agata (the Saint Agata) and “sui Due Golfi” (literally translates to English as “between two gulfs”-Gulf of Naples and the Gulf of Salerno).

FUN FACT! Most villages and towns in Italy are actually named after local Saints…

This little town, or should I say village, is quaint and tranquil. Everyone who lives here is like family because you practically see them everyday walking down the cobblestoned roads. It’s location is one of the best in the whole peninsula of the Amalfi coast. Why you might ask? Well let me explain with a some helpful maps…

Let’s start with Italy…you know the country that is shaped like a stiletto boot? Yeah there is a reason for that: Italians are super stylish. They care so much about their Bella Figura (Beautiful figure/ presentation to others) that even the country has to look good as well.

(All images were provided by Google Maps)

Anyway so here is beautiful Italy….

and there is me…

Italy is first ‘divided’ by north, central, and south, and then by regions.

North and south Italy are very different when it comes to their culture and ways. Apparently the North is more “with the time of things” while South Italy has the stereotypical Italian villages with nonna (grandmother) shoving food down your throat. It has always been said that Italians identify more with their city and/or region than with their actually country as a whole. Northerners have always been taken as disliking and making fun of southerners, but this is just all based on stereotypes and not actual facts. I really could talk about their differences forever so I am going to write about it with example videos in a future post!

Anyway, I am located in the South of Italy in the Campania region (which frankly is the best region of them all because we have the most incredible scenery and food here). The regions are kind of like states of the US and each one is known for producing different types of food, plates, wine, etc. There are technically 20 regions of Italy, but five of them have a broader amount of autonomy (For example, the islands of Sardenga and Sicily).

So there is Sant’Agata sui Due Golfi– my home-let’s just call her Sant’Agata for short.

Here she is!

And if we zoom in further….

….You can see that Sant’Agata (circled in red) is perfectly placed on the hilltops between all these gorgeous towns of Italy (circled in purple). The famous town of Sorrento is the closest to me out of all of them, but it still includes a ten minute drive. Since Sorrento is a very popular tourist attraction, it has become a very expensive place to live. But if you drive up to Sant’Agata the cost of living significantly drops (TIP: same goes for booking hotels!)

A lot of my friends live in Sorrento, but sometimes it gets too crowded with all the tourists. The best part about living outside is that I can always go to visit Sorrento, but if I ever need a break from its chaos I have my home in Sant’Agata to go back to anytime. Sant’Agata is truly a nice and peaceful village to live in. The proprieties are a lot bigger as well since there is more space open to land than in Sorrento where it is more designed as a downtown tourist district.

Here is a little map of Sant’Agata that I found on Google Images…

The main road that goes through the center of this town is Corso Sant’Agata (written on the map as: c.so S.Agata). This is where you find all the local shops, bars, alimentari (food shops) , pescatore (fishermen), tabacchi (tobacco shops), macellerie (butcher shops), ristoranti (restaurants), and La chiesa di Sant’Agata (the church of Sant’Agata).

All of Sant’Agata is fairly accessible by foot and there are local buses that will take you to neighboring towns. There are many walking paths all around as well! Great for avid hikers!

If you ever find yourself in our little town, here are some of my favorite things that I recommend in Sant’Agata:

Pricing for Reference:

$– cheap and won’t regret spending money

$$– decent pricing for what you get 

$$$– Splurging in class

$$$$– Boy, you better have a big wallet. Luxurious AF

Restaurants/Bars:

Roxy Bar ($)

Roxy bar is my favorite bar to grab breakfast. Personally, I think they make the best pastries of them all and almost every morning I walk there to grab a cornetto alla crema (croissant with cream) or a pasticcino al ciccolato (a small cupcake with chocolate) or maybe a crostino alla fragola (small tart cake with cream and strawberries). Their caffè (espresso) is also incredible- perfect if you really need to wake up! If you want a delicious breakfast and have a sweet tooth I would highly recommend to check this bar out! (Located right next to La chiesa di Sant’Agata).

(Top two images provided by me; bottom image provided by Google Images)

Bar Orlando ($)

Bar Orlando is one of my favorite bars for an aperitivo (a drink with some snacks before dinner to open your appetite). It was one of the first bars ever in Sant’Agata opening back in the early 1900s and has been family-owned ever since. In the 195os the owner, Orlando, had a famous cat named Jolly whom he trained to jump through his arms and apparently liked to smoke cigarettes…I swear I am not joking. They even have a statue in Jolly’s honor after he passed away. Orlando’s son, Alfredo, and his brother help run the bar. I actually recently became friends with Lauren, Alfredo’s wife, since we have somethings in common: we are Americans who are both obsessed with and live in Italy. She is a lot of fun to be around and we have spent many nights at the bar drinking Aperol spritz while watching Napoli football surrounded by old men playing cards. It is even better during the summer because they have a beautifully decorated outdoor patio!

(Photos provided by Google Images and Sant’Agata sui Due Golfi’s website)

Bleu Moon ($)

Bleu Moon is Luigi’s favorite bar in Sant’Agata. He has been going there ever since he was a child. He would eat a cornetto con  albicocca  (croissant with apricot) with his father before his football matches. This bar has some of the biggest cornetti  (croissants) and brioche (a sweet bread roll with cream or chocolate) I have ever seen and also offers gelato during the hotter months. It is a great stop to have a drink as well with outdoor and indoor seating.

Route 66 ($$)

One of my favorite places of all time in Sant’Agata has to be Route 66. It is an American pub/bar owned by our friends, Pasquale and Mario. It offers anything from burgers to salads with a wide selection of beers and cocktails. Almost every week they have Karaoke on Fridays and a Quizapp night to win various prizes. If you ever need to watch an important sporting event definitely go here because for sure they will be displaying it on their televisions. Almost anyone who is anyone of Sant’Agata goes there with their friends for a nice night before heading down to the clubs and bar scene in Sorrento. I highly recommend to stop in for a drink or if you just want to chow down on a juicy burger! (Only open at night)

(Photos provided by Google Images, Route 66 facebook page, and Me [top-right corner image])

Campo Sportivo Sant’Anna  ($$)

Campo is located a little bit farther away from downtown Sant’Agata but there is a short walking path (Via Canale) from Corso Sant’Agata that is easily accessible. There you will find a football field that locals will rent out to play and/or practice on. Currently there is a tournament happening between the local surrounding towns and my boyfriend, Luigi, plays on Sant’Agata All Blacks team. The best part about this place is that you can always eat at the restaurant located above the pitch. There they make some of the best pizza in Sant’Agata. Top it off with a tall glass of beer and you can watch a nice game of football while enjoying your meal!

(photos provided by their website located here)

Don Alfonso 1890 ($$$$)

Okay so if you want to experience one of the best meals of your life you need to eat at Don Alfonso 1890. This restaurant is one of the oldest and most famous in the Southern Italy. Chef Don Alfonso creates masterpieces on fine plates. It is a feast for the eyes and an experience like no other! No wonder this restaurant has 2 Michelin stars! It is the perfect place for a romantic dinner and it comes with a high price tag too. There are also some rooms for people who wish to stay there including a Moraccan bar, a pool, and a classy atmosphere. Don Alfonso’s outstanding products come from his garden and even offers cooking classes for those who wish to learn his masterful ways! To make things even more insane, he has a wine cellar that goes down six stories into the ground! Make sure you pack your wallet and reserve in advance! Whether or not you believe me, you have to go.

Da Mimi ($$-$$$)

If you want something more affordable to eat, but still delicious with the typical mediterranean cuisine, I highly recommend Da Mimi! It is a wonderful place to have lunch with the family and to enjoy the appetizing food of our region.

(Left: Me eating a delicious plate of Paccheri pasta with mussels;

(Right: Filomena [Luigi’s mother], Luigi, and Me)

Attractions:

La Chiesa di Sant’Agata (free)

This is a great stop to see some of Sant’Agata’s beautiful history. In their small church you will catch a glimpse of the past with majestic paintings and architecture. It is beautifully located in the center of the town with Roxy Bar right next door. Definitely take a photo of the clock tower!

Monastero di San Paolo (free, but offering is recommended)

If you want to see one of the most gorgeous views of all Sant’Agata head up to the monastery! It is a bit of a walk, but on a nice summer day with comfortable shoes it is something you can’t miss! It is also a wonderful place to have a picnic and to capture breath-taking photos. If  you walk all the way to the end of the monastery, you can catch the unbelievable glimpse of Naples, Sorrento, and Vesuvius! You can also enter inside the monastery, walk up the steps, and into one of the towers to get a 360 degree view of everything- from Vesuvius to Capri, and to the start of the Amalfi Coast. It is recommended that you place an offering if you enter the monastery.

(Top left image: Me looking over the beautiful view of Sorrento)

(Right image: My kitten, Marek, enjoying the view as well)

(Bottom left image: Exterior of the Monastery- Image provided by Google Images)

Due Golfi Train Tour ($$)

This is perfect option for part of a day trip that doesn’t include a lot of walking. This takes you to all the hotspots of the local towns! The train tour starts in the main square of Sant’Agata, then goes to the Monastery of San Paolo, and then takes you all the way to the town of Massa Lubrense to try some local fresh mozzarella, limoncello, and more! This is a great option for tourists especially if you want to try local products, but don’t want to deal with all the traveling around on your own. The tour lasts about 3 hours and if you wish to purchase a ticket for the train tour you can do so at the tourist center located in the center of Sant’Agata or online here.

(Image provided by Google Images)

La Pineta le Tore (free)

The majestic pinewoods of Sant’Agata! Above our little town are beautiful woods filled with pine trees where you can have a nice walk on a sunny day and also see a beautiful view of Sorrento! Here is also where Luigi and I met our friend, Dominick the donkey (I gave him that name from the famous Italian-American song). I have no idea what his real name is, but he is always so happy to see us!

Markets: ($)

There are two markets located on the main street of Sant’Agata that I highly recommend for cheap produce, beer, groceries, and sandwiches.

One of the markets is located on the corner of Via Nastro Azzuro and Corso Sant’Agata. This one is where you can buy your fresh vegetables, produce, cheap beer, pasta, wine, etc. And the best part is that it is opened almost all hours of the day! Right next door, to left: you can buy fresh fish for the day, and to the right: you can purchase fresh meat from the butcher!

(Image provided by Google Maps Street view)

The second market is located on Corso Sant’Agata and it is across the street from Bar Centrale. Inside you can buy Cheap groceries and even order a fresh panino (sandwich) that they make behind the deli counter! One of my go-to places if I want to take a panino down to the beach.

 (Image provided by Google Maps Street view)

So there you have it! If you ever find yourself in Sorrento, feel free to adventure out into the neighboring towns to discover more hidden gems Italy has to offer! Sant’Agata sui Due Golfi  is endearingly wonderful and I absolutely love the cozy friendly feeling it gives me every time I step out my front door. It is easily accessible around town by foot and it is so comforting to see familiar faces around town…there is truly no place like home!

I will be posting more about the local towns around Sorrento and the Amalfi Coast with recommendations so please subscribe to receive new updates on my blog! Arrivederci!

Sant’Agata sui Due Golfi On top of a mountain, nestled between Sorrento and the Amalfi Coast, is a little town that I like to call home: …