Is your home brewed coffee strangely flavored? Ever question if all coffee made at home tastes this way? If you’ve got fresh beans, a quality brewing system, and a great burr grinder, the answer may be related to…water. Water Flavor There are many varieties of water available. Many spring waters have undesirable tastes, drinking water is flat, and distilled water tastes awful. All the flavors that are being tasted in water are going to influence the final flavor of brewed coffee. The … [Read more...] about For Coffee–Water Makes the Difference
Columnists
MOBs – Investor Interest Increasing
In 2010, Medical Office Buildings (MOB) sales volume increased dramatically to 80 percent over 2009. According to Real Capital Analytics, MOB acquisitions totaled more than $3.1 billion by the last quarter of 2010. In our Southwestern region of the United States, we experienced $75.7 million in transactions in the third quarter of 2010, along with an average sales price per square foot of $223. What’s up with this? This can’t be; everyone (me not included) says that we are still in a major … [Read more...] about MOBs – Investor Interest Increasing
What if Kathleen Battle Were a Market Economy?
When it comes to the market (one is tempted to write The Market), we speak as if it is an entity with “a mind and a morality of its own,” writes Bernhard E. Harcourt in The Illusion of Free Markets. Philosophers call this a category mistake – that is talking about a thing in one category as if it belongs to another. Even if we know the market isn’t a person or a thing you could meet walking on the street, we have the unfortunate tendency to talk as if we might. The market has “needs” (don’t we … [Read more...] about What if Kathleen Battle Were a Market Economy?
Pacemakers Improving and Saving Lives
There are areas in the heart called pacemakers that send electrical signals to the rest of the heart, setting the speed or pace of the heartbeat. These pacemakers speed the heart up during exercise or hard work and slow it down again during rest. If natural pacemakers are injured or fail to do their job, a miniature medical device called a cardiac pacemaker can be implanted in the chest wall. What is the Body’s Natural Pacemaker? The heart's "natural" pacemaker is called the … [Read more...] about Pacemakers Improving and Saving Lives
Passing On Wisdom
Today’s seniors have lived through significant historic events and change – from the Great Depression and World War II to rapid-fire advances in technology and medical science. And along the way, through times both challenging and prosperous, they have collected a treasure trove of experiences and wisdom that could guide us today and in the future. That is, if we do not let time get away. We need to create opportunities now, while we can, for seniors to share their life stories with younger … [Read more...] about Passing On Wisdom
Risks of Screening Prostate Specific Antigen
Prostate specific antigen (PSA) is a protein measured in the blood that is produced by the prostate gland. It is used as a marker for the early detection of prostate cancer. Currently, the American Cancer Society recommends all men begin screening their PSA at age 50, with annual tests thereafter. Since the implementation of this screening protocol, the number of men who unnecessarily undergo invasive diagnostic and treatment procedures, including radical prostatectomy (complete removal of the … [Read more...] about Risks of Screening Prostate Specific Antigen
Service Begins at the Top
One of the objections we hear about trying to improve customer service is that much of the workforce is transient – young employees who do not have a commitment to stay. We hear some other harsh assumptions made about this particular workforce; for example, they act as though they are doing the employer a favor by working there, they don’t value customer service as important, and they just don’t have the same work ethic. This drove us to talk to some twenty-somethings who are in our local … [Read more...] about Service Begins at the Top
Opportunities In Public Private Partnerships
Public-private partnership (PPP) describes a government service or private business venture that is funded and operated through a partnership of government and one or more private sector companies. A PPP is a contract between a public entity and a private party in which the private party provides a public service or project and assumes a substantial financial and operational risk in the project. This agreement between the government and the private sector is usually associated with the … [Read more...] about Opportunities In Public Private Partnerships
Communicating Great Expectations
A common question we are asked when coaching managers and supervisors is how to give feedback. While feedback skills are critical, in many instances, it is only a temporary fix to a greater issue impacting morale, employee commitment, creativity, innovation and potential. Often, when managers are asking for this assistance, they are currently faced with that uncomfortable position of needing to tell an employee that they are not meeting expectations. There is a churning in the stomach or some … [Read more...] about Communicating Great Expectations
Neighborhood Associations–An Economic Development Tool
A significant factor in economic development for our community is strong and involved neighborhoods. The city recently invested $1.8 million for improvements to the Southside in the form of new pavement, sidewalks, trash receptacles, and bicycle parking amenities. Because of that investment and efforts from the Southside Neighborhood Association, we are already beginning to see a return on the investment by way of new and existing business development. This shows us the importance of strong … [Read more...] about Neighborhood Associations–An Economic Development Tool