Cat lovers in London will soon have their own cat cafe.  Entrepreneur Lauren Pears, 30 years old, was able to raise more than $151,000 through project-funding website Indiegogo. She is currently looking for space and will have the cafe opened up in a few months. The cafe idea is based on the popular Japanese cat cafe.

I wonder if the coffees are served up like this?  Photo via CoffeeStencil.com

Lauren’s already found 10-15 cats from the animal shelter to staff the cafe. She’s also received 300 prospective job applicants and more are coming in each day. She plans to charge about $7 per hour for customers to enjoy coffee in the company of cats. Or in the company of other cat lovers.

Lauren will have a volunteer program so people who can’t afford the cover charge can actually come in overnight and look after the cats. For hygienic reasons, the cats are to be kept out of the kitchen.

Vienna, Austria also had their first cat cafe open up last year and it seems to be a hit among locals and tourists. Cafe Neko (”neko” means cat in Japanese). The cafe was opened by Vienna resident Takako Ishimitsu, a 47-year-old woman originally from Nagoya, Japan, who moved to Vienna some 20 years ago.

If there was a cat cafe near where I lived, I would definitely check it out. Although I already have enough cats in my life, I wouldn’t mind having coffee with a few new cats.

BBC News Report on Youtube here - Vienna cat cafe with strict no dog policy.

Last summer we harvested maybe 40 fruits from a five year old apricot tree. And yes I did try to count all the fruits.  The tree just started bearing fruits for the last two years.  And the apricots have turned out to be one of the best tasting fruits I’ve ever eaten.

This spring I noticed we are getting more fruits.  They are growing in clusters of at least 3 to 5 fruits. And many more of them are starting to fall off when the fruits are still green and young.

It turns out this is how the tree is “thinning” itself.  Many stone fruits require thinning to encourage bigger fruits.

The more I researched “growing apricots” I found that it’s best to thin of the clusters and leaving only 1 or 2 fruits near each other. And it’s best to not let them touch as this could cause fungus to grow.

An interesting note, the ones that fell are a mixed bunch, some having dimples and markings while others are just normal looking.

These 2 fruits don’t look too healthy with the dark spot.  I’m waiting to see if they will drop off on their own.

A tip on thinning from BC Ministry of Agriculture:

“If the tree sets a heavy crop and no thinning is done, the fruit will be small at harvest time. Thus, removal of part of the crop is necessary. To do this, space the fruits about 1 - 2 inches (3.8 - 5 cm) apart. Early thinning results in more uniform ripening.

Fruit on well-thinned trees will ripen several days earlier than on poorly or unthinned trees. There will still be mixed maturities, even on well thinned trees, so more than one pick may be necessary. Heat greatly accelerates maturity.”

Check out the harvest from a gardener in the SF bay area yard.  And it doesn’t even look like they did any thinning of the fruits.  Talk about bumper crop!

I really enjoyed reading this by William Rosenzweig, it was from his acceptance speech at the “Oslo Business for Peace Award”.

Business Lessons from A Quiet Gardener

The people who know me best know that at heart I am just a quiet gardener. My garden has probably taught me the most about how things grow - and thrive in a vibrant and sustainable manner. These lessons have shaped my approach to encouraging responsible growth in business and to the ways I apply my intention, attention and energy.

Tranquil garden at Leaping Lamb Farm in Oregon. Photo from Flickr.

A gardener sees the world as a system of interdependent parts - where healthy, sustaining relationships are essential to the vitality of the whole. “A real gardener is not a person who cultivates flowers, but a person who cultivates the soil.” In business this has translated for me into the importance of developing agreements and partnerships where vision and values, purpose and intent are explicitly articulated, considered and aligned among all stakeholders of an enterprise - customers, employees, suppliers, shareholders, and the broader community and natural environment.

The garden has taught me about patience and persistence and the ethical principles of generosity and reciprocity. It has illuminated the importance of appreciating the cycles of life and decay. For the gardener, composting is a transformative act - whereby last season’s clippings (or failures) can become next year’s source of vigor.

I’ve learned that it’s not just what you plant, but how you plant it that brings long - term rewards in life, work and the garden. Gardeners know that once strong roots are established, growth is often exponential rather than linear.

Also gardening, like business, is inherently a local activity, set within an ever-changing and unpredictable global climate. Showing up in person, shovel - and humility in hand is essential.

Gardeners, like entrepreneurs, are obsessed with latent potential - and can be known to be pathologically optimistic. We can vividly imagine the bloom and the scent of the rose even in deepest of winter. As the American naturalist Henry David Thoreau once wrote: “I have great faith in a seed. Convince me that you have a seed there, and I am prepared to expect wonders.”

In essence, the gardener’s work is a life of care. We cultivate abundance from scarce resources. We nurture, encourage, fertilize - and prune when necessary - while being respectful of the true and wild nature of all things. We know that creating enduring value requires vision, passion, hard work and the spirit of others.

I am just coming to understand this work of business gardening - and investing in keeping people healthy - as an act of universal responsibility. His Holiness Dalai Lama reminds me: “Each of us must learn to work not just for one self, one’s own family or one’s nation, but for the benefit of all humankind. Universal responsibility is the key to human survival. It is the best foundation for world peace.”

_____________________________

You can read the whole speech here. Or visit his website.

“You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future.

You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. Believing that the dots will connect down the road will give you the confidence to follow your heart, even when it leads you off the well worn path, and that will make all the difference.” - Steve Jobs

Memorial for Steve Jobs (1955 – 2011)
Cupertino, CA

It’s one week later. Lots of apples and it smells like rain and roses here.

Great speech by Jobs at Stanford University’s 114th Commencement on June 12, 2005 via . The above quote can be found at 05:08/15:05

Back in April of this year, Amazon announced they would be partnering with OverDrive to bring Kindle Library lending to 11,000 libraries across the U.S.

Can’t wait to look into this option when it’s available later this year for Kindle and free Kindle app users. At the moment I am using Google’s eBook. And it makes reading so much more neater!

A note from Amazon:

- With Kindle Library Lending, customers can take advantage of all of the unique features of Kindle and Kindle books, including:

- Read everywhere with free Kindle apps for Android, iPad, iPod touch, iPhone, PC, Mac, BlackBerry and Windows Phone

- Whispersync technology wirelessly sync your books, notes, highlights, and last page read across Kindle and free Kindle reading apps”

Read more at TechCrunch.

UPDATE: October 4, 2011

I have been using OverDrive app on my iPod Touch. Some things to know to make it run smoothly. The EPUB books have to read with Adobe and requires free registration.

Must set your Touch to military time, 24 hours mode. And make sure your time zone is correct.

Some things I didn’t like about the lending library. The selection is limited, buy hey it’s FREE. You can only check out 8 books and you set the loan limit starting at 1 week to 3 weeks.

Once you’ve check them out, there doesn’t seem to be an option to delete these books on the list.

Many interesting books are checked out and there’s a waiting period. You would think with E-books they shouldn’t have a waiting list. So anyway it’s OK so far, but can be better.

It was sad to see Borders declaring bankruptcy this summer. They really couldn’t compete in today’s changing market. Not that I have anything against online bookstore like Amazon, I actually love Amazon. But sometimes it’s also nice to visit a bookstore.

For those living in Oregon, they have Powell’s, which is an independent bookstore. I’ve never been to one and would love to visit if I’m ever in Oregon.   They have a huge selection of new and used books.  Flate rate shipping is only $3.99

Here is a little more info about Powell’s Books:

“From humble storefront beginnings in 1971 on a derelict corner of northwest Portland, Oregon, Powell’s Books has grown into one of the world’s great bookstores, with five locations in the Portland metropolitan area, and one of the book world’s most successful dot-coms (www.powells.com), serving customers worldwide.”

This month Powell’s is listing 20 ebooks for 99 cents each. Since I barely read much fiction, I found this title that sound interesting: Diary of a Very Bad Year: Confessions of an Anonymous Hedge Fund Manager by Keith Gessen.

A little summary:

“This book is a series of interviews with an anonymous hedge-fund manager (HFM) by the co-editor of a literary magazine (who admits to being ill-informed on finance); he sets out to understand what is happening on Wall Street.

The HFM offers a brilliant financial professional’s view of the economic situation in real time, from September 2007, when problems in financial markets began to surface, until late summer 2009, when the financial meltdown generally subsided and the financial community went back, in HFM’s view, to business as usual.

The interviews are edited in a readily understandable manner and will provide a thoughtful perspective for a wide range of library patrons who want to learn about the recent financial debacle.”

The book covers fall of 2007 to late summer of 2009 and I think it would still be interesting to read. Especially with all the financial situation we’ve been facing in the U.S.A.

Book review from Good Reads.

Ever since I wrote about banking with Washington Mutual Bank, there’s been many changes.

First of all they are now Chase Bank. And what was FREE checking will no longer be offered.

Since February 5, 2011, Chase members who have one of the following checking accounts: Chase Free Extra Checking, Chase Free Classic Checking and Chase Basic Checking will be switched to their new account, the Chase Total Checking.

One of the change is the monthly service fee. $10 for accounts in California, Oregon or Washington, all other states $12. Unless you have one of the following:

* Set up direct deposit of $500 or more into your account. The direct deposit may include a payroll, pension, or government benefit payment such as Social Security.

* have an average ledger balance of $5,000 or more in a combination of accounts that linked

* keep a minimum ledger balance of $1,500 or more

* have paid other Chase checking related fees of at least $25

Info from MyBankTracker.com

I no longer bank with Chase. I prefer smaller banks and have an account with a credit union instead.

I wanted to start off the new year with a new skincare regiment. As my handmade soaps can only do so much.

After I finished using SIBU lotion, I am switching to Korres. It’s an all natural skincare line from Athens, Greece and is known world wide. They’ve been around for a while and thought I would give it a try.

This is the kit I got from Sephora.  Korres Brightening & Anti-Aging Rose Collection which includes:

- 1.35 oz Wild Rose Moisturizer
- 1.01 oz Wild Rose Serum
- 1.35 oz Wild Rose Mask
- 1.69 oz Rose Showergel
- 1.69 oz Rose Body Butter
- 0.21 oz Wild Rose Lip Butter

This kit is formulated with wild rose oil, which is a really luxurious and expensive skincare oil. I’ve only used this kit for about one week and so far my skin really likes it.

The best thing about Korres that it’s gentle and good for those with sensitive skin. And it’s also formulated without Parabens, Petrochemicals, Phthalates, GMOs, and Triclosan.

My product review:

Wild rose moisturizer has a nice rose scent. It’s a very heavy cream great for winter. It has spf 6, which is not enough for me. But I also use bronze mineral powder for additional sun protection.

Read the rest of this entry »

I’d like to share a few interesting handmade soaps I’ve discovered from various shops. Not only do I make soaps, but I also like to collect other soaps too.

This is one of the first handmade soap I came across from Pier One Imports. It’s made in Thailand by Bath & Bloom.

The dark chocolate soap smells yummy! And the tumeric honey is a neat combination. Except when I think of tumeric, I think of the yellow stains it will leave behind. But this doesn’t do that as it’s blended very well into the soap.

It’s a fairly small square bar that weights close to 3 oz. And cost about $2.50 to $3.00. Pier One has many interesting soaps from around the world. But I don’t think they carry this brand anymore.

Read the rest of this entry »

Outdoor fashion is becoming more popular these days. From fleece jackets to boots. Is it because they last longer? Or is it because we’ve gone mostly casual in our everyday clothing choice.

Carl Chiara, director of brand concepts for Levi’s, had this opinion to share from a NY Times article, “During uneasy times, consumers are naturally drawn to items that are well-constructed and built to last.” That makes sense, but I would think this is the better way to go, even when times are good. Well made products mean less waste going into landfills.

Outdoor clothing company, L.L. Bean, is getting into this trend with their Signature line. It’s something the more youthful generation can appreciate when they think of L.L. Bean.

Here are some of my favorites from LL Bean Signature Fall 2010 season. I just like the muted and classic colors of the outfit. And the Saltwash Canvas Backpack looks like it’s ready for adventure.

The duck sweater is actually cute! And the shirt underneath is plaid and it’s back. But in much brighter and happier colors.

Photos from LL Bean.

Daiki Suzuki, is Japanese designer that has helped bring the classic American outdoor sportswear look into high fashion. From an interview with Time Out New York in December of 2008, the designer of Engineered Garments was really quite surprised by this trend. The designs from his line was inspired by Woolrich Woolen Mills, an outdoor clothing company.

This is the winning design by Daiki Suzuki. It truly looks like classic American fashion. And the facial hair is more like 1800’s! Photo from The Gloss.

Woolen Mills came calling to Suzuki in 2006 and asked Suzuki to join their team. He was in charge of updating the 170 year old American brand. Two years later, in 2008 his line, Engineered Garments won the CFDA/GQ Menswear Designer of the Year Award.

Suzuki’s combines the utility of outdoor clothing with a modern sensibility. And he also mentioned, “It’s about being made in the USA,” he continues. “It’s not easy manufacturing here, but that’s what gives it its character and heritage.

As for the made in U.S.A part, he must be talking about his own line, Engineered Garment. Since only 20 percent of Woolrich’s products were assembled by Woolrich from start to finish. Forty percent were produced entirely by other manufacturers, and the remaining 40 percent were produced abroad. - source. That probably goes to say for many other retailers too.

Other popular outdoor clothing company that could see business grow is Eddie Bauer, Columbia, Recreational Equipment Inc. (REI), Eastern Mountain Sports, and Land’s End.