YaelTamar - Carpe Diem!

My personal blog about technology, art, relationships, life in Israel and everything I am doing

[yaeltamar]

Why graphic designers are NOT taxi drivers

[yaeltamar]

My favorite person had a birthday party last night

[yaeltamar]

NLP and Emotion Analytics?

A few years ago I read a book called Blink by Malcolm Gladwell and what fascinated me the most there was an article about Dr. Gottman's marriage lab. Married couples would come in and answer a few questions for about an hour and based on how they interacted with each other (but not what they said!) Dr. Gottman was able to predict accurately whether the couple would split up over the next 5 years.

How did he do it? He would condense the whole hour of conversation to a few seconds where certain intonation was prominent and it was possible to detect a particular emotion. The emotion most predictive of divorce was contempt. This was my early introduction to emotion analytics.

For the past 10 years I have been fascinated with the NLP (neuro-linguistic programming). In a nutshell, NLP is a behavioral technology focused on the connection between mind (neuro) and language (linguistic) and how their dynamics affect our behavior. NLP is focused mainly on the content of speech and the body language. This is possibly due to a limited ability of human beings to decipher verbal cues like intonation as opposed to visual cues like body language. Dogs and small children are particularly good at this, and that could be due to their inability to fully comprehend spoken language or express themselves verbally. Why do we lose this ability to a great extent when we enter adulthood? Why is there an evident lack of self-awareness that prevents so many people to succeed in professional and personal lives?

NLP is used for personal development and psychotherapy. Imagine if NLP were armed with a tool to analyze one's emotions and then work on better expression skills? On the other hand, when using NLP to build relationships, an addition of emotion analytics, and possibly even emotion anchoring and mirroring could be a powerful tool in communication.

NPL has an established framework, an algorithm, for skill development, or in other words converting something that one consciously makes an effort to do into second nature. As witnessed by Dr. Gottman, verbal interactions can create a strain on an emotional and a subconscious level; he saw something in the couples' interaction that would indicate an imminent divorce while the couples seemed perfectly happy with one another and did not suspect the problems that would arise down the road. If only we had a tool that could tell us what to work on with regards to our projection to the outside world? How many marriages would be saved if a technology similar to Dr. Gottman's was available to couples? Or even prior to taking their nuptial vows, could people spend some time analyzing their emotional compatibility using an algorithm rather than consulting their horoscope for that?

Using the methodology of NLP, emotion analytics has an opportunity to become one of the most important tools for personal development and counseling. While the field of personal development existed since Benjamin Franklin (or perhaps since Pirkei Avot), emotion analytics is like a breath of fresh air into the field that may have become underappreciated recently as many other fields did once they entered into the mainstream (and the mainstream oversimplified and cheapened them). By using emotion analytics and NLP methodology, the field of personal development can experience just the revival that it needs.  

[yaeltamar]

The pros and cons of reusable nappies

[Skip to the descriptions and the prices of the nappies at the end of the blog if you have already decided the reusable nappies are for you]

Whether you are new to mother- or fatherhood or you are an experienced parent, sometimes it pays to evaluate your options: disposable vs. reusable.

How much extra effort are you willing to put into the diaper issue? Breastfeeding seems to be a no-brainer nowadays... There’s lots of evidence of benefits associated with breast milk as opposed to formula and working mothers worldwide go through the great hassle of pumping milk while at work.

So why aren’t parents switching to cloth nappies that don’t even take that much longer to change or clasp and only marginally add to the wash load of a busy family?

Let’s think this through logically for a minute...

Pros:

- Cost

The industry-accepted cost of using disposables averages about $1,000-$1300 (NIS 4,000-5,200) per child over 2.5 years.

Cloth nappies can cost as little as $300-$500 or NIS 1,200-2,000 for the same period. And they will also be largely reused for subsequent children and sold afterward further reducing the cost.

- Chemicals

Disposable nappies are a largely chemical product that comes into contact with your child’s body many times a day.

- Environment

An average baby in the Western world goes through 6 nappies a day, 40 per week and 2,000 a year! Imagine that amount filling up a huge garbage dump and multiply by all the babies in your country. Ugly.

Cons:

- Washing

You will need to remember to wash the nappies once every few days. It has been reported though that there are fewer leaks with the reusable nappies and thus the total wash amount went down

- Extra time changing

This has not really been an issue ever since the new comfy nappies came out that really don’t take much longer to put on the child than the disposables.

- Travel

They are bulky when dry and a nuisance when wet. ___________________________

So it seems like it doesn’t hurt to give it a try! I personally purchased disposable cloth nappies and used them for night time and weekend while during the day at the kindergarten and while traveling I used disposable diapers. My first child is now mainly potty-trained using reusable nappies in the night time and with my second child who is now two months old I will do my best to maximize the use the reusable nappies.

Check out the nappies that my friend Mor is selling in Israel.

NEW (UNUSED) NAPPIES

45 nis (each)  X 3 charcoal inserts (1 single/2double) – night time non-drip inserts (lil helpers)

50 nis (the lot) X 6 microfiber reusable cloth filters - used to filter the poop so the cover stays clean (instead of throwaway filters)

35 nis (each) X 9 single inserts – inserts for day-to-day poops and pees

70 nis (each) X 2 bamboo double inserts (lil helpers) – double-inserts for longer non-drip protection

460 nis X 14 (the lot) NB organic cotton prefolds (can be used as inserts) – NB cloth nappy/prefold for older babies

55 nis (each) X 2 baby wizard covers – covers by baby wizard

85 nis (each) X 4 lil helpers covers – covers by little helpers

90 nis X1 charcoal cover – night cover for high pee saturation

USED (SECOND-HAND) NAPPIES

212 nis (the lot) X 10 assorted second hand covers and double inserts – multicolor covers and inserts of premium quality 

MISCELLANEOUS

100 nis X 1 reel of disposable material to keep nappies clean

IF YOU TAKE IT ALL:- 1,300 nis ONLY! (Net worth 1,952 nis)

For questions, please contact Mor at [email protected] or 052-8368365.

Links:

How to properly wash diapers: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjDLsk27bvw

Prefold diapers: http://www.thinking-about-cloth-diapers.com/prefold-cloth-diapers.html How to fold a prefold diaper: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JDqa45EOHfE Newborn diapers: http://www.kellyscloset.com/Newborn-Diapers_c_894.html

[yaeltamar]

Fifty Shades of Grey PHENOMENON... and some reviews on Amazon

I saw an ad for the movie Fifty Shades of Grey. Beyonce is in it. And I love Beyonce... However, I don't think I'll be watching it. Oh, and of course, it comes out next Valentine's Day! 

This book isn't my cup of tea. I like brilliant comedies. I actually don't finish 8 out of 10 books I start to read because I get bored of them (I've become selective in my 30s with my time), and that's after an exhaustive search through reviews and testimonials online and on the back cover. 

I heard about this book and decided not to bother to even read the testimonials. It just sounded like a bad idea and a cultural phenomenon to me. A phenomenon similar to that of Twilight. A money maker. Something written to become a bestseller rather than a masterpiece. 

I forgot about it rather quickly until Dr. Ruth Westheimer mentioned it in her lecture. Some people (women) cheered for it in the audience. So just for the heck of it, I decided to go to Amazon and read the reviews. 

They are quite entertaining! The whole thing reminds me of the story about the naked king and how those who admired his elaborate dress were just very confused and afraid to speak out. Well, in the age of Amazon, people are unafraid. More so, they are pissed on having spend money and time (more about the time) on this utter garbage. ALL the reviews written are JUST ONE STAR! Somehow, the book has a LOT of 5-star ratings, but these ratings don't seem to come with a review (fishy). 

Here are some titles of the reviews (all gave the book 1 star with just one that gave 2) and below find a really cool review that gives you a good idea of what to expect:

--- I want to give this book to someone I hate and tell them it's awesome. That's how bad it is. --- If Crap Had an A$$hole, This Would Be Shooting Out Of It --- 50 ways to yawn --- AWFUL --- Warning: You will not be able to unread this book if you decide to try it.... --- Bestseller? Really??? --- Did a teenager write this??? --- "Fifty Shades" of really bad --- THIS is what the hype was about? --- Wow. Jeez. Holy Cow! This book is not worth the time or money --- Horrifying --- Fifty Shades of Suicidal Thoughts --- Fifty shades of dysfunction --- Are we all just subjects of a social experiment?      It's the only thing that can possibly describe the phenomenon. A bad social experiment conducted to better understand the further dumbing down of America --- Horrified that this was actually published. More horrified that people are reading it!!! --- Can I give it zero stars?

--- Not the worst I've ever read... No, wait. It IS

I downloaded the book to my Kindle because it was on the best seller list and had 4 stars overall rating on Amazon. I wish I'd taken the time to read some of the reviews. As it turns out I agree with the negative. I found myself thinking "Twilight, plus some spanking, minus the sparkly vampires." Here, I'll save you all some time (SPOILER ALERT):

Once upon a time... I'm Ana. I'm clumsy and naive. I like books. I dig this guy. He couldn't possibly like me. He's rich. I wonder if he's gay? His eyes are gray. Super gray. Intensely gray. Intense AND gray. Serious and gray. Super gray. Dark and gray. [insert 100+ other ways to say "gray eyes" here] I blush. I gasp. He touches me "down there." I gasp again. He gasps. We both gasp. I blush some more. I gasp some more. I refer to my genitals as "down there" a few more times. I blush some more. Sorry, I mean I "flush" some more. I bite my lip. He gasps a lot more. More gasping. More blushing/flushing. More lip biting. Still more gasping. The end.

The bad: It was an interesting concept - for a romance novel. However the story is weak, the pace is slow and awkward, the characters come through as more schizophrenic than complicated, the "romance" is a juvenile and dysfunctional crush, and the "erotic" scenes alternate between Penthouse Forum and something that sounds like it was written by a painfully shy and sheltered 13 year old. I have now read through some of the rave reviews and I have to assume that these were posted by people easily shocked and/or titillated. I can't imagine what fans are comparing this to when they describe this as "good."

The good: Nice cover art.

______________________________________

What did you think about the book?

[yaeltamar]

NYC by night for a working tourist

I am in NYC for mere 4 and a half days. And I am working each day. Still it's NYC and I am willing to forgo sleep to have fun.

For those of you who are like me, this could be a good list of things you can squeeze in in NYC if you're here for a few days for work. 

The first day of my conference was Sunday and that's when I arrived. By the time I was done it was after 9 p.m. In NYC events on Sunday start early so there wasn't much happening unless you want to go clubbing, but that's now a good option for those of us who need to wake up early the next day.

But behold,  there's shopping. Most shops like Gap, H&M, Forever 21, etc. around 34 St. (Penn Station) don't close til 11 p.m., and so I did two good hours of shopping and got that out of the way. 

Duane Reed is open all night at some locations, and so you have an opportunity to stock up on cosmetics (men, remember you have wives and girlfriends back home). 

On Monday night I also finished at about 9 p.m. and ventured into a salsa bar. I asked my salsero friends for recommendations in NYC and this bar, Taj, in Chelsea, was a bit off the radar (or off the official schedule), but I chose it because of the live music, which I really enjoy dancing to. 

On the way back from salsa to the train station, I took my shoes off. High heels are not conducive to walking in NYC. While walking through Chelsea I suddenly saw an old cemetery in between the buildings. I was shocked. I came closer and I saw Hebrew writing on the graves. Then I found a plaque confirming it was an old Jewish cemetery. Such are things you discover while working through the streets of NYC. 

If you don't dance salsa you can check out meetup.com for meetup groups around your interests, and that's exactly what I did on Tuesday night.  I went to a really nice roof top bar, The Delancey, on Delancey Street, where about 200 vegans and vegetarians gathered for a meetup.

The venue was amazing and the conversations - exciting! Besides, a large number of Israelis showed up, and I am wondering whether there are more vegans in our midst or we are just more social vegans.

But that was only at about 10 p.m. and not before I caught a Broadway show. I only got a ticket a few hours before as it appeared I could finish at the conference at about 7 p.m. 

I decided to see After Midnight, a highly acclaimed Jazz show.

(Please don't mind the Tumblr bug that doesn't orient photos properly!)

I am so fond of Jazz that even my daughter's middle name is Jazz. However, I guess because I am privileged to go to a lot of Jazz events including the Red Sea Jazz Festival in Israel (coming up again in August) and see all kinds of innovative performances, this musical did not renew anything for me. I actually fell asleep! I nice thing about this musical was that I was seated next to a family from Texas and they really enjoyed it, constantly cracking up in laughter and clapping loudly and I guess I could say I enjoyed it vicariously. 

I should have probably mentioned by now, I have a tradition that at every abroad location,  I do four things before anything else. (1) Salsa, (2) Jazz, (3) scuba diving and (4) a modern art museum. That explains the odd choice of  jazz on Broadway. Plus the amazing reviews that show has received...

Well, scuba diving is not an option in NYC, but on Wednesday afternoon, after my work meetings, I scheduled to meet with an old college friend to go to MOMA (Museum of Modern Art)! This is by far my favorite museum in NYC, up there with the MET (Metropolitan Museum of Art).

By now I should have probably mentioned that I am almost a New Yorker. I lived here for three years studying at Hunter College, on 68th and Lexington Ave. So I have been to MOMA and many other museums and landmarks. So by now, I am just interested in having the most fun time and exploring the best aspect of NYC: its people. I try to talk to as many people as possible, making jokes while buying a MOMA ticket is one example. "Do you have any discounts for international rock stars?" I asked the guy behind the ticket counter. "Are you one?" he asked in return? "No, but it would be nice to know." This got me no discount, but a few laughs.

While I was at Hunter, I was a real Manhattan snob. I refused to go to outer boroughs. And now, traveling between the coveted New York City and the mediocre Long Island, I am thinking of the gap between NYC and the rest of the world, even if the rest of the world is just half an hour away. I guess the best way to sum up this sentiment is a phrase you see several times a day while in transit in NYC (and almost anywhere else in the world). This philosophical phrase that can mean so many things should really be the motto of any traveler down there. 

Here's another piece of wisdom I saw while walking around in the city:

My favorite floor at MOMA is the post-impressionist and expressionist 5th floor, which is pretty much the only floor I go to. I am not a fan of much of modern art, I have to say. I appreciate it for its effort, glance over it and move on. The best part about MOMA is the guided tour. There is a short 1.5 minute message from a curator on selected paintings and each of them creates a new perspective for you and just blows your mind. Plus at the next museum, you will be able to impress your family and friends with your ample knowledge and understanding of the art works you learned about. 

Here's a photo of tourists taking photos of Starry Night by Van Gogh. This is the most popular painting in the museum and there's always a small crowd gathered around it.

It's probably so enticing because Van Gogh was in an insane asylum when he painted it. Or at least I like to think so. We crave insanity, subconsciously, that state of carelessness and strife to do what one really is born to do. Van Gosh let himself go, but we still haven't. At least we have MOMA to admire one's courage to pursue their talent. 

Speaking of travel and art admiration, I was on the subway seated in front of a guy with a painting in his hand. All through the ride he was lovingly gazing at the painting, so I thought he must have just bought it. I was curious but was waiting for the right excuse to come over and look at it. Soon two guys entered the subway facing the painting and started talking to the guy about it. I stood up and joined them. The painting was very busy with loads of scenes going on with various futuristic subjects. The guy claimed that he saw all of those in his dreams and that he had no idea what they represented. I asked him if he was Native American, and he confirmed. His name is Louie Luna, and I tried to find him on Facebook, but couldn't. Here's a glimpse of his painting:

After MOMA, I went to the financial district because I have not seen the new 9/11 Memorial. And boy, was it grand! This is by far the most perception-shuttering, awe-inspiring and just plain impressive memorial I have seen! I was stunned and starting crying.

The memorial consists of who giant waterfalls in place where the two buildings stood up, with the water cascading into a giant drain in the middle of each one. Around the waterfalls, the names of the fallen were inscribed on a marble contour.

  Walking around the financial district is kind of fun too. I love the architecture there! And I love talking to the policemen :). Tip: just ask them how to get to Wall St. to get them talking. 

After that I went to yet another Meetup - a Foodie tour of the East Village! It was 6 of us sampling foods from the 7 best restaurants in the Village while learning about its history. We started at Astor Place Cube, which was one of the very few street art pieces left from the the beautification efforts of New York City municipality in the 60s. About two built men (or six average-built foodies) can spin it around 360 degrees!

There is a rumor that someone lives inside the cube going out at night through the little hole you see in the photo, but apparently it's just an urban legend. 

The tour was fabulous. The food was pretty awesome. I learned about this mosaic artist who went rogue back in the 80s and decided to beautify street lamp poles and after someone complained and alerted the authorities, they thought it was kind of neat and commissioned him to continue doing his art around the city. Here's an example: 

Another cool landmark is the Yiddish theater stars right on 2nd avenue. I had no idea there was a Yiddish theater and that it was quite big!

I'll make a separate post about this tour, but for now, just marvel at the food photos!

My favorite restaurant out of the 7 was Quintessence, a raw vegan spot.

  After the tour, I made my way to a friend's home in Forest Hills, Queens, where we spent the night chatting and smoking Nargila. A cool thing I noticed on my way over there is an "alphabet" train transfer: 

On the morning before my flight, I had a meeting scheduled at an amazing cold-pressed juice bar.

Apparently, these juices are made in a way that minimizes processing via a process of cold pressing over a long period of time. I was explained that regular juice looses its quality almost immediately while these special juices remain potent for up to two days. Plus they are delicious! And they didn't lie. For a price of $10 per 0.5 liter bottle each, I enjoyed a beat/ginger/etc concoction and another one based on fresh coconut water. I also had a bagle of sprouted buckwheat with soy cheese and some other sprouts, which was just divine. Sorry, all the people who like "normal" food for breakfast. I hope you are still with me here. 

That was about it from my 4.5 trip to NYC. And I can't wait to go back! For now, I am back to Israel, and I really hoping the prediction by the fortune cookie from the conference catered sushi dinner comes true!

[yaeltamar]

The importance of Google Analytics for Marketing Strategy

In the past ten years, marketing strategies changed beyond recognition, in for-profit and non-profit organizations alike. Tools and strategies that were cutting edge just a few years ago are becoming obsolete as far as the technology evolves. New marketing approaches are appearing every day.

This is why this is of vital importance to utilize every tool available to an organization.

The decision-making process behind adoption of new technologies within the organization, just like about any other budgetary decision, relies on ROI analysis and industry standards.

Strategy and planning decisions typically address such questions as:

On which customer segments and product lines should we focus marketing support?

What is the optimal level of spending, and what is the right allocation among vehicles and channels?

What is the testing and learning plan?

ANSWERING THESE QUESTIONS (AND ULTIMATELY CREATING A STRATEGY) WITHOUT THE USE OF DATA AND ANALYTICS WOULD BE LIKE DRIVING IN THE DARK WITHOUT SWITCHING YOUR LIGHTS ON.

In marketing, the use of various technologies that support the evaluation of marketing strategies or campaigns’ impact on sales or fundraising may distinguish leading brands from the rest, as well as enable decision-driven marketing. Without such technologies, the decisions made by the marketing team are based on the data that’s unreliable and inconsistent, as it usually sourced in the sales / fundraising results of the company, which depend on a variety of factors, only one of which is marketing.  

In order to create a successful marketing strategy and focus on the channels that will provide the most return on the marketing budget, constantly re-evaluating the strategy based on the response of the core audience, or even determine whether the marketing efforts (especially above-the-line marketing) reach the target audience at all, the organization needs to leverage all data and analytics available. Correctly identifying the maturity of a target market is important if promotion activities are to be successful.

Other examples of questions analytics helps answer:

Where should an organization increase its marketing spend? Where should it decrease it?

How should the marketing department align performance metrics to ensure that marketing and sales focus on the same opportunities?

What is the optimal price incentive to prompt desired customer behavior?

What should be the allocation of marketing investment for tried-and-true strategies versus unproven but promising ones?

According to the latest Harvard Business Review report (July-August 2014), 52% of companies who said that their organization leveraged all data and analytics to improve marketing effectiveness were overperformers compared with 35% among the underperformers.

The high performers in the study were distinguished by their ability to integrate data on what consumers were doing with knowledge of why they were doing it, which yielded new insights into consumers’ needs and how to best meet them. In a non-profit world, this is translated into why donors donate or why participants select specific Israel programs and what kind of campaigns speak to them.

Besides being able to learn about an organization’s customers or donors, an organization must be able to evaluate the success of its marketing efforts and determine whether it reaches the set objectives. All these functions are performed through analytics. For instance, an objective to reach a national level of program awareness could be measured through analyzing the visitors to the company’s website and their geographic spread. If a company wants to focus on a specific area and diverts resources to creating marketing efforts in that specific area, it needs to be able to measure the response of the target audience in that area. It’s possible that the brand strategy is to attract a specific age group and an organization needs to be able to evaluate the success of this strategy.

Perhaps most importantly, an organization needs to be able to measure and analyze its customers’ behavior and their level of engagement with is offerings as per targeted audience. There is a multitude factors there, and this sort of complex analysis is performed by the analytics software.

Another way organizations use analytics is to measure the audience response to specific campaigns as well as create so-called A/B tests to compare audience response to different messages or even determine the better look and feel for an organization’s app or web pages. Audiences are directed to varying pages (usually an experimental one compared to a control one) with Google, Facebook or other types of ads, and then the audience response and behavior on the page is measured.

Finally since SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is a big part of the above-the-line marketing strategy for any organization, analytics is crucial to evaluate SEO strategy success and direct the resources to the appropriate channels with the most ROI.

GOOGLE ANALYTICS IS A FREE POPULAR ANALYTICS SOFTWARE THAT ENABLES ORGANIZATIONS TO RUN A SIMPLE YET COMPREHENSIVE ANALYSIS ON THE ONLINE PERFORMANCE OF THEIR BRANDS AND THEIR ABILITY TO REACH OBJECTIVES.

It provides the answer to most of the organizational decision-making challenges. It allows users to set targets in line with marketing objectives and provides tools to analyze the performance in line with those targets.

While Google Analytics is fairly straightforward for a light or average user, advance level or expertise is required for heavy users. While the former receive a superficial level of data that may provide an indication of user behavior or a success of certain campaigns, the heavy users are able to create targets and follow up on those targets to receive a clear indication of where  to direct marketing effort.

USING ANALYTICS WITHOUT TARGET CREATION IS EQUAL TO DRIVING IN THE DARK WITH ONLY PARKING LIGHTS ON.

My recommendation would be to train several marketing associates in the use of Google Analytics and creating a set of Best Practices involving making data-driven marketing decisions. In addition, I would advise using consulting services to help set up the targets together with the employees for the initial campaigns. Practically this involves identifying campaigns that need tracking, generating a code and placing it on a particular page where a campaign or ad (or another call to action) is placed. After a few of these initial actions, employees would be able to retrieve and analyze the data on their own.

In conclusion, analytics is an indelible part of the marketing Best Practices and responsible ROI-driven decision making. Being able to use analytics to the full extent of what it offers is important for advanced and effective data generation and analysis that ultimately leads to the right decision and success of the marketing strategy and, as a result, the organization overall.

[yaeltamar]

How to start taking awesome photos with your SLR - a quick tip

Congratulations on becoming a proud owner of an SLR! Let’s take it for a test drive.

Best way to learn all the different functions in your camera is to start taking photos. So let’s dive into it.

Choose a subject for a photoshoot. It always helps to go on a photo hunt in colorful places like the city market, the great outdoors or a festival. So go ahead and plan an outing with a friend and photography enthusiast.

With most SLRs, you can take awesome photos even when not using any of the camera’s advanced settings.

Make sure the dial menu you see in the illustration on the left is set on AUTO.

To take a photo, press the push button in the middle of the OFF/ON switch. It’s called a shutter release.

Here’s a useful trick to improve any photo you take. Don’t rush to press that button. Even though on the AUTO function the camera focuses on objects automatically, you can create depth to your photo through focusing on different objects in the viewfinder. The more this focus is pronounced, the more artistically interesting the photo will be. The way you focus is by lightly pressing the shutter release half way to see a pair of small red brackets appear in your viewfinder to indicate the objects that the camera is focusing on. You may need to press several times to land on your object of choice. Here’s an example of two photos with different focal points:

In order to further improve the quality of your photos, you can venture into using advanced functions beyond the AUTOmatic option, playing with Aperture (A) and Shutter (S) options (found on the dial menu) in order to use the lighting and the environment to your advantage, as well as create further juxtaposition of foreground and background beyond just using your camera’s focus. Let’s move on to learning how to use the A and S on your dial menu.

Example of a photo taken with Aperture function (max aperture of 4 – most focus on foreground).

That’s it for the beginning. Stay tuned for more.

[yaeltamar]

F**k the media - my new poem

F**k the media

  I’m tired of the romantics

Calling themselves visionaries,

Completely lost in semantics –

They are nothing but dictionaries.

  I’m exhausted by the clowns

Always trying to cheer me up.

Let me have my ups and downs!

No one should be high non-stop.

  I’m fatigued by the boundless sex

Used just to grab my attention.

Sometimes I just want to relax

And think beyond a single dimension. 

  And I’m footsore of hearing cheers

For the goals we have never scored.

I’m embarrassed by all these years,

In which I haven’t touched a sword.

  But as much as I’m tired, I’m lucky,

To be bored of the world’s banality

Because all I have to do is say, f**k it. 

And go fight for originality.

[yaeltamar]

Where'd You Go Bernadette, a book review

This was a fascinating read I couldn’t put down til I was done!

Written in an epistolary form, which means in a form of letters, the action is totally unexpected and takes you by the storm.

The story takes place in Seattle and depicts a typical dysfunctional family. Bernadette, a former genius architect who underwent a certain trauma and was no longer creating, her husband, a Microsoft genius and TED star, their 15-year-old daughter, Bee, and a bunch if suburban moms who are out to get Bernadette for her snobbish attitude to school spirit and parent participation. The hilarity ensues as Bernadette is completely cool and nonplussed by their efforts retaining her sarcastic attitudes.

She is still deeply traumatized by something that happened 20 years ago. Because of this she gets into trouble and is forced to escape. Only ger daughter is convinced she’s still somewhere out there.

The story takes place near Seattle and you really get a feel for the location. The plot unravels through emails, notes, faxes, etc.,that the book characters send to each other which allows for first person account from many different people.

I highly recommend the book as a fun read that also makes you think about how things happen and how to overcome fears.

[yaeltamar]

The Day Eve Met Adam - my poem about monogamy

(Slightly related cartoon to peak your interest)

(Now the poem)

She had a nice time talking to her first man

And getting to know him a bit more…

And adam told her how he was the first man

And how he spared a rib for her.

  She thought, how nice, it probably is,

To see who else is out there;

I know he has nice abs and nice lips

But what’s up with all that hair?

  I wonder where I can find other adams

And whether it may be forbidden;

I bet adam is wondering about other Madams,

But how do we get out of Eden?

  Although we have everything here:

We don’t need any clothes and we’re always fed,

I just don’t see myself leaving in fear

Of seeing the same face each time I go to bed.

  Of course I appreciate all the care:

Not having to work and sleeping all day,

But I need to see what’s out there

And I think I know the best way.

  I hear this God only asked one favor –

Not to touch the fruits of a certain tree;

Adam thinks it’s because of the flavor,

But I bet God’s waiting for a sign from me.

  He wants to see if this model is good:

An eve for an adam, rib-less and faithful,

If I eat this fruit, he will have understood

That his experiment was not so successful.

  And if I convince my adam to follow,

At least out of inquisitiveness

We may find a way out, having swallowed

A piece of this fruit, or truth, more or less.

  There’s only one problem, I may have to kill the snake

That guards the tree hired by You Know Who;

Or I will try to bribe him, and see if I can make

Him have a bite and get expelled from Eden too.

  Now that all has been planned and figured out,

I shall rest and gather strength for a hard day,

“Can we do that thing tomorrow, honey? I’m very tired,

I just wanna sleep tonight, if that’s Okay.”

[yaeltamar]

Starbucks is everywhere... on the Internet

Not everyone can agree on whether Starbucks coffee is worth the buck, but it's easy to agree on one thing: Starbucks is a perfect brand.

They took an omnipresent beverage, a commodity, the coffee if you really need me to clarify, and turned it into a culture with a huge following. They created  language around it, a ritual, and an extra unnecessary expense which people don't seem to mind.

I'd say the CEO of Starbucks is one of the most unappreciated innovators. His name is Howard Schultz and he's about 60. Interestingly, he wasn't Starbucks' founder, according to Wikipedia. Starbucks was a coffee bean shop in Seattle, which he has joined as a Marketing Manager. He saw the potential of coffee shops in the U.S. after going to Italy on a purchasing trip and decided to implement a similar concept in the U.S. At that time, early 1980s, there were virtually no coffee shops in the U.S. while in Europe they existed on every corner. Eventually Schultz bought and reconfigured the shop and then created and perfectly executed one of the most clever branding strategies I've seen. 

The reason why I remembered about Starbucks is because virtually every day I see a Starbucks ad in one form or another. They are now omnipresent on the Internet! And the ads are very clever: for instance, today I was watching a clip from the Voice show in the U.S., and in almost every shot the judges are sipping a Starbucks beverage! Moreover, they even sponsor Q&A bits with hashtags, e.g. #blakescup, where the judges, after mentioning that the bit is called after the Starbucks sponsor, are answering questions written on pieces of paper and thrown into, naturally, a Starbucks cup. 

Yesterday I saw Starbucks in a morning show: they are now opening Wine concept bars and the show hosts were discussing how clever that strategy is. Their PR seems very effortless and seamless, and yet they are everywhere. 

I even came across a Quora question a few days ago on whether Starbucks should come back to Israel and apparently, people LOVE talking about Starbucks. 

Starbucks is also smart on social media. For example, their #tweetacoffee campaign enables people to send gifts of coffee to others. 

I am wondering what will be the next commodity (or other ordinary thing) to turn into a popular brand with a cult following that people would be willing to overpay for? Are there other examples? 

[yaeltamar]

How to escape the vicious cycle of maintenance and finally focus on real innovation

Credit: ADRIEN VECZAN / TORONTO STAR

The biggest challenge of IT managers in almost every industry today is to ensure that companies are able to maintain their competitive edge.  Because the evolution cycle of ERP is shorter than ever, the IT manager’s role becomes centered on various upgrades and maintenance tasks.

It looks as if the IT department is juggling crystal balls and that virtually at any time one or more of those balls is bound to fall. While the IT department is also tasked with improvement of the efficiency of the information systems and processes, in reality, there is very little time and resources left for integrating innovation. For each of the major upgrades scheduled, there are several others waiting to be deployed. Adding innovation into the mix is like adding more crystal balls for the juggler: it’s a fun challenge, but a more complex task, especially if the number of hands remains the same.

This vicious cycle of maintenance prevents many organizations from reaching their revenue potential. While the top priority, obviously, is ensuring that companies’ day-to-day functions are not disrupted and that they may continue supply products or services without interruption, in order to survive in today’s competitive environment, an organization needs to optimize maintenance and innovation processes.

The reality is that most organizations’ IT departments’ resources are heavily skewed towards maintenance, with the average one spending about 70% of the resources to maintenance and only 30% on innovation. An organization that plans to get ahead is focused on finding ways to reverse this ratio.

But how can an IT department escape this vicious cycle of maintenance when the very source of upgrades and performance requirements is innovation?

Apparently, there’s a relief for the crystal ball juggler, otherwise known as the IT Manager. Panaya has developed a solution that reduces the risk and cost of upgrades in the ERP system. What it does is create a simulation environment on its cloud ecosystem which shows every single domain of the organization affected by the changes to the ERP systems. Not only does it make recommendations for maintenance processes through this simulation, but it also helps organizations manage the scheduled changes through supplying the code required to fix any impending issues.

Panaya supports the users of SAP and Oracle. The solution is deployed within several hours and significantly reduces ERP maintenance costs, as well as lessens the risk of business disruption.

What’s equally important, Panaya’s solution creates recourses for focusing on innovation. By supporting each stage in the ERP, Panaya enables organizations to seamlessly innovate their processes.

Now the juggler can safely collect his crystal balls and go have lunch. 

[yaeltamar]

What has compelled a gold-winning Olympic skater Yulia Lipnitskaya to skate to Schindler's List score? And is she Jewish?

This was one of the most compelling moments in the 2014 Olympics: Yulia Lipnitskaya skating to Shindler's List score in a red dress that resembled a famous red coat in the movie, the only color moment in otherwise mostly black and white film. 

Schindler's List is an Academy Award-winning 1993 film about German entrepreneur Oskar Schindler, who was instrumental in saving the lives of over one thousand Polish Jews during the Holocaust. 

She appears in the following clip from about 1:44. Don't forget a box of tissues before you watch. 

What really annoyed me is that a lot of Western newspapers and blogs discussed her choice of the music through a lens of "whether it was a fitting choice for a 15-year-old," and some people wondered if she had known the significance of what she was dancing to. Even one of the main Israeli newspapers, Haaretz, wondered about the subject. What surprised me is that it didn't include any references to interviews with Yulia or any other resources from the Russian media. I am pretty sure Haaretz employs some Russian speakers as one of the major newspapers in a country where 20% of the population speaks the language.

So I decided by the power of Google Translate... just kidding... I decided to look through the Russian media (as I am a Russian-speaker) and see what Yulia, her coach, her mom and her choreographer said on the subject of the music choice.

Also one can't help but wonder (mainly if one is a Jew) whether or not Yulia is Jewish. I will touch on some evidence later on.

Here's a translation of interviews from various sources:

1.  Yulia's trainer, Eteri Tutberidze, said in an interview: "Yulia chose the music from the Oscar-winning "Schindler's List." She repeatedly watched this movie, and she said she wanted to be that girl in a burgundy coat." According to the coach , when Julia first told her that she wants to use this music, her coach tried to dissuade her . Moreover,  according to Tutberidze, several choreographers abandoned this idea and only Ilya Averbukh decided to stage dance. 2. From an interview with Ilya Averbukh, Yulia's choreographer:

- When I arrived to first do the choreography, I did not know Yulia. I have only once seen her on television, says Ilya Averbuch. "Her coach convinced me to work with her. And here I come , I see Julia , listen to the music, which she chose on her own, and the reaction I had was the same as yours: this stuff is not for a 15-year-old girl, it's the one for an adult woman. [...] Overall, I was surprised. It seemed to me that this fragile girl should skate to the light , airy music. But the last word was for Yulia."

"As for the music from "Schindler's List ", which we used in the free program, I did not mind it too much because I like it too. But the task was even more difficult. Julia had to tell the story about the collapse of children's hopes. Remember in the movie there is an often repeated frame with a girl in a burgundy coat? Julia transforms into this girl. Her character leaves knowing that there is no exit ahead... But I did not exaggerate the program. I tried to do the choreography without the hard creases of hands, without excess suffering. So this dance, despite the heavy music, turned light. - How did your colleagues take her new program? - Ambiguous. After the first show I experienced a lot of criticism, saying, why I chose this kind of music? But after a Yulia's Canadian performance, her coach called me and said that Lipnitskaya received a standing ovation!

3. From an interview with Yulia.  - You skate to music from Spielberg's film "Schindler's List."  - I have long insisted on the music. Many were against it. I watched the film when we began to put the program together. And after watching I changed my enterpretation slightly. I saw it a little differently.  - We heard that Spielberg is almost planning to shoot you in his movie? - I heard that from Tatiana Antolevna (Tarasova. - Comm . Ed. Figure skating trainer) - Tatiana will not lie. - But she can joke.

- And you want to act in a movie? - Yes, possibly!

4. In an interview with "Soviet Sport," Lipnitskaya's mom, Daniela said: " Tatyana Tarasova said that Spielberg was going to shoot Yulia. I've heard about it, but not from Spielberg himself. So I cannot really tell you."

5. From a phone call to Yulia's aunt, Anna, as published by Komsomolskaya Pravda ("KP"):

"Yulia's mom, Daniela Lipnitskaya, sent her daughter to do figure skating at three years old" - as Yulia's aunt, Anna, who lives in Yekatirenburg, Anna told "KP." "She had a champion's character since early childhood. Her coaches advised to leave [Yekatirenburg] for Moscow. And so Daniela packed her bags at once, got in her car and took her daughter to the capital. At first it was hard: there was even no place to live. Now, of course, everything is different .

- Where's Yulia's dad? - Daniela worked with Slava, the girl's father, in Yekaterinburg. It was the first marriage for both of them. But they quickly separated. Slava left the family when Yulia was eighteen months old. Why? I did not ask . And then he died. Daniela told me that he died - without going into much detail.

_______________________________________________________

My thoughts:

Why would it matter if Lipnitskaya were Jewish?

Not for any other reason except to analyze her choice of Schindler's List's score to skate to in the Olympics.

I have a feeling that she and her choreographer, Ilya Averbukh (who has a common Jewish last name) have (perhaps inadvertently) built up a coming-of-age story for Yulia with this very dance. Yulia is no longer a little girl. She is brave enough to suggest a controversial track that most other choreographers do not accept and she insists upon it until her coach finds one who will. 

Lipnitskaya could possibly be a Jewish last name. What's striking is that her mother's first name, Daniela, is extremely unusual for Russia. I wouldn't be surprised if she were to come from a prominent Jewish lineage.

Some observant viewers noticed a small Russian Orthodox silver cross necklace on Yulia's neck.

Photo source

Her choreographer, Ilya Averbukh, has solved this mystery in an interview: Julia is not Jewish , it was just a dance and nothing else. The music from the film "Schindler's List" came from Yulia herself; she felt it, but did not fully understand the meaning. Honestly, at that time she has not even watched the movie.

In conclusion, whether or not Yulia is Jewish, I am happy and touched she chose this score which commemorate the memory of the Holocaust. When this subject is talked about, the memory of those who perished lives on. Thanks to Yulia, the world once again is remembering the Holocaust, and in the context of the Olympic Games, which is even more amazing. Yulia deserved the gold for her skating, her courage and her maturity. And her performance to the score from the "Shindler's List" will definitely go down in history. 

[yaeltamar]

What the hell is happening in Ukraine - a crash course in current events

A good friend asked me to explain in simple terms what's going on (I am a Ukrainian citizen living in Israel). I agree, the media is not doing a great job providing a background story. So here it is:

Give me the dummy version of what's going on in Ukraine.

1. Ukraine was a part of the Soviet Union. The part closer to Russia consists mainly of the Russian speakers and the  people close to Russian culture (they are even called the "Russians"). The western part, closer to Europe (via a border with Poland) is more "Ukrainian" and is very nationalistic.  2. However, the current conflict is not about nationalism! It's about trying to oust the dictator who has changed the constitution to give himself almost unlimited power, is incredibly corrupt and does whatever he wants. 

Yanukovich, the President of Ukraine. He is naturally close to Russia because it suits Putin to have a fellow dictator in the back yard.  3. Putin, of course, wants to keep Ukraine close to himself (it's always the West vs. Russia and its satellites)

4. Gas is a very big part of it. Russian and Ukrainian gas disputes go along way back and back in 2009 lead to a gas crisis in Ukraine and disruptions in gas supply in most of Europe. The reason being that 1/3 of the Russian gas pipelines for export flow through Ukraine and that's the only way to export the Russian gas into Europe. What the international news doesn't report is that Ukrainians are known to steal (or confiscate) the gas through the pipelines. Very clever. Also Ukraine is a big gas consumer. To make a long story short, Russia needs to keep Ukraine of a tight leash to continue the exports of gas uninterrupted and at favorable conditions.  5. EU invited Ukraine to join if Ukraine fit some economic requirements and released a political prisoner (Yulia Timoshenko) of the current president (Yanukovich). The prisoner is the leader of opposition who was imprisoned as a scape goat for some bad political decisions that were really made by the government at large. 6. As a retaliatory move for the EU invitation, Putin invited Yanukovich, the president of Ukraine to meet, and offered to cover the debt of Ukraine as well as promised a good deal on natural gas. 7. Yanukovich probably took a large sum of money in his pocket and agreed to take the deal, and subsequently cancelled the deal with the EU. Or a major amount of pressure was exuded onto him by Putin, including the $15 billion bail out, the price of gas, etc.  8. The Western Ukraine people got really pissed off at this and went to protest in Kiev's main square, as well as in the periphery. 9. The government of Ukraine passed a law outlawing protests. 10. Protests worsened. 11. Government of Ukraine quit (except Yanukovich and his aides) to help improve the situation, as well as repealed the protest law 12. There are thugs on the side of the opposition igniting violence or MAYBE it's the government itself (conspiracy) 13. The thugs throw stones or otherwise aggravate the police 14. The police started shooting with real machine guns at people in the square last night 15. The square where the protesters congregate in Kiev is called Maidan or "square" in Ukrainian. Full name - "Independence Square" - symbolic 16. Protests are not only held in Kiev. In many Western Ukrainian cities, the protesters took over the local administration buildings 17. There's no civil war or clashes between the camps of different nationalities in Ukraine. It's totally a clash between the people and the police. And I don't think the government has any control over it any more. The people feel there is nothing to lose. 18. On 19 February 2014, 25 people were killed, from both sides, and over 400 were injured. On the morning of 20 February 2014, the sides called for a temporary time-out (truce) to try to reach some sort of a compromise through negotiations. Whether or not the radicals, which ride the tide of the protests, will let it stay quiet remains to be seen. 

Why does Russia care if Ukraine joins the EU? It's the cold war type of issue. Russia wants ukraine on its side. Ukraine has nuclear weapons, so it's the safety issue also. In addition, Ukraine is 47 million people, who are consumers. So Russia just wants MORE protection in the form of Ukraine as an ally?

Yes exactly. Russian doesnt want Ukraine against Russia. Ukraine also provides additional access (besides Sochi) to the Black Sea. The city of Sevastopol, my birth place, is where a lot of the russian navy is stationed. Russia rents a part of the port there. 

So why do you think the US should do something more than just verbal condemnation?

I don't know if it can (but any country should). The EU should - they are right there. It would be better for the US if Ukraine with its nuclear weapons and 47 million people would join the EU and the joint military organizations against Russia. Russia is a thug, and it does whatever it wants. E.g. it sells weapons to Syria, another thug. 

Why do you think Obama has failed to take more action then if it would behoove us to have Ukraine join the EU? Obama seems not to not want to get his hands dirty in internationa policy at all. He hasnt handled Israel situation well in my opinion. Regarding why he hasn't acted - there weren't enough casualties, perhaps. Look at Syria with tens of thousands dead and obama not doing anything because Americans are tired of the war. There is no budget, and no one wants to send troops anywhere.

I am not sure what the US tactic on the foreign policy any more either. The US foreign policy used to be like this: they used to go in and support one dictator over another if that dictator promised to be on the US side. This way the US cultivated monsters.

[yaeltamar]

Self improvement all over again!

New approach to self improvement

I used to decide to do a sudden revolution and just change everything about me. Write it out on a piece of paper and then get overwhelmed. 

This time instead I focus on a small thing each week instead! And I don't even need to see the whole picture, I do one thing a week and then move on to the next.

These small things become HUGE in a grand scheme of things because I was unable to accomplish them for YEARS! Important habit building activity if you ask me. 

What I accomplished in the past few weeks:

1. Finally became vegan

2. Started raw food diet

3. Started making fresh vitamin shakes every morning

4. Went back to exercising: kickboxing & yoga

5. I wake up at 6 a.m. every day now

6. I go to sleep before 12

7. I meditate upon waking

8. I eat regularly, eat healthy and avoid junk

If you ask any of my friends and family, these are huge changes for me. I always woke up at 10 or even 11, and I went to sleep at 3 a.m. on average. I also tend to be stressed out about accomplishment of my goals and willing to sacrifice a healthy lifestyle for that accomplishment. I am now trying to do both. I am taking one thing at a time. It's so simple and so profound! It's much easier to make one small change a week or every few days and then feel good about yourself and start working on another. 

Check out my new take on self improvement:

- Weekly life goals

- Realistic schedule

- Tackling few tasks at a time

- Scheduling down time

- Self improvement goals of the week

[yaeltamar]

Tziporela: full house, standing ovation & cheeks hurting from non-stop laughing

Last Monday, 28 January 2013, we went to see Tziporela's Worldwide show at the Tzavta theater in Tel Aviv. Oh my God! This really was a fantastic way to kick off the theater season in 2013!

This amazing and young group has kept me at full attention from the first second to the last; I laughed non-stop throughout the show as well as couldn't stop wondering who's behind the amazing and innovative script. I don't think I have seen any other play like that.

The only comparison I had in my mind, I guess, is the Israeli Gashash, perhaps because of its short skit format or its consistent hilariousness. The show had some silly moments, some sexy moments, some international moments, some local Israeli moments, some cultural moments... and I don't even know if there was anything the show didn't cover. It was clear from the skits that a lot of the actors come from improvisation background.

As far as the quality of the performance, I could really compare Tziporela to Saturday Night Live, except that the former is even funnier! The group is really on an international level and I can easily see them going on a global tour.

Here below you can see some clips from the show. I didn't want to give too much away, so go and see the show!

For Tickets: 

Select Tziporela Worldwide at http://tziporela.e-tickets.co.il/ 

Contact Information: 

Talli Koren, 054 779 0713, [email protected]; 

Ilana Butrimovitz, 052 886 4565, [email protected]