http://theadvantagecatalog.com/2015/

We’ve been putting together our annual catalog for 20 years now, and this year’s edition is one of my favorites; it is also our biggest ever – coming in at 360 pages.  Jamie Welsted has been the Art Director for all 20 editions, and this year’s catalog was developed by our Catalog Publisher, Joe Kontrabecki [who just happened to be providing the same magic for the very first catalog 20 years ago].  They were joined by Emily Donnelly, our Catalog Director, and Frank Gaglione, our Chief Photographer [who once again flew in from San Francisco for a couple of weeks to shoot some amazing photos].  But putting a catalog like this together calls on more than just a few dedicated designers, and we had a whole host of talented and tireless contributors this year [you will recognize them throughout the catalog].

What makes our catalog special, as always, is the people – and everyone you see in the catalog is part of the Advantage Experience.  Our customers, staff, partners, affiliates, and suppliers all contribute.  The photo sessions are more fun than you can imagine, and our newest photographer, Brianna DeJoy, picked up quite a bit working with Frank.

Although this year’s catalog is a little bit less provocative than last year’s, we always get a kick out of the outrage some of the photos of our staff and customers engenders.  We’ve already had the cover called ‘shameful,’ so if you take exception to it, you’ll have to get  your thesaurus out to come up with something a little more original.

Doing anything well for 20 years feels good, and the catalog always makes me feel good.  Actually, there was one that didn’t really … but let’s not go there.

Check it out and let me know what you think:
http://theadvantagecatalog.com/2015/

I was up at 4AM this morning.  Yesterday was a rough day, and I didn’t sleep well.  That’s unusual for me, because I generally sleep like a baby.  But I was confronted by an unusual amount of angst yesterday, and I am having trouble putting it into perspective.  I just don’t get why so many people are miserable.  I am running into fewer and fewer people who really enjoy what they are doing.  It’s more than a shame, it’s a waste [and waste is the original sin].

As Fr. John Sturm always beat into my head, you only get one shot at life – so you better enjoy it.  I’ll always remember how much he enjoyed [and believed in] the title of the book we created from his weekly homilies “Life is a Dance, Not a Dress Rehearsal.”

You don’t need anything but an appreciation for the gift of life to make every day the best day of your life.  We are all going to be dead for a very very very long time, so let’s make certain we are enjoying the brief time we’ve been given [by either some incredible cosmic fluke or by your own version of god].

In the big picture, life is incredible.  What a time to be born?  And what a place to be born in?  When we look back 12,000 years ago, the world population was only an estimated 15 million people, and since then there have been 100 billion of us who have taken a shot at life on Earth [93 billion of whom have passed on after living to varying degrees of happiness].  In the Bronze Age, the average life expectancy was only 26 years, while today it has climbed to almost 70 [with life expectancy in Japan leading the way at 84+ years].  Not surprisingly, women are now outliving men by an average of 5 years.

Seventy plus years is a long time to go without enjoying it all.

Currently, there are 7 billion of us still navigating the adventure of life with an average age of 30 [which puts me at double the average age].  So, when you look at the predicament that most of the 100 billion people have been born into over the course of time, being born in the United States during the middle of the 20th century was an incredible stroke of good fortune.  I try to never lose sight of that fact.  And, although we can always make life better, it’s important to appreciate just how lucky we are.

This morning I am refocusing on making life better.  It starts with my personal health and well-being, and from there I need to focus on my family, work, friendships, and community.

About a decade ago, I created a chart for a young woman who was working with me to chronicle her progress as she navigated life.  Years later, while at the Cleveland Clinic for my bi-annual check up, the ‘Life Coach’ there suggested a similar chart.  I’ve decided to break out my original chart for a monthly review of my own progress [or lack of].  It is based on 1-10, with 10 being the best it could be.  Your original numbers are nothing more than a baseline, what counts is the delta in your numbers from month to month, year to year.

This morning, I broke the 170 pound barrier.  I am just 2.5 pounds from my all-time fat.  What’s distressing is that just a few years ago, I was down to a very healthy 154 pounds.  And, although I feel great, I know I am putting myself at risk for a variety of ailments, especially diabetes.  It’s time to get serious.  I don’t need to go on a diet, I simply need to eat better and exercise more.

I’ll update this post every month.  We’ll see how I do.

May 8, 2020 Update:  This morning I was 153.8 pounds.  I’m 66 and feeling great.

This is what I came up with yesterday.

ABX Managing Partner:  Joseph Robert Kreuz

Work begins Monday on the new Advantage Business Exchange [ABX] headquartered at the front of the Walker Center.  We will initially be focusing on eleven key resources for presentation and sale locally and globally.  From there, ABX will build out the presentation of additional Advantage Co resources and outsourced resources.

These are the initial resources that are being discussed and vetted.  We want to start out by offering our 10 most advantageous resources for both our clients and ABX’s sales force.

1. The c1 Group.  Although c1 provides a wide array of IT services, we will be focusing our ABX sales activity on three key components:
   1. c1 Services
   2. c1 Search
   3. c1 Secure
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2. FedCloud Resources.  Autonomic Resources’ FedRAMP ATO has allowed us to develop several new offerings for both the Federal and commercial markets.  The key to all of our offerings is that we have implemented the most advanced FedRAMP and DISA certified security boundaries for cloud compute.
   1. FedDROP
   2. ARC Secure Data Centers
   3. FedDataCrunch
   4. FedCloud Express
   5. FedCloud Secure
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3. EAS.  Enterprise Archive Solution [EAS] is a highly scalable and flexible consolidated archiving solution that captures and preserves email messages, files, documents and other content in a way that both optimizes long-term storage and allows immediate access for Mailbox Management, Compliance, and Legal Purposes.  Engineered for easy deployment, EAS is essentially invisible to end users, who continue to use their existing and familiar processes and clients without the need for training.
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4. Grivani Corporate Sales.  Our troika of offerings for local corporate clients will be focused on corporate catering, corporate gift-giving, and corporate advertising in our annual Advantage catalog.  Our new line of upscale product, Grivani, will provide our clients with a premium resource for corporate gift-giving.
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5. Giancarlo’s Corporate Catering & Events.  We have been building an excellent reputation for our corporate event and boutique wedding catering, along with raising the bar on daily breakfast and lunch deliveries.
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6. Advantage Catalog Advertising.  Our catalog has become the benchmark for all of Western New York’s elite businesses and services.  We have been adding services and benefits to their participation, and we are looking to build it out for year long participation with all of our clients.
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7. iWorldFundraising.  Effective fundraising activity is key to every successful business’s community engagement.  iWorldFundraising will offer both online and event fundraising resources for our ABX clients.
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8. The College Rep Program [Jumpsite].  One of our first college reps from back in 80’s is now the Secretary of Labor for the United States.  Back in the 70’s, as a college rep for FAD Co. in New Jersey, I was able to sell Technics and Pioneer product, and it is what led to the Stereo Advantage’s early success.  Today, we have the product that will allow us to launch the premier online experience for college reps worldwide.
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9. Advantage Brands [Brand Online Partnership].  Our ever growing list of brands is remarkable.  Starting with our most successful brand launch ever, Aussie T Co, we now have several brands that have the potential to explode worldwide: Bogavia [which now sold in Whole Foods], Piece Apparel, Modern Luxuri, Pure+Fresh, Grivani, RiOT, Chuggs, …
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10. White Box Service [iphones, ipads, computers].  Our Lifetime Service Centers in Williamsville and California are the industry leaders in tech product service.  Lifetime Service’s WhiteBox Service specializes in the rapid repair of tech products that are no longer covered by a manufacturer or extended warranty.  Apple® products, video game consoles, HDTVs, laptops, smart phones, tablets, etc. can all be repaired for a fraction of the price it costs to replace the device.  Regardless of the geographic region, WhiteBox Service can facilitate the repair.  With proprietary UPS and FedEx approved containers, we can safely coordinate the shipping logistics of up to a 42” LCD HDTV.

I spent some of the past 10 days of my Naples respite thinking about Fr. Sturm.  On one of my playlists, I have his favorite song, A Slow Boat to China.  It’s funny how a tough guy like Johnny Sturm could love such a sweet song.  It always makes me laugh.  From there, thinking of Fr. John usually gets me thinking about accountability and happiness.  For him that was the alpha and omega of life.  It’s hard to argue how right he was.  It certainly has resonated true with me.  I like to think I have been accountable and happy [and very fortunate], and I like to think I have done him proud.  Maybe I’ll find out for sure one day if his version of heaven and hell actually turns out to be true.  Wouldn’t that be wild?

To say we disagreed would be an understatement, but we certainly shared the unwavering belief that life was a gift from god and we better enjoy it.  He always emphasized ‘enjoy it’ over the more prosaic parental admonishment of ‘don’t waste it.’   It was more than a nuance to him.  If you get that, you are a step ahead.

He pounded into me that life is inherently positive with boundless potential, while the negative comes from the dark side, and it can suck the life out of you if you fall prey to its constant bombardment [which comes disguised as popular culture].  He’d never allow for the darkness to suck the life out of him.  I watched life kick him in the teeth a few times, and each time his disappointment would give way to his inevitable enthusiasm.  He understood that grief was a natural part of life [and love], but he never gave it prominence.  There was a time and place for all emotions, but never could they, or should they, replace the vigor we have reserved for the gift of life.  He always energetically chose life.

In the end, his harsh lessons provided comfort to those who could meet the challenge of living an accountable and happy life.  But for those who needed excuses, he was just a prick.  So it goes.

I live with a firm belief that an appreciation for life is a choice, a choice that fewer and fewer seem to be making.  And while fate will visit us all with an undeserved cruelty from time to time, I always know that in the end I am accountable for my happiness – and fate will just have to move on when it’s done with me.

But for those of you who need an excuse, you can always fall back on the sure-fire winner ‘it’s not my fault.’  It can deceptively preclude just about any accountability – while still punctuating your undeserved misfortune [giving credence and value to your unhappiness].

This has been a message from the Church of the Good.

Ariana reminded me of this one tonight.  It is certainly my favorite of all time.  If there is one thought that we should have with us at every moment, this is it.

http://churchofthegood.wordpress.com/

OK, I’m going to blame this posting on Postcard Jodi.  Jodi can’t help but post a steady stream of chocolate-box Facebook sententia.  Her saccharine aphorisms, however, are often thought-provoking [so, keep them coming].  And while it’s only a rumor I started, I do believe she use to write copy for Hallmark in college.

Yesterday, she passed along this little quote:

According to the Israel Defense Forces, the Iron Dome has had a 90 percent success rate.  It is truly remarkable that Israel can withstand the constant threat [and bombardment].  And while there is always another side to the story, as Hemingway said, “All stories, if continued far enough, end in death …”  Unfortunately, this story is destined to always end in death.

The world is on fire, and to some that’s recent news.  Although there was a respite in worldwide conflict during the ’90’s after the particularly bloody ’80’s [making the much-maligned Clinton look, in retrospect, really good as a world leader], things seem to be throttling back up; but, in reality, the recent casualties are relatively minimal [when put into a historical context].

In the bloody 80’s, the Iran-Iraq border war alone claimed almost a million victims, while the Third Indo-China War threatened to include the Soviet Union in a war that had the potential to destroy Asia [while still managing to hit 100,000+ casualties].  The Sino-Soviet split saw China amass an army 1.5 million strong at the Soviet border in a testy readiness for a full scale invasion.  However, not much of that left an indelible mark on America because we weren’t directly involved like we are in this MidEast conundrum.  Our last ineradicable memory is Vietnam.

War in the Middle East is nothing new.  Over a period of 500 years, from 1000 AD to 1500 AD, the Muslim conquest of the Indian subcontinent bore witness to an astounding death toll of an estimated 60-80 million people.  Keep in mind that the population of the entire world in 1000 AD was only 300 million [and 500 million by 1500 AD].  Today, that would be equivalent to killing off about 1.5 billion people.

One of the most overlooked international crimes of terrorism was the brutal colonization of the Congo by Belgium from 1885 to 1908 that left over 20 million dead.  [Wikipedia] “Private forces under the control of Leopold II of Belgium carried out mass murders, mutilations, and other crimes against the Congolese in order to encourage the gathering of valuable raw materials, principally rubber.  Significant deaths also occurred due to major disease outbreaks and starvation caused by population displacement and poor treatment.”

But that pales in comparison to the European genocide of the indigenous Americans.  Colonization, disease, ethnic cleansing and war accounted for upwards of 100 million casualties.  Of course, the 80 million dead in WWII proved that Europeans were pretty adept at killing each other as well.

When I was a kid there were only 3 billion people on Earth, and I have lived long enough to see it climb past 7 billion.  Did we really need another 4 billion people?  What kind of stress does an extra 4 billion inhabitants put on our social, economic, and political structures worldwide?  To think that it took 12,000 years to ramp up from 3.5 million to 3.5 billion people, and then we just doubled it in a mere 45 years.  This is the root of all our challenges, and it is only going to exacerbate every issue as the population climbs.

The battle lines are being drawn, but not where you might think.  The enormous stress caused by this unchecked population explosion will either lead to worldwide anarchy or totalitarianism [it might be time to re-read 1984].  Technology is the available weapon of choice for both [as is a worldwide nuclear arsenal].  My money is on totalitarianism, but never discount the allure of fascism.

When we were young, we were all ready to build bomb shelters and quote George Orwell.  Then we rose up and thought we changed the world, but all we did was change the banking laws.  Today, hedge funds, derivatives, the international money-cult, the internet, social media, and our vapid celebrity culture have potentially paved the way for Orwell’s ominous warning of psychological and electronic tyranny.  1984 may not have arrived as predicted,  but it isn’t out of the question.  Fortunately, there’s a new generation, and they aren’t as foolish as my generation proved to be.  Maybe they can figure it out.  Maybe they’ll build an app that …  OK, you got me, the next generation is just as bad, if not worse.  Just one look at social media, and I rest my case.  But …

Of course, the wild card is still disease and famine.  They go together like greed and money.  Add in a little totalitarianism, and you get 50 million starving to death in China during the Great Leap Forward under Mao.  [Wikipedia] “State violence during this period further exacerbated the death toll, and some 2.5 million people were beaten or tortured to death in connection with Great Leap policies.”  Talk about good times!

So, if you think you have the answer, let us all know.  The world awaits your opinion [and solution].  In the meantime, you might want to start wearing a face mask when you fly.

As for me, I’ll be busy trying to help keep America safe.  Cybersecurity and all that stuff.  If the world is going to have a chance, it’s going to really need the United States of America.  Hey, just trying to do my part.

Emerging Infectious Diseases: Threats to Human Health and Global Stability
David M. Morens  Published: July 04, 2013

The inevitable, but unpredictable, appearance of new infectious diseases has been recognized for millennia, well before the discovery of causative infectious agents. Today, however, despite extraordinary advances in development of countermeasures (diagnostics, therapeutics, and vaccines), the ease of world travel and increased global interdependence have added layers of complexity to containing these infectious diseases that affect not only the health but the economic stability of societies. HIV/AIDS, severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), and the most recent 2009 pandemic H1N1 influenza are only a few of many examples of emerging infectious diseases in the modern world; each of these diseases has caused global societal and economic impact related to unexpected illnesses and deaths, as well as interference with travel, business, and many normal life activities. Other emerging infections are less catastrophic than these examples; however, they nonetheless may take a significant human toll as well as cause public fear, economic loss, and other adverse outcomes.

Determinants of Emergence and Reemergence

Historical information as well as microbial sequencing and phylogenetic constructions make it clear that infectious diseases have been emerging and reemerging over millennia, and that such emergences are driven by numerous factors. Notably, 60 to 80 percent of new human infections likely originated in animals, disproportionately rodents and bats, as shown by the examples of hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, Lassa fever, and Nipah virus encephalitis [2]–[4]. Most other emerging/reemerging diseases result from human-adapted infectious agents that genetically acquire heightened transmission and/or pathogenic characteristics. Examples of such diseases include multidrug-resistant and extensively drug-resistant (MDR and XDR) tuberculosis, toxin-producing Staphylococcus aureus causing toxic shock syndrome, and pandemic influenza.

Although precise figures are lacking, emerging infectious diseases comprise a substantial fraction of all consequential human infections. They have caused the deadliest pandemics in recorded human history, including the Black Death pandemic (bubonic/pneumonic plague; 25–40 million deaths) in the fourteenth century, the 1918 influenza pandemic (50 million deaths), and the HIV/AIDS pandemic (35 million deaths so far).

It all starts when we are very young.  It’s a process, and it has been working effectively in organized society for thousands of years.  We are processed with a mixture of religion and patriotism that keeps the social fabric intact.  Religion and patriotism are the ties that bind.  They are meant to supersede not only family and friendships, but our very instinct to survive.  The process ingrains the fundamental values that social order depends on, not the least of which – when called upon – is self-sacrifice.  Heroes are honored and sainted, and they are used as paragons of behavior.  Follow their lead, and you too will be worthy.  Repeat after me …

Some societies reference patriotism above religion and vice versa.  In most cases it’s easy to recognize what a particular society is selling the hardest – the flag or the cross?  I’ll go with two newsworthy examples: Russia is currently selling patriotism [effectively] and Iraq is forever selling religion [ineffectively].  While patriotic ethnic cleansing is all the rage in Eastern Europe, sectarian violence has a grip on the Mideast.  You’ll need a scorecard to keep track of the carnage, but I’m putting my money on ethnic patriotism for the next decade – unless, of course, a billion Hindus decide to start really smacking some Sunni Muslims around [while the Sunnis are busy eradicating the Shias] – then we’ll have a real ballgame in the Mideast.

But that’s not what this posting is all about.  It’s simply about all the constant complaining that’s going on.  It’s an emotionally devastating pandemic, and it’s crushing our spirit.

Partisanship is nothing new.  But our non-stop partisan complaining and vilification have been amplified beyond reason.  And while it all seems to start in Washington DC, social media has allowed it to permeate every corner of our world.  Twitter is toxic.

The simple reality [or at least my version of simple reality for the purpose of this posting] is that our very mortal leaders are ostensibly, but not really, elected by flawed and often ignorant constituents in an enfeebled system.  It is the best of all possible worlds, but that does not make it any less dyspeptic.  Eventually, this habitual bad temper takes its toll, and we have become as fractured as the system.

Our expectations are beyond reason.  Our leaders are being held to unreasonable standards, and this contrarian posturing seeps into every aspect of our lives.  Nothing is good enough anymore.  Everything is a conspiracy.  No one is merely mistaken, they are malicious and evil.  In general, marketers have us convinced that no one is happy enough, so everyone is either complaining, consuming too much, or being anesthetized against the horror of their lackluster predicament.  It’s almost comical.

I was reading about how upset a whole town in Pennsylvania is about our failure to find a suitable ‘American’ solution in Iraq.  Already the chorus has begun that we wasted trillions of dollars and thousands of lives for nothing.  In their ‘America,’ sacrifice is only worthwhile when we are victorious [or at least sanctimoniously right].  Well, it just doesn’t always work out that way.  It’s time we accept that America’s world dominance is not only a patriotic illusion, but an unhealthy prospect for the world [and us].

I’m neither Democrat nor Republican, liberal nor conservative.  From my perspective, Bush and Obama are part of a glitched system that produces the same outcome.  We naively overstate their significance.  They are just ambitious men with often debilitating flaws, not the least of which is hubris.  They screw up – we all do.  This is unavoidable.  But they do not drive the system, the system drives them.  At times, it makes heroes of them [like my personal favorite, Winston Churchill], while most of the time they are merely grist for the mill [like poor Jimmy Carter].

In government, policy is fluid because it has to be.  We live in a dynamic world, nothing is static.  By the end of the week, Iran might be our new ally.  And don’t forget that Stalin got us through WWII.  Today’s friend is tomorrow’s mortal enemy, and the clock is ticking on China.  So, try to keep up and shut up.

As for your tiresome and sophomoric political opinion, you most likely don’t know the difference between a Sunni and Shia Muslim, and you sure as hell couldn’t find Turkmenistan without Google Maps, so quiet down.  You probably don’t know the fundamental difference between communism and socialism, and I doubt you have any idea what is going on in Africa, so let it be.  Domestically, you are possibly oblivious to the fact that at 40% we have the highest corporate tax rate in the world [even Sweden is only at 22%].  So kindly stay away from economics and domestic policy.  Do you remember when interest rates were over 10%?  Maybe you do, but do you remember how our economy was doing when they were that high?  Clueless, I bet.  So, stop promoting and repeating ignorant populist views.  And for those of you that do know the difference, do something constructive with that knowledge.

My advice is to turn it way down.  I just can’t listen to one more ignorant complaint.  Your constant whining is unbearable, and your pill popping solutions are pathetic.  Whatever it is that you are pissed about, keep it to yourself.  And, by the way, if you really hate the uber-rich so much, stop fawning over them and maybe they will go away [or at least stop being so annoying with their vanity and conspicuous consumption].

But, most of all, stop complaining about your own abysmal personal predicament.  We all understand someone is sick and dying, while someone else is broke or depressed, but that’s life.  Unhappiness is part of life.  Failure is part of life.  And, yes, death is inevitable.  But joy is also part of life.  Why not skip your misery and bring a little joy into the world?  You only get one life – do you really want to spend it complaining?

The gift of life comes wrapped in free will.  Use it wisely or lose it.