I’m having lunch with my girlfriend, discussing none other than the world’s most delicious chicken soup recipe.

According to C.C., she feels that chicken soup should NOT be the traditional “clear broth” soup, but rather the deep autumn tones of orange! Yes, I did say ORANGE.

Here’s how it goes:

1 huge calabasa - the bigger the better., cut into 2” x 2” squares (spelled either Calabaza or Calabasa) is a variety of squash commonly eaten in Latin America, the Philippines, and the Caribbean.

3 acorn squash – cut into 2” x 2” squares
2 large turnips cut up
4 sweet potatoes cut up
4 carrots cut up
1 bunch of fresh parley, chopped
2 teaspoons salt
1 large WHOLE roasting chicken
3 stalks celery, cut into 2” pieces
2 large Vidalia (or sweet) onions cut into 2” x 2” squares
4 tablespoons chicken bullion (the powdered kind)

Here’s the 1st secret. Place the chicken in the pot first, then cover with all the cut up raw veggies and herbs. Sprinkle the chicken bullion over the vegetables. Add enough water to COVER the veggies & chicken then continue to add more water until 3 inches of extra water is covering everything. Bring to rapid boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 2 – 3 hours!!!

Here’s the 2nd secret. When finished, carefully scoop out only the chicken (use 2 slotted spoons).

Take a hand held blender and puree the soup (right in the same pot you just cooked it in.) (click here for 117 product reviews of hand held blenders that will make your life simple) but don’t skimp and buy the cheapest, you want POWER for the best performance! Personally, I like the 500 watt Dualit Kitchen Prep Professional Immersion
Hand Blender from Kitchen Universe (normal price $100, on sale for $79.96. RARELY do you find one with this much wattage and power. If you don't want to spend this much, then buy the Cuisinart Brushed Chrome Hand Blenderfor only $29.95 -- but it only has 220 watts of power! For FREE SHIPPING on the Dualit blender go first to Catalogs.com and link directly from our home page into Kitchen Universe!

Meanwhile, dice (cut up) the chicken and return it to the pureed soup. Serve hot and enjoy. Leftovers freeze beautifully (stay green and re-use old quart size plastic containers from take-out Chinese restaurants and grocery store bought food).

Posted by Melody at 04:18 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (7)

It’s Monday morning and I drag my laptop into work, carefully balancing my Starbuck’s Venti American coffee and carrying my briefcase (not your typical leather attaché, but rather the U.S. Postal Service plastic extra large bin).

I begin to retrieve my voicemails. Thirteen to be exact!

Of which nine -- 9 – spoke so quickly when leaving the phone number that I was totally unable to retrieve the call back number.

Business Lesson #101: If you expect a phone call to be returned, don’t waste your breath leaving a number that can’t be retrieved. Speak slowly and repeat the number 2 times – slowly. It is THE MOST IMPORTANT part of a message.

Business Lesson #202: Train your salespeople and remind them of the importance of leaving messages that are clear, and concise.

According to eHow, there are 9 simple steps one should follow when leaving messages:
Step One: Speak slowly and enunciate clearly. If the recipient can't understand your message, it will be useless and frustrating.

Step Two: Try not to ramble, mumble, hesitate or whisper.

Step Three: Emphasize your phone number and name by repeating them, especially for business calls or important social engagements.

Step Four: Prepare, at least in your mind, what you want to say beforehand.

Step Five: Respond to the matter at hand. If it's a romantic connection, consider reading a sweet poem; alternatively, make it short and sweet.

Step Six: Be businesslike for a business connection. State your name, your company and your reason for the call: "returning your call," I was referred to you by Joe Schmo," "I got your name from my marketing VP," "You've won the sweepstakes."

Step Seven: Never feel compelled to tell all to the machine. Phrases such as, "Call me back for details" or "I'd prefer to tell you this news in person" are welcome.

Step Eight: Cut off? Call back and leave your message again, explaining why.

Step Nine: Include a time when you can be reached for a return call.

I didn’t even bother looking up the nine people’s numbers who left me messages this morning.
This really is a pet-peeve of mine. It’s so incredibly annoying and stupid!

Posted by Melody at 07:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

About 3,000 years ago, God spoke to Moses and commanded that two identical goats be taken up to Mount Zion, and that a lottery be cast: one goat was deemed “to God” and sacrificed as a sin-offering; the other was sent to the wilderness (Leviticus 16:7-11). The goat that was to be sacrificed represented the “good” self -- free to pursue Godliness – as symbolized in the goat whose destiny was to be offered as a sacrifice in the Sanctuary. The other goat was not considered an “offering” but rather a “bribe” or “gift” to the Satan. It symbolizes the source of “evil” and was sent away.

This is where the original term “scapegoat” was derived, according to some theologians who recently compared and described the similarities of the word scapegoat with Dan Rather.

Question #1: is Dan Rather being used as the “scapegoat” to CBS?

Question #2: Have you ever used people in your business as “scapegoats” to avoid the truth or to manipulate a situation in your favor?

Question #3: Can you, as a business owner or senior manager, admit to your own mistakes and not name someone else as a scapegoat?

According to Timothy Rutten at the Los Angeles Times, he feels differently …

"Central to the defendants' play to pacify the White House," the suit contends, "was to offer Mr. Rather as the public face of the story and as a scapegoat for CBS management's bungling of the entire episode -- which, as a direct result, became known publicly as 'Rathergate.' "

Now, if you once had thought of yourself as situated at the heart of the journalistic universe for nearly half a century, and suddenly found yourself 75 and toiling for an obscure cable operation that seemed to generate more press releases than viewers, it probably would be much more satisfying to see yourself as the victim of an intricate, high-level conspiracy than as someone undone by the kind of personal screw-up that would make a first-year reporter blush.

The problem is that there's more than one guy's injured vanity at play here. In fact, the adjectives that come to mind as you assess the substance of what Rather now has done are wanton, reckless and irresponsible. Let's put aside the fact that Rather has no evidence that the network's owners were anything but understandably embarrassed and angry at having their single most recognizable journalist air something as incompetently put together as the "60 Minutes" segment in question. Let's ignore any questions over why Thornburg and Boccardi -- two men with unimpeachable reputations in their respective fields -- would join a conspiracy to "get Dan Rather."

So what should business managers and owners do if they “screw up” and need a scapegoat?
1. Do not blame other’s for your mistakes.

2. Call a meeting of top managers together and ask your secretary to “hold all calls.”

3. During this senior management meeting, begin by saying “In order for our company to move forward, often times we must take risks and act quickly. Sometimes these actions don’t turn out as we had hoped. This is the case when I tried to implement xyz and it resulted in the following …”

4. Remember that we are all human and make mistakes. Be able to admit your mistakes and faults and your co-workers and management team will respect you, rather than hate you for falsely blaming someone else. Don’t make others your scapegoat!

Posted by Melody at 11:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)