Random Facts Friday: December 16, 2011

We are heading in to the last weekend before Christmas.
Taking off any days next week?
Hope you have a good holiday!
Here are some random facts when you need to catch your breath and relax...

1. I live in Ohio and was happy to find out that John Heisman who coached football in the late 1800's and early 1900's, got his start in college football at Oberlin College in Ohio. The Heisman Trophy is named after him.

2. The winter solstice can occur between December 20 and 23rd. The last December 23 solstice occurred in 1903 and will not occur again until the year 2303. A December 20 solstice has occurred very rarely, with the next one occurring in the year 2080.

3. The seasons do not have the same amount of days because of the earth's elliptical orbit. Spring lasts 92.8 days, Summer is 93.6 days long, Fall is around for 89.8 days, and Winter is with us for 89.0 days.

4. Christmas Eve, 1907, has the first telecast over a wireless radio. Reginald Fessenden began reciting: “And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed…” After reading the Christmas story, he picked up his violin and played “O Holy Night”, the first song ever played over the radio.

5. Caramel Corn. Can you not think of anything better around the holidays? I got this from Allrecipes.com and the submitter said they got the recipe from an Amish family. They give the Caramel Corn as a gift around Christmas time to friends and neighbors.

• 7 quarts plain popped popcorn
• 2 cups dry roasted peanuts (optional)
• 2 cups brown sugar
• 1/2 cup light corn syrup
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup margarine
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Place the popped popcorn into two shallow greased baking pans. You may use roasting pans, jelly roll pans, or disposable roasting pans. Add the peanuts to the popped corn if using. Set aside.
2. Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F (120 degrees C). Combine the brown sugar, corn syrup, margarine and salt in a saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring enough to blend. Once the mixture begins to boil, boil for 5 minutes while stirring constantly.
3. Remove from the heat, and stir in the baking soda and vanilla. The mixture will be light and foamy. Immediately pour over the popcorn in the pans, and stir to coat. Don't worry too much at this point about getting all of the corn coated.
4. Bake for 1 hour, removing the pans, and giving them each a good stir every 15 minutes. Line the counter top with waxed paper. Dump the corn out onto the waxed paper and separate the pieces. Allow to cool completely, then store in airtight containers or resealable bags.

Working Wednesday: Doing Business within China and other countries

Last week I attended a seminar with speakers from the U.S. Department of Commerce. They have a U.S. Commercial Service and more specifically, The China Business Information Center. You may want to visit their website, export.gov/china. They have information on the basic first steps; qualified buyers and distributors; laws, regulations, and customs; and market research.

The Commercial Service has offices in 78 countries, all listed on the website. Besides the web, the Commercial Service can be contacted at 800-USA-TRADE (800-872-8723). These countries represent more than 90% of the world's market for exports. The Commercial Service international offices generated $18.3 billion in exports for U.S. companies and their domestic offices facilitated $5.8 billion in U.S. export sales during fiscal year 2010.

Roberta Ford, who is the Director of the Commercial Service office in Columbus said that Ohio has seen a 21% increase in exporting to China, placing Ohio 10th in the nation. There are 6 offices in Ohio: Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, Toledo, Akron, and Dayton.

She reminded the audience that 95% of the consumers in the world live outside of the U.S. The Commercial Service will have 25-30 trade shows throughout the U.S. per year. These will be listed on the website. Also, see http://www.trade.gov/cs/states/csinyourstate.asp and click on Ohio. You will see events coming up, such as the conference in March in Cincinnati.

There is a National Export Initiative under the U.S. Small Business Administration that wants to double U.S. exports by 2015. Ohio has partnered with SBA to create the Ohio International Market Access Grant for Exporters (IMAGE). Funding is available to help small business market at the international level such as participating in an international trade show, funding for services provided by Commercial Service, and defraying some costs related to a trade mission. See www.IMAGE.development.ohio.gov or contact their office at 614-466-5017 for more details. The Ohio Department of Development's Office of Export Assistance may also be of assistance to you.

Alone in the Car: Religious Holidays and Public Education

For my regular readers, you know I mentioned in my last "Alone in the Car" blog these statistics: 78.4 % of Americans are Christian, 1.7% are Jewish, .7% are Buddhist, .6% are Muslim, .4% are Hindu, and less than .3% are Native American in terms of their religious affiliation taken from a Pew survey.

Through a variety of gathering information means, reports are showing that elementary school principals  are banning anything directly or indirectly related to Christmas, a Christian holiday held in December, but allowing the study of Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, and other religious holidays. Clearly, the majority of this country is Christian.

The study of cultures is fascinating. I fully support such research. Religion is part of a culture, and in an elementary school setting should be approached as objectively as possible--what I term an "encyclopedia" or "reference room" library definition.

I myself have taken my children (during their younger years) to visit different churches/religions other than our own for several purposes: 1) to learn from the people who practice that religion the tenets of said religion and 2) to learn to show respect to people from faiths other than our own. This has given them a wide variety of experiences including meeting with denominations within Christianity to the Hindu religion.

If religion is going to be part of the curriculum, which I think it should be--it is a major influence within any culture--then All religions should be given the same time, objectivity, respect, and honor they deserve. A principal is not the one to make the call on which religion can be studied. It should be All religions or None. I hope "none" is not the choice. Culture is part of partnership, whether it be in our communities, on a business level, keeping our country safe, or having a world at peace so great minds can put their energies on solving real challenges. We need to understand one another to work things out and that means taking time to get to know the whole person sitting across the table. Relationships will then follow.