Secretaries and stewardesses went from endangered to extinct. Simultaneously, the new species of Administrative Assistants and Flight Attendants evolved. “Professional correctness” is taking off in this modern day workforce and men want in too!
Well at least that’s what I take away from a Monster.com article that re-terms “cowboy” with “ranch or farm manager.”
The only explanation I can think of for this modification is that the connotations of “cow” for “fat” and “boy” for “young” offended an overweight man with an inferiority complex. If this was simply a sexist issue, why not just use “cowperson?” Or did Nickelodeon already copyright that term for a cartoon?
Whatever the reasoning behind this change, it’s not just the occupation formerly known as cowboy that will be affected.
For those aspiring to be country singers, remember that you will now need to fit in two extra syllables when lyrically describing the men of the West. Good thing The Dixie Chicks peaked in the 90’s. “Farm manager take me away” somehow doesn’t strike as romantic a chord.
And for those planning on being politically and professionally correct parents, you better make sure it’s “Ranch managers and Native Americans” your kids are playing at recess.
Inspired by “10 Cool Jobs and What They Pay.” By Dona DeZube. http://content.comcast.monster.com. May 5, 2008.
People are outraged over Donald Trump trying to trademark “You’re Fired.” But I think we should be celebrating. Let him broaden his real estate properties to include intellectual ones. Once he owns that phrase as his brand, guess who can be held liable for saying “You’re Fired?” OUR BOSSES! Landing a job now equals employment for life!
Okay, the reality is that “The Apprentice” star is marketing his clothing line. If his application for a trademark is approved, he will have sole privileges to print “You’re Fired” on clothing, and the right to block other designers from accessorizing their fashion with his phrase.
I still think we should celebrate – for the future of our work wear. First of all, the fewer designers entitled to put that phrase on clothing, the better. And second, I for one am just grateful that The Donald isn’t launching a hair care line.
Of all people, it was the crusader against organized crime and corporate wrongdoing who turned out to be a high-paying customer in a prostitution ring.
So who has the last laugh now at former Governor Eliot Spitzer? His Wall Street targets, his white collar convicts, Republican radio show hosts, and even us Trubys???
HA HA – Hold it! Thanks to public confessionals from the new New York Governor David Paterson about his past affairs and drug use and to Detroit’s latest setback involving Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick’s infidelity, perjury, and incessant text messaging, we see that the nation’s top leaders are vulnerable. And whether we want to admit it or not, we are too.
The reality is that the wrong decision will be easy to make throughout our careers. Sometimes we won’t know we’re doing wrong at the time. I, for one, swear I had no idea that a blinking red light was code for “Feed me any more paper and I’ll die.” Unfortunately, my decision to continue the task at hand resulted in a company casualty. RIP Shredder.
Other times we’ll know what we’re doing isn’t right. It always seems to start off innocently – we expense a beer tab that really wasn’t business related or we indulge in flirtatious conversation with a blind eye to the ring finger. But such activity can grow beyond our control and pretty soon we might be no better than the corporate tycoons who cook the books or the politicians who allocate tax dollars towards the cause of call girls.
So I’ll suspend my judgment for now and instead admire Eliot Spitzer for stepping down immediately in the interest of the people of New York. Plus, anything I say here is subject to being hypocritical. I still have an entire career ahead to make mistakes in…
Restoration Hardware turned down a buy-out offer from Sears.
I don’t think anyone needs experience in the business world, consumer world, or world in general to understand this one. The only thing I don’t understand is how a deal like this even approached the table. I couldn’t even imagine the table these two companies would come together at.
A simple search on the Sears website for “table” will yield a page of 20 tables - 17 air hockey/ foosball tables and 3 dining room tables, starting at $249.99. That same exact search conducted on the Restoration Hardware site yielded a page of 10 tables - all bearing titles including a synonym for “wealth” or a luxurious travel destination (i.e. Estate Coffee Table, Hamptons End Table), as well as 2 table lamps, one priced at $500.00.
The Sears and Restoration Hardware homepages showcase quite a mismatch as well. Restoration Hardware features a lavish poolside chair surrounded by the pristine green of an untouched mountain range. The only prop that appears to be missing from this scene is a service bell. Meanwhile Sears looks like they uploaded a picture taken accidentally in a garage where the only green comes from four potted plants. The place is so filled with tool chests and landscaping implements that one can only assume this is the service entrance to the set of Restoration Hardware’s photo shoot.
Is this an anti-Sears tirade? Absolutely not. I’ll be checking out with them for Fathers Day, trust me. I just don’t see the connection or strategy behind their buyout offer.
Restoration Hardware didn’t either. They took up a deal with private equity firm Catterton Partners instead. Now their website definitely resonates with Restoration Hardware. That table pictured on the homepage - you think it’s straight from the Greenwich Collection?
Sources:
www.sears.com
www.restorationhardware.com
http://www.cpequity.com/
Everyone can have Facebook now! And some people have it twice.
If you’re reading this in Morocco, here’s a warning. A 26 year-old computer engineer was arrested, and allegedly beaten, for impersonating Prince Moulay Rachid on a Facebook account.
Needing background on this news story, I went straight to my trusted information sources. First, I pulled up the Prince’s Google Images file. I couldn’t help but wonder what was so impressive about his face to fraudulently post it on Facebook. Then I found a timeline of the Prince’s life on Wikipedia: son of a King, studied International Politics, acted as a Diplomat - pretty standard - any Disney prince could have provided that material. Reading on however, I did find that his royal highness was a hero via one extremely unique course. Wikipedia states verbatim: “In 2000 under the brave leadership of Prince Moulay Rachid was founded Hassan II golf Trophy Association.” I sure hope he survived that feat without too bad a handicap.
Joking aside, this is a serious matter. We who grew up during the Internet boom in democratic societies must be careful. We now have the ability to broadcast our jokes to the masses BUT THE MASSES HAVE THE ABILITY TO SEE THEM! It’s not just about taking down that picture of you doing a keg stand so that your boss doesn’t see it. It’s about controlling anything that goes out into cyberspace from your IP address. Cyberspace is border-free but full of citizen-censors.
Of course we can still have fun. There are plenty of safe alternatives to joking on the web - so be clever! If you just HAVE to impersonate someone in Morocco on Facebook, scroll down to the Favorite Quotes section and write:
“Here’s looking at you kid.”
- Humphrey Bogart, Casablanca
