15 Years Ago

From time to time I hit some personal items on this blog.  The start of this post will be one of them, so if you are here for the industry related scuttlebutt, please skip down to the next section.  Otherwise thank you for hearing me out.   15 years ago this past week, my father passed away.  He was a great and patient man.  An inspiration in that he decided to “bet on himself” and start anew.. by breaking away and starting his own glass business in the 70’s.  Not exactly the greatest economy to do so, but he did and did it well.   He recognized the talent of people around him and put them in a position to succeed.   Efforts by my brother, sister and many others who were there at the start were huge and the company grew.  That team he built, led to more and more over the years as people connected to that original network branched out and now the impact from that foundation is felt throughout the industry today.   That makes me proud.  I was too young to be in that business at the start, I consider myself one of the branches of that tree though.   I wish he could still be here to see how we all are doing but that was not meant to be. In any case I do think about him all the time and miss him dearly- he may be gone, but never forgotten.

Elsewhere…

--  Nice pub for the industry and SageGlass with a quick Q&A in the New York Times in the Vocations section. 

--  Very interesting article here on a 1600 year old glass kiln discovered in Israel.  The best part of it for me was that they mention how even back in ancient times there were costs differences for glass based on supplier.  The price lists were on stone tablets… amazing.

--  A great twitter follow is Glassworks Inc. (@Glassworks_Inc) as there’s usually an excellent article or picture to take in.  This past week was no exception with a super link to an article on “Architectural Embellishment” and that story was spot on.  For the architect the question is… the freedom to design whatever you want is surely available… but should you? 

--  I got the new Glass Magazine this week and kudos again to Katy Devlin and company for a fantastic issue.  Tremendous reads cover to cover and the list of top fabricators never disappoints.  In addition the piece on interiors was very informative.  A lot more to think about with that application than I think many expect.   And the continuation on “Exit Planning & Succession” series was strong.  Good stuff.

--  And in that issue, my “ad of the month” award goes to Dorma.  I liked the layout of their piece- very sharp and eye catching.  Right amount of text and thumbnails of product really worked here.

--  Last this week… the NHL playoffs kicked off, as did then NBA.  So here are my picks in both.  Again apologies to the fan bases I choose, as I am rarely right…  In the NHL I am taking the San Jose Sharks to beat the New York Rangers.  Yes I know picking the Rangers means I am picking against my Penguins….  In the NBA, this year will be amazing to watch.  I am excited that my Detroit Pistons are back in the post season for the first time in years, but they have no chance, unless they convince Guardian’s Chris Dolan to come out of retirement and rain down lots of three pointers on the Cavs.   I don't  think LeBron can guard Megatron Dolan.  

I would love to see the Spurs win because of my friends in San Antonio, the awesome Luna family. But I think it’s the Warriors world and while they will be tested, in the end, I think they pull it off in a finals rematch vs. the Cavs.

LINKS of the WEEK

--  Yikes- an acronym gone wrong.

--  Smart pharmacist during a robbery

--  Sorry this cake will not come close to replacing Red Velvet as my favorite…

VIDEO of the WEEK

Well if the Pistons or someone else eliminates the Cavs, LeBron can go back to his other job… making pizzas.  Fun video here- LeBron does own a piece of this franchise too.