Ever since its creation in the 1980s, Italian brand Moschino has been known for eccentric themes and flamboyant designs. When designer Jeremy Scott took the helm in 2013, he breathed new life into the label, and continued to push the boundaries of fun-loving chaos, which attracted even more attention.
But when some blouses retail for $1,295 and pants for $750, not every fan of the brand can afford the steep prices. That doesn't mean you have to miss out completely. Every season Moschino produces phone cases that reflect the runway's theme. Ranging from $25 to $135, these tech accessories are a more affordable way to own the label.
An entire Windex-themed Moschino outfit can be yours right now (with the exception of the iPhone case shaped like a spray bottle, which is already sold out).
Shortly after the show Moschino.com offered an iPhone case version of the knock-off glass cleaner for $95, in addition to other Windex-themed merchandise. While it's not their most expensive case, the price is up there. That didn't stop Moschino lovers from snatching it up. The squeaky clean case is already sold out. There's no word yet if the units will be restocked.
AU JOUR LE JOUR - In the U.S., you can Shout it out; In Italy, they use Dash, a popular clothing detergent. To mark its 50th birthday, the Procter & Gamble-owned soap brand partnered with Au Jour Le Jour, which duplicated the Dash logo and packaging on tall boots, boxy tote bags and oodles of go-go dresses. Even worse, the print motifs were stains: stylized splatters and drips on rainbow-colored, croc-stamped leather pinafores; broken eggs on sweatshirts, and drops of blood on white tops and bleached jeans.
With this collection, Mirko Fontana and Diego Marquez joined the campy, cartoonish fashion territory mapped out by Jeremy Scott at Moschino, whose giveaway iPhone cover this season resembled a window-cleaner spray bottle. Call it a stain-off.
Dubai’s Ziggurat City Will House A Million: Dubai wants to build one of the wonders of the earth – a massive flat-topped pyramid where a million people can live in a self-sustaining environment. A city within a city, dubbed Ziggurat after the temples of ancient desert peoples who first lived in the Middle East, the base will be almost a mile square. With roots in history, the building is definitely at the cutting edge of science with green technologies that do not run on fossil fuels and a transport system that runs vertically and horizontally. The futuristic building is expected to be open in time for the Cityscape Dubai exhibition in October 2013. Cityscape is the region’s largest and most prestigious real estate event that attracts thousands of delegates from around the world each year.
A 15-year-old boy working as a window-washer fell to his death from the ninth floor of a building on Wednesday afternoon. The incident occurred at a construction site in the central Israeli town of Bnei Brak. Paramedics tried to resuscitate the boy at the scene, but were unable to do so. The young man’s family has been involved in criminal activity. Two family members were arrested recently for serious crimes, and another relative was arrested in a separate incident. Despite the family history, the Dan District Police believe after a preliminary investigation that the boy’s death was an accident, not the result of foul play. The boy worked with his father at the site near the Bnei Brak- Ramat Gan border, where two apartment towers are in their final stage of construction.
Keeping New York workers safe in the heat: New York workers need to take precautions to keep themselves hydrated and healthy in the summer heat and humidity. This summer is turning out to be a particularly steamy one for many parts of the country, and while the temperatures haven't been "record high" in New York, there are still countless workers exposed to hot and humid environments on a daily basis. What many employees - and in some cases, their employers - don't realize is that heat-related illnesses can result in serious injury and even death.
What are heat-related illnesses? Sometimes when the body is exposed to hot and humid conditions, it simply cannot cool itself enough. When that happens, heat exhaustion and other heat-related, on-the-job injuries can occur. According to information about heat illnesses provided by the New York City Department of Health, heat exhaustion can cause nausea, vomiting, clammy skin, weakness and dizziness. When the body's temperature spikes suddenly, heat stroke is possible. Heat stroke is the most serious heat-related illness, and it can cause death if not properly treated. The NYCDH also gives some guidance about the warning signs of heat stroke, which include excessive sweating, muscle cramps, loss of appetite, confusion, hallucinations and light-headedness.
Who's at risk? Obviously, those working outside in the summer heat, including construction workers, landscapers, roofers, painters, window washers, delivery persons, law enforcement professionals and utility workers are at high risk. People working inside with no air conditioning or little ventilation, metal workers, restaurant chefs and those in commercial bakeries (and other factory positions) can also succumb to the heat.
Heat-related illnesses are more common in the elderly, those unaccustomed to the heat (like new hires who have not yet built up a tolerance or workers returning from an extended break), those taking medications that make them more susceptible to heat (antidepressants and anti-anxiety medicines are notorious for this) and those who have pre-existing medical conditions.
Prevention: They say that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. That is definitely true when it comes to preventing heat-related illnesses. Employers and workers who understand the dangers associated with excess heat and humidity can take steps to ensure that their bodies are not overcome by the stress of hot, humid weather. The most important thing that any outdoor worker (or one in a heated indoor environment) to remember is that water is absolutely crucial. Drinking at least one cup of cooled water every 15 to 20 minutes can go a long way toward keeping the body's temperature under control.
Wearing loose-fitting clothing and a hat to protect the body from the sun's rays can also be beneficial. Another helpful hint is to avoid alcohol and caffeine when working in the heat; both of these actually dehydrate the body, so they can diminish the effectiveness of proper water consumption. Taking breaks in the shade often, using fans or air conditions whenever possible, and wearing light-colored clothes will also help put the body in an optimum position to fight the heat and humidity.
Suncream and cosmetics spark allergy epidemic: Millions of people are being exposed to toxic chemicals in everyday products ranging from shower gel and deodorant to make-up and suncream, doctors have warned. Skin experts say that Britain is in the grip of a skin allergy epidemic which could reach crisis point if more is not done to slash the amount of the preservatives – known as MI and MCI/MI – being used.
Dr John McFadden, consultant dermatologist at St John’s Institute of Dermatology, said: “The time for action is now. We are in the midst of an outbreak of allergy to a preservative (MI) which we have not seen before in terms of scale in our lifetime. “Many of our patients have suffered acute dermatitis with redness and swelling of the face. I would ask the cosmetics industry not to wait for legislation but to get on and address the problem of MI allergy before the situation gets worse.”
Dr David Orton, president of the British Society of Cutaneous Allergy, said: “Data suggest that rates of allergy to these two preservatives are now nearing 10 per cent – and in some cases higher – this is clearly far too high and is an unacceptable situation. “The last time a preservative had this type of effect it was banned by the EU. Although the relevant bodies in Europe have set up a review this all takes time – in the meantime the number of people coming to see us with this allergy is only likely to rise.
“We would welcome the opportunity to meet and discuss this issue with representatives of the UK cosmetics industry so as to take immediate steps to protect UK consumers.” The MI – methylisothiazolinone – and MCI/MI – methylchloroisothiazolinone aka methylisothiazolinone – are found in abundance in personal care products including moist wipes, cleansers and shaving foam as well as products such as washing up liquid. MI is also present in window and floor cleaners, air fresheners and paint. It is also used in the paper, metal and oil industries.
This week, at a City Hall reception in London, party guests roasted – surrounded on all sides by windows that didn't open; and, when windows don't open in summer, they turn into heating panels. Ever since the Romans first inserted glass into wall apertures, the window has got more sophisticated. First came the casement window – with its thick glass divided up into tiny chunks by lead strips. Then came the most sophisticated window of all – the sash window, imported from France in the late 17th century, allowing minute adjustments, with the sashes balanced by cords and weights, and the air circulating through both a top and bottom opening if needed. Through the 18th and 19th centuries, window panes got thinner and thinner, and lighter and lighter, allowing fewer glazing bars – until you got to the stage in the late Victorian period when you could have a single pane of glass over another single pane. And then, suddenly, over the last 20 years, we regressed and sealed our windows permanently shut. Why?
First health & safety working at height workers - Mary Smith: Legendary knocker-upper, picture from 1905. Mary Smith was a notorious character in the east end of London, allegedly earning sixpence a week for shooting peas at the windows of local market workers in Limehouse Fields to get them up in time for work. Knocker-uppers were reportedly on duty in towns and cities across the country between 1870 and 1945!
San Antonio Window Cleaners Needed (Deadline today) - The upcoming TV season sure is shaping up to be a special one for San Antonio viewers. It's to feature real, hard-toiling Americans and, according to casting producer Bonnie Clark, San Antonio is one of the cities selected for the hunt. The idea is that hard work deserves a reward. The ads and online documentary will be produced by the team behind the reality series, “Dirty Jobs.” Those chosen to appear will be paid. A description of what the casting folks are looking for: stories from dedicated workers who know what real labor is all about — ranchers, commercial fishermen, mechanics, factory and construction workers, window washers ... you get the picture.
They're also looking for people who have made a difference off the job: rescuing animals, building a park playground, any deed that showcases sacrifice, integrity and plenty of heart. Busch Beer and the ads' producers hope to come to San Antonio in August to film those chosen. Deadline to apply is July 10. Interested? Send an email to Clark (bclark@pilgrimstudios.com) with the following: name, age, location and phone number. Also include a recent photo and a description of how you really “earn it” at your current job or volunteer effort. Applicants must be older than 25.
Hugh O'Brian reflects on journey from Hollywood window washer to star: When he was a 17-year-old Marine on weekend leave, Hugh O'Brian made easy money washing the storefront windows on Hollywood Boulevard. It was 1943 and O'Brian would go up and down the 6600 block of the boulevard, earning extra cash for his labors -- money he said he generally used to help pay for dates. But it was his fame as an actor that permanently cemented his relationship with this famous street. His star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame was dedicated in 1960 -- 6613 Hollywood Blvd., smack in the middle of the neighborhood where he once washed windows.
Sitting on a recent afternoon at a sidewalk table with his wife, Virginia, outside the Lucky Devils gastro pub in the middle of the block, the 88-year-old actor said he has been drawn again and again to this stretch of the boulevard. "I don't remember what kind of store this was back then," he said, "but I used to get $2 to do windows like these. It was good money back in 1943."
Motorcyclist's 528-mile challenge in aid of Hoddlesden boy Sam: Window cleaner Andrew Smith, who is originally from Darwen, will complete the 528-mile round trip for the four-year-old Hoddlesden boy, who was diagnosed with neuroblastoma, an aggressive childhood cancer, in January.
His parents are hoping to be able to take him to America for treatment but need to raise £250,000 to be able to do so.
Father-of-two Mr Smith, 52, who now lives in Salford, said he was inspired to take on the challenge on his Honda Blackbird after reading about Sam’s story in the Lancashire Telegraph. He said: “My mum lives in Hoddlesden and she visits me once a week and brings the papers with her. “I read about Sam and I thought it was a fantastic appeal, so I wanted to raise some money.” Mr Smith expects it will take him around four hours to get to Torquay, where he will have a two-hour rest before starting the journey home again. He has not yet set a date, but expects to complete the challenge at the end of August. Donate here.
DDB MudraMax - Outdoor wins big at Outdoor Advertising Awards (MUMBAI): Outdoor Advertising Awards 2013, which concluded recently, saw DDB MudraMax - Outdoor as the clear winner. The agency once again proved indomitable by bagging eight Golds, five Silvers and four Bronzes and the coveted 'Campaign of the Year' and 'Innovation of the Year' titles. The Campaign of the Year title was given to Volkswagen's campaign titled 'Post-It' and the campaign for Adventure 18 titled 'Window Washers' bagged the Innovation of the Year. Commenting on this exuberant win, DDB Mudra Group COO Pratap Bose said, "This is the fourth year where we have dominated this award function with a sack full of awards. It's a great result for the brave clients that we work with and a great thumbs up for the best Out of Home team in the country."
New York-based ABM is stating that if energy savings, measured annually, don't completely cover the cost of the work, as promised, including new equipment, they'll cut the town a check for the difference. ABM started as a window-washing company in San Francisco more than 100 years ago. It now offers such services as electrical and lighting, electrical testing, facilities engineering, janitorial services, landscaping and energy consulting.
Lucky escape for window washer - Man accidentally rams car into store-front property: The store front of Rent-A-Center was damaged after a man driving a Jeep Grand Cherokee struck parked vehicles before crashing into the business Wednesday near the intersection of W. Loop 281 and Gilmer Road. Police say the Longview man was backing out of a parking space when he lost control of his vehicle. Mike Stacy, manager of Big 5 Tires next door to Rent-A-Center, was on the telephone about 9:30 a.m. when he heard what sounded like a car peeling out of the parking lot. “He left the parking (space), and the vehicle was wide open on the accelerator,” Stacy said, describing the noise coming from the Jeep’s engine. “You could tell from the noise the accelerator was all the way on the floor.”
Witnesses saw the Jeep dart backwards across the parking lot and strike a car, pushing it into a van parked in the next space. With the accelerator still on the floor, Stacy said, the car continued traveling in reverse toward the Capital One bank building before it veered and entered the roadway on Village Drive. Stacy said at one point it appeared Barnes’ Jeep was headed straight into traffic on the loop. The vehicle then hit a small tree and re-entered the parking lot — still in reverse — back to its original parking spot before plowing through the Rent-A-Center’s front, floor-to-ceiling windows. Stacy said it was a miracle no one was hurt since there was a person sitting in the van Barnes damaged, people were walking in the parking lot and a man was washing the window the Jeep drove through.
The Mom thing hits me like a bolt of lightning when I least expect it. Like the other day when I was sitting in a meeting at work watching as a couple ropes swayed to and fro clicking and clacking against the 11th floor windows. I knew a window washer would make his appearance soon, but when his little wooden seat dropped down to my level of vision, my heart skipped a beat. He looked so young that I gasped. “There’s a mother somewhere who worries every day if her son will be safe when he goes to work.”
Students with a talent for IT, electronics or engineering are being sought for the 2013 Bright Sparks competition. The competition, created by The Skills Organisation, is designed to encourage young people, between 11 and 18, to experience electronics by developing and refining an invention before submitting a prototype for judging. This year the panel of four judges – all industry experts in their own right – has strict criteria for selecting a winner. “We’re on the lookout for technical excellence; innovation, including originality and commercial potential; and passion, involving personal engagement,” says Petersen. “It’s important to us that a Bright Sparks entrant has a balance of these three factors in their project.” Previous Bright Sparks award winners have gone on to win awards at national and international levels. The 2012 overall winner, James Watson, took his Rubik’s Cube-solving robot to the International Science Fair in Singapore, while fellow winner Sohail Abdullah (pictured) was selected to attend the prestigious INTEL ISEF Fair in Arizona where his robotic window cleaner placed third among 1500 entries. The awards were first held in 1998 and, Petersen says, the technology has changed markedly in that time, as well as becoming cheaper and more accessible.
Visitors are attracted to a performance by intelligent robots during the four-day 2013 China International Robot Show, which- opened on Tuesday in Shanghai.
Shanghai center to showcase robots: Expo plans to feature machines for dull or complicated assignments. The consumer robotics market is set to have a quick takeoff in China with the nation's first service robot exhibition center scheduled to open in Shanghai by the end of July. A robot-led automation boom is taking place in China as more companies use industrial robots for manufacturing and equipment operation. The market value of industrial robots in China surpassed 1 billion yuan in 2012, up 67 percent from the previous year, said Zhao Xinmin, head of the statistics department at the China Machinery Industry Federation. Service robots have long been a niche market, however, where overall revenue only reached 7 percent of that for industrial robots in 2011, IFR data showed. According to New York-based consulting firm ABI Research, the global consumer robotics market is poised to hit $6.5 billion by 2017 from $1.6 billion in 2012. ABI also said Asian companies are fueling new momentum in the industry by delivering newer task-based products such as window-cleaning robots.
The glass memory has been compared to the "memory crystals" used in the Superman films, which contain recorded holographic video and data saved by his parents.
Glass allows scientists to recreate superman's memory crystals: A new type of computer memory similar to the “memory crystals” used by Superman in the films has been developed. lasers to record and retrieve data from pieces of glass. They claim it could allow up to 360 terabytes, equivalent to 580,000 CDs, to be stored on a single piece of glass the size of a standard CD. The process uses a laser to reorder the atoms in the crystal structure of the glass. The size and orientation of the tiny structures the laser creates adds extra information in addition to their location. These structures change the way light passes through the glass, meaning it can then be read back.
This means huge amounts of data can be stored. The scientists say that because the glass is stable and heat resistant up to 1,000°C (1,800F), it could also be used to ensure information can be kept safe for long periods of time in archives. Professor Jingyu Zhang, who led from the University of Southampton, said: “We are developing a very stable and safe form of portable memory using glass, which could be highly useful for organisations with big archives. “At the moment companies have to back up their archives every five to ten years because hard-drive memory has a relatively short lifespan. It is the first time researchers had been able store a document in glass using the device and then read it back. Previously the scientists created glass storage that could store the equivalent of a Blu-ray Disc – up to 50GB of data – but they now can store more than seven times that.
The scientists presented their latest work at the Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics in San Jose.
The recording process, which is done by focusing a laser to imprint tiny dots called "voxels" into the pure silica glass. The process makes the glass slightly opaque and polarises the light as it passes through. This can then be read using a optical detector. The glass memory has been compared to the "memory crystals" used in the Superman films, which contain recorded holographic video and data saved by his parents. Professor Peter Kazansky, supervisor of the Optoelectronics Research Centre at Southampton University, added: “It is thrilling to think that we have created the first document which will likely survive the human race. “This technology can secure the last evidence of civilisation: all we’ve learnt will not be forgotten.”
A Hackensack man and his sister have been indicted by a Bergen County grand jury in connection with a pair of pellet gun shootings in which a man was hit and a young girl was narrowly missed. Nicholas Battaglia, a 25-year-old pizza maker and window washer, apparently was taking potshots at people “for fun,” Detective Capt. Thomas Salcedo told CLIFFVIEW PILOT at the time of the mid-March shootings. The victims were in the area of a Pizza Hut parking lot at Essex and State streets across from Battaglia’s apartment, Salcedo said. “At the time we didn’t know whether it was a drive-by or from a stationary position,” the captain said.
Detectives canvassed the area and hit on Battaglia’s apartment. They knocked and immediately spotted the box for an air rifle inside, Salcedo said. The .177 caliber Crosman Air Rifle — same as the model pictured above — was recovered, authorities said. Battaglia was taken to headquarters, along with his sister, 30-year-old Rebecca Battaglia. Nicholas Battaglia remains held on $75,000 bail in the Bergen County Jail. He faces six grand jury counts related to possessing, pointing and shooting the rifle His sister remains free on two grand jury charges of trying to hide the rifle and keep police from arresting him. Both are due back in Superior Court in Hackensack for conferences on July 17.
Community Alert: The RCMP are warning people about young people going door-to-door offering window cleaning services. In situations where unsolicited services are offered, you need to be wary that it might be an unsavoury character scoping out your residence. Never invite a stranger into your home, and always do reference checks on any contractor.
Percy Main serial conman locked up for cruel scam of Gateshead pensioner: Despicable doorstep trickster Philip Lamb was out of jail just months before he was preying on the vulnerable again. Lamb has a shameful history of posing as a window cleaner to trick his way into the homes of the elderly to steal from them.
And he’d only been released after serving half of a five-year prison sentence for a matter of months when he struck again. This time, the 30-year-old, whose own dad is severely ill, posed as a handyman and knocked on the door of an 84-year-old disabled woman and offered to clear out her gutters. The housebound pensioner, who lived in sheltered accommodation in Felling, Gateshead, initially refused to let him in, saying she thought that he was a conman. But it didn’t stop the career criminal from gaining her trust and worming his way in.
And it was while the victim was fetching him a bucket and water, that the shameless fraudster stole her handbag, a court heard. The woman only noticed her bag was missing after Lamb had left and contacted police. Now, Lamb, of Balkwell Avenue, Percy Main, North Tyneside, who pleaded guilty to burglary of a dwelling at Newcastle Crown Court, has been jailed for six-and-a-half years. Caroline McGurk, prosecuting, said Lamb was caught after police matched DNA to the bucket of water.
Branding Lamb a “serial burglar”, Recorder Keith Miller said: “You’re not a stranger to these courts, far from it. “You’re not a stranger to offences of burglary. You appear to be a serial burglar.” He added: “According to probation records, the circumstances for the matter for which you received five years was you called at the address of an elderly woman and asked if she wanted her windows cleaned. “You asked for her to fill you a bucket of water and you stole cash. The same report indicates a pattern of the deliberate targeting of elderly of vulnerable victims.
“According to the latest victim, you knocked at her door at about 3pm. “She wisely had a chain on the door so she could open it slightly without opening it fully. You asked if she wanted her gutters cleaning. She said the organisation that runs the sheltered accommodation carry out the work on her behalf. “You persisted and said it would only cost her £3. She continued to dispute the need for you to do the work, stating she doesn’t normally have to pay anything. She told you she thought you were a conman and you said ‘certainly not’, but that is precisely what you are.
“She eventually agreed and got a bucket of water for you then you asked for some soap. “She got that and remembered she needed to give you £3 and went to get the money out. “You then tried to confuse her, stating she had given too much money and you gave £1 back. It was after you went that she realised her shopping bag was missing from the side of her chair. “In the bag she not only had her keys, bus pass, rail card, purse, her pension card, spectacles, a bank card, £40 to £50 cash and her rosary beads. I’m sure the latter had particular importance to her. I’m equally sure she looked after all those items in the bag.”
The court heard Lamb committed his latest burglary in May, just five months after he was released from prison in December and while he was still on licence. She said: “He maintains he didn’t know beforehand that the victim was vulnerable as he was not in a clear state of mind.” Ms Hedworth also told the court Lamb, whose girlfriend is standing by him, was planning on giving £100 compensation to his victim.
Jailing Lamb, Recorder Keith Miller said: “The victim has lived in her house for 19 years and she now is frightened and is glad that the locks were changed, otherwise she would not be able to sleep in that property. I have gone at some length through what happened and the way the victim has been affected by it because, sooner or later, you’re going to have to realise that you must change your ways. The sentencing for this sort of offending only gets higher and higher.” Lamb fleeced an 81-year-old woman after posing as a window cleaner during the 2010 offence.
Woman Attacks Boyfriend With Windex, Car: A woman is accused of running down her boyfriend outside a store she was already banned from before attacking him with a bottle of window cleaner and standing over him with a box cutter. New Castle City Police say they responded to the BJ’s on Sunset Boulevard around 2:30 p.m. Monday for the report of a domestic incident between a man and a woman. Police say they found Adrienne Dorman, 21, of the 500 block S Dupont Highway standing over her 21-year-old boyfriend with a box cutter in her hand. BJ’s staff told officers that Dorman had already been banned form the store because of previous fights with her boyfriend.
The duo got into a fight in the parking lot this time over a cell phone. Witnesses told police Dorman intentionally struck her boyfriend with her car, sending him airborne. As the man lay on the ground, Dorman allegedly sprayed him in the face with Windex and began to go through his pockets. Police officers said they found her standing over the victim with the open box cutter. Officers were able to disarm Dorman and take her into custody. She was charged with second-degree assault, trespassing and related charges and released on $10,4000 unsecured bond. She was also ordered to have no contact with the victim and ordered not to drive a car. Her boyfriend was treated at a local hospital for leg injuries. Also see: A Use For Spray-On Window Cleaner.
Justin Bieber urinates into restaurant mop bucket then decries ... President Bill Clinton? Justin Bieber acting out of control and as if he can do anything he wants continues, as TMZ has video of the pop star urinating into a mop bucket in a restaurant kitchen. TMZ is told the clip was shot earlier this year when Bieber and his entourage were leaving a nigihtclub by exiting through the restaurant kitchen. And instead of using a restroom like a normal person, Bieber decides to pee in some poor janitor's mop bucket while laughing like an idiot. And his "Wild Kidz" entourage buddies act like this is a moment to remember. Then on the way out of the restaurant, Bieber sprays window cleaner on a photo of President Bill Clinton that hangs on the wall, shouting, "F*** Bill Clinton." So, have we started an office pool yet for the total implosion of Bieber? Whatcha got?
Weapon: Grabbing a bottle of blue window cleaner Mr Baillargeon said he sprayed the chemical, pictured, in the burglar's eyes and blocked his swing of a crowbar.
So there is a use for spray on window cleaners after all..
Man fends off home invader with glass cleaner: Lauderdale Lakes, Fla. - A home invasion victim turned the tables on an armed man, fighting back with an everyday household item. Sixty-six-year-old Jacques Baillargeon didn't sit back when a robber stormed into his apartment. "I don't like to be afraid, I never like to be afraid in my life," said Baillargeon. On Tuesday, Baillargeon said a man came into his home carrying a gun and a crowbar. At the time, Baillargeon was relaxing with his wife. "And I said, 'No way this guy is going to touch my wife,'" he said.
Before the robber could grab any cash or jewelry from the apartment, Baillargeon grabbed the first weapon he saw, which was a bottle of glass cleaner. "I said, 'No way, I will try not to panic and I will try to knock him down,'" said Baillargeon. Baillargeon sprayed the robber's face with the blue liquid. The robber then dropped his crowbar and fled the scene. Baillargeon immediately called 911.
Dispatcher: "You sprayed him with window cleaner?"
Baillargeon: "Yes."
Moments later, 29-year-old Nathanael Smith called 911 and claimed his home was broken into.
Dispatcher: "Did you see anyone? Can you tell me what they look like?"
Smith: "No, ma'am. He had on all black with a bandanna over his mouth."
Smith told police a crowbar was taken during the alleged robbery. Police questioned him and determined it was a cover-up.
Detectives said Smith was the one who tried to rob Baillargeon. Smith faked having a crowbar stolen to explain how his print was on the crowbar he left behind. Smith appeared before a judge Wednesday and is being held without bond. Police said Smith confessed he robbed Baillargeon and also confessed to robbing another couple a few days earlier.
A Royal Canadian Mounted Police veteran said he fought off a man’s home invasion by spraying him with Windex. The suspect, 30-year-old Nathaniel Smith, later helped police with his own arrest by calling 911, authorities said. Smith is accused of rushing into Jacques Baillargon's condominium in Lauderdale Lakes armed with a crowbar and a gun, as he wore a skullcap. He faces a charge of home invasion with a firearm after the Tuesday incident, online Broward court records said.
Baillargon, a veteran of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, showed NBC 6 how he fought off Smith's attack, then sprayed him in the face with window cleaner. “I look at him and I said I have to grab his eyes with the Windex,” Baillargon said. He said he spritzed Smith with the Windex twice, then deflected Smith’s arm with his own – knocking the crowbar out of his hand. Smith then took off, leaving behind the crowbar and skullcap.
Afterward, in an effort to misdirect investigators, police say, Smith called 911 and reported that somebody stole the tools he had used in the home invasion. “The tools that we fixed on my brother's girlfriend's car, it’s a small crowbar, a miniature crowbar, my black skully was with my book bag, my wallet’s missing, everything,” he said in a 911 call released by authorities.
Baillargon laughed about that aspect of the story. Why? ”Because he was playing smart, but I guess he didn’t play the right card,” he said. Baillargon said his training as a law enforcement officer gave him confidence to resist Smith and fight back.
He also had something else on his mind. “I was thinking about my wife, my wife,” Baillargon said. “My wife, and also I don't like to be afraid, so I said if something happened to her I'm going to have to live with that, so I prefer to run the risk.” Smith also faces kidnapping and drug charges, according to online jail records. He is being held on no bond in the Broward County Main Jail, and it was not immediately known if he has an attorney.
Industry agrees to postpone Carpex/Windex until October 2012: Quartz Business Media, the organiser of the Carpex/Windex 2012 exhibition, has announced the postponement of the event, which was due to take place on 8th and 9th March. The new dates have been confirmed as 3rd & 4th October 2012. The exhibition will remain at The Ricoh Arena in Coventry.
Martin Scott, exhibition sales director, said: “Carpex/Windex is staged specifically to support the needs of the carpet & upholstery and window cleaning industries, and we work closely with senior representatives from both sectors when shaping the event. Both sectors are finding trading tough at the present time, reporting that business activity is not set to rise until Q3 of this year. After positive discussions with major companies and associations from both industries we have therefore decided to postpone the event until 3rd & 4th October 2012, when buying activity is expected to be far stronger. Quartz Business Media is happy to be able to satisfy the needs of exhibitors in this way, and to reflect the wishes of the event’s sponsors, the National Carpet Cleaners Association (NCCA) and the Federation of Window Cleaners (FWC).”
Both associations support the organiser in a move that they agree is in the best interests of the industries concerned. Early indications are that the October event will be larger than that planned for March, offering visitors a greater breadth of products and technologies.
Martin Scott continued: “The event in October 2012 will feature everything that was planned for the March event - there will just be more. The seminars organised by the FWC and NCCA will be stronger, and the Window Cleaning Competition - hosted by the world’s fastest window cleaner, Terry ‘Turbo’ Burrows – will take place over the two days of the event. I would also like to acknowledge the great help provided by the management team at the Ricoh Arena in being able to change the dates at such a late stage.”
With market recovery widely predicted for the third quarter of 2012, the organiser is confident that the October 2012 event will surpass the high standards achieved in 2010. To make sure you are part of it, please contact Martin Scott or Sarah Layton on:
Tel: 01737 855086
Windows Next? Reverse Graffiti Actually Cleans Surfaces, but San Francisco Disapproves (Video): An advertising company called GreenGraffiti has come up with an ingenious way to provide clean marketing messages: reverse graffiti. By putting company-branded stencils on dirty sidewalks and pressure washing the ground, the stencils create a pattern in the shape of the stencil, often a company logo. Customers include Starbucks, Virgin Mobile, Patagonia, Range Rover, and Sony. But city officials in San Francisco are unhappy with this form of advertising and are seeking a way to have it banned.In fact, reverse graffiti can be equated to seeing "wash me" on a dirty car window. While swiping a finger across the surface to create the "wash me" message cleans the actual surface, most would agree that it's an eyesore and rather immature. Companies reverse washing their logos onto sidewalks with this type of graffiti may face the same backlash. Despite the potential "annoyance factor," this type of green graffiti can potentially gain favor if advertisers show willingness to clean up other parts of the city or donate some funds to city projects where they're posting their messages. Previous blog on this subject here.
OMG! It’s Gaga’s friend Zombie Boy without his tattoos: Before finding fame as model, Canadian Rick was living on the streets of Montreal, working as a window cleaner and appearing in a circus freak show to fund his tattoos. He was chosen by Gaga’s stylist Nicola Formichetti to star in the Born This Way video, and since his appearance along side Gaga he’s found work as a model, even walking the runway at Paris Fashion Week this year. So far, Zombie Boy’s body art only covers the top half of his body, but he is hoping to cover his legs, too. Previous blog here.
Q and A: A return to the ministry: Mike Lee isn’t new to The River Church, but for the past month or so he’s had a new job. Lee, a Farmington resident, took over Sept. 1 as pastor at the downtown church he has attended since 2004, and where he and his wife have been associate pastors since 2006. We sat down with him Monday to talk about his new role, chili carts and how to get men to come to church.
Why did you get away from the ministerial side of things in between moving back here and now?
I started my own business, My Three Sons Window Cleaning, that we started seven years ago February. And we just raised our boys.
What was it about the situation now that made you think it’s time to go back and get into it a little more?
Our kids are getting older, so they’re in school. And my business allowed me to have more time. I can manage it now rather than having to clean all the windows. That allows more time.
Ralph Bronk, an arborist, recommends residents use an extension pole, similar to those used by painters and window cleaners, to remove snow from trees before the branches are damaged. Extension poles can be found at most hardware stores. "If you have one of them handy, you can start tapping the branches on the tree. You want to start probably at the bottom so you don't build up additional snow load knocking the snow from the top to the bottom. You start at the bottom and just keep working your way up tapping the branch enough to get the snow to fall off," Bronk said. While extension poles can be very helpful in clearing snow from tree branches, care should be taken to make certain electrical power lines are not in or near the tree.
The Windex Mini has become the company's online bestseller.
SC Johnson introduced a version of its popular Windex window cleaner earlier this year that's sold in a "snip 'n' pour" pouch, above left, so customers can refill old bottles with a concentrated Windex formula diluted with water from the tap. The company also is test marketing a contraption called the All-in-One, above right, a dispenser for concentrated versions of Scrubbing Bubbles, Fantastik and other cleansers. And in March, Procter & Gamble is scheduled to introduce Tide Pods, a “compacted” version of liquid laundry detergent in single-use capsules meant to eliminate the need to measure and reduce the overuse of soap.
These kinds of super-concentrated cleaners have come and gone since the '70s, with mostly limited success. But consumers will see a resurgence of them in the months to come due to the success of niche cleaning products and pressure from large retailers including Wal-Mart, which are seeking to maximize shelf space, reduce their environmental footprint and showcase their eco-stewardship. For manufacturers, concentrated cleansers mean less water, less weight and lower shipping costs. For shoppers, the form and look of products used every week in the house could change dramatically. Among the benefits: fewer heavy bottles to lug and, perhaps most important, less packaging that needs to be recycled.
“Compaction allows us to do well while doing good,” said Len Sauers, vice president of global sustainability for Procter & Gamble in Cincinnati. “It reduces packaging through size reduction, which ultimately results in fewer trucks needed for transportation and a reduction in emissions.” The Windex Mini pouch uses 90% less plastic packaging than a traditional 26-ounce trigger bottle, avoiding the transport of 1.5 pounds of water per bottle, SC Johnson spokeswoman Kelly Semrau said. If 20% of the 21 million bottles of Windex Original sold in the U.S. each year were refilled, the company estimates, it would avoid shipping 6 million pounds of water and save 350,000 pounds of plastic.
Clearly, reducing the water in common household cleaners has advantages. Yet customers do not always buy in. According to the 2011 Eco Pulse Study conducted by the Shelton Group in Knoxville, Tenn., 7 in 10 Americans are searching for sustainable products but will try a greener product only if it's comparably priced and a known brand. The 2.9-ounce Windex Mini pouch makes a 26-ounce bottle of Windex and costs 40 to 50 cents less than a traditional bottle of Windex, according to spokeswoman Semrau. Still, “consumers think that it needs to be cheaper than that,” Semrau said, adding that SC Johnson is doing more studies on Windex Mini, currently available through the SC Johnson website.
The Mini pouches are shipped in a 100% post-consumer-recycled corrugated box, part of which can be turned into a photo frame. They are mailed through greenshipping.com. The Windex Mini has become the company's online bestseller, Semrau said. Yet when a product requires real behavior change, “most retailers would kick us off the shelf before we'd even have time for an idea like this to catch on fire,” she said. The company does not know when the Windex Mini will be available in U.S. stores.
John Koch (1909–1978) - The Window Washers: Window Washers is a fine example of Koch’s characteristic style and subject matter, a manner that he had fully codified by the time he had begun to earn good money as a society portraitist, and was able, in 1954, to move into the spacious rooms of two 10th floor apartments in the El Dorado building that would serve the couple for the rest of Koch’s career as home, studio, and salon for gatherings of a select circle of friends. In Window Washers, as in all of Koch’s oeuvre, light, whether artificial, natural—or both at once—functions as the artist’s alter ego. Koch’s light is the theater impresario who authoritatively enters a room, looking carefully and loving about as he does, and extends his hand delicately but firmly to bless all things beloved by the artist with touches of radiance, translucence, and quickening warmth.
Window Washers is also a subcategory of Koch’s interiors in which he depicted workmen attending to maintenance chores, a subject that insinuated the ideas of ordinariness and routine into a setting of studied delectation. Koch savored the quiet independent ritual of daily work in his studio and derived considerable contentment from the patrician view of city life offered by his north-facing studio windows: the neighboring apartment building with its lush pink brickwork, beaux arts architectural details and opportunity for inventing decorative window treatments, the aerial view of the traffic on Eighth Avenue including the iconic yellow taxi, and the green borders of stately Central Park. Window Washers is essential Koch, each day lived as an exquisite measure of delight. In Koch's painting, sunlight washes across the room's walls, floor and furnishings as a window washer, perched half-in, half-out of a window overlooking the Hudson River, cleans a glass pane with a cloth.
Forward-thinking architects are coming around to the view that inner-city tower blocks and woodland can be combined and are incorporating both in their latest designs. Plans for "vertical forests" – 25-floor buildings, flecked with balconies full of bushes and small trees – are sprouting up in several European countries. Fittingly, Milan, the continent's design capital but also one of western Europe's most polluted cities, is leading the way with the construction of two green towers. The Bosco Verticale (vertical wood) project, due to be completed in 2015, consists of two residential blocks, 110 metres and 76 metres in height, set in the Isola neighbourhood just north of the city centre. The towers will house a total of 900 trees, ranging from 3m to 9m in height, plus thousands of shrubs and flowering plants.
Stefano Boeri, the architect responsible for the design, says that together the buildings will provide the city with the equivalent of a further 10,000 square metres of woodland. The layer of foliage around the apartments is supposed to produce humidity, absorb CO2 and dust particles, produce oxygen and shield the building from traffic noise. Energy recycling systems that generate power from sunlight and wind should produce "dramatic" energy savings. The designers say that the plants provide shade in the summer and allow more light through during the winter months after they have shed their leaves.
But all that environmental technology doesn't come cheap. Prices at the exclusive development will start at €750,000 for 100 square metres, near the ground, rising to €1.2m for flats with spectacular views across the city. Architects in other populous, compact continental cities with chronic traffic and pollution problems are also turning to green skyscrapers to help the environment. In Valencia the planned Torre Huerta will feature balconies with trees and the use of solar cells. In Barcelona, the helical Stairscraper, in which the roof of each apartment will house the garden of the dwelling above it, is due for completion by the end of 2015.
But the problem of how to keep the foliage looking good – and doing its job– has yet to be resolved. Mr Brunello said plans for gardeners to descend, like window cleaners, on rigs outside the Bosco Verticale are being ditched in favour of "garden-freeclimbers" – think Spiderman armed with clippers and green-fly spray.
War hero, gym founder and businessman Ken dies (88) - A decorated war hero who lived an incredibly packed life to the full has died aged 88. Mr Ken Cowgill, of The Paddock, Burnley was a familiar face after turning a small window cleaning round into one of the area’s biggest cleaning firms in the 1960s. His son Adrian described him as a hard-working man who helped others. “He was my dad, my boss, my best friend and my golf partner,” he said. Born in Brierfield, Mr Cowgill attended Walter Street School before being drafted into the Army for the Second World War aged 18. He served in the 16th/5th Queen’s Royal Lancers as a tank commander spending much of his service in North Africa and Italy and was seconded for covert operations with the Special Air Service, including an attempt to kidnap Field Marshal Erwin Rommel. Days after returning from duty in 1946 he married his teen sweetheart Ethel, who wrote to him everyday for four-a-half years while he was away. After a stint as a delivery man for Bob Lord’s butchers he bought a window cleaning round before expanding into industrial cleaning and forming Ken Cowgill Ltd, in Colne Road, employing 40 men. Despite work and social commitments, Adrian said he will remember his dad as a man who had time for others. “He wasn’t bothered about himself and just wanted to help other people. He was a real grand fella.”
Funeral of murdered Hull man can finally be held after family's two-year battle with Spanish authorities: The family of a man murdered in Spain have spoken of their two-and-a-half year battle to hold his funeral. Charles Stabler, 64, died after he was attacked at his holiday home in the resort of Benalmadena in April 2009. His family struggled for more than two years to find out about the murder trial while battling Spanish authorities to release his body. Charles's murderer was jailed in May this year, but his family were still not allowed to hold a funeral. Lifelong Hull FC fan Charles, born in the Hessle Road area of west Hull, spent most of his life working at Capper Pass in Melton. When he was made redundant, he set up a window cleaning business with his partner Joanne, who died from cancer six years ago. Charles, who lived in Sutton Park, had owned his apartment in the Costa Del Sol for more than 20 years. He died after he was hit over the back of the head and slashed across the face before his holiday home was set on fire. He spent three weeks in a coma in a Malaga hospital before losing his fight for life on May 1, 2009.
Window cleaner climbs military ladder: A former window cleaner from Bridlington is preparing for a new military career after committing himself to Army training at the Infantry Training Centre (ITC) in Catterick. James Child, 24 from Bridlington, decided to swear his Oath of Allegiance in front of family and friends at the Scarborough Army Careers Office because of the job security and travel opportunities offered to servicemen. James, who has lost a stone in weight through fitness training to prepare himself for the Infantry course, said a lack of jobs locally also drew him towards joining the army. James said: “I’m really going to miss my friends and family, but I’m looking forward to starting my training and learning more about my role.” The demanding 26-week Combat Infantryman’s Course will improve James’ fitness and stamina whilst providing him with the weapon and fieldcraft knowledge essential for frontline service.
Burglars twice target Willenhall woman, 96: A 96-year-old woman from Willenhall has twice been targeted by distraction burglars posing as window cleaners, police revealed today. Money and jewellery was taken from the pensioner’s home in one of the burglaries. A man demanded money from the Portobello pensioner after claiming to have cleaned her windows and guttering. He spoke to the victim through the front bay window of her home but was disturbed by a neighbour before he could get inside. It came just six days after a man posing as a window cleaner got into the victim’s house and stole money and jewellery.
Falls from height remain the most common cause of workplace fatality. In 2008/09 there were 35 fatalities, 4654 major injuries and a further 7065 injuries that caused the injured person to be off work for 3 days or more. For those working in commercial window cleaning businesses, this is a very serious issue. Unger, one of the leading manufacturers of professional cleaning tools, offers a modular pole window cleaning system that reaches up to 65ft, enabling safe operation from the ground without the need for ladders. The pure water filter means that no chemicals are necessary, making it a safe and environmentally friendly solution.
Glass falls from Austonian high-rise after unknown object strikes window, officials say: Just when you thought it was safe to go back into downtown Austin. Pieces of glass again fell from a downtown high-rise, this time coming from the Austonian condominiums at Second Street and Congress Avenue Tuesday night. The glass fell after an unknown object hit an exterior window on the 45th floor of the downtown building, officials said Wednesday. No injuries were reported. The object hit the window on the building's east side about 9:30 p.m. Tuesday, Fire Department Specialist Andre De La Reza said. Wind carried some of the falling glass north of the building, and two cars along West Third Street were damaged, said Cile Montgomery , spokeswoman for the Austonian. Third Street was briefly closed Tuesday night. Montgomery said Austonian officials are investigating what hit the window. De La Reza said the window had a two-pane setup, and only the exterior window was broken. The remaining broken glass was removed Wednesday, causing more pieces to fall to the street about 10:40 a.m. Workers use a pole to knock out the remaining glass of a 45th-story window at the Austonian, Austin's tallest building.
Safety fears as window falls from derelict Port flats: Fears over the condition of a long-derelict block of flats in Port Bannatyne have worsened this week after a pane of glass fell from a top floor window and smashed on to the street below – narrowly missing passers-by and parked cars. Neighbours contacted Argyll and Bute Council after the incident at Buckingham Terrace, and the building was fenced off before local contractor Ian McMillan began work on boarding up all the windows in the derelict blocks at numbers 12 and 14 Castle Street.
Sault court windows cleaned: Cleaning a stained glass display at the provincial courthouse is a tall order. Twenty-five foot high scaffolding was put up on the main floor to reach about 75 pieces of yellow, burgundy and clear glass by a stairwell near the main entrance. The courthouse is being extensively cleaned following a suspicious fire in the basement in August. The glass is original to the 89-year-old building on Queen Street East, designed by chief architect Frank Heakes. Sizes range from one-by-one foot to two-by-two feet. The glass is in good shape with no fire damage, but some supporting bars were straightened out. A few years have passed since the stained glass, especially at the top end, got a good cleaning, said Moore. "It was a lot more than we actually thought," he said. "There's a lot of stuff that fell when they cleaned the glass. There was enough that it was warranted to be done." The stained glass cleaning was subcontracted to Glassworks. The downtown business resealed the exterior wood moulding of Sault Ste. Marie Museum's tower clock in 2010. Five Glassworks employees used a "special window cleaner" and soft bristle brushes to clean the glass. It took about five days to clean the glass. Final work was done Monday.
PPG Industries and Pleotint have contracted an accord to promote a commercial window glass structure that mixes Pleotint’s Sunlight Responsive Thermochromic or SRT (TM) interlayer expertise with that of SOLARBAN(R) low-emissivity (low-e) glass of PPG and also its other glass types to check solar heat gain within the buildings and to bring down energy cost. The patented technology of Pleotint utilizes a lowly tinted thermochromic interlayer that gets warm and becomes dark when exposed to direct sunlight but opens in for indirect sunlight to enable the light to enter into the building. The SRT interlayer sandwiched between two lites of glass can be utilized monolithically or in an insulating glass unit. The SRT interlayer adjusts the entry of visible light transmittance (VLT) all through the day without requiring any type of wiring, power supply and control requirements.
When combining the SRT interlayer with that of a window system utilizing Solarban glass with an established e-glass with solar control provided by PPG, the interlayer also blocks the entry of solar heat inside the construction and allows passing of visible light. Such windows drastically cut down the requirement of energy usage required to cool the buildings. Also the new combination windows brighten up the indirect sunlight within the building to bring down the usage of artificial lighting within the building, thus saving on energy costs.
Suspended sentences for pair who broke man’s jaw in kebab shop fight: Two friends who fractured a man’s jaw during an attack in a Stamford kebab shop have been given suspended prison sentences. Scott Taylor, 21, and Nathan Robinson, 20, were each ordered to pay their victim £1,500 compensation after Recorder Peter Cooke accepted they had punched him in a “moment of madness”. Lincoln Crown Court heard the two men each struck the man with a single heavy blow after Mr Taylor bumped into him during “horseplay” inside Zorbas kebab shop in Red Lion Street. The victim attended Peterborough City Hospital after the attack and was later transferred to Addenbrookes Hospital near Cambridge where he required surgery to fit plates in his jaw and remove two broken teeth. Both Taylor and Robinson were identified by a local police officer after the incident was caught on CCTV inside the kebab shop. During interview Taylor admitted bumping into the victim as he fooled around with Robinson while they waited for their food. When Robinson was shown the CCTV footage he admitted the attack on the man looked “fairly unprovoked.” The court heard Robinson had lost his job as a window cleaner after suffering a football injury.
A Scarborough man has been jailed after hurling a table at his former partner which injured her foot during a row. Andrew Davis, of Prospect Crescent, was sentenced to 10 weeks in prison after throwing the table and a laptop computer at the woman from the top of the stairs. Scarborough Magistrates’ Court yesterday heard Davis, 40, a self-employed window cleaner, threw the items down the stairs after she told him to get out of the house the next day. Prosecuting, Martin Butterworth told the court the incident had escalated after the pair had enjoyed an evening out together in Scarborough. He said: “She had gone out drinking with some old school friends and had been joined by him. “They were walking home along Dean Road when he disappeared, she was not quite sure where, so she walked home alone. “He was already at the home when she got back and a dispute occurred. “He was angry and she could not explain why. “He was standing at the top of the stairs throwing things at her which included a laptop, plant pots, a table and potpourri.”
Mitigating, Franklyn Garvey said Davis deeply regretted his part in the incident. He said: “He is extremely remorseful and knows he has got to face the music. “On the night in question, they had gone out but were not flat on their backs with an excess of alcohol and his ex-partner says that he was not drunk. “They were walking back home along Dean Road when he was caught short and went into an alleyway to spend a penny. “He decides there that he is going to play a prank on his partner and surprise her when she goes past the alleyway at the other end. “However, he gets there and there is no sign of her so he goes home. “When she arrived home, he said she went out to her car before telling him; ‘I want you out of this house by the morning’. “For a split second he has lost it and the red mist has descended. “He grabbed hold of the first item close to him and threw it. “He realises that he must have put the fear of God up his partner with the way he reacted. “He is beside himself with remorse.” After handing Davis 10 weeks in prison for common assault, magistrates also imposed a two week term to run alongside the sentence for criminal damage to account for the items which were broken during the incident.
Window Genie Window Cleaning Franchise Comes to Northwest Georgia: Window Genie®, a national franchisor of window cleaning and other home services, has granted a new franchise territory to Benjamin Hankins, who runs his franchise from his office in Chattanooga. Hankins’ franchise services Catoosa County, Walker County, Whitfield County, Dade, Chattooga County, Floyd County, and Gordon County, Georgia, and surrounding areas. Hankins grew up in Bristol, Tennessee and went to the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. From there he went to work for the Air Force in Warner Robins, Georgia. After that, he moved to Atlanta for 10 years, where he met his wife Tracey, who worked for SunTrust for 17 years. Six years ago, the Hankins moved to Chattanooga, where they are raising their family. In 2008 Hankins started researching his options and finally decided that a Window Genie franchise would be the ideal move. He voluntarily quit his job, something not many people are doing in this economy. “Job security is not necessarily more secure in the corporate world than owning your own business,” admitted Hankins. “You write your own checks, and you can work harder and smarter in your own business and make it work, while in the corporate world, you can work smarter and harder and still get fired.”
ABLE provides jobs for disabled; nonprofit group started nearly 50 years ago. The program turned into ABLE Industries, a nonprofit organization that provides employment and a variety of training for adults with disabilities. ABLE at one time stood for A Better Living Enterprise. Some of the areas ABLE clients perform work in include packaging, assembly, janitorial, window washing, grounds maintenance and paper shredding. Ayers said the organization has done work for thousands of businesses, including NASA, the state Department of Transportation, National Pretzel and numerous state prisons. The prison system is one of its biggest clients.
Help! My Franchise Is Failing: As a franchise consultant, I often remind people of a chief reason for buying into an established chain: You’re not by yourself. A good franchisor, whether it’s a big player like Burger King or a smaller chain such as Moe’s Southwest Grill, should provide critical support if your location runs into a cash crunch or suffers a loss of customers. That’s part of the appeal of buying into a franchise rather than starting a business from scratch. If you’re thinking about becoming a franchisee, ask existing franchisees about the support they’ve received from the parent company – or ask the franchisor itself about its commitment to franchisees, especially in a tough economy. If you’re already a franchisee, but are experiencing a setback, don’t be afraid to ask your franchisor for assistance.
Sales: In the beginning, franchisors typically offer lots of initial and advanced sales training as a normal part of their support services. But in troubled times, franchisors can step up their game by sending their own staff into a franchisee’s location to provide real-world training and extra help in signing up clients. The franchisor also might establish mentoring programs to rapidly increase a franchisee’s skills, or share real-world knowledge and timely best practices from other successful franchisees. Finally, the franchisors can bring in outside expertise by hiring sales experts to provide state-of-the-art professional sales training to franchisees. In recent years, I’ve seen a number of service-based franchises – Fish Window Cleaning, Dryer Vent Wizard and PuroClean, among others – help franchisees in this way.
Fair amplifies small-business voices: It was the first time Dave Ziervogel attended the event. In November, he and his wife, Debbie, started a Fish Window Cleaning franchise in Columbia. Although he isn’t sure how much business the fair might generate for the franchise, he will at least have one new customer: The bowl on Ziervogel’s table collecting business cards for a free window cleaning was full. “I know the economy’s a little difficult, but hopefully we get a few jobs out of it,” Ziervogel said.
Meadow Vista resident Nate Esway, 28, became a musician through the drums, but has since added several other instruments to his repertoire. Esway was born in San Jose but moved to Meadow Vista in 1989. He currently works at his father’s ceramics studio in Auburn and has his own window washing business. He has been a musician since before he was a teen and a songwriter since he was 18. Esway says "I started playing drums when I was 12 years old, and I picked up the guitar when I was 15." "And I have pretty much been playing guitar as my main instrument since I was 15." "As far as writing songs, I have been writing original music seriously since 2001." "(Writing music) is almost like therapy for me." "I usually take ideas that are somewhat personal to me and try to make them more abstract."
Stranded after bedsheet escape bid: Allegedly upset with her employer, a young Indonesian domestic helper tried to make her escape from an eighth-storey HDB flat in Bedok North. In a move right out of the movies, she tied pieces of blankets and clothes together and tried to lower herself down from the bedroom window. But she had cold feet and found herself stuck on a ledge a floor below. Shin Min Daily News reported that the 23-year-old claimed that her boss had slapped her, and she had been afraid and upset. The incident happened around 6 am on Friday.
The report also said a cleaner had spotted the woman standing on a small ledge on the seventh storey. He told Shin Min: "I was working, looked up and saw her." A black luggage bag was tied to the end of her improvised "rope". He had gestured for her to stay there, and she seemed to understand, he said. A police spokesman said they received a call for assistance. It was reported that the maid was taken to a police station for questioning and then sent to the maid agency.
The neighbour, whose ledge the maid was stuck on, said she was shocked when the police knocked on her door in the morning. Madam Su, 65, a housewife, told reporters that as her windows opened outwards, there was a fear that the maid would lose her balance. She recounted how the officers spoke in Malay to get the domestic helper to calm down and get back in. Once back inside on safer ground, the maid started to cry, she claimed. It is believed that the domestic helper had been with her current employers for three to four months.
Councillors will look into reports that elderly residents feel they are being ‘abandoned’ at sheltered housing schemes. Residents at two sheltered schemes in the Forest Heath area believe that changes made by Flagship Housing have drastically reduced the level of service they are receiving. Councillors heard that gardening, window cleaning, satellite TV services and external cleaning of the site had all stopped since May – despite residents still paying for them. Councillors will visit sheltered housing providers in the area. A report is expected back to council by December 10. Cllr Tim Huggan called the situation ‘shocking’.
Leavenworth County Commission to meet: The commission will meet at 9 a.m. Thursday for public comment and administrative business. County Clerk Janet Klasinski will discuss the redistricting of commission districts and Buildings and Grounds Director John Forslund will discuss bids for window washing and painting.
niors with tasks within their residences has received rave reviews from its clientele. In her recent report to city council, Family & Community Support Services manager Virginia Lehman said she was overwhelmed by the positive support she received following a survey. "We go in and assist seniors with their housekeeping, or things that make it difficult for them (to accomplish), so they can stay in their homes. "At the present time, and they change constantly, we have 75 homes that we go into." Lehman said she conducted a mini-survey with all her clientele, and was she elated with the results. "I was absolutely astounded because usually there is something that's not right, but it was 100 per cent happy with the service."
Part of Lehman's surprise over the results is the fact that the fees increased in the past year for the homemaker service. The cost now ranges from $7.50 to $15 an hour. It was the first increase since 1994, explained Lehman. "Over those 17 years, costs have gone up. "They just went right into the fact how wonderful the staff were," said Lehman, and added some said they wouldn't be able to live in their homes without the program. The only suggestion the clientele had for the program consisted of wanting to increase the service to include window washing. "Windows was a very big one, which I've known for a long time, but it's a very difficult one. "It's something that doesn't happen all the time, so it's not something that is a must to keep you in your own home," said Lehman. "And that's where we're coming from. "The fact that there is so many different types of windows. Maybe they're in a bigger house and it's got high windows. "What we do for one, we do for everybody. We're very flexible, but on the other hand, we're very consistent. "We won't do one and then tell the other one we can't do it, so that's one the reasons for no windows."
