Here I am with my co-workers in Corporate Communications at Genesis HealthCare, as we celebrate the Holidays!
Wednesday, December 28, 2005
Wednesday, December 21, 2005
FedEx & Me
FedEx reported today that its profits are higher than expected... Could this be because of the final boxes I had shipped by Fed Ex Ground from Arizona in the wee hours of November 30th? Amazing how the few things remaining after the moving van pulled away two weeks before could fill seven boxes... But I take this time to reflect with appreciation. Thank you FedEx for helping me to empty the home in Phoenix (not to mention my checking account) just in time for me to say good-bye to the place, the lease and two-years worth of memories, before I headed onward to the last of many flights this year from Phoenix Sky Harbor to BWI.... Hmmm.... maybe I could have put myself in an eighth box and saved the airfare?
Friday, December 2, 2005
Newsroom Address Change
For those of you that have been reading the BDL Newsroom, I need to inform you of an address change. Due to changes at the hosting service My Blog Site, the site has been moved to a new host, Blog Harbor... If you had saved it separate from this blog, please note the new address: http://bdlcommunications.blogharbor.com/
Thursday, November 17, 2005
Where's the Beef?
Or should I say, "Where's the meat?"
After returning from my latest trip to Phoenix, I read the following news report in my e-mail, one of several headlines I get fed from Baltimore's WBAL TV:
CATONSVILLE, Md. -- Police said an elderly woman was trampled by a bull on Inwood Avenue in Catonsville on Saturday. The bull was blocking the road and the woman got out of her car to try to push the bull out of the way, police said. They said that's when the bull trampled her. Authorities said the unidentified woman's injuries are not believed to be life-threatening.
That's it. Sad story... But sadder is the fact that the meat of this story is not explained or even mentioned... Where did this bull come from?! Are there still farms in Catonsville? Is it someone's pet? Obviously, the writer assumes that no one will question the fact that a bull just happened to appear in the middle of a road in a suburb of a major metropolitan area? It was, afterall, some urban-sounding street called Inwood Avenue, not some a rural route. (I almost thought I was back in Phoenix, where a wandering bull would be at home with wild coyotes, people carrying firearms into bars -- legally, coyboy hats and mountains in the distance... Can't you hear it? "Hey, Vern? D'ya hear Mrs. Smith got herself run over by a durn bull? Doc's tending to her now.")
But I think the question of what part of Catonsville and why was the bull there should have been in the mind of the writer and editor, and it should have steered at least a portion of this story. Now, I know this was only a TV headline service, delivered online. However, some basic and vital info is missing here, and it should not force me to solely read the Sun or other print-based Web sites.... I like WBAL's Weather Center, and I hate to subscribe to too many of these things.
Or maybe I'm just in a bullcrappy kind of mood.
After returning from my latest trip to Phoenix, I read the following news report in my e-mail, one of several headlines I get fed from Baltimore's WBAL TV:
CATONSVILLE, Md. -- Police said an elderly woman was trampled by a bull on Inwood Avenue in Catonsville on Saturday. The bull was blocking the road and the woman got out of her car to try to push the bull out of the way, police said. They said that's when the bull trampled her. Authorities said the unidentified woman's injuries are not believed to be life-threatening.
That's it. Sad story... But sadder is the fact that the meat of this story is not explained or even mentioned... Where did this bull come from?! Are there still farms in Catonsville? Is it someone's pet? Obviously, the writer assumes that no one will question the fact that a bull just happened to appear in the middle of a road in a suburb of a major metropolitan area? It was, afterall, some urban-sounding street called Inwood Avenue, not some a rural route. (I almost thought I was back in Phoenix, where a wandering bull would be at home with wild coyotes, people carrying firearms into bars -- legally, coyboy hats and mountains in the distance... Can't you hear it? "Hey, Vern? D'ya hear Mrs. Smith got herself run over by a durn bull? Doc's tending to her now.")
But I think the question of what part of Catonsville and why was the bull there should have been in the mind of the writer and editor, and it should have steered at least a portion of this story. Now, I know this was only a TV headline service, delivered online. However, some basic and vital info is missing here, and it should not force me to solely read the Sun or other print-based Web sites.... I like WBAL's Weather Center, and I hate to subscribe to too many of these things.
Or maybe I'm just in a bullcrappy kind of mood.
Monday, October 31, 2005
Halloween at Genesis
Here I am, with some of my new Genesis co-workers, after today's Halloween Party. All of us in the picture (all but one of us are in the same department - Corporate Communications) received recognition for our costumes. My Big Blue Board, based on our bi-weekly posted publication, was a big surprize to all, and it was made complete with blue tights. (Pictured, l. to r., Ginger Galvez, Patti Delaha, Greg Svehla, me and Victoria Valton.)
Sunday, October 16, 2005
The New BDL “Newsroom”
Today I officially introduce the BDL Newsroom blog!
While the blog you’re reading remains the BDL Blog, the main source of mostly personal notes and commentary, the Newsroom will be a new place for me to post more general news and photojournalism. There you will find both text and original photos from newsworthy events, personalities and activities I encounter by chance, as well as those related to my freelance PR and marketing clients and projects.
I will also occasionally add some behind-the-scenes information – pics and insights from people, places and moments that have played a role in my background, such as the Gilman reunion photos. And, yes, I’ve cheated a bit and added some entries from the past year or so, to test the format and give the site a bit of substance in case you want to browse around.
The Newsroom is actually designed as section of BDL Communications, my freelance services site, and it brings to fruition an idea that came about during the redevelopment of my Web presence nearly a year ago. In fact, the Newsroom is also the official home for a syndicated media-related news headline service I began subscribing to earlier this year. Some of you may have already noticed this appear when you’ve clicked on the “web links” in my personal e-mail signature… Note that I have created reciprocal links between my two blogs, but be sure to come back and check each one, as they will be updated separately.
And yes, the BDL Newsroom will respond to requests! If you have an item you think is newsworthy, I’ll be pleased to discuss putting on my reporter’s hat and publicizing it. (It lets us continue the delusion of me being a real media person and of your event being something really important.)
While the blog you’re reading remains the BDL Blog, the main source of mostly personal notes and commentary, the Newsroom will be a new place for me to post more general news and photojournalism. There you will find both text and original photos from newsworthy events, personalities and activities I encounter by chance, as well as those related to my freelance PR and marketing clients and projects.
I will also occasionally add some behind-the-scenes information – pics and insights from people, places and moments that have played a role in my background, such as the Gilman reunion photos. And, yes, I’ve cheated a bit and added some entries from the past year or so, to test the format and give the site a bit of substance in case you want to browse around.
The Newsroom is actually designed as section of BDL Communications, my freelance services site, and it brings to fruition an idea that came about during the redevelopment of my Web presence nearly a year ago. In fact, the Newsroom is also the official home for a syndicated media-related news headline service I began subscribing to earlier this year. Some of you may have already noticed this appear when you’ve clicked on the “web links” in my personal e-mail signature… Note that I have created reciprocal links between my two blogs, but be sure to come back and check each one, as they will be updated separately.
And yes, the BDL Newsroom will respond to requests! If you have an item you think is newsworthy, I’ll be pleased to discuss putting on my reporter’s hat and publicizing it. (It lets us continue the delusion of me being a real media person and of your event being something really important.)
Monday, September 12, 2005
Relief Fund for Hurricane Victims
Here at my new workplace, Genesis Health Care Corporation, an employee fund has been set up to benefit the victims of Hurricane Katrina. Throughout our locations, staff members have pulled together a variety of bake sales and other fundraising efforts, including "Denim for Disaster Day" where employees contribute $5 per day for the opportunity to wear jeans to work. All of these tax deductible donations will be given to the American Red Cross, and the company is matching all donations, up to $50,000…. In addition, Genesis has been in touch with Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour, who once served as the chief lobbyist in Washington, DC for the Alliance for Quality Nursing Home Care. We have at least one employee that has traveled to the region to volunteer, and we are working with the American Health Care Association for possible transfer of people to our facilities and the shipment of supplies to the area….
Call me at 410-494-8961, if you wish to send a cash donation to the Red Cross (that will be matched by Genesis) through me.
Call me at 410-494-8961, if you wish to send a cash donation to the Red Cross (that will be matched by Genesis) through me.
Wednesday, September 7, 2005
10 Things We've Learned from Hurricane Katrina
- The United States is a very rich and powerful country, but it still has too many very poor and powerless people.
- Whenever you tell tens of thousands of people to leave a city, it’s best to check first to see if they have a ride.
- Mike Brown’s previous job as an overseer of horse shows did not prepare him well for managing the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
- Four years after 160-foot-long planes veered off course, crashed into buildings and killed thousands, we still don’t feel very secure or prepared, even for something that was forecast hours in advance, was as large as 500 miles wide, and was seen on satellite photos for days.
- As soon as we question whether race is an issue, it becomes an issue.
- Katrina was a very, very big storm.
- Being the mayor of New Orleans is not an easy job, and evacuating the nation’s 35th largest city is not an easy task.
- If the last presidential election was being held THIS November, the President would need to spend more time in Louisiana.
- No one is too proud to accept charity from a third-world country.
- Fats Domino is still alive.
Monday, August 22, 2005
AOL Gnomes vs. My Guestbook
I've just learned that AOL gnomes are at work on my home and home office email accounts. If you've sent email today, it may have bounced. Things should be up and running again soon, according to the head gnome... Meanwhile, if you have a message to send to me, simply post to my guestbook, where you can make it "private" or "public." Not enough people use my guestbook anyway... so now's your chance.
Monday, August 15, 2005
My Big Blue Debut
Here I am, being introduced this week to over 30,000 Genesis HealthCare employees. This picture and note are part of the latest edition of postings for the 200 or so "Big Blue" boards at Genesis facilities. I'll be writing, researching and editing postings, as part of my duties in the Corporate Communications department. (Note: Great photo of me was taken by co-worker Victoria Valton.)
Monday, July 18, 2005
Announcing My New Job
Yes, it has been a while since my last posting here, as I have been very busy with several freelance assignments in both the East and the West (especially these past two weeks!)… However, next Monday, I will officially begin to curtail freelance work, in lieu of a new full-time job as Communications Director for Genesis HealthCare, a Pennsylvania-based corporation that operates skilled nursing and assisted living facilities and rehabilitation centers.
Genesis has offered me a great opportunity to work again in my hometown of Baltimore, but as part of a regional corporation. (Headquartered in Kennett Square, PA, Genesis has locations throughout the mid-Atlantic, and the communications office is located just north of Baltimore City, in Towson.) It’s also a return back to corporate communications and publications, as I will be creating internal news and information documents for and about the employees and operations of Genesis. It will be my first job outside of the non-profit world since 1992, when I left Baltimore Magazine, and my first non-fundraising job since I was recruited away from the Engineers Club in 1998.
As for the freelance creative services I have been focusing on during past year, I will not be accepting any new clients, but I do plan to concentrate my free time on a select number of personal and pro bono literary, visual and performing arts projects, as they arise.
Working and living in Baltimore – something I have not done both of in more than five years – will be a welcome change after commuting to Washington for Children's National Medical Center and relocating to Phoenix, Arizona to work for TGen. After the transition and the move back to the East Coast is finally complete within a few months, I'll once again be free for early evening events with friends B'more again.
For those of you in Baltimore, give me a call or send me an e-mail so we can begin planning some fun! For those of you in DC, we have to plan some special weekend activities. And for those of you out West, I'll be popping in and out of Phoenix a few times between now and the Fall, and I do plan to maintain an Arizona telephone number and mailing address indefinitely, so there will be several opportunities to connect with you too.
Genesis has offered me a great opportunity to work again in my hometown of Baltimore, but as part of a regional corporation. (Headquartered in Kennett Square, PA, Genesis has locations throughout the mid-Atlantic, and the communications office is located just north of Baltimore City, in Towson.) It’s also a return back to corporate communications and publications, as I will be creating internal news and information documents for and about the employees and operations of Genesis. It will be my first job outside of the non-profit world since 1992, when I left Baltimore Magazine, and my first non-fundraising job since I was recruited away from the Engineers Club in 1998.
As for the freelance creative services I have been focusing on during past year, I will not be accepting any new clients, but I do plan to concentrate my free time on a select number of personal and pro bono literary, visual and performing arts projects, as they arise.
Working and living in Baltimore – something I have not done both of in more than five years – will be a welcome change after commuting to Washington for Children's National Medical Center and relocating to Phoenix, Arizona to work for TGen. After the transition and the move back to the East Coast is finally complete within a few months, I'll once again be free for early evening events with friends B'more again.
For those of you in Baltimore, give me a call or send me an e-mail so we can begin planning some fun! For those of you in DC, we have to plan some special weekend activities. And for those of you out West, I'll be popping in and out of Phoenix a few times between now and the Fall, and I do plan to maintain an Arizona telephone number and mailing address indefinitely, so there will be several opportunities to connect with you too.
Saturday, April 30, 2005
Returning to Baltimore?
Yes... For those of you wondering, or for those of you who have even spotted me in Charm City, I am here in Baltimore, and have been for a few weeks.
Whenever I try to sneak into my hometown, I wind up running into people who are surprised to see me here, and not in Phoenix... Part whim, wonder, part work, part homesickness, April presented some unique reasons for an East Coast visit...
Whim? Well, I've been planning an extended visit for a while, but got caught up with freelance activities in Arizona, mainly a request to help out at Denise Resnik & Associates, a public relations and marketing firm I've maintained as freelance client for a few months. The freelancing life is exciting like that -- sometimes never knowing when or where I'll be asked to work. However, unexpected assignments also help to pay for whim purchases like plane tickets. So, as soon as assignments were done and tickets were bought, off I went.
Work (as in Career), was the reason for attending the 42nd International Conference on Fundraising, presented by AFP - the Association of Fundraising Professionals, held on the weekend of the 5th at the Baltimore Convention Center. It was a chance to see some friends and colleagues who were either presenting, exhibiting or merely attending sessions too. Yes, a great networking opportunity for the East Coast side of my activities.
Baltimore was also the location of the Miss USA Pageant, held this month at the renovated Hippodrome Theater. No, I did not get in, but I managed to get close enough that afternoon to take a few pictures. Knowing that the long-awaited renovation of the long-vacant Hippodrome is complete, along with many other urban construction and revitalization efforts underway, do make me homesick. It has been quite a while since so much excitement was evident here... Two years away surely makes this point stand out. Baltimore City even recently announced its first budget surplus in decades, thanks mostly to a booming real estate market. And Baltimore's Mayor was listed among the nation's top Mayors by Time magazine.
More? Yes... There's even more...
Baltimore, home of the nation's first Catholic Cathedral, known now as the Basilica, was an ideal place to reflect upon the death of Pope John Paul II. (By the way, the Basilica is currently undergoing a major renovation... speaking of the construction boom.) My family, which is not Catholic, has had relationships with Catholic institutions here. I attended the Jesuit Loyola Collage here, and my prep school is located across the street from St. Mary's Seminary, one of the most impressive seminary facilities in the country. The Pope visited Baltimore in the 1990s, and I have some great photos of his appearance at Oriole Park at Camden Yards, taken by my boss at the time, Don Blum... However, most notably, my mother just retired a few weeks ago from the Catholic nursing home St. Elizabeth's (formerly Jenkins Memorial), after 42 years there.
Art, Culture and Urban Events also bring me back... Like the first solo art show of friend and former neighbor Bharati Parekh... and the annual blooming of the famous cherry blossoms and the ensuing Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington. (Ask me for photos and video clips of both events.)
So, you're wondering if I am homesick enough to come back to live on the East (or, as a colleague in Washington says the "right")Coast? Well, I'll let you know soon, as I am in discussion with several organizations trying to woo me. And I am now officially entertaining other offers.
The adventure in Phoenix has been rewarding and educational... but my early prediction of spending just a few years in the Southwest may indeed be coming true.
Stay tuned for more details as they develop!
Whenever I try to sneak into my hometown, I wind up running into people who are surprised to see me here, and not in Phoenix... Part whim, wonder, part work, part homesickness, April presented some unique reasons for an East Coast visit...
Whim? Well, I've been planning an extended visit for a while, but got caught up with freelance activities in Arizona, mainly a request to help out at Denise Resnik & Associates, a public relations and marketing firm I've maintained as freelance client for a few months. The freelancing life is exciting like that -- sometimes never knowing when or where I'll be asked to work. However, unexpected assignments also help to pay for whim purchases like plane tickets. So, as soon as assignments were done and tickets were bought, off I went.
Work (as in Career), was the reason for attending the 42nd International Conference on Fundraising, presented by AFP - the Association of Fundraising Professionals, held on the weekend of the 5th at the Baltimore Convention Center. It was a chance to see some friends and colleagues who were either presenting, exhibiting or merely attending sessions too. Yes, a great networking opportunity for the East Coast side of my activities.
Baltimore was also the location of the Miss USA Pageant, held this month at the renovated Hippodrome Theater. No, I did not get in, but I managed to get close enough that afternoon to take a few pictures. Knowing that the long-awaited renovation of the long-vacant Hippodrome is complete, along with many other urban construction and revitalization efforts underway, do make me homesick. It has been quite a while since so much excitement was evident here... Two years away surely makes this point stand out. Baltimore City even recently announced its first budget surplus in decades, thanks mostly to a booming real estate market. And Baltimore's Mayor was listed among the nation's top Mayors by Time magazine.
More? Yes... There's even more...
Baltimore, home of the nation's first Catholic Cathedral, known now as the Basilica, was an ideal place to reflect upon the death of Pope John Paul II. (By the way, the Basilica is currently undergoing a major renovation... speaking of the construction boom.) My family, which is not Catholic, has had relationships with Catholic institutions here. I attended the Jesuit Loyola Collage here, and my prep school is located across the street from St. Mary's Seminary, one of the most impressive seminary facilities in the country. The Pope visited Baltimore in the 1990s, and I have some great photos of his appearance at Oriole Park at Camden Yards, taken by my boss at the time, Don Blum... However, most notably, my mother just retired a few weeks ago from the Catholic nursing home St. Elizabeth's (formerly Jenkins Memorial), after 42 years there.
Art, Culture and Urban Events also bring me back... Like the first solo art show of friend and former neighbor Bharati Parekh... and the annual blooming of the famous cherry blossoms and the ensuing Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington. (Ask me for photos and video clips of both events.)
So, you're wondering if I am homesick enough to come back to live on the East (or, as a colleague in Washington says the "right")Coast? Well, I'll let you know soon, as I am in discussion with several organizations trying to woo me. And I am now officially entertaining other offers.
The adventure in Phoenix has been rewarding and educational... but my early prediction of spending just a few years in the Southwest may indeed be coming true.
Stay tuned for more details as they develop!
Friday, April 8, 2005
Washington in Bloom
What would a trip to the East Coast in April be without a moment to see the Cherry Blossoms? It was not a very sunny day, but I took a moment in between appointments to sneak down near the mall to see this annual signal of Spring.
Wednesday, March 23, 2005
My Arizona TV Debut
If you were wondering if that really was me asking Channel 3's "Dave the Gardener" about fruit trees today... Yes, it was. My five seconds of fame actually occurred on Monday when I was caught coming out of AJ's Fine Foods on Central Avenue. Now, I have no plans to plant citrus trees myself , but I do admire them. The scent of orange blossoms this time of year is wonderful, and they seem to be everywhere. Not to mention grapefruit and lemons too... Last summer I even saw a pomegranate tree growing in someone's front yard. As for Dave's answer? Just ask me. Thanks to Dave, I know all of the secrets to planting fruit trees in Phoenix.
Wednesday, February 2, 2005
Trees in Bloom
Yes. If it's February, and the trees are in bloom, you know you must be in Phoenix. ... Some trees are now in bloom, while much fruit is still on the tree from the last season. Actaully, I took this picture last Friday, still in January, while my friends back East were dealing with snow and ice.
Thursday, January 6, 2005
Happy New Year... Happy New Projects!
Happy New Year to all... Hope all is going well for you, despite the continuing disaster taking place in Indonesia.
As for me, I am traveling to the Baltimore-Washington region today, beginning a short trip to check in on both old and some potential and new freelance projects. More details to come soon... (As always, I will be available by phone to clients on both sides of the country... just dial me as usual. In Phoenix: 602-230-4343. Or in MD/DC: 410-783-8250.)
As for me, I am traveling to the Baltimore-Washington region today, beginning a short trip to check in on both old and some potential and new freelance projects. More details to come soon... (As always, I will be available by phone to clients on both sides of the country... just dial me as usual. In Phoenix: 602-230-4343. Or in MD/DC: 410-783-8250.)
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