Look-A-Like Contest....or Back to the Future?

On the right, you'll see a picture of my old buddy Big Ike Griggs.....

So we're at the grocery store Sunday afternoon and Nancy sees this odd looking fellow. She believes he looks a lot like my old buddy Big Ike Griggs. Ike has a penchant for fancy clothes and so forth.... In any case Nancy causes me to take a picture of this guy, who like Big Ike was all too happy to have his picture made. See picture on right of the alleged "Big Ike Look-A-Like". This gentleman was quite kind, and affable. Chatting with him I found out that he had just turned 80 years old. He was with his daughter at the grocery store - who looked to be about 30 to me. Amazing. Here's a picture of the guy at the grocery store......

I Honestly don't think there is too much resemblance do you? On the other hand when I got back to the house and started putting this together, I noticed a certain similarity between this character and someone who I am even closer too than Big Ike. See below......

Could this be a preview of my future......??????

Mike Roberts @ 54 years vs. Mike Roberts @ 80 years...

NO Way! I'd have to lose too much weight, and I'll never live that long or look that good.

All the best,

Mike

Letting Go - Here's what can happen

OK, I am way behind on updating this blog, and I want to apologize. When I got "let go" last year, I had a mental problem, - and have been unable to get worried about anything. We have just kept trucking along .....and it has kind of worked itself out pretty well.

Many of you may not realize that Nancy and I have been busy relocating ourselves to our newest "Letting Go" location - Whitmore Lake, Michigan!!!! Yep we live here now! And when I use the term "live" - I mean LIVE!!!!!

For starters, here's a picture of our new digs. It is relatively small - only about 1200 sq. feet inside - on the other hand it has some interesting amenities.

As you may notice, there are actually two major driveways - 2 if by land - but more importantly, one if by sea!!!! Yes, we have our own boat, and yes we are on a lovely 700 acre lake in Michigan, and yes you are invited!!!!

Other amenities include: THE FISHING is GREAT - and we have our own boat - which we have christened: The Good Ship "Leggo and LET Loose!" We are only about a block away from the bait shop and the liquor store (I consider these both bait shops - just depends on which fish you want to catch). I am an easy lunker on either bait!

Here's a pic of me trying to act as Captain of the good ship "LEGGO and LET LOOSE". As you can probably tell, I am struggling to keep the ship (and myself) under control - luckily we have lots of personal flotation devices aboard, full safety equipment - plus a few pain killers in case anyone was to get hurt or just wanted to relax. By the way - that is my Michigan "Campaign Hat" - it is from the "Blue Tractor Brewery" in Ann Arbor - where the continue to crank out great Michigan Brew. My Lord Have Mercy, they make fine beers here - maybe the cars are dicey - but you can be on some great brews.



Now here's the bad part, Mom came up here and she is a fishing fool. I mean to say Mom is a "Piker", here is a pic of Mom after she just caught a large pike off the dock.....
Mom, didn't like the "Northern Pike" because it has very large teeth - I took it off the hook with a glove. However, Mom hooked another one today - about a four pounder - but it chewed through the line. Mom did not seem happy about that. Oh, me, yes, I was looking for gloves.

Did I mention that Mom still has no scheduled departure date?

In a nut shell, Nancy and I only have a 6 month gig up here - unless something changes....but if something changes - we are in a great spot here - and if it changes some other way - we'll find another great spot! Hope you are all as well as we are. Make ur reservations for "Camp Mikey" Michigan early - the guest list is filling up fast.

All the best,

Mike

How Much Am I Worth???

Well, this week finds me here on the job in beautiful southern Michigan. I am working with two customers and one of them asked me..."how much is it worth for us to have you to work with for the next six months?" I know, most of you are thinking, 6 months with Mike Roberts - that would be "priceless". The only problem here is that a few of you are thinking it would be a valuable experience to work with me for 6 months, and the rest of you are thinking - what would you have to pay to excape from being around me for 6 months. Either way, the answer could be "priceless". So how should I answer this question? Here's a couple of essays on how I would answer the question......

1. I personally believe that one measure of the value of an individual is the quantifiable results that are produced by the work you do. For example, I expect the project I am leading now to result in a minimum cost savings of $250,000 annually, and I expect the project to be completed in less than 6 months. In that case, I guess you could argue that my value is $500,000 per year less the costs of getting the process in place. If this were right, and the savings extended over a multi-year period, my efforts, discounted to present value, could well be over $1 million.

2. I try, on every assignment I get (especially now that I am getting older) to provide training to the younger people I work with, so that they could use some of the same techniques I use in the future. If 5 of the 20 people I am working closely with eventually use these techniques successfully - what is that worth? I don't want to claim any credit for it, but I like to think I helped. It makes me feel good. My view - no charge - but it has been worth something to more than one person...lol. If nothing else, my "mentees" learned some important mistakes to avoid. How much could it be worth not to make the same mistakes Mike Roberts did.....I guarantee you...that would be "priceless".


3. Using simpler thinking, I sold my consulting practice to another company - I was absolutely tired of travelling every week. My record year in business for myself I paid income tax on $750,000 - so is this what I am worth? I don't think so - I don't want to do that again - I was divorced the next year. Worst of all, between the divorce and the tax man - I worked like a dog for nothing. So my view, is even though I "earned" $750,000 - I'd never do that again - so I must be worth something less than that number.

4. Still simpler - after my professional consulting experience - I went to work at the International Paper Company in Memphis, TN. for less than 1/3 of my consulting income. But, I didn't have to travel (too much) and had a nice simple life as a corporate jr. exec. Not bad. Is that what I am worth? I am not sure - Corporate BS is really not for me and my head was starting to hurt.

5. Now, I am in Michigan. Working with my friends. The weather is beautiful. Nancy will be up here soon. We are getting a summer cabin, with a hope of enjoying weekends together and with old friends and new friends. This is where it gets tough to figure out......

When you get to thinking about it that way it make me wonder; "HOW MUCH Do You Think I Should HAVE TO PAY THEM -TO LET ME WORK HERE?"

All the best,

mike

Summer Wardrobe Edition...Starting from the Top!

Often times, I get inquiries from subscribers from near and far about what the properly dressed gentleman should be wearing this season. Most of the time, I just say, "How the Hell would I know and why are you asking me?" On the other hand, watching some of the comings and goings of recent male fashions, I have decided I should take my rightful place as a male fashion trend setter. I've had enough of other people making fools of themselves with poor taste in fashion - its high time for me to come out and take the lead on this subject.... I'll start at the top.

Starting at the top, no gentleman can be fully dressed without the proper chapeau, fedora, or to make it simple for you are less aware of gentleman's fashions....you need a good hat. There are a number of options here but there are some basic requirements. For summer time fashion, a hat must;

• be cool in the hot summer sun



• make a bold statement about the gentleman's personality, and



• look cool and sophisticated for the ladies.
  

Obviously, comfort in the summer is a priority and this rules out all the fine felt fedoras, Stetsons, and my favorite the Kangol Wool Beret. While these can set a fine tone on winter occasions, they could easily cause a heat stroke in the hot Texas summer sun. Hell, they might even cause a heat stroke in the Michigan summer. I am ruling these out - fashion should never completely over rule safety and comfort in attire.

Now in terms of summer head wear a lot of my buddies go with the basic baseball cap. To be honest, these things have "BUBBA" written all over them. I mean, what kind of fashion statement does it really make when you're out there sporting your bright green cap with yellow letters that advertises John Deere Tractors. It may be true that "Nothing Runs Like a Deere", but nothing will run off a sophisticated babe faster than one of these John Deere Caps. The last statement is not true, dipping Copenhagen Stuff will run women off faster than you can say "Let Go!". (The last two statements are not always true, if you are from Georgia, Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana, or some parts of Northeast Texas.) Still basically, unless you plan to have a date at the local farm supply - leave these things at home. See picture at right, Glenn Goodnight in his "courtin clothes".

This brings to mind a couple of thoughts about Alabama. Huntsville, Alabama is said to have the most PHD's per capita of any city in the world. This is in large part because of the significant Redstone Arsenal and other governmental scientific efforts that surround the area. Furthermore, Alabama - has been the site of numerous developments that have helped mankind for decades. The first toothbrush, was actually invented in a little town called Arab, Alabama. Had it been developed anywhere else, it would have been named the teethbrush.

Still thinking of Alabama....(their state slogan is "Thank God For Mississippi", "otherwise we'd be on the bottom of everything)".....Tragedy has struck the state of Alabama in recent times. As most of you know the governor's Mansion caught fire and burned to the ground a month or so ago...fortunately, they were able to save the rest of the trailer park.

Sadly, this all comes at a time when Alabama was stuggling to overcome the effects of Hurricane Rita - which struck near Gulf Shores, Alabama causing over $20 million dollars in improvements.

Excuse me, but once again I have digressed. Our subject was proper gentlemanly attire for the summer season, and we were focused on starting at the top with proper head wear. We've covered comfort...and we've at least listed some of the do's and don'ts in terms of style. Why don't I just give it to you straight.....the must have head wear for stylish gentlemen and ladies this summer will be Panama Hats! Damn right, Panama Hats!

Before you rush out and try to buy a nice Panama - it would help to have an understanding of the history and significance of the Panama Hat. First off, for those of you who are geographically challenged, Panama, is a country in Central America. In fact, here's a you a little test - where is the Panama Canal located??? You got it....Panama. NOW let's make it a little tougher.... Where does the Panama Hat come from......_________. You got it...WRONG....the Panama hat actually comes from Ecuador. Yeah...that was a trick question.

So if the Panama hat actually comes from Ecuador - how come we call it a Panama hat? Well actually there are three primary reasons;

1. First, like many other 19th and early 20th century South American goods, these hats were shipped first to the Isthmus of Panama before sailing for their destinations in Asia, the rest of the Americas and Europe. For some products, the name of their point of international sale rather than their place of domestic origin stuck, hence “Panama hats.
   


2. Secondly, during the building of the Panama Canal, U.S. President, Theodore Roosevelt and other international dignitaries were photographed sporting these fine hats as they inspected the progress being made on creating the Panama Canal. This spread the Panama's reputation globally.
   





3. Finally, "Panama Hat" just has a nice ring to it that Equadoriaquito Hat.
   

So there you have it...that's how these beautiful hats got their name.

Here's a picture or two of some of the many notables wearing Panama hats this year.....

Sean Connery

Bonnie Prince Charley

celebrities at the KY Derby

But before you rush out and buy just any old hat that looks like it might be a "Panama" to start your summer wardrobe, here's a few tips from the fashionista Old Uncle Mikey on getting a quality panama.....

The primary criteria in evaluating the quality of a Panama quality is by the density of the weave. A low quality weave would be "100 fibers per square inch", while a superfino or ultra fino weave might have up to "1400 fibers per square inch." According to a study done in 2007, there are less than 15 living craftsman in Ecuador who can create the super - ultrafino weaves. These babies may not be around long. (see picture at right....my Texas buddy Big Ike Sporting a high dollar superfino Panama at the Kentucky Derby) As you can see, Ike is not from Alabama.

So here's my first fashion advice for summer.

1. Run out and get yourselves the best Panama you can...while you can.



2. Send me a picture of you, your significant other, your friends wearing a stylish Panama



3. I'll post them here...on the prestigious "Let Go Journal"



4. I'll send you an invite to my Panama Hat party on Labor Day 2009.
   

Of course, you know I'll be going in style and I'll be hoping to see all of you.

All the best,

Mike