jfgarrard

Ramping up for self publishing!

Books, Money, publishing, Uncategorized, Writing

I was a shark in my last life, as I can’t sit still on any project…Agents and publishers only take 1% of the pile of stuff they get, so I think I will have to go the self-publishing route as my multicultural vampire book query has received multiple rejection letters. Apparently there are too many vampire books on the market right now.

I was hoping for a happy ending to avoid self-publishing as it is a very expensive endeavor to undertake! You have to do everything from hiring an editor, to doing the marketing, to creating the print book and ebook.

It feels like I’ve stepped into a tornado! I know, I should think about things as I need to cross the bridge…but I’m the type to scope out the bridge ahead of time and consider the different possibilities before I cross the bridge!

(Think I’m also feeling super hyper on this Chinese medicine stuff. Can’t sleep properly because I feel too awake all the time. Will have to tell doctor when I see him next…)

Come rain or shine, The Undead Sorceress: Book 1 of the International House of Vampires will be available May 2014.

The next steps I need to do over an 8 month period I’ve scheduled for myself to make this book happen:

1) Find editors who offer consultation services, ask for quotes from different editors

2) The editor quotes determine how much money I should try to raise from Kickstarter to cover some project costs

3) Running a Kickstarter campaign to raise funds – write and rewrite text for campaign page, shoot and reshoot video to explain the project and why I need the $$, look around other people’s pages/videos and decide what incentives to entice future investors in the project (aka what carrots should I offer?)

4) Learn video software properly to add close captioning, splitting scenes and not to overuse special effects as my first video made my producer friend nauseous

5) Follow up with artists I’ve hired to do artwork for Kickstarter campaign. Have 3 of them on hand, hoping one of them will give me some drawings to buy from them! Got a 4th artist name, will wait a few weeks before I overdo it with asking artists for stuff…they need time to ‘create’

6) Start looking at books on my bookshelf to determine size of paperback I want to make.

7) One editor who wrote back said that I used 2 spaces between sentences instead of 1 – which led me on a route to read about formatting stuff for printing. OMG! Have to destroy all formatting and start over…after editing is done.

8) Found out I shouldn’t think about pretty text for the first letter of each chapter or life will become more difficult. But I want pretty text, so when I reach that point I will have to decide what to do.

9) Decide if I should hire someone to format for print book, Amazon e-book and Smashwords e-books. They all have different formatting rules = pain in the butt.

10) Can’t make the cover for printing until I know how many damn pages the print book is, as this will determine the size of the spine which affects front and back covers. So I have to wait on this one. If it is too complicated to make, will have to hire someone to do it for me.

11) Upload book into print book and e-book formats, look at proofs (print book could take a few weeks to receive in mail) and make sure things look ok. If something goes wrong, start over with formatting.

12) Amazon and Smashwords have different programs you can take part in. For Amazon, to get into publishing catalogues, it’s an extra $25 USD per year and then there is some Kindle borrowing program thing.

13) Then there is the issue of different ISBN numbers. Print and e-books have to have different numbers. I can also apply for my own ISBN for more control or just get a free one from Amazon or Smashwords…decisions, decisions…

14) Look for tax forms. Eventually if I make more than $10 profit I will have to ask Amazon or Smashwords to send me a letter to vouch that I’m not American. Then I have to contact IRS and ask them for a special number to avoid paying US taxes which are automatically taken off all book sales through Amazon and Smashwords.

15) For the book launch, I have been talking to a convention I volunteer at annually in May, so this is my drop dead date to have everything done by then. Hopefully they will let me do a panel on vampires, do a book reading and throw a party there. After confirmation of permission, need to think about banners, what to give away, food to bring, etc.

16) Once Kickstarter campaign and convention confirms things are a green light, start emailing, blogging, posting a link with details to people. This is where you find out how many friends you actually have and if you have to depend on the kindness of strangers to make things happen!

17) Keep blogging, posting when I don’t have a headache!

There is a wedding in between all this in Korea, so a few weeks is a write off as I travel. Or maybe I can do research on stuff for the next book! My end goal is to break even in regards to expenses, although time is net negative! But if this all works out, maybe I can end up with a series that gives me some money to buy a few cups of coffee every year!

Curing the Living Dead…With No Sugar Added!

asian, Babies, health, identity, science, Uncategorized

“How are you even alive?” The Chinese doctor looked at me and sighed. “You barely have a pulse, do you eat anything at all?” I told him that I have been trying to eat more vegetables, exercise, etc. “Is there a problem with meat?” “No, I just thought I was eating too much.” “Well, you need protein for your cells to repair and function.” At this point I was flabbergasted. He knew cell biology? He was a Chinese practitioner with 35 years of experience and worked in HK, Taiwan, and Canada. But I guess I had a stereotype that people usually chose one culture’s scientific knowledge over another.

It’s been 30 years since I have seen any Chinese doctor after the last one my parents dragged me to did some “bone reconfiguration” after I sprained my ankle. So now I have two “ankles” on one foot due to a misalignment somewhere. “It’s not like you are crippled!” my mom yelled back when I told her why I was afraid of Chinese medicine.

With reluctance after trying to have a damn munchkin for so long, I caved into to seeing a Chinese doctor after my Western doctor became too “busy” to see me. It was a difficult situation with a parent there, as she explained to him how she thinks it’s a stupid idea for me to have a child as children are bad karma creatures out to collect debts from the parents. The doctor smiled politely and said, “You’ve shared your experience with your daughter, now it’s up to her to make the final decision.” A former university colleague of my mother’s, he knew her personality well.

He spoke for about an hour about how to eat properly as it turns out I was malnourished. With not enough nutrition to function, how did I expect to grow a parasite? He taught a minimal cooking technique for green vegetables to preserve as much nutrients in the food as possible: Add 2 slices of ginger to a wok, heat up; add vegetables which have been rinsed in water only; cook for 3-4 min; add a little olive oil and water if needed; use lid to cover wok; cook for 3-4 min and add a little bit of salt for flavor.

In regards to cutting vegetables, he recommended not using a knife if possible as just hand breaking them preserves the cells better. Also, what I can eat depends on my body type, so he had to take my pulse.

Looking at my left wrist, he shook his head as my non-existence pulse. After feeling my right wrist he frowned and asked, “You should be experiencing abdominal cramps after meals as you have a bad digestive system.” How did he know this? It was true, I get cramps once in a while, especially when I’m super full.

Then he looked under my tongue; there were black colored veins and when I relaxed it, the tongue did not have smooth sides. “Your veins are black due to bad blood circulation and there are lumpy sides from your teeth. When the tongue becomes swollen, it presses against the teeth which is why it is lumpy when you relax it.” My mom, the energizer bunny, had a super healthy tongue of course.

After another hour of teaching me how to better take care of myself, he started to set my prescription for the next five days. I had a weak body (low energy, bad blood circulation, heat based), but if I had too much rich food, that would make things worse. He said there is lots more to know, but didn’t want to overwhelm me at the first meeting. I have to return in a few days and have another assessment, then my instructions might change depending on how my body is doing.

herb powder ss — From herbs to GMP powder

My instructions:

-powder Chinese medicine mixed 2x per day in lukewarm water (on empty stomach, can eat 1 hour after).

I was expecting to have to buy herbs to cook, but he said that his GMP certified powders were tested for toxins and guaranteed to be the correct herb, unlike random vendors. This technique of manufacturing Asian meds had been perfected by the Japanese. Also, people don’t know how to cook the herbs properly which may mess up the meds too. There were about a dozen powdered herbs in one “dose”.

-can only eat until 7/8 full for each meal

-can not drink water or liquids during the meal, as apparently I’ve been diluting my stomach acids. I can have half a bowl of soup/water before and after meal that is warm in temperature.

-3 meals: breakfast (something small, carb or protein), lunch (palm size meat with 2x vegetables and some carbs), dinner amount is same as lunch, fruit 2x

-meat = chicken, fish, pork; my body can not handle lamb or beef

-vegetables and fruit must be different if eaten in the same day

-no caffeine = tea, coffee

-no alcohol

-no pop, too much sugar

-speaking of sugar, avoid as much as possible as body can not digest this well

-ARH! NO CHOCOLATE! I might as well be dead!

-Vitamin C, 500 milligrams; taking prenatal multi-vitamin ok as much of it will be peed out anyways

-breathing exercises, no more than 5x each or I might damage something (no aerobics as I didn’t have enough energy for that)

-no spicy or fried things

-less soya, tofu due to hormones in them

-No eating of frogs, toads, quail spit, placentas (really?!)

-snacks can either be fruit or yoghurt (Apparently the Japanese have the best yoghurt which is not available in North America)

I had questions about my use of Western medicine and he said that I should not stop as it would be a shock to the system. I told him it was too late as the doctor pulled me from all meds after my last failed baby attempt. He said it will take a while for my body to recover, but my body wasn’t too terrible compared to other women he had seen with the same problems.

He told a few stories in which he knew what to prescribe, but held back as he was worried about lawsuits as there is not much confidence in Chinese medicine in the Western world since Western medicine dominated. There was some communication issues, as my background in science had been taught in English and his in Chinese. So there were some moments which was like a game as we tried to describe the cell part we were each talking about.

In previous meetings, my Western doctor had said that I was about to take the last step in how they can help me and if it didn’t work, there was no other alternative. So, I guess, I’ll have to give this Chinese medicine a try as I’m not sure what to do anymore. I am feeling hopeful, which is always a dangerous thing. Wish me luck!

Setting up a kickstarter campaign

Books, Money, publishing, Uncategorized, Writing

What is kickstarter? It’s a US site that lets people put up their projects to ask for crowdsourcing funding. Say you need $1000 to publish a book (my situation) – people can chip in $15, 35, 50, or more, in exchange for a copy of the book and other bonuses. Projects can range from books to movies to a product.

I have been thinking about putting together a campaign for the past year, but was thinking of Indiegogo (a similar but less popular site), as up until now, Kickstarter did not allow Canadians to raise funds. The issue was that Kickstarter used Amazon Marketplace payment system which is only open to US residents with a US SIN Card. Now, starting in September 2013, Canadians can use Kickstarter, with funds deposited into their bank accounts directly.

It sounds too good to be true, doesn’t it? Free money! When you look at some campaign pages, people have raised over $200K for some projects, which is amazing! The idea is that people will put their money into projects that they want to see appear in the market.

There is a catch – if you don’t reach the goal you specify (eg. $1000), then you get $0 and the project campaign is considered a failure. You can launch again, but all previous donations will have to be re-pledged by people.

If you have a great idea and want to set up a campaign, it’s pretty easy if you are willing to put in some blood, sweat and tears. Also, you do need a thick skin because if you are asking for money, you have to put your face onto video and sincerely tell people what you are doing with the money and why your project is important.

What you need to do:

1. Think of a project

2. Write about why you are doing it, who you are, what you need money for

3. Make a video asking for help

4. Open a kickstarter account

5. Fill in pages of information and pledge information (if people give you money, what do they get in return?)

6. Send finished campaign pages to kickstarter staff, they have to approve the project before it becomes live

7. If it is a go, think about who you are going to beg for support via email, facebook, etc.

8. Wait a month and hope it works; pray for the kindness of strangers

Each step sounds simple, but in reality it is all fairly time consuming!

Trying to figure out how to make a video with sound, editing graphics, writing the script, etc, took me a few weeks. Writing the pages for the campaign took a few days. I bought a video camera as I wanted better quality videos than webcams or phonecams (I wanted to make sure voice sounds were properly captured). For a professional book cover, I hired a graphic artist company to help me create one. Prior to kickstarter opening to Canada, I was hunting down Americans to see if I could find a silent partner with a SIN number.

Anyhow, I am in the process of putting together for my non-fiction book, “How to Make a Munchkin” and will see if I can launch a campaign in September then! Will be bugging you soon!

Are bubbles alive and happier than me?

depression, family, Uncategorized

Last week was a terrible week and I was very unhappy. As noted in my non-fiction book, “How To Make a Munchkin”, we have been trying to have a baby for a while. Of course we had high hopes it would happen this month…and then it didn’t…this has been happening almost every month and I’m starting to think I might never have one of those baby/parasite/munchkin things. Also I keep getting rejection letters from agents, even a Chinese one, which really bummed me out. I guess I thought she would understand the East meets West concept which I have not seen in vampire books yet.

While washing dishes in the lunch room at work I accidentally created a bubble which floated high into the air and it waltzed around up and down due to the AC current in the room. As I watched it glimmer with different colors, floating around so lightly; I wondered if it could feel any happiness or joy. It was probably happier than I was at that moment.

Soap_bubble_sky_photo1

It was a ball of simple molecules, but for the brief few minutes it traveled through the air was it satisfied to be existing at all? I reflect on this as I wonder if I am always wanting too much and that makes me not enjoy the present moment I am living in.

Friends at work saw that I was so sad, so they gave me some roses which was very nice of them. After thanking them, I thought, “Now I have a new problem, I need to buy a vase!” I guess I’m too practical to ever be truly happy. Except when I’m eating Green Tea Kit Kats I think, because the sugar high freezes up my brain (yes, I know the brain has no nerve endings, trying to describe the sensation).

Then on the weekend I accidentally came across a Buddhist temple at Niagara Falls, so I went in to look and also bought a few books. There was a book about a woman who kept having dying kids and the explanation was that she had been a horrible baby murderer in her previous life. Of course, this made me wonder what I did in my previous life and if I had been a terrible person. Having a strong imagination is not an advantage when you read things like this…my Viking husband as usual talked some sense into me and told me to stop letting my imagination run away again…the message from the book was that if you are a good person, then good karma will happen. I want to think that I’m already a good person, but I guess being more conscientious of others, trying to better yourself and doing something good everyday is something one should strive for. This is the universal message in all religions, is it not? I must work harder then and hopefully good things will come my way!

Finally Completed My Minion Set…But I Feel Sad

Geek stuff, Uncategorized

A few weeks ago, people were making fun of me for collecting Minion toys from Happy Meals. Then a couple of days later, the obsessions from the same people started furious trading negotiations as they frantically tried to complete their set before the promotion was over and the next set of Smurf toys emerge.

This morning I confessed to my husband that although I collected the entire set of minion toys from McD, I wasn’t feeling that happy as people were missing a few. I guess it was my Catholic guilt was influencing my potential to feel happiness once again.

“How altruistic of you and Orwellian,” he sniffed.

The altruistic part I understand, after all, I work in healthcare. This is a field where things are very complicated and the pay isn’t that great compared to other industries. But many people I know in this field all have the goal of wanting to make the healthcare system function properly to benefit society.

Orwellian refers to George Orwell’s 1984 book set in a Big Brother dystopian future where people are under survelliance and the population must give into all government orders. My snobby hubby is generally saying that me and the masses were having nonsensical thoughts by focusing on collecting these silly toys and not thinking about real world issues.

Quite frankly I disagree with this and told him that it was more accurate of him to say that I was being more Marxist than Orwellian because I wanted equity for everyone. But then again, these toys wouldn’t come out of a Marxist society as it is a waste of resources to make such things in the first place. So I conclude now that me and my minion collecting friends just being good Capitalist supporters. In the end, McD reaps profit, we feel momentarily happy over a stack of plastic, so everyone wins! Except for the planet as I’m sure these toys will be around for eternity..Damn, being happy is just not in my nature!

Freezing your fat away! Sounds awesome!

fashion, Money, Uncategorized

I was super excited today when I saw an ad which claimed that a service was available to “freeze away your fat and sculpt a body you want with no exercise or surgery”! Intrigued, I visited the website, freezeyourfataway.ca which describes a technique called “cool-sculpting.” According to them, no exercise, needles, surgery or nozzles is required because this breakthrough technology will cool fat cells in certain regions to reduce bulk. It uses a technique called “cryolipolysis” which freezes fat cells to kill them off and then the body’s natural immune system will gather off the cell remnants, leading to an overall decrease of fat cell content in the body. During treatment, clients can read or watch tv as a vacuum sucks onto the part of the body they want to treat and the controlled cooling is applied. It was discovered by doctors at Harvard so it must work!

Is this really safe? According to a 2009 paper, researchers studied this technology for reducing fat layers and there were pretty good results found in both human and animals when cryoloipolysis was done over a period of two to four months. In one treatment session, the top fat layer thickness was reduced from 20-80% depending on the individual. Some side effects seen were skin redness, bruising and temporary numbness lasting for about a week.

Ready for the ‘it’s too good to be true part?’ The same researchers also concluded that this treatment works best with people who don’t have many discrete bulges in the first place. So this treatment is only for people who aren’t that fat!

According to Elle Magazine, if you are already in good shape (within 15 to 25 percent of your target weight) but have bits of fat you can’t get rid of with diet and exercise, then this procedure if something you can try. Cryolipolysis is $750 to $2,000 per area while the more invasive liposuction can cost $5,000 to $35,000.

If you want a DIY method, this webpage features instructions on just putting bags of ice on your tummy for a few hours a day instead.

There’s no way out of it folks, looks like diet and exercise is still the best way to lose weight!

The Price of Changing Your Sex

family, identity, Money, Uncategorized

The other day at dinner I commented out of anger due to pain from time of the month that I wanted to be a man. My male dinner companion quipped, “It’s not too late! You can do it anytime; there’s lots of surgery options!” I was a bit taken back by this as usually my Viking just groans and nods whenever I complain like this. Anyhow, I decided to look into it and see what is involved.

The official term is sex change or gender reassignment surgery when one decides to change their gender. There are usually 2 reasons for this: 1) babies are born with intersex deformities, so their sex is decided by the parents and surgery is done or 2) people believe that they are physically a different sex mentally and emotionally. There is also the unofficial reason #3 of people being exploited for the sex business, but all the sites I found were for people who want to do it on their own. Stats are difficult to come by as many surgeries are done in private clinics. Surgeryencyclopedia.com estimates that annually in the US 100-500 people have such surgeries and the number worldwide is estimated to be two to five times larger.

TSSurgeryGuide.com outlines a number of steps for either female to male or male to female surgeries required. Before some of these surgeries, extensive planning is required, such as scheduling multiple doctor appointments; dealing with family, friends, work; insurance; legal documents; taking time for recovery from surgery, etc. Transsexualroadmap.com offers tons of advice and financial calculator for those serious about change.

Male to Female (MTF) Surgeries

Breast Augmentation
Labiaplasty
One Stage MTF SRS/GRS – vaginoplasty
Orchiectomy -removal of the testicles
Tracheal Shave – Adam’s apple shaving

Female to Male (FTM) Surgeries
Hysterectomy
Ring or Simple Metoidioplasty – constructing the penis
Testicle Implants
Top Surgery – Chest reconstructive surgery

Male to Female (MTF)

Other than surgery, according to someone named “Clones Don’t Have 200k Pts” on Yahoo answers who made the transition from man to woman, there are a number of other things needed. Their transition cost about $80,000 USD:

Therapy. Sessions run $100-150/hr. At least a couple dozen sessions.
Facial hair removal. Done with electrolysis, laser or a combination of both. Electrolysis can cost $50-80/hr and between 150-300 hours is required to be hair free.
Body hair removal. Many people need laser treatment to help reduce excess body hair still left after starting hormones.
Endocrinologist. This doctor evaluates health, prescribes hormones, monitors progress and orders labwork to check hormone levels and liver function. Average cost per visit (with labwork): $500.
New Clothes. Cost depends on person’s fashion sense.
Legal fees for legal name change. New Birth certificate. New passport. Costs vary.
Facial surgery. Facial Feminization Surgery, the most expensive part of transition. Usually $20,000-45,000.
Breast augmentation. About $6-8,000.
Sex reassignment surgery. Costs vary, North America ($18,000-20,000) or overseas ($8,000-15,000).

Historically, one of the first recorded surgeries took place in the US in 1962. For those that aren’t queasy, it is amazing what kind of female organs can be created – medical diagrams and pictures are on this vaginoplasty site.

Female to Male (FTM)

Surgeryencyclopedia.com states that female to male reassignment surgery can exceed $50,000 USD while male to female reassignment is $7,000 to $24,000 USD. I’m guessing that female to male is more expensive due to removal and reconstruction of so many things (taking out uterus, making penis, creating broader torso, etc). Also, female plastic surgery in general is more common than male plastic surgery, so there is most likely better competitive pricing. Other items cost relatively the same (therapy, legal changes) and overall estimates I’ve read about online roughly total $80,000 USD as well, same as male to female. Medical pictures of these surgeries are outlined in a scientific paper published in Seminars in Plastic Surgery journal and surgery recovery time from penis reconstruction is stated to be about 2.5 weeks. This is only recovery time for one surgery, for multiple surgeries, times for recovery would vary.

And Then?

For the rest of their lives, people who change gender will need to continue taking hormones to counteract their “natural” ones. In an article published in Archives of sexual behavior, researchers studied 32 male-to-female and 23 female-to-male post surgery and found that female-to-males seem to have better sex lives. Generally, people’s expectations were met at an emotional and social level, but only 80% reported improvement of their sexuality.

What if you regret surgery?

Apparently it’s possible to go back…just do it all over again! A British millionaire named Sam Hashimi became Samantha Kane and then became Charles Kane. Dailymail UK interviewed him and apparently he is happier as a man now. Granted, going back and forth isn’t very good for the body as there is probably some consequence such as desensitization to certain areas due to nerve damage, etc. There are a number of other stories of regret online as well in which people become miserable for the rest of their lives as they suffered from bad surgeries or just changed their mind, but couldn’t go backwards for some reason.

Gender is a complicated issue and there are no easy solutions if one feels like they are suppose to be another sex. For those who actually do take all these steps to fulfill their dream of becoming a man or woman, they are super brave! Kudos to them! I hope they find happiness after all these challenging steps. In the future, would these surgeries become easier? It’s hard to say, cutting into flesh seems painful regardless.

When I was joking with my Viking that if I get a penis it would be bigger than his, he nodded with raised Spock eyebrows and said, “Of course, dear”. Hm, I guess this is what he means when he claims that I test/torture him everyday! Anyhow, I hope you learned something new from this random post!

What’s scarier to horror movies? McCarthyism!

asian, films, Uncategorized, warped

Last weekend I caught a film called Blue Kite about the rising of Communism in which people either willingly went along with the reform or they would be accused of being a “Rightist” and sentenced to hard labor. The story followed a little boy who grew up as he saw various people die around him. His father was accused of being a Rightist, sent far away to do hard labor and died after a tree fell on him. The family never recovered his body. Then his uncle dies due to a combination of malnourishment (there was a famine) and hard labor. His high ranking Communist stepfather is accused by other party members of being a Rightist as well and dies of a heart attack during interrogation. The landlady, who started off quite rich in the movie, ends up impoverished as her saved rations are taken from her (the accusers said she bought flour on the black market although the landlady says she saved it to make her son buns to welcome him home) and she is forced to lower all rents as entrepreneurship is not encouraged.

To balance the situations, there were lots of pro-Communist characters, with one being the boy’s aunt who talks ideally about how they were the pioneers, living in a time of historical change. In general, many of the people just wanted to live their lives and didn’t care too much about politics. There were lots of little old lady characters that just wanted peace and quiet for themselves as well as for the younger generations around them. However, no one really had any choice of not changing as reform started to set into the country. The movie isn’t about whether Communism is good or bad, but sheds light on how people are swept away by events beyond their control.

All the scenes of multiple characters being rounded up by masses of people and then taken away were frightful. It resonated with me that none of the “victims” protested at all. They seem to have decided there was either no point or they were in shock that their friends, neighbors, family, co-workers, etc, were throwing out accusations left and right without any proof. In horror stories, it’s more black and white: monster bad/hungry, humans good. Here, with people you have known turning against you, there is no telling what the motivations are. There was one character who kept saying that she didn’t know what happened and why she was even sent away.

When I told my Viking husband about “Blue Kite” and how it was frightening to see neighbours as well as friends turn against you, he told me to look up McCarthyism. Joseph Raymond “Joe” McCarthy was a Republican U.S. Senator represented the state of Wisconsin from 1947 until his death in 1957. During the Cold War, McCarthy started freaking people out by claiming there were large numbers of Communists and Soviet spies and sympathizers inside the United States federal government and elsewhere. He couldn’t prove his claims and was eventually censured by the United States Senate.

“McCarthyism” was coined by Washington Post cartoonist Herbert Blockwho used the word as a synonym for demagoguery, baseless defamation, and mudslinging. Basically what was happening in Blue Kite was the same thing…life is so depressing sometimes. This is something which people will use as a weapon when it serves them for whatever gain they want, no matter what country they live in.

The Cell Phone Accessories Market Is Worth How Many Billions?!!! Women Spend How Many Trillions?!

Money, Uncategorized

Last weekend, my visiting mother-in-law wanted to go to Pacific Mall, the largest Chinese mall in Canada that is open 365 days a year. It is set up like a Hong Kong shopping mall, with multiple tiny shops, street names such as “Hollywood Ave” and is a chaotic place in general. I haven’t been there in over a year as it is quite far from where I live.

Anyhow, over the last year, perhaps due to crackdown of police on too many illegal English dvds – the mall has changed from being a giant dvd store to a giant cell phone/tablet case store. There were over a dozen stores all carrying cases for any phone or tablet you can think of. The TIFF goddess wanted another leather case for her Iphone and was appalled to see many fake Bottega weave cases. It took a lot of my own restraint to not break down and buy a Hello Kitty case for my phone, everything looked adorable! In the end I ordered an “official” Samsung case online as it looked more grownup than the Hello Kitty or Totoro case I had been considering…I have to remember that I’m an old woman, professional, etc…

This got me wondering about how much this market is worth. Research firm ABI claims that in 2012, the market for cell phone accessories are worth $36 billion USD with $20 billion USD attributed to smart phones. By 2017, smart phone accessories will grow to $38 billion USD in revenue, both other type of phone accessories will decline to $12 billion USD. The average smart phone consumer will spend $56.18 USD on accessories for their phone, while other phone owners will spend $28.17 USD.

So are the margins that great for all the thousands of plastic cases hanging around Pacific Mall? The margins range from 25%-50% according to online retailer Comeparts.com. Considering the Samsung case which I bought online for $8 with free shipping from China; at Pacific Mall it was about $25 – it was most likely worth $4 at wholesale. More stats are available on this page about mobile phone use and consumers, such as “By the end of 2013, there will be more mobile devices on Earth than people!”

Meanwhile in my random internet searches, I discovered that as consumers, women represent a growth market bigger than China and India combined—more than twice as big! Harvard Business review states that they control about $20 trillion in annual consumer spending globally, which could increase to$28 trillion USD in the next five years. This great article dissects women into different lifestyle categories and concludes that there are many categories for business to lure women, especially in financial services. Also, in Japan, the men don’t help their wives with chores. Looking at the categories of women, at moment I believe I’m in the fast tracker category, but of course, it looks like over time things could change. Just saying…because I’m a pessimist…so we should save our $$ ladies for the rainy days!

Exploring Road Rage…

Uncategorized

Today we are preparing for a transuburban trek to visit my family 60 km North of us. If there is one thing my Viking husband fears, it is me behind the wheel and him trapped in the passenger seat. Last time we drove to Stratford (about 2.5 hours), he yelled that I was going to have a nervous breakdown due to my road rage issues. In the end, he had one before I did. All those Globe and Mail articles about women being “gatekeepers” and being anal about housework, is the opposite in my household, as I am married to a groomzilla who had several excel spreadsheets in 15 min increments of all people and tasks for our wedding. I was the reluctant bride who was told by my Dragon Mother before the wedding, “Just marry him. You can easily get divorced later if it doesn’t work out.” After the wedding, she said, “Divorce is out of the question! Do you know how much paperwork is involved!” I have not learned the fine art of manipulation yet, as my worst vice is brutal honesty which gets me into trouble a lot. But I digress…

Merriam-Webster definition of road rage (noun)

: a motorist’s uncontrolled anger that is usually provoked by another motorist’s irritating act and is expressed in aggressive or violent behavior

First Known Use of ROAD RAGE; 1988

Now I wanted to know – how do they know this was the year of the first known use of road rage?! This cited year came from the August ’98 issue of Atlantic Monthly, when journalist Michael Fumento cites evidence that this term firm appeared in 1988 and before that it was referred to as “aggressive driving”. He believes the this phrase is a pure media invention for sensational story telling as since it’s creation was based on “roid rage,” referring to sudden violent activity by people on steroids. “Road rage” and its supposed epidemic was then quickly made popular by lobbying groups, politicians, opportunistic therapists, publicity-seeking safety agencies, and the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Let’s accept the phrase “road rage” as aggressive behaviors by the driver of a motor vehicle, which seem well beyond the perceived offense committed by the victim. According to Dr. Randy A. Sansone, a number of factors may contribute to road rage:

environmental factors (greater number of miles driven per day, traffic density)
nonspecific psychological factors (displaced aggression, attribution of blame to others)
Axis I (alcohol and substance misuse) or II disorders (borderline and antisocial personality disorders)

The good news he reveals, is that while studies show one-third of drivers claim to have road road, far fewer drivers (≤2%) actually report serious threatening behavior or damage to another person or vehicle. As well, the Canadian Automobile Association (CAA) group and Statistic Brain (US data) reveal that “distraction” is one of the major factors in actual car crashes. Cell phones = common distraction. Drivers engaged in text messaging on a cellular phone are 23 times more likely to be involved in a crash or near crash event compared with non-distracted drivers. Road rage was not listed anywhere.

Some people believe that road rage is solely due to psychological character trails – Type A people are more prone to react to stress, making them more competitive, ambitious, impatient and aggressive; so they are more likely to engage in road rage. Type A personality types are also more likely to develop stress-related illnesses such as Coronary Artery Disease, high blood pressure etc. Of course, as with much research, these traits were developed from studies on middle age males, so there is uncertainty in application to females.

Online there are many quizzes for one to determine if they are a type A. Looking at the questions below, I say “yes” to about 6/9 so I guess I’m a Type A (is my Viking a Super Type A then?!). I theorize that I get road rage due to my lack of patience for people combined with my anxiety/stress about driving as I don’t drive very often. My lack in sense of direction adds to it as well. The Viking likes to ask me where East is once in a while and mocks me with delight when I get it wrong – lots of scarring on this front here…I guess I’ll try to write more to make more money to take taxis everywhere! Or come up with some psychology test and theory, then make big bucks by making people pay for them! Either way works!

Here are some adapted items from the interviews and questionnaires used to determine the Type A personality. Which are you?

(Affirmative responses suggest Type A personality)

• Are you pressed for time at and after work?

• Do you always take work home with you?

• Do you eat rapidly?

• Do you have a strong need to excel?

• Do you have trouble finding time to get your hair cut/styled?

• Do you feel or act impatient when you have to wait in line?

Hostility-related items:

• Do you get irritated easily?

• Are you bossy and domineering?

• When you were younger was your temper fiery and difficult to control?

Curing road rage

Ehow has a list of instructions on how to “cure” road rage:

1. Get adequate sleep each night
2. Create a relaxing atmosphere in your car.
3. Refrain from driving under stress.
4. Keep your distance from hazardous drivers.
5. Take deep breaths to get calm.
6. Don’t take the actions of an aggressive driver personally.
7. Keep in mind the lives of all motorists.

They all sound reasonable, so good luck to those that have to cope as well!