Saturday, January 7, 2012

Fleet Feet Sports Review

The last pair of running shoes I had I picked up at Rack Room because they felt good for 30 seconds walking around.  I ran holes into them over the next four years and knew it was time to get serious about running shoes.  I saw the reviews on Yelp and figured I'd probably do worse on my own.

Just like everyone else says, they took my measurements and watched me walk and all the rest.  They brought out three shoes I'd never pick for myself, and all were better than anything I'd pick for myself.  The price for the one I settled on seemed steep, but I was glad to pay for the service.  Then I found my exact shoes on Amazon...for the same price.

I've yet to actually run in my shoes, but I'm still leaving 5 stars because of their return policy: 30 days unconditional (even wear and tear from running through mud puddles is covered).  Can't beat that!

2076 Chestnut St
(between Mallorca Way & Steiner St)
San Francisco, CA 94123
Neighborhood: Marina/Cow Hollow
(415) 921-7188

A Briggs Passport & Visa Expeditors Review

I needed a last-minute tourist visa to Brazil for my vacation this year.  Unfortunately, Brazil has one of the most complicated and expensive visa systems for US citizens and had I done it myself through the Brazilian consulate, I wouldn't have even been able to make an appointment to apply for at least two months, well past my departure date.

I contacted several visa expediters on the phone and they either didn't really know what was required or they were going to charge over $300 not including the application fee.  Interacting with A Briggs was so positively different from the others:
-They were CHEERFUL and patiently explained everything I needed to do
-Clear about documentation requirements, deadlines, and upfront fees
-Perfect amount of communication: didn't bother me unless it was necessary
-Reasonable expedite fee that was less than their competitors

I forgot to include a copy of my driver's license in my application and they immediately e-mailed me, requesting a scanned or faxed copy.  I sent that in but it wasn't very clear; within 10 minutes they e-mailed me again, asking that I send in a clearer copy.  Within an hour I had a Fedex tracking number and invoice in my inbox and everything was taken care of.  I got my passport with visa a full NINE days earlier than promised.

Thanks for taking the stress out of this part of my trip!

50 California St
Ste 1500

(between Drumm St & Davis St)
San Francisco, CA 94111
Neighborhood: Financial District
(415) 626-5860

Monday, January 2, 2012

Atlantic Business Magazine wins GOLD in international competition Review

ATLANTIC BUSINESS MAGAZINE  is proud to announce that Editor Dawn Chafe and Contributing Editor Alec Bruce have each won Gold in the 2010 Tabbie international business press awards. It is the only business magazine in Atlantic Canada to have received this distinction.

Editor Dawn Chafe took first place in the Editor’s Column category for “Michael’s Big Fat Fib”, an eloquent and amusing rebuttal to Michael Economides’ anti-green energy presentation at the 2009 NOIA conference. Her award-winning column appeared in the July/August 2009 edition of Atlantic Business Magazine.

Judging comments: “From its headline to the last sentence, this column caught my attention. I thought it was elegantly and intelligently written as well as entertaining. The author made a very persuasive argument to continue the dialogue about alternative energy.”

Contributing Editor Alec Bruce was similarly successful in the Regular Column category. ‘Winner Takes All’ is the title of Bruce’s pithy and intelligent column on competitiveness. In the words of the judges, it’s a must-read element of the publication:

 Judging comments: “A well-written, engaging column. The author uses interesting and punchy text and analogies to drive his point home. If I received this magazine, it would likely be the first article I’d turn to.”

The 2010 Tabbie Awards, an international b2b magazine competition, featured nearly 500 entries, with nominations coming from the U.S., Canada, the U.K., India, New Zealand and South Africa.

Founded in 1989, Atlantic Business Magazine is an independently owned, bi-monthly glossy publication that covers all areas of business within the four Atlantic provinces. As the region’s highest circulation business magazine, it publishes 37,000 copies per issue.

501 W Roscoe St
(between Sheridan Rd & Broadway St)
Chicago, IL 60657
Neighborhood: Lakeview

Atlantic Business Magazine welcomes Peter Grandich Review

This review is a long distance review, as I have never actually been to Romanian Kosher Sausage Co.  My dad travels on business to Chicago a few times a month and stops here to buy salami and beef fry.  When he knows I'm coming home for a visit from Atlanta to Ohio he stocks up so I can load up my cooler and bring it back with me to Atlanta.  I have never had better salami and the concept of beef fry is just amazing!  I don't eat pork, but to use beef fry and get the BLT type sandwich that is still kosher is the best!  I highly recommend this place for kosher meats!
But you won't just find me there. You'll find a lot of great writers too numerous to mention, and I'd better not mention any of them because if I leave one of them out I'll never hear the end of it. (And besides, I've linked to their posts at this blog before so you might recognize them anyway.) Site registration at Swish Appeal is free, but you do have to establish an identity there in that you have to sign up for a user name. (This drives posters away for some reason. I can't figure it out.) I will say that the writing is top-notch, and not because I'm writing for it.

The platform at Swish Appeal is much more flexible than the one at Blogger.com, and it's just a damned sight simpler to post there - as a matter of fact, you can use the "Fanposts" feature and post your own content if you've got an issue that you feel you can't confine to the comments at Pleasant Dreams.

I was very reluctant to close down the blog. But no, the blog isn't closing down. It's just moving. 

7200 N Clark St
(between Chase Ave & Touhy Ave)
Chicago, IL 60626
Neighborhood: Rogers Park
(773) 761-4141