Volume 60, Number 2
Spring, 2005

"THE APPRENTICE" TO HEADLINE FALL JOINT MEETING

Mark your calendar now, and plan to attend the next Chicago PDCA/FCA and NiPDi/FCAI Joint Membership Meeting, scheduled to be held on September 14th at Maggiano's Little Italy in Oak Brook. Our Guest Speaker will be Bill Rancic, the young man who gained fame a year ago by winning Donald Trump's competition to become his new business "Apprentice."

Bill grew up in Chicago, attending Carl Sandburg High School and Loyola University, from which he was graduated in 1992. Working his way through college by running a boat washing business for his tuition money, he earned a BA degree...graduating with cum laude honors.

Then his instincts as an entrepreneur kicked into high gear. Founding an internet business called "cigarsaroundtheworld" as a "dot com" enterprise in his studio apartment, he built it into a multi-million-dollar business.

Today, he still manages the day-to-day operations of his cigar business, but has also launched a new career with the Trump organization in the real estate development industry through his assignment on the Trump Tower project now beginning to grace the Chicago skyline.

Bill is a highly-sought speaker at major corporations as well as universities, where he speaks about achieving success through hard work and "thinking out-of- the-box." He delivers the same messages to residents of Mercy Home For Boys, where he often volunteers as a tutor for the underprivileged children.

Bill enjoys skydiving and scuba diving, and has run in two Chicago marathons. Now he has also become a published author with Harper Collins producing his book, You're Hired, How To Succeed in Business and Life.

Don't miss his lively discussion!

WATCH YOUR MAIL FOR INVITATIONS BEING MAILED OUT THIS SUMMER!

Want to avoid telemarketing calls to your cell phone number? Just call the "National Do Not Call Number" from your cell phone (888/382-1222). It will only take a minute of your time, and it will block your number for five years! You can also register on-line with the Federal Trade Commission at their web site (www.ftc.gov/donotcall/).

Now you can turn off annoying TV sets with the press of a button on a small key fob device called TV-B-Gone which scans 200 infrared codes that control the power on about 1000 TV models. The device was invented by a San Francisco resident annoyed by the proliferation of blaring TV's in public places, such as airports. His next work will no doubt by the Cellphone-B-Gone.

Write down September 30, 2005, if you would like to attend the Illinois State PDCA Golf Tournament at the beautiful Weaver Ridge Golf Course in Peoria. Call Illinois Council Secretary Bob Ireland at 815/741-4331 if you wish to receive the invitation mailing. Bob is a Past President of National PDCA, and the proprietor for many years of his own paint contracting company in Joliet, Ireland Decorating. These days, Bob remains involved with volunteer work for the Illinois Council of PDCA and stripes the occasion parking lot for his old company just to keep in shape.

Persons abiding in a domicile built of silica combined with metallic salts should not carelessly project geologic specimens. In other words, people who live in glass houses shouldn't throw rocks.

The trouble with bucket seats is that no everyone has the same size bucket.

Observations on these changing times: have you realized that, in 40 years, we will have thousands of old ladies running around with tattoos?

Reading about drywall may be as interesting as watching paint dry, but installing it is more difficult. Help is on the way from USG, the world's largest manufacturer of gypsum panels. Cruise the internet to their drwall web site at www.usg.com/diydry/drywal01.htm to learn everything you ever wanted to know about drywall but were afraid to ask. Be patient...you'll have to wade through seemingly endless advertisinginformation on their monumental list of products to find the gold.

While we're talking web site usage for useful information, here's one that veterans may wish to visit for help on available benefits. Listing about 500 federal and state benefits available to qualified veterans, it is sponsored by the government: www.govbenefits.gov. A recent search for a World War II vet produced 21 benefit programs that he was still eligible for.

A new employee at a large company was standing by the machine, looking confused, when a co-worker offered to help. "How does this thing work," she inquired. "It's simple," the other lady noted, taking the thick report from her colleague's handings and feeding it into the shredder. "I see," said the novice. "But how many copies will it make?"

The reporter was asking an elderly lady who had reached 104 years of age what she thought was the best part of growing so old. "No peer pressure," she observed quickly.

Great Britain's Prime Minister, Tony Blair, is the rare friend one finds among foreign government officials. When he was interviewed recently and asked why he believed so strongly in America and President Bush, he responsed, "A simple way to take the measure of a country is to look at how many want in ...and how many want out."

The next time you're shaking your head about the Federal Tax Code, just remember that Albert Einstein once noted "The hardest thing in the world to understand is income tax!"

Of course, Benjamin Franklin's famous take was, "Nothing in this world is certain but death and taxes."

Pity the hapless airline pilot who miscalculated his land approach and hammered his ship really hard onto the runway. Finding it difficult to look his passengers in the eye as they filed out, and expecting sarcastic comments, he was relieved when the only person left was an old lady walking unsteadily out the door and leaning on her cane. Just when he thought he was out of the woods, she turned and inquired, "Son, do you mind if I ask a question?" He responded courteously, "Why not at all, ma'am, what is it? Without batting an eyelash, she asked, "Tell me...did we land, or were we shot down?"

PDCA/FCA'S 2005 POSTER

2005 "PIPP" AWARDS

R-GANG ENTERTAINS

PAINTMANBILL, THE TRAVELLING MAN

Since retirement, our friend Bill Wright has amassed a good many miles on his motor coach home along with his wife, Mary. The couple has criss-crossed the country several times, wintered three years in Florida, and recently relocated to a new home in Mountain Home, Arkansas. They just sold their Illinois homes in McHenry and on Fish Lake, but do plan to return to the Chicago area this Summer to visit with their family. If you want to learn the whole story, try sending Bill an e-mail to paintmanbill@aol.com.