[caption id="attachment_489" align="alignnone" width="700" caption="Caribou's President and CEO, Michael Tattersfield, giving Tyler the 10th Melon "Head" award"]
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How do you say thank you for a watermelon award? Well, if you are the first person to earn one outside of the Caribou Coffee company you say...
"I just am completely humbled for Project 7 to be partnered with such a great company like Caribou Coffee. Corporate Business has taken some 'hits' over the last couple of years thanks to the “headline offenders on Wall Street”.... Too often companies like Caribou and what they are trying to do goes unnoticed. Supporting the needs of 7 is authentic through all the levels of their company... This is the fabric of their company culture." - Tyler Merrick
Recently, our founder, Tyler Merrick, was the recipient of the prestigious Caribou "Melon Head" award. The melon head is awarded to someone who has made a significant contribution to Caribou as a company. The recipient is someone who really "moved the needle."
Tyler's "Melon Head" was the 10th given out by Caribou's President and CEO, Michael Tattersfield. The watermelon shall forever mean more to us than a delectable summer food... it now stands for our wonderful partnership with Caribou Coffee.
Today we were featured on a fantastic blog called
Life-Content. To quote the creator or Life Content, Courtney Dreslin Sinelli, "Life Content is not meant to be trendy or to report on only the newest hotel, hippest restaurant, etc. I am a huge believer that it’s better to have a few things and experiences that you absolutely love than to just fill your life with “stuff.” Therefore, this website features selective content for life—things and places and experiences that I think other people will love, no matter what the subject, price, or when it made its debut."
We are so excited to be one of those things. Thanks Courtney!
One chandelier...
Four days...
and it has to be made out of recycled water 7 bottles....
No problem.
Okay, problem. After talking to Darren Q. in the electrical dept at a local home improvement store, it was clear that we had bit off way more than we could chew. His series of annoying, albeit it important questions didn't dampen my spirits. It wasn't important to know how I was going to hang it, or where I was going to get the power supply... the important thing was to first figure out how not to electrocute myself or anyone else in the process... then we would figure out how to hang it.
The logistics looked something like this: the chandelier would need 8 to 10 light bulbs to put out any kind of light these bulbs would be provided 14 watt candle style bulbs so as to not be too hot (this comes into discussion a little bit later).
After a series of "How are you going to..." questions, Darren Q helped me pick out the wiring, electrical connections, light receptacles, bulbs and few other needed details. I raced back to the office and sent out a memo that all P7 employees should drink up and save all the empty Project 7 water bottles. They had a week to provide me with my "raw" materials.
Everyone did their part and delivered the recycled goods. In order to prep the bottles for their new illuminated roles, I cut both the bottom and top ends off of the bottle, creating a cylindrical tube of Project 7 goodness.
After the first day, I had 10 bottles fitted with the sockets, wiring exposed and ready to be spliced together. And this is the point where I went a little mad. I had to figure out how to daisy chain all 20 wires together to eventually meet up with just two wires going to the power. This is math doesn't make sense. However, as many good things do, the answer came to me in a dream where an angelic Darren Q. provided me with the guidance... okay, maybe he told me while I was standing in front of him... all the while wondering why I wanted to build this crazy thing.
Where was I? Oh yeah, I’ve got 10 bottles with 10 lights, all I need are a few empty bottles mixed in with it to give it a little more body (did I just say that?) I cut holes through the lids and ran the same size wire I had used for the lights electricity and ran them up in the same box where all of my electrical connections are and tied them off. See! Totally simple... did any body get that? Perhaps we need a drawn up plan...
Everything had been prepped on Thursday for the unveiling of this marvelous light fixture that would no doubt light up the night in its recycled glory and super low wattage bulbs... Then, it all went wrong... I had plugged my electric baby to show off the stellar design and crafty wiring when my co-worker noticed the water bottles around the bulbs beginning to deform. They were quickly turning into Dali-esque figures, melting into oddly shaped forms of their previous selves. Unplugging the chandelier as fast as I could, we tried to save what was left, but alas, my glorious experiment into the light had sparked and then burned.
Friday morning was back to the drawing board. It was back to my old friend Darren Q, to get some Yoda like guidance on electricity and how to not burn down your office... I told him my sob story of the melting bottles and he smirked as if he knew that would happen. And then, he brought a new answer to the table... the 4 watt bulb! Why he hadn't told me about this beauty four days prior I will never know... maybe he just wanted to ensure another meeting with me... who knows. But needless to say, the 4 watt was the answer and I have the pictures to prove it!
So boys and girls, what have we learned from Darren's (me not Q) recycled chandelier story?
A) know what you are doing before playing with electricity... or at least have the fire department on speed dial.
B) There are easier ways to build your own Chandelier. If you want to create a chandelier from scratch, you’ll need to purchase the central structure, or lamp, from a light store or hardware store, but make sure you know what you’re getting into. Some home improvement stores feature chandelier kits where they provide you with the base and wiring supplies, (where was this for me? Not at my local hardware store... and we all know I'm one step short of MacGuyver...) These kits are a good starting point for making your distinctive piece. They are relatively inexpensive when compared to pre-made chandeliers.
C) If your focus is to create a unique design or focal point for the room, but you don’t want to start from scratch, you can decorate an existing chandelier. Turn to antique stores or garage sales to find a chandelier that you can modify and decorate. This strategy allows you to work with an existing design, and focus more on the ornamentation and details of the lamp.
Good luck! Going green isn’t always easy... But the payoffs are huge.
[caption id="attachment_454" align="alignnone" width="637" caption="Credit: emmanueljal.com"]
[/caption]We want to introduce you to the life and music of Emmanuel Jal. For those of you that don't know about him, read on... it's a doozy. For those of you that do know, you know what to expect.
From war child to hip hop star, Emmanuel Jal has come a long way. At the age of seven, he was ushered into the Sudanese rebel army. No child should witness or be part of the atrocities that plagued Emmanuel's youthful existence. Five years later, Jal, along with 400 other soldiers, finally escaped. Of these 400, only 16 survived the flight, one of which was Jal.
Jal found his was to a refugee camp, eating snails and vultures to stay alive. At this refugee camp he was adopted by aid worker Emma McCune who later sent him to England.
Jal found solace in music, and his moving lyrics and stories shed light on the problems facing the children and people of war torn Africa. His music can be heard alongside Coldplay, Gorillaz, and Radiohead on the fundraising ‘Warchild – Help a Day in the Life’ album.
In addition to his music, Jal founded a charity called
Gua Africa that works with individual, families and communities to help them overcome the effects of war and poverty through Education. Recently he spoke at the TED conference. His talk was moving and absolutely inspiring.
Take a listen and a look.
Emmanuel Jal, a voice for change, with a beat you can dance too.
My name is Jeanne, and for those of you that don't know me, I am an employee of Project 7. You may remember me from such blog posts as "Good is all around us." and "A Good Habit." Today I accomplished two good deeds for the effort it took to do one. I subscribed to
GOOD Magazine.
For those of you that don't know, GOOD is a collaboration of individuals, businesses, and nonprofits pushing the world forward. Since 2006, they've been making a magazine, videos, and events for people who care. The subscription is donations based and you can choose which level you wish to give at.
And to top it all off, my entire subscription fee was then gifted back to me in the form of a gift card to be used on
globalgiving.com. Globalgiving "connects donors with community-based projects that need support." They have hundreds of non-profits seeking funding. I chose to send my $50 subscription to
Playpumps International. PlayPumps International’s mission is help improve the lives of children and their families by providing easy access to clean drinking water, enhancing public health, and offering play equipment to millions across Africa.
So, to sum it up, I will now receive a beautiful magazine that supports people and companies that do good AND I have just helped a kid in Africa get good drinking water! Now that is a truly GOOD day!
