CFMA - Valley of the Sun

5) The Environment is Better than You Think In the United States, rivers, lakes, seas, and air are getting cleaner all the time.  A car today emits less pollution traveling at full speed than a parked car did from leaks in 1970. (Readers Digest, 04/12 pg. 151)

4) The Important Stuff Costs Less. One reason we are richer, healthier, taller, cleverer, longer-lived, and freer than ever before is that the four most basic human needs – food, clothing, fuel and shelter-have grown markedly cheaper. Take one example: in 1800, a candle providing one hour’s light cost six hours work. In the 1880’s, the same light from a kerosene lamp took 15 minutes work to pay for. In 1950, it was eight seconds. Today, it’s half a second. In these terms, we are 43,200 times better off than in 1800. (Readers Digest, 04/12 pg. 151)

3) Poverty is nose-diving The rich get richer, but the poor do get better. Between 1980 and 2000, the poor doubled their consumption. The Chinese are ten times richer and live about 25 years longer than they did 50 years ago. Nigerians are twice as rich and live nine times longer. The percentage of the world’s people living in absolute poverty has dropped by over half. The United Nations estimates that poverty was reduced more in the last 50 years than in the previous 500. (Readers Digest 04/12 pg.151)

2) Urban living is a good thing… City dwellers take up less space, use less energy, and have less impact on natural ecosystems than country dwellers. The world’s cities now contain over half its people, but they occupy less than 3 percent of its land area. Urban growth may disgust environmentalists, but living in the country is not the best way to care for the earth. The best thing we can do for the environment is build more skyscrapers. (Readers Digest 4/12 pg. 151)

With all the doom & gloom being reported.... Sometimes it is hard to see all the good, so over the next couple of days, I would like to point out some good: 1) WE'RE BETTER OFF NOW Compared with 50 years ago, when I was just two years old, the average human now earns nearly three times as much money (corrected for inflation), eats one third more calories, buries two thirds fewer children, and can expect to live one third longer. In fact, it’s hard to find any region of the world that’s worse off now than it was then, even though global population has more than doubled over that period.   (Readers Digest 4/12 pg 151).

See everyone tomorrow @ the VOS CFMA 2012 Education Forum - "Bridge to Recovery "! How exciting! I cannot wait - can you??  For more information: http://chapters.cfma.org/ValleyOfTheSun/index.htm

Happy National Chocolate Chip Day! When: Always on May 15th National Chocolate Chip Day celebrates and enjoys sweet, tasty chocolate chips. Chocolate chips are a great invention, and certainly deserve a little recognition. After all, where would chocolate chip cookies, cakes and muffins be without the chocolate chip!? Chocolate chips are popular in cooking and baking, for a wide variety of breads, cakes, and cookies. There is an almost endless number of recipes. They are also used in decorating. Have you ever had chocolate chip pancakes? How about chocolate chips in trail mix? If you've never had these, then you're leading a sheltered life.  This is referred to as a "National" day. However, we did not find any congressional records or presidential proclamations for this day. It seems that many of the food and candy related days have tagged on the  word "national".  We suspect in the midst of a sugar high, the creators got a little excited,...

            HURRY - TODAY IS THE LAST DAY TO REGISTER!! Reservations must be received before 5 p.m. today, May 11 for next week’s lunch. You also have the opportunity to come for the entire day and earn 8 CPE credits. Yes, there are even more options. See the attached Bridge brochure. Remember – this month only we will meet at a different location , the Fiesta Inn in Tempe (see flyer), because we were unable to fit all those CPEs and nationally known speakers into our regular location. Prefer online registration? Then this link is for you . . . http://chapters.cfma.org/ValleyOfTheSun/index.htm

Congratulations to VOS CFMA newest CPA – Lisa Vaglio! In a recent conversation, almost in passing, Lisa Vaglio told us she is now a CPA!   Don’t keep it a secret girl – you worked hard and you deserve the recognition!! Next time you see Lisa – congratulate her – she deserves it!  Lisa at the most recent New Member Breakfast  Congratulations Lisa!!

Welcome New Members! This morning, the Membership Committee represented by Kris Newman, Lisa Vaglio & Lynne Pace, held the latest New Member Breakfast. The breakfast is an opportunity for our newest members to meet/greet current Valley of the Sun CFMA members, officers and committee chairs in an informal, small group in a casual setting.  The breakfast, held at the Romancing the Bean in Tempe, is a great setting for new members to   learn more about the benefits of membership, how to become involved in various committees, and begin networking with peers and/or potential customers .  The hour went quickly and a good time was had by all. Please welcome our newest members: Drew Wagner, wholesale floors llc Ted Gust, Able Steel Fabricators Paul Shurtleff, Enterprise Fleet Mgmt Kent Sorensen, Ledgerwood Assoc Matt Gasper, Merrill Lynch

Happy Mother Goose Day! When: Always on May 1st   Mother Goose Day was created only recently, as a day to appreciate nursery rhymes and stories. They are a favorite of children and their parents.   The term "Mother Goose" dates back to the 1650's. It refered to stories like Cinderella , Little Red Riding Hood and Sleeping Beauty . It does not appear to represent a particular person, as many of "Mother Goose" stories were written both before and after this term was first used. And, the stories were written by numerous authors. Enjoy "Mother  Goose Day" by reading Mother Goose stories and rhymes to your children or grandchildren.