One step in winning the war for talent: Help create a world where little girls want to become women
My daughter MacKenzie will be seven in October. As our only child, each year has brought unexpected challenges and pleasant surprises. In her sixth year, she’s asked tough questions and started to really demonstrate the person she’s becoming. She is a very social creature and has never met a stranger. She has a huge heart and feels things deeply. She’s passionate about science, math, singing and the beach.Several times in the last few months she’s told me something that nearly stopped my heart. She’s said, “Mommy, I don’t want to be a girl.” The first time she said it, I made the mistake of immediately giving her all the reasons that she’s wrong. I told her being a woman is an honor. I reminded her of the all the great women in her life like her grandmothers, her aunts and her teachers. As with most lectures, she quickly moved on to something else and stopped listening.The next time she said it, I was smarter and asked, “Why honey? What are you worried about?” She told me that it was going to hurt to have a baby. She said, “It isn’t fair that I have to wear a shirt and boys don’t.” What struck me was that at this very early age, she’s already identifying some of the gaps that remain for women. continue reading » 21SHARESShareShareSharePrintMailGooglePinterestDiggRedditStumbleuponDeliciousBufferTumblr
Apartment sales are starting to pick up according to Haesley Cush.A few months ago I wrote about the resurgence of the inner city apartment market.The unit market has been so quiet in the last couple of years that when someone turned up to an open house, agents just assumed they were a lost neighbour or tourist looking for directions!Well I’m pleased to report that the reported increase in activity has continued and has started to swell.We sold every apartment under the hammer that we took to auction in July. With multiple bidders in the previously dormant range of $480,000 to $520,000.We have seen a rise in open house numbers, offers and now sales. We are yet to see an increase in price, but that is largely due to the number of apartments that have been on the market.More from newsNew apartments released at idyllic retirement community Samford Grove Presented by Parks and wildlife the new lust-haves post coronavirus17 hours ago Auctioneer Haesley Cush has noticed a lift in unit sales. Picture: AAP/David ClarkWe are simply seeing demand creep closer to supply. Obviously while the number of available apartments outweighs the number of buyers in the market, prices will remain steady.It’s this steady platform however that is giving buyers confidence that we have seen the bottom of this market and prices can now only go up. It’s no longer a chance of ‘if’ but ‘when’.So staring into my crystal ball, I expect to see the number of transactions in the unit market increase.This will start in the inner city and head to the suburbs. The smart money will look for the apartments that offer something slightly unique for example a courtyard, larger floor plate, additional car park etc.As these units are snapped we should start to see competition and then ultimately the rise of prices in the unit market.
DES MOINES — A proposal to make it more difficult to create new public parks and recreation areas in Iowa drew a big crowd of opponents to the state Capitol Monday. It would prevent state dollars from being used to acquire land for public use.Alicia Vasto of the Iowa Environmental Council says the legislation is tone-deaf to what many Iowans – especially younger people – want. “Access to public space and recreation is important to me and my generation,” Vasto said. “It’s a quality of life issue that cannot be understated and is an ongoing part of the conversation around workforce recruitment and brain drain.”Marc Beltrame spoke on behalf of Ducks Unlimited. “This legislation doesn’t create another job,” Beltrame said. “It doesn’t make it easier to bring people to the state. It doesn’t make it easier to retain people that are already here.”The bill has the backing of the Iowa Farm Bureau. The group argues it could make it easier for beginning farmers to buy land and ensure state money is used to maintain and enhance existing public land. A three-member House subcommittee did not take a position on the bill Monday. A Senate committee MAY consider a similar bill later today
ROCK FALLS — Authorities say the search continues for an Illinois man last seen earlier this month at a campground near Rock Falls.The Cerro Gordo County Sheriff’s Department says 48-year-old Lawrence Howlett of Sandwich Illinois was last seen at about 10 o’clock on the night of June 1st near his camper along the Shell Rock River at Camp of the Woods northwest of Rock Falls.Howlett is 5-foot-5, weighing about 160 pounds, and was last seen wearing blue jean shorts, a gray tank top and tan work boots.Since he was reported missing, the Sheriff’s Department says authorities have conducted ground and water searches in the area where Howlett was last seen.The Sheriff’s Department asks for the public’s help, and anybody that has information is asked to call them at 641-421-3000.