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www.kevintharpe.com (770) 503-1022 MEET GRANDPA COLE! THE TRUE ALL-AMERICAN DAD & GRANDAD Kevin’s Peace of Mind
March 2021
It has been said that when you marry someone, you marry their family. If that’s true, then the day I married Missy, I struck gold, especially with her grandfather, Robert Cole. Grandpa Cole, was my grandfather-in-law and was and still is today very special to me. Over the many years I’ve known Grandpa Cole and his family, I’ve noticed there are similar traits that run throughout, starting with Grandpa Cole: kindness, integrity, and a dash of the sweetest Southern hospitality you’ll ever find. Grandpa Cole’s given name was Robert Ezra Cole, although nobody dared to call him Ezra (except his wife, Josephine and usually when he was in trouble). He was very happy with just being called Grandpa Cole. He grew up in the North Georgia mountains during the Great Depression era. He had a large family, like a lot of folks during that time, and he was the youngest boy. As he grew older, he needed work, and living in a rural community, the only work available in the North Georgia mountains at the time was farm work. So, Grandpa Cole and his wife Josephine (her family called her “Josie”) moved farther north to Dearborn, Michigan, a suburban area of Detroit. Of course, at the time, working in Dearborn, Michigan, meant you worked in the auto industry. So, Grandpa Cole began work as an engineer for the Ford Motor Company and continued his entire career with Ford. Grandpa Cole thrived despite being entirely self- taught, and he worked at nearly all levels at Ford. When not at work, Grandpa Cole was all about family, and it didn’t matter if it concerned immediate or extended family. He was always there for his kids and was a true all-American dad, comfortable cardigans included. Like his son, Doug, Grandpa Cole was really good at golf, often playing with Doug and me, even into the later years of his life. He was also known to be a good bowler in church and community leagues and was a quintessential team player in every sense. Even when Missy and I were dating, he treated me like one of his own grandkids. I got to know him quite well because Missy lived in the same neighborhood. But one of my favorite things about Grandpa Cole was that he always had a little mischievous spark in him. Missy and I would have a lot of lunch dates at Grandpa Cole’s house, and whenever Missy would visit without me, Grandpa Cole would say, “Wait a second, where’s Kevin?” It was like he was missing one of his grandkids, which amused me a little more than Missy.
Given our mutual love of golf, Grandpa Cole was an automatic choice for the extra ticket I was given for the Masters Golf Tournament back in mid ‘90s. That day, we traversed the most famous and beautiful golf course in the world, watching our favorite golfers and even enjoying a couple of pimento cheese sandwiches together. The golf, the food, the laughter, but most importantly, the time we spent together always makes me smile. It’s a day I will never forget. Grandpa Cole and Grandma Josie remained independent almost all the way into their 90s. It was only in the last few years of their lives that Sue took them in to take care of them. Grandpa Cole was a vivacious reader and an adept conversationalist, keeping his mind sharp by staying up to date with politics and current events. If you ask anyone who knew him, Grandpa Cole was a well-respected man. You could always rely on him to keep his word, whether he promised to fix your roof or drive you to the grocery store. We had a great rapport, and although Grandpa Cole never served in the military, I often called him “Colonel,” which, as Southerners know, is a sign of respect for an older Southern gentleman. “Colonel” I salute you. I can only hope to reach the standards you set for kindness and integrity. You proved to me that you don’t have to be born into a family to be part of it.
–Kevin
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Dehydration is a big problem. Many people don’t drink enough water each day — some reports show that 75% of adults in the United States don’t drink enough water, and over a quarter are dehydrated. Though those statistics aren’t widely agreed upon, it’s obvious that most people need more fluids. Even if it feels like you’re drinking a lot of water, remember that water leaves your body every time you sweat, go to the bathroom, and even breathe. Not keeping up with proper water intake can lead to dehydration. Even mild dehydration can cause health problems and impact your brain, heart, skin, and other organs, which can lead to headaches, confusion, fatigue, and gastrointestinal distress. We all know the solution to dehydration is to drink more water, but exactly how much water do we need each day? The amount will differ depending on the person, but one simple way to approximate your necessary daily intake is by dividing your body weight in half and drinking that much water (in fluid ounces) each day. For example, if you weigh 175 pounds, you’d need to drink 87.5 fluid ounces — over half a gallon — of water per day. An Easy Way to Drink More Water AND AVOID DEHYDRATION
That might seem like a lot of liquid, but you can easily drink it without trying too hard. All you have to do is be proactive: Start keeping water any place you frequent during the day. Keep a bottle in your car, at your desk, by your favorite chair, near your workout equipment, etc. Having water easily available in the places you spend the most time each day helps increase your chances of actually drinking it. An alternative approach is to purchase a giant jug that can hold all the water you need to drink in a day. Seeing it all in one place might be intimidating at first, but this method makes things very simple. Keep the jug close, and your water intake will likely increase without too much additional effort. And if you’re just not motivated to drink plain water, you can always add sugar-free flavoring or lemon to make it more enticing.
3 Ways to Help Your Legal Case Move Faster (And 3 Ways to Mess It Up)
Every legal case proceeds at its own pace. The Myra Clark Gaines litigation — a fight over an inheritance that began in 1834 — famously lasted 55 years. Even simple car accident cases often take more than a year to resolve. Frustration during the legal process is normal, but if you’re feeling it, there are a few things you can do to help your lawyers move things along: • Respond to communication quickly. • Share all of the details about your case. • Keep your emotions in check. This might seem like common sense, but you’d be surprised by how quickly ignoring these three items can send your case off the rails. Be Quick to Click When your attorney emails or calls you, it’s vital to answer as soon as you can. Some steps of the legal process are time-
sensitive, and if you ignore your attorney or wait hours or days before responding to them, you could miss a crucial window. Your lawyer might even walk away from your case, like the attorney in the 2002 Garden v. Garden case who withdrew when his client stopped responding. That said, it’s vital not to overcommunicate with your lawyer either. Always respond when they reach out, but don’t flood their inbox with emails or load their voicemail with messages. Clogging their information channels will just slow down their work, and it might end up costing you. Your attorney’s billable hours may include time taken to respond to emails.
to continue prodding you for information, and it could also save your case! Your lawyer won’t be able to defend you well unless they have all of the relevant information. Plus, if opposing counsel discovers something you’ve been hiding, your case may fall apart. Tamp Down Your Temper Court cases can get emotional, especially if something like child custody is at stake. Even so, if you have to appear in court it’s vital you keep your emotions in check and listen to your attorney’s advice about what to say and do. If you lose your temper or disrupt the court process, the judge could hold you in contempt of court — potentially triggering a fine or even jail time. This will certainly derail your case’s timeline. For proof, consider a defendant in a burglary case, Manson Bryant, who was sentenced to 22 years in prison. When he heard the verdict, Bryant started shouting at the judge — who added six more years to his sentence on the spot.
Don’t Hide the Details Some facts of your case could be
embarrassing or hard to talk about, but the best way to keep things moving is to share everything with your lawyer upfront. This will save time because your lawyer won’t have
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TAKE A BREAK
A LITTLE DISTRACTION
THIS ONE SMALL THING IS KILLING YOUR PRODUCTIVITY
Distractions in your workplace destroy your productivity, regardless of where you actually work. But here’s the kicker: Some distractions don’t always register as distractions because they’re often minor, like a knock at the door or a conversation you can hear from two cubicles over. However, even when a distraction doesn’t feel like a distraction, it still kills your productivity. But one distraction in particular can absolutely ruin productivity. It isn’t as obvious as an unexpected phone call or a meeting that could have been an email. It’s a small, normal part of our everyday lives: the notification. We get notifications on our phones, tablets, laptops, desktops, and even our smartwatches. Notifications are everywhere, and we’re conditioned to accept them. Take email, for example. You’re likely in the habit of checking email periodically — or whenever you get a notification. It can feel natural to quickly check your email and then get back to what you were doing. Except that never happens. When an email, text, or other random notification distracts you, it completely diverts attention away from what you were doing. If it’s spam, you may delete the email. Or, if you need to respond, it might take a few minutes or more. You may spend anywhere between 20 seconds to 20 minutes on any given email. However, this isn’t where time is lost. If you’re responding to a customer email, for instance, that is part of your productivity. The time is lost when you attempt to get back to what you were doing before checking your notifications.
ASPARAGUS AND SMOKED MOZZARELLA PIZZETTES
Inspired by EatingWell.com
Ingredients
• 1 lb prepared whole-wheat pizza dough, divided into 6 equal portions • 12 oz asparagus spears, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces • 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil • 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 cup shredded smoked mozzarella cheese • 1/3 cup scallions, thinly sliced • 2 tbsp walnuts, toasted and chopped • 1 sprig of fresh mint leaves, torn • Zest of 1 orange
A University of California, Irvine study found that it takes an average of 23
minutes to get back to your task after every distraction, not just email. Over the course
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 500 F and ensure there are two racks in your oven. 2. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper, stretch each piece of dough into a 7-by-3-inch oval and arrange evenly on the pan. 3. On a second baking sheet, toss asparagus with oil and 1/4 tsp salt. 4. Place dough on top rack and asparagus on bottom and bake for 3 minutes. 5. Remove both trays from the oven, sprinkle cheese over the dough, then top with asparagus and scallions. 6. Return pizzettes to oven and bake until the crusts’ edges are golden, about 8–10 minutes. 7. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with walnuts, mint, and orange zest before serving.
of a day, that adds up to a significant amount of wasted time.
How do you overcome this? Your best bet is to turn off notifications. Most devices let you customize your notifications so you can turn them off during working hours. Here’s another quick tip: Set aside time during the day to check emails, texts, and other messages. You will significantly reduce the amount of time spent trying to refocus on the important tasks at hand.
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PRST STD US POSTAGE PAID BOISE, ID PERMIT 411
(770) 503-1022 www.KevinTharpe.com 405 Broad St. Gainesville, GA 30501 INSIDE THIS ISSUE
1
Meet Grandpa Cole!
How to Easily Increase Your Water Intake 3 Ways to Help Your Legal Case Move Faster
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Asparagus & Smoked Mozzarella Pizzettes Don’t Let This Distraction Destroy Your Productivity
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‘Jersey Shore’ Stars Battle a New York Restaurant Over Meatball Merch
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The Meatball Shop Sued Snooki! (And Another ‘Jersey Shore’ Star, Too)
Reality TV stars Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi and Deena Cortese are gearing up for a court battle. But this isn’t a showdown with another celebrity: It’s a fight to the death over merchandise with ... a New York City-based meatball restaurant! This case sounds laughable, but there’s some real “meat” to dig into. The controversy started when the celebrity duo — known as “The Meatballs” since their time together on “Jersey Shore” — launched a clothing brand/online store called The Meatball Shop late last year. The brand sells meatball-themed T-shirts, sweatshirts, and hats with slogans like “Team Meatball Forever” and “Meatball Squad.” Over the holidays, they even offered a sweater with a checklist reading, “Pour wine, wrap gifts, decorate, be a meatball.” All of this merchandise plays off the pair’s “Jersey Shore” nickname, which Polizzi and Cortese earned because, as Food & Wine puts it, “The party girls are both very tan, curvy, and short.”
actual meatballs. According to Page Six, the New York City-based restaurant The
Meatball Shop sued Polizzi and Cortese in December of 2020, claiming their clothing infringes on its trademark. As of writing this, a judge is considering The Meatball Shop’s request to shut Polizzi and Cortese’s operation down. To add even more meat to the argument, it was the owners of The Meatball Shop restaurant (Daniel Holzman and Michael Chernow) who first taught Polizzi and Cortese to make edible meatballs in 2017. The lesson was documented in a photo shoot with “In Touch.” Does it get more ironic than that? If you want to keep up with the drama, check PageSix.com, and if this article made you crave meatballs, don’t worry — we’ve got you covered. Visit Epicurious.com and search “classic beef meatballs’’ for a recipe that will knock your socks off.
Even with this claim to the moniker, the legality of the celebrities’ clothing line has some competition from, well, places that sell
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