Podcasts about u s

Tiff and Dana take a close look at a practice that wanted to get a handle on its growth. They discuss knowing numbers inside and out, forming a growth plan, keeping your team involved in any expansion. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript:   The Dental A Team (00:00) Hello Dental A Team listeners. I am just so excited. It is Friday today. I don't know what day you're listening to this or what day it will drop, but you know, these are prerecorded. are not live. So that is not a shock to you. This Friday is almost ending. I think we've got a couple hours left under our belts for both of us, but I get to end it with Ms. Dana and I have missed you, Dana. I was on vacation last week and I feel like I barely saw you the week prior. And then this week has been crazy for both of us and   I love our time together. think I scheduled this extra time just to chat next week because I miss you so much. So, Dana, you're rocking this outfit today. I told you that this morning on our morning huddle. Yes, we do morning huddles. And this cut you've got on your hair, I've told you already, but I freaking love it. You look stellar today. So welcome to Friday, Dana. How are you?   Dana (00:51) Doing good. I'm excited to end, well, almost end my day with you two. I'm excited. I know we probably don't want to get into it on this podcast, but I can't wait to hear about your trip. And, you know, I'll take as much tip time as I can get. So I'm super excited to be here and to be able to chat with you and to maybe help some people too while we're at it.   The Dental A Team (01:13) ⁓ thank you. Thank you. know I did. I scheduled our time next week and I was like, that's our catch up time. But I can say I did figure out I know you recently went on a cruise. ⁓ I am not a cruiser. It's not my jam. So I figured that out. But it was a great sampler platter and I fell in love with Italy. So we'll say that and I've got a lot of stories. I literally yesterday I was like, I need to like, type these out or write them in a journal or something because you know, in 10 years, I'm gonna forget half of them and there are just so many stories out of   the nine days that I was gone. So I'm excited to chat with you. And we can share our cruise stories, I guess, right? They're wild. Cruises are wild. Cruise people are a little wild. If you're out there listening, like you're a little wild. I don't know about these 11 PM, like bingo nights and stuff. I'm like, guys, it's wild. But here we are.   Dana (01:59) Yeah. I left mine   feeling like you. not necessarily, I don't think that like I put it at the top of my list. Would I do another one maybe? But I don't think that it's at the top of my preferred methods for traveling.   The Dental A Team (02:15) Same, same,   same. But you know, Vegas isn't on my top list either. And it kind of felt like Vegas on water. So maybe it's me. I said 10, 15 years ago, you know, in my young years, I would have been all about it, you know, and I would have stayed up all night and gone to Rome the next morning. But at the age that I'm at now, not so much, not so much. I'm tired. My kid puts me to bed every night at like 8.15. He's like, all right, mom, we're part and ways. I'm like, you're right. I'm falling asleep on the couch. Let's go. So.   Dana (02:43) you   The Dental A Team (02:44) Anyways, anyways today, ⁓ Dana, I'm here to pick your brain. You've had, you've had monster success. think all of our consultants have had a lot of success, but you've had some pretty monster success with a few practices that you've got a load of practices under your belt, ⁓ over the years and currently working with quite a few rock stars and some that have come back around because they miss Dana so much. So, you know, if you're out there and you're missing Dana, you guys, she's still here.   We love her and we're keeping her. She's not going anywhere. But you have actually worked with, ⁓ a few of us have worked with clients out of the country too. And you specifically, you've worked with a handful. I think you've probably worked with more than any of us have out of the country. So today's conversation is kind of fun because it is chatting a little bit about somebody who's out of the country, like their successes that they've had. not in the United States, but.   for one, kind of notifying everybody out there, especially our Canadian listeners here. We do work with clients in Canada all the time. And Dana is actually a super stellar. She's trained a lot of us on a lot of things she's learned. And we've all been able to really kind of figure out how to manipulate some of our US standards and our ideas and our protocols and really translate them towards Canadian. And I think the biggest pieces in the Canadian world there are the billing.   and the way the claims go out and the things that you're able to build and collections processes, things like that. But we've kind of got that down. Dana did a ton of work with this practice in regards to that. So today's actually super fun because it's also really cool to see, I think Dana, I think it's awesome to see that like business is business. I say that all the time, like I don't care what your company is. We've worked with CPAs, we've worked with ⁓ podiatrists, we've had...   you know, chiropractors that we've consulted because business is business protocols or protocols. So it's really cool to see that even dentistry outside of the country, so many of the systems and the protocols that we use every single day that I would say some of us take for granted are totally transferable. So today's conversation, I really wanted to dive in and kind of pick your brain, on how this client was able to see so much success. They were really, they're really a fantastic client. And I know that they implement really well.   ⁓ And that's a huge piece of the success, you guys. If you come and we give you the tools and you don't implement them, I can't do it for you, right? So Dana, I know this client does really well in that aspect, but I mean, you took them, I mean, I'll let you tell the story, but their production, their collections kind of skyrocketed once you started really cleaning up some of those systems. Where do you feel like was the best starting point? Like I know you had like Keaton on,   on some things we always do, what was our journey like?   Dana (05:32) ⁓ The first thing is this office came in and they were they were doing well, right? They weren't sure how well they were doing though. So we really really started with numbers. ⁓ Knowing numbers inside and out, knowing expenses inside and out, knowing what goals should be. ⁓   you know, even knowing where payroll expenses were sitting and things like that. So it first first started with number review. So that we basically knew how well they were doing to be able to kind of put projections in place and look at growth trajectory and talk about like what growth should be or could look like. But it started really with honing in on those foundations and getting the doctor to understand.   their numbers and what they were telling them as far as ⁓ growth and opportunity that there were for the practice. So we really, really started in with that. We did create a scorecard so that they could look at numbers every ⁓ month. We looked at trends together and really, really got them comfortable in what the numbers told them. then it was like, okay, I'm ready for the growth, right? I can see, I think some doctors come in and it's like, well, I feel like I'm doing okay. And I feel like I want to grow, but I actually don't know if I can grow.   because I don't know like what my foundation is. So that was really, really eye opening. The other thing was this doctor was working a ton of time and didn't necessarily have any time to work on the business, right? It was always working in the business. So then it was taking the numbers and creating a plan to work them out of the business at least one day a week ⁓ and to also then create some admin time.   within the rest of the week. getting them to have those pieces really allowed for them to have discussions on what a growth plan.   looks like and it kind of helped us take off from there. So looking at the numbers, we realized, you know, the number of patients that they had, he really couldn't serve on, you know, solo. So then we started looking at associates and bringing in associates to the practice. And then when associate schedules started to get full, was like, what's next? And so then it was adding surgery services and sedation and getting hospital days. And so it was really, really fun. And then we got to a certain   point of growth and it was like, this is so much for me to manage. And then we built a leadership team. So there was just a lot, a lot of pieces that happened. ⁓ But honestly, and truly practice came in at about 3.2 million and was projected to end that year at five. Right. So it was a ton of growth, but it honestly and truly started with knowing the numbers and knowing where the potential was and what we needed to do, what levers we needed to do to pull to make growth really happen.   The Dental A Team (08:02) Well.   Mm-hmm. That makes sense. makes so much sense. So the projections and that growth plan that you did with them, how did you project that? So to know that you could take them from that 3.2 that they probably didn't even know they were accomplishing. It sounds like they were successful, but like you said, they didn't know their numbers. They didn't know how successful, which happens, think, a lot for our clients. We attract clients who are doing well and just don't know the space that is left to target.   So how did you help them find that within that growth plan?   Dana (08:47) Yeah, we first started just looking at like patient number because it was feeling like yes, they were doing well, but you know being like schedules were jam-packed. So looking at active patients and actually saying hey you do need to actually grow your hygiene department.   right? So to be able to serve the patients you already have within the practice. So then we really honed in on how many, how much hygiene time do we actually need, right? For this practice. And then looking at, and this is one thing that like where Canada does differ in their billing, especially for hygiene, they, can bill for time, right? We bill for services in the U S they can bill for time. And it does still illustrate a point though, that when we're billing for what we're doing time or not time, right? It's important. So making sure that there are standard billing.   and for the US, right, it's not necessarily billing, it's actually like perio and what we recommend in the time that we have with the patient, but really getting them calibrated on that and really getting them all moving in the same direction.   And then I was expanding the hygiene department. Once we've expanded the hygiene department, then we needed the providers. We needed the providers to do the restorative dentistry since we expanded the hygiene department. So we really started with hygiene and started with adding hours there, really making sure that we fine-tuned the billing process so that, know, hygienists were producing really what they should be producing for their time. And then adding, again, the doctors in there for the restorative that came out of hygiene was just kind where we started.   started.   The Dental A Team (10:16) Awesome. And it sounds like they were at a space then where I think a lot of doctors get to, or a lot of practices get to where it's either I'm good and I'm going to like steady eddy this and I'm just going to, I'm going to stay where I'm at, or I want to continue growing. And I think a lot of doctors get to that space and they think I'm supposed to continue growing. And that's not a hundred percent always the case. It's not necessary. You should continue to grow to keep up with inflation.   obviously, but I think ⁓ something that needs to be said is you don't have to add more hygiene. You don't have to add more doctors. You don't have to do all of those things. But if you want to continue to grow, you want to continue to see those ⁓ numbers increase the way this practice is did, that's a great step to take. And being able to first see all of the patients that you have currently, ⁓ not even including, it sounds like any new patients, we're just   trying to handle the current load, I think is fantastic. And then like you said, it sounds like you did a decent job really honing in, not just the billing, because we want to bill for time, right? I get that. But also honing in their peri-o protocols. while you're increasing, well, we added, you know, added associates. But while you guys were increasing the value on the doctor's side over there, you made sure, it sounds like that.   hygiene was able to keep up with the increased production on the doctor side. And I think that gets missed a lot, Dana, where it's like skyrocketing doctors and we're like, why is hygiene at 12 % of our production now? Well, because we forgot to focus on them. And I think that's something you guys did really well. And I'm sure your hygiene background helped you see that this is an important space. those perio protocols really, really helped, I'm sure. And how did their team do?   Dana (12:05) Mm-hmm.   The Dental A Team (12:07) A big scare I think doctors have is getting hygienists on board. Our hygienists have a scare of maybe changing their thought process on a lot of those pieces. How did this practice do with implementing those changes in their period department?   Dana (12:22) They did a really, really good job, but I will say when we decided to kind of tackle that, we really booked out a set of meetings where they really were able to work through it, to look at each other's patients, to look at what each other built, to look at what each other did for those patients, to pull x-rays and FMPs and all of those things and really work through it together and really calibrate. ⁓ They had a series of, I think,   monthly meeting for four months and really really work through it together as well as at that point we had a leadership team and so having the lead hygienist really double check those things and have conversations with   you know, some hygienists initially took it on really strong and they did really well. Other hygienists didn't do quite as well, quite as fast. And so just having individual conversations, using some of the other hygienists as examples, and really letting those that were really strong give verbiage tips, give billing tips, give all sorts of tips to the hygienists who weren't as strong. And they really, really leveled up and learned from each other, which I was super proud of them for.   The Dental A Team (13:28) That's awesome. That's awesome. So the planning and the prepping, I think, is key and having those initial conversations, but then also having follow up. Because I'm sure some of those conversations were, like you said, seeing the other patients and being able to see those spaces. But I'm sure some of those conversations were like, how did this go for you? And what was your case acceptance? Or how many times have you talked about it? And how did that conversation go? And really kind of batting ideas back and forth. And I would venture to say you probably also   had those meetings set up for the doctors too, where they're calibrating. You've got your owner doctor and your two associates who are calibrating, especially as you brought on more dental surgeries and, you know, it looks like you guys worked on hospital privileges and all kinds of things for them. But I assume based on what I know is that those doctors had to calibrate as well. So he's not only training doctors, training hygiene, but they're all kind of training each other. Is that what you saw?   Dana (14:27) Yeah, it was. And that's why we really put leadership meetings in place. ⁓ And the cool thing about this growth, like you said, you get to a point where you kind of have to choose, right? Do you want to stay where you are? Do you want and he didn't want growth, right? But he didn't want to necessarily take on more dentistry. And I think that was a key thing to really talk about is what does that long term picture for you look like so that as we build it, gets you to those points. And so we knew it meant bringing on other doctors, we knew it meant expanding services in some ways to get them   massive amount of growth that was wanted, but without it being him, right? Because, like, young kiddos family, like wanting to just prioritize that and have days away and, you know, totally understand that but how can we still have growth and have that happen?   The Dental A Team (15:03) him. Yeah.   Mm-hmm, that's awesome. That's awesome. Now within that growth trajectory, and I know we have a lot of team members that listen, not only is this helping the doctor and the practice and the associate dentist and all of these different pieces, but it's also helping the team because I think when you have, that kind of a growth trajectory for a practice and you've got a growth plan set, you've got the goals set, this also trickles down into the growth of the team.   Right. And so I think something you mentioned, right, was the leadership team. so one, you don't always have to have a leadership team in place before you have the growth. First of all, because I think a lot of people are wondering like, what's the chicken? What's the egg? Which comes first. And it doesn't, it doesn't really matter. It doesn't, you can have one, but you don't have to wait for the growth. You don't have to until you have one. Right. But part of that growth trajectory and the growth planning was that leadership team.   Right? And so did you kind of help them timeline that and kind of figure out, well, when you get to this many patients, when you get to this many people, when you get to this, like this is where we need to bring somebody up. Did you help them timeline it and kind of org chart that and like job descriptions? How did you guys work that?   Dana (16:26) Yeah, OrgChart played a big piece in it because we knew like with this kind of growth you're going to need additional team members. I knew Leadership Team was a big piece because it just   didn't want everything to fall on owner doctor, right? So yeah, we did. We looked at org chart, we timelines, like when we were going to add new seats to it, what we might need for the future to get there. And that was really fun. Because I think when we build an org chart, we tend to just have it be like, well, what do I have? Right? Who do I have? And what do they do? And I build it based on that versus like, no, actually, what do you mean? Right? And, and what will you need in the near future? It's okay to build an org chart for now and an org chart for the future. And then   The Dental A Team (16:56) Yeah.   Yeah.   Dana (17:08) map out how you get there. And so that is definitely something that came into play here and was super impactful ⁓ in the journey.   The Dental A Team (17:17) Mm-hmm. Yeah, I agree. I agree. That's amazing. So if we were to peel this back a couple layers for our listeners today who might be in a space where they're like, gosh, I don't know if I can grow. I have the capability and the capacity to grow? What would you say, Dana, is a first step for someone who's really in that space or even trying to figure out if they want it or not?   How did you, like what's that first step look like with your practices that you've worked with or this one specifically that you're like, is where we start, this is how we see that.   Dana (17:52) ⁓ I think that first it becomes like the vision. Where do you want to do? What kind of growth do you want if you even want growth, right? And what I mean by growth is like getting bigger, right? Or getting larger. And what are the pieces that you want? And then secondary to that, and I think in conjunction with that, knowing your numbers and where the health of your numbers stands so that we can kind of align those pieces together. ⁓   The Dental A Team (18:04) Yeah.   Dana (18:21) And I think that those are the two key foundational pieces that I think really helped to drive this doctor too.   The Dental A Team (18:27) Awesome, awesome. So it's kind of looking at where do you want to go? And then looking at what you're capable of right now. What have you done? And I think that gap in between, then you have to kind of figure out, well, if we're doing 3.2 now and I want to do 5 million, how do I get that 1.8 in the middle to get to that 5 million? And then that kind of backtracks into, well, how like financially, right? So dollar per hour, doctor's dollar per hour. How many chairs do we have? What's our dollar per chair?   per day, what's our daily goals, of figuring that out. And then time-lining, I know that's, you know, I did a ton of time-lining for a practice that just grew like crazy. And I was like, okay, by this point, you're gonna need this many people. But knowing that gap in between to be able to set some parameters to really see how far you can go. ⁓ And I guess maybe action items for today would be.   Go look at your mission, your vision, your core values, make sure that you're in alignment still. Those change, you guys, they change constantly. What you wanted 10 years ago is probably very different than what you want today, and that's okay. You don't have to stick with the business plan you set out with when you first started. I think, Dana, you're 100 % spot on. Go look at that mission, that vision, make sure that it is in alignment, and then figure out where do you want to go, and then what does that mean? And if you need help with that, hello at the TheDentalATeam.com., we're always here for you, you know that.   But really figuring out what that means and then looking for that gap so that you can project and look to see. There's a lot of prep work that we didn't talk about today that goes into adding associates. So I would hate to blindly walk into anything and just tell people that an associate is a great idea. I don't think that it's a horrible idea whatsoever, but you have to be prepared and there's a lot that goes into that. just build out your plans. If it's something that you look at and gosh, maybe it's 500,000.   You want to make an additional million next year. Look at the hours in your schedule. Are you capable of that? And maybe there's some scheduling tweaks that we can make. We have found in many, practices just implementing blocked scheduling increases $5,000 a day. We have seen crazy amounts of money come into the production just by fixing the scheduling. And I think I've ventured to say that this practice had to do some of that as well.   and really, really maneuvering what those schedules might look like. this is great, Dana. Thank you so much for all the work that you do with all of the clients that you see, the work you do with our consulting team, and you're constantly finding new avenues and helping us to expand our entire team. So thank you for that. Thank you for sharing this today and just sharing all your love with everybody, Dana. I appreciate you.   Dana (21:11) Anytime, thanks for having me.   The Dental A Team (21:12) Of course, of course. All right, guys, go do the things. Mission, vision, core values, peel back those layers, really look for those gaps. And then I would say look at your open hours. I found a ton of money just sitting there, like, could have been, could have been gotten for so many years for so many doctors that was just open hours and mismanagement of schedules. So double check those things. Drop us a review, you guys. We love those five stars. We love to hear what you loved. We love to hear ideas that you have.   You know I always say people really do read those so go do it. And Hello@TheDentalATeam.com we are always here to help you and if you want to sign up for a free practice assessment it's on our website TheDentalATeam.com. You guys we will help you figure out what your next best growth movement is whether it's with us or without us we don't care we just want to give you the tools. So thank you all and I hope you have a great day.

0:00: Lav doesn't sound his best after screaming at his teams all weekend03:00: Scottie Scheffler warms up for the Ryder Cup the only way he knows how – with a win11:00: Other big-picture takeaways from the U.S. and European teams' final tuneups14:30: After another high finish, what should amateur star Jackson Koivun do?23:00: Former European captain Paul McGinley on the state of the European team and other burning questions43:00: Final thoughts before we head to Bethpage Black and the highly anticipated matches Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Israel following controversial Israeli attack on Hamas leaders in Qatar. Beijing rejects US president Donald Trump's call for NATO to sanction China over Russian oil purchases. South Korea says a high-ranking U-S diplomat has expressed regret over a raid on Korean workers. Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre addressing his caucus today, ahead of his return to Parliament. Northern Ontario First Nation is hoping a new law will help them combat drug and crime problem. Tofino has become the first municipality in Canada to ban the sale of some plastic water bottles. Pope Leo turns 70 today, one day after Vatican celebrates its Jubilee 2025 with first rap performance in St. Peter's Square.

SEASON 4 EPISODE 12: COUNTDOWN WITH KEITH OLBERMANN A-Block (1:45) SPECIAL COMMENT: I suppose it could've been worse. Rather than reacting to Russia’s drone attack on Poland the way he did (“What’s with Russia violating Poland’s airspace with drones? Here we go!”) Trump could’ve done the Martin Sheen bit from “Dead Zone” where as the messianic psychopath president Greg Stillson he starts World War 3 and announces “The missiles are flying hallelujah, hallelujah.” "What’s with Russia violating Poland’s airspace…?” Seriously, jackass? That’s your JOB, you great decaying pile of burger grease. YOU are supposed to KNOW “what’s with Russia violating Poland’s airspace?” and if you DON’T, get out, turn the government over to a general or an ex-general or somebody who understands that your owner Putin PLAYED YOU AGAIN, and that when everybody, everybody in this country with an IQ greater than 47 said that we have to support Ukraine because if we do not stop Putin in Ukraine his next stop was Poland and you twisted your bulbous face into that stupid 45-degree angled smirk, you were WRONG and everybody else in AMERICA – all 340,111,000 of us – WE were RIGHT. There are 10,000 American troops IN Poland. What would have happened if mere DEBRIS from one of the drones destroyed in the air hit a U-S base, or ONE U-S soldier? Would Trump have tweeted out a shrug emoji? Does it even register any more that even in the narrowest of views of this disaster – Trump IS the commander-in-chief and he is RESPONSIBLE for keeping American soldiers safe. ANYBODY NOTICE THAT GHISLAINE MAXWELL'S OLD LAWYER went on CNN and admitted that there was a quid pro quo that got her moved from a high-octane Florida prison to Club Fed in Texas? Now there’s ANOTHER Trumpstein cover-up? AND LASTLY, No I’m not in favor of shooting commentators. Or politicians. Or anybody. But my god, this is America. All we have done for virtually all our history is shoot political opponents. Add to it THIS America that MAGA wanted, where the military is politicized, and politics are militarized, and Trump has spent a decade stochastically encouraging terrorism against, and assassination of, his opponents, where conservatives REPEATEDLY call for the killing of Trump’s opponents. Trump was shot a year ago and not one of his supporters was willing to support meaningful gun restrictions. You can have many reactions to the death of Charlie Kirk and I hope sorrow and disgust are among them for you as they are for me - but surprise shouldn’t be one of them. Kirk himself said in April 2023: "You will never live in a society when you have an armed citizenry and you won't have a single gun death. That is nonsense. It's drivel. But I am -- I think it's worth it. I think it's worth to have a cost of, unfortunately, some gun deaths every single year so that we can have the Second Amendment to protect our other God-given rights. That is a prudent deal." B-Block (30:13) THE WORST PERSONS IN THE WORLD: The online poster who says it's ok for JD Vance to boast about war crimes because his mother was an addict. We started, writes an Andrew Klavan, to lose our civil rights as a result of the civil war. And to prostitute yourself as Jeff Shell has: from liberal anti-Trump head of NBC to installing a political officer inside CBS News to rat on journalism and anti-Trump facts. What a waste of life. C-Block (42:07) 24 YEARS SINCE 9/11: Apart from applying the "midpoint" rule to really sense how long ago something was (9/11 was the "midpoint" between September 1977 and today) there is one story that has stayed with me permanently. The man's name was Tomas Reyes, he wasn't anywhere near the World Trade Center - but he was supposed to be. How I came to meet him as part of my reporting on that horrible day.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One of President Donald Trump's key allies has been shot and killed during a public event at a university in Utah.Charlie Kirk co-founded the Turning Point USA organisation in 2012 to drive conservative viewpoints among young people, and then became the go-to spokesman on television networks and at conferences for the youthful hard-right.It's the latest in a series of attacks on U-S political figures, as ..... reports:

Let's take some time, and pour some out, to a trio of Japanese car brands that came and went in the American market. Suzuki, Isuzu, and Daihatsu died off a while ago, but some of their cars and trucks are still driving around the U S of A. Are you ready for Axiom speak and Equator chatter? 

Farmers could soon benefit from wheat engineered to stimulate the production of its own fertilizer, and the U.S. ag trade deficit hit a record high in the first half of this year.

The political commentator and former Army nurse made unsuccessful runs for a seat in both the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives.

Georgia farmers are forecast for a massive gain in corn production and more modest increases in peanuts and soybeans, and the U.S. ag trade deficit hit a record high in the first half of this year.

Farmers could soon benefit from wheat engineered to stimulate the production of its own fertilizer, and the U.S. ag trade deficit hit a record high in the first half of this year.

Cheers and jeers. President Trump getting mixed reactions... returning to the U-S open for the first time in ten years. And he shouldn't be too surprised... Considering the fact he was surrounded by people who really don't like him. And dry those tears! He's the college football player we all felt for after he burst into tears... Missing his family back home in Australia. Now they're here... All the way from down under to see him play in his very first home game. And only Inside Edition was there. Plus, as former two and half men star Charlie Sheen opens up in a new documentary about his epic meltdown that torpedoed his career... The woman who almost married him tells us what life was like with the star.  And it was a shocking moment. A baseball fan plummets 21 feet from the stands. It was so frightening players stopped to pray he would survive. Well, he did... And in an Inside Edition exclusive he's telling us what happened. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Neighbor's daughter seeks out widower next door, to help her with human sexuality lessons. By SilverFoxMullet - Listen to the ► Podcast at Steamy Stories. I was folding the last of my laundry, there wasn't much with just myself left in the house. My son had got married and moved to British Columbia. My wife passed on 2 years ago. Just me now, enjoying a much-too-quiet life. Then the doorbell rang. I went to the door and opened it, only to find my neighbour's daughter Tess standing on his front porch. I'd watched her grow up next door. When my son had moved out ten years ago, my wife and I had occasionally babysat little Tess. It had been nice having kids around the house again. She'd grown up into an intelligent, pretty young girl. She'd also been devastated why Marie had died. "Oh, Hi, Tess. What can i do for you?" "Hi Mr Brock. I um, I need some help with some, uh, homework. I was hoping you'd be able to help me?" "OK, I don't know how much help I can really be, but I can try. High school was an awful long time ago for me! Come on in." Tess followed me into the living room and I asked her "Do you want a drink, I've got water, pop, juice, or milk." "Water's fine" she said. I poured two glasses and came back, handing her one as she sat there on my sofa. "So, how can I help? My knowledge of high school math is really out of date you know." She was fidgeting and blushing, as she sat there clutching her drink and a textbook. Finally she exhaled and said "Human sexuality" as she held up the book. I blinked at her, nonplussed. What are they teaching kids these days? The only response I could muster was "Um, what?" She set down her book, took a drink, then set her glass on the coffee table. "Mr. Brock…" "Call me Kenneth, please." "Kenneth. I, I want to learn about um, you know, sex. I, my friends, they're all starting to do stuff, to fool around, and I um, I want to learn too but I'm afraid." I sat there looking at her, unable to process what she was saying. She grew more agitated, and blushed even more. Tears welled up and slipped down her cheeks. If I have one weakness, it's a crying woman. I got up and moved to sit beside her and wrapped my arms around her. Tess sobbed and clutched at me, crying into my shoulder. After a few minutes she pulled back, and I let her go. "Will to teach me?" she asked. Oh fuck no, I thought. "That depends on what you want to learn." "I want to learn about sex. I want to learn everything, I want you to teach me." "Oh. How old are you now, Tess?" "I'm sixteen. I'm old enough to learn about this." Oh crap. This is bad. Really, really bad. "You may think you're old enough, but not for me, that's for sure. You're not even an adult in the eyes of the law. I'm sorry Tess, I can't help you with this." Tears started dripping again as she spoke. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have bothered you with this. It's just, like, all my friends, they're doing stuff, and I feel left out, I want to, but I'm scared. They all say sex is painful, or uncomfortable, or just, not great. Stuff I've read, and stuff I've watched on the internet, makes it sound like sex should be really good, really fun, but my friends say it's not. I want to learn the right way, so it's good for me." Wow. What the hell are her friends doing? Ah, right, teenage boys. Worse than useless. Maybe I can't do anything with her, but I can help. "Ok, I am not going to teach you, at least not any hands-on lessons, but I will offer you some advice." She straightened up a bit, and wiped her eyes. God she was so beautiful. Very girl-next-door wholesome. The last thing she deserved was some idiot teenage boy humping at her for 30 seconds and then running off to brag about his prowess to his idiot friends. "My first piece of advice is to masturbate." She looked confused now. "You want me to what?" "Masturbate, play with yourself. Look, how will you ever be able to tell your lover what you want and how you want it unless you know yourself? Get comfortable with yourself, learn how to please yourself, learn what makes your orgasms great." She was staring wide eyed at me now, as my words started to sink in. "How do I do that?" she asked. "Look up female masturbation videos. Watch and learn, and practice." "Okay" she said, "What else?" "Buy a toy. Get a marital aid, a dildo, so you can practice feeling what intercourse is like. You can use other things, but it's better and safer to use the right tools for the job. Look up a sex shop or stag shop. I'll even go shopping for you if you want." "Oh, yes, would you, please?" "Certainly. Now, once you are comfortable with your own sexuality, and you find someone you want to be with, make sure you tell them what you like. Don't be afraid to be demanding about what they're doing. They either do it right or you kick them out of bed." She giggled at this, which I thought was incredibly cute. "Don't discount female lovers either. They like sex exactly the way you do. Once you get good at masturbation you'll be able to please another girl quite well." "I don't think I want to do that, I like boys." she said. "You mean 'men' not 'boys'. That's exactly why your friends are having lousy sex. They're playing with boys." She nodded, so I continued. "Guys like oral sex too. In fact, if you're good at blowjobs you won't have to put up with their inept antics in bed. That's another use for the dildo, to practice oral sex. And if a guy starts to hump your face, if he starts grabbing you and pushing, bite him. You don't have to take that if you don't want it. If it's something you enjoy, then let him play, but otherwise he is there to please you, not the other way around." Tess was smiling now, tears all but forgotten. She hugged me, and said "Thank you. I will follow your advice Mr, uh, Kenneth." I picked up her book, flipped through it quickly, and found the section on female anatomy. I showed her the diagram and said "Learn what all your parts are, what they're for, and how they work. This is a good place to start. I'll find you a toy tomorrow and you can stop by to pick it up on Tuesday, OK?" She nodded, saying "Thank you", and repeated herself after hugging me again. Once she'd left I locked the door and went upstairs with laundry basket. I dropped the basket on the bed and went into my bathroom. I had such a wicked hard-on, I just had to get some relief. The very idea that the literal girl next door wanted me to teach her about sex had me hard as steel. She might be jailbait but I could still follow my own advice, and masturbate. Of course I didn't last long at all, but I wasn't trying to last. I went shopping for Tess on Monday, picking out a nice realistic looking dildo and a bottle of personal lubricant. Maybe it was wishful thinking, but I chose one that was almost exactly my size. The girl at the cash looked kind of funny at me, so I smiled and said "Gift for a friend Tess knocked on my door the next afternoon when she got home from school. We exchanged greetings and I handed her the plain brown paper bag. She wanted to pay me for it but I told her it was a gift. l got a hug in return and she practically scampered next door. I silently wished her luck. ." It's great to see Tess feeling more confident about her sexuality. I'm still amazed that I'm the one she turned to for help. The thought of this girl using her new toy to explore herself gave me fodder for my own playtime for the next week. She may only be sixteen, but she's unbelievably sexy. Afterwards I only saw her in passing, as usual, and we'd wave and say 'Hi'. She looked happy and cheerful, and I assumed her self-directed lessons were going well, as she hadn't returned for any more advice. Part of me assumed she'd developed a romantic relationship and was handling things just fine. Life went on, I kept busy at work, and did yard maintenance, laundry, and all the usual stuff around the house. I wasn't into playing sports, so I went to the gym a few days a week to keep in shape. My woodworking hobby morphed from a strictly power tool shop to using a lot more hand tools. It was slower paced but I found it a lot more rewarding. Thoughts of Tess faded away. I had my 'internet videos & pics' to keep me occupied when I needed it. I had no interest in pursuing a new love this late in life, so i wasn't dating or putting myself out there. That was two years ago. Today I was in the basement shop, planing a cherry table top. It was good physical labour, and I was sweating a bit as I worked. I heard the doorbell, so I set the plane aside and brushed the shavings off my pants. The bell rang again as I hurried up the stairs, yelling "Coming!" I pulled the door open to find Tess standing there smiling at me. "Oh, Hi there, Tess. I haven't seen you around for a while. How've you been?" "Hi Kenneth! I just wanted to stop by for a visit, if that's OK?" "Uh, sure, come on in, can I get you a drink or something?" "Water would be fine, thanks." I poured two glasses and brought them to the living room. We sipped and she set her glass down. "So what brings you by today?" I asked. "Same as last time." she said with a demure smile. Last time? Shit, last time she wanted me to 'teach' her about sex. I choked on my drink. "Uh, Last time?" I said faintly. "I'm here for my next lesson. I turned 18 a month ago," She beamed. "And now I want you to finish teaching me about sex." Holy fucking mother of god. She was back, and she was more beautiful than ever. She'd matured more since she was 16, with such a pretty face and solid, slim figure. I could see how nice that figure was, because she wasn't hiding it. The bright yellow halter style dress she was wearing had a deep vee displaying her lovely cleavage, no back, and came to mid-thigh on her sleek legs. I didn't realize that I hadn't responded to her. "Well? Will you? Please?" she asked. "I've waited two years you know. And I followed all your advice too. I'm ready for the next lesson." "But why me, you're stunningly beautiful, you could have any guy you wanted." "I know. And I want you." She said with resolve. She then kicked off her sandals and stood up. Reaching behind her neck, she undid the tie holding up the top of her dress. It came undone and the dress slithered to the floor, pooling around her feet. All she had on now was a pair of lacy yellow panties God she was perfect. Chestnut hair, falling about her shoulders. High, firm, fully tanned breasts with neat brown areolas and stiff looking nipples; her slender waist flared into nicely curved hips, which continued in a graceful curve down her thighs. Tess stepped towards me, and held out her hand. I reached out and took it. God help me, this was so wrong, but I was literally unable to resist her. She pulled gently and I rose to my feet, stunned by her presence. A tug on my hand was all she had to provide to get me in motion, and I followed her from the living room. She led me to the top of the stairs, hypnotizing me with the sway of her ass; then stopped and asked in a sultry voice "Which way is the bedroom?" "This way" I said, pointing to the right. I continued to follow her, into my room, where she stopped, turned, and stood with her arm wrapped around the tall bedpost at the foot of my queen bed. "Tess…" I croaked in a strained voice. "This is what I wanted back then, when I came to you two years ago. It's still what I want now. You said I was too young. I'm an adult now, and I want this, I want you." "Oh god, Tess. I want to say no, I should say no, I have to say no, but I can't. You're so perfect, so beautiful, so delightful, and I can't tell you no." She smiled, and oh man, she was so stunningly beautiful it made me weak at the knees. Like a fucking goddess. And like a goddess, no mere mortal like me could refuse her. "Make love to me, Kenneth." She said, in a low sultry voice. I peeled off my polo shirt and tossed it aside. The rest of my clothing quickly followed, and I stood before her as aroused as I had ever been in my life. Her smile broadened and she laughed lightly, saying "Oh you're perfect! You're just like that wonderful dildo that you gave me to practice on!" I remembered the dildo I bought her years ago, and recalled that that was exactly what I'd picked out for her. I just smiled back at her and gave a little shrug. She laughed again and beckoned me forward. The goddess pulls the strings and the puppet moves to her will. Where did she get such sexual confidence and assertiveness? I took her hand and walked over to the side of the bed, where I sat and guided her onto my lap, and kissed her. She sighed into the kiss, and melted against me. Her skin was so soft, her warm, fragrant body so supple and firm at the same time. We kissed for a while, and I moved my attentions from her lips to her jawline, then to her earlobes, and finally her neck. Tess was cooing and sighing in my arms, her firm breasts and taught nipples pressed to me. I kissed her again, harder, and brought my tongue into it. Hers came back at me to play, and we tasted each other for a while more. When she started to writhe in a subtle manner I knew she was truly aroused, so I moved her over to lie back on the bed. Awestruck, I gazed at her, reddish brown hair fanning out on the bed, firm breasts sitting high on her chest, defying gravity and anatomy alike. I swooped down upon her breasts, stroking, kissing, licking, and fondling her magnificence. Those coos and sighs continued, and she started adding words to her breathless sounds. "Don't touch my nipples yet" she whispered, as she directed me to the valley between her tits. I moved to the undersides of them, and thence to her areolas, as I progressed along my slow, wonderful tour. Finally, with a moan and a push, she led me to the end of this part of our journey. Set in goose-bumped areolas, her swollen, highly sensitive nipples were my last target. I began with gentle licks, then small kisses, on one, then the other, and back. Then it was nibbles, fingers rolling them, sucking them, pressing them, and manipulating her nipples as many ways as I could. She began to writhe beneath me, her words tapering off into moans and gasps. No longer directing me, I played, I explored, I teased and tantalized her. A shudder, followed by a long sighing gasp was the signal she was done with this, and she gently pushed me away. "Oh, Kenneth, that was wonderful! Thank you. Now lay back, I want to explore you." I did as she bid, and Tess started touching, stroking, fondling, and kissing her way from my ears to my toes. She didn't spend too long in any one place, and she avoided my cock completely. Little questions, do I like this, or that, and little comments about what she found or liked, interspersed her explorations. She found some ticklish places, and she also found some really arousing places too. Places my wife had never found, places I never suspected I had. By now, there was a puddle of pre-cum on my abdomen, and she shifted her position to inspect me more closely. She lifted my cock and licked the most recent droplet from it. Then she dipped her head down and lapped up that puddle. My stomach muscles flexed and clenched as she tickled me with her agile tongue. She giggled at my 'gut reaction' as she called it. Then the most wondrous sensation hit my rigid cock. Her mouth closed over me, and that agile tongue found a new place to play. My late wife hadn't been much for blowjobs, so this was a rare treat indeed for me. Last time would have been probably 25 years ago. And it didn't stop with her tongue, amazing as it was. My shaft began to disappear into her mouth bit by bit, as she bobbed up and down ever so slowly. I stared stunned and slack-jawed in amazement as Tess worked my cock into her throat. I kept my hands to myself, clutching the duvet, and desperately willed myself not to cum. Alas, this last was in vain, because this goddess continued to pull strings on her mortal puppet. She wanted me to cum, so cum I would, whether I wanted to or not. I groaned and muttered "I'm gonna cum" through gritted teeth. She heeded my warning by humming and pulling back until just my head was in her warm wet mouth. She redoubled her efforts with her tongue, swirling around and around my throbbing manhood. With a whimper I came, shaking and pulsing over and over into her eager mouth. She swallowed my load and kept licking and sucking until I wilted in her mouth. "How was that?" she asked. "Oh god, Tess, that was the best I ever had." She giggled again. "I'm just glad you picked a toy the right size. Practice makes perfect. Although my toy doesn't cum like you do, that was a bit of a surprise. It doesn't taste bad at all, but the texture is weird." As I listened to her words, she made me wonder, and I had to ask. "Was that your first real blowjob?" "Uh huh. First ever. It was good?" "Like I said, best ever. I can't believe that was your first time doing this!" "First time for real, it was always just my toy before now." "Wow." "Now it's your turn to please me" she said, rolling onto her back and tugging my arm. Those strings again, pulling me wither she desired, and this time it was her most private place. I used my hands and forearms, my lips and tongue, to stroke and touch her all over. It was my turn to find her interesting places, her ticklish spots, and make her squirm in anticipation. I touched her face and neck, kissing and stroking, and proceeded to her shoulders and arms. Another chance to play with her lovely breasts was not to be denied either, and I did indeed have her squirming now. I worked my way down her body, making sure to test every place I could for sexual suitability. She directed me to a few places that she liked, and I found some spots she didn't yet know about. She began to get more vocal, calling my name occasionally, giving hints and feedback and directions, interwoven with a progressively louder and more varied series of moans and gasps. I stopped, and rose to preview what I was about to acquire. I softly brushed my fingers all around her panties, and her movements became more erratic, changing from a slow undulation to twitching and shuddering. Slowly, I peeled the bright yellow lace from her hips. I could scent her now, a wonderful mix of the robust and the delicate at the same time. She had a beautiful reddish-brown bush, lush and soft, that led to her sex. I nuzzled her lovely triangle of fur, all the while drawing in her heady aroma. I discarded her panties now, and her legs fell open to my gaze. Beautiful. Exquisite, even. Her lightly furred vulva surrounded a pair of dark-edged lips, glistening with the source of that scent I was enjoying. I pushed her legs farther apart and looked up at her. She smiled back at me and said "Teach me". Fuck. A lick, along her slit, hammered my senses of taste and smell, filling me with her. She was sour and sweet and floral and meaty, with a little saltiness from her sweat. I moaned into her as I plowed her with my tongue again, deeper, harder. More contact, more flavour, more joy! I pulled back and looked for her clit. That little peak in her folds held a secret I wanted to discover. I drove my tongue into her again and licked all the way up to try and find her clitoris. It was there, small, but firm, still buried in those folds, I could feel it. She could too, based on how she squeaked and jumped when I hit the right spot. Her breathing was getting faster, and her thighs were flexing, so I assumed she was very close. Did I want, or even need, to tease her? I needed to know what she wanted, so I asked. "Do you want to cum now, or make it last a while?" "In a little while, but not too long" she said as she brought her hands down to run fingers through my hair. Perfect. I wondered if her other lovers had asked the right questions, or had she had to guide them? No matter, I have the here and now to deal with. I pulled her labia apart gently with my fingers and played my tongue over the wet pink flesh revealed within. Her hips gyrated against me, so I continued to play at this. When my nose bumped her clit, she jumped and squeaked again. I worked a fingertip into her opening, swirling it around to maximize the stimulation, while at the same time I began to gently lick and kiss her clitoral hood. A shuddering moan indicated I was on the right track, With feather-light touches around her clit, and my finger slowly working deeper into her passage, I increased her stimulation. Those gyrations increased, and my licks to her clit became less subtle, more direct. Tess whimpered as I rolled my finger inside her, and sought her G-spot. When she cried out suddenly, with an accompanying shudder and thrust of her hips, I knew I'd found the right spot. I attacked her clit with more gusto, lapping and flicking at her, as my finger continued it's internal foray. She came, she came with abandon. Squealing and thrashing and calling my name, she practically bounced on the bed. I had to hold her hips firmly with my arms and my free hand just to stay connected to the vital spots and continue to stimulate her. She seemed to cum at least twice, possibly thrice, before the grip on my air went from pulling to pushing. I relented, and rose to look down at her, her face and chest flushed, sweat beading her forehead, and the most beautiful expression on her face. She looked like the goddess she was. "Oh god Kenneth, that was the most amazing orgasm I've ever had! What have you done to me?" I slid up to lie beside her, cuddling together while she regained her breath and her senses. "That was wonderful" I said. "I enjoyed you so much, and you seemed to enjoy it too." "The best ever" she said, paraphrasing my earlier comment on her own oral efforts. "Your other lovers didn't perform so well, then?" "There are no others. just me and my toy. I've waited and practiced and dreamed of this day." Her hand slipped between us to fondle my hardness, which was back from it's slumber. "No one? But I though you wanted to learn…" "I wanted you. I told you so. I wanted to learn, and I wanted you to teach me. All you could give me was advice and my toy, so I made the best of what I had. Can we start our next lesson?" "Tess? You're still a virgin? Are you sure about this?" She laughed, saying "If you're wondering about my hymen, that toy took it the very first day I got it. I went straight home and tried it. Slowly, carefully, and immediately. And every day since, I've practiced and practiced, hoping that when I was ready, you'd accept me. That you'd teach me the rest." "You are so beautiful, so amazing, I don't know how or why I got so lucky, but you're here. And I will not disappoint you." I sat up next to her, and swept my gaze and my hands along her nubile young body. "Did you bring any condoms?" I asked. "I'm on the pill, and you are my first lover, do we need one?" "I haven't been with anyone in over 5 years, and before that I had a vasectomy. So I am clean and sterile." "Make love to me, Kenneth." "For your first time, I want you on top." She laughed and we switched places on the bed. Straddling my hips, she leaned in to kiss me fervently, passionately, until we were starving for oxygen. I could feel her wet heat against my hardness, as she slowly shifted her weight on me. Finally breaking our kiss, she sat upright, raised herself aloft, and reached for me. I felt her hand moving my cock around, as she tried to position me just so. "I never tried this way with my toy. It doesn't lend itself to this very well. I'm usually on my back or on my hands and knees." Then she pressed herself down onto me, taking it slowly, gently. She leaned forward to plant her hands on my chest. "Oh god, this is so good, sooo goooood" she groaned. Bottoming out, she sat staring at me, gently running fingers through the graying hair on my chest. "Wow. I thought when I saw you, that it would feel just like my toy. But it doesn't, not at all. This is so much better!" With that, she started to play. She bounced up and down for a while, breasts wobbling, hair swirling, suddenly yelping and shuddering on me as she came. Collapsing on me, breathing hard for a minute or two, whilst her pussy throbbed and rippled on me. Smiling that amazing smile of hers, she pushed herself back up, and started grinding on me in little circular motions. This apparently worked even better, as she kept it up for about 5 minutes before squealing through a couple of orgasms. Once again, she slumped down onto my chest, and I could feel her heart beating madly in hers. When her pussy relaxed again, and she stirred, she sat up and said "That was better than anything I've ever felt. Even better than your wonderful tongue. Can we trade places now?" "As you wish" I said. "Oh Westley!" she replied with laugh. "Farm boy, make love to me now!" she demanded. With a chuckle, I rolled her over and we kissed again. I reached down to guide myself into her beautiful warmth, and god she was tight. I knew I wouldn't last long like this, and I told her so. "I've already had the best time of my life, please just enjoy me, the way I enjoyed you." she said. I kissed her again as i began to slowly push my aching cock in and out of her. We could hear the wet sloppy sounds of her pussy as I fucked her. I pushed myself up on my elbows and tucked an errant strand of hair behind her ear. Her smile was amazing, and she felt so alive beneath me! I rocked my hips as my thrusting increased in force and speed, which stimulated her clit. Her smile changed to laughter as she approached orgasm, crying out to me "Oh god yes! Yes!" I was getting closer myself, and then she looked deep into my eyes, saying "I love you". That triggered me, and I humped madly at her, pounding myself deep into her, over and over, until I spasmed in bliss. I felt and heard her answering orgasm as we tumbled from our peaks to lay panting against each other, sharing breath, sharing heartbeats, sharing souls. "Oh god, Tess, I love you too." This, torn from me, how and why could this be happening? She kissed me again. "I hoped, I prayed, I wished, I waited so long for this. Thank you." Not wanting to crush her, I lifted off her, and slowly pulled my shrinking cock from her welcoming heat. "Yipe! Hey, I thought you were fixed!" she exclaimed as my issue came pouring out of her. Too late, the duvet cover needs washing now for sure. "A vasectomy doesn't change how much comes out, just what's in it, or not in it, so to speak. And you knew from that blowjob how much I cum." "My toy never made this much of a mess, that's for sure." she said with a laugh. "Let's take a shower, and then we can have something to eat, and we can talk, OK?" She looked a trifle worried about the 'talking' part, but the shower was definitely of interest to her! We spent a long time in the hot spray, exploring, touching and teasing each other. And we did incidentally get clean. We dried each other off, and I got a spare bathrobe for her. I made some sandwiches, and poured a couple of glasses of lemonade. We ate, and I asked her about school. She had just graduated high school with top honours, and was intending to go to Queens in Kingston, come September. Now we has to discuss 'Us'. "Tess, you're 18, you have your whole life ahead of you. I'm 58, due to retire in 2 years. I'm afraid that if we pursue any kind of relationship it will end badly, and most badly for you." Once again she surprised me by simply laughing at me. "Silly man! You've probably got another good twenty years in you. Do you want to waste it mowing your lawn and doing your laundry, or do you want to live?" I blinked at her in surprise, and she continued, "Do you think I would deny myself my true love simply because it may be cut short? Are you tied to this place? Could you follow me to Kingston?" My mind spun, I felt totally disoriented for a moment, and I looked into those crystal grey eyes. And I was lost. Strings, pulling me out of the quiet, common existence I was in. Strings, hauling me out of a rut that I hadn't known I had fallen into. Strings, pulling on my heart, making me love again. "Yes" I managed to choke out. She smiled that awesome, devastating smile of hers, and said "Kenneth Brock, will you marry me?" This had started with her tears two years ago and it was going to end with mine today. "Yes" By SilverFoxMullet for Literotica.

Neighbor's daughter seeks out widower next door, to help her with human sexuality lessons. By SilverFoxMullet - Listen to the ► Podcast at Steamy Stories. I was folding the last of my laundry, there wasn't much with just myself left in the house. My son had got married and moved to British Columbia. My wife passed on 2 years ago. Just me now, enjoying a much-too-quiet life. Then the doorbell rang. I went to the door and opened it, only to find my neighbour's daughter Tess standing on his front porch. I'd watched her grow up next door. When my son had moved out ten years ago, my wife and I had occasionally babysat little Tess. It had been nice having kids around the house again. She'd grown up into an intelligent, pretty young girl. She'd also been devastated why Marie had died. "Oh, Hi, Tess. What can i do for you?" "Hi Mr Brock. I um, I need some help with some, uh, homework. I was hoping you'd be able to help me?" "OK, I don't know how much help I can really be, but I can try. High school was an awful long time ago for me! Come on in." Tess followed me into the living room and I asked her "Do you want a drink, I've got water, pop, juice, or milk." "Water's fine" she said. I poured two glasses and came back, handing her one as she sat there on my sofa. "So, how can I help? My knowledge of high school math is really out of date you know." She was fidgeting and blushing, as she sat there clutching her drink and a textbook. Finally she exhaled and said "Human sexuality" as she held up the book. I blinked at her, nonplussed. What are they teaching kids these days? The only response I could muster was "Um, what?" She set down her book, took a drink, then set her glass on the coffee table. "Mr. Brock…" "Call me Kenneth, please." "Kenneth. I, I want to learn about um, you know, sex. I, my friends, they're all starting to do stuff, to fool around, and I um, I want to learn too but I'm afraid." I sat there looking at her, unable to process what she was saying. She grew more agitated, and blushed even more. Tears welled up and slipped down her cheeks. If I have one weakness, it's a crying woman. I got up and moved to sit beside her and wrapped my arms around her. Tess sobbed and clutched at me, crying into my shoulder. After a few minutes she pulled back, and I let her go. "Will to teach me?" she asked. Oh fuck no, I thought. "That depends on what you want to learn." "I want to learn about sex. I want to learn everything, I want you to teach me." "Oh. How old are you now, Tess?" "I'm sixteen. I'm old enough to learn about this." Oh crap. This is bad. Really, really bad. "You may think you're old enough, but not for me, that's for sure. You're not even an adult in the eyes of the law. I'm sorry Tess, I can't help you with this." Tears started dripping again as she spoke. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have bothered you with this. It's just, like, all my friends, they're doing stuff, and I feel left out, I want to, but I'm scared. They all say sex is painful, or uncomfortable, or just, not great. Stuff I've read, and stuff I've watched on the internet, makes it sound like sex should be really good, really fun, but my friends say it's not. I want to learn the right way, so it's good for me." Wow. What the hell are her friends doing? Ah, right, teenage boys. Worse than useless. Maybe I can't do anything with her, but I can help. "Ok, I am not going to teach you, at least not any hands-on lessons, but I will offer you some advice." She straightened up a bit, and wiped her eyes. God she was so beautiful. Very girl-next-door wholesome. The last thing she deserved was some idiot teenage boy humping at her for 30 seconds and then running off to brag about his prowess to his idiot friends. "My first piece of advice is to masturbate." She looked confused now. "You want me to what?" "Masturbate, play with yourself. Look, how will you ever be able to tell your lover what you want and how you want it unless you know yourself? Get comfortable with yourself, learn how to please yourself, learn what makes your orgasms great." She was staring wide eyed at me now, as my words started to sink in. "How do I do that?" she asked. "Look up female masturbation videos. Watch and learn, and practice." "Okay" she said, "What else?" "Buy a toy. Get a marital aid, a dildo, so you can practice feeling what intercourse is like. You can use other things, but it's better and safer to use the right tools for the job. Look up a sex shop or stag shop. I'll even go shopping for you if you want." "Oh, yes, would you, please?" "Certainly. Now, once you are comfortable with your own sexuality, and you find someone you want to be with, make sure you tell them what you like. Don't be afraid to be demanding about what they're doing. They either do it right or you kick them out of bed." She giggled at this, which I thought was incredibly cute. "Don't discount female lovers either. They like sex exactly the way you do. Once you get good at masturbation you'll be able to please another girl quite well." "I don't think I want to do that, I like boys." she said. "You mean 'men' not 'boys'. That's exactly why your friends are having lousy sex. They're playing with boys." She nodded, so I continued. "Guys like oral sex too. In fact, if you're good at blowjobs you won't have to put up with their inept antics in bed. That's another use for the dildo, to practice oral sex. And if a guy starts to hump your face, if he starts grabbing you and pushing, bite him. You don't have to take that if you don't want it. If it's something you enjoy, then let him play, but otherwise he is there to please you, not the other way around." Tess was smiling now, tears all but forgotten. She hugged me, and said "Thank you. I will follow your advice Mr, uh, Kenneth." I picked up her book, flipped through it quickly, and found the section on female anatomy. I showed her the diagram and said "Learn what all your parts are, what they're for, and how they work. This is a good place to start. I'll find you a toy tomorrow and you can stop by to pick it up on Tuesday, OK?" She nodded, saying "Thank you", and repeated herself after hugging me again. Once she'd left I locked the door and went upstairs with laundry basket. I dropped the basket on the bed and went into my bathroom. I had such a wicked hard-on, I just had to get some relief. The very idea that the literal girl next door wanted me to teach her about sex had me hard as steel. She might be jailbait but I could still follow my own advice, and masturbate. Of course I didn't last long at all, but I wasn't trying to last. I went shopping for Tess on Monday, picking out a nice realistic looking dildo and a bottle of personal lubricant. Maybe it was wishful thinking, but I chose one that was almost exactly my size. The girl at the cash looked kind of funny at me, so I smiled and said "Gift for a friend Tess knocked on my door the next afternoon when she got home from school. We exchanged greetings and I handed her the plain brown paper bag. She wanted to pay me for it but I told her it was a gift. l got a hug in return and she practically scampered next door. I silently wished her luck. ." It's great to see Tess feeling more confident about her sexuality. I'm still amazed that I'm the one she turned to for help. The thought of this girl using her new toy to explore herself gave me fodder for my own playtime for the next week. She may only be sixteen, but she's unbelievably sexy. Afterwards I only saw her in passing, as usual, and we'd wave and say 'Hi'. She looked happy and cheerful, and I assumed her self-directed lessons were going well, as she hadn't returned for any more advice. Part of me assumed she'd developed a romantic relationship and was handling things just fine. Life went on, I kept busy at work, and did yard maintenance, laundry, and all the usual stuff around the house. I wasn't into playing sports, so I went to the gym a few days a week to keep in shape. My woodworking hobby morphed from a strictly power tool shop to using a lot more hand tools. It was slower paced but I found it a lot more rewarding. Thoughts of Tess faded away. I had my 'internet videos & pics' to keep me occupied when I needed it. I had no interest in pursuing a new love this late in life, so i wasn't dating or putting myself out there. That was two years ago. Today I was in the basement shop, planing a cherry table top. It was good physical labour, and I was sweating a bit as I worked. I heard the doorbell, so I set the plane aside and brushed the shavings off my pants. The bell rang again as I hurried up the stairs, yelling "Coming!" I pulled the door open to find Tess standing there smiling at me. "Oh, Hi there, Tess. I haven't seen you around for a while. How've you been?" "Hi Kenneth! I just wanted to stop by for a visit, if that's OK?" "Uh, sure, come on in, can I get you a drink or something?" "Water would be fine, thanks." I poured two glasses and brought them to the living room. We sipped and she set her glass down. "So what brings you by today?" I asked. "Same as last time." she said with a demure smile. Last time? Shit, last time she wanted me to 'teach' her about sex. I choked on my drink. "Uh, Last time?" I said faintly. "I'm here for my next lesson. I turned 18 a month ago," She beamed. "And now I want you to finish teaching me about sex." Holy fucking mother of god. She was back, and she was more beautiful than ever. She'd matured more since she was 16, with such a pretty face and solid, slim figure. I could see how nice that figure was, because she wasn't hiding it. The bright yellow halter style dress she was wearing had a deep vee displaying her lovely cleavage, no back, and came to mid-thigh on her sleek legs. I didn't realize that I hadn't responded to her. "Well? Will you? Please?" she asked. "I've waited two years you know. And I followed all your advice too. I'm ready for the next lesson." "But why me, you're stunningly beautiful, you could have any guy you wanted." "I know. And I want you." She said with resolve. She then kicked off her sandals and stood up. Reaching behind her neck, she undid the tie holding up the top of her dress. It came undone and the dress slithered to the floor, pooling around her feet. All she had on now was a pair of lacy yellow panties God she was perfect. Chestnut hair, falling about her shoulders. High, firm, fully tanned breasts with neat brown areolas and stiff looking nipples; her slender waist flared into nicely curved hips, which continued in a graceful curve down her thighs. Tess stepped towards me, and held out her hand. I reached out and took it. God help me, this was so wrong, but I was literally unable to resist her. She pulled gently and I rose to my feet, stunned by her presence. A tug on my hand was all she had to provide to get me in motion, and I followed her from the living room. She led me to the top of the stairs, hypnotizing me with the sway of her ass; then stopped and asked in a sultry voice "Which way is the bedroom?" "This way" I said, pointing to the right. I continued to follow her, into my room, where she stopped, turned, and stood with her arm wrapped around the tall bedpost at the foot of my queen bed. "Tess…" I croaked in a strained voice. "This is what I wanted back then, when I came to you two years ago. It's still what I want now. You said I was too young. I'm an adult now, and I want this, I want you." "Oh god, Tess. I want to say no, I should say no, I have to say no, but I can't. You're so perfect, so beautiful, so delightful, and I can't tell you no." She smiled, and oh man, she was so stunningly beautiful it made me weak at the knees. Like a fucking goddess. And like a goddess, no mere mortal like me could refuse her. "Make love to me, Kenneth." She said, in a low sultry voice. I peeled off my polo shirt and tossed it aside. The rest of my clothing quickly followed, and I stood before her as aroused as I had ever been in my life. Her smile broadened and she laughed lightly, saying "Oh you're perfect! You're just like that wonderful dildo that you gave me to practice on!" I remembered the dildo I bought her years ago, and recalled that that was exactly what I'd picked out for her. I just smiled back at her and gave a little shrug. She laughed again and beckoned me forward. The goddess pulls the strings and the puppet moves to her will. Where did she get such sexual confidence and assertiveness? I took her hand and walked over to the side of the bed, where I sat and guided her onto my lap, and kissed her. She sighed into the kiss, and melted against me. Her skin was so soft, her warm, fragrant body so supple and firm at the same time. We kissed for a while, and I moved my attentions from her lips to her jawline, then to her earlobes, and finally her neck. Tess was cooing and sighing in my arms, her firm breasts and taught nipples pressed to me. I kissed her again, harder, and brought my tongue into it. Hers came back at me to play, and we tasted each other for a while more. When she started to writhe in a subtle manner I knew she was truly aroused, so I moved her over to lie back on the bed. Awestruck, I gazed at her, reddish brown hair fanning out on the bed, firm breasts sitting high on her chest, defying gravity and anatomy alike. I swooped down upon her breasts, stroking, kissing, licking, and fondling her magnificence. Those coos and sighs continued, and she started adding words to her breathless sounds. "Don't touch my nipples yet" she whispered, as she directed me to the valley between her tits. I moved to the undersides of them, and thence to her areolas, as I progressed along my slow, wonderful tour. Finally, with a moan and a push, she led me to the end of this part of our journey. Set in goose-bumped areolas, her swollen, highly sensitive nipples were my last target. I began with gentle licks, then small kisses, on one, then the other, and back. Then it was nibbles, fingers rolling them, sucking them, pressing them, and manipulating her nipples as many ways as I could. She began to writhe beneath me, her words tapering off into moans and gasps. No longer directing me, I played, I explored, I teased and tantalized her. A shudder, followed by a long sighing gasp was the signal she was done with this, and she gently pushed me away. "Oh, Kenneth, that was wonderful! Thank you. Now lay back, I want to explore you." I did as she bid, and Tess started touching, stroking, fondling, and kissing her way from my ears to my toes. She didn't spend too long in any one place, and she avoided my cock completely. Little questions, do I like this, or that, and little comments about what she found or liked, interspersed her explorations. She found some ticklish places, and she also found some really arousing places too. Places my wife had never found, places I never suspected I had. By now, there was a puddle of pre-cum on my abdomen, and she shifted her position to inspect me more closely. She lifted my cock and licked the most recent droplet from it. Then she dipped her head down and lapped up that puddle. My stomach muscles flexed and clenched as she tickled me with her agile tongue. She giggled at my 'gut reaction' as she called it. Then the most wondrous sensation hit my rigid cock. Her mouth closed over me, and that agile tongue found a new place to play. My late wife hadn't been much for blowjobs, so this was a rare treat indeed for me. Last time would have been probably 25 years ago. And it didn't stop with her tongue, amazing as it was. My shaft began to disappear into her mouth bit by bit, as she bobbed up and down ever so slowly. I stared stunned and slack-jawed in amazement as Tess worked my cock into her throat. I kept my hands to myself, clutching the duvet, and desperately willed myself not to cum. Alas, this last was in vain, because this goddess continued to pull strings on her mortal puppet. She wanted me to cum, so cum I would, whether I wanted to or not. I groaned and muttered "I'm gonna cum" through gritted teeth. She heeded my warning by humming and pulling back until just my head was in her warm wet mouth. She redoubled her efforts with her tongue, swirling around and around my throbbing manhood. With a whimper I came, shaking and pulsing over and over into her eager mouth. She swallowed my load and kept licking and sucking until I wilted in her mouth. "How was that?" she asked. "Oh god, Tess, that was the best I ever had." She giggled again. "I'm just glad you picked a toy the right size. Practice makes perfect. Although my toy doesn't cum like you do, that was a bit of a surprise. It doesn't taste bad at all, but the texture is weird." As I listened to her words, she made me wonder, and I had to ask. "Was that your first real blowjob?" "Uh huh. First ever. It was good?" "Like I said, best ever. I can't believe that was your first time doing this!" "First time for real, it was always just my toy before now." "Wow." "Now it's your turn to please me" she said, rolling onto her back and tugging my arm. Those strings again, pulling me wither she desired, and this time it was her most private place. I used my hands and forearms, my lips and tongue, to stroke and touch her all over. It was my turn to find her interesting places, her ticklish spots, and make her squirm in anticipation. I touched her face and neck, kissing and stroking, and proceeded to her shoulders and arms. Another chance to play with her lovely breasts was not to be denied either, and I did indeed have her squirming now. I worked my way down her body, making sure to test every place I could for sexual suitability. She directed me to a few places that she liked, and I found some spots she didn't yet know about. She began to get more vocal, calling my name occasionally, giving hints and feedback and directions, interwoven with a progressively louder and more varied series of moans and gasps. I stopped, and rose to preview what I was about to acquire. I softly brushed my fingers all around her panties, and her movements became more erratic, changing from a slow undulation to twitching and shuddering. Slowly, I peeled the bright yellow lace from her hips. I could scent her now, a wonderful mix of the robust and the delicate at the same time. She had a beautiful reddish-brown bush, lush and soft, that led to her sex. I nuzzled her lovely triangle of fur, all the while drawing in her heady aroma. I discarded her panties now, and her legs fell open to my gaze. Beautiful. Exquisite, even. Her lightly furred vulva surrounded a pair of dark-edged lips, glistening with the source of that scent I was enjoying. I pushed her legs farther apart and looked up at her. She smiled back at me and said "Teach me". Fuck. A lick, along her slit, hammered my senses of taste and smell, filling me with her. She was sour and sweet and floral and meaty, with a little saltiness from her sweat. I moaned into her as I plowed her with my tongue again, deeper, harder. More contact, more flavour, more joy! I pulled back and looked for her clit. That little peak in her folds held a secret I wanted to discover. I drove my tongue into her again and licked all the way up to try and find her clitoris. It was there, small, but firm, still buried in those folds, I could feel it. She could too, based on how she squeaked and jumped when I hit the right spot. Her breathing was getting faster, and her thighs were flexing, so I assumed she was very close. Did I want, or even need, to tease her? I needed to know what she wanted, so I asked. "Do you want to cum now, or make it last a while?" "In a little while, but not too long" she said as she brought her hands down to run fingers through my hair. Perfect. I wondered if her other lovers had asked the right questions, or had she had to guide them? No matter, I have the here and now to deal with. I pulled her labia apart gently with my fingers and played my tongue over the wet pink flesh revealed within. Her hips gyrated against me, so I continued to play at this. When my nose bumped her clit, she jumped and squeaked again. I worked a fingertip into her opening, swirling it around to maximize the stimulation, while at the same time I began to gently lick and kiss her clitoral hood. A shuddering moan indicated I was on the right track, With feather-light touches around her clit, and my finger slowly working deeper into her passage, I increased her stimulation. Those gyrations increased, and my licks to her clit became less subtle, more direct. Tess whimpered as I rolled my finger inside her, and sought her G-spot. When she cried out suddenly, with an accompanying shudder and thrust of her hips, I knew I'd found the right spot. I attacked her clit with more gusto, lapping and flicking at her, as my finger continued it's internal foray. She came, she came with abandon. Squealing and thrashing and calling my name, she practically bounced on the bed. I had to hold her hips firmly with my arms and my free hand just to stay connected to the vital spots and continue to stimulate her. She seemed to cum at least twice, possibly thrice, before the grip on my air went from pulling to pushing. I relented, and rose to look down at her, her face and chest flushed, sweat beading her forehead, and the most beautiful expression on her face. She looked like the goddess she was. "Oh god Kenneth, that was the most amazing orgasm I've ever had! What have you done to me?" I slid up to lie beside her, cuddling together while she regained her breath and her senses. "That was wonderful" I said. "I enjoyed you so much, and you seemed to enjoy it too." "The best ever" she said, paraphrasing my earlier comment on her own oral efforts. "Your other lovers didn't perform so well, then?" "There are no others. just me and my toy. I've waited and practiced and dreamed of this day." Her hand slipped between us to fondle my hardness, which was back from it's slumber. "No one? But I though you wanted to learn…" "I wanted you. I told you so. I wanted to learn, and I wanted you to teach me. All you could give me was advice and my toy, so I made the best of what I had. Can we start our next lesson?" "Tess? You're still a virgin? Are you sure about this?" She laughed, saying "If you're wondering about my hymen, that toy took it the very first day I got it. I went straight home and tried it. Slowly, carefully, and immediately. And every day since, I've practiced and practiced, hoping that when I was ready, you'd accept me. That you'd teach me the rest." "You are so beautiful, so amazing, I don't know how or why I got so lucky, but you're here. And I will not disappoint you." I sat up next to her, and swept my gaze and my hands along her nubile young body. "Did you bring any condoms?" I asked. "I'm on the pill, and you are my first lover, do we need one?" "I haven't been with anyone in over 5 years, and before that I had a vasectomy. So I am clean and sterile." "Make love to me, Kenneth." "For your first time, I want you on top." She laughed and we switched places on the bed. Straddling my hips, she leaned in to kiss me fervently, passionately, until we were starving for oxygen. I could feel her wet heat against my hardness, as she slowly shifted her weight on me. Finally breaking our kiss, she sat upright, raised herself aloft, and reached for me. I felt her hand moving my cock around, as she tried to position me just so. "I never tried this way with my toy. It doesn't lend itself to this very well. I'm usually on my back or on my hands and knees." Then she pressed herself down onto me, taking it slowly, gently. She leaned forward to plant her hands on my chest. "Oh god, this is so good, sooo goooood" she groaned. Bottoming out, she sat staring at me, gently running fingers through the graying hair on my chest. "Wow. I thought when I saw you, that it would feel just like my toy. But it doesn't, not at all. This is so much better!" With that, she started to play. She bounced up and down for a while, breasts wobbling, hair swirling, suddenly yelping and shuddering on me as she came. Collapsing on me, breathing hard for a minute or two, whilst her pussy throbbed and rippled on me. Smiling that amazing smile of hers, she pushed herself back up, and started grinding on me in little circular motions. This apparently worked even better, as she kept it up for about 5 minutes before squealing through a couple of orgasms. Once again, she slumped down onto my chest, and I could feel her heart beating madly in hers. When her pussy relaxed again, and she stirred, she sat up and said "That was better than anything I've ever felt. Even better than your wonderful tongue. Can we trade places now?" "As you wish" I said. "Oh Westley!" she replied with laugh. "Farm boy, make love to me now!" she demanded. With a chuckle, I rolled her over and we kissed again. I reached down to guide myself into her beautiful warmth, and god she was tight. I knew I wouldn't last long like this, and I told her so. "I've already had the best time of my life, please just enjoy me, the way I enjoyed you." she said. I kissed her again as i began to slowly push my aching cock in and out of her. We could hear the wet sloppy sounds of her pussy as I fucked her. I pushed myself up on my elbows and tucked an errant strand of hair behind her ear. Her smile was amazing, and she felt so alive beneath me! I rocked my hips as my thrusting increased in force and speed, which stimulated her clit. Her smile changed to laughter as she approached orgasm, crying out to me "Oh god yes! Yes!" I was getting closer myself, and then she looked deep into my eyes, saying "I love you". That triggered me, and I humped madly at her, pounding myself deep into her, over and over, until I spasmed in bliss. I felt and heard her answering orgasm as we tumbled from our peaks to lay panting against each other, sharing breath, sharing heartbeats, sharing souls. "Oh god, Tess, I love you too." This, torn from me, how and why could this be happening? She kissed me again. "I hoped, I prayed, I wished, I waited so long for this. Thank you." Not wanting to crush her, I lifted off her, and slowly pulled my shrinking cock from her welcoming heat. "Yipe! Hey, I thought you were fixed!" she exclaimed as my issue came pouring out of her. Too late, the duvet cover needs washing now for sure. "A vasectomy doesn't change how much comes out, just what's in it, or not in it, so to speak. And you knew from that blowjob how much I cum." "My toy never made this much of a mess, that's for sure." she said with a laugh. "Let's take a shower, and then we can have something to eat, and we can talk, OK?" She looked a trifle worried about the 'talking' part, but the shower was definitely of interest to her! We spent a long time in the hot spray, exploring, touching and teasing each other. And we did incidentally get clean. We dried each other off, and I got a spare bathrobe for her. I made some sandwiches, and poured a couple of glasses of lemonade. We ate, and I asked her about school. She had just graduated high school with top honours, and was intending to go to Queens in Kingston, come September. Now we has to discuss 'Us'. "Tess, you're 18, you have your whole life ahead of you. I'm 58, due to retire in 2 years. I'm afraid that if we pursue any kind of relationship it will end badly, and most badly for you." Once again she surprised me by simply laughing at me. "Silly man! You've probably got another good twenty years in you. Do you want to waste it mowing your lawn and doing your laundry, or do you want to live?" I blinked at her in surprise, and she continued, "Do you think I would deny myself my true love simply because it may be cut short? Are you tied to this place? Could you follow me to Kingston?" My mind spun, I felt totally disoriented for a moment, and I looked into those crystal grey eyes. And I was lost. Strings, pulling me out of the quiet, common existence I was in. Strings, hauling me out of a rut that I hadn't known I had fallen into. Strings, pulling on my heart, making me love again. "Yes" I managed to choke out. She smiled that awesome, devastating smile of hers, and said "Kenneth Brock, will you marry me?" This had started with her tears two years ago and it was going to end with mine today. "Yes" By SilverFoxMullet for Literotica.

On September 8, 1935, Huey Long, the former governor of Louisiana who by then was serving as a U.S. Senator, was fatally shot at the Louisiana State Capitol in Baton Rouge. Such debate continues over the politician's murder. 

Increased strawberry demand in the fall and winter has driven summer plantings, which have reached a record high of 11,503 acres this year, and Mexico recorded 5,086 cases of flesh-eating screwworm in animals as of August 17, a 53% jump over July.

Increased strawberry demand in the fall and winter has driven summer plantings, which have reached a record high of 11,503 acres this year, and Mexico recorded 5,086 cases of flesh-eating screwworm in animals as of August 17, a 53% jump over July.

A federal court in Louisiana has vacated the Department of Labor's 2023 Adverse Effect Wage Rate methodology rule, a major victory for Florida agriculture, and Mexico recorded 5,086 cases of flesh-eating screwworm in animals as of August 17, a 53% jump over July.

Today, we’re bringing you the best from the KUOW Newsroom… The Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center celebrated its 50th anniversary this week - the center has evolved from a scrappy lab doing what some considered risky science, into one of the top cancer centers in the world. International students have brought needed revenue to colleges in recent years, especially community colleges where local enrollment has fallen… But getting permission to study in the U-S has gotten harder under the Trump administration. And September 2nd marked 80 years since the end of World War II. Hear from veterans’ families, and a historian working to preserve personal memories of World War II. We can only make Seattle Now because listeners support us. Tap here to make a gift and keep Seattle Now in your feed. Got questions about local news or story ideas to share? We want to hear from you! Email us at seattlenow@kuow.org, leave us a voicemail at (206) 616-6746 or leave us feedback online.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Are Ancient Avatars Secretly Influencing U.S. Politics?Interview with Johnatan CahnFor more information visit Pastorvlad.orgChapters0:00 - Intro1:07 - What is The Avatar about and what will it reveal?3:35 - Can you share what happened in India when you blew the shofar? 5:14 - What do the ancient gods have to do with us and especially the U.S.?6:51 - What are the Avatars revealing about the U.S. right now? 9:03 - How does Donald Trump fit into this template? 11:08 - Prophetic mysteries about Joe Biden 13:23 - Did an ancient mystery tell the number of days of Donald Trump's presidency? 14:22 - The ancient goddess that is tied to Kamala Harris 19:10 - What does "The Image" reveal?22:55 - What is the mystery that has to do with Donald Trump's assassination? 25:40 - What is the mystery of the Black Obelisk and what does it have to do with Trump and America?28:53 - Where can people find this book? 32:04 - Prayer for revival33:48 - Outro

Thomas and Karl are back in the U S of A where the salt mounds of South Baltimore are a close second to the snowy peaks of Mont Blanc. We hear all about their remaining adventures, including a seasick paragliding adventure and watching the finish of the greatest trail race on the planet. We also cover some of the Adidas Chasing 100 event and the wonderful world of piglet racing. SUPPORT OUR SPONSORSMAURTENGet 20% off for one week only by using code Believe20! We use Maurten gels for all our races and some of the most elite athletes in the world rely on their bicarb system for optimizing their fuel strategies on race day. Stock up for your fall marathon training and save 20% off your order by using this link: https://www.maurten.com/?utm_source=referral&utm_campaign=bitr_podcast&utm_medium=partnerships&utm_content=believeintherunLA SPORTIVALooking for a new training partner? Meet the La Sportiva Prodigio Max—built for ultra-distance comfort, with nitrogen-infused XFlow Endurance foam and a wide, stable platform to keep you moving mile after mile. Shop the La Sportiva Prodigio Max here: https://rei.pxf.io/K0LmKa LMNTBIG NEWS: Lemonade Salt is here to stay! Our favorite flavor of the summer is back and ready to give you 1,000 mg of sodium plus other key electrolytes that will restore balance to your life after any hard effort. You'll also get an 8-count LMNT Sample Pack with any purchase, so don't miss out: http://drinklmnt.com/thedropSWIFTWICKThe best running socks in the game, Swiftwick is made right here in the USA, which means no price increases on account of tariffs. They're rolling out a lifestyle collection in the coming months, but for now, grab a pair of Flite XT or any other amazing styles. We're always running in their socks and you should be too. The Drop listeners can get 15% off their first purchase with code BELIEVE15.Shop here: https://swiftwick.com/collections/believeINDEX0:00 - Intro1:57 - UTMB / Chamonix Recap29:39 - Maryland State Fair / Piglet Races / Motion Sickness35:10 - UTMB / Chamonix Recap (cont.)1;01:43 - ACG / Satisfy Popups1:03:41 - Adidas Chasing 100 / Evo Prime X 1:12:31 - Hoka Mafate 51:16:56 - Move Her Mind Event Series (Oklahoma) / Charles St. 12 Miler

On this Salcedo Storm Podcast: Blake Fischer is a policy-first conservative and host of The Homeless Conservative, a show that turns political noise into plain English. Disillusioned with the modern GOP's personality cults and big-government populism, he argues for principles over personalities - grounded in history, data, and the Constitution.

U-S immigration officials say they have conducted their largest ever single-site raid at the Hyundai vehicle plant near Savannah; As Fulton County moves forward with plans to improve jail conditions, county commissioners are also wrestling over money for the magistrate court and public defenders; Biologists with the state of Georgia are playing the waiting game — every month, they’re checking to see how long it takes for fish hooks to rust in water. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Spooky Season 2025: Lesser-Known CRYPTIDS of the U.S.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/missing-persons-mysteries--5624803/support.

The U.S. population in rural counties grew by more than 134,000 between 2023 and 2024, an increase of 0.29%, and the Maryland Department of Health says the patient with the first human infection of New World screwworm infection in the U.S. has recovered.

The U.S. population in rural counties grew by more than 134,000 between 2023 and 2024, an increase of 0.29%, and the Maryland Department of Health says the patient with the first human infection of New World screwworm infection in the U.S. has recovered.

0:00: Did Luke Donald make the right call with his Ryder Cup captain's picks?05:00: Why Donald steered away from some of the other options12:00: This could be the best chance for a road team to score an upset18:00: Breakdown of the new "Golf Channel Games," set for Dec. 1730:00: Rex is off to Napa next week for some U.S. team scouting

The U.S. cattle inventory is historically low, and that trend could take some time to turn around, and when retail prices reach record-high levels, the demand usually plummets quickly, unless that product is U.S. beef.

Wine Institute President and CEO Robert Koch is pleased with recent progress in U.S.–Canada trade negotiations, and Senior Chinese trade negotiator expected in Washington, D.C. to meet with U.S. officials and move current tariff truce forward.

Australian grown apples have entered the United States market for the first time. Soluna apples, known domestically as Bravo, will be shipped to China next year, but exporters have sent two containers to the U-S to trial demand there. Rural Editor Emily Minney spoke with WA Farm Direct Commercialisation Manager Sean Englebrecht about the efforts to expand export markets.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Good afternoon, I'm _____ with today's episode of EZ News. Tai-Ex opening The Tai-Ex opened down 40-points this morning from yesterday's close, at 24,237 on turnover of 5-billion N-T. The market gained solid ground on Monday - closing up more than 500-points as investors were boosted by news that the U-S Federal Reserve could soon cuts interest rates. Vice premier confirms ongoing car tariff talks but gives few details Vice Premier Cheng Li-chiun says U-S car imports are part of ongoing tariff talks with Washington. Speaking at a legislative hearing, Cheng told lawmakers that Washington has expressed the hope for greater openness and expanded market access (市場准入) for U-S cars. According to Cheng, tariffs on U-S car imports and compliance with safety and emissions standards were still being negotiated. She failed to provide any further details. But Cheng did say she has held three video conferences with U-S officials since returning to Taiwan on August 1 .. KMT's Lo Chih-chiang joins race for party chair K-M-T lawmaker Lo Chih-chiang has announced his plans to seeking the party's leadership. Lo made the announcement in a Facebook post with a photo of him standing next to a statue of Sun Yat-sen. He survived a recall vote on July 26 and said in the post that his top priority (優先考慮的事，重點) will be to stop President Lai Ching-te from winning a second four-year term in 2028. Luo also said in the Facebook post that he will release further details of his campaign to seek the post of K-M-T chair later today. US Trump says he'll meet Kim Jong Un U.S. President Donald Trump says he will meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un - potentially this year and that he 's open to further trade talks with South Korea - as he hosted President Lee Jae Myung at the White House The future of their military alliance (聯盟) was also on the agenda at the meeting just hours after President Trump suggested in a social media post that the US might stop doing business with the country. Kate Fisher reports from Washington. Brazil Buys US Tariff Affected Products Brazil's government says it will buy several domestic products that have been hit by the 50% higher U.S. tariffs on the country's exports. They include acai, coconut water, mangoes, Brazilian nuts, honey and fish. Most of these will be used in state schools or in stock building (增加庫存) nationwide. Officials say coffee and beef, which were also affected by the increase imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump, were not included on the government's list because there are other markets interested in them. That was the I.C.R.T. EZ News, I'm _____. －－－－以下為 SoundOn 動態廣告－－－－ 無論是駕駛、行人或自行車騎士，「停讓先行」不僅是口號，更是城市交通文化的核心。 讓我們將安全意識化為日常實踐，共同為行人、自行車及校園周邊建構更安全的用路環境，讓澎湖成為全齡友善的宜居城市。 交通部及澎湖縣政府關心您。 -- Hosting provided by SoundOn

In this 73rd episode of the Paul Zimnisky Diamond Analytics Podcast, Tom Moses, Executive Vice President of The Gemological Institute of America (GIA), joins the show to discuss an array of timely industry topics. The episode begins with Tom giving his perspective on the current downturn in the diamond market and how it stacks up against others that he has seen over his almost 50-year career. Paul then explains why he thinks the 50% Indian tariff on natural diamonds could actually be digestible by consumers while the tariff on lab-grown diamonds is maybe not even consequential. Next, Tom gives an estimation of what current diamond inventory in the U.S. looks like based on what the GIA has seen passing through in recent weeks. The conversation then moves to LGDs and Tom explains why he thinks that we could see LGD rough selling for as little as $5 per carat in the coming years and how fine jewelers selling LGD could be a “path to distinction” for the larger category. Tom then shares his story of spearheading the GIA decision to provide LGD reports and how this ultimately culminated in a decision to change course in June 2025 –news which generated significant industry stir. Finally, Paul shares why he thinks the diamond industry might be through the worst of the disruption caused by LGD.   Hosted by: Paul Zimnisky Guest: Tom Moses Guest plug: www.gia.edu More information on PZDA's State of the Diamond Market report: www.paulzimnisky.com/products   Show contact: paul@paulzimnisky.com or visit www.paulzimnisky.com.   Please note that the contents of this podcast includes anecdotes, observations and opinions. The information should not be considered investment or financial advice. Consult your investment professional before making any investment decisions. Please read full disclosure at: www.paulzimnisky.com.

Good afternoon, I'm _____ with today's episode of EZ News. Tai-Ex opening The Tai-Ex opened up114-points this morning from yesterday's close, at 23,740 on turnover of $6.9-billion N-T. The market tumbled on Wednesday - losing more than 700 points as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing came under heavy pressure, which pushed the electronics sector lower following a decline by tech stocks on Wall Street overnight. It was the first time the Tai-Ex had closed below the 24,000 point mark since August 6 and analysts says the steep declines among U-S tech stocks overnight prompted local investors to pocket gains from previous sessions. AI system predicting rogue waves to be deployed in 16 coastal regions The Central Weather Administration say it's developed an artificial intelligence-powered system that predicts the occurrence (發生) of rogue waves. It's been developed in conjunction with the National Cheng Kung University and can predicts rogue waves over the next 24 hours. According to the weather administration, the system will now be implemented (實施) in 16 of Taiwan's coastal municipalities by the end of this year. Administration deputy head Fong Qin-zi says rogue waves are not traceable like the weather but occur as a result of specific environmental conditions, which requires more precise predictions than simply issuing warnings of long waves. The Coastal Ocean Monitoring Center says a total of 430 rogue wave incidents have been recorded over the past 25 years, causing 750 casualties, one-third of which were fatalities. UN Warns IS Exploiting Instability and Remains a Threat U.N. counterterrorism experts warn that Islamic State extremists are exploiting instability in Africa and Syria and remain a significant threat in Afghanistan, Central Asia and Europe. They told a U.N. Security Council meeting on Wednesday that the militant group is now using advanced technologies, including artificial intelligence, and social media, which poses a new challenge. The Islamic State group declared a self-styled caliphate in a large swath of Syria and Iraq that it seized in 2014. It was declared defeated in Iraq in 2017 following a three-year battle that left tens of thousands of people dead and cities in ruins. But its sleeper cells remain in both countries and it has affiliates (附屬機構) and supporters in many other countries. Trump Administration slaps sanctions on more ICC judges The Trump administration has imposed fresh sanctions on four ICC judges and prosecutors, including individuals associated with cases involving alleged war crimes linked to Israel and the US. Critics say the sanctions threaten to impede the Court's ability to investigate other cases, including alleged (被指控的) war crimes carried out by Russia in Ukraine. Toni Waterman has more. NZ Announces Military Spending for Planes and Helicopters New Zealand's government has announced new military spending of $1.6 billion to replace aging planes and helicopters. Officials unveiled the package today, citing growing global tensions and a deteriorating security environment. The purchase of military planes and helicopters is the first procurement in a plan to double defense spending from 1% to 2% of GDP in the next decade. The procurement includes five Seahawk helicopters and two Airbus aircraft. New Zealand's defense minister says the government would move quickly to procure (採購) the helicopters through the United States' foreign military sales program. That was the I.C.R.T. EZ News, I'm _____. －－－－以下為 SoundOn 動態廣告－－－－ 中國信託聯手統一集團推出uniopen聯名信用卡 2025年12月31日前消費享最高11%回饋 完成指定任務加碼每月免費跨行轉帳10次，ATM存領外幣各1次免手續費 了解詳情> https://sofm.pse.is/8487b6 謹慎理財 信用至上 -- Hosting provided by SoundOn

Good afternoon, I'm _____ with today's episode of EZ News. Tai-Ex opening The Tai-Ex opened down 44-points this morning from yesterday's close, at 24,309 on turnover of 4.6-billion N-T. The market lost ground on Tuesday due to investor concerns over the impact of U-S tariffs on the local job market after machine tool maker Taiwan Takisawa Technology urged its employees to take three days off a week due to a decline in orders. Analysts say the Takisawa report delivered a shock to investors as it is a listed old economy company and there's now fear the impact will affect more Taiwanese machinery makers given the higher tariff burden plus a stronger New Taiwan dollar. Lai calls on defense medical university to strengthen battlefield medicine President Lai Ching-te says the newly upgraded National Defense Medical University needs to further enhance its training in battlefield trauma care. Speaking at a ceremony marking the school's elevation from the National Defense Medical Center, Lai said greater global exchanges will help it specialize ( 專精) in battlefield medicine and trauma care. According to Lai, international cooperation will allow the university to learn from other countries' military and medical education systems and apply those lessons to not only support the armed forces but also strengthen (加強) society's broader capacity to respond to crises. Lai described the university as a crucial asset for infectious disease research and prevention during his speech … The university was officially upgraded on August 1. Over 5 million votes required to pass nuclear power plant referendum The Central Election Commission says at least 5 million votes will be needed to pass Saturday's referendum on whether to extend the service of the Maanshan Nuclear Power Plant in Pingtung. Under the Referendum Act, the vote will pass only if votes in favor account for more than one-fourth of the total eligible voters and outnumber the votes against. According to the election commission, number of eligible (有資格的) voters is 20,002,091 - translating to a minimum threshold of 5,000,523 votes for passage of the referendum. The referendum question reads: "Do you agree that the Maanshan Nuclear Power Plant should continue operation upon approval by the competent authority and confirmation that there are no safety concerns?" US favors Budapest for Russia-Ukraine meeting The Trump administration is considering the Hungarian capital Budapest as the location for a summit (高峰會) between Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskyy. It comes as the White House weighs offering US air support as part of security guarantees for Ukraine to help end the conflict. Nick Harper reports from Washington. Mexico Maya Train Derailment A tourist-focused Maya Train running along Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula has derailed while moving slowly toward a station platform. The train was traveling Tuesday from Cancun to Merida when it left the tracks at a station in Izamal. Passengers were uninjured and transported by bus. The accident is under investigation, but the train is operating normally between other stations. The Maya Train began running in late 2023, but has had low ridership (客流量). Environmentalists have documented severe impacts on the delicate (脆弱的) cave systems under the train line. That was the I.C.R.T. EZ News, I'm _____. -- Hosting provided by SoundOn

Data centres are being used to power tech companies all around the world.In the U-S alone, there are more than 5-thousand facilities.And the facilities use up valuable resources, which could leave some communities without things like water – according to a new report.Host Kris McCusker speaks to Miguel Yanez-Barnuevo and Dan Bressette with the Environmental and Energy Study Institute about the second of 3 reports, which take a deep dive into the environmental impacts of technology and things like artificial intelligence. We love feedback at The Big Story, as well as suggestions for future episodes. You can find us:Through email at hello@thebigstorypodcast.ca Or @thebigstoryfpn on Twitter

European leaders are set to join a meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and United States President Donald Trump at the White House to discuss an end to the war in Ukraine. The UK, Italy, Finland and France will attend the meeting in support of Ukraine's President, who is under pressure from the U-S to accept a quick peace deal. It follows Mr Trump's face-to-face meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska, which did not include Ukraine, and ended without achieving a ceasefire.

In this episode of End of the Road in Michigan, we journey to Beaver Island — the largest island in Lake Michigan and the only place in America that once had a king. From 1848 to 1856, James Jesse Strang ruled here as a self-proclaimed monarch, building roads, homes, and a newspaper before his dramatic assassination at the St. James docks.We explore the Irish fishing community that reclaimed the island, the rise and fall of its Great Lakes fishing dominance, and the daring rescues of lighthouse keepers and the U.S. Coast Guard.The story continues with the roar of logging trains through the forests, the quiet service of “Dr.” Feodor Protar, and the hard years when the population dwindled to fewer than 200 residents. This is a story of isolation, industry, and community spirit, told through the photographs and voices of history.

In this bulletin, the Prime Minister has strong words after a U-S ambassador to Israel voiced disgust over his decision to recognise Palestinian statehood, states and territories unite with the Commonwealth to reform a major child safety policy by 2026. And in AFL, Jayden Nguyen hopes to inspire Vietnamese kids, when he lines up with Essendon against St Kilda tonight.

In episode 1912, Jack and Miles are joined by comedian and co-host of The Worst Idea of All Time, Tim Batt, to discuss… Fellas, It’s Time To Get Into Woodworking, The Sex and the City Universe and more! Fellas, It’s Time To Get Into Woodworking LISTEN: Plain Sailing by Gold PandaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In episode 1910, Jack and guest co-host Blake Wexler are joined by host of Creature Feature and co-host of Secretly Incredibly Fascinating, Katie Goldin, to discuss…Tourism Is On Fire (In A Bad Way) In The U.S.: Vegas Tourism Crash, The Grand Canyon Wildfires, Foreign Tourists Avoiding U.S., Wolves Scared By Marriage Story, RFK Jr. Cancels 500 Million In Vaccine Research, 21 Cases of E. Coli Infection Reported in Florida Linked To Raw Milk, Curious Octopus and more! Grand Canyon Wildfire Spreads to More Than 126,000 Acres Arizona Governor Wants Investigation of Federal Handling of Grand Canyon Fire Arizona Fire Season: In-Depth Guide Trump's track record of disaster misinformation as he casts blame over California wildfires Las Vegas June tourism declines by 11% from 2024 U.S Economy Set To Lose $12.5BN In International Traveler Spend this year Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill Has A Nasty Surprise For World Cup Tourists Trump signs executive order calling for foreign tourists to pay higher national park fees Trump Administration: Some Foreign Tourists Must Post Bond Of Up To $15,000 To Enter U.S. In move to lift Argentina visa restrictions, Trump rewards Milei’s friendship Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver Fighting in ‘Marriage Story’ Is Being Used by the USDA to Scare Off Wolves and Save Cattle: ‘They Need to Know Humans Are Bad’ RFK Jr. Cancels 500 Million In Vaccine Research, 21 Cases of E. Coli Infection Reported in Florida Linked To Raw Milk Florida reports 21 cases of E.coli infections linked to raw milk Coke confirms cane sugar change. RFK Jr. calls it a MAHA win. Is it? Some Raw Truths About Raw Milk The Pasteurization of Milk* Curious Octopus "My son has visited the same octopus every week for 3 years. She always loved him until today, when she tried to pull him into the tank." LISTEN: To Love and Be Loved by Annie TracySee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

** Electric vehicles disappoint in on road testing ...*** Japanese politicians and civilians have gathered in Hiroshima to pay tribute to those who lost their lives during the U-S atomic bombing 80 years ago. - ***昨日8月6日は、広島原爆の日でした。 80年前に、アメリカによって落とされた、原子爆弾の犠牲者を追悼する式典に大勢の市民・政治家が参列しました。 ***ベンジャミン・ネタニヤフ首相が、ガザ全面制圧計画を発表する可能性がある、との報道がありました。 *** 路上テストの結果、オーストラリアで最も売れている電気自動車の一部が、広告で宣伝している機能を、達成していないことがわかりました。

The latest local news impacting D.C., Maryland, and Northern Virginia.Today's top news stories: More federal law enforcers may hit the streets of DC...as soon as today.New and higher U-S tariffs on goods from DOZENS of countries.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

On this Salcedo Storm Podcast:Chris interviews Governor Greg Abbott and Senior Editor at the Texas Scorecard, Brandon Waltens on the latest Democrat-casued crisis, the Texas special session quorum break. 

DAMION1In our 'Treaty Talks Begin With Bold New Commitment to Avoid Commitment: Delegates agree to form a task force to consider considering action and then unite to Say 'Plastic Is Bad'—Then Go Back to Their Plastic-Filled Hotels' headline of the week. Here's what to watch for at this month's global plastics treaty talksNegotiators from more than 170 countries are arriving in Geneva, Switzerland, this week to resume discussions over the United Nations plastics treaty, eight months after they missed their original deadline for finalizing the pact. Many delegates, advocacy groups, and U.N. officials are hopeful that the 10-day session will result in a final agreement that delivers on the U.N.'s objective to “end plastic pollution.” But progress has been slow at each of the five preceding sessions, in large part due to a consensus-based decision-making structure that has allowed oil-producing countries to obstruct progress. In our 'Hey Ma, the dude who got his BA at Haverford College which costs $93,600 and received his JD from Stanford is mansplaining about elite colleges, can you grab my water bottle and my red lawn chair?!' headline of the week. Palantir CEO Alex Karp takes a shot at elite colleges and says the company offers 'a new credential independent of class In our 'It's better off helping people without formal biology expertise design or recreate biological threats like toxins or pathogens' headline of the week. OpenAI says ChatGPT shouldn't tell you to break up with someone In our 'What an asshole! The next thing he'll probably do is call out other banks for breaking their climate pledges ' headline of the week. Banking CEO breaks from the pack on return to office. He goes in 4 days a week but leaves the rest up to the ‘adults' he works withStandard Chartered CEO Bill Winters In our 'Citizen Journalist Robbie Starbuck and The National Legal and Policy Center prepare shareholder proposal calling out Microsoft and asking “What about MEN'S ovaries? This is woke biology gone too far.”' headline of the week. Gates Foundation is giving $2.5 billion to fund women's health researchMATT1In our '8Ks revealed that Charlie Scharf, Wells Fargo's CEO, was awarded $30m to open his mindspace, Steven Hemsley at UnitedHealth was given $60M to center his chi, and Goldman's CEO DJ DSol got $80m to attune his crystals and align his money aura.' headline of the week. Tesla Grants Musk $29 Billion in Stock to Keep ‘Elon's Energies Focused'In our 'Specifically, the part where they ran someone over' headline of the week. Jury Says Tesla Was Partly to Blame for Fatal CrashIn our 'Reports suggested the awning was made of cybertruck trim, the tables were actually crashed robotaxis, and the chicken wings were made from old Nazi bathroom graffiti' headline of the week. Tesla Diner Patio Covering Collapses, Smashes Mother on Head and Barely Misses BabyIn our 'Retention awards for "continued leadership"? Or pay for focus? Pay to show up? Pay for "energy"? Relocation pay for my sister's cousin's condo in Ottawa? ' headline of the week. 2025 CEO PrioritiesAdapt to changing external environments and regulatory landscapeManage growth and investment amid current fiscal outlookCreate a resilient supply chainAccess to talent and workforceArticulate a vision for an AI and tech-enabled enterprisesEmbrace opportunities for personalized consumer experiencesUnderstand the changing environmental challengesShape the leadership teamArticulate Vision and strategy, and tell your story as a leaderDrive performanceEnsure proper governance processesCollaborate with the boardOptimize organizational structureAlign communicationsSatisfy shareholders and stakeholdersBuild the cultureNavigate geopolitical uncertaintyIn our 'If you can't tell your kid with a fever of 102 to suck it up and fuck off, maybe this company isn't for you' headline of the week. 5 things the AT&T CEO's sweeping memo says about where corporate America is headedHis name is John Stankey"If a self-directed, virtual, or hybrid work schedule is essential for you to manage your career aspirations and life challenges, you will have a difficult time aligning your priorities with those of the company and the culture we aim to establish," Stankey wrote.DAMION2In our 'I refuse to celebrate until we reach 7.3%' headline of the week. The share of female CEOs running Global 500 companies hits a record high of 6.6% In our 'Houston American Energy Corp. announces that finally the phrase “Let's hear what she thinks” can be said in the boardroom without an immediately ironic chuckle, now it can be an authentic condescending chuckle' headline of the week. Houston American Energy Corp. Appoints Martha J. Crawford to Board of DirectorsIn our 'Great, when he's done creating a practical application of cold fusion, could he explain why anyone would buy a Cybertuck, have him finish my daughter's algebra homework, and then share the wisdom behind Intel's stock price being down 22% from the day he started as Intel CEO?' headline of the week. Jim Cramer on Intel CEO: “He Totally Understands Everything” In our 'After a nice brunch, they went to the aquarium and then to a poetry reading' headline of the week. Mary McDowell Joins Zebra Technologies Board of Directors In our 'They named him Peter Semple, after their great grandfather, and then chained him to his desk ' headline of the week. Depop names permanent CEOMATT2 In our 'US companies give investors a break from voting NO on every shareholder proposal this year' headline of the week. US companies deny record number of shareholder votesAverage vote for ESG proposal: 20%. Average vote against ESG proposal: 80%.In our 'Please don't say suicidal ideation, aggression, reality detachment, and hallucinations, please don't say suicidal ideation, aggression, reality detachment, and hallucinations, please don't say suicidal ideation, aggression, reality detachment, and hallucinations...' headline of the week. A New Paper Just Found Something Horrifying About Kids Who Get Phones Early in LifeChief scientist Tara Thiagarajan found that among the more than 100,000 18-to-24-year-olds whose outcomes they tracked, those who got phones when they were younger experienced more suicidal ideation, aggression, reality detachment, and hallucinations as they aged.In our 'Man leaves gym and goes to Wendy's to get fit' headline of the week. Barclays leaves Net Zero Banking Alliance to combat climate changeIf you want to prove your commitment to transitioning Barclays, feel free to use our data to vote out every director that underperforms on climate!In our 'Olive Garden appoints car mechanic as executive chef' headline of the week. Harley-Davidson board appoints Topgolf executive as next CEOArtie Starrs has been golf CEO, Pizza Hut CEO, is on a non profit board that helps underprivileged children, got an economics degree from Princeton, and he enjoys hiking, playing golf, listening to live music. He sounds exactly like someone who rides a Harley.In our 'SOMEONE IS ACTUALLY FIGHTING. And of course it's a female founder.' headline of the week. A long-running anti-DEI lawsuit could help companies defend themselves from reverse-racism claimsElizabeth Gore of Hello Alice is fighting Stephen Miller's AFL lawsuit brought on behalf of a white trucker in Ohio who says they didn't get a shot at a grant that went to someone black - and Gore is winning because it's all a fucking jokeMeanwhile, Brown, Harvard, Colombia and the high priced Ivies are folding like cowardsReach out to Hello Alice or Gore, offer help or support, join the service, because somewhere there is someone fighting bullshitFigma IPO QUIZThe Figma IPOFigma founder and CEO Dylan FieldWhat percentage of shares does he actually own in the company?17%What is total voting power?74%How many votes per share are magical Class B shares worth?15 votes per shareWhat percentage of Class B shares does Dylan control?99%There are 5 executive officers and 10 directors, how many are women?2 (directors)Who is the chair of the Figma board?CEO and founder and controlling shareholder Dylan FieldHow many friendships with Peter Thiel does Dylan Field have?1How many college degrees does Dylan Field have?0Where did Dylan Field drop out of?BrownWho paid Dylan Field to drop out of college?Peter ThielIn addition to his shareholdings, how much is Dylan Field due to receive if the stock price hits $130 (it already was over $124)$2B in equityWhich CEO's pay package was Dylan Field's pay package modeled after?Elon MuskHow many years does Dylan Field have to reach that stock price hurdle?10How old is this very rich college dropout?33In response to a question about how he was going to change the world, what did Dylan Field say?He was going to build better software for drones.Then I'm guessing Figma must truly benefit humanity if this guy is so rich, what does Figma do exactly?Figma is a collaborative web application for interface design, with additional offline features enabled by desktop applications for macOS and Windows. The feature set of Figma focuses on user interface and user experience design, with an emphasis on real-time collaboration,[3] utilizing a variety of vector graphics editor and prototyping tools.

Killing God's Enemies:: The Crazy War Against Jews, African-Americans and the U.S. Government by John Lee Brook (Author)  Killing God's Enemies relates the origin, history and activities of the church of Christian Identity and its violent outgrowth called the Phineas Priesthood. In doing so, the book reveals the group's philosophy of hate; their methodology, which is death to all blacks, Jews, homosexuals and abortionists; and their goal, which is an America ruled by white men. The church of Christian Identity is a small and obscure religious denomination. Its radical arm— the Phineas Priesthood— barely registers on the radar screens of the general public's consciousness. That is, until it's too late. For the Phineas Priesthood is unlike any other priesthood. There is no seminary and no ordination. There is only one requirement: kill the enemies of God. Killing God's Enemies will tell the fantastic but true tale of how Christian Identity came to exist, where the idea of the Phineas Priesthood came from, relate the violent exploits of the Priesthood's lone warriors, and show how Anti-Semitism forms the fulcrum upon which Christian Identity pivots.https://amzn.to/4oe0MIVBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-opperman-report--1198501/support.

Marc Watson took over for the retiring Gordon Motion this month after six months of serving as his understudy. The former master blender for The Famous Grouse has 11 years of industry experience, and he'll join us for one of his first interviews since his promotion on this week's WhiskyCast In-Depth. In the news, the U-S and the European Union have hammered out a trade agreement that limits tariffs on E-U whisky exports to 15 percent. India and the United Kingdom have signed a trade agreement that will reduce India's tariffs on Scotch Whisky imports over the next decade, and Pernod Ricard is selling off some brands as it narrows its focus.

Patricia Smith: Sean Smith killed 9 11, 2012 attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-opperman-report--1198501/support.

Minnesota-based UnitedHealth is under investigation by the Department of Justice for its Medicare billing practices. It's just the latest in a string of setbacks the powerful insurer has faced recently. We learn more from a Wall Street Journal reporter.Housing in the Twin Cities is pricier than ever. We hear how first-time buyers can cope.And young people are losing confidence in their future social security benefits. We break down why.Plus, summer is the time to swim. But for adults who didn't learn during childhood, developing water skills can be daunting. We have tips on trying it out.And we hear the story of how early miners on the Iron Range contributed to a bedrock of U-S transportation.Today's Minnesota Music Minute was “You Are There” by Connie Evingson. The Song of the Day was “Light Switch” by Fall Risk.

Title: Rare Earths to Truffles: Diversified Investments You've Never Heard Of with Louis O'Connor Summary: In this episode of Raise the Bar Radio, Seth Bradley welcomes back Lou, an international investor, to discuss diversification, rare earth metals, and a unique agricultural investment opportunity. Lou, who splits his time between Europe and Latin America, emphasizes the importance of global diversification for peace of mind and flexibility. He highlights the geopolitical dynamics affecting rare earth metals, where China dominates the refining process, and discusses the increasing demand due to restricted exports. Transitioning from metals to agriculture, Lou introduces his truffle farm investment. Leveraging agri-science and Ireland's favorable climate, the project offers investors ownership of inoculated truffle trees with professional farm management. Returns are projected to begin in year 4-5 and continue for up to 40 years, offering IRRs between 14% to 69% based on historical truffle prices. Risks include mismanagement and natural elements, though strong biosecurity and proven success mitigate concerns. Lou finishes with a valuable mindset tip: improve by 1% daily to compound results over time. Bullet Point Highlights: Diversification across countries and industries provides flexibility and peace of mind China's control of rare earth refining and export restrictions create scarcity and opportunity Truffle farm investment offers strong IRR potential, with returns starting in years 4-5 and lasting 30-40 years Minimum $30K investment includes 400 saplings and full farm management with a 70/30 profit split Primary risks are mismanagement and nature, mitigated through biosecurity and replacement guarantees Lou's golden nugget: Focus on improving 1% daily to unlock exponential long-term growth Transcript: (Seth Bradley) (00:02.062) What's up, builders? This is Raise the Bar Radio, where we talk about building wealth, raising capital, and all in all, raising the bar in your business and your life. This is the No BS podcast for capital raisers, investors, and entrepreneurs who are serious about scaling their business and living life on their own terms. I'm Seth Bradley, securities attorney, real estate investor, and entrepreneur, bringing you world-class strategies from the best in the game.   If you're ready to raise more capital, close bigger deals, build a better you and create true financial freedom, you're in the right place. Let's go. Lou, what's going on, brother? Welcome back to the show.   Thank you very much Seth. Thank you. I'm very happy to be here. Good to see you again.   Yeah, absolutely man. Great to catch up with you. Are you tuning in from where?   Well, in Europe still, you know, I'm back and forth between Ireland, Germany, mostly, a little bit of time in Panama as well, because my wife's from there, but I'm in temporary in Ireland, horse breeding country and agricultural heartland actually of Europe. And at the moment anyway, yeah, so in Europe.   (Seth Bradley) (01:16.664) awesome, awesome. That's the beauty of being on a video conference call that you can talk to anyone from anywhere in the world now. That's the one good thing that came out of COVID is it made it normal to do it.   Yeah, it's funny, unbelievable. Just yesterday I was contacted actually by CNBC in the US, I'm in Europe, about the metals. We're not talking about metals today, but I've spoken with you before about the rare earth metals. And I guess the US chamber, secretary chamber of commerce is in China this week because China is restricting the export of certain technology metals and that's their area.   And within a day, there's like an hour after I speak with you, I'm doing an interview with CNBC on, I think it's Power Launch or something they call it. So it's fascinating really how quickly you can sort of ping around the globe and find somebody and do this.   Yeah, yeah, very cool, very cool, man. Well, thanks for taking the time to tune in with us today. And we've got a brand new thing to talk about and we'll jump into that. But before we do, just for listeners who didn't listen to your previous episode, give us a little bit about your background and your story. Just a general synopsis,   Sure, thank you. Yeah, so I'm obviously, you can tell from the accent, I'm Irish or Scottish or Australian, but it's Irish. And I suppose you could say I'm bit of a world traveler who has come back home specifically for this project we're going to talk about. Ireland is known as sort of the breadbasket of Europe. But yeah, I lived in Germany for 10 years, lived in Central America and traveled extensively in South America during that time.   (Louis O'Connor) (03:05.422) But my niche, if you will, you know one other business we're involved in. And my niche, what I'm looking for is always what I call, I don't know what you might call it in the US, but we sort of call it a path of progress play here, which is if you sort of look at an industry or a product, what's happened in the last 10 years, or even a country or even a business for that matter, if you look at what's happened in the last 10, you can sort of   have a look at likely what's going to happen in the next 10. So I'm always looking for somewhere where demand is increasing and supply is either going to be limited or subject to disruption and somehow, and that's what we will be talking to an agricultural product and we'll talk more about it. But I like to be diversified in every way. So I have business in Germany, this agricultural product is in Ireland.   I do my banking in Belize and Panama and different parts of Europe. So just trying to be as diversified as possible.   Right, right. And that's part of your kind of plan as well, right? Like to be kind of this international man of mystery, right? Like you have different ties to a couple of different countries, which gives you flexibility in case something goes wrong in one of them, right? Like, you know, I think a lot of people were worried here for a while and I think it's still in the back of people's minds in the United States about, you know, the strength of the dollar and   You know, people were talking about getting a second citizenship and things like that. Can you speak to that a little bit about kind of, you know, how you've done that and what your kind of thoughts and feelings are around that?   (Louis O'Connor) (04:46.552) Sure, sure. Well, you my feeling always has this peace of mind, you know, I just want peace of mind. I want to be at peace with myself and the world around me. that's, I mean, I'm probably talking about more philosophically and spiritually as well, but also, you know, in business or residencies or banking. I suppose it's because I left Ireland quite young and I did live.   I didn't just go on a vacation somewhere. lived in Germany for 10 years. I learned the language. Ireland is an island, even though we're part of Europe, continental Europe is completely different. And then I went to Latin America, which is a completely different kettle of fish altogether. And I suppose it was those experiences that the perspective that gave me was that, that sounds very simple, really, root of entry, but there's...   there's good and bad, know, you we do certain things in Ireland very well, and maybe other things not so well in Germany, they do, you know, they've made better cars and better roads. And we do and you know, Latin America, I think they dance better and drink better maybe than you know, but so yeah, what I learned is, you know, you know, you can pick is a bit like life can be a bit like a buffet, and you can pick what you like, and you know what you don't like leave behind, you know, so and the idea, I suppose the point I should make is that   What I've learned is it's not expensive or difficult to be diversified. Like have your banking in different jurisdictions really doesn't cost anything. Having a second or third residency if you do the right homework on I'll go into more detail if you want. have residency still in Panama and I three passports. I'm working on the fourth and it has been a little bit of effort but not expensive or costly.   And will I ever use it? I worried that the world's going to end? No. But it's just that peace of mind you have when you've got these other options that, God forbid if something did happen here in Ireland or Europe, I have a residency in Panama, I banking there. So it's just that, suppose it's like having a parachute or a safety net that's always there.   (Seth Bradley) (07:00.13) Yeah, yeah, I agree. mean, that's, you know, especially the way that things are today and people kind of just worry about things generally, right? If you have that peace of mind and you have that, you know, second or third option, it's just something that can kind of let you sleep at night a little bit better. It's like having a nest egg or, you know, having a second, third, fourth, fifth stream of income.   things like that that can let you sleep at night and while other people are panicking and worrying and making, you know, maybe even bad decisions based on that, you know, based on those worries, you can sleep soundly and make decisions that are best for you.   Yeah, yeah, and you're not limited, know, if you're just, you know, like, I mean, it's funny though, as well, I think it's timely. I think the time has come. I you see people, you know, we were chatting earlier, you know, being involved in multiple different industries and, you know, with technology, we're allowed to do that. We can reside in one country, we can do our bank in another, we can do our tax responsibility somewhere else, we can do our business. So it's probably just in the last 20, 30 years that we can move so freely.   with all this stuff, know, you know, only maybe 25, 30 years ago, I wanted to, I couldn't really do business in Germany, but live in Ireland, it'd have to be one or the other. There was no internet, you know, everything. So, so yeah, I think, I think we're heading in that direction anyway. And it's just, yeah, there's great freedom in it and great peace of mind, even though, you know, I mean, I'll be in Ireland for, you know, my two kids are, there's another six or eight years.   before they finish school. So I plan to be here, but I just have other options as well, you know.   (Seth Bradley) (08:41.42) Yeah, yeah, that's fantastic. And speaking of diversification, mean, your investments are very diverse, right? I mean, in the previous episode, we jumped into rare earth metals. And then in this episode, we're going to jump into something new. Before we jump into the new thing, though, give us a little update on what has changed in your business with the rare earth metals or if anything has changed or how those things are going.   Yeah, well, thanks. Thanks for asking, Seth. Since we spoke, actually, the big news is just in the last 60 days, I think I mentioned to you that China pretty much sort of dominates the rare earth industry. it's, I think really, it's possible and we understand now that China sort of saw before the EU and maybe before the US or they understood at least that rare earths would become   the backbone of manufacturing in the 21st century and they've been, you know, they've taken action on that. So we're in a situation now and it's not really an economic strategy. It's more of a geopolitical strategy that China has big plans for electric cars, big plans for solar, big plans for wind. you know, they, they've hundreds of million people, they're, taken out of the poverty, into the middle class all the time. So sort of   thinking strategically and long term, they rightfully secured their supply of rare earths. And what happened just in the last 60 days is the US sort of initiated a sort of a block. Now it was also supported by Holland and Japan and they're blocking sort of the latest sort of semiconductor technology from going to China. And in retaliation for that, China   You know, they have, you know, an ace up their sleeve, which is where it hurts. So the West has the technology and China has the raw materials. And just in the last 60 days, China has said they're going to, well, effective August 1, which is a month ago, they're restricting the export now of gallium and germanium, which is two of these technology metals, and that China, you know, is responsible for 95 % of the global production. so we're seeing the prices go up and this is sort of.   (Louis O'Connor) (10:57.826) what I talked to you about that these metals are in demand on a good day, you know, you will make a nice return. But if something like this happens where China sort of weaponizes these metals economically, then you'll see prices increasing quite dramatically, which they are. Yeah, that's that's what's happening there. It's basically a market where there's surging demand and you have sort of political landscapes affecting as well. So   It makes for interesting investment.   Yeah, yeah. Are these rare earth metals, are they not something that we can mine or is it something we're not willing to mine, like let's say in the West?   (Louis O'Connor) (11:44.142) Yeah, good question actually. that actually gets right to the heart of it, Seth, because despite the name rare earths, they're not all that rare. Some of them are as sort of common as copper and stuff, but there's about eight or ten of them that are rare and they are available in the US. But this is what's changed dramatically in the last 30 years is the rare earths don't occur naturally. So they always occur as a byproduct of another raw material.   They're sort of, they're very chemically similar. they're, sort of all stuck together. So they have to be extracted and separated and then refined and processed into, you know, high purity levels for jet engines or smartphones or whatever the case might be. what's happened where China dominates is, is China is responsible for 95 % of the refining. Now there's about 200 or sorry, $390 billion available in subsidies in the U S.   from the Inflation Reduction Act, which despite the name is all about energy transition. And that's all very well, except the human capital and the engineering expertise to refine rare earths is depleted in, it doesn't exist in Europe, and it's very much depleted in the US. Just to give you some context, there's 39 universities in China, where they graduate degrees in critical minerals.   So the Chinese are graduating about 200 metallurgists a week, every week for the last 30 years. I think the US has a handful of universities. I'd say there's probably 300,000 metallurgists in China and there might be 400 in the US and probably none in Europe at all. So it's not just a question of if they're there, it's how do we get them into 99.99 % purity? Without the engineering expertise, we can't, not anytime soon anyway.   Wow, yeah, yeah. mean, that just alone sounds like a recipe for a pretty good play for an investment. you know, there's these bottlenecks, right? Whether that's people that can refine it or the actual element itself or willingness to mine it, you know, all these different things come into play to make it a good investment. All right, let's switch over a little bit here. Let's talk about the new investment vehicle.   (Seth Bradley) (14:06.99) that you talked to me about. It's an agricultural play, correct? we're talking about truffles, talking about mushrooms, right? Tell me a little bit about it just to get started here.   Okay, well, you probably I mean, you know, truffles are in the culinary world, they're known as the black diamond of the kitchen, you know, they're, they're a delicacy going back to, you know, thousands and thousands of years. Traditionally, the black perigord, which is the Mediterranean truffle would have originated in France, but for the last sort of, you know, the last 100 years or so,   they've been growing abundantly in sort of South, Southwestern France, Northern Spain and Italy. So traditionally, you know, that's where they grow and they sort of, know, because the truffle, as you said, it's a mushroom that has a symbiotic relationship with a a native tree, an oak tree or hazel tree or sometimes beech. So it's a very delicate balance, you know.   And although I have invested in agriculture before, we started, we, I mean, a collective does not just me involved here, and I don't want to sound like I take credit for any of this really. I was just a part of a team where we had some agri-science people, and we had sort of four generational farmers involved. But we were looking at, it is no question that climate, there's a climate change, right?   It doesn't matter to me whether people, whatever the causes of that are, the reality is if you talk to an olive grower or a truffle grower in Italy or France, they'll tell you the climate has changed because their harvests have been decreasing for about the last 30 to 40 years actually, but really more so in the last 10. So we were sort of, I'll tell you basically the AgriScience partner involved in this.   (Louis O'Connor) (16:10.958) As a test back in 2005, they started to plant and the trees inoculated, the baby trees inoculated with the truffle sort of in the root system as a test all over different countries, not just Ireland, England, UK, also the US. So this has been in sort of research and development since about 2005.   And we got seriously involved in about 2015 when history was made and this Mediterranean truffle was grown here in the British Isles for the first time. we then with our agriscience partner in 2015 planted a thousand trees in five different locations in Ireland where I am.   and one of them is about 20 minutes away from me here. They're all secret locations. I won't even tell you where they are because they really are. They're highly valued or highly prized. And so it takes about four or five years to see if you're a business. So yeah, we now are growing the Mediterranean truffle, not just in Ireland, but in other parts of the UK. But the real interesting thing, Seth, it's just now ready for scale. And all of the farmers,   who were involved in the original research. None of them are going to take it to scale. The one that's local to me is a lovely gentleman. in his 60s and he planted a thousand trees really just as a retirement. His daughter works in banking in Switzerland and so there's nobody really to take over the farm. So we're the first to do it with scale. So we're inviting in...   a portion of some investors in as well.   (Seth Bradley) (18:05.87) Gotcha. Are there specific, I assume there are, are specific growing conditions where these things can prosper? Like I can't, I'm in San Diego, I can't just plant them in my backyard and wait five years and be a millionaire.   Well, if you you if I hear you're growing truffles death, you know, we should assign an NDA we should assign. You could try but no, they wouldn't grow in San Diego because I mean, there's a very delicate balance and you're what you're you're what you're using here is agri science and nature. You're working with nature. And because the reason they've grown so well in demand is   No way.   (Louis O'Connor) (18:48.738) just because of that balance up they get a sort of a dry season or sort of they got to get a lot of rain and then they get the dry season and what's happened is they're getting more drought and less rain and it's just upset the balance. So it's a very, very delicate balance. But what people wouldn't know, I think, is that truffles have always grown wild in Ireland.   There was a time five or 600 years ago when Ireland was 85 % forest and our native tree is the oak and the hazel tree, is the tree that's also where the fungus grows. And what happened was when the Brits were before, you know, when shipbuilding was the thing and the British Navy were, you know, the Spanish were, so the Brits sort of chopped down a lot of the forest for the wood for shipbuilding. you know, our forests were depleted. But to this day,   Truffles do still grow wild here, but we're doing it differently. know, we're only planting on land where you have like certain protein and pH levels and limestone. And then we're planting baby saplings that are already two years old that were inoculated with the truffle fungus like at birth, like in the root system. And we only plant them after we see that the root system and the fungi are already thriving.   So if you get into the right soil and it's already thriving, then two, three, four years later, you'll get truffles.   (Seth Bradley) (20:17.216) the interruption, but we don't do ads. Instead, know that if you're raising capital for real estate, my law firm, RaiseLaw, is here to give you the expert legal guidance you need to raise capital compliantly and structure and close your deal. And if you're looking for a done-for-you fund-to-fund solution, Tribest is the industry's only all-in-one setup and fund administration solution. Visit Raise.Law and Tribest.com to learn more.   That's awesome. just, I think about like wine and like, you know, you can grow it, you know, vines in different places. Some places they grow, some places they don't, some places they grow and the result isn't good and some places they grow and the result is awesome. It's probably a very delicate balance between, you know, environment plus how they're raised, how they're taken care of and all those sorts of things.   It is 100%. I mean, first and foremost, mean, because of angry science and technology today, you know, I mean, we can plant baby saplings that are already and not, I mean, we're playing God a little bit with nature, but you know, I mean, it's just amazing, you know, like you could do it. And then, you know, the biggest threat is actually mismanagement. You know, if you don't then manage it correctly. If you have a root system inoculated with the fungus and you have the right soil conditions,   after that and it's management and it's sort of bio security meaning they have a very pungent smell. mean, squirrels and pigs and they love them. They love to eat. So you have to, mean, you're literally it's like protecting a bank, know, you have a bio security fence. You've you know, you limit visitations to the farm, you've, know, special footwear and cleaning and stuff. so yeah, it's serious stuff, you know.   Yeah. Yeah. Wow. That's awesome. Well, let's dive in a little bit to the kind of the investment itself. Like what does that look like for an investor? Like what are your projected returns? You know, what, how does it all kind of, how does it all shape out? Like you've grown these wildly valuable truffles and now I guess the first step would be what's the business plan? Who are we selling these truffles to? What makes them so valuable? And then get into kind of the investor   (Seth Bradley) (22:33.794) portion like how would someone get involved in whether projector returns.   Okay, so we sell, first of all, the estate that the farm is, it's called Chan Valley Estate. People can Google it, it's beautiful. It's 200 acres of north-temporary farmland. The estate itself, it's a bit like a smaller version of Downton Abbey. It's a Georgian.   a three story Georgian home, it's over 200 years old. It's also a museum and we have events there and it's also a working farm. And it's a herbal farm. So we grow plants and herbs there that we then we have our own, we work the value chain where we also sell those herbs for medicinal purpose and we convert them into medicinal oils and things like that. So the location is already up and running.   And what we're doing with the truffles is for every acre, we can plant 800 trees. And so what we're doing is we're offering investors, well, a client, the minimum investment is $30,000 and the investor for that price gets 400 baby saplings already inoculated with the truffle fungus. And then they get the farm management   included up to the first four to five years. takes about, there'll be truffles after, bearing in mind that the sapling, the baby tree is two years old. So after three years in the ground, it's already five years old and there'll be truffles then and the returns don't begin until then. But what's included in the price is all the farm management, know, all the, you know, the,   (Louis O'Connor) (24:23.508) implementation of the farm, the irrigation, the electricity, the hardware that's needed. So all the management right up until there is production and then when they're producing, the investor gets 70 % of the growth and the farm management company, we get 30%. So it's a 70-30 split. Now the great thing about the oak and the hazel is they'll produce   for 30 to 40 years. it's a long term, it's a legacy investment, you might call it, because you won't see returns until the fourth or fifth year. But once you do, you'll see returns then for another 30 to 35 years. And they're very, very good. mean, we have three numbers in the brochure. We looked at what's...   price half the truffles never dropped below. So we have the very low estimate, which is they've never gone below this price. That brings in an IRR, which would be from day one of about 14%. And then the highest that they've sold for, you're looking at about 69%, but the average is about 38%.   So the returns will be very, very good once production kicks in and then they'll maintain. We've included an inflation for 30 to 40 years. I hope, I think I answered everything there.   Yeah, definitely. sorry. I gave you about six questions there to answer in a row. But yeah, I think you covered everything. And having an IRR, which is time-based on something that has this long of a horizon and even takes four or five years to even start producing, those are really, really strong numbers.   (Louis O'Connor) (26:23.63) Yeah, well, again, even the, you know, one of the reasons obviously we like truffles because they're very, very expensive. mean, they're a luxury product. You know, we're about an hour from Shannon Airport here, which is the transatlantic hub between Europe and the U.S. So we can have truffles in U.S. or anywhere in Europe or even the Middle East or the Far East, for that matter, in less than 24 hours. that's important as well. But they're a luxury item. There's huge demand for them. mean,   You know how the world is. mean, there are, unfortunately, you know, there's always sort of, people are getting richer and some people maybe are getting poorer. But the luxury, you know, high end market and the culinary, international culinary explosion means that, you know, there's huge demand for truffles. And also you have to factor in the fact that the harvests in the Mediterranean are less and less every year. And I mean, very, very sadly,   I mean, it's an opportunity for us, but very sadly that they've done very specific scientific studies and it's going to over the next 50 years, the truffle harvests in the Med will go will decline between 73 and 100%. So literally, they will not be growing truffles there in 50 plus years from now. So that's an opportunity for us. you know, again,   We've been working on this really since 2015. And it was only, you know, it was only 2019, 2020 when we began to get to truffles we knew because there was no guarantee, you know. But yeah, now that we're growing them, we just need to scale up.   Gotcha. Gotcha. what's kind of the I see that you know, for that minimum investment, you get X number of baby saplings. How many was that again? 400. That's what I Okay, 400. What's kind of the survival rate, I guess, of those saplings? Do you have kind of a percentage on that? Is it like?   (Louis O'Connor) (28:17.102) 400   (Louis O'Connor) (28:27.086) Yeah, well, we expect you got what's happening so far is within in about year three, which is actually year five, because the sapling, you should get three of the five trees producing. But once you have production, once that fungi is thriving, it will just continue to grow. So in year four, you should have four of them. In year five, you should have all of them producing.   Now we also put a guarantee in the farm management contract that if any tree, you know, if it dies or if it's not, you know, producing truffles, we'll replace it free of charge at any time. in the event, you know, for some reason, I mean, we put a tree in that's inoculated and it doesn't take, then we just replace it. So either way, over the first four to five years, we get them all. And the great thing is if you protect that soil from   pests and diseases and other sort of unwelcome sort of mycorrhizal or fungi, then it will thrive. It will thrive. It'll keep, you know, it'll spread, you know, it's a symbiotic relationship underground between the tree and the fungi.   Got it. Yeah, that's awesome to know. like survival is not one of the things that we should consider because if for some reason it wouldn't survive or is not producing, then it just gets replaced. So you actually are getting those full 400 saplings turning into trees that will be producing.   almost they mature and produce and you know as I said barring you know any pests or diseases or you know interference then they just continue you just protect them you just allow nature then to do its work.   (Seth Bradley) (30:18.848) Yeah, yeah. So what are some of the risks then? What are the downsides that you can foresee if something were to go wrong? What would it be?   Well, the greatest threat is mismanagement, literally. I obviously we're doing this with scale, so it's a professional endeavor, you know, people from time to time, know, I mean, some of the test sites here, mean, I don't know, it seemed like a good idea at the time, and they're not that hard to manage, but people just lose interest, or the younger kids don't want to farm. But the greatest threat is mismanagement. So as long as you put in these biosecurity measures,   and manage, you know, there's got to be some clearing done, there's got to be some pruning done, there's got to be tree guards. So there is a process involved in bringing them to nurturing them along and then keeping everything, you know, neutral, if you will. that's first, weather is always, you know, factor in agriculture. We don't feel it's as much of a threat here, because although we're for the first time,   growing the Mediterranean truffle. Truffles have grown, they grow here wild anyway. So the climate is right and has been right for thousands of years in Ireland. So, you know, and again, we'll have irrigation as well. You know, we get a lot of rain here. It's not likely we'll need any more rain, but yeah, we, you know, the agri-science will kick in there as well. And then, you know, as I said, like,   you know, biosecurity we call it, which is, you know, very, very serious fencing, limited visits to the farm, know, special footwear if people are going up to the area and sort of rinse. We have a pool area where they have to disinfect before they go into, you know, it's a very, very, very protected area from pests and from diseases or anything, you know, that could be brought in from the outside on whether that's machinery or humans.   (Louis O'Connor) (32:22.892) So yeah, it's almost like a laboratory. mean, you keep it very, very delicate balance and keep it very limited on who visits and, you know, people are a visit, but they have to be properly, you know, the feet have to be cleaned and footwear has to be worn and stuff like that. So, but, know, at the end of the day, Seth, it's, you know, well, any investment really, but agriculture, you know, the final say is in nature's hands, you know, not ours. mean, we...   We like to think, suppose, we're in the results business, but the reality is we're not. in the planning business and all we can do is plan everything as well as we can. It's just like, you if you planted a rose, you know, bush out in your backyard there today, you wouldn't stand outside and will it to grow, right? You know, grow quicker. You know, we have to allow nature and the cosmos to do its work. so yeah, nature has the final say, you know.   Yeah, yeah, no, totally, totally understand. And any investment has its risks, whether you're investing in truffles or real estate or any of the above. Quick question on this. Don't want to paint you like in a bad way at all, but we have had and it's not you, of course, of course, but we've had an influx of bad sponsors and people that are anything from mismanaging investor capital on one end, which can happen pretty easily. And there's not a whole lot of   Not a lot of bad blood there. Things happen. And then on the other side of the spectrum, we've seen everything from fraud to Ponzi schemes and all kinds of stuff lately. One thing that I tell investors is to make sure you know who you're investing with and make sure your investing dollars are actually getting invested where they're supposed to. Could an investor invest with you and actually go to the farm?   and see their saplings or see the farm and see this business.   (Louis O'Connor) (34:24.654) 100 % in fact, we would rather people do I mean, I it's not always possible. Right. But Shan Valley Estate, I mean, I'll give you the website and stuff after Shan Valley Estate. It's a 200 acre farm. It's already a museum. have events there. It's a herb dispensary as I said, as I said, it's our our manage our farm management partner is the Duggan family, their fourth generation farmers and they're being in temporary, you know,   longer than that even. absolutely, you you know, of course, there's legal contracts. mean, people get a legal contract for the purchase of the trees and then we have a legal contract for the farm management that we're responsible for implementing the project, we're responsible for bringing the hard, the trees to truffles to harvest. But we do, we just beginning, we just had our first tour, but it was sort of Europe from Germany. Last, sorry,   the 18th, 19th of August. But we will be having tours every quarter. And if anybody wants to come at any time, we'd be delighted to have them because it's like I said, it's like a smaller version of Downton Abbey. And we've accommodated, we converted the stables into accommodation, you know, because we have weddings and events and stuff there as well. It's not just a field that we bought.   Yeah.   And so it's a big deal. I'll give you the website. The location is spectacular and clients can, you know, stay the night, you know, and there's a three story Georgian estate house and the bottom floor is a museum. So it's like walking into a pharmacy from 1840, all the bottles and the counter is 200 years old, you know, and then the middle level, we've an organic vegetarian restaurant, all the   (Louis O'Connor) (36:17.24) food is grown on the farm. There's an old walled garden that they used to wall the gardens years ago to keep out the pests. And all the food that's served is grown on the farm. And then the top floor is accommodation as well and the stables have been converted. look, it's all about trust, Seth. And, you know, I would say to anybody, you've   I mean myself, if I have any doubt about anything, don't do it. And it might not be that somebody's a scam or a fraud, it's just if you're not 100 % sure about it, don't touch it. But what I would recommend is people do their due diligence because we've done ours. We've eight years invested in it, put a lot of time and effort into it. And at the very least, we'd like people to check it out and see it all the way through.   for what it is. yeah, we'll be, we're hoping to, we have a partner in Europe and we're to connect with somebody in North America. I don't want name anybody here because it might not come off, but there's a few sort of marketers and there's plenty obviously that we might sort of do a sort of an agreement with where they'll, you know, I mean, we could even have sort of investment real estate conferences on the farm.   you know, and do farm tours as well. so definitely 100 % we'd love for people to visit and, and they get to drink some Guinness and they're really brave, they can swim in the Irish sea.   Yeah, and I'm looking at the website right now. We'll drop that in the show notes, but it is absolutely gorgeous. I mean, it's making me want to get on a plane right now and check it out. It's incredible.   (Louis O'Connor) (38:00.046) Yeah, that's the estate, shambali.ie. I mean, what I love about it's 100 % organic or members of the Irish Organic Association, track ref, fourth generation. You know, this is not me, I'm a part of this, but the farm management team are, you know, they're already like growing herbs and plants and converting them to medicinal, you know, oils and things. And this is just another, it's more of a farming enterprise, I suppose, than a farm.   And then the other partner is the Agri Science Partner, which is this team of scientists who basically made history by growing for the very first time eight years ago, the black, the Mediterranean truffle in Ireland, you know, so there's a lot of professionalism and thought and effort being put into a chap.   Love that. Love that man. Is there anything else about this type of investment that I didn't ask about that I should have?   I think you know Seth, you should be on CNN or something because I you did. I'm pretty sure you did, you definitely covered it. I mean I may have left something out but I think it's a good foundation for somebody if they're interested, I'll give them my email and you know it's not that expensive to get to Europe and it's a great way to mix a holiday and you know come to the farm and stuff you know.   Absolutely, absolutely. Well, since you're repeat guest of the guest of the show, we won't go into the freedom for but you have one last golden nugget for our listeners.   (Louis O'Connor) (39:34.446) You know, I knew you were going to ask me that, Seth, you caught me off guard. So I have one ready and I stole this from someone else. So I'm not going to take it. But I was listening to a guy last week and he, sort of a big operation in Europe. And he was talking about a phrase they have in the office and it's 1%. And they always look at each other and when you pass them, they go 1%. And I love what it's about. It's about the idea that in a way it sort of comes back to what we talked about earlier, which is forget about.   Yeah.   (Louis O'Connor) (40:04.664) the fact don't think you're in the results business. You're in the planning business. And the 1 % is every day, try and improve every little action. I'm not just talking about work. I'm talking about family, your spiritual practice, if you have one, increase it by 1 % every day. And you know, it's like compound interest, isn't it? That in a way, then you don't have to worry about the big picture. And the results will just look after themselves then, you know.   Yeah, yeah, I love that man. Always improve. mean, you you've got to take small steps to get to those big goals. And a lot of times you just need to ask yourself, did I improve 1 % today? If the answer is yes, then it was a successful day.   Yes. Yeah. Yeah. And it's great because, you know, if I was to try and think now, or you were to try and think now, everything you have to do in the next three weeks, right, you just be overwhelmed, right. And sometimes my head is like that, you know, I mean, I've got meditation practice and stuff, but I watch my thoughts and you know, I mean, it's it's a fact. I mean, it's a human condition. I don't know, some disestimates of how many thoughts do we have a day? How many are repetitive and how many are useless?   A lot of them are repetitive, a lot of them are useless. So it's good just to narrow it right down to what's the next thing I can do right now and can I do it 1 % better than I did yesterday, you know?   Absolutely. Love that man. All right, Lou, we're gonna let us find out more about you.   (Louis O'Connor) (41:34.954) Okay, so they can email me. It's Truffle Farm Invest. Sorry, it's a new website www.trufflefarminvest.com or they can if somebody from your your audience wants to email me directly, it's louis at trufflefarminvest.com   Alright, perfect man. We'll drop all that in the show notes. Thanks again for coming on the show. Always a pleasure, brother.   Thank you very much, Seth. A pleasure.   (Seth Bradley) (42:08.088) Thanks for tuning in to Raise the Bar Radio. If you enjoyed today's episode, make sure to subscribe, leave a review, and share it with someone who needs to hear it. Keep pushing, keep building, and keep raising the bar. Until next time, enjoy the journey. Links from the Show and Guest Info and Links: Seth Bradley's Links: https://x.com/sethbradleyesq https://www.youtube.com/@sethbradleyesq www.facebook.com/sethbradleyesq https://www.threads.com/@sethbradleyesq https://www.instagram.com/sethbradleyesq/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/sethbradleyesq/ https://passiveincomeattorney.com/seth-bradley/ https://www.biggerpockets.com/users/sethbradleyesq https://medium.com/@sethbradleyesq https://www.tiktok.com/@sethbradleyesq?lang=en Louis O'Connor's Links: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100054362234822 https://www.linkedin.com/in/louis-o-connor-a583341b8/ https://www.cnbc.com/video/2023/08/30/strategic-metals-founder-louis-oaconnor-breaks-down-china-u-s-rare-metal-wars.html

In this monthly collaboration series, Adam from the UK True Crime podcast and I take a step back from individual cases to explore a curated selection of gripping crime stories that made headlines in July 2025. From chilling local, national, and international headlines to quirky and more lighthearted stories, this series offers a glimpse into the diverse and often shocking world of true crime.This month's stories include:Postman who murdered and beheaded girlfriend jailed for at least 23 yearsVicious fuel thief drives over worker and leaves him for dead while fleeing garageRoyal Navy sailor arrested over bomb hoax on nuclear submarineConstance Marten and Mark Gordon convicted of gross negligence manslaughter of their babyFour people killed in a Southend plane crashMan sucked into jet engine at busy Italian airport in suspected suicideAmerican tourist beaten by bar owner in ThailandAustralia's 'trial of the century'US driver tries to swap places with dog to avoid drunk driving arrestSnake captured on passenger plane in AustraliaJoin us as we dive into these extraordinary stories in the July 2025 edition of The Crime Roundup.Join my Patreon community at patreon.com/britishmurders for exclusive perks, including early access to ad-free episodes, exclusive episodes and content, exciting giveaways, and welcome goodies! It's quick to sign up and you'll save 20% if you choose an annual membership.Follow me on social media:Facebook | British Murders with Stuart BluesInstagram | @britishmurdersPrivate Facebook Group:British Murders Podcast - Discussion GroupVisit my website:britishmurders.comDisclaimer:The cases discussed in this episode are real and represent the worst day in many people's lives. We aim to cover such stories with a victim-focused approach, using information from publicly available sources. While we strive for accuracy, some details may vary depending on the sources used. Due to the nature of the content, viewer discretion is advised. Thank you for your understanding and support. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In episode 1884, Jack and Miles are joined by comedian and host of Salty AF, Holly Brown, to discuss… The Pentagon Flew A Decoy Mission Because Of Trump’s Social Media Posts, Trump Planning to Lift Ban on Asbestos? Of Course Richard Dreyfuss Is Trying To Cash In on Jaws’ 50th Anniversary and more! Inside Trump’s Decision MAGA Takes Victory Lap After Hegseth Manages Not to Leak Plans to Bomb Iran FOX PENTAGON REPORTER: "In my 18 years at the Pentagon, I've never seen such operational security. Trump Planning to Lift Ban on Asbestos? U.S. Bans the Last Type of Asbestos Still in Use Of Course Richard Dreyfuss Is Trying To Cash In on Jaws’ 50th Anniversary Will we need a bigger boat? Martha's Vineyard awash in 'Jaws' at 50 mania Narragansett Beer celebrates 50 years of ‘Jaws’ The 50th Anniversary of ‘Jaws’ Brings a Wave of Brand Collabs and Collectibles LISTEN: @justbmannodj Get Tickets for the One Night In The Valley Comedy Benefit Show here!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.