Risk & Associates County Civil - May 2021

Risk & Associates County Civil - May 2021

COUNTYCIVIL.COM

MAY 2021

Being There for Mom

3 IDEAS FOR SHOWING MOTHERS APPRECIATION IN 2021

H ello, friends. This month, I wanted to talk a little bit about some of the most important people in our lives, our moms. The word “family” can apply to many modern households. Related or not, however, most people agree: Mothers are typically the first people we can truly rely on. A good mom often provides a sturdy foundation of support and moral character for the rest of our lives. Although nothing in life is perfect, including our mothers, there are few things more whole or complete than a mother’s love. Mothers are only getting busier. In 2018, the U.S. Census reported that over two- thirds of mothers (with children under 18) work full time. And being a working mom, especially during COVID-19, is not easy. Mother’s Day is a fantastic day to show appreciation, and we all have our own rituals for it, but moms deserve appreciation every single day. Here are a few ways we can do just that in 2021.

First, try to help out appropriately whenever you can. Not every mom will want you to hold the door for them, so to speak. But if you see a way to help give them time flexibility, or time off to relax, then do so! My mom passed away a long time ago, but my mother-in-law, Sandy, is still alive and I’m very grateful to be so close with her. Close at work, also — she works at County Civil and has been a fantastic part of the team! Many of the women at County Civil are also mothers, and taking care of their needs has always been one of our top priorities. We keep their schedules flexible when they need to arrive later and leave early due to carpooling their kids. It’s totally fine when they need to take a day off for a school function as well. Second, express to your mom that you don’t take your moments together for granted. Mothers often try to make a lot of time in their lives for others, whether it’s for their kids or even other families and

community members. I’ve mentioned in previous newsletters how much I admire my sweet-natured wife as a mother and grandmother to our family. She’s always there for everyone and never says “No.” My wife will arrange her entire day to take care of other people — while she would say she was just raised like that, I think it’s such a special and admirable trait to have. Third, create new experiences with your mom. Find time to go to a painting class together or spend time on another shared interest. Write a long-form letter to her. There are a lot of ways you can engage with your mom in ways you haven’t before or perhaps haven’t done in a long while. Your efforts to make new memories with her will make her feel very special, and that’s how moms deserve to feel every single day. Thanks for reading, friends. Have a wonderful month, and I’ll chat with you again soon. -Rick Risk

616-374-7170 1

Published by Newsletter Pro • www.NewsletterPro.com

THE 3 STRANGEST CELEBRITY LAWSUITS

Stories about celebrities can be enjoyable or awkward, but no matter what happens, they usually create great material for Buzzfeed or Reddit users. This also includes celebrity stories involving the law, which bring on a lot of head-scratching and legal action — like these three strange cases. SIMON COWELL PAYS FOR A CHEF’S DISAPPEARING SHOES. Known for his unrelenting critiques and setting the stage for some of the world’s biggest names in show business, Simon Cowell has amassed enough wealth to afford a private chef. When one such chef came by his house for a job interview, she was asked to remove her shoes, but according to court documents, she never received her shoes back. The chef claims to have tried multiple times to retrieve the shoes — which were outfitted with $500 orthopedic insoles — but never succeeded. She sued Cowell for the shoes and gas money, and the “America’s Got Talent” star shelled out. INTERNET CONSPIRACY THEORY RESULTS IN A COURT CASE AGAINST BEYONCÉ. The internet is a wild place, and conspiracy theories are often born on its digital channels. One such theory was that Beyoncé and her husband, Jay-Z, hired a surrogate to give birth to their daughter, Blue Ivy, in 2012. Internet trolls who saw her pregnant belly roll as she sat down for an interview fanned the flames of this theory, and soon, a

lawsuit emerged. A woman claimed she was the true biological mother of Blue Ivy, and she asked for compensation and DNA testing to prove it. Previously, the same woman claimed to be the birth mother of North West, the daughter of Kim Kardashian and Kanye West, but the court threw out the case. MILA KUNIS RUFFLES SOME FEATHERS. Actress Mila Kunis was sued for $5,000 by her childhood friend, Kristina Karo, in 2015 because Kunis allegedly stole a chicken from Karo when they were still children in Ukraine. Karo, an aspiring singer, claimed the theft resulted in extreme emotional distress and prevented her from pursuing the American dream. According to Kunis, the theft occurred when she was 7 years old and Karo was just 1 month old. Kunis and her husband, actor Ashton Kutcher, speculated that the case was all a publicity stunt to promote Karo’s upcoming music video, and the case was eventually dropped.

FROM SCRATCH-AND-SNIFF TO POP-UP COINS! The World’s 5 Most Unusual Coins

In the world of coin collecting, it’s exciting when mints and manufacturers become especially creative in the coins they produce. That’s why we thought we’d share the excitement and take a look at some of the most unusual, creative coins in the world. NO. 1: SEA OF PARADISE, PALAU You might associate coins with a metallic smell, but as it turns out, that’s not the case everywhere. Palau, an archipelago country of over 500 islands, released a very unique coin in 2010 as a collector’s variant of their $5 coin: a scratch-and-sniff coin. At over 92% silver, it’s colored with the blue hues of the waves on one side and, on the other, a colored depiction of a beach and coconut. If you rub the waves, you’ll smell the sea breeze. NO. 2: MAMMOTH IVORY COIN, IVORY COAST Ivory Coast, or Côte d’Ivoire, is a country in West Africa with a French- colonial legacy. While it’s illegal to create currency with ivory, the country commemorated its name and history by using a real piece of fossilized mammoth in the creation of each coin. NO. 3: POP-UP EASTER ISLAND MOAI COIN, COOK ISLANDS The Cook Islands, a self-governing parliamentary democracy in free association with New Zealand, enjoy tourism as it’s No. 1 industry. It’s

not hard to see why: Besides the islands’ profound natural beauty, the enormous Moai heads found on the islands are considered to be an incredible intellectual, creative, and physical feat. Similarly, the fact that the colored Moai head on these collector coins can “pop up” from the coin is a very unique feature for a coin designed in 2007 — or ever. NO. 4: MOTORCYCLE ONE DOLLAR COINS, SOMALI REPUBLIC These motorcycle-shaped coins look like theme park collector coins, but they’re legal, $1 Somali mint coins! Although Somali is one of the poorest countries in the world, any collector would be fascinated by these. NO. 5: ISLE OF MAN, BRITAIN To commemorate King Tut’s return to The British Museum for the first time since 1972, the British Pobjoy Mint released an extremely limited collection of pyramid-shaped gold coins. They’re 99.9% gold with beautiful depictions of the tomb’s artifacts.

We hope you enjoyed this list as much as we enjoyed finding these coins. See you next month!

2 COUNTYCIVIL.COM

Published by Newsletter Pro •

Historical Origins and Tips to Start Flying Kites! FLY A KITE

Before Facebook or Netflix, one of the most thrilling things you could do was go on a picnic with your family on a beautiful, windy day. Then, kids and parents would run along the hillside as they raised their kites up to the sky and let go to watch it fly.

should be ideal for a beginner, since they’re relatively simple and only require low winds of 6–15 mph.

It’s important to start with a single-line kite, which means that your kite is attached only to a single line of string. This might be the only type of kite you’d imagine, but as kites become more complex in their construction, there are often more lines to control them.

But how did this fun tradition begin?

There’s some dispute about when kites were invented. Many scholars believe they were developed in China, while some anthropological evidence suggests that kites may have been independently developed in other areas, but those claims aren’t well documented. In any case, the earliest written account of kite flying was in China in 200 BC. The Chinese General Han Hsin of the Han Dynasty flew a kite over the walls of a city he was attacking in order to measure the distance his army would travel to get past defenses. Then, in the 13th century, kites suddenly became curiosities in European culture as trade with countries like China, Japan, and Malaysia grew. Kites became fascinations with scientists, innovators, military strategists, and even athletes in later years. (Kite surfing is a legitimate extreme sport!)

If you want an especially unique kite to fly, try flying a box or parafoil kite! They’re a little more challenging than a delta or diamond kite since they require 8–25 mph winds, but they are similar to ancient Chinese kites.

Getting our kids off their iPads can be tough work, but kites can help create new memories with them that go far beyond the screen. We hope you get to enjoy one with your family this spring!

Kites might be a part of your childhood, but even if they aren’t, anyone can enjoy flying a kite! A delta or diamond kite

BLOOM CINCO COMIC DERBY EMERALD GEMINI

GRADUATION LILY MEMORIAL MOTHER PARANORMAL VETERANS

616-374-7170 3

• www.NewsletterPro.com

2383 Tamarack St., Lake Odessa, MI 48849 616-374-7170 | COUNTYCIVIL.COM R isk & A ssociates

Rick Risk is Founder and President of Risk & Associates, a legal support service provider in Michigan, and has assisted hundreds of attorneys, municipalities, courts, Sheriff Offices, businesses, and others with their strategic process needs.

PRST STD US POSTAGE PAID BOISE, ID PERMIT 411

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

1

3 Ideas for Showing Mothers Appreciation In 2021

2

Mila Kunis Got Sued for That!? (And 2 Other Weird Celebrity Legal Cases)

The World’s 5 Most Unusual Coins

3 4

Fly a Kite

The Bet That Spawned the Filet-O-Fish Sandwich

The Bet That Spawned the Filet-O-Fish Sandwich INSIDE THE MCDONALD’S HISTORY BOOKS

Every day, 68 million people dine under the iconic golden arches of McDonald’s. If you’re one of them, then you’re probably intimately familiar with one of the most famous offerings on the menu after the McRib and the Big Mac: the Filet-O-Fish Sandwich.

bunch of crap!” he said. “I don’t want my stores stunk up with the smell of fish.” But at the end of the day, Kroc’s motivation was profit. So, the two men made a bet. On Good Friday in 1962, select McDonald’s would put both the Filet-O-Fish and a different meatless option, the pineapple-centric Hula Burger, on their menus. The entree that sold the best would stick around.

This bestselling entree looks simple enough. It features a fried square of wild-caught fish nestled under a slice of American cheese and a smear of tartar sauce. But it has a contentious history. In fact, Ray Kroc, the owner of McDonald’s who was immortalized in the 2016 movie “The Founder,” didn’t want the fishy offering on the menu. It ended up there anyway for one of the oldest reasons in the world: Kroc lost a bet. The story starts back in 1962 in Cincinnati, Ohio. That year, an enterprising McDonald’s franchisee named Lou Groen had a problem. His customer base was largely Catholic and abstained from eating meat on Fridays (not to mention during Lent!), and they weren’t buying enough burgers to keep his restaurant afloat. According to the Smithsonian Magazine, on Fridays, Groen pulled in just $75 per day. To combat that lack of sales, he masterminded a beef-free option, and the Filet-O-Fish Sandwich was born. The problem came when Groen pitched the entree to Ray Kroc. The founder didn’t approve. In a 2006 interview with Business Courier, Groen recalled Kroc’s reaction: “You’re always coming up here with a

Since you’ve probably dined on a Filet-O-Fish and never heard of Hula Burger, you can guess what happened. Groen sold 350 Filet-O-Fish sandwiches. And Kroc? Well, he moved just six Hula Burgers. Fishy smell or not, the filet was there to stay.

Want to read up on more fast-food capers? Pick up the book “Drive- Thru Dreams: A Journey Through the Heart of America’s Fast- Food Kingdom” by Adam Chandler. His KFC stories will blow your mind.

4 COUNTYCIVIL.COM

Published by Newsletter Pro • www.NewsletterPro.com