In 2020, four brewers in the western suburbs did a collaboration of sorts. “Box of Chocolates” was a series of imperial pastry stouts, each with a different addition of nuts or chocolate box fruits. I was able to try them on draft at Skeleton Key, and wrote about them here.

For 2022, the project returned. This time I was able to snag a 4-pack of 16 oz. cans, each one a collaboration by two different breweries. They just happened to be available at the “Little Key” auxiliary tap room of Skeleton Key, where they were serving more beer made with neighboring brewers, while recovering from the 2021 tornado.

Oh, I know. These beers are probably all sold out, but keep an eye peel for the brewers who took part in this project. They may put some of these cake bombs back on tap once in a while.

I can only recommend that you watch your local brewer or tap room’s menus on their social media. Who knows when more cans or tap handles might come this way. This was about $40 a four-pack, so a bit rich for my blood. But a portion of this, I convinced myself, might be adding to my patronage for Skeleton Key’s recovery.

Picture it! Chicago, April 2022!

Golden Con: Thank You For Being A Fan is a TV comedy fan convention presented by Golden Fandom, LLC. Get ready to laugh your vay through a first-of-its-kind, veekend-long classic TV comedy fan gathering! Most official convention events take place at the Lakeview Terrace and AON Grand Ballroom at Chicago’s historic Navy Pier. The “Mother of a Solid Gold Dancer Disco Party” vill take place at the Sheraton Grand Chicago, the official host hotel of Golden-Con. Team Gregula is honored to be approved as the macabre media in order for us to cover our first Golden-Con: Thank You For Being A Fan.

Listed below are just some of the guests making appearances at Golden-Con.

GOLDEN GUESTS:

Lyn Greene – “Young Dorothy”
Cindy Fee – Singer of ‘Thank You For Being A Friend’
Dinah Manoff – “Carol Weston”
John Schuck – “Gill Kessler”
Amelia Kinkade – Rue McClanahan’s niece
Dr. Melinda McClanahan – Rue McClanahan’s sister
Bonnie Bartlett – “Barbara Thorrndyke”
Monte Markham – “Clayton Hollingsworth”
Alan Blumenfeld – “Mr. Ha Ha”
Hilary Shepard – “I’m Yvonne and this is it!”

OFFICIAL EVENTS:

“The Biggest Gift” Vendor’s Market
Grab That Dough Trivia Show!
Picture it…Back in St. Olaf Story Slam Contest
Live parody shows from Hell in a Handbag Theater Company
Mother of a Solid Gold Dancer Disco Party & Costume Contest
Panel Discussions
Autograph sessions vith stars, producers and others that vorked directly on the show!

Golden-Con is running April 22-24 in the Lakeview Terrace and AON Grand Ballroom at Chicago’s historic Navy Pier. 

Show Floor Hours
Friday, April 22: 12PM-8PM
Saturday, April 23: 9AM-8PM
Sunday, April 24: 9AM-8PM

To purchase tickets and find the most up-to-date info, go HERE.

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CHARLESTON – Underneath O’Brien Field, past the Ohio Valley Conference championship trophies and the deep blue walls, Chris Wilkerson is surrounded by football in his new office.

On his desk is a paused video of last season’s Eastern Illinois University football team in action. He shows off a photo of his time as an assistant coach with the Panthers while wearing a grey sweatshirt with the block letters EIU in blue.

On a recent Saturday in Charleston during spring football practice, Wilkerson, the Panthers’ new head coach, shared the other sport that takes up his time in the spring – softball.

His wife, Sharna, was playing catcher for EIU when the couple first met.

The oldest of their three children, daughter Bella, is an accomplished softball player who is competing at the Division I level.

“I’m able to stream the games right here on my phone and watch the entire time,” he said.  

Bella is a freshman catcher for “that other school in Bloomington-Normal,” Chris Wilkerson said with a smile.

That’s Illinois State University, the same school EIU plays on the football field each season for the Mid-America Classic trophy, a rivalry that dates back to 1901.

The 110th meeting of the rivalry will be played Sept. 17 at ISU’s Hancock Stadium, which is visible to fans watching Redbird games from Marian Kneer Softball Stadium every spring.

Along with planning EIU’s spring football practices, Wilkerson also was planning some 103-mile trips to see Bella and just be a softball dad, wardrobe included.

“I do have a (red) sweatshirt and a hat that I only wear at the softball diamond,” Wilkerson said. “I’m very proud of her. Her work ethic has been second to none. It’s a pretty surreal experience watching her grow and have a chance to do something that she loves.”

Family affair

Since a young age, softball and football were prevalent around the Wilkerson home.

Sharna Wilkerson taught Bella the game, but there were some hurdles, like the time Bella tried pitching.

“I had one awful outing when I was like 8 years old,” Bella said. “(My mom) came back in the dugout and said, ‘Put the gear on.’ I put the gear on and went out there and I haven’t taken it off since. We still laugh about it.”

The close mother-daughter relationship was part of the reason Bella chose Illinois State after a standout career at Lincoln-Way Central High School in New Lenox.

“She brings a wealth of knowledge,” ISU head softball coach Melinda Fischer said. “The influence of her mom, as a D-I catcher, certainly has played a lot into her growth and development. Bella came in ready to play.”

Bella Wilkerson has started 15 games this spring and is batting .315.

Now in her 37th season at ISU, Fischer coached against EIU and Sharna Wilkerson regularly.

“(Bella) is one of the nicest players we have,” Fischer said. “She’s extremely polite, but there’s a little bit of fire that you see in her. That’s the part of her mom that I absolutely, positively see in her. Her mom was a ‘let’s go get ‘em’ catcher.”

While softball skills and knowledge came from her mother, Bella said she got a different trait from her father, who spent the past eight seasons as the head coach at the University of Chicago, and made assistant coaching stops at Eastern, San Jose State and Dartmouth.

“I definitely feel like I took his passion,” Bella said. “He’s been a coach my whole life. I’ve seen him talk every year in front of his squad when he introduces us as his family to the whole team.”

The call of Charleston

No matter where Chris Wilkerson was coaching, EIU was never far from his attention.

“Eastern was always on the TV,” Bella said. “Since he graduated and left, that’s been the No. 1 thing he wanted to get back to. He was extremely happy at all of his other schools, but this one was just different because he was coming home.”

While at Eastern, Wilkerson played and later was an assistant coach under legendary head coach Bob Spoo, who died in 2018 at the age of 80.

“Coach Spoo was his idol,” Bella said. “He always wanted to make Coach Spoo proud.”

On Jan. 28, when Wilkerson was introduced in Charleston, he was joined by Sharna, Bella, son Peyton (a defensive end at Lincoln-Way Central) and daughter Charlotte, who is a freshman in high school.

“I’ve never seen him smile so big than that day at the press conference,” Bella said. “That was a huge milestone for him.”

Rooting for red … or blue?

Bella Wilkerson also remembers the press conference because she wore her red Illinois State softball jacket to Charleston.

“They wanted to take my coat the first time I walked in, but I refused,” she said with a laugh. “I wore that the whole time I was there.”

So what will Chris Wilkerson’s daughter be wearing Sept. 17 when her dad’s dream school plays her dream school in Normal?

“I do have one blue shirt,” she said. “But since it is a home game and I bleed red, I will be supporting the ‘Birds that game.”

Will her dad understand the wardrobe choice?

“He’d better understand,” she said.

Inexperienced users can make a lot of mistakes when starting to work with cryptocurrency. For instance, choosing an exchange where it is risky to store funds, or specifying the wrong address when transferring digital assets. Each of these and many other oversights can lead to partial or complete loss of invested funds. To avoid these mistakes, it is better to study the instructions: where to start working with digital money, how to buy cryptocurrency, and where to store it.

1. Decide on a Strategy

First of all, it is crucial for a user starting to work with cryptocurrency to decide on their strategy. It depends on where the trader will store their assets. If they prefer to buy coins and forget about them for a long time, it is safer to keep them in a cold wallet. If the user wants to try exchanging cryptocurrency or trading digital assets, it is better to choose an exchange.

Both methods have their advantages and disadvantages. It is more convenient to keep assets on the exchange: they can be sold at any time, exchanged for other coins, or withdrawn into fiat money. This is especially true during sharp market fluctuations. If a rapid decline in the price of bitcoin begins, the coins stored on the exchange can be immediately exchanged for the US dollars or other currencies.

A cold wallet is less convenient in this matter. Coins will have to be sent to the exchange first, to be sold later. Accordingly, while the transfer is going on, there is a risk of losing on the depreciation. Another problem with cold wallets is the lack of multicurrency. For instance, it is not possible to store Ethereum on a Bitcoin wallet. Accordingly, the more a novice investor wants to buy different coins, the more wallets will be required to store them.

The solution could be hybrid wallets that work, for instance, as applications on a smartphone. This is a safer way to store funds than on an exchange, and, at the same time, most of these wallets allow you to make purchase and sale transactions with popular cryptocurrencies.

2. Create a Crypto Wallet and Open an Exchange Account

After choosing a strategy, you should create a wallet for storing cryptocurrency: either download the application to your computer or smartphone or create an account on the exchange. Both options can be selected. Experienced traders keep on the trading platforms part of the assets that are needed for operations. The remaining funds are kept in over-the-counter wallets.

When choosing an exchange, it is safer to pay attention to large, popular sites. They have more means to provide protection against hacker attacks. There are also lower risks that well-known exchanges will turn out to be fraudulent projects. 

When registering on the exchange, and especially before transferring funds to it, it is critical to check the terms of the user agreement. Some exchanges may not provide services to traders from your country. The site, if it finds out that you have violated this rule, may block your account. Another crucial condition concerns verification. The exchange may require you to verify your identity to open an account or withdraw funds from it.

When registering, you can use the referral link trick. Most marketplaces reward their users for inviting new customers. If a new user signs up using your referral link, you will receive a small percentage of the commissions they pay for transactions as a reward. The trick is to create a new account using your own referral link and receive a small income from this from your own operations.

3. Buy Bitcoin

To buy Bitcoin (BTC), there are two main ways. The first is directly on the exchange if you have created an account on it. Many large trading platforms now provide an opportunity to replenish the balance directly from the card or through the payment system.

The second way is through exchangers, like Changelly. These are special services for buying and selling cryptocurrency. They allow you to purchase popular coins and immediately send them to an exchange or wallet, or vice versa, exchange digital money for traditional ones and withdraw them to a bank card or electronic wallet.

Exchangers work as follows:

You choose the cryptocurrency you want to buy and the payment method.Specify the amount for which you want to purchase digital assets.Specify the address of the wallet where the cryptocurrency will go.Confirm the application for the purchase and transfer of funds. It is crucial to transfer the amount strictly specified in the application. Otherwise, the service will not recognize the transaction, and the funds will not come.On many services, after payment, you need to click the “I paid” button. If this is not done, the service will receive the money, but will not transfer the cryptocurrency to you.

Exchangers charge a fee for their services. Its size is usually 2-4%, although it can often be higher. To choose the most profitable option, you can use services for monitoring exchangers. They allow you to sort them at the most favorable rate.

To Sum up

In this cryptocurrency overview, we have described the three simplest strategies for working with digital money. They are suitable for novice users and will help reduce the risk of losing funds due to emotions and in pursuit of quick profits.

Inexperienced users can make a lot of mistakes when starting to work with cryptocurrency. For instance, choosing an exchange where it is risky to store funds, or specifying the wrong address when transferring digital assets. Each of these and many other oversights can lead to partial or complete loss of invested funds. To avoid these mistakes, it is better to study the instructions: where to start working with digital money, how to buy cryptocurrency, and where to store it.

One of the most important things for a business to be is trustworthy. If people don’t trust your company, they’ll be less willing to pay for your products or services and will likely look for alternatives. By contrast, building a reputation for trustworthiness will encourage loyalty and bring in new customers.

Studies show that 49% of U.S. consumers have purchased from a company because they trust it, and 44% have stopped buying because of a lack of trust. So, how can you build credibility to fall into the first half of that figure instead of the latter? Here are five crucial steps.

1. Excel in Customer Service

Customer service is your chance to talk face-to-face with clients, so it’s one of the most important factors for building trust. Keep the customer’s needs at the forefront of all conversations, and answer questions as thoroughly and quickly as possible. If you respond to inquiries and give guidance speedily and effectively, it shows you care about your clients’ business.

Remember to be personable, too. Nearly half of all Americans say they feel more lonely than usual after the pandemic, so a little humanity can go a long way. Demonstrations of kindness, empathy and care will make a lasting impression.

2. Be Transparent

It’s also important to be transparent about all your goals, operations, products and impact. If a company keeps all of its details behind closed doors, consumers will wonder if they’re trying to hide something. By contrast, transparency generates trust because it shows you’re committed to honesty.

Be honest about your mistakes, too. Nearly nine in ten people are more likely to give a brand a second chance if they’re transparent. Take responsibility, get ahead of any potential controversy and be open about your company’s shortcomings.

Transparency also applies to your strengths. If you have processes, customer testimonials or values that set your company apart, tell people about them.

3. Improve Your Curb Appeal

Some steps to improving credibility are easier to overlook. While it may not seem as important at first, your property’s physical appearance plays a big role in communicating trustworthiness. Curb appeal demonstrates attention to detail and care for the customer experience.

It’s hard not to judge a book by its cover. While your actual products and services should be top-notch, too, your property should reflect that. Keep everything clean and in good repair, provide clear, safe walkways, use greenery and paint to your advantage and invite people in.

4. Ask for Feedback

Customer feedback is one of the best tools a business has. Questions, ratings and suggestions can show what’s important to customers and where companies need to improve. Asking for feedback also communicates that you care about helping your customers.

Instead of waiting for customers to post reviews, ask them if there’s any way you can improve after they make a purchase. Remember to act on this feedback, too. Ineffectiveness is the number one cause of frustration in customer service. By contrast, if a company actually changes in response to feedback, it shows it prioritizes customers, building trust.

5. Capitalize on Referral Marketing

Similarly, you can maximize credibility among your client base by publicizing positive feedback. Few things are as convincing of a company’s trustworthiness as other customers attesting to it. Only 38% of global consumers trust advertisements, but 93% trust friends and family members.

You can capitalize on this by using referral marketing. Offer rewards in return for customers referring others to your company. This will encourage word-of-mouth marketing, growing your reputation as a trustworthy, quality business. The incentives will also help satisfy existing customers even more.

Trust Is Crucial for Customer Loyalty and Growth

If you want to succeed as a business, you need to generate trust. Consumers are growing increasingly skeptical about whether companies have their best interests at heart. Going the extra mile to prove you care about them and their needs will help you stand out from the crowd.

Trustworthy companies will foster more customer loyalty and encourage peer-to-peer marketing. As a result, your client base will grow and stick with you in the future.