Company Memos Archive

OFFICIAL COMPANY MEMO: 12-22-07

FROM: Deren Laterra, President and Chief Financial Officer - AnyRecipe.com, AnyRestaurant.com, AnyDentist.com, AnyGolfcourse.com

Dear AnyRecipe.com Visitors,

It's not often that a company survives its first year in business. And the odds are even greater against a venture lasting through an entire 2nd year. It's not rocket science really. It's about common sense and sometimes to a far greater extent - it's about luck. This ingredient is what the "chefs of business" (as I refer to people like me) is what makes the whole damn business of being in business so exciting.

But sometimes the rollercoaster of profitability and fame can turn into what can only best be described as a "Carnival de Farce". Those whom you've treated like family - no...even closer than that, like business partners can turn on you like ravenous beavers, snarling and seething to take you down at night in the cold rain when you least expect it.

Late last summer, the offices of AnyRecipe.com were nearly all but demolished by a 16 pound member of what some were referring to as a "Half-Squirrel / Half-Beaver like beast".

Now, I appreciate fortunes in business the same way I appreciate the possible fortunes that might come by gambling at The Bellagio in Vegas or the Wagon Wheel Casino in Laughlin. On any day, one might find themselves doubling down on a strait or pony-ing up for a long-shot on the roulette wheel. In just a few easy rolls, it's possible to make enough money to retire.

Rolls of the dice are what being a hi-tech entrepreneur's all about. Those of us who have the audacity of venture capitalism in our blood know what the pounding pulse of a first sale or a closed deal can feel like. There's simply no comparison for that kind of high to people like us.

But sometimes the dice roll out of synch with even the best laid business plans. Sometimes an angry rodent stops by your shop to try and steel your thunder and hush your many egg-lings of ideas and marketing strategies. I don't blame the animal per say... no... I blame the eco-liberals who make it easier for hardened wildlife to come and trash what isn't theirs and to crap all over whatever good bastions are left of Ron's proven trickle down theory economics.

It's no wonder we have a real estate crisis AND a possible "R" word on the horizon. I'm not sure if many people "get it" but for those of us who do, could you please pull over into the slow lane so we can conduct the world's business? Because some of us want to propel this country into being the best it can be and we refuse to let an angry result of cross-species rodent breeding take that away from us!

But I digress...

All the firemen could say after it was all over was "We've never seen an animal that small do so much damage in such a short amount of time." The insurance company said it was an act of God and that it wouldn't cover the loss of almost 36,000 s/f of office equipment and data center racks that power the AnyRecipe.com network and database architecture.

Fortunately, I've been able to secure a new source of VC - or "venture capital" as those of is in the hi-tech biz refer to it (also known as cold hard available cash). That's not to say we haven't tightened our belts around the AnyRecipe.com offices either. We no longer can afford the unlimited soda machine for our hard working employees - and those are the kinds of things that hurt... really hurt this entrepreneur.

This all being said, I must state for the record that we are stronger than any rabid squirrel/beaver creature and we at AnyRecipe.com along with people like Brittany Spears, Paris Hilton, Justin Timberlake, Beyonce and Sean Hannitty and William F. Buckley will live to show the world just how strong we are and truly can be.

From the entire AnyRecipe.com family, who are hard at work providing you with "The largest recipe database in the universe"™, we want to say Happy Hanukah, Feliz Navi Dad, Merry Non-Denominational Observance Period and most of all - a very heartfelt Merry Christmas & Happy New Year! Now go enter another recipe on our site and make sure it's here for you when you come back!

Thanks,

Deren LaTerra - AnyRecipe President & Chief Financial Officer

Stay tuned for more Chef Paul segments and the launching of AnyRestaurant.com, AnyGolfcourse.com and AnyDentist.com!

"AnyRecipe.com, AnyRestaurant.com, AnyGolfcourse.com & AnyDentist.com - Come on in, the water's fine!"