Tag: Tarps

Tarps for Kids Program Helping Local Schools

Finger Painting

A tarp distributor out of Palmdale, California found a way to put its overstocked items to good use. Many companies are not sure what to do with their overstocked products, but this company is using theirs for a program called Tarps for Kids.

The California-based company, Tarps Plus, has created the Tarps for Kids program by donating their overstocked supply of untreated white canvas tarps, as well some portable building tarps to local schools. The company collaborates with the local schools to set up an event where Tarps Plus shows up with the tarps and painting Portable Garagesupplies and the kids paint them with their teachers.

The Tarps Plus truck will arrive at a school and lay out a 30 x 30 foot white campus tarp. Then a 10 x 10’ white pop-up tent is set up on top of it. The Tarps Plus employees then lay out all of the painting supplies for the kids so they can create their masterpieces! The children dip their hands in the paint and imprint their hands onto the tent along with their teachers, symbolizing the unity of the school. The tarp on the ground is for the children to free paint anything they can imagine.

Tarps Plus CEO said this about the creation of the program;

“We were trying to think of a unique way to use our overstocked tarps and tents. What better way than donating them to schools and getting the children involved with painting them?”

After it is all said and done, the schools use the tarps and tents for fundraisers,
assemblies, and various outdoor functions. Tarps Plus hopes to do the program all throughout California, but for now they are starting with the Southern half. If your school is in the Southern California area and wants to participate in the Tarps for Kids program, you can contact the company at 1-800-838-3057.

The Oakland Raiders are taking a Page out of the Jaguars’ Playbook to Lower Capacity

Raiders Stadium

The Oakland Raiders are planning on using tarps to block off a large section of their stadium in hopes to reduce seating and “sell out” more home games in the 2013 season. The team hopes that this strategy that was most recently used by the Jacksonville Jaguars will help them eliminate blackout games.

Jaguars Stadium
Jaguars Tarp off Section of their Stadium

The Raiders are not the only Oakland team to implement this strategy. In 2006 the Oakland A’s used tarps to eliminate 20,000 seats that were normally empty during games. The only downside in the NFL is that once the tarps are on, they have to stay on, the WHOLE season. So when the A’s miraculously made the playoffs, they ran into a similar problem. When the A’s faced off against Detroit in the Divisions Series, 20,000 seats were covered up. Sorry Raiders fans, but it is very unlikely that your team will face this same problem in 2013 after a dismal 4-12 season this year.

Placing the tarps over the 300 section, nicknamed Mount Davis, could still be a beneficial move for the Raiders. Eliminating around 11,000 seats and bringing the max seating down to 53,200 would help eliminate blackout games. The Raiders averaged a league worst attendance of 54,216, which is unimpressive at best with other teams boasting attendance numbers over 80,000 a game.

When games are not sold out 72 hours before kickoff, local televisions will blackout the game and show something else. This has been a problem that has frustrated Raiders fans for years now, and TV contracts can make a team big money. So by decreasing the amount of seats available, the team hopes to decrease the number of blackout games. One other thing working in the team’s favor is that in 2013 the NFL will allow teams to lift blackouts if they sell 85 percent of their tickets.

Hopefully, the tarps will help the Raiders sell out more games. The Mount Davis section was one of the reasons the team moved back to Oakland from Los Angeles in 1996, but they might want to think of re-locating once again. Unless the team does not mind the eyesore of the tarps, they should think about building a new, smaller stadium.

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Many Haitians Still Living in Tents Almost 3 Years After Earthquake

Canopy Tents

Almost three years ago, Haiti was devastated by an earthquake. Many Haitians were forced to live in tent camps because their homes were destroyed from the earthquake. Now many families were rendered homeless because of Hurricane Sandy.

Even though it has almost been three years since the earthquake that struck Haiti forced people into tent camps, over 370,000 people are still living in them. The communities made up of tarps are the only place they have to live. The tarps provide them with shelter and their own space, but after Hurricane Sandy, many people are left homeless once again.

The tarps had provided a way to protect the people from the outdoor elements, but were unable to withstand Hurricane Sandy. Many people’s tarps were ripped, destroyed, or blown away. The super storm flooded most of the living spaces and left many homeless Tarpsagain.

There is no drainage system in the camps, so the water sits stagnant
inside of everyone’s tents. Their beds, clothes, and belongings are all soaked. Many of the tarps are damaged and now they struggle to stay protected from the elements. It has been reported that 18,000 people are now homeless after Sandy came.

The conditions are horrible for those still living at the tent camps. It is hard for people to sleep because they do not have a dry place to rest. The ground is covered with more tarps to try and create dry places to walk. When they try to mop or sweep the water out, more water just pours in. With no real way to drain the water; it will cause the ground to be muddy and wet for a long time. Without help, the Haitian people will be living in a nightmare for some time. Wet and hungry, the people there are crying out for help.

Man Works Under a Tent at His job

Underground Elephant

As the internet becomes an everyday necessity for everyone, the amount of jobs that are internet based increase. Most people who work on the computer all day also sit in a cubicle. Andrew Fischer decided he wanted to do something a little different to make his cubicle his own.

Andrew created a tent out of PVC pipe and canvas that covers the top of his cubicle. He did not build it because it rains a lot in his office or because the sun was bothering him while he worked in his cubicle. Andrew works for Underground Elephant, an internet marketing company that is known for its “weird” office customs. The tent idea won an office contest for Andrew and he brings the tent with him every time his desk moves to a new part of the office. Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you that at Underground Elephant, you move to a new area of the office every quarter, so you never get too cozy. Think that’s weird? That may be the most normal thing that happens in this office.

Underground Elephant is a fast growing company in San Diego that does internet marketing. In five short years the company has become one of the fasting growing and best place to work in San Diego. CEO Jason Kulpa believes in organized chaos and deliberate disruption to keep his staff creative. Besides moving desks every quarter, Kulpa does a lot of weird things that may be the reason his company is so successful.

Many offices where people work mainly on the computer can be mundane and not invite creativity. White walls and cubicles with short breaks and 30 minute lunches are like something out of Office Space. However, Underground Elephant is nothing like the depiction of the American office in the popular ’90s movie. While there are still cubicles, the office is covered in provocative paintings on the walls, doors, windows, and ceilings.

With distractions everywhere in today’s world, the attention span people have is extremely low. So Kulpa tries to play off that by creating an environment of distraction and relaxation to promote creativity. While it is not required, you can take a ten minute break to get a massage in the office. This helps his busy staff of over 50 to just relax and think for ten minutes, with no distractions. You do not have to multi-task, answer the phone, or stare at four computer screens, you can just relax with your thoughts.

massage

Tired of sitting in your chair all day? Well at Underground Elephant you can work up a mental and physical sweat at their ping pong table. Get distracted from your daily tasks with a quick game of ping pong, ride a bicycle around the office, or go on a scavenger hunt. Underground Elephant keeps the office lively with such activities. If it is your birthday, you get a spin on the reward wheel to win prizes!

Birthday

The element of randomness and weird being the new normal has made Underground Elephant the successful company it is today. While I would not suggest you ride your bike inside your office, I would suspect Underground Elephant to be receiving a lot of job applications soon.