The poet Homer called olive oil “liquid gold,” and we call it a pantry staple. This month, George indulged our culinary side with a fascinating look at every chef’s favorite secret weapon:

• No one knows exactly where olive oil originated, but it dates back to 2000 BC in Crete
• The average life expectancy of an olive tree is 500 years
• A tree must be eight years old to bear fruit, and 2000 year-old trees still bear fruit today
• Olive oil is fruit juice
• The first Olympic torch was fueled by olive oil
• Extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO) is produced without heat, and has less than 1% acidity
• Adding heat produces a greater yield, but a lower-quality oil
• 80% of Greece’s olive oil is EVOO, and this country produces 1/3 of the world’s supply
• George’s family produces olive oil made from organically grown, hand-picked petrina olives, and imports a limited supply into the U.S. each year
• Purchase olive oil in dark bottles, and store it for up to three years in a cool, dark place

Lunch:Spiral-sliced ham sandwiches with sides of broccoli and cheese casserole, and ambrosia salad. In keeping with our Grecian theme, baklava was served for dessert, all courtesy of Lynn.

In the coming months, if you see Peppers carrying piles of rocks, let the record state that we are not building Stonehenge or a meditation garden.

As we gathered round the tables in the Brainstorm Room, Tim asked us to confidentially evaluate our company's performance in a number of different areas. The survey set the stage for discussing how to improve the way we handle business priorities based on a book called Traction: Get a Grip on Your Business, by Gino Wickman.

Up on the big screen, he showed us a glass full of rocks, gravel, sand and water. The glass represents time, the rocks are our priorities, gravel equals our daily responsibilities, sand stands for interruptions and water symbolizes the trivial things we deal with. Since the yellow flower floating at the top was not a metaphor for anything, we can only assume it was there to test our chef's vast horticultural acumen.

Our leadership team will review all priorities for the next 90 days, then whittle the list down to three company rocks. Rocks must be specific, measurable, attainable and only owned by one person. At the end of the quarter, rock owners are held accountable. After the leadership team takes the system for a test drive, there will also be leadership, department and employee rocks.

As we rock on, we'll let you know how it goes.

Lunch: A Giant Italian Club sandwich accompanied by Potato Double Corn Chowder, assorted toppings and volatile Ginger Ale Lemonade (it fizzes and splashes as you mix it). For dessert, we enjoyed chocolate cupcakes with festive Halloween-inspired orange frosting. All courtesy of Jessie.

Would you date an ad, brochure, poster, website, sell sheet, direct mail piece, video, commercial or logo? Probably not, unless something was seriously wrong with you. But Cindy explained how dating and good design have a lot more in common than you might think.

Think about what makes another person attractive. Unless you're a superior being who's only interested in a beautiful mind, you consider how your date looks, dresses, sounds, and their general attitude and sincerity. At the same time, you gauge if you have anything in common, or if your date is self-absorbed or truly interested in you. And you can decide if this person is worth a second chance in seconds—until you get home and google them, unless you've checked them out already.

It's the same with good design. Either your eye is magnetically drawn, or it's not. Either you take a second look, or you don't. Either there's chemistry, or there isn't. Does it speak to you, fulfilling some kind of need that you can personally connect with, or is it all about the person or company who made it? Is it desperate and cheesy, or sincere? Is there a chance of "going out again"—you finding out more about their business, product or service—or was it a completely missed connection?

Have you fallen in love with any good design lately?

Lunch: Taco salad and quesadillas, served with sour cream and guacamole, courtesy of Denise. In keeping with the dating theme, for dessert we enjoyed wedding cake filled with European butter cream, hazelnut and raspberry filling, courtesy of Lynn and her newly wed daughter Lindsey. Congratulations Lindsey!

There’s no replacement for one-on-one connections—most people still prefer meeting face-to-face. But the trend is that virtual tradeshows are augmenting physical events, and there may be times when our clients can benefit from this new technology.

At this month’s learning lunch, we welcomed our virtual guest, David Kaz, Account Executive from INXPO, a company that specializes in “privately-branded virtual events and virtual business environments that connect, educate and engage audiences.”

As he demonstrated his platform’s many capabilities, he emphasized that the site is “focused on content, not just looks.” We saw how exhibitors can incorporate live streaming and pre-recorded video, Twitter feeds, web pages, YouTube videos, customized graphics, polling questions and more. Attendees and exhibitors can also meet in the lobby, lounges, and meeting rooms.

The biggest surprise? Attendees typically spend several hours at an event, just as they would in person.

Definitely something to keep in mind for our clients who have upcoming sales meetings, or other opportunities to address large groups of visitors.

Lunch: Build-your-own lunchmeat and vegetable pitas, featuring ham, turkey, turkey pastrami, Swiss cheese, provolone and assorted toppings and condiments. Turtle cookies for dessert, courtesy of Sharla.