10 things not to buy in 2010

Like Betamax videotapes and rotary phones before them, these are the products and services that soon will go the way of the dodo.

By SmartMoney

Ten years ago, most homes relied on dial-up connections to access the Internet, and iPods, flat-screen TVs and the Nintendo Wii didn't exist.

As we begin 2010, consumers should expect to see more revolutionary products supplanting old mainstays. In media, DVDs, books, newspapers and magazines will continue to lose ground to services like in-home movie rentals and gadgets like the Amazon's Kindle electronic book reader. For big-ticket items, the push for energy efficiency will continue to influence consumer decisions on cars and home upgrades.

As a result, some consumer products appear poised for sales drops, which could be a prelude to obsolescence. Here are 10 items not to buy in 2010.
DVDs
The days of going to a video store to rent a movie are near an end. Blockbuster has said it plans to close more than a fifth of its stores by the end of 2010. (The company didn't return calls for comment.)

Looking ahead, DVD purchases could turn cold as well. An average DVD sells for around $20. That's pricier than signing up for Netflix or renting movies from cable providers' on-demand channels. Netflix charges as little as $8.99 a month to rent one DVD at a time -- with no limit to the number of monthly rentals.
Home telephone service
It will probably take a while, but home land lines could become as rare as the rotary phone.

According to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study, more than one in five U.S. homes (22.7%) had cell phones -- and no land lines -- in the first half of 2009, up from 10.5% during the same period in 2006.

Ditching your home phone is easier now than it has been in the past, as cell phone companies compete for greater market share and alternatives to the home land line continue to grow. For example, magicJack provides phone service when it's plugged into a computer’s USB port and a home phone. It costs $39.95 and includes a one-year license for calls in the U.S. and Canada; after that, service costs $19.95 per year. (By contrast, Time Warner Cable's digital home phone service costs $39.95 per month.)

And consider Skype, which is free when you communicate with other Skype users. The software application uses the Internet as a platform to make calls, hold video conferences and send instant messages.
External hard drives
Consumers who keep their computers for years and upload thousands of songs, videos, movies and photos at some point find that they need to get more space.

External hard drives are one option, but they can crash, too. An up-and-coming alternative might be simpler and save you another transition down the road. Online backup services, like Carbonite and Mozy, allow users to back up data over the Internet.

These services quickly become more expensive than purchasing an external hard drive, which typically starts at around $70. At Carbonite.com, a one-year subscription starts at $54.95, and at Mozy.com monthly subscription costs total $54.45 for a year (although you can get 2 gigabytes of storage for free).
Smart-phone also-rans
In the past few years, several smart phones have hit the market with features similar to the iPhone and BlackBerry, but they haven't generated the same buzz.

As a result, fewer developers are likely to create applications and other products that cater to those phones.
Today, the BlackBerry dominates the smart-phone market with 40% market share, followed by the iPhone with 25%, according to data released by comScore in December. In the near term, both are expected to stay at the top. ComScore found that most consumers who will be shopping for a smart phone in the next three months plan to purchase a BlackBerry (51%) or an iPhone (20%).

By contrast, only 5% of respondents said they planned to purchase T-Mobile's MyTouch. The Palm Pre and Palm Centro received 2% and 1% of the vote, respectively.
Compact digital cameras
For nearly a decade, compact digital cameras were must-haves for most consumers. But during the past several years, another type of digital camera has been slowly rising in popularity: the single-lens reflex (SLR) camera, from manufacturers including Nikon, Canon, Sony and Olympus. Although bulkier, these cameras produce pictures that more accurately represent what's in their viewfinders than those that use older technology.

They are also pricier. For example, Canon's digital compact cameras start at $110, while the SLRs start at $570.
Newspaper subscriptions
The past few years have been unkind to the publishing industry.

In 2008, newspaper advertising revenues declined by 17.7%, according to the Newspaper Association of America. Meanwhile, average daily circulation at 379 newspapers fell 10.6% from April through September 2009, compared with the same period a year ago, according to the Audit Bureau of Circulations.
Magazines haven't fared any better. In 2009, more than 360 magazines shut down. During the first half of 2009, ad pages fell 27.9% when compared with the same period in 2008, according to Publishers Information Bureau.

The morning newspaper has been replaced by a growing online media presence -- much of which is accessible for free. Amazon's Kindle -- even with its price tag of around $250 -- and other e-book readers could increasingly become one-stop sources to access newspapers, magazines and books.
CDs
When was the last time you bought a CD or even walked into a record store?

The past decade has been devastating to the record industry. At its start, there was Napster. Then came iTunes, which was introduced in 2001 and offered affordable pricing and easy accessibility. Face it, CDs aren’t coming back.

Record stores are feeling the pinch. Most Virgin Megastores in the U.S. have shut down following declines in sales and revenues. In 2004, Tower Records entered bankruptcy, and by 2006 most locations had closed.
New college textbooks
Unless a student absolutely needs brand-new textbooks, she can use several alternatives to save.

Shop for used textbooks, which can help you save 70% to 90% off the retail price, says Mike Gatti, the executive director at the Retail Advertising and Marketing Association, a trade group. Check out Web sites like CheapestTextbooks. com, BooksPrice or Amazon. Many college bookstores also sell used texts.

Another option is downloading books online. Sites like CourseSmart sell subscriptions to digital copies of more than 7,000 textbooks. TextbookMedia allows students to download textbooks for free. You can also rent textbooks on Chegg.
Gas-guzzling autos
Skyrocketing gasoline prices made headlines late in the decade, and they remain volatile.

The Energy Information Administration estimates that crude oil prices averaged around $77 a barrel for the fourth quarter of 2009, up from $42.90 in the first quarter. The EIA also projects prices will rise in 2010 to their highest point in more than two years: $81.33 a barrel.

Recent announcements by car manufacturers that they plan to mass-produce fuel-efficient cars could help push consumers away from gas-guzzling vehicles.

According to the Department of Energy, the most efficient cars include the Honda Civic Hybrid, which gets 40 miles per gallon in the city and 45 mpg on the highway, and the Toyota Prius hybrid (51/48 mpg). Also getting good marks for their efficiency are the diesel-fueled Volkswagen Jetta and Golf.
Energy-inefficient homes and appliances
Ten years ago, shopping for home upgrades involved looking at a product’s functionality and aesthetics. Now, there's a third consideration: energy efficiency.

Today, the products most touted by manufacturers and retailers are those that are Energy Star-certified and those that meet new federal environmental standards.


Most of these appliances and other products come with higher price tags than their counterparts but help lower heating and cooling bills.

In addition, the government is offering a federal tax credit of up to $1,500 on energy-efficient home upgrades. Many of the tax breaks -- including those on eligible insulation, roofs and windows and doors -- are set to expire at the end of this year. But others run through Dec. 31, 2016.

Modern Economy

It is the month of August, on the shores of the Black Sea . It is raining, and the little town looks totally deserted. These are tough times, everybody is in debt and everybody lives on credit. Suddenly, a rich tourist comes to town.

He enters the only hotel, lays a 100 Euro note on the reception counter and goes to inspect the rooms upstairs in order to choose one.

The hotel proprietor takes the 100 Euro note and runs to pay his debt to the butcher.

The butcher takes the 100 Euro note, and runs to pay his debt to the pig farmer.

The pig farmer takes the 100 Euro note, and runs to pay his debt to the supplier of his feed and fuel.

The supplier of feed and fuel takes the 100 Euro note, and runs to pay his debt to the town's prostitute, who in these hard times offered her "services" on credit.

The prostitute runs to the hotel, and uses the 100 Euro note to settle her debt with the hotel proprietor for the rooms she rented when she brought clients there.

The hotel proprietor then lays the 100 Euro note back on the counter so that the rich tourist will not suspect anything.

At that moment, the tourist comes down after inspecting the rooms and takes his 100 Euro note, saying that he did not like any of the rooms and leaves town.

No one earned anything. However, the whole town is now without debt, and looks to the future with a lot of optimism.... .

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how modern company is doing business today.

Happiness

Everybody want to have a happy and comfortable life. Here is the list of things that you should do to achieve that happy life.....

• Sing in the shower
• Treat everyone you meet like to want to be treated
• Watch a sunrise at least once a year
• Leave the toilet seat in the down position
• Never refuse homemade brownies
• Strive for excellence, not perfection
• Plant a tree on your birthday
• Learn three clean jokes
• Return borrowed vehicles with gas tank full
• Compliment three people everyday
• Never was and opportunity to tell someone you love them
• Leave everything a little better than when you found it
• Keep it simple
• Think big thoughts but relish small pleasures
• Become the most positive and enthusiastic person you know
• Floss your teeth
• Ask for a raise when you feel you've earned it.
• Be forgiving of yourself and others
• Overtip breakfast waitresses
• Say "thank you" a lot
• Say "please" a lot
• Avoid negative people
• Buy whatever the kids are selling on their card table
• Wear polished shoes
• Remember other people's birthday
• Commit yourself to constant improvement
• Carry jumper cable in your trunk
• Have a firm handshake
• Send lots of Valentine cards. Sign them:"Someone who thinks you're terrific
• Always look people in the eye when talking to them
• Be the first to say "hello"
• Use the good silver
• Return all things that you've borrowed.
• Make new friends, but cherished the old ones
• Keep secrets
• Sing in a choir
• Plant flowers every sprint
• Have a dog
• Always accept an outstretched hand
• Stop blaming others, take responsibility for every area of your life
• Wave at the kids on the school buses
• Be there when people need you.
• Feed a stranger's expired parking meter
• Don't expect life to be fair
• Never underestimate the power of love
• Drink champagne for no reason at all
• Live your life as an exclamation, not an explanation
• Don't be afraid to say "I made a mistake"
• Don't be afraid to say "I don't know"
• Compliment even a small improvement
• Keep your promises (no matter what)
• Marry only for love
• Rekindle old friendship
• Count your blessing
• Call you mother

The value of time

To realize the value of TEN YEARS : Ask a newly divorced couple.

To realize the value of FOUR YEARS : Ask a graduate.

To realize the value of ONE YEAR : Ask a student who has failed a final exam.

To realize the value of NINE MONTHS : Ask a mother who gave birth to a stillborn.

To realize the value of ONE MONTH : Ask a mother who has given birth to a premature baby.....

To realize the value of ONE WEEK : Ask an editor of a weekly newspaper.

To realize the value of ONE DAY: Ask the student who just miss the paper dead-line.

To realize the value of ONE HOUR : Ask someone who's late for a meeting with a prime client.

To realize the value of ONE MINUTE : Ask a person who has missed the train, bus or plane.

To realize the value of ONE SECOND : Ask a person who has survived an accident.

Time awaits for no one                                                                                                               

Treasure every moment of it or YOU'LL BE LEFT OUT cause IT CANNOT COME BACK. Treasure it even more with someone special.

John C Maxwell

Dumped? Ten Healthy Ways to Heal

Ice cream, alcohol, meaningless hookups: the go-to antidotes for a bad breakup are often about distraction rather than relief. What’s more, they tend to injure more than assuage, as if the breakup itself didn’t cause enough pain. Here, we’ve identified ten healthy ways to deal with getting dumped that don’t include booze, food, or flings:
1. Buy the Dumped! Fun and Games Activity Book, which offers such whimsical games as “I Cried to Smell Few (I Tried to Tell You).” Help broken-hearted “Sam” decipher what his friends have been telling him about his now ex-girlfriend in lines such as “Why stink clue fan screw fetter.” Translation: “I think you can do better.”
2. Surround yourself with happy people. Recent research from Harvard and the University of California, San Diego shows happiness is “infectious,” so take up with a group of friends or organization that you know is high on life.
3. Log on to justbeendumped. wordpress. com and submit your breakup emails or IM conversations. The names are changed, so it’s an anonymous way to have complete strangers tell you what a jerk he was. Your friends need a break anyway.
4. Listen to these ten breakup songs of the year. From Pink to Kanye, these tunes are all about getting back on your feet.
5. Learn boxing. Boxinggyms.com lists location around the country. Get angry—then get ripped.
6. Give your home a makeover. Following feng shui principles can help you clear out the emotional and physical clutter from your previously shared space. 7. Get even without getting a restraining order: practice your frustrations on a voodoo doll instead.
8. Write. Whether on a blog, in a journal, or in a letter you may decide never to send, getting the words from brain to paper or screen can improve your mental and physical health.
9. Volunteer for a cause you feel passionate about or to help those whose plight might give you a new perspective on your own. VolunteerMatch can help you find the right place and the right time.
10. Fall in love with a new scent. Learn to associate the smell of a new perfume, candle, flower, or detergent—even— with your new, improved, and single self. Take a sniff every time the breakup blues arise.
Of course, sometimes a glass (okay, or a bottle) of wine, meeting someone new, or buying a hot new dress is the just what the doctor ordered. Ultimately, do what feels right to you.

Of course the original writer of the above short essay is a girl, but it should apply a guy as well

Soft Drink

The regular consumption of sugar-laden soft drinks could boost a person's risk of developing pancreatic cancer. The results of a new study found that individuals who consumed 2 or more soft drinks per week had an 87% increased risk for pancreatic cancer, compared with those who did not.
Even after taking factors such as smoking, caloric intake, and type 2 diabetes mellitus into account, the authors found that consuming soft drinks might play an independent role in the development of pancreatic cancer.
The finding is reported in the February issue of Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention.
Both soft drinks and fruit juices have a high glycemic load relative to other foods and drinks, and it has been hypothesized that both are risk factors for pancreatic cancer. The high levels of sugar can increase levels of insulin in the body, and this can contribute to pancreatic cancer cell growth, the researchers explain.

Association Not Seen With Fruit Juice
However, this study did not find an association between consumption of juice and an increased risk for pancreatic cancer.
"There are several plausible explanations why fruit juice was not significantly associated with pancreatic cancer," said first author Noel Mueller, MPH, a research associate at Georgetown University Medical Center in Washington , DC .
One reason is that the finding was based on a relatively small number of cases, so there might have been too few cases to detect an effect with fruit juice, he explained. Another is that there are differences between soft drinks and fruit juice — fruit juice is lower in sugar, includes many nutrients, and is typically served in smaller portion sizes.
A third explanation is that fruit juice intake is associated with healthier lifestyle characteristics than soft drink intake, he said.
The consumption of soft drinks coincided with a number of other unhealthy lifestyle characteristics, making it somewhat difficult to separate smoking, caloric intake, body weight, and type 2 diabetes mellitus from soft drink consumption. "But the findings from our study suggest that soft drinks may play an independent role in the development of pancreatic cancer," Mr. Mueller told Medscape Oncology.
"The influence of soft drink intake on the risk of pancreatic cancer remained virtually unchanged after adjustment for smoking status, energy intake, body weight, and type 2 diabetes mellitus," he added.

Results Statistically Significant for Soft Drinks
The current study examined the association between the consumption of soft drinks and juice and the risk for pancreatic cancer among Chinese people residing in Singapore . The data came from the Singapore Chinese Health Study (n = 60,524), and information regarding the consumption of soft drinks, juice, and other dietary items, along with lifestyle factors and environmental exposures, was collected at recruitment to the study. The participants were followed for up to 14 years.
At the start of the study, 9.7% of the participants consumed at least 2 soft drinks per week and 10.2% consumed at least 2 servings of juice per week. The authors note that, compared with those who did not consume soft drinks, those who consumed 2 or more soft drinks per week were younger, were more likely to be men, and were more likely to smoke cigarettes. They also had higher levels of education, alcohol consumption, and total energy intake; lower levels of physical activity; and consumed more total carbohydrates, fat, added sugar, and red meat.
Individuals who reported consuming 2 or more juice drinks a week had lifestyle and dietary habits that were similar to those who consumed soft drinks. However, there was no association between juice intake and cigarette smoking, and body mass index (BMI) was comparable across different categories of soft drink and juice consumption.
At 14 years and a cumulative 648,387 person-years of follow-up, 140 incident pancreatic cancers developed in people who were cancer free at baseline. After adjustment for confounders such as BMI, type 2 diabetes mellitus, and fruit juice intake, the authors found that those consuming 2 or more soft drinks per week experienced a statistically significant increased risk for pancreatic cancer (hazard ratio [HR], 1.87; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.10 - 3.15).
Although people who consumed 2 or more juice drinks a week had an increased risk for pancreatic cancer of approximately 30%, elevated HR was not statistically significant after adjustment for variables.
However, in an age-adjusted analysis, smoking was also a risk factor. After excluding former smokers, the authors found that current smokers had a 49% increased risk for pancreatic cancer, compared with never smokers (HR, 1.49; 95% CI, 0.98 - 2.27). This risk factor remained unaffected after adjustment for diabetes and BMI.

Can Be Extrapolated to United States and Europe
Singapore is a highly industrialized nation with lifestyle and nutritional patterns reminiscent of many westernized countries. In that sense, these findings could be extrapolated to the United States and Europe , explained Mr. Mueller. Soft drinks are the leading source of added sugar in the American diet, the authors note.
"However, there are inherent differences between Singaporean Chinese and Caucasians, which is why one must be cautious when generalizing these results to the United States and Europe," he said. "But it is important to note that other studies in Caucasian populations have suggested that soft drink intake may increase risk for pancreatic cancer."
Because pancreatic cancer is a relatively rare disease, the number of cases in this study was relatively small, the authors point out. This limited the statistical power of the study. Another limitation was the inability to collect repeated dietary measurements during the course of the study; therefore, they could not account for changes in consumption of soft drinks and juices.
However, this study adds to the evidence that soft drink consumption plays a role in the development of pancreatic cancer, they conclude, and that "clinical studies examining biomarkers for glycemia and insulinemia and taking a mechanistic approach to the question of soft drink consumption and pancreatic cancer are warranted."
There is "still much to understand on the link between sugar-sweetened beverages and pancreatic cancer," the authors write.
The study was supported by a grant from the National Cancer Institute. The researchers have disclosed no relevant financial relationships.
Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2010;19;447-455. Abstract

Clinical Context

Carcinoma of the pancreas has high metastatic potential and poor prognosis because of lack of good treatment options and late presentation, with a 5-year survival time of less than 5% and no specific primary preventive strategies available. Smoking, obesity, and diabetes mellitus have been reported as risk factors for pancreatic cancer. Also, high glycemic foods that may predispose to diabetes may predispose to pancreatic cancer.
This is a prospective, 14-year cohort study of Chinese people living in Singapore to examine the association between consumption of soft drinks and fruit juice and the risk for the development of pancreatic cancer.

Study Highlights

• The Singapore Chinese Health Study is a population-based, prospective cohort study of diet and cancer risk conducted in permanent residents from government-built housing estates where 86% of the population resided.
• This study involved 2 dialect groups: the Hokkien and Cantonese originating from the southern part of China .
• Participants were men and women aged 45 to 74 years without preexisting pancreatic cancer.
• Recruitment was by letter, and staff went from door to door inviting participation with each subject.
• A trained interviewer then interviewed the participants face-to-face using a structured scanner-readable questionnaire.
• The interviewer asked subjects about demographics, lifestyle, diet, and medical history.
• Diet was elicited with a semiquantitative 165-item food frequency questionnaire.
• The questionnaire included commonly eaten food from Singapore , with 3 portion sizes and frequency in 8 categories ranging from never or hardly ever to 6 or more times daily.
• Photographs of foods were presented to identify the food groups.
• The questionnaire was validated against 24-hour recall in at least 1000 participants.
• Soft drink portions were defined as 1 glass.
• 1 glass was designated as 237 mL and was equivalent to 1 cup.
• Juices were categorized into specific drinks that included sugarcane, honeydew melon, apple, watermelon, carrot, pineapple, star fruit, and lemon juices.
• The Singapore Food Composition Table was developed to analyze the nutritional content of food types.
• Other risk factors for pancreatic cancer were assessed, including BMI, smoking, and physical activity.
• Pancreatic cancer cases were ascertained by linkage to the population-based cancer registry and registry of births and deaths.
• 142 incident cases were identified, of which 56.4% were histologically confirmed, 38.8% were by clinical and radiologic findings, and 4.8% were identified by death certificates.
• Rate of loss to follow-up was only 0.03%.
• Mean age was 56 years, 55% were women, mean BMI was 23 kg/m², 30% were ever-smokers, and 10% had type 2 diabetes.
• At baseline, 9.7% of participants consumed at least 2 soft drinks per week and 10.2% consumed at least 2 servings of juice per week.
• Those who consumed 2 or more soft drinks or juices weekly were likely to be younger, men, smoke, have higher levels of education, consume alcohol, and have higher energy intake and lower physical activity vs those who consumed no soft drinks or juices.
• They also had a higher consumption of total carbohydrates, sugar, and red meat.
• After 14 years and 648,387 person-years of follow-up, invasive exocrine pancreatic cancer developed in 140 persons .
• Smokers had a 49% increased risk for pancreatic cancer.
• BMI and a history of diabetes were not associated with an increased risk for pancreatic cancer.
• Results for all risks were similar for men and women, and analysis was combined for the 2 sexes.
• Drinking 2 or more soft drinks per week was associated with more than 80% increase in risk for pancreatic cancer after adjustment for other risks (HR, 1.87).
• This risk was independent of diabetes and smoking and persisted after excluding those who had pancreatic cancer within 5 years of baseline.
• After adjustment, juice intake of 2 or more drinks per week overall was not associated with increased risk, but when smokers were excluded, there was an association between juice intake and pancreatic cancer risk (HR, 1.60).
• The authors concluded that soft drink consumption was positively associated with pancreatic cancer risk but that juice consumption was associated with risk among nonsmokers only.

The Men Behind Indonesia's ‘Massage’ Parlors

Seedy business is good business. At least that’s what the owners of many of Jakarta’s massage and spa parlors believe, with some reason.

It’s no secret that there are many venues offering far more than just the advertised services — clients head there with one thing, and one thing only, in mind. Raids take place once in a blue moon, usually during religious holidays, and for the rest of the time this shady sector remains Jakarta’s elephant in the room. Everybody knows it happens, though officially it is illegal.

The history of what Indonesians refer to as “Massage Parlor Plus Plus” goes back a long way. No one interviewed for this piece knew exactly when the trade emerged, but all agree it has been a thriving industry in Indonesia for at least 20 years.

The nattily dressed Randy (not his real name) is the 31-year old co-owner of a successful parlor in North Jakarta. He’s suffering from a bad cold, but is still eager to talk to me about the trade he has been involved in since late 2008. He even brings along one of the women who work for him — a Sundanese woman in her early 20s. Although he had said she would be happy to be interviewed and photographed, she is reluctant to do so.

Randy entered the industry by investing in a parlor owned by one of the city’s largest massage groups.

“They’ve been around for about 23 years, I think,” Randy says. He adds that the group owns most of the city’s well-known parlors, and he became acquainted with the association through friends.

Bobby (also not his real name), the co-owner of a parlor in the Kota area of Central Jakarta, says he is “a fan of girls foremost and a businessman second.”

Profusely sweating when we meet, the thin-haired Bobby is in his early-50s and says he has been in the business almost seven years. “I used to go to [parlors] when I was in my 20s and 30s, which is how I learned about the trade and management of places like this.”

By his early 40s, it became Bobby’s goal to run such a venue. He begun saving money and building connections. In just a few years he achieved his dream, buying a stake in an established venue which he now owns with three other people.

Michael, 38, (who repeatedly reminds me not to mention his real name), owns a massage parlor in one of Indonesia’s biggest cities — “Don’t mention which, because the sheer mention of it tips people off,” he says. He was handed the business by his wife, of all people.

Michael’s wife is the step-daughter of a prominent “businessman,” which ensures that all Michael has to do is manage an already well-maintained machine.

When it comes to running the venue, Randy claims that contrary to what some investigative reports about trafficked women might indicate, most women who work in the industry do so willingly. He says he does not consider himself a pimp, but rather an entrepreneur.

“We have around 200 girls in our place now. And all of them we got through the six or seven agencies that specialize in tracking down girls that are interested in this line of work,” he says.

“The agencies provide a hostel for them to live in. Sometimes the senior girls choose to live by themselves, which is something [the parlors and the agencies] don’t like, since it means they can earn money [independently],” Randy says.

He adds that most of the girls hail from small towns with few prospects, and that they are open to any kind of work available.

Certainly, the worker who accompanied him at the interview did not seem to be under any duress. She said she had been working at his parlor for over a year.

Michael’s description of sourcing workers is less benign than Randy’s. He uses the word “indoctrinate” to explain how he manages to turn often-naive village girls into sex workers.

“The ‘training’ session is challenging,” he says. “Firstly, we indoctrinate the girls into believing that [hand relief] is not a sin. After they do this, the rest tends to progress more naturally through their experiences with clients. We let the market do the talking,” Michael says.

“Eventually some of them resign themselves to the sexual nature of the job, while the ones that don’t eventually leave.”

Many parlors also employ women from mainland China, who are considered more exotic and can command Rp 2 million ($216) per client — almost four times the price of local women. The owners and clients refer to them as chungkuo girls, Chinese for China. These imported employees do not only earn more, but are given more luxurious accommodations and other perks.

“They earn us more, but they also cost much more to employ,” Bobby says. “We have to take care of their visas, as well as renting them a house or apartment to live in. Sometimes, to keep them happy, we have to give them extra shopping money to satisfy their expensive habits.

“They think they’re divas,” he laughs.

Randy, Bobby and Michael make a good living out of their business, and they insist that their female employees earn a decent amount of money, too.

“We have different systems of payment,” Michael says. “There is the ‘include all’ package, which lets you order the whole deal through the receptionist, for which we charge Rp 300,000 to Rp 600,000, depending on the girl. They get 30 percent [of this fee and tips].”

Michael explains that a client can also request a massage then make a private deal with the girl once inside the room. “They receive incentives for those kinds of deals, which give them a lot more — around Rp 500,000 to Rp 700,000,” he says.

He acknowledges that women who are initially unwilling to engage in sex often eventually do so because of the money they are offered by clients.

Randy and Bobby, however, refuse to divulge details of their workers’ fees or payments.

“They make good money, plus they get a lot of tips from satisfied customers,” Bobby says without elaborating.

Dani, 30, an unmarried branch manager of an internationally branded car dealership in Central Jakarta, is one of those satisfied customers. He frequents the parlor owned by Bobby, and spends around Rp 1 million a month on one or two visits with local women.

“Sometimes I spend more, like on chungkuo girls, but that is only if I’m being treated by someone else,” Dani says.

Like Dani, many of these venue’s visitors are clients that are being “treated” by marketing officers from a partner company eager to secure a deal.

“Sometimes marketers treat me to fancy dinner, and sometimes they treat me to girls,” Danny says, laughing.

Michael tells the story of a father and son who unknowingly visited his parlor at the same time.

“The father was upstairs with one of the girls when the son came in for a visit. I told him that his father was there. But instead of leaving, he asked me to show him to his father’s room. Then, instead of being angry at the father, [the son] gave him some recommendations regarding our best girls,” he says.

Dion, 25, is a bank employee who regularly visits sex workers. “I’m young and not in a committed relationship. This is the modern age, and I think it’s archaic to consider these kinds of activities a sin. Illegal maybe, but not a sin,” he says.

When asked about the challenges of running a business that is officially illegal, Bobby grins knowingly.

“Let’s just say that you need to send certain groups of people their monthly allowance,” he says.

“If you don’t have the connections to engage in businesses like this, then don’t,” Michael advises.

Then there is also the issue of safety and security — Randy says they get aggressive customers about twice a week.

To ensure the protection of the workers, Randy, Bobby and Michael employ neighborhood toughs, who are feared and respected in the local area. Michael says a good relationship with the neighborhood is crucial.

Neither Randy, Bobby or Michael seems to harbor any regrets about their line of work.

“If it’s not me who runs this, then somebody else will,” Michael says.

And what about temptation at the work place? Randy says he doesn’t even think about it, while Bobby says he indulges “once in a while.”

But Michael says, “Are you crazy? My wife would literally kill me. Everybody is scared of her.”