Category: Learning

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Finding Free Scholarships

With so many companies having layoffs and going bankrupt, I’m sure people who are working in troubled industries are getting paranoid and worried about their job security and future career path. Some people who are holding onto their jobs by a thread are very likely spiffing up their resumes and discretely starting a job hunt. Others may be looking harder at their resumes and credentials and considering going back to school to finish that degree, enhance or even change fields of expertise.

People considering going back to school  might be interested in applying for scholarships and grants to help with the additional expense. I recently read about a free college scholarships program that involves some participation in a fun and interesting way. Your activities in their program earns points toward free scholarships. If free scholarships are something that interest you, check out their web site at www.scholarshippoints.com.

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Opportunities in a Bad Economy

A wise woman once told me, “for every door that closes, God opens another door.” I’m pretty sure there is a paraphrase to that somewhere in the Bible, but I’m not even close to an expert on that. The point is, that for everything bad that happens you should have faith that someone good will come from it.

The economy is struggling now and people are losing their houses, their jobs, and their health insurance. Yet all of these bad things that are happening will result in new opportunities for them and for others.

One of the industries that is still growing and actually benefitting from the bad economy is the health care sector. Perhaps some people who would not have otherwise considered a career in health care may now pursue the medical fields. We have had a shortage of good nurses for years. Perhaps that will now change and the people who need medical help in the future will have better health care available to them.

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Top City Choices

At lunch we were talking about the different cities across the United States and how the quality of life can differ so greatly depending upon where you choose to live. Of course, a lot of the discussion was subjective and how you define desirable qualities can change due to external factors, personal experience, and even media coverage.

In my current situation, a high quality of life involves nice but affordable housing in safe neighborhoods, a dynamic downtown with professional sports and cultural activities, and lots of opportunities for outdoor sports and recreation – such as lakes and rivers, state parks, etc.

Cities at the top of my personal list include:

  1. Austin, TX
  2. Nashville, TN
  3. Birmingham, AL
  4. Charlotte, NC
  5. Raleigh, NC
  6. Athens, GA
  7. Mobile, AL
  8. Louisville, KY
  9. Ft. Worth, TX
  10. St. Louis, MO

Well, just making a list has started me thinking that I should check out the different cities and see if I should be considering a move in the near future. One of the best ways to get to know an area is to work with a knowledgeable realtor and to be totally open and honest with them about your intentions to just look around.

I was able to find help with Austin real estate by clicking on the HomeCity.com web site and drilling down to the neighborhood and agent. That’s one of the things that I like about HomeCity – you can choose an area and neighborhood if you know where you want to buy, or you can click on the general area and get plenty of detailed information.

I know enough about Austin to be dangerous. The major areas in Austin includes Eanes, Rolling Hills, Round Rock, Lake Travis and the outskirts that make up the greater Austin TX region. So I’ll use HomeCity.com to help me find a broker experienced in the Austin Real Estate market and get help learning more about the different neighborhoods and local quality of life.

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Plans for Reading More

This year I’m working on a personal improvement goal of reading more books. I used to love to read in school. I could read all afternoon and finish off a book a day when I was in junior high school. Of course, I hardly ever had an afternoon dedicated to reading – I was always doing some kind of sports or lessons. But I did read a fair amount and I still like a good book. One of my favorite fiction writers is John Grisham and his series of novels about lawyers and legal cases.

In the world of non fiction I usually stay away from all those touchy feelie, self improvement types of books. I like books about history – especially the Civil War. I also like books about travel and places around the world that will make my “bucket list.”Haven’t been outside of the U. S. yet, but I plan to.

Right now I’m reading a book by Jimmy Buffett, of all people, called, “Tales From Margaritaville.” Although the collection of short stories is mostly fiction, some of them are based on the truth. It makes for interesting reading and stirs up the desire to head for a beach.

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Sharing the Knowledge

I’m a big fan of blogs. Any web site that has one when I’m there for other reasons catches my attention and I will usually click over to the blog and read what they have to say. The advantage of most blogs is that they are written in people’s real words and the blogs often reflect more emotion and opinion than the sterile ad content on the rest of the site.

One blog that keeps me coming back is written by Mark Cuban. He is a very interesting man and what impresses me the most is that he is so willing to share his thoughts and opinions in a very constructive way. He writes about a variety of business topics. The latest posts on Mark’s blog have been about the economy and the stock market, and he proposes concrete changes to existing laws and policies.

His writing style is plain English and it’s a quick, interesting read. I feel fortunate to have come across his blog – he’s already taught me several things and I look forward to reading more.

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Fusion vs Vista

I like Net Objects Fusion. I’ve used it for years in web site design and publishing. I also use it as a database of sorts – the organization tool makes it easy to keep track of multiple projects and little details like user names and passwords when you have a lot of different accounts. You can visually organize your data as if they were web site pages, and make changes using drag and drop.

So I always buy the next upgrade when it is announced. I also bought a new PC last year and it has Vista on it. But, evidently, the latest version of Fusion does not like Vista and I have a huge problem now. I like Vista – knock on wood – and have no desire to downgrade my Windows operating system. But I also need to be able to run my favorite programs on the machine!

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Sobe Sayings

What is the deal with all these weird sayings printed on the inside of the bottle caps on Sobe drinks? The new version of fortune cookies?

I can’t pay top dollar at the convenience stores for a bottle of flavored water. At the local Dailey’s stores, the Sobe drinks are $2 and sometimes $2.29 for just one bottle. But they do go on sale every once in a while at the local grocery, so when they are featured “10 bottles for $10” I will stock up.

This week I’ve enjoyed two bottles of the Sobe green tea. It’s an acquired taste but now I’m hooked. I also like the citrus and the Nirvana flavors.

Under the bottle cap of the first one it says, “Scorch Muffins.” WTF is that? A band? Instructions?

Under the bottle cap of the second one it says, “You’re kind of a big deal.” Well, YEAH!

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Hurrah Beltane!

Does anybody that is not a practicing Wicken even know what Beltane is? Does anyone understand the origin of the May Day celebration?

I don’t recall learning any of this in school. You would think that with all those years sitting in a classroom with all those different teachers and all those different subjects, that someone would have introduced a mention of the ancient days in England and the surrounding countries.

World History is a lot more than just World War I and World War II. I honestly don’t remember anything else from school about world history. Everything that I’ve learned about the world has been from documentaries on TV, books from the library and bookstore and the internet. There is a lot to learn about other places and other people’s cultures.

Americans are being shortchanged not learning these things – or at least being introduced to some of the topics for further independent research – in the public schools and colleges.