It's Getting Ugly Out there
Jack Cafferty
ISBN: 9780470144794
Jack Cafferty of CNN's "Cafferty Files" examines the current media and political regimes in the US and their effects on the country. This book interested me as I try to delve into current issues and players to know how to vote later in the year. I am only a few chapters into this book yet I am intrigued by Mr. Cafferty's ideas and perceptions. It is not the first time I have seen the media portrayed as biased and I am eager to relieve myself of my naivete that the press is always bound to tell the truth and that politicians on either side have our best interests at heart.
Cool It!: The Skeptical Environmentalist's Guide to Global Warming
Bjorn Lomborg
ISBN: 9780307266927
Bjorn Lomborg has good news. The polar bears are going to survive! Mr.Lomborg takes the prevalent global warming assertions and brings them back to reality. While he is a supporter of conservation and does believe in global warming, he echoes my own belief that it is probably not as dire as is being asserted in the media and by some scientific organizations. He debunks the wild theories and offers commonsense explanations of this vital but confusing topic.
Notes From My Travels
Angelina Jolie
ISBN: 0743470230
I remember the "old" Angelina Jolie, who was a bit wild, had a dark sense of humor, and loved to make decisions that would shock people. I have watched her evolve in recent years into a real leading lady with a sense of responsibility for those who cannot help themselves and using what she has earned to help others- money, time, attention, influence. Her notes are not a tale of whirl-wind celebrity travel with photo ops, but a dirty, gritty, no time-for-makeup, sleeping-on- cot-in-a-tent journey to discover another world in need of help. She reminds me of Princess Diana in her own development of self and of refining her life to give back.
Big Cherry Holler
Adriana Trigiani
ISBN: 9780345445841
I first discovered Adriana Trigiani in reading "Rococo" and fell in love with her humor and humanly flawed characters. Big Cherry Holler is the sequel to Big Stone Gap, a tale of Ave Maria, a smart, funny yet vulnerable woman. In this book, she weathers her husband's job loss and transformation into a self-made business man surrounded by a community that I can only describe as "Mayberry meets "Men in Trees". Just don't tell me how it ends yet...this is one I want to savor along the way.
Saturday, August 2, 2008
What I am Reading This Week: New Feature Introduced
I think one of my greatest fears is to believe in something and take a public stand only to find out I was wrong, not because of the strengths and faliures of an issue, but because I was not informed. I want to know my ememy, I want to know how to do things and not have to rely so much on others, I want to know why I believe what I believe. I also want to be entertained and transported for a while everyday (they only make so many movies!)
This is why I read.
And I read a lot. I am well-known at my regional library branches. I rarely just check out a few books. My library card stays maxed out and, shamefully, some time over the limit. I aggressively use my local library's website to put books on hold and track my checked out items. I monitor my library account with as much effort as I monitor my bank account. I usually check out a mix of non-fiction books- cooking, gardening, knitting, politics, history, some fiction books, audio books for my long commute to work, magazines, music CD's and movies. They just have too much cool stuff at the library these days. I am usually actively reading three books at a time. It probably has something to do with attention deficit disorder, maybe.
I am adding this feature to my blog to record and encourage with the books that I read. I invite discussion on these books. Just don't try to figure out any of my ideological views from what I choose to read. If I am against something, I read about it. How else can you logically and effectively dispute it? If I support something, I read about it to learn more. I read about things I've never discovered before just to see what is out there. I read about things in which my kid is interested. I read Christian books, not just for inspiration, but to help me figure out what I really believe.
I don't believe we are here to be something, but to continually grow and develop who we are and what to believe. Reading is a good place to start. One does not have to read several books a week. Most do fine taking things one book at a time.
There is an old saying that there is always time and you are never too old for one more good book.
This is why I read.
And I read a lot. I am well-known at my regional library branches. I rarely just check out a few books. My library card stays maxed out and, shamefully, some time over the limit. I aggressively use my local library's website to put books on hold and track my checked out items. I monitor my library account with as much effort as I monitor my bank account. I usually check out a mix of non-fiction books- cooking, gardening, knitting, politics, history, some fiction books, audio books for my long commute to work, magazines, music CD's and movies. They just have too much cool stuff at the library these days. I am usually actively reading three books at a time. It probably has something to do with attention deficit disorder, maybe.
I am adding this feature to my blog to record and encourage with the books that I read. I invite discussion on these books. Just don't try to figure out any of my ideological views from what I choose to read. If I am against something, I read about it. How else can you logically and effectively dispute it? If I support something, I read about it to learn more. I read about things I've never discovered before just to see what is out there. I read about things in which my kid is interested. I read Christian books, not just for inspiration, but to help me figure out what I really believe.
I don't believe we are here to be something, but to continually grow and develop who we are and what to believe. Reading is a good place to start. One does not have to read several books a week. Most do fine taking things one book at a time.
There is an old saying that there is always time and you are never too old for one more good book.
Friday, February 1, 2008
The Importance of Accurate Employment Records
The Importance of Accurate Employment Records.
Recently I passed some professional certification exams and embarked on a process of documenting my work history for the application for the certification. It has taken six weeks to get all of the needed letters together in a long, frustrating process. I was shocked to find that two employers had listed job titles that were incorrect and not indicative of the real work I did at the company. I was dismayed to learn that once you are no longer employed with them, most employers will not go back to change the records and in my area it is not illegal for them to refuse to do so. In my case, two companies used existing job titles to "fit" me into instead of creating a new job title when one did not exist for my specialized role. I know have shaky references for the years I worked in those positions.
I have learned the hard way not to trust my employer's records or to trust that Human Resource employees will "follow through" or "do the right thing." I am sure that for every HR generalist who is really good and consientious there is a least one who is not. They are like all people, so some do a little and care a little more (or less) than others. It is up to us, the employees, to double-check to be sure our records are accurate whether it is with job titles and job descriptions or our tax forms and deductions.
This explains why I have been sending our resumes for months without a call back. Because my resume listed different job titles that were verified by prospective employers, it would be assumed I had manufactured the titles on my resume. I am revising my resume to reflect what the employers show so that won't happen.
I also recommend to anyone who is job-hunting to take the time to contact all of your recent and relevant past employers to verify dates of hire, dates of termination, and job titles. I would also see which past supervisors are still with the company and see if they would be willing to serve as a reference. Important past business clients may also agree to do the same. Just be sure to use those from past employers rather than current employers to prevent any appearance of conflict of interest, etc. I was able to get a letter of reference from a former vendor I had worked with during the questionable years to bolster my certification application. Hopefully it will be enough.
It is also important to keep personal copies of any performance reviews, Goals and Objectives, job descriptions, time sheets, letters of job offer, discipline, promotion or commendation and retain them indefinitely. They may come in handy later.
I may be bearing the adverse effects of this oversight for a while.
Recently I passed some professional certification exams and embarked on a process of documenting my work history for the application for the certification. It has taken six weeks to get all of the needed letters together in a long, frustrating process. I was shocked to find that two employers had listed job titles that were incorrect and not indicative of the real work I did at the company. I was dismayed to learn that once you are no longer employed with them, most employers will not go back to change the records and in my area it is not illegal for them to refuse to do so. In my case, two companies used existing job titles to "fit" me into instead of creating a new job title when one did not exist for my specialized role. I know have shaky references for the years I worked in those positions.
I have learned the hard way not to trust my employer's records or to trust that Human Resource employees will "follow through" or "do the right thing." I am sure that for every HR generalist who is really good and consientious there is a least one who is not. They are like all people, so some do a little and care a little more (or less) than others. It is up to us, the employees, to double-check to be sure our records are accurate whether it is with job titles and job descriptions or our tax forms and deductions.
This explains why I have been sending our resumes for months without a call back. Because my resume listed different job titles that were verified by prospective employers, it would be assumed I had manufactured the titles on my resume. I am revising my resume to reflect what the employers show so that won't happen.
I also recommend to anyone who is job-hunting to take the time to contact all of your recent and relevant past employers to verify dates of hire, dates of termination, and job titles. I would also see which past supervisors are still with the company and see if they would be willing to serve as a reference. Important past business clients may also agree to do the same. Just be sure to use those from past employers rather than current employers to prevent any appearance of conflict of interest, etc. I was able to get a letter of reference from a former vendor I had worked with during the questionable years to bolster my certification application. Hopefully it will be enough.
It is also important to keep personal copies of any performance reviews, Goals and Objectives, job descriptions, time sheets, letters of job offer, discipline, promotion or commendation and retain them indefinitely. They may come in handy later.
I may be bearing the adverse effects of this oversight for a while.
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