Written on 1:25 PM by Robert
In my situation, I am currently receiving unemployment checks while my wife still works for the local government, bringing home the fatty part of the bacon. I'm grateful for that because it helps out tremendously with the few bills we still have. I also need to realize that my wife needs a vacation, even though we can't afford to go away. How are we going to manage this? Very frugally!
I understand most people who are unemployed are in one-income households. The suggestions that require a small expense may not be feasible for those people. Those who aren't unemployed and read this post can also benefit by some cost-cutting suggestions.
First of all, plan on staying close to home. There are no sleep-overs, unless you can sleep over a relative's house. I don't know about you, but I've never felt comfortable enough to stay over anyone's house unless it was an emergency - everyone may have different opinions on that, however. As you know from my previous posts, I don't own a car anymore, reducing my monthly (and weekly) payments tremendously. Those who don't live in a metropolitan area do not have that luxury. Those who do should think about making the local transit system their friend.
Here are a few suggestions for spending a great time with your kids without spending a lot of money.
- Go to your local zoos. Kids love animals, and local zoos don't cost much for admission. I'm actually going to splurge and have my wife buy tickets for the Bronx Zoo, which is usually pretty expensive. As a city employee, she gets discounts on admission to many city attractions. Do research on your favorite attraction. The Bronx Zoo, for example, has "pay what you want" Wednesdays - but the catch is no ground transportation on that day.
- Check out the local parks, especially the ones you've never gone to before. It is like an adventure every time you take children out somewhere new. Here in New York City, there are dozens of parks throughout the city. There has to be a few that you'd like to check out: http://www.nycgovparks.org
- Free lunches!! Here in NYC, many public schools offer free lunches for all children (and sometimes their parents). Most of those schools also keep their playgrounds open as well, so the kids can work off that meal afterwards. Take advantage of this and save some money!
- Local piers and beaches are good as quick trips for relaxation.
- Free pools! There are tons of free swimming pools in the city, for those who don't mind the company. I, for one, can't stand the thought of how unclean the water is. That's why I searched online for local spots that charge small fees for the use of their private pools. Some local hotels may offer this, and would be worth looking into.
- For the kids who enjoy techie attractions, you can take advantage of some of these locations as well (unfortunately, these are only in the NYC area - but web search for similar attractions in your area):
- Sony Wonder Technology Lab (free admission) - hands on science experiments for kids
- NY Hall of Science ($11 adults, $8 for kids and free when school is in session) - larger science hall for kids
- Nintendo World (free admission) - Bring your DS and play with others, download demos, or just browse through tons of merchandise. This is not recommended for kids who always want to buy stuff, but for those who can appreciate playing demos of games and just having fun.
Enjoy your summer! Let us know what other tips you'd like to pass along! And as the final point - when it comes to eating, check out this MSN article on how to eat cheaply:
http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/SavingandDebt/SaveMoney/HowCheapskatesDoDinner.aspx?page=all
Posted in
money,saving,vacation
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Written on 12:48 PM by Robert
I know it's been a while since I posted anything. Although I'm still unemployed, I am happy to report I completed the requirements needed to receive my Bachelor's degree in Computer Science. Does that change anything in my status? Not at all - not yet. I still believe you need more than a Bachelor's degree to make an impact in the job market in IT.
My road to success is a long and difficult one, but one where I see light at the end of this dark tunnel I seem to be stuck in. Phase one is complete, with my 4-year degree in hand. What's next?
1) .NET Certification - I have VB .NET experience. Unfortunately, the experience is in Windows programming. I know the industry is focused on web programming, but the fastest road to certification is to be certified in something you are already familiar with. After I'm certified in Windows programming, I can set my sights on web programming certifications down the road.
2) Continuing my education - I decided to get into my school's Master's degree program in the Fall. This means I need to prepare for the GREs fairly quickly.
3) Keep learning - I need to keep up with the latest technologies, particularly open-source programming languages. A great site to start would be Dev Shed, a site for programming tutorials. The more you learn, the better chance you have to land a programming or developer position.
4) Keep putting yourself out there - It's frustrating to keep applying to jobs that seem to be filled before you get to interview for them. I need to learn to set up informational interviews. I need to be more active on LinkedIn groups, on Facebook, and on Twitter in order to attract some attention from the right people. I need to keep refining my resume, contacting more recruiters, and going to career fairs.
Why should you care? Well, if you are in the same boat I'm in, use my example as a template to follow for your own personal situation. The U.S. unemployment rate for May was 9.4% and being one of the thousands out of work is little comfort. The bottom line is that you should have your own "economic recovery plan" so we could start pulling ourselves out of this hole we seem to be in. Good luck!
Posted in
career,degree,education,financial,jobs,layoff,money,programming,school
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Written on 10:08 AM by Robert
I've learned recently the importance of keeping a job search log. I've been out of work for months and started a log early on, but as time went on I stopped updating it out of sheer laziness. But there is sound reasoning the "madness" of keeping such a detailed log.
The most important reason of keeping such a log is for the followups. When you apply for a job online or receive a call from a recruiter, keeping a record of this action is crucial. As a job seeker, it is absolutely important to keep tabs on the positions you apply to. If you apply to ten jobs in a week, you will have to contact these companies (or recruiters) in a few days or a week. They respond quickly to people who seem to be very interested in the position. A log like this is important to keep these position requests organized.
Another important reason to have this list is in case someone important requests it. Your local department of unemployment may request it (in normal circumstances) to prove your willingness to search for work. A recruiter may also request this list to make sure they are not sending your resume out to a company you have already applied for.
In order to create a decent log, use Microsoft Excel to create a spreadsheet. Make sure you include the name of the position applied for, the name of the company, the recruiter's company or web site where the position was found, the date you applied for it, and the name and phone number of the contact. A week after you apply for the position (at the latest), contact the person you dealt with to see if the position has been filled. Express your desire to obtain this position and hopefully it should increase your chances of getting it.
It's as simple as that. Keep organized and increase your chances of success.
Any thoughts?
Posted in
files,jobs,unemployment
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Written on 11:30 AM by Robert
Scala is an object-oriented language that can be used in the Java and .NET platforms. Released in 2004, it has slowly gained strength and popularity. Early this year, Twitter announced it has changed part of its backend to Scala in increments.
But why is Scala so hot lately? Twitter developers Steve Jenson, Alex Payne, and Robey Pointer sat down for interview earlier this month, where they explained why they chose to move away from Ruby on Rails and use Scala. Here's some of what they had to say:
Steve Jenson: "One of the things that I’ve found throughout my career is the need to have long-lived processes. And Ruby, like many scripting languages, has trouble being an environment for long lived processes. But the JVM is very good at that, because it’s been optimized for that over the last ten years. So Scala provides a basis for writing long-lived servers, and that’s primarily what we use it for at Twitter right now. Another thing we really like about Scala is static typing that’s not painful..."
Robey Pointer: "Also, Ruby doesn’t really have good thread support yet. It’s getting better, but when we were writing these servers, green threads were the only thing available. Green threads don't use the actual operating system’s kernel threads. They sort of emulate threads by periodically stopping what they are doing and checking whether another “thread” wants to run. So Ruby is emulating threads within a single core or a processor. We wanted to run on multi-core servers that don’t have an infinite amount of memory... I think of it as, the higher the level of the programming language, the less you have to type to do more. To me, languages like Ruby, Scala, and Python are very high level, because you can write a few lines of code to do what might take ten or twenty lines in Java, or 250 lines in C."
So they incorporated Ruby with Scala on Twitter. This language is a good direction to head towards if you already know Java. So as a developer, how do you get started learning Scala?
Steve Jenson: "Just try it. Make a starter project. Go for it."
Alex Payne: "There’s great code on GitHub. There’s a growing Scala community there. David Pollak and the rest of the Lift committers have put Lift on GitHub."
- I don't know about you, but I think I'm going to give this language a look. Thoughts?
Posted in
programming
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Written on 4:47 PM by Robert
Thirty years ago, when someone would graduate from college with a Bachelor's degree, they were pretty much guaranteed they would get a well-paying job in their field of expertise. Anyone with a Masters degree or higher were probably doctors or lawyers. The pride of saying that you had a Bachelor's degree was a privilege not many people had. The fact that the drop-out rate for high school graduates was high at the time was also a factor.
Today, there are less people who are satisfied with a high school diploma. Most people who graduate from high school go on to get a Bachelor's degree. What exactly does that mean? Well, it means that if you are one of those people with a Bachelor's degree, you have a LOT of competition out there. If you are coming out of college with a degree and no experience, then you'll be like the hundreds of others who just graduated, and is after that job you want to land. It's depressing, to an extent - that the 4-year college degree has less worth than it did decades ago.
So what can you do to stand out in that sea of academic clones in the job market?
- Get your Masters Degree (or PhD). Yes, it will take more time and money, but if you read over the course descriptions of the required classes you will be taking, you will find that these courses are more relevant to the job requirements found in the real world.
- Internships. Apply for whatever internships are advertised at your school. That could be the step in the door you need to work at that place in the future.
- Get a job while you're in school. If you're lucky enough to get a full-time job in your field of study without a degree, make sure you complete your degree at night. It's easy to fall into the trap of being caught up in the job and forgetting about the degree and career path. When a degree is achieved, you will have that experience under your belt already and will have a leg up on the competion.
The choice you make may not be the best choice for everyone, but its important to remember that there is always a choice.
Can you think of another option? Please add whatever else you think should be added to this list.
Posted in
career,degree,jobs,school
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