Separated at Birth?

Anyone else notice the resemblance between Tony Hayward, CEO of BP, and Michael Sheen,actor, who played the roles of Prime Minister Tony Blair in the movie “The Queen,” David Frost in “Frost/Nixon,” as well as Liz Lemon’s very short term romantic interest in “30 Rock."

Every time I see a photo of Tony Hayward, I immediately think of the movie "The Queen." I have to imagine a movie about the Gulf of Mexico oil disaster is in the works (if not, someone needs to get started on a screenplay), and who else could better play Tony than Michael Sheen? After all, it's a story rampant with greed, bribes, people out of jobs, sexual liaisons, endangered animals, children worried about their parents, a terrible fire, death and destruction, a threatening storm...wow, it's a lot of drama for one film.

USPS: What About Advertising on Stamps?

We're all familiar with the financial constraints of the US Postal Service. Postage prices rise, jobs are cut, post offices are eliminated, and there is talk that in all probability one day of home delivery will be eliminated each week. 


Anyone can see that email, electronic banking, online shopping, and the economy have taken a toll on the number of pieces of mail that get sent. I know in my home, I receive fewer catalogs (thankfully), fewer credit card solicitations (although Capital One and American Express remain relentless in their efforts to get me to spend money), smaller magazines (less advertising = fewer pages), and less mail each day. 


So I have just two questions:
1. USPS, why the heck did you spend millions of dollars to sponsor the US Pro Cycling Team (in other words, Lance Armstrong's bike team) in the late 1990s and early years of this decade?


2. What about selling advertising on stamps? Many of the stamps now feature beautiful artwork, famous Americans, or places of historical significance. At one time, the USPS introduced a program in which customers could create their own personalized stamps featuring a photo of your choosing...your face or someone else's. 

But what about offering that space up to businesses with deep pockets...or even smaller local businesses?  I'd like a book of 44 cent stamps sponsored by Starbucks or Bloomingdales or Hallmark. They could still be visually attractive, a good fit with the sponsoring brand, and the USPS reaps a double whammy...revenue from the advertiser and from the stamp purchaser.

Don't laugh. I am getting ready to mail two birthday cards today and will be adhering the very boring Liberty Bell "forever" stamp to the upper right corner. But I would love if I had Mad Men stamps, sponsored by AMC to correspond with the launch of the show's new season, to lend a little pizzazz to each envelope.

Running the numbers:
In fiscal year 2008, 37 billion U.S. stamps were printed.
If one advertiser sponsored one million stamps at 10 cents/stamp, the USPS reaps $100,000. If they can get ten sponsors at the same rate, then the USPS earns $1 million.
Small potatoes, but a start...

Top 10 Things Learned This Week

When one isn't working, one can still learn something new every day. Things may not be as intellectually stimulating, but inspiration is all around us. Here are the Top 10 Things I’ve Learned This Hot Summer Week:

1. I learned that stores will always post banners boasting their 75% off Clearance Sale, but when one gets inside, most things are only 25% off the regular price. That one thing that’s 75% off must be left from 2 years ago. Don’t fall for something that appears to be too good to believe.
2. I learned that storm clouds rolling across the sky, with the promise of a huge rainstorm to come, are energizing on hazy, hot summer days. Summer in the mid-Atlantic = wilted me. The clouds in a dark sky help rev me up to actually get work done. 
3. I’ve learned (actually I already knew this one but it was reinforced this week) that patience is a virtue. When heading home after an art show Tuesday evening, traffic was completely stopped due to a fallen tree across the parkway. My first inclination was to wish I had listened to the traffic reports so I could have chosen an alternate route, but it was too late. However, dear friend, cool car, quiet evening and good conversation meant waiting for the road to be cleared was enjoyable.
4. Peaches are the best food ever. I always thought I was a strawberry girl, but the beautiful, juicy, perfect peaches from Kingsbury Orchard are pure summer heaven (breakfast, lunch, dinner and snack time). 
5. I am fortunate to have an abundance of friends – new friends and old (okay not old but long-time friends) – who go out of their way to share ideas and information, provide a sense of humor, plan outings, share meals, recommend books, commiserate, open a bottle of wine, and give welcome advice and encouragement. I learned we must be grateful for these friends in our lives and tell them so. 
6. I learned that to be a job seeker, one must be a risk-taker, too. It’s no time to be shy, modest, or quiet about looking for a job. 
7. I learned that if there is someone I really don’t enjoy spending time with, then life is too short to spend more time than is absolutely necessary beyond being cordial. 
8. I learned that I actually do like tomatoes (those growing in pots on my patio). As a child I loathed tomatoes but somehow I now think they’re pretty swell and a terrific lunch with fresh basil leaves, cottage cheese, and lots of ground pepper. 
9. I’ve learned that it’s beneficial to print out a cover letter and resume to proof before submitting online for a job application (trust me). Reading these things in print makes it much easier to catch errors than reading on my laptop screen.
10. I’ve learned that the best time of day is the very early morning, when no one is out and about in the neighborhood, the air conditioner sounds are silent, the sun is up but only just, the birds are not quite stirring, and I can sit outside, read my paper and sip hot, hot coffee while it’s still slightly cool on a July morning. I sense a hint of the light changing, not so bright at 6am, summer ending and Fall on its way.

Easy to Watch, Easy to Read

I was entranced by this TV commercial for the Amazon Kindle. 

The first time I saw the spot a few weeks ago, I was drawn in by the slow beach reveal and the low-key, non-intrusive song…I was curious to discover what was being advertised.  Who doesn’t want to be at a quiet beach, looking at the turquoise water, feet in the soft sand, reading a good book in the summer?

Then Kindle hit the hot button benefit, since (not being a Kindle owner) I would have wondered if it’s even readable at the beach; the words on the screen reinforced that it’s readable even in bright sunlight. Great advertising and memorable!

Lyrics/sung by: Annie Little

Dollar Wise and Pound Foolish?

I am not an economist. I am simply a Job Acquisition Specialist who is (who has been) looking for a job, following layoffs at my previous employer. And based on the tepid results of my job search and that of many, many other friends, colleagues, and acquaintances who are in the same boat, I believe that many of the nation’s unemployed will not be able to be employed again. There is a shortage of jobs as companies and governments have eliminated jobs and scaled back hiring.

I have also been concerned with some of the political rhetoric in this country that seems to be based on self-centered, emotional preservation of personal principle (and one’s own job) rather than on sound, educated research and considered analysis.

Paul Krugman, a Nobel-prize winning economist, wrote recently in the New York Times:

"So I don’t think this is really about Greece, or indeed about any realistic appreciation of the tradeoffs between deficits and jobs. It is, instead, the victory of an orthodoxy that has little to do with rational analysis, whose main tenet is that imposing suffering on other people is how you show leadership in tough times.

And who will pay the price for this triumph of orthodoxy? The answer is, tens of millions of unemployed workers, many of whom will go jobless for years, and some of whom will never work again."

Mr. Krugman also wrote that cutting back on unemployment benefits for millions of Americans will only worsen the economy as spending, which stimulates manufacturing, business, and growth, will be cut back even further. No spending = less money being spent at groceries, local businesses, and Target = further cutbacks on hiring = more people being unemployed = fewer charitable donations = more people and organizations in need. So extending unemployment benefits for the reported 15 million unemployed Americans (and most economists believe the number is even higher since so many people have simply dropped out of the job market after a long period of being unemployed OR they are under-employed, having taken part time jobs while waiting for the economy to improve) may seem counter-intuitive, but history indicates that is not the case.

From Mr. Krugman’s July 4 op-ed in the New York Times:

"One main reason there aren’t enough jobs right now is weak consumer demand. Helping the unemployed, by putting money in the pockets of people who badly need it, helps support consumer spending. That’s why the Congressional Budget Office rates aid to the unemployed as a highly cost-effective form of economic stimulus. And unlike, say, large infrastructure projects, aid to the unemployed creates jobs quickly — while allowing that aid to lapse, which is what is happening right now, is a recipe for even weaker job growth, not in the distant future but over the next few months."

I fear that America has sunk to such a partisan, tit-for-tat mentality that there is little hope of coming up with a recovery plan that is in the best interest of the country as a whole. Anyone else have more confidence than I do?

It’s hard to imagine that the economy could worsen, but it seems a very real possibility. And what is the first thing people do when there is fear of a depression: cut spending even more (even the employed will cut spending and find ways to save money). And, of course, this then leads to cuts in manufacturing, sales, and jobs.

Is it too late to go to medical school? I think there is going to be a need for physicians in this country in the next few years.

Happy Independence Day!

Happy Independence Day, America.

In case you’ve forgotten:

• The Fourth of July commemorates the adoption of the Declaration of Independence, declaring the 13 colonies’ independence from Great Britain.
• An original of the Declaration of Independence may be seen at the National Archives (free entry). It’s on view along with the Constitution of the United States, the Bill of Rights, and one of the few remaining copies of the Magna Carta.
• Congress officially declared the Fourth of July a national holiday in 1870 for federal workers (without pay) and the District of Columbia. Americans celebrated the occasion but it wasn’t declared a federal holiday until 1941.
• Bristol, Rhode Island has the oldest continuous Independence Day celebration in the country. In 1777, thirteen guns were fired in the morning and the evening to mark the thirteen colonies’ declaration of freedom.

The National Archives is one of the most interesting and historic places to visit in Washington, DC. One realizes what a young country the U.S. is as well as the extraordinary significance of the brave founders of the country who took a stand on basic human rights. 

Enjoy your celebration!

Mid-Week Escapes

Believe it or not, even unemployed Job Acquisition Specialists need a break from reality...especially when the late June thermometer indicates a 72-degree day and there is no humidity in the air. This is the kind of day that tells me I must be outside.
No air conditioning needed. Lunch outside, preferably by the water. A change of scenery. Time away from the computer.






I'm ready for a proper vacation but with time on my hands, no great discount fares found this weekend, and no vaca planned, a couple of perfect days outside playing tourist was the ideal plan. Wednesday meant a beautiful day trip to the Chesapeake Bay and Friday was spent meandering through the activities at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in D.C.






A day at the Chesapeake Bay was the perfect mini holiday. A walk through Annapolis then lunch al fresco at Bridges on Kent Narrows: beautiful view of the water, delicious crabcake sandwich, perfect deck for outside dining. I could have sat there all day soaking up the sun.

It was a great day to check out the Chesapeake Exploration Center while at Kent Narrows to learn more about Maryland's long and fascinating history and the things that have been so important to its culture and economic growth: farming, tobacco, fishing, crabbing, and more. There is a nice observation deck and a path along the area being developed to prevent more erosion along the banks of the Bay.

And late June/Early July in Washington always means the Smithsonian Folklife Festival, with opportunities to check out the musicians, dancers, storytellers, craftsmen and artisans, food, and culture of different countries each year. This year featured Mexico, Asian Pacific Americans and the Smithsonian...unfortunately the weakest lineup I can ever remember (perhaps a result of budget constraints?).

Nothing memorable in the Asian Pacific American area (except for the very beautiful Sri Lankan dancers).

But Mexico had a variety of musicians, artisans and people making tequila (sorry, no samples) -- now that was a fiesta for the senses, too. A mini vacation in Washington, DC.

Mi hermosa hija:

The Government's Got an App for That

I adore my iPhone. It's a mini-computer, telephone, information-provider, music carrying, and family photo sharing, pocket-size, fabulous invention. I love being out with friends and able to look up a movie time, a definition of a word, a street address (along with directions) for a restaurant, or the opening hours for a museum. It also provides me access to news when I'm waiting in long lines and easy connection with family and friends.

So I was pleased to read today that the U.S. government has launched several apps to make useful info easily available when one needs it. From nutritional information to products that have been recalled to wait times at TSA checkpoints at airports (now that's info I can use!) to information for veterans...and more. The apps are easy to find, no wading through bureaucratic gobbledygook to get to the right page, and a great way to get information to me when I need it (like when I need a zip code after leaving the card store). And of course who doesn't need a mobile BMI calculator... 


I think one of the most useful apps they might come up would be for USA Jobs, so applicants can search new job postings, get an alert if a job is posted that matches a submitted resume, or track their applications.


These apps are not just for iPhones but are also downloadable for other mobile devices. Thanks,fed gov,for trying to be more consumer-friendly!