So now that you're earning at least 3.75% on your savings account (see prior post), you're probably wondering what is the next step? Whenever you start a new job, you need to immediately enroll in the 401(k) (or 403(b) if working for the government) plan offered by your employer. Why is this so important? Employers almost always match a certain percentage of the amount you contribute. Often, they match $0.50 of every $1 you invest up to 6% of your income. So, if you invest 6%, you automatically have 9% put into your account. That's a guaranteed return of 50%. Nowhere else in the world will you get this kind of return on your money. Do this for 15 or 20 years when you're in your early to mid-20s and you will be a millionaire by the time you retire. By the way, employers match your 401(k) investments because they no longer offer pensions or other monthly payments like they used to a generation or two ago.
However, if you are unfortunate and your company doesn't match your 401(k), you should invest in a Roth IRA. Stay tuned for my next post where I will translate this crazy language.
Here's to monetary success!
B-Squared
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Thursday, August 28, 2008
how to afford coffee, wine, and tea...
Just wanted to let everybody know about the best way to earn interest on your savings. If you have a Washington Mutual (www.wamu.com) checking account, you are eligible to receive 3.75% on your money if you open an online savings. The online savings is the exact same as a regular savings in that you use your ATM card just the same to take out money, you can use the teller to deposit money, etc. The interest amount I receive in one month is more than I made in interest for an entire year with a regular savings. If you don't want to deal with WaMu, there are other banks out there with online savings like ING Direct, although the interest rate is not as high as WaMu.
Here's to monetary success!
B-Squared
Here's to monetary success!
B-Squared
how to appreciate coffee, wine, and tea... (amongst other things)
SECOND SECTION: how to appreciate coffee, wine and tea (amongst other things)
ok, i'd like to describe a seemingly less practical skill. while i was an intern at starbucks, i was taught the invaluable skill, to me, of tasting. while people may love to trash-talk this company, i maintain that they are doing a good job of educating coffee drinkers, in an ability that i believe crosses over rather nicely into tasting various different things.
essentially, tasting is comprised of breaking down the different senses involved. sometimes this requires you to close your eyes when you drink (or eat) to focus on either the aroma, or the taste. when you experience something, try to break down different components that make up whatever you may be tasting.
the key is building confidence in your discerning abilities. thus practice is highly important, for you to become accostomed to presenting your thoughts behind the different aspects of whatever you may be tasting. sit down with your significant other, friends, co-workers, and so forth. practicing this on a daily basis will make you more aware of the subtleties in what you're trying.
it also is important that you try different things alongside each other, which will allow you to be able to compare them and discern their differences or similarities more accutely.
first, i'd focus on the visuals:
a) with coffee, maybe look at the color of it, if it's a dark, rich color, or a lighter hue.
b) with wine, look at how it clings to the glass (its "legs", indicating how sweet a wine is), the shade/hue.
c) with tea, could be yellow, green, red, orange... many different shades!
secondly, look for the aroma (there are different "polite" ways of doing this, including the wafting of your hand above the cup rather than putting your nose over the side of the cup, or food. obviously this will be determined by who you're doing this around) just call out whatever first comes to your mind!:
a) with coffee, there can be all sorts of different aromas present, such as grapefruit, citrus, earthy tones, herbal tones, etc.
b) with wine, once again, there are a myriad of different aromas, some may be oaky, others may be very berry or floral, minerally...
c) with teas, again there are many possibilities. from grassy green teas, to berry like infusions.
lastly, focus on the taste:
a) with coffee: look for the body (weight of the liquid on your tongue, how the flavor fills your mouth), the acidity (if your sides of your tongue tingle), and the characteristics of the flavors. example: you could get a "light bodied", "bright acidity" coffee, with "citrus notes".
b) with wine: once again, the body, acidity, and characteristics. example: an "oaky" wine, with tannins and blackberry notes.
c) tea: also, body, acidity, and characteristics. a "toasty", "bright acidity", with medium body, for a light black tea.
and there you go! you have the tools that you need, now call out your creativity and go for it. i promise you, trying something will never be the same, as you'll be able to break something down into it's nuances. this may incur you spending more money on such things in the future, though (just to warn you! :)).
i'm currently at remedy teas here in Seattle, my favorite tea shop, escaping the weather with the help of two different teas, and enjoying the ambiance that this place harbors. it is definitely my winter haunt. tea shops and cafés serve as hubs of community, and provide an extra kick of energy, in my opinion.
hope this is helpful!
abraços,
burnptcruisers
ok, i'd like to describe a seemingly less practical skill. while i was an intern at starbucks, i was taught the invaluable skill, to me, of tasting. while people may love to trash-talk this company, i maintain that they are doing a good job of educating coffee drinkers, in an ability that i believe crosses over rather nicely into tasting various different things.
essentially, tasting is comprised of breaking down the different senses involved. sometimes this requires you to close your eyes when you drink (or eat) to focus on either the aroma, or the taste. when you experience something, try to break down different components that make up whatever you may be tasting.
the key is building confidence in your discerning abilities. thus practice is highly important, for you to become accostomed to presenting your thoughts behind the different aspects of whatever you may be tasting. sit down with your significant other, friends, co-workers, and so forth. practicing this on a daily basis will make you more aware of the subtleties in what you're trying.
it also is important that you try different things alongside each other, which will allow you to be able to compare them and discern their differences or similarities more accutely.
first, i'd focus on the visuals:
a) with coffee, maybe look at the color of it, if it's a dark, rich color, or a lighter hue.
b) with wine, look at how it clings to the glass (its "legs", indicating how sweet a wine is), the shade/hue.
c) with tea, could be yellow, green, red, orange... many different shades!
secondly, look for the aroma (there are different "polite" ways of doing this, including the wafting of your hand above the cup rather than putting your nose over the side of the cup, or food. obviously this will be determined by who you're doing this around) just call out whatever first comes to your mind!:
a) with coffee, there can be all sorts of different aromas present, such as grapefruit, citrus, earthy tones, herbal tones, etc.
b) with wine, once again, there are a myriad of different aromas, some may be oaky, others may be very berry or floral, minerally...
c) with teas, again there are many possibilities. from grassy green teas, to berry like infusions.
lastly, focus on the taste:
a) with coffee: look for the body (weight of the liquid on your tongue, how the flavor fills your mouth), the acidity (if your sides of your tongue tingle), and the characteristics of the flavors. example: you could get a "light bodied", "bright acidity" coffee, with "citrus notes".
b) with wine: once again, the body, acidity, and characteristics. example: an "oaky" wine, with tannins and blackberry notes.
c) tea: also, body, acidity, and characteristics. a "toasty", "bright acidity", with medium body, for a light black tea.
and there you go! you have the tools that you need, now call out your creativity and go for it. i promise you, trying something will never be the same, as you'll be able to break something down into it's nuances. this may incur you spending more money on such things in the future, though (just to warn you! :)).
i'm currently at remedy teas here in Seattle, my favorite tea shop, escaping the weather with the help of two different teas, and enjoying the ambiance that this place harbors. it is definitely my winter haunt. tea shops and cafés serve as hubs of community, and provide an extra kick of energy, in my opinion.
hope this is helpful!
abraços,
burnptcruisers
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
No puedo hablar espanol
After encountering Spanish-only speaking patients on two separate occasions this month, I have decided that I would like to relearn Spanish and become as fluent as possible (even at my best, both my speaking and listening comprehension were pretty pathetic). I have started to read through my old Spanish text book. Although that will probably help me with grammar for reading and writing purposes, it still renders me useless in the world of verbal communication...which is precisely what I need to be able to do with my patients.
How can I improve? I've thought about getting Rosetta Stone. It's a shitload of money, but I figure it's worth it if it works. I don't want to shell out the dinero if it's not going to help me. What would you all recommend? Has anyone tried Rosetta Stone?
How can I improve? I've thought about getting Rosetta Stone. It's a shitload of money, but I figure it's worth it if it works. I don't want to shell out the dinero if it's not going to help me. What would you all recommend? Has anyone tried Rosetta Stone?
first post... JOB HUNTING!
INTRODUCTION
my idea's for this blog: spread experience and knowledge. i have many amazing friends, each of which has their own expertise. i think that we each have something to share, where my original idea was more along the academic side (inspired by intersections between different approaches such as a geographer working with an anthropologist), i believe we can first start approaching issues individually and later see how it goes. (to all those who don't know me, please know that i intentionally do not capitalize, outside of names of places generally, please do not take this as being illiterate).
FIRST SECTION: job hunting
although i am currently working pro-bono with the university of washington, i am looking for a job that will be able to provide me with a paycheck, which led me to a rather large dilemma: do i go to temp agencies to look, or should i focus principally on searching for positions on my own.
let's look at the advantages for each path:
A) with a temp agency, you are able to have other people proactively looking for positions that would suit your abilities. also, you are able to leave the job if it doesn't turn out to be what you are hoping for, essentially giving both you and the employer a "try out" time. another positive point is that you do not have to have a pre-existing relationship with the potential employer, as the temp agency is already connected with the businesses. another positive point is that this accelerates your ability to make a form of income, despite your positions not necessarily being closely aligned with your interest.
B) looking for positions on your own may make the company more likely to hire you, as it would be theoretically cheaper for them to hire you. temporary employees are sometimes looked upon as "lesser employees" unfortunately inside the company. by choosing the specific positions, you have a better chance for getting a position in your interests.
i find that although going through temporary agencies could provide you with a stigma upon you entering an occupation, they can indeed lead to good paying, full-fledged employment. in my opinion, should you have already spent much time looking for a permanent job, you can sign up with multiple temporary agencies in order to spread out your chances at finding a job. sometimes the agencies will have information regarding positions that aren't visible on sites such as craigslist, monster, or careerbuilder. temporary agencies specialize in particular sectors, or even employers. for example, if you're looking for supply chain positions, corestaff has contact with many folks inside amazon.com. if it's non-profit that you want, some smaller agencies such as woods and associates or molly brown temps can definitely help you reach out.
in conclusion, my opinion is that by hedging your bet by getting out there on many different job search engines, looking daily at positions, getting into contact with temp agencies can provide the best approach for finding a job... now, i'll just keep up my efforts 'til they pan out, and will post when i hear back. :)
abraços,
burnptcruisers
on a nerdy, theoretical level, i feel that i must discuss the current function of having "temporary work" in the marketplace. the market is supposed to be increasingly flexible, ideally providing for employees to move on when they no longer enjoy their profession, and providing flexibility for employers to drop expenses and man-hours when needed. however, this can help contribute to unemployment, especially in the cases of recession.
labor, unlike capital and money, is not as mobile as the popular proponents of the current macro-economic policies would like. take the example of a farmer, moving to a highly technologically based workplace: he'll have to invest time and money into retraining his abilities, imagine having to train to work with a computer if you are not so familiar with it initially!
my idea's for this blog: spread experience and knowledge. i have many amazing friends, each of which has their own expertise. i think that we each have something to share, where my original idea was more along the academic side (inspired by intersections between different approaches such as a geographer working with an anthropologist), i believe we can first start approaching issues individually and later see how it goes. (to all those who don't know me, please know that i intentionally do not capitalize, outside of names of places generally, please do not take this as being illiterate).
FIRST SECTION: job hunting
although i am currently working pro-bono with the university of washington, i am looking for a job that will be able to provide me with a paycheck, which led me to a rather large dilemma: do i go to temp agencies to look, or should i focus principally on searching for positions on my own.
let's look at the advantages for each path:
A) with a temp agency, you are able to have other people proactively looking for positions that would suit your abilities. also, you are able to leave the job if it doesn't turn out to be what you are hoping for, essentially giving both you and the employer a "try out" time. another positive point is that you do not have to have a pre-existing relationship with the potential employer, as the temp agency is already connected with the businesses. another positive point is that this accelerates your ability to make a form of income, despite your positions not necessarily being closely aligned with your interest.
B) looking for positions on your own may make the company more likely to hire you, as it would be theoretically cheaper for them to hire you. temporary employees are sometimes looked upon as "lesser employees" unfortunately inside the company. by choosing the specific positions, you have a better chance for getting a position in your interests.
i find that although going through temporary agencies could provide you with a stigma upon you entering an occupation, they can indeed lead to good paying, full-fledged employment. in my opinion, should you have already spent much time looking for a permanent job, you can sign up with multiple temporary agencies in order to spread out your chances at finding a job. sometimes the agencies will have information regarding positions that aren't visible on sites such as craigslist, monster, or careerbuilder. temporary agencies specialize in particular sectors, or even employers. for example, if you're looking for supply chain positions, corestaff has contact with many folks inside amazon.com. if it's non-profit that you want, some smaller agencies such as woods and associates or molly brown temps can definitely help you reach out.
in conclusion, my opinion is that by hedging your bet by getting out there on many different job search engines, looking daily at positions, getting into contact with temp agencies can provide the best approach for finding a job... now, i'll just keep up my efforts 'til they pan out, and will post when i hear back. :)
abraços,
burnptcruisers
on a nerdy, theoretical level, i feel that i must discuss the current function of having "temporary work" in the marketplace. the market is supposed to be increasingly flexible, ideally providing for employees to move on when they no longer enjoy their profession, and providing flexibility for employers to drop expenses and man-hours when needed. however, this can help contribute to unemployment, especially in the cases of recession.
labor, unlike capital and money, is not as mobile as the popular proponents of the current macro-economic policies would like. take the example of a farmer, moving to a highly technologically based workplace: he'll have to invest time and money into retraining his abilities, imagine having to train to work with a computer if you are not so familiar with it initially!
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