TikiPrincess

There are two types of jobs: skilled and unskilled labor. If you're looking for a job that doesn't require any experience, like many service jobs, including telemarketing, fast food, etc., than employers are looking for someone who will be cheap and undemanding. They often choose high school students because they can pay minimum wage, students still live at home and are under parents' insurance, and they only work part-time hours which means that employers don't have to give out full-time benefits. If you have no work experience when you graduate, employers assume that you are getting a job because you need the money, but they have no evidence of your work ethic and whether you'll be a good employee. At least that's one perspective. And people who work at unskilled jobs, even if they get promoted, will usually make less money than someone working at a skilled job.Skilled jobs are harder to come by these days. In my parents' day, a high school diploma was a benchmark that showed an above average level of competence and basic education. A high school diploma today doesn't carry the same weight. The new benchmark is a degree, and specifically, more often than not, a bachelor's degree either in the arts or sciences. You can eke out a living off of an Associate's Degree, but most companies are requiring at least a Bachelor's or equivalent work experience.My suggestion to you is to try taking some community college courses and work towards an A.A. or an A.S. It's cheaper than going to college or a university, and it will show employers that you have some sort of ambition. The next thing would be to try networking. Ask your parents or your friends' parents or your parents' friends if they know of any jobs that might be available and if they can put in a good word for you. Volunteer for a non-profit. It doesn't pay, but you'll meet people who may have connections. If that doesn't pan out, then rethink your work hours and ask a manager at a nearby store if they need an overnight employee, like a stock boy or something like that. It's not glamorous work, but it's work and it pays. You'll need to work at a job for at least a year to be able to put it on your resume, but it will start opening some doors that weren't open before.

I honestly see no reason why women can't serve as equally as men. I have a female cousin who did serve in the navy and did spend months at a time on a ship. And why is it that women, who are the victims of assault, should be penalized for men's inability to control their libido? If men would see women as equals and respect them as such, I fully believe that there would be less cases of rape and assault on women. I have a friend who is heterosexual that works at Victoria Secret. I used to go to a male hairdresser who would talk on and on about his wife and son. I've had my nails done by a man who owns a nail salon with his wife. I have bought make up from a man at the Lancome counter at Nordstrom's. I really don't see why buying these things from a man is any different than buying them from a woman if that guy is knowledgeable and competent at his job. Why is it, then, that men won't take their car to a woman mechanic or hire a female contractor?As to trivialize the issue by comparing women and men with the taste of a carrot cake or a Pepsi, that only proves how little progress has been made in women's efforts. When I started this topic, I was simply interested in the perspective of whether people actually believe that biological differences makes a difference in equality. Little did I realize that my idealistic world where women and men realize that despite gender differences, we are all humans and capable of working together towards a better and equal human civilization. It saddens me that despite the scientific proof and everyday examples that women are as capable of being as intelligent, as strong, as hard-working as men, the world continues to simplify that cry for equality as simply another nagging, *BLEEP*y woman. What saddens me more is that this belief is instilled and nurtured in the home, from what mothers teach their children, from the way wives treat their husbands, or the way husbands treat their wives. That being said, I'm retiring from this thread because it pains me to see how women are disregarded in society. I encourage further discussion on the subject, but I ask that you all keep an open mind and perhaps my idyllic world will someday be realized and people will live and work together without regard to race or ethnicity or gender. In my eyes, we are, all of us, unique and special in our own ways, but we are still members of humankind. ***steps off the soapbox***

While civil service tests have prevented patronage in government jobs, it doesn't prevent it in the private sector. While most companies claim to be an "Equal Opportunity Employer," this simply means that they won't discriminate on the basis of race or sex. So they find other ways to discriminate.I really can't complain too much because I've gotten jobs through networking, which you could consider a form of nepotism or patronage. I get more substitute teaching jobs because I'm friends with teachers, so they request me when they go on vacation or call in sick. Yeah, they probably wouldn't request me if they thought I was a horrible teacher, but lucky for them, I'm not. Or at least, that's what I tell myself.

I find it interesting that no one is countering my arguments which clearly address some of these issues. Oh well, c'est la vie. I suggest everyone take another look at that South Park episode with the "go backs." Some of you might find it enlightening. Or not. Maybe 'cause your heads are too far up your rear ends to see any position other than your own.

My husband's old boss got that stomach staple surgery to reduce his weight. After the surgery, he went to seminars and support groups to try to keep the weight off. One of the speakers got up on stage, opened up a 2 liter of Coke, shook it up a little and let the extra fizz die off. He put a deflated balloon over the spout, then he talked for about an hour and the balloon was almost completely inflated by the time he was done. The carbonation in soda, even soda that's relatively flat, still had enough gas to expand the balloon, so imagine what it's doing to your stomach. Scientists have also shown that carbonation inhibits absorption of calcium in your bones.My suggestion is to stay away from soda all together.

We survived the 4th of July! Thanks for your helpful comments. We decided to do a bit of a trial run on the 3rd and brought her to my in-laws for dinner without giving her anything. She ended up freaking out at the first bang and clawed the door, so I took her home straight away. We made up her bed in the bathroom, gave her a pill, turned on the radio and stayed with her until she started calming down and the drugs started taking effect. Then we went back to the in-laws to visit with my husband's sister who's in town for the week. Honestly, if she wasn't visiting, I would be snuggled up with my dog all night. I hate seeing her scared like that. Anyways, we pretty much left her inside all day on the 4th and stuck to the whole routine, I gave her one sedative a few hours before the sun went down. She did fine, didn't scratch up the door or anything! The only problem we had was that she didn't want to sleep alone when we came back home, so I plopped down on the bathroom floor and stayed with her until she fell asleep.

Hahaha, I love Dr. House because he's completely unapologetic for his behavior because he's always right. Of course, if I were to deal with him in the real world, then I would hate him for the bastard that he is. And that's the thing, it's a TV Show that's made for entertainment purposes only. While some of these episodes are based on actual medical cases, the truth is that it's never as simple as they make it out to be. Even CSI, which my science professor praised on getting the actual science part right, is highly dramatized and their quality control is starting to deteriorate. If you're suffering from migraines, I suggest talking to your doctor before deciding to self-medicate using LSD. On a side note, you might want to be a little more descriptive in your topic title.

Allow me to try to put it in terms that you might have an easier time understanding.Let's say you have a job. Someone of another race comes in and starts working the same job. It's demeaning for him to have the same title as you, they give him another title and twice the pay for doing the exact same job. Then he gets promoted to a supervisory position despite the fact that you have worked there longer. All because he happens to be the "right" race. Now change race to gender. You can't put a woman on a pedestal and then treat her as an inferior. It just doesn't work that way. You choose one or the other. Respect her for the contribution that she makes to society or treat her like a slave and deal with the consequences. This "feminist crap" is just asking for equal rights and equal opportunity. Most people agree that racism is wrong. Sexism and gender bias should be considered just as wrong. As for your example, women are smart enough to realize that getting caught for stealing bread isn't going to help her family. Sad to say, but rather than risking everything for a single loaf of bread, it's better to find a john with enough money to pay for the loaf, some eggs, and some milk. Women are just as capable, if not more so, of being as calculating and emotionless as men, we just know how to pretend better.

The operative phrase there is when you were young. Most kids these days don't have a sense of work ethics. I substitute teach at the high school level and kids are much more affluent and spoiled than I ever was as a child. They've got iPods and designer clothes, PSPs and the latest cell phones, and even though they have money, they all want more. The problem is that they don't want to work for it. They're all about instant gratification.Thank you Tetraca for pointing out that illegal immigrants don't just come from south of the border but from the north as well. It's just easier for them to blend in because they're the same race and speak the same language, but they're still here illegally. When you think about it, though, this country has been fueled by the blood of our immigrants and founded upon the ideals and beliefs of foreigners. The British colonists who forced the Native Peoples off their land and brought slave labor because they weren't going to do it their damn selves. Or the second wave of immigration during the Industrial Revolution when factories took advantage of the newest immigrants and paid them the cheapest rate. Then the foremen realized that they could get child labor even cheaper. Thankfully, someone decided that there were just too many kids dying from accidents and lung disease at the factories. You know, for a time it was the Irish who were despised and looked down upon in this country. Every time a new wave of immigrants flows into this country, there are complaints and racial tension. They don't look like us, they don't talk like us, so they don't belong here? Then America should stop spouting out the fallacy that this is "the land of opportunity and freedom" because they're buying into it. The same way our ancestors did when they came here. And unless you are from a tribe of the Native Peoples, your ancestors were immigrants too. Most people can't even imagine the kind of life that these people fled from. Poverty, rape, warfare, the uncertainty of whether you'll live through the next day or whether you'll be killed in your sleep. And I don't just mean poor, I mean poverty where your stomach gets distended from not having eaten in a month. Poverty where you can't get off your butt and get a job because there's no work to be had by anyone. Their lives have to be absolute *BLEEP* to make them go through what they have to in order to cross the border. So stop your hegemony and realize that kicking them out or tightening up the borders isn't going to help and will only result in more companies outsourcing and relocating to areas where labor remains cheap. Try being more of a humanitarian and help build a better world so that immigrants would be just as safe and happy to stay in their own country rather than here.

Contrary to popular beliefs, cutting isn't related to suicide. Yes, people who cut can be suicidal as well, but cutting is often a sign of a different psychological problem. Girls have a tendency to internalize the world around them, which can sometimes be overwhelming psychologically and emotionally. Some girls discover healthy ways to channel this into physical activity, artistic endeavors like art or music, or by escaping into their imaginations. Others aren't so lucky. Instead of lashing out against a world they cannot change because they lack the power to change it, they affect the things that they can - themselves. It seems that more and more girls are cutting themselves these days. Unless your friend has found a way to channel her emotions in a positive way, she's going to end up cutting again if she isn't already. When girls get discovered, they just find better places to hide it because they don't know how to deal with the pain and emotions. Ultimatums don't work because it's not solving the problem of why she's cutting in the first place. My suggestion would be to give her a journal and tell her to write in it whenever she gets the urge to cut and KEEP WRITING until the urge passes. It's one of those therapy tricks I've picked up. It doesn't matter what she writes, just so long as she keeps doing it. On one hand it gives her a healthy outlet for her emotions. On the other, she can look back and discover what exactly sparks the urge to cut. She can also start to recognize patterns and maybe get to the root of her unhappiness.I have a feeling that she was abused as a child. Many people who are in abusive relationships as adults experienced the same trauma as children and have not been able to process and work through those emotions. Though you want to rush her out of these relationships, and no doubt you should, she will still continue to seek out someone who will abuse her unless she can resolve the issue of why she feels that she should be abused. The journal may help her uncover these emotions, but it takes a lot of soul searching.As to what you can do to make her feel better, just be a supportive friend. She obviously needs one.

Wait, you mean From First to Last isn't punk? OMG, I'm gonna kill myself now. >.< j/kPunk bands aren't supposed to be well known, they're supposed to be non-conformist and build a small group of loyal followers in an organic fashion from grass roots using cutting edge technology or completely antiquated means or a weird mixture of both. But they are out there.

The fourth of July is celebrated in the US as Independence Day. And it's probably my dog's least favorite holidays. I think she'd even rather be boarded for a week than have to deal with the fireworks that go off around July 4th. Last year, we had plans to go out, so we locked her in the bathroom and turned on the radio to try to drown out the noise. Usually she gets locked out of the house when we leave because she's pretty bad a chewing things up when she's bored and there's just too much stuff within reach. I also gave her a sedative but didn't tell my husband until a couple days later when he said she did really well. So this year, he wants to see how she's going to react without using the sedative, but we'll be going to my neice's birthday party, so we're not sure whether we'll be able to take our dog along. So she might end up being locked in the bathroom again. She gets really freaked out by the fireworks, especially the screaming ones. She curls up in a corner or she gets clingy and won't leave my side at all. Or she does both if she can.I know that my husband means well, but he's always been the type who toughens up to get through things. Our dog just can't understand all the noise and stuff and she gets scared. I don't think that it's something that she can "get over" or even get used to since it's not a daily occurence. I'd really appreciate any suggestions and your opinion on whether I should slip her the sedative or not.

My friend would have loved that dish no matter what it was. She'll eat almost anything if there's enough garlic on it. We even went to this restaurant in Beverly Hills called The Stinking Rose that serves everything with tons of garlic. They also have a vampire menu for people that don't like garlic, but there's all the garlic aroma in the air that it's bound to flavor everything that's served.Anyways, I have to confess to another mishap in the kitchen. I accidently started a grease fire, but luckily it was contained in a pot with a lid, so it wasn't as bad. I was trying to heat up some oil to fry some rice in, but I guess the flame was too high, and it caught fire before I knew it. Luckily, I had the lid handy and covered it up quickly. NEVER USE WATER TO PUT OUT A GREASE FIRE. By the way, the smell of burning cooking oil is terrible.

I think that SAT scores are not nearly as important as they used to be in determining whether you are accepted at most colleges. There are some that still use it as a benchmark to weed out students that may have slid by on the grading scale, but most realize that the SAT's are somewhat skewed and biased. What separates applicants these days are their extra-curriculars, community service/volunteer work, and your essay. The thing that makes or breaks your application is the essay. I didn't take the ACT because most of the schools I applied to were on the West Coast and they put more emphasis on the SATs. I heard that they were easier though, but you had to score higher to be considered equivalent to the SATs. Plus there were less testing dates and test sites.My suggestion is to buy or borrow one of those review books and go through that. Then go out and get involved with Habitat for Humanity or some sort of non-profit, service-based organization like that. Or start your own organization. College admission offices love entrepreneurial types. See a need, fill a need. Plus you can write all about it in your essay.Good luck!

I just have to say kudos to you for being mature enough to realize that you weren't emotionally ready for a relationship so soon after a break-up. Too often have I seen my friends rush into a "rebound" relationship and soon regretted it or had problems because they still had an attachment to their exes. Or they've been the rebound girl and had problems from that end. One of my friends, who somehow always seems to be the rebound girl, calls me all the time. She worries that he's thinking about his ex when they kiss or that he'll drop her in a second if his ex wants him back. She's always competing with the ex, even if that girl is completely out of the picture. If you love her as much as you say you do, then the only thing to do is give her the love and respect that she gave you when she told you how she felt. Let her process through her emotions. If she's not ready for a relationship with you, then respect her decision but stand by her as a friend, like she did for you. Just don't let her forget how you feel or you'll get stuck in the friend zone. You can also go the old-fashioned way and send her flowers and candy. Don't ask for commitment, just a date. One little date where you can go all out and do everything that she loves to do. Make the day all about her and show her how much more enjoyable it is to spend her time with you. Let her know that you see her as the person she is and not as a replacement for your ex. Don't talk about yourself or your ex or her ex. In fact, don't even think about your ex, just focus on this girl.

Sorry, I stumbled onto this topic and had to respond because I Bruce Campbell and these movies are classic. I have to agree with Mike that Army of Darkness is really the best of the three. However, I'm not sure if this qualifies as a trilogy. If you've seen them, you'll notice that Evil Dead 1 & 2 are extremely similar, except that one seems a little more campy and comedic than the first. This is because the director Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell wanted to include elements from the first movie in Army of Darkness but had sold the rights to Evil Dead. So they made Evil Dead 2 instead. I'm guessing that they still had rights to the script. They went for less of the B-movie thriller aspect and more of the "B-movie that knows it's a B-movie" aspect. Army of Darkness is absolutely hilarious and full of quotable lines. I actually have 2-3 DVD versions of it: the regular one, the bootleg edition, and the necronomicon. Oops, sorry, I've got the Evil Dead in the Necronomicon. Anyways, I liked the original ending better than the director's cut. Hail to the king, baby.

For the past few years I've carved pumpkins for Halloween. Mostly we use patterns, but I'm thinking of doing something more original this year. I'm just not sure what. Anyways, here are some examples of what I've done in the past. Pirate Pumpkin 2005 Gargoyle Pumpkin 2006 (That one's for you Misanthrope!) Tiki Pumpkin 2005 My husband did that one, but I figured I'd throw it in there anyways since it is a tiki I'd love some suggestions for this year!

Heh, I've gotta agree with you there sheepdog, I can't stand little yappy dogs. I did hear about the bill they're trying to pass since I subscribe to a pitbull rescue newsletter. It's kinda hard for me to decide whether I'm for it or against it since I can see both sides of the issue. On one hand, the pound and humane society are filled with stray dogs and other animals that will be euthanized if they can't find a home simply because someone didn't want to spend the extra money to get their dog or cat snipped. I think that breeders and trainers will have to apply for exclusion priviledges which might prevent backyard breeders and puppy mills. On the other hand, I think the cat population problem is 10x worse, and there's no law in effect for them. The law doesn't give exclusion to working dogs and their owners, who mostly can't afford going to a breeder. That's the other thing, if specific people have exclusive rights to breeding, then the price will skyrocket, especially if there's less selection at the pound. I'm lucky that my dog was spayed before we got her, but I would have done it anyways. As much as I love her, I can only deal with one dog at a time right now, maybe two, and I would have hated having to give away her puppies, especially considering how misunderstood and misused her breed has become. As for the rats, well... they're supposed to be really intelligent. I know my neice would love having something bigger, but my sister-in-law lives in an apartment, so their choices are limited. We got her a hampster a few years ago, but it only lasted about 7 months before it died. She's had Nibble, the black and white rat, for a couple years now and Princess is probably a year or a year and a half. They're kinda fun to watch and Nibble will actually come when my neice calls her. I just try to think of them as mice with pointier noses and longer tails. The secret of NIMH has become a favorite movie and we've already bought tickets to watch Ratatouille at the El Capitan.

Since I grew up in the Los Angeles area, I think almost everyone here considered acting as a career at one point or another in their lives, including me. I got bit by the bug when I was 8 or 9 and got a part in all the school plays all through high school, but my mom wouldn't let me audition for anything more than that. I took some professional classes in college and did some extra work, but auditioning is pretty grueling work and you have to have the self-confidence to withstand constant rejection for the most superficial things. I should probably thank my mom for saving my self-esteem. One of my friends started out as a techie working backstage and kinda worked his way onto the stage by schmoozing with the producers and directors at parties. But it wasn't steady work, so he still worked backstage and had another part-time job to pay the bills and save up enough money to move to New York to do theater, since LA doesn't really have a thriving theater community. He finally had too many on-camera hours working as an extra so he either had to join SAG and pay their dues or stop doing any film or tv gigs. He's been in New York for over a year now, mostly taking classes and auditioning, but the competition is really tough. It's always a good idea to have something to fall back on if your career doesn't pan out. Education is a great one since you have so much time off during the summer and your work day ends pretty early so you could possibly make it to some casting calls. I would do as the Queen of Evil suggests and take some improv classes. Most of the auditions that I went to handed you the script when you got there and you were expected to read off it rather than a prepared piece. It kinda sucks for us actors, but it's easier for them to compare the differences. My instructors always told me to try interpreting the piece in as unusual a way as possible, especially since they give you a pretty bare backstory if they give you one at all.Good luck in your endeavor and I hope you're one of the lucky ones that make it!