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Tips For a Successful Online Job Search

May 16, 2012 By Leave a Comment

More and more job seekers find employment online, whether through contacting companies directly or through search engines like Monster.com. But there are rules of etiquette for online job hunting just like the old-fashioned way. Here are some important tips to follow for best success.

Set up email alerts for jobs that match your criteria. Most major job hunting websites provide this service for free, but it will save you a ton of time. Why look through endless listings that may or may not apply to your needs when you can have a computer do it for you?

Make sure to write a customized cover letter for each position. Hiring managers typically look at the cover letter before the resume, and if it seems like you are serious about the open position, you’ll have a better chance at proceeding to the next stage.

When it comes to salary discussion, make sure you have a clear idea of not only what you need, but what the general industry average is. There are a number of websites that aggregate statistics for compensation – it’s wise to check them before you give a quote.

Watch out for job listings that seem too good to be true – the online marketplace is full of scams and misleading positions. A red flag should go up at any job that requires your social security number with an application or a fee.

 

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Fun Beach Games & Activities to Enjoy with Your Kids

April 25, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Lying on the beach is great, but when you’re traveling with kids, playing a few fun beach games is part of the experience, too. If you’re looking for some ideas to enjoy with your kids, or to play with your fellow beach-going friends, check out the suggestions below.

Cool off with a water balloon toss. This refreshing outdoor game is great for the beach, and since the kids are already in their bathing suits, having water balloons pop in their hands or near them on the ground will be a real treat to beat the heat!

Set up a bucket relay race. Grab two small buckets that are roughly the same size. Then have everyone divide into two teams, and have both teams form a line at the water’s edge, and set up the buckets 10 feet from the water. The point of the game is for each team to carry ocean water in their bare hands to the bucket. Keep alternating – once one player fills the bucket, then the next player in the line can grab water and race to the bucket. Keep going until one of the buckets is filled – revealing the winning team!

Everybody, let’s limbo! Grab a long stick, like an umbrella pole or broom handle, or even a jump rope can work. Two people hold the limbo “stick”, and the remaining people form a line and try to pass under the stick – after each round, the stick is lowered. The last player who makes it without touching the stick wins. And luckily, the sandy surface will cushion you if you fall.

Build a sand sculpture. If you’re ready for the kids to wind down, this is a great activity to suggest. Suggest that they build something unique that reflects an interest of theirs – like trucks, princesses, or bugs.  Even if you don’t have many castle-building tools, get creative – shells, seaweed, and pebbles make for great sculptural tools and decorations.

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Energy Bar Ingredients: 3 to Look for and 3 to Avoid

April 18, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Energy bars, protein bars, nutrition bars, health bars, snack bars, food bars, granola bars…they go by many names but they all serve a similar purpose- to provide your body with fuel. Regardless of what you call them, it is wise to look at the ingredients to determine whether they are a nutritious choice or merely empty calories. They can be wholesome or they can be artificial and highly processed. Don't make judgments based on the marketing words on the front of the wrapper or box. Turn the product over and read what it is made of.

3 Healthy Ingredients to Find in an Energy Bar

  • Whole Grains: Oats are common to find in energy bars. All oats are considered whole grains; there are various stages of processing but there are no refined oats to watch out for. Whole grains are a healthy source of carbohydrates and fiber to help keep you full. Whole wheat flour is okay also, but if it just says wheat flour (which is another phrase for white flour), then it is not a whole grain.
  • Nuts and seeds: These are the "good fats" as well as an excellent source of protein and fiber. Any kind of nut or seed is a nutritious addition to your diet. Don't be alarmed if the fat grams seem high on a bar if the source is from nuts or seeds. Many people still associate fat from nuts and seeds with fat on their body and this is an inaccurate belief. Eating more calories than you need is what leads your body to store fat.
  • Dried Fruit: The most natural sweetener you can get. Full of vitamins and minerals, which white sugar and high fructose corn syrup are lacking. Dates and raisins are commonly found in energy bars. It's okay to check out the sugar grams on the nutrition facts panel, but bear in mind that it does not differentiate between sugar from dried fruits and white sugar and corn syrup. See why it is so much more informative to read the ingredient list?

3 Ingredients to Watch Out For in an Energy Bar

  • Sugar: This is number one and because it makes things taste good and it's cheap you will find it in most bars. You'll also see it listed as high fructose corn syrup. Higher quality bars will use dates, raisins, or other dried fruit to sweeten. You may find brown rice syrup or agave- a bit of an improvement over the white stuff, but not much. Determine how much is in the bar by looking at where the sugar falls in the ingredient list (ingredients are listed in order of occurrence by weight). If sugar is up near the top then you know it's got a lot.
  • Partially-Hydrogenated Oils: Otherwise known as trans-fats. Most people know by now that these are the most dangerous type of fat out there. They are man-made and have been associated with numerous health issues. You'd never guess they could be lurking in a bar marketed as healthy but check that ingredient list to be sure.
  • Artificial Ingredients: This covers a wide range of ingredients. Look out for artificial: colors, flavors, preservatives, and sweeteners. Basically avoid anything that you don't recognize as a real food in the ingredient list. A questionable ingredient is any protein isolate (usually soy or whey). This is not a natural food; it has undergone extensive processing. In moderation, this is fine- just try to stick mainly to the bars with more wholesome and natural ingredients.


Kyle Vergari
Your NEWtrition & FITness, LLC

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Memorable Dogs In Fiction and Film

April 11, 2012 By Leave a Comment
If you’re a dog lover, you know the joy, humor, and adventure that pups can bring to everyday life. They have also brought those qualities to the page and screen many times throughout history. Here are some of the most famous four-legged stars to ever appear on celluloid or between the covers of a book:
 
Lassie
No list of memorable dogs would be complete without Lassie, a fictional collie dog created in a short story by Eric Knight and later brought to the big screen in MGM’s hugely popular 1943 film Lassie Come Home. After the movie did so well with audiences, a television show based on the dog was put into production, and it became a long-running Emmy winning series. As a character in fiction and film, Lassie the Dog was known for the ability to help save people from difficult situations and rescue those in need. 
 
Argos
Argos is the dog from Homer’s The Odyssey, known for his faithfulness to Odysseus – particularly in the famous scene of Odysseus’ homecoming. When Odysseus returns home after twenty years of struggling to find his way back to Ithaca, he disguises himself as a beggar in order to secretly re-enter the house. As he nears the house, he sees Argos lying old and sick on a pile of manure. Even in his decaying state, Argos recognizes Odysseus and manages to drop his ears and wag his tail. This scene has long stood as an iconic one when it comes to capturing the affection and loyalty that can exist between human beings and dogs.
 
Benji
Benji is a fictional pup that was featured in various movies from the 1970’s all the way through the 2000s. The Benji character is a small golden mixed-breed dog with a boisterous and lovable personality and the ability to sense when people are in need of help. The first Benji film in 1974 was a huge box office hit, spurring eight more extremely popular films in the Benji series.
 
Toto
Toto is a dog (a cairn terrier) created by L. Frank Baum in his Oz series of children’s books. He also later became a famous character in the The Wizard of Oz film starring Judy Garland. As the plot goes in both the books and the movie, Toto belongs to Dorothy Gale, the story’s young heroine. He is Dorothy’s loyal companion, accompanying her on her adventures through the magical land of Oz. 
 
Clifford
Clifford is a classic children’s book character loved by generations of kids. He is a giant red dog known for being friendly, helpful, and gregarious – and also known to sometimes get himself into trouble and various humorous situations because of his massive size. He is the loyal pup companion of Emily Elizabeth, an eight year old girl. He also has a host of dog friends who are vivid canine characters – including Cleo, a troublemaking purple poodle, and T-Bone, the sheriff’s slow-witted but lovable dog. 
 
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Why Skipping Breakfast Ruins Your Fat Loss Efforts

April 5, 2012 By Leave a Comment

I am fascinated by how many people miss breakfast or just have a coffee to start their day. If you consider that most people get 6 to 8 hours sleep and who miss breakfast often don’t have their first real meal until lunch time, which can mean up to 14 hours between meals.

Let’s also consider that if your last meal was at 7pm in the evening and your next real meal is at midday then that’s a whopping 17 hours without fuel. Overnight the sugar stores in the liver (glycogen) are depleted by a third. This means that the body is in starvation mode. After long periods of fasting, any refined sugars, excess carbohydrate or fat taken on board will be stored as fat and your body may use muscle mass instead of body fat as an energy source. Muscle under tension burns more body fat at rest and a reduction of muscle mass directly affects your metabolism, because muscle is what helps your body burn fat calories.

Did you know that your brain consumes 20 watts of energy and uses glycogen as its main energy source? Irregular eating intervals send your blood sugar levels on a rollercoaster ride making your body crave sugar. Snacking on a high sugary food spikes blood insulin levels but shortly after the levels then drastically crash making you tired and irritable. Because your brain is a hungry monster and detects this sudden drop, it demands more energy, making you repeat your snacking cycle.

Eating an appropriate balanced breakfast which includes protein is important in weight management and potentially can help you reduce calories though out the day, keeping your energy levels high, jump starting your metabolism, keeps your insulin levels constant, helps curb hunger and prevents binge eating.

Top Facts:

• Skipping meals shuts the body down and it stops burning fat and starts storing fat.
• Avoiding meals forces your body to use muscle tissue as a fuel source.
• Reduced muscle mass reduces your metabolism.
• Food energy is essential in keeping the body active. Missing meals reduces the intensity when working out and your ability to gain lean muscle mass, the key factor in increasing your natural metabolism.


Kyle Vergari
Your NEWtrition & FITness, LLC

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Fun Film History Facts

March 28, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Movies have given us so much entertainment and education, but did you know the long and convoluted road they had to travel to get where they are today? Here are some interesting facts about the torrid history of motion pictures.

The earliest ancestor to what we consider modern film is the photography of Edweard Muybridge, who rigged a special array of cameras to take multiple still pictures of a galloping horse. The images were then developed and put into a rotating drum that, when spun, caused the illusion of motion.

The motion picture camera was invented in the 1880s. Early silent films shocked and amazed audiences, who had never experienced anything like it before. Producers like Georges Melies created incredible narratives with early special effects that still dazzle to this day.

A number of people experimented with adding sound to movies, but it wasn’t until the 1920s that a soundtrack was directly attached to the film itself, opening a whole new world to artists.

The introduction of digital technology in the 1990s has radically changed the way people produce and view film, with new 3D projection methods being the latest example. Who knows what the future will bring?

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Passion for Fashion: Five Up-and-Coming Fashion Designers

March 14, 2012 By Leave a Comment

As we embark into the spring 2012 fashion season, here are five young designers to watch:

Rebecca Minkoff
Launched to fame by the appearance of one of her T-shirts on the show Dharma and Greg, Minkoff’s lines of men’s and women’s handbags are practical, stylish, and flying off the shelves.

Chadwick Bell
Chadwick Bell’s designs hark back to old Hollywood glamour but with a modern, minimalist touch. Combining structured pieces with more flowy and ethereal ones, Bell’s garments have a timeless appeal.

Alejandro Ingelmo
Ingelmo opened his first boutique and produced his sixth Spring Fashion Week collection this fall, taking a bold architectural approach to footwear. Ingelmo always brings the drama in his designs for both men and women.

Jen Kao
Kao effortlessly balances high fashion and ready-to-wear, creating bold, graphic designs that look equally at home on the runway or on the street. It is truly surprising how wearable these clothes are, despite their often innovative designs and structures.

Denis Colomb 
Colomb began his career designing scarves and housewares and has recently expanded to men’s and women’s knitwear. Colomb’s designs are strongly influenced by the cultures of Southeast Asia, reined in by a sharp modernist aesthetic.

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Truth Is Stranger Than Fiction: Four Surprising Documentaries

February 22, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Some of the greatest documentaries are about subjects that no one would have thought would make for a compelling story. These films take seemingly mundane subjects and craft them into compulsively watchable entertainment:

Helvetica
The story of the world’s most popular font (you’ll recognize it as soon as you see it) encompasses design history, philosophy, sociology, and the psychology of typeface selection.

Hands on a Hardbody
This 1997 film follows a common car dealership promotion that took place in Longview, Texas: contestants must place their gloved hands on a shiny new truck and the last one to remove them wins the truck. What follows is a grueling, suspenseful, and strangely inspiring ordeal.

The Parking Lot Movie
Learn why a parking lot in Charlottesville, Virginia can be a special place, a place of learning, growth, and a rite of passage for its employees. Funny, insightful, and sometimes sad, this film uses its banal backdrop to say important things about life and growing up.

Please Vote for Me
A class of 8 year olds vote for a class monitor in the first election of its kind in China. The larger issue of the democratization of China and the nature of democracy runs through the story, as children and adults become involved in the election in both positive and negative ways.

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Endless Summer: Songs to Beat the Winter Blues

February 8, 2012 By Leave a Comment

In the depths of winter, sometimes you need some musical inspiration to remember that life is not always this grey. These summery songs make a great soundtrack for a winter day.

Chicago – "Saturday in the Park"
Released milliseconds before the band moved into the realm of utter cheese, this sweet song gives a sense of time and place that will warm your bones. Meanwhile, gorgeous vocal harmonies and a jazzy tune will lift your spirits.

Various Artists – "Summertime Blues"
Whether it’s Eddie Cochran’s rockin’ original, Blue Cheer’s heavy rendition, or The Who playing it live, “Summertime Blues” is a deceptively jaunty expression of teen angst. And it’s all centered around good old summer vacation.

War – "Summer"
Not just summer – summer in the 70s. The number of classically 1970s references in this epicly long song (8 tracks and rappin’ on CB radios!) approaches the comical, but luckily it’s War so the funky, chilled out beats make it all fun.

Fastbacks – "In the Summer"
This late 80s track from Seattle pop-punkers the Fastbacks has a timeless and relentlessly summery feel. It’s the song about cruising around on a hot summer’s day and going to the beach that you’d listen to while cruising around and going to the beach. Absolutely perfect.

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Great Sites for Free Online Classes

January 25, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Increasingly, universities and companies are creating free and accessible online courses to open up education to everyone. Got an itch to learn something new? Check out these five sites offering free online courses:

MIT’s Open Courseware
Now you too can experience a prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology education through their free online Courseware. While you can't earn an MIT degree through the site, Open Courseware allows you to watch lectures, study from real exams, and more in disciplines such as Architecture, Engineering, and Science. Click here to learn more.

Open Yale Courses
Open Yale Courses grants free access to Ivy League introductory courses on programs like Astronomy, Economics, and Philosophy. You don’t need to register, giving you freedom to learn at your leisure through lecture videos and notes. Learn more by clicking here.

iTunes University
iTunes U’s podcasts are used by students and professors alike through a variety of mediums such as laptops and iPhones.  Along with lectures from top universities, iTunes U also distributes video tours, books, and films from museums, PBS, Public Radio International, and more. Click here for more information.

Khan Academy
Developed by an entrepreneur from MIT, Khan Academy allows users to register and track their progress wading through thousands of videos and problems from high school to college level courses. This is a unique gem for home school students and their coaches. To learn more about the Khan Academy, click here.

Idealware
Along with pay-for courses, Idealware has free web-based classes aimed towards non-profits. Typically an hour-long apiece, these courses address topics such as software and fundraising. Click here to visit Idealware's site.

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