Found Not Lost

Everyone must realize by now how the IT field is growing by leaps and bounds and anyone who is in the industry and is good at what they do is guaranteed to remain gainfully employed. Whether you are just thinking of getting into the field or are already in the field and are just looking to get ahead, a Cisco certification can open a lot of doors for you.

It used to be that when you say you’re going into computers, everyone assumes that you will become a programmer. Well even if your exposure to today’s technology is minimal, you’ll realize that the world of computers has gone way beyond simple programming. An IT professional can work as a network security specialist, security administrator, network security support engineer, voice administrator, voice engineer, voice manager, and many other areas of expertise. Some people gain access to those jobs through education, some through experience, but to keep those jobs they all have to maintain a level of knowledge in order to keep up with the ever changing state of technology. A Cisco certification, the guaranteed seal of approval in the IT world, will do that for you.

If you are interested in getting certified, look through their list of general certifications or if you’d like, they also offer more advanced specialist certifications in areas such as Advanced Routing and Switching, Data Center Certifications, IP Communications, Wireless LAN, and VPN and Security. The field is endless. The great thing is, almost every corporation now needs a crack team of IT specialists in order to keep their wheels turning. There is no better time to get in the IT field than now.

Frank McCourt won the Pulitzer price for his first Novel, Angela’s Ashes, which chronicles his childhood in Ireland. Teacher Man is his third book and here he talks about the thirty years he spent teaching English in New York City. He writes in a very relaxed, narrative style with plenty of humor and wittiness interspersed. While everyone says this is a must read for teachers, I think it is also a must read for parents. I think many parents don’t realize the work it takes to be a teacher. We sometimes forget that they are human too, just like us, no worst and no better.

Teacher Man follows McCourt’s journey through teaching from the very first days floundering in the classroom to the very last, where alas, he is still floundering but with a little more finesse. Isn’t that the same way for most of us, especially when it comes to dealing with young people? Teens are an enigma that we can never hope to solve and the sooner that we learn that the better. Of course, we don’t and we all flounder along bumping into each other until we bump in just the right direction and something wonderful comes out. That’s kind of how McCourt chronicles his teaching experience. I think the greatest thing he did was to admit that he is there to learn just as much as his students are, if not more so.

Whether you’re a teacher or a writer, I think this book provides great insight into the profession and encourages quite a bit of introspection, which, for books, I think is a great thing.

I’m sure you’ve seen the growing number of Payday loans places in your neighborhood. If you don’t know what they are, you’ve probably never had a use for them before and that’s a good thing. Those who have heard of Payday and Loans were probably warned that they are not smart financial solutions. However, I think that there is a benefit for these places especially when you find yourself in a situation where you need some cash right now, and you don’t have any other means to get any cash. What a lot of financial advisers forget or choose to overlook is that not everyone has an emergency fund to dip into. Not everyone has a savings. There are a great number of people who literally are living from paycheck to paycheck. If even one cent goes awry, it throws their whole budget off.

We know, and they know it’s not the smartest way to handle your money, but some people just don’t have a choice.

We finally got to try Chipotle Burrito over the weekend and got some mixed reviews. Overall, everyone (me, the husband and 3 kids) thought the burrito was good, BUT…

1. There was not enough meat (husband)
2. Not enough selection (daughter #2)
3. You have to pay for chips and salsa which offsets the lower cost of the burrito (daughter #1)
4. Too spicy (daughter #3)
5. Not spicy enough (mom)

We all agreed Chipotle Burrito is better than Taco Bell. Their ingredients were fresh and the rice was good. They just put too much rice and not enough meats in their burrito. They had fresh and quite good guacamole. The salsas were also good, just not spicy enough for me, but that’s just me. It is good enough to tide you over, but not anything to rave about or itch to go back to. The consensus is, it’s good in a pinch when you just want something good to eat, but definitely not a planned night out destination. We also all agreed, this ain’t no Mexican food. If you’re looking for authentic fare, better look elsewhere.

Magic tricks used to mean rabbits out of the hat, flying pigeons turned into kerchiefs and the finale, woman sawed in half! Illusions meant the disappearing act behind curtains and trap doors on the floor.

What if you took all the trappings off and ratcheted up the tricks? That’s what magicians/illusionists today, like Criss Angel, are doing. Criss Angel, for instance, does the woman cut in half trick. We’re so used to seeing the box part and the show wriggling that it really doesn’t impress us much anymore, right? But what if you see it Criss Angel’s way (look for the YouTube video - Criss Angel and Half a Woman. You’ll be amazed), without the props, in the middle of a park, with some random person (don’t really know if she is random or planted), and have her pulled apart by two volunteers? What if those two halves then run away from each other in shock? Would you believe? There are no mirrors, no smoke screen, just your eyes. Do you still trust them?

Want to see more? The famed Cirque du Soleil is now staging a new show at the Luxor in Las Vegas featuring Criss Angel, CRISS ANGEL Believe. It is going to be a sure blockbuster show.

Now you can win two tickets to the show by simply texting ‘Believe’ to 22122. Visit crissangel.com to learn more about the show and the contest.

My daughter and I couldn’t wait for this third installment of the House of Night series by P.C. Cast and daughter Kristin Cast. We both enjoyed reading the book, but it left us hanging and sort of unsatisfied. It wasn’t long enough, too many plots left unfinished… So we’re hanging until the next book, Untamed.

“..darkness does not always equate to evil, just as light does not always bring good”

This has been cautionary words of wisdom, since the beginning. The book, it’s story line and the sub plots have all pointed to this truth that things are not always as they seem or what you think they should be.

In this third book, Zoey is still dealing with her best friend Stevie Ray being undead as she tries to find ways to get her friend back the way she was. She also has to deal with another death at the school, this time around one of the professors die. She is still juggling three romantic interests; and while my daughter thinks she was being totally stupid in her choices, I think she is just being a typical teenager. She also has to make a mature choice in working with her former enemy, who may turn out to not have been an enemy after all.

There are certainly enough subplots in this book to keep you engrossed. I read this in one sitting, practically, and was left wanting for more.