The Market Coalition

This week I came face-to-face with a genuine dilemma. I had several meetings across town and for some reason I miscalculated and ended up with a 2-1/2 hour gap between meetings. I hate to waste time, but if I drove back to my office, I would simply have to return to my meeting later and with the cost of gas these days, one cannot be too cautious.

You know gas is getting high when it costs more to fill up the car than the car is actually worth. The most valuable thing in my car is in my gas tank.

I remedied the situation by stopping in a small coffee shop for cup of Joe. As far as I’m concerned, there is no bad time to have a cup of coffee, in spite of the price. I ordered my coffee and when the waitress brought it to me, I began to think about coffee. Why did God give us coffee?

Then my mind went back to my grandfather, whose great gift to me was a love of coffee. Nobody loved coffee more. I remember one of his favorite quotes, “You can always tell a man by the coffee drinks.”

Anathema to my grandfather was the idea of instant coffee. No man, in his opinion, would ever drink anything of the kind. “If a man would drink instant coffee,” my grandfather perked, “there’s no telling what else he would do. Never trust a man who drinks instant coffee.”

Making coffee was an art form to my grandfather. There was a right way and a wrong way to make coffee, and he always insisted on the right way. Of course, the right way was the way he made coffee.

In grandfather’s kitchen was an old wood-burning cook stove. My grandmother cooked meals on this ancient apparatus for more than 50 years. Sure, she eventually got an electric stove but it was more for show than anything else.

On this old-fashioned stove, my grandfather brewed his famous mud broth. He never allowed my grandmother to make the brew; it was his job, which he took seriously.

Once for his birthday we all chipped in and bought him an electric coffee pot. I had never seen my grandfather so mad. When he saw what it was he would not even take it out of the box.

He had strong ideas about coffee and how it should be brewed and woe be to the person who contradicted his ideas.

Grandfather always kept a fire in the old wood cook stove and on the back of the stove he kept his coffee pot, a large 2-gallon pot one of those old-fashioned percolators long since gone out of style. The coffee was always on, and no matter when you stopped in to see him, he always had “fresh” coffee brewing.

When I say “fresh” I need to explain. Actually, the coffee was only fresh on Sunday. On Saturday night, he routinely emptied the coffee pot and prepared fresh coffee for Sunday morning.

He had an old coffee grinder and ground the coffee beans on Saturday night. He put some other things in the coffee, I have never figured out what. One thing I know he put in was a crushed eggshell. What it did to his coffee I have no idea, but grandfather was sure it was an important ingredient.

The freshly-ground coffee beans were put in, the pot filled with fresh water and set on the back of the stove to slowly perk. This coffee would last the entire week. The coffee was so strong on Sunday that if it didn’t wake you in the morning, you were dead.

In fact, cousin Ernie died on a Sunday afternoon, so my grandfather tells the story, and one sip of his black coffee roused him and he lived seven more years, which was unfortunate for grandfather, as he had to support him.

Before retiring each evening my grandfather took care of his coffee. He would freshly grind a few coffee beans, sprinkle it on top of the old coffee grounds, and then add a newly crushed eggshell. Then he would refill the coffee pot with water.

His coffee percolated 24/7 and by Saturday it was so strong you needed a half-cup of sugar just to drink one cup. It was thick enough to use as syrup on your pancakes, but so strong, it dissolved your pancakes before you could eat them.

My grandmother once tried washing the coffee pot. When my grandfather saw her, he became furious, “Never wash that coffee pot,” he spouted, “you’ll ruin its character and a coffee pot needs a lot of character to make good coffee.”

When my grandfather died, I looked at his old black coffee pot and discovered two things. One, the original color was blue. And two, although it was originally a 2-gallon pot, it only could take three quarts of water. The “character,” so important to my grandfather, had built up so much over the years its capacity was diminished.

In pondering my grandfather, I thought about my Heavenly Father and His gifts. The Bible puts it this way; “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.” (James 1:17 KJV.)

I really don’t know why God gave us coffee but I do know God’s character is of such a nature that it never diminishes His ability to bless me each day.

The Rev. James L. Snyder is pastor of the Family of God Fellowship, 1471 Pine Road. He lives with his wife, Martha, in Silver Springs Shores. Contact him by calling 687-4240. His e-mail address is jamessnyder2@att.net. The church web site is http://www.whatafellowship.com

It seems so simple: write down your previous jobs and give some educational history, maybe offer a few details about what you want out of life. Easy stuff, right?

Maybe not.

A poorly written resume is worse than not having one at all. It can easily undo everything that is presented at an interview. No matter how perfectly you word your phrases, they will all be forgotten the minute an employer scans over a shoddy resume.

So, what do you do? One way is to, of course, write it yourself, using templates and other sources, and hope your skills with words match your experiences. But, for those not so confident in their writing abilities, the smartest option is to have a professional resume prepared.

There are multiple sites and organizations dedicated to helping you craft the perfect professional resume. You provide the information and they turn it into something you can be proud of. Having a professional resume created offers you the best chance of impressing employers.

Of course, it must be noted that there is a disadvantage to this process: cost. Professional resume companies charge–sometimes heavily–for their services. Some may not want to pay for what they consider just “a couple pieces of paper”. This may be your mindset. Perhaps you think you could write a solid resume on your own and, perhaps, you can. All should take notice, however, of what they think their skills are, compared to what they really are.

You might be able to create a good resume; if so, create one. But, you should never rely just on your perceptions. You must be sure to let others read it, giving their opinions on what you can improve. If, after different suggestions, you don’t feel the resume is what it should be, consider a professional resume service.

Yes, they do charge and, yes, sometimes it can be much. The key is to research. You might find better deals online than through a standard service, or you could, at least, use the Internet to discover how many options you have available to you. Never go with the first company you stumble across; this is not a wise decision. Compare prices and rates until you find one that can offer quality and affordability. Often, these businesses will offer samples of their work. Decide if their style will suit
what you need.

If you seem to have trouble correctly wording your professional resume, or don’t get the responses you desire, it would be wise to look into these services. A professional resume is written by individuals who know what future employers look for; they are well-schooled in catching, and keeping, the attention. So, for the sake of your future, don’t sneer at the idea of receiving help. A resume–for all the talk of it being just a piece of paper–is important.

You don not want to ruin your chances of success with a poor one. Consider a professional resume service; they can help you create a resume tailored for your abilities.

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The studies are overwhelming - if you are physically able and willing to breastfeed your baby, it’s the best food for baby’s early days of life. That doesn’t that your baby won’t thrive perfectly well on formula if that’s what you need use, but simply that breast milk is preferable if at all possible. Although this article is written specifically about breastfeeding, many of the suggestions made here will also apply to bottle-feeding, so read on!

For the first few days of baby’s life, mum produces a substance much thicker and creamier than milk, which is called colostrum. Even if you don’t nurse your baby, see if you can collect some of this colostrum through expressing, as it’s wonderful food, full of nutrients and other good stuff for baby. If you’re nursing, it will most likely be that you need to feed your baby frequently, and on demand, for these early days.

When babies are born their digestive system is very underdeveloped, and it takes a little while for baby to get used to having food pass through his system. Many babies seem to automatically regular their intake of food, almost as if they know their stomachs need time to get then hang of food. Small, frequent feeds helps get the digestive system up and running without overwhelming it.

After about 1-2 weeks, the baby’s digestive system should have settled down, and you can start to work on creating a feeding routine. Most new babies work well on a schedule of feeds every 3-4 hours. Now, this doesn’t mean that you start a stopwatch at the end of one feed, and refuse to feed baby again until the correct amount of time has passed! It does mean, though, that you can try and plan your day with a view to needing to feed your baby at about those intervals. Also, if baby grumbles in between feeds, it’s worth trying to find other ways through it, stretching the gap between feeds, until you reach somewhere around 3-4 hours. Apart from anything else, this means that you’re not tied down to always feeding baby. It also means that your body gets to rest and make more milk, and baby’s stomach is given time to digest each feed before having another one.

If you find that baby just can’t seem to go 3-4 hours between feeds by the time he’s a month old, it may be worth checking this with your health professional. Not all breast milk is the same, and it may be that either you’re not producing enough to keep baby satisfied, or perhaps that the milk’s quality isn’t quite sufficient for baby’s needs. Sometimes in this type of situation a little supplementation may be required. Only do this with guidance, however.

From this point on almost every baby comes up with its own schedule for feeding, but the first big advance is to go without a night feed. You can progressively work on moving the last feed at night to around 10.00 or 11.00pm. Initially that means you’ll get woken for a feed around 2.00 or 3.00am, and again for an early feed around 6.00 or 7.00am. The good thing, though, is that at some point the 3.00am feed will stop, and you’ll be able to get a stretch of unbroken sleep for 7-8 hours. Bliss! Of course, the first time it happens, you’ll probably wake up at 4.00am anyway, and race into baby’s room in a panic because you’re sure something’s happened to him!

You can start to think about introducing solid foods somewhere around 6 months of age. Sometimes you can start a little earlier, and sometimes you need to wait another month or two. But that’s a topic for a whole new article!

One of the most important things to remember in breastfeeding is YOU. If you’re tired, or unwell, or stressed, your body will struggle to produce enough high quality milk to feed your baby. It’s vital that you eat well, rest whenever you can and just generally look after yourself. Both you and your baby will be much happier that way.

For more useful breastfeeding hints, visit Info About Baby You can sign up for a FREE Baby Tips newsletter at Baby Tips Newsletter. The author’s book about babies is available at Baby’s First Year

Nowadays, the expansion rate of satellite TV had beaten cable
TV greatly. Recent polls show some common reasons being superior
picture quality, larger selection of channels and programs,
increased availability, good customer service and the continuing
drop in price.

From the popularity angle, we can see that cable TV is having a
bigger market segments as they are the pioneer in the paid TV
business. However, satellite TV services are less expensive,
provide better picture quality (digital signal) and give more
programming choices to their users. Perhaps this is the reason
why satellite TV had been listed as one of the fastest growing
products in United States. We predict that this rapid growing
trend will remain the same pace for the next 5 years. As for
consumer’s view of angle, satellite TV deals seems to be the
better deal to go for.

However, with any hot product come the scammers. Hundreds or
even thousands of "free satellite TV" websites had
popped up; claming to offer the best satellite TV deals and
promotions. Most of these scams offer a fake promise on their
deals. Extremely low monthly subscription rates, next-day
installation, and unlimited number of free satellite systems are
some of the common promotion terms. However, once a customer
signs up they find hidden activation fees, high delivery costs
for free extras, installation dates continuously missed or
pushed back, as well as shocking cancellation fees.

Satellite TV buyers should always beware of all these scammers
and do not fall into their traps. Satellite TV deals can be a
huge bargains or a scary nightmare and it all depends on the
satellite TV retailers that you pick. To avoid these troubles,
you must be prepared to do some study before getting into the
deal. Understand clearly all the buying terms, avoid confusion
by the promotion wordings, and select only dependable satellite
TV providers (retailers).

What happen when someone place his/her order on satellite TV
services via online retailers?

You place an order with an online satellite TV system retailer.
You will then choose the number of satellite system you wished
to receive. Standard online satellite TV deals will offer you up
to 4 free satellite systems along with certain incentive gifts
like DVD player or home theater systems.

At the time of ordering you will schedule a time that a local
professional installer can come to your home and install the
system. You do not need to choose your programming packages at
the time of order. For example when you are ordering the Dish
Network deals, you can always order your Dish Network systems
first and decide your programming package later. Instructions
for ordering your Dish Network programming will be sent with
your systems.

You will need to call Dish Network’s toll-free number (24/7 all
year long) after your installation is completed. A customer
service representative will help you activate all the
programming you would like. The satellite system will either be
shipped to your home before the installation date or the
installer will bring it with them. In normal case, shipping cost
and standard installation fees are free of charge.

How should I know the satellite TV retailer is dependable?

Both Dish Network and DirecTV had several authorized online
retailers assigned and you are always recommended to order your
satellite systems from them. Remember! Only order your satellite
TV from authorized dealers.

Further more, to get a dependable online dealer, we suggest
checklist below as the minimum requirements.

This page: http://www.satellitetvissue.com/freesatellites/dealers.html
would be a good place to start on with a filtered list of satellite TV providers.

Requirements on good online satellite TV retailers:

• In satellite TV business for more than 1 year.
• Websites must provide secure order page and certified
  website.
• Must be authorized by Dish Network or DirecTV
  officials.
• No "hidden" fees- cost charged on
  credit card is shown clearly.
• Customer service
  available via phone, live chats or email.
• 100%
  guaranteed. (Full refund if installation fails).
• Testimonial, users review, as well as other authority sites
  recommendation would be a plus point.