Tips for handling pressure at work

Stress is no stranger to anyone striving to earn a living in the twenty-first century. Long working hours, looming deadlines, fierce competition, unrealistic demands from supervisors and job insecurity are only a few of the items which routinely plague the contemporary worker.

Left unaddressed, these factors, over a period of time, will result in loss of productivity, and an increased number of absences due to illness, accidents and emotional problems. Further consequences will involve family break-ups, relationship difficulties and mental illness. Not even machines can operate continually in high gear.

Management strategies for work-related pressures are best undertaken by individual employees. Corporations and executives are chiefly motivated by the all-important bottom line: profits.

Here are a few tips workers can use to keep cool at work, even when the pressure reaches maximum intensity:

* Get sufficient rest. Everything seems worse when you're tired, Arrange your life so that you get at least 8 hours sleep before every work day. Only disrupt your schedule for a very important reason.

* Leave time for a relaxed morning routine. Have a healthy breakfast, look at a newscast on TV. Reflect that your job is, in reality, only a tiny part of the events and drama taking place around the globe.

* Plan ahead. Have in mind what you want to accomplish that day, a major goal and perhaps some secondary ones. Write them down if necessary. You'll be rewarded with a feeling of satisfaction if you manage to achieve even the most important one.

* Be comfortable. Dress appropriately and neatly in clothes that fit comfortably. Wear suitable shoes. You can't do your best if your feet hurt. You are there to use your skills and abilities for the benefit of your employer. You are not competing in a fashion show.

* Be organized. Keep your desk and workspace neat. Do one thing at a time and only move on when it's completed. Keep your list of goals handy and check each off when it's completed.

* Avoid conflict. Be pleasant and cooperative with everyone, but refuse to get involved in gossip, office politics, or heated discussions. Hostility creates tension, and that's what you're trying to avoid.

* Take a walk at lunch. Get out in the fresh air, weather permitting. Pick up a few things at a store, meet a pal for coffee, go home and let the dog out. Take your mind off work, however briefly.

* Keep your priorities straight. Your family comes first. Jobs may come and go but they will be with you for life. If you damage your physical or emotional health through overwork, they will suffer. Not only will they miss your financial contribution, but more importantly, your cheerful companionship and emotional support. For their benefit, you must maintain stability and balance in your life.

As you leave the workplace, check your goal list, then discard it. You've probably had a pretty productive day.

On the way home, think back to the newscast you saw in the morning. You might have spent the day dodging bullets on a bloody battlefield, or running from a street gang in a crowded inner city. You could live in a third world country, be deathly ill with no medical help or medicine for miles.

Come to think of it, that job isn't so bad after all, is it?

Funny U.S. Laws

Every jurisdiction in the world has laws which seem outdated and sometimes even ridiculous. Some were enacted years ago and no one has ever bothered to remove them. Others have been left in place in case they might become relevant again in the future. Still others, I suspect, have been left on the books just to provide a chuckle to anyone who wants to peruse every single piece of legislation ever enacted in that area.

Here are some of the strangest laws still in effect in the United States:

* In Minnesota, it is illegal to tease skunks.

It is not only illegal, it is also stupid.

* In Oklahoma, people who make "ugly faces" at dogs may be fined and/or jailed.

If you're naturally unattractive, must you wear a mask in front of your dog?

* In North Carolina, it is illegal to have sex in a Churchyard.

I suspect the punishment would be more severe if there is a funeral in progress at the time.

* In Montana, it is a felony for a wife to open her husband's mail.

However, if it just happens to open as she holds it over a steaming kettle...

* In Omaha, Nebraska, if a child burps during a church service, his or her parents may be arrested.

They probably wonder why only elderly people attend church in Omaha.

* In Tennessee, it is illegal to use a lasso to catch a fish.

You can use a hook, a net, a spear, a bucket, a knitting needle, a pickle jar, a strainer, but not a lasso.

* In Columbus, Georgia, it is illegal to sit on one's porch in an indecent position.

Back straight, feet flat on the ground, knees together, shoulders back, head up; got it?

* In Texas, it is illegal to milk another person's cow.

And don't give me that old story about the animal being a stray who just happened to follow you home.

* In Lebanon, Virginia, it is illegal to kick your wife out of bed.

You can push, pull, shove, roll, heave, nudge or butt her out, but don't you dare kick!

* In Vermont, women must obtain written permission from their husbands to wear false teeth.

Would he prefer to watch her gumming her way through life?

Perhaps there should be an official "Records Officer" appointed for each state to delete all out-of-date laws, or to bring them into conformity with modern practices and customs. Then again, that would be yet another civil servant to drain the already anaemic public tax coffers.

As  Mark Twain observed, "Humor is mankind's greatest blessing". Let's just leave them the way they are.

Have you met the blue-footed booby?

Why would I want to?", you're probably wondering. Well, these seabirds have several interesting features, besides their comical names, and you must admit the topic would be a great conversation opener.

The booby gets its name from the Spanish word "bobo" meaning a stupid fellow. And this goose-sized seabird really does have bright blue feet. He's very clumsy on land and appears fearless of humans, which makes him seem very vulnerable, and not too smart.

Habitat

The blue-footed booby is found on the Galapolos Islands, and on other islands off the western coasts of northern South America, Mexico, and tropical America, from the coast of California to southern Peru.

Description

It has a white body, a brown and white-streaked head, a blue-grey face, a blue tapered bill, a long neck and brilliant blue webbed feet. It is a little less than a meter long and has a wingspan of almost 1.5 meters. It can live as long as 17 years.

Feeding

It feeds singly or in a group and eats only fish. It glides smoothly over the waves, keeping its beak at a downward angle. When it sees a fish, it dives gracefully into the water, barely making a splash. It can also dive from a sitting position on the water's surface.

When in a flock, the first bird spotting a fish gives a whistle to alert the others, and they follow him, diving in perfectly synchronized movements.

Reproduction

The blue-footed booby may breed any time of year. During the mating ritual, the male bird shows off his feet to a possible mate by doing an exaggerated high-stepping strut. The bluer the feet, the more attractive he is. Then he presents nest materials to the female. After a brief courtship flight, mating occurs.

The female lays two or three light blue eggs in a shallow depression in the flat ground. The parents use their webbed feet, which have an increased blood supply, to cover the eggs and keep them warm. The young hatch in about 45 days. The female balances them on top of her feet for the first month of their lives.

Both parents feed the young continuously by regurgitating fish and allowing the chicks to remove it from their bills. It there is a food shortage, only the largest chick is fed. Chicks stay with their parents about two months

Conservation

The blue-footed booby is legally protected on the Galapagos Islands, where there are about 20,000 breeding pairs. Other populations, numbering about 20,000, are slightly in danger because of egg collectors.

Now that you've been introduced to the blue-footed booby, you must agree it's an interesting bird. As you share information about its habits and lifestyle, you should be guaranteed at least five minutes of attention from even the most reticent conversationalists.

If you hate to speak in public

Hate it or not, the ability to speak well in public is a necessary skill for anyone wishing to get ahead in the world of business, politics, or any field of endeavor today. The twenty-first century is the age of effective communication.

Consider the charismatic figure of Barack Obama during the 2008 presidential election campaign, striding across numerous stages and platforms all over the country, electrifying audiences with fiery, stimulating public speeches. Would he have won the presidency without this talent to connect powerfully and positively with many people during a single presentation? Probably not.

Admittedly, few of us will reach the skill level of President Obama in addressing groups of people, but there are simple steps which can be mastered by anyone to assure success. The projected audience may be large or small, young or old and the settings vary from a college classroom, to a boardroom, to an elaborate auditorium. By following these guidelines, you'll do well in communicating before a group.

1. Know your material, but don't try to cram everything you know into your speech. Several main points, with background information will be sufficient. Information overload will not be helpful to your audience. Plan for a question period later when additional points may be addressed.

2. Choose a topic you're interested in and are enthusiastic about. The audience will catch and reflect your enthusiasm.

3. Practice, practice, practice. Rehearse aloud, use a tape recorder, speak in front of a mirror and before friends and family members. Speak slowly. Vary your tone. Insert pauses after critical points. Make up cue cards with bullet points in large font as back-ups, but know your material well enough so that you won't need them.

4. Be well-groomed. Wear something comfortable, yet neat and professional-looking.

5. Arrive early; walk around the speaking area. Practice using the microphone.

6. Engage in positive self-talk. " You are going to be great! You have something worthwhile to share and these people need to hear it." Visualize yourself giving the speech. Imagine speaking loudly, clearly and confidently, and the audience applauding.

7. Take several deep breaths before beginning. Pick out two or three friendly faces in different sections of the audience and attempt to keep eye contact with them. Try to look natural. Move around, use gestures.

8. Think of the audience as your brothers and sisters. They want you to do well. They are glad it's you up there and not them. Concentrate on helping them, by getting your message across as clearly as possible. Think of them, try to forget your nervousness.

9. Be aware of time limitations. The sustained attention span of the average adult has been estimated to be about 20 minutes. After that, you're probably talking to the walls. Be direct, be clear, be finished.

10. If a follow-up is needed, arrange for a question period, small-group discussions, a video or slide presentation or refreshments and perhaps a written evaluation of the evening.

Being a confident, charismatic speaker will be an important asset for whatever career path you choose. The most important factors for success are experience and practice. If you feel you need extra help, join the local Toastmasters Club. It is an organization which has helped millions of people hone their speaking skills and overcome their nervousness about speaking in public.

Check the Toastmasters World Headquarters web site to find a club in your area.

http://reports.toastmasters.org/findaclub/

Unique and creative gifts for seniors

Since I am a senior, I have a few suggestions to offer. I'm in my seventies, so I speak from experience. One thing to remember, please don't ask me on the spur of the moment what I want; I won't be able to think of a thing. Many of us older folks have well-seasoned minds which work just as well as they ever did, but perhaps a bit more slowly. I like to think that's because there's so much knowledge, and so many memories stored in there, it takes a while to locate the appropriate information. Here's what I'd really like for Christmas:

1.) A family Christmas Day celebration, in which nobody's fighting and everybody shows up. Even if everyone is not feeling totally amicable, could you just pretend, for the sake of your dad and me? We may not all have that many more holidays together.

2.) You know those grocery list pads that stick on the fridge with a magnet? I could use a dozen of those! See earlier comments about slow memory. I forgot to mention forgetfulness.

3.) We got a VCR last year, but never figured out how to work it. I would love a certificate for one hour of someone's time to explain it again very slowly. See that I take notes to refer to after you leave. Make me set it up myself several times so I really understand.

4.) I would love to get involved with E-Bay! Hey, I think I could even start a little business buying and selling stuff on line. Since the computer and I are hardly what you'd term "well-acquainted", that would cost some generous soul an hour a week for a month. I hope you don't think that's being greedy; you know I'd share any profits with my grandchildren.

5.) Speaking of grandchildren, we love it when you drop in with them for a visit. I realize everyone's busy with their own lives, but could you commit to a visit, say, every two weeks? A note to that effect under the tree would make it seem that Christmas was going to last all year.

6.) I've started back to Weight Watchers on the urging of the doctor. You know what? All the scales in Canada show your weight in kilograms- what a crock! I need a scales that weighs in pounds. I know that would entail a trip over the border for someone, but I'd really appreciate it; so would the doctor. He gets really grumpy about the weight issue.

7.) Our dog is getting on in years, just like us. Soon it will be time to send her to that big kennel in the sky. I don't have the heart to take her on that last trip to the vet. I worry about your dad, with his heart condition, having to do it. Could one of you offer to take her when the time comes? We would be forever grateful.

8.) I miss the days when we were all together and life was busy and interesting. Remember how I used to nag you all about always being on the phone. I think at one point we even had a schedule as to who could use it when. You can phone as much as you want now- please do. I`ll even be glad to get e-mails! I am a thoroughly modern mom. (Well, almost-)

9.) If you`re bound and bent on buying something, anything warm and fuzzy would be most welcome- slippers, a robe, a sweater. Please stick to bright colors, just because we`re getting on doesn`t mean we have to be totally dull.

10.)Sharing your time, your attention, and your lives with us is the best present you can give. You have already gifted us by becoming fine upstanding adults of whom we can be very proud. We never tire of relating your kindnesses and your accomplishments to our friends. We sincerely hope that when you become seniors you will be fortunate enough to have children as loving and caring as ours are.

Tips for a beginning writer

To write professionally is a privilege, and also a responsibility. These two facts must be kept in mind whenever you take pen in hand or sit down at the computer to share your thoughts, opinions or stories with others.

Writing professionally is a privilege because others are taking time out of their busy lives to read your words. They may have paid to purchase a publication containing them. They have made a judgment that what you have to say is important enough to merit their consideration. You are privileged to have gained the attention of strangers, who are ready to share your thoughts.

Because of this privilege, you, as an ethical writer, have certain responsibilities. Here are several:

(a) The research you do for articles and essays for must be thorough and accurate. It is wrong to give your readers false or misleading information. You should not make inferences on matters which can be easily researched to obtain factual information. Total truth and honesty is a must, and will gain you faithful and trusting followers.

(b) Proof-read your work several times carefully. Editors and readers can easily begin to doubt your ability if you have failed to master the basics of your mother tongue.

(c) Keep a dictionary at your side. Check to be sure you have the correct meaning of sound-alike words: i.e. their, there and they're.

Don't plan to begin by writing the novel of the century. Start small. Write a " Letter to the Editor" of your local newspaper. Submit an article to the "Seniors' News" or other local publication. Write a blurb about an upcoming event for your church bulletin. With every acceptance your confidence will grow.

A next step may be to submit an op-ed piece to the Editorial Pages of an area newspaper that accepted guest columnists. Be sure to check the publication's web site for writers' guidelines. You may receive a small payment for your efforts. This will be a major thrill if you are hoping to launch a new career.

If your talent is fiction, begin with short stories. Every Spring and Summer many newspapers in larger urban centers have contests to gather notable short fiction pieces. The winning stories will provide their readers with material for leisure reading during the holidays. The prizes are often worthwhile and your fame as a freelance writer will grow with every piece you have published.

At this point, I recommend that you invest in the current year's edition of "Writer's Manual". It's a fat, soft-cover book which lists everypublication in North America which accepts freelance articles. It also lists book publishers, tells you how to write an effective query letter, and contains more helpful information than I can even begin to disclose here. Just about everything a neophyte writer needs to know may be found between its covers.

Now you're ready to begin your career. Set a definite time each day for writing, and stick to it, except in the most dire emergency. Start submitting your articles and stories. One suggestion: keep records of what you send where. It is a little embarrassing to receive a note from an editor telling you that you sent the same article to him three times.

As in all areas of life, a sense of humor is a valuable asset. Be sure to nurture yours.

One final thought: as much as you may love writing, try to reserve at least one-quarter of your waking hours for just plain living. Go to interesting places with people you like and interact with family and friends. Even the most talented author needs people, places and experiences about which to write.

The myth about the talented author shut away for weeks in a cold garret writing his masterpiece just doesn't happen anymore. Get out there in the world. Live, love, play, observe and listen. Then come home and share your experiences, and the insights they provide with others, through the printed word. This is your privilege as a professional writer. Be sure to exercise this privilege responsibly.

The nutritional value of pears

Pears have been cultivated in China for at least 3000 years, and are believed to have spread east and west from there. There are records of pear orchards in Ancient Greece: the poet Homer ( circa 900-800 B.C.) referred to them as "a gift from the gods". Homer knew whereof he spoke; this fruit, which comes in many varieties, is a beneficial addition to any food plan.

Pears are flavorful and come in their own nutritious, edible package. Simply rinse under running water and enjoy! There is more levulose, the sweetest of the natural sugars, in pears than in any other fruit. No wonder they make a delicious snack! And, besides tasting good, this fruit is good for you.

One medium pear has about 100 calories and is a good source of fiber, vitamin C, potassium and folacin. It contains no sodium, no cholesterol, no saturated fat. It's a natural quick source of energy. Because of the high fiber content, this fruit makes you feel full faster, so it is helpful in weight-reduction regimens.

Unlike their cousins, the apple family, pears should not be allowed to ripen on the tree. They should be harvested when mature and allowed to ripen at room temperature. They improve in both taste and texture after being picked. The ripe fruit should be stored in the refrigerator. A ripe pear is quite firm, but will give a little when pressed gently.

Pears can be eaten fresh, canned, poached, dried or as juice. They can be used in jams, jellies, cakes, pies, tarts, crisps, dumplings, sherbet, and even pasta and main-course salads. Fermented pear juice, "perry", will be of interest to those who enjoy an alcoholic beverage.

Pears are the least allergenic of all fruits. For this reason, they are popular with allergy sufferers, and are often among the first solid foods introduced to infants.

Wood from the pear tree is one of the preferred materials for carving, for furniture construction, and for making high-quality woodwind instruments.

It well may be that Homer, on a chilly night in Athens long ago, warmed himself by a fragrant fire of pear logs , and mused that such a useful and versatile plant as the pear tree must indeed be "a gift of the gods" to humankind.