Beth n Rod

I'll keep an eye out for it Aaron. Have not seen it yet. Beth

Ok guys, here it is. I was born and raised in Tucson AZ. where the language and population was becoming predominantly spanish yet I spoke english because that is what was publicly expected. I had to listen to Mariachi music each and every nite because of the band that played at a bar which we lived directly next door to. Guess what, I didn't lose any sleep. I slept through it all the time. I have a background of many races in my blood and so I guess I am a mutt. But my approach is simply this; I am no better than any other race and they are no better than me. No Jon Fife, I don't dance around things with an anything goes attitude but I do have a different way of looking at things than you do and that should not be something to admonish but to be respected. Perhaps someone could benefit from another point of view. You are right, I don't want my toes stepped on so here I practice the golden rule. Respect for others comes first. I accept people for what they are, not what I want them to be. They were not put here to benefit me, and neither was I for them. btw, Jeff admitted he was scared, particularly on the encroachment of another race upon his ideals, so my analytical abilities are on target. We just don't agree on how to deal with it. Our forefathers new that this nation would become one of many nations so they instilled the primary point "All men are created equal" into the declaration of independence. Our language is and always will be the primary one, but we cannot stop people from using their language just because they came here. Fear comes not knowing how to deal with what is presented or the lack of will, guts, testicular fortitude etc... to over come it. I confront and overcome much more than you would have any knowledge of to give me credit for, and as far as objections, I would have thought you knew better than that by now. I get pretty vocal when I object to things and past events not withstanding will vouch for it. I just don't go headlong into making statements I can't back up. I took pshycology and use that as the basis for my interpretations. Yes, there are people whose culture does things that are atrocious but that is our judgment of them by our standards again. No, I don't think it is right, but if they tolerate it amongst themselves, who are we to tell them different? Until they decide to change, we cannot force them to nor should we expect them to because they live here. They must abide by our laws and they do. We don't allow them to tell us what we should be doing but we find a middle ground and a way to keep the peace and get along. That person may be a new friend but it is better than having them as an enemy don't you think? Who knows what they are capable of in that way. At least I try to make a friend and not condemn them for having ways that I don't understand. Judgment is the noose around the neck of humanity with our tendency to pass judgment upon each other. When you judge someone, you stop being open minded and miss any of the other clues that may help one to understand better than one would otherwise. It's probably the best thing you may understand as psycho-analysis but it is also a way to understanding human nature and what we are doing wrong. I think for the most part, many are over reacting to this and have jumped to a conclusion that is not healthy. We all live here and we should be setting the example of how to conduct ourselves. Learning a second language can facilitate that by communicating with them to help them adapt. When going to another country with family, will you drop the english language just because of it? Of course not, but in order to speak with the locals, you have to talk to them in the language they understand. I don't hesitate to be controversial and lead the way with a different point of view or way of approaching things. I don't just blend in. I stand out and I have no fear in doing so. Enough about me. Here is the opportunity! Learn to communicate with as many people as you can on their level and increase your business' outreach and client base. Rod!~

Neither do I. I know she'll at least read... Beth

Wow...you must be 100% American Indian, because most of us came from another country at some point way back when. Beth

Interesting reading... Beth

This seems to be timely.... Beth

Jeff, We didn't say we pay that rate. We said we have heard others pay that rate. We pay substantially more. Beth

Our country, their country...the whole separatist attitude is what is keeping us from all being friends. Learning a new language is a way to bring down the borders. Some want the borders to stay firm and not be bothered with others. Your choice. But those who see things this way are fast becoming the minority. There is a great deal to learn from other cultures and it cannot be done by shutting them out. Learning another language is an opportunity to understand another culture from their way of communicating. No one in the U.S. has to learn another language to be in their own neighborhood. English is the primary language. Some people fear change especially when those changes may impinge upon them in ways they were not prepared to deal with and this is the beginnings of fear. Not being able to control everything in ones own life. The growing second language influence is one example. Yet, it is upon us and we can either embrace it or fight it. One of these options is a losing battle because those who bring the second language influence are to well established. Our laws allow for the immigration of people from other countries and those cultures are very large and well established here in the U.S. Jeff stated many cases in which he is bothered by the strength of the second languages influence on labeling and adaptations to accommodate them in many areas. These are the signs of his fear. He has no desire to learn another language and feeling impinged upon he has become threatened by it because his homeland is changing and he sees it's inevitability. That is scary for many and I can relate. How we deal with our fears is unique to all who have many challenges in addition to them. One can face them and conquer them or be ruled by them and create what comes from fear. Depression, anxiety, resentment, anger, hate... I would rather face it and learn the second language and learn about the people who bring it. I can have more friends that way. Enemies are easy to make, friends take effort. Rod!~

In our area, there have always been hispanic communities here. I have seen for the basis of example, landscaping crews become predominantly hispanic and the caucasian workers have basically vanished. We can all speculate as to why this has happened but I know it is not because of the cheap wages. Many of them are earning $8-10/hour which is pretty darn good considering they are only riding a mower or toting a grass cutter etc. Heck, if you want to see if any of them are illegal, go run by there and shout out "INS, INS, INS" I bet that you will not see anyone running. Our area is pretty strict on payroll auditing and assure that all paperwork is in order. We have gone through it ourselves. We passed. Rod!~

If you look at Europe, they speak many languages. Personally I think it is enriching to speak another language. I speak some Spanish (2 years), and enough Italian to order a meal, find a bathroom or get to the airport. Beth

Hey guys, Maybe it is due to demographics and yours doesn't have this problem, but I don't find this statement true in relation to our experiences having to contend with much of the problems of trying to hire and retain employee's. This is not in any way relevant to what is going on overseas where they are using slave labor, this is blue collar work in a trade field. In our area, there is a severe shortage of 'American Citizens' willing to work in this field. The lot of them want the management positions in which they are not even qualified for from the git go and don't want the positions requiring them to do the actual work. I need the indians as we already have the chiefs. We are left to hiring legal immigrants with INS cards and all proper ID. They are willing to work and have a better work ethic for the most part. We require they have english speaking skills due to the nature of our clientele. I have tried hiring college guys and they work ok for a couple of months and once august rolls around for back to school time they become worthless. I have run ads in the regular papers with minimal responses and very few of them actually show up for the interviews. I run an ad in our local hispanic paper and get flooded with calls. My apologies for being the controversial poster but it is real...for us it is not a crock. Rod!~

The total package thing has not worked for us in particular as budget constraints are much of the problem we hear, plus some do not want them, instead, they would rather go ala carte. Plus, you have to consider that many of these businesses have channels and other directing entities they have to go through to get approval for in order to get the ball rolling. Sometimes when working with people who control money matters you can get them to go for the whole enchilada, it just depends on what you walk into. They may have already decided they need or want all of what you offer. The next part is price. Listing services ala carte first then showing a package price with a discount for it will be a better option. Between us, the real answer to the discount lies in the set up and break down times. The less you are doing that, the more you are working. If I get someone who can keep me on a site for the majority of the day, it means I will set up and break down fewer times. On the other hand, if someone only needs our services for a few hours worth of work then I have to fill in the rest of the day with others and they could be small too which means several set up and break downs which are not part of the production phase of working. This drains the actual work day and makes it less profitable unless you adjust your prices accordingly. Rod!~

Isn't he? :) Beth

I have been to that site and they are very knowledgeable on tile. :cool: Rod!~

Question: How many innocent people are in prison that are sentenced to death? Can you be so sure there aren't? Many people are convicted on circumstancial evidence because of no one witnessing the accused doing otherwise. As for death and judgement, I'll have no part of it. People embrace it too easily as it is...that is until it is imposed upon them. Only then do they understand the truth of it. Rod!~

We have been in the decrepit grips of dial up for years. We finally upgraded yesterday to Verizon's new FiOS service - 15mbps up and 2 mbps down. This totally rocks! I got in like 50mb of photos last night and it was here in seconds. If you have the chance to get FiOS in your area, look into it. We're glad we did! Beth

Anyone here a M*A*S*H fan? Years ago I watched an episode where the psychiatrist, Dr. Sydney Freeman said the following: Ladies and gentleman take my advice.... Pull down your pants... And slide on the ice! I love that saying! Beth

Update: http://www.thepwna.org/Conventions_And_Shows.html

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Another update: http://www.thepwna.org/Conventions_And_Shows.html

For your consideration...we do janitorial work and this is something we have done in the past so from our experience standpoint, I pass it on for anyone else to use. You will need a wet vac. You will need Hot water to get this to work well. Apply your chem and agitate, especially the grout using a brush. Give it some dwell time and apply again where needed and then use the vac to extract it. Some use a low rpm rotating brush machine to clean tile and others use steam machines similar to those for removing gum. If you can find a unit for rent, there are lvlp units that use a surface cleaner with extraction to clean tiles. They operate at about 120-160psi and <2gpm. Afterwards, and the grout comes as clean as you can get it, once dry, apply a grout sealer just to the grout with an applicator bottle that has an applicator brush that is fed from the bottle. Most tile distributors and supply stores have them. This is of course if you charge to have this done. It is not expensive, the sealer costs around $6.00 and the applicator bottle around $3.00, but the time is what you should be charging for. It will take you about 20-30 minutes to do the application. Rod!~

We joined ***** and we hope to attend this convention. The schedule of events looks good. It cost us $97.00 for one year to join. We filled out the application and sent it in, and within 24 hours had a telephone call welcoming us to the organization. How nice! Beth

Thank you Ron R! :) Beth

Yeah - fiber optic is the cats meow! Beth

Every year the winter comes with less work for those of us in the northern lattitudes and that means more time spent inside being couped up. It can get to some people and it comes out in the forms of frustration, anger, rebellion, restleness, depression and lot's of time online. How do you help to overcome the effects of cabin fever? Rod!~