Can someone help me with this?

This is a long shot, but does anyone here have any experience with Caribbean vacation resorts?

Mrs. Noland and I are in the very early planning stages of a vacation over Mardi Gras (2/18/12 - 2/25(ish)/12) next year and, since I am the world's cheapest person, I am trying to find a deal.

I'm not married to the idea of a big corporate resort (that has just been the easiest thing to search online so far) so any other thoughts or ideas are welcome. Keep in mind we will be dragging a 9, 7, and 4 year old along with us.

 

Can anyone speak to the merits of this book, on a scale of 'snake oil' to 'must read?'

 

Does anyone have any experience with lemon laws, namely pertaining to used cars in GA?

I'm pretty sure used cars aren't covered, but I have a few questions about a truck I just bought. Long story short, it had a problem that the dealership didn't tell me about. They're fixing it now, and it is under warranty, but I'm wondering what sort of recourse I might have if the truck continues having problems. Please PM me. Thanks in advance!

 

I don't know of one that will get you that much back without being tied to a specific gas station, but the AMEX Blue Cash card will get you either 2% or 3% which is pretty good. The awesome part though is 3% at supermarkets for the no fee card and 6% for the fee card.

 

My wife and I want to install programmable digital thermostats. We've got two HVAC units, one for the first floor and one for the second floor and third floor walkup. I was told a good while ago that it really will save a decent amount of dough.

I should have done this long ago, but I'm slow sometimes.

The local big box has Honeywell models and Filtrete models. Prices vary wildly. It seems the range for both is 5+2, 5+1+1 and 7 day settings. Also then you have regular or touchscreen. With Filtrete, you can also get one that is wifi with iphone and computer apps.

Anybody have any suggestions as to what is really needed here? The prices for the 5+2 is around $40 and the Filtrete wifi is the highest at $100.

Any input on best brand and experiences would be greatly appreciated.

 

I feel like a pussy, but whatever, it really fucking hurts.

In the past week, I've developed quite a few throat ulcers. Speaking hurts, breathing sometimes hurts, yawning hurts, and eating or drinking is murder. I've already got a prescription for some mouthwash to keep it from spreading much more, but can anyone recommend anything else to make it more bearable? I've also been inhaling extra-strength Halls like it's my job (as in I've gone through 10-15 packs in the past week), and I'm not sure whether or not that's entirely good for me or not.

This is not a plea for medical advice since I've already been to the doctor, and I do already know the basics like staying away from alcohol, spicy foods and acidic foods etc. Rather, this is just me asking for any foods that are easy to eat, or over-the-counter meds that could make me not want to rip my throat out. Thanks in advance.

 

Chloraseptic spray or cough drops should help numb it. Both can be found in the cough/cold section of most stores, and come as either a generic or brand name.

 

Very cold applesauce and jello. Gargling with salt and warm water will help, too.

 

Can anyone recommend some good layman's articles about the Kreb Cycle?

I got some organic acids tests back, and it looks like I have some mitochondrial dysfunction (I've got lactic, pyruvic, isocitric and fumaric acids well over the upper limit of the range). If it makes any difference, I also have way high indoleacetic, dihydroxyphenylpropionic and succinic acid and arabinose levels, with high suberic and a-ketoisocaproic acid levels and marginally low VMA neurotransmitter metabolites despite being on dexamphetamine. Plus I have very low zinc levels despite adequate intake.

 

I know this falls under the "lesser of two evils category," but I wrecked my knee last night. I've had surgeries before, so I know it's significant. Unfortunately I don't have money for doctors/MRIs until Friday.

Knowing that I'll be drinking to not think about how bad it's hurting, what's the OTC pain reliever least likely to make me die if I'm also boozing?

Thanks.

 

Flights. Looking for a flight from SF or Oakland to Omaha, NEB for my roommates' wedding in August, which is on the 20th. Trying to fly in early on the 19th and leave on the 22nd, cheapest I am finding is about $350 roundtrip. Is that about right?

 

Resumes. To the employers on the board, do you make any judgment on a chronological vs. functional resume? If so, why? Does it make a difference in how you view the applicant?

 

What industry are you applying in? I'm sure it varies greatly on the person conducting the interview, but I glance at resumes. "Glance" being the keyword.

My business heavily relies on sales, so as awesome as your resume may be, I won't spend more than a minute or so on it before calling you for an interview as long as it's error free.

It's become almost standard practice to stretch the truth, or even flat out lie on a resume. Whatever liberties you took with your resume to get the job isn't worth it. Because of this, a resume is nothing more than a caricature of your work experience and I'm not going to spend any amount of time sorting fact from fiction.

If you really want the job, research the company. Ask technical questions that show you've done your homework. Most of all FOLLOW UP. Call or send a thank you card. Don't bug the shit out of them, but let them know why you deserve the job more than the other applicants.

Outside of executive and IT positions, I think people spend entirely too much time on their resume and not enough prepping for the interview.

 

Depends a lot on industry, in IT where typically the problem is sorting a managable number of plausible applicants from a sea of morons - most people use keyword loading (take a position description, pull some key words out of it, frequency match those key words in the resume and then look a bit closer at the top X frequency counts). So the most important thing for an IT guy to do is keyword load - you have to work it in so it reads naturally when someone actually reads your resume -but stack your resume with keywords and you get a lot more calls for interviews.

I generally use a summary / skills matrix / chronological list presentation. I give a 2 or 3 paragraph summary of why a person is awesome, list key skills, and then give an employment history loaded with applicable key words for the roles that they're looking for. My experience is that most employers read the skills matrix and summary and then flick through the employment history to bullshit filter and then make a decision from the interview.

 

I'm looking for a couple of websites/forums to follow in the following fields:

- A law news website/forum for current cases, law news etc. including SCOTUS with intelligent/qualified discourse.

- A gaming website/community where I can get news about good upcoming games with little salesmanship. Bonus points for a more serious/competitive community.