Author Archives: stanberlin

USPS

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So I was asked to place arrows pointing to the slot where the intake mail is to go, so that our trainer postal carriers understand that the mail is to go into the slot (referenced above the arrow) and not in the outtake section inside the door. This is a regulation locking USPS mailbox. Key provided to the Post Office. I was told that the trainer postal carriers are not familiar with such mailboxes and therefore the arrow should help them out. One would think that this sort of training is provided when they are taught how to drop off mail or that perhaps common sense would dictate that if a box is showing as a locked device that perhaps the mail should BEST be put INSIDE the locked portion of that box and not external to the locked portion of the mailbox. I offered to be an employee with the USPS since it appears that this basic common sense is not currently a hiring requirement and since I possess this basic skill set, I would be a great asset to the USPS but was told “to not go there.”

I have made three official claims with the USPS investigations on this and of course nothing gets resolved other than I am told that the local Postmaster will be advised. When I last spoke with the manager at the local post office (Georgesville Rd) this was his solution and that I should be understanding that they just may not know that mail should be deposited into the locking portion of the box.

Rates continue to go up with the USPS and customer service with them continues to deteriorate. As long as the USPS will be run with a government mind set instead of operating like a profitable business, we consumers will continue to receive poor service, poor customer service, and continue with decreased services such as potentially having Saturday service stop.

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The right to bear bombs

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I recently came across this FaceBook, 06/07/14, post and had to report and comment the following:

A gun is geared to protecting oneself or family because of threat which may or may not involve injury or death. A bomb’s intent is to cause deliberate injury or death for the sole purpose of promoting threat. Both of course involve people, so really ANY tool does not kill people, people kill people. People make choices to kill people and therefore their CHOICE of tool is irrelevant. Remove one tool and another one will take its place. In closing I have yet to read that the Second Amendment (Amendment II) to the United States Constitution protects the right of individuals to “bear bombs”.

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Things Employers Look For in an Interview

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3 Things Employers Look For in an Interview

By Steve Pollock, WetFeet

It’s all too easy to look at a job interview as an adversarial situation. The interviewer is interrogating you. She’s posing brainteasers and “gotcha” questions. But as tense as the situation might seem, just realize she has one goal in mind:

Identifying a plausible candidate and hiring that person. She’s seeking someone with a demonstrable capacity for delivering results.

So, give employers what they want and be the candidate they’re looking for. Prepare to shine. Know your strengths and highlight them. Make sure the personal strengths you plan to emphasize in your interview match the demands of the position. On the big day, present yourself as a candidate with the right skills and temperament for the job. Your confidence, enthusiasm, knowledge, and understanding should confirm what your interviewer is already predisposed to believe: that bringing you in for an interview is a wise move and that hiring you is even wiser.

When interviewing, hiring managers are hoping to explore some basic areas:

Do we want to work with you?

You might enter an interview prepared to recite a litany of skills and work experience, but interviewers aren’t looking for a walking, talking resume. They’re already intrigued by your skills–that’s why they’re interviewing you in the first place. The reason they need to meet with you in person is to gauge your personal qualities, to see if you’ll be an asset to the workplace. Intangible attributes–resourcefulness, initiative, creativity, adaptability, drive, and integrity–will set you apart from other qualified candidates.

Will you mesh with the team?

The corporate workplace is increasingly a team-driven environment. Because of this, organizations are especially eager to hire people whom they think will fit within a team. This might mean a tough adjustment for academic high achievers who are used to working on their own. But as much as interviewers might be gauging your individual strengths, they are also evaluating your ability to be a team player.

What’s your EQ?

Interviewers are probably less interested in your IQ than your EQ–your emotional intelligence. You can have a high IQ and still lack common sense and empathy. Employers are learning that intelligence isn’t always the most desired attribute for prospective employees, especially when it comes at the expense of good sense–after all, perfectly smart people were responsible for the downfall of Lehman Brothers. Although you’ll want to impress your prospective employer with your smarts, you also must convey you are a thoughtful, collegial coworker with a sense of personal responsibility.

Steve Pollock, Co-founder of WetFeet, a career site that provides profiles of companies, careers, and industries to help job seekers find the right career, industry, company, and job for them. They also offer articles about trends, markets, major players, and jobs in leading industries.

Columbus Division of Police 2014 Community Survey

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Please take a moment today to complete this survey

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=ka4%2bFn748NuL6Sq64HvnsipqDuYKLQ%2b04KRfIEGHTgY%3d
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Columbus Division of Police 2014 Community Survey
http://www.surveymonkey.com

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=ka4%2bFn748NuL6Sq64HvnsipqDuYKLQ%2b04KRfIEGHTgY%3d

Below are my comments that I provided on the survey. Please feel free to modify to fit your need, opinion and what you would like to see happen with our Columbus Division of Police!

We need an additional police cruiser for our district. We need more compliance on the “smaller” issues in our community. I would like to see more bike patrol. Overall I have a very favorable experience with the CPD. I would like to see community education and outreach on using the police call in line. Most citizens feel the police line is of no value and I continually hear “well the cops won’t do anything anyway.” The police need to have more community engagement meetings whether it be via blockwatch meetings, association meetings or community projects. This involves funding I am aware of so let’s get more funding for that. Police shouldn’t only be about enforcement. It also needs to be about community engagement, education, nurturing and of course citizen compliance.

We need a stronger task force devoted to drug activity on our streets. We need to focus more on the “small” guy instead of focusing on always trying to devote full resources to the bigger fish. Abandoned, vacant, and negligent properties are a breeding ground for these activities. CPD should partner with other City services in compliance for code violations of property, structures, or businesses.

It is hard to gauge whether crime has increased or decreased as a lot of citizens do not report crime as they feel no benefit to themselves in reporting it. Most citizens fail to realize the value that all crime should be reported no matter what. Here again this could be a strong community outreach piece.

I believe the CPD does the best to it’s ability given the resources and manpower that they have. I would like to see additional manpower, police cruisers, bike patrol, walking patrol and community outreach and engagement. Obviously, much increased funding is needed for this. I would like to see the CPD budget intensely increased for these requests.

The Columbus Police Radio Room could be more engaging and understanding of it’s customer base. Better customer handling and people skills would be of great value. Understanding of human nature, human condition, and anticipation of results of their customers would go a long way in this endeavor. I realize that efficiency and speed of call is paramount to this Police Radio Room call center, nonetheless, a better median can and should be established.

50% rating. I have had less than favorable responses when calling the Radio Room Operator. Again, the Columbus Police Radio Room could be more engaging and understanding of it’s customer base. Better customer handling and people skills would be of great value. Understanding of human nature, human condition, and anticipation of results of their customers would go a long way in this endeavor. I realize that efficiency and speed of call is paramount to this Police Radio Room call center, nonetheless, a better median can and should be established.

Most Columbus Police Officer’s are professional and most are courteous. I’ll admit some of the newer officers haven’t yet developed the human interaction piece very well yet.

This only takes into account existing funding and personnel. Obviously improvement can be maximized by increased personnel and funding.

Again, this only takes into account existing funding and personnel. Obviously improvement can be maximized by increased personnel and funding.

17. We need an additional police cruiser for our district. We need more compliance on the “smaller” issues in our community. I would like to see more bike patrol. Overall I have a very favorable experience with the CPD. I would like to see community education and outreach on using the police call in line. Most citizens feel the police line is of no value and I continually hear “well the cops won’t do anything anyway.” The police need to have more community engagement meetings whether it be via blockwatch meetings, association meetings or community projects. This involves funding I am aware of so let’s get more funding for that. Police shouldn’t only be about enforcement. It also needs to be about community engagement, education, nurturing and of course citizen compliance.

We need a stronger task force devoted to drug activity on our streets. We need to focus more on the “small” guy instead of focusing on always trying to devote full resources to the bigger fish. Abandoned, vacant, and negligent properties are a breeding ground for these activities. CPD should partner with other City services in compliance for code violations of property, structures, or businesses.

It is hard to gauge whether crime has increased or decreased as a lot of citizens do not report crime as they feel no benefit to themselves in reporting it. Most citizens fail to realize the value that all crime should be reported no matter what. Here again this could be a strong community outreach piece.

I believe the CPD does the best to it’s ability given the resources and manpower that they have. I would like to see additional manpower, police cruisers, bike patrol, walking patrol and community outreach and engagement. Obviously, much increased funding is needed for this. I would like to see the CPD budget intensely increased for these requests.

The Columbus Police Radio Room could be more engaging and understanding of it’s customer base. Better customer handling and people skills would be of great value. Understanding of human nature, human condition, and anticipation of results of their customers would go a long way in this endeavor. I realize that efficiency and speed of call is paramount to this Police Radio Room call center, nonetheless, a better median can and should be established.

50% rating. I have had less than favorable responses when calling the Radio Room Operator. Again, the Columbus Police Radio Room could be more engaging and understanding of it’s customer base. Better customer handling and people skills would be of great value. Understanding of human nature, human condition, and anticipation of results of their customers would go a long way in this endeavor. I realize that efficiency and speed of call is paramount to this Police Radio Room call center, nonetheless, a better median can and should be established.

Most Columbus Police Officer’s are professional and most are courteous. I’ll admit some of the newer officers haven’t yet developed the human interaction piece very well yet.

This only takes into account existing funding and personnel. Obviously improvement can be maximized by increased personnel and funding.

Again, this only takes into account existing funding and personnel. Obviously improvement can be maximized by increased personnel and funding.

Getting Rid of Rats

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Yes, this came in the mail. So if you didn’t already know…..Don’t feed the rats!

Seriously – Clean up your yard. Have junk, like old cars and appliances, hauled away. Call 645-3111 about collecting bulk items or report online:
http://311.columbus.gov/

Stack building materials, lumber and fire wood at least 18 inches off the ground. Remove leaves, branches and other yard waste. Keep grass and weed cut low (under 12 inches.)

Some wonder why others take this so seriously, well illegally dumping your trash in our alleys or hoarding in your yard affects all of us. Just because it is your yard does not give you license to be so disconcerted about keeping it clean. Lots of us are watching and we will use Columbus311, 645-3111 or Nail-A-Dumper – It’s a Crime:
http://www.itsacrime.org/
http://www.swaco.org/Communities/EnvironmentalCrimesTaskForce.aspx
614-871-5322.

Do your part today.
1. Clean up.
2. Observe
3. Document
4. Report
5. Followup

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COTA provides bus service to the Columbus Zoo

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So let’s see, such a concern that our poor kids (downtown) should have access to a Zoo, but not just days after the defeat of Issue 6, we now have bus service to that Zoo way up north and wait….keep reading…..yes it’s coming….COTA is offering the service and wait…..keep reading….it didn’t involve a levy????? HMMMM. This deserves a cocktail!

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Quick hamburger patty making

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A simple way to make hamburger patties.

  1. Roll your finished hamburger recipe into palm size balls.
  2. Place in the center of a saran wrap square.
  3. Bring up the four corners and wrap together.
  4. Flatten out patty with your hand to desired thickness.
  5. Refrigerate this way until ready to cook.
  6. Or you can freeze them this way for later use. (When freezing place in freezer proof bag or wrapping.

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4 Job Search Rules to Break

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4 Job Search Rules to Break
Posted on April 21, 2014 by Corey Fick, 20’s Financea

When it comes to job searching and submitting resumes, most job seekers follow the same tried and true rules. But what if these rules were actually preventing you from landing your dream job. Depending on what kind of job you’re looking for, you may find that breaking the rules can actually give you the upper hand against other candidates. Here are 4 job search rules that you should be breaking.

1. Give Your Resume to Someone You Know in the Company

Most job seekers swear up and down that the only way to really land a job is to know someone in the company. The general consensus is that having a connection in the company can get your resume to the top of the list.

While there may be some truth to this, you need to consider who your contact is before you get your hopes up. What if your friend inside of the company has a horrible reputation? What if your contact doesn’t even know the hiring manager? Don’t allow your job prospects to rest solely on the shoulders of someone you know inside of the company. In many cases, you are better off contacting the hiring manager directly or using a third party recruiter.

2. Do Whatever and Say Whatever to Land the Job

Job seekers are trained to put themselves at the mercy of the hiring manager. Most people are under the impression that they should be doing whatever it takes to land the job, but is this really a good idea? Believe it or not, hiring managers appreciate honesty and probably aren’t interested in hiring a candidate who is afraid to be themselves.

Should you do your best to highlight your skills, experience and achievements? Absolutely. Should you just tell the hiring manager what they want to hear? No. It’s important to find a job that fits you well. If you say whatever it takes to get the job, you may find yourself with responsibilities that are above your skill level, and your new employer may have expectations that you cannot live up to. Instead, just be honest and be yourself.

3. Submit a Standard Resume and Cover Letter

How is your resume and cover letter written? If you’re like most people, you probably describe yourself as a “team player” or “results-oriented professional.” The resumes and cover letters we are accustomed to submitting often sound mechanical or robotic. Try humanizing your resume and cover letter to make it sound like you. Tell your story and talk about your achievements. You are far more likely to catch the eye of the hiring manager if you use a human voice in your resume.

4. Focus Your Energy on Applying for Posted Jobs

Most people who are searching for jobs rely on job postings in the newspaper and online. They rarely venture outside of the box. While you certainly should dedicate a large percentage of your time applying for posted jobs, you should also spend some of your time taking an active role in your job search. Make networking a part of your routine and use social media to find new opportunities. There are so many ways to find jobs in the least likely of places, so keep pursuing every avenue you can get your hands on.

http://www.20sfinances.com/4-job-search-rules-break/

Columbus Zoo Levy

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What a bunch of poop! And I know where it is coming from!

I don’t believe we should fund a permanent levy for the Zoo and still have to pay admission. The Zoo is very accessible where it is at for anyone in the city. I believe there is bus service to the Zoo, if not then let’s get on COTA for the service or more importantly let’s let our community churches, recreation parks, and community groups provide the transportation. Tearing down Veteran’s Memorial as part of this plan in addition to putting the auxiliary Zoo downtown is not acceptable to begin with and will not provide the proximity resources needed for our inner city. I’d rather see the money go to recreation services and if it is our youth we are concerned about for activities to do, then let’s use these same community resources for structured activities, educational items, employment trades, and civic responsibility and funnel money to these organizations. Also this money can be better served by improving our already existing but deteriorating infrastructure.

If the Zoo has helped build communities aside from monetary support then I’d like to see the tangible results. Bring the Zoo to some of our vast wasteland here on the Westside-Hilltop. The downtown has the luxury of enough monetary resources for any of it’s developments and does not need ANY tax levy!

http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/editorials/2014/04/23/1-zoo-levy-would-enhance-vital-local-resource.html

Debt Relief Advocates (DRA), LLC (Media)

4 Replies
  1. BBB serving Dallas and Northeast Texas
  2. 1601 Elm Street, Suite 3838
  3. Dallas, TX 75201-3093
  4. (214)220-2000
  5. complaints@dallas.bbb.org
  7. Thank you for using the Better Business Bureau’s Online Complaint System.

Your complaint has been assigned case # 91288205.
Correspondence regarding this complaint will be emailed to : @yahoo.com
Please print a copy of this for your records.

Filed on : April 18 2014

Filed by :
Stanley Thornburgh

Filed against :
Debt Relief Advocates, LLC
5068 W Plano Pkwy STE 300
Plano TX 75093-4409

Complaint Description:
Presents letter as if I have been in negotiations with them to settle a debt and that it has been renegotiated. I have always been on a do not mail. Presents letter as if I have been in negotiations with them to settle a debt and that it has been renegotiated. I have always been on a do not mail list. I do not appreciate receiving unsolicited invitations to settle my debt when I am not looking to do so. I have good credit and pay my bills. Additionally I am tired of being told that “mediation program has not been activated. Please call.” When you call the company to be removed from mailing list they state that they must have reference number on letter. Since I do not trust the company I do not want to provide that as it will imply authorization to pull my credit report further. When they call they are not friendly and are not accommodating in anyway when you express concern about not receiving future mailings. Some of these letters have a name on them and when you ask for that person they state the person does not take messages. I am on a do not mail list and state that upfront. My biggest concern is that these companies somehow are pulling consumers credit reports to make these solicitations. I believe this is fraudulent activity and is an attempt to prey on otherwise unknowledgeable consumers in this matter. I do not feel that a no rating company with the BBB should be allowed to buy or access your consumer credit report for any reason. These companies operate under different names throughout the company. I want this company and all companies that do business in this matter to not mail or call me for any of their supposed claims of settling consumer debt. I want this company to issue me a formal apology either thru the BBB or on one of my social media blogs. Settlement Seeking: I want this company and all companies that do business in this matter to not mail or call me for any of their supposed claims of settling consumer debt. I want this company to issue me a formal apology either thru the BBB or on one of my social media blogs.

Your Desired Resolution:
I want companies such as these to not have access to consumers credit reports. I want this company and all companies that do business in this matter to not mail or call me for any of their supposed claims of settling consumer debt. I want this company to issue me a formal apology either thru the BBB or on one of my social media blogs.

This case will be reviewed by a complaint specialist at the Better Business Bureau, and then forwarded to the business for their response. It is our policy to allow the business 30 working days to respond to your complaint. You will be notified when the business has responded.

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