“Art is our chief means of breaking bread with the dead.”
—W. H. Auden, English poet, born February 21, 1907
When you’re trying to break a habit, it’s very useful to build a sort of “scaffolding” to support you in avoiding the bad habit and sticking with the new one. For example, if you want to lose weight, it helps to replace high calories snakes with fruit and vegetables, because when you would go for the bad stuff there isn’t any around. Have a handful of carrots instead.
Same is true for changing social and economic patterns. The “bad habit” is excessive individual use of internal combustion powered private automobiles. If there are more handy alternatives to having your own car, you might just take advantage of that “scaffolding” to satisfy your transportation needs. Applause to Northampton for trying to get some more Zipcars. It’s a small step in the right direction.
This list of most highly recommended jobs is interesting. The jobs have in common a lot of human interaction and a fair amount of autonomy. I note that six of the jobs are in healthcare, which is good because the field is one of the few that’s growing pretty rapidly.
Today and Tomorrow in #westernma
| TUESDAY | FEBRUARY | 25 |
| 8:00AM | Agawam | MarketRight |
| 5:00-7:00PM | Springfield | 1-2-3s of Financial Literacy for Small Businesses |
| 6:30PM | Indian Orchard | The Geek Group of Western Mass |
| WEDNESDAY | FEBRUARY | 26 |
| 7:00-9:00AM | West Springfield | West of the River Chamber of Commerce Legislative Breakfast |
| 7:45-9:30AM | Holyoke | Association of Fundraising Professionals |
| 8:00-10:00AM | Holyoke | Holyoke Chamber Economic Development Breakfast |
| 9:00-11:00AM | Springfield | Understanding Your Company’s Cash Flow |
| 5:00-7:00PM | Amherst | Amherst Chamber After 5 |
| 5:00PM | Springfield | Career Showcase |
| 5:00-7:00PM | Chicopee | Chicopee Chamber After Hours |
| 6:00-9:00PM | Springfield | How to get your product idea into the marketplace – workshop |
Reading
“…the hope is to get two new Zicpcars from the company, which is owned by Avis. There would be no cost for the cars, but the city would have to provide parking spaces for each of the vehicles.
“Northampton previously tried to obtain Zipcars, but at that time the company required a minimum usage that the city could not guarantee. However, a significant percentage of the customers who use the Smith Zipcar are not connected with the college, according to Narkewicz. This indicates a broader demand in the community.
“The Transportation and Parking Commission must approve the proposal to obtain the cars, and the City Council must sign off on a new ordinance and approve the lease before the plan can go into effect. In a statement announcing the proposal, Narkewicz indicated he is optimistic.
“’Zipcar is a cost-effective solution to help us reduce traffic congestion, free up more parking spaces for shoppers, workers and visitors and make urban living more convenient,’ the mayor said.
“The new Zipcars would be located in the E. John Gare Municipal Parking Garage. Studies show that two Zipcars can replace up to 30 private cars. The approximate cost of using a Zipcar in Northampton is $8.50 an hour, according to Feiden.”
Northampton Wants to Obtain Zipcars to Ease Traffic Congestion and Create More Parking Spaces
What’s So Great About Being an Optician?
“Would you recommend your job to a close friend?
“That’s the question salary data provider PayScale posed for the first time to over 10,000 workers in its annual Best Jobs For You survey. The survey also asks about job satisfaction, flexibility, and whether respondents felt their careers had meaning.
“Of the roughly 200 jobs examined, optician is the only profession that garners a 100% recommendation rate…On the flip side, the least recommended jobs in America include cashiers, bank tellers, and truck drivers, which have recommendation rates of under 30%.”
The Most Highly Recommended Jobs in America
The Last Word
“You can pretend to be serious; but you can’t pretend to be witty.”
—Sacha Guitry, French director, born February 21, 1885