Cash for Trash: Ebay Classes Begin Soon

In response to numerous requests by interested patrons, the Haysville Community Library will host three separate eBay “Cash for Trash” training classes during the month of June.

With more than 90 million active users worldwide, eBay is “the world’s largest online marketplace, where practically anyone can buy and sell practically anything.”

Founded in 1995, eBay connects individual buyers and sellers, as well as small businesses. The total value of goods sold via e-commerce on eBay in 2009 was $60 billion — $2,000 every second.

The HCL classes will be conducted in the computer lab on three Thursday evenings this month – Thursday June 10th, Thursday June 17th, and Thursday June 24th – at 6:30 pm. Classes will last about an hour, and will be free and open to the public. In order to attend, simply sign up at the main desk in the library.

Classes will be taught by Dave Sevart, whose experience with eBay dates back more than a decade to the infancy of the online trading industry. In addition to extensive experience with e-commerce, Dave has introduced many others to eBay trading, and understands the nuances and intricacies of the system.

Dave has both a BA in Communications and an MBA from Newman University, and is a full time member of the Air Force Reserves stationed at McConnell AFB.

You Must!

Local author James Trotter will visit the Haysville Community Library on Thursday evening June 10th at 7 pm to visit with patrons about his new book You Must!: Basic Rules for Living the Best Life You Can.

You Must! Offers guidance and action steps for anyone wishing to make changes in their life, to set and achieve goals, to assume personal responsibility, and much else.

On Books, #41

Anyone who has a library and a garden wants for nothing.
– Cicero

Occupational Outlook Handbook

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes an Occupational Outlook Handbook every other year. The handbook is intended to serve as “a nationally recognized source of career information, designed to provide valuable assistance to individuals making decisions about their future work lives.”

“For hundreds of different types of jobs . . . the Occupational Outlook Handbook tells you: the training and education needed; earnings; expected job prospects; what workers do on the job; [and] working conditions.

“In addition, the Handbook gives you job search tips, links to information about the job market in each state and more.” It is an invaluable resource for those who are seeking to change occupations, looking for new opportunities, reviewing the prospects for employment in their chosen field, or seeking employment.

The Handbook is available in a print edition, and also online.

Seeking employment? Check out Finding and Applying for Jobs and Evaluating Offers.

Looking for information on the job outlook in each state? Try the comprehensive listing of State Sources.

For broader analytical projections for the economy and job market, see the Handbook section Overview of the 2008-2018 Projections. There you’ll find that:

– “The U.S. civilian noninstitutional population, including individuals aged 16 and older, is expected to increase by 25.1 million from 2008 to 2018. The projected 2008-18 growth rate of 10.7 percent is less than the 11.2-percent growth rate for the 1988-98 period and the 13.9-percent rate for the 1998-2008 period.”

– “The U.S. workforce is expected to become more diverse by 2018. Among racial groups, Whites are expected to make up a decreasing share of the labor force, while Blacks, Asians, and all other groups will increase their share. Among ethnic groups, persons of Hispanic origin are projected to increase their share of the labor force from 14.3 percent to 17.6 percent, reflecting 33.1 percent growth.”

–“Total employment is expected to increase by 10 percent from 2008 to 2018. However, the 15.3 million jobs expected to be added by 2018 will not be evenly distributed across major industry and occupational groups. Changes in consumer demand, improvements in technology, and many other factors will contribute to the continually changing employment structure of the U.S. economy.”

See the Overview or the Handbook for much else of interest and utility.

Kansas Ranks #1 in Driver Knowledge

Last week GMAC Insurance released the results of its sixth annual National Drivers Test, finding that as many as 1 in 5 licensed American drivers (that’s 38 million drivers) would not pass a written driver’s test if they took one today.

For the second time in the past three years, Kansas drivers ranked first in the nation, with an average score of 82.3 percent, as compared with a national average score of 76.2 percent. New York drivers came in last at 70 percent. (For a map of all state rankings, look here; to view a listing of all state scores look here.)

The survey press release explains that “the sixth annual survey polled 5,202 licensed Americans from 50 states and the District of Columbia, gauging driver knowledge by administering 20 questions taken from state Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) exams. Additional questions explored distracting habits such as texting while driving.

“Overall, findings indicate a number of licensed Americans continue to lack knowledge of basic rules of the road; the national average score decreased to 76.2 percent from 76.6 percent in 2009. Eighty-five percent could not identify the correct action to take when approaching a steady yellow traffic light, and many remained confused by safe following distances.”

They further indicate that “when analyzed regionally, the results reveal that drivers in the Northeast may not be as road-rule savvy as their Midwestern counterparts. The Northeast had the lowest average test scores (74.9 percent) and had the highest failure rate (25.1 percent). The Midwest region had the highest average test scores (77.5 percent) and the lowest failure rates (11.9 percent).

“Results also indicate that the older the driver, the higher the score. Males over 45 earned the highest average test score. Males also out-performed females overall in terms of average score (78.1 percent male versus 74.4 percent female) and failure rates (24 percent female versus 18.1 percent male).

“Additional questions from the survey reveal drivers conduct a variety of distracting behaviors behind the wheel; approximately 1 in 4 participants admitted to driving while talking on a cell phone, eating and adjusting the radio or selecting songs on an iPod. However, only five percent reported they text while driving. Overall, a significantly higher percentage of females than males reported engaging in the following distracting situations: conversation with passengers, selecting songs on an iPod or CD/adjusting the radio, talking on a cell phone, eating, applying make-up and reading.”

For more details, see the Executive Summary of the survey.

To take the National Drivers Test yourself, see this page on the GMAC website.

For the methodology of the survey look here.