Jobs That No Longer Exist—part 1 of 2

This is certainly far removed from a complete list of obsolete jobs, but it's an interesting cross-section. Some of these jobs were prominent centuries ago and have been gone for a long time, some are much more recent. One or two of them may have existed in your lifetime. But either way, they are jobs that no longer exist.

Pre-Radar Listener

And speaking of World War II (and World War I)…during times of war in the days before radar, these listeners were people assigned to detect enemy aircraft. They did this by using acoustic mirrors and listening over-sized devices to detect the sounds of engines.

Daguerreotypists

We've all seen photographs from back in the day showing the photographer taking a picture, whether a portrait in a studio or Matthew Brady engaged in his landmark history changing photographs from the U.S. Civil War. Prior to modern cameras and selfies, daguerreotypes were one of the earliest forms of photography. These images were made by daguerreotypists, who treated a silver-coated copper plate with light-sensitive chemicals. After exposing it in a camera and developing it with mercury, a detailed image appeared.

Ice Cutter

Back when today's electric refrigerators were referred to as ice boxes, there was a reason for it.  Highly insulated boxes held a large block of ice and kept food cold (until the ice melted).  The ice man delivered the large blocks of ice door to door.  These blocks were provided by people known as ice cutters who would literally cut the huge blocks from frozen lakes. And in the summer? Mostly it was 'tough luck.'

Knocker-Up

Before you become shocked or start laughing, that's not what I'm talking about here. The knocker-up was literally a human alarm clock. A knocker-up would visit your house to make sure you got to work on time. They used a long, light stick to hit their client's doors or windows to wake them.

Rat Catcher

From several centuries ago to even just a couple of centuries ago, cities (both residential neighborhoods and industrial areas) were plagued by disease-carrying rodents. Rat catchers were the people employed to remove the vermin off the streets.

Lamplighter

Back in the day when street lights were gas, before the days of electric lamps, lamplighters would use long poles to light, extinguish and refuel street lamps to illuminate the night streets.

Gas Station:  They used to be called service stations and you actually got service. You stop to buy gas and the attendant would fill the tank for you. And while the tank was filling, they checked your oil, checked your tire pressure, and washed your windshield. Now, anything you want you have to do it yourself including putting your credit card in the slot at the pump to pay. There are probably still places where someone actually fills the tank for you, but today they're few and far between and about to be gone.

Milkman

Before refrigerators existed, and even in the day of the ice box, it was hard to keep milk from going bad, especially in summer. The milkman made regular neighborhood deliveries, some extending to as recently as the 1960s. With the advent of home refrigeration and the convenience of modern supermarkets, the need for the milkman disappeared.

Switchboard Operator

At one time switchboard operators were a key part of a telephone network’s operation. Initially, anyone wanting to make even a local call needed the operator to put it through. After local dial was the norm, the operator was still required for long distance. And in businesses where numerous employees were all connected to the same company phone number, the switchboard operator was needed to direct incoming calls. But now, with billions of phone calls made every day, the job of switchboard operator would be virtually impossible.

Computer

Before you wrinkle your forehead into a frown and formulate an immediate objection to the concept of computer belonging on a 'no longer exists' list, I'm not talking about the hardware/software combination that is vital to today's society. I'm talking about a person rather than a machine. Computer was an actual job title. Before computers (the machine) became commercially available, these computers (the human workers—commonly women) performed mathematical calculations, converting and crunching numbers by hand. These computers were invaluable during World War II calculating firing logistics for the artillery units at the front.

Resurrectionist

Also known as body snatchers as well as grave robbers. Resurrectionists were hired to dig newly buried, fresh corpses from graveyards and sell them to universities to be used as cadavers for medical research and instruction.

And as is obvious, many of today's jobs will be obsolete at some point in time. Some of them not that far away. Check back next week for part 2 of 2 which takes a look at jobs that are soon to be considered obsolete.

September's Bizarre And Unique Holidays

Every month seems to have at least one holiday for each day, some well-known and celebrated and others wrapped in varying stages of obscurity.  And in addition to the daily holidays, there are also month long celebrations devoted to various endeavors.

In the year 2025, the following month-long observations for September include:  Classical Music Month, National Piano Month, International Square Dancing Month, National Courtesy Month [shouldn't this be a year long observation, every year?], National Chicken Month, National Honey Month, National Rice Month, National Papaya Month, Self-Improvement Month, Be Kind To Editors and Writers Month, Cable TV Month, National Bed Check Month, and National Mind Mapping Month.

Here's a list of the daily holidays (some dates having multiple celebrations scheduled for the same date). I've even included an explanation for a few of them.

Sept. 1             Labor Day—since Labor Day is the first Monday in September, the date changes from year to year. This is the only legal holiday in September, one honoring the nation's workers, where government offices are closed along with the banks, schools, and the post office which means no mail delivery. This is the unofficial close of the summer season, as Memorial Day is the unofficial beginning. Canada also celebrates their Labor Day holiday on the first Monday in September.

Sept. 1             Emma M. Nutt Day—in celebration of the first woman telephone operator.

Sept. 2             National Beheading Day—every once in a while there's a holiday that has no obvious reason for being. Why would someone declare something as gruesome as beheading to be an activity that warrants a special holiday celebration? Beheadings have been a method of execution for both commoners and royalty throughout history and in today's society the practice includes the activities of terrorist groups. Probably the most famous royal beheadings were Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette in 1793 during the French Revolution. There isn't any factual information about the origin of this holiday.

Sept. 3             Skyscraper Day—a celebration of tall buildings?

Sept. 4             Newspaper Carrier Day—to honor those who deliver the newspaper to our homes.

Sept. 5             Be Late For Something Day—if you are among the millions who can't seem to stay on schedule, then this is a holiday for you. Being late is a common occurrence and can be caused by any number of things from it being a conscious desire to it being caused by circumstances beyond your control. There is no factual information about this holiday, but it leads us to the September 6^th holiday which is…

Sept. 6             Fight Procrastination Day—for those of you mired down in Be Late For Something Day, this is a day to get things done. Many people consider procrastination as a way of life. There are even clubs dedicated to procrastination. Today is the day to make a decision…to take action. Fight those procrastination urges. There is no factual information about the origin of this holiday.

Sept. 6             This is also Read A Book Day—self-explanatory and important for those of us who write. Goes along with this being Be Kind To Editors and Writers Month.

Sept. 7             Neither Rain Nor Snow Day—this sounds like a tribute to those who deliver our mail.

Sept. 8             International Literacy Day—another holiday pertinent to those of us who write. Something we should all support with the goal of wiping out illiteracy in all countries.

Sept. 9             Teddy Bear Day—a day to honor our teddy bears, those past and those present.

Sept. 10           Swap Ideas Day—a day to share information, plans, ideas, and maybe even dreams.

Sept. 11           911 Remembrance—while not a legal holiday in the manner of Labor Day, it's certainly far removed from the frivolous and fun nature of the other holidays that fall into the bizarre and unusual category. This is the day in 2001 when 4 commercial airliners were high-jacked by terrorists; 2 flown into the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, 1 flown into the Pentagon in Washington D.C., and 1 brought down by the passengers in a field in Pennsylvania thus preventing it from reaching its target in Washington D.C. To quote FDR (when speaking of the Japanese attack at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, that officially brought the U.S. into World War II): "A date which will live in infamy."

Sept. 12           Chocolate Milk Shake Day—all I can say is yummy!

Sept. 13           Defy Superstation Day—this is the day for you to defy all those superstitious beliefs that surround us. And the defiance starts by celebrating on the 13^th. This holiday was created to help you eliminate all those superstitions from your daily life. There isn't any group who claims responsibility for this holiday, but it dates back at least to 1999 in origin.

Sept. 14           National Pet Memorial Day—this falls on the second Sunday in September, so the specific date changes from year to year. A day to honor the pets we've lost to time.

Sept. 14           National Cream-Filled Donut Day—again, all I can say to this holiday is yummy!

Sept. 15           Make A Hat Day—I can only assume it's a holiday dedicated to making hats of all type for all occasions.

Sept. 16           Collect Rocks Day—for all you rock hounds out there, this is your day of celebration.

Sept. 17           National Apple Dumpling Day—and once again, all I can say about this holiday is yummy!

Sept. 18           National Women's Friendship Day—this is celebrated on the third Sunday in September.  It's nice to have a holiday dedicated to friendship.

Sept. 18           National Cheeseburger Day—and even more yummies! Have you noticed how many holidays celebrate food and drink?

Sept. 19           International Talk Like A Pirate Day—a day to let out the pirate in each of us. You need to brush up on your pirate-speak in anticipation of this holiday. You're not required to dress like a pirate on this date, only to talk like one. This holiday was created by John Baur and Mark Summers in 1995 while they were playing racquetball and started talking to each other in pirate-speak as a fun thing to do.

Sept. 20           National Punch Day—I'm assuming (or choosing to believe) this relates to the beverage rather than hitting someone. So, I have to give it a yummy!

Sept. 21           World Gratitude Day—we all have things for which we need to express our gratitude. This is the day to do it.

Sept. 22           Elephant Appreciation Day—you can show your appreciation for all the elephants in the world.

Sept. 23           Dog In Politics Day—it seems that every year and every month and for that matter, every day in this election year, is filled with politics.

Sept. 24           National Cherries Jubilee Day—oh, yes…and another yummy!

Sept. 25           National Comic Book Day—for those who enjoy reading, writing, drawing, and collecting.

Sept. 26           Johnny Appleseed Day—in honor of the young man named John Chapman who planted apple trees across the country.

Sept. 27           International Rabbit Day—this is celebrated on the 4^th Saturday in September, for those of you who love your pet rabbits or are fans of Bugs Bunny.

Sept. 27           Crush A Can Day—the beer can (hopefully empty) on the forehead? All I can say about this is ouch!

Sept. 28           Ask A Stupid Question Day—this is a chance for you to get all those stupid questions out of your system, all those questions you've been saving up because you thought they were too stupid to ask. And for this day, we have a special quote:  "Stupid is as stupid does." (Forrest Gump). The origins of this holiday goes back to the 1980s when there was a movement by teachers to try to get kids to ask more questions in the classroom.

Sept. 29           Confucius Day—this is the day to get a fortune cookie and check your fortune.

Sept. 30           National Mud Pack Day—and another yummy!  Oops, wait a minute…that's wrong. Mud packs, not mud pie…I've never understood how smearing mud on your face is suppose to be good for the skin.

And that's a listing of the bizarre and unique holidays for September. Do any stand out as a favorite for you? 

10 Unexplained Ocean Mysteries

The vast briny deep has been the source for many a tale of the unexplained and unexplainable. Even though water covers a majority of the planet, we know more about outer space than we do about what exists beneath the surface of the oceans. The mysteries of the deep date back to ancient times. Modern science has been able to dispel many of these tall tales, but not all of them.

I recently came across a list of ten unexplained ocean mysteries, shown here in no particular order. There are, of course, many more strange and unexplainable occurrences than the ten listed here.

10)  "The Bloop" and "Julia"

Several creepy sounds have been recorded by underwater microphones off the Southern coast of South America. Nearly all of these sounds have been attributed to volcanic activity and shifting icebergs. There are, however, two incidents that have baffled scientists. The Bloop occurred in 1997 and lasted over a minute. In the same region, two years later, they recorded something that sounded like a watery voice saying Julia. Both seismic and human activity were ruled out in each case. Scientists agree than an animal is responsible for Julia, but no currently known creature is large enough to produce such a noise.

9)  The Mary Celeste

In 1872, a merchant ship named Mary Celeste set sail from New York with ten people on board.  Eight days later the ship was found adrift in the North Atlantic, intact with the exception of one missing lifeboat. A six month's supply of food was on board as were the crew's belongings along with the ship's logbook and some charts. Neither the lifeboat nor any bodies were ever found. So, what happened to the sailors, the captain and the captain's family? With valuables left on board, a pirate takeover wasn't the answer. An experienced crew and well-liked captain ruled out error and mutiny. To this day no one has an explanation for what occurred on board the Mary Celeste.

8)  The Sonar Flying Saucer

Swedish researcher Peter Lindberg was using sonar to search for a shipwreck between Sweden and Finland in 300 feet of water. In July 2011, he discovered a perfectly round circle approximately 60 feet in diameter resting on the ocean floor. Deep scars on the ocean floor suggested the object had moved across the ocean bottom. Released sonar images immediately had a number of news outlets claiming the object was a UFO. Although finding a perfectly round object of that size on the ocean floor is very strange, sonar specialists declared the resolution of the image too low to identify it as anything in particular. Until more money is available for improved equipment and more exploration, the object remains a mystery.

7)  The Montauk Monster

In the summer of 2008, an unidentified dead animal washed up on the shore at Montauk, New York. Although several people reported seeing it and photographs surfaced, the carcass disappeared before police were able to recover the remains. Newspapers ran the story along with a grotesque image. Locals speculated that it could be a mutant resulting from experiments at nearby Plum Island Animal Disease Center. Others suggested that it was nothing more than a hoax. Many scientists who studied the photographs think it was a known species heavily damaged and decomposed as a result of time spent in the water. Several people claimed it was some type of sea turtle without its shell. The raccoon claim seems to be the closest, but the Montauk Monster's legs are longer than a normal raccoon leaving us without a definitive conclusion.

6)  The Vil Vana

A 41-foot fishing trawler with a seven man crew mysteriously vanished off the coast of Santa Cruz Island in 1993. With no signal for help and very few ship remains ever found, it was determined that the boat sank quickly and fully intact. For two decades, investigators have been baffled by the fact that no diesel fuel ever bubbled to the surface and no bodies were ever found. Some of the victim's families believe that a military submarine may have accidently caught one of the boats' nets and dragged it under. This is rare, but possible. Four years earlier a submarine sank a tugboat in the same area. The case of the Vil Vana is still open and unsolved.

5)  The Lost City Of Atlantis

In 360 B.C. Plato wrote "in a single day and night of misfortune" a major sea power called Atlantis mysteriously sank into the ocean. Some historians have labeled Plato's account a myth while others have dedicated their lives to finding the lost city which they believe was a super power devastated by a natural disaster. It's been suggested that Plato was describing the Minoan civilization on Crete and neighboring Santorini where a devastating volcanic eruption happened in 1600 B.C. During the last couple of decades several research teams claimed to have located Atlantis, but this 2000 year old puzzle is still waiting to be solved.

4)  The Bermuda Triangle

Certainly one of the best known ocean mysteries, this stretch of water between Bermuda, Miami, and San Juan has also been called The Devil's Triangle. Most of today's theories say that nearly all reported incidents are due to equipment or human error combined with the areas strong currents and frequent (and sudden) storms. Others strongly believe that paranormal activity or a magnetic anomaly are to blame. A few of the Bermuda Triangle accidents have escaped any type of scientific explanation. The U.S.S. Cyclops with 306 people on board disappeared in 1918 between Barbados and Baltimore with no signal for help and no remains discovered. Five Navy bombers disappeared off the coast of Florida in 1945 with neither the planes nor any bodies ever found. A DC-3 plane with 3 crewmen and 29 passengers on a flight from San Juan to Miami with perfect visibility radioed when they were 50 miles from landing saying all was well, but the plane never arrived and has never been found.

3)  Alaska's Loch Ness Monster

In Bristol Bay, Alaska, a fisherman managed to get some film footage of what the locals refer to as Caddy, a creature with undulating body, horse-like head, long neck, big eyes and back humps—much the same as descriptions of sea serpent sightings from Scotland's Loch Ness and of Lake Champlain's Champ on the New York-Vermont state line. This footage shot in 2009 has the distinction of being the first hard video evidence. After studying the footage, scientists have determined that the creature isn't a whale, seal, shark, eel or fish. It has been suggested that the film shows a Cadborosaurus, a beast named for Cadboro Bay in British Columbia combined with the Greek word saurus (lizard) that's been popular in Alaskan lore for nearly 200 years. But, without more physical clues no definite conclusions can be drawn.

2)  Quackers

In various parts of the North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans during the peak of the Cold War, Soviet submarines reported hearing mysterious sounds they called quackers (the Russian version of our own ribbit of a frog). Using sound recording from various ships, scientists concluded that the noises were made by a moving object with the behavior of a living creature or manned vessel. The origin of the sounds seemed to show interest in and occasionally circle the subs. However, their sonar was unable to find anything to account for the sounds. The Soviets claimed it was secret U.S. technology. Others believed it was giant squids that evaded sonar because they don't have a rigid skeleton. The most mysterious part of the quacker puzzle is that the sounds stopped in the mid 1980s.

1)  The Baychimo Ghost Ship

For centuries there have been stories about ghost ships either manned by the dead or possessed by some type of unknown force. While most of these stories are considered myths, one actual ghost ship did exist. Baychimo, a 1322-ton cargo steamer became trapped in pack ice in 1931 where the crew had to abandon ship off the coast of Alaska. A harsh blizzard hit and the ship was nowhere to be found. The crew assumed the ship had sunk, but Inuit hunters reported several sightings over the ensuing months. Many reports were received for nearly 40 years from people claiming to have seen the unmanned vessel sailing the waters around Alaska as if still in use. The last reported sighting was in 1969. The ultimate fate of Baychimo is a mystery.

And as a footnote to Ghost Ships:

This didn't actually involve a ship, but it is about a large man-made object that ended up navigating thousands of miles of ocean on its own. The large destructive tsunami following the March 2011 Japanese earthquake ripped apart four large sections of dock and set them adrift on the ocean, each about the size of a freight train box car. One landed on a nearby island, two were never seen again, but the fourth managed to find its way across 5000 miles of ocean without any type of help and came to rest on a beach in Oregon. So…I guess a ship without a crew could continue to stay afloat and move with the currents and tides for an indeterminate amount of time.

Things NOT To Say At A Job Interview and Six Red Flags That Say Perhaps That Job Isn't For You

We all know that going on a job interview is cause for varying degrees of anxiety.  We're uncomfortable, very concerned about making a good impression both personally and with our resume and work history.  Saying the wrong thing…misspeaking…is upper in our mind.

All of this discomfort is part of the process.  But, there are those who go beyond the bounds of mere jittery nerves.  The following comments were actually said during the course of a job interview.

Q:  Why did you leave your last job?

A:  "I have a problem with authority."

Q:  Why should we hire you?

A:  "I would be a great asset to the events team because I party all the time."

Q:  Do you have any questions?

A:  "Cross dressing isn't a problem, is it?"

Q:  Why are you leaving your current job?

A:  "I was fired from my last job because they were forcing me to attend anger management classes."

Q:  Why do you want to work for us?

A:  "My old boss didn't like me, so one day I just left and never came back.  And here I am!"

Q:  What are your weaknesses? [related to job skills]

A:  "I get angry easily and I went to jail for domestic violence.  But I won't get mad at you."

Q:  When have you demonstrated leadership skills?

A:  "Well my best example would be in the world of online video gaming.  I pretty much run the show.  It takes a lot to do that."

Q:  Is there anything else I should know about you?

A:  "You should probably know I mud wrestle on the weekends."

Q:  When can you start?

A:  "I need to check with my mom on that one."

Q:  Have you submitted your two weeks' notice to your current employer?

A:  "What is two weeks' notice?  I've never quit a job before.  I've always been fired."

The following are random responses and comments made by job seekers at interviews.

"If I get an offer, how long do I have before I have to take the drug test?"

"When you do background checks on candidates, do things like public drunkenness arrests come up?"

"May I have a cup of coffee?  I think I may still be a little drunk from last night."

And finally…

[During a telephone call to schedule the interview]  "Can we meet next month?  I am currently incarcerated."

While we put a lot of effort into that all important job hunt, we should not be so anxious to land a job…any job…that we ignore those red flags trying to tell us this might not be the best place to work.

While those red flags might be flying during your interview, you could be so busy talking about how well you work with your team or bragging about your killer sales record that you don't see them flapping in the wind trying to get your attention. Or you pretend you don't see them. You pretend you don't hear the interviewer complain about a colleague or working long hours. Or you decide it's no big deal that she interrupted your interview twice to take a call.

If getting the job means a large pay increase, or if you've been looking for a job for quite a while with no luck, you're more likely to ignore the signs. But if you don't want to be job hunting again in a few months, you need to pay attention to those red flags.

The good news is that there are usually clues during the interview process that you could be heading for trouble. Spot any of these signs, and you may want to turn down that job offer you've been seeking.

Your interviewer is late. Being a few minutes late for an interview is no big deal. However, if someone is 15 or 20 minutes late, that deserves some added attention on your part especially if your interviewer doesn't appear to care. Being on time is a sign of respect for both the interviewer and the interviewee.

And rescheduling your interview a few times doesn't bode well, either. Your interviewer might be overworked or disorganized, and you really don't want to work in that type of situation and atmosphere.

Your interviewer hasn't reviewed your résumé. If the hiring manager isn't familiar with your background, you have to wonder why you're being interviewed at all. If the person who is doing the hiring hasn't taken the time to read your résumé then that person isn't doing their job.

Ideally, the hiring manager and your potential boss will have called you in because they've carefully read and discussed your résumé and read your online profiles. If they haven't done this, they're not invested enough in bringing in the right person, or they're just desperate to hire someone…anyone.

There's confusion about the position. Sometimes you get called in for an interview through a referral or because you have a great résumé, and the manager is trying to figure out where you fit. You may wind up getting hired, but the job you get might not be best suited to you.

Taking a job because you like the company or the manager isn't enough. Try to pin down specifics about what you will do and how you will be evaluated. Can't get any information? Perhaps it's best to walk away.

Your interviewer checks email and texts. It's just too rude. Your interviewer should be paying attention to the interview, not checking his cell phone. And if someone is that uninterested in what you are saying, there's a good chance that you won't be hired anyway.

The department has a lot of turnover. During your interview, ask why the previous employee in that position resigned, as well as how long that employee had been in that specific job and how long with the company. When you meet other team members, ask them about their career paths.

If many team members are recent hires, be sure there is a sound business reason for the hiring spree, such as a new product or client or a round of funding. Otherwise, too much employee turnover hints at a toxic boss, culture, or work atmosphere.

You hear negative comments about the job situation you're interested in or read them online. If your interviewer criticizes the person you will be replacing, other team members, a boss or even the company in general, don't disregard it as unimportant. It isn't professional, and it might mean you will be working for someone who doesn't respect other people or is impossible to please.

Pay attention to negative comments in online reviews of the company as well. A few negative reviews are one thing—there are always a few disgruntled employees. But if there are many such comments, consider yourself warned. Look for patterns in the comments, too. If the same negative words or phrases pop up in many reviews, such as political, lacking vision or endless hours, the problem might be the general atmosphere or the leadership, rather than a single manager.

So, with all of this information at your fingertips…good luck with the job search!

5 THINGS YOU SHOULD NEVER PUT ON YOUR RESUMÉ

I think of doing a resumé when job hunting to be similar to writing a synopsis of your story before writing the manuscript…a dreaded task no one wants to do but it's necessary.

With a synopsis you need to convey the storyline, who your main characters are, their conflict and how it's resolved, and the emotion that fits into the story—providing an editor with the feel of your story as well as the events that take place. And the catch that makes it a daunting task? Trying to fit all that into the very limited number of pages as set forth by the publisher without it reading like an impersonal listing of items.

A similar problem exists when putting together a resumé. I've heard it said that a resumé should never be more than one page long, therefore brevity is a must. But on the other hand, you need to provide a prospective employer with a clear picture of your qualifications and experience.

So, what do you put in and what do you leave out?

I recently came across a list of 5 things you should not put on your resumé which I'd like to share with you.

Your Age:

People doing the hiring need to know what you can bring to the company rather than how many years you've been alive. I think it's actually illegal in the U.S. for a prospective employer to ask the age of anyone 18 years of age up to the retirement age. And along with listing your specific age goes the following no-no items:

Listing professional experience more than 15 years old.

Providing an exact number of years of professional experience in your opening summary. For example: 'senior accountant with more than 25 years of experience in...'  According to experts, this type of data invites age discrimination. And don't forget that age bias goes both ways—a resume that says you are too young for the job isn't to your advantage, either.

Listing Tasks or Duties Without Results:

Your resumé needs to go beyond listing the jobs you've done: It must convey what you've accomplished on those jobs. Many applicants miss this key distinction. Saying you reorganized the filing system conveys the task but that's all. But saying that you increased office productivity 20% by reorganizing the filing system conveys both the task and positive results.

Explanations of Anything Negative:

A resumé needs to present a positive picture of the person applying for a job. If there's something negative that needs explaining, do it in person at your interview rather than in your resumé.

A List of Every Job You've Ever Held:

Prospective employers don't want to know about that summer job you had—unless you're applying for a job where that specific experience is relevant. List the work you've done in the past 10 to 15 years that tells an employer you're a skilled, reliable fit for the job. However (tricky line here), employers don't want to see gaps in your employment history so you need to account for that time.

Personal Details:

Employers usually don't care about your marital status, race, sexual orientation or hobbies, unless they are somehow relevant to the job. Including personal data is a novice mistake. Your resumé is just the first step in securing a job. At this phase of the process, those personal details aren't necessary. Today's job seeker usually sends a resumé via email and that means there's no way to know exactly who or how many people will see it. With identity theft becoming a larger and larger problem, you need to protect your personal information from anonymous eyes.

And here's a few more quick tips:

Make sure your resumé is free of typos, grammar goofs, and factual errors (like getting a company's name wrong).

Don't list your salary history unless the employer demands it.

Don't worry about providing references on your resumé. You can do that in a separate document. 

And keep in mind, this is a basic list of do/don't. It does not apply equally across the board to all situations and all types of jobs.

Good luck on the job hunt.

No new blog post this week

I'm not posting a new blog for the week of July 26, 2025.  Check in next week, August 2, 2025, for my next blog post.

Thank you.

Frivolous Lawsuits part 2of2

Welcome to part 2 of 2 of my blog about frivolous lawsuits. Lots of people believe they're only a stone's throw from striking it rich. All you need to do is check out the number of pioneers (the 49ers) traveling to California during the gold rush days in search of sudden wealth. Overland it was a dangerous trip that took several months. From Europe or Asia, it was a long ocean voyage. And from Europe, that only got you to the East Coast, there was still the journey all the way across the country to California. The completion of the trans-continental railroad was still twenty years away (1869).

However, the ultimate get-rich-quick scheme has evolved quite a bit since the time of our ancestors. In today's world, frivolous lawsuits might be one of the most popular techniques for gaining a sudden windfall of cash. When the consumer feels wronged, they have the power to fight back. But some take that power too far, and it's led to some pretty ridiculous lawsuits, as evidenced by the 12 examples listed here.

1. Landlord sues non-tenants: An Israeli couple was ready to sign the paperwork on a new rental. At least, that's what the landlord thought when the couple sent him a text that made it seem like they wanted the property. He'd assumed wrong. The landlord removed the property's ad, but it turned out that the couple wasn't as committed as he believed, and they backed out of the deal. The landlord, furious at being misled by the miscommunication, sued for the $2,000 in rent he lost. Surprisingly, the judge ruled in his favor!

2. Grandma sues Universal Studios: Every Halloween, Universal Studios put on an event known as "Horror Nights." Employees dressed up as ghouls, zombies, and serial killers and tried to spook park guests. Apparently it  was scary—just ask Cleanthi Peters. She allegedly sued for $15,000 when a costumed employee got a little too into his monster role and chased her and her granddaughter with a fake chainsaw. The case outcome was not reported.

3. Man sues Foster's: If you've turned on a TV in the past decade or so, you've probably seen a commercials for Foster's beer, complete with Aussie flags, kangaroos, and an accented narrator. A man named Leif Nelson had noticed. Apparently, it turned his world upside down when he learned that Fosters was brewed in Fort Worth, Texas and not in Australia. His life a lie, he sued the beer company for an unknown amount for their dishonesty. As of yet, the suit's result has not been published.

4. Man sues British Airways: In 2014, an American dentist planned a first-class flight on British Airways to the beautiful city of Granada, Spain. But the trip didn't quite go as planned. Nine hours after takeoff, the dentist was dismayed to find he wasn't in Granada, Spain, but the city of Grenada…in the Caribbean. The airline refused to refund his tickets, so he sued for $34,000 in damages. He lost the suit.

5. Woman sues Google Maps: One day, a woman needed walking directions, so she consulted Google Maps. Google suggested a route that had her walking down Utah's Deer Valley Drive. The problem? Deer Valley Drive, aka State Route 224, was not fit for foot traffic. There was nowhere to walk, but she gave it the ol’ college try anyway, which ended horrifically when a car smashed into her. She then sued Google for $100,000, but the court dismissed her claim.

6. Man sues New York City subway: A man decided to take his own life by jumping in front of a moving subway train. The passing train didn't kill him, but it did seriously wound him. His family claimed that the train conductor hadn't slowed down in time. The family sued for $650,000, and surprisingly, they won. Tragically, He jumped in front of another subway train years later. That time, he didn't make it.

7. Hellmann's sues competitor: If you have mayonnaise in your fridge, there's a good chance it's the Hellmann's brand, and the company wants to keep it that way. That's why they sued their competitor, Hampton Creek. Their reasoning, however, was a bit much. Mayonnaise is defined as an "egg-based spread," so when Hampton Creek released their egg-free mayonnaise, Hellmann cried foul. It wasn't actually  mayo, the company claimed, and saying otherwise was false advertising. They eventually dropped the suit.

8. Man sues McDonald's: In 2014, a California man had just finished pounding back a burger, fries, and an ice-cold Coke when he asked a cashier for more napkins. Then, life as he knew it, ended. The cashier allegedly mumbled something, and he took it to be racially discriminatory. He claimed his ensuing emotional distress left him unable to work, so he sued for $1.5 million. Some say he's still searching for a napkin. Either way, the case was unresolved.

9. Woman sues Starbucks: Have you ever ordered an expensive coffee only to find you got less than you ordered? A Chicago woman had, many times, and it frustrated her enough to take legal action. She sued Starbucks for $5 million, claiming the company misrepresented the amount of actual drink in a venti-sized iced coffees. The lawsuit didn't get far. As Starbucks had tweeted out a year earlier, if she wanted less ice, she only had to ask. Because of this, a judge threw out the case.

10. Judge sues dry cleaner: Washington D.C. judge took his pants to the dry cleaner, and because the store had a "Satisfaction Guaranteed" sign hanging in the lobby, he knew his pants were in the right hands. Or were they? The judge never received the correct pair of pants, so naturally, he sued the family-owned dry cleaner for $54 million. He represented himself during the civil case, and, no joke, worked himself into a tearful frenzy during his testimony. He lost his suit (and his pants).

11. Man sues Jack Murphy Stadium and San Diego: While at a Billy Joel Concert at a San Diego arena, the man had to use the bathroom. So, he strolled over to the restroom, went in, and saw something that, evidently, scarred him. He didn't realize the bathrooms at the stadium were unisex, so upon entering the restroom of his choice, he saw a woman peeing in a urinal. Frightened by what he saw, he held his bathroom urge for four hours and sued the stadium and city for $54 million. He lost the suit.

12. Man sues Michael Jordan: Have you ever had someone mistake you for Michael Jordan? Apparently, a man had, and it totally ruined his life so he sued the basketball legend. He sued Jordan for $416 million, an amount he pulled from thin air—it just felt right to him that Jordan should pay big money for "stealing his likeness." He officially filed the suit, but dropped it after a visit from Nike's lawyers. [Unless someone has had plastic surgery to purposely make him or her look like a specific celebrity, I don't see how two unrelated people physically looking alike can be lawsuit material.]

While there's always more to the story than meets the eye, these lawsuits sure seem frivolous! Were they get-rich-quick schemes or truly an instance where someone was wronged?