5 Alternative Winter Sports And Where to Try Them

 Whether you’re a winter sport daredevil or only in it for the mulled wine, dust off your mittens for these alternative winter sports. Give standard skiing and snowboarding a wide berth with a few frosty favourites perfect for beginners, or test your snowy sport expertise by scaling ice or soaring up high. There’s an avalanche of choice, so wrap up warm and hit the snow.

1. Dog-sledding in Norway

 

 Feel the fresh air rush past your face as you glide through Scandinavian snowlands, a pack of lively husky dogs towing you at speed. Dog-sledding is a breathtaking thrillride and plenty of tourist boards across Scandinavia arrange day excursions for total beginners. But if you imagine the bounding hound dogs will be doing all the work, think again: make sure you’re in good shape and expect sore arms in the morning.
Mush! Take a visit to the Villmarkssenter outside Tromsø in Norway to canoodle with friendly husky pups before a day excursion on a sled. Some tour packages will also warm your cockles with an authentic Sami feast of reindeer stew.

2. Snowshoeing in the French Alps

 

 Tread merrily over frosty plains on a snowshoe walk. Snowshoes distribute your weight over a larger area, stopping you from sinking into the snow. And the dark age of cartoonish tennis rackets strapped to your feet is over, giving way to daintier models with killer grip. This formidable footwear will keep you upright on snowy terrain, allowing you to take in breathtaking expanses of white rolling hills (and get a fantastic workout as you walk).
Step out. You don’t need much training to walk in snowshoes, just practice: you’ll have to walk slowly, steadily and with a slight rolling gait to start off. Most ski rental stores will hire them out, along with trekking poles to jab into the snow to save you from a slippery fall. You can snowshoe across the globe, around Lapland, the USA and eastern Europe. Morzine-Avoriaz, a winter sports hub in the French Alps, is a great choice as it has suggestions galore for snowshoe treks and tips on easy trails for beginners.

3. Ice fishing in Finland

 

 Tranquillity, silence and staying still: yes, fishing still counts as a sport, and it can be done just as well through a hole in a thick layer of ice as on a warm summer’s day. This pastime creates red noses across Scandinavia and eastern Europe, and Finland is a great choice to drink in glacial views as you wait for a bite. Just don’t forget your thermal underwear.
Cast a line. Stepping out onto an unknown frozen lake could be fatal and failing to research fishing permits could land you a fine. Helsinki’s tourist office has some helpful resources for getting a fishing licence and novice ice fishers should start with a tour operator. They’ll be able to arrange an excursion to a monitored fishing spot, to ensure our slippery waterborne friends are safe from overfishing. They can also supply you with equipment and help drill through the ice safely. Go prepared so you don’t hurtle through some thin ice; save your lake plunge for the bracing Finnish pastime of ice swimming.

4. Snowkiting in the northeastern USA

 

 This sport will keep accomplished skiers and snowboarders on their toes – literally. Snowkiting gives you the sensation of weightless skiing, with a power kite speeding the snowkiter along or lifting them above the ground. The experienced (and brave) can also spin into mid-air acrobatics. A combination of skiing and kite-flying, using some of the principles of sailing to steer, snowkiting allows you to glide easily on flat land assisted by the breeze, or even ski uphill.
Sail away. Snowkiters need plenty of icy or snowy space and a breeze to play with, and the northeastern USA in winter has plenty of each. Beginners can get a helping hand at the Superior Kiteboarding School, which offers snowkiting lessons in Minnesota and Wisconsin. The pristine lakes of New Hampshire are also a popular spot for snowkiting.

5. Ice climbing in Europe’s Chamonix Valley

 

 If snowkiting doesn’t give you enough of a bird’s-eye view, then ice climbing will give you the adrenaline-laced vertigo you crave. Scaling ice falls is not for the faint-hearted (or inexperienced), so if you want to feel the thrill, sign up for a beginners’ class and prepare to hold on tight.
Reach new heights. The ice falls of Chamonix, across the borders of France, Italy and Switzerland, have plenty of sites for ice climbers are the perfect place to test your nerves. The best spots are driveable from Chamonix and there are plenty of beginners’ courses to choose from. The mountainous views are beautiful enough to be very distracting, but while clinging to an icy edge we suggest you don’t look down…
Source: Lonelyplanet

10 Cities With The Fastest-Growing Wages In America

 The number of jobs in America is growing, and with that, full-time wages are also shooting up in parts of the country.

The PayScale Index tracks how many times private-sector wages have changed since 2006, and found that between Q4 of 2010 and Q4 of 2011, 18 metro areas saw at least some wage growth.

While energy and tech jobs continue to see the most wage growth, construction and manufacturing jobs are finally starting to move in that direction.

PayScale Analytics Manager Katie Bardaro told us that the index doesn't account for differences in compensation based on experience or other outlying factors. It just looks at how pay has changed for the job itself.

We've highlighted the 10 cities with the biggest wage increases in the past year. Among the winners are

Houston, Texas; St. Louis, Mo.; and San Francisco, Calif.
Here are the cities with the biggest wage increases:

#10 San Diego, Calif.
12-month change: 1.2% increase
2011 Q4 PayScale Index: 104.9
2010 Q4 PayScale Index: 103.7

#9 Atlanta, Ga.
12-month change: 1.3% increase
2011 Q4 PayScale Index: 103.5
2010 Q4 PayScale Index: 102.1

#8 Philadelphia, Pa.
12-month change: 1.3% increase
2011 Q4 PayScale Index: 106.2
2010 Q4 PayScale Index: 104.8

#7 St. Louis, Mo.

12-month change: 1.4% increase
2011 Q4 PayScale Index: 105.8
2010 Q4 PayScale Index: 104.3

#6 San Francisco, Calif.
12-month change: 1.4% increase
2011 Q4 PayScale Index: 104.5
2010 Q4 PayScale Index: 103.1

#5 Seattle, Wash.
12-month change: 1.6% increase
2011 Q4 PayScale Index: 107.5
2010 Q4 PayScale Index: 105.9

#4 Washington, D.C.
12-month change: 1.7% increase
2011 Q4 PayScale Index: 106.8
2010 Q4 PayScale Index: 105.0

#3 Chicago, Ill.
12-month change: 1.7% increase
2011 Q4 PayScale Index: 104.2
2010 Q4 PayScale Index: 102.5

#2 Miami, Fla.
12-month change: 1.8% increase
2011 Q4 PayScale Index: 104.4
2010 Q4 PayScale Index: 102.5

#1 Houston, Texas
12-month change: 2.2% increase
2011 Q4 PayScale Index: 108.3
2010 Q4 PayScale Index: 106.0
Source: Finance

9 Brands Which Have Better Reputations Than Apple Right Now

 Market research firm YouGov BrandIndex has released its survey of the top brands of 2011, and found for the second straight year that Subway is the most beloved brand among consumers.
You just can't beat cheap sandwiches, it seems.

The survey is based on a continuous sampling of 2.5 million people online, within YouGov's database that nationally represents U.S. adults.

 The survey produces a "Buzz score," based on consumers' response to questions such as, "If you've heard anything about the brand in the last two weeks, through advertising, news or word of mouth, was it positive or negative?"

The results are an amalgamation of those results taken from the entire period of 2011, and thus represent the strength of these brands based on consumer sentiment and "buzz" over the period.
Here are the 10 strongest brands in the U.S. right now, starting with the best:

1 Subway
YouGov says: "Subway is the only dining brand to crack the BrandIndex Buzz Ranking Top 10. The sandwich giant ranks number one in our overall Buzz list for the second consecutive year."

2 Amazon
"The launch of the Kindle Fire and an increase in marketing spend solidified Amazon's number two position," YouGov says.

3 History Channel

This is History's third consecutive appearance in the top five brands of the year. It's not just World War II stuff any more: The channel added reality shows such as Pawn Stars and speculative documentaries about aliens.

4 Google

Google edged up one spot from last year's survey due in part, perhaps, to its launch of Google+, its social networking site.

5 Cheerios
General Mills introduced 'Cinnamon Burst Cheerios' last year, but the cereal is a perennial best brand in this survey.

6 Lowe's

Lowe's buzz declined a little at the very end of 2011 due to a controversy over its refusal to sponsor the TLC reality show All-American Muslim.

7 Ford
Ford is the top auto brand in the survey and its 2011 sales bounced back.

8 Discovery Channel

Shark Week -- still getting the job done for Discovery. This is the third consecutive year for the channel in the YouGov Top 10.

9 Target
Target hurt itself in September when its launch of a Missoni collection crashed its web site. But people like the cheap and trendy retailer so much it kept its place in the top 10.

10 Apple

Apple hasn't been in the top 10 for the last three years, but new iPad and iPhone models -- plus the death of Steve Jobs -- appear to have grown consumers' affection for the brand.

 Source: Finance

10 Secrets Of Hiring A Manager

 Ever wonder what the hiring managers who are screening your resume, interviewing you, and--maybe--making you an offer are really thinking throughout the hiring process? Here are 10 secrets that most hiring managers share:

1. Most interviewers aren't very good at interviewing. You might be going into interviews assuming that your interviewers know what they're doing, but in fact, many interviewers are inexperienced, unskilled, unprepared, or otherwise unable to conduct effective interviews. Some of them are even nervous. Most interviewers don't get good training on how to interview well, and a lot of them are winging it.

2. We want you to talk about salary first for exactly the reason you fear. Salary conversations are frustrating and nerve-wracking for job-seekers because they risk low-balling themselves by naming a number first. And that's exactly why employers push candidates to throw out a number first. In an ideal world, employers would simply let you know the range they plan to pay, but in reality, plenty of them take advantage of the power disparity by making candidates talk money first.

3. We're being really friendly because we want you to let your guard down. Good interviewers will do everything they can to put candidates at ease--partly to be nice, of course, but also because they want candidates to let their guard down. Not only do we want to know what you're really like (as opposed to your formal "interview face"), but we also know that you're more likely to reveal something unflattering if you feel comfortable.

4. Fit really, really matters. You could have all the qualifications an employer is looking for, but if they decide that you wouldn't mesh well with the manager, team, or office culture, you're probably not getting the job. Employers aren't just looking for specific skill sets; they're also looking for people who will thrive in their specific environment.

5. Saying you can start sooner than two weeks when you're currently employed is a huge red flag. If you indicate that you'd leave your job without giving your current employer proper notice, we'll take note of that and will assume that if we hire you, we'll be on the receiving end of that kind of treatment too.

6. Employers always underestimate how long it will take to fill a position. They might tell you they'll be scheduling interviews next week or making a decision by the end of the month, but chances are high that it'll take longer than that. Timelines get derailed by all kinds of things: higher priority work that comes up unexpectedly, a decision-maker who's busy or out sick, a budget question that needs to be resolved before they can make the hire, a reference check process that takes longer than expected, and so forth.

7. Rejection letters are intentionally vague. Don't read anything into them. Most rejection notices are standard form letters that are sent to all rejected candidates, using the same language for everyone. Don't try to figure out if they really mean it when they say "you were a strong candidate" or "your experience didn't fit our needs." The only real meaning a rejection notice has is "we've decided not to hire you." (The exception to this is if the employer has added an obviously personal note to the letter.)

8. "We'll keep your resume on file" rarely means that your resume will be reviewed the next time that employer has an opening. Employers keep resumes on file because the law requires them to, not because they regularly sort through them for candidates.

9. "We'll call you" might mean "you'll never hear from us again." It's increasingly common for companies to never get back to candidates after interviewing them. This is rude and inconsiderate; candidates are often waiting anxiously to hear back, and have often taken time off of work to interview or even traveled at their own expense. But, unfortunately, this "out of sight, out of mind" behavior has become commonplace.

10. The way you approach your job hunt will affect how happy you are in your new job. If you use gimmicks and aggressive sales tactics instead of standing on the strength of your own qualifications, you're likely to end up working somewhere that rewards that behavior, rather than merit. And then you'll be complaining that the promotions and raises all go to the flashiest employees, instead of those with the best work. Hiring managers who are good at what they do and are rewarding to work for don't need you to use sales tactics or gimmicks in order to stand out, because they know how to identify the best candidate for the job all on their own.

Source: Finance

8 Shortcuts to Getting Richer

 Want to turbocharge your change jar? In this post a few months back, guest columnist Len Penzo suggested adding dollars to the mix: "When you are out during the day, don't spend any dollar bills you get as change. Then, after you come home and are ready to make contributions to your jar, be sure to include all of those unspent dollar bills along with your coins—and if you have no singles, then pull out a fiver and drop it in the jar."

They're called "hacks": clever solutions to tricky problems. Here are some of my favorites to help you save more or spend less.

Did you make a New Year's resolution? If not, there's still time—after all, the year's still "new" until you remember to stop dating things 2011.

But whether your resolution is getting in better physical shape, dropping bad habits, or improving your finances, odds are it's about changing your behavior—no walk in the park. One thing that will help? Using simple shortcuts that remove some of the pain from the process.

In the digital age, shortcuts to solutions are often called "hacks." Now let's look at these money-making and saving hacks.

1. Saving More

Problem: You want and should be able to save more, but it never seems to happen.

Hack: Take your discipline (or lack thereof) completely out of the equation by automating your savings. Save before you see the money by transferring it automatically from every paycheck into savings, either regular or retirement. If your employer can't make it happen, talk to your bank, broker, or mutual fund to schedule regular transfers to savings or investment accounts. Instead of trying to find the money every month, you set it once and watch the money pile up.

Not only is saving automatically more efficient, it's more effective. If you take the traditional approach—waiting until you've paid all your bills before saving what's left—there's often nothing left to save. There's a reason "pay yourself first" has been the mantra of the money-enlightened for decades: It works.

2. Paying Bills on Time

Problem: Forgetfulness leads to late bills, which leads to fees and potential damage to your credit score.

Hack: Most banks and credit unions offer automated bill payment you can set up online. Utilities and other companies offer this service too, and might waive convenience fees or offer discounts for the right to suck money directly from your account. If your monthly bills include debt payments, automatically pay more than the minimum to work off debts faster. Remember what I said in the video above: Minimum payments are for losers.

One caveat: Make sure you maintain a sufficient checking balance to auto-pay all your bills without over-drawing your account. If there's even a chance you might, set up an auto-transfer from savings or a credit line to cover any potential shortfall.

3. Creating a Budget

Problem: You see the advantage of budgeting, but feel overwhelmed by the idea of creating spreadsheets, then tracking and recording where your money's going.

Hack: Traditional budget worksheets are so 2011. It's time to throw out the paper and pencil and let your computer or phone do the heavy lifting. Use a free service like Mint.com to establish goals, automatically track your spending, and give you a complete picture of exactly where you are 24/7. For even more convenience, look to the dozens of apps—many free—that can put your computerized budget into the palm of your hand. This app review article from Moolanomy is a good place to start looking.

4. Allocating Assets

Problem: You'd like to invest part of your retirement or other long-term savings into stocks or other risk-based investments, but have no idea how much to put where.

Hack: Take your age from 100. That's the percent of your savings to at least consider investing in stocks. So if you're 25 years old, you'd put up to 75 percent in stocks. If you're 60, your stock percentage should be around 40 percent. As for the remaining portion, split it equally between a money market account and an intermediate term bond mutual fund. For specific investments in each of these categories, use low-cost index funds. For example, the Vanguard 500 Index fund (VFINX) is a good pick for a stock investment.

Caveat: The hack above isn't a rule, it's a rule of thumb. Don't ever put money into any fluctuating investment that you'll need within five years, and don't ever risk so much that you lie awake at night. There's no amount of return worth sacrificing your peace of mind.

5. Spending Less

Problem: You pay more than you have to because you didn't check online before leaving home and don't want to waste time and gas comparing prices all over town.

Hack: Smartphone apps, such as Google Shopper, RedLaser, and Amazon Price Check, let you scan barcodes and search for products to check prices online and locally. And don't ever buy anything without looking for online coupons.

6. Saving More, Part 2

Problem: You don't make enough to automate your savings and never seem to have anything at all saved.

Hack: While tracking and analyzing your expenses is the only way to know if there's really any money hiding in your budget, the time-honored technique of using a change jar is a low-tech and simple way to save. When you come home, simply empty your pockets or purse of change. I've started doing this and the amount I've saved is astonishing. Try it.

7. Using Coupons

Problem: You'd love to use more coupons and discount codes, but don't have time to clip them or scour the Web.

Hack: Set up an RSS feed to automatically create and maintain a searchable collection of deals and discounts. The easiest way to do it:

8. Avoiding Parking Tickets

Problem: You're accumulating parking tickets because while your intention is to run inside a store for just a minute, that always seems to be the minute parking enforcement is dropping by.

Hack: One of the best pieces of advice I ever read: Always keep change in your car so you can feed the meter. Not in your pocket or purse—in your ash tray. Sounds simple, but do you do it? Since I started a few years ago, I've pretty much eliminated this maddening budget-buster.

Source: Yahoo

7 Skincare Tips For Winter

 It's that time of the year when you need to be extra careful about your body. The following tips will help you deal with those dreaded winter woes.

1. Start using a creamy facial cleanser. Cleansers, which you use to remove make-up usually, strip away moisture and during winter, this problem gets magnified.

2. Moisturise throughout the day. Use a moisturizing facial mask. Try using body lotion even before you've left the shower, right after rinsing soap or body wash. It will help lock in some extra moisture.

3. Of course, hot water showers feel great in winter, but they wreak havoc on dry skin. Try a lukewarm shower instead, and then pat your skin dry with a towel.

4. Avoid skin products and hairstyling products that have a high alcoholic content. When alcohol evaporates, it feels cool and refreshing, but it also strips away moisture, so opt for alcohol-free products, when the air is already dry.

5. When it comes to hair, if you're already dealing with dry, brittle hair, resist the urge to reach for the hair dryer. It'll only make things worse. Dry and style your hair with a towel, and if you still want to use a dryer, time yourself and try to use it a little less.

6. One of the biggest problems during winter are chapped lips. Use a lip balm with at least SPF 15 and preferably one with antiseptic agents to aid in healing. Some lip balm products are made with tea tree oil, which helps heal painful cracks.

7. Your hands, feet, knees and elbows need to be looked after too, during winter. Use products containing shea butter, petrolatum, mineral oil, tea tree oil or glycerin. For intense relief, moisturise hands and feet at night, and then slip on gloves or socks to lock in the moisture.
Source: TOI

Best and Worst Rankings For U.S. Airlines

 Tough times in Big D: First, the Dallas Cowboys missed the NFL playoffs (again). Now, locally based American Airlines has ranked dead last in customer service in the annual Middle Seat analysis of major domestic carriers (again).

United Airlines got sacked as well, showing that mergers can create big customer woes. United and Continental Airlines, when combined, scored almost as poorly as American.

The best-performing carrier last year was Alaska Airlines, the smallest among the seven major U.S. airlines. And in a surprise showing, Delta Air Lines scored a big turnaround, placing second in 2011 compared with ninth in 2010.

The Middle Seat scorecard ranks major carriers each year on a number of key measures important to travelers: on-time arrivals, long delays, canceled flights, mishandled bags, passengers bumped from flights and complaints filed with the Department of Transportation. Data come from DOT and FlightStats.com, a flight-tracking service that collects real-time flight information from airlines, airports and the Federal Aviation Administration.

Alaska, which launched an operational overhaul in 2007 after several years of dismal reliability, was first among major airlines in on-time arrivals. The carrier has set internal standards: There are 50 different check points on a timeline for each departure, with data collected on each one. Flight attendants have to be on board 45 minutes before scheduled departure; customer-service agents board the first passenger 40 minutes before departure, and 90% of passengers need to be boarded 10 minutes before departure. What time the fuel truck hooks up and what time it disconnects its hose are measured. When flights arrive, the time the belt-loader pulls up to the plane is tracked. The cargo door is supposed to be opened three minutes after arrival; the first bag needs to be dropped on the carousel before 15 minutes after arrival.

"There are so many moving parts. You just can't tell people to get the airplane out on time," said Ben Minicucci, Alaska's chief operating officer.

Delta engineered a major operational turnaround last year. In 2010, Delta was second-worst in punctuality and baggage handling among rival airlines and it had the highest rates of canceled flights and consumer complaints filed with the DOT. For 2011, Delta ranked in the top three in five of six categories.

In the past two years, Delta opened maintenance operations in nine cities that aren't hubs for the airline, such as Miami, Portland, Ore., and Philadelphia, to keep more of its fleet ready to fly. Once it was done integrating with Northwest Airlines, Delta invested in new baggage systems in Atlanta, plus new technology in its operations control center and retraining for customer-service workers.

"There are a lot of side benefits to running a good, clean operation," said David Holtz, Delta's vice president of operations control.

American, which filed for bankruptcy-court reorganization in November, has struggled with its operation for several years. For the past five years, American has been among the worst three airlines at on-time performance, a key measure of an airline's operation since it impacts mishandled bags, bumped passengers and even canceled flights and customer complaints.

Last year, American was worst among major carriers at baggage handling and had the highest percentage of canceled flights. The rate at which American canceled flights was 70% higher than at United, Delta and the industry average for major airlines, which the DOT defines as those with more than $1 billion in operating revenue.

American, which replaced its top operations executive last month, says its aging fleet has led to increased cancellations because of more mechanical breakdowns. In addition, American said its hub cities seemed particularly plagued last year. A severe thunderstorm season last spring in the South took a toll, along with a tornado in St. Louis, a fuel-farm fire in Miami and a hailstorm in Dallas that damaged 50 jets.

The carrier has placed large orders for new replacement jets and stepped up baggage scanning to improve accuracy. It now hopes bankruptcy reorganization will allow the same kind of cost cutting and work-rule changes that have boosted operations at other airlines, said Jon Snook, American's vice president of operations planning and performance.

"There's no question cost has impacted on our ability to invest in dependability," he said.

United and Continental merged in 2010, but the two carriers still operate on separate reservation systems. Customers like Jay Gould complain they sometimes get lost in the gap between the two airlines. Mr. Gould, a lawyer in San Francisco and New York, is a top-level frequent flier who pays for membership in United's airport clubs. Yet, he got kicked out of a Continental lounge, where privileges are reciprocal. After 45 minutes and a flurry of phone calls, he was allowed back in.

A United spokesman said the airline expects complaints to drop when it moves to one passenger system within a few months.

JetBlue Airways had both the most-frequent delays and the longest delays. Nearly one out of every eight jetBlue flights was at least 45 minutes late last year, according to DOT and FlightStats data. The average delay for a jetBlue flight that ran late was 65 minutes, according to DOT data for the first 10 months of the year.

JetBlue says the New York and Boston areas, which are departing or arriving points for 73% of all its flights, got slammed last year with a few severe weather events that led to long delays and canceled flights. Hurricane Irene and severe snowstorms in January and October hurt performance.

"We don't have hubs in more favorable weather areas to balance it out," said Rob Maruster, jetBlue's chief operating officer.

Southwest Airlines, the only major airline that doesn't charge fees to check two pieces of luggage, had the second-worst rate of mishandled bags, better than only American. Bags fly free, but they don't always get there. Excluding AirTran Airways, which Southwest acquired in May, Southwest would have been the industry's worst at baggage handling. In addition to added volume, Southwest's baggage operation has struggled with complexity of connecting lots of different flights in lots of different cities.

Southwest said it made a major push to improve its on-time reliability in the second half of 2011. This year, baggage gets a major SWAT team improvement effort, said Greg Wells, senior vice president of operations. Currently, the carrier is studying use of hand-held scanners to improve accuracy in routing bags.

Still, Southwest customers aren't complaining. The airline had the fewest complaints per passenger, according to DOT stats.

The overall rate of cancellations among major carriers was unchanged in 2011 from 2010 at 1.4% of all flights, according to DOT data covering 10 months and FlightStats data for November and December.
Source: Yahoo