New Rules: Tea & Coffee in the Office

This blogger has set his own five rules about the making of hot beverages in the office.

Synchronized Desk Swimming

Russian office workers combat desk boredom with synchronized "swimming" at their desks -- and delight a planet of "leg men" with the video to prove it. Have a peek.

Get Pricy, Healthy Snacks on the Cheap -- Here's How.

A Just A Sec Exclusive!

Got a sweet tooth that flairs up around 3 PM?

Would you love to replace those junky candy bars with healthful, super-sweet and delicious dehydrated fruit snacks from the health food store, but you just can't afford that regular expense?

In our 'hood, dried strawberries go for about $8 a pound, and dried raspberries, $17 a pound!!!! No wonder so many of us reach for the M&Ms -- they're a quick fix for less than a buck. (A fix that doesn't last very long, however -- you're sugar-crashing an hour later.)

Maybe, like us, you looked at those neatly sealed bags of pricy dried fruit and automatically assumed they came from giant drying factories, and that nobody had the ability to do the same thing at home. At least not without a lot of fuss. And who needs that?

We were delighted to discover that fruit-drying can be done at home, very simply, using personal food dehydrators by Nesco.



To test the ease of the process, our volunteer Stacia put the Nesco Snackmaster Express Dehydrator and Jerky Maker, Model FD-60, to the test. Never having used a food dehydrator before, in one weekend, Stacia dried enough strawberries to feed all the secretaries in her office during the following Monday's 3 PM energy plunge.

So did Stacia have to labor the entire weekend for those few moments of glory?

"No, it was easy. Much easier than I expected," she said. "I sliced the strawberries in half, placed them on the (dehydrator's) trays, turned the dial (on the dehydrator) to the recommended temp for strawberries, and came back six hours later. They were done. I put them into baggies and stored them in the fridge 'til Monday morning."

Wow -- pretty simple!

The dehydrator is made up of a plastic base, a lid (which contains the drying mechanism -- fan, temperature gauge, etc.), and a stack of trays in between on which fruit is placed for drying. Stacia's Snackmaster Express came with four trays, but additional trays may be purchased and added to the machine, creating a taller "tower" with space to dry even more fruit at one time.

The dehydrator's literature stresses the option of pre-treating fruit before drying it. Although not necessary, pre-treatment reportedly gives dried fruits a longer shelf life, and for fruits that tend to brown (like apples), it reduces browning.

Stacia opted not to pre-treat (to save prep time) and still got a perfect product that her co-workers raved about. But pre-treatment would have been as simple as soaking her strawberry slices in fruit juice for five minutes before drying.

We were impressed by the variety of things the Nesco FD-60 is designed to do.

Besides drying fruit (not just for snacks, but for adding to granola, yogurt, cereal, etc.), the Snackmaster Express comes with a special tray for making your own "Fruit Roll-up"-type snacks using your own homemade puree. Nesco's dehydrator comes with recipes for fruit roll flavors like "Orange Julius", "Strawberry Daiquiri", "Strawberry Cream Cheese" and "Pina Colada".

The Snackmaster dries vegetables and herbs for use in stews, soups, casseroles, marinades, pizza, breads, etc.

The Snackmaster is also a jerky maker. Dried meat snacks aren't cheap. Making your own is much cheaper.

For you crafty types, the Nesco Snackmaster Express FD-60 will keep you busy in all sorts of new ways, drying plants and flowers for potpourri, dried flower arrangements, wreaths, etc. There are some clever instructions for drying dough ornaments, too.

Stacia added that cleaning the dehydrator was also easier than expected. "I thought if any part of this process would be hard work, it would be cleaning those trays. They have all those little slots in them and I thought I'd end up spending a lot of time cleaning them up. But I just let them sit in my sink full of warm soapy water for a few minutes and the pink residue from the strawberries rinsed right off with plain water."

You should know that dehydrated foods, when stored in a cool, dry place, can last a year or longer.

You might even find ways to bring in extra income with a Nesco dehydrator -- think about it.

You can get your own Nesco Snackmaster Express for $59.95 at www.nesco.com. Not only is it affordable, but it quickly pays for itself.

MTA Votes to Raise Fares, Cut Services

That's right, kids. Read it and weep.

Thai Lunch @ POOKET: Skip it!!

A Just A Sec Exclusive!

We sent Kathy, one of our volunteer restaurant reviewers, out to find a Thai lunch special near her workplace. She landed at Pooket at 945 Second Avenue at 50th Street.

She thought the lunch menu looked promising: 30 different items to choose from for $7.95, which included complementary soup of the day or house salad.

It was a bad experience from the moment Kathy walked in.

"The service was completely chaotic," she said. "It looked like there were two kids running around the dining room trying to do everything."

"First, they sat me down and forgot to give me a menu," she went on. "Eventually the waitress came back. I gave her a blank look, she looked at the empty table and said, 'Oh, you didn't get a menu yet?' Bad sign! Especially when a lot of people are in a hurry to get back to work at lunchtime. How hard is it to remember to give someone a menu when they sit down? I mean, shouldn't that be second nature for the hostess?"

"I couldn't believe it when the guy came with my salad and soup," said Kathy. "He literally threw the bowls on the table as he whizzed by." She also added, "I noticed the menu said you have your choice of soup or salad, but they gave me both. Were they too overworked or careless to bother asking, so they just gave everyone both? Or was that a menu typo? I'll never know."

And how were the soup and salad?

"They were both completely disgusting. Let me just say that I am not a picky eater. I will eat a lot of mediocre food when I'm hungry and not complain. But I took one bite of that disgusting salad and pushed the bowl away. If you'd been sitting there watching me, you'd clearly see how disgusted I was. I'm sure I made a total face."

"The salad was a meager portion of wet lettuce and a cucumber slice in a bowl without dressing. It tasted like something you'd eat out of the dumpster at the end of the day."

"The soup was like dishwater. Water with a vague hint of onion flavor, filled with limp pieces of cabbage, exactly three julienne slices of carrots the size of blades of thin grass, and exactly three squares of tofu."

As for the entree, Kathy kept it uncomplicated and ordered her favorite thing: classic Pad Thai with chicken. She knew what to expect, and had plenty of Pad Thai experiences to compare it with.

"I ate it. It tasted OK. But it was not the best Pad Thai I've ever had. No way. First of all, it was incredibly watery. The whole thing was sitting in a pool of broth, which is NOT how Pad Thai should be served."

She went on, "One of the things I love about Pad Thai is the different textures in your mouth of the smooth noodles and the fresh crunchy peanut crumbles. Pooket did one thing right -- they served the peanut crumbles on the side so you could put them on the noodles yourself and they wouldn't soak up the moisture before getting to the table. The problem was, the peanuts they served didn't taste freshly-chopped anyway. They arrived in a clump. Like they'd been stored for a while and the bits got all stuck together. I had to put the clump on top of the noodles, and break it apart with my fork. Not first-class Pad Thai."

"They were too busy to check on me during the meal, it seemed they were so understaffed and just wanted to throw bad food at you and get you out the door." "While I was eating, I noticed one customer across the room had a problem with his check. It seemed he was charged too much. And a guy at the table next to me at one point was calling out, 'Excuse me! Excuse me!' Then he turned to his friends and said, 'Nobody's looking!' So I don't think I was the only one who was unhappy."

So Kathy, how was the decor?

"The place was really shabby. I was surprised. I haven't seen a place that bad in a while. (The upholstery in) almost every booth was ripped to pieces, and they repaired them with so much black tape it was ridiculous. One booth had black tape going all the way up the side."

"It seems like Pooket has been trying to cut costs for a long time with the bad condition of the dining room. Taping up their booths, please! I don't know how long they've been passing off the poor ingredients in the food, but I think Pooket is suffering the effects of the economy, and they're passing the suffering on to the customer. I will never go there again." A note from the editorial department: we went to the Pooket web site address as printed on their take-out menu and found the account had "been suspended". Does this lend muscle to Kathy's theory that Pooket is trying to cut expenses? Web site account suspended, restaurant understaffed, pathetic ingredients and meager portions? We couldn't help but wonder.

Just to play devil's advocate here: Kathy, it was $7.95, for an entree, soup and salad. What do you expect?

"I've been working in New York for a long time. I've been to a lot of places. There are plenty of places with that kind of lunch special, where the food is decent. I can't believe Pooket gets away with being so bad when they have so much competition."

Kathy added this excellent point: "...getting a free soup and salad isn't a great value if what you're getting is tasteless shit that won't stick to your ribs, makes you want to hurl, and you'll probably not eat it anyway. What are you getting for free? Garbage. You're getting water and a couple of water-logged vegetables as thin as paper. So you've just paid $7.95 for mediocre food, when you could've walked down the block and found five other places who will feed you something decent for that much, or less."

In midtown east, when you're craving Thai, skip Pooket. You work hard for the money -- get fed by people who care about your satisfaction and your business.

COBRA: Even Cheaper Now

If you're about to get laid off and your company employs at least twenty people, you'll most likely be continuing your health insurance through the COBRA program. But did you know that COBRA is now a lot more affordable, thanks to the prez's economic stimulus plan? Learn more from Daily Finance.

New Ferry Terminal @ Vesey Street: A Waste?

The Port Authority opened its beautiful new ferry terminal at the World Financial Center yesterday. But was it an extravagant waste of money?

Commuters seem to feel the only plus is that it has a bathroom. Otherwise, it doesn't impact their commute for the better.

Find out how riders are weighing in at the New York Times.

Baby Born Under Big Sign in Penn Station

Yesterday during morning rush hour, a woman gave birth to a baby boy, right under the "Departures" sign in the main waiting room at Penn Station. Can you guess what she named him? Get the full story here.

Surprising Recession Trend: Secretaries Hiring Secretaries

An unexpected trend has emerged from the ashes of thousands of lay-offs: overburdened secretaries hiring their own secretaries, with their own money.

With the trimming down of so many office staffs, secretaries and administrative assistants are finding themselves saddled with extra work as the duties of the departed are now being heaped on them.

To keep from losing their minds, certain clever secretaries are pooling their financial resources and paying out-of-work secretaries to help with both personal and work-related tasks, thereby relieving the pressure. And these hired "virtual assistants" are able to bring in some much-needed cash in an otherwise bleak job market.

A secretary we'll call Angela and two of her co-workers asked to remain anonymous, because they're concerned that their employer would not approve of them sharing work with an outsider.

"There's the confidentiality issue," Angela says. "I'm pretty sure my firm doesn't want anyone on the outside seeing our internal work product. I don't give anything sensitive to our secretary. And she doesn't care what she's looking at, she just needs to get paid like we all do. Of course, we don't want to get fired over this. But (our assistant) is a friend of mine, and I know I can trust her."

Despite the risks, Angela sees the "secret secretary-to-the-secretaries" solution as being resourceful. She's taking action where her employer can't or won't.

"My firm has a dumb rule about having no part-timers. If we had just one part-time secretary in our office it would make a huge difference to a lot of secretaries. I know (the firm) is trying to cut costs, but if the three of us (secretaries who are sharing a virtual assistant) can get enough money together from our salaries to pay for help, the firm should be able to do the same. But they won't."

"It doesn't make sense that they're willing to pay us extra for overtime, when that same money could probably pay for a part-time person," she added.

"We're not going to suffer just on principle," one of Angela's co-workers said. "It's true the firm should be able to get us a little extra help. But if they won't do it, why shouldn't we take matters into our own hands? I'd rather pay to keep from going out of my mind and be able to see my kids at night instead of being here 'til all hours of the night. If I said, 'I'm not paying out my own money for help on principle, because the firm should do it', I'd still be miserable and overworked. So let's just take control, pay up and be happier."

Another of Angela's co-workers added that "It's not just about the firm's money issues. Sometimes I think the reason we can't get what we need has more to do with being blocked by one stupid person in middle management who's either too stupid to take action or too afraid. If it was up to the managing partner, maybe we'd get a part-time helper. But we'll never get to him because we have to go through this terrible manager who's just not that smart."

So what kind of work do these secretaries-to-the-secretaries get? In the case of Angela's virtual assistant, it's a mix of the professional and the personal.

"Whatever we can farm out," Angela said. "I scan hand-written stuff and document mark-ups and e-mail them to her for typing. I know (one of my co-workers) gets her to make travel arrangements. She took care of a major pain-in-the-ass problem for me with the cable company the other day."

Similarly, across town, an entire office full of secretaries is handing work off to one recently laid-off co-worker at home in Queens. They, too, are on the down-low because of confidentiality issues.

"We know (our hired secretary) isn't going to do anything with the (company)information," Donna told us. "It makes sense for her to be doing the work anyway. She used to work here. She's seen all this stuff before."

Further uptown, two other secretaries, Nora and Rayna, are helping out a recently laid-off co-worker by paying her to run personal errands.

"We're buried in the work left behind when Leslie was fired," Nora said. "We don't leave the office for lunch anymore, and we're constantly staying late."

Until recently, this overworked lifestyle left them feeling like their lives were being lived on a treadmill.

"By the time the weekend comes, all you have time for is the shit you didn't get to do during the week," Rayna complained. "Laundry, go to the supermarket, all that crap. And if you have to make a phone call and be on hold or something, forget it. I don't have time for that at work, and a lot of people don't have hours on the weekend. It's just ridiculous. It's a stressful way to live."

But then Nora and Rayna got wise and started paying their unemployed friend Leslie to take care of personal errands for them, freeing up their evenings and weekends for just plain enjoying life.

"Oh my god, it's made a world of difference," Nora sighed. "It's absolutely worth the money. We have no regrets."

For Leslie, it means much-needed cash-in-hand, and a powerful weapon against inertia.

"If I didn't have things to take care of, I'd be completely depressed, sitting on my couch and stuffing my face," Leslie said. "(Helping Nora and Rayna) gives me a reason to get up every day and I feel good knowing I'm helping my own friends."

Nora and Rayna don't have the same concerns regarding confidentiality, because they chose to keep their noses clean and keep the work they give Leslie personal in nature. Leslie stays busy making phone calls, processing health insurance claims, sorting mail, doing laundry, grocery shopping, and even doing light cleaning.

They are, however, paying Leslie in cash under-the-table, $10 an hour.

The same seems to be true for everyone doing the secret secretary thing -- cash on the sly. But the arrangements differ from one situation to the next.

Donna and her fellow company secretaries -- all twelve of them -- pay their unemployed former co-worker per task, and each secretary takes individual responsibility for paying for the task he or she assigned. Their assistant gets $15 an hour. For any task that falls under an hour, she still gets the full $15.

Angela and company made an entirely different arrangement. They pay their assistant Valerie a flat hourly rate to remain on-call during certain hours -- $5 -- just for the security of knowing she's available. However, when work arises for Valerie, she gets an additional $10 per hour, or $10 per task if the task takes less than a full hour. The secretaries split the $5 on-call fee equally, but individually pony up the extra cash for any tasks they've personally assigned to Valerie.

If you're interested in getting help on the side, and you want an arrangement that's as risk-free as possible, consider keeping your hired hand's duties in the realm of the personal, and ask him or her to sign an Independent Contractor Agreement. When your assistant is an independent contractor, they are responsible for reporting their income to the IRS, and you need not withhold taxes from their pay. However, treating someone as an independent contractor comes with some rules. Get familiar with them on the IRS web site. They're fairly simple rules to comply with, so don't let them discourage you from putting a fellow secretary back to work.

-- Margaret Haney

Hugs vs. Handshakes

Hugging is the new handshake in the workplace. At least that's what one article in a Pennsylvania newspaper tells us.

Is it true -- do you see the embrace taking over in the office where the handshake was once the norm? Read more about the phenomenon.

Office Gossip: Debunking the Myths

Office gossip is a dangerous thing. It can cause people to lose their jobs and even result in a serious downgrade in a company's overall rep.

But what counts as gossip? Are certain types of "gossip-esque" communications OK depending on who's dishing them out? Are you a gossip and don't know it?

Find out more from the Examiner.

$1 Oatmeal at Jamba Juice!!!

Now through March 31st, get yourself a deee-lish oatmeal at Jamba Juice for only a DOLLAR. Just print and present the coupon below. To find the Jamba Juice near you, use the Jamba Locator.

New Tolls: Exempt City Residents?

That $1.2 million MTA operating budget gap still has to be dealt with -- and state legislators are volleying around some ideas.

A $5 proposed bridge toll has been recommended -- but Congressmember Anthony Weiner, a representative of parts of Brooklyn and Queens, is arguing on behalf of an already-cash-strapped middle class to exempt city residents from paying the toll, leaving the burden of the toll to outsiders driving in.

Read more about Weiner's four-step plan in the Queens Courier.

Boost Your Morale in Uncertain Times

In the workplace, more than ever people are in a state of fear over things beyond their control.

How can you be expected to maintain a positive attitude and stay calm in the current economic climate?

Here's some advice on how to have your own personal morale-boosting party in the quiet of your own mind.

New Yorkers Suddenly Feeling Happier

Forget your troubles, c'mon get happy! There's a reason your friends and co-workers have a little more spring in their step today. Read about it in the Daily News.

Paying a Notary: $2 MAX.

Legal secretary Jessica R. discovered that friends and family members had been charged more than $2 for the services of a notary. She advises us that "it is against the law for a notary to charge you over $2 (in New York)."

See the excerpt of Notary Law below, taken from the following website: http://www.dos.state.ny.us/lcns/lawbooks/notary.html

Notary Public Fees in New York State:

§136. Notarial fees.
A notary public shall be entitled to the following fees:
1. For administering an oath or affirmation, and certifying the same when required, except where another fee is specifically prescribed by statute, $2.
2. For taking and certifying the acknowledgment or proof of execution of a written instrument, by one person, $2, and by each additional person, $2, for swearing such witness thereto, $2.

Software Troubles? Carol to the Rescue!

We'd like to introduce you to Carol Bratt. Carol is a certified Microsoft Office specialist, and her mission is to provide a life raft to workers like you, navigating the sometimes rocky seas of Microsoft Office. She offers various educational products to help you learn more about Microsoft Word, Outlook, Excel, Power Point or Publisher.

Due to firms trimming their staffs, some of you may find yourselves having to take on responsibilities that once belonged to someone recently departed -- responsibilities that require software know-how you don't have. Do you find yourself suddenly plopped in front of Excel spreadsheets, and you have no idea how to use them? Or do you now need to understand mail merges, when you never had a call to use them before? Investing in some learning tools can reduce your panic and boost your confidence more quickly than you may have imagined.

Visit Carol's Corner Office for more information. And be sure to sign up for her free monthly Word Bytes Newsletter!

How to Beat Office Stress

We let stress get to us. Keeping stress in check is a matter of health, which is why, every now and then, we remind you how. This time, Men's Fitness has the tips. And if you've read them before and are putting them into regular practice, feel free to tune out. Otherwise, pay attention -- this post is for you.

90% of American Workers are Still Employed!

Let's try looking at the sunny side of the street for a change: 90% of American workers are still employed!

And some people are actually doing really well at work. In fact, we know of more than one secretary who not only got a bonus this past December, but got raises at the start of 2009! But why aren't we hearing more about these people?

Get a clue from MSNBC.

Two Ways to Save $$$ on Work Clothes

A Just A Sec Exclusive!

There's no getting around it: you need a decent work wardrobe. And few secretaries we know are finding a surplus in their fashion budget these days.

But we know of at least two ways to save money while still dressing your best:

METHOD #1: Stop Paying for Pressing; Spray the Wrinkles Away!



Who likes ironing? It's so much easier to hand off your stuff to the drycleaner and let them worry about getting your shirts crisp, smooth and office-ready. Of course, that can get expensive.

All right, so you can't imagine doing all that ironing yourself, no matter how much money it saves. Hey, we respect that. We don't iron anymore either. We found a surprisingly effective alternative for lazy people: Grandma's Secret Wrinkle Remover. It's a secret we're happy to share.

We don't understand how this stuff works -- we just marvel that it does.

Here's how to duplicate our test: Take your favorite shirt and hang it on a hanger. Spray Grandma's Secret Wrinkle Remover on the shirt. Then, work the wrinkles out with a combination of two motions: tug the garment down and outward gently to pull the fabric flat so the wrinkles flatten, too. Then smooth the fabric out with the palms of your hands, as if your hands were irons. Work your way around the garment one section at a time, tugging and smoothing. This doesn't take long, mere moments. You'll be amazed at how smooth and tidy the garment becomes in no time at all. Plus, the clean scent of Grandma's Secret Wrinkle Remover freshens your clothes and chases away any stale odors in the garment. Give the garment about two minutes to air-dry and it's ready to wear!

Try not to worry about your drycleaner's receipts when you stock up on Grandma's Secret Wrinkle Remover instead at www.GrandmasSoap.com. A four-pack of 8-ounce spray bottles goes for $19.95.


METHOD #2: Keep the Clothes You've Got in Good Shape.



Stretch your budget by stretching your wardrobe into one more season. Trust us, in these economic times, no one will blame you for giving last year's clothes at least one more go 'round.

One of the most common reasons that clothes get discarded from one year to the next is stains. And they always seem to fall right smack in the middle of your best sweater or blouse, where it can't be hidden with a scarf or piece of jewelry, right?

In a downtown legal office, a group of secretaries kept a set of Carbona Stain Devils on-hand for several months, and promised to use them as needed. Carbona's Stain Devils are specially designed to treat specific stains. Carbona makes Stain Devil formulas to treat:

- Gum & Glue
- Ketchup & Sauce
- Ink & Crayon
- Blood & Milk
- Fat/Grease/Oil
- Make-Up & Grass
- Motor Oil & Lubricant
- Fruit & Red Wine
- Rust

Each special formula also treats other, similar stains. For example, the Stain Devil for Gum & Glue also removes stains from correction fluid and nail polish.

During our secretaries' test period, they found occasions to reach for Carbona's Stain Devil formulas for Ketchup & Sauce, Ink & Crayon, and Gum & Glue.

Carla used the Stain Devil for Ketchup & Sauce to get rid of a barbecue sauce stain. "I noticed the stain right away, so I treated it right away. I had to wait several hours to go home and be able to throw my shirt in the laundry, but the stain came out like it was never there to begin with."

Irina had similar results with Carbona's Stain Devil for Ink & Crayon on a blue ink stain. "No, I didn't notice the stain right away," she said. "In fact, I didn't see it 'til I got on the subway at the end of the day, but I waited 'til the next day to take that Carbona bottle home from work to try it out." Even after letting the stain set in for at least 36 hours before treatment, Irina found that Carbona did a great job of getting rid of the stain. "I didn't bring the bottle back to the office," she confessed. "The stuff worked too good, so I kept it."

Diane was equally pleased when she used Carbona's Stain Devil for Gum & Glue on a sweater. "I got some gooey *#@# on my sweater from a strip of double-sided tape," she complained. "I got most of the gooey part off in little rolled-up balls, but it left behind a sticky mark." "I used the formula for Gum (& Glue) and it lifted out the stickiness, and when the sweater was washed there was no spot leftover. You couldn't tell where the tape had been." "I probably would've gotten rid of (the sweater) if I couldn't get that spot out." It sounds like Carbona saved Diane's sweater!

So the next time you get a stain that you think is hopeless -- including shoe polish, suntan lotion, Vaseline -- stop by the supermarket on your way home from work and get the Carbona Stain Devil made for your stain. It's one of the best ways we know to extend the life of your wardrobe!

The Carbona web site lists all the different types of stains each type of Stain Devil treats, and you can buy them individually for $3.49, or get the entire line for $27.92.