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Show HERALD DAILY Sunday. June 15, 2008 C9 Summer job hunting: No day at beach New York Times spotlighted a side of the current economic malaise the meltdown of the svimmer job market. "The job market of 2008 is shaping up as the weakest in more than half a century for teenagers looking for summer work," said the Times article, "little more than d of the 16- - to olds in the United States are likely to be employed this summer, the smallest share since the gov- ' 2 one-thir- pay? Fine. But my ambition was honing my golfing skill so I could become a state high-scho- ol champioa I got fired when I started asking for way too much time off to play in tournaments. Collecting my walking papers from Howard's proved an unforgettable lesson in the summer school of life: Getting the job is not the done deal. Keeping the job every day is doing the deal Here's how: I Flex and accommodate. Young people usually get summer jobs to fill in for staffers who want to take time off . Willingly start early, stay late and schlep doing all the un- - silver-haire- well-chose- ar ernment began tracking teenage work in 1948." Before offering my tips on how to land a coveted spot on the payroll, let me mention how I lost a plum job one summer at Howard's Men's Store in St. Paul, Minn. The sionals in their 60s and 70s, often contemplating retirement, hanker to mentor. For example: Tracking down a job in the law or accounting office d of a ace can be worth two years' tuition at a prestigious university. Judge any job's pay scale by what you learn as much as what you earn. t Do a year's work in a season. A friend of mine spent I If all else fails, volunteer, Nix those beach rays, soap ophis college summers as an aneras or MTV marathons. Volnouncer at a classical-musiunteer at a community organiradio station. He was invited back for three encores because zation that could use your enhe had a special knack for pro- ergy and ingenuity maybe it's the charity favored by the gramming and used the sumfirm where you would most mer to structure the station's like to work next summer. Too broadcasts for most of the calculating? If it's June, and if year. I Set up shop. Americans you don't yet have a summer spend a lot of money each year job, maybe calculating is someon home organization. Many thing you should consider adda homeowner will ing to your skill set. I Mackay's Moral: Does sumplunk down good money so an organizing guru can wring mertime mean the living is order out of chaos. For out easy? Not if you check today's houses and garages, job thermometer. too many days off to spiff up his swing on the links. I Remember alma mater matters. If you're a college student, study the roster of companies who donate heavily n to your school. A contact can translate to a softhearted alum willing to toss a lifeline to a student in need. The Harvey Mackay Positive Struggles pleasant pesky chores regulars shun. I Network to beat the band. June is late season for summer job hunting. Be enterprising in tapping personal networks yours, your family's, your friends' and any other quality contacts that can be begged or borrowed. I Pitch the long ball. Companies love to polish gems in the rough. Always give first consideration to organizations that career match your long-terinterests, and then develop an airtight case as to why a particular summer job will help skills. polish your long-terCheck back on turndowns. Perhaps a rival for a dream job beat you out. Do a discreet phone check and see if all's well. You never know: Mr. Right could be finagling one c well-heele- d an enterprising student with a strong back and a knack for neatness can be the low-co- Harvey Mackay is the author of The New York Times' No. 1 bestseller "Swim With the Sharks Without Being Eaten Alive." He can be reached through his Web site, www. harveymackay.com, by emailing harvey'sf'mackay.com or by writing him at Mackay Mitchell Envelope Co, 2100 Elm St. SE, Minneapolis, MN option. t Scan the big picture. If you're just tracking classifieds in the local gazette, it's time to shake your head out of the sand. The Internet offers access to thousands of pages of d ads throughout the United States and even the world. i Stalk old grizzlies. Profes -. help-wante- 55414. when you consolidate, you'll be given the option to lower your monthly payments by repaying Continued from CIO the loan over the course of 20 I If your loans are variable, or even 30 years instead of the rates reset annually on July 1, standard 10. but you can only consolidate "In some cases, you can cut once. This Jury is a great time your monthly payment in half, but you will pay more over the to do it if you haven't already. life of the loan," warns Martha Consolidating will bring Stafford Loans that are in repayHoller, a spokesperson for Sal-li- e ment to an interest rate of Mae. Make sure that you've 4.25 percent, and PLUS loans trowitz suggests turning to the exhausted any other options, such as making cuts in your to 5.125 percent. If you're still Federal Direct Consolidation in school or under the grace Loan program (loanconsolida-tion.ed.gov- ). budget or working a few overtime hours, and resort to this , You can consoliperiod after graduation, your Stafford Loan rate will be 3.625 date both Direct Loans, which as a last step. One caveat: If you, like are issued by the government, percent. This is not only the about 75 percent of your peers, biggest drop ever in the interest and private loans (typically came out of college with not rates on variable rate loans, but called Federal Family Education Loans or FFELs) through according to Kantrowitz, they just student loans but also a load of credit card debt, and are the lowest rates in the histo- this program, which will give you're feeling squeezed, it ry of the student loan program. you all the options offered by So take advantage, and you private lenders namely, mul- may make sense to extend could save several thousand tiple repayment plans and only your loan and focus on the dollars over the life of the loan, one check to write each month. credit cards for the time being. loan Student loan debt is largely I Stick with a depending on how much you if possible. As I mentioned, considered good debt, because borrowed in the first place. the interest rates are about as low as they come, and they generally help round out the credit reports of borrowers who may not have much of a history otherwise. The interest rates on credit cards can be three or even four times that of a student loan, so you'll save in the long run by throwing the bulk of your money at that debt first. I Don't be surprised if you have trouble finding a lender. Consolidation loans are no longer all that profitable, and many lenders have pulled out of the business including Sallie Mae, according to Holler. The current economy and credit crunch isn't helping matters. If you shop around and can't find a private loan company to consolidate with, Kan- Chatzky I Jean Chatzky is an editor-at-larg- e at Money Magazine and serves as AOL' s official Money Coach. She is the personal finance editor for NBC's "Today Show" and is also a columnist for Life Magazine. She is the author of four books, including "Pay it Down! From Debt to Wealth on $10 a Day." ass WILL KINCAIDAssociated Carnivals Continued from CIO County fairs were established in the 1800s as a way to promote agriculture, and little has changed since then, said Jim Tucker, president of the Inter Springfield, national Association of Fairs and Expositions. He is not related to Billy Tucker. Jim Tucker's group represents about 1,300 fair groups worldwide, though most are in the U.S. Fairs remain popular, with Mo.-base- d eppner Shows has been bringing its carnival to the upper Midwest since the early 1980s, and Pembina County was one of its annual stops. Not this year. The carnival has decided to stay closer to home. The skyrocketing cost of diesel and fewer fairgoers hurt business, said Pam Scho-eppne- r, who runs the carnival . with her husband, Phil. "We're carving out new ter' ritory in Utah, Nevada, Idaho she said. "Just and Wyoming," driving out to North Dakota took a huge chunk of money, 150 million Americans atand the same thing with South all Dakota and Nebraska tending them in 2007 and 80 percent showing increased or those little county fairs have steady attendance, just petered out and there is "More and more people are not enough attendance to supcoming up with farm animals port a carnival of our size." as the No. 1 reason to visit a Schoeppner's carnival has fair," Jim Tucker said. "A big stopped each year at the Fair in Wishek, in part of the population does not interact with farm animals south centra North Dakota, The company's decision to and the more something becomes a curiosity, the more pull out of the state prompted fair officials to buy their own people come and see it." In Hettinger County, in carnival rides. Fair purchased North Dakota's southwest nine rides for about $50,000, corner, livestock is hardly a curiosity. Kelly Stewart, though most need work to get who was a member of the them running in time for the fair's already-delaye- d county fair board for several opening years, said fairgoers still like July 10. "1 can't see us running a the amusement rides, though fair without a carnival," said they've been absent the past few years. Mike Martell, who has helped Fair attendance has sufFair organize the fered as a result. "Now we are for 45 years. "Kids bring their down to a small beer garden, parents to fairs. If you don't have something for kids, inflatables, and an egg toss for kids," she said. there is no reason for their Scho- - parents to go." Palmdale, Calif.-base- d iBiMIMnnLjiK-- i Happy Shopping Everyone! I'm Amy TheSavvyShopper and I should mention up front I'M ADDICTED : ( TO SAVING MONEY!!! the 2 years I have been working for the Daily Herald I have taught many free seminars, moderated vvww.SavvyShopperDeals.com and scoured nun dres of sales ads, all in the hopes of teaching others how to help their families and themselves save money, shop smart and be prepared. Sharing this knowledge brings me the greatest joy as Even my TheSavvyShopper. children know, we don't buy anything unless it's on sale, and if there's a coupon it's even better. In these times of financial in- I M :Vv i money buy more! weekly emails and get the scoop on how you on can save 5Q-Cgroceries with the Daily Herald. O ill V A i ;.. : I : visit www;Sa opperDeals.com r ; i . or call 375-510- 3 to get your Savvy Shopper subscription .T; i prudent and cost conscious. As a mother, I feel a great sense of satisfaction knowing I can help my family, and hopefully yours, prepare ourselves and make our Sign up for Amy's FEXEE ' I. j stability and uncertainty there is always one thing that remains -we need to find ways to be more I., tA j In y rough! t j fit by! j i ; Press the Pembina County Fair grounds in Hamilton, N.D., on May, 20. For the first time in many years the fair will be without a carnival. Behind Fleming is the fairs grandstand. Neil Fleming looks over - fh il |