If it seems there is a Starbucks Coffee sign on every corner, how about stumbling upon one in a cornfield?
That’s right, the words “Starbucks Coffee” have been carved into the mini-maze, which sits next to a larger Corn Maze, at the Denver Botanic Gardens at Chatfield attraction in Jefferson County.
The entrance to the Corn Maze has a welcome banner that features the recognizable Starbucks logo.
Starbucks has sponsored the Corn Maze for two years, said Lyn Berry-Helmlinger, spokeswoman for the Botanic Gardens.
So far, there are no plans for the coffee chain to open a coffee booth at the Corn Maze, but coffee samples will be handed out Sept. 29 and Oct. 13-14, Berry-Helmlinger said.
Milky Way caters to rushed candy crowd
The Washington Post reported last week that candymaker Mars is trying to capture the “on-the-go” market by offering a new kind of Milky Way bar.
It’s exactly like the old king-size Milky Way bar, but this one is – get this – pre-broken in half so consumers can eat it on the go.
Apparently biting or breaking the candy bar in half was entirely too time-consuming and inconvenient for some harried consumers.
The market for convenience food aimed at busy consumers is growing rapidly. But is this going a bit too far? At least one pundit believes so. On his website, , Kevin Coupe contemplated the next steps in this emerging trend.
“I’m thinking that pre-chewed food is next,” Coupe wrote. “Because if the consumer is actually too lazy or too busy (and I’m not really sure which of these is the dominant trait) to bite into the candy bar, isn’t chewing really a more time- and energy-intensive proposition?”
Spellcheck, dress up and don’t be a liar
A lesson for job-seekers: Run spellcheck before you send out your résumé. Up to two-thirds of small businesses report finding misspellings in half of the résumés they get.
Even worse, the same number reported that job applicants lie during the interview process, according to a survey by the National Association of Professional Employer Organizations.
Outsourcing company ADP reported that 6 percent of applicants that it performed background checks on covered up something negative about their past.
Another way to make a bad impression: Show up to an interview looking like a slob. Three-quarters of companies picked “unclean” as the most negative characteristic in a job applicant. More than two-
thirds chose “sloppy.” Also unappealing were applicants who had numerous prior jobs.
Companies will have to deal with fewer of these faux pas this year, however, because many say they don’t plan to hire during the last three months of the year, due to a shaky economy.
The survey was conducted in August and included more than 350 businesses.
Age discrimination: Not just for the old
When you think of age discrimination at the office, does the 22-year-old new hire fresh out of college come to mind? According to a new survey, younger workers experience age discrimination more frequently than their older colleagues. More than 35 percent of 18- to 34-year-olds reported age discrimination in the workplace, compared with only 24 percent of employees ages 35 and older.
“Ageism isn’t about old people, it’s about all people,” said Laurel Kennedy, president of Age Lessons, the consulting firm that conducted the survey. “To avoid a ‘war of the ages’ in the workplace, companies need to address generational diversity across the age spectrum.”
Men were more likely than women to report age discrimination at work, with 30 percent reporting a personal experience with ageism, compared to 23 percent of women.
The survey was conducted online among more than 1,000 employed U.S. adults and was supplemented by additional follow-up interviews with management personnel at U.S. corporations.
September is for vacation lovers
For those of you who still have vacation days to use up this year, some good deals and beautiful weather await.
The next few months abound with cheaper airfare and hotels, comfortable temperatures and crowd-free travel, now that the peak summer vacation season is winding down, said Fiona Lake Waslander, director of Yahoo Travel.
If you have only two to three vacation days left, consider traveling closer to home. Dreaming of Paris? Canada’s Quebec City offers French culture without the overseas trip, she said. During November and December, cooler weather beckons in Phoenix and Miami.
If you’ve got a week or two to use up, try a destination like Istanbul, Lake Waslander said. “Europe and Asia can really give you quite a diverse vacation with some great prices this time of year,” she said.
After the hurricane season ends in September, the Caribbean and Mexico can make great vacation options.
First things first, however. Before you book your flight or reserve a hotel room, double-check your remaining vacation days with human resources, Lake Waslander said.
FROM STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS
