Sudokuaholics Anonymous 2

Looks like it.

That happened to me earlier today. Parts of Ohio have gotten rain. Last night's was the first we've had in almost a month. The last few weeks it's been in the 90's (32C +). Today it was in the low 80's. I thought most of Australia was flooding. Is there still dry areas there?

There was some flooding in and around Syndey and parts of Victoria. Over here in the west we are getting desperate, several years in a row with very low rainfall. What is the main industry in Ohio? Is is farming?

That should be is IT farming.

Mostly farming. We used to have a lot of white collar and factory jobs. Offces closed or downsized and factories closed. The economy here isn't very good.

What do the workers do when the factories close, do they have to move interstate, get redundancy payments or just go on unemployment benefit.

Hello

Most draw unemployment. A lot will take any job they can no matter the pay. BIL was unemployed for about a year when the place went out of business (internet security). He drew unemployment for 6 months and used savings for the rest of the time he was off. Ended up taking a job for 1/3 the pay.

Hi Rena. Welcome back.

It's nice to be back. My internet is finally fixed.

I can imagine. Our DSL goes down sometimes and have to reboot the modem. It takes about 10 minutes to get back up.

Hi Rena. Becky would you say BIL's case was usual? Can't be good if he had to use savings. Ohio looks like a bautiful place, rivers and the lake. No good if there is no work. We are given to believe that the US is booming, maybe that is the impression your government wants the rest of the world to have.

Some areas of Ohio are doing better than here. Our local politicians seem only care about getting re-elected. He did have other job offers, but tried to hold out for more money.
Ohio is a pretty state. The area I came from is mostly farmlands, Amish and older homes.

Just popping in to say Hi! - Lynda, Becky & Rena - Can't stay, must get some sleep! I'm sooo glad Rena your internet is finally fixed! Hopefully, I'll catch you guys on the flip side! Have a good night/day!

Hi, bye Stella. Sleep tight.

G'night Stella.

Sleep well, Stella.

What kind of job do you have Lynda?

Becky I think all politicians must be the same. We have three tiers of government here, Federal, State and Local, I presume you have the same. The local ones are not too bad, but, as the saying goes 'I wouldn't give shed room' to the others.

I am self employed, originally I was a journalist, then my father needed me to help so I joined him in the construction industry. Now I am ancient I try and use my brain a bit more!!! What about you?

Since we live in town, we have local, county, state and federal. Told hubby that I was going vote for the opponent of the incumbant at the next election. Probably won't make any difference, but who knows.

I was in insurance for 9 years and taught high school for 9 years. Now, just looking for a part time job.

It will if a lot of people do the same as you. Do the county and local get paid?

Yes. Even the local school board recieves a set fee for each official meeting they attend.

It must be difficult being a teacher, how do you control them? What was your subject? Here we have relief teachers that work part time. What sort of part time opportunities are there for you? Rena you are very quiet.

Our locals are volunteers, they get a bit of help with telephone and travel but not much. Who has to raise the money to pay the school board, the government or parents? We have parents and citizens associations with each school that fund raise etc.

I'm still here. Just looking in the archives. I submitted some pics awhile ago. I missed the one of Amber on the parents page on June 26.

First day out, told them that I don't yell and I'd be fair. My main subject was history, but did fill in for other teachers if something came up. We call them substitute teachers here.
There are a few offices and retail stores within walking distance. Been keeping my eyes and ears open for new jobs.

The schools are run on property tax. Some of the money is set aside to pay the board members.

What is property tax? Is that as well as Income Tax?

All owned property is appraised by the county auditor and a set value is placed on each parcel. The voters can either pass or reject levies. Each levy can be a different milage. If it passes, then the county figures out how much tax each land owner has to pay. The owner can dispute the amount, if he thinks he's being overcharged.

We have Land Tax here which seems similar, but it is not levied on your own home. Only on a second (or more) property. History and Latin were my favourite subjects at school.

My favourite was math.

Do you have to pay sales taxes. Some states here have a tax on non-food items and services, some on only food and a couple on everything. They literally get you coming and going here.
Sometimes I miss the students. High school kids can be a hoot.

Becky is your property tax only on land? In Canada our land and buildings are assessed. My Mom pays property tax on her trailer home but she doesn't own the lot it is on.

I enjoyed most of my classes. I had a lot of good teachers.

Rena, it's on both. On the bill they have the two combined. Trailers only have to pay a property tax if they are sitting on a foundation. Our neighbor has a trailer that they go to campgrounds in and they only had to pay a sales tax.

Math! You had to be bright then. We have GST (Good and Service Tax)which is 10% on all manufactured items, fresh food is exempt. All services, lawyer, plumber etc are subject to it. Rates and taxes are exempt. We have no sales tax. When GST came in a lot of other state charges were abolished.

To make it even more complicated, some states charge import fees on other state's products. An example is that Ohio charges out-of-state wineries a fee on each bottle of wine they ship in for sale.

I am beginning to think it is cheaper to live here.