Sandy-damaged cars in Idaho? Be on the lookout

Idaho used-car buyers should be aware that vehicles damaged by Hurricane Sandy "will likely end up on local car lots to be sold by unaware care dealers to unsuspecting buyers," said the Northwest Insurance Council, funded in part by Idaho insurers, and the National Insurance Crime Bureau.

People who buy a used vehicle and later discover it was water damaged will likely find their insurance policy does not cover the cost of repairs, the groups said.

"Unscrupulous people buy the vehicles, clean them up to hide the flood damage, then ship them to states unaffected by flooding to be sold as normal used cars," said Frank Scafidi, public affairs director for the bureau.

The groups recommend that Idaho car buyers:

• Choose a car dealer vetted by the Better Business Bureau or local Chamber of Commerce.
• Check the car's VIN number and search the National Motor Vehicle Title Information System for online access to vehicle history information.
• Look and/or smell for mildew, mold or an intense smell of deodorizer, debris and silt in unusual places such as under the carpet in the trunk or around the engine compartment.
• Look for rust on screws and other metal parts.
• Look for water stains, faded upholstery, discolored seat belts and door panels.
• Look for dampness in the floor and carpet and moisture inside the instrument panel

Here's an interesting link if you want to read more: http://www.cartalk.com/content/how-not-buy-storm-damaged-used-car

Read more here: http://www.idahostatesman.com/2012/11/08/2338810/insurers-warn-idaho-car-buyers.html#storylink=cpy

Nuclear Society sponsors high school essay contest

The Idaho Section of the American Nuclear Society is inviting high school students to research and write about next generation nuclear design research, offering two $1,500 scholarships to the winners.

One scholarship will be awarded for the best essay at the 9th-10th grade level and another scholarship for the winner at the 11th-12th grade level. The student writing the winning essay in each category will receive a check, which will be given Feb. 28, 2013, at a dinner and scholarship presentation at the Shilo Inn Convention Center in Idaho Falls. Only first place in each category will be announced.

Any area high school student is eligible to enter an essay, which should focus on one next generation of nuclear reactor designs and should discuss the design in detail. The essay must be between 1,500 and 2,500 words and must include at least three references, one of which must be from a journal.

All entries must be submitted or postmarked by Dec. 10, and submitted to Danielle Perez (Danielle.Perez@inl.gov) or mailed to Idaho Section of the American Nuclear Society, P.O. Box 51635, Idaho Falls, ID 83405-1635.

Here is a link to the entry form and more information: https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=gmail&attid=0.1&thid=13ade0c683dfced6&mt=application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document&url=https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/?ui%3D2%26ik%3Dfe0b2e3f21%26view%3Datt%26th%3D13ade0c683dfced6%26attid%3D0.1%26disp%3Dsafe%26zw&sig=AHIEtbQaP0-mEfU19McRV2o2IAPn4yNinw

Film production workshop offered Nov. 16-18 in Boise

Buster Keaton as "The Cameraman" (1928)

So you wanna be in pictures? If your dream is behind the camera, Boise State University is offering a way in.

For more than 15 years, Ken Chaplin’s company has led production crews on film locations in the United States, Canada, Europe and Africa. At each location they have sought to hire qualified  production assistants only to find the local talent lacking in adequate production training. This prompted them to develop their Production Assistant Training Seminar (PATS) program, which Chaplin is bringing to BSU Nov. 16-18.



The class is open to the public as well as students. Cost is $150 for members of the public, $125 for students.

After completing the workshop, each participant’s name will be entered into the PATS national database, available to national and local film professionals and production companies. Participants will also receive a 110-page production assistant training manual.

"Kenny’s 2011 workshop was terrific and we welcome him back to Idaho for a second class," said Peg Owens of the Idaho Commerce Film Office. The state's media production industry is valued at $36 million, with a payroll of $15 million, according to the United States Bureau of Economic Analysis.

For more information and to register online, click here: http://copperledge.boisestate.edu/CourseStatus.awp?&course=129COM109U01 or visit http://www.filmidaho.org/filmmaker-resources/workshops/.

Lucy's offering free desserts to voters

Do I need to admonish my BizMojo Idaho readers to vote? I hardly think so, yet for the sake of our republic I will anyway.

This has been a volatile election, and regardless of who wins I think we are going to see great unhappiness in its wake. Deal with it. This is democracy, and for all the people who moan about its lack of civility I would like to point out that no one is fighting duels or attacking others with fireplace andirons, as has happened in the past. Nor is anybody being jailed or killed for political statements. There are a lot of countries where this still happens.

We are engaged in a grand experiment in self-governance that began in 1776. Our system, for all its faults and imperfections, is a model to the world.

If you need more incentive than my words, Lucy's New York Style Pizzeria, will give you a free dessert cannoli if you show up wearing an "I Voted" sticker at either of its two Idaho Falls/Ammon locations (West Anderson and Hitt Road, next to Merlin's) or at its original location in Roberts.

I would not be surprised if other businesses are offering similar specials. So do I need to make my point any clearer? Go out and vote. It matters.

Idaho theme hotels prominent in Frommers online article

The Hawaiian Suite at Idaho Falls' Destinations Inn is one of 10 themed hotel rooms featured in an online layout on www.Frommers.com.

What does it tell you that four of the 10 Wacky Hotel Rooms on a current Frommers.com slideshow are in Idaho?

These include rooms at Destinations Inn in Idaho Falls and the Black Swan Inn in Pocatello. By far the most unique, however, is the Dog Bark Park near Cottonwood (pictured below).

To look at the full feature, follow this link: http://www.frommers.com/slideshow/index.cfm?p=1&group=1203&cat_cd=FAMILY#slide

Idaho Falls photo studio offers mini-headshot sessions Nov. 10

An example of a mini-headshot from Kristi Sheriff Photography's Web site

If you would like your child to try out to be a model for Kristi Sheriff Photography & Sweetiebirds Designs, now is your chance. The two Idaho Falls businesses are offering five-minute mini-headshot sessions Nov. 10 to get a feel for how your kids are in front of the camera. Sessions are only $5 plus tax, and special packages will be available that day as well.

If you aren't interested in having your child be a model but would still like a nice portrait of them, this session is also something to consider. Special packages are available the day of the session.

If you want to see some images from other Mini-Headshot Sessions, you can see them here: http://www.spgx.com/blog/?p=275.

Bring your child dressed and ready to go. Kids must wear their own clothes for the Mini-Headshot Session. Winners will be chosen for modeling the Sweetiebirds clothing at a later date.

If your child is interested in modeling, Kristi’s images can be a great asset. Some of Kristi Sheriff’s modeling images have been used by her clients to obtain jobs at Disney and the Weather Channel. She has also had many images appear in print.

To sign up, follow this link: http://kristisheriff.bookmonline.com/schedules

Still trying to make sense of the numbers.

In my continuing effort to understand how many people I may be reaching with this blog, I've noticed a huge difference between the number of pageviews as reported by Blogger as opposed to the number reported by Google Analytics.

Looking at the Blogger stats, here's what I see:

October was our biggest month yet, with 9,456 pageviews. Since beginning BizMojo Idaho in September 2011, we've been seen by over 76,000 pairs of eyeballs.

Nice going, eh? Not so fast. Let's take a look at the Google Analytics chart now:

While impressive for a local blog (I wouldn't be sharing this otherwise), they present a more modest picture. In the case of October, pageviews were 4,803, slightly more than half the number reported by Blogger. Why is this? Apparently, Google can filter out bots that Blogger counts. These bots are crawling the Web looking for keywords, which is good for search engine optimization. I don't think there can be any argument that original content frequently posted is the key to a good profile with the search engines. This also probably explains the mystery of why our posts about Carl's Jr. and In-N-Out Burger get so many pageviews.

Here's a link where I learned picked up this information: http://jensontaylor.blogspot.com/2012/03/blogger-stats-vs-google-analytics.html. I found the comments to be interesting, too.