Happy Holidays from Snaggle Foot Round Lake!!
Christmas is upon us once again. Where on earth did this year go? It has been a fantastic year here at Snaggle Foot Round Lake.
We have some exciting times coming up for us. Our business model is changing and it will be great to see this new growth in our little business.
I want to take a moment and thank my sitters: Christina Lennon, Sarah Taylor, Stephanie Coleman, Olivia Wastag, Jennifer Rhinehart, Valerie Caputa and Skye Robinson
I also want to thank all of our clients for allowing us into your pet's lives. We love what we do at Snaggle Foot Dog Walks and Pet Care - Round Lake and we will continue to love your pets in the coming years !
Thank you so much and Happy Holidays !
Sincerely,
Laurie Brzostowski
Should I Tip My Pet Sitter?
It is that time of year again.. Christmastime and we are starting to think about those people we want to buy gifts for. Your mom and dad, kids, grandkids, neighbors, friends, etc. But, how about those people who help you throughout the year with other things? Like your pet sitter, housekeeper, gardener.
Sometimes people forget about the people that are in the service industry. Pet sitters come every day to walk your dog, or they are there for your pets when you go on vacation or they fulfill last minute visit requests. You trust them with your pets and your home.
Some pet sitters work 365 days a year taking care of pets so should you tip your pet sitter? Absolutely!
If you are thinking about a monetary gift the normal tip amount is basically the same as you would tip anywhere else.. standard 20% is the going rate.
The most grateful feeling in the world is that tip or gift you receive from a client for helping them out during the year with their pets. It let's us know that we matter... we matter to you and we matter to your pets.
Other ways to thank your pet sitter:
- Unique gifts from your vacation. If you know that your pet sitter likes collectibles.. find out which ones and a small gift to your pet sitter is a nice "thank you".
- Thank you cards. In-home pet care is now a preferred option and there are now a lot of greeting card manufacturers that are creating "thank my pet sitter" types of cards.
- T-shirts, sweatshirts, supplies, etc. Most of us wear jeans and t-shirts and/or sweatshirts while working. We also carry a lot of supplies with us. These would be useful gifts to give your pet sitter.
- Plan ahead when you need a pet sitter. Pet sitters have to put a lot of planning into taking time off to be with their families. If you schedule last minute vacations or overnights or even daily dog walks, it can take that time away from your pet sitter who may have already had plans to be with family and friends. Their "time off" is important to them also as it helps them to recharge and keep them from burning out on the job.
- Write a review on Google+, Angies List, or Yelp. It is always nice to hear from our clients how much they truly appreciate us. A compliment goes a long way.
So while you are out shopping this year for your friends and family, don't forget your pet sitter.
Happy Holidays Everyone !!!
Happy Holidays Everyone !!!
More about gaming interface
Much is said about interface in games today. After a long winter, producers and game designers discovered that a merely beautiful game does not work as product nor as a good experience to different kinds of players.
Try to imagine this situation: a beautiful futuristic game fulfilled of great cut scenes and technological characters. Everything in the scenario is perfect, but every action is a mystery for the player inside this fictional universe. It’s difficult to understand where you need to go, when the objective is accomplished, and it’s impossible to determine what kind of object you can take from the ambient.
Schell (2008, p.222) says in his book The Art of Game Design that the goal of a good gaming interface “isn’t ‘to look nice’ or ‘to be fluid’, although those are nice qualities; the goal of an interface is to make players feel in control of their experience.
Complementing Schell’s ideas, Perron and Wolf (2009, p.66) postulate that one of the “fundamental conditions that govern our interactions with video game virtual environments is that our actions are mapped onto the game system by various technological means, since we cannot physically manipulate the virtual entities directly”. By this last quotation we can understand the importance of a good interface and how it can create an immersive experience to the audience.
An interface establishes an answer system between the game and the player. Before we think about fantastic graphics, it is more important to design the interface to create a deeper experience. For more information and to discover more about this theme, I strongly recommend the following readings.
References:
PERRON, Bernard; WOLF, Mark. The Video Game Theory Reader 2. New York: Routledge, 2009.
SCHELL, Jesse. The art of game design. Burlington: Elsevier, 2008.
Try to imagine this situation: a beautiful futuristic game fulfilled of great cut scenes and technological characters. Everything in the scenario is perfect, but every action is a mystery for the player inside this fictional universe. It’s difficult to understand where you need to go, when the objective is accomplished, and it’s impossible to determine what kind of object you can take from the ambient.
Schell (2008, p.222) says in his book The Art of Game Design that the goal of a good gaming interface “isn’t ‘to look nice’ or ‘to be fluid’, although those are nice qualities; the goal of an interface is to make players feel in control of their experience.
Complementing Schell’s ideas, Perron and Wolf (2009, p.66) postulate that one of the “fundamental conditions that govern our interactions with video game virtual environments is that our actions are mapped onto the game system by various technological means, since we cannot physically manipulate the virtual entities directly”. By this last quotation we can understand the importance of a good interface and how it can create an immersive experience to the audience.
An interface establishes an answer system between the game and the player. Before we think about fantastic graphics, it is more important to design the interface to create a deeper experience. For more information and to discover more about this theme, I strongly recommend the following readings.
References:
PERRON, Bernard; WOLF, Mark. The Video Game Theory Reader 2. New York: Routledge, 2009.
SCHELL, Jesse. The art of game design. Burlington: Elsevier, 2008.
Snaggle Foot Round Lake Still Has Openings For The Holidays!
Christmas is right around the corner and if you are still looking for pet care services we still have openings. We come to your pets so they can stay comfortably in their own home.
Our vacation visits are all inclusive and include:
- Feeding all animals
- Walking dogs (or backyard potty)
- Scooping Litter Boxes
- Water Refresh
- Treat
- Mail and Newspaper Retrieval
- Rotating Lights and Blinds
- Any other small home maintenance items you would like us to check on while we are there
All new clients do receive 10% off your first set of services. If you were or are in the military we discount another 10%.
We are fully insured and bonded and ready to help you over the holidays.
For more information and rates, you can click on the Pet Care Rates tab on this blog or you can go directly to the website at: www.snagglefoot-roundlake.com.
Give us a call or email us to set up your inhome consultation.
Phone: (847) 886-4648
Email: Laurie@snagglefoot.com
Snaggle Foot Round Lake Loves Puppies!!!!
Christmas time is usually the time people get puppies. Puppies can be a handful for the new mommies and daddies who have to go to work all day so give us a call and we can help.
Our puppy services are geared to helping your new puppy adjust to it's new home.
We will get him/her on a leash right away so they get used it.. we will help with potty training, and of course, we will give them tons and tons of belly rubs and kisses!
So, if you live in Lake County Illinois and you are bringing home a new puppy or you know someone who is, and need some help, give us a call !!!
To learn more about our puppy services or to schedule your free inhome consultation, go to: www.snagglefoot-roundlake.com
Or you can call or email us at:
(847) 886-4648 | Email: Laurie@snagglefoot.com
Freemium gameplay loop
We already have spoken of this subject here and here, but it's always good to reinforce some ideas.
"A freemium game is one that you can play, for free, for an unlimited time, but that also offers advantages to players that spend some cash on premium items. These items could be magic spells, higher character stats, more health points, secret characters, or special weapons. They could even be purely aesthetic items, like hats, that just customize your in-game avatar and offer no benefit beyond that".
"Unlike a shareware game, a freemium game doesn't require you to buy anything, ever; you can play it normally without spending a penny, but to really get everything out of the game you'll have to pay. Freemium game designers need to define a clear line between the free and paid. This line needs to be thin; the free items must be great enough to let the player have fun and slowly turn into an addict, while the paid items must be desirable without offering too great an advantage to those players who spend their cash".
Source: Tuts+ (Game Development)
"A freemium game is one that you can play, for free, for an unlimited time, but that also offers advantages to players that spend some cash on premium items. These items could be magic spells, higher character stats, more health points, secret characters, or special weapons. They could even be purely aesthetic items, like hats, that just customize your in-game avatar and offer no benefit beyond that".
"Unlike a shareware game, a freemium game doesn't require you to buy anything, ever; you can play it normally without spending a penny, but to really get everything out of the game you'll have to pay. Freemium game designers need to define a clear line between the free and paid. This line needs to be thin; the free items must be great enough to let the player have fun and slowly turn into an addict, while the paid items must be desirable without offering too great an advantage to those players who spend their cash".
Source: Tuts+ (Game Development)