Tires and nails

Change a flat tire like a girl

You're in a remote area and emergency roadside can't reach you.  Trust me, you don't want to be in a situation stuck late at night having to wait for roadside assistance.  Here's tips that might make a stressful situation easier to handle.  And with a little bit of luck maybe you'll do it without chipping a nail.

Be prepared - have a jack and a wrench

1. TURN ON YOUR HAZARD LIGHTS 
2. APPLY THE PARKING BRAKE 
3. LOOSEN THE LUG NUTS USING A WRENCH
4. PLACE THE JACK UNDER THE VEHICLE 
5. RAISE THE VEHICLE WITH THE JACK 
6. UNSCREW THE LUG NUTS 
7. REMOVE THE FLAT TIRE 
8. MOUNT THE SPARE TIRE 
9. TIGHTEN THE LUG NUTS 
10. LOWER THE VEHICLE

Look for the jack under the car

Usually, the jack goes under the vehicle. Most car frames have a particular indented area that’s designed to accommodate the jack. Feel for it and make sure the placement is sturdy. Your owner’s manual may specify exactly where to put the jack, double check.

Sources: Bridgestone

Changing a car for dummies

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Going Places

Press a button 

Imagine having to read a map or even worse having to ask somebody for directions.  Today we ask siri, type into our phones, or just press a button and ask the car for directions.  What would happen if GPS stopped working?  Drivers would be slowing down traffic, looking at street signs or stopping to read road maps.  And how on earth would Uber ever know where to pick us up?

Everything is based on GPS, from emergency services to containers in ports, to factories, power grids and more.  It is estimated the cost of GPS crashing to be a loss of about 1 Billion per day.

The Global Positioning System consists of 24 satellites synchronizing with time in such an exact degree of precision that when we ask our phones for directions, it picks up signals from some of those satellites based on the time the signal was sent and where the satellite was.  If the clocks on those satellites are not exact,our route will be off by miles.  

Re-fold it back to the way it was

Not so long ago, before GPS, reading a road map was the only way to get around.  You can still find  maps at some gas stations and rest areas.  Maps are huge but fold down small enough to keep in the glove box. 

Reading a Road Map 

The index on the map lists the names of all of the cities listed on the map in alphabetical order and the corresponding location of each listing. Across the bottom of a map there may be sections that are labeled A, B, C and on the left side of the map, the grids may be labeled numerically. If a town’s location is described as B4 in the index, you would look in the grid where column B and row 4 meet to find the town. When using a map to navigate, locate your current location and your destination first.

Source: BBC 50 things that made the modern economy- GPS  and Driving-test.org

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Let's Talk about it

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Everybody says it's ok to talk about it, but nobody wants to talk about it.  We all know somebody that suffers from anxiety or depression, or we know somebody that knows somebody that has a drug or alcohol addiction.  Almost all of us know somebody that is affected by mental illness.

Your health should be the most important thing in your life 


Finding time for mental health is important. Meditating, working out or talking to somebody should be a priority and now there's apps that can help.  Here's a link for the total wellness site. Total Wellness

Let's use this Open Enrollment period as reminder for mental health

The Enrollment period for Health coverage lasts only a few weeks and coverage sold during Open Enrollment starts January 1, 2020.

If you don't enroll during open enrollment you might not be able to get coverage for next year unless you qualify for the Special Enrollment Period which includes a life event like getting married or having a baby.

Enrollment is open all year for Medicaid and Child Health Plus.  It depends on which programs you are eligible for,  it's based on your age, income and other factors. 

New York State of Health has health options available through the Health Plan Marketplace where people can shop and enroll in Health Coverage.  It is also the place to get help from the government for low cost or free coverage from Medicaid if you qualify.

visit NY State of Health or call 1-855-355-5777

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Superhuman Powers

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Save a Life

According to DMV's website there's a huge need for organ donations in New York.  Nearly 10,000 New Yorkers are currently waiting for an organ transplant, and every 13 hours someone dies waiting for an organ transplant.  Did you know just one organ donor can save up to eight lives? Yet only 29% of New Yorkers are enrolled in the Donate Life Registry compared to the national average of 51%.

At the DMV website you can create an account, update your address, view the status  of your license and register to become an organ donor.   

NY DMV

DMV offices play a huge role in promoting Donate Life℠, a program to motivate the public to register as organ, eye or tissue donors.  Next time you register a vehicle or renew your license sign up to be an organ, eye or tissue donor.  And now you can make an appointment online before you visit DMV.

Please register as an organ donor and you might be someone's superhero.

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Bread Crumbs

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Getting smarter and smarter

I think it's safe to say we’ve all gotten used to searching on-line for a product and next thing we know,  there’s ads about that product popping up on our social media. But what about when advertisements for things similar to our interests start showing up on our social media?  Like it’s reading our mind. Scary!  Not really, it's part of AI, machine learning.  It uses our patterns to predict outcome. Tracks your cookies (bread crumbs that you leave as you search the web) and compares it with data and people with similar interests and searches to create a personalized experience. These amazing things are happening and the technology is evolving every day. Including the perfection of self driving cars. Insurance companies in most states are using telematic devices and working with electronic logging devices on vehicles to offer discounts to customers that agree to share their usage data.  All this sharing may seem scary but this is our new reality and it's getting smarter and smarter.

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There’s a new place in town

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 Pumpkin everything

Autumn begins next Monday.  Fall is the best time of year - The weather’s usually still nice with sunny skies, but leaves start to change colors, and with this comes Pumpkin Latte, Pumpkin Pie, and Pumpkin … everything.  Then starts the countdown to Halloween.  And last but not least, does anything sound better than Sunday Pasta and Football?

Cook like an Italian

I’m not Italian, I learned to cook spaghetti and meatballs from my Husband and his family when we got married 25 years ago.  Since then I cook mainly Italian dishes and I love Italian food!  There’s an awesome new place in town called Narducci’s Pizzeria & Restaurant.  They have the best Meat Lovers Pizza, Gluten Free Pizza, an awesome Penne Carbonara and lots of other yummy dishes on the menu. Mention Familiar Insurance Services to get a 10% Discount.     

  

Falling for Fall

Decorating for fall and winter holidays is arguably one of the most fun things to do.  Spending time with friends and family is priceless.  But with lots of traffic, sometimes accidents can happen.  Protect your assets from an unseen event with a Personal Liability Umbrella Policy which is liability insurance covering above and beyond claims directly relating to your home and auto.  An Umbrella policy also provides coverage for claims that may be excluded by other policies.  Umbrella is affordable and a peace of mind. 

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Short-Term or Longer

Millions of Americans rely on Life insurance to protect their financial security.  What type should you buy?

The Cost of Waiting

In general Life insurance quotes increase as you get older.  When you are young, healthy and insurable is the time to buy and lock in the rate.  Polices are based on a few things, including your age.  The older you are, the higher the risk for the company, the more expensive the policy will be.  Companies also look at your medical history and current health.  If you’re healthy, you’ll get a better rate. 

Temporary Coverage

The best thing about Term polices is that they’re inexpensive and depending on your age, you can get a lot of coverage for about $20 per month.  Term insurance covers you for a certain period of time, like 10, 20 or 30 years.  So, if you buy a 30-year Term policy when you’re 25, you'll choose an amount of coverage and choose one or more beneficiaries.  That policy will cover you for 30 years, until you’re 55.  You are locked into that price for the 30 years, AKA life of the policy.  If you die during those 30 years, your beneficiaries will get paid the amount of insurance you bought. The only time this type of policy pays is unfortunately if you die.

Permanent Coverage

Whole Life is one type of permanent insurance, it covers you during your entire life or 100 years.  The upfront cost is more expensive than Term policies but in the long run it’s more affordable because after you buy, it never increases in price, yet it increases in value.  It provides Life insurance but it also puts money aside for the future. Which you can borrow against or cash out.

Two Questions

Life insurance can be simplified by answering just two questions.  First we figure out how much coverage you need, then you see how much you can afford.  A licensed agent can help you quote different types of policies and different amounts.  And increase or reduce the amount, depending on what you can afford.   

Life Changes

It's important to review your policy at renewal every year.  If your income increases, your Life insurance should increase accordingly.  Update your marital status.  Update your beneficiaries by removing or adding your spouse and any new additions to the family to make sure your family is fully protected.    

Do you need term coverage or longer?

Coffee Bar

"Make Your Own Coffee" Challenge

People are either big believers in Life Insurance or they think they can't afford it or need it.  But  misfortunes happen every day.

Take the Challenge

Buy an awesome mug and take the "Make Your Own Coffee" challenge to save big.  The average cup of coffee costs about $2 a day.  A cup of Joe at a specialty coffee house can cost over $6 but brewing your own cup costs pennies.

Priorities

There's nothing wrong with buying a cup of coffee but if you don't have Life Insurance, consider taking the "Make Your Own Cup Of Coffee" challenge and save enough monthly to pay your monthly Life Insurance bill. You might  have money left over to pay down debt, savings or donations. 

Sign Me Up

Take the challenge if you answer yes to any of these questions:


You Drink Coffee
You are breathing
You are healthy
You have a mortgage
You have an auto loan
You have credit card debt
You have student loans
You are married
You have children



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Life in a box

Monthly and season subscription boxes are advertised as being life savers for delivering goodies like clothing, make-up, razors, and other self care products right to your home.  These deliveries cost between $25 to $100+ dollars but can save you money with pretty good product discounts.

Priorities 

American are spending an average of $1400 per month on non essentials. That could add up to 1 Million dollars during a lifetime.  JPMorgan Chase advised customers that their bank balances would be so much healthier if they “make coffee at home”.

 

The Trade off

Maybe the real life saver is life insurance.  Americans spend an average of  about $1,400 per month on non-essential items. Imagine spending just 5% of that on life insurance to make sure your family is protected.

Here’s some shameful monthly expenditures,  online shopping “for non-essentials” ($84),, “subscription boxes” ($94), and impulse purchases ($109).    

Read article Here




“My Wife and I thought Life Insurance was a joke then she died in a crash”

Read article Here

Buy Time

Life insurance can do amazing things for people. It can buy loved ones time to grieve  It can pay off loans. It can keep families in their homes.  It can  pre-fund a child’s college education. It can keep a family business in the family. It’s the easiest way to build an estate. It will create an influx of cash when your loved ones will need it most.

Already got it

Review your policy annually.  Update beneficiaries.  Buy more coverage with lifestyle change like buying a house, growing family or student loans.

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6 Inches of moving water

A Storm is Coming

Six Inches of moving water is what is takes to knock you off your feet.  Experts say to obey evacuation orders and don’t wait until it’s too late. 

 Read article from weather.gov site  

Evacuation and our Pets

When families are forced to evacuate from approaching floodwaters they’re often forced to make difficult decisions about their pets. FDA says the number 1 instruction is to bring your pet with you when you evacuate but some shelters don't accept pets.  Having a plan in place can give our fur babies their best chance. 

Pet Friendly 

• officialpethotles.com
• petswelcome.com
• petfriendlytravel.com

Below are some items from FEMA’s list for Pet Preparedness:

1. Food. At least a three-day supply 
2. Water At least three days supply
3. Meds and medical records
4. Important documents and Microchipping.
5. Collar or harness with ID tag, rabies tag and a leash.
6. Crate or pet carrier.  
7. Toys and treats. 
8. A picture of you and your pet together

Click FEMA.GOV to read full article: Items you’ll Need for your Pets Hurricane Emergency Kit.  

Drenched 

The Gulf Coast is preparing for Barry which is about 10 mph away from hurricane strength. Residents are mainly concerned about floods from rain and storm surge.  "Barry is expected to produce total rain accumulations of 10 to 20 inches over southeast Louisiana and southwest Mississippi, with isolated maximum amounts of 25 inches," the National Hurricane Center says.

Tropical Storm Barry Creeps Closer As Gulf Coast Prepares To Be Drenched

Read NPR article here 

The Gulf Coast is preparing, CNN says the real threat is rain “which could quickly turn into unprecedented flooding” .

 

Flood Insurance

Floods are the most common natural disaster in the United States and no home is safe from flooding. Find out what Flood Zone you live in and be prepared.  Get flood insurance for the next possible storm.  

Fantastic Voyage

Come on y'all let's take a ride

Be in the Driver’s seat during the July 4th sales push

Drivers are stretching out the length of car loans. The average loan is 70 months and the average monthly car payment is $554 for new cars. Experian reported outstanding auto loan balances in the first quarter totaled $1.18 billion.  

Inventory

“Dealers have too many vehicles on their lots compared to how many they’re selling,” said Ivan Drury, senior manager of industry analysis at Edmunds.com.

Be Prepared

Buying a car this weekend  - here's some tips for getting the best deal

• Know the deals on the market
• know your credit score 
• Use a loan calculator  
• Give the dealership your payment threshold 
• Get a vehicle history report on used cars  
• Take your time, shop different dealerships 
• Check online for deals and visit the dealership's website
• Look for cash-back deals

Check with your bank or credit union for financing

This gives you the upper hand.  The dealership will need to get you the best offer to get your business. 

The price 

Doing your research will give you more confidence and buying power.  Don't focus solely on the price of the car.  "If a slightly higher selling price comes with a better interest rate, you might come out ahead over the life of the loan.” senior manager of industry analysis at Edmunds.com

 

Sources: FOX business and CNBC





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Stars and Stripes

Happy Flag Day 

Yesterday’s clouds are gone, leaving only sunny skies.

History 

Just like ships crossing the ocean hundreds of years ago during colonial discovery, going to the moon was a voyage to the unknown. A mission to explore uncharted depths of space.  

The Sales Pitch

Imagine trying to sell NASA on a computer system in the early 60s filled with integrated chips when computers back then were the size of a room, Software wasn’t even invented yet and everybody thought computers weren’t reliable. In the 60’s software was like the Wild West, nobody knew anything about it. For the development of the program NASA would  rely on a woman programmer named Margaret and among many others a young 23 year old Don, who was just happy to have a job, but ended up designing software program for the Apollo lunar landing. 

50 in July 

Throwback to July 1969, two weeks before Mom was in labor giving birth to yours truly, the world held it’s breath when the human race landed on the Moon. It was one of humanity’s greatest achievements.President Kennedy said in the early 60s “We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard” Kennedy's words still have the power to inspire us.  

We can do anything we set our minds to.  Doubt or uncertainty about making that important sales pitch?  Just take the first step ....“You can do it and you will, the very difficulty of it is why you must”.  You never know, you might make history.

Source: 13 minutes to the moon podcast.

Car Industry writing code?

Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced at their Annual Shareholder Meeting, the company is “pretty close to being able to release its own insurance product and that it has “a bit of software to write” to make it “ready for market”.  
Is it smart for the car industry to get into insurance?

Source: TechCrunch.com

Two cars Different states

You can own and keep a car in a state that isn't your permanent residence, but you should register and insure it in the state that it is garaged.

15 Minutes

With Prom season also comes the danger associated with drinking and driving.  Every 15 minutes someone dies from an alcohol related collision. Teenage drinking and driving has been a leading cause of death among teenagers so it’s critical teens avoid drinking and driving or riding with an impaired driver. Below is a link to a video titled 15 minutes created by students, school officials and the California Highway Patrol to raise awareness of the dangers of drinking and driving. 

15 Minutes

Source: Castro Valley High School /YouTube 

Let them know if they need a safe ride home for any reason, you are available.

Teresa

mano a mano

Great American Feuds

Throughout American history there have been feuds like when VP of the United States shot and killed Alexander Hamilton, the former Secretary of State in a NJ duel .  Thankfully things have changed a little bit.  Now feuds are usually handled in court.  But sometimes in the ring, like Pacquiao Vs Mayweather or Frazier Vs Ali.  Sometimes in the media - the beef between Cardi and Minaj.

Over a dude 

Joan Crawford and Bette Davis had a feud which lasted their entire lives.  Davis fell in love with Franchot Tone but he married Crawford.  Many years later after Davis heard about Crawford’s death, she allegedly said “you should never say bad things about the dead, you should only say good.  Joan Crawford is dead. Good”.  (yikes)

Car Fights

The Dodge brothers started out being the main supplier of transmissions for Henry Ford and they were early shareholders in the company.  Then Dodge launched their own car to compete with the Ford Model T.  In response, Ford lowered the price of his model and Dodge sued.  Claiming reducing the price of the model cheated shareholders. Ford was ordered to payback dividends to shareholders, including the Dodge brothers.  After the ruling Ford made an announcement about his plans to sell the company to his son and started a rumor about a new car business.  This drove down the value of Ford shares and investors like the Dodge brothers sold their shares back to Ford; which allegedly was Ford’s plan all along.



I just had a bittersweet memory in my Ford Expedition, circa 2002 looking back at my kids in the rear seat ... No Fighting! No Fighting! No fighting!



Teresa




Source:  Brain Stuff Podcast, Time and Bleacherreport.com

Wagers, Coffee & Cakes

What are the Odds

Insurance companies don’t take bets on death. Seems clearly illegal, but they do something similar.  Both parties come to an agreement and money changes hands for a LIFE Insurance policy.  

Insurance and gambling goes back thousands of years.  The code of Hammurabi has clauses about bartering a type of insurance. Merchants would borrow money to fund a ship’s voyage and be protected if the ship sank.

Coffee, Cakes and Selfies

Posting pictures and drooling over cakes and coffee seems like an Instagram trend but in the late 1600s men would gather at Edward Lloyd’s small coffeehouse on Tower St, near the London docks to network & gossip.  He created a newsletter called Lloyd’s List with lots of info about ports, tides and ships.  His coffee shop in London became known as THE place for getting Marine Insurance.  Men would gossip, drink coffee and tea and place bets.  There were  auctions and they would insure ships.  The insurer would draw up a contract and sign his name underneath - now known as underwriting. 

Edward Lloyd’s small coffee shop became known as the place for obtaining marine insurance. Lloyd grew to became a pioneer in Insurance - Lloyd’s of London.  Today Lloyd’s list is only available in digital format.

Would you like a Chocolate Croissant  or a Glazed Donut with that coffee?

Source: BBC 

To hear more about this check out BBC podcast 

BBC Podcast 50 things that made the modern economy: Insurance

Familiar Insurance Services

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Java Fix

Is our pint sized quick Java fix killing the environment?

In 2018 Keurig alone sold close to 10 billion K-Cups.  According to USA Today, over 40 percent of Americans use coffee pods.  These plastic pods are difficult to recycle so they end up in landfills.  In 2014 there were enough coffee pods buried in landfills  to go around the Earth 10.5 times. Plastic waste is an even bigger problem in 2019.  

“Some cities around the globe began banning K-Cups entirely, due to the product's recycle-resistant nature”

Will using refillable pods make a difference?

Read USA article Here

Marisa Palmer: Nespresso is the first single-serve coffee company to develop a facility dedicated to recycling their own coffee pods. Why? Because we have a coffee pod recycling problem.

Read Business Insider article Here

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Once Upon a Time

Ever After

Once upon a time a Man commuted for work into NYC on Northern State Parkway.  Married with an infant and another child on the way.  He had a nice home and liked his job.  

It was a beautiful sunny day, the sky was clear and as usual early AM traffic was light.  He was keeping up with traffic, doing about 75 MPH, car next to him doing the same.  Along with 2 cars driving behind him.  All 4 cars going at same speed, the skies were clear, good driving conditions.  Suddenly his tire blows out,  pulls him to the right, sideswiping the car driving in lane next to him. This creates a chain reaction and the cars behind them crash into them.  Man wakes up 2 weeks later out of a medical induced comma. He had been pulled out by the jaws of life and lost his right leg.  But even worse, the man in the car next to him was killed in the crash.  He also was married with an infant child.  The survivor lived the rest of his life wondering if he had been driving a little slower would the man in the other car survived. Does 5 MPH make a difference? He spent the rest of his life celebrating milestones with his family thinking of the child who was left without a father. There was no way to avoid the tire blow out, but would it of made a difference if he was driving the speed limit.

If a front tire bursts, you should feel the force mostly within the steering of your vehicle. With a rear tire, you should feel it more in the seat or body of the car. Whether the blowout occurred in the front or back, your response should be the same in either situation.

What to do

According to the National Safety Council here is what to do if you experience a tire blowout.

• Keep a firm grip on the steering wheel.
• Do not slam on the brakes.
• Let your car slow down gradually.
• Pull to the side of the road once you have slowed to a safe speed.
• Activate your emergency flashers.

The benefits of benefits

Penny Wise

Benefits are expensive but necessary to attract and keep talent. People are happier at their jobs when they have good benefits.  Although not as sexy as a six figure salary, more than ever, job seekers are considering benefits when job hunting.

The Race

Employers offer good packages to retain good employees. At the top of the list is medical insurance, but job seekers are also demanding a retirement plan, disability insurance and more.  USAA offers a strong 401k program with an 8% match and according to SHRM, the average company in the U.S. matches 6%.

Courtesy: Glassdoor

The reward

Give employees the benefits they value, and they'll be more satisfied, miss fewer workdays, be less likely to quit, and have higher commitment to meeting employer goals," says Joe Lineberry, a senior vice president at Aon Consulting.