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?