How Much Car Insurance is Enough?

If you own a vehicle, car insurance is the first thing on your mind when your teenager starts driving…..that and buying lots of aspirin. Getting car insurance quotes can be a tiresome and not-much-fun way to spend an afternoon….especially when you’re scouring the telephone directory looking for an agent. Then there’s the paperwork…over and over again.

Our neighbor has two teenagers…both drive. They both started out with nice cars, not new, but in excellent condition. Mike spent hours looking for an agent who could give him a decent rate, and considering the kid’s driving records, that wasn’t easy. But, he found a great way to find the insurance he needed and could afford…. American Car Quotes.

Its simple. Type in your name and your state, answer the questions on the form and let American Car Insurance do the rest. They will forward the form to the appropriate car insurance companies in your area and they will contact you…by email, telephone or however you want…No muss..no fuss.

Trick or Treat Hints - by 3rd grade students

SOURCE: The Reader’s Digest……Halloween hints to potential trick-or-treaters….submitted by 3rd grade students.

1. Old people are either very generous or give you one peanut. There is no in- between.

2. The cuter the costumes, the more candy you get.

3. Good loot: Tootsie Rolls, Kit Kats, Nerds, Twizzlers, Jolly Ranchers, Starbursts, Skittles, Snickers, and Whoppers. Bad loot: toothbrushes.

4. Pillowcases hold twice as much as plastic grocery bags and three times as much as plastic orange pumpkins.

5. Don’t get stuck behind little kids at the door. They take forever to decide.

6. Handing out candy is like serving wine at a party. People serve the good stuff first and save the not-so-good stuff for later. The longer you stay out on Halloween night, the worse the candy gets.

7. Lots of decorations in the front yard means good candy. They spend a lot on Halloween.

8. If a group of children gathers at the door, sometimes it's best to be in the front so you won't have to wait and can run immediately to the next house. But sometimes it’s better to be the last one: You might get two pieces of candy for being patient.

9. It's always better to choose your candy than to have someone else choose it for you.

10. When parents chaperone, moms say "Be careful" and "Remember your manners." Dads say "Wha'd ya get?"

11. Know your shortcuts. Slide through hedges. Jump over gutters. Dodge strollers. And run, do not walk.

12. Dads stay out later than moms.

13. Do not show your teacher what you have in your lunch bag the day after Halloween. Otherwise, he might point to his "Official Halloween Candy Taste Tester" button and ask for all your Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups.

FREE Credit Reports

I'm on a tangent...don't fall for anything that is offered for FREE....there's usually a catch somewhere.

Shortly after my experience with the FREE ACAI BERRY mess, I had planned to get my FREE credit report just to see shape my credit was in...so clicked on FreeCreditReport.com.....you know, the one with the goofy guy whose credit was trashed...by the time I figured out which one of the ads was for the FREE one, my patience was at an end, and I said..."nuts to this whole thing"

This is the official site.....annualcreditreport.com

The Federal Trade Commission has received many complaints from consumers who were misdirected from the official centralized site. Every consumer is entitled to a free credit report every 12 months from each of the three nationwide consumer reporting agencies — Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion.

The one thing the FTC should do is remove all advertising and marketing by the credit bureaus before, during and even after the process of getting a free credit report. It’s a pain to have to worry about identity theft or mistakes when checking your credit report. People should be able to get their reports and exit the Web site without having to go through the sales pitches. Why give the bureaus a commercial crack at all?

If the FTC really wants to end consumer confusion, annualcreditreport.com should be completely commercial-free.

For Heavens Sake! Don't Do what I Did!

OK, usually I am fairly intelligent and guard my credit card numbers with care. But, I fell for this ad on the internet.

You’ve see it lots of times. A before and after photo of someone, often from your own area, who has lost 25 or more pounds by using Acai Berry … usually in any form. The Acai Berry is probably a great help in losing weight (although I haven’t as of yet) and has many genuine, honest sellers. This did not happen to be one.

The scam is the “try it free” offer.

I clicked on “try it free”, gave my credit card number for postage and off it went. Unfortunately I did not read ALL the fine print on the site…be careful...if it mentions their monthly recurring billing….GET OUT… I should have clicked, clicked, clicked all the links until I found it.

I got my first bottle in about two weeks and also my credit card statement arrived…WOW! My free bottle cost me $79.95 plus four Foreign Transaction Fees! I called my credit card company wanting to know what this was for…Health-Cleanse, I didn't order any Health-Cleanse?????

The Bank of America representative was very helpful, telling me that this scam happens often, you have to carefully read those Free Offers. The acai berry scams and many others offer a free trial of their product, but they ask for your credit card number for mailing charges. Stupid me, I typed it right in.

Somewhere in the fine print, they tell you that if you cancel within 14 days, nothing happens and the free trial item is yours. But, you receive it shortly AFTER the 14 days have passed, and whoops, your credit card is billed, in my case it was $79.95 plus four Foreign Transaction Fees.

I called Bank of America immediately and said...."what is this?" representative said to call the number shown on the credit charge and tell the agent that I wanted everything cancelled and to ask for the agent’s name, ID number and a confirmation of cancellation number. He said that often there are other companies attached to these “free offers” and more things may arrive. However, I would not be responsible for any charges made after the date I cancelled the Health-Cleanse account.

I called the phone number listed on the statement and had no problem canceling my “account” and as the BOA representative suggested, asked for the agent’s name, ID number and a confirmation of cancellation number. Obviously from her voice and pronounciation, I could tell this person was not from the U.S. - I asked where she was located and was told that she was "in Florida" but would not say where she herself was from.

Just to be safe, I cancelled that BOA account and was given a new account number.

Now I sit and wait for my next statement….and mentally call myself many unkind names for falling for the scam in the first place.

Where Did Our United States Jobs Go??????

This was sent to me by a friend who lost her job in August. She had worked at the same place for 15 years....but no longer. Her company could not compete with the foreign imports...many of which were actually American companies who chose to have their items made overseas.....cheaper? I suppose so.

But in a way, we, as comsumers are also to blame. We want the best bargain, i.e. cheapest, items we can find....who cares if John, Helen, Tom or Doreen, American citizens, will lose their jobs....obviously we don't.

Is this you?

John Smith started the day early having set his alarm clock (MADE IN JAPAN ) for 6 am. While his coffeepot (MADE IN CHINA) was perking, he shaved with his electric razor (MADE IN HONG KONG ). He put on a dress shirt (MADE IN SRILANKA ), designer jeans (MADE IN SINGAPORE ) and tennis shoes (MADE IN KOREA).

After cooking his breakfast in his new electric skillet (MADE IN INDIA ) he sat down with his calculator (MADE IN MEXICO ) to see how much he could spend today. After setting his watch (MADE IN TAIWAN) turning off his radio (MADE IN INDIA ) he got in his car (MADE IN GERMANY ) filled it with gas (FROM SAUDI ARABIA) and continued his search for a good paying AMERICAN JOB.

At the end of yet another discouraging and fruitless day of checking his computer (MADE IN MALAYSIA), John decided to relax for a while. He put on his sandals (MADE IN BRAZIL ) poured himself a glass of wine (MADE IN FRANCE ) and turned on his TV (MADE IN INDONESIA ), and then wondered why he can't find a good paying job in AMERICA.

Do you see anything WRONG with this story? You should.

Our New Cabela's Store W-O-W

I love to fish! When I was growing up, my folks and I would make our annual pilgrimage from Nebraska to Minnesota for two weeks of fishing bliss. We stayed at resorts on Leech Lake, Woman Lake and finally Ten Mile Lake. Dad loved to fish for northern pike and I was "hooked" on casting for bass....Mom preferred to sit in the middle of the boat, secure in her life preserver jacket and troll for anything with fins.

We lived in Nebraska, not exactly a fisherman's paradise. At that time (1950) the only tackle stores in the vicinity were Sears Roebuck or Montgomery Ward. But, no more!

Cabela's has built a mega store on the outskirts of Omaha....a place of awe and wonder! Need a boat, Cabela's has it, how about a tent camper, its there. Fishing gear, guns, camping supplies you name it...you'll find it.

Any lure you can imagine has a home at Cabela's....even some that are so big you wonder what fish would even DARE to attack it. Rods, reels, line, motors, boats, Cabela's Fishing Supplies are endless, and, you can even eat an exceptionally good meal in their in-house restaurant!

Dad and mom have been gone for many years, but whenever I enter the Cabela's store, I wonder what my Dad would think of it.. actually, no I don't have to wonder, I know....he'd be speechless.