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Saturday, October 22, 2011

Weather Advisory, Watch, Warning what's the difference?

WASHINGTON - FEBRUARY 05: The Lincoln Memorial...Image by Getty Images via @daylife

Original Article

DO you know?

If the newscaster came on with those phrases which ones would get you concerned?  The best thing is to familiarize yourself with the terms that are used to identify winter weather so when you hear them, you understand the differences.  Hopefully you'll have prepared beforehand so you won't have to be on the roads in bad weather looking for supplies.



• Winter Weather Advisory means cold, ice and snow are expected.


• Winter Storm Watch means severe weather such as heavy snow or ice is possible in the next day or two.

• Winter Storm Warning means severe winter conditions have begun or will begin very soon.

• Freezing Rain creates a coating of ice on roads and walkways.

• Sleet is rain that turns to ice pellets before reaching the ground. Sleet also causes roads to freeze and become slippery.

• Blizzard Warning means heavy snow and strong winds will produce a blinding snow, near zero visibility, deep drifts and life-threatening wind chill.


• Frost/Freeze Warning means below freezing temperatures are expected.



 When a Winter Storm WATCH is issued   Listen to NOAA Weather Radio, local radio, and television stations, or cable television such as The Weather Channel for further updates. Be alert to changing weather conditions. Avoid unnecessary travel



 When a Winter Storm WARNING is issued   Stay indoors during the storm. If you must go outside, several layers of lightweight clothing will keep you warmer than a single heavy coat. Gloves (or mittens) and a hat will prevent loss of body heat. Cover your mouth to protect your lungs. Walk carefully on snowy, icy, walkways.




Avoid traveling by car in any storm ~ if you're out in winter weather please be sure you have winterized your car.









Fake Silver Coins On eBay

Original Article

Use commen sense and be careful when buying coins from eBay; especially raw (unslabbed) silver or gold coins. Chinese counterfeting rings have been peddling these coins (mostly Morgan silver dollars) for several years. eBay has tied to stop these phony auctions but many people still get taken in.



Most of these coins were sold from China and are now reappearing back on eBay as the original buyers try to sell them; knowingly or unknowingly passing off these fakes into the coin market. The quality is sometimes very good as evidenced in this photo of fake Morgans:







Red Flags to look out for:




* If a deal looks too good to be true, it probably is.

* Seller is located in China or other Asian country.

* Seller lists coin for short one day auction, often with a low opening bid.

* Seller is new and has low feedback.

* Seller does not offer a reasonable (7 day or more) return policy.



On eBay, I recommend buying only certified gold and silver coins graded and encapsulated by PCGS, NGC, ANACS or ICG. Other grading services are out thre but they are of dubious quality. Stick with these four. Graded coins all have a serial number which can easily be cross referenced on the grading service website before bidding. A few fake PCGS and NGC slabs were on the market but these could have easily been checked out by running the serial number. Most of the fakes are raw coins.



As far as raw (ungraded) coins go, I will not buy these sight unseen on eBay or anywhere else. If I can't personally examine it, feel it, etc, I don't want it. I DO buy raw coins at coin shows, tag sales, estate sales but again, I'm examining the coin before I lay my hard earned money down for it.




Recommended Article detailing the manufacture of fake coins:



http://coins.about.com/od/worldcoins...rfeiting-Ring/




Friday, October 21, 2011

If you Rent, get Renters insurance

Original Article

“I installed a skylight in my apartment... The people who live above me are furious!”

- Stephen Wright
A co-worker recently experienced a fire in the apartment he rents. He did not have renter's insurance and must pay out of his own pocket the expense of a hotel room while looking for a new place to live and out-of-pocket to replace his belongings.



You might be thinking you could afford that if your belongings are few and/or modest. But there is another important component of Renters Insurance that no renter should be without - Liability protection. If a fire starts in your apartment and it looks like your fault (smoking in bed, a candle, a stove fire, etc) the landlord can sue you for damages and the cost to repair the entire building AND other residents can sue you for the damage they incurred from smoke, fire, and water.




Here are two examples I found on the Internet.



1. Insurance company for the apartment complex just had a law firm send a letter addressed to my sister-in-law and niece. It stated they were deemed at fault for the fire by the insurance company's fire investigator. [The bill is ] $180,000.



2. I am aware that i have to pay for the damages of the fire in my apartment that i caused accidentally. Now i get a bill & they're making me responsible for the buildings under me since i am on the 3rd floor. I don't have rentals insurance, so am i responsible for paying their damages as well? ...

[Answer] You are liable for all of the structural damage you caused ... You caused the damage, this is your puppy.




Bottom Line





There is just no excuse for not having renter's insurance, it can cost as little as $10/month!



Apartment fires are very common; most of the events I respond to as a Red Cross volunteer are apartment fires.



See also What to Do after an Apartment Fire http://www.apartmentinsurancerates.com/after-an-apartment-fire.html



Thursday, October 20, 2011

Long Grain Wild Rice

Original Article

Wild riceImage via Wikipedia
Image via Wikipedia
Make your own long grain and wild rice side dish mix.


Ingredients:

1 cup long grain brown and white rice mixed
1/2 cup wild rice
1 Tablespoon dried parsley flakes
1 Teaspoon dried minced garlic

3 Tablespoon chicken bullion crushed
2 teaspoons Mrs. Dash seasoning or Herb Mix
1 teaspoon dried French thyme leaves
1/2 teaspoon tarragon leaves
1/8 teaspoon mixed fresh ground pepper
1/2 teaspoon sea salt


Preparation:
Mix ingredients and store in an air-tight container in a cool, dry place. This makes one side dish. You can multiply ingredients to make more mixes.

Long Grain Wild Rice Side Dish
3-1/4 cups water

Long Grain Wild Rice Mix (about 2 cups)
Bring water to boil in a medium saucepan. Add Rice Mix, cover pan, reduce heat, and simmer for 18 minutes. Remove pan from heat, and let sit for 10 minutes before fluffing with a fork.
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Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Keep Spare Parts With Your Preps

Original Article

keep-spare-parts-for-survival-preparedness
Regarding preparedness planning, I can’t emphasize enough to have spare parts for your essential systems! This is a very big deal folks. During times of disruption, we probably will not have the luxury of driving down to the hardware store, automotive store, ordering parts online, etc. to keep our systems running.
I recently received an email that read, “Today the power went out twice and I went to start the generators to keep the refrigerator and freezer working and I discovered that the fuel line to one of the generators had a split in it, and gas was going everywhere. Did not have a spare fuel line and had to go to the auto store to get some hose. If the auto store had not been open then I would have had to run everything on one generator rather than the two. Without spare parts you have something that is essentially junk if the parts store is not open or you cannot jerry-rig something up to make it work. Am glad to discover this split hose before it could not be fixed when I really needed it. Fixed it and both are working now.”
The key to this line of thinking is to figure out what are the ‘things’ that you should have spare parts for. Also, should go without saying, the more handy you are – the better able you will be to identify these things and to actually repair them when they break. If you are not very handy, then I do suggest that you begin to spend some time learning some of the basic handyman skills. How do you learn, you may ask? By giving it a try…

So, what are the things that you should have spare parts for? Well, I believe that you should first look at what you depend upon for immediate survival, followed by secondary survival, followed by comfort level, etc.
For example, If you depend upon electricity for your survival, then you better have a backup, and you better have the essential spare parts for that backup. As exemplified in the email comment above, having a length of the proper size fuel line would have been an ideal spare for the generator. Duct tape ‘might’ have worked in a pinch, for a little while anyway…
Another example is regarding your transportation, your vehicle… most vehicles today have one belt, called a serpentine belt, which goes around all the pulleys of various engine parts. If that belt breaks while out on the road, you will be ‘down’. I always keep a spare serpentine belt with my vehicles (and tools!).
Think of the things that if they break, you will be dead in the water. During my previous career, we would call these types of things ‘gating’ items. In other words, items that gate or block the progress of the next thing.
Even if you don’t know how to replace or repair these things, the fact is that if you know what the ‘things’ are, you may be able to determine the spare parts that you should have. If they need to be replaced later – you can probably find someone who knows how to replace it.
I love having spare parts on hand. It makes for peace of mind!

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