Sandhills Seniors » Sharon

Identity Theft

Sharon — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 23:19:41 +0000

These days you will hear lots of heavy breathing about the dangers of identity theft for users of the internet.

If you are unsure of what such theft involves, check out this overview from the U.S. Department of Justice. To obtain additional information on phishing and other identity theft matters, start at this page of the FTC site. You can also file an FTC complaint at this site.

As any watcher of television will know, there are several companies who promise to protect you from identity theft. A comparison of several programs such as Debix and LifeLock can be found here as the NextAdvisor site, a consumer comparison site.

For an oversight and omnibus identify theft resource, go here to visit the non-profit identify theft resource center.

Considering purchasing commercial insurance against identity theft? For an unenthusiastic look at such a move, consult this issue of Forbes. And just google identity theft insurance to find a variety of companies offering to take care of any woes that may come down your path.

Russell’s Seafood

Sharon — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 22:44:39 +0000

Russell’s Seafood in Southern Pines offers senior discounts.

Your Apple a Day

Sharon — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 17:04:07 +0000

Apples serve to enhance several kinds of health, including mental health when you need a computer.

If you use a Macintosh computer to tour the Internet, read email, and whip out letters and to-do lists, you know how intuitive Apple has made its computers and how seldom you are inclined to toss your machine out a nearby window.

Thanks to the Internet, help for those rare moments of frustration is often only a click away.

Want to track the currency of your favorite software package? Stop by Version Tracker and go to the Macintosh section to check. You can even list all your software, and the site will notify you when upgrades become available.

Get an error message from Apple with one of those inscrutable numbers? Check out Apple Error Codes to see, for example, what -36 means. You can always google the problem to decipher a fix on your own. Or you can try for free online tech support

Tired of mousing around the page and want some keyboard shortcuts? Just visit >a href=”http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1343” Apple keyboard shortcuts at the Apple site. And while you are there, stop by the Apple store to scope out the available models as well as peripherals and software you can purchase at the site.

You can even find an exhaustive history of Apple and its computers at several sites, including this Low-End Mac page site.

One software suggestion: if you are constantly losing little pieces of paper with passwords written on them, check out an inexpensive software program called Web Confidential that records and encrypts your passwords until you need them.

And when it is time for some close-to-home help, stop by our Mactutor & Service site.

Sharon Shaw works with Authorized Apple Service Provider and business owner Melanie McDonald at MacTutor & Service in Southern Pines.

The Proposed NC Legislation on Puppy Mills

Sharon — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 21:31:43 +0000

Formally called The Commercial Dog Breeder Regulation bill, the NC Legislature recently voted down a puppy mill bill that many state animal protection groups applauded and the state lawmakers, the NRA, the AKC, and various hunting interests opposed.

This section of Sandhills Seniors is designed to help you know the issues that impact us so you can formulate a position independently.

Comments welcome.

Words, words, words

Sharon — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 19:06:46 +0000

Who doesn’t use words? Who doesn’t want to know more of them, more about them, and more ways to use them.

For a word of the day, visit this page of Merriam-Webster Online.

Like word games? Try today’s M-W word game.

Find dozens more free word games on the Shockwave site.

If crossword puzzles is your thing, you can find them all, US and British, at this site.

Get your coupons from the Internet

Sharon — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 18:19:48 +0000

As a Google search for internet+coupons will show, the net gives you access to thousands and thousands of printable coupons and codes to use for Internet purchases.

We can suggest a few such sites to help you kick-off your shop ‘n save efforts.

First off, if you shop on the Internet, you will want to check out eBates, and Retail me Not.

All three sites offer codes for use when you checkout of various online retail sites. When you know what you are shopping online for, visit one or more of the above or similar sites and see if you can save some money by entering a relevant code in the appropriate section of your checkout screen.

For local grocery shopping, the Internet can be a sea of useful coupons that you can print out at home and take in when you shop.

Shop at Home says it has coupons available for 4,204 stores. For two million coupons you can have mailed to you, check out the Coupon Clippers.

Two similar sites are Smart Source and
Grocery Coupons.

Most of these sites require free registration.

And don’t forget to take a look at the couponing pages at about.com.

Saving money at restaurants and more

Sharon — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 18:18:13 +0000

Have you checked to see which local grocery stores offer Senior Days for price-breaks on shopping?

How about restaurants and fast-food spots in your area?

For an overview of vendors and restaurateurs offering senior discounts, take a look at this page of the About site. Give a call to your local establishment and find out what special opportunities are available for seniors.

Most fast-food places offer some sort of break as do many restaurants. So an afternoon with a list of your favorite shopping and eating spots and a telephone directory could add up to significant savings.

If your business offers special discounts to seniors that you would like to see listed here, please contact us.

For Whom the Bell Tree Tolls

Sharon — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 18:13:22 +0000

If you have not yet had a burget at Southern Pines’ Bell Tree on East Broad Street, you have missed a good burger in an area that boasts many good burgers.

A homey and causal place, The Bell Tree has a bar, side tables, and some center raised tables that make for comfortable conversation and eating. Television sets around the room will make sports fans happy. The burgers on special bread and the French fries are both primo at less than ten bucks. And the menu has a range of other goodies to please almost any taste.

Try it out to eat in or carry out. See what you think.

When your kitchen goes pear-shaped . . .

Sharon — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 17:56:29 +0000

It’s time for a Gordon Ramsay pick-me-up.

How about Beef Wellington for dinner tonight?

Almost every written review of Ramsay’s cooking and restaurant shows on BBC America and Fox allude to him as “the foul-mouthed chef.”
Fiddle. What these folks miss is that his vocabulary is used in the interest of training people to either cook or run successful restaurants, a job he does with a degree of sensitivity and generosity that is nowhere suggested in the standard opening gambit of reviewers.

Check out a bit about Ramsay’s life and career and you will find a fellow who has worked his way up from a near-disastrous beginning to one of today’s top international chefs.
Click your remote to BBC America and enjoy some galvanizing re-runs of chef Gordon Ramsay in two of his best programs: The F Word and Kitchen Nightmares or Hell’s Kitchen on Fox.

Whenever did a master chef and teacher have so much fun working?

Want to see which part of the Ramsay personality you are? Take the test here at the BBC site.

Want to try some of Ramsay’s recipes? You can find them here.

When you’ve seen one Alzheimer’s affected . . .

Sharon — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 23:22:24 +0000

The saying among Alzheimer’s caregivers and the affected is that once you have seen one person affected with Alzheimer’s, you have seen one person with Alzheimer’s.

What this not-too-subtle observation suggests is that Alzheimer’s impacts each person affected and each affected’s family in different ways, and the progress of the disease tracks differently with each man or woman impacted.

Named for Alois Alzheimer who described the disease in 1906, Alzheimer’s is a form of dementia that is both progressive and fatal, although the time consumed by the “long goodbye” varies from affected to affected.

Symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease, according to WebMd include:

Serious memory problems affect your ability to carry out everyday life activities such as driving a car, shopping, or handling money. Signs of serious memory problems may include:
Getting lost in a place you know well may be a sign of a serious memory problem.
• Asking the same questions over and over again.
• Becoming lost in places. you know well.
• Not being able to follow directions.
• Getting very confused about time, people, and places.
• Not taking care of yourself — eating poorly, not bathing, or being unsafe.

The disease may occur in the 30’s (Early Onset Alzheimer’s Disease) or around 65 and progress in clearly delineated stages.

For one of many excellent resource lists for the affected and their caregivers, check this resource list.

Caregivers or early onset affected are invited to join a private online support group. To obtain more information, contact Sharon Shaw at puffin@puffinsplace.com