Protect yourselves

Last week Blogger was down for a while.  I ran across this brief feature on Yahoo! Finance that was posted by Consumer Reports that covers "How to Protect Yourself."

Here is an outline of topics it briefly covers.  Click on the link at the bottom for more details.

At Home

• Making a break-in too easy
• Leaving your garage door open
• Obscuring your house
• Leaving valuables in sight
• Advertising a vacation
• Being carefree with keys
• Tossing prescription bottles
• Thinking a gun is your best defense

With Your Electronics

• Using lazy passwords
• Falling for phishing
• Running outdated software

For Your Personal Finances

• Banking from a public computer
• Using unfamiliar ATMs
• Dropping your guard at gas pumps
• Ignoring your credit or debit cards
• Abandoning your receipts
• Trashing your bills

6 Ways to Stay Safer

• Watch out for imposters
• Learn to parallel park
• Hide the stuff in your car
• Change your PIN
• Keep a financial inventory
• Change your Wi-Fi password

Click here for the article and more details
Click here to go to ConsumerReports. org

The Art of the Handoff - When to delegate?

Okay.  It has been forever since my last post.  I have been submerged and coming up for a breath before going down again.  Well....we'll see...

I am still getting Inc. Magazine for free (except for my time, etc).  In it is an article by Jason Fried that is titled "The Art of the Handoff" where he talks about the decision to get an assistant for him.

Click here to view the article.

Adventure Cycling Association for maps

In this a previous post (http://2raising4.blogspot.com/2009/07/pbs-show-walking-great-divide-and.html) I described a PBS show that showed how you can walk the continental divide.

In a recent Men's Health Issue, which I am receiving free (disclaimer), there was a short blurb about how you can ride your bike on part of the trail.  You can get maps here:  http://www.adventurecycling.org/routes/index.cfm.  For the section from Butte to Jackson Hole, it required two maps for $15 each.

Visit? Saddleback Butte State Park

In looking for things to do in the higher desert, I found a possible hike in Lancaster.  It is at the Saddleback Butte State Park.  They list a short 2.5 to 3 mile hike to the peak, and at the top you have a 360-degree view over the Lancaster valley as well as the Mojave desert. 

For the state park website: http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=618

Visit? Orange County Great Park

Here's another tip from Sunset Magazine.  There will be 1,347 acres of lakes, gardens, trails, museums, and an amphitheater.

They say that there are free balloon and carousel rides Thursday through Sunday.  For more information: www.ocgp.org

To subscribe to Sunset Magazine for 1 year, click below:

Visit? Limestone Canyon

I posted Limestone Canyon and Whiting Ranch Wilderness Park on this earlier post.

There is another website that has lists activites related to the Irvine Ranch Open Space: http://www.irlandmarks.org/activities/

I also got this tip from Sunset Magazine which you can get a 1-year subscription here:

American Express really wants business!

Wow! I actually have to think about not taking this offer.  I am trying to read the fine print...

Apply (and of course be approved) for an American Express Premier Rewards card and spend $500 in the first 3 months and I get a $400 Home Depot Gift Card plus, they waive the annual fee of $175 for the first year.

Hmmmmm.....  I can still remember the person not choosing my pictures for Travel and Leisure magazine...