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Developed for those 55 and older
(but anyone can use it).
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This week's Featured Article
Slightly Creaky is pleased to announce the addition of a new section in our Active Living area: E-Learning. When we started, only two years ago, we considered having this topic, but there were few quality Online sites dedicated to free learning. Now there are hundreds of thousands and we are selecting the best for you.
Watch Us Build: Normally we do not release a page until it is complete. Many people, though, have asked us how we develop our topics. The simple answer is. "Slowly." We do weeks of testing, locating hundreds of web sites to select only a few for each topic. Thus, we though our viewers might be interested in visiting this page as it slowly develops.
We expect it to be complete around February 15.
February 8 update: around 3/4 completed.
The Slightly Creaky Blog:
Due to lack of replies on our Slightly Creaky Blog, we are temporarily suspending posting there.
If you have comments or questions relating to the Blog or Consumer issues, please use our Consumer Message Board or write to us.
Suggested Reading
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February 8
"Lots of companies offer a trial period to buy something, leaving you with the impression that you can return it or stop using it if you don’t like it. That’s not necessarily the case with some teeth whitening products purchased on the Internet. If you want white teeth and search for a phrase like “tooth whitening,” you’ll probably get pop-ups for trial offers. Advertisements lure buyers with an offer of spending just a buck or two for a quick test, but some customers tell me they get charged a lot more."
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February 5
How to Raise your Cholesterol
"Why one type of cholesterol is good for you —
and how to get more of it "
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February 3
February 3AT&T and Apple Allow Cheap VoIP Calls(NY Times) "In all of the hullabaloo over it the iPad, a long-awaited change to the iPhone got lost in the shuffle: Apple has taken the wraps off VoIP calls over the 3G network. That could mean a potentially huge savings on domestic and foreign calls."
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February 1
Reminder - Get the GSA Consumer Information Catalogue
One of the most valuable consumer tools you can have - many of the documents in it are free, others at a very low price. We strongly recommend that you order the Consumer Action Handbook (item #568V). It's the 2009-2010 edition. We use it as the textbook in our Consumer Awareness classes. And it's free. (The 2010 edition will be available in March, but there are few changes from year-to-year.) Available in English and Spanish.
Order online to save the #2 service fee.
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January 31
"Cyber-crooks are using tax season to launch some especially sophisticated scams. The latest involves an official-looking "IRS"
e-mail that says you can get your tax refund on your Visa
and/or MasterCard. The message asks for your Social Security number, Visa and/or MasterCard, their expiration dates, CVVs
("card verification value" numbers), filing status, amount shown
on your tax return, etc."
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PHONE NUMBER FINDER
Just leave it to Google to come up with something like this! Here's a
number worth putting in your cell phone, or your home phone speed
dial: 1-800-goog-411.. This is an awesome service from Google ... and
it's free -- great when you are on the road.
Don't waste your money on information calls and don't waste your time
manually dialing the number... Here's an example of how it works. I
am driving along in my car and I need to call the golf course and I
don't know the number. I hit the speed dial for information that I
have programmed ... 1-800-goog-411.
The voice at the other end says, 'City & State.' I say, Venice ,
Florida ,' He says, 'Business, Name or Type of Service.' I say,
Firewheel Golf Course.' He says, 'Connecting' and Firewheel Golf
Course answers the phone. How great is that? This is nationwide and
it is absolutely free!
(With thanks to a viewer. If this information violates any known copyrite, please let us know and we will remove it.)
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This Month's Featured Columns
"Retired and Living in Colombia."
Part 24 - February, 2010
All of Bill's articles can be found on his own page.
"Generations"
Active Living Columnist, Nancy Dickerson displays her wit and knowledge in her latest article on the SC Active Living Page
In The Home: Rat-Pack Syndrome
Current Featured Recipe: Crockpot Beef & Barley Soup
Medical & Health: "Vitamin Consumption"
After January, 2010, the editors of Slightly Creaky are taking a few months off writing Medical articles. We would consider viewer submissions. See the Submission Policy for more details.
Consumer Info: "The Official Spokesperson"
Contents
(with easy to access links)
Active Living. Home page for activities. Not sure what to do today or looking for a new hobby? We provide hundreds of ideas.
- Life Styles. There are many environments in which to live: urban, rural, overseas, on a cruise ship, traveling in a motor home, or in a care facility. We provide basic information about all these places so you can research the possibilities.
- Travel. Specific vacations, cruises, tours, and similar activities.
- Recreation. Indoor and outdoor activities to give you ideas of things to do. Many of them you have never considered but are easy and fun. Others are quite challenging. Have you tried geocaching, locating places using GPS devices, a wonderful way to find new locations in your area? Interested in learning bocce?
- On The Road. Whether you travel by train, bus, car, motorcycle, or motor home, there are destinations you do not want to miss. We have a huge listing of both the popular and the unusual.
- E- Learning. Electronic Learning includes formal university classes, lectures, how-to guides, and hundreds of other topics. We rovide some of the most polular as well as links to online collections of E-classes.
In the Home. Home page for activities around the house.
- Entertaining. Whether you have one person visiting or five dozen, we provide links to sites to make entertaining easier and unique. There is also a suggestion about planning events outside your home, in your yard, a park, or a formal banquet hall.
- On the Table. Providing a listing of web sites that provide generalized or specific recipes and cooking suggestions. Each week we also feature a viewer's Favorite Recipe. Send yours (original only, not copied) to info@slightlycreaky.
- Leaky Pipes. Covering many types of household (and outside the house) repairs.
- Pets. Mice, horses, cats, fish, dogs, and dozens more. We provide information about care and feeding, boarding, medical and health. Have you ever thought about putting a GPS tracer in your dog or cat (or iguana)?
- Hobbies & Interests. Indoors or out, this section looks at the way people spend their leisure time. Designing model train layouts, knitting, gardening, collecting, exercising, and even creating web sites. We also have a special page for Online Games. There are 20 separate hobby pages, and some bonus pages.
- News, Information & Literature. Newspapers, news magazines, books (print and audible) are now available online. If you are interested in reading the New York Times, looking up what is showing on TV, or checking out information in an encyclopedia or dictionary, there are a huge amount of resources here.
- Virtual Communities. This is a Slightly Creaky exclusive, bringing you web cams from around the world. Watch cruise ships, traffic, take tours of zoos, and peek into nightclubs and resorts.
Medical & Health. Home page for information about "the human condition." You can link directly to subcategories below.
- Medical Information. Links to medical information, dictionaries, encyclopedias, drugs and home remedies, advocacy, and groups that support many conditions.
- Support Groups. Six pages of annotated links to sites that support people and families with specific medical ailments and conditions. From the most common such as heart disease, diabetes, and vision problems, to orphan conditions that get very little attention. They are all here. Links to Support Group pages:
A - B C- D E- F- G H - I - J- K
L - M N - O - P - Q R - S T - Z - Family & Relationships. We choose our friends, but not our family. Relationships are difficult, whether between spouses, parents and children, and siblings. This section provides links to sites that offer suggestions to improve and repair such situations.
- Nutrition. From the food pyramid to calorie counters, nutrition guides for general living or specific medical conditions, you can find links to helpful sites here.
Consumer Information. Information about things we buy and use. Each section contains annotated links to appropriate web sites so that you do not need to use a search engine. You will probably find things here that you never considered researching.
- Consumer Assistance & Scam Watch. Links to consumer information pages on the Internet where you can find product reviews and comparisons, safety suggestions, and product recalls. Includes links to scam recognition and assistance locations.
- Finance. Making handling money just a little bit easier. Our links and articles include writing and probating wills (and how to avoid problems), providing for a power of attorney, investing, scams, living wills, and dozens more topics. It also includes links for tax preparation and Social Security.
- Energy. Every day electricity, gas, and heating fuel get more expensive. There are alternative ways you can provide for these modern needs without having to depend on the mega-corporations. If "green" is the energy word of the 21st century, you'll find information here.
- Legal Information. With every state, county, town, and city having conflicting legal rules, we can not possibly provide all the information you might need. We do, though, have links to general law sites that update their information as needed. Also provided are dictionaries of legal terms. (We provide the links, but do not guarantee what you find is accurate. Consult a lawyer.)
Message Boards. It is our hope that the topics, information, and weekly columns will generate discussions.
About Us. Information about the people behind Slightly Creaky, our philosophy, goals, and volunteers. This includes our safety guidelines and a chronology explaining the development of this site.
Contact Us. We have a variety of E-mail addresses if you wish to submit an article, suggest a new link, or to otherwise get in touch with the Slightly Creaky team.
Legal Stuff. The required disclaimers, policies, etc.
Just For Fun. Well.... it's just for fun.
This Month's Featured Article
(February, 2010)
Retired and Living in South America Part 24
Adapting to a Very
Different Life Style
Last month I asked for idea for this and future columns. One suggestion was to let you know how I spend my time, so that those of you thinking about retiring here or a similar place, could see how you could adapt to the very different life style.
I was a teacher and administrator for over 35 years, after spending 10 years in biomedical research. So for 45 years I had to be at work before 8:00 (7:00 most of the later years). Now suddenly I didn’t have to be anywhere at any time.
That took a while to accept and adapt to. For those years I really didn’t have much time for ME. While many people want to retire to do something, I really wanted a chance to do nothing.
This morning while thinking about what I was going to share with you all, I noticed what I was doing while I was doing nothing. I woke up when the sunshine coming through the blinds warmed my face; it was about 8:00. After getting dressed and brushing hair and teeth (no shaving, ever), I went outside for my morning walk with my Bull Mastiff. This walk doesn’t cover much ground, we both like to sniff around and stare off into space.
I stopped to enjoy some fresh roses on the Mother’s Day Rose, they smelled great, and so did a few gardenias nearby. As we got close to the front of the house I stopped and sat in a chair that I have left there.
I was enjoying the clear fresh air when I heard the whirring of a couple of hummingbird’s wings. That required a closer look at their activities taking place about 4 feet away. They were feeding on the Red Ball Bush.
After they left I moved on to return to the house. Wrinkles was reminding me about his “Crunchy” which I got out of the refrigerator for him. His crunchies are the material left over after beef fat has been rendered. It was now starting to get warmer, when I started out the temperature was about 65° and now was over 70°.
The second phase of my day then started, I went into my study and turned on the computer and TV system. I handled my e-mail (30 new mails), checked out the Poor But Happy web page which I help moderate and spent time looking at the Red Ball bush which is outside my study window. The hummers were not there now. I put my hand down beside my chair and felt it rest on a big furry head.
Time to eat, as I am getting hungry. So I had 2 hard boiled eggs, a multigrain roll and a cup of iced tea.
Bill & Gloria Turley
Somondoco, Boyaca
Colombia
All of Bill's articles can be found in his archive area.
Articles 1-15
Articles 16 - ??
Brief Disclaimer
The obvious legal statement.
The folks at Slightly Creaky are volunteers. None of us get any salary or compensation in any form. We are not a corporation, just a few folks working out of our houses. If anything on this site bothers you, if you notice mistakes, please let us know.
While we do maintain editorial rights, things slip past, especially on the message boards. The submitted columns and news articles, as well as the postings on the message boards, belong to the contributor(s), not to the Slightly Creaky team. We are simply a vehicle bringing you information to the best of our ability. We have no control over the sites we link to. Web site contents frequently change. If you find anything improper, objectionable or not working, please notify us.
Be sure to read our complete Legal Information and Policies
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