AP9 Articles

Privacy Matters 1-2-3SM Says Listen to the Credit Experts: Haste Makes Waste

Privacy Matters 1-2-3, a leading security and privacy membership program from Adaptive Marketing LLC^®, tells its members that paying close attention to credit scores and credit history has never been more important. In fact, Privacy Matters 1-2-3 urges members to listen to the credit experts — your credit score can ultimately be the most important three-digit number in your life.

Fairly or unfairly, banks, landlords and lending institutions put a tremendous amount of weight on your credit score. Your “credit worthiness” — which determines your ability to get a home mortgage, rent an apartment or town house or get some other large loan — depends on that three-digit credit score. With today’s average scores holding steady at about 670 (with 600 generally considered good and 700 or higher considered excellent), knowing where you stand credit-wise is important — especially if you are poised to try to buy a home or secure a car loan, reports PrivacyMatters123.

Privacy Matters 1-2-3 reminds its members that a better credit score can depend on several different factors. The following are a few important thoughts to keep in mind when dealing with credit:

-- Set your watch by it. One thing is certain when it comes to credit matters: Being late on payments is a major “no-no.” So when it comes to your bills, be organized, and pay attention to payment due dates. Being late or skipping a payment will definitely damage your credit score.

-- Do the math. There is an unwritten rule in the credit game, sometimes referred to as the 20/10 Rule. When it comes to credit card bills, for example, it’s not smart to let credit debt exceed 20% of yearly income tax. On a more regular basis, try to ensure that you have less than 10% of your monthly income tied up in credit bills. It’s simple math, yes … but financial problems might not be so simple if credit debts begin to mount.

-- Up the ante. Not only do credit companies like it when bills are paid on time, some may even reward you when they receive payments that exceed the minimum amount due. Paying more than the minimum may help keep down finance charges, and with finance charges approaching 20%, every little bit helps.

-- Speak now or forever hold your lease. A good credit score won’t guarantee an outstandingly low home mortgage rate, but you DON’T want to consider the alternative. When it comes to home buying — and any disputable credit issue, for that matter — it’s your legal right to argue credit negatives. Since you are what your credit says you are, check your credit report frequently, and make sure it’s error-free. If you don’t speak up on behalf of your credit, no one else will.

For these and other handy credit tips, finding help is as easy as PrivacyMatters123.

PremierHealth PlusSM Suggests Consumers Take Precautions Before Cold and Flu Season Begins

Fall has started, and with the turn of the leaves and the change of colors also come the signs of cold and flu season. Taking safety measures to keep the entire family healthy is the best thing parents can do before winter reaches its peak, recommends PremierHealth Plus, a leading healthcare savings program offered by Adaptive Marketing LLC^®.

Some cold viruses reproduce better with the cool, drier conditions of winter, and since everyone tends to stay inside — clustered at home, school or the workplace — there are more chances for those viruses to spread from one person to the other. PremierHealthPlus encourages consumers to take a proactive approach by maintaining a healthy lifestyle and using all available resources to keep cold viruses out of their home.

PremierHealthPlus offers some anti-cold and flu tips to keep in mind:

-- Wash your hands. During winter, people spend more time together in enclosed spaces, sharing the same organisms and bacteria through surfaces such as tables, doorknobs and handles, so it’s essential to wash these bacteria off to prevent their spread. Another good tip is to use a hand sanitizer every so often while visiting places such as school, the supermarket, and the ATM, among others.

-- Get plenty of sleep. A tired body won’t fight viruses and bacteria as well as a well-rested one. People who are under stress and struggling with allergies or fatigue are more susceptible to colds, so a good night’s sleep is a great way to boost the immune system and help prevent one.

-- Exercise regularly. Aerobic exercise is highly recommended during cold and flu season; it speeds up the heart, makes you breath faster and pumps more blood and oxygen through the body. Any kind of exercise, but particularly aerobic exercise, increases the body's natural virus-killing cells.

-- Go outdoors. Contrary to what one might thing, breathing fresh, cold air during winter helps the body feel stronger. Throughout cold months, people tend to stay indoors, which creates a better environment for germs to spread; central heating dries out the body and makes it more susceptible to viruses.

-- Eat healthy. Along with proper rest, good eating habits are a key to maintaining a cold-free body. Include red, yellow and dark green fruits and vegetables in your diet, along with whole grains and yogurt. A more natural approach suggests increasing the consumption of vitamin C, zinc and echinacea. Although there’s no scientific proof that these elements have a protective effect against cold and flu, it has been shown that they do help decrease the symptoms of common colds. Along with a good diet, drinking a lot of fluids is highly recommended. Liquids help you flush out your system, washing out bacteria that you might have gotten from someone.

-- Stay home. Germs are everywhere, and sometimes it’s just not possible to avoid them. In case you do get the flu, stay home and take care of yourself. You don’t want to feel lousy while interacting with coworkers, and you certainly don’t want to be responsible for making everyone else in the office sick.

PremierHealthPlus members can access a nationwide network of 400,000 healthcare providers and enjoy discounts on a wide range of healthcare needs, including chiropractic care services and other alternative medicine treatments. The whole family can take advantage of the benefits offered by PremierHealth Plus.

At Home RewardsSM Says, “Spring Flowers Depend on Fall Yard Work Hours”

At Home Rewards says that, whether you’re partial to “April showers bring May flowers” or instead prefer, “Only God can make a tree,” one thing is certain: For a healthy lawn and blooming flowers next spring, yard landscaping and preparation must begin this fall.

At Home Rewards, a leading membership discount program offered by Adaptive Marketing LLC^®, offers members some valuable yard maintenance tips to make that lawn and garden the envy of the neighborhood.

Proper lawn care and landscaping have become a year-round proposition. It doesn’t demand a green thumb, but it does take commitment and consistency.

With that in mind, At Home Rewards offers the following words of physician-turned-poet William Carlos Williams: “So much depends on a red wheel barrow — glazed with rain water.” Some experts say that Williams intended to show a simple snapshot of American life — to indicate beauty through simple and mundane objects. So when it comes to keeping a solid and good-looking lawn, nothing flowery is required. Instead, keeping overall flora beautified may depend more on regular maintenance and the following types of careful preparation:

-- “Oh, the water.” Regardless of whether rock ’n’ roll icon Van Morrison was into gardening, the aforementioned refrain from his 1970 hit “It Stoned Me” reminds us that running water is not only a symbol of freedom, but is also a key to maintaining a healthy lawn. Proper storage of water hoses is pivotal, and that means bringing outdoor hoses in out of the cold during the winter months. And while you’re at it, turn off the outside water supply if the air temperature is expected to dip below 40 degrees.

-- Breathe deep. A healthy lawn is one that breathes. Leaf blowers and similar power methods are certainly more efficient for fall clean-up, but raking the lawn by hand aerates the grass and helps loosen up the soil.

-- Groom it or lose it. Experts say that the optimal height for cool season (fall) grass is about 2.5 inches. So be perverse and give your lawn a summer haircut in fall, and keep it short throughout the winter. Come spring, that high and tight cool weather lawn coif will make an easy transition to those lush green lawns — just like the ones on TV.

-- Bye-bye blackbird. Cleaning out what birds leave behind can really make a difference when it comes to bugs. When birds fly south for the winter, clean out the remnants of their nests and any nearby birdhouses. The more bird-related debris you manage to clean up, the less likely parasitic bugs will be to survive the winter.

At Home Rewards is all about giving its members useful tricks and tips on all kinds of home care, decorating and home entertainment ideas. Acting like a home care pro means thinking like one. Just ask the home care experts from At Home Rewards.

BusinessMaxSM Gives Tips on How to Stay Healthy at Work

BusinessMax, a leading membership discount program offered by Adaptive Marketing LLC^®, knows it’s a jungle out there in the workplace. And maybe more to the point, it’s a “germ factory” to boot. In fact, with all we hear about germs, viruses and potentially contagious diseases floating around our work environments, it’s a miracle anyone can get any work done.

After all, any work space — office or otherwise — can be a lot like an elementary school classroom, gymnasium or other close-quartered environment. If one person starts hacking and coughing, others are sure to follow suit. So what to do?

Business Max suggests treating germs as formidable but ultimately beatable foes. It’s like the traditional proverb says, “Fight fire with fire.” And while you’re at it, just remember to use common sense in the process:

-- Say it … don’t spray it. If you work in a close-quartered work environment, chances are you’re around the same few people often. That means that even simply shaking hands or giving each other the occasional “high-five” is enough to randomly swap germs back and forth at an alarming rate. That said, when you feel a coughing or sneezing fit about to come in, cover your mouth and nose — fast.

-- Scrub up or ship out. Maybe those who are often labeled “germ freaks” have the right idea after all. Washing your hands a lot during the day with soap and water doesn’t make you overly fastidious. In fact, if it prevents colds, chapped hands and other maladies, maybe it just makes you smart.

-- Don’t pass it on. It’s pretty easy to pass on colds, flu and the like while at work — even to yourself. Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth too much during the workday. And if you’re in a job that requires more manual labor, repeat tip #2 as often as possible.

-- There’s no place like home. A survey released in December 2006, involving more than 1,000 adults, revealed that 98% of them admitted to showing up sick for work. As quixotic as it may be to drag yourself in, if you’re really feeling ill, like Shakespeare’s Falstaff said, “Discretion is the better part of valor.” That applies especially during the winter months, when colds and flu tend to run rampant. And if you happen to be a manager, let the troops know that you’re there in spirit, and set a good example by staying home.

Having access to these handy workplace tips is just one aspect of what BusinessMax can provide. For all those little things that give businesses a decided edge and keep employees happy in their work, the name to remember is Business Max.

Privacy PlusSM Helps Renters Find a New Lease on Life

Privacy Plus, a leading security and privacy membership program from Adaptive Marketing LLC^®, offers members advice and valuable insights on how credit records can affect their ability to rent a property. Even more, Privacy Plus shares ideas on how renting can be different from home buying — especially when it comes to the pivotal relationship between renter and landlord.

Unlike a home mortgage, which often ends up as just a financial arrangement between you and a faceless entity these days, when it comes to renting, you and the landlord have to establish a relationship based on trust. Simply showing up with a current bank statement or a letter of reference from a current or past employer just isn’t enough. And from your perspective as the renter, a promissory note from the landlord or even a “handshake” agreement shouldn’t be enough either — especially when it comes to structural damages for which you could be liable.

Clearly, the relationship between landlord and renter depends on both communication and documentation. For that reason, Privacy Plus has a few handy tips on landing rental properties:

-- Put it in writing. If you don’t have written proof of your financial past, including past residences, employment records and references, that’s a lot like a landlord telling you, “You’ll love this place … just take my word for it.” Prospective landlords, like prospective employers, need written proof that you’re a reliable individual. So before you start looking at places, prepare a resumé of previous living arrangements and employment status.

-- Keep an eye on credit. Landlords can and will run a credit check on you when you try to rent a house or apartment. Plain and simple, the law allows them to use your credit history as a factor in evaluating your application. For that reason, it’s probably a good idea to include a copy of your credit report with the rental application. If your credit is especially good, adding a credit report copy could seal the deal. If your credit is only marginal, that kind of upfront honesty and preparedness can also give you an edge over other would-be renters.

-- A promise is a promise? Taking someone at their word doesn’t really wash when it comes to any business dealing — especially real estate matters. Just as a landlord won’t accept the fact that you have good credit at your say-so, you shouldn’t, for example, accept a verbal agreement to fix plumbing problems. Promises are nice; written documentation helps get the job done.

-- Rent-a-Check. Even if a landlord has property insurance, that just covers the property — not your personal items. Check up on and protect your investment with renter’s insurance, and guard against fire, theft and personal injury.

Renting a house or apartment doesn’t have to be a chore. Still, since it directly affects your future, be sure to put in the time and effort needed to make a solid, reliable decision, suggests Privacy Plus.

Simple EscapesSM Takes You to Haunted Places All Over The World!

October is here again, 31 days of spooky tales and very scary entertainment offerings on both the big and small screens. Although these movies and shows are enough to cost you a good night’s sleep, it’s definitely more exciting to experience it in real-time, traveling to an unknown place with a haunted history.

Experienced and amateur ghost busters can arrange their trips (haunted or otherwise) through Simple Escapes, a travel and entertainment discount membership program offered by Adaptive Marketing LLC^®. These spooky-adventure seekers will find places for eerie encounters with ghosts, goblins and paranormal phenomena in every corner of the world; and no matter where they go, they can take advantage of instant savings on travel reservations and car rentals, along with discounts on hotel stays, meals at family restaurants, theme park admission tickets and other benefits offered by Simple Escapes.

SimpleEscapes has a few suggestions for ghost lovers in Europe and America:

-- Haunting Noises. Edinburgh, in Scotland, has been called the most haunted city in Europe. Spooky settings are spread out all over the city, and the magnificent Edinburgh Castle is the ideal place to start a ghostly tour of the city. The drummer who announced when the castle was being attacked still plays a tune every now and then, but he hasn’t been seen since appearing hundreds of years ago as a headless boy playing the drums. Another noise that has been heard is the tune of a piper who was once sent out to explore the then-recently discovered tunnels underneath the castle. Halfway down the Royal Mile, the piping suddenly stopped, and the rescue party that was sent to investigate never found a trace of the poor man. Along with the ghosts of the Castle, other famous ghosts in Edinburgh include the Corstorphine White Lady, Johnny One Arm, and the Royal Mile Death Coach.

-- Sunbathing Ghosts. As America’s oldest city, St. Augustine, Florida, has its fair share of hauntings. The “Caspers” of the city are so famous that various ghost tours now operate year-round. Those who dare to see them firsthand stay at the St. Francis Inn, where the ghost of a young African-American girl has been seen floating around. Other visitors opt to make a reservation at the Casablanca Inn, hoping to see the light on the balcony. Legend has it that a widow who ran a boarding house in the same building back in the 1930s used to swing a lantern back and forth on the balcony to warn rumrunners when government revenuers were in town. That light supposedly still shines on clear nights in the moonlight.

-- White House Ghosts. Since 1800, this splendid house has been the residence of the Presidents of the United States, but even though the periods of reign for most of them ended long ago —and, in fact, most of them are now dead— a few of them decided to never leave. That’s right. The White House is said to be another site of paranormal activity, so much that even the respectable Eleanor Roosevelt once said she felt Abraham Lincoln staring at her while working in the room that carries his name. Other staff members have seen the late Great Emancipator walking down the hallways or staring outside a window at the Oval Office. William Henry Harrison and Andrew Jackson are also said to be wandering around different rooms, and First Lady Abigail Adams has apparently decided to stay in the house. Some have seen her floating through hallways in the house, as if carrying something in her hands.

Ghost hunting is another fun activity to include in any vacation plans. And to avoid any scary surprises when traveling while enjoying great deals on travel arrangements, entertainment, meals, shopping and many other benefits, go with SimpleEscapes.

24Protect PlusSM Reminds Consumers of Important Safety Tips During Halloween

Witches, skeletons, and ghosts, among other strange creatures, will be wandering up and down the streets of neighborhoods all over the country during the evening of October 31, an exciting event for children and adults alike. 24Protect Plus^®, a premier security program provided by Adaptive Marketing LLC, recommends that parents take extra safety precautions for their children and themselves during this special evening.

The enthusiasm of Halloween can cause some reckless behavior. “Kids under a sugar rush are difficult to control, and in the hunt for candy, they’ll easily forget to be careful,” says Jorge Rivera, a retired firefighter from Bridgeport, CT, consulted by 24ProtectPlus. Along with children and trick-or-treaters of all kinds, neighbors and motorists should remember to be extra cautious during Halloween, mainly by watching out for children rushing to cross the streets, standing on driveways or counting candy between parking spaces.

To promote a safe and enjoyable Halloween night, 24 Protect Plus offers some helpful tips:

-- Plan ahead. Set up a route to follow, and map it out for your kids. They should know in advance where they can go and what areas are off limits, especially if they are going to be on their own or accompanied by any other adult. Establish a time to begin and end the candy excursion.

-- Talk to your children. They have to know the rules to follow, whether you’re with them or not. Teach them the most common safety rules for Halloween: walk — don’t run — on the sidewalk and not the street; obey traffic lights; approach only houses that are lit; and, last but not least, accept the treats at the door but never go inside a stranger’s house.

-- Be visible. Add reflective tape to accessories the costume might have, or do so around the trick-or-treat bag. Carrying a flashlight is another way to be visible without compromising the costume. Make sure at least one adult in the group carries one or wears some type of reflective attire.

-- Safety-proof the costume. For store-bought costumes, the first rule of thumb is to make sure the fabric and accessories are “fire-retardant” and “not toxic.” Face-paint should be preferred over masks, but if masks are worn, make sure they have large eyeholes and enough nose and mouth openings. Also, ensure the costumes aren’t so long that they cause the wearers to trip.

-- Save the treats for later. Although tampering is rare nowadays, it’s always better to stay on the safe side. Tell your kids to wait until they get home to eat their candy. Go through each bag, and toss those that are half-open or seem to have been re-wrapped.

In addition to offering these helpful Halloween-safety tips, 24Protect Plus can help families with their home improvement projects; financial advice; medical records storage, and other key safeguards. Whenever your family requires savings and safety information, you can count on 24ProtectPlus.

Todays EscapesSM Takes a Look at the Top Spots for Viewing Fall Foliage

Fans of the term “leaf-peeping” are chomping at the bit for the start of the fall foliage season, reports Todays Escapes, a top discount travel and entertainment program provided by Adaptive Marketing LLC^®. And even folks who dislike the term often find themselves enthralled by the colorful change in the landscape as autumn’s dropping temperatures begin to turn forests of green into patchwork quilts of red, gold, brown and a variety of other arboreal shades.

Todays Escapes members enjoy access to an Online Travel Agency along with other valuable savings that help lower the costs of travel, lodging and accessories as they gear up for fall vacations, long weekend getaways and other breaks from their daily routines.

Few breaks offer as much natural beauty across so much acreage as you can discover on a jaunt across the prime locations for fall’s spectacular fireworks. And you don’t have to be an arborist or botanist -- or even a backyard gardener -- to enjoy the dazzling array of colors that autumn brings; you just need your eyesight and a sense of wonder.

Whether you’re new to the leaf-peeping game or you’re looking to revisit some favorite old stomping grounds, Todays Escapes offers you a few tips on where to find some of the best landscape portraits in the country this fall:

-- Vermont. To outsiders, New Englanders may seem to take too much pride in Mother Nature’s leaf-painting abilities, but once you’ve experienced a Vermont fall, you’ll understand why. Starting in mid-September up north and slowly rolling south through the state until the end of October, Vermont’s changing hues can leave you searching for new words to describe “red,” “golden yellow” and “wow,” among other terms.

-- Massachusetts. From seaside vistas to mountainous views, Massachusetts offers you as much variety in your leafy search as anywhere on the planet. You can start your late-September trip in the wooded hills of western Massachusetts and chase the transformation southeast to the tip of Cape Cod in mid-October -- and add a quick trip to Nantucket or Martha’s Vineyard for a full oceanic effect.

-- Michigan. By late September, Michigan’s Upper Peninsula will be offering a rich panoply of the season’s top colors -- red, orange, gold, amber and more -- and savvy leaf fans can make a leisurely trip south through the state to experience the change from summer to autumn tones on a daily basis.

-- Montana. Serious outdoor adventurers can experience the fall foliage against a backdrop of beautiful terrain in Montana, starting in late September. From Custer, Shoshone and Gallatin National Forests to Glacier National Park, Montana’s natural landscape is awe-inspiring year-round; adding the autumn palette to the views just increases the payoff that much more.

-- Washington state. The Pacific Northwest has been blessed by Mother Nature’s design skills, and the mid-autumn season offers heightened proof of that. Take your pick from a wide selection of mountain ranges -- Mount Rainier, the Cascades, the Selkirk Mountains, the Blue Mountains and more -- then prepare for a visual feast of colors and gradations that will fill up your eyes and, perhaps not so oddly, leave you wanting more.

Autumn is a time of change -- the beginning of a new school year, the end of warm summer climes, a switch in sporting focus from baseball to football, and more -- and few changes are anticipated and embraced as much as the changing of the leaves. If you’re looking for an outing that will fill up your senses without draining you of energy, take a trip to a fall foliage hot spot, suggests Todays Escapes.

HomeWorks Plus Offers Tips on Turning Peter Pumpkin into Jack-o’-Lantern, Safely and Effectively

As the Halloween witching hour approaches, it’s time to start drawing up your favorite jack-o’-lantern decorations, reports HomeWorks Plus^SM, a leading discount shopping program. And you’ll want to act soon, before your neighbors claim all the best faces.

Acting soon should not be confused with acting hastily, of course. You’ll probably be working with a sharp knife, so you want to be certain that the only cuts you make are measured incisions designed to turn your pumpkin into the happy, strange, terrifying, or mysterious jack-o’-lantern look of your choice. After all, Halloween is a lot more fun when the bandages you wear are part of a costume rather than a dressing prescribed by a doctor.

To help you keep your jack-o’-lantern looking and performing at its best this Halloween season, HomeWorks Plus offers the following suggestions:

-- Go big or stay home. Larger pumpkins are the easiest kind to carve. They also have more innards, of course, but if you’re into healthy snacks, that just means you’ll have more pumpkin seeds to toast.

-- Top it off with an inverted pyramid. When you make your initial cuts at the top of the pumpkin, try to cut into the pumpkin, around the stem, at a 45-degree inward angle. That way, when you replace the cut-out lid, it’ll stay on top of the pumpkin rather than dropping straight into it.

-- Use a cheat sheet. There was only one Michelangelo, and he’s been gone a long time now. If you want to carve an eye-catching pumpkin, try using tracing paper to copy a design from a book or a printout of an Internet page. Tape the paper to the face of the pumpkin, and retrace the face with lines deep enough to make impressions on the pumpkin. Once the lines are in place, all you have to do is follow them with your carving knife.

-- Give ol’ Jack a facial. To preserve that “fresh as a devil” look, immerse your carved-up pumpkin in a solution of one teaspoon of bleach to one gallon of water. Let it dry completely, then apply either petroleum jelly or vegetable oil to all of the inside and outside surfaces, including the cut-out portions. Repeat as needed throughout the season.

-- Let the bottom fall out. Cutting off the bottom of your pumpkin can create greater stability (particularly for wobbly-bottomed pumpkins). With the ability to place the pumpkin over a stable setting, you’ll also have greater control of the candle. For increased fire safety, consider using a small, battery-powered light instead of a candle.

-- Try some common scents. Why just decorate when you can invigorate? To turn your jack-o’-lantern into an air freshener, sprinkle the underside of the lid with spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, and other aromatic favorites.

A successful Halloween includes cool costumes, tasty treats and, ideally, an absence of unanticipated tricks, but it all starts with a jazzy jack-o’-lantern. To get your season off to a rousing start, keep in mind these tips from HomeWorks Plus.