Living Will

Hi everyone!
Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream shop is sponsoring their "FREE scoop" night on April 19th. Usually Baskin Robbins 31 Flavors has their free night in April, but so far it's not advertised on their web site so I don't know when it'll be.
One question we’ve failed to see during the controversy over the Terri Schiavo "right to life" case is what can WE do to prevent this from happening in our own families. Medical technology can allow keep people alive even though they are not really functioning. Teri, who is in a vegetative state, is in the middle of a debate between a group of people who want to keep her alive and another group who want to let her die peacefully.
Her husband says she wouldn’t want to be kept alive in the condition she’s in and he says she expressed that to him. The problem is that her wishes were never written down. People should write exactly what they would like to happen in what’s called an "advance directive." People should also appoint a messenger who will be the steward of that information and will deliver it to the appropriate parties if something happens. To find out more, check out the following sites: partnershipforcaring.org (provides specific advance directive forms for each state), agingwithdignity.org (offers details about its Five Wishes document), healthdirectives.org (charges $18 a year to scan directive documents and make wallet-sized cards specifying how medical providers can retrieve the documents from the website), and uslivingwillregistry.com (offers directive services for member hospitals).
In case you're thinking about hitting Universal Studios during Spring Break you can save some admission money if you plan ahead. You can get discount tickets on-line BUT they're even cheaper if you buy them at VON's grocery store, BUT you can save even more money if you have one of those Universal Fan Club Cards. Ask your company's Human Resource Manager to order one for you (for companies over 50 employees). If you belong to a credit union they may have one for you as well. With that card you can also save 15% at the restaurants and gift shops at Universal Studios. The card is free....you
just have to find one. Check out the Fan Club info on-line and you can
even get $30 tickets mailed to you with free shipping. :)
The Oriental Trading Company that sells all that great, cheap plastic junk is offering free shipping if you order by April 12th. Stock up on
Graduation stuff, party supplies, weddings, 4th of July, etc. Use code
WC54003 during checkout on-line at www.OrientalTrading.com
Have a beautiful day!
CENTSerely,
Sister Thrifty

E-Bay & PayPal

Hoppy Easter!!!
I thought the attached Easter photo was cute and wanted to share it to bring
a smile to all your jellybean-stained faces. :)
I also wanted to give you a quick "heads up" on some dangerous e-mails I've been receiving from both PayPal and Ebay. Those rotten scumbag criminals out there are pretending to be Ebay and PayPal by sending notices to customers who have accounts and telling them to hurry and verify all credit card information on your account. They give you a link where you can update all your personal information......
Do NOT fall for it! Do NOT use the link that is included in the e-mail! I checked with both companies and they said they will never send you a generic
letter with a non-specific greeting "Dear PayPal User", for example. If
they really do want to contact you they will address you by your name and include your specific account number. If you think you might really need to update your credit card information on your account then go directly to those sites, not by using a link. If you are afraid you have been scammed, then you should most definitely report it so they know to alarm all their members.
On a happier note......all Easter merchandise will go on sale at 50% on Monday! Stock up on non-perishable holiday supplies for next year! :)
CENTSerely,
Sister Thrifty

Local News

Hi thrifty spenders & savers!
We now have subscribers to the Sister Thrifty newsletter that live all over the country! Because it started in Carlsbad, California I often have items that pertain only to subscribers that live in that area, so when the rest of you see "Local news" you can close your eyes and skip that part. For
example:
Local news:
June Olsen of O-2 is looking for a roommate...she has a room to rent, $500 a month includes all utilities (minus phone). She's lives in the Oceana apartments in Oceanside...a senior citizen complex, so they should be 55+ in years. If you know of anyone who may be interested have them give her a call at 722-0877.
EGGstravaganza at Holiday Park in Carlsbad at 10:00 on March 26. The Easter egg hunt lasts about 11 seconds long so don't be late! When you're done hunting eggs there, head over to Poinsettia Park for their annual Spring Festival from 11:00 to 3:00 pm
Kids' Day at the Flower Fields is April 2nd from 12:00 noon to 5:00. Tons of kids activities in addition to romping through those gorgeous flower fields and very cool herb gardens.
Also on April 2nd, our very own Trina Boice, will be doing a book signing at the Deseret Book store in La Jolla from 5:00 to 7:00 for her newest book "Thinking Outside the Green Gelatin Box". It's also Ladies' Night at Deseret, so they'll have all kind s of discounts and fun things going on.
Now for steals and deals for everyone else:
www.overstock.com will only charge you $1 for shipping in the month of March. Pretty good deal if you're buying a sofa!
www.joannes.com is also have a sale and you can get free shipping.
Have a wonderful day!
CENTSerely,
Sister Thrifty

Credit Report

Spring is in the air...... FINALLY!
Hard to know how to decorate your house when St. Patrick's Day and Easter are only a week apart from each other this year. Green eggs? Gee, wouldn't life be great if that was our toughest problem?
Here are some thrifty tidbits to get you singing like those birds outside....
There is one legitimate web site that gives you your credit report for free now. It is www.annualcreditreport.com So don't be fooled by other sites claiming to offer you the same thing.

To check out what products are being recalled go to www.cpsc.gov Would you
believe there's actually a recall on yarn? It's that Bernat "Fur Out" yarn which, apparently, is flammable....aren't all yarns? You can sign up to receive an e-mail whenever there is a new recall issued. There is also a ton of other great info at that web site.
If you have a child that's getting ready to take the SAT exam or just wants
to better prepare for it check out www.collegeboard.com ,
www.vocabulary.com , www.WorkmanWeb.com
The dreaded tax day is quickly approaching. Did you know you could file
on-line for free at www.irs.gov That web site will also give you a list of
other sites offering free or nearly free filing services suggested by the
IRS. You can even file on-line for your state tax in some states. Check
out www.taxadmin.org If you don't have all your tax paperwork figured out
yet, don't panic. You can also file for an extension of the deadline there.

In local San Diego news:
This is a last call to get ready and make it to the "LDS Career Fair,"
Saturday, March 19, from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., at the San Diego Stake, Stake Center at 4195 Camino Del Rio South.
Just this week, we signed up Southwest Airlines, The Home Depot, and Dixieline Lumber. These companies are teaming up with 30 other premier companies like SeaWorld San Diego, National Steel and Shipbuilding Company, Jack in the Box, San Diego Harbor Police, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Embassy Suites, Loew's Coronado Resort, and Kragen Auto Parts. Please dress in Church attire and bring extra copies of your resume.
Bringing small children is strongly discouraged. For more information, call the Regional Employment Center at (858) 279-2338.
Camille Stagg is taking care of children in her home now. If you, or someone you know, is in need of daycare for your children, please give her a call @ 760-931-6699.
Have a WONDERFUL weekend chickadees!
CENTSerely,
Sister Thrifty

X-box

Hey everyone,
On a sad note, a very sweet friend of mine, Lyn Bonilla, passed away last night. Many of you knew her, so I wanted to let you know that the funeral/memorial service will be held at the LDS Stake Center this Saturday (March 12) at 11:00. She was struggling with Cancer and is now out of her pain. She gave a lot of us wonderful massages.....you can bet the angels are now giving her one to congratulate her on a job well done here on earth!
:)
Now on a happier note....
Microsoft is providing FREE replacement power cords for your X-box console.
Check out www.xbox.com They'll need your serial number and manufacturer's
date (written on bottom of console) and then you can order a free replacement. If you don't have an X-box system in your house.....consider
yourself lucky. :)
There are a lot of people who would like to work from home because of their schedules and current situations. The problem is that people often get taken by work-at-home scams when they are in that situation. The good news is that the Federal Trade Commission has formed a multi-agency task force that plans to track down these criminal outfits and prosecute them. The FTC is working with the Justice Department and the Postal Service to go after 200 of these companies. The scams include envelope stuffing, refrigerator magnet sales, Web design, medical billing and vending machine businesses. Some people have been taken for $5,000 or more. But even if it’s a small amount – like $50 – don’t believe these scams. Any time someone asks for money up front to start a business, it’s a scam. Check out more at ftc.gov.
Great news for all of us consumers! If a company treats you badly, don't just go away angry. Thanks to the Internet, you have the power to change what a company does by speaking your mind. A perfect example of this is what happened recently with Hertz, the rental car company that was planning to charge customers a $2.50 fee just to make a reservation. In the past few days, the company backed down and did away with plans for this fee.
Apparently Hertz was barraged with complaint e-mails and letters, and it cancelled the idea before it was ever put into place. Isn’t it great that consumers have the power to change what a company does by speaking their minds?! Sites such as epinions.com, tripadvisor.com and planetfeedback.com.
For sure, consumers are not always right either. That’s why the critical masses have the say, and not just one or two people. So, if a company treats you badly, don’t just go away angry. Complain.
Be happy. Be good.
CENTSerely,
Sister Thrifty

Car Thieves

Hi everyone!
As much as I love technology it can sure make me nuts sometimes! I had written a great letter to you all, full of incredible steals and deals and even after saving it, it has vanished from off the face of the earth. I'll try to recreate what little I can remember....
Seems that car thieves have found yet another way to steal your car or truck without any effort at all. The car thieves peer through the windshield of your car or truck, write down the VIN # from the label on the dash, go to
the local car dealership and request a duplicate key based on the VIN #. A
friend of mine called Chrysler Dodge and pretended she had lost her keys.
They told her to just bring in the VIN #, and they would cut me one on the spot, and she could order the keyless device if she wanted. The Car Dealer's Parts Department will make a duplicate key from the VIN #, and collect payment from the thief who will return to your car. He doesn't have to break in, do any damage to the vehicle, or draw attention to himself. All he has to do is walk up to your car, insert the key and off he goes to a local Chop Shop with your vehicle. You don't believe it? It IS that easy. To avoid this from happening to you, simply put some tape (electrical tape, duct tape or medical tape) across the VIN Metal Label located on the dash board. By law, you cannot remove the VIN, but you can cover it so it can't be viewed through the windshield by a car thief.
If you've wanted to host a dinner party but didn't even have a table, now you can get one at just the right price....FREE! Call Tamara Ogg, who is giving away a nice oak table with 4 chairs. Her number is 760-918-9795.
AND if you don't have any pots to cook your guests a nice dinner, you can get those for FREE too! Call Rosanne Barlow, who is giving away a nice 9 piece set of used pots and pans. Her number is 760-603-9366.
Have a wonderful day!
CENTSerely,
Sister Thrifty