Summertime and the storms are a coming
Greetings one and all. Can you believe that SUMMER is here? now I know i have friends in Colorado where they had sleet just two weeks ago. but we have been baking here in Florida. Being on the West Coast of Florida we are also paying very close attention to the fact that hurricane season is now upon us and of course the major story of the last 70 days, the horrific environmental catastrophe in the Gulf with the oil spill that just keeps on giving. I know that we all have our opinions on the handling of the oil spill so will not address that directly here. I just want everyone to be vigilant in what you do and how some of the least expected action can have lasting repercussions.
Now for those who live in the land of Hurricanes, I realize that it has not yet been quite a month. But it doesn’t take long for the tropical storm to turn to a hurricane make a blip on that weather radar and then you are SOL.
There are some necessary protective measures that you should do before you need to do them.. Get your hurricane survival suitcase(s) and backup plan together. Do you have an elderly person living with you that has home health care that needs constant supervision, oxygen, monitoring of different sorts. Check with your doctor, your social worker, your county, your home health service. They can assist you with the paperwork so you can have a plan in place. What shelter or hospital will they need t o go to in an evacuation? Will you or another relative, or caregiver be allowed to accompany then? Remember your animals. Even if you go to a medical shelter or hospital you will not be able to take your pets unless they are a guide dog. Find a temporary home where they can go so your furry children won’t be lost, stranded or perhaps killed due to lack of planing and horrible circumstances.
Make sure you have copies of your insurance information, medical information and identification in a zip lock bag. Also include your medications-30 days supply is great but if it is only a week’s worth that is better than nothing. Include bottled water-gallon size is good, canned goods, perhaps if you have space , your grill with an extra container of propane. That may be the only way you will be able to get hot food for a few days. Don’t forget your toiletries, a couple of changes of clothes, Not to be forgotten-an EXIT PLAN.
Do you know where you are on the evacuation map? Are you in an area of mandatory evacuation? Level 1 or is your number higher say 5 or 6.? Important information to know. Also pick up your hurricane guide at your local market or ACE Hardware store. You can also download them. All the major media networks put one out . If you have seen the weather alert radios they aer an excellent source of information when a storm is coming your direction. It will alert you and tell you what the alert is. You can get those at the local grocery stores now as well as home Depot, Lowes, Target and many other business locations.
Some insurance companies are now offering a preregistration form for use during the hurricane season at no extra charge. With your written permission they can have adjusters to your home site as soon as possible. Sure it take a couple of minutes to fill out the form, but in the event that your home suffers damage, do you want 5 minutes of form filling to be replaced by 5 days of waiting for an adjuster of some sort to show up? Water is the worst damage followed but wind, smoke and fire. I am not going to lecture anyone but say just be prepared and let your family know the plans, where are you goingto meet if you live in the same area, how are you going to communicate? Make sure that your car’s gas tank is filled. Check the oil, air in your tires. You would do this if you were going on a motor trip for vacation just as a safety precaution. Why wouldn’t you do it on a regular basis for your family’s safety and yours as well.You don’t want to wait in line when you could be loading that same care and heading out of dodge. The same for preparing your home. Get the plywood and any other protection that you would need to prevent glass damage to your home. Your favorite orchid plants and hanging plants need to be brought in to the garage or home. Remove items that could become flying weapons through your windows. That includes bird feeders and other such feeders as well. Have a swimming pool? Dump your patio furniture in it, No harm to the furniture or the pool and one less flying object.
If you are going out of town, let a neighbor , friend or hire a service to check on your home while you are away especially should a storm come up while you are gone. We never expect these things to happen but mother nature sometimes has a strange sense of humor and really does get a laugh by throwing you off guard. There are some concierge services and others that will look after your home while you are away for a minimal cost. OH MISS does a house/pool/mail/plant check. Do you know if your lawn service is cutting the grass as they should? What about the pool? Is that where anything green is growing? Peace of mind can be a wonderful thing. If there is no time to get ready-where is the saferoom in your home? Don’t forget to fill the bathtubs and sinks with water. You may not have water service or electrical service when you first get back to your home. So as I go to start taking my own advice with Alex out in the Gulf, I hope that you will as well.
Stay tuned for some exciting news about OHMISS and the growing butterfly population right here at home.
Getting to January
Hopefully by now everyone has adjusted to our adjusted time. Rolling back is always such a wonderful thing. Just having that extra hour even if for one day seems like a luxury unlike any other. Unfortunately what it the magical moment also signifies is the beginning of the holiday whirl, swirl,frenzy and stress.
How can a concierge company help at this time of year? Hiring a concierge firm to be of assistance is similar to what happened in the Ozzie and Harriet neighborhoods back in the 50’s 60’s and 70’s before mobilization of families and jobs. We could ask a neighbor for a suggestion for a referral if we needed something done at our home or where to find a special present that we had not yet located. We could most likely get help from a neighbor to put holiday lights outside our home to make it look festive during the season. You might have even shared ladders and tools then later a beverage and cookies. Now we hope that are neighbors are nice if we even know them other than to wave from the car. Who can we call to get the names of persons that do a good job for a good price? You know the ones who suit up, show up and are on time? What a concept!
Having the services of a concierge firm is like having that neighbor to ask, it is a wonderful resource tool. Not only can a concierge firm guide you to the right people for the right job but they can also oversee that job if you are unavailable.
What about having someone gather all those impossible to find toys for you? Then what is really cool is having them all gift wrapped and delivered before Christmas. No worrying about hiding those special goodies in the closet, the pantry, under the bed, in the garage or attic or anywhere else you can stow something.
Need to get a party planned for the office at last minute? A concierge firm can usually help you get it organized, pulled together with decorating, catering and assistants so that you don’t feel like pulling your hair out. They can even arrange to have your home cleaned before and after. Why not be able to enjoy a party at your own home. Isn’t that a novel concept?
I am reminded of a friend a couple of years back that was very involved in a group of business people in town. This person was so busy at the time trying to keep her feet even close to the pavement, yet she wanted to send out holiday cards to the people in her group. It was over 100 individuals. The quandry was to either run address labels for all of them or hire someone to write the name and address on the envelope.ersonalize the inside of the card, and post. Above and beyond the cost of the cards and postage, this task only cost her $40.00. I can not begin to relate to you the number of people who said to her,”How did you find the time to do this?” or “Wow, you made me feel really special with your handwritten card.” How much is that worth in today’s marketplace? I would just guess that it is a lot more than $40.00.
Another scenario might pop up with out of town guests showing up at the last minute during the holidays. Love to see them but now how do I entertain them? Let the concierge help you get tickets to a show or sporting event. What about reservations to a new restaurant in town or an old one that you really like.
We’ll catch up next time on helpful hints for Thanksgiving whether you are at home or on the road.
If you work for a company or a corporation and would like them to consider having this type of service available to you at work. Let us know. We will offer you 25% off your first out of pocket fee. Special rates for corporate clients for the next 90 days. Give a gift that is useful.
Until then, enjoy this beautiful Florida weather with just a hint of fall as you think of friends and relatives who live up North or in the Midwest that area getting snow remembering “This is why I live here.”
TOO MUCH ON YOUR PLATE WEEK
Now did anyone have to tell you that you have too much on your plate? Did you really have to have a designated week of the year to realize it? Fear not my friends, it is officially “Too Much On Your Plate Week”. For purposes in writing this, the week shall be called “TMOPW”.
We all try to do so much, whether it is on the job or at home, with families, friends, and oh yes don’t forget those volunteer hours. I was given a packet of cocktail napkins not too long ago that had a picture of a woman wildly waving her hand in the air and shouting”pick me, pick me, I volunteer., let me help.” This of course was noted to be caused by one too many espressos. This however is not always the case.
We seem to need permission to slow down, take a break, read a book, take a walk, etc. For some reason our backgrounds insist that we continue to plow through to the bitter end no matter what toll it takes on our bodies, minds, families or friends. We think we are doing just fine. That we have the whole situation and life under control, then pop something happens that is not on the agenda. We are thrown for a loop and hope that somehow we can recover. Our bodies and minds ae amazing and humorous as well. They have systems that will slow us down whether we want to or not. Make no bones about it, if you do not slow down and take some things off your plate, your body will help you with that decision and you will have No choice.
I recall as a young woman in my twenties and being the overachiever that I was and also figuring that there was no life after 30, I had to do it all. I had my own retail store, sold some real estate on the side and assisted my husband with his restaurant. This of course was all the while I was moving in to a new home and did I say my parents were moving to our communiity? Needless to say, I caught what I thought was a cold. No big deal, a cold, you get some pills, cough drops a little chicken soup and you are ready to roll,only not so fast. I lost my voice and thought I just had laryngitis. After my cold appeared to have resolved, my voice did not. I had to go to an Ear Nose and Throat specialist. He sat me in the chair and asked me what was going on in my life. I know it’s a funny scenario as it is like the dentist putting one of his instruments in your mouoth and then asking a question that requires an answer. Ha! So I wrote on a note pad that he had for this type of situatioin what was going on in my life. Frankly I was quite proud of all that I was doing and still be able to stand up and function. This man looked at me straight in the eyes and said”how much do you think you can do at one time?” I shook my head. I don’t know I said. When something needs to be done, I just do it. I needed to fix it.
If you haven’t figured out where this is going, it is that we can not do it all, or at least not all at the same time. I had a condition that is referred to as frozen vocal cords. It would be months before I could even get a squeak past my lips as I would try to communicate. As I said before, our bodies do make us pay attenttion and slow down whether we want to or not. Picture this. Have you ever tried to have a telephone conversation with somone when you can’t vocalize? Have you tried to tell a contractor what you need done when you can’t speak? Or better yet, how about trying to make a sale. Nope, it isn’t going to happen. I had to learn the hard way that I can’t do it all, all the time, all at once. I have been told that I am strong willed and stubborn, but then I guess you had already figured that one out for yourself.
This week, I give you permission to sit down and read a chapter of your book, or enjoy a beverage with your friends. Take that walk,go runing if you like the runner’s high, or take the yoga class. This won’t releive your stress but it will slow you down. Now as far as the stress of everyday life is concerned, taking that yoga class will do you no good as long as that “to do” list is still hanging over your head. This is where learning to prioritize comes in to play. Put what is most important at the top even if it is the one that is the most uncomfortable. Get the uncomfortable done first, then the rest is easier.
I was at a reception just about a week ago. As I stood talking with some folks that like you are professionals and occupy the executive suites around town, the basics of everyday life came in to the conversation as we talked about how we got our things done. What is the best use of your time? Is it standing in a line at the grocery store or the post office or returning the gift that you do not like at all? Or is it getting some of that paperwork off your desk talking to a client that creates billable hours for you? If I were to be so bold, I would bet that it would be a client for billable hours and not the grocery store, post office, or mall.
This is where a service like OH MISS comes in handy, For very little, an OH MISS associate can get that list done in a flash, throw in the post office if you like, the wine shop, the dry cleaners etc. What does this do for you? The answer lies in the fact that you are billing more hours=more pay. You are clearing the “to do” list by at least a fraction and eliminating some stress from your life. After all do you want to be the one that is thrown for a big fat loop and find out you have been knocked out of the game for several days, weeks, or even months? Do the math., It will be less expensive to have someone else do the errands that for you to pay a Doctor and lose those hours at work. Get the type of down time You want not the kind that is thrown at you.
With that I will say to all of our friends and aquaintances new and old-Happy TMOYPW! Wouldn’t you love that in a crossword puzzle?
Have an awesome week.
Got Shred?
One of our friends across the bridge is doing a wonderful event. She is having a shredding party. Please see the information below for details. RSVP to her if you are going to attend and drop us a line too. We want to know to look for you!
You’re Invited!!!
Document Shredding Event
An opportunity to safely dispose of outdated personal information. Documents such as old tax filings, insurance bills, check & bank statements, credit offers and estate planning & investment statements……For tips on what to keep, how long to keep it, and what to shred, view the attatched document.
PEACE Wealth Management
Seminole Professional Center
7178 Seminole Blvd., Seminole, FL 33772
Thursday, June 19th ~ 4:30 PM - 7:30 PM
Come by anytime with your friends.
You might even win a door prize for: the Oldest Document, the Largest Group, or the Person Who Drove the Farthest.
RSVP PREFERRED BY JUNE16th
Please just email us with a “Yes, I’d love to finally rid myself of these papers that are piling up,” or a “No, I prefer to remain a pack rat and hoard my papers.”
Your friends, family and colleagues are welcome!!
Another way PEACE Wealth helps you organize your financial life!