Monthly Rewards Newsletter

                       October 2007            


Welcome to the October Rewards Newsletter.   

This Month In History

1 The Television series "The Twilight Zone" premiered (1959)

1 Walt Disney World opened in Orlando, Florida (1971)

2 Peanuts comic strip by Charles Schultz first appeared in newspapers (1950)

3 Frank Robinson becomes major leagues baseball's first black manager for the Cleveland Indians. (1974)

5 The World Series was broadcast on radio for the first time (1921)

6 Thomas Edison showed the 1st motion picture (1889)

9 The general public was first admitted into the Washington Monument. (1886)

11 Space Shuttle Challenger astronaut Kathryn Sullivan became the first American woman to walk in space. (1984)

12 The very first Oktoberfest is held in Munich, Bavaria, Germany (1810)

14 Martin Luther King Jr was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize (1964)

15 "I Love Lucy" premiered on television. (1951)

15 U.S. Department of Transportation was created (1966)

16 Marie Antoinette was guillotined for treason. (1793)

16 Cuban Missile crisis begins. (1962)

17 Mobster Al Capone was convicted of income tax evasion. (1931)

19 The Senate passed a bill making Martin Luther King's Birthday a national holiday. (1983)

19 The Revolutionary War ended. (1781)

21 Thomas Edison invented the incandescent electric lamp. (1879)

23 25,000 women marched in New York City demanding the right to vote. (1915)

24 The United Nations came into existence. (1945)

24 Anna Edison Taylor is the first person to survive going over Niagara Falls in a barrel. (1901)

25 U.S. forces invade Grenada. (1983)

26 The Erie Canal opens, connecting Lake Erie to the Hudson River. (1825)

26 The "Gunfight at the OK Corral" occurs. Wyatt Earp, his two brothers, and "Doc" Holliday, have a shootout with the Ike Clanton gang. (1881)

27 President Theodore Roosevelt's birthday. (1858) The "Teddy bear" was named after him.

28 France presented the U.S. with the statute of Liberty. (1886)

28 The Gateway Arch in St. Louis is completed. (1965)

29 The New York Stock Exchange crashed on what came to be known as "Black Tuesday", starting the Great Depression (1929)

31 Magician Harry Houdini dies from complications of a ruptured appendix. (1926)

31 Indian Prime Minister Indira Ghandi was assassinated. (1984)

Product of the Month

Reverse Mortgages

A Reverse Mortgage is a special type of home loan that enables seniors at least 62 years of age to borrow money against their primary home and make no loan payments until they sell or permanently leave their home. This mortgage was designed and is insured by the federal government to assist and protect seniors and allows them to maintain their financial independence. It is a safe loan. Borrowers can not lose their home nor owe more than the home is worth. Reverse Mortgages are available for 1-4 family homes and condos.


             No income or credit needed to qualify.

          Proceeds are treated as tax-free income.

          Interest is paid at the time the loan is repaid-not during the loan.

          Benefits received from Social Security and Medicare are not affected by a reverse mortgage.

          Borrowers retain title to the home.

    Proceeds Can Be Used For Any Purpose!

Call Or E-Mail Me For More Information On Reverse Mortgages.

Thank you for referring your friends and family to me for all their residential, commercial and business
financing needs. The finest compliment I can receive is a referral from my friends and clients.

If you or anyone that you know is in need of a real estate agent, an attorney, a CPA or a financial advisor, I work with the best professions in the area and I would be happy to recommend an excellent one.


Household Hints Of The Month

Flower Arrangements
Arrange flowers in front of a mirror, so that you will know what the other side looks like.

To revive a vase of wilted flowers, add a teaspoon of mild detergent.

Hanging Plants
Hang them with nylon fishing line if you don't care for chains, ropes or macramé.

Herbs
To dry herbs, set an old, clean window screen on four bricks. Lay herbs on the screen to dry.

Pests
To keep numerous pests at bay, add garlic cloves to water in a blender, then strain the liquid through several layers of cheesecloth. Spray on your garden.

To repel pests on plants, grind up several pods of hot peppers in a meat grinder or blender. Add an equal amount of water and 2 teaspoons of plain dishwashing detergent to help the solution cling to the leaves. Spray the affected plants every few days.

Planting
Plant flower or vegetable seeds in cardboard egg cartons. Poke a hole in the bottom of each egg cup for draining, then fill with dirt. Plant seeds as instructed on the seed packet. To transplant, cut the carton into 12 pieces and plant the individual egg cups directly in the ground. The cardboard will decompose naturally.

Plants
Use leftover Styrofoam peanuts as great drainage in the bottom of a pot.

Cut the bottom out of gallon-size plastic milk jugs to make covers for small garden plants. Just remove the caps to let in fresh air. They are transparent enough to admit sunlight.

For bright, beautiful leaves on household plants, wipe each leaf with a small amount of mayonnaise on a soft paper towel. It will make the leaves easier to keep clean, and they'll remain shiny for months.

To help keep moisture in the ground, place very clean straw around the base of the plants to make a thick blanket under each plant. This also helps to keep weeds down.

Do you have a great household hint that you would like to share with our readers? E-mail me your hint along with your name and maybe your household hint will be featured in a future newsletter.


Health

30 tricks, tips, and tactics to help keep you out of the Big C's reach. Plus, the ultimate cancer-fighting salad.

Courtesy of Prevention.com

We're all grown-ups here -- nightmares aren't a big problem anymore. We're calm, we're cool, we're mostly collected...until it comes to the C-word. For adults, cancer is the thing that goes bump in the night; that bump gets louder when family or friends are diagnosed. Whether your risk is monumental or blessedly average, we know you want to protect yourself. So we've combed through research, interrogated experts, and found cutting-edge strategies to help keep you safe.

Worship a wee bit of sun. People who get the most vitamin D, which lies dormant in skin until ultraviolet rays activate it, may protect themselves from a variety of cancers, including non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, breast, and colon. Ironically, it even improves survival rates of melanoma, the most serious skin cancer. But 10 to 15 minutes a few days a week is all it takes to benefit. (Or you could try a supplement--aim for 400 IU a day.) If you're out any longer than that, slather on the sunscreen.

Eat an orange every day. It just may zap a strain of the H. pylori bacteria that causes peptic ulcers and can lead to stomach cancer. Researchers in San Francisco found that infected people with high levels of vitamin C in their blood were less likely to test positive for the cancer-causing strain.

Listen to Katie Couric. Though colonoscopies are about as popular as root canals, if you're 50 or older, get one. Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in the United States. Don't think you're off the hook because you got a digital fecal occult blood test at your last checkup: Research by the Veterans Affairs Cooperative Study found that the test missed 95% of the cases. (Schedule your first colonoscopy before your 50th if you have a family history of colon cancer.)

Steam a little green. Piles of studies have shown that piles of broccoli help stave off ovarian, stomach, lung, bladder, and colorectal cancers. And steaming it for 3 to 4 minutes enhances the power of the cancer-fighting compound sulforaphane, which has been shown to halt the growth of breast cancer cells. (Sorry, microwaving doesn't do the trick; it strips out most antioxidants.) Get more protection by sprinkling a handful of selenium-rich sunflower seeds, nuts, or mushrooms on your greens. Researchers are discovering that sulforaphane is about 13 times more potent when combined with the mineral selenium.

Pick a doc with a past. Experience--lots of it--is critical when it comes to accurately reading mammograms. A study from the University of California, San Francisco, found that doctors with at least 25 years' experience were more accurate at interpreting images and less likely to give false positives. Ask about your radiologist's track record. If she is freshly minted or doesn't check a high volume of mammograms, get a second read from someone with more mileage.

Drink jolt-less java. Downing 2 or more cups of decaf a day may lower the incidence of rectal cancer by 52%, finds a study from two large and long-term research projects--the Nurses' Health Study and the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study from Harvard University. One theory is that coffee increases bowel movements, which helps to reduce the risk. Why decaf reigns supreme, however, remains a mystery.

Drop 10 pounds. Being overweight or obese accounts for 20% of all cancer deaths among women and 14% among men, notes the American Cancer Society. (You're overweight if your body mass index is between 25 and 29.9; you're obese if it's 30 or more. Click here to gauge your BMI.) Plus, losing excess pounds reduces the body's production of female hormones, which may protect against breast, endometrial, and ovarian cancers. Even if you're not technically overweight, gaining just 10 pounds after the age of 30 increases your risk of developing breast, pancreatic, and cervical, among other cancers.

Make like a monkey. Or a bunny. Women who ate four to six antioxidant-laden bananas a week cut their risk of kidney cancer by 54%, compared with those who didn't eat them at all, found an analysis of 61,000 women at the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden. Gnawing on root vegetables such as carrots did the same.

Get naked with a friend. You'll need help examining every inch of your body--including your back, scalp, and other hard-to-see places--for possible changes in the size or color of moles, blemishes, and freckles. These marks could spell skin cancer. Women, take special note of your legs: Melanoma mainly occurs there. For the guys, the trunk, head, and neck are the most diagnosed spots. While you're at it, check your fingernails and toenails, too. Gray-black discoloration or a distorted or elevated nail may indicate the disease. And whether you see changes or not, after age 40, everyone should see a dermatologist yearly.

See into the future. Go to Your Disease Risk to assess your chance of developing 12 types of cancer, including ovarian, breast, and colon. After the interactive tool estimates your risk, you'll get personalized tips for prevention.

Pay attention to pain. If you're experiencing a bloated belly, pelvic pain, and an urgent need to urinate, see your doc. These symptoms may signal ovarian cancer, particularly if they're severe and frequent. Women and physicians often ignore these symptoms, and that's the very reason that this disease can be deadly. When caught early, before cancer has spread outside the ovary, the relative 5-year survival rate for ovarian cancer is a jaw-dropping 90 to 95%.

Get calcium daily. Milk's main claim to fame may also help protect your colon. Those who took calcium faithfully for 4 years had a 36% reduction in the development of new pre-cancerous colon polyps 5 years after the study had ended, revealed Dartmouth Medical School researchers. (They tracked 822 people who took either 1,200 mg of calcium every day or a placebo.) Though the study was not on milk itself, you can get the same amount of calcium in three 8-ounce glasses of fat-free milk, along with an 8-ounce serving of yogurt or a 2- to 3-ounce serving of low-fat cheese daily.

Sweat 30 minutes a day. One of the best anticancer potions is a half hour of motion at least 5 days a week. Any kind of physical activity modulates levels of androgens and estrogen, two things that can protect women against estrogen-driven cancers such as ovarian and endometrial, as well as some types of breast cancer. The latest proof comes by way of a Canadian study that found that women who get regular, moderate exercise may lower their risk of ovarian cancer by as much as 30%. Bonus: All that moving might speed everything through your colon, which may help stave off colon cancer.

Stamp out smoking--all around you. Lung cancer is well known as one of the main hazards of smoking. But everything the smoke passes on its way to the lungs can also turn cancerous: mouth, larynx, and esophagus. The fun doesn't stop there. Smokers are encouraging stomach, liver, prostate, colorectal, cervical, and breast cancers as well. The good news: If you give up the cigs today, within 15 years, your lung cancer risk will drop to almost pre-smoking lows. Share that news with the people who puff around you, because exposure to someone else's smoke can cause lung cancer, and it may boost your chances of cervical cancer by 40%.

Step away from the white bread. If you eat a lot of things with a high glycemic load--a measurement of how quickly food raises your blood sugar--you may run a higher risk of colorectal cancer than women who eat low-glycemic-load foods, finds a Harvard Medical School study involving 38,000 women. The problem eats are mostly white: white bread, pasta, potatoes, and sugary pastries. The low-glycemic-load stuff comes with fiber. To find out how your diet fares, go to "Your Guide to the Glycemic Index."

Have your genes screened. Do you have a strong family history of any kind of cancer or multiple cancers? Talk with your doctor about genetic counseling. For instance, nearly everyone born with familial adenomatous polyposis (the genetic predisposition to colon cancer) develops the disease by age 40 if preventive surgery isn't done. Knowing this early can aid in prevention and early detection.

Request a better breast scan. If you're at high risk of breast cancer--you have the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genetic mutation, for example - ask your doctor to pair your routine mammogram with an MRI. One study found that together, the two picked up 94% of tumors; mammography alone detected just 40% and MRI, 77%.

Grill smarter. Cooking your food over an open flame is a great way to cut calories. Unfortunately, it can also raise your cancer risk: The grill's high temps can trigger substances in muscle proteins to form cancer-causing compounds called hetero-cyclic amines, or HCAs. But avoiding this potential hazard is easy; simply keep gas jets low or wait until the charcoal turns into glowing embers before you start cooking. Protect yourself even more by lacing your burgers with rosemary (and perhaps other antioxidant-rich herbs such as basil, oregano, or thyme). This helps reduce the amount of some HCAs in meat, a Kansas State University study found. Also helpful: Microwaving meat ahead of time helps disable HCA formation and cuts down on grilling time.

Keep your house clean. Yet another reason to love your Swiffer: Active postmenopausal women who got most of their exercise from housework cut their risk of breast cancer by 30%, Canadian researchers say.

Let garlic lie. Thanks to this bulbed wonder, you can ward off vampires and stave off cancer. To preserve the potential cancer-fighting power of garlic, chop it up and let it sit a bit. Research suggests that heating garlic can block 90% of the activity of alliinase, the enzyme that helps to form a cancer-fighting compound. Alliinase is activated when the cloves are crushed or cut, but if cut garlic cools its heels for 5 to 10 minutes before heating, enough compounds are formed to survive cooking.

Check for radon. Exposure to this odorless, radioactive gas that's produced by the natural decay of uranium is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the United States, according to the EPA. Test your home to see if you're safe. The National Safety Council's National Radon Hotline (800-767-7236) offers low-cost test kits; they're also available at hardware stores.

Play hot tomato. Red fruits (watermelon, tomato, pink grapefruit) are loaded with lycopene, a substance that has been proven time and time again to be a potent cancer fighter. It seems that heating said fruits makes the lycopene easier for the body to use, which explains why men who eat a lot of ketchup, pizza (it's in the sauce), and spaghetti (ditto) are far less likely to get prostate cancer.

Ditch the wieners. You can smother 'em in all the ketchup you want, but you can't negate a hot dog's, well, negatives. One study of 190,545 people found that eating a wiener daily may boost your risk of pancreatic cancer, which is nearly always fatal, by 67%. Same goes for sausage and other processed meats.

The Perfect Cancer-fighting Salad

Can you spot the cancer fighters at the salad bar? Build yourself some powerful protection with these ingredients.

Start with leafy greens. They contain a hefty amount of the B vitamin folate, which has been shown to reduce one's chances of getting colorectal, ovarian, and breast cancers. In one study, researchers at Vanderbilt University found that women who ate the mostly dark greens were among the least likely to get breast cancer. Apparently, folate can halt changes in DNA that trigger runaway cell growth, the main characteristic of cancer.

Add shredded carrot. In a study from Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, women who ate just five servings of four raw carrot sticks a week had a 54% decrease in their risk of getting ovarian cancer, compared with women who ate them less than once a month. Carrots may also reduce your risk of kidney cancer.
Serve yourself some tomatoes. If you don't feel like turning up the heat on your tomatoes, you can still get some of their cancer-shielding benefits. German research on 165 colonoscopy patients found that those who had the lowest blood level of lycopene, one of the chemicals that give tomatoes their color, had the highest rate of colorectal adenomas, a precursor to colorectal cancer. Toss a few into your guy's salad: They also reduce the risk of prostate cancer.

Heap on beans. Women who ate beans at least twice a week were 24% less likely to develop breast cancer than those who ate them less often, report Harvard School of Public Health researchers, who analyzed data from 90,630 people. Legumes may lessen risk of breast cancer, thanks to their ability to suppress the production of enzymes that encourage tumor growth.

Add a little fish. Want to add something hardy to your lunchtime salad? Go wild with salmon. When B6-rich foods (like salmon) are eaten with folate-filled foods (dark leafy greens), they can help reduce the recurrence of colorectal adenomas, a precursor to colorectal cancer, by 39%, a University of Arizona study found. Salmon may also help shield regular eaters from skin cancer, British research found.

Splash on some vinaigrette. Mixing your favorite vinegar with olive oil can also help prevent breast cancer. Scientists from Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine found that oleic acid in olive oil dramatically cuts the levels of the cancer gene Her-2/neu, associated with highly aggressive breast tumors with poor prognosis.

Garnish with citrus peel. They're like eating sunscreen - but they taste better. Limonene - a compound that gives oranges, lemons, and limes their scent - is linked to a 34% reduction in skin cancer, finds a University of Arizona study of 400 people.



Recipe Of The Month

Do you have a special recipe that you would like to share with our readers? E-mail the recipe along with your name and maybe your recipe will be featured in one of our future newsletters.


Quotes Of The Month

In matters of style, swim with the current; in matters of principle, stand like a rock.
- Thomas Jefferson

Courage is doing what you're afraid to do. There can be no courage unless you're scared.
- Eddie Rickenbacker

I always like to look on the optimistic side of life, but I am realistic enough to know that life is a complex matter.
- Walt Disney

It doesn't make a difference what temperature a room is, it's always room temperature.
- Steven Wright

The most exciting phrase to hear in science, the one that heralds the most discoveries, is not Eureka! (I found it!) but 'That's funny...’
- Issac Asimov

If there were no schools to take the children away from home part of the time, the insane asylums would be filled with mothers.
- Edgar W. Howe

It wasn't until late in life that I discovered how easy it is to say 'I don't know'.
- W. Somerset Maugham

Man is the only animal that laughs and weeps, for he is the only animal that is struck with the difference between what things are and what they ought to be.
- William Hazlitt



Did You Know?

The Earth radiates back into space as much heat as it receives from the sun. If this was not so, the temperature on Earth would steadily rise and life would become impossible.

The only wood used by famed London cabinetmaker Thomas Chippendale was mahogany.

A quarter horse gets its name from its speed in running the quarter-mile.

According to a survey, the most popular day for eating out in the United States is one's own birthday — 49 percent of American adults do. The worst holiday for eating out is Grandparents' Day, with less than 5 percent participating.

To preserve their elaborate coiffures, geishas in ancient Japan slept with their heads on bags filled with buckwheat chaff.

The largest cell in the human body is the female ovum, or egg cell. It is about 1/180 inch in diameter. The smallest cell in the human body is the male sperm. It takes about 175,000 sperm cells to weigh as much as a single egg cell.

It is the impurities in gemstones which give them their color.

There are no words in the English language that rhyme with month, orange, silver, or purple.



Click Here For Weekly Economic Indicator Calendar


Click Here For Exclusive Money Saving Discounts


E-Mail This Newsletter To A Friend.
Complete all the information in the form below and a copy of this newsletter will be sent to that person.

Friend's Name:

Friend's E-Mail Address:

Your Name:

Your E-Mail Address: (so that your friend will know who is sending this newsletter)


Comments: