Winter Driving Safety Tips

Found this article and thought it was interesting ~ wanted to share it with you.

For more information, visit the Pioneer from North Hempstead Project Independence

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Attention ~ Great Program for Home Buyers

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Combat the Changing Season with These Fall Safety Tips

As the summer season fades into fall and long sunny days wane into short chilly nights, it’s time to take several safety measures and apply them to your home. The changing weather poses risks for your health and home so it’s important to be aware of the shifting season and its impact on your surroundings.
Don’t let the changing weather dampen your enjoyment of the season. Here are some important safety tips for a fun and safe fall.

De-clutter the Gutters

Clean your gutters by removing all debris and leaves. Before burning leaves, check your city’s regulations, as it may be illegal where you live.  If you burn them, do so away from the house and use proper containers.

Trim the Trees

As plants begin to die in the cold weather, make sure you call a landscaping service to remove any dead branches or decaying limbs on the trees of your property. When weighed down by ice and snow, or blowing in the wind, they can become hazardous and fall on your house or vehicle.
Fall is a time for fun and family. Put these tips into practice today to ensure a safe fall and winter season.

Fall Health and Wellness Tips

From illnesses to injuries, there are several climate changes that happen in the fall that might have a direct impact on your health and wellness. Take some precautions to protect yourself!

Fight the Flu

Short for influenza, the flu is a contagious illness that infects the nose, throat, lungs and a range of complications like sinus and ear infections. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), there are three actions you can take to fight the flu:
  • Wash your hands regularly
  • Avoid close contact with sick people
  • Wear appropriate clothes outdoors (coats, jackets, scarves, gloves, etc.)
Even though you can possibly get sick after getting a flu shot, a yearly vaccine can provide protection against complications from the flu.
If you do find yourself sick with the flu this fall season, make sure you talk to your doctor about steps you should take in order to get well soon.

Watch Your Back

One of the most beautiful occurrences of the fall season is when the leaves start to turn color then gracefully fall upon lawns or get suddenly swept up on an autumn breeze. A less poetic reality of fall is the fact that someone has to rake those leaves.
This season, watch your back as you tend to your lawn, as back injuries are prone to happen while raking and collecting leaves, by following these safety tips:
  • Stretch: Make sure your muscles are ready for a workout
  • Stand up straight: Pull from your arms and legs
  • Relax: Rake for intervals of 10 – 15 minutes at a time, taking breaks in between
If you opt for a leaf blower over a rake, make sure you are properly dressed in clothing that covers your skin, like a flannel shirt and jeans. Wear appropriate eye protection and work shoes as well, protecting any sensitive parts of your body to prevent injury.

Protect Your Pets

When it comes to your home, you might think your pet is safe, but there are some hidden dangers. The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) has a helpful list of tips to help keep your pet safe from household poisons, cold weather hazards and everything that could pose a possible threat to your pet:
  • Keep rodenticides (rat poisons) out of reach
  • In more rural areas, watch out for dangerous wildlife
  • Keep apple stems, leaves or seeds away from your pet, as ingestion could cause health problems
  • Watch out for poisonous mushrooms
If your pet ingests something harmful – or is bit or attacked by a wild animal – call your local animal poison control center orASPCAimmediately.

Fall Driving Safety Tips

A combination of fewer hours of daylight with unpredictable weather can result in unsafe driving conditions in the fall. This can result in difficulty seeing and maneuvering on the roads.

Slippery When Wet

A number of weather conditions can contribute to a risky road. Here are a few dangers of fall weather to be aware of when driving:
  • Rain: Water can pool on top of dust and oil, making the pavement slippery
  • Leaves: They can litter the roads, making it slippery and obscuring vision of traffic lines, other pavement markings and even potholes
  • Frost: Temperatures can drop dramatically in the night, making ice spots on areas of the road, such as bridges, overpasses and shaded areas
  • Fog: It can limit your visibility when driving
There are multiple ways to stay safe on the roads this fall, and they all boil down to watching your speed, especially in areas with rain, frost or leaves, and paying attention to the road and your surroundings.

Don’t Veer for Deer

In Michigan we have a saying – “Don’t veer for deer.” Meaning, don’t swerve if a deer runs in front of your vehicle! You could lose control of the car quickly, especially if you are on a curve or narrow road with little to no shoulder. Instead, brake firmly with both hands on the wheel to come to a controlled stop.

Soak Up the Sun

Believe it or not, fall is a bad time for sun glare on the roads. Sun glare is dangerous because it can impact your sight for a few seconds after exposure, obscuring any vision of pedestrians, oncoming traffic and even the car in front of you.

Class Is Back in Session

Fall is back-to-school season, bringing with it back-to-school traffic in the early mornings and late afternoons. This also signals an increase of school buses and cars on the road. Not to mention, pedestrian traffic at crosswalks as kids and parents walk to and from the school and their bus stop.

Tips for Fall Home Maintenance

From cluttered gutters to fire hazards, protect your home this fall by making sure your it’s ready to combat the changing weather and potential dangers.

Check All Safety Devices

In order to ensure safety inside your home, take a moment and check all of your safety devices, making sure the batteries are charged and that they work properly. For example, test all your smoke alarms inside your home. Make sure the batteries are working properly and are fully charged. In addition, make sure to replace used and expired fire extinguishers.

Fire Up the Furnace

Turn your heater on before the temperatures really plummet so you can ensure it works. Contact a technician to inspect that it’s operating properly if you suspect it needs servicing. Keep all flammable materials away from your furnace. This includes clothing, paint products, toxic materials, cardboard and more.

Inspect the Insulation

When your home allows in cold drafts, it forces your furnace to work harder in order to heat your house, resulting in higher energy bills. Keep the cold air out by improving the insulation in your attic and walls.

Give the Heater Some Space

Make sure you read the instructions to see if your space heater requires venting, and if it does, make sure it’s vented to the outdoors. A good rule of thumb is to keep your space heater away from clothing, bedding, drapery and furniture. Remember to shut them off if you leave the house and don’t leave them unattended if you have children or pets. More importantly, don’t use your space heater as a dryer for hats, gloves and other articles of clothing, as they can catch fire.

Fire Safety

Before you relight your fireplace, check your chimney to confirm it’s free of debris and has proper ventilation. Make sure the bricks, mortar and liner are in good condition. Lastly, use a fireplace screen to keep the sparks from flying all over the place.
Doing laundry? Prevent dryer fires by cleaning filters after each load of wash and removing lint that collects in dryer vents. Like burning candles, never leave a load of laundry in the dryer unattended.
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Attention New Home Buyers ~ Did You Apply for STAR?

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Why RENT If You Can OWN ~ Port Washington ~ $669,000

Call 516-767-0200 for a private showing today!

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STAR Tax Workshop To Be Held At PW Public Library

Just a friendly reminder to our friends and neighbors:

On July 30 at 1:00 pm to 2:30 pm STAR Tax workshop will be held at the Port Washington Public Library.

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Check This Out ~ A Lot of Success Stories

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Fun Father’s Day Activities

Celebrate with Dad by going to Adventureland Park ~ Dad’s ride free on Father’s Day. Located at 2245 Broad Hollow Road, Farmingdale. Info: 631-694-6868 or adverntureland.us

Join the excitement at Cirque du Soleil: Volta Under the Big Top ~ Showtimes are 1:30 and 5:00 pm. Live at The Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Uniondale. Click here for tickets.

Father’s Day Adventure ~ The Adventure Park at Long Island ~ Dads climb free with a paid climber using Promo Code DAD18. Good for Father’s Day ONLY! Located at 75 Colonial Springs Rd, Wheatley Heights. Visit their web site for more details.

Mon Tiki ~ Montauk Sail ~ Bring your Dad to see the beauty of Montauk in a whole new light with a daytime or sunset cruise. Check out Mon Tiki’s site for more information. They sail from Montauk Yacht Club, located at 32 Star Island Rd.

Whatever you decide, enjoy the day with your Dad!

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Summer Home Safety Checklist

Borrowed from Realtor.com

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Head’s Up – Current Scams to Beware of

1. LONG  – TERM PARKING 
Some  people left their car in the long-term parking at San Jose while away, and  someone broke into the car. Using the information on the car’s  registration in the glove compartment, they drove the car to the  people’s home in Pebble Beach and robbed it.  So I guess if we are going to leave the car in long-term parking, we  should NOT leave the registration/insurance cards in it, nor your remote  garage door opener. This gives us something to think about with all our  new electronic technology.  
  
 
2. GPS 
  Someone had their car broken into  while they were at a football game. Their car was parked on the  green which was adjacent to the football  stadium and specially allotted to football fans. Things stolen from the  car included a garage door remote control, some money and a GPS which had  been prominently mounted on the dashboard. When the victims got  home, they found that their house had been ransacked and just  about everything worth anything had been  stolen. The thieves had used the GPS to guide them to the house.  They then used the garage remote control  to open the garage door and gain entry to the house. The thieves  knew the owners were at the football  game, they knew what time the game was scheduled to finish and so  they
knew how much time they had to clean  out the house. It would appear that they had brought a truck to  empty the house of its contents. Something  to consider if you have a GPS – don’t put your home address in it.  Put a nearby address (like a store or  gas station) so you can still find your way home if you need to, but no  one else would know where you live if  your GPS were stolen. 
  
3. CELL  PHONES
I  never thought of this! This lady has now changed her habit of how she  lists her names on her cell phone  after her handbag was  stolen. Her handbag, which contained her cell phone, credit card, wallet,  etc., was stolen. Twenty minutes later when  she called her hubby, from a pay phone telling him what had happened,  hubby says, “I received your text asking about our Pin number and I’ve  replied a little while ago.” When they  rushed down to the  bank, the bank staff told them all the money was already withdrawn. The  thief had actually used the stolen cell phone to text  “hubby” in the contact list and got hold of the pin number. Within 20  minutes he had withdrawn all the money from  their bank account. 
  
Moral lesson: 
a. Do not disclose the relationship between you and the people in your contact list. Avoid using names  like Home, Honey, Hubby, Sweetheart, Dad,  Mom, etc.
b. And very importantly, when  sensitive info is being asked through texts, CONFIRM by calling  back.
c. Also, when you’re being texted by friends or family to meet  them somewhere, be sure to call back to  confirm that the message came from them. If  you don’t reach them, be very careful about going places to meet  “family and friends” who text  you. 
 
4. PURSE IN THE  GROCERY CART SCAM:
A lady went grocery-shopping at a  local mall and left her purse sitting in the children’s seat of the cart  while she reached something off a shelf/ Wait  till you read the WHOLE story! Her wallet was stolen, and she reported  it to the store personnel. After  returning home, she received a phone call from the Mall Security to say that they had her wallet and that although  there was no money in it, it did still hold her personal papers. She  immediately went to pick up her wallet, only to  be told by Mall Security that they had not called her. By the time she  returned home again, her house had been  broken into and burglarized. The thieves knew that by calling and saying  they were Mall Security, they could lure  her out of her house long enough for them to burglarize it. 
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