Best Ways to Help Victims of Hurricane Harvey

Hi All,

In light of the catastrophic events that have occurred and are occurring in Texas over the last 5 days this blog post is appropriate and timely.

Most of us have seen the pictures and the video of the hurricane flooding and aftermath.  And you might want to help the victims of the hurricane.  How can you help you ask?  Simple: by giving to charities that are in a position to help!

The charity watchdog site BBB Wise Giving Alliance can help you decide which charities are legitimate and which are frauds.   Other charity watchdog sites include Charity Navigator and Charity Watch. Click the links to go to the respective websites.

National charities that some of these watchdog sites recommend include American Red Cross, Americares, Direct Relief and Humane Society of the United States. 

Local grops that these watchdog sites recommend include Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston, Harvey's Heroes/San Antonio Humane Society, Food Bank of Corpus Christi, Houston Humane Society and Houston SPCA.

Finally, for a more local take on how to help victims of Hurricane Harvey, click on this link from ABC7.  The link has a video and an article with contact information for donating.

Regards and I hope you find this post helpful!

Regards,
Stu

The American Red Cross

Hi All,

In light of what is happening in Houston and in Texas, I thought a blog entry talking about the American Red Cross would be useful, helpful, interesting and appropriate.

Visitors to the ARC site can donate by giving money in various amounts. The minimum donation is $10.  Users are able to specify where the money gets spent. For example, you can choose disaster relief, where the money is needed to go the most, your local red cross, home fires and Hurricane Harvey.

Visitors to the ARC can also donate blood. Click the link to find blood drives by zip code.

Users of the ARC site can also volunteer their time. Click this link for more information. 

Finally the site has a helpful Get Help section where you can learn about disaster relief/recovery, how to reconnect after a disaster, learn about post-emergency recovery and more.   

Also, at the bottom of the page users can sign up for ARC (American Red Cross) news.  By submitting your email address users will be informed of disaster alerts, preparedness tips and ways to get involved with the ARC.


Click on this page for FAQ's (frequently asked questions) about a variety of Red Cross related topics like Donating Blood, Financial Donations, Getting Assistance and Reconnecting Families.

Regards,
Stu

Waze - Mapping the Future

Hi All,

Over the weekend I took a trip.  To New Jersey. And while I took a route that I've taken several times before, I still got myself hellishly, horribly, time-lost, no maps of the area with me, lost.  Ugh. And while I did stop at a gas station (thanks Lukoil!!!) for great directions that got be back to where I was supposed to be, it felt awful being that lost.

So....lesson one.  Bring maps. Duh. You would think I would have learned that.  Okay, correction...we had maps in the car. Just not of the place in New Jersey that we were going. 

Lesson two - maybe we should use Waze?  So, as I've said before: 'What is Waze you ask?'  And as I've said before, 'Great question'.

Basically Waze is an app that gives the user the best route, every day, with real-time help from other drivers.  More specifically it is the world's largest community-based traffic and navigation app.  Users can join other drivers in the area who share real-time traffic and road information.  The result is that saves everyone time and gas money on their daily commute.

Interested users can download the app on Google Play and at the Apple App store.

If, by chance, you need assistance with the app, you can click here for the Waze Help Center. 
If you want to learn more about Waze, click on this link for the 'About Us' page on the site. 

Enjoy the links and the site and the app.  (And hopefully you won't get lost! And, in the process you might even save time and money!)

Regards,
Stu

Word of the Day From Merriam-Webster

Hi All,

Watch your words!  And mind your definitions!

All joking aside I just came across a very interesting and painlessly educational website from Merriam-Webster (the reputable source for dictionaries that you've probably used in the past)


This link takes you to the Word-of-the-Day (WOTD) part of the website. 

Readers can sign up for the WOTD by clicking on this link. When You sign up, you'll learn a new word every day because a new word will be delivered via email to your inbox!  How cool is that?

When you get a WOTD you will find a definition of the word at the top of the email.  In addition Merriam-Webster provides you with several examples of how the word is used in modern conversation or in current/relevant sentence. 

Finally, there is a section in the email titled 'Did you know?'  This gives the readers context of the WOTD and gives even more background and information for the word.

WOTD is a great way to increase your vocabulary in a non-stressful, educational and informal manner.  Its great stuff!

Enjoy the site and the new words you'll learn!

Regards,
Stu 

FinancesOnline.org

Hi All,

Its all about the green today - as in money.  As in finance and investing. Sure many of us have seen Yahoo! Finance, Google Finance, MSN Money, Marketwatch and Bloomberg.  Those are mainstream news sources for finance and money and investing so most folks are aware of them.

But have you seen FinancesOnline.org?  I didn't think so.

The site quickly reviews finance sites with a quick description of the site, the topics covered on the site a section titled 'What Makes This Site Unique?' and another section titled 'What We Like Most About the Site'.  Links to the discussed site are included!

The site also has sections on financial guides, a library  and a glossary to boot so users won't ever get confused about terminology! 

Short, sweet and to the point, Financesonline.org is a don't miss page to visit next time you're on the web.  Enjoy the site and keep learning and reading!

Regards,
Stu