Manhattan Resident Managers Club Newsletter-October 2017

Vol. 38 No. 175

Dedicated to the Performance & Advancement for the Real Estate Manager

OUR NEXT MONTHLY MEETING WILL BE HELD ON Wednesday, October 4th at SkyPort Marina 2430 FDR Service Road, New York, NY 10010

October 2017

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PRESIDENT: anton Markola 212-974-4650 Amarkola1@gmail.com

Manhattan­Resident­ManageR’s­Club,­inC. ORganized­1980 P.O. Box 1144 New York, NY 10021

VICE-PRESIDENT: Joe Cervini 917-588-4922 jcervini@mac.com TREASURER:

OUR NEXT CLUB MEETING

PatriCk MCenaney 917-699-5231

will be held on Wednesday, October 4th, and it will be our 7th Annual Dinner Boat Cruise around NYC harbor aboard the CABANA Yacht.

McEnaney.patrick@gmail.com

FIN.SECRETARY: Steve Mala 212-861-2073 Steve.Mala@yahoo.com

Debarking from 23rd street and FDR Service Road.

SECRETARY:

Boarding begins at 5:45pm and the boat is set to depart at 6:00pm SHARP! Tickets are just $75.00.

Dress Code is Business Casual.

ben floreS 917-860-5811 benjieflores3@gmail.com TRUSTEES:

Laslo Karsai

John Szabo

Joe Vela

CLUB NEWSLETTER

Dean Berishaj

Steve Kukaj

Louis Parrilla Publisher 917-750-4117 resmgr524@gmail.com

Peter Guzman Business Manager 917-837-1390 pgu3911250@aol.com

Ben Flores Editor 917-860-5811 benjieflores3@gmail.com

Any Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and not necessarily those of the Manhattan Resident Managers Club,Inc., or its members.

The Manhattan Resident Managers Club Inc. reserves the absolute right, at its sole discretion, to accept or decline requests or submissions for advertising or other copy in its Newsletter or in any Club publication.

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Anton Markola President

Manhattan Resident Managers Club, Inc.

Welcome to the October Newsletter!

It was great seeing all of you in such large numbers at our September CLUB meeting. We were pleasantly surprised. I would like to express our gratitude to Adam Levine from Dave’s NY for his informative educational feature. As you are aware by now, our previous meeting spot, SaloonNYC has permanently closed their doors and we are in process or finding a new location for our monthly meetings. The September meeting was held at Connolly’s Pub & Restaurant on West 45th Street and everybody seemed to have a really good time. In fact, it was one of our largest turn outs ever for a September meeting. We will keep everyone updated as to the location of all future meetings until we select a new permanent location.

Our next CLUB meeting will be held on Wednesday, October 4th, and it will be our 7th Annual Dinner Boat Cruise around NYC harbor aboard the CABANA Yacht debarking from 23rd street and FDR Service Road. Boarding begins at 5:45pm and the boat is set to depart at 6:00pm sharp. We shall return at 9:30pm. Don’t miss out on this great evening filled with food, music & dancing.

Come one, Come all.. Join us! Tickets are just $75.00. For tickets or to reserve your spot, please contact Anton 212-974-4650, Francis 212-268-0952 or Louis 212-734-9810. Also, at this event, we will award the final (2) John Person Memorial Scholarships.

Each scholarship is valued at $2,000.00. YOU MUST BE PRESENT TO WIN! Please note that the dress code for OCTOBER meeting is business casual.

On behalf of the CLUB’s Dais and entire Membership, we hope that our friends of the Jewish faith enjoyed their High Holy Holiday Season.

The Manhattan Resident Managers Club is proud to have selected Mr. Ben Flores as our 2017 Resident Manager of the Year. We would also like to congratulate the winner and recipient of the William Key Vendor of the Year Award, Mr. Phil Levine of Major Air Service Corp.

REMINDER TO ALL MEMBERS! The 2017 Three Hands Grand Ball is set for Saturday, November 4th at Gotham Hall located at 1356 Broadway Between 36th and 37th Street. Cocktail hour starts at 7pm. Tickets are $350.00 and we are limited to 300 only people. Please contact Grand Ball Chairman Mike McGowan for tickets. Only a few tickets left!

Please remember to support our Associate Members as they are main source that keeps our CLUB in existence. Most of our Associate Members take an ad in our monthly Newsletter, so when you’re in need of a contractor or vendor, please refer to the Newsletter for their services & products.

I’m looking forward to seeing everyone on the CABANA this coming October 4th for our next monthly meeting.

Fraternally yours,

Anton

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Brain scientist says stress can make you stronger

You feel the tension creeping up your spine. Heart begins to pound. Anxiety. Do you need to pop a pill to stop it? Or maybe what you need to do is feel the stress and use it.

In his new book, The Stress Test: How Pressure Can Make You Stronger and Sharper, neuroscientist

He proposes a four-step process to employ stress.

First step: When feeling stress in a difficult situation, trick the brain into reinterpreting the feeling by saying out loud once or twice: I feel excited. The brain can now interpret the feeling differently. Stress isn't a challenge or a threat, it becomes excitement.

Step two: Control breathing. In an emotional stage, people quit breathing. Fight this by taking control. Breathe slowly through the nose several times.

Ian Robertson points out that anxiety and stress can be a signal to get going, not relax.

Robertson's idea challenges all the vogue psychology that says stress is dangerous to your health and peace of mind. Instead, Robertson says stress is an energy that can be harnessed.

Quoted in the UK Telegraph, Robertson says stress is essential for achievement.

Step Three: Become a superhero. Stand straight, chest out, hands on hips -- this is a stance of confidence and power, triggering the fight response, not the flight.

Step Four: Squeeze your right hand closed for 45 seconds, then release for 15 seconds. Repeat.

Robertson believes this increases activity in the left side of the brain and puts it in a challenge mode, lessoning anxiety and improving performance.

Robertson believes the brain is a programmable machine that will respond with creativity in the face of trauma.

OCTOBER 2017

OCTOBER 4TH

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OSHA rolls back regulations, reporting OSHA has rolled back some of its detailed reporting on workplace fatalities, a move that has been backed by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce which thought the information was unnecessarily and unfairly punitive to companies.

Under the Obama Administration, extensive details about fatalities were posted on the OSHA website, including the names of the workers who died, the companies, and the apparent circumstances. But critics said the practice did not protect the privacy of families and unfairly put black marks on companies even before the accidents were investigated.

The practice was an attempt to make companies work harder on compliance and humanize safety statistics, OSHA officials said. The agency posted weekly reports of accidents and put a scrolling box on its home page reporting the names of workers who died in accidents.

The new OSHA website posts a more limited set of information on citations for companies dating back to the beginning of the year. Previously, fatality information was available through 2009.

OSHA has also rolled back a regulation that required companies to electronically file injury logs they keep at the

Do over: When first impressions are bad You don’t always get a do-over in life but, with a little effort, people can help erase bad first impressions.

Remember that a bad first impression isn’t always your fault.

According to author Heidi Grant Halvorson, author of No One Understands You and What To Do About It, impressions are based in biased thought patterns. People see what they expect to see (confirmation bias) and they tend to notice just a few things that may influence them later.

But, a bad impression might be your fault, even though it might not tell the whole story.

Say, for example, on your first day in a new city you are delayed by traffic and end up being late for a meeting.

That performance could make a bad impression but now you know what traffic can be like. Be early for meetings for the rest of your career.

Stay patient.

You might poke fun at your blunder: Well! Now I know what traffic is like in XYZ city.

You can also point out common bonds with people: Sports teams you both like or music.

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Hurricane Harvey high- Vacation debt lights small business risk The devastation left by Hurricane Harvey is a good reminder to small business owners that preparing for disaster is essential.

Catastrophic hurricanes claim close to 40 percent of small businesses, according to FEMA.

According to the 2017 LearnVest Money Habits and Confessions Survey, 74 percent of people say they’ve gone into debt to pay for a vacation; to the tune of $1,108, on average.

On average, Americans spend 10 percent of their annual income on vacations. A quarter of respondents even said they spend 15 percent or more.

While 32 percent of Americans marked vacation savings as a financial priority, only 7 percent said retirement savings was top of mind.

When will checks disappear?

It can take years for even the most prosperous businesses to recover. Most Mom-and-Pop operations running on the edge never reopen.

According to a 2016 study by Harvard Business Review, small and young businesses, already taking big financial risks, are notably unprepared for a disaster such as a hurricane.

The study focused on small and young business recovery one year after Hurricane Sandy in 2012.

Among its findings: * Many firms were uninsured. Nearly one-third of companies affected by Sandy had no insurance of any kind. Of firms less than five years old, about 60 percent were uninsured. Those that were insured found that their insurance covered none of their losses. * Businesses increased their debt load when they could. More businesses applied for credit after Sandy than received insurance payments. * Credit was often constrained. Firms unprepared for disaster found that their interest rates went up after Sandy.

Smaller firms were unable to secure credit because they did not meet the requirements, according to an informal survey by the New York Daily News. * Community banks reduced lending. After Sandy, so many households and businesses were affected at once that small banks found loan defaults depleted capital. They were unable to lend.

The study concluded that risk analysis had to be made a strategic priority.

The paper check is a dinosaur walking. Not yet extinct, but close. The 300-year-old form of payment had a good run. According to Bloomberg, the average person still used 38 checks each year in 2015, but that number has been dropping fast.

Payment options like PayPal and Venmo, which allow for instant transfers with just a few taps on any smartphone, have taken over, especially among young people. Older Americans are lagging behind with only 18 percent of smartphone users over 60 having used mobile banking services, although that number is slowly growing as well.

In the UK, paper checks will be phased out in 2018. Sweden, Ireland and Australia have already eliminated them.

Why it is important to talk about money

Money has become a bit of a taboo subject in American culture.

Along with religion and politics, few other topics that are so eagerly avoided among friends at the dinner table. According to NBC News, however, not talking about money might be doing more harm than good.

Speaking of money often, especially with people close to your financial situation like a spouse or children, gets the subject out in the air and allows people to feel the relief of sharing the weight felt on their shoulders.

These discussions will enable people to avoid mistakes, make better decisions, and set goals that can actually be met with purpose. Forbes magazine suggests that talking about finances with friends can help avoid unnecessary, expensive meals and entertainment that might bust a budget. Every little bit helps when trying to eliminate debt or save money.

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Booming market lifts 401(k)s but should you relax?

eople get nervous when the stock market crashes. They relax when it is high.

And it is high. The market has been reaching landmark highs for months and 401(k)s are loading up on value.

The flip side is what goes up must come down and investors should be checking to see just how invested they are in the stock market.

Quoted by the Associated Press, Fidelity Investments vice president Jeanne Thompson, says you don’t want to wait until the market drops to balance your portfolio.

According to Fidelity, 40 percent of savers who manage their own 401(k) accounts have a higher percentage of stocks than the company recommends.

In fact, from 6 to 9 percent of investors have all their money in stocks.

But, even if the market bulls on running hard, it’s always best to balance accounts with stable investments

like bonds.

Bonds aren’t nearly as fun right now because yields are low, but they are stable and that’s a good thing if the market suddenly takes a 10 percent hit.

Workers far from retirement can afford to take some risks and ride out the current joyride.

Those within a decade of retirement need their portfolios in 61 percent stocks.

For those 30 years away from retirement, a mix of U.S. and foreign stocks could be as high as 88 percent.

The key is to consider how comfortable you would be with a 10 percent move down in the market. Then adjust your portfolio accordingly.

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Kids and Fires and falls are among the leading causes of injury and death for young children. Some falls are from windows, but a window is also a means of escape in the event of a fire. Some cautions:

* When making an escape plan for your home, remember that children may have to rely on a window to escape a fire. * If you open windows for fresh air, open those that are beyond the reach of young children. * Don’t depend on a screen to hold a child inside. A child pushing on a screen could make it fall through. * Make sure windows can be opened easily in an emergency.

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After 85 years, the Called Shot still debated

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Eighty-five years ago in October, Babe Ruth pointed to center field and called his shot.

Maybe.

It was, after all, decades before today when every fan has a cellphone and takes video of everything from cats to drying paint.

For The Called Shot, all we have are recollections and quotes. Neither are conclusive.

Recollections have it this way: Oct 1, 1932: In the fifth inning of game three of the World Series, with a count of two balls and two strikes, Babe Ruth pointed to the center field bleachers in Chicago’s Wrigley Field and then smashed a home run high above the very spot to which he had just gestured. The Yankees went on to sweep the Series with four straight victories.

Now the pitcher, Charlie Root, took exception to the story and said if Ruth had the nerve to make such a gesture, Root would have made sure the Babe “ended up on his (behind).”

Nearly 10 years later on the set of a movie, Root and Ruth talked about the Called Shot. Ruth said he didn’t call it, but it made a great story.

On the other hand, Ruth’s descendants are firmly in the Called Shot camp.

In 2013, Chicago sportswriter Ed Sherman interviewed Ruth’s 96-year-old adopted daughter, Julia Ruth Stevens, who said both her mother and Cardinal Spellman claimed to have seen the Called Shot.

Even two 16-mm films, one discovered in the 1970s and another in 1999, don’t conclusively tell the story. But some say the 1999 film shows Ruth talking smack and pointing at the Cubs dugout, not center field.

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MANHATTAN RESIDENT MANAGER’S CLUB, INC. IS PROUD TO HAVE SELECTED

BEN FLORES Resident Manager of the Year 2017 With gratitude & appreciation for the years of dedication and service to the CLUB — 20 —

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MANHATTAN RESIDENT MANAGER’S CLUB, INC. IS PROUD TO HAVE SELECTED

PHIL LEVINE of Major Air Service Corp

Associate Member of the Year 2017 In recognition of many years of support & friendship you have show to the CLUB — 21 —

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JOKES FOR THE MONTH OF OCTOBER

Laws to live by…

"Conway's Law" In any organization there is one person who knows what is going on. That person must be fired.

"Heller's Law" The first myth of management is that it exists.

"Main's Law" For every action there is an equal and opposite government program.

"Weinberg's Second Law" If builders built buildings the way programmers wrote programs, then the first woodpecker that came along would have destroyed civilization.

100th Birthday

An old man was relaxing at his hundredth birthday party when a reporter went up to him. "Sir, what is the secret of your long life?"

The man considered this for a moment, then replied, "Every evening at 9 p.m. I have a glass of port. Good for the heart I've heard."

The reporter then asked, "That's ALL?" The man smiled, "Well, canceling my voyage on Titanic sure didn't hurt."

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Autonomous wheelchairs deployed in Japanese airport

Airports are often frustrating for a variety of reasons, but for people with a mobility impairment, it can be a nightmare. From lengthy waits in the security line to long walks between terminals, it only makes sense to make things easier for passengers in need. According to Panasonic, Japanese airports have started using specialized wheelchairs with autonomous movement technology to help people get anywhere they need to go in the airport. A simple smartphone app shows where chairs are located.

Groups of the chairs can move together, and collision detection means that other pedestrians aren’t likely to be impacted, literally.

Once the chair has done its job, it will automatically return to a docking area which makes things easier for the disabled and the airport workers.

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Horoscopes Aries 3/21 - 4/19: A long frustration is resolved and with it your anxiety. Accept the resolution and find peace.

Taurus 4/20 - 5/20: Stay relentlessly steady in challenging circumstances. It pays off by the end of the month.

Gemini 5/21 - 6/20: Be more aware this month of the routine contributions of others. A well-timed remark means a lot to someone special.

Cancer 6/21 - 7/22: Go ahead and take the plunge. After much thought, the time comes for action.

Leo 7/23 - 8/22: Consider doing more with less. You'll need a cushion in the final months of the year.

Virgo 8/23 - 9/22: Decision time. If you analyze it too much you'll say no. But if not now, when?

Libra 9/23 - 10/21: The first week of October brings a full moon and a full schedule. Most Libras find things are going their way.

Scorpio 10/22 - 11/21: You hate those little gray areas, if you see them at all. The Stars insist that you resolve an uncertainty.

Sagittarius 11/22 - 12/21: Take some time to rest after a recent period of activity and change. Recharge.

Capricorn 12/22 - 1/19: After months when things seem to fall apart, the first quarter moon at the end of the month ushers in a time of togetherness.

Aquarius 1/20 - 2/18: A feeling of satisfaction comes your way as what you expected to happen, does happen.

Pisces 2/19 - 3/20: You may need to acquire new skills or new knowledge. The time is right; a teacher appears.

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Time well spent: Fire safety awareness

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lot of things are annoying: Long meetings, traffic jams, tax forms. And fire drills.

The truth is one can’t ignore annoying things because the consequences are usually catastrophic.

In the case of fire drills and fire safety, this is exceptionally true.

Because we are safety oriented, fire isn’t an everyday threat.

We’ve built our infrastructure and environments so that we can have some peace of mind.

And this also becomes the problem.

In office buildings and plants, it is essential to have open exits and essential that people know where they are.

One oft-cited case from 1991 tells a tragic story of locked doors, obstructed exits and no fire plan.

The case involved a food products company. Oil from a hydraulic line leaked out a few feet from a natural-gas fired cooker.

The blaze blew up instantly, trapping workers who couldn’t get out locked or obstructed doors. No fire suppression system was in place and exits were far from work stations. Out of 90 employees, 25 died and an additional 54 were injured, according to OSHA. While this was an exceptionally tragic case, blocked exits and locked doors are possible to find in any location. Usually, these situations are easy to remedy and all it takes is a fire-safety attitude.

In fact, the threat of fire is highest during working hours. According to FEMA, non-residential building fires occur most frequently from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.

An estimated 86,500 nonresidential building fires are reported to United States fire departments each year, according to FEMA. These fires cause an estimated 85 deaths, 1,325 injuries, and $2.6 billion in property losses per year.

In workplace cases where the blaze is not contained, the most common areas for fires to occur is in vehicle storage areas or other storage areas. Electrical malfunctions and cooking areas follow closely as areas of ignition.

Regardless of where a fire starts, the key is knowing how to escape a building.

Don’t ignore the occasional, and annoying, fire drill. The consequences can be catastrophic.

Stained coffee mugs

If your ceramic mugs have stubborn tea and coffee stains, try a baking soda paste.

Mix a little water into several teaspoons of baking soda; just enough to make the mixture pasty.

Now rub the paste over the offending coffee stains with a soft cloth or sponge. Clean off with a wet sponge and dry.

The mixture also has other uses: Scuff marks on the floor, chrome on golf clubs or stainless steel in the kitchen, according to hunker.com

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MRMC Building and Health Tips

Reminder: How the Latest FDNY Safety Guidelines Affect Your Building!

The NYC Fire Department (FDNY) earlier this year passed new rules affecting many multi-family dwellings in the city. Duplexes and triplexes are now required to install reflective signage on apartment doors in an effort to better assist first respondes by March 30th of this year. Buildings with single-level apartments are mandated to follow suit by the same date in 2018.

Purpose of the New Rules: Place at the door jambs, the signs are meant to assist firefighters

when crawling through smoky conditions with no visibility. The signs are to indicate the apartment number; wheter the apartment is a duplex or a triplex; wheter ther is more than one entrance; and wheter a particular entrance is a primary one.

Dwelling unit entrance door identification: The entrance door marking identifying the

room number and/or letter shall be conspicuously and durably printed or posted on or adjacent to the entrance door, on the public corridor side of the door. The marking or sign letters and numbers shall be at least 48 inches or less, but not more than 60 inches, above the floor, but no more.

Building lobby and hallway corridor directional markings or signs: In a group R-1

and Group R-2 building or occupancy with more than (8) dwelling units on a floor, a marking shall be placed or a sign posted in a conspicuous location in the elevator or lobby or other public entry oneach floor, and in the public corridor opposite each stairwell entrance. The marking or sign shall be identify by directional arrows and dwelling unit numbers and/or letters, the directional markings or signs shall be provided at each location where the corridor from the stairwell intersects with another corridor.

5 All- Natural Allergy Remidies and Treatments

1. Humidifier: One thing you can try that allows you to escape the chemical additives of pills offered over the counter is a cool humidifier.

2. Saline Rinse: Flushing out your sinuses with medication can be harmful and and addictive, but if you mix up a quart of distilled water with a few tablespoons of baking soda , you can fliush out your passages with a Neti Pot. 3. Steam Healing: By boiling water with essential oils in it you can create a type of natural allergy treatments through the healing steam that helps send away negative symptoms associated with your allergies.

4. Honey: Is one of the best all natural allergy treatments and helps with sore throats and keeps mucus in control.

5. Quercetin: Is a substance that you can find in the skin of fruits and vegatables like apples and onions. This works as a natural form of anthihistamine, clearing up your nasal passages and putting symptons to rest during peak hours of your allergies. You can combined these products with bromelain from pineapple, which also helps you with allergy symptons that you are dealing with.

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Study: Yoga or therapy Watch out for Belles and superheroes may help back pain As you might imagine, superheroes and other movie According to the National Retail Federation, the ­– Manhattan­Resident­ManageR’s­Club,­inC.­–

If you suffer from chronic low back pain, you might be desperate for some sort of solution to the debilitating condition.

Chronic low back pain is a widespread problem. According to WebMD, Americans spend over $50 billion each year on back pain.

About 80 percent of the population will experience a back problem at some time in their lives.

There has been a lot of publicity touting the benefits of yoga and physical therapy for back pain relief, especially as doctors move away from painkillers as a solution.

But a recent study suggests aching consumers shouldn’t expect complete relief.

The study results showed that both yoga and physical therapy help some people some of the time, but they don’t work for everyone and the pain relief was not perfect.

According to the June 2017 study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, 320 patients with persistent back pain were assigned either yoga, physical therapy or educational instruction on managing back pain.

After 12 weeks, about 48 percent of the yoga group had a ‘clinically meaningful’ improvement in their pain. The same was true for 37 percent of physical therapy patients. The study’s authors said the difference between the yoga and physical therapy results were not statistically significant and both therapies appeared to make some difference during a year’s time.

In an editorial accompanying the study, one of the authors, Dr. Stefan Kertesz of the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Medicine, cautioned on overselling yoga as a solution. “The reality is, yoga was not a panacea for most of these patients.”

If you want to try yoga for your back, be sure you take a beginners class with gentle poses aided with chairs.

characters take the spotlight for 2017, especially for kids.

Topping the list for girls, there is Belle from Beauty and the Beast. You knew that. And for boys, that means the beast. Naturally.

Belle should be followed closely

by Wonder Woman impersonators, or so the seers in retail predict.

For adults, Game of Thrones themes abound. For women, Daenerys, mother of dragons, is a natural and easy costume that mainly requires a white wig and blue dress, even a daring one, if so inclined. For the guys, Jon Snow’s leather duds or black cape with ever-present sword make a manly presence.

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last decade of children’s costumes has been ruled by a throng of princesses spurred on by Disney movie re-releases and kept afloat by the 2013 hit Frozen. It was hard to keep track of how many Anna’s and Elsa’s were running around trick-or-treating that year. In 2016 the top spot for kids was occupied by superheroes and other action stars from Batman, Deadpool and Spiderman.

As for adults, superheroes ranked high last year. But witches, vampires and classic slasher movie villains were also plentiful and are expected to do well in 2017.

Video game characters rank high for adults while kids seem to like characters from fantasy

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Celiac Disease Awareness Month:

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What’s all the fuss about gluten?

It’s nearly impossible to go to a restaurant or a supermarket now and not be bombarded with labels touting “gluten free” ingredients and recipes.

Today people are acutely aware of an allergy to a protein in wheat, barley and rye. This allergy is called celiac disease.

With all of the sudden attention to this disease, it almost seems like a recent discovery. But, according to the Celiac Disease Foundation, it has been acknowledged for nearly 2,000 years.

It was ancient Greece, in fact, where a physician first noticed patients that presented with diarrhea and malabsorption. They used the term “coeliac,” from the Greek word for abdominal, to describe the condition and the modern name evolved from there. Much later, during the food supply shortages of World War II, European doctors noticed that fewer children were dying from this disease as wheat became a rare commodity. This link started the decades-long research of wheat, gluten, and celiac disease.

The Mayo Clinic explains that when those with celiac disease eat gluten, it creates an immune reaction in the small intestine. With continued exposure, this response will damage the lining of the intestine and affect the way the body digests food and absorbs nutrients from it. Side effects from this malabsorption can include chronic diarrhea, weight loss, fatigue, and more. At this time, there is no reliable cure for this disease but abstaining from gluten entirely can prevent nearly all of the complications from the disease.

Despite the widespread coverage of celiac disease recently, Stefano Guandalini, a doctor at the University of Chicago Celiac Disease Center, points out that gluten has been around since wheat was cultivated over 10,000 years ago and has remained largely unchanged over the years. It is estimated that about 1 percent of the population has celiac disease and many of those people are currently undiagnosed.

More alarming is that celiac disease does seem to be becoming more common as only about .2 percent of the population were estimated to have it in the 1950s. Although many people probably don’t have to worry about this affliction, greater awareness of any illness is always helpful with prevention and finding a cure.*

ALTERNATIVE TO GRANITE

Soapstone countertops combine beauty with utility If a stone material can be called flexible, then soapstone is that material.

Soapstone, actually a mineral known as steatite, is a somewhat rare stone that is made up of talc, a soft mineral, and magnesium among others. Time, heat and pressure forge the minerals together into a veined, relatively soft stone that compares favorably to marble or granite for countertops, floors and sinks.

In fact, soapstone has much to recommend it for countertops.

First, it is always unique. Every slab of soapstone is different.

Your slab won’t be like that owned by anyone else.

Second, it is versatile. Unlike zinc, for example, it is heat resistant. Unlike granite, marble and limestone, it is non-porous and does not have to be sealed to prevent staining. This non-porous quality also means it doesn’t harbor bacteria and is easy to clean. Acids from lemons or tomato juice won’t affect it and neither will alkalin found in some householder cleaners.

Third, it is easy to maintain. Owners will want to wipe a thin layer of mineral oil over the surface at regular intervals. This helps expose its deeper tones and veining, according to vermontsoapstone.com.

It is a soft stone, however, and will scratch or chip over time.

The good news is that it is easy to repair. Light scratches can be smoothed with simple oiling. Deeper scratches can be sanded. And a chip can be easily repaired using a two-step glue.

Soapstone is affordable but not cheap. It costs between $70 to $120 per square foot, according to hunker.com. That is less than marble but comparable to high-end granite.

Many other uses for soapstone reflect its ability to retain heat.

Historically, it was used as a fireplace material, since once heated it slowly radiates the heat long after the fire has died. That is why it has been used as a boot dryer and bed-warmer. Vermont Soapstone still sells small slabs for use as bed-warmers. At $42 each, they make a warm gift for chilly nights.

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“QUOTES 2 LIVE BY”

Doubts and fears are the heaviest burdens. ~ James Lendall Basford

Nothing in life is to be feared. It is only to be understood. ~ Marie Curie Keep your fears to yourself but share your courage with others. ~ Robert Louis Stevenson

Fear is a darkroom where negatives develop. ~ Usman B. Asif

There are very few monsters who warrant the fear we have of them. ~ Andre Gide Every man, through fear, mugs his aspirations a dozen times a day. ~ Brendan Francis

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CLUB SUDOKU

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“QUOTES 2 LIVE BY” If a man harbors any sort of fear, it makes him landlord to a ghost.

~ Lloyd Douglas

“QUOTES 2 LIVE BY” Fear has many eyes and can see things underground.

~ Miguel De Cervantes

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“QUOTES 2 LIVE BY”

You block your dream when you allow your fear to grow bigger than your faith.

~ Mary Manin Morrissey

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Teaching kids about the cashless economy

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The cashless society reigns and it is getting more powerful every year.

One area of life that usually does involve cash are allowances paid to kids every week.

But even kids need to learn that cash comes in many forms. As they become adults, today’s kids will manage virtual money more than coin and paper, according to walnutrow.com It’s a good thing to teach kids how money moves from place to place and what forms it takes.

If you give your kids an allowance in cash, it’s worth taking a trip to an ATM and explaining how an amount from your paycheck goes into a checking account. From the ATM, you access the money and turn some of it into paper.

When you write a check, explain that you are giving your bank a notice to transfer money from your account to another account.

Even young kids need to know that a stack of checks is not necessarily money.

Gone are the days when mom or dad comes home with a paper check. Nowadays many paychecks are electronically deposited.

Explain to kids that the paycheck is really a transfer of dollars from the employer’s account to your account.

One note: If you give your teenagers some sort of debit or credit card instead of cash, set up balance notifications and spending notifications so you can monitor their use of digital money.

The politics of tipping

Just when you thought everything was political, it really is. Even tipping.

According to research by creditcards.com, a great tipper is a male Republican who lives in the Northeast and uses a debit or credit card.

Meanwhile, the worst tippers are female Democrats who live in the South and use cash.

According to the study, the best tippers leave a median 20 percent at a restaurant. The worst tippers leave 15- to 16-percent.

Tips are expected in North America and there are even rules of etiquette about it.

According to the etiquette experts at the Emily Post Institute, diners should tip from 15 percent to 20 percent at a sit-down restaurant. But, according to the creditcards.com research, one in five diners left no tip at all.

It’s well known that wait-staff depend on tips for a living. They get a base pay of just over $2 per hour and the rest of their income comes from tips, amounting to at least 58 percent of their income. Some staff even have to split tips with other restaurant staff.

Joe’s Crab Shack, among other companies, tried banning tipping with bad results. Customers complained that the food was too expensive and the service was poor. The company brought back the tips.

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“Cyberspace” coined: Neuromancer Published in October 1984

According to Vice, this month marks the anniversary of William Gibson’s coining of the term “cyberspace” in his cult classic book Neuromancer. Released in 1984, his book was written during a period in which computers were not yet affordable or useful for the mainstream. Gibson envisioned a world in which hackers run rampant through a digital world offering visual hallucinations and a connected society that has only recently emerged in the real world. To a young generation of computer fanatics, he has been considered a prophet for his work.

Insurance exams may disappear

In the next 10 years, you probably won’t have to get a health exam to get life insurance.

The fact is that insurance companies can learn all they need to know about you to write a term policy. Young people, especially, can get a term policy online in minutes.

Insurers are accessing data from all sorts of sources.

It is known that companies qualifying young people for term insurance check such information as driving records and prescription drug history. Companies then make decisions on acceptance based on algorithms that project life expectancy.

The system is so useful for getting people insured that it has reduced waiting time from weeks to minutes.

Right now this accelerated insurance system applies mainly to term insurance but whole life is probably next.

According to the Center for Economic Justice, the process of decision making on insurance should be transparent. It wants regulators to survey the types of data insurers use and make that data public.

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ROSENWACH TANK

THE FIRST NAME IN QUALITY WOOD AND STEEL TANKS

718.729.4900 • ROSENWACHGROUP.COM • 43-02 Ditmars Boulevard, 2nd Fl. • Astoria, NY 11105

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Mr. Louis Parrilla, Newsletter Publisher 524 East 72nd Street New York, NY 10021

To PLAcE An AD in ThE nExT nESwSLETTEr PLEASE cALL Louis Parrilla 917-750-4117 • resmgr524@gmail.com