There are all sorts of products on the market to help you get a handle on back-to-school organizational needs.

Here’s a look at a few:

Charging station. Are chargers for cell phones, MP3 players and game systems taking over outlets around your house? Can you never find the charger that fits your cell phone? Check out two-level charging stations from stores like Bed Bath and Beyond. It can store up to four devices for charging and features a pull-out accessory drawer and side pocket for storing wires.

Light and storage. Desk lamp organizers offer light to study and a place to hold your pens, paper clips and other goodies.

Crates everywhere. Everybody needs a couple of plastic crates. They are great for holding soccer cleats and shin guards in the garage or filing notes for term papers. These stacking plastic crates hold letter or legal hanging files and they lock together to stack or make cubes. They also can be used with casters to move around your room.

Everything in its place. Back to school means lots of slips of paper. Keep them organized in a mini case file. Accordion-style file cases come with a handle on top so you can take it with you to sort coupons or receipts while you’re waiting in the carpool line.

Style and storage. Storage becomes stylish with furniture like ottomans that include tops that pop off to stow away books or anything else.

Keeping track. Back to school means back to schedules. There are all sorts of options available for keeping you on task. Dry-erase boards are available in plenty of shapes and sizes. Just fill in your appointments, soccer games and test dates. Then wipe them clean.

Too many wires. Do those wires seem to be multiplying under your computer desk or entertainment system? And how do they get so tangled? Try a wire organizer grommet, which hides tangled wires and cables with three adjustable openings.

Too many plugs. Try using a power cord which converts one grounded outlet into five flexible adapter-ready outlets. It also has a master power switch.

We must reiterate that some of these strange behaviors are just normal to being a teenager such as lack of memory or
falling and stumbling over things. It is the combination of the above behavioral changes that parents must be on the lookout.

It is hard for some teenagers to believe that their parents or any adult knows anything.

There is nothing new under the sun, for many adults they have done that, been there and don’t want to do any of it
again. We do know what we are talking about and even if we never experienced it there is someone that we know
who has.

Help

Focus Adolescent Services Phone# 410.341.4216

We feel strongly that teenagers should receive the best of life. This is one way to make sure that this happens.

For all the young people out there who believe that drinking a lot of alcohol does not lead to adverse life changes


Fact: Alcohol is a drug which can become addictive.

Fact: Alcohol can interfere with the growth function of the brain in young folks. It is obvious that drugs that affect the pleasure functions of the brain can also limit the growth of the brain in a young person. What drinking does to the brain is damaging to brain cells. If you are going to make it in this crazy world, you need all of your faculties that the brain produces for rational, focused thought.

Fact: Alcohol for a youth who starts drinking early can become a lifelong habit. Amazingly, young folks who start drinking at an early age are four times more likely to develop alcohol dependence. It is hard to break from the dependence on alcohol because it makes the pain, thoughts, and actions dull into, not only no pain but I’m feeling good, my senses are heightened, and everybody likes me when I’m high. Then there comes the time when alcohol does not give the same buzz anymore, it’s harder to get drunk to the point of oblivion. A friend suggests that you can get to a higher state of oblivion by trying hallucinatory drugs and the real hard stuff like crack, heroin, etc.

Fact: Alcohol drinking started at an early age may lead to the thought process that: "If I’m holding my own when hanging out with my friends, I surely can imbibe a lot more. You know, I can stop drinking anytime I want too." Majority of youth when binging means five or more drinks in the case of teenage boys and in the case of teenage girls, four or more drinks.

Fact: When young folks drink they are more likely to be victims of violent crime. Yes, things like rape, aggravated assault and robbery. Why? Peer Pressure. It’s easy to pass out when drinking a lot of alcohol and waking up with no idea of what happened the night before or the blurry knowledge that something did happen that makes you feel sick such as being raped. High tolerance for alcohol is attained quicker for a teenager. So you need more and the more you need, the likely hood of doing something regrettable may happen, like contracting HIV, AIDS, Herpes, Sexually Transmitted Diseases. We know: "It will never happen to you!"

Fact: Drive drunk and physically damage yourself, passengers and there is always the possibility of causing many deaths even your own.

Just because this information is regional, it is for all teenagers and there is help out there for you.

Hope this helps some teenager out there.

Our Concern is you.

Larry and Madeline 

Before you purchase a home you must be aware of your finances, credit score and employment stability so that the decision you make is the right one.

Homeowner:

Development regarding Buying a Home in 2008.

The Internet offers many valuable articles and press releases for first time buyers and investment opportunists. Below is a list of links that will assist you through the transaction process.

(U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s 100 Questions & Answers about Buying a New Home)

These links are several great places to begin your preparation for becoming a Homeowner.

© 2008

PropertyMinder, Inc.

Who Is Eligible?

The provisions of the Act apply to active duty military personnel who had a mortgage obligation prior to enlistment or prior to being ordered to active duty. This includes members of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Coast Guard; commissioned officers of the Public Health Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration who are engaged in active service; reservists ordered to report for military service; persons ordered to report for induction under the Military Selective Service Act; and guardsmen called to active service for more than 30 consecutive days. In limited situations, dependents of service members are also entitled to protections.

Am I Entitled To Debt Payment Relief?

The Act limits the interest that may be charged on mortgages incurred by a service member (including debts incurred jointly with a spouse) before he or she entered into active military service. Mortgage lenders must, at your request, reduce the interest rate to no more than six percent per year during the period of active military service and recalculate your payments to reflect the lower rate. This provision applies to both conventional and government-insured mortgages.
Is The Interest Rate Limitation Automatic?
No. To request this temporary interest rate reduction, you must submit a written request to your mortgage lender and include a copy of your military orders. The request may be submitted as soon as the orders are issued but must be provided to a mortgage lender no later than 180 days after the date of your release from active duty military service.

Am I Eligible Even if I Can Afford To Pay My Mortgage At A Higher Interest Rate?

If a mortgage lender believes that military service has not affected your ability to repay your mortgage, they have the right to ask a court to grant relief from the interest rate reduction. This is not very common.
What If I Can't Afford to Pay My Mortgage Even At the Lower Rate?
Your mortgage lender may allow you to stop paying the principal amount due on your loan during the period of active duty service. Lenders are not required to do this but they generally try to work with service members to keep them in their homes. You will still owe this amount but will not have to repay it until after your complete your active duty service.
Additionally, most lenders have other programs to assist borrowers who cannot make their mortgage payments. If you or your spouse find yourself in this position at any time before or after active duty service, contact your lender immediately and ask about loss mitigation options. Borrowers with FHA insured loans who are having difficulty making mortgage payments may also be eligible for special forbearance and other loss mitigation options. More information about help for homeowners who are unable to make payments on a mortgage is available on the HUD website at HTTP://www.HUD.gov/offices/hsg/sfh/econ/.cfm.

Am I Protected against Foreclosure?

Mortgage lenders may not foreclose, or seize property for a failure to pay a mortgage debt, while a service member is on active duty or within 90 days after the period of military service unless they have the approval of a court. In a court proceeding, the lender would be required to show that the service member's ability to repay the debt was not affected by his or her military service.
What Information Do I Need To Provide To My Lender?
When you or your representative contact your mortgage lender, you should provide the following information:
 Notice that you have been called to active duty;
 A copy of the orders from the military notifying you of your activation;
 Your FHA case number; and
 Evidence that the debt precedes your activation date.

HUD has reminded FHA lenders of their obligation to follow the Act. If notified that a borrower is on active military duty, the lender must advise the borrower or representative of the adjusted amount due, provide adjusted coupons or billings, and ensure that the adjusted payments are not returned as insufficient payments.

Will My Payments Change Later? Will I Need To Pay Back The Interest Rate "Subsidy" At A Later Date?

The change in interest rate is not a subsidy. Interest in excess of 6 percent per year that would otherwise have been charged is forgiven. However, the reduction in the interest rate and monthly payment amount only applies during the period of active duty. Once the period of active military service ends, the interest rate will revert back to the original interest rate, and the payment will be recalculated accordingly.
How Long Does The Benefit Last? Does The Period Begin And End With My Tour Of Duty?
Interest rate reductions are only for the period of active military service. Other benefits, such as postponement of monthly principal payments on the loan and restrictions on foreclosure may begin immediately upon assignment to active military service and end on the third month following the term of active duty assignment.

How Can I Learn More About Relief Available To Active Duty Military Personnel?

Read more information about the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, sponsored by the Legal Assistance Policy Division, Office of The Judge Advocate General, U.S. Army.
Servicemembers who have questions about the SCRA or the protections that they may be entitled to may contact their unit judge advocate or installation legal assistance officer. Dependents of service members can also contact or visit local military legal assistance offices where they reside. A military legal assistance office locator for each branch of the armed forces is available legalassistance.law.af.mil

For additional information see:  http://usmilitary.about.com/cs/sscra/a/scra2_3.htm

Reprinted from HREU 7.25.08