Volume 5 October 2005

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Welcome to TAKE-A-MOMENT!

The Take-A-Moment newsletters strive to provide quick-to-read content to improve and enhance the quality of life at home and in the work place...for when you can "take-a-moment" from your hectic schedule. Take-a-Moment is provided by the Louisville Area Cooperative Extension Agents. When you have "more-than-a-moment" visit our web site for expanded articles, article archives, sign-up and contact information, and links to other web sites of interest.

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Did You Know...?

C O N T E N T S

Stain Removal -- Priorities for Clean-Up and Repair After a Flood
Financial Fitness -- Updated Ballpark E$timate® Appears in Two Formats
Family Life -- Encouraging Children to Read
Nutrition & What's Cooking -- Tips to Healthy Dining Away From Home
Home Tips -- Smoke Detectors Ensure Family Safety
Ways to Wellness -- October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month
In The Work Place -- Enrichment, Fun & Laughter

STAIN REMOVAL
PRIORITIES FOR CLEAN-UP AND REPAIR AFTER A FLOOD
stainremoval@take-a-moment.com

• Start by taking photos or a video for insurance claims and tax deductions. Keep records of all expenses. Books and papers may be frozen until you have time to work with them. Place waxed paper between layers and place items inside plastic bags before freezing.
• Next, examine the building's structure. Check the foundation for settling, cracking or undermining. Examine walls, floors and windows. Have an electrician check the electrical system. If the basement is flooded, pump the water out in stages, about 1/3 each day. If you have a well, email me for more information on water safety, because you will need to disinfect the well.
• Your plan of action for the clean up process starts with removal of standing water. Use pails or pumps, then vacuum with a wet/dry shop vacuum cleaner.
• Remove all soaked and contaminated materials. Place in plastic garbage bags and haul them outside. They may need to be tagged and discarded according to local regulations if they've been contaminated with sewer water.
• Shovel out mud and silt before it dries. If the walls are salvageable, hose down walls and floors before they dry. Rinse several times, then clean and disinfect them. Start at the bottom and work upward using chlorine bleach (do not mix with ammonia; the fumes are toxic).
• The heating system may need to be cleaned, dried and reconditioned. Turning the heat on will help the drying process. You may want to also use a dehumidifier.
• Treat items for mildew if necessary.

The clean up and subsequent repairs may take weeks, even months. For more detailed information, contact your local Extension Service Office. Further information can be found at the Extension Disaster Education Network. www.eden.lsu.edu.

FINANCIAL FITNESS
UPDATED BALLPARK E$TIMATE® APPEARS IN TWO FORMATES
finances@take-a-moment.com

Americans trying to estimate how much they need to save for a comfortable retirement now have an updated and easy-to-use tool—the Ballpark E$timate.®

The updated Ballpark is available in two formats: An online version that is interactive and provides instant results, and a printed version that can be downloaded from the Internet and filled out at home.

Both versions are sponsored by ChoosetoSave.org and the American Savings Education Council (ASEC), programs of the nonpartisan Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI). They are available free on the Web at www.choosetosave.org/ballpark/. The Ballpark E$timate® has been repeatedly cited as a simple and useful tool for quickly estimating overall retirement savings needs.

Both the online and paper versions of the Ballpark come with instructions that take complicated issues—such as projected Social Security benefits and earnings assumptions on savings—and turn them into language and mathematics that are easy to understand. The updated online version allows individuals to customize several key factors in calculating how much they need to save for retirement: how long they think they will live, when they expect to retire, and other variables as well. Since each individual is different, it allows people to achieve a more accurate estimate based on their particular circumstances.

As people continue to live longer, and as savings for retirement becomes more and more of a personal responsibility issue for all Americans, it is important that savings calculators take full advantage of what we know and the technology that is now available. While the amount people need to save may be shocking to them, it is better that they have a realistic Ballpark E$timate so they can get started.

Most Americans currently are not saving enough to achieve their retirement goals. An individual who starts at age 20 and saves consistently for 42 years—in anticipation of retiring at age 62—would have to set aside more than most Americans save now. Waiting to start saving until age 40 moves the required savings percentage to the stars. (Charts detailing these points are available on EBRI’s Web site at www.ebri.org/pdf/PR_714_6Oct05.pdf.)

EBRI’s 2005 Retirement Confidence Survey (http://ebri.org/surveys/rcs/2005/) showed that doing a retirement saving needs calculation can change savings behavior. Most often, those who do a calculation say they start saving more and they take other steps, such as changing the investment allocation of their retirement savings, researching other savings methods, reducing debt and opening a new savings account.

FAMILY LIFE
ENCOURAGING CHILDREN TO READ
familylife@take-a-moment.com

Here are some suggestions for encouraging your child to read:

• Help your child gain access to reading materials that he or she understands and enjoys.

• Read with him or her.

• Encourage reading aloud.

• Visit the library with your child. A librarian can help you locate appropriate, popular children's books.

• Buy a birthday book. When a youngster receives a birthday book, he or she recognizes that books are special gifts.

• When preparing for an outing or vacation, read about where you will be going and what you will see. You can find such materials in a library, bookstore, or from a travel agent.

• Establish a balance between television and reading time, realizing that quality television programs sometimes encourage follow-up reading.

Source: Sam Quick

NUTRITION & WHAT'S COOKING
TIPS TO HEALTHY DINING AWAY FROM HOME
whatscooking@take-a-moment.com

Dining away from home doesn't mean you have to give up good nutrition. Many restaurants offer low-calorie alternatives for their health-conscious consumers.

Restaurants also honor special requests such as broiled rather than fried, or low-fat items like milk, margarine, sour cream and salad dressings. As a consumer, you can make wise choices by ordering meals to meet your nutritional needs without exceeding your energy needs.

For an appetizer, order fruit juice or a fruit cup instead of creamed soup or fried tidbits. Some vegetable juices and broth based soups are good choices, but they might be high in sodium.

Remember that lettuce, fruits and other vegetables on the salad bar are rich in nutrients and dietary fiber. To reduce saturated fat intake, limit cheese, chopped meats, bacon bits and croutons. Also avoid salads with mayonnaise-based dressings such as potato, macaroni and slaw. Try an oil and vinegar dressing, French dressing or lemon juice to minimize fat intake.

If you're on a low-sodium diet, avoid marinated vegetables, which also usually contain some oil. And become familiar with food preparation terms.

Steamed, braised, broiled, stir fried, roasted, baked, boiled and stewed are healthy methods of cooking. Limit entrees that are fried, coated, or drenched in sauce.

When you select side dishes, remember that all potatoes are not equal. Pick baked or mashed potatoes. Even with a little butter or gravy, they contain fewer calories than their fried cousins. Spice up a plain baked potato with chives and plain yogurt. Stick to one pat of butter, and avoid sour cream, cheese and other toppings.

You can reduce saturated fat intake and increase dietary fiber by your bread and dessert choices. Order whole grain breads, pita bread, bread sticks and Italian or French bread instead of biscuits, croissants and rich dinner rolls.

For dessert, pick fresh fruit, fruit ices, frozen yogurt, gelatin, sherbet, or cake without frosting. If you order fruit pie, fill up on the filling rather than the pastry. Remove the icing from pastries to reduce the calorie intake.

Moderation is the key word to good nutrition. Look at a particular food or meal in the context of your total diet, not as a single entity. With practice, it's easier to make healthful choices whether eating in your favorite restaurant or at home.

HOME TIPS
SMOKE DETECTORS ENSURE FAMILY SAFETY
hometips@take-a-moment.com

Congratulate yourself if you have smoke detectors in your home, because these units save lives. Give yourself a big pat on the back if you routinely check smoke detectors to be sure they are working. About 30 % of homes with these units have at least one detector that doesn't work. This creates a false sense of security because you believe your family is protected when it really isn't.

For a home to be fully protected, you should install a smoke detector outside each bedroom area and on every level including the basement. The following simple steps will ensure your detectors are in good working order:

• Test each smoke detector at least once a month by pushing the test button and listening for the alarm.

• Follow the manufacturer's instructions about keeping smoke detectors clean. You often can remove dust and spider webs with a vacuum cleaner attachment.

• If your smoke detectors are battery operated, change the batteries regularly. Be sure to check the "best used by" date on a battery before installing it.

• For longer battery life, use nine-volt lithium batteries that should last up to six years when used with an Underwriters Laboratory approved smoke detector.

• If older smoke detector is prone to frequent nuisance type alarms, consider replacing it with a new detector.

• When moving into a new home, immediately replace batteries in each smoke detector.

• If a smoke detector is more than 10 years old, replace it right away.

Along with working smoke detectors, every home should have a fire escape or exit plan to follow if the smoke detector alarm goes off. Be sure this plan has a normal exit route and an alternate emergency escape route in case the first one is blocked.

WAYS TO WELLNESS
OCTOBER IS NATIONAL BREAST CANCER AWARENESS MONTH
wellness@take-a-moment.com

Have you had an annual mammogram? Be sure to discuss the importance of an annual mammogram and other cancer screening tests with your doctor at your next annual physical. Screening tests should be part of your healthy lifestyle habits. In between annual physicals, don’t forget to do monthly breast self-exams to detect any changes in breast tissue. Take time to maintain your health.

IN THE WORK PLACE
ENRICHMENT, FUN & LAUGHTER
workplace@take-a-moment.com

When we get caught in the everyday humdrum of living, we numb ourselves to the pleasures and opportunities that come our way. Don’t let this happen to you. If it’s already happened, break free and reclaim your zest for life. It’s never too late!

Why not take a community education course on a topic you’ve always wanted to study? Or bring out the old photos and recall good times with family and friends.

By the way, how’s your laugh life? When it comes to good health, laughter is serious business. Laughter has been called “inner jogging” because an old fashioned thigh-slapper does give you an aerobic workout of sorts. It stimulates the cardiovascular system, sends surges of oxygen throughout your bloodstream, and exercises the muscles of your face, shoulders, diaphragm, and abdomen. A good laugh temporarily reduces blood pressure, respiration, heart rate, and muscle tension. Laughter also, enhances creativity and problem solving, reduces stress, eases strained relationships, and promotes mental health. It may even encourage healing, strengthen the immune system, and contribute to longevity.