When Relocating, Make Things Easy on Yourself

Face it, moving is traumatic. Whether you're moving to get a better job or just to keep the one you've got, you've got a lot of things to juggle, what with trying to wrap up things at your old place and coordinate getting situated at the new.

Moving Strategies

There are strategies you can use to make the transition more seamless. Here's a few.
Have a professional do the heavy lifting for you. This is a great time saver. They are called movers in the US but are removal companies in the UK. That sounds like a "glass half full, glass half empty" thing to me. I love US/UK language differences!

Plan ahead. It's never too soon to start on a game plan. Things will escalate the sooner the move gets. It you are moving because of business obligations, they will expect more from you before you leave; no loose ends.

Register your new address with the post office. Time sensitive things need to follow you as soon as possible. Yeah, you can change as many as possible before the big move, but some will slip through the floorboards.

Transfer Your Services

Not many professionals leave it all at the office. We always bring work home and make things happen after usual business hours. For this you need a seamless transition of broadband services.

Satellite TV is a bit easier. One of the big selling points of Dish TV is "leave it there, we'll get you a new one". Good hype. but a Godsend for transitioners.

When you move into a new home use local recommendations from Angie's List for fine-tuning your new home. Take the Tour!

Health Care VS the Economy

The Obama administration has been getting more and more of a backlash. First, the health care reform that was supposed to sail right through began to stumble. Now, it's not just wading through molasses, it's mired in the primeval Wahingtonian tar pits.

Here's the issue: citizens, both on the right and the left, are increasingly asking why Obama is so focused on nationalizing the private business sector that he has no time to spend on saving the economy.

Recent polls show that overwhelmingly, people that are losing their jobs and homes are not concerned with changing the way their present medical insurance works.



The Distraction that Cash for Clunkers was

Even the cash for clunkers program is questionable. The administration is hailing it as a huge success. But was it? Many of the car dealers are still waiting for their money.

Ironically, from a financial point of view, the clunkers program benefited Japan more than it did Detroit. Who in their right mind wants to buy any American car other than a Ford? Toyota and Nissan were the big winners with this mis-guided program.

And on a fundamental level, I have to ask, why should my tax dollars subsidize someone else's new car purchase? This "cash" is our money, not the government's.



ACORN in Deep Trouble?

"ACORN has violated serious federal laws, and today the House voted to ensure that taxpayer dollars would no longer be used to fund this corrupt organization," said second-ranked House Republican Eric Cantor of Virginia.

Still, 75 democrats voted to keep ACORN afloat with tax dollars despite overwhelming evidence that they committed election fraud to get Obama elected and recently conspired to assist in setting up a brothel employing immigrant children as prostitutes.

At least some members of the House concluded that this is not the way to stimulate the economy, whether Obama is willing to pull their funding or not.

Re-Building After a Hurricane

I write hurricane articles fairly regularly during the season, pretty much to get folks to prepare early, not at the 11th hour.

I keep most supplies all year round, but the specific ones I need for the big blow, I can get at Home Depot early in the day. I've found that here in the bedroom communities south of Houston, folks that commute to the city are expected to show up, stay until the last minute, and storm-proof the facilities. "Do ya want yer job next week?"

That's the way it was when I worked for Marriott. It was a difference of opinion. I thought my family and my major lifetime investment was a priority and my boss thought a hotel property (which the guests had mostly fled) was a more important investment. Good old Howard said, "Take one for the team, Kelly!"

I don't think so.



Anyway, there is plenty of devastation in the wake of a major storm. Sometimes a remodel is needed, but there are times when nothing short of a demo and re-building will do.

If you have to re-build or you're just adding on, I suggest doing it right. Go green construction and use Insulated Concrete Forms for your exterior walls. Not only are you going to save money in the long run, but you will be able to withstand those winds.

Go for it, uh-huh!

Subscribe to the I Can Fix Up My Home newsletter! Just send an email to subscribe@icanfixupmyhome.com and then respond to the confirmation email you'll receive. And, add listserv@icanfixupmyhome.com to ensure the newsletters don't get filtered out into your spam or junk folders.