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Posted on: May 2, 2019

Congratulations to Master Sergeant (Retired) Gerald D. Hansen, the winner of The MilitaryVALoan.com Miltary Hero Award!

Gerald Hansen was nominated for his outstanding service to his community and his country. He spent twenty-one years in the United States Air Force with assignments to Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico, Yokota Air Base, Japan, MacDill Air Force Base, Tampa, FL and Zweibrucken Air Force Base, West Germany. He retired in May 1990.

His awards and decorations include the Meritorious Service Medal with two oak leaf clusters and the Air Force Commendation Medal. He was promoted to Master Sergeant through STEPS (Stripes for Exceptional Performers) in August of 1983. He was also named as the Tampa Military Citizen of the Year for 1986. Mr. Hansen was named the Management Award recipient in 1995 from the International Builders Exchange Executives (IBEE), Tampa Bay Lightning Community Hero in 2017, Ring of Honor with the Buffalo Soldiers (The Woods & Wanton Chapter) in 2017 and was named the Bay Area Brotherhood Humanitarian Award winner 2019.

Hansen is the volunteer Executive Director for Paint Your Heart Out Tampa (PYHOT), an all-volunteer, nonprofit organization that benefits low-income and elderly citizens of Tampa by improving the exterior of their homes. Each year, Hansen freely gives more than 1,250 hours of time to the organization. Hansen has also successfully raised more than $14,000 for the Greater Tampa Bay Walk to Defeat ALS, was involved in three annual cleanups of Bayshore Boulevard on MacDill AFB, served as the Chairperson of the Preschool Education Board, and helped build playgrounds on MacDill AFB and in Clearwater.

“Jerry is the most unselfish person I have ever met,” his nominator wrote. “He has taught me more about generosity than anyone. The majority of Jerry’s time is spent behind the wheel of his car, picking up, dropping off supplies or materials needed from one organization to another. He is often delivering items to groups working with homeless or food banks.”

Congratulations to Gerald Hansen on being named The MilitaryVALoan.com Military Hero Award Winner!

 

MilitaryVALoan.com Military Hero Sweepstakes
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NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN.
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  1. Eligibility: The TravelNursing.org Sweepstakes (the “Promotion”) is open only to registered nurses who are legal residents of the 50 United States and the District of Columbia (collectively the “Participating States”) who are 21 years of age or older (and located in the one of the Participating States at the time of entry. TravelNursing.org (“Sponsor”) and their respective parents, subsidiaries and affiliated companies, retailers, sales representatives, dealers, distributors, licensees and the advertising, fulfillment, judging and promotion agencies involved in the development and administration of this Promotion and each of their respective officers, directors, employees and agents (collectively, “Promotion Parties”), and their immediate family members and persons living in the same households of each (whether related or not) are not eligible. Void outside the Participating States and where prohibited by law.
  2. Promotion Period: The Promotion begins at 12:00 a.m. Pacific Time (“PT”) on May 6, 2019 and ends at 11:59 p.m. PT on May 31, 2019 (the “Promotion Period”).
  3. How to Enter: During the Promotion Period, go to https://www.militaryvaloan.com/blog/the-militaryvaloan-com-military-hero-award/ and locate the official entry form. Follow the on-screen directions, complete all required registration fields and submit to enter (“Online Entry”). Entrants must complete all required information. LIMIT ONE (1) ONLINE ENTRY PER PERSON/EMAIL ADDRESS. Nominations MUST be submitted online. Mail-in nominations will not be accepted. Nominations must be submitted on behalf of another person. Self-nominations will not be accepted. Nominations must be submitted in English only. Nominations may only be submitted in the name of a single person; group nominations are not acceptable. False or deceptive nominations or acts may render a nominee ineligible. All nominations become the property of MilitaryVALoan.com and will not be returned. MilitaryVALoan.com reserves the right to edit the nomination as it sees fit for use in publication or promotion. By submitting a nomination you agree to grant Sponsors the right without obligation, unless prohibited by law, to use the contents of your nomination, your name, voice, picture and likeness, without compensation, for the purpose of advertising and publicizing all matters related to the Awards Program and/or the Sponsors in any medium, throughout the world in perpetuity.
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  11. Winners’ List: To view the winners’ list for this Promotion, please visit https://www.militaryvaloan.com/blog/the-militaryvaloan-com-military-hero-award/. The winners’ list will be available after winner validation has been completed.
  12. Sponsor: Full Beaker, Inc., Bellevue, Washington 98004.

Source: militaryvaloan.com

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On Thursday, I featured a guest post from Free Money Finance that proved to be surprisingly controversial. His five steps to six figures in seven years offered solid common-sense career advice for those looking to boost their incomes. Many readers disliked the post. (Though they didn’t hate it as much as FMF’s previous guest article.)

Though I don’t share all of your complaints, I do think some of you made an excellent point: Just as money is more about mind than it is about math, so too a rewarding career is more about personal fulfillment than it is about raking in big bucks. I agree that I’d rather work at a low-paying job that I loved than make $100,000 a year at a job I hated. I’d rather be happy than rich.

In response to FMF’s post on Thursday, Mike wrote to share his predicament. He’s hoping GRS readers can help him decide what to do:

I feel like I am at a crossroad in my career, and I truly don’t know what to do.

I am 31, married, and have two young children. My wife is well respected in her field and has a good salary; she likes what she’s doing, and has opportunities for advancement. We have a pretty hefty mortgage, but it is totally manageable with our current income stream. We also have a considerable monthly cost for day care. Overall, our financial situation is decent and improving.

Anyhow, those things aren’t the issue. The issue is me. I am in the IT field, but it is just not something I’m passionate about. My job pays well — $75,000 a year — but I am on call a lot and work a lot of hours that go un-noticed. I dread getting up and going into the office. My fear is that if I try to switch careers now, I won’t be making that much money. I’m not as happy as I used to be doing this type of work.

Part of my problem is that I don’t know what I want to be when I grow up. I really enjoy working with my hands, and I am very handy. I have remodeled homes (mine, my parents, and some friends) and I have done some commercial construction projects (in-laws used to own a property management company).

I am just looking for something that drives me right now. I can honestly say that I am not a good leader, almost like I need someone to be a mentor to me, as I have never really had that. I am willing to work hard, and I know I would have the support of my wife and family with whatever choice I make. I just can’t justify leaving a good paying job right now without having a clue as to what I want to do next.

I need some help.

Mike’s situation is far from unique. In fact, I get e-mails like this all the time. There are many people who feel trapped in jobs that they hate, but who cannot quit because of the financial implications. What’s the solution?

The best thing, of course, is to find a career where these two intersect: a job you love that pays well. This isn’t always easy to do.

The first — and most difficult — step is to find out what it is you really want to do. What would make you happy? (And how can you be sure?) In researching my book, I’ve learned that meaningful work is one of the keys to personal fulfillment. Research shows that if you have a job that matches your personal values, you’re much more likely to be happy than if you’re doing something you find meaningless. But it can take a lot of soul-searching to determine what exactly “meaningful work” is for you.

I also think it’s important to reduce your lifestyle as much as possible in order to give yourself flexibility in your job search. The lower your expenses are, the more options you have. If your lifestyle costs $10,000 a month, your family needs to earn at least that much (more, after taxes) in order to maintain it. But if your lifestyle costs just $5,000 a month (or, better yet, $3,000 a month), you have a much wider range of career options.

In our e-mail discussion with Mike, FMF offered some good advice:

Is it really the IT field that you hate or something else? Maybe it’s the company you’re working at or the people you’re working with. Maybe it’s the aspect of IT you’re working in (for instance, you may hate database management but end up loving web security — or something else if you tried it.) Or maybe it’s the industry you’re in. Perhaps you’d be fulfilled as an IT consultant working on various projects for clients rather than trapped with one company doing the same thing over and over.

There are lots of factors to consider and I highly recommend you think about the various options before you ditch the career (and the valuable asset) you’ve built over the past several years.

I know that some people argue that a job isn’t something to be loved. Work is work and you should treat it as such. I don’t agree. I’ve had jobs I hated, and I’ve had jobs I loved. I believe it’s absolutely worth sacrificing income to find work that is meaningful and fulfilling.

But how much should you sacrifice? And how do you find this meaningful, fulfilling work? What steps should Mike take to change his situation so that he’s no longer miserable? And how does the current economy affect his options? If you were in Mike’s shoes, what would you do?

Source: getrichslowly.org

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Save more, spend smarter, and make your money go further

Investors are always itchy to get on board with the hot new tech stock IPO – despite the rcent lackluster performance of some big names . So, how do you know the difference between a bull and a bear on IPO day?

Be Wary of Cash Outs

Some initial public offerings seem more about letting founders and other insiders vash out of their holdings than anything else. There’s one problem with this conspiracy theory, however: Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) rules dictate that a company’s officers and employees hold their stock for a predetermined period of time known as a “lock-up period.” This is anywhere from 90 days to two years. Still, when doing your homework ask yourself this: Does the company have a sustainable business model that will make stock ownership an attractive option — or is it just trying to cash in on being the fad of the moment?

Watch Out For Irrational Exuberance

Because IPOs are such media-driven events, there’s often an initial period of euphoria before a crash. For example,one electric care company saw a 60 percent increase in the price of its stock during the first hour and a half of trading. When the initial buzz wore off, the stock’s value plummeted 43 percent over the next four days.. A more cautious investor would do well to sit back and see what the stock does for a few days, waiting for a dip, rather than buying at the initial asking price.

Look at the Underwriters

You don’t have a crystal ball to know whether a stock is going to do well. You can, however, look to experts who are intimately involved in the process and keep an eye on what they’re doing. Underwriters work in two ways: “best effort” and “firm commitment.” You’re going to want to buy stocks where the underwriters have made a firm commitment.

This means that, as part of their investment deal, they have to buy a certain amount of stock. They then attempt to resell this stock at something resembling the IPO price. This means their financial welfare is directly tied to the success or failure of the company. When an underwriter invests on a firm commitment basis, you know they have faith in the company.

“Best effort?” Not so much. If a company doesn’t have underwriters with full faith in it, why should you?

Investing In New Companies For The Extra Cautious

Perhaps the most cautious course of action you can take is to wait for the lock-up period to end. Even if the company is sound, with a good business plan and a product or service that people are interested in, the stock’s value might drop sharply after the lock-up period is over. This can be the ideal time to buy, as the excess stocks flood the market and depress the price.

Do Your Research

As with any investment instrument, you need to do your due diligence before you purchase a stock. A company’s prospectus is available for any potential investor to peruse prior to the IPO. In fact, you can find them online on the Securities and Exchange Commission’s website.

Don’t let your desire to get rich quick have you throwing your money down the toilet. Be patient, do research, see what other investors are doing – and then you’ll be better equipped to invest in an IPO.

“The Do’s and Don’ts of IPO Investing” was written by Nicholas Pell, a freelance writer living in Los Angeles.  

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From saunas to serene city views, these are the most relaxing spa-style apartments in Denver.

As one of the most active and fastest-growing cities in the country, Denver has a lot to offer. With everything from skiing to river rafting to barhopping all close by, it can be tough to carve out time for yourself.

One way to make it easier to prioritize personal time is to move to an apartment complex that provides all the spa-style amenities you crave. The apartment communities that grace this list are some of the best-equipped abodes in Mile High City to help you unwind.

Source: Rent. / Bromwell

It’s darn near impossible to stay stressed at a rooftop spa. Bromwell provides residents with an expansive rooftop pool and hot tub area complete with cabanas, loungers and views of Alamo Placita and beyond.

Along with a luxury spa-style pool and hot tub area, Bromwell also boasts a number of indoor and outdoor shared spaces that all provide residents with everything they need to unwind and forget about the stresses of the week. Whether you’re a Sunday soaker or a cabana coffee drinker, there’s something for you at Bromwell.

Source: Rent. / The Seasons of Cherry Creek

The Seasons of Cherry Creek is one of the only apartment complexes in Denver that houses an on-site sauna. A great place to cure sore muscles, detox after a big weekend, improve circulation and more, it’s here that you’ll find the benefits of regular sauna sessions are all-encompassing.

Located in the highly sought-after Cherry Creek neighborhood, this beautiful complex also boasts a huge resort-style pool, wine cellar, private art collection and a communal firepit. The long list of amenities at this luxury complex provides resources to detox, retox and everything in between. Long story short, stress isn’t going to find you here.

Source: Rent. / The Quincey

The outdoor pool and spa at The Quincey are truly second to none. With two side-by-side rectangular hot tubs situated next to the large rectangular lap pool, this glass-lined pool area is always pristine and the pride and joy of this exclusive community.

This Central Business District apartment complex also has a spa specifically for the four-legged residents. This pet spa is so nice that it just might have your dog begging for bath time. Beyond that, The Quincey also provides residents with a yoga studio and stretching area that is the ideal spot to work out the demons of a long week or meditate before heading to work on a Monday morning.

Source: Rent. / The York on City Park

The York on City Park boasts one of the coolest communal areas you’re ever going to find. Centered around a mid-century modern fireplace, the indoor lounge at this City Park apartment complex invites residents to step back in time and unplug from the stresses of daily life by getting lost in the fire and wilderness view outside the large windows.

The York on City Park also boasts a beautiful outdoor pool area. While the pool may be slightly too small for swimming laps, it is the perfect size for relaxing, lounging and breathing in that fresh mountain air. Regardless of what’s going on with the weather, you always have somewhere to escape to at The York on City Park.

Source: Rent. / Gables Cherry Creek Apartments

With beautiful stonework around the spa and a stunning view from the pool, the rooftop at Gables Cherry Creek Apartments is one of the more relaxing places in Denver to spend a day (or an entire weekend).

This Belcaro beauty also houses an onsite pet spa, spin studio and multiple communal lounges with comfortable furniture, WiFi and unobstructed views of the city. Crack open a book, kick off a conversation with a neighbor or find a quiet place to sit and think about the twists and turns life takes. Regardless of what your relaxation goals are, all the resources you need to meet them can be found at Gables Cherry Creek Apartments.

Source: Rent. / EVIVA on Cherokee

The pool at EVIVA on Cherokee is one of the more distinctly styled apartment swimming areas you’re ever going to find. With an oval shape and city views alongside a half-circle-shaped green space equipped with lounge chairs and a hammock, this is a sweet place to hang out and let stress slip away.

This Capitol Hill apartment complex also boasts a light-filled, street-level lounge with floor-to-ceiling windows, designer furniture and a coffee bar. This is in addition to the on-site yoga studio and demonstration kitchen. Whether you like relaxing by the pool, working on your flexibility or whipping up a healthy meal, you can do it all just steps from your front door at EVIVA on Cherokee.

Source: Rent. / Gables Vista

The elevated pool area at Gables Vista is a serene place to soak up the sun and breathe in the mountain air. With a side-by-side pool and hot tub, lounge chairs under umbrellas, and stellar views of the city, Gables Vista is a great place to unwind and find your inner peace.

This Belcaro apartment complex also boasts a covered open-air dog run so you can walk your furry friend in the winter without having to traverse the snow. It’s forward-thinking amenities like this that make Gables Vista one of the premier spa-style apartments in Denver.

Source: Rent. / Steele Creek Apartments

Steele Creek Apartments is an undeniably relaxing place to call home. One of the main amenities that give it that distinction is the on-site yoga studio. With dark wood flooring, mirrored walls and a large flat screen for guided classes, you can always stretch and decompress in this serene space.

Located in the heart of Cherry Creek, this upscale apartment community also boasts a thin, rectangular rooftop pool with stunning views and an elevated fire table area, perfect for cold Denver days and chilly summer nights. Take a dip or take a sip. Either way, you’re soaking in a stellar view and breathing the fresh mountain air.

Source: Rent. / AMLI RiNo Apartments

AMLI RiNo is an amenity-heavy apartment community in Curtis Park. Curated to provide residents with everything they need to relax and unwind, this expansive 390-unit complex offers spa-like amenities at every turn.

AMLI RiNo boasts numerous luxuriously adorned indoor and outdoor communal areas, a resort-style pool and a rooftop deck. Beyond that, this complex backs right up to the South Platte River Trail. This beautiful treelined trail has water views and is the perfect place to clear your head or do some breathwork in peace.

Source: Rent. / Sentral Union Station

The lobby area just off the expansive fitness center at Sentral Union Station is one of the best-designed and most spacious apartment common areas in existence. With an aesthetic that’s part Apple Store, part WeWork and part serene escape, this is the perfect place to crack open a book or spark up a conversation. Either way, the stress of the day will never find you here.

Just blocks away from Coors Field, this complex benefits from being in the middle of it all. With all the hustle and bustle going on outside, Sentral Union Station does a great job of separating itself from the buzz of the outside world and provides residents with a safe haven to relax and recharge.

Decompress from your home in Denver

It doesn’t matter if your favorite form of relaxation is hopping in the pool, sitting around the fire, cracking open a good book or anything in between, the apartments on this list offer the most comprehensive spa-style amenities in Denver. Find the one that fits your lifestyle best and fill out your application today.

Featured image source: Rent. / Steele Creek Apartments

Source: rent.com

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For the longest time I vowed that I would never pay for cable or satellite TV.

For the first 33 years of my life, I didn’t, and I got along just fine.  My wife and I do enjoy movies and TV, but we had found ways to get our favorite shows without paying the high cost for TV service.

This past month my wife and I made a decision to get cable TV.  I didn’t really want to get cable, but my wife wanted to because she doesn’t enjoy the process of watching streaming video through our Xbox as much as I do.

She enjoys the ability to just turn on the TV, flip through the channels and just watch something without having to look up a certain show. She also enjoys  the social aspect of watching TV by being able to talk with friends about certain shows the day after they air.  Me – not so much.

I understand her reasoning for wanting to get service, so I gave in.  However, that didn’t mean I wasn’t going to do my best to get a great deal.

Researching The Best Cable And Satellite TV Deals

Once we had decided that we were going to get cable TV, I moved into the next phase – research mode.  I started saving all of the cable and satellite TV flyers that we received in the newspaper and in the mail looking for the best possible deal on cable.   The deals I found were ok, but nothing to write home about.   I kept them all just in case I could hobble together a deal of my own.

Next I tried finding a good deal or promotion on TV service through an online reseller or physical store.  A lot of them will have rebate programs available that will give you big incentives if you sign up. One offered me a $100 Amazon gift card if I signed up.  The only problem with a lot of these sites or stores is that most of them are selling you cable service at a higher price than  you should be paying.  For example, for cable tv service with comcast (who we ended up going with), most of the resellers were charging $54.95 for the package we ended up getting for much less.  So you may be getting rebates and bonuses, but you’re paying for it through higher monthly subscription prices.

After checking all the reseller sites trying to find a deal I moved on to one of my favorite resources, online deals forums.  Through those forums I was able to do a search for all of the latest deals that people had been able to find through Comcast, Dish Network and AT&T TV Now .  Many of those deals were much better than anything I had been able to find online or in the newspaper.

After some more research on I found that most people weren’t able to get the great deals on their cable bill just by ordering service through the website, or by phone.  The trick was to go on the company’s online chat and to work with the sales agents on there.  From what I could gather, the agents when you call are actually Comcast employees, and they toe a hard line on giving discounts or special deals.

The chat agents are outsourced, and are more likely to give you a deal.  I found the chat agents much more helpful later on when I was ordering.

Ordering Cable TV Service

After doing our research we finally decided that we’d rather have cable TV service since we didn’t want to have a satellite dish mounted on our garage.

The pricing seemed comparable – as did the channel lineup.  So we proceeded to try and find the best deal through the website,  over the phone and through the online chat.

Through The Website

Cable TV in our area comes mainly through Comcast, so we set about finding the best possible deal on digital cable through them.

After checking the website for special deals or discounts – the best deal that I could find on service was for 6 months of their digital starter package for $29.99 plus $15 rental every month for the HD DVR cable box.  $44.99 a month for the service we wanted.  After the first 6 months the pricing would revert back to $54.99 a month plus $15 rental.   $69.99 a month after the first 6 months!

No thank you.

Over The Phone

Next I called Comcast’s phone agents to see what type of a deal I could talk them into over the phone.  Over the phone they offered me a similar deal to the one I had seen on the website, except they offered to throw in the HD DVR box for 1/2 price.  So it would be $36.99 a month for 6 months for everything.

That’s a little better than on the website, but I wasn’t satisfied.

I hung up and called back to get another agent.  This agent wouldn’t go any further than the other one, they would give me 1/2 off on HD DVR service, but no free premium channels or further discounts.  Even after telling the agents that I knew other people had gotten a better deal, they wouldn’t budge.  Time to move on to the chat.

Through The Online Chat

I clicked on the chat icon through Comcast’s support section, and was quickly transferred to the “sales chat”.

I told the agent that I was trying to get a deal that I knew several other people on the forums had gotten.   I wanted to get the digital starter package for $29.99 with 1/2 price HD DVR, for 1 year without price increase.   I didn’t want to worry about the price going up after only 6 months.

The chat agent quickly agreed to the deal, which made me realize that maybe I could get a little more out of him.  I told him I still wasn’t sure I wanted to move ahead with it.  He said that if I signed up now, he would also throw in HBO free for 1 year.  Normally HBO can cost up to $15/month. With that I agreed to sign up.

So here’s what I got.

  • 1 year Digital Starter Cable TV Package: Normally $54.99/month – we got it for $29.99/month. (we got an extra 6 months of this deal by chatting)
  • HD DVR cable box: Normally $15/month – we got it for $7.00/month.
  • Free HBO: Normally $15/month – we got it for free for 1 year.  We’ll cancel after that.
  • Total: Normally our cable package would end up costing $84.99/month. We’re currently paying $36.99/month.

Things To Remember When Signing Up For Cable Or Satellite

When buying cable or satellite tv there are a few things you can do to ensure that you get the best possible deal.

  • Research the best deals:  Save all the flyers and circulars you get, do internet searches for online resellers, and check deals forums to find what kind of deals other people are getting on service.   Once you know what deals others are getting, it’ll give you a better idea of what to shoot for.
  • Figure out what kind of deal you want:  After finding out what deals are available, figure out what package you want, what price you’d like to pay, and what (if any) extras you want.   Since you’ve already done the research to find out what the best deals are that others are getting, you can now use those as a baseline for your own deal.
  • Contact the company through phone, website, chat: Contact the cable or satellite TV company through different contact methods.  Sometimes  you’ll find that one method is more successful than others at getting you discounts, free premium channels and other bonuses.    For us the online chat at Comcast had the most friendly agents who were willing to give the best deal.  Make sure to get it in writing!
  • When your promo period ends, re-negotiate your deal!: One of the biggest mistakes that a lot of people make is to not re-negotiate their cable deal with their 6 month or 1 year promo period ends.   That means their monthly bill jumps from $30-40 up to $70-100! Don’t make that same mistake.  Make sure that you re-negotiate your deal when it comes due, and make sure that you continue paying only as much as you need to.  If they don’t give  you the same or a better deal, cancel!

Do you have your own suggestions or tips for getting a good deal on cable TV?  Do you have ways that you save on your TV bill?  Have an experience signing up for service that you’d care to share?  Tell us about it in the comments!

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Source: biblemoneymatters.com