Why People Are Stealing Tomatoes

With new scandals in the papers every day, it’s hard to shock us.


Hiding a secret love child? Old news. Texting inappropriate pics? Yawn.

But stealing tomatoes? Now you’ve got our attention.

This year, thieves executed a successful heist of more than $250,000 of Florida tomatoes—six tractor-trailers full of fruit. And believe it or not, this unusual pilfer may be a direct result of current economic trends.

Why Tomatoes?

The real culprit is inflation: Tomato prices have recently experienced greater than normal inflation due to an unusually cold winter in Mexico. Freezing temperatures badly damaged the tomato crop, and the price rose from $1.84 per pound last year to a whopping $2.44 per pound earlier this year. The tomato price spike even led some fast food chains like Wendy’s to distribute tomatoes on burgers by request only (policies vary by franchise, so this may or may not have impacted you).

Given the price hikes in grocery stores, selling Florida tomatoes on the black market has suddenly become a very profitable proposition. To pull off the heist, thieves set up a bogus trucking company to trick farmers into giving away their precious produce. You say “tomato,” I say “payday.”

It’s Not Just Tomatoes, Either

While the bad weather in Mexico has made tomato inflation particularly striking, price inflation is affecting all aisles in the grocery store. Disruptions in normal weather patterns as well as rising energy costs have contributed to price inflation for food this year. Beef and pork prices rose 10.4% from April 2010 to April 2011, milk prices rose 10.9% and coffee prices rose 13.8%.

This year, it’s estimated that food inflation will be between 4.5% and 5.5%, leading to a notable hike in food prices—especially since last year.

Meanwhile, total inflation, which takes into account all goods and services, was at 3.6% this May—another big jump, considering that the 2010 average inflation rate was 1.6% and the 2009 rate was negative, at -0.4%. Over the past century, the average total inflation has historically been a little more than 3%.

It’s estimated that food inflation will be between 4.5% and 5.5%, leading to a notable hike in food prices—especially since last year.

The Things People Steal…

Rising inflation may be the culprit behind a rash of other weird thefts around the country. Some people in California have been knocking down power poles and stealing the copper wiring inside them. The price of copper has risen high enough to make this a profitable undertaking: In 2009, copper sold for $1.25 per pound, whereas it now costs about $4 per pound.

It doesn’t end there. According to The New York Times, thieves have stolen at least $315,000 of human hair from salons in Texas, Michigan, Illinois and California. As demand for human hair has increased due to beauty trends, prices for high quality hair have gone up. Two years ago, burglars broke into a beauty supply store in Chicago and robbed its cash register; this year, thieves broke into the same store and took $90,000 of human hair instead.

Stay Afloat, Despite Inflation

From tomatoes to copper wiring, inflation erodes the value of a dollar because it takes more money to buy the same items as before. Let’s say that you put $1,000 in your desk drawer. Assuming inflation continues at the average rate of 3%, your $1,000 will have the buying power of only about $450 in 20 years. Even though you won’t have lost money in the literal sense—you still have $1,000 dollars—your money will have less buying power.

Make Your Money Work For You

To avoid having your savings eroded, ensure that the money you have is also earning money. You could do that by putting it into a savings account or a CD, but those interest rates are generally only a little over 1%. If inflation is around 3%, that’s not enough.

The best way to make returns that keep pace with inflation is to invest your money–whether in a retirement account or a regular brokerage account. Investing comes with risks, but historically the stock market returns about 7% on average (with some good years and some bad years), which beats the rate of inflation with room to spare.

Resources: LearnVest.com
Thanks Mom for the great article

7 Everyday Products That are Linked to Cancer

This article really caught my eye as I have had many customers ask if I flame retardant my car seat covers. We do not! Please read the paragraph below on the dangers of flame retardant chemicals. In fact, replacing your current cover with our cover is much safer for your baby.

Are Americans “bombarded with…dangerous exposures” to cancer-causing toxins, as a scary report from the President’s Cancer Panel contends? Of more than 80,000 chemicals on the US market--some found in products used by millions of people in daily life—only a few hundred have ever been tested for safety, warns the report, released in May. Yet these largely unregulated chemicals, including some linked to cancer risk, are now so ubiquitous in our environment that 300 contaminants have been detected in the umbilical cord blood of newborns, leading the authors to warn that babies are born “pre-polluted.”


Over a lifetime, 41 percent of Americans will develop cancer, and 21 percent will die from it. While the leading culprits include smoking, obesity, and sun exposure, a variety of common products—some of them quite surprising—can also be triggers, according to the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). Here’s a guide to seven known or probable carcinogens:

•Coffee: There’s hot debate brewing about the health effects of coffee, since it lifts risk for some cancers and cuts risk for others. A 1991 IARC report linked drinking coffee to increased risk for bladder cancer, while a study released in May found that men who consumed six or more cups daily were 60 percent less likely to develop fatal prostate cancer. Quaffing two or more cups a day raises lung cancer risk by 14 percent, according to a 2010 review. Classification: Probable carcinogen.

•Flame retardant baby products: In the 1970s, the flame retardant Tris was removed from kids’ sleepwear as a suspected carcinogen. In May, a study found chlorinated Tris in more than one-third of the polyurethane foam baby products tested, including nursing pillows, car seats, baby carriers and high chairs. A program within the EPA not only has identified the chemical as a cancer hazard, but also reports that animal studies link it to developmental defects, anemia, liver failure and reproductive problems. Classification: Probable carcinogen.

•Talcum powder: Widely used to keep skin dry and prevent rashes, talcum powder may cause ovarian cancer if applied to the female genitals. Particles from sanitary napkins, diaphragms, condoms and talcum power applications could travel through the vagina, uterus and fallopian tubes to the ovaries. An analysis of data from 16 studies found a 30 percent rise in ovarian cancer risk among talcum users. A safe alternative is cornstarch powder, which is not linked to cancer. Classification: Possible carcinogen.

•Alcohol: Nearly 10 percent of cancers in men—and 3 percent in women—are sparked by drinking too much alcohol, German researchers reported in April. They calculate that in the eight European countries studied, about 54,500 cases of alcohol-related cancer, such as cancers of the upper digestive tract, colon, liver and breast (in women), would have been prevented in 2008 if women limited themselves to no more than one alcoholic drink a day and men to two drinks. Classification: Known carcinogen.

•Hormone replacement therapy: Used to relieve menopause symptoms and delivered as a pill, patch or vaginal ring, hormone replacement therapy may involve estrogen alone or a combination of estrogen and progesterone. The Women’s Health Initiative study reports that daily use raised women’s risk for breast cancer by five to six percent for each year HRT was taken. Estrogen-only HRT more quintuples risk for uterine cancer. Doctors advise women who use HRT to take it for the shortest possible time. Classification: Known carcinogen.

•Salted fish. Eating salted fish, a popular food in Asian countries, raises risk for cancers of the nose, stomach and colon. Studies also link consumption of highly salty foods, including fish, to increased threat of ovarian and prostate cancer. Also be wary of caviar: A 2010 study of 77,500 Japanese men and women found that those who ate salted fish roe the most frequently had the highest overall rate of cancer. Classification: Known carcinogen.

•Tanning beds: There’s no such thing as a “healthy tan.” Some tanning beds emit 10 to 15 times more UV radiation than the midday sun. A 2010 study found that young people who have ever used a tanning bed are 1.41 times more likely to get melanoma, the most deadly form of skin cancer, and those who have used them 10 or more times have double the risk. Melanoma rates in young women have tripled over the past 30 years, largely due to use of tanning beds. Classification: Known carcinogen.

Resources: YahooHealth

Inexpensive Recreation Ideas

As Summer approaches, I thought this would be some good info for families.
Recreation doesn't have to be expensive to be fun.


Try some of these ideas:
◦Seasonal Activities
■Winter: Ice Skating, sledding etc

◦Annual Events
■Horse Show / Livestock show
■Parades / Rodeos

◦High school / Colleges
■Concerts
■Drama productions
■Sporting events

◦Nature
■City, State and National Parks

◦Field Trips
■Factory tours—candy, bread and milk
■Farms—dairy, egg, and horses

■Tours—newspaper, post office, airport and radio / TV station
◦Museums (look for free admission days)

◦Political / Patriotic / Historical
■State capitol tour
■Presidential Museums
■Historical reenactments

◦Upcoming Holidays
■Easter—Church Musicals
■Fourth of July—Fireworks / picnics

◦At Home Fun
■Board Game Nights
■Charades
■Volleyball / Basketball
■Flag Football

•Tools to use
◦Entertainment book (discount coupons)
◦AAA Tour Books
◦National Parks Pass
•For a more detailed list and explanation, read Chapter 10 of America's Cheapest Family Gets You Right on The Money

Resources: AmericasCheapestFamily.com

Tiny House Design~Frugal Mompreneur

We downsized through the years so we could make our move to the Yucatan. I loved this article about tiny houses.

Brian “Ziggy” Liloia just finished a book documenting the process of building his tiny cob house at the Dancing Rabbit Ecovillage. The book is titled The Year of Mud: Building a Cob House.

Ziggy began construction in April of 2008 and moved in on July 11, 2009, but the story didn’t end there. He quickly learned what worked and didn’t work with his original design and made changes to make the home more comfortable. For example a novel bed design heated by a rocket stove didn’t work out as expected – so Ziggy got out his pickaxe and shovel and replaced it with a tiny wood stove before the winter snows came.

The lessons folks like this learn through their explorations can help us all make better choices for ourselves. I’m really greatful to those that share their experiences through blogging and who take the time to put it in print.

Read more of Ziggy's blog at The Year Of Mud: Building A Cob House

How perfume / Cologne / Fragrance samples can help you find the right fragrances to add to your collection

This is not a paid advertisement. I just thought this was a great idea, as I know you can easily waste money over the years looking for that perfect scent.

Finding the right new fragrance for your collection is sometimes tough. There’s so many different colognes, perfumes, and fragrances out there where do you start? Finding the right perfume ‘flavor’ is a bit like researching information in a report or paper. You need to wade through the mass of mens and womens perfumes, reviews, and recommendations to find the right scent for your collection.


Well, that’s where perfume samples come in. A Perfume Sample is designed to give a man or a woman a brief look into a specific fragrance (or fragrances if you purchase one of our multiple sample sets).

What we first recommend is to purchase the samples from our Online designer fragrance store that interest you.
When your samples arrive, open each vial and put a dab of cologne on a strip of paper. Take a sniff of each cologne or perfume. If you don’t have strips of paper you can simply open the vials. We also recommend that you take a sniff of fresh coffee beans between testing each vial and limit the amount of fragrances you smell in one sitting so that your olfactory senses do not burn out.

Once you have narrowed down the fragrances you wish to explore further (to add to your collection), we suggest taking one sample at a time and putting a dab of perfume / fragrance / cologne on your wrist and inhaling the scent periodically. Keep in mind that this part of the process will take a few hours per sample. The goal of smelling each perfume sample is for you to develop your feelings about the fragrance.

Parfums Raffy has over 220 perfume samples in stock and we’re sure we can find the best fragrance to add to your collection!

This list is but a small fraction of the discount brand name perfume samples we have in Stock:

•Escada perfume samples

•Calvin Klein perfume samples

•Montale perfume samples

•Elizabeth Arden perfume samples

•Creed perfume samples

•Amouage perfume samples

•Perry Ellis perfume samples

•Crown perfume samples

•Raffy Fragrances perfume samples

•Single Note Perfume Samples – Only found At Parfums Raffy!!!

Parfums Raffy designer fragrance shop also offers free Creed designer perfume samples with selected orders. Check out our site for more details.

http://www.parfumsraffy.com/

Recovering From A Lay-Off

Recovering From A Lay-Off

It should come as no surprise to anyone who has involuntarily lost their job that this is one of life's greatest stressors, especially if your lay-off was completely unexpected. Suddenly, you are hit with the one-two punch of loss of income and the loss of purpose and companionship which you may have received from your job. The good news is there are strategies you can make use of to get you through this challenge and come out stronger and wiser by the time you land your next job.

Take Care of Yourself Emotionally

For some people, the loss of a job can bring on a mourning process similar to the loss of a loved one. This is especially true if you have been in a particular career for most of your working life and had a lot of your personal identity tied up in your job title. It is important to allow yourself the time to grieve and experience any feelings of sadness or anger that you have. If you are able to process your emotions, you will get to a point where you accept the situation faster.

As important as it is to grieve, do your best not to get stuck there. If you feel thoughts of embarrassment, anger or depression threatening to take over, focus on reframing that thought in a more positive light. For example, let's say that you have always wanted to be a writer, but circumstances forced you to take a job in another field and you put off your dream indefinitely. Remind yourself that you have been given the gift of time and then try to use it to your advantage to figure out what you might really want to do next.

How to Go About Looking for a New Job

You have probably heard the expression that looking for a job is a full-time job in itself, and that is certainly true. You would be wise to consider job hunting your new career for the time being. Start by making a schedule each day and deciding how much time you are going to set aside to write your resume, search job ads, network with others in your field and go on interviews. If you find that you still have a lot of free time, consider getting a part-time job to get you out of the house.

Give Yourself a Break

Recovering from a lay-off and then being forced to look for a new job can both be very taxing. As your schedule permits, allow yourself time for a walk, exercise or visiting with friends and family. It will do wonders to recharge your battery while you are in the job search mode.

This guest article was contributed by Jennifer Bell from Health Training Guide.  Check out her site to learn more about medical records training and other exciting health careers.

The 10 Golden Rules of Saving on Everything~Frugal Mompreneur Tips

You resolved to save more this year, but it's just not happening. Take heart -- it's still early in the year. Use these tips and you're guaranteed to spend less on the things you want.

You'll find thousands of individual tips to save money online on virtually everything you buy, from groceries to funerals. But when you boil it down, most ways to save can be condensed into some simple rules -- use them and you'll painlessly find ways to meet your savings goals. Here are 10 ways to save:

More from MoneyTalksNews.com: • My 10 Dumbest Money Moves -- and How You Can Avoid Them • Money in a Minute -- Today's Top Stories • Mortgage Rates 2011 -- Predictions From 6 Experts

1. Never buy new what you can buy used.
That brand-new sparkle comes at a high price, on everything from cars to furniture to clothes. Let somebody else take the hit. Instead of heading to the department store, head to the consignment store, thrift shop, yard sale, or sites like Craigslist or eBay.

2. Never buy this generation when last generation will do.
Ignore the commercials that entice you to buy the latest and greatest. From cars to computers, buying yesterday's technology can save you 20-50 percent. Early adopters are often paying for nothing more than bragging rights -- why not wait and brag about how much money you saved?

3. Always ask for a lower price.
People say you get what you pay for. We say you get what you ask for. In addition to negotiating more traditional things like houses and cars, our writers have succeeded in scoring lower prices on hotel rooms, doctor's visits, cable bills, and car repairs, as well as asking for and receiving lower rates on loans and higher rates on savings.

From now on, consider the price of services or big-ticket items as what they are: an opening bid.

4. Stop paying for name brands.
What's in a name? Often nothing more than a higher cost. Paying more is OK if the higher cost means higher quality. But it's not OK to pay more simply to help pay for some company's annoying commercials.

One of many examples: More often than not, generic patent medicines like aspirin and cough syrup aren't similar to their brand-name counterparts. They're identical. There's only one reason anyone would pay up to 50 percent more for an identical item -- some commercial told them to.

5. Share with your friends and neighbors.
It's probably not practical to share a car with your neighbor, but what about his ladder, or your lawn mower? If it's something neither of you need to use on a regular basis -- and you get along well enough -- get together with one or more people on your block and form a neighborhood co-op. In addition to reducing the cost of common household items by 50 percent or more, you also reduce clutter.

And if you use something really infrequently, rent it instead of buying it.

6. Try to substitute imagination for money.
People often pay for pre-packaged ideas by habit when they could easily come up with lower-cost ideas that are also better. Instead of buying cards and gifts, make your own. Instead of taking your date to a restaurant, take her on a picnic. Instead of meeting at a bar, have your friends over. Instead of heading to hotel, camp out.

Use your mind instead of your money and your life will be more interesting and less expensive.

7. Try to make it or fix it yourself.
Just because something's available in a store doesn't mean that's the only place you can buy it. There are alternatives to expensive household cleaners, do-it-yourself laundry detergent and household products vinegar can replace.

From homemade items to home repairs to growing your own food, you can save a bundle by using your hands instead of cash. And you can find help with just about anything online.
Additional benefit? You feel more independent, because you are.

8. Always use the Internet.
While using the Internet to comparison shop should be obvious, there are new techniques and technologies evolving constantly. For example, PriceBlink: This browser add-on automatically searches for a lower price and/or coupons on anything you're looking at or searching for online.
Don't ever buy anything online or off without first searching the web to see if you can find a coupon or discount. But the Internet is a double-edged sword ...

9. Never subscribe to "deal" websites.
While it's smart to be able to find online coupons and deals on the things you want, it's dumb to allow websites to fill your in-box with dozens of potential impulse buys. Tell the Internet what you need: Don't let the Internet (or TV commercials or your friends) tell you what you want.

10. Sell before you buy.
Before you buy anything you want, make it a habit to first sell something you don't. Your garage and closets are full of stuff you no longer use. So before you go to the store or click that online "checkout" button, stop. Put off the purchase -- first, take some clothes to the consignment shop, or take a picture of something you're no longer using and put it on Craigslist. It only takes a minute.

As soon as it sells, apply the money to the purchase you were going to make. Now you've saved on something you wanted, and gotten rid of something you didn't.
Resources: MoneyTalkNews.com