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Internet Safety Tutorial #2 – Opening Email-HaliPawz

So it is time for another Internet Safety Tutorial. I know that our email in boxes can get inundated with email and we don’t always have the time to go through them, especially for those that just have one email address (or addy for short). I will address that in another tip. Today is just about keeping yourself safe when you are opening email.

The first thing I want to say is that if you EVER receive an email from a “family member” saying that they were traveling overseas and their wallet was stolen, please send money….DO NOT SEND MONEY!!!!! EVER!!!!! What happened is somehow, their Social Media site (generally Facebook) was hacked and they are email everyone in their friends list. I know for those of you that are reading this that are not internet savvy, it is difficult to understand how this all happens, but trust me, it does. A family member would NEVER contact you this way. I know that it seems like it is coming from their email and you want to help a loved one, but it would never happen that way. Do not do it. PLEASE!!!! Side note, even though this is about Internet Safety, the same would go for a phone call from a third-party. Never send money because you think a family member is stranded somewhere unless you talk to THAT family member directly! Even overseas, if something like that should happen to a family member, there are places they could go, their hotel would let them contact you, the police, US Embassy, etc. It would not be through a third-party that you do not know!

Now, that leads me to opening email in general. For the most part, the email you receive is safe and you do not have to worry about it. The ones I am focusing on in this blog are the ones that seem to trip some people up.

The first one I am going to focus on is when it looks legitimate at first glance but it shows up in your junk email. Use the filters in your junk email for a reason! They catch things internally that you might not always see at first glance.

I recently received an email Titled “expedited Shipping” Now, I have been ordering a few things lately, so I thought, maybe it isn’t really junk mail, it’s a notice of something arriving. Then I opened it and I realized right away that it was junk. Not everyone would though.

This is what it looked like:

Screen shot of potential dangerous junk mail

Screen shot of potential dangerous junk mail

If you notice, it has USPS on it, so you would think that it was sent from them. But it wasn’t the typical logo and style of USPS so that had me on alert. If you weren’t familiar with their style of email or if you didn’t catch subtle things like that, it might have you fooled.

With my notes

With my notes

Now, here are some basic steps to help keep you safe. The first thing you want to do is look for the email address of the sender….not just what they listed as the title. For example, “Expedited Shipping” isn’t their email address, all email addresses end in XXXXXXXX@something.com always look at the name AFTER the @ sign. That is the key to who it is from. If you are looking at the email from a tablet or smart phone, you may have to click more or click on the name to see the email address. It is IMPORTANT that you do that! In this case, this was the email address:

The Email Address

The Email Address

It was clear that it was not from anyone at the USPS. If it was, the email would have been something like
XXXXXXXX@USPS.com At this point, you would be best to just delete it and move on.

For those that like to go the extra step to prove that it isn’t the right thing to do….If you notice in the pic up above, I said that you could right-click on the “Print Address Label” and copy the path. If you are looking at the email on your computer, you can also often click properties after you right-click and it will show you the path. For this blog, I am showing you a sample of what it would look like on an iPhone. I held down over the “Print Address Label” and then clicked “copy”. From there, I opened up a blank text message screen, held down over the area you text in, and clicked “paste”. This is what it showed me….

The path

The path

The sender’s whole goal is to get you to click on “Print Address Label” In doing this, it may have allowed them to put a virus on your computer, it may have allowed them access to your computer to get into your files. There is no telling WHY and WHAT they had in mind. By doing these few extra steps, you can save yourself a lot of headache.

Another popular trick that is happening is that the sender’s name may be a name you recognize, maybe even someone you have emailed in the past, and the spelling is the exact same….do not be fooled! If it ended up in your JUNK or SPAM folder, there is probably a reason. Or if it just says “Web Page for __________ (your name)” BE SUSPICIOUS!!!! Chances are, it’s SPAM.

Junk or spam from a name I know

Junk or spam from a name I know

Now, because it was in my junk email AND it was just a generic title, I took the one extra step and click to see the email address. This is what I saw:

Email Addy not right

Email Addy not right

These are just a few of the examples of how to protect yourself from opening bad emails or causing damage to your computer or your personal information.

I hope this helps.

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Driver License Proposal

With all this media attention about animals and children being left in hot cars, I have a proposal.

Every potential driver in the United States has to sit in a car. The windows have to be cracked about a half-inch each. The car in a room that has UV and “sun rays” equivalent to an 85 degree day. I say 85 because I think that a lot of people don’t realize how hot 85 degrees is. When we go from an air-conditioned building or home to a car that cools down pretty quickly on an 85 degree day, we don’t always get that “man it’s hot out” feeling like we do at 95 degree weather.

As they are sitting in this vehicle, they can not turn it on. The timer starts as soon as the door shuts. They have to just sit in that car until they cannot stand it anymore and have to get out. Once the door is opened again, the timer stops. I think everyone would think twice about leaving their child or animal in the car with the windows “cracked” after they did this test. Once the test is complete and they have passed everything else, THEN they can get their license.

I wonder how many lives we would save if this was a requirement?

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Internet Safety Tutorial #1 – Facebook Giveaways – HaliPawz

It happens to the best of us. We get overwhelmed with everything on social media and we miss those dreaded problem sites. Those moments a friend or family member shares or likes a posting on Facebook from companies that are just using it to spam their friends! I recently was talking to a couple of family members about when to click and when not to and they had no clue about some of the basic tell-tale signs so I thought I would take the time to help educate everyone. Will this stop all of the SPAM? No, not at all. Will it help? YES!!!! Please do some due diligence before you start clicking and liking pages on Facebook. This first tutorial is focused on those amazing giveaways that everyone wants to win.

Here are a couple of steps to keep you and your friends from getting hacked or SPAM.

Step 1. LOOK at the offer. I mean, REALLY look at the offer. If it seems like it is an amazing offer that a company has NEVER given away before…..chances are, it’s going to be easy to spot the tell-tale signs of a fake. You should already be on alert that there may be a problem with it.

Facebook giveaway

Facebook giveaway

Step 2. Click on the business name that is attached to the item being shared. It should take you to their business page or group page. This is where a lot of information is found. Do not go by the number of “likes” a business has because many people are duped. They believe that if their friend shared it, it must be reputable. NOT TRUE!!!! Once you are on that page, take a look at it. Is it a company you are familiar with? For the sake of this blog, I am using a giveaway that was posted for Southwest Airline. They are a large company that many people are familiar with. The first thing to look for is the spelling of the business. The actual spelling is Southwest Airlines (notice the s is missing from Airlines). Large corporations aren’t going to spell their business name wrong. The next thing to look for with a large corporation is a blue and white check mark after their name. That check mark means Facebook (and twitter) have done the work for you and verified that it is the legitimate company. I have included some samples for you to see the difference. Those two things right there will have you stopping the “share” before more people are affected.

Let’s talk about the smaller companies….the ones that Facebook hasn’t deemed big enough to verify. The first thing you want to look at is when was their Facebook page started? How many other posts are on the page? If that particular give-away is their ONLY post (even if it’s multiple times) then it probably isn’t a valid company. For example, I saw a couple of friends share a Camaro give-away from a smaller company. When I went to that site, the only posts were about that give-away and nothing else. The page had just been started in 2014. Chances are, a company that just entered into the world of social media doesn’t have the capital to give-away a $20,000+ prize. You can find all of their posts if you scroll down to the bottom of the page and click on “More posts”. Most companies doing a large give-away have been on Facebook for a few years.

Step 3. If you have done the following steps and you still aren’t sure if it the real thing…..go into the search box of Facebook and type in the company that you believe is doing the give-away. Find the one that has the verification mark next to it and go to their page. If there is no mention of the give-away, then it isn’t happening!

Verified and non Verified Southwest Airlines Companies

Verified and non Verified Southwest Airlines Companies

Another one that is shared a lot is Walt Disney Corporation. Here is an example of all of their verified entities and the fake ones

Verified Walt Disney Corp

Verified Walt Disney Corp

Step 4. IGNORE THE TEMPTATION TO SHARE BAD GIVEAWAYS!!!!! It’s that simple. You will help cut down on the dangerous SPAM emails that you and your friends receive that could potentially give your computer a virus or allow someone to hack into your Facebook to get detailed information on you.

The BAD company

The BAD company

Southwest Airlines

Southwest Airlines

Just taking a few extra seconds and paying attention to some small details will help keep your Facebook perusal safe and fun!

Thanks everyone!

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The Question is WHY? Baby left in car

I first want to say I am happy the baby is safe and sound. I never wish harm on any child, or adult for that matter. Unless of course, the adult has done harm to others!

My question is why….

Why was the child left alone in the car in the first place? Almost every gas station has “pay at the pump” so PAY AT THE PUMP! If you do not want to be bothered by getting your child out of the car and then back in, DO NOT LEAVE THE AREA! It’s as simple as that. Yes, it is sad that the day of walking away for a few minutes and everything being ok is gone. People have to start taking responsibility for their own actions! Don’t leave your child in a car and then wonder why something happened to your child. It’s not rocket science people!

My question is WHY…..

The other part of my question….IF you MUST leave your child in the car while you ran in to pay, WHY did you leave the vehicle in a position to be taken? Did you lock your doors? Did you take your keys? Did you leave the windows down all the way?

It would seem to me that; IF you rolled the windows down (ventilation), but locked the doors, and took the key, there would not have been time for a car jacking. They would have tried the door, locked…dang it, move on to the next vehicle. If they had enough time to pop the lock AND Hotwire the car, HOW LONG was the parent inside “paying” for gas??? This is summer!!! You shouldn’t have been away from your child that long! I don’t think anyone of legal driving age has the excuse “I didn’t know what could happen” when they leave a child or an animal in a hot car. Ignorance is NOT bliss!

My dogs love to travel in the car with me. The minute it starts hitting 70+ degrees out, I think before they go with me. Will I have to stop and get out and leave them? What is the high temp for the day? I know dogs are not children but I’m going somewhere with this. I THINK about the steps BEFORE I leave the house.

I travel with my dogs, sometimes even in the summer. That takes even more preparation. Here are my steps when I stop to get gas and / or use the restroom when I’m traveling with them.
1. Leave the windows down while I’m pumping gas. Talk to them. Make sure their heads can get out the window but not their bodies. Not always an easy task when one is 100+ pounds and the other is 18 pounds but I’m checking it and gauging the windows at that time. All windows EXCEPT the driver’s side window is down pretty far.
2. They have a water source. It used to be a big bowl, but the mastiff would tip it over. Now they have a double-sided cooler I had in my basement that I never used. It’s high enough to hold water and heavy enough to keep from tipping.
3. I lock the doors and take the key.
4. I set my timer on my phone for 5 minutes. If my timer goes off and I am not walking out the door yet, I put stuff down (if buying snacks, etc), go out, check on them, go back in and finish the transaction. I make sure to set my timer again as I go back in.

Does all that seem extreme, probably to some but I don’t care. I am the one responsible for their health and well-being, just as a parent is responsible for their child’s health and well-being. All these steps may sound like a lot, but in reality, they take 20-30 extra seconds (other than having to run back out after five minutes). If these same steps were being followed by parents that don’t want to take their child in to the gas station or corner store then we would have less incidents where a child dies or is taken in situations like this article. Proper planning and forethought is all it takes. Of course, I don’t recommend letting your child stick his head out the window! 🙂

Parenting, be it to two-legged babies or four-legged babies, isn’t easy. We make decisions for them all the time that we then look back on and say…. WHY did we do that? We can’t plan for everything ahead of time, but just stopping and thinking about all possible scenarios for a few seconds and then acting on it would probably stop a lot of the stupidity!

Have a great day all!

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/baby-girl-found-safe-after-she-went-missing-stolen-car-n138196

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Washer and Dryer Bliss

I had been putting off saying anything about this because I didn’t want to hear “wow, for someone not working, you are buying a lot” but I don’t care. I want to share my happiness. I had been nursing my washer & dryer for almost a year. The washer drained water into my basement every time it washed. It only worked on one speed and cycle and sometimes even that didn’t work if you didn’t balance the clothes in there just right. If they did get unbalanced, it would sound like a jackhammer. A couple weeks ago, my mom & I went to Nebraska Furniture Mart. I had done my research. Had the one I wanted picked out, etc. I completely changed my mind & ended up with a 4.8 cubic foot Samsung washer & Dryer. A week later, they were delivered. I LOVE it. I just wish they had mentioned the steam part on the dryer would need a longer hose than it came with if your water hook ups weren’t in the middle. I still don’t have that part hooked up. It is so nice to be able to put every bit of the darks in one load once a week (I used to do laundry about every 2-3 days) Of course it also helps that I’ve lost weight so I have more clothes to choose from. LOL I know it’s crazy to be so excited about a washer & dryer but I am. I love the look, the sounds they make (yes, that’s the geek in me), the efficiency. I even love the color of the lights on it! LOL It is the little things that excite me sometimes! Even the dryer lights up blue when you open it instead of boring white! It has a clear lid so I COULD watch my clothes wash the entire time. I haven’t done that YET but I’m sure I will at some point. LOL

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The painful step

Have you ever had one of those weeks that you felt like you were falling apart? I was having one of those weeks. It all started with the poison ivy. Now, I KNEW there was poison ivy around my tree in my back yard. I have been fighting with it for a few years now. It has never really been a problem for me, so I didn’t think a lot about it. I knew I was going to be closer to it because I was trying to kill it more, including killing the vines. I did what I was supposed to do, wore gloves, tried to be aware of what I was touching, but let’s face it, sometimes you just want to get the job done. I had my clippers out there, my weed eater, gloves, etc. Needless to say, a couple of days later, the skin around my eye is swollen (I vaguely remember wiping the sweat away with the back of my gloved hand), my knee is covered in bumps, and I am spotted all around with lovely little bumps. The first couple of days, they were irritated, but not too bad, I picked up some cortisone, and thought, Hey, I can get through this. Then the itching started! Oh the horror!!!! NOTHING could make it stop once it started itching. I scratched. Then I bled. Then I was mad at myself. Over a week later and I still have not healed completely. It has been horrible. What did I learn? Longer gloves, wear a hat to minimize the sweat running down my face, and wear pants, not shorts! Hopefully I will never have to endure it again.

So, all by itself, that sounds like a bad week. Oh no, I can’t stop there. My back starts hurting. First it was just a little irritated, took some Excedrin Back and Body (side note, if ANYONE reading this knows where I can still buy some of this, please tell me. Wal-Mart and Target do not carry it) So I take the Excedrin and it feels a little better, but still hurts. I don’t let it stop me. The next morning, I’m taking two more because it’s just not getting better. Went for a 2 mile walk later that day and I could feel every step going up my back. Decided it was time for something stronger so I picked up some Doan’s Back pain pills. Those always seem to work. Took 2, felt a little better, went on with my day. By the weekend, I was taking Tylenol 3 with Codeine and finally relaxing it a little. I still had to get the housework done, the horses fed, still had to lift my mom’s scooter in and out of the van, so I didn’t take the time to truly relax it, just lived with it the best I could until I could get in to my chiropractor.

All in all, a pretty painful week….but Still wasn’t the worst. I was downstairs in my basement and had to unplug my dehumidifier for a short time. Not a big deal, unplug it, get the other stuff done, and plug it back in again. Of course, I didn’t plug it back in right away, I got sidetracked with other things. I was downstairs moving something and took a step back. Pain went SHOOTING through my foot. WHAT THE H*LL????? That hurt!!! I have never been one to swear when I hurt myself, but that one cause more than one word to come out of my mouth. I have never had that much pain from stepping on something. I look down and see the plug to my dehumidifier. It hurt like you could not imagine. I’m walking funny, trying to will the pain away. Of course, walking funny causes more pressure on my back. It was a nightmare circle of pain.

I finally manage to limp upstairs and decide to lay down on the couch. I was not moving for a while! A few hours later, I went to stand up and pain shot through my foot again. WTH???? I’ve never had my foot hurt a few hours after stepping on something. I push down on my foot and I feel like I’m standing on a marble or something. Yes, I stepped so hard that it bruised but also became so inflamed that it was a little round bump right on my foot.

Of course, it was on left side of my left foot so the only way to see it was to twist my leg / back…..sending MORE pain through my back. I decided….I’ll just take a picture of it!

The painful step onto a plug

The painful step onto a plug

Nasty isn’t it? The blue circle may look small, but trust me, the pain was mighty! It lasted for over 4 days, where it hurt to even walk on it. For those that know me, they know that I love to walk around barefoot pretty much all summer. It is not common for me to have shoes on at all and when I do have shoes on, it is usually sandals or flip flops, so having something that painful made it difficult to walk, difficult to stand. I never want to go through that much pain on my foot again!

Here it is; almost the end of the week and my back is just now getting back to normal, thanks to a couple visits to the chiropractor. My foot pain is virtually gone, unless I step just right on it (which I try not to do) and my poison ivy is still hanging on.

All in all, I will be happy to have some pain free time anytime! I welcome it!

Have a great day everyone!

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Government Butting their nose in – HaliPawz

Is it just me or does it seem like President Obama is pushing his thoughts and ideas on everyone without a care or thought about what “We the People” want.  I shouldn’t just say President Obama, I should say all politicians in general.  I thought the whole purpose of government was for them to represent the majority of the people, but last time I checked, it seems like they don’t care about the people.  Do you know who they care about?  They care about the person / organization with the biggest pocketbook to help them in one way or another.  Instead of being so concerned about the whole, you wash my back I’ll wash yours mentality, we have to see that our country is failing in so many ways.  We have people shooting at people driving by them like they are playing a video game.  We have people not able to afford the new “forced” health insurance but they don’t qualify for assistance or Medicaid.  We have way too many people who “qualify” for Medicaid that should be forced to go out and get a job.  But if they get a job making $100, they lose $300 dollars.  What is WRONG with this system.  I’m not saying I have all of the answers, no one has all of them, but when you have people passing laws that have never had to experience they system, the laws are going to continue failing.  Now this whole, equal pay for each gender law???  Last time I checked, that has been a focus for years, why all of a sudden is it a law?  Who is going to fact check it?  I’m a woman and I still have an issue with it.  OK, so lets say Bob and Sally are both hired the same day for a new company and Bob has 10 years experience and Sally has 2 years experience.  Because it’s the SAME job and they are starting the same day, should they both get the same rate of pay???  OF COURSE NOT!  Bob has more experience!  I see it all the time…..young 23 year olds, fresh out of college thinking they should be paid the same as the 40+ year old at the job twenty years…they think since they are doing the same job, they should get the same pay.  Life isn’t like that!  You have to EARN the right to be up there.  While they may be able to do the same overall job as the next person, they might not have the wisdom to trouble shoot a problem when it arises or to react quickly to a situation like someone who had been doing the job multiple years can.  President Obama says he wants his girls to make the same pay as their male counterparts…..who is he kidding???  Daughters who will be, by all counts, educated at ANY college they want to go to, and will have the title of former President’s daughters???  They are not going to be starting at the bottom of ANY wage bracket.  Their title, history, and name will already earn them a higher wage at ANY job they do.  So anyone that wants a feel good moment and saying….yeah, I want that too….reality is, it’s not going to happen, they will be treated differently their whole lives.  All this new bill will do is cause companies to scramble to find a way to “follow it” without actually following it and make the word force unbalanced, and, in many ways, unfair.  That is the reality of letting people pass laws that are CLUELESS to reality!

We need to make changes.  We need to get people in there that are not motivated by money and greed.  Oh wait, we can’t, because you have to be RICH to even be able to campaign!  But alas, that is a vent for another day!

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Crazy Life / Crazy Schedule….Balancing it all

When I started this blog, it was my intention to log on everyday to post something.  It wasn’t because I thought others would really care what I had to say, but rather, to get into the habit of blogging on a regular basis.

It didn’t happen.  I could leave it at that, but I’m going to continue my thoughts.

I am a single person, no children, but keep a very hectic schedule.  I get tired of people saying to me, you don’t have children, how can you be that busy?  Since when did having children be the only reason that you are busy?  Don’t get me wrong, I know that juggling work, life, career, children’s activities, etc, can keep you very busy, but that doesn’t mean that someone who doesn’t have children cannot also be busy!

I have two dogs, a horse, I work full time, I’m trying to start a side business, I try to volunteer to causes I believe in,  I maintain a home, and still try to maintain a little bit of a social life, although I’m not doing too well at that last part!

It makes me often wonder, How do others manage to do it all?  Am I the only single, non parent, person that struggles to find free time?  How do some people manage to have so much free time?  Is free time overrated?

I’m going to go with that.  Free time is over-rated.  For me, I thrive when I’m busy.  On those rare occasions that I spend half a day catching up on my DVRd shows, I feel like I wasted half the month.  I know I didn’t, but I then think about everything I have to get accomplished and wonder why I didn’t work on any of it.

My biggest piece of advice is to stop judging someone else’s use of time.  What may be important to you might not be to them and vice – versa.  If they say they are busy, respect them.  Don’t let the number of people in the household indicate the level that you feel they should be busy!

Enjoy every moment of your life, accept challenges as they come, drive yourself to do what YOU want to do, and accomplish your goal, even if it takes a little longer than you wanted….at least you accomplished it.

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Entering the world of blogging

I have finally decided to enter the world of blogging.  It can be a very scary thing to do because it’s putting your innermost thoughts, opinions, and ideas out  there for others to read, react, maybe even ridicule.  I know that I have to keep a tough skin and an open mind when I post something new.  If someone disagrees with my thoughts or opinions, it’s ok because they are MY opinions, not yours, but I would still like to know why someone disagrees with me.  One should never stop growing and learning.  It is through growth that we thrive, through growth that we empower ourselves to be just that, ourselves.  We should never strive to be someone fake.  Remember that you have to be true to yourself first.  That doesn’t mean you have to be a jerk.  I’d like to think that people, for the most part, are good in their core but they allow outside influence, stress, day to day drama to chip away at that “good” part of them, until there is anger, depression, or just plain meanness because they don’t know how to ignore it or deal with it.  With that I say…..enjoy your day, enjoy your life, and continue to be true to yourself.

Please remember that all thoughts and opinions expressed in my blog are mine.

Thank you for starting this journey with me.