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2B Daily News – Friday, December 20, 2013 FEATURES Keep advanced medical directives handy Here are some DEAR DOCpeople who TOR K: This isn't should have really a medical copies of your question, but I advance directives hope you'll and other places answer it anyway. they should be Where should I filed: keep my advance — Your health medical directive? care agent. DEAR READDr. K — Your doctor. ER: You raise an by Anthony L. important issue, Komaroff, M.D. A copy of your advance directives and I'm happy to address it. In fact, your should be in your file and question is timely, medical record. — Your hospital chart. because I have just discussed with my lawyer If there is one hospital where to store my advance where your doctor is likemedical directive. Let me ly to hospitalize you, ask tell you what I've learned. to have a copy of your For readers who are not advance directives put in familiar with the term, your chart. — A safe spot in your advance directives are documents that allow you home. File the original to describe what kind of documents in a secure medical care you hope to place in your home. Tell receive if an accident or your agent, family and illness renders you unable friends where you put to communicate. The them. — Carry it with you. health-care power of attorney, living will and do- Put a card with your not-resuscitate order health care agent's name (DNR) are all advance and contact information and where you've put the directives. Some people worry original copy of your that advance directives directives in your wallet mean giving up control or purse. — In the glove comover their medical treatment. But as long as you partment of your car. A are able to communicate colleague of mine recomdecisions, your word mended this, and it seems overrides anything you've like a good idea to me. When I completed my written. In fact, I think of my advance directives as first advanced medical my way of maintaining directive, I was a healthy control over how I am adult in mid-life. I had a treated, should I become very small risk of becoming seriously ill. But I critically ill. Advance directives wondered why it had taken enable you to choose the me so long. At any age, person (your agent) who and in any state of health, will make medical deci- bad things can happen. sions for you when you Hopefully, that time will are unable to do so. Using never come for me. But if directives, you may offer it does, I want to control as much or as little guid- how I'm treated. ance as you like. Dr. Komaroff is a Many people understandably want to keep physician and professor Harvard Medical their advance directives in at To send a secure place. But if these School. go to documents are locked questions, AskDoctorK.com, or away in a safe-deposit box, they won't be much write: Ask Doctor K, 10 help if you're unexpected- Shattuck St., Second Floor, Boston, MA 02115. ly hospitalized. Car show and caroling The Veterans Home of California in Redding will play host to the Shasta Mini's car club Saturday at 11a.m. The Shasta Mini's are well known in Shasta County and this year they will bring their car show and caroling event to the Veterans Home of California in Redding. Over the last 5 years the Shasta Mini's paid a yearly visit to the Veterans Home of Yountville in the Bay Area. With the opening of the Redding Veterans home, the Mini's are thrilled to be coming to show off their cars, sing for the residents and play a part in a social setting with the Redding residents. The members of the Shasta Mini's are very festive and will be on hand in full holiday costumes to share the holiday spirit with everyone in attendance. Many mini cooper cars will be on display and the club will also provide Christmas Carols and other entertainment for all to see and hear. The public is invited to attend. Event begins at 11a.m. Reader wants advice to quit chewing cer.org) and assistance by Dear Annie: After phone at 1-800-227-2345. many years of using Here are additional smokeless tobacco, I'd like resources: Nicotine Anonyto quit. Are there any effecmous (nicotine-anonytive measures one can take mous.org) at 1-877-879to beat this highly addictive 6422; Kill the Can habit? (killthecan.org); the Centers I use the kind of tobacco for Disease Control and Prethat comes in a can, and it goes wherever I go. It Annie's vention (cdc.gov/tobacco) at 1-800-QUIT-NOW, and the wakes me up in the mornNational Cancer Institute ing demanding attention. I believe it is partially by Kathy Mitchell (cancer.gov) at 1-800-4responsible for my high and Marcy Sugar CANCER, or smokefree.gov at 1-877-448-7848. Good blood pressure. My dentist has concerns for my teeth and luck. Dear Annie: I recently lost my gums. I mentioned my tobacco use to my doctor, but he couldn't give driving privileges and have been me a response that would be an getting a ride from a co-worker twice a week. I am right on her way effective way to quit. I see commercials on TV for a to the office, so it's not at all out of drug that helps smokers, but I don't her way. This co-worker recently blindknow whether it would be helpful for those of us who dip. I, and the sided me with a demand to pay her many others with this problem, gas money. I don't feel I should pay would appreciate any advice. — her, because she already drives there. Not a Baseball Player Do you think I should pay? How Dear Not: Smokeless tobacco is also called chew, snuff, spit and oral much? I already pay another person tobacco, but it still can cause cancer, to take me to and from work on the just like cigarettes, along with other other three days because it is defihealth problems such as tooth loss nitely out of the way for him. I can't and gum disease. While some nico- afford to pay a second person. I tine replacement therapy (patches, work the third shift and am the main lozenges, sprays) can be helpful, provider for my family of five. — not all work for smokeless tobacco. Broke in Ohio Dear Broke: Anyone who picks Some people prefer alternative medicine (hypnosis, acupuncture, you up regularly deserves to be herbal treatments, etc.), although given something for gas and wearstudies are inconclusive as to its and-tear on the car. She is doing you a favor, and it's starting to cause effectiveness. The American Cancer Society some resentment, which means she offers a Guide to Quitting Smoke- could stop offering you a lift and less Tobacco on its website (can- you'd have to make other arrange- Mailbox ments. You do not have to offer her as much as the co-worker who must travel a greater distance, but perhaps you could fill up the tank once in a while. Ask her what she thinks is fair, tell her what you can afford, and try to work out a compromise. Dear Annie: I had tears in my eyes reading the letter from ''Lonely in California.'' It was a sad and depressing life taking care of young children while my husband would rather be drinking with his buddies. Over the years, I saw a couple of divorce lawyers, but I was afraid to be on my own. And my husband made it clear that I could leave, but not with the kids. So I stayed in this miserable mess. This summer, after he got completely wasted every day, my worst nightmare happened. He was so drunk that he didn't realize he was sexually assaulting our 7year-old daughter. I got a restraining order, filed for divorce and am now on my own. It's scary, but I have so much peace in my heart. I still feel like a failure as a mother for allowing my kids to live with this man, but I know I will get past this, and in the end, leaving will be worth it. — Relieved in Massachusetts Annie's Mailbox is written by Kathy Mitchell and Marcy Sugar, longtime editors of the Ann Landers column. Please email your questions to anniesmailboxcomcast.net, or write to: Annie's Mailbox, c/o Creators Syndicate, 737 3rd Street, Hermosa Beach, CA 90254. Saving coins can be a pain I am not one to spend coins. And I don't like carrying them around in my wallet, either. Every night both my husband and I dump the day's accumulation into a container to save for a trip or to buy something special. One year we saved $1,100 in coins, but I have to admit the logistics can be a royal pain. Banks and credit unions have strict rules about loose coins. Some require it to be rolled, wrapped and labeled before depositing. Others won't accept wrapped coins. Either way, most banks these days charge a fee. I don't know what happened to me last weekend. I guess I was suffering from a severe case of TMC (too many coins). In a fit of frustration I dumped the jars into a big bag and drove to the supermarket. I knew it would cost me 10.9 percent to use the Coinstar machine, but it seemed reasonable. After a few minutes of shoveling, out popped a voucher for $383.52. My heart sunk once I realized that I'd walked in with $431.57. Big Green clobbered me with a $47.05 fee! Karl Hartkopf, whose website -theunderstory.com -- is devoted to coin rolling techniques, advocates cheap or free counting machines. But, he points out, it is not always possible. So, if you can't find a bank way, and I consider myself average. It takes me forever to roll or credit to count and wrap coins. But then I your coins for read his method (look for free, should you "Counting-Rolling-Wrappay the fee or ping Your Coins" on his should you wrap website). I tried it ... and your own coins? wow, it is slick. With very Well, that all little practice I'm under two depends. minutes per roll already. Breaking this down Here's the key: Work on a into hourly rates, "made bed." Hard surfaces Hartkopf says that I paid make coin rolling nearly Coinstar an hourly rate impossible. Hint: Spread an of $26.70 to count my Mary old sheet over that "made quarters ($.89 per $10 bed" first because money is roll) because he says it very dirty. Then follow his takes less than two mindetailed steps. utes for the average perI'm still kicking myself son to wrap a $10 roll of over that $47.05 fee. At the quarters. Pennies are very least I should have another story. It takes the rolled the quarters and dimes same amount of time to roll pennies, but Coinstar charges myself and taken them into my bank, less than 5 cents per roll or $1.36 which will accept rolled coins from per hour to count pennies. Nickels accountholders. Then I should have work out to $5.34 an hour, dimes dumped only the pennies and maybe the nickels into Big Green. $13.35. Most of us probably value our Mary Hunt is the founder of time at much more than $1.36 an hour. However, many of us do not www.DebtProofLiving.com and even get paid as much as the hourly author of 23 books, including her rate Coinstar charges to count quar- 2012 release, "7 Money Rules for ters or dimes. Who among us Life." You can email her at wouldn't gladly "earn" a few extra mary@everydaycheapskate.com, or write to Everyday Cheapskate, dollars by rolling our own? At first I scoffed at Harkopf's sug- P.O. Box 2099, Cypress, CA gestion of two minutes per roll. No 90630. Hunt Everyday Cheapskate 3 year-end tax tips Although the year is almost over, you still have time to take steps that can lower your 2013 taxes. Now is a good time to prepare for the upcoming tax filing season. Taking these steps can help you save time and tax dollars. They can also help you save for retirement. Here are three year-end tips from the IRS for you to consider: 1. Start a filing system. If you don't have a filing system for your tax records, you should start one. It can be as simple as saving receipts in a shoebox, or more complex like creating folders or spreadsheets. It's always a good idea to save tax-related receipts and records. Keeping good records now will save time and help you file a complete and accurate tax return next year. 2. Make Charitable Contributions. If you plan to give to charity, consider donating before the year ends. That way you can claim your contribution as an itemized deduction for 2013. This includes donations you charge to a credit card by Dec. 31, even if you don't pay the bill until 2014. A gift by check also counts for 2013 as long as you mail it in December. Remember that you must give to a qualified charity to claim a tax deduction. Use the IRS Select Check tool at IRS.gov to see if an organization is qualified. Make sure to save your receipts. You must have a written record for all donations of money in order to claim a deduction. Special rules apply to several types of property, including clothing or household items, cars and boats. For more about these rules see Publication 526, Charitable Contributions. If you are age 70 1/2 or over, the qualified charitable distribution allows you to make taxfree transfers from your IRAs to charity. You can give up to $100,000 per year from your IRA to an eligible charity, and exclude the amount from gross income. You can use the excluded amount to satisfy any required minimum distributions that you must otherwise receive from your IRAs in 2013. This benefit is available even if you do not itemize deductions. This special provision is set to expire at the end of 2013. See Publication 590, Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs), for more information. 3. Contribute to Retirement Accounts. You need to contribute to your 401(k) or similar retirement plan by Dec. 31 to count for 2013. On the other hand, you have until April 15, 2014, to set up a new IRA or add money to an existing IRA and still have it count for 2013. The Saver's Credit, also known as the Retirement Savings Contribution Credit, helps low- and moderateincome workers in two ways. It helps people save for retirement and earn a special tax credit. Eligible workers who contribute to IRAs, 401(k)s or similar workplace retirement plans can get a tax credit on their federal tax return. The maximum credit is up to $1,000, $2,000 for married couples. Other deductions and credits may reduce or eliminate the amount you can claim. For more on all these topics, visit the IRS.gov website.