Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/241426
2B Daily News – Tuesday, January 14, 2014 How to pull the plug on cable or satellite Want to put a thousand bucks back into your wallet in the coming year? If you're paying around $100 per month now, pulling that plug would more than do it and without leaving you high and dry for TV entertainment. It's been three months now since we cancelled our cable TV service. While I can't say we dialed our monthly entertainment costs back to $0, we have reduced the cost more than $100 a month. What we had before: basic cable service including several premium sports packages like ESPN and movie channels. My husband is a sports fanatic, while I approach the level of "junkie" when it comes to cable news. What we have now: local free broadcast channels and access to movies, TV and sports that are available live and online as well as an audio feed for cable news channels. STEP 1: GET AN ANTENNA. If you grew up fiddling with rabbit ears on top of your family's television set to get rid of snow and ghosts, you may be getting a little creeped out right now. Relax. In today's digital world, with the way that digital signals are transmitted, TV reception comes in crystal clear or not at all. All you need is a decent antenna to add to your TV's built-in digital tuner. Depending on your location, you may be able to get by with an indoor antenna. Not that close? You'll probably need an outdoor antenna to get decent reception. This is really all you need if you are content to watch free television broadcasting. But if you like to watch movies on demand and enjoy consideration, we have settled on all that broadband Internet Netflix because of original TV connectivity has to offer, programming for shows such as "Downton Abby" and "House of you have options. STEP 2: GET A BOX. A Cards" (to name just two out of the thousands) and Amazon broadband confor movies, which is part nection lets you of our Amazon Prime hook your televimembership ($79 per sion to the Internet year). and stream shows and STEP 3: ADD A DVR. movies to your TV. If I'll be honest. We love to you have a "smart TV," record programs for later this connectivity is viewing so we can skip already built in. If not, through the commercials. all you need is a streamAfter all kinds of research ing box that sits between and consideration, we've your router and TV, Mary made TiVo our DVR of which will allow you to choice. TiVo is a very useraccess specialized Interfriendly device. A basic net channels that offer model costs about $150 TV content. There are plus $15 a month for the dozens of choices, rangTiVo service. This brings ing in price from about our monthly TV costs to $50 to $400 or more. about $30 as opposed to The most popular of these devices are Roku and Apple our old Time Warner Cable bill of TV. Hint: Having used both, I can $130 per month. Yep, that's $1,200 promise you that Roku (everyday- a year we are not spending for TV cheapskate.com/roku) is much eas- entertainment. Regrets? We've had a few, but ier to use, and at under $100 for the model with all the bells and whis- we're dealing with them quite well. tles, it is quite an amazing piece of My husband is still mourning the genius. You may have a streaming loss of ESPN. As for my need for box already if you have a newer cable news, I am subscribing to Sirgame system like Xbox 360 or iusXM Internet radio, which gives Playstation 3. Many Blu-ray play- me the audio feed to my favorite ers can stream Internet channels as cable news shows via my computer headphones for $14.49 per month. well. Much of the content that comes Mary Hunt is the founder of through these boxes is free, but a you'll be watching older shows www.DebtProofLiving.com, and movies, and many will be ad personal finance member website. can email her at supported. If you want newer You shows and content (we do), you mary@everydaycheapskate.com, will need to subscribe to one or or write to Everyday Cheapskate, more streaming service like Hulu, P.O. Box 2099, Cypress, CA Netflix or Amazon. After lots of 90630. Hunt Everyday Cheapskate State to return $16M in tax refunds The Franchise Tax Board is holding more than $16 million in returned state income tax refunds. In 2013 nearly 48,000 personal income tax refunds, ranging from $1 to $54,000 were returned by the US Postal Service. The vast majority of refunds, nearly 45,000, are for $1,000 or less. Taxpayers who moved and failed to update their addresses are the main reason refunds are returned. Updating an address is easy through the Access Your Account feature on FTB's website.FTB reissues returned refunds automatically once a new address is received. Taxpayers expecting a state refund, or unsure if they received their refund, can access FTB's Check Your Refund Status. This service is available in both English and Spanish. FTB encourages taxpayers to use direct deposit when filing their tax returns. Direct deposit is a fast and secure method to receive your tax refund within days rather than waiting weeks for a paper refund. Last year, more than 6 million California taxpayers received their tax refunds directly into their bank accounts through direct deposit. As of Dec. 31, 2013, FTB issued more than 10.7 million refunds worth more than $10.5 billion. Tips to prevent tax-related identity theft Attorney General Kamala Harris today kicked off Tax Identity Theft Awareness Week by issuing tips for Californians to follow to prevent tax-related identity theft as the annual tax compiling and filing process begins. Tax-related identity theft increases in January and commonly occurs when: • Thieves use stolen personal information to file tax returns in someone else's name in order to obtain a refund. • Thieves use a stolen Social Security number (SSN) for employment, which may complicate state and federal income tax obligations for the victim. • Thieves send phishing emails that look like they are from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) or the Franchise Tax Board (FTB) that ask for personal information or include links to official-looking web sites. California consumers are urged to use the following tips to better prevent tax-related identity theft: • Never open an email or a text message that says it is from the IRS or the FTB - they are always fraudulent. State and federal tax Rubes agencies never initiate contact with taxpayers by email, text message or social media to request personal or financial information or to send notice regarding audits or refunds. • It's fine to show your Social Security card to your employer when you start a job or to your financial institution for tax reporting purposes. Do not routinely carry your card or other documents that display your SSN. • While preparing your tax return for electronic filing, make sure to use a strong password. A strong password is at least eight characters and includes a combination of at least three upper and/or lowercase letters, punctuation, symbols and numerals. • Once you have e-filed your return, save it to a flash drive, CD or similar device and then delete the tax information from your hard drive. Store the CD or flash drive in a safe place, such as a lock box or safe. If working with an accountant, ask about what measures they take to protect your information. • Use a locked mailbox and don't leave your mail in it for By Leigh Ruben long periods of time. Take your mail that contains sensitive information (bills, tax returns) to the post office. • If your SSN is stolen, reference the California Attorney General's Identity Theft First Aid page for instructions on what to do: www.oag.ca.gov/idtheft/firstaid. You may have a tax identity theft problem if you receive a letter from the IRS or FTB stating that you filed more than one tax return, someone has already filed using your information, you have a balance due, refund offset or have had collection actions taken against you for a year in which you did not file a return or you received wages from an employer for whom you have not worked. If you receive such a letter (not an email) from the IRS or FTB, immediately contact the agency's identity theft unit at Internal Revenue Service: phishing@irs.gov, IRS Identity Protection Specialized Unit at 1-800908-4490 or California Franchise Tax Board: www.ftb.ca.gov/individuals/id_theft.shtml#ID, ID Theft Resolution Coordinator 1916-845-3669. Water agency urges halt to outdoor watering SACRAMENTO (AP) — A large Northern California water agency is asking customers to stop all outdoor watering amid continuing drought conditions. The Sacramento Bee reported Thursday that the San Juan Water District board of directors approved the move this week. The district serves more than 265,000 people in the Sacramento suburbs, including the communities of Citrus Heights, Orangevale and Folsom. Most of its water comes from Folsom Reservoir, which the newspaper says has shrunk perilously low amid one of the driest winters in California history. District General Manager Shauna Lorance says the call for conservation is not mandatory, but it could become so next month if the area doesn't get rain soon. The district also is extending a request for a 20 percent cut in all water use that has been in place for months. Local Calendar Submit calendar items clerk@redbluffdailynews.com. to P .O. Box 220, Red Bluff, 96080 or TUESDAY, JANUARY 14 Red Bluff Childbirth Class, 6:30-8:30 p.m., St. Elizabeth Community Hospital, Columba Room, 529-8026 Community BLS/CPR class, 6 p.m., St. Elizabeth Community Hospital, Columba Room, 529-8031 Cribbage Club, 6 p.m., Cozy Diner, 259 S. Main St., 527-6402 Emblem club, 7 p.m., Elks Lodge Fun Senior Aerobics, 8-9 a.m., $1, Community Center, 1500 S. Jackson St. 527-8177 Homeschool Support Group, 7 p.m., North Valley Baptist Church, 345 David Ave. International Order of the Rainbow for Girls, 6:45 p.m., Masonic Hall 822 Main St. 527-6715 PAL Kickboxing, 6 p.m., 1450 Schwab St., 529-8716 or 200-3950 Penny Bingo, 10 a.m., Community Center, 1500 S. Jackson St. Photo club, 6 p.m., Community Center,1500 S. Jackson St., 5288066 Pinochle for Seniors, 12:30-3:30 p.m., 1500 S. Jackson St., free, 527-8177 Red Bluff Derby Girls open tryouts and practice, 6:30 p.m., Tyler Jelly building at Tehama District Fairgrounds Red Bluff Rotary, noon, Elks Lodge Red Bluff Union Elementary School District board meeting, 5:30 p.m., 1755 Airport Blvd. Take Off Pounds Sensibly — TOPS, 10 a.m., First United Methodist Church, 525 David Ave., 824-0556 or 529-1414 Tehama 4-H, 7 p.m., First Baptist Church , Pine Street, 527-3101 Tehama County Board of Supervisors, 10 a.m., 727 Oak St. Tehama County Fish and Game Commission, 8 a.m., Conference E, courthouse annex, 527-2095 Tehama County Flood Control and Water Conservation District, 8:30 a.m., 727 Oak St. Tehama County Genealogical and Historical Society, 6:30 p.m., library, 529-6650 Tehama County Tea Party Patriots, 6 p.m., Grange Hall, 20794 Walnut St. Tehama County Young Marines Parent Meeting, 5:30-7 p.m.,332 Pine St., 366-0813 Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1932, 7 p.m. Veterans Building, Oak Street Weight Watchers meeting, 9 a.m., 485 Antelope Blvd., #N, 1-800651-6000 Westside 4-H, 7 p.m., Reeds Creek School Gym, 527-3101 WWE self defense training for women, 5:30-7 p.m., 1005 Vista Way, Ste. C Corning City Council, 7:30 p.m., City Hall, 794 Third St. Dance with Juana, noon to 1 p.m., Family Resource Center, 1488 South St., 824-7670 Domestic Violence Information and Support Group (Spanish language), call for time and location., 528-0226 ESL, 9 a.m., Family Resource Center, West and South streets, 8247670 Soccer training, 4-6 p.m., Woodson School Soccer Field, 150 N Toomes, 824-7680 Women's Support Group, 6 p.m., Family Resource Center, West and South streets, 824-7670 Gerber El Camino 4-H, 7 p.m., Gerber School Cafeteria, 527-3101 El Camino Irrigation District, 6 p.m., 8451 Highway 99W, 3851559 Los Molinos Los Molinos Women's Club meeting, 1 p.m., Veteran's Hall, 7900 Sherwood Blvd. School Readiness Play Group, 10-11:30 a.m., up to 5 years, free, First Steps Family Resource Center, 7700 Stanford Ave., 384-7833 Manton Manton 4-H, 7 p.m., Manton Grange, 527-3101 Cottonwood Evergreen School Board, 5 p.m., 19500 Learning Way WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 15 Red Bluff Adult Carving Class, 10 a.m. to noon, Veteran's Memorial Hall, Corner of Jackson and Oak streets, 527-0768 Al-Anon, noon, Presbyterian Church, Jefferson and Hickory Alcohol, Anger and Abuse Group, Call for group time and location, 528-0226 Emblem club dinner, 5:30 p.m., Elks Lodge Lupus/Fibromyalgia Support Group, 6 p.m., St. Elizabeth Community Hospital, Columba room, Jackie, 529-3029 Marine Corps League, 6:30 p.m., Red Bluff Veteran's Memorial Hall, corner of Oak and Jackson streets., Roy Fansler 384-2134 Nurturing Parenting Dads Program, 10 a.m. to noon, 1860 Walnut St. #D, Shasta Room, call Keith at 527-8491, ext. 3012 Nurturing Skills for Teen Parents, 9-10 a.m., 1900 Walnut St., 527-8491, ext. 3012 PAL Martial Arts Women's Self Defense, 5:30-6:30 p.m., 1005 Vista Way, Ste. C, 840-0345 Passages caregiver support group, 12:30 p.m., Red Bluff Community and Senior Center, 1500 S. Jackson St., 229-0878 or 800 9950878 Penny Bingo, 10 a.m., Community Center, 1500 S. Jackson St. Red Bluff Derby Girls open tryouts and practice, 6:30 p.m., Tyler Jelly building, Tehama District Fairground Red Bluff Joint Union High School Board, 5:30 p.m., 1525 Douglas St. Red Bluff Kiwanis, noon, Elks Lodge Senior Dance, 7 p.m., Westside Grange, Walnut St. Team Kid, 5:30 p.m., First Southern Baptist Church, 585 Kimball Road, 527-5083 TeenScreen Mental Health Appointments, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., free by appointment only, Youth Empowerment Services, 1900 Walnut St., 527-8491, Ext. 3012 Tehama County Board of Education, 5 p.m., District Office, 1135 Lincoln St. Tehama County Child Abuse Prevention coordinating council, 8:30 a.m., Family Resource Center, 220 Sycamore St. Tehama County Fireworks Committee, 6 p.m., Lariat Bowl Tehama County Library story time, 9:30 a.m., 645 Madison St. 527-0604 Waterbirth Class, 6:30 p.m., St. Elizabeth Community Hospital Columba Room, 529-8026 Weight Watchers meeting, 5:30 p.m., 485 Antelope Blvd., #N, 1800-651-6000 Widowed Persons Breakfast, 8 a.m., call 384-2471 for location Work Incentives Planning and Assistance, 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Family Resource Center, 220 Sycamore St., Ste. 101, 528-8066, free Y-FI Middle and High School Youth Group, 6:30-8 p.m., North Valley Baptist Church, 345 David Ave., 527-0543 Corning Building Community Partnerships, 11 a.m., Family Resource Center, 1480 South St., 528-4187 Corning Rotary, noon, Rolling Hills Casino Timbers Steak House, 2655 Barham Ave., corningrotary.org Nutrition Classes, 1-2:30 p.m., West Street FRC, 824-7670 Nutrition Classes Spanish, 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., West Street FRC, 824-7670 Richfield School Board, 6 p.m., 23875 River Road, 824-3354 School Readiness Play Group, 10-11:30 a.m., up to 5 years, free, Family Resource Center, 1480 South St., 824-4111 Spanish Adult Education, 5 p.m., Family Resource Center, West and South streets, 824-7670 Strategies for Success, Life Skill classes, 1:30 p.m., Family Resource Center, West and South streets, 824-7670 Tehama County Sanitary Landfill Agency, 6 p.m., City Council Chamber, 794 Third St.