Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/370588
RecentlyIstopped into Toys "R" Us to get a little something for Eli. Yes; I am one of those grand- mothers. We found the cutest toy shav- ing kit, just perfect for bath time. The price was under $10. At check out, and without missing a beat, the sales clerk inquired if I would like to add an ex- tended warranty for just $4.79. Seriously. I laughed. She winced. I apologized, but really, I couldn't help it. An extended warranty sounds like a good thing, and that's because it's de- signed that way. While I cannot say that every ex- tended warranty would be a rip off, that's the way I want you to start thinking of them. Every time you are offered and extended warranty, think: Rip off! Then if you have doubts, make that warranty prove to you otherwise. Failure rates. Products for which there is an ex- tended warranty always come with a manufactur- er's warranty. We know that if a product is going to fail, most of the time it happens at the start of that product's life, not in the time after the origi- nal warranty expires. That means you do not need the extended warranty. As a rule, rely on the warranty that comes with the prod- uct. Then rely on your own independent research. Profit margins. Ever wonder why retailers are so diligent in offer- ing extended warran- ties? Wonder no more. It's all about — now here's a real shocker — money. Ex- tended warranties average a 70 percent profit for the retailer. Plus, if they can get you to finance the cost of the extended warranty, the retailer ends up profit- ing even more. Suppose you buy a $750 extended warranty on a new automobile, and you include it in the amount to be financed. Here's an esti- mate of the dealer's profit: The dealer will re- ceive $764 from you including in- terest you will pay on the financed extended war- ranty after taking into consideration the 30 percent payout on claims. Now do you see why retailers push their extended warranties? Here's a novel idea: In- stead of buying extended warranties, set up your own "Repair & Mainte- nance" savings account for all of your fixed assets — cars, boats, RV's, ap- pliances, toy shaving kits and so on. Now make pay- ments to your own ex- tended warranty program every month. That way, if you do need major repairs once the regular warranty expires, you will have the money set aside and ready to go. On the other hand, if it turns out you never re- quire major repairs (sta- tistics are in your favor, by the way), the "extended warranty" funds become your profits, not the retail- ers'. On a personal note, there are only two prod- ucts for which I have and will continue to buy the extended warranty, be- cause both of these are no- torious for failure after the manufacturer's warranty: Apple products (iPhone, iPad, MacBook, MacPro and so on) and treadmills. Maybe I am the only one who beats up my elec- tronic devices, but that's a pretty solid rule for me. As for treadmills, my experi- ence and research suggest they are also notorious for breakdown with extended use. You should create your own, well-thought- out very short list of items for which an extended warranty may be a wise decision. Then stick to it. Wouldyouliketosend a tip to Mary? You can email her at mary@eve- rydaycheapskate.com, or write to Everyday Cheap- skate, P.O. Box 2099, Cy- press, CA 90630. EVERYDAYCHEAPSKATE Truthaboutextendedwarranties The public is invited to the Tehama County Dem- ocrats' Labor Day picnic to be held 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday, Sept. 1 at Discov- ery Garden, 1000 Sale Lane, Red Bluff. There is no charge for this event, with hot dogs being provided and barbe- cued by Wild Willy's Smoke- house and watermelons do- nated by LicketySplit Wa- termelons. Join this salute to Amer- ican workers picnic and en- joy games, tours of the Sac- ramento Discovery Center, great food and a chance to meet office holders and can- didates. Special guests will include Heidi Hall, candi- date for Congress, CJ Jawa- har, candidate for State Senate and Jim Reed, run- ning for State Assembly. Please bring a dish to share and lawn chairs. Labor Day, first observed in 1887, is celebrated on the first Monday in September to recognize the Ameri- can labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of this country. Take Sale Lane south from Antelope Boulevard and continue until you see the old oak tree and signs for the picnic. Bring your friends and family for this annual tradition. Information is available at 736-5200. DEMOCRATS 2ndannualLabor Day Picnic planned Mary Hunt Members from the Ol- ive 4-H Swine project took part recently in an ex- change with a 4-H Pro- gram in Washington State. During the six-day trip, both groups stopped and explored many new places and learned many things touring the farms in Wash- ington, even camping by the ocean and seeing the sea lion caves. Some of their stops were at an aquarium where they got to pet sharks, West Coast Game Park where they were in close contact with lions, tigers and bears and farms in Ellensburg, where they grow and ship hay to feed race horses in Japan. The groups ate some homemade ice cream at Winegars, which started making its ice cream from its own dairy. The Dairy has since sold, now getting its cream from local co-op dairies to make ice cream. All flavors are named after family members. At Rosbach Farms, stu- dents learned that 70 per- cent of the world's seed comes from Washington. While there, Olive 4-H members attended one of their host's 4-H meetings. Members of the Washing- ton 4-H program were wonderful hosts and the Tehama County 4-H mem- bers learned a lot about ag- riculture in Central Wash- ington. The Tehama County 4-H Program has 12 active 4-H clubs with a variety of proj- ects available. Now is the perfect time to join 4-H as enrollment is open through October. For more information on the Tehama County 4-H Program, call the 4-H Of- fice at 530-527-3101 or visit http://cetehama.ucanr. edu/4-H_Program/. YOUTH CLUB Ol iv e 4- H me mb er s go t o Wa sh in gt on COURTESYPHOTO Pictured, from le , are Dartagnan Kingwell, Mariah Kingwell, Ryanne Harris, Trystan Harris and Trinity Kingwell. Today REDBLUFF Al-Anon: noon to 1p.m., Presbyterian Church, Jef- ferson and Hickory Community Dance: 7-10 p.m., Westside Grange, 20794Walnut St. Dance with Juana: noon to 1p.m., Family Resource Center, 1488South St., 824-7670 Downtown Farmers Mar- ket: 5-8p.m., Washington Street between Pine and Oak streets Nurturing Parenting Dads Program: 10a.m. to noon, 1860Walnut St. #D, Shasta Room, call Keith at 527-8491, ext. 3012 Nurturing Skills for Teen Parents: 9-10a.m., 1900 Walnut St., 527-8491, ext. 3012 PAL Martial Arts Wom- en's Self Defense: 5:30- 6:30p.m., 1005Vista Way, Ste. C, 840-0345 Penny Bingo: 9:30a.m., Community Center, 1500S. Jackson St. Red Bluff Derby Girls open tryouts and prac- tice: 6:30p.m., Tyler Jelly building at Tehama District Fairground Red Bluff Kiwanis: noon, Elks Lodge Soroptimist International of Red Bluff: 5:30p.m., Community and Senior Center, 1500S. Jackson St., siredbluffclub@yahoo. com Team Kid: 5:30p.m., First Southern Baptist Church, 585Kimball Road, 527- 5083 TeenScreen Mental Health Appointments: 10 a.m. to 2p.m., free by ap- pointment only, Youth Em- powerment Services, 1900 Walnut St., 527-8491, Ext. 3012 Tehama Coffee Party Loyalists: 6p.m., Cozy Diner 259Main St. Waterlabor Class: 6:30- 8:30p.m., St. Elizabeth Community Hospital Columba Room, 888-628- 1948 Weight Watchers meet- ing: 9a.m., Hampton Inn, 1-800-651-6000 Widowed Persons Break- fast: 8a.m., call 384-2471 for location Y-FI Middle and High School Youth Group: 6:30-8p.m., North Valley Baptist Church, 345David Ave., 527-0543 CORNING Corning Rotary: noon, Rolling Hills Casino, Tim- bers Steak House, 2655 Barham Ave., corningrotary. org Exchange Club member- ship meeting: 7p.m., Iron Skillet Latina Leadership Group: 9a.m., Family Resource Center, West and South streets, 824-7670 School Readiness Play Group: 10-11:30a.m., up to 5 years, free, Family Re- source Center, 1480South St., 824-4111 Spanish Adult Education: 5p.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 VFW Charity Bingo: 6 p.m., Veterans Memorial Hall, 1620Solano St., 824- 5957 LOS MOLINOS Bible Study: 1p.m., Sherwood Manor, 7975 Sherwood Blvd., all wel- come, Pastor Clyde Brant, 347-1330 Chamber of Commerce: 6:30p.m., 7904Highway 99E Narcotics Anonymous: 7-8p.m., 25204Josephine Ave, Wednesday and Friday Take Off Pounds Sensibly - TOPS: 8:30a.m., 25160 Josephine St., 385-1068 COTTONWOOD Cottonwood Creek Watershed Group, educational stakeholders meeting: 6:30p.m., Com- munity Center, 347-6637 Cottonwood Library Story Time: 11:30a.m.- 12:30p.m., Cottonwood Library,3427Main St., 347-4818 Thursday RED BLUFF California HEAT Chorus - Sweet Adelines: 7p.m., Meteer School multipur- pose room, 695Kimball Road, 895-0139 Childbirth Class: 6:30- 8:30p.m., St. Elizabeth Community Hospital, Columba Room, 888-628- 1948 Fun Senior Aerobics: 8-9 a.m., $1per class, Com- munity Center, 1500S. Jackson St. 527-8177 Good Morning Red Bluff: 7:50a.m., Enjoy the Store, Main Street Grief Support Group: 3-5 p.m., Coyne Center, Kristin Hoskins 528-4207 Imagination Train story hour: 4p.m., Tehama Coun- ty Library Kelly-Griggs House Mu- seum: 1-3p.m., 311Wash- ington St., group tours by appointment, 527-1129 Live country music, din- ner: 5-7p.m., Veterans Hall Narcotics Anonymous: 7-8:15p.m., 2595Main St, last Thursday of month Painting session, Red Bluff Art Association: 10 a.m., Tehama District Fair- ground, 529-1603. Calendar Kristaat602-702-9086orMarcyat1-800-888-9040(TollFree) or e-mail us at info@world-heritage.org LIFESTYLES » redbluffdailynews.com Wednesday, August 27, 2014 » MORE AT FACEBOOK.COM/RBDAILYNEWS AND TWITTER.COM/REDBLUFFNEWS A5