Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/511752
TodayIthoughtI'd reach into my bulging mailbag to respond to a few of your questions. I love to get mail from you, my lovely read- ers. Even though I cannot per- sonally re- spond to ev- ery message, I read them all. Keep 'em coming! Dear Mary: For the first time in my life, rather than getting a tax refund, I owe the IRS. I'm talking about a lot of money, too. Should I use my savings to pay my taxes, or is there a way to make payments that will not be overly tax- ing? I've been planning to use that money to pay off my high-interest credit cards. — Phyllis Dear Phyllis: While the IRS purports to set up payment plans in certain situations, I would not advise that you go that way if there is any way you can avoid it. The in- terest rates are high, and in my opinion, not reli- able. I've seen numerous cases where a payment plan was arranged, going along fine and then out of the blue the IRS slaps a lien on the taxpayer without rhyme, reason or explanation. I've con- cluded that the last per- son on earth you want to owe money is Uncle Sam. Your taxes should take top priority. If you be- lieve you are in a position to handle monthly pay- ments to the IRS, great. Begin making those pay- ments to yourself instead to restore your savings account once you have paid your debt to the IRS. Once you have your sav- ings built up, then you need to aggressively at- tack that killer credit- card debt. Dear Mary: How can I get the hard water marks off my glass shower doors? I've tried vinegar and that helped some, but the marks remain. Thanks! — Julie Dear Julie, There's a slight chance the glass has become permanently "etched" over time by min- erals in the water, but I'd give it one last try using the mother of all hard wa- ter mark removers: oven cleaner. I'm not kidding. I'd go with something like Easy-Off Professional Fume Free because you don't want to introduce fumes into an open area of your home if you can help it. Be sure to wear rub- ber gloves and then ap- ply with a sponge. Leave it overnight and rinse in the morning. Expect magic! That's how well oven cleaner works on shower doors. Dear Mary: I just got a raise that translates to about $230 a month spendable. I have no sav- ings and am working hard to rapidly repay my credit- card debt. How should I use this money? — Daniel Dear Daniel: This is great! You are smart to think of this now because without specific direction that $230, (about $7.50 per day), could easily evapo- rate into thin air simply because you feel wealthier. While your debt is very expensive for you, I do not recommend you use these new funds to repay the debt more quickly. In- stead, you should build a contingency fund with your raise. Without money you can get your hands on in an emergency, you will be forever running to credit cards when the car breaks down or you experience a temporary lapse in em- ployment. Just make sure you park it in a safe place where it is can earn some interest and you can set up an automatic deposit so that you never have to think about whether or not to save that part of your paycheck. Do not dip into your contingency fund un- less you are faced with a genuine emergency. You need a minimum of three months' living expenses in your fund (six is better). I suggest that you check out Ally online bank, Ally.com and SmartyPig, Smart- yPig.com. As of this writ- ing you can earn .99 and 1.00 percent on savings, respectively, with no min- imum requirements or fees. Wouldyouliketosend a tip to Mary? You can email her at mary@ everydaycheapskate. com, or write to Everyday Cheapskate, 12340 Seal Beach Blvd., Ste. B-416, Seal Beach, CA 90740. EVERYDAYCHEAPSKATE It's best not to mess with the IRS Mary Hunt RED BLUFF KIWANIS REDDING The Bureau of Reclamation, National Ma- rine Fisheries Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Ser- vice announced Wednes- day that pulse flow re- leases from Whiskeytown Dam into Clear Creek will be made in mid-May and mid-June to attract adult spring-run Chinook to Clear Creek habitats for holding and spawning pur- poses. The pulse flows are re- quired under the Endan- gered Species Act to pro- tect populations of steel- head and spring-run Chinook salmon, both listed as threatened spe- cies. Water released as part of the pulse flows will re- main within the Central Valley Project system and will be available for use downstream by Reclama- tion customers, including agricultural and munic- ipal and industrial users in the Central Valley and Bay Area. Releases will be- gin increasing on Monday, May 18, and remain at the peak of 800 cubic feet per second for two days, May 21 and 22. Release rates will then be reduced back to a base flow of 175 cfs by Tues- day, May 26. The second pulse flow release will begin on Mon- day, June 15, increasing to a peak flow of 400 cfs on Wednesday, June 17. Re- lease rates will then be re- duced back to a base flow of 175 cfs by Saturday, June 20. The public should take appropriate safety precau- tions when near or on Clear Creek during these pulse flows. In these habitats, spring- run Chinook can access colder water tempera- tures, large holding pools, newly provided and clean spawning gravel and avoid hybridization and competi- tion with fall-run Chinook. USFWS monitoring has shown that pulse flows have been successful in at- tracting spring-run Chi- nook into Clear Creek. The number of spring-run in Clear Creek increased 40 percent in 2013 and 66 per- cent in 2014 during pulse flows in June. Salmon were counted during snorkel surveys im- mediately before and after each pulse flow. Salmon were also counted during the pulse flows using video cameras running 24 hours a day. Pulse flows in 2014 at- tracted spring-run Chi- nook into Clear Creek where temperatures were 3°F cooler than where they would have spawned in the Sacramento River. These high temperatures would have led to very low sur- vival for eggs remaining in the Sacramento River. On Monday, May 18, a daily schedule of flow re- leases will be available at www.usbr.gov/mp/ncao/. WATER Clear Creek pulse flow scheduled released SUSANVILLE Zone V on the Eagle Lake Ranger Dis- trict of the Lassen National Forest will partially re- open for fuelwood cutting effective Saturday, May 16. Acting District Ranger Matt Boisseau recently made the decision to open the portion of Zone V that lies to the south of Highway 44. However, there are spe- cific areas south of High- way 44 that will be closed to firewood cutting and posted as such. These are areas of heavy windthrown trees where the forest has determined additional evaluation is necessary. Fuelwood cutters are advised that all areas of Zone V north of Highway 44 will temporarily re- main closed due to exces- sive windthrown trees in order to capture any po- tential commercial value. A provision for these mea- sures is contained in the forest's Fuelwood Cutting Requirements. No woodcutting is al- lowed in timber sale areas or other commercial op- erations marked with "No Woodcutting" signs. Trees marked with paint may not be cut or removed, includ- ing those on the ground, with the exception of downed lodge pole pine. Woodcutters are re- minded to stay on roads and trails, as traveling cross-country with motor vehicles to scout for wood is prohibited. Even with a valid wood permit, wood- cutters are only allowed to leave a forest road to gather firewood, as long as this activity does not re- sult in damage to natural resources. In some instances, driv- ers could be held liable for such damage. See the Mo- tor Vehicle Use Maps, avail- able free at your local For- est office, for more infor- mation. Zone V is shown on the Fuelwood Cutting Map, and woodcutters are urged to check the map to ensure that they are on National Forest land and are cutting in permissible areas. Zone V woodcutters are also re- quired to call the 24-hour number, 530-257-4188, for any current restrictions. The price of personal wood permits remains at $10 per cord, with a mini- mum purchase of two cords per permit. Multiple per- mits may be purchased, up to a 10-cord limit. Personal use tags purchased on the Lassen National Forest are also valid on the Plumas National Forest and vice versa. Woodcutters should carefully read all materials included in each wood per- mit packet. Permits may be pur- chased at the Eagle Lake Ranger District office, lo- cated at 477-050 Eagle Lake Road, near the intersection of Highway 36 and County Road A-1, three miles west of Susanville. Office hours are Monday through Fri- day, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Call 530-257-4188 with any questions. LASSEN FOREST Portion of forest to open for woodcutting COURTESYPHOTO Red Bluff Kiwanian Dr. Tony Carbonell, le , in apron, helps rig a pole for one of about 50North Valley Services clients who were treated to a day of fishing by the Red Bluff Kiwanis Club on May 2. The Red Bluff Kiwanis Club hosted its annual VIP Fishing event May 2 at a private pond in Red Bluff. The event provided a day of fishing for about 50 clients of North Val- ley Services along with a lunch of grilled hot dogs, soda, water, chips and cookies. Two hundred pounds of fish were donated by Phil Mackey and Lassen Trout Farm and a dozen Kiwanians helped clients bait hooks, cast lines and land fish. All fish were cleaned, bagged and given back to the clients, many of whom have been coming to the event for years. Commemorative T- shirts were distributed to clients as a keepsake from the event. VIP Fishing a fun outing for special-needs clients STOVEJUNCTION The TheNorthState'spremiersupplierofstoves 22825 Antelope Blvd., Red Bluff 530-528-2221 • Fax 530-528-2229 www.thestovejunction.com Over 25 years of experience Tues-Sat9am-5pm• ClosedSun&Mon Now Carrying! GreenMountainGrills & Accessories Serving Butte, Glenn & Tehama Counties Spring Clean Your Debt With This Special Offer *Bankruptcy * Chapter7 $1,199Allfeesinclude d Call the local office of Travis Stroud -Attorney at Law to schedule a free consultation 530-838-0828 LIFESTYLES » redbluffdailynews.com Thursday, May 14, 2015 MORE ATFACEBOOK.COM/RBDAILYNEWS AND TWITTER.COM/REDBLUFFNEWS A4