Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/549408
DearMary:Iamgo- ing to have to buy a new vacuum cleaner soon and wanted to know your thoughts on the new Shark Nav- igator with the lift off container. — Wanda Dear Wanda: Oh, my, you could not make a better choice than a Shark Navigator vac- uum. For me, Shark Nav- igator needs to be added to the Wonders of the World list. I've never known a vacuum cleaner that comes even close to a Shark for extracting dirt from carpet. It's been three years now since I wrote about my first Shark ("So Dis- gusting I'm Embarrassed To Tell"). Then I couldn't help myself and wrote about it again. If you've been follow- ing along for the past few years, you know that the Hubs and I have recently relocated (and by that I mean the biggest move of our lives) and are now getting settled into our new home. This house has (count 'em) 29 stairs, each one of them car- peted. We love this house for its views and vaulted ceilings. However, I am not a fan of carpeted stairs, because how do you clean them? I don't mean sort of clean them. I mean really vacuum ev- ery bit of dirt, crud and grime out of that carpet. Just a few weeks ago, I bought the new Shark Professional Navigator Lift-Away (www.every- daycheapskate.com/new- shark) so I could deep clean all of these car- peted stairs. Wow! This thing is a miracle worker. It's that lift-away feature that makes is to easy to vacuum stairs — every edge and even that hard to reach crevices. I'm in love. My opinion is that you could not get a better vac- uum than a Shark Nav- igator — at any price. What's remarkable to me is that this vacuum is not expensive. And I would put it up against the most expensive vacuum any day. I love it. It's quieter than my original Shark, and, with that lift-away feature, I can deep clean my stairs so easily. And every time I do, I can't be- lieve what comes out of that carpet. Am I the only one who wonders where all that dirt comes from in an otherwise clean house? Those are my thoughts. I can't wait to hear yours. Dear Mary: Any ideas how to get an "old" musty smell out of a curio cabi- net? Sandy Dear Sandy: Do you hear my husband laugh- ing? He says I have an idea about everything. Ha. I'm not so sure about that but when it comes to offensive odors, he's ab- solutely right. While you could try to cover up that offensive odor coming from your curio cabinet with something like a few drops of essential oil, that is not going to remove the problem. That musty smell will just linger — even get worse, over time. I know of only one thing that will kill what's causing the odor with- out bleaching the wood or harming the cabinet in any way. The product is called Nok-Out (which by the way is currently going through a name change to Sniper, but only the name is changing). Nok- Out is odorless, non-toxic and completely harmless but boy, does it do the job. That's because it kills the odor at its source. You can order the product at www.nokout.com (don't forget to use coupon code DPL at checkout for 10 percent off). My friend Lou Osburn has written a detailed tutorial (www.nokout. com/Rescuing-Old-Furni- ture-with-Nok-Out.html) for how to rescue an old piece of furniture you love with Nok-Out. Please read it and then follow her instructions carefully. Good luck. 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 Carpeted stairs challenge and old furniture rescue By Jennifer Cooper Social Security manager in Redding Eighty years ago, on August 14, 1935, Presi- dent Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act into law. The new law guaranteed a basic in- come for retirees and, at the time, the unemployed. Over the years, Social Security has expanded its safety net to provide ben- efits for retirees, people with disabilities and the chronically ill, and spouses and children of deceased workers. The agency has evolved to serve the needs of a changing America. Now, we're celebrating this historic anniversary by looking at both our suc- cessful past, and the path to an even brighter future. Social Security is there for you during all stages of life. Right from the be- ginning, we issue a unique Social Security number to most newborns when an application is taken at the hospital. This allows us to track your income over your working career and accurately calculate your retirement benefit. We provide disability ben- efits to injured and chron- ically ill workers and their families. We provide sur- vivors benefits to widows, widowers, and the minors of deceased workers. We also provide Supplemen- tal Security Income (SSI) to those with low income and resources, and Extra Help with Medicare pre- scription drug costs for people who qualify. In our decades of expe- rience, Social Security has evolved to meet the fast- paced demands of the dig- ital world. Creating an on- line my Social Security ac- count, for instance, let's you view your Social Se- curity Statement, verify the accuracy of your earn- ings record, and get esti- mates of future monthly benefits. Once you begin receiving Social Security benefits, you can use your online account to man- age your record, includ- ing changing your address and phone number, check- ing your benefit informa- tion, changing your elec- tronic payment method, and obtaining an instant benefit verification let- ter or replacement SSA- 1099/1042S. If you haven't already, you can easily sign up for a my Social Security account at www.socialse- curity.gov/myaccount. Our safe and secure on- line services allow you to apply for retirement, spouse's, Medicare, and disability benefits from the comfort of your home. You can quickly complete an online retirement appli- cation at www.socialsecu- rity.gov/applyonline. Looking to the future, we recently released our Vision 2025, a strategic plan to help us shape the future of Social Security service delivery and main- tain clear communication with you. For more infor- mation about our vision for the next ten years, visit www.socialsecurity.gov/vi- sion2025. We look to the next 80 years with a renewed com- mitment to proudly serv- ing Social Security cus- tomers throughout their lifetime, when and where they need us. See how So- cial Security has evolved over the years at www.so- cialsecurity.gov/history. SENIORS Social Security turns 80 next month The following workshops are scheduled for the Chico State Herbarium. IntroductiontoKeying the Sunflowers, Sept. 12 The sunflower family is the largest plant family in the world and the most di- verse plant family in Cali- fornia. Come join an over- view of this remarkable group. John Dittes, senior bot- anist with Dittes and Guardino Consulting, will lead this workshop using the 2nd edition of The Jep- son Manual. John will pro- vide fresh specimens usu- ally comprising 40-60 spe- cies from some 30 genera. This workshop will meet 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in 129 Holt Hall at CSU, Chico. Cost is $100. Register in advance. Tree Identification, Sept. 19 Trees will be introduced that are found on the cam- pus of California State Uni- versity, Chico. Key charac- teristics of the leaves, bark and reproductive structures will be emphasized. Information will be pro- vided about the tree biol- ogy, pruning and urban forest management. Linnea Hanson, Emily Meigs Doe, Erin Gottschalk Fisher and Adrienne Edwards will be instructors for this work- shop. Linnea and Emily have taught tree identification at the community college level and Erin and Adrienne are certified arborists. Five units of International Soci- ety of Arborists continuing education credit can be ob- tained. This workshop will meet 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in 129 Holt Hall at CSU, Chico. Cost is $110. Register in advance. For more informa- tion about registration, call the CSU, Chico Biol- ogy office at 898-5356 or send an email to epurvis@ csuchico.edu. Detailed workshop de- scriptions and sign up forms are available on www.csuchico.edu/biol/ Herb/Events.html. CHICO STATE Upcoming workshops at the herbarium SAN JOSE Emilia Gray, of Red Bluff, was this year's 2nd alternate to the Cali- fornia State Teen Ambas- sadress, which carries the title of Golden State Teen Princess. She received a $150 educational scholar- ship Gray competed this year as Miss Teen Tehama County. She is 15 years old and will be a sophomore at Mercy High School. Last year Gray was elected freshman class president and participated in numerous school sports such as volleyball, cheer leading and softball. She is proficient in voice and en- joys performing. Gray was in her school's musical production of "Phantom of the Opera." She received an award for Outstanding Performance in Physical Education and was the 3rd place winner in Red Bluff's Talent Show. "I am excited about rep- resenting Youth Focus and expanding my volunteer work," Gray said. "This will give me the ability to be a role model for younger girls in my community." The California State Youth Accolades schol- arship competition is a youth program sponsored by Youth Focus Inc. in co- operation with the Califor- nia State Fair. These two non-profit civic organiza- tions conduct this statewide scholarship program to rec- ognize and select outstand- ing youth who will repre- sent the California State Fair and the California Fair Industry as youth ambassa- dors throughout the state of California. The program awards some $10,000 in educa- tional scholarships to the young men and women of accomplishment who par- ticipate. Gray wins Teen Princess title COURTESYPHOTO Emilia Gray is crowned Golden State Teen Princess during the California State Teen Ambassadress competition in San Jose. Mary Hunt YOUTH ACCOLADES Each year, many people get a larger refund than they expected. Some find they owe a lot more tax than they thought they would. If this happened to you, review your situation to prevent another tax sur- prise. Did you marry? Have a child? Have a change in income? Some life events can have a major effect on your taxes. You can bring the tax you pay closer to the amount you owe. Here are some key IRS tips to help you come up with a plan of action: New job. When you start a new job, you must fill out a Form W-4, Employ- ee's Withholding Allow- ance Certificate and give it to your employer. Your em- ployer will use the form to figure the amount of fed- eral income tax to withhold from your pay. Use the IRS Withhold- ing Calculator on IRS.gov to help you fill out the form. This tool is easy to use and it's available 24/7. Estimated tax. If you earn income that is not subject to withholding you may need to pay estimated tax. This may include in- come such as self-employ- ment, interest, dividends or rent. If you expect to owe a thousand dollars or more in tax, and meet other conditions, you may need to pay this tax. You nor- mally pay it four times a year. Use the worksheet in Form 1040-ES, Estimated Tax for Individuals, to fig- ure the tax. Life events. Check to see if you need to change your Form W-4 or change the amount of estimated tax you pay when certain life events take place. A change in your marital status, the birth of a child or buying a new home can change the amount of taxes you owe. In most cases, you can submit a new Form W—4 to your employer any- time. Changes in circum- stances. If you are receiv- ing advance payments of the premium tax credit, it is important that you report changes in circumstances, such as changes in your in- come or family size, to your Health Insurance Market- place. You should also notify the Marketplace when you move out of the area cov- ered by your current Mar- ketplace plan. Advance pay- ments of the premium tax credit help you pay for the insurance you buy through the Health Insurance Mar- ketplace. Reporting changes will help you get the proper type and amount of financial as- sistance so you can avoid getting too much or too lit- tle in advance. For more see Publication 505, Tax Withholding and Estimated Tax. You can get it on IRS.gov/forms at any time. TAX TIP Review taxes in summer to prevent spring surprise Social Security is there for you during all stages of life. Right from the beginning, we issue a unique Social Security number to most newborns when an application is taken at the hospital. PLEASERECYCLE THIS NEWSPAPER. Thankyou! (530) 529-1220 100 Jackson St. Red Bluff AquaAerobics Classes Mon., Wed., Fri. 10 to 10:45am Mon., Wed. 5:30 to 6:15pm Monthly pool pass $25 adult $15 child Smog Check (MOST CARS & PICK-UPS) 527-9841 • 195 S. Main St. starting at $ 29 95 + $ 8 25 certificate All makes and models. We perform dealer recommened 30K 60K 90K Service At Lower Prices. Round Up Saloon Round Up Saloon 610 Washington St. (530) 527-9901 SupportingFarmersMarket with live music from LishaandFriends Datessheisplaying July 1st, 15th & 29th August 12th & 26th September 9th Areyoumelting? Professional Evaporative Cooler Service & Repair 221 3331 Chimneys • Air Ducts Swamp Coolers • Dryer Vents Residential & Commercial WhiteGloveChimney.com ChocolateIsn'tHappy InTheDesert Servicingyourdisposalneedsin Tehama County, and the City of Red Bluff including Residential, Commercial, and Temporary bin services. GREEN WASTE OF TEHAMA A WASTE CONNECTIONS COMPANY 530-528-8500 1805 AIRPORT BLVD. RED BLUFF, CA GreenWasteisaproud supporter of local events. www.TehamaCountyRealEstate.com 530529-2700 314 Washington St, Red Bluff, CA LIFESTYLES » redbluffdailynews.com Friday, July 31, 2015 MORE AT FACEBOOK.COM/RBDAILYNEWS AND TWITTER.COM/REDBLUFFNEWS A7