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Someprepaiddebit cards can be problematic to use up to the last cent without go- ing over and having to dip into your pocket to complete the transac- tion. Some of them have expi- ration dates, which is dif- ficult to understand, but true nonetheless. Another problem: Most stores will not allow you to split pay- ments. That means if you buy a new bike and want to use up that last $1.77 on a prepaid debit card, paying the balance with cash or some other form of payment, most stores will not let you do it. The problem is, when they try to process the prepaid card, it returns a rejec- tion because the balance on the card is insufficient to cover the entire trans- action. I want to show you a way that you can use up that $1.77 or any nag- ging tiny balance — even $.05 — on a prepaid debit card. But before we go on, let's define terms. A "prepaid debit card" is a credit card branded gift card. That means it has a MasterCard or Visa logo on it. It's been "loaded" with a certain amount of money that can be spent in any store that takes MasterCard or Visa transactions. This article does not apply to a Macy's or Best Buy gift cards. Those are department store gift cards, not prepaid debit cards. For anyone worried that I'm about to haul off and suggest you do some- thing so sneaky you could be arrested, relax. This is very ethical and com- pletely legal — openly ac- cepted and actually quite clever. You will use Amazon to convert any amount on any prepaid debit card (defined above), even if what remains is only a few cents. This means you need an ac- count at Amazon. If you have ever purchased any- thing there, you have an account. If not, you need to open one. It's free and easy. The way to conquer the prepaid debit card prob- lem is with your account at Amazon. First, you will transfer the value of any prepaid debit card that has not expired to your account at Amazon. Next, you will use those funds to purchase an Amazon gift card and email it to yourself. The minimum purchase amount is $.50 so you will need to accumulate at least fifty cents in your Amazon.com account to do this. Once you have an Ama- zon gift card, you can use it to buy anything at Am- azon. And you can split payments. That means if you bought yourself a $.71 Amazon Gift Card, you can use it now to pur- chase, let's say, one of my books or a gift for your best friend. First you apply said Amazon gift card to your purchase, and then pay the balance as you nor- mally would. The nice thing here is that Amazon gift cards never expire. You can just hold the funds in your Amazon account un- til you need them or un- til you want to purchase an Amazon gift card for yourself or someone else. So, let's review, shall we? Amazon has a method by which you can move any amount from a pre- paid debit card into your Amazon account. Those funds can now be used to purchase things, in- cluding Amazon gift cards. To learn more, go to Amazon.com and log in using your passcode. Look at the upper right side of the page and click on "Your Account." Select the first item in the pull down menu, "Your Ac- count" (yes, again). Look under "Payment Meth- ods" and select "Add a Credit or Debit Card." 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 Use up every last cent on any prepaid debit card Mary Hunt It was getting colder in November, but we de- cided to take the paddle- boards down the river one last time. It was a beau- tiful day, but by the end of our trip, we were so cold. We all agreed that we'd need kayaks, and maybe wetsuits, if we wanted to go on any more river excur- sions this winter. Looking for something new to try, my friends Terri Opdyke and Kelly Amen invited me to go horseback riding with them. That would sound tame to most of you, but even though I've lived in Red Bluff my whole life, I have only been on a horse once. It was on a guided tour in Mexico, and it was scary. I almost got bucked off. I promised myself I'd never get on a horse again. Terri was able to con- vince me that she would put me on her safe horse, Rocky. She said he'd take good care of me. I fig- ured, why not. The catch was we'd be helping her mom move some cattle at her ranch. A ranch on very hilly territory with lots of rocks and oak trees to navigate around. Kelly was riding their new horse, Stitch, for the first time. Our friend Katherine joined us on her horse for her first try mov- ing cattle. So, there were a few firsts on this trip. I got up onto Rocky, and was grateful that he was very mellow. We headed out, and his mellow went out the window when he tried to catch up with Stitch. I learned that gal- loping hurts the tookus. I learned to ride a little higher in the saddle. While we were mov- ing cattle, Kelly took Stitch under an oak tree. A branch smacked Stitch on the butt, and Kelly got bucked off. He didn't get hurt and got right back on, but I freaked out a bit. It looked painful. I held on tight and prayed I wouldn't get dumped off. Next up, Katherine's horse took her under a low hanging oak branch and dang near scrapped her off. She was able to get low enough to avoid being dis- mounted. She got through that with nary a scratch on her, but it scared the heck out of me. I tried to go way around any trees and, again, I prayed I wouldn't get scraped off. Terri was riding her mare, Paris. Those two were awesome together. She moved those cattle like nobody's business. I was impressed. We finished getting them to their designated area and got back to the ranch. I was freezing and bone tired. Terri's mom asked if I was hooked. I told her that it was an ad- venture, but I wasn't really the cowgirl type. I liked Rocky, he was a sweet, gentle horse who took great care of me all day. But I'd take my trike over a horse any day. In gym news, we are still waiting to hear back from the California Fran- chise Tax Board. We are hoping for full non-profit status by the first of the year. In the meantime, we are doing a free self de- fense class each month. Please come and learn some things and pick up a kubotan to keep yourself safer in these scary times. Christmas is fast arriv- ing, and I have a gift giv- ing tip. Instead of buying stuff for people you love, why not donate to the Sal- vation Army, Food For The Hungry, Toys For Tots. Make a donation as a busi- ness, as a family, as an in- dividual. It feels so good to know that you are sup- porting organizations that do so much to help those in need in our community. Whatever your plans, may you have a Merry Christmas, and may God bless and keep you. Avery Vilche is a fitness instructor who owns Psycho Fitness & MMA at 1450 Schwab St. in Red Bluff. You can reach her at 200-0526 or vilcheavery@ yahoo.com. AVERY VILCHE Avery Vilche Saddledupandreadytoride. The Tehama County An- imal Care Center will be holding a dog and cat adop- tion event Dec. 17-19. During the three day Home for the Holidays event, the Care Center will reduce the adoption fees for all dogs to $25 or less, all kittens will be $10, and all adult cats will be avail- able for free. Animal Care Center Staff are hoping to use this adoption event to find every dog and cat in the shelter a new home before the new year begins. "The holiday season is of- ten the time families decide to add a new pet to the fam- ily," manager Christine Mc- Clintock said. "We want to encourage families to look to the shelter for their new furry friend." Adoptable dogs have been micro-chipped, li- censed, started on vaccina- tions and have been tested for heartworm. Cats are started on vaccinations and have tested negative for fe- line leukemia. Additionally, all spay or neuter and rabies vaccination fees for dogs and cats alike will be paid for by PETS — Providing Es- sentials for Tehama Shelter. All adopted animals will be spayed or neutered prior to going home with adopters. "Winter is especially hard on the animals in the shelter, and we want to see them in a warm, loving home before the year ends," McClintock said. "For that reason, we have reduced our adoption prices to the lowest of the year. We are hoping to find a home for every animal in the shelter during the Home for the Holidays event." In addition to amaz- ingly low adoption prices, each adopter will receive a gift bag filled with toys and treats for their new pet. Thanks to donations to PETS from BarkBox and Swiffer, the first 50 adopters will be awarded a BarkBox full of Bark & Co. toys and treats, along with Swiffer products for cleanliness. Home for the Holidays will begin at 10 a.m. Thurs- day, Dec. Adoption hours for the event will run 10 a.m. to noon and 1-4:30 p.m. all three days. The Tehama County An- imal Care Center is at 1830 WalnutSt.inRedBluff.Care Center hours are 8 a.m. to noon and 1-5 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 10 a.m. to noon and 1-5 p.m. Satur- day. Adoption hours are 10 a.m. to noon and 1-4:30 p.m. If you would like more in- formation regarding adopt- ing, fostering or becoming a Care Center volunteer, call McClintock at 527-3439 or write to cmcclintock52@sb- cglobal.net. ANIMAL CARE CENTER HomeforHolidaysadoptiondriveset The Franchise Tax Board is encouraging taxpayers to find out if they are among the thousands of Califor- nians who missed receiv- ing a total of $28 million in income tax refunds. This year, the US Postal Service returned more than 49,000 personal income tax refunds to FTB. Most cases involve taxpayers who moved but failed to update their addresses with FTB. Taxpayers can use the Check Your Refund Status online tool at https://www. ftb.ca.gov/online/refund/in- dex.asp in both English and Spanish to learn whether they have a refund waiting. Taxpayers may call FTB at 800 852-5711. Once FTB en- ters a taxpayer's new mail- ing address, a refund is au- tomatically re-issued. Taxpayers are strongly encouraged to use direct deposit, which allows FTB to deliver refunds in a mat- ter of days. As of Nov. 28, FTB had issued more than 10.5 mil- lion refunds totaling more than $10.8 billion for the 2014 tax year. CALIFORNIA $28 million in unclaimed tax refunds You're there f or Mom. We're here f or you. Caring for a loved one can be more than you expected. But you're not alone. Connect with experts and other caregivers aarp.org/caregiving 1.877.333.5885 The adventure continues with the ride of my life OURHOMEWASBROKENINTO, AND THEY STOLE MY DAD!! TheystolemyDad'sashesthatwere in a special box. We are offering a $500 REWARD for his return. 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