Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/616401
Thenation'slargestfree volunteer tax assistance and preparation service, AARP/IRS TaxAide pro- gram, is seeking volun- teers of all ages and back- grounds. Barbara Vandygriff, lo- cal coordinator for Red Bluff and Corning, and Everett McDonough, Te- hama County district co- ordinator, are looking for new individuals to pro- vide this free tax service from Feb. 1 to April 15, 2016. Volunteers should be computer familiar and able to commit to 40 plus hours (3 to 5 hours per week) of their time during the 10 weeks of the tax season. No previous experience is required. Volunteers receive spe- cialized training and have the option of serving in a variety of roles. Seasoned counselors and qualified instructors will offer four days of comprehensive training Jan. 19-22, 2016. Volunteers will learn new skills and be providing a valuable service for Te- hama County. Anyone looking for a way to help the community is asked to consider becom- ing a tax volunteer. Call TaxAide at 727-8298 and leave your name and phone number. Your call will be returned. The TaxAide program is a free tax service offered to seniors and others by the Internal Revenue Service and the American Associ- ation of Retired Persons. TaxAide is in the process of establishing a web site at tehamataxaide.weebly.com. More information will be available on the site closer to opening date of Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2016 at the Veterans Hall, on the corner of Oak and Jackson streets. TAXES TaxAide program gears up for season The Associate Degree for Transfer program, a joint venture between the California Community Colleges and the Califor- nia State Universities sys- tems, is showing rapid and marked success as it con- tinues to grow. The number of degrees awarded through the pro- gram in 2014-2015 is nearly double the number of de- grees awarded the year be- fore. Data released by the California Community Col- leges Chancellor's Office shows that 20,644 students earned Associate Degrees for Transfer in the 2014-15 academic year compared to 11,448 degrees awarded in 2013-14. "We are thrilled by the growing success of the As- sociate Degree for Trans- fer program," said Califor- nia Community Colleges Chancellor Brice Harris. "This program offers stu- dents an affordable path to a four-year degree without compromising the quality of education. Because of the time and money saved through this program, it's a win-win for both stu- dents and the state of Cal- ifornia." The Associate Degree for Transfer program, now in its fourth year, provides community college stu- dents with guaranteed ad- mission to the CSU system and priority admission to a CSU campus. Once admit- ted, students complete an additional 60 units to earn a bachelor's degree. There are currently more than 1,900 associate degrees for transfer offered in a wide variety of subject areas. The two higher edu- cation systems have also made it easier for stu- dents to chart their path to a bachelor's degree with a new search tool on the program's website www. adegreewithaguarantee. com. The tool allows stu- dents to search degree dis- ciplines offered at different community colleges and identify CSU campuses as potential transfer desti- nations for earning bach- elor's degrees in the same discipline. COMMUNITY COLLEGES Associate Degrees for Transfer nearly double over past year As California's severe drought and bark beetle epidemic has left millions of trees dead, the Califor- nia Board of Forestry and Fire Protection last week voted to extend a drought mortality exemption to the state's tree removal permit- ting process. "With massive tree mor- talityacrossCalifornia, this exemption streamlines the process for landowners who are working to re- duce their wildfire risk and safety hazards from falling trees by removing their deadtrees,"saidHelgeEng, CALFIRE's deputydirector of resource management. On June 17, the Board of Forestry and Fire Pro- tection initially adopted emergency regulations al- lowing specified forest management activities, in- cluding the cutting or re- movaloftreesthataredead or dying as a result of the drought conditions across California. The original action was set to expire on Jan. 12, 2016; however, the extension provides an ad- ditional 90 days for prop- erty owners to utilize the exemption when remov- ing dead trees due to the drought. The latest aerial survey estimated that over 29 mil- lion trees have died as a re- sult of the drought and the effects of bark beetle infes- tation, up from 3.3 million in 2014. These dead and dying trees create an en- vironment more readily susceptible to dangerous and destructive wildfires. "Even with recent rains it will likely take years to slow down the massive tree mortality and bark beetle infestation, said Eng. "Dead trees near homes, roads and pub- lic infrastructure create a fire hazard and public safety concern, so it's crit- ical that residents remove their dead trees and reduce their wildfire risk." The winter months typi- callyprovideagoodtimefor landownerstoremovedead trees as bark beetle activity generally stops when tem- peratures drop below 50º F andthebeetlesgodormant. During other times of the year, when the beetles are active, trees with fresh cuts will actually attract beetles allowing them to spread to other trees. Once a tree is infested with bark beetles, there is little that can be done to save the tree and it can be dead in three to four weeks. Thebarkbeetleepidemic has hit California's wild- land forests in the coastal ranges, mountains and foothill communities, pos- ing particular threat where dead trees are near homes and private property. In these areas, Cal Fire has launched a public outreach campaign to educate and motivate residents to take steps now to protect their home and property from wildfire. The campaign began in the summer with the message "Remove Your Dead Trees. Reduce Your Wildfire Risk." Property owners are encouraged to remove dead trees on their property to help protect from wildfire. For more information from visit www.Prepare- ForBarkBeetle.org. CAL FIRE Dead tree removal with exemption extended I've told you about my email inbox, but re- ally, you should see it — not that I am com- plaining. On the con- trary, the more mail I get, the move love I feel from my wonderful readers. Some of you send the most amazing stories and accounts of your prog- ress toward getting out of debt. Other messages are a quick sentence of en- couragement. But mostly, you can't seem to lo- cate past information. You need a reminder of a tip, trick, product or do- it-yourself instruction you've read in a previous column. I'm no statistician, but I'm told that for ev- ery person who actu- ally writes to ask a ques- tion — given the size of readership that Every- day Cheapskate enjoys — 1,000 others have the same question, but just don't get around to writ- ing. So, consider the fol- lowing my attempt to kill thousands of birds with just a few stones. Q Can you tell me which carpet steam cleaner you recommend, the one you said was the best thing you ever bought? A Oh, you're talk- ing about my be- loved Hoover Steam Vac. I still have it, still love it and wouldn't want to live without it. Make sure you re-read the original post so you'll know how Hoover works best for me (hint: no shampoo.) Q Which Shark vacuum do you recommend? There are several models and I'm confused. A You want a Shark Navigator Lift-Away Professional (about $160). This will give you a vac- uum that cleans carpet so well you might be embar- rassed to see how much cleaning there was to be done — I sure was! You will have the attachment you need to vacuum your hard surface floors. But wait, there's more! The Lift-Away feature turns this Shark into a handy vacuum to clean stairs. Q Can I use a blender to grind coffee beans? What make or model would be the best? A Maybe in a pinch, but I would not rec- ommend it as a regular method. You will end up with powder, and that will not make good cof- fee. To make good cof- fee, the beans need to be crushed to release the oils. You need a grinder. They come in two variet- ies: blade grinder or burr grinder. A blade grinder will be cheaper, but will only cut the beans into small bits. A burr grinder crushes the beans. A blade grinder will be cheaper, however, cof- fee experts agree that a burr grinder is far supe- rior for making a great cup of coffee because it releases the precious oils that make great coffee. My choice for the best in- expensive blade grinder is KRUPS F203 Electric Spice and Coffee Grinder (about $20). However, for about $5 more, you can get a fabulous manual burr grinder — Vero Man- ual Coffee Mill. (about $25). It's beautiful and creates a perfect grind. Q I just took my tent down from the raf- ters — it went unused for several years and the smell is horrendous. It is a lovely Timberland tent and I would hate to have to throw it out. Any sug- gestions? I thought about Nok-Out but I don't know if I need to submerge it in the stuff; use it straight from the bottle or dilute it first. A You are definitely on the right track. Nok- Out offers the best possi- ble rescue here because it will eliminate the odor by killing it — not covering it up. Fill a spray bottle with Nok-Out. Pitch the tent outdoors. If you can easily see the offending areas on the tent, spray them well. Me? I'd spray the entire tent inside and out to make sure I didn't miss a single iota of stink. To do its amazing job, Nok-Out must come in full contact with the offending odor. Do not rinse. If it's a sunny day, the tent will dry quickly. You may need to conduct a second operation to treat the floor of the tent. Provided you have satu- rated every source of the odor, this will take care of the problem. Q Would you please re- print the brand of indoor TV antenna you have in your new home? I lost that information. A It's the FlatWave Amped Indoor Am- plified HDTV Antenna by Winegard, about $60. You can re-read that par- ticular column (Have You Given Yourself That $1,400 After-Tax Raise Yet?) by typing a keyword like "antenna" in the search box at the Every- day Cheapskate website. 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. EVERYDAY CHEAPSKATE Anavalanche of reader love Mary Hunt VolunteerTaxCounselorsassistedinpreparingalmost800taxreturnsduringlastyear's tax season at the Tehama County sites. Thankyou! PLEASE RECYCLE TH IS N EW SP AP ER . 645AntelopeBlvd.Su#10 530-330-1096 We've Moved Reformer Pilates and Tabata Bootcamp to frontier village Limitedopeningsin (530) 527-2151 545DIAMONDAVE.,REDBLUFF The Daily News office will be closed Friday, Dec. 18 from 12-2 pm for our annual Christmas party. Please leave a message and we will return your call. Thankyou Daily News staff DAILY NEWS Tehama District Jr. Livestock AnnualMeeting Wed., Jan 13 th 6pm held in the Tehama Room @ Tehama District Fairgrounds GiveTheGiftOf Hea lth And Fitness (530) 529-1220 100 Jackson St. Red Bluff Holiday Special $25.00 Come in for details Gift Certificates Available www.tehamafamilyfitness.com Tehama Family Fitness Center 2498SouthMainSt.RedBluff• 528-8656 ★ Paynothingtogetyournewmembershipstarted, and no dues until 1/1/16! *must be EFT ★ Gift Certificates Available ★ $99 - 3 month membership ★ $189 - 6 month membership ★ All Supplements and Clothes are 10% Off all day! BLACK FRIDAY SPECIALS NEW MEMBERSHIPS GET THE REST OF 2015 FOR FREE Regular Haircut $ 2 00 off KWIK KUTS FamilyHairSalon 1064SouthMainSt.,RedBluff•529-3540 ANY RETAIL PRODUCT 20 % off withanychemicalserviceof $50 or more Notgoodwithotheroffers Expires 12/31/15 With coupon Reg. $13.95 LIFESTYLES » redbluffdailynews.com Wednesday, December 16, 2015 » MORE AT FACEBOOK.COM/RBDAILYNEWS AND TWITTER.COM/REDBLUFFNEWS A5