Every New Year we make resolutions that we sometimes keep and sometimes do not keep.  However, this New Year, the recent fires and flooding disasters in our State have reminded all home owners that it is very important to check their homeowners insurance.

Mobile home owners and manufactured home owners need to make sure that their insurance coverage covers REPLACEMENT cost of the home!  This cannot be stressed enough.  You may have paid only $20,000 for a double wide home, but in order to replace that home should it become totally damaged, it will cost more than double that or more.  Also, remember that you are renting the lot and should the home become damaged, the site will need to be cleared by the home owner and this is no small cost.

NOW is the time to make sure you have adequate homeowners insurance!

We are all in to recycling, but not everything is recyclable.  Always check with your trash company to confirm what and how they recycle.  Some have different requirements.   Here are some general things you need to keep out of the recycling bin.

Coated Materials: Juice boxes, chip bags, frozen food boxes, and other materials that have a plastic, glossy or shiny coating are not recyclable.

Food-Stained Materials: Pizza boxes, used paper plates, napkins, paper towels, and jars with food residue should not be put in a recycling bin. While the materials themselves are recyclable, once they are contaminated with food they are useless.

Lids and Caps: While bottles can be recycled, the cap is made out of a different kind of plastic called polypropylene that has to be recycled separately. This goes for laundry-detergent caps and peanut-butter lids, too. Most plastics have numbers that determine where they should be recycled. No. 1 and No. 2 can usually be recycled with everything else. If it is No. 5 (polypropylene) or another number, it probably needs to be separated.

Plastic shopping bags: Plastic bags from the grocery store can be detrimental to recycling equipment because they wrap around the machinery and can shut down operation.

Shredded paper: A sheet of paper can be recycled five or six times. However, shredding paper destroys the fibers and makes it difficult to recycle. Brightly colored paper can be a bigger problem and ruin a whole batch of recycling paper.  Put out shredded paper in compost instead.

All medical waste: Needles, syringes, etc.

Plastic foam: Block Foam, air-filled packaging and packing peanuts

Source:  planetsave.com, ocregister.com

Holiday traditions are as unique as the countries they are from.  Some rituals date back centuries, while other celebrations are only decades old.  To celebrate this time of coming together, here are a few holiday traditions from around the world:

Christians around the world celebrate the birth of Jesus on December 25^th, and  Naples Italy is famous for it’s nativity scenes.  During this time, it is not uncommon to find the Christ Child’s crib in many Christian homes.

Rovaniemi, Finland is the “official home town” of Santa Claus.  Jolly old Saint Nick in his red suit, can be visited 365 days a year.  Children from around the world come to deliver their wish lists in person.

Jewish families around the world light candles on the eight nights of Hanukkah.  The festival is observed by lighting the candles of a candelabrum with nine branches, called a Hanukkah Menorah.   Hanukkah festivities include praying, playing dreidel and eating latkes.

In Croatia, s few days before the holiday, residents release thousands of paper lanterns carrying their Christmas hopes and wishes into the sky.

Christmastime in Russia swaps Santa Claus with a gift-giving character from Slavic folklore, Father Frost.  He’s rarely seen without his daughter, Snow Maiden, by his side.

Kwanza is a celebration that honors African heritage in African-American culture, and is observed from December 26 to January 1, culminating in a feast and gift giving.   Each day of Kwanza, marked by lighting a candle on the Kinara holder, represents one of the founding principles of the holiday, including unity, faith and purpose.

On January 6^th, the Christian holiday of the Epiphany, children in Spain sometimes receive presents.  A parade celebrates the Three Kings and their visit to the Baby Jesus.

No matter how you celebrate the holiday season, ENJOY!!

Source:   www.businessinsider.com