Panda Picks-Seniors Work on the Net!

Thank goodness we seniors are more concerned with safety than with style.  But why not have both style and stay safe in this subzero weather.

Wear head gear.  Covered ears are essential to prevent frost bite  You think your hair will keep your head warm.  Think again as 40% of body heat can be lost from  your head. You might like ear pops, to add to your head covering options. Fleecy  or denim and very warm, they store easily in pockets and purses.

Keep fingers comfortableand warm in mittens rather than gloves.  Be sure to wear mittens that are snug at the wrist.  You might consider the mittens that double as gloves. Look for gloves or mittens that provide some traction for those times you want a secure hold.

Get a grip on that ice and snow  when you add treads to your shoes. Traction cleats provide that security with non slip ice treads that are easily added to any shoes.

Cover your mouth/nose with a scarf, mittened hand or mask to protect skin and lungs in extremely cold weather. we seniors shouldn’t be out long enough to need them, but mini heaters can be tucked inside some masks.

Wear layers of loose-fitting clothing, lightweight, warm clothing. Trapped air between the layers will insulate the body.

Keep at least a half tank of gas in your vehicle. A full tank of gas will prevent fuel line freeze up and allow for running the heater periodically if stranded.

Safety Note: Stay with your car while its warming . Don’t invite car thieves.

Keep walks free of ice. Look for pet friendly products to protect furry paws of our housemates with 4 legs. Lawn lovers also look for gentle ice removers that don’t leave residue on floors and carpets.

Panda Lady picked Safe and Warm for this discussion  as some of us are not snow birds.  We stay in the fridged north to be near our families and stay active in our community during the winter months.  The joy of staying in our community can be atained if we stay safe and warm in winter weather. 

Weather information for Ottawa Canada provides vital information for staying safe: They report 80 people a year die in Canada from Winter weather related issues.

Panda Lady

As  seniors we often become victims as we are home, available, believing and trusting.  On line  internet as well as telephone scams are on the rise and we tend to be the victims.  I want to share several scam practices that are going on right now based on police reports as well as my personal experience.

Nov. 11, State Police in Pennsylvania  now report a scam  involving our willingness to co-operate.  The automated phone message asks us to change the pin number to our bank accounts.  When the old pin # is received along with other information, the thiefs have access to banking accounts.

RECOMMENDED ACTION:  recoup the phone number using *69.  Notify local authorities. Call your bank.  Keep track of your account daily  via the internet, watching for any discrepancies.

ON GOING SCAM- This one preys on our wanting to be good citizens.  The caller is warning that we missed  jury duty.  However, they can make it right so that we don’t get in further trouble.  They then want to verify information so that they can eliminate the need for our being punished for our neglect.  They will repeat things like your name, address, phone number asking you to verify.  Now they have you on a role answering questions and agreeing.  “Now what is your social security” they might say “We need to verify that you indeed are Mrs. XXX”.   Your mind is still back on , when was I notified to be on jury duty, what will they do to me for my neglect, etc. You know the rest of the story, you have just been scammed.

A common scam for  on line internet users is to receive a notice that you have just won the lottery. You will receive a notice that you have so many days to claim and here is the contact information.  I received such notices for several months saying I had won the British Lottery.  The notice included lottery numbers they were trying to match to people and of course the number assigned to me was on the list.  I notified the FBI, calling the local number in our community phone book.

I have experienced two on line scams where the e-mail looked very official, with proper stationery headings.  One was for pay pal and the other was for my bank.  Both notices told me to go to a certain url and fill in the information to verify my account as they suspected  a problem with my account.  I contacted pay pal and they told me “WE NEVER ASK FOR YOUR INFORMATION”.  On the bank request they told me they would NEVER send a notice but would contact me in person and ask  me to come in if there were a problem with my account.

When in doubt, always contact the instituion and verify that indeed they were the sender of the information. This is another tactic I find affective.  Thank them and tell them you can’t talk right now but you will get back with them.  Ask for their phone number. 

Panda Picked the subject of phone and on line scams because we seniors are the greatest victims of such cimes.   On line scams and phone scams prey on our  fear, lack of understanding, our willingness to please and  our desire to be honest.

National Do Not Call List-1-888-382-1222

Think You Are A Victim-Action To Take

Common Phone Scams