Gift For New Homeowners

A family friend and her husband are hosting a housewarming party next week. My mother has tasked me to get a gift for them and I have been crazy trying to come up with gift ideas. I rarely attend housewarming parties, you see, and don't really know what I should buy. Why do people usually buy? It would be helpful if they had a gift list for us to pick our gifts from!

I went to a new home furnishing mall the other day and spotted some very nice hot tub covers. I don't even know if the couple has a hot tub at home. I guess I will have to get my mother to do some detective work for me before I buy those hot tub covers, beautiful as they are.

RM42 Billion In Frozen Assets

It was an eye opener to read in the papers today that Amanah Raya reported that there is a total of RM42 billion in frozen assets because the deceased did not have a will.

In Malaysia, will writing is still unpopular because we have the notion that wills are only written by people who are old and dying soon. Young people still feel quite taboo to have a will written and hence, when they die suddenly, the family is unable to gain access to the assets.

I remember reading about a tycoon who had two wives who died young and now, the two families are fighting for control of the company that the man built. I shall not name names here….

But really, RM42 billion is really a staggering figure.

Cleansing

I've been suffering from terrible stomach pangs lately, which started a few weeks ago when I ate the wrong food and had food poisoning, so much so I had to visit the doctor! I was never in that much pain from food poisoning before! Even though I was treated, things have not been the same since then.

I am thinking that the solution of to cleanse my colon. I know, it may sound drastic but I am desperate. I have heard of cleansonix and wonder if I should use this. Or is there something else that is better and that I should consider as well?

I have never cleansed my colon before and it's high time I do so but even desperate as I am, I hope to be able to do it safely. Any recommendations?

Sale Of Royal Memorabilia Up 12491%

According to eBay, sale of Royal memorabilia, in conjunction with the royal wedding of the century between Prince William and Catherine Middleton on 29th April, 2011, as expected, shot up, by 12,491% year-on-year.

Normally, although there are royal memorabilia collectors, sales are slack and prices are never too high. And this time, even though there are collectors of Prince William and Kate Middleton royal wedding memorabilia, collectors believe that these souvenirs would not be able to fetch a high price in the future, following the trend of past royal memorabilia.

This means that such souvenirs are good as keepsakes but not as investment. I wonder if this trend would change with Prince William souvenirs. If so, I too would like to pick up an item or two!

Building Self-Esteem

I noticed that a friend is suffering from low self-esteem. I know that feeling when I had bad skin. Now that I have cured my face of zits, I feel a lot better about myself. My friend doesn't have bad skin like I did but he has a weight problem which spiraled out of hand.

I would like to recommend to him sensa natural weight loss system which I have read worked for some people but I am afraid to bring it up as it may hurt him further. Perhaps I should bid time and wait for him to mention about his weight and then only broach the subject. What do you think?

Delivery of Credit Cards

A little while ago, a reader asked me how credit cards are delivered. I told him that most banks and credit card issuers use courier service, the majority use Poslaju. By using courier service, recipients are required to sign for receipt of mail and one also has to show MyKad to the delivery guy.

He then told me that there wouldn't be anyone at home during office hours and asked if there is an easier way. Well, I am afraid that either he has it sent to him this way or he goes to the bank to collect it personally. Which is the lesser devil?

And now that seven Pos Malaysia postmen have been found to have tampered with mail that contained credit cards, do you think we should all request to personally pick up our credit cards just to be on the safe side?

Recourse For Topamax Victims

Over the past few days, since learning about Topamax side effects, I have been asking friends to check out the ongoing Topamax lawsuit so that they know what's going on and if they come across anyone who has been impacted by Topomax, they could point them to the right direction.

Although I do not know of anyone affected by Topamax, which doctors have linked to causing cleft lips and cleft palate, I find this pitiful that a medication that is supposed to cure someone in fact injures someone else. Isn't that ironic? Obviously, help should be extended to people who have been affected. Mothers will also blame themselves for "causing" this to the affected children.

For more information on the options that a “victim” has, please contact this law firm directly:
O’Hanlon, McCollom & Demerath – Personal Injury Lawyers – 808 West Avenue, Austin, TX. 78701 – 512-494-9949

No More Cheap Deals?

A friend, who recently revisited eBay to shop after a long hiatus, told me that she is disappointed that she could no longer find cheap items of quality. I have to concur. I remember that when eBay first started, we all looked forward to browse eBay every day wondering what treasure we would be finding. By treasure, I don't mean expensive stuff, but stuff that sellers have dug from their home, items that they may not need anymore but still useful to others, hence they are letting go so that they have a new home.

I personally haven't shopped on eBay for a long time now and even back when I did, most of the items I bought were from traders and not mom and pop stores. I wonder if these stores have died. I think these are the stores that give eBay personality, not brand name stores that are trying to penetrate online shoppers and hence think it best to go through eBay.

Malaysian Online Shopping Hit RM1.8 Billion in 2010

PayPal commissioned a survey that spanned from January and February this year on Malaysian shoppers and their shopping habits recently and found from the 1.1 million Malaysian shoppers who are at least 18 years of age, spent an average of RM2,461 on online purchases, totally RM1.8 million for the entire year!

If you run an online business and found that you did not achieve good sales, I think you should ask yourself what went wrong and how you should try to get a larger slice of this pie.

No doubt, most of these purchases were made with international web stores because of a wider variety of products and purportedly better quality products, there are loyal shoppers who are very supportive of home-grown entrepreneurs.

Topamax Lawsuit

I have been reading up on medical reports lately because my mother wants me to look for medical information for her. She hasn't been feeling well lately, you see, and her doctors could not pinpoint her ailment, if any.

I was quite shocked when I read about an ongoing Topamax lawsuit which came about because of side effects from the anticonvulsant medication called Topamax. While Topamax was used to treat epileptic seizures and migraine headaches, it has been found that some women on this drug delivered babies with various degrees of cleft lip or cleft palate.

I know of a friend who is on an anticonvulsant drug; luckily not Topamax. if you know of anyone in a similar situation, find out if the drug is Topamax. Also, you should pass the patient the address of this law firm: O’Hanlon, McCollom & Demerath – Personal Injury Lawyers – 808 West Avenue, Austin, TX. 78701 – 512-494-9949

Credit Card Issuers To Send Out Text Messages

I read in the papers recently that soon it will be an automated process to receive a text message from the bank each time we charge our credit card. This will make it easier for us to track if our card has been stolen or misused. With the text message alert, we would be able to cancel the transaction, hence it will no longer be easy for fraudsters to steal or clone credit cards.

This is only one of the many steps taken to curb credit card fraud and it's a good step forward. Credit card owners can set the minimum charge amount they would like to be alerted. As for me, I would prefer to know each time my card is charged, even if I charge it myself. One can't be too careful!

Self Storage Solutions

A friend is moving from Dubai to Finland for work. He was quite sad that he had to give away many of his personal belongings, his collection of knick knacks and furniture. He only lived in Dubai for three years but you'd be surprised at the speed that we collect items for the home. My friend was no exception.

I was thinking that if he was living in Chicago, he could utilize a self storage facility so that once he settles down in a new home, he could call for his belongings to be shipped. He need not have given away his beloved collection! Moishe's Self Storage Chicago offers a very simple solution, from US$29 per month, to people who are on the move whether they are relocating to a new house in the neighborhood or even to another country like this friend.

In fact, I am in the midst of clearing out my house and I have to give so many items away, or if they are not taken later, I plan to throw them away. I am a sentimental person and I do this with a heavy heart. If I can, I would like to keep everything. No, I am not a hoarder but still, I like to keep old stuff because they have memories. If self storage is available here, I would definitely use it!

eBay Instant Sale Offers More In Conjunction With Earth Day

In conjunction with Earth Day 2011 on April 22nd, eBay, which runs a buy-back programme called Instant Sale for old/used/broken devices like smart phones, is offering more for these devices. This special rate will expire on 30th April, 2011.

eBay has a chart of how much each device is bought but even so, the transaction price very much depends on the condition of the device. Even if the device is beyond repair, they would still offer you free shipping to get it off your hands.

If you are taking up this offer, remember to factory reset your device so that all your personal information will be wiped from memory. You wouldn’t want your email to be accessed by strangers, for example!

Investment Plan

A friend asked me how he should invest his savings. A few years ago, I told him to open a fixed deposit account but he said that his savings wasn't large enough. Now that he has enough, I don't think he should keep in his savings in an FD.

No doubt, FD is the safest form of savings but it's not investment. Besides, over the past few years, we have seen how high commodity prices have risen, particularly precious metals like gold and silver. Now, I think he should use his cash to buy gold and silver bars.

Some people say that the price of gold and silver are already too high but judging from the slack economy and turmoil in many countries around the world, I am confident that the price of precious metals and other raw material could only go one way: UP.

eBay Adds Facebook "LIKE" Button To Listings

This feature isn't on every category yet but it's kind of weird that this button is added when eBay policy states that we are not to share eBay listings on social networking websites, for example Facebook, MySpace or Twitter. Duh!

With the implementation of this LIKE button, while it is a step forward, it's contradictory. So do we "LIKE" or do we not? Since we are still trying to make a living through eBay, surely we don’t want to violate any policies? What do you think?

Gold IRA and Gold 401k Accounts

I was discussing with a friend about the best ways to save for our retirement and we came to the conclusion that the best way is still gold. Sure, gold price has risen by quite a lot but because of the nature of this precious metal, the price is very stable, unlike paper currency that could easily get affected by external forces like natural disaster or war. In fact, in such circumstances, the price of gold rises even more!

Also, gold 401k and gold IRA accounts are very common these days and it is very easy to do a gold IRA transfer, hence its appeal. In fact, 401k gold and IRA gold is possibility the most wealth-preserving due to its stability, untouchable by any crisis.

Although many people know that they should start saving for their retirement from young, the big question has always been HOW to save and HOW to make the most of what we could set aside monthly from our paycheck. The answer is in gold.

'Misleading' Home-Based Advertisement Banned

An advertisement that shows a screenshot of PayPal with a one-day income of £3,732.73 has been banned because it does not show the true picture of an "average" person who participates in this home-based work. According to this company an average person can earn between £200 and £500 per month. £3,732.73 is an exceptional case.

Although I have not heard of this company before and do not know their nature of business, I only know from reading news report that the company teaches people who to target niche products and set up stores accordingly.

If that's the case, if one puts in time into this online "business", £200 and £500 per month is achievable. But then again, one would have to set aside some money to advertise the business.

Shop For Lingerie Online

A few of my friends think that I have a good life because I run an online store. To them, it's easy job. Actually, I have stopped my business a few years ago as I need time to concentrate on other ventures. You wouldn't believe it but from being a seller of ladies underwear online, I have turned into a purchaser instead.

From experience, some people, especially women, are not comfortable shopping for lingerie online, but once we have shopped at a store one time, we have no more qualms returning because trust has been gained and that's one of the most important aspects in an online retailer-shopper relationship.

Also, it may seem strange but shopping online could be cheaper than shopping at a regular store because of discounts using promotional codes. Maybe free shipping is offered too. In addition, by shopping online, I could browse through multiple brand names by just sitting in front of the computer. This is good because not all major lingerie brands are available in my city; for example, Curvy Kate and Damart.

I have spent this morning browsing through shapewear because I am thinking of buying my first. It would be nice wearing one under a tight fitting dress so that my bulges aren't visible! I'm quite surprised that full-bodied body shaper is so affordable. This means that I could get a few for myself. Yay!

"William & Kate" PEZ Candy Dispenser Hits eBay

As far as souvenirs for the royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton go, this one has to be the most "unique". It's a pair of PEZ candy dispenser and it is not mass produced, which makes it valuable. There is a large group of PEZ dispenser collectors but there is also a similarly large group of collectors of royal souvenirs. So who among these fans will win?

Although I am a collector myself, I don't collect any PEZ candy dispenser or royal stuff. These are way too expensive for me to invest in. At this point of writing, this William & Kate unique PEZ candy dispenser has already garnered 29 bids at GBP7,641.51. And there's still eight more days to go!

What do you think of this William & Catherine original PEZ candy dispenser? How much are you willing to pay to own this pair of royal souvenir box set? By the way, 100% of proceeds from this auction will go to Starlight Children's Foundation in the UK, a foundation which grants wishes of terminally ill children and which provides hospital entertainment for them.

Charlie Sheen 1997 Ferrari 550 Maranello On eBay

A 1997 Ferrari 550 Maranello formerly owned by Charlie Sheen is now on eBay. This past month, I've come across quite a few celebrity owned vehicles being auctioned off on eBay. I think the seller of this Ferrari 550 Maranello is trying to cash in on the notoriety of Charlie Sheen. if you read the gossip papers enough, you would know that he has caused CBS to cancel their popular sitcom "Two and a Half Men".

This car really looks beautiful. For the one with cash who can't wait for the auction to end, he can have it right now for US$79,500. That's the Buy it Now (BIN) price. Anyway, I don't have the money. I can only watch this auction....