Make Sure You Have A Will!

A stark reminder of the importance of having a will -- was driven home recently while working a chap who is now trying to find any surviving family members in another land before the local  Public Trustee grabs the estate of a friend who recently died unexpectedly.


Many people (myself included) try to push the thought of dying away off in the shadows -- as far away as possible, but that can be a little risky as shown by this experience.  His friend never thought he would died and so put off the idea of making a will until the last moment when doctors told him that he was not going to make -- that he was going to die within in days.


Although he hurriedly decided to leave his estate  worth over $8,000,000 in property -- to a big aid organization.  The local Public Trustee tried to claim that this will was written under duress and tried to have it declared void.


What the final outcome will be  I'm not sure, but I do know that if this friend had taken the time to think things through he very likely would have  written a will that left a least a portion  of his estate to another organization that he was associated with -- and that they could have done a lot of good with it.


So, don't leave something like this to the last minute. There  are far too many cases where people do and the Public Trustee here in B.C. steps in and take control of the estate -- which can mean big legal battles for surviving family members. 

Take The Time To Hear Properly.

Ancient King Solomon had some very valuable advice for everyone to keep in mind -- especially when communicating or dealing with other persons -- which is just about all the time.


Thousands of years ago he warned his officials and others that, "When anyone is replying to a matter before he hears [it] that is foolishness on his part and ]often] a humiliation [in the end]"


How many times do we fall into the trap of making a critical decisions about somebody or something before we have properly listened to and analyzed what they have said [or somebody has said about them]?


And how many times have responded in ways that hurt  emotionally)  somebody needless because of it?


I know I've been guilty of this on occasion -- so Solomon's advice is good to keep in mind -- and follow in business and social settings.  It protects critical relationships!

Check This Magazine Out First!

Before heading out on that winter skiing, snowmobiling or other adventure make sure you are properly prepared  with those space-age survival blankets  and other emergency equipment.


A good place to find the latest safety suggestions is with the latest edition of Backpacker magazine. This latest copy is a special survival guide for the outdoor enthusiast -- packed with guides on dealing outdoor emergencies.


Any decent sized book store or news stand should have this out by now.

Call Right Away!

Call the police -- right away -- when you see suspicious persons  -  or suspicious vehicles -- in your your neighborhood.

The current search fro Baby Lisa in the United States could have ended almost right away if just one of  those persons -- either the lady who saw a strange man carrying an unclothed baby in the wee hours of the morning near her home, which was close to the baby's home, or the man near the service station, who apparently saw the same man with a baby before he later vanished had called the police they could likely have intercepted this person first.

This is not an isolated instance of this type of thing happening and it is too bad because a call at the right time to the police can obviously make a difference to somebody's life.

Another High Pressure Reaction To Avoid

We recently took a quick look at how succumbing to high pressure reactions by losing our temper and striking out orally or physically at people can get us in big trouble.

 Remember, you are accountable for everything to do or say and to try and get out of it by saying you didn't know or didn't intend to doesn't usually excuse you

But there is another aspect of succumbing to high pressure reactions. Fear. This can be caused by a variety of situations such as somebody intimidating you either through his appearance or expression (that blank stare look) or actions -- or somebody who suddenly appears in the dark on a lonely path or trail headed in your direction.

Don't give in to this. Instead of shaking or trembling spend your time what you can do to defend yourself if this person is an attacker.

Do you have a set of keys including the new vehicle keys with that thick plastic handle housing the electronic chip?  You could grip this  in your strongest hand between your fingers to slash the person in the face as they rush towards you.

Do you have one of those LED flashlights that has a quick flash mode in your pocket or purse that you could use to blind the person as they rush at you?

(Some people have described these as the stroke maker because of the blinding light they emit in this mode.)

do you have a sharp pencil or pen that you could use to gouge the person's face or eye? Or a bottom of perfume that you could spray in the person's face.

That doesn't mean you are going to stand, wait for and attack the person approaching you of course.  Keep moving away as quickly as possible to safety or a safer location, but be ready to use such things to stun the person long enough for you to make your escape if you do attack.

What should be going through your mind as you continue to move to safety is how you are going to use these if you have to.

Of course you need to take some time regularly to practice such self-defense tactics before you use them. And it would be a good idea to enroll in a self-defense course.  More and security companies, as well as other companies, are offering such courses to the general public as well as their own security officers.

If your are concerned about your personal safety you should look into  enrolling in such as course. Their instructors will will teach you things that are easy to master -- and legal.


In the meantime, if you click on  www.selfdefenceexposed.org
you can sign-up up for a free self-defense newsletter which  contains many self-defense tricks you can use to protect yourself.

"Think Twice Before You Act"

"Think twice before you act!"  That was advice of the father of a young man who was stabbed in Greater Vancouver, BC when he tried to break up a fine between two girls. He died of his wounds and his attacker has still not been arrested.


That is timely advice not only for Good Samaritans like his son, but all of us.  You just never know who you are confronting in public places -- especially at night  and  if you are a female jogger who is lying in wait for you along  the park trail you have jogged along so many times before -- without anything ever happening.


The results of not keeping your personal safety always in mind  are too vividly illustrated a number of young and older women have been murdered in parks in the Greater Vancouver area by predators who had possibly  been watching and planning their attacks for some time.


(Predators  do watch. Just this evening I made a bank deposit at drive-in-bank and found a motorcyclist had parked his machine directly opposite to me in the entrance to the parking area and was just standing there watching what I was doing for some reason.)


So in all situations -- especially if you are by yourself in an isolated area--  you need to ask yourself  if anybody might be watching and either vary your route when out alone so it is harder for criminals to plan an attack or don't go out alone.





Or if you are caught in a sudden desperate situation like the young man on the bus realize that in such close quarters it is easy for somebody to pull out and and stab you suddenly.


Before you do - anything --ask yourself if it is safe for you to intervene or  is if there a --safer way of accomplishing your goals.


Keep in mind the warning of the young man's father to think carefully before doing anything that could be dangerous for you.

Protect Yourself from Identity Theft?

Travel Consultant, Claire, had some valuable tips on the local news hours by Global T.V. here in the Vancouver area today.


These focused on how travelers can protect themselves before and while traveling by making sure mail does not pile up in front of their door and also leave most of their credit cards (ones they don't have to use) at home -- in a safe place -- rather than packing them with them where they could be more vulnerable to  identity and other thieves.


She also reminded listeners not to  use outlets at internet cafes and similar locations for online banking transactions and to use credit cards and cash more most of their purchases -- rather than debit cards and to keep these credit cards and any cash in a safe place.


Another thing which you should keep in mind when traveling is that it is now possible for identity thieves to steal information from credit and other cards just by passing an electronic scanner past your pocket or purse.


According to one expert you can thwart these attempts by making a little purse or wallet out of that old gray (or silver) duct tape. Just wrap a piece of it around a piece of cardboard or paper and you have very effective shielding for your cards apparently.


It is certainly something worth looking into -- whether you are planning a trip to a foreign country or just going about your daily activities in busy streets or shopping malls etc.