What a surprise it was to be called by Sid Johnston from the Suburban Trends, a local/regional paper, to ask me questions about my blogs and websites. As much as I share in writing, verbally, I’m relatively quiet (some may disagree, but it’s true, I promise LOL!) by nature, so just say that I live in Northern NJ on most of my sites to maintain some privacy, but Sid was persistent, and tracked me down, and then put together this wonderful article…thank you so much! Actually when you think about it, there isn’t a lot of privacy when you post to blogs and on the web, your audience is huge, hmmm. Well anyway, never expected a full page article, and very much appreciate it.
Everything is true in the article…well, almost…I guess since I have a blog for Work at Home Grandmothers, and a small but growing network of Work at Home Grandmothers one would imagine that I’m a grandmom…not yet, but maybe one day. Most if not all of my other blogs and sites will be listed in my blogroll as soon as I finish typing this.
One thing I wasn’t “savvy” enough to do was figure out how to make the images so that you could click on them and bring up a bigger image, so if you’d like to be able to read the article, email me at claudiascorner[at]gmail.com and I’ll send you larger images, or if you live locally, stop by the store and pick up a copy of the Trends, and for more information about the paper, or to subscribe, click here.
With the increase in job loss, or fear of job loss in the present recession, there are support groups beginning to form in New Jersey. I just received an email from a fellow NJ Baby Boomer, and thought I’d share the content with you. If you know of other support groups forming, please leave a comment:
UMDNJ-University Behavioral HealthCare to Provide Free Support Groups for People Affected by the Economic Crisis
NEWARK – Panic over job loss. Fear of unemployment. Profound worry about meeting mortgage and tuition payments. Unfortunately, these are the realities of this severe recession.
If you are experiencing any of these kinds of reactions to the current fiscal crisis, it is important to know that you are not alone; there is a place you can go for assistance.
Beginning March 3, UMDNJ-University Behavioral HealthCare (UBHC), a statewide mental health and addiction services network, will offer free 90-minute support groups, run by experienced counselors, for those affected by the economic downturn. Sessions will be held weekly at the following locations on the days and times specified:
-Newark: Wednesdays at 12:30 p.m. at UBHC, 183 South Orange Avenue;
-New Brunswick: Wednesdays at 3 p.m. at 303 George Street, 2nd Floor;
-Edison: Thursdays at 3 p.m. at 100 Metroplex Drive, 2nd Floor, Suite 200;
-Monmouth Junction: Tuesdays at noon at 4326 U.S. Highway 1.
Sessions are open to the public and no appointments are necessary to attend. Participants may remain anonymous.
People interested in attending may call (800) 969-5300 for more information.
Members of the media interested in more information about this new initiative should contact Zenaida Mendez at (973) 972-7273.
PLEASE VIEW THE COMMENT(S) BELOW if you are viewing this as a single post, or click the “comments” link under the title of the post, for more support group information that has been added since this post was published. Thank you.
I promise to get a few interesting and fun posts on here soon, but everyone is talking about the economy, and how it is affecting businesses, small and large. Small businesses are likely to struggle more than large businesses, more likely to fail. New Jersey has small business development centers in every county to help in a general way.
As for the financial aspect, remember, we are experiencing this first hand with our son who has been unemployed for going on 3 months as the small business he worked for tries to get back on their feet. They are in need of funding to go on, and though I am not knowledgeable about how businesses go about this, I do know that there are websites that help small business owners acquire Working Capital.
If you are in, or considering starting, a small business, I hope you will find the links in this post helpful.
As I’ve shared in earlier posts, our family here in New Jersey is feeling the affects of the economic downturn in a personal way; not so much that we are devastated, but enough that we feel for those who are experiencing so much worse. My son is unemployed right now, but he’s still single and living with us, so he doesn’t have the concern of how to feed a family or pay the next bill that many others are experiencing. My husband has been unemployed, but now has a job that at least pays the bills and keeps us fed. These small challenges are only a taste of what many are experiencing…I can only imagine what it must be like to be losing a home, not knowing where the next meal for your children will come from.
If we were in a position where we needed to explore benefits, the “red tape” involved in seeking them out in New Jersey, …
THE REMAINDER OF THIS POST HAS BEEN REMOVED because a link that was sponsored in the post lead to a site affiliated with ACORN. Until matters are resolved with ACORN, this site will not promote any sites that are related to them to the best of our ability. Why? Take a look at what’s been going on at http://biggovernment.com
How are my readers doing with all the news we’re hearing on the economy lately? As I type this we have just finished hearing that there was quite a lot of controversy during the meetings in Washington DC today, and no agreement on what to do about the situation has been reached…in fact right now my husband is listening to the talking heads yell at each other about the situation on the news.
I was just talking to my neighbor who is a real estate agent here in NJ today, and she was telling me that the prices on houses are great for first time buyers, and interest rates low, but they are having trouble getting mortgages now.
For us, we don’t have a lot saved, so there won’t be a “run on the bank”, and we have a pretty good credit rating, but there are many people that are sincerely struggling and don’t know where to turn. I feel for these people. We have had two homes on our street go into foreclosure, one just sold for a fraction of it’s worth in an auction sale. Multiplying that my many MANY homes across the country, one can get a feel for how critical the real estate situation has become.
I don’t know a lot about the economy, or how all the pieces of the puzzle fit together, so if you are interested in more information about the issues we are facing, want to view lists of auctions, and much more, be sure to visit the U.S. Department of Treasury.
There is also a site called CareOne that can help you if you are considering debt consolidation loans, and need counseling help to get out of debt. They will connect you with agencies that have high standards of customer care, and provide you with 24 hour access to your account information, 7 days a week. So far, we’re doing okay, but if you’re not, maybe careonecredit.com can help.
New Jersey can be somewhat expensive compared to living in other states around the country. Our taxes are relatively high, and perhaps higher because we chose to live in a rural part of the State where there are no big businesses to help with local taxes. And with “retirement” years ahead, if there will be such a thing for us, one is naturally concerned.
I just did an online quiz at Bills IQ to help me decide whether or not we are handling our finances well, and whether we need help with Debt consolidation, as we have a few bills and debts due to various life circumstances that seem to be common these days for many, including a period of time that my husband was unemployed…and another spell of that that will start in November if he doesn’t find a new job soon. Our grade after doing the quiz was a “B”, which isn’t terrible, but I know we could use some improvement, and BillsIQ seemed to provide some helpful solutions, including Debt help and resources for Debt relief. Maybe you’ll want to take the simple quiz they provide, it’s easy to do, and you’re provided with some options to decide what help might be best for you. You can chose one of these opportunities, or skip on to see your score. If you need the help, then check out the services they offer.
For now, I think we’re okay, but our wonderful Lord knows what the future holds, and we know He’ll show the way through the valleys.
Here’s an attempt at a little Haiku, which is a form of Japanese “poetry”, 3 lines – 1 with 5 syllables, the next with 7, then the third, 5 again. It often speaks of nature, seasons, etc.
Fall of life is here,
Know not what the future holds, Bills IQ is near.
If you’re a boomer with some extra time on your hands, and who doesn’t have a little extra time in a day, you may want to spend some of it making a little extra money reviewing services and trying products that you may have never heard of before. “Get Paid to Try” has set up an easy-to-use system for doing this. Once you sign up, you will be sent an email every day with tasks to complete, and if you complete them, you receive $5.00. I am in the process of signing up myself as I type this, it’s quite easy. Simply click the link at the end of this post, fill out your name and email, then you have the option of reviewing a few services. After that, you move on to the next page, where you can receive a bonus $20 by completing 10 tasks…I am going to go right back and complete mine as soon as I finish this post. After the 10 tasks are completed, $20 will be added to my account, and then each day, I’ll get an email with tasks to complete. There are many good offers…you don’t have to take them all, just the ones that interest you. Sounds easy, doesn’t it? Click here to begin
New Jersey can be somewhat expensive compared to living in other states around the country. Our taxes are relatively high, and perhaps higher because we chose to live in a rural part of the State where there are no big businesses to help with local taxes. And with “retirement” years ahead, if there will be such a thing for us, one is naturally concerned.
If you’re a boomer with some extra time on your hands, and who doesn’t have a little extra time in a day, you may want to spend some of it making a little extra money reviewing services and trying products that you may have never heard of before. “Get Paid to Try” has set up an easy-to-use system for doing this. Once you sign up, you will be sent an email every day with tasks to complete, and if you complete them, you receive $5.00. I am in the process of signing up myself as I type this, it’s quite easy. Simply click the link at the end of this post, fill out your name and email, then you have the option of reviewing a few services. After that, you move on to the next page, where you can receive a bonus $20 by completing 10 tasks…I am going to go right back and complete mine as soon as I finish this post. After the 10 tasks are completed, $20 will be added to my account, and then each day, I’ll get an email with tasks to complete. There are many good offers…you don’t have to take them all, just the ones that interest you. Sounds easy, doesn’t it? 
