Amy Currioman

I’ve been resisting entering the modern age. I admit it. I’m technologically challenged! I prefer cassette tapes to CDs, I prefer VHS tapes to DVDs. And I have resisted getting an IPOD or MP3 player like crazy. I like my old “Walkman” cassette player; it works great! I just pop in a cassette tape and press play and I get to listen to my favorite tape! But I have to admit that the IPODs and MP3 players are smaller, and therefore easier to transport. And I can store hundreds of songs on them and don’t have to lug around a bunch of tapes to swap in and out of them. So I have finally ordered an MP3 player.

I asked my kids for help in picking one out, and they basically told me that they are pretty much all alike, and to buy a “cheap one.” So I think I ordered one where I can pick the song from a menu (I hope!) and not just have to put up with a random shuffle. It is supposed to be arriving in the mail shortly; I’m anxiously waiting for it so I can check it out!  Who knows, maybe I can start to embrace the “modern age” after all!  Just don’t ask me to text message anyone on my cell phone!

I can remember life before the Internet.  Can you?  I even remember life before the personal computer!  Back when I was in junior high school I took typing classes on the old-fashioned manual typewriter.  The classroom only had two electric typewriters in it, and they were reserved for only occasional use!  It was such a big deal at work when we got our first word processors!  Then when the first personal computers hit the market, my hubby and I were the first family on the block to have one! 

I am constantly amazed and impressed with how the technology has advanced so quickly in this field!  Now it seems that almost everyone I know has a personal computer with Internet access!  Many of us have our own websites!  I’ve recently been made aware of how important it is to make sure that you have an up-to-date website security program on your computer to protect your website.  I was reading a blog article on the webhostinggeeks.com website about that very issue.  I like their website a lot; I use it to help me to make decisions about what web hosting service to subscribe to or recommend to my friends when I want to learn about the different options and packages on a lot of different services at once.  If any of you need to read reviews and rankings of the most popular web hosting services, this is a great place to go.

I understand that payday loans are very popular in some states.  I also heard that they are not legal in other states!  That surprised me to hear that they are prohibited in some states.  I was searching on the Internet to find out if they are legal in the state that I live in, and they are, but they are illegal in most of the NorthEastern States.  I have to wonder why that is the case!  And I wonder if that is a trend that is going to continue, making them illegal.  I know that some law-makers are very concerned that some of the companies that run that kind of loan are predators and that the loans are designed to never let the debtor pay off the loan!

There has been a lot of news stories on the local television stations about how some companies have been sued over their predatory practices, and changes have been ordered.  I don’t know if the changes have actually been made or not!  I still see a lot of television commercials for that kind of loan.  I think that this kind of short term loan is ok if the debtor is in the position to pay it off with their next paycheck; but if they are not able to pay it off quickly then they need to carefully review their options because these types of loans are very high interest loans.

I’ve always liked shiny, glittery things.  I enjoy looking at them sparkle and shine!  Having said that, I don’t own very much “good” jewelry; fear of theft would prevent me from enjoying it!  So I think that maybe I should go for the costume jewelry that I won’t be upset about if I lose it (or break it) and try to put the “good stuff” where it will do the most good – in a gold IRA or a gold 401k instead. 

I had never heard of IRA gold or how to put gold in an IRA until my brother told me that he was going to be doing it.  I asked him how to put gold in my IRA and he told me to go to the goldcoinsgain.com website.  The website is an informative resource that explains all of the details of what kind of gold can go into an IRA or 401K and how to go about creating the accounts and buying the gold to put in the account.

My family roots are in show business.  As far back as my family tree reads, on my father’s side, are musicians.  It was understood that everyone in the family would learn to read music and play the piano as soon as their feet could reach the piano pedals and their fingers touch the keys at the same time.  I can remember the many hours of practicing the piano in the family room.

I loved watching my grandfather play the piano – he made it come to life!  He used to play the piano for the silent movies before I was born; I loved to go to his house and beg him to play a silent movie for me.  I would close my eyes and visualize the movie.  He didn’t need to narrate for me what was happening; I recognized each and every scene.  The villain, the beauty in distress, the oncoming train, the horse chase, the rescue, and the love scene.  These memories will always be dear to my heart.