Intown Living
Auto Insurance Premium Savings Tip
Thursday, September 02, 2010
Typically, auto insurance companies sign up policy holders using the Blue Book market value of our cars. Once signed, the insurance company has the original value of the vehicle on its books and generates premiums based on that value.
But, as you are probably aware, if you are in an accident and ‘total’ your car, you will only receive the current book value on your vehicle.
What the insurance companies don’t want you to know is you can call them every year and adjust the value to the current Blue Book value so that your premiums are more in line with insurance coverage if the car is totaled.
The potential cost savings to you? Depends on your car and the condition…but it can amount to a lot!
For example, if you bought and insured an Audi S6 in 2002 for $45,000, you may still be paying premiums on a $45,000 car. But that Audi S6 has since depreciated to, say, $19,000… So shouldn’t you only be paying on the $19,000?! Why? Because if you are in an accident, the insurance company will only reimburse you up to $17,000, not the original 45,000!
- Scott Askew
Posted in: Intown Living
Cheap Eats - So-Ba
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Taking the word of my sister-in-law, who is very reliable for information concerning good restaurants (not so much other things: she thinks Syfy Original Movies are genius), my spouse and I went to So-Ba in East Atlanta (http://soba-eav.com).
So-Ba is quite a find; but you really have to want to go there to find it. Located on Gresham Avenue, you’ll turn on to what looks (at first glance) like an alley, but is, in fact, a street. It’s off of Glenwood, just before you get to Mary’s. There is a parking lot behind the strip of shops that houses Mary’s, but your best bet is street parking.
So-Ba just got their liquor license, so they have a limited selection of alcohol. But that is not why you go there in the first place. The food is INCREDIBLE.
So-Ba specializes in pho (pronounced fuh, not faux), which is a Vietnamese noodle soup, and they do it up well. Traditionally, pho is served with beef or chicken, but So-Ba also offers brisket, round-eye steak, tripe (TRIPE!), chicken, and shrimp. The medium sized bowl is enough to feed a platoon, but my spouse always goes for the large. It is the size of a small moon, or Pluto. The pho comes with basil, lime, bean sprouts, and peppers on the side, so you can spice to your desire.
I have good word that the pho is excellent, but I can never seem to get past the one dish that caught my eye the first time I went. I’m embarassed to say I can’t spell it, I can’t say it, but it is the dish of diced fillet mignon served over jasmine rice with a vegetable confetti on the side. Now, I don’t know what they marinate the steak in, or if they made a deal with the devil, but that steak is better than any earthly steak has any right to be.
The service is great, and so are the prices. The pho comes in three sizes, the most expensive of which is still under $10, and the fillet mignon dish is the most expensive thing at the menu, at $11. The restaurant itself still almost seems to be a work in progress with sparse decorations, and minimal lighting, but that lends it an air of a new business just getting off the ground. So-Ba 560 Gresham Avenue, SE Atlanta, GA 30316
- Jacob Gallman
Posted in: Intown Living
Spices To Boost Your Brain
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Previously, Ashlee Heath has highlighted a number of ‘Cheap Eats’ where one could go for a variety of good, inexpensive meals. But did you also know that by devouring a varied menu, you’re helping your body function better?
By ‘spicing up’ your life, you are actually helping your brain! Recent studies have shown that spicy food can preserve brain function and help prevent disease. The following spices, when added to your diet, will benefit you!
Cinnamon Eating it helps with blood sugar control, but just smelling it boosts brain activity. It also speeds the way your brain processes visual cues. Chew some cinnamon gum before your next bike ride or test!
Garlic You already love this one, but did you know it increases blood flow to the brain? In a 2007 study, garlic helped fight brain cancer cells.
Ginger This spice may make you smarter if combined with ginkgo biloba. It also may help treat Parkinson’s disease and migraine headaches. Try it with vanilla ice cream or by drinking it as a hot tea.
Saffron The economy got you down? Saffron extract has been found to be effective in treating people with depression.
Turmeric Called the ‘ultimate health spice’, turmeric contains cur cumin and is an ingredient in curry. Studies have shown that it may help prevent Alzheimer’s and lessen the pain of rheumatoid arthritis. Sprinkle it on your broccoli or mix a spoonful in a warm glass of water and drink it down.
- Scott Askew
Posted in: Intown Living
Faith In What Happens
Thursday, August 05, 2010
With the economy affecting all of us, it could be easy to start laying blame on whichever political party you do not like on any given day, or the banks who do not ‘give away’ ‘easy’ money, or the person who called and said you were not the candidate they selected for the job you were applying. Yes, times are tough. But when you begin to feel the tentacles of depression creeping up on you, take time to reflect on two things:
1) Have I had a life as challenging as my parents or their parents?
2) Is this all just a test ?
Faith sees the invisible, believes the incredible and receives the impossible. - Anon
My Dad was in WWII. He spent four years in the army. He enlisted in January, 1943, right after getting married on December 29th, 1942; which was accelerated due to Pearl Harbor and the declaration of War. In October, 1943, my sister was born. A number of years ago I asked my Mom how she did it… Raising my sister by herself, not knowing if my Dad would ever make it back. She always replied - “I had faith he would come home.”
Over the past two+ years we have had faith that the housing market would get better. Now it is recovering. And - more good news - a lot of people who had less faith and were in our business for the wrong reasons got out… leaving the better agents to serve you!
Only the person who has faith in himself is able to be faithful to others. - Erich Fromm
As you know, to be a successful entrepreneur, domestic engineer, business person, or student, it takes supreme faith in one’s own ability. Maintain that faith! If you do not, your clients, customers, children, co-workers and/or teachers/coaches will feel your doubt and they will come to rely on someone else who is more confident in their ability.
We must have infinite faith in each other. - Henry David Thoreau
A reputable person knows they can trust another reputable person to do the job correctly. The trick is to have faith in your counter-part when you do not know them. That is why we must be involved in the community where we live and work! My involvement with the Atlanta Board of REALTORS has allowed me to get to know thousands of professionals in our industry. This helps when negotiating a contract. If you know the person on the ‘other side of the table’, you have a 75 percent better chance of negotiating that agreement! Why? Because you have more faith in someone you know and they, in turn, do not want to let that faith be dimmed by their wrongdoing.
Faith in our associates is part of our faith in God. - Charles Horton Cooley
Faith in the associates and staff in your office, your teammates in the huddle, your family members, etc. that they hold the same ideals as you is paramount to a healthy work environment. This is a truth known to all. All religions teach that faith in a supreme being is necessary to a happy life. Imagine if we did not have that faith. Why would anyone be civil to their fellow man? Lawlessness would rule… because there would be no ultimate consequence…
- Scott Askew
Posted in: Intown Living
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