SRA E-MAIL NEWSLETTER*
Issue # 45
August 2006

Ron Violette-Editor

Greetings from the Upper Midwest.  More specifically, from Brownsville, MN, a huge city of 512 people located on the Mississippi River just north of the Iowa border.  You can tell how big it is when 4th street is the edge of town.  It has been a bit hot and humid at times, but this week it is 80°, sunny, and just beautiful.  Back to SRA business.

SAVE THE DATES -

Monday, September 11 -- SRA GENERAL MEETING: INSIDE SCOOP on CAMPUS DEVELOPMENT RECOGNITION of RETIREES from Facilities Management (O&M, Physical Plant, Building & Grounds)

9:30 a.m. Check In ­ GERO Courtyard

10:00 a.m. Program ­ GERO Auditorium

11:30 a.m. ­ Box lunches provided for paid SRA members.  Guests are welcome and, with prior reservation, can purchase a box lunch for $10.00 (pay at the door).  If you pay your dues at the door, lunch will be covered.

Speakers: Tony Lazzaro, Vice President Emeritus, “Recognition of Retirees from Facilities Management”

Curt Williams, Vice President, Capital Construction Development, “USC Campus Development”

Reservations Required!!!!!!  Please call, e-mail, or fax your reservation by Wednesday, September 6 at 5:00 p.m.  We need the following information: Name, Paid Member of SRA or Guest, phone number, and if you are a USC Facilities Management retiree please indicate years of service and job title.
Phone: (310) 842-7544 (Carole Gustin); Email: <cgustin@usc.edu>; Fax: (213) 740-7120

Monday, October 16 -- There will be a trip to the reopened Getty Villa in Malibu.  You will be receiving a flyer on this.  It will be limited to the first 30 SRA Members who respond to the flyer and send a check for $18.50/person.  (No more than one guest per member.)  A bus will be provided.
Contact Dick Martin at (323) 343-1146 or if you have questions.

INFORMATION FROM CAROLE GUSTIN, THE SRA PRESIDENT ­

• Volunteers Needed: Please call Carole at (310) 842-7544 or e-mail her at <cgustin@usc.edu> if you are willing to work on a Hospitality Committee to arrange food for the December 2006 and June 2007 SRA meetings.
• Some of your colleagues will be calling you in early November requesting support for the Emeriti Center.  Your SRA dues and gifts support our SRA activities.  The Emeriti Center gets some support from the USC Administration and the remainder comes mostly from gifts.  Such programs as The Living History Project, the College Speakers Program, and the Emeriti Center Endowment are supported with these gifts.  We also want to know how you as a retiree are doing, new activities, changes in your life and your suggestions on how we can be of better service to our retirees.  We look forward to speaking with you.

HOPEFULLY HELPFUL TIPS

TELEPHONE DIRECTORY ASSISTANCE ­ U.S. Consumers can save over $6.5 billion a year now that directory-assistance services such as 1-800-411-SAVE, 1-800-411-METRO, and 1-800-FREE-411 will look up phone numbers for free.  You do have to listen to their ads however.  (AARP the Magazine, August 2006, page 20.)

ARE BLOGS FOR YOU? ­ I am not yet into blogs, but if you are, here is a site that may be of interest: <http://www.jenett.org/ageless>.  It is not a blog site but it links an array of blogs created by people 50 and older.

WEB SITE FOR VETERANS’ SURVIVORS ­ The VA has created a new Web site for the surviving spouses and dependents of military personnel who died while on active duty and of veterans who died after leaving the military.  The Web site is in two categories: death in service and death after service.  There is information about a range of benefits for the surviving spouse, dependent children, and dependent parents of deceased veterans and active duty personnel.  It also has links to other federal agencies and organizations that offer benefits and services to survivors.  The site is <http://www.vba.va.gov/survivors>.  (Military Officer, July 2006, page 26).

AIRLINE CHECK IN ­ If you possibly can, check in on line and print your boarding pass.  If you do this, you can greatly reduce the show-up time at the terminal.  There is a new free website that can give you wait times, airline delays, and even tracks flights in real time.  The site is <http://www.flightstats.com/>.  (Money Magazine, July 2006, page 114).

FUN WHILE EXERCISING ­ Try tracking your virtual path along famous trails like the Appalachian or the Lewis and Clark as you increase your steps to 10,000 per day.  All you need is a step counter.  Go to <http://www.aarp.org/walking> for more information.

HYBRID TAX CREDITS ­ If you are planning on buying a Toyota or Lexus hybrid auto, you may want to consider doing so before Oct.1,2006.  The tax credit for these autos will drop by 50% after Sept. 30.  Hybrid tax credits for Ford or Honda autos will drop at some later date.  The different dates have to do with the number of such vehicles sold.  (Toyota and Lexus have already sold over the magic number of 60,000 such autos.)

* A bit to ponder: Who was the first person to look at a cow and say, “I think I’ll squeeze these dangly things here, and drink whatever comes out?”

PLEASE NOTE: If you know someone who would like to receive this newsletter, have him or her send an e-mail to Len Wines at <len@winesland.net> asking to be added to the list.  After you are on the list, you will remain on it until you unsubscribe.  To do that, simply send an e-mail to Len at <len@winesland.net> with the word UNSUBSCRIBE SRA in the Subject.

*The content of this Email Newsletter is for the information of the members of the USC SRA.  It is not a University of Southern California official publication.  There is no intent to promote any particular product or point of view.  Personal decisions regarding health, finance, exercise, or other matters should be made after consulting with the reader’s own professional advisors.