Hurricane Irene Visits Pepperrell Cove, Kittery Point, Maine

While the storm skirted the seacoast of NH & Maine (for the most part), she did visit Pepperrell Cove.  Two boats were blown from their moorings and crashed onto the rocks.  It was sad to watch as one of the boats which was pulled from the rocks, fill with water as they tried to get her to safety. No one was injured, and hopefully the owners of the boats had insurance.  While I tried to video tape what was going on, wouldn't you know it, my battery died!

It was somthing to watch Portsmouth Tow and it's Owner Steve, Bruce Oronte and Bion Pike leap into action to try to save that boat. I am proud of all of them. 

Hurricane Irene - A Wolf Cry for New Hampshire & Maine?

On September 10th 2010, I posted a Blog on Hurricane Earl, which turned out to be (at least for us in NH/Maine) no big deal. Well, almost a year later and Hurricane Irene is being purported as " the most dangerous Hurricane since Katrina" "A once in a lifetime event"...  And they are talking about the Entire East Coast - and NH & Maine are included in this -   

Is this a Cry Wolf for those of us in southern NH/southern ME? I haven't talked to one person who seems to be very concerned - Yet yesterday there was considerable activity at Pepperrell Cove with people pulling their boats out of the water - still others I've spoken to have the attitude "ah, it'll be okay"...

Am I just paranoid?  Perhaps it's because I'm from the West Coast (originally) and while I've been through many Earthquakes in my lifetime, Hurricanes I have not really experienced -other than those that petered out.  But Irene seems to be a little different.  Either way, for those of you who may secretly feel just a LITTLE concerned about Irene - I'm reposting my list of things that you can do to be prepared - I personally am putting my "Go Bag" together today (and Irene isn't suppose to be here until Sunday).  

Exterior of House –

-Clean out Gutters on the roof to keep driving rain from backing up and leaking down into windows and doors (while you are at it, check windows and doors for holes/cracks that could be a source for water entry).

-Repair loose or faulty siding that could be ripped off during a strong storm

-Store or secure the patio furniture (tables, chairs, umbrellas. grills, garbage cans, potted plants, garden tools)

-Trim any weakened bushes or tree branches - that if broken could take down utility lines or break windows...

-Make sure outbuilding doors and windows are securely latched

-Check the basement to make sure windows/pet doors are closed

If You Live In An Apartment or Condo-

-Contact your Management company or landlord if you see any issues that you think need addressing beforehand (they may be unaware of potential hazards that could cause problems)

Electronics/Vehicle/Boats

You know the storm is on its way and if it passes without issue - that is great - but humor me:

-Charge all of your electronics (cell phones, wireless cards, rechargeable batteries, laptop...) you might even want to invest in a power converter (it plugs into your car's lighter and then you can plug your electronics into it, as if you were in the house)

-Make sure you fill your vehicles gas tank, make sure your wipers are in good working order, check the fluid levels and the air in your tires (you don't want to be worried about this at the last minute)

-Make sure your boat is secure and watertight - if you can take it out of the water great if you cannot at least make sure you double your lines and store anything below that can fly off

If You Have To Leave in a Hurry

-Don't forget the pets - (food, water dishes, kennel)

-Make sure you have your Insurance Policy # and Agent or Claim Telephone Number with you.

-And have an Emergency To Go Kit Ready -

Put a "Go Bag" in the car ahead of time in the event you need to leave abruptly.

Your GO BAG should contain:

- Allow 3 gallons of water for each person;

-Flashlights/don't forget batteries,

-Portable radio (Smartphone’s are great but there's nothing better than an old fashioned portable battery operated radio).

-Put an ice chest or duffel bag in the car with nonperishable foods i.e. high-nutrition foods you don't have to refrigerate and require little or no water such as: Ready to eat canned meats, fruits, vegetables, juices or soups. Energy foods like, trail mix, crackers, granola bars; Comfort foods like hard candy, cookies, coffee, tea; If you have elderly or infants don't forget any special diet foods...

-Medications -Blanket or Sleeping Bag (we keep our camping gear ready for spontaneous trips so that would even work if you are a camper). And if you don't have to leave at least you have something in the car if you ever break down somewhere.

Here's a great link to help you put a kit together - You can purchase one of these "emergency kits" from this link as well (I have one in my car - you never know when you might need one) "Get A Kit" .

Chances are (at least from those that I've talked to) that the Seacoast of NH and Southern ME won't be too "inconvenienced" by Irene, and she'll turn out to just be full of Hot Air! but it is "Better To Be Safe Than Sorry" they say (who said that?).

And if you want to "Keep an EYE on Irene" here are a few links.

Follow Irenes' Track -(click here) (courtesy ofSSEC - Space Science and Engineering Center)

FEMA - National Weather Service (Current Watches & Warnings)

You might find these interesting as well:

Hurricane History (this is the National Hurricane Center site and addresses Hurricanes everywhere)

Hurricane Tracker (enter a state and zip code - you may have to adjust your screen)

The Great Hurricane of 1938 Storm Preparedness

Remember what Benjamin Franklin said  "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" 

Are You Prepared To Put 20% Down For A Home Purchase?

In July of 2010, President Obama signed into law the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform  and Consumer Protection Act -   The name Dodd-Frank... comes from the original proponents of the act (Barney Frank - House of Representatives/(d) MA - and, former Senant House Banking Committee Chairmen Chris Dodd /(d) CT.

- Among the many sections of the Act is - Title XIV - Mortgage Reform and Anti-Predatory Lending Act, which directly affects consumers who desire to purchase real estate and finance that purchase.  And one of the items includes something called "QRM" Qualified Residential Mortgage - in essence it could mean that consumers will have to come up with 20% down to purchase a home... Ouch!  Just consider what it would take to save 10% down (with a median income of   $47,732) - 10 YEARS*! - (*assumes 5.2% savings rate, all for home purchase (i.e .none for retirement, college or repairs) - what would that be for a 20% downpayment? 

The National Association of Realtors is actively working to curb the QRM rule - Please watch this video -

QRM  

-  Interest rates are incredibly low right now,  if there were ever a time to buy, it would be now. And hopefully with the efforts of organizations like the NAR, this aspect of the Dodd-Frank...act, we won't see this QRM rule become a reality!

So What Is A QR Code? How Can It Work For Me?

So What is a QR Code? Simply put a QR Code (meaning “Quick Response”) – is like a Bar Code that you see used in the grocery store when they scan your items. QR Codes basically do the same thing.

The exciting thing is- if you have a Smart Phone – you can download a QR Code Reader App and have instant access to information on anything that has the QR Code displayed - (For Sale Sign for Example)-

QR Codes are appearing more often now days and your seeing them in magazines, at department stores on the product price display, signs, T-shirts, or on the back of someones business card...  And they sometimes have pretty graphics with them, but they do the same thing. They are a window to something else - a web site, a spec sheet for a product, a blog, they can also be linked to download a MP3, dial a phone number, prompt your email client with a sender address...

If you haven't seen them yet - Don't Worry You Will!
But why would you want to download a QR Code Reader?
Let’s say you are in a place like Best Buy. You’re starting to look for a new camcorder (for example). You’re not sure what you want, you’ve done some research online, and you’re your standing in front of the 5 models that you think will work for you. The salesperson doesn’t really know that much more than you – and, had you remembered to print out your findings from your research at home you could have referred to them, but you forgot to .

Well, QR code reader to the rescue. At Best Buy, if you look you’ll see that each camcorder on display has a QR code printed on the price sign. If you already downloaded a QR Code reader to your phone, you would simply start the app on your phone – point it at the QR code – and ba-da-bing it takes you to the information site for that camcorder model. And now you have all the information you need on that product right on your phone. VERY COOL. Move over to the next model hold your phone up – Sha-zam you have knowledge in front of you…

Just don’t do what I did. When I first learned about QR codes (in 2010), I thought “this is very cool”, and the next time I was in Best Buy, looking for a new Camcorder, I saw the QR codes, pulled out my camera and started taking “Pictures” of them… But nothing was happening! I later learned (when talking to a colleague of mine) that I needed to download a QR Code Reader to my cell phone in order to make it work. Duh!!!!

So yesterday I downloaded a QR Code Reader for my HTC Droid Incredible and have to say, I am now officially a fan of QR Codes. What a great way to get information fast when you are on the go – no typing, or speaking into the phone – just hold up your phone to the code and your there.

Below is what I did to download the QR Code Reader – but I’ve sense learned you only need to go to your phones app store and do a search for QR Code Readers – and a long list will open – and from there you can download a FREE app quickly and easily.

Here is a little video on the subject cbsnews did.   

Not being sure which QR Code reader I should use, I found a pretty good web site that spelled out everything I wanted to know - click here to go to that website  or copy and paste this url into another browser. http://www.mobile-barcodes.com/about-qr-codes/  In addition to learning more about how it works, the site also has a list of QR Code manufactures. And with so many QR Code Readers and cell phones, this is where I found the I-nigma reader.

Not being too Geeky but geeky enough I opted to download my I-nigma reader by using my cell phone and going directly to this web site http://www.i-nigma.mobi/ - and it told me immediatly what my phone was, which meant it was compatible.  Here are the steps I used to download (if you want to try what I did)  Do this with your Smart Phone.

 – In my phones Internet browser after I typed in the URL above, it opened up a search results window and I clicked on the first one in the list which was just the name i-nigma (underlined) with the above web site address under it. When I clicked on it, a new page came up saying Welcome to i-nigma – your handset is Android, press here to install on the reader on your device. I clicked on it, I got a new window that asked how I’d like to download using Internet or Market – I selected Market, another window opened with the i-gnma icon with 4 stars and the word FREE – I clicked on it again and it opened another window where I could read more about it. Having already read the reviews on I-nigma, I clicked on Install at the top (where it said FREE) then I had to accept the permissions – Once I clicked ok I saw a message that the app would be downloaded.

After a minute or so, I saw a message that it had been installed. So I went to my app window and sure enough it was there. Since I plan on using this frequently, I put the App Icon on my phones desktop by holding down the icon and moving it to an open space on my phone. Done.

I then tested it with a flyer I made for my new listing where I had placed a QR Code (used in this post) for the custom web site I created – by clicking on the I-gnma icon on my phone – holding my phone up to the QR Code on the flyer –it scanned the code without having to press anything. Immediately opening up the custom web site I created.

I highly recommend downloading a QR Code reader for your particular Smart Phone and the next time you are out an about and see a code like the one above, just press your icon, hold up your phone to the code and Sha-zam you’re there.

My Smart Phone just got smarter!  Oh, after you download your QR CODE Reader, come back to my post and try it out on my QR Code above! 

If you really adventurous – you can create your own QR Codes – for just about anything… the website I refer to above can tell you all about it.