In the News

1)
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-09-13/fed-plans-to-buy-40-billion-in-mortgage-securities-each-month.html
2)
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-09-14/mortgage-bond-spreads-fall-to-record-low-as-fed-starts-buying.html
3)
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/does-quantitative-easing-mainly-help-154211100.html
4)
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/jailed-banker-helped-crack-swiss-142921849.html

I just saw it on CNN.com: Anonymous member claims responsibility for GoDaddy outage

Powered by    * Please note, the sender's email address has not been verified.       Don't put all of your eggs in one basket!             Click the following to access the sent link:       Anonymous member claims responsibility for GoDaddy outage - CNN.com*                 Get your EMAIL THIS Browser Button and use it to email content from any Web site. Click here for more information.   *This article can also be accessed if you copy and paste the entire address below into your web browser. http://www.cnn.com/2012/09/10/tech/web/go-daddy-outage

FW: Seeking Alpha Article

http://seekingalpha.com/article/851141-why-do-analysts-love-this-10-yielding-mortgage-reit?source=email_rt_article_title&ifp=0

It's September already?

Where did the summer go? I'm sitting here writing this blog entry one weekend after Labor Day listening to "Breakfast with The Beatles" after having made lemonade and iced tea.

Mine started with a trip to Chicago and ended with a movie laden three day holiday weekend. I never really liked to do much of anything on Labor Day weekend. Let the others drive to where they planned to go. I'll stay home and BBQ and catch up on TV. It went by so fast, I forgot to paint my toenails this year.

What I've noticed as I'm growing older and more people call me "Ma'am" is that the days are longer and the nights are shorter which is not really a good thing for someone who only sleeps 6-7 hours anyway.

I started to walk more this summer... by design or by... accident, you could say due to the July 4th weekend fender bender I had on a freeway near my home. After the collision center threw away the damaged bumper with the condo's parking sticker on it and not wanting to deal with the idiots on the board, I started to park outside of my complex about a 10 minute walk away. It's helping me in two ways: 1) more exercise and 2) to de-stress after a long drive. When I was on b/c for years, they, the doctors, always tell you you can expect to gain weight because of the monthly hormones fluctuation. Because I don't eat any dairy, I think that helped not gain huge amounts of weight over the years, but I know if I eat tons of sugar and chips, it tends to creep up. And I love chips. If I keep it below 120, that would be good. If it was closer to 110, that would be better. I was 108 when I graduated from high school 28 years ago.

The tomatoes I planted in the spring grew finally. I grew a Japanese heirloom cherry tomato plant from last years seed called Chika and killed the strawberry, the thyme and the rosemary bush due to not watering them. All four tomato plants are on drip irrigation and a timer in which the run off falls into other potted plants below them.

I didn't get to any of the fairs or festivals that go on throughout the summer months in Southern California either.

The Others

Originally, I thought I was going to take care of some HOA business on my PTO day, Monday, but I decided that I have to take care of myself first before I can take care of the others.

After my son got up, we got ready, then I rented a 16 ft. truck from Penske, which happens to be in my neighborhood, and we went and cleaned out the storage unit. But before I could get on my way, I walked to my car and found the rear drivers side tire went flat. My appointment to pick up the truck was at 1PM. We changed the tire, drove to Penske, picked up the truck then drove to the storage unit.

Then drove back to Penske to find out how to use the damn lift again. The lock was not disengaging. Drove back to the storage unit and cleaned it out in time to drive to Goodwill and donate it's contents. They, thankfully, took everything and now I don't have to worry about that damn monthly payment anymore.

And then we drove back to Penske before they closed. After transferring a few thing into my car, we drove downtown to Big O Tire to repair or replace the flat. The guy said it was a sidewall issue and not repairable which lead me to think that maybe someone punctured my tire. But then again, I didn't move my car on Sunday and it was extra hot that day, so maybe the heat just effected a weak spot in the tire. I so hope the latter than the former. And I'm so glad I didn't have a blow-out on the freeway with all of the driving I do with my commute to work and home.

It ended up being a $400 day. Not my idea of a fun time PTO day, but stuff got done that I needed to get done.

Shake it Baby, Shake it

I like summer. I wish I had the time to take it off.  Maybe I'll just take a long weekend and go to San Diego... Anyway, with the temperature change this week from moderate to hot-hot-hot (at least in my mind anyway) earthquakes have come to Southern California.

I said this at work: Who needs Yorba Linda anyway? Oh, so the presidential library shifts around a bit and some dust falls off of Nixon's old books. Who cares.

Here's the link for the USGS - happy earthquake tracking peoples:

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/shakemap/list.php?x=1&n=sc&y=2012

Three earthquakes just today (so far).

Fwd: Quick Guide: How To Enjoy eBooks Without A Tablet Or An eReader

Cool

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "MakeUseOf" <news@makeuseof.com>
Date: Aug 7, 2012 7:47 AM
Subject: Quick Guide: How To Enjoy eBooks Without A Tablet Or An eReader
To: <judi.stutz@gmail.com>

Tip of the Day: Want some free ebooks? Download them from Feedbooks or Project Gutenberg. You can also borrow ebooks from the library. Unsubscribe Create Professional Presentations In Minutes with Slidevana for PowerPoint and Keynote [Giveaway] 5 Free Tools For Online Video Editing What Is The Benefit Of An Online/Cloud-Based Anti-Virus? [HELP WANTED] Recommend Your Favourite iPhone Games, Win 150 Reward Points! Get a Free Copy of FX Photo Studio Pro for Mac from MakeUseOf Rewards! FX Photo Studio Pro offers 173 high-quality editing effects, 40 frames and 20 editing tools. Your photos will look awesome in no time! Get it Now for 400 Points! Learn More about Rewards Read More Articles Quick Guide: How To Enjoy eBooks Without A Tablet Or An eReader by Yaara Lancet eBooks are a phenomenon that can no longer be ignored. Whether you're one of the early adopters, or still sticking religiously to paper books, you must have noticed how easy it's become to get your hands on an eBook. When you can start reading a mere 5 minutes after deciding on a book, the lure of eBooks is bigger than ever. Alas, not all of us own an eReader or a tablet. Getting such a device requires a one-time investment of $100-$200, which not everyone is willing to make. So are you to give up on eBooks until you get your hands on such a device? Not necessarily. There are many convenient ways to enjoy eBooks right on your computer, without paying for an extra device, and without having to venture to the book store every time you want a new book. It might not be as convenient, but it's still a great option. Here are some great apps that will help you enjoy eBooks on your desktop. Nook for PC/Mac/Web The Nook is Barnes & Noble's take on the eReader niche, with devices ranging from a simple $99 eReader to a $199 tablet. But one of these devices is not a must in order to enjoy the wide range of books offered at the Nook Store. Nook Reader is also available for PC, Mac, and in a Web version compatible with IE, Firefox, Safari and Chrome. All versions are free to use, and let you enjoy your eBooks on your desktop, almost as if you were reading on an eReader. You'd need to create a BN.com account to enjoy Nook products, but when you do, you'd be able to sync books between different computers, create bookmarks, highlights and notes, create your own library and shelves, and enjoy your eBooks in full-screen mode on your computer. Download: Nook for Windows, Nook for Mac, Nook for the Web Kindle for PC/Mac/Cloud The Kindle is probably the best known eReader out there, and is brought to you courtesy of Amazon. The Kindle line ranges from the simplest $79 Kindle to the $199 Kindle Fire tablet and the $379 Kindle DX. But Kindle books can be easily enjoyed without a Kindle device, provided you have an Amazon account. If you do, you can start reading instantly using Kindle Cloud Reader, compatible with Firefox, Chrome and Safari, or with the Kindle desktop app for Windows or Mac. All of these Kindle apps are free and support full-screen reading  with the ability to create notes, highlights, bookmarks, etc. You can search for highlighted words in a dictionary or on Wikipedia, and even choose to read in two-column mode or in one column, depending on the width of your screen. Once you sign in with your Amazon account, you can sync your books across multiple devices. Download: Kindle for Windows, Kindle for Mac, Kindle Cloud Reader Kobo for Windows/Mac/Web Kobo is another well-known line of eReaders, which offers its own set of desktop and web apps for reading eBooks. Out of all the desktop apps I tried, Kobo's Windows app is the least responsive and intuitive, but it makes up for these faults with a slick reading interface when you finally start reading on it. A Kobo account is necessary in order to get books, but once you start, Kobo's apps will automatically sync all the books in your library between your different computers. The Kobo desktop reader, like all the others already mentioned, lets you highlight, bookmark, and annotate, and also offers quick definitions and translations for words on right-click. Calibre for Windows/Mac/Linux There's not much that hasn't been said about Calibre, and we like it so much here at MakeUseOf that we even wrote a complete guide about it which you can download for free. In a nutshell, Calibre is an eReader and eBook organizer which you can use to read books from almost any eBook provider out there, and in almost any available format, including ePubs. Naturally, Calibre supports the usual highlights, bookmarks and notes, and gives you fine-grained control over appearance and fonts. You can also use Calibre to convert eBooks to different formats. Download: Calibre for Windows/Mac/Linux Book.ish for Web Book.ish is a web app which makes reading eBooks on your browser a breeze. It supports ePubs as well as other formats, and you can use it to browse local stores for eBooks, or simply upload your own ePUB files for easy reading. The reader itself works both online and offline, and supports Firefox, Chrome, Safari, and IE, with Opera support coming soon. You can also use Book.ish to read on your iOS, Android or Blackberry devices. The reader itself, while not as sophisticated as others, provides all the basic trimmings you can look for in a desktop eReader, with control over appearance and font, and the ability to create bookmarks and search through the books. This is a great option if you're into ePUBs. What is your favorite way to enjoy eBooks on your computer? Or do you feel there's not much point in reading books on a desktop? Share your thoughts in the comments. Image credit: Girl reading on laptop image via Shutterstock Share: Comments Our records indicate that at judi.stutz@gmail.com signed up for the MakeUseOf newsletter at http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/find-perfect-iphone-android-blackberry-apps-appspace/. To unsubscribe http://www.aweber.com/z/r/?7CzszKxstKwMHAzsrKyctEa0jKxMLMzMjOw= MakeUseOf Limited, 105 Collingwood Road, Colchester CO3 9BB, Essex / UK

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EOM

It's the end of the month once again. I ate out for breakfast in Long Beach and got sick. Not fun.

I got my car back from the repair shop, but they failed to salvage my parking sticker, (and I'd rather not ask the current HOA president for another sticker) so I've been parking outside of my complex at night which has me walking more. And I need to exercise more since I'm two months into menopause now. The hot flashes are bothersome. The feeling of sticky sweaty skin after having these hot flashes is disgusting. The weight gain leveled off at 3 lbs. I've seriously been thinking about buying that "TapOut" workout series advertised on TV to get my gut to go down. I refuse to buy larger size Levi's just because all these changes are happening to my body now.

I have got to take time off of work and clear out that damn storage unit.

Did you see that stage coach with a busted wheel?

It's been an ugly year in Wells Fargo mortgage business history.

March brought a 49-state consent order over foreclosure practices:
http://www.nationalmortgagesettlement.com/states

Judgement over redlining:
http://www.jgmobile.net/article/20120713/BIZ/307139932/1031/BIZ&template=mobileart

Wholesale division closure:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-07-12/wells-fargo-to-exit-wholesale-channel-after-fair-lending-accord.html

Let's wait and see if their fees go up again.

Moving right along

I called my insurance company to report my claim yesterday from Saturday's fender bender. Today, I got a call confirming my information. Later in the day, someone from the dealer where the Mercury approved body shop is located called to talk to me. Saturday morning, I get to go get my car inspected. From the looks of the damage to the other vehicle, there has got to be more damage to mine hiding under the bumper panel other than the superficial scrapes and the loss of a trim panel. Even the rental car company called me today. I ended up renting a Chevy Malibu because the other two cars I sat in didn't have a fully adjustable drivers seat, which is a requirement for short me.