China is in the forefront of banning white plastic grocery bags, favoring cloth
bags, instead. Their goal is to cut waste and to conserve resources. Rising
environmental concerns and rising gasoline prices couple to encourage
consumers to make the choice to bring cloth bags along when they shop.

Beginning June 1, 2008, in time for the Summer Olympic Games, Beijing businesses
will no longer provide the free bags. Thicker plastic bags will be available for sale
and use, but businesses will be prohibited from manufacturing, selling or using bags that
are less than .025 millimeters thick.

Other countries that have already passed legislation to ban the bags are Ireland,
Taiwan and parts of South Africa. Last year, San Francisco became the first U.S.
city to ban petroleum-based plastic bags.
Plastic bags clog landfills and pollute our oceans. The approximately
100 billion plastic bags that are used each year are the equivalent of 17 million
barrels of oil down the drain.

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Be careful how you list names on your cell phone! Here is a scenario:

"This lady has changed her habit of how she lists her names on her mobile phone after her handbag was stolen. Her handbag which contained her cell phone, Credit card, wallet...etc.... was stolen. 20 minutes later when she called Her Hubby, from a pay phone telling him what had happened, hubby says 'I've Just received your text asking about our Pin number and I've replied a little while ago.'

When they rushed down to the bank, the bank staff told them all the money was already withdrawn. The pickpocket had actually used the stolen cell phone to text 'hubby' in the contact list and got hold of the pin number. Within 20 minutes he had withdrawn all the money from the bank account.

Lesson: Do not disclose the relationship between you and the people in your contact list. Avoid using names like Home, Honey, Hubby, sweetheart, Dad, Mom etc....... And very importantly, when sensitive info is being asked thru texts, CONFIRM by calling back. Also, when you're being texted by friends or family to meet them somewhere, be sure to call back to confirm that the message came from them. If you don't reach them, be very careful about going places to meet 'family and friends' who text you."

According to the Snopes.com inbox in April 2006, given the lack of information provided in the narrative with which to prove or disprove it and the dearth of accounts of similar nature in the news, this story is perhaps best regarded as a cautionary tale rather than as an account of an actual incident — something meant to inspire greater prudence on the part of cell phone users whose casual laxity regarding security matters might otherwise lead them to grief.

Handbags do get stolen, and a great many women as a matter of habit carry their phones in their pocketbooks, which means a purse snatcher may net himself both the victim's ATM card and her cell phone. If those so robbed have identified their spouses in their phones' address books as "hubby," "my sweetie," or the like, thieves might know exactly whom to attempt to extract cash card PINs from (although most ATMs have daily withdrawal limits that would prevent an account from being "emptied in 20 minutes"). Those concerned about such theft might therefore do better to list all contacts within their cell phone address books by first names only.

(This story idea from: Ken Irwin and Elaine Atlow)

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Tri-Rail is offering seniors
a chance to have a free ride, to introduce them to the easy access Tri-Rail
wants to provide them.
No purchase necessary. Must be 65 years or older. Ticket offer is
non-transferable and has no cash value. Limit one round-trip ticket per
person. Deadline is June 2, 2008.
Call 1-800-TRI-Rail (874-7245) or www.tri-rail.com to get a form.

Or - send your complete name, address, age, phone # and/or e-mail address,
WITH a stamped, self-addressed envelope, to:
Tri-Rail, P.O. Box 5148, Lighthouse Point, FL 33074-5148.

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Saturday, March 29th: Wetlands Dayto be held at:
The Green Cay Wetlands 12800 Hagen Ranch Road,
Boynton Beach . FREE

On Saturday, March 29th, a collection of local nature center experts, wetland
birds and animals, environmental volunteers, naturalists and photographers
will be there to celebrate Wetlands Day 2008. P.B. CountyWater Utilities
Department sponsors this event to promote awareness of water
conservation and environmental issues.
At 10 a.m. Karen Milstein and Arlene Spagna, nationally-published nature
photographers, will speak, followed by a presentation from the South Florida Water Management District on the role of man-made wetlands in Everglades restoration
at 11 a.m. At noon, Busch wildlife will give a presentation on the animals of the
wetlands featuring baby alligators and birds of prey. The day will conclude with a rehabilitated wildlife release.
Palm Beach County Environmental Resource Management will hand out native
saplings and information on reforestation. Nature Center volunteers will give
boardwalk tours and provide story telling at the chickee hut every hour on the
half hour.

The Green Cay and Wakodahatchee Wetlands were built by the P.B.C. Water
Utilities Department as an important component in its Reclaimed Water Program.
In addition to providing valuable wildlife habitat to more than 150 bird species,
turtles, fish, bobcats, foxes and otters, the wetlands also receive and help clean
treated wastewater that is piped underground from the nearby Southern Region
Water Reclamation Facility. This wastewater treatment plant also supplies the
surrounding community with reclaimed water, a cost savings for consumers
while conserving fresh drinking water that would otherwise be used to
quench thirsty South Florida lawns and golf courses.

This information supplied by Robert Nelton, Senior Public Relations
Specialist for P.B. County Water utilities Dept.

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HEARING LOSS ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA -
Help For The Hearing Impaired
Delray/Boynton Chapter of the HEARING LOSS ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA
monthly meeting will take place Friday, March 21, 2008 from 9:45 A.M. to
12 Noon at the South County Civic Center, 16700 Jog Road, Delray Beach
(opposite Morikami Park.)
Two Guest Presenters:
1. Nimet Adams, Dr. of Audiology talks about advances in hearing aids and hearing
aid technology.
2. Clear Sounds demonstrates state-of-the art assistive hearing devices. A must
for anyone hearing impaired. Learn about the latest devices for hearing
enhancement in the many situations where a hearing aid is not enough for
clarity and understanding.
Question and answer period will follow.
The meeting is open to the public at no charge. Complimentary coffee and
bagels served.
For more information call (561) 499-9873

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Night Explorers at Gumbo Limbo Nature Center
Stars, owls, frogs, bugs, things that go bump, some that glow and much more to know! Peek at the night sky through a telescope in the company of an astronomer. Hike with creatures of the night along the flashlight illuminated boardwalk. See the tanks under a different light. Explore the nightlife at Gumbo Limbo with a naturalist in tow, family fun in a natural setting. Ages 7 and up with adult participation.

Friday, 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm
March 28, 2008
Members: $6.00 per person
Non-Members: $9.00 per person

Come one and All! Lets wish for clear skies!

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The Center is located at 8645 W. Boynton Beach Blvd. It provides free medical and
dental care to low-income families in Boynton Beach and west of Boynton Beach.
The Executive Director of the Caridad Center, Barbara Vilaseca, was the guest
speaker at the at a recent COWBRA meeting. She highlighted the special services
that the Caridad Center provides to needy families in our area. The Center
has over 500 volunteers: doctors, dentists, nurses and others who
donate their time and skills. All services are FREE. Last year, there were
approximately 25,000 visits by over 7,000 people from 2,000 families.
About 25% of the patients are children, however many senior citizens have
begun to use the free dental servicesl.

In addition, the Outreach Program provides food vouchers, college scholarships,
rent assistance, school supplies and help with FPL bills, if needed.

The after school enrichment program currently serves 53 children grades K-5.
Children who are waiting for their parents to receive free care now have a place to
play. There is a gazebo, playground equipment and an area to safely run around.
If you would like to donate children's books for the indoor waiting area, please drop
them off at the center.

Sandy Parker, COWBRA Delegate, provided this information.

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The Future of Cable

(Courtesy of W. Boca BLOGGER, Alan Kellock)
Imagine every home in your HOA community connected by a fiber optic network that offers a choice of many hundreds, if not thousands, of “channels” from all over the world, with a picture quality superior to anything available now. It would provide access to the Internet with blazing speed compared to Comcast cable or AT&T’s DSL. This same infrastructure could also support provide land phone services.

Your TVs, computers and land phones wouldn’t need all that cable and wire that snakes through your attic and perhaps even along your baseboards. All you have to do is plug in your device to an electrical outlet to get connected anywhere in your home.

A fantasy? Not really. This is where the future of home media is heading. It’s commonly called bundling. The technology to support this vision already exists, and more is on the way.

Newer companies with fresh strategies are mixing it up with aging media conglomerates like Comcast, AT&T and Time Warner. The challengers lean toward the Internet model, enabling consumers to select their own content from unlimited choices a la Google or You Tube. The other side is steeped in a tradition of pre-selecting the content we can access in our homes and is struggling to redefine its mission in response to the challenge posed by these upstart enablers.

The cost? I don’t know. But if you add up what you would pay on your own for cable or satellite TV, broadband Internet and land phone service come 2009, the available evidence indicates that a community-wide bundling alternative will cost less per month and the quality will be superior. Communities with a viable home media program that appeals to a growing number of prospective buyers who value such services will also enhance the property values within such communities.

It may prove necessary to invest in the startup of the new infrastructure. This is the pioneering path that Boca Isles South took a couple of years ago when their then-Adelphia contract expired. They installed their own fiber optic network. In effect, they cut out the middleman and became their own Cable TV and broadband Internet company, buying content directly from content providers or the growing number of resellers who represent them.

A number of other communities in are looking into similar alternatives to Comcast as their contracts also near expiration.
What direction do you think home media should take in your community?

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The Coalition of Boynton West Residential Associations (COBWRA) next meeting will be
at 9:30 A.M., on Wednesday, March 19, 2008, at the Valencia Lakes clubhouse,
11600 Valencia Lakes Blvd. , Boynton Beach
The entrance is located on the west side of Hagen Ranch Road between Woolbright Road and Pipers Glen Blvd.
Program:
1: ELECTION OF COBWRA OFFICERS FOR 2008-9.
2: PROPERTY INSURANCE.
Open to the public. No tickets or reservations needed.
Contact COBWRA at 789-8140 or cobwra@yahoo.com for more information.
Jack Leicher, COBWRA Program Chairman

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The West Boynton Park and Recreation Center is located at 6000 Northtree
Boulevard, Lake Worth - directly behind the Park Vista High School. For
more information, call Ellen Gilmer, 561 355-1125. Tell her you saw this
BLOG.

Every second Friday of the month, there is FREE Family Skate Night, from
6:00 P.M. to 9:00 P.M. Why not go there on March 14th and try it out
with your family?

There is music and food and fun for all. Spend time with your kids and
exercise at the same time!! Everyone benefits!

If you like this BLOG, please leave a comment.

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Green Cay Nature Center, 12800 Hagen Ranch Road, Boynton Beach invites seniors
to a program of "Birding," on March 19th at 2:00 P.M.

The fee is $3.00 per person, for adults age 50+.

You must register by calling 561 966-7000.

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“The Bucket List," If you have not seen it, is a terrific movie (a tear jerker though) with Jack Nicholas & Morgan Freeman. The two of them are both diagnosed with terminal cancer, meet in the hospital, and decide to spend their last days traveling and doing all of the things that they wanted to do before “kicking the bucket”. The movie truly makes you think.

As an owner of Sand & C Travel Agency, Alan Rosen sent this message to his clients, after he and his wife saw it: "We have been blessed to have seen many great wonders of the world at a young age. No matter how old you are, I believe it is beneficial to make your own 'Bucket List', either on paper or just in your mind. Now I am not going to discuss goals such as skydiving (which they did in the movie), but I think I can give you some ideas for places to visit in your lifetime.

Some of the greatest places to see on earth were shown in the movie. These include the pyramids of Egypt, the Taj Mahal in India, the Great Wall of China and an African Safari; The Western Wall in Jerusalem, the Galapagos Islands, and, right here in the United States, the Grand Canyon and California coast. Finally, a couple that are on my list but that I have not been to, nor were in the movie, are The Great Barrier Reef off Australia and the penguins of Antarctica.

No matter how old you are, I believe that you are never too young to start, or too old that you have to stop, making your dreams come true. I started this letter talking about how time continues to fly. One of the most important lessons that I have learned in my life is, that if you keep waiting for tomorrow, next week, or next year to accomplish your goals on your “bucket list,” it is probably never going to happen. Enjoy life while you can, because we all never know what is around the next corner. Appreciate your family and loved ones, and seek to obtain your goals. Because when it comes down to the last moments, those are the things that you are going to look back upon."

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West Boynton Branch, 9451 Jog Road, Boynton Beach 561 734-5556

ADULT PROGRAMS
Thurs., March 6, 1:00 p.m.
Afternoon Writers’ Workshop
A monthly workshop led by author Barbara Bixon, area representative of The
International Women’s Writing Guild. Bring your fiction, nonfiction, or poetry to
share with the group. (3 hr.)
Tues., March 11, 2:00 p.m.
Sense of Place: Book Discussion Series
Nora Natke will lead a discussion of “Prior Bad Acts,” by Tami Hoag.
Sign up and check out a copy of the book. (90 min.) Preregister.
Tues., March 18, 2:00 p.m.
The Bintel Brief in 2008
For more than 60 years, The Bintel Brief was a regular feature of the Jewish Daily
Forward and served as a newcomers’ guide to America for immigrants. Marjorie
Gottlieb Wolfe will present a humorous and informative program on modern
“Bintel Briefisms.” (60 min.) Free tickets available March 11.
Tues., March 25, 2:00 p.m.
The Way-Off-Broadway Players -
Be prepared to laugh at “The Battle of the Sexes,” written and performed by this
popular and multi-talented local group. (45 min.) Free tickets available March 18.

WEST BOYNTON CHILDREN'S PROGRAMS
March 1-21
Winter Story Times Reminder
There’s still time to sign up in person (except for Lapsit) for sessions which end
on March 21.
Mon., Feb. 4-May 5, 4:00 p.m.
Teen Book BuddiesEarn volunteer service hours by helping children in grades
K-5 with reading each week. Submit an application at the youth services desk
and attend a mandatory orientation. Ages 14-18. (60 min.) Preregister.
Thurs., March 13, 2:30 p.m.
Hands-On Fun - Hear a story, see a movie, and make an eggcellent ornament
to take home. Ages 4-7. (40 min.) Preregister.
Mon., March 17, 3:00 p.m.
Leprechauns in the Library (Again!)
Help us learn about, and maybe even trap, these tricky little creatures. We’ll read a
story, hear some music, and do a craft. Ages 3 & up. (45 min.) Preregister.
Fri., March 28, 1:00 p.m.
Sidewalk Chalk (rescheduled)
Get out your chalk and we’ll cover the sidewalk with colorful drawings.
(In case of rain, call for an alternate day and time.) Chalk supplied. Ages 2 & up.
(60 min.) Preregister.

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Formerly known as the Golden Age Passport, the America the Beautiful National
Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass allows many people to enjoy traveling,
camping, and sight seeing at our national parks and recreation areas.
The lifetime senior pass is for U.S. citizens or permanent residents age 62
or over. The senior pass provides access to, and use of, Federal recreation
sites that charge an entrance fee.

The senior pass admits the pass holder and passengers in a non-commercial
vehicle at “per vehicle” fee areas and pass holder plus 3 adults, not to exceed
4 adults, at “per person” fee areas (children under 16 are admitted free).

The senior pass can only be obtained in person at a national park, recreational
area, or monument where an entrance fee is charged and at forestry ranger stations.

The senior pass provides a 50 percent discount on some Expanded Amenity
Fees charged for facilities and services such as camping, swimming, boat launch,
and specialized interpretive services. In some cases where Expanded Amenity
Fees are charged, only the pass holder will be given the 50 percent price reduction.

The senior pass is non-transferable and generally does NOT cover or reduce
special recreation permit fees or fees charged by concessionaires.

You must show proof of age such as a driver’s license, birth certificate,
or similar document. There is an $10 processing charge to obtain the senior pass.

Comments are welcomed! Did you like this article? Readers: Would you
like more postings about senior programs in our area? Let me know. Your
comments are always private. Your e-mail address is never made public.

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On Sunday, March 9th, at 2:00 P.M., the South Florida Veterans Administration
National Cemetery's new 313-acre site will be opened to the public.

South Florida VA National Cemetery will serve veterans' needs for the next 50 years.
The cemetery is located in Palm Beach County in Lake Worth on U.S. 441,
just south of Lantana Road and north of Boynton Beach Blvd.,
6501 South State Road 7, Lake Worth, FL. 33467.

All veterans and their families are invited.
There will be parking on the west side of U.S. 441 (state road 7) at the
Pro-Source Company or on the east side of U.S. 441 at the Whitworth
Farms, just north of Eternal Light Cemetery.

Shuttle buses will be provided from these parking areas to the VA Cemetery.
For more information call Barry Tutin at 865-0271 or Cemetery Staff at
(561) 649-6489

This article courtesy of Mort Mazor, Del Ray Beach Sun-Sentinel Blog.

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The Boca Raton Branch of the National League of American Pen Women and the Courtyard Building Twelfth Annual Juried Multi-Media Art Exhibition March 3- April 2, 2008
Gala Reception Saturday, March 8, 2008 2:30-4:00 p.m.
Awards and Ribbons: 3:30 p.m. Courtyard Building 5301 N. Federal Highway Boca Raton, FL
1/4 block north of Yamato Rd. hours: Weekdays 7:00 A.M. - 7:00 P.M. (photo, Carol Gold, co-art Chair) Local Events (4)

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