The Survive and Thrive Boomer Guide

Facts and figures for Father’s Day 2020

The first Mother's Day was celebrated in 1914, but a holiday honoring fathers didn’t become official until 1966, when President Lyndon Johnson declared that the third Sunday in June would be Father's Day. President Richard Nixon made this proclamation permanent in 1972. However, Father’s Day was celebrated before then.

The idea for Father's Day is attributed to Sonora Dodd, who was raised by her father after her mother's death during childbirth. While listening to a sermon at church on Mother's Day, she thought about all her father had done for her and her siblings and decided fathers should have a day, too. Because Dodd's father was born in June, she encouraged churches in her area, Spokane, Washington, to honor fathers that month. The first Father's Day was celebrated in Spokane in 1910.

Over the years, the idea spread, and people lobbied Congress to establish the holiday.

Shopping

This year three-quarters of consumers say they plan to celebrate Father's Day, according to the annual survey conducted for the National Retail Federation. While fewer consumers expect to take their dads out for Father’s Day, they’re planning other ways to celebrate.

What to buy and not buy at Memorial Day sales 2020

Memorial Day sales have begun, even though stores aren’t operating like they usually do due to the coronavirus pandemic. Shop online for safety or pick up items you’ve ordered from local retail stores.

Many states have opened retail stores, including Georgia, Florida, Texas, and Iowa. However, I wouldn’t take the risk to go shopping for clothes or other items yet. About a dozen states – Alabama, Arizona, Kentucky, Maryland, Minnesota, North Dakota, Texas, Wisconsin, and Mississippi – have opened retail stores even though their coronavirus cases are going up or have plateaued rather than dropping. See this New York Times article on the reopening plans of states.

DealNews.com suggests consumers look for Memorial Day deals on:

Path lighting kits by Sterno Home are being recalled due to shock hazard

Sterno Home is recalling about 77,000 hampton bay, patriot lighting, and paradise light kits with LED power supplies.

The path lights have a defective Sterno Home LED power supply that has a plug blade that can remain in the AC outlet when the LED power supply is pulled from the outlet, posing a risk of electric shock to the user.  

The firm has received one report of the light’s power supply plug blade detaching in an AC outlet. No injuries have been reported.

Electrical connectors made by Leviton Manufacturing are recalled due to shock hazard

Leviton Manufacturing is recalling about 98,000 50 ampere, non-NEMA electrical connectors, plugs, receptacles, and inlets in the United States and about 4,400 units in Canada.

The electrical connection devices can have mislabeled terminal markings, posing an electrical shock hazard.

Leviton has received four reports of mismarked devices, including one report of a consumer who received an electrical shock, and three reports of minor property damage to equipment with which the devices were being used.

Progressive Leasing to pay $175 million to FTC to settle charges it deceived consumers about prices

Progressive Leasing will pay $175 million to settle Federal Trade Commission charges it misled consumers about the price of items purchased through its plans. The company markets rent-to-own payment plans at more than 24,000 retail locations – including stores such as Best Buy, Lowe’s, Big Lot’s, and Kay Jewelers – in 46 states and the District of Columbia.

Consumers who visited retailers to buy items such as furniture, jewelry, or cellphones were often told that Progressive’s payment plans were “same as cash” or “no interest” – leading consumers to believe they wouldn’t be charged more than an item’s sticker price, according to the FTC’s lawsuit filed Monday.

Instead, the lawsuit alleges, consumers paid more than the sticker price, and often paid about twice the sticker price if they made all scheduled payments under the plans. When consumers were presented with the terms of Progressive’s offers, they were shown the “cash price” of the item, as well as the cost of their initial payment and each periodic payment.

Electric receptacles recalled by Pass & Seymour due to burn hazard

Pass & Seymour is recalling about 685,000 commercial-grade tamper resistant duplex electric receptacles.

A manufacturing error in the receptacles could allow consumers to incorrectly force the plug into the receptacle, causing the plug blades to overheat, posing a burn risk to consumers.

No incidents or injuries have been reported.

This recall involves electrical receptacles with model numbers found here. The model number is printed on the labels on the individual product boxes or cartons. “Legrand” is printed on the back of the receptacles. The following manufacturing date codes can be found on the outside of the carton: 43U, 44U, 45U, 46U, 47U, 48U, 49U, 50U, 51U, 52U, 53U, 01V, and 02V.

Pressure washers recalled by STILH due to injury hazard

STIHL is recalling about 16,400 RE 90 pressure washers.

The pressure washer nozzle can disconnect from the spray wand when under pressure during use, posing an injury hazard.

STIHL has received seven reports of the nozzle detaching from the spray wand during use. No injuries have been reported.

This recall involves the spray wand supplied with STIHL RE 90 pressure washers. The pressure washer is gray and orange with “STIHL RE 90” printed on the front. The recalled spray wand is 15-inches long and attaches to the spray gun.  Interchangeable nozzles connect to the spray wand.

The Thompson’s Co. recalls aerosol cans of wood and masonry protector due to fire hazard

The Thompson’s Co. is recalling about 852,000 Thompson’s waterseal waterproofing wood protector and masonry protector in aerosol cans.

The contents of the cans can react with the package, causing rust to form along the can seam, which could spread to other areas of the can and create pinhole leaks. Leaking propellant poses a fire hazard when it comes into contact with sources of ignition. Leaking sealer can also cause property damage. 

The Thompson’s Co. received about 18 reports of leaking cans from retailers. No injuries, fires, or property damage were reported.

Residential fires: The main causes and tips to prevent them

By Cristina Miguelez, Remodeling Specialist, Fixr.com

Guest Blogger

Each year, an estimated 371,000 residential fires occur in the United States. These fires result in more than 2,000 deaths, 10,000 injuries, and more than 7 billion dollars in damages. And while the total number of fires per year has decreased very slightly since 2008, this is still far too many, especially when combined with the total of deaths.

Thankfully, there are steps that people can take to help prevent fires in the future. The key is understanding the most common causes, so you can be better equipped to avoid them.

The graphic above shows the impact of residential fires over the last decade, as well as the most common causes of fire in residential settings.

Understand the most common causes of residential fires

While residential fires can be caused by a variety of issues, cooking fires are far and away the most common cause. More than 50 percent of all fires over the last decade have been started in the kitchen by someone cooking. Other causes include heating systems, 9 percent; open flames, 4 percent; electrical malfunctions, 6 percent; and carelessness, 7 percent. However, all of these totaled don’t equal the same threat that cooking carries with it.

Tips for shopping on Cyber Monday

Cyber Monday has a reputation for being the leftovers from Black Friday. However, it can actually have the better deals. Americans spent an estimated 27 percent more money online on Cyber Monday than on Black Friday last year. One reason is probably it’s more convenient to order deals on Cyber Monday than fight the Black Friday crowds.

Tips for shopping on Cyber Monday include:

Make a plan. You need to have a holiday budget for spending. Don’t let possible deals on Cyber Monday lead you to overspent.

Do research. Know what the prices are for the items on your list. That way, you won’t be fooled by deals that really aren’t deals.