SmartHomeOwners

Whether you wish to organize a social club or a sports-related club, we've put together some ideas to make the process go much easier.  A social club enables people with like passions and views, or even similar hobbies, to meet others and share experiences.  Social clubs can be for business or pleasure.  Some examples include book clubs, art clubs, tea/coffee socials, writer's groups, dessert clubs, fitness clubs, country clubs, sports clubs and classic car clubs.  Social clubs can also be geared toward specific needs, such as a single mom's social club or a club for divorcees.

When organizing a social or sports club, think about what you would like the club to accomplish?  How do you want members to relate to one another?  Will you get involved in outside activities or simply meet with one another occasionally for a group chat?  Consider your personal interests and whether or not you will be passionate enough to keep the club going for years to come.

Getting Started

Starting a social club is as simple as coming up with a theme and an actual name for your club.  Avoid naming the club after a person, but rather try to capture the theme of your group in the name.  You can use the city or community name for starters, such as the "Memphis Book Lovers Club" or "New Heights Basketball Fan Club."  Try to keep the name short and catchy....easy to remember. 

In the start-up process, tell people you know about the club, especially those you feel would be interested in joining.  Try to get at least two other people to make a committment.  You will need their help when it's time to promote and grow the club.

Meeting Place and Time

Once you have a couple of people to start the club, find a meeting place.  This could be an empty building or office, a restaurant (on a slow morning or evening), someone's living room, or even in a garage or basement!  You can always move to a better location with more space should your club outgrow the original meeting place.

Advertise

Create club flyers that include the meeting locations and times, what your social club is all about, and who to contact if one has questions.  Some local businesses or organizations will allow you to leave the flyers on a counter or table, or hang one on the door.  Think of places where your potential members might visit, shop or relax.  For example, classic car clubs often advertise through local mechanic and body shops, car dealerships and auto parts suppliers.  A book club can advertise at the local library.  You can also promote your club by starting a website with keywords and phrases to target people in your local area.  Other ways to advertise include newspaper and local magazine classified ads, postal mailings and referrals from current club members.

Set Guidelines

Every social club needs guidelines.  Once you start adding members, you'll need to decide on regulations and possibly create a Board of Directors to handle club operations, membership fees, planning of events, etc.  The Board may include a president, vice president, treasurer and secretary.  You'll also need to decide if you want the club to be registered as a 501(c)(7) corporation.  This will give the club "non-profit" status by the IRS, exempting the club from paying taxes as long as it falls within certain guidelines.

Plan Activities

Once you've established the social or sports club, it's time to plan your activities.  Decide which activities will be fun for all while remaining affordable.  You can plan nights out on the town, breakfast or dinner meetings, visits to local venues related to your club theme (i.e. museums, shops, music stores, book stores, etc.), sports games, festivals and parades, etc.  You can even host your own events to gain publicity and grow your club membership even more!

Planning a social club isn't difficult if you follow these steps.  You'll be able to gather with great friends, meet new people and spend at least one or two days out of the month focusing on your greatest passion in life!

Let's face it, not all neighbours are kind and easy to get along with.  And some are downright mean!  Living closely with others in a neighbourhood has its benefits and downturns.  It can mean feeling safe, loved, protected and connected if you have good neighbours.  On the other hand, one bad neighbour can cause your entire world to feel threatened or at the very least, overcrowded.  Let's look at some ways to solve common neighbour problems and also to be a good neighbour yourself.

Socialization with Neighbours

One way to ensure good relationships with neighbours is to get out and socialize.  In our society, people are often in too big a hurry to speak to anyone, much less take time to learn their personality, likes and dislikes.  You might live near your neighbours for many years to come.  Get to know them.  Invite them over for dinner or a grill-out.  Make them feel welcomed to your home, and let them know you're there if they ever need a shoulder to lean on.  Speak to your neighbours when out and about riding your bike or jogging, or even while grabbing your daily newspaper or mail!

Avoid Kid Conflicts

Kids are often a source of strife between neighbours.  The parents may have a disagreement about child-rearing, or perhaps the children will repeat something another parent or child said about you...or vice versa.  It's important to set boundaries when neighbourhood kids play together.  At least one trustworthy adult should be present with younger children.  Older children should be given set rules and be expected to follow them (or else).  You can discuss these rules with the other parents and try to come to an agreement.  If there are problems with a particular neighbour, don't discuss it with your children unless there is a true danger of physical harm or kidnapping!

Be Alert

While many of your neighbours may be the nicest people on earth, there could be a bad apple in the bunch.  Imagine living near a thief/robber, murderer, child molester, drug dealer or spouse abuser.  In these situations, you might even consider moving to another neighbourhood.  Moving, however, is difficult and expensive.  You might need to install a security system and ask the police to keep an eye on your neighbourhood.  Start a crime watch group as well.  This allows neighbours to join forces and watch out for one another.  Ask others to watch your home closely when out of town.  Also, don't allow your children to play alone in plain view without adult supervision.

Dealing with a Mean, Nasty Neighbour

Perhaps your neighbour isn't a criminal, but is just simply mean and hurtful to others.  First, find out from others if you are the only target, or if this person is always mad at the world.  You might find that the person has had a tragedy in his/her life and has become bitter at everyone.  In this case, kindness is the best medicine.  Don't pester the neighbour, but do extend kindness during holidays or whenever you get a chance.  Kindness sometimes breaks through bitter feelings.

If you find that the person is targeting you for a particular reason, ask another neighbour or friend to mediate and find out what the problem is and how you can make amends.  Contact the neighbour that's angry and ask for a meeting at their home.  Bring along a gift and let them know that you truly want to mend the relationship.  It may be a small thing to you, but very annoying for them.  Let's say your dog barks near their bedroom window most of the night and keeps them awake.  This can possibly be solved by moving the dog's pen to the other side of your yard.  You might even plant shrubs or install a fence wall as a noise barrier.  Sometimes petty things can become a source of strife before you even realize it!

If you've made every effort to reconcile with a mean neighbour, and nothing seems to be working, it's best to count your losses.  Don't be hateful or start a shouting match.  Just pleasantly tell them you wish to be their friend if possible.  But if not, you'll leave them alone.  You might even consider planting a privacy hedge if you feel this will prevent further conflict.

Neighbours can be a blessing or a thorn in the side.  Either way, strive to be a good neighbour.  Don't gossip, and avoid conflict if possible. You never know when you'll need a helping hand from the one living beside you!

A basement leakage can cause excess moisture to enter your basement and can even damage your belongings if left unrepaired.  It might be a while before discovering you even have a basement leakage, so it's wise to check it occasionally and notice if there are wet spots on the floors or walls, a musky smell, or any stored items with apparent water damage.

Identify the Leakage

The cause of leaks in a basement could be anything from a crack in the foundation to a leak in bottom floor plumbing that seeps through the flooring.  Cracks can appear in the basement if there are poor quality pipes or tiles.  Concrete shrinks can cause cracks as well.  If there's even a small crack, heavy rainfall as well as settling of the house can cause it to grow larger over time.  If it's a fairly new home, perhaps the builder left a small opening in the basement walls during the time of construction.  Once you've identified where the water is coming from, be sure to repair it right away before it leads to bigger problems.

Repairing the Leakage

Visit your local home improvement store (Lowe's, Home Depot, etc.) to buy the supplies you'll need.  If you find a crack or hole in the concrete, buy some hydrophobic liquid polyurethane.  This can be used to fill even very deep cracks, and once applied, it will expand and turn into a foam-like substance.  After drying, this substance is waterproof and can last up to 15 years!  You'll also need to buy peel-off ports and cartridges (for filling the cracks) as well as crack seal glue.

Here's what to do to repair basement cracks:

1.  Clean the basement from top to bottom to eliminate any moisture and toxins.

2.  Cover all the cracks you can find with the crack seal glue and peel-off ports. 

3.  The cartridges can then be used to fill the cracks with polyurethane.  Wait for it to form into the foam-like substance completely before the next step.

4.  The crack seal glue and peel-off ports can be removed once the polyurethane has formed into the foam-like substance. 

5.  Waterproof your basement (kits are available to do this) to avoid moisture build-up and further damage to your stored items.

Other Tips:

If you find a leaky plumbing pipe in your basement, be sure to repair it immediately.  If you're not familiar with plumbing, it's best to call a plumbing repair person right away.  Don't allow the leak to continue...even if only a small one.  It can cause your pipes to burst and flood your basement entirely!

Use these simple tips to repair any leakages caused by cracks or to fix other moisture problems in your basement.  Don't allow moisture to damage your valuable possessions or to cause mold and mildew problems to arise.

What if I told you that you can save up to hundreds of dollars a year just by maintaining and or improving your water systems at home? Sounds too good to be true doesn’t it. Well by applying a few of these simple tips, you can make a simple but powerful change in your life.

Install a more efficient shower head

With technology the way it is today, odds are your shower head is old and outdated. Visit your local hardware store and make the switch. They have long working lives, and the few bucks you spend on them now are returned back to you and then some over the long run.

Do laundry with full loads only

Allow yourself and your family to accumulate a full load before stuffing them into the wash. This cuts down on the frequency of washes you’ll have to perform and greatly reduce annual water consumption.

Reduce the length of showers

By reducing the length of your showers by a few minutes, the slight amount you save each time will add up over the course of a year, saving you a substantial amount annually.

Do not thaw frozen food with running water

Plan ahead of time and use your fridge to defrost. Don’t cost yourself money just to defrost your food.

Change car wash habits

Instead of washing it at home in the driveway, consider using a professional service that recycles water. Otherwise try washing your car on your lawn so the water doesn’t go to waste right after.

These are only a few of the myriad of possibilities. Remember to keep in mind that this not only puts more money in your pocket, but is also environmentally friendly. A penny saved is a penny earned!

Planning your vacation can be both an exciting and stressful task.  You might be trying to decide if you should go with a vacation package deal or plan every aspect of the trip on your own.  Let's look at some pros and cons of package deals to help you choose what's best for your vacation needs.

Vacation packages do offer many benefits whether you travel often or hardly ever.  Probably the greatest benefit can be realized if traveling to an unfamiliar place, especially to a foreign land.  In situations where you know nothing about your vacation destination, a travel package will give you guidance and take care of the arrangements for you.  There are also all-inclusive packages at secluded resorts if you're planning a quiet, romantic getaway.  These often include your resort stay, local activities, meals, drinks and more.  And with so many online travel venues, you can easily choose a vacation package that suits your needs and budget.

This brings us to the next advantage - vacation packages are very easy to find and put together on the Web.  You don't even have to speak with a travel agent or coordinator to secure your package.  Travel arrangement sites can do it all for you, and even allow you to explore and substitute options to create a package that's just right for you.

You can also possibly save money by opting for a vacation package deal.  Imagine saving a percentage on airline fare, a rental car, hotel accommodations and perhaps even meals and/or attractions!  Many travel package sites offer incentives to sign up for a package in the form of traveler discounts.  With careful research, you might save 10 percent or more on your overall vacation spending.

As for the disadvantages, not all vacation package deals will include everything you need.  It really depends on the destination and how popular it is with tourists.  Many hot tourist spots offer hundreds of package deals while lesser known places have few or none.  A vacation package might not be in your best interest if you're already familiar with the location, hotels, attractions, or if you plan on driving there yourself.  Many package deals only offer savings on big purchases, such as airfare and hotel rates.  So if you can drive to the destination, it might be best to make all arrangements on your own.  Also, you'll have to plan ahead with package deals, so you can't change your destination on the spur of the moment.  If you plan on visiting several towns within an area or driving cross-country to tour numerous spots, then a vacation package will only limit your sightseeing opportunities.

Consider these pros and cons to determine if a vacation package will work for you or if you should plan on your own.