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SEX & LIFE

3 Tips for Buying a Second Hand Car

3 Tips for Buying a Second Hand Car

Choosing to buy a second-hand car for your family means you’ll need to make sure you take into account a lot of things. Sure, this choice could be better for you financially. 

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Second-hand cars are of course cheaper to buy than brand new cars. The thing with second hand-cars is that you’re not the first and only owner.  You will need to look carefully at many different aspects of the car before signing on the dotted line.

Did you know that some cars are significantly more reliable than others? This applies to buying a brand new or pre-loved vehicle. The reason is that some major problems only come to light once the car has been driven for some time. 

When you add that to general wear and tear, and all of a sudden the cheaper option becomes a money pit that costs more than you would pay for a brand new car.

It can be tricky, but not impossible, to avoid the pitfalls of buying a second-hand car. Knowing the right questions to ask, what to look for and any telltale signs will help you make a well-informed choice before deciding on your new car!

Know Exactly How Much You Are Willing to Pay or Spend on Repairs.

It goes without saying that the less you pay for a car, the greater the likelihood is that it will need more repairs.

If this is what you are after, then you could end up bagging a bargain. If you want a car you can drive away instantly, it may not work out in your favour. It’s never a bad thing to be able to modify a car to exactly how you want it to be. If this is the case, the less you pay the better. It is important to be able to invest in the proper car parts for a project like this. Remember to look around for auto quotes that cover any major modifications you make to the car to make sure you are driving legally.

The average price point for a good reliable pre-loved vehicle in the US is currently $2,500. Of course, this doesn’t guarantee you will get a reliable car, but it is good starting to consider when you start looking.

Do Your Research.

You need to look at more than just the exterior paint job when it comes to buying a second-hand car. Lift the hood, and get a good look at what is going on underneath. Check online for reviews of cars that you’ve got your eye on to see what previous and current owners of that model have to say. Check for any known defects or mechanical problems that might become evident on some models when doing your research.

If you’re after a car that’s going to serve you well, it pays to check its reliability before taking it out. No one wants to breakdown on the highway in a car they have just purchased!

Don’t Trust The Sales Patter!

The job of a car salesman is literally, to sell the car. Chances are, they will be very good at their job and may omit facts, gloss over any issues or promise you things to get you to buy.

If possible, take someone who is familiar with the mechanics of a car to check it out. That way you can be more confident in your purchase before leaving the forecourt.

Tia, and TipsfromTia.com  is trying to keep you looking good and
feeling good, from the inside out. If you’ve got a problem or a tip email me! Be sure to Like and share on Facebook or Follow on Twitter or Instagram.

ORGANIC HEALTH & HOME

Keeping Your Home Safe Year Round

Keeping Your Home Safe Year Round

Your home is likely your biggest investment, so you’re going to want to keep it as safe as possible year round. Many homeowners unknowingly put their homes and families at risk – here’s how you can make sure your home and loved ones stay safe:

Don’t Advertise When You’re Going Away

Many people announce on social media exactly when they are going away. If people know where you live and your social accounts are not set to private, you could be putting your home at risk. Don’t advertise it, and always ask a family member or neighbor to watch your home while you’re gone. 

Invest In Home Security

Make sure you invest in home security pieces. Alarms, locks, CCTV, and other security features will go a long way to keeping your home safe. This is especially important if you have kids – child proof your home and keep chemicals out of reach. 

Get A Dog

While your lifestyle should of course suit a dog before you decide to get one, this could be a way to keep your home safe and deter intruders. 

Test Your Alarms

Make sure you test your alarms regularly. Don’t neglect to install a carbon monoxide detector and test it – this is especially important if you use a fireplace or kerosene heater. This is often something that is overlooked around the holiday season – the infographic below can help you to ensure you’re staying as safe as possible during that time. 


credit to University of Arizona

Tia, and TipsfromTia.com  is trying to keep you looking good and
feeling good, from the inside out. If you’ve got a problem or a tip email me! Be sure to Like and share on Facebook or Follow on Twitter or Instagram.

SEX & LIFE

The Roadblocks In Your Mind: Getting Over Your Fear Of Driving

The Roadblocks In Your Mind: Getting Over Your Fear Of Driving

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It is essential now. Wherever you are, you’ve got to drive in order to get anywhere on time. And whether you’ve been driving for a while and your technique is a little rusty, or you haven’t been driving for a while, but now it has become a necessity, when there are certain anxieties associated with getting behind the wheel this can cloud our ability to drive but also put us off driving for life. When we have a fear of driving, it is not necessarily about one single component, but we’ve got to figure out the reasons why we have driving anxiety. So let’s provide you with a plan of action to get yourself on the road again.

The Reasons For A Fear Of Driving

To be fair, there is no one-size-fits-all reason why people develop a fear of driving. Some people have a fear of driving stem from a bad experience or a fear of accidents. Fear of accidents or “dystychiphobia†usually covers people who avoid every situation that increases their risk of physical danger. And while you may think about the fact that a car accident could cause scoliosis or could result in a life-threatening injury, there can be a combination of anxieties. Reasons people fear driving can be down to claustrophobia in the vehicle or performance anxiety. When you start to break down the reasons for your fear of driving, you can start to tackle these problems one by one.

Tackling The Symptoms

We have to remember that while we’ve got reasons why we’re scared of driving, they can manifest themselves in specific symptoms. It all depends on the person, but some can feel dizzy, short of breath, confused, or even have heart palpitations. While some people might not experience these types of symptoms, if you have any of these, it could be solved with medication or counseling to address an underlying issue. There are general tips that can help. For example, managing your stress is a simple way to reduce symptoms of anxiety. If you are someone who quickly gets anxious, getting behind the wheel of a car can be one of the most stressful situations.

Stress management encompasses so many different components, but there are specific techniques that can help people that have a fear of driving. For example, there are driver hypnosis courses that can help you to break down the mysticism of being behind the wheel. As well as this, there are desensitization techniques that involve putting yourself into situations that trigger anxiety symptoms. From the perspective of a driver, getting into a car with the engine running could be the first step. When we start to consider our symptomatic reactions, we can then begin to undertake the appropriate course of therapy. Using therapeutic techniques like desensitization can take a long time to go from one stage to the next, but you’ve got to remember that you are always progressing in the right direction.

What If It’s Impossible To Overcome?

We can pinpoint our problems to a handful of specific situations behind the wheel, and we may worry that we’ll never get over a fear of driving. We’ve got to remember that if it’s too much, we shouldn’t force it. When we cause unnecessary stress for ourselves, this results in a feeling of danger for the people in the vehicle and can cause dangers for other people on the road.

You have to remember that if confidence is the underlying issue, there are ways for you to help yourself back to driving with a more proactive mindset. Having a few lessons with an instructor, especially if you’ve not driven for years, can be the perfect way to bring back that muscle memory. Or if you’ve got a particular fear behind the wheel, for example, driving on the freeway, you need to build up your resilience. Going from driving to the end of your street and back is the first step, and gradually you can start to cover more distance. As soon as you begin to build up your confidence you could look at driving near the freeway and seeing what people do to get on it safely, but also there’s a lot to be said for looking at other idiots on the road. When we are so scared of driving, but some people are going from A to B without issue, it can fill us with a bit more confidence. 

We have to remember that it’s normal to feel some sense of driving anxiety, but it’s not something that should stay with us for life.

Tia, and TipsfromTia.com  is trying to keep you looking good and
feeling good, from the inside out. If you’ve got a problem or a tip email me! Be sure to Like and share on Facebook or Follow on Twitter or Instagram.

ORGANIC HEALTH & HOME, SEX & LIFE

Eight Ways To Preserve Your Precious Memories

Eight Ways To Preserve Your Precious Memories

It doesn’t matter where you go for vacations, trips or visits, you collect memories. Some people do it with badges, others with stickers and magnets. Your memories – whether from life or vacations – need to be preserved as best as possible. That box in the attic that has been filled to the brim with photographs? That box needs to come down, and the pictures treated accordingly – with reverence and care. Photos, videos and even magnet collections all have a place in life, and they should all be treated with respect.

Your collected memories show the world who you are. They tell your stories, and each photograph leads to the next and the next, a tattoo of happy memories etched in the boxes of the attic! You can use your pictures and videos to look back on life and appreciate the good times, smile at the loved ones left behind and remind yourself of every happy memory. After all, we take pictures to capture the good times. All you have left in life are captured happy moments, but if you don’t use guides like https://setapp.com/how-to/backup-iphone-to-external-drive, you’re not going to learn how to preserve them properly. You want to make sure that ALL of your good memories – from the camera roll to the iPhone – are well looked after. When you do, you’ll preserve your identity. Your whole life is left behind in photos and trinkets when you die, so you need to make sure you leave behind good memories.

So, with this in mind, let’s take a closer look at eight ways you can keep your memories safe.

Black Camera Film

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  • Preserve Home Movies First

Those dusty old reels that you have kept for years? They need to be looked after urgently. Home movies can deteriorate every day, and as they deteriorate, so do the colors on the reel. The good news is that there are services that can restore your home movies into a more updated setting. Digitizing old films allow you to put them into films that you can keep in photo albums or frames.

  • Keep Albums Together

Old photo albums shouldn’t be taken apart if you can help it. You may want to take the photos out and frame them, but if you take the photo albums apart, you’re going to lose the context of the pictures themselves. Take a muslin and wrap the album properly, and then store it in an acid-free box. It’s the best way to preserve the photo albums that you have and ensure that they are safe!

  • Always Backup Your Pics

We’ve discussed a guide to backing up your iPhone to an external drive, and it’s one of the most important things that you can do in the modern world of taking photos. By backing up your images on your phone, you can ensure that you always have access to them no matter what happens. 

  • Start Interviewing Everyone!

The older generations in your family aren’t going to be around forever. Get the younger relatives in the family to ask the older relatives questions that they want to know for the future. Ask about their parents, their adventures as children, and whether they had their hopes and dreams fulfilled. If you don’t get these questions on video for eternity, the stories will be lost, the memories forgotten. Don’t let this happen – get the interviews completed and then transcribed for later remembrance. 

  • Always Store Your Hard Copies Properly

Photos are still going to be best off the floor and away from damp and dark places. These memories are precious, and they deserve better treatment than being left all over the floor. The rooms in which you keep your photos are those that must be well ventilated, light and dry. Hard copies – once lost – are often irretrievable. Without the hard copies, you’re not going to be able to replace the memories you once had.

Tia, and TipsfromTia.com  is trying to keep you looking good and
feeling good, from the inside out. If you’ve got a problem or a tip email me! Be sure to Like and share on Facebook or Follow on Twitter or Instagram.

ORGANIC HEALTH & HOME

Don’t Be Tempted By Fad Diets: They’re Not Worth It

Don’t Be Tempted By Fad Diets: They’re Not Worth It

With the new year now in full swing, many of you will have embarked on a new diet in an attempt to change your figure, lose weight, and get healthy. 

But while dramatically changing your eating patterns might seem like a good idea right now, you could come to regret it in the future, especially if you’re on the wrong program. 

Traditional diets where you restrict what you eat to lose weight have a problem: they’re unsustainable. The vast majority of people cannot willingly restrict calories or whole food groups for long periods of time. Eventually, their biology wins, and they give up, often winding up binging on all the foods they’re not supposed to have. 

Fad diets are also potentially dangerous for another reason: they don’t provide all the nutrients you need. If you miss out on all carbs, for instance, you’re forgoing essential food groups like fruits, beans, and grains. Eventually, you end up feeling depleted and wishing that you were back on “normal food.â€

As the following infographic shows, however, you don’t have to go down the route of fad diets to lose weight and get healthy. All you need is to change your lifestyle and get started with a proven plan. 

While the benefits of many fad diets remain dubious, some work for most people most of the time. The most famous is, of course, the Mediterranean diet, but there are others, including the DASH diet (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension). If you’re interested in this subject, read on to find out more. 


Infographic by USC

Tia, and TipsfromTia.com  is trying to keep you looking good and
feeling good, from the inside out. If you’ve got a problem or a tip email me! Be sure to Like and share on Facebook or Follow on Twitter or Instagram.