David's Anthem Journal

Consumers Corner: For Short People, A Solution To A Vexing Problem

 

 

When Roz and I began attending events at the magnificent new Smith Center, Roz immediately discovered a serious problem that created great discomfort for her, and perhaps you or your loved ones have run into the same problem.

Regardless of where we sit in splendid Reynolds Hall, Smith Center’s main auditorium, Rosalyn’s feet cannot reach the floor. As a result, her experience becomes increasingly uncomfortable due to the added pressure on her legs and thighs.

Roz is five-foot-two, and I imagine anyone whose height is in this range is likely to experience similar issues.

Seeking a solution, I went online to search for a product I was sure exists: a folding, portable footrest.

In short order, I discovered the Econo-High Footrest, a high-quality device made of sturdy UBS plastic, weighing a bit less than 1.5 pounds, and capable of fitting into many styles of women’s handbags or carried in its velvet drawstring carrying case.

 

This footrest, which locks into place when opened, raises the user’s feet five inches off the ground.

The cost from the vendor is $29.95 with free shipping, and it comes in a variety of colors.

The vendor’s impressive marketing materials stress the product’s value for alleviating deep vein thrombosis, which is the formation of blood clots in the veins, usually in the calf or thigh muscles.

 

 

The footrest has many more uses than in a theater. It is valuable, for instance, on long plane trips, in the home, and in other scenarios where some elevation of the feet is needed.

We put the footrest to the test for the first time this week when we attended a delightful performance of “Mary Poppins” at Smith Center. It was the perfect solution, and Roz reported that it left her with a complete feeling of comfort, not present when we attended previous shows.

I should probably ask the seller for a commission, because four audience members inquired about the footrest, due to having the same issues as Roz does. They all expressed enthusiasm for the product, and I gladly gave them the company’s web address so they could look into it.

 

 

Here is a promotional video that shows the footrest in detail and discusses its benefits and uses:

 

 

 

And finally, here is the link to the company's website.

Note: If anyone with an interest in the folding footrest would like to examine it in person, contact me and I will be happy to arrange a hands-on (feet on?) demonstration for you.

Cramming: A Scam To Watch Out For

 

 

A Sun City Anthem blog reader sent me the following portion of his current CenturyLink phone bill, from which I have deleted his identifying information:

 

 

The printing is probably too small for you to make out, so I’ll describe it to you.

The bill shows a charge of $12.95 from a third-party biller called Enhanced Billing Services, which submitted the charge to CenturyLink on behalf of a company called Rocket Communications.

The bill is allegedly a monthly fee for, as the document states, “VMAIL AND FAXING.”

My reader, who swears that he never heard of Rocket Communications or the billing agent, and never contracted for such services, is the victim of one of the fastest-growing fraudulent schemes in the nation.

It is called CRAMMING, defined by the Federal Communications Commission as “the illegal placement of an unauthorized fee onto a consumer’s monthly phone bill. The charges are for services like long-distance services, voicemail, or even diet plans or yoga classes that the consumer neither requested nor used.”

 

 

In a June, 2011 report, the FCC estimated that 15 to 20 million American households a year potentially have these mystery fees on their monthly landline phone bills.

When my reader told me he had been assessed these unauthorized charges for three months before noticing them, I suggested that he start seeking redress by contacting CenturyLink.

Lo and behold, CenturyLink replied almost immediately with the news that they would credit all the charges, totaling $38.85, within his next two billing cycles and would block future charges from this biller.

I researched Rocket Communications and found that it is part of a convoluted web of companies that have had thousands of complaints filed against them.

There is legislation pending in Congress that would require phone companies to notify their customers in advance, and obtain their authorization, before placing such charges on a customer’s bill. But the legislation seems to have been stalled.

In addition, attorneys general in several states, including Nevada, have the issue prominently in their sights.

For the moment, however, it is up to us, as consumers, to take necessary steps to protect ourselves.

Since CenturyLink is my company, too, I called them and asked if they have a procedure that would allow us to prevent ANY third-party biller from adding charges to our phone bill without our express approval.

To my surprise, the answer was YES. For the reasonable cost of $1.00 per month, CenturyLink has now added this service to our monthly bill.

If you have CenturyLink, you should consider spending a buck a month to protect yourself. If you have a different telephone provider and don’t know what their policy is, call them and find out.

What else can you do?

• Examine your monthly phone bill in minute detail for mysterious or unexplained charges, and seek answers if you don’t know what they are.
   
• Be VERY careful when receiving unsolicited phone calls for ANYTHING that seems confusing or suspicious. The scammers are so sophisticated that they have techniques for pulling you into their scheme, even if you gave out no personal information but simply answered the phone and briefly talked with someone, because they can easily capture your phone number.
   
• If you are debited automatically each month to pay your phone bill, consider discontinuing that feature for at least this one type of service provider, regardless of how aggressively your phone company tries to sell you on the so-called benefits. It is a lot easier to dispute a charge before you pay it than after it has been debited by your phone company.

Here is a link to an FCC document that contains information on the subject and tells you how to file a complaint, free of charge, with the FCC.

Consumers Corner: Get Money For Your Old Tech Gear

 

 

Readers: This is the inaugural article in our new blog category called “Consumers Corner.” As the logo above suggests, the idea of this category is to help you stretch your dollars by sharing ideas and suggestions that can put money in your pockets, save money, or somehow make your life easier and more enjoyable. If you have suggestions for Consumers Corner articles, please e-mail me privately: davidinlv@cox.net.

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As technology advances flood into the market, and we rush to buy the latest “gotta have it” gadget, many of us are left with older or obsolete equipment that we no longer have use for.

When we upgrade to the newest and greatest, we may give away our old “stuff,” sell it at the SCA parking-lot sale, put it up for auction on e-Bay, or possibly just throw it in the trash.

Or it may be just stashed on a shelf or piling up in a drawer.

If you’re like us, to use just one example, you may upgrade your mobile phone every couple of years. And when this happens, you must decide what to do with your old phone.

There are worthy organizations that will take donations of cell phones, which they put to good use, and we have disposed of phones this way in the past.

One such non-profit program is Cell Phones for Soldiers, started and operated by the Bergquist family of Norwell, MA. Since 2004, according to their website, Cell Phones for Soldiers has recycled more than 8 million donated mobile phones, raising more than $7 million and providing more than 114 million minutes of free talk time for members of the military services.

Here is an alternative if you have replaced your older mobile phone with a newer model and would like to receive some cash for the old one.

Around the time we each purchased the new iPhone 4s, we noticed television ads for a company called Gazelle. 

 

 

Gazelle’s business model is simple: This company will purchase your older mobile phones (and other electronics) and will pay you money for them.

 

   

After investigating the company and verifying its legitimacy, we sent Gazelle our no-longer-needed iPhone 16 GB 3g and 32 GB 3Gs. Shipping was free via FedEx, using a mailing label the company e-mailed to us and which we printed on our home printer.

Gazelle buys more than just iPhones. According to their website, they will purchase other brands of mobile phones, along with more than 20 other categories of electronics that include calculators, digital cameras, camcorders, laptops, MP3 players, projectors, and much more.

Before sending in your old products, you can use the Gazelle site to get an estimate of what the products are worth to them.

In our case, we were offered a total of $165 for our two iPhones, with the option of receiving payment in one of these forms: check, PayPal, Walmart prepaid VISA, or Amazon.com gift card.

By choosing the Amazon.com gift card, we received a 5% bonus, bringing the total payment amount to $173.25. The entire transaction, from the time we shipped our package until receiving the code for the gift card, took only one week.

In addition, the customer is allowed to designate that the payment go to one of about 100 approved charities.

Gazelle, which has the highest Better Business Bureau rating, says they have paid out more than $30 million to customers for their equipment so far.

If we had wanted to make the effort, utilizing eBay, Craig’s list or some other outlet, we undoubtedly could have received a bit more money for our mobile phones in excellent condition, but I don’t think Gazelle can be beat for the sheer convenience of the process.

There is much more to learn about Gazelle if you are interested in this method of disposing of your old or unused electronic equipment. Click on this link to the Gazelle website.