"The problem," DeBlaise continued, "is if you never step away; if you never take a breather, or time off, your creativity becomes drained. Your enthusiasm is zapped. And your relationships with your family and friends can break down.

"It's not good for you. It's not good for the business. Ultimately it can really hurt your businesses bottom line if you don't take any time off, or take a break.

"So you really have to put some rules in place. You have to put practices in place that force you to step away from your job.

"One of the best things you can do as a business owner is to keep regular hours.

"For instance work 8:00 am to 6:00 pm. On the weekends, maybe have a time when you check in, but take Sunday off.

"A lot of people who run their own company do it out of their homes. They have a really tough time having a finite end of the day. They can work from dawn until the sun comes down, even when their spouse comes home, or the kids come home. Setting limits might work for them.

"For someone who lives alone, try putting a good practice in place, say you're going to head to the gym at 6:00 pm. A workout can be the transition.

"Complete Small Business Guidebook", Colleen DeBaise

www.smallbiz.att.com

www.businessonmain.com

www.business.com

What would you do if Channel 11 gave you $1,000 in cash?

But there's a catch!

Tune into the PIX News At Ten every Friday night to find out what it is.

And be sure to go to our blog every Thursday night to find out what part of the tri-state area Howard's going to be giving away cash next.

This November 20th, the "Feel Good Friday" location will be in the vicinity of Yorkville, Manhattan.

In the United States 24 million people have diabetes. One out of four don't even know it. As the rates of obesity go up, the number of people with prediabetes is increasing.

The figures for adolescents are the most alarming, coinciding with the higher rates of obesity. 16% of adolescents have prediabetes, almost double since the year 2000.

"Prediabetes represents abnormal blood sugar, but not yet to the degree of having formal diabetes," said Dr. Michael Bergman, of the NYU Langone Medical Center. Dr. Bergman offers hope for people who find themselves with this condition. " This offers the possibility of reversing the onset of disease," he said.

"An early diagnosis comes from getting blood tests done during a routine physical exam. Levels of 100 or higher are of particular concern," Dr. Bergman continued.

"If there is the presence of one or more additional risk factors that is of particular concern.

"Those factors include being overweight and a family history of diabetes for one. Also do you have high blood pressure or elevated cholesterol?

"The recommendation for screening is also somewhat arbitrary but in general, individuals who are under 45 are advised to have a screening for diabetes, or prediabetes.

And, according to Dr. Bergman, every individual over the age of 45 should be screened regardless, of whether or not they're overweight or have any other risk factor.

Dr. Bergman cites the body mass index as a good measure. " The body mass index, which is a relationship between height and weight, so if the body mass index is in the overweight category, or higher than 25, those individuals should be screened. If they are overweight and if they have one other risk factor which is high blood pressure or high cholesterol, it's a concern.

So, Dr. Bergman urges people to keep their weight down.

"The way to prevent the disease or even reverse it in individuals who have prediabetes is clearly to watch your weight," he said. "Weight reduction is probably thee most important thing anyone can do in terms of not only preventing the disease but also reversing the disease.

"What we've learned from recently completed clinical studies, is that somebody who loses about 2.2 pounds can reduce the risk of developing diabetes by about 15-16%.

"Weight reduction, even very modest weight reduction is important. If that's accompanied by exercise, which facilitates weight reduction, which facilitates the body's ability to respond to insulin, that also will help in preventing diabetes or reversing pre-diabetes. It's phenomenal. And it only needs to be about 150 minutes of exercise a week. Modest exercise; walking is good. Even if it's done over 10-15 minutes a day, as long as it averages about 150 minutes a week.

"Nutrition is important, certainly avoiding simple sugars, concentrating on legumes, fiber, berries, fruit, minimizing amnd of fat, especially saturated fat. One of the ways to lose weight and also to improve your lipid profile is by decreasing the amount of saturated fat, the recommendation is to have less than 10% total calories in fat.

"Children are not immune from diabetes. The incidence of diabetes is really much higher today than it was even a decade ago. In younger children, the prevalence, the number of individuals who have prediabetes is much higher than it was. Over the age of 13, it's about 13% in school age children who already have prediabetes. I think to be successful in avoiding diabetes later on in life is by focusing really on the school age children.

"Children need to exercise more. The school diet needs improvement. A lot of the nutritional information has to be done at home. We really need to focus on younger children before they become adults and it becomes a much more serious problem.

So again, Dr. Bergman urges everyone to know what their fasting blood sugar is. "If your fasting blood sugar tends to be borderline, if it's 100 or over, it's clearly abnormal but even individuals that have in the mid or upper 90 range, it's higher than it should be.

"As we get older there's a tendency to become more resistant to the insulin we make and the blood sugars run a little higher.

"The ranges vary a little bit but in general between 65 or 70 is more of the normal range.

"The lower the blood sugar the better. Once you start exceeding levels that are around 90, or into the 90 range, although that's still is a normal blood sugar, that still is in the higher end of the spectrum, **

"It's the weight that drives it. Family history is important but it's really the weight that drives it. And again, it's largely reversible.

"Unfortunately, we spend a tremendous amount of time, money and energy treating the disease and not enough on prevention.

"Prevention is essential in terms of minimizing risk. It's not only just the prevention of diabetes, it's even prevention of cardiovascular disease which is a hallmark of diabetes.

Know the symptoms of diabetes.

Type 2 diabetes develops slowly. The first signs are usually excessive thirst and frequent urination. Some people also experience a flu-like illness, weight gain or loss, blurred vision, fatigue, frequent infections or slow-healing sores, nerve damage and/or swollen gums. In many individuals, however, diabetes may be present without any signs or symptoms.

For more information:

www.diabetes.org

www.diabetes.com

www.GoInsulin.com

He told his assistant he was worth millions, so how come she paid for everything?

It all began when she put her resume on Craigs List and got a call from Robert Schnepf.

She says "He was basically telling me he was a pro racer for Suzuki, he needs an assistant full time, cuz he's traveling, he's going to Asia in November and he needs someone to do paperwork, do his run-arounds, basically be like a little slave for him. That was his words."

It was the first week in October and Evelyn decided to give it a try, but when she tried to do some research on him, nothing came up.

She says Robert had told her that he would not come up on Google, because he had reportedly paid them $165,000 to be "taken off of Google." This he added was requested by his "sponsor" Suzuki, because he had been involved in a car accident and had over 20 tickets in his name and they wanted to downplay the publicity.

Evelyn accepted this bizarre explanation, plus he also included that a Suzuki bike was coming out soon to be named after him, he had tons of deals going on and he needed Evelyn's cooperation.

Any trepidation she may have had then was further smoothed over when he began promising her a car, a $100,000 salary and plans to erase all of her debts.

But first he told her to collect about $400 of her own money. Robert told Evelyn that he wanted to see his employees "give out first" , before he paid them and then he would double whatever they gave out.

So Evelyn was instructed to meet Robert every morning with his coffee and cigarettes, which she paid for. Whenever they took a cab somewhere, she paid for it. When they went to lunch meetings, she would foot the bill.

Evelyn's first assignment was to set Robert up with real estate companies to look for commercial real estate, because he was supposedly looking for office space. Her phone calls and contacts set him up with various midtown Manhattan real estate agencies, all eager to do business with this "millionaire sports star/entrepreneur."

Evelyn was also instructed to schedule meetings with bank officials to help Robert merge his bank accounts, but when it came time to complete any of these bank or real estate transactions, nothing ever happened.

Ironically, by the second and third week, when Evelyn's money was running out, these same real estate agencies were now picking up the tab on their lunch meetings.

Then in the third week, Evelyn really began to get second thoughts, when Robert asked her to create a false Chase Bank account showing 10 million dollars in his account.

She says "He had me forge and print out an account that I typed his name, a random account number and 10-million dollars. He had me print it out, paste it to the sheet, as if it was his."

When she told him that this was fraud, she says this is what he told her:

"You have nothing to worry about. It's just until I can get my guys in at Citibank...because I can' t do this right now."

But Evelyn had had enough. When she asked to be paid the money he had promised her, he told her to wait on a corner in Bayridge and one of his Financial Advisors would show up and pay her. Of course this never happened and now Evelyn is out nearly $ 500. When her calls to Robert went unanswered and unreturned, she called Help Me Howard.

Howard decided to start at the Queens address that Robert had told Evelyn to include on the fraudulent Chase bank account.

That's where Howard and Evelyn met up with Robert's parents. The address is their home. They were only too happy to tell Howard about their son and how he has scammed them out of money and the long trail of girls who've shown up on their doorstop, who have also lost money to Robert Schnepf.

Unfortunately Howard was not able to track down Robert Schnepf this time, but this is not the last time you'll hear about Robert Schnepf.

"The most important thing," said Leonard Gordon, "is for consumers to have a plan before they do their shopping. They need to make a list and think ahead about where they can get the best deal.

"The reason we're concerned about consumers staying on track and following their plan is we've seen frequently the consequences of consumers who don't stay on track. We see a lot of debt elimination scams, we see a lot of phony credit card scams, preying on people who got into too much debt. One of the reasons people get into too much debt is a little too much holiday shopping and not enough planning before they do it."

The following is an alert issued by the FTC that warns shoppers.

FTC Alert:

Who doesn't want to get the best deal for their dollar - especially during these tough economic times? There's no shortage of sale ads from merchants who want your business: they're using preferred customer specials, early bird sales, midnight madness events, coupon savings days, and pre- AND post-holiday sales. Just how do you decide if their deals are real?

The Federal Trade Commission, the nation's consumer protection agency, has some tips to help you get the most for your money.

* Shop around. A "sale" price isn't always the "best" price. Some merchants may offer a sale price on an item for a limited time; others may discount the price on the same item everyday. Having an item's manufacturer, model number, and other identifying information can help you get the best price for the item you want.

* Read sale ads carefully. Some may say "quantities limited," "no rain checks," or "not available at all stores." Before you step out the door, call ahead to make sure the merchant has the item in stock. If you're shopping for a popular or hard-to-find item, ask the merchant if he'd be willing to hold the item until you can get to the store.

* Take time and travel costs into consideration. If an item is on sale, but it's way across town, how much are you really saving once you factor in your time, your transportation, and parking?

* Look for price-matching policies. Some merchants will match, or even beat, a competitor's prices - at least for a limited time. Read the merchant's pricing policy. It may not apply to all items.

* Go online. Check out websites that compare prices for items offered online. Some sites also may compare prices offered at stores in your area. If you decide to buy online, keep shipping costs and delivery time in mind.

* Calculate bargain offers that are based on purchases of additional merchandise. For example, "buy one, get one free," "free gift with purchase," or "free shipping with minimum purchase" may sound enticing. If you don't really want or need the item, it's not a deal.

* Ask about sale adjustments. If you buy an item at regular price and it goes on sale the next week, can you get a credit or refund for the discounted amount? What documentation will you need?

* Ask about refund and return policies for sale items. Merchants often have different refund and return policies for sale items, especially clearance merchandise.

For More Information

To get more money saving tips, visit ftc.gov/MoneyMatters.

The FTC works for the consumer to prevent fraudulent, deceptive, and unfair business practices in the marketplace and to provide information to help consumers spot, stop, and avoid them. To file a complaint or to get free information on consumer issues, visit ftc.gov or call toll-free, 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357); TTY: 1-866-653-4261. The FTC enters consumer complaints into the Consumer Sentinel Network, a secure online database and investigative tool used by hundreds of civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad.

According to Angie, "It's really important to prepare ahead of time if you're going to be cooking for Thanksgiving. The last thing you want is the turkey not getting properly cooked or not coming out cooked on time.

" One thing you can do ahead of time is to check your oven. Don't wait until the day or two before Thanksgiving to worry about whether it's operating properly.

" There is a great way to check whether the temperature is set accurately, so if you think your temperature is at 350 degrees it could be only heating to 325 degrees. That's going to add to the time it takes to cook your turkey.

" So an easy way to test that is to bake a cake. Bake a cake in your oven. Follow the directions perfectly so you can see how long it's going to take for that cake to come out right. Then you can adjust your time accordingly or get the oven fixed.

" It's always a good suggestion to keep your oven clean. A lot of us tend to forget about that. Really the only recourse we think about is the smell that might create. But another thing to think about is it's not going to work as well. The heating element won't work as well if it's dirty so it's important to clean it.

" It's so close to Thanksgiving that I would advise you not run the self-cleaning option on your oven. What happens a lot of times is people run it and running it at that high a heat, causes the oven to fail. You don't want to be calling a service repairman out and if you're doing it the night before, that's a bad idea.

"When you're cooking for Thanksgiving you need to have a plan in place, you need to know what you're going to do and you need to know exactly the timing of items going into the oven.

"Also think about alternative ways to cook items, for example if you can cook some things in your microwave that certainly is going to free up space in the oven. Some people find they run out of space in their oven to cook all the dishes they might want to make.

"On Thanksgiving Day make sure you keep people from peeking inside that oven to see how things are cooking. What happens is every time that oven door opens you're letting heat out and the oven's not keeping it's set temperature."

Just following a few simple suggestions could make a big difference in your Thanksgiving Day festivities.

For more information: www.angieslist.com or read Angie's blog at www.angiehicksblog.com.

What would you do if Channel 11 gave you $1,000 in cash?

But there's a catch!

Tune into the PIX News At Ten every Friday night to find out what it is.

And be sure to go to our blog every Thursday night to find out what part of the tri-state area Howard's going to be giving away cash next.

This November 13th, the "Feel Good Friday" location will be in downtown Brooklyn.

The Federal Trade Commission has put out an advisory regarding charity organizations and veterans.

Many legitimate charities are soliciting donations to support the nation's military veterans as well as the families of active-duty personnel. And despite tough economic times, people reportedly are responding generously to these requests. But not all "charities" are legitimate: Some are sham operators whose only purpose is to make money for themselves. Others use paid fundraisers whose fees eat up most of a donation, so very little of it is shared with those in need.

* Recognize that the words "veterans" or "military families" in an organization's name don't necessarily mean that veterans or the families of active-duty personnel will benefit from the money you are donating. The U.S. Department of Defense doesn't endorse any charity, but recommends this source of information about military relief societies: www.militaryhomefront.dod.mil.

* Donate to charities with a track record and a history. Scam artists follow the headlines and charities that spring up literally overnight in connection with military conflicts and related news stories may disappear just as quickly - with your donation funding their next move. In many cases, those "instant charities" don't have the infrastructure to get donated money or products to the right place.

* Trust your gut - and check your records if you have any doubt about whether you've made a pledge or a contribution. Callers may try to trick you by thanking you for a pledge you didn't make. If you don't remember making the donation or don't have a record of your pledge, resist the pressure to give.

* Check out an organization before donating any money. Some phony charities use names, seals, and logos that look or sound like those of respected, legitimate organizations - or they may claim veteran status themselves as a way to gain your trust. You may see a small difference in the name of the charity from the one you mean to deal with; in that case, call the organization you know to be legitimate and check it out.

* Don't be shy about asking who wants your money. Some charities hire professional fundraisers for large-scale mailings, telephone drives, and other solicitations, rather than use their own staff or volunteers. They use a portion of the donations to pay the fundraiser's fees. If you're solicited for a donation, ask if the caller is a paid fundraiser, who they work for, and the percentage of your donation that will go to the charity and to the fundraiser. If you don't get a clear answer - or if you don't like the answer you get - consider donating to a different organization.

* Call the office that regulates charitable organizations and charitable solicitations to see whether the charity or fundraising organization has to be registered in your state. If so, check to make sure that the company you're talking to is registered. For a list of state offices, visit the National Association of State Charity Officials at www.nasconet.org/agencies. The organization also can verify how much of each donation goes to the charity, and how much goes to fundraising and management expenses. You also can check out charities with the Better Business Bureau's (BBB) Wise Giving Alliance (www.bbb.org/charity) and GuideStar (www.guidestar.org).

* Do not send or give cash donations. Cash can be lost or stolen. For security and tax record purposes, it's best to pay by check - made payable to the charity, not the solicitor. If you're thinking about giving online, look for indicators that the site is secure, like a lock icon on the browser's status bar or a URL for a website that begins "https:" (the "s" stands for "secure"). Unfortunately, no indicator is foolproof; some fraudulent sites have forged security icons. If you're not confident you're dealing with a legitimate site, consider donating elsewhere.

* Ask for a receipt that shows the amount of your contribution, and that it is tax deductible.

* Be cautious of promises of guaranteed sweepstakes winnings in exchange for a contribution. According to U.S. law, you never have to give a donation to be eligible to win a sweepstakes.

If you think an organization may be making misleading solicitations or may not be operating for charitable purposes, contact your state Attorney General (www.naag.org) or your local consumer protection agency (www.consumeraction.gov). You can get the phone numbers for these organizations in your phone book, through directory assistance, or through Web directories.

Or you may file a complaint with the FTC.

The FTC works for the consumer to prevent fraudulent, deceptive, and unfair business practices in the marketplace and to provide information to help consumers spot, stop, and avoid them. To file a complaint or to get free information on consumer issues, visit ftc.gov or call toll-free, 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357); TTY: 1-866-653-4261. The FTC enters consumer complaints into the Consumer Sentinel Network, a secure online database and investigative tool used by hundreds of civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad.

For more information about making your donations count, visit www.ftc.gov/charityfraud.

www.militaryhomefront.dod.mil

Fashion Phony Scams Unsuspecting Victims

Last month we told you about how self-styled mover and shaker Kevin "T- Weed" Watson persuaded aspiring model "Anna" to pose nude for him, promising she would get a contract with designer Ed Hardy.

Photographer Jason Howard was hired to shoot that photo shoot.

And event planner Tiffany Baker gave Watson a lot of money to rent a space for a fashion show.

None of them got what was agreed upon and when they tried to contact Watson for answers, he conveniently disappeared.

Until now.

Today Howard got an anonymous tip with specific information on where Kevin Watson was now living that finally panned out.

Following up on the lead, Howard headed to The Powerhouse Condos in Long Island City, about a block from where Watson used to live. The tipster had told Howard that Watson now has an apartment in that building on the 6th floor, plus another apartment in the building that he allegedly uses as an escape route.

Once there Howard asked the doorman to be connected to Watson's apartment. At first the doorman called Watson's apartment upstairs, announcing Howard was on the lobby. But after speaking with Watson, the doorman suddenly changed his tune, now telling Howard that Watson no longer lived there.

Howard knew T-Weed was ducking him, but it's only a matter of time before things catch up to Mr. Watson, so he left his card and promised to return.

Howard will stay on top of this story as it develops.

It's very hard to make sure no personal information is left around on your computer.
One thing you might want to do before and after shopping is use the software of IdentityFinder.com. Identify Finder helps people search everywhere on a computer to see if any personal information exists in an unprotected manner. It searches for social security numbers and credit card numbers. Software like Identity Finder makes sure there is no unprotected instances of personal information left anywhere.

Identity Finder has a free edition, available on the website, that allows people to search their entire computer, email messages and attachments for any personal information. This way if they ever got a virus or spyware, the information isn't there to be stolen.

Secure information can be stored inside of files. It could be on an application they might have filled out or email messages where they might have received an email with their receipt. So Identity Finder looks for it and if it finds it then helps people shred it, secure it or scrub that information out of the documents.

" When you sign up to a new website to purchase something , you might have to register", Feinman continues, "when you register make sure you're using a very secure password, use as strong a password as possible with as many letters and different characters as possible and make sure it's not a word in the dictionary.

"People are going to be searching for as many deals as possible so they might go to a website that has the cheapest price but it's not really a store they're familiar with. Be very careful that you're always purchasing something with SSL which is the padlock in your web browser that tells you you're going to a secure website. Also make sure it's the website you intended to go to and make sure that if you haven't heard of them before, make sure a friend has heard of them.

" Another new idea is to use a one-time credit card which is something that expires after you use it. If it's it's a website that's not real, thieves would only get the credit card you use one time and one time only.

What is a one-time credit card? According to Feinman it's a credit card you can get for free from your bank. Go to their website and use your normal credit card to sign in then get a one-time use credit card that expires after the one-time use. This at least, limits your exposure. If you use it on a website that isn't real they actually can't steal much besides that one-time use credit card.

Other ways to protect yourself.

Don't shop on public computers. if you're in a hotel on vacation or you're in an airport, don't use that terminal to shop online, don't enter your social security, credit cards, or passwords on computers. They could have key loggers that steal you're information.

Always update your anti-spyware definitions. Always make sure your software is up to date.
Check your credit report from time to time. Make sure no new credit cards have been opened under your name. Make sure no large bills have been run up.

www.identityfinder.com
www.protectmyid.com
www.consumercompare.org
www.identitytheft.com

Hopefully you've planned in advance for this expense.

One tool will help you only spend what you have. Try using eBillme.

EBillme is a way for consumers and small businesses to pay cash for their shopping online.
You're actually paying cash at the checkout.

Marwan Forzley, CEO of eBillme/ShopDebtFree gave us a briefing.

" You go to any of our customers that accept eBillme," said Forzley, "there's 850 sites like Sears, kmart, buy.com, etc.

" When you go to the checkout you'll see us next to credit cards. You select "eBillme". You will now get an electronic bill. You pay it from money that you have using online banking, the same way that you pay a credit card bill.

" It's the same as paying any other bill that you have. You're paying from money that you have using online banking. If you don't have online banking you can go to a nearby 7-11, or Walmart, or a CVS and pay cash in person. You walk in and say I need to pay my eBillme bill and they'll take your cash right then and there and notify the merchant it's been paid.

" Either way you're paying from money that you have so you're getting protected from getting into debt.

" We're helping people getting out of debt, we're helping them to shop online. Another advantage is there is absolutely no exchange of any financial information with the merchants so you're not giving out credit card numbers or your bank account information, your social security number; none of that. You pay by only giving your name and e-mail address. And, you pay from funds that you have.

" To be clear on the process: you only give your name and email then you log into your bank on your own and you pay eBillme exactly the same way you pay any other bill. It's the same way you pay your phone bill, your electric bill, your mortgage bill. It's the same concept, you log in, you pay eBillme. Money comes from your bank account to the merchant.

Security-wise the key is your not putting your bank account information online at the check out when your buying stuff on the internet.

You're getting your bill, you log into your bank then you're paying this bill.

" Again if you don't have online banking, you can still pay cash in person at locations that support eBillme. There are 75,000 locations that do. You present the bill, say "here's the cash for the purchase..the merchant is informed immediately and the goods are shipped to you.

" It's cash, just like going to the store when you give the person at the store cash and they give you the product. You pay cash to the merchant and the merchant ships the goods to you.

" That's the beauty of it you don't have to have a credit card if you have a credit card that's limited you can still shop from money you have.

" It's a way to get out of trouble if you have high debt or if you don't want to be exposed to debt. This is a way to control your finances, to shop online and pay from money that you have.

" If you don't have it you don't spend it.

ShopDebtFree is a site where you can look for all the merchants that have eBillme.

" Think of it as a place where you can start shopping," said Marwan.

" You'll go to ShopDebtFree.com. You'll see all our merchants that accept eBillme.

" The nice thing about starting with ShopDebtFree.com is they all carry some type of discount.

Marwan mentioned another advantage to using these two sites.

" Because you're getting a bill and there's nothing sensitive about the bill, for kids shopping online your parents can pay for it from online banking.

" Think of it as parental consent. if you're a mom you're busy. You don't have to sit next to your kid and worry about what they're doing with your credit card.

" This way your kids can shop online and get what they want and at the end of the day if you like it you can pay for it, if you don't like it, your child will have to try again.

" This is a way to put discipline into the purchase process.

" Your kids can buy online but you're the one in control, you're authorizing the transaction.

" It's parental consent, it's discipline, it's helping your kids to buy online, giving them freedom to buy what they want, at the end of the day you control the show. If you like
what they buy you pay for it, otherwise you have a talk with them.

You're getting a number of things accomplished with this. You're not giving out your identity on the internet which helps you protect ag. identity theft. You're not getting into debt which helps you stay out of debt. And it also it helps you with the product you're trying to buy.

" If you buy a laptop, or jeans, and you find it somewhere else for cheaper you're going to be covered. You can return the product and get your money back. it's a 90-day buyer protection program.

" These are typically services you get with a credit card Here you're getting them on top of a cash product.

" As long as you use eBillme you're going to be protected against any price changes, you're going to be protected if there are any issues with returns.

"These are services you typically get if you have platinum or gold card but you'll pay for it, usually with an annual fee. With eBillme you get it free."

www.eBillme.com

How to Get Your Money Back From The Party That Wasn't

This is not the way "Halloween on the Green" was supposed to have turned out! Thousands of costumed revelers showed up and not many of them got in before cops shut it down. The bash was oversold! The event was the brainchild of a company called Alex and Leo Entertainment.

Daniel, Lauren and Jenelle were just some of the partygoers who shelled out big bucks for this night.

Daniel - "There was basically the sense that nobody knows whats going on, so we're just standing in a crowd of thousands of people waiting to find out if we're gonna get in at all tonite..."

Lauren - " We were waiting there in line from 9;30 PM until 12;30 AM, I got pushed,, I was all the way in the front, there was one security guard , he just stood there, I asked him what was going on, he cursed me out."

Jenelle - "By the time we reached the party, all you saw was New York police everywhere, there was no security guards, there was no one from Tavern, there were no promotors, nothing."

This is not what Tavern on the Green had in mind for Halloween either. This has not been the best year for them. Ownership has lost it's lease, and the Central Park landmark is due to close down at the end of the year.

By Sunday Help Me Howard was already receiving complaints via e-mail and the hotline from irate partygoers, who payed, but never got a chance to play!

Tavern on the Green told Howard that Alex & Leo Entertainment was responsible for selling the tickets. They admitted they were partly responsible for the security that night, but said no one was prepared for the huge number of people that turned out due to allegations of counterfeit tickets.

Alex and Leo Entertainment promoted the event, selling tickets online and also through other party promotors. But after the Halloween fallout, they were nowhere to be found. Cellphones and voicemails remained full and no one could contact them.

Howard paid a visit to their offices in Queens with no luck and attempts to reach them via email went unanswered.

During this time Howard began getting calls and emails from other promotors, who had also sold tickets to the event, saying they were more then happy to refund money to their customers, so a payback plan began hatching.

At this time Alex and Leo Entertainment released a joint statement with Tavern on the Green:

"The Halloween event was ruined when hundreds of partygoers - unknowingly holding counterfeit tickets - arrived two hours early for the event, creating long lines for admission and depriving many revelers holding legitimate tickets entry to Tavern on the Green. Fortunately, there were no reported injuries at the event, but the New York Police Department shut down the party at about 1:30 AM - before the situation became unsafe."

"We have promoted thousands of parties in New York since 1994 and this is the first time something like this has happened. Advances in photocopying and internet commerce, counterfeit tickets have become a real problem in the industry. We will be modifying our ticket sale policies to avoid such a situation in the future. We are truly sorry for the inconvenience this situation has caused our customers."

Alex & Leo Entertainment will be responsible for organizing the refunds requested by valid ticket holders through the following procedures:

If patrons paid for tickets with a credit card or via Paypal, may request a refund directly from the online ticket seller or their credit card company.

Those who bought valid tickets using cash should email their refund requests to Halloweenrefund@gmail.com. Each request MUST include a copy of the ticket(s) purchased, together with the place and date of purchase, as well as the ticket holder's mailing address.

Alex & Leo Entertainment will process each request within four weeks of receipt.

"Indoor allergens such as pet dander and dust mites often bother people more in the winter months when they are enclosed in their apartment or
house: Therefore, take extra precautions if you are allergic
by wiping down your cat or dog with a product such as Allerpet or a damp towel weekly.

It you are allergic to your pet, it would be best if the pet were out of the bedroom, even when you are not at home, or at least was never on the bed.

Special dust proof covers can be purchased for your pillow, mattress, and even the down comforter. Or, consider replacing that comfy down comforter with a washable synthetic one; dust mites thrive in down or any bedding that is not washed often. Wash sheets at least once a week with hot water.

Consider placing filters over the vent of your heating ducts.

Indoor humidity should be 35-50%. Higher humidity will favor dust mite and mold growth. Lower humidity can be overdrying to the mucous membranes of your nose and throat. Consider a warm mist humidifier, if the dryness is bothering you, but keep it very clean to avoid mold and bacteria growth.

Cold outdoor air may trigger asthma symptoms, such as shortness of breath or cough. Keep a warm scarf over your mouth when walking or running out in the cold.

Fall leaves harbor mold. If you are raking leaves wear a mask. If you are playing sports out in the leaves, take a shower and change clothes as soon as you come indoors.

Holiday decorations can be a source of dust and mold. Wear a mask when you are unpacking them if you are sensitive. Use a dust resistant clothe to clean them. If the pine or balsam holiday tree bothers you, opt for artificial.

For holiday travel, stay well hydrated and if you are on an airplane, use a saline nose spray regularly throughout the flight.

www.livingallergicasthma.com
www.info-on-allergies.com
www.allergyguardirect.com

She got herself up to speed on how to go about protecting her invention when she first came up with the idea.

After many false starts she finally got a manufacturer on board.

The game has been a huge success.

She just wrote a book about how it all played out.

"The game has sold something in the region of 50 million copies," said Leslie Scott. " I'm absolutely delighted."

How do you protect yourself when you've got a great idea. You don't want anyone to steal it.

If you've developed something you think is very marketable there's a lot to keep in mind. You want to make money from the invention. Usually that means licensing the rights to it to another business, say a manufacturer or distributor. When you pitch these folks, you run the risk of giving them so much information your idea could get stolen.

So how do you shop your invention around without risking your rights?

First things first.

The first step in the patent process is Invention Protection.

Whenever you come up with a new idea or invention, you want to get a "date" attached to it immediately. So write out the general concept of your invention. Take the paper to a Notary Public. They will have you sign and date it, then they will sign it.

Once it's notarized keep the original document in a safe place will your notes and any drawings you may have. It's a good idea to start a diary on your venture.

Start by filing a PROVISIONAL PATENT APPLICATION (if your invention is patentable). This costs only about $10. And gives your invention "patent-pending" status. This goes a long way in preventing rip-offs.

This gives you a one-year period to develop the invention, determine its marketability and seek licensing agreements.

Next most likely a patent searcher will do a search to figure out if anyone else has already claimed the same idea.

If your invention is not patentable you can use a nondisclosure agreement.

Before you sit down with a prospective licensee, you have them sign a non-disclosure agreement or a confidentiality agreement before you tell them anything. If they then turn around and use your secrets without your authorization, you can sue for damages.

Nondisclosure agreements contain important elements including a definition of what is and what isn't confidential information, obligations of the receiving party and time periods in place for nondisclosure.

For " Jenga"'s creator, Leslie Scott, " It remains thrilling. I put the game on the market 27 years ago and I still get the most amazing kick going into a toy store and seeing someone buy the game."

For more information, log onto:

www.InventHelp.com

www.Secure.Davison.com

www.thelivingweb.net/Invention

www.entrepreneur.com

www.inventions.org

www.forbes.com

www.inventprotect.com

www.frompatenttoprofit.com/getting