10 Tips on Discouraging Home Break-ins

by Faith Ranoli

In the United States each year over 6 million homes are robbed while residents are on vacation. The majority of those breaking into homes are opportunists, they see something and they take it. Usually working on impulse and taking low risk items.

According to the Burglary prevention council, 28% of summer break ins are performed by someone who watches the home for daily routines and wait for the occupant to leave on vacation before breaking into the home.

The home items most often taken are, tools, cameras, credit cards, sports equipment, jewelry, TVs, computers and laptops, DVD players and stereo equipment.Here are a few simple things you can do to reduce your risk of break ins:

1. Create a neighborhood watch, your neighbors are your extra set of eyes when you are away from home, know your neighbors and know each other's schedules. Let a neighbor know when you are leaving and when you will return, alert the police too, they will do additional drive bys at different times of day.
2. Lock your doors, especially the door from the house to the garage and the side yard to the garage. Lock fence gates. Lock all your windows too.
3. While away disable your overhead garage door opener and lock the overhead door to the track.
4. Use timers to turn on lights and TVs throughout your home, set them for the times you would normally be using the lights or TVs.
5. Use outside lights, a well lit home will discourage would be robbers, they will go to a dark home first.
6. Stop the mail, milk delivery and newspaper.
7. Close shades, what a thief can't see they can't take.
8. Install an alarm system or at least put an alarm company's sign in your yard.
9. Monitor your answering machine message and your trash. Don't indicate you are away from home and don't put out the trash with the box from the new flat screen TV.
10. Have a home safe and lock up important papers with your account numbers, social security numbers, check books and extra checks, any jewelry or other small valuables.


Tune in to listen to Faith Ranoli on the Heart And Home Show, Thursday 1p.m. PT on www.healthylife.net

JEFF BRIDGES WAS "THE GORGEOUS MAN"

In February of 2008, I flew from Los Angeles to New Orleans and as I was walking through the airport along with others from the same plane, I turned around and caught a glimpse of a good looking man. Well, “gorgeous” is what I actually thought. He looked kind of familiar but I was focused on getting outside to meet my ride.

I exited the airport and was pretty much alone until two men exited and stood about ten feet away from me. I turned to look, the same as one turns to look at the driver of the next car while waiting for a red light to change to green, and the ‘gorgeous’ man was one of the two. Within another couple of seconds, I realized who it was.

So I fumbled for a piece of paper and a pen and walked over to the ‘gorgeous’ man and asked him for his autograph. I don’t think he was really in the mood to meet and greet fans, but he proved himself as gracious as he was good looking, took my paper and pen and asked to whom he should make out the autograph. And that’s when I unintentionally pulled a “classic star-struck Daena Smoller”… my mouth went all dry from excited nerves and I actually had to think before I could remember and offer my name!

This past Sunday night, I was thrilled to see that the gorgeous man, JEFF BRIDGES, won the BEST ACTOR OSCAR for CRAZY HEART!

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