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Show New Utah American Fork CitizenLone Peak New Utah - Thursday, March 27, 2003 - Page 2 Opinion I ; There's an ocean for each of us Scouting for is a winning Utah County's Scouting for Food Drive is set for this Saturday Satur-day throughout the area, and the service rendered through this annual event is more critical criti-cal than ever, according to Will Johnson, director of the Tim-panogos Tim-panogos Regional Food Bank. With the national economic downturn and the idling of (Jeneva Steel among the more significant reasons, unemployment unemploy-ment has risen sharply here over the past two years, leaving many in need who previously provided for themselves. Also, many who are working at the lower end of pay scales simply don't make enough to cover basic needs, let alone unexpected or uncontrollable expenses such as medical bills or rent increases. In addition, the deployment of the military members of many local families has in some cases greatly reduced customary incomes, which may force some uncomfortable choices in the weeks and months ahead for those left behind. Utah food banks historically get a big influx of donations around the holidays, but by now, those stores are depleted. This drive has been timed to replen- ish supplies when not much is coming in from other sources. Only nonperishable items in Take steps to avoid identity fraud With headlines in Utah and across the nation chronicling the increasing incidences of identity theft, it's a good idea for everyone to take some common-sense precautions, pre-cautions, j The following suggestions were made by a corporate attorney in a large company who recently suffered suf-fered such a crime personally when his wallet was stolen. Within a week, the thieves in this instance had ordered an expensive monthly cell phone package, applied for a VISA credit card, had a credit line approved to buy a Gateway computer, received a PIN number from the Dept. of Motor Vehicles to change his driving driv-ing record online, and more. He said most people know about calling immediately to cancel can-cel their credit cards, but the trick is having the card numbers and toll-free reporting numbers handy when you need them. He suggested photocopying both sides of each license, credit card and other information you carry in your wallet or purse, and keeping it in a safe but easily-accessible easily-accessible place. That way you will not only know what was actually stolen, but you'll immediately have the information needed to make those calls. He also recommended carrying a photocopy of the identification pages of your passport separately : when you travel abroad. The U.S. Government also recommends keeping a copy at home with someone who knows your travel plans. It's also important to file a ' police report right away in the jurisdiction where the theft took place. This proves to credit providers that you're diligent, and is a first step toward an investigation investiga-tion (if there ever is one). However, the most important step is one that the lawyer admit New Utah American Fork Citizen, Pleasant Grove Review, Lchl Free Press, Lindon New Utah, Lone Peak New Utah 59 W. Main American Fork, UT 84003 An edition of The Daily Herald, a Pulitzer, Inc. newspaper USPS 018-580 (ISSN: 1521-6845) NEWSSTAND PRICE: 50 cents SUBSCRIPTION RATE: 1 year - $26 (in county) $35 (out of county) (Thursday and Sunday plus Holiday deliveries) Holiday deliveries include delivery the week of Easter, Memorial, Independence, Pioneer, Labor, Thanksgiving, Tiriitmas & New YearY Food Drive deal for all unopened, commercially-produced cans, packages and boxes are acceptable for the drive. Personal Per-sonal care items (toothbrushes, toothpaste, soap, sanitary supplies, sup-plies, etc.) are also always welcome. wel-come. Those who wish to inquire about other kinds of donations should call 377-0066 or 373-8200. 373-8200. In the past, the Utah National Nation-al Guard has provided the means of transportation for collected col-lected goods to get to the food banks, but the present military situation makes that impossible this year. However, local trucking truck-ing companies have stepped forward for-ward to take over this aspect of the drive. Every household in our area should have received a bag last Saturday in which to place donations, but if you didn't get one (or want to use more than one), any bag will do. It's best to mark it clearly so that the Scouts will know it's intended for them to pick up. Residents are asked to have their donations out in front of their homes by 8:30 a.m. Satur-, day. We urge everyone to be as generous as their circstdpees will allow, especially linfea e Very item we donate will aid our own neighbors in need. ted he'd never thought of, and I think most people have never even heard of: calling the three national credit-reporting organizations organi-zations and the Social Security Administration immediately to place a fraud alert on your name and Social Security number. The alert means any company that checks your credit knows your information was stolen and they have to contact you by phone to authorize new credit. The lawyer said his bank advised him to do this about two weeks after the theft; the agencies had records of all the credit checks initiated by the thieves, and after the alert, no further damage was done. Here are the numbers: Equifax 1-800-525-6285 Experian (formerly TRW) 1-888-397-3742 Trans Union 1-800-680-7289 Social Security Administration (fraud line) 1-800-269-0271 Some additional suggestions: The next time you order checks, have only your initials (instead of first name) and last name put on them. If someone takes your checkbook, check-book, they will not know if you sign your checks with just your initials or your first name, but your bank will know how you sign your checks. Also, put your work or cell phone number on, yojir checks instead of your home phone. If you have a post office box, use that instead of a home address, or a work address if you can. Never have your Social Security number printed on your checks; you can add it if it's necessary, but if it's printed, anyone can get it. NEWS: We welcome news tips. Call 756-7669 to report a news tip or if,.vpu,.heve a comment or a question! We welcome letters to the editor. All letters must include the author's name (printed AND signed) and a telephone number. We reserve the right to edit letters for clarity, punctuation, taste and length. Letters are welcome on any topic. Published Thursdays by Pulitzer Newspapers, Inc., 59 West Main, American Fork, Utah 84003. Periodicals postage paid at American Fork, Utah. Postmaster: Send address changes to 59 West Main, American Fork, UT S4003. Member: Audit Bureau of Circulations Last weekend I had the chance to hear a very interesting presentation. presen-tation. It was given by a man who became the first American to row a boat across the Atlantic Ocean. Richard Jones spoke at one of the meetings of the Utah Press Association I attended and his experiences made for very interesting inter-esting listening. To say that he is a motivational speaker is like taking a guess that the Pope is probably Catholic. But the way that Jones got his message mes-sage across meant so much more than someone shouting at me, giving giv-ing me a rah-rah speech which usually has the exact opposite effect. He had spent 32 years as CEO of an adventure touring company, then sold his business to pursue his dream. He built a specially designed, very high tech rowboat for his journey. There were many problems he had to face, including creating fresh water, communicating, navigating, navi-gating, avoiding ships and islands, and providing food for himself. Under the plan he followed, fol-lowed, he had no backup of someone some-one traveling near him, offering provisions from time to time. He had to pack food for the estimated esti-mated five months it would take Creating memories through books I've been feeling a little down lately, and realized I'm probably suffering from the effects of too much bad news. With constant talk of war and rising gas prices, as well as a sluggish slug-gish economy, it's amazing we are able to get out of bed in the morning. morn-ing. After going through the motions one particular day, I ended up at the library for a child's science project. As soon as I walked through the door, I saw a display of recommended children's picture books, including some with which I had become familiar 1 at a young age. . - There was Harold with his purple pur-ple crayon, beckoning me toward him, daring me not to remember the day I was able to sign my name and get my first library card so I could finally check out books of my very own. I picked up the book and could immediately visualize the old bedspread bed-spread on my mom's bed, where I first turned the pages of "Harold and the Purple Crayon." I think I even smelled cookies, baking, but You might be In honor of the beginning of the regular season ( opening day being a sacred time of year for baseball fans) which begins tMs weekend, here is a list of qualifications to be a true baseball fan. If you have even some of these qualities, you might be a baseball fan. You can quote verbatim "The Sandlot," "Field of Dreams," The Natural" or "Bull Durham." You've ever held a glove to your nose just to smell the leather. You've ever slept with a glove under your mattress. You know how to hold the ball for a change-up, curve and slider. You know where the box of curve balls is and where to find the key for the batter's box. You know what a fungo is. You look forward to Ihe Super Bowl because you know it means spring training is almost here. You've gone to Arizona or Florida just for spring training. ' You think it's perfectly all right to steal or to hit and run. You might be a baseball fan if ERA has nothing to do with Equal Rights. You spend more time at work DEADLINES Classified Advertising , .'. .'". . . .' . .Tuesday, noon Display Advertising .Monday, 5 p.m. New j . .... . .Monday, 2 p.m. Missionaries, Weddings ....... . .Monday, 2 p.m. Spdrts, Letters to the Editor .... .Monday, 10 a.m. Community Calendar ......... .Monday, 10 a m. Obituaries i :;v.v. : .Tuesday, 11 a.m. (Mm for the approximate 4,000 miles, plus a cushion for two additional months. Many, if not most, of us would have given up long ago. But Jones went ahead with the project. He emphasized that he did not have the information readily at his fingertips, fin-gertips, but had to gain it a little at a time. "In the beginning I knew nothing noth-ing about boat building," he said. "I had zero knowledge. The only thing I had going for me was a fierce determination to succeed." And that was eventually enough. It took three years for him to construct the boat in his garage. Then the project required two more years for him to acquire the necessary electronic equipment to survive and succeed. The 27-foot craft had three compartments -one for sleeping and communicating, communicat-ing, one for making water and cooking, and one for the rowing. From the Canary Islands, he that may have been conjured up out of some kind of cliche" in the back of my mind. I wandered the rows of picture books, even though I was there on a completely nonfiction assignment, assign-ment, perusing covers old and new, pleased with the increased quality and quantity of children's books being published in recent years. I -saw books I had read for the first time with each of my children. I chuckled to myself after seeing some that made me laugh hysterically hysteri-cally for their cleverness. I saw the books that were thought-provoking, the ones that were maybe a tad overly sentimental, but sweet nonetheless, and the ones that I admired solely for their beauty. For a good 30 minutes, I literally literal-ly lost myself in reminiscing about various children's books. Vivid images literally flashed before my eyes as I recalled scenes in which I a baseball fan if: i 'in nil i j j h managing your fantasy baseball team than you do actually working. You know what happened in the 1919 World Series. You can list five nicknames for George Ruth. You know the difference between spikes and cleats. You plan major league ball games into your itinerary when you travel for business. You plan to spend your vacation at a major league ball park or two or three. You take opening day ; off to attend or to watch the games. You know where the Dodgers and Giants used to play. You know who Satchel Paige was. You own the entire Ken Bums video or DVD set called "BasebalL" If no one can reach you on your pager because you've got it set for up to the minute scores from around the leagues, you might be a baseball fan. took aim for a 40-mile spot of ocean called the Caicos Passage, near the Bahamas, Haiti and Cuba. At times the seas had 40-foot 40-foot high waves. During the quiet times, he used his mind to keep himself occupied. "Solitude and silence never bothered me," he said. He planned a chain of cookie stores, even to creating and naming the varieties he would sell. He disassembled and assembled a car, bought more, and toured the country in his Model A - all in his mind. Virtually all boat traffic had to go through the same channel he was aiming for, which caused some concerns and challenges. The weather and a subsequent failure of his rudder 1500 miles from shore also brought problems. Jones had passed the point where he was counted as completing complet-ing the transatlantic journey, but ran into serious problems and almost lost his life. He was rescued res-cued and taken to safety and a reunion with his family. Such a journey may never be in our dreams or plans. But we should all have at least one goal which makes us stretch the same way. As his presentation concluded -"You too can row an ocean of your choosing." had shared these books with children, chil-dren, and I suddenly realized that I was smiling because all the memories mem-ories were good. The feelings of anxiety I had been feeling had been replaced by the comfortable memories brought by sharing good books. I gathered up a stack and checked them out with a new resolve to continue sharing books with my children even though life has become much crazier and time a much rarer commodity. Gas prices rise and fall (mostly rise, admittedly), conflicts abound, and economies fluctuate,' but they always have. Remember the gas lines from the 70's? I do. However, I remember books more, and the memories are much more inviting. This is my plea to take any local school teacher's or administrator's suggestions and share a good children's book with a child tonight, preferably during the news. I promise you and the child will create good memories. And don't forget the cookies. Your cell phone rings to "Take Me Out to the Ball Game." You got cable or satellite TV just to be able to see more baseball. You play wiffle ball in the house in January just to feel a bat in your hands. You know the smell of a wet wool hat from early spring games. Your children took their first steps between first and second base. Your washing machine has a permanent per-manent red stain at the bottom from the infield dirt you've washed off pants, socks and uniform tops. You don't have enough room in your house to store all the bats, balls, gloves and hats you own. You have a batting cage set up in your backyard. You've ever taken the cover off a ball to see what's inside of it. You know what a "juiced" ball or a "corked" bat means. You know how to eat sunflower seeds and spit the shells out without iou uuriK cnurcn, work and every other activity needs a Beventh inning stretch. And finally, if you love the smell of pine tar, you might be a baseball fan. 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