After hearing from our newest expert on the art and science of finding your Mr./Ms. Right, we want to make sure you stay safe while enjoying the dating scene.  And although that includes having your first meetings in public places and not drinking in excess so you can keep your wits about you, these are not nearly as concerning as the rise in HIV amongst Boomers.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, between 1996 and 2000 nearly as many older adults were diagnosed with AIDS as were those in their twenties.  Then, in 2003, CDC data shows that there were over 315K AIDS cases in people over 45, representing 30% of total cases.

Surprising?  It ought to be for a generation that certainly understands STD transmission, and how to prevent it.

So, why are we not being careful?  We let our guard down when it comes to unsafe sex, for two reasons:

1. If we’re dating someone our own age, we falsely believe that this is a kind of guarantee that there’s nothing to worry about, so why use protection?!  We erroneously believe that because we may have just come out of a monogamous 26 year relationship, so has everyone else, therefore this person cannot possibly be a risk.  The fact is, some if not quite a few of the fellow Boomers we date have been on the dating scene for a while, so very well may have been having unprotected sex with multiple partners
2. If we’re dating someone younger, we can easily be pressured into unprotected sex for fear of seeming uncool, or stodgy, being too overly cautious, so we give in rather than risk looking “old”
   

What can we do about it?  Also two things:

1. Do not jump into bed with someone without truly knowing him/her first – take your time.  We’re not kids, so don’t act like one
2. If you do find yourself about to have sex with someone you don’t know fully well, use protection.  If your sex partner balks at such common sense behavior, stay strong.  You’re right, they’re wrong.  If they will not relent, remember that you may be risking your life if you continue unprotected.  Much better option, get up, get dressed, and go home.  This is not someone worth your time.
   

You have been officially alerted….

Last week, the AARP’s Fraud Fighter Call Center along with John Gannon with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, revealed a distinct increase in the number of retirement-age investors who are being scammed out of their nest eggs by ethically challenged financial advisers…who are Boomers themselves…We Boomers are scamming…each other…

Apparently, these so-called “advisers” are taking full advantage of two things that make us vulnerable to them: our desire to recoup our Great Recession losses, and the likelihood that we will trust a fellow Boomer outright, because we believe he or she understands our plight and truly wants to help us. 

So, here’s some solid advice from the investment fraud experts, on how to safeguard yourself:

• Check your adviser's credentials (remember last week we alerted you to doing your research before making important decisions, and here is another example). Titles like "certified senior financial planner" can be fabricated to make you believe someone is uniquely qualified to assess your retirement needs, when, in reality, such designations don't necessarily mean a thing.  You can check on the legitimacy of an adviser's financial title, and verify his/her designation and licensing through FIRA's BrokerCheck service , or by contacting your State’s securities regulator.  You can also check federal court dockets to see if your adviser has declared bankruptcy or if his or her company has ever been sued for fraud, through PACER.gov
• Skip the free meal. According to a 2009 report by AARP, scam artists often find victims through free retirement planning seminars that usually include a free lunch or dinner at a nice local restaurant or hotel.
• You’re at greater risk of fraud when you let advisers talk you into stocks that don't trade on the NASDAQ or New York Stock Exchange
  

Bottom line: don’t rely on generational commonality as a key deciding factor when choosing your advisor. 

You have been officially alerted…

Once upon a time, a subject of the land named Terri who thought she was a very smart shopper, was taken in by the great prices and low, low shipping charges of a merchant called Overstock.com, in a marketplace known as The Internet!  “What a smart shopper I am,” she cooed to herself as she hit the "place order" button!

You see, Terri was purchasing a delightful little 22" TV w/DVD player for her mother, and was puffed up with self-congratulations as she thought about how happy her mother would be to get such a deal!

Alas, when her mother received the TV, she decided it was too small.  So Terri returned it.

But alack!  That's where Overstock gets buyers by the proverbial gonads, and wrings 'em dry!  “I don't even have a pair...” cried Terri, “and if I did, I wouldn't now anyway!”

You see, of a total purchase price of $266.99, Terri was refunded $93.45.

This is because in the land of Overstock, if you are silly enough to open the electronic item to determine if it’s right for you, they claim it can no longer be resold as new, so charge you not only the dreaded “restocking fee” but the amount they determine they will lose in the resale.

Now, in every other major electronic marketplace of the land, this does not happen; a subject can return an electronic item even if opened, and receive a full refund so long as the item has not been used.

But hark, it appears that for Overstock, this is a back-end way to make a bigger profit on those great front end prices and low, low shipping charges.

So, the moral of our tale is this: There are any number of on and offline retailers that won't gouge you when you buy and return.  Overstock is not one of them.

Thou hath been officially alerted…

I looked around for the best deal on a new PC when mine died, and thought I found it at Best Buy. 

Now, believe me, I have no problems asking lots of questions, but the trick is knowing the right questions to ask; if you don’t, don’t bet on the young folk at any electronics store to fill in that gap for you.

Here’s what I learned the hard way.  Do you know the difference between a 32 bit and a 64 bit system?  I didn’t know that such a difference even existed.  And of course, the young man selling me the computer didn’t mention that it was a great price because it’s a 64 bit, which sounds much better than a 32 bit, right?!  In any other world but computer land, a higher number means somehow better, yes? 

Nope.  Computer manufacturers are phasing out 64 bit computers….don’t know why, but I feel confident it has something to do with that being the last year that Boomers were born…hey, I’m not paranoid… These are being replaced with the much younger sounding 32 bit systems. 

Why would we care, you ask?  Well I did just ask just that, and found out that all that nifty software, and stuff you want to add onto your system as a download, is now being made for 32 bit systems.  In order to get them for those “old” 64 bit PC’s, you must special order them.  It may not cost you extra (sometimes it does) but it sure is a huge pain in the keester, as you now have to contact that provider’s customer service team and go through not only the 15 minutes on hold, but the somewhat convoluted process of downloading these apparent dinosaurs.

So, remember, 32 bit is in, 64 bit is ever so on its way out.

You have been officially alerted…