Meeting 12/1/2009
Riviera Leads Club Meeting 12/1/2009
Meeting opened with Director Bernhard Hoehle reading the Leads Club Purpose statement.
We welcomed back Carlene Delight who says it is so good to be back to work full time!
Missing were Dr Jerry Bottomley, Kazue Fakuda, Christina Scataloni, Dr Dennis Kinnane and Brie Scott-Wells.
Trophy for most Leads for last week went to Dr Rachelle Mand.
We discussed the upcoming Holiday Stroll, Dec 3, 5-9 in Riviera Village. Meeting place will be HT Grill on the corner of Catalina Avenue and Avenue I.
We also discussed the possibility of our Holiday Gift “Exchange” event, tentatively set for December 17. Location to be determined.
LEADS CLUB PRESIDENT, LISA BENTSON, WILL VISIT OUR CHAPTER NEXT WEEK!!! See bio in last week’s minutes.
Our first speaker, Larry Tiberi, “Mr About Exercise,” demonstrated “Why My Bike is More than Just Cool”
He has adjusted his bike to be ergonomically correct. The handlebars are raised to allow an upright position, his seat position is set to allow full power in his legs and he has a basket to carry what he needs. He stressed that ALL sports equipment should be adjusted for each individual. The equipment in his gym is always readjusted for each person’s needs.
He specializes in personal training with resistance and free weights, accommodating for shoulder problems, length of arms, etc.
Myths:
3 exercise sessions/week is enough. 30 minutes/session
If we eat a candy bar, will 1 hour of walking be enough? Probably not. We burn 300 calories walking for 1 hour. BUT, we burn 140 calories just sitting.
“No pain, no gain” philosophy. He prefers a “work to the pain, back off, work to it, not through it” approach.
Body builders rip muscles in order to build. He doesn’t feel that is a healthy approach.
Fat burning: work at 60%? He prefers pushing it to the max.
Build strength, then endurance. If you can walk AND talk, you are NOT walking fast enough.
Does swimming help to lose weight? It depends on how we are swimming. He likes to encourage heavier people to start with a swimming regimen first because there is not as much wear and tear as they begin to exercise.
Stretch before exercise? Warm up vs stretching. Body needs to be warm and have a good range of motion. When you are done working out, then stretch, but don’t push your muscles at that point, it is easy to hurt yourself.
Ice immediately when you injure yourself. It prevents more injury. Ice cools the blood. It helps decrease the pain.
Run 5 miles, recovery time? Every other day. Interval training. Break up routines.
Our second speaker Lawyer, Robert Ciaccio, spoke about “Keeping Your Mouth Shut!” He sited two recent incidents with Tiger Woods and the couple that crashed the White House Party. Tiger’s approach resulted in a minimum fine and points against his driving record. If he or his wife had talked to police or the press and told conflicting stories, it would have given “probable cause” for an investigation.
If you do talk to officials, tell the truth, or it is perjury. That’s what Bill Clinton was guilty of. You have the right to remain silent AND anything you do say can and will be used against you. The police and insurance agents are paid to collect information. We DO NOT HAVE TO GIVE A STATEMENT TO ANOTHER INSURANCE AGENT, ONLY OUR OWN. In the event of an accident, just say, “I’ll speak to you in a few weeks.” We don’t know if we are okay at the scene of an accident. Usually, we are in shock. The other person’s insurance agent often tries to get a statement immediately. Also, if we are pulled over by police, all we are REQUIRED to do is provide license, registration and insurance card. If we do answer questions, we MUST be truthful!
Also, Robert stressed the importance of sufficient insurance coverage on individual units, not just common areas of living complexes. Common area policies do not protect you if something happens inside YOUR unit. The cost is very low/year, often less than 1 1/2 hours of time with a good lawyer afterwards! Tell your friends who live in this type of complex.
The holidays are stressful times. Be wise.
Our third speaker, Mortgage Broker, Andre Hemmersbach, shared an invaluable resource from the website of the Los Angels County Office of the Assessor (http://assessor.lacounty.gov/). There is a scam alert:
Scam Alert – No Fee Necessary for Value Reduction.
Various private companies are again sending mailings to property owners offering their services to pursue a reduction in their property taxes. These companies may charge hundreds of dollars to file for a reduction in value on behalf of the property owner. Some companies are even imposing late fees if the application is received after an arbitrary deadline. Be aware that solicitations from private companies offering to pursue a reduction in property taxes must clearly indicate that they are NOT a government agency and that their services are NOT approved or endorsed by any government agency. Failure to provide such notice is a violation of California law. If you or someone you know receives an illegal solicitation, please contact the Los Angeles County Department of Consumer Affairs by phone at (800) 973-3370 or visit their website.
Andre offered his services if you think you deserve a reassessment. Call him!
Andre shared tips from a list of possible exemptions: homeowner’s ($7,000 if you reside there), veteran’s, builder’s, disaster relief, market decline, senior and disabled exclusions. Call him for details.
Filing for a permit can trigger a reassessment if it is beyond maintenance. If you are adding square footage it will trigger a reassessment.
Our theme for the meeting came from Brian Biro’s “BEYOND SUCCESS, The 15 Secrets of a Winning Life.” The three central blocks in the base of John Wooden’s Pyramid of Success are FRIENDSHIP, LOYALTY and COOPERATION. Biro stated that “These three central blocks in the Pyramid of Success must become consistent priorities rather than occasional niceties if you are to master the secrets of a winning life.” Our closing promotionals drew out comments about the value of building these themes in our businesses.
Four Leads were passed, 3 outside and 1 inside. Panned out Leads amounted to $2,390.
Bernhard read the Leads Club Creed and closed the meeting.
SB