1629 Miles for Thanksgiving

This year for Thanksgiving, we drove to Signal Mountain, just outside Chattanooga, Tennessee, to spend the holiday with my family. My parents still live on a farm there and my brother and his wife had their second child, a boy, the Thursday before Thanksgiving. I planned to cook the traditional Turkey, dressing and cranberry salad at my mother's then take dinner to my brother and his family in the valley.

Just before we left for the trip, my wife learned of her college roommate's mother's passing in Greenville, Tennessee, about 3 1/2 hours north of Chattanooga. Since we were also planning to drive to Durham, NC for the Duke v. Miami game, we made the detour for the funeral. This meant Four days of driving over a 6 day holiday weekend. We left Florida Tuesday evening and made it almost to Macon, Ga., before spending the night. Waking up in Cordell, we drove most of the morning to reach Tennessee; however, just before leaving Georgia, we stopped for lunch at my sister's house for lunch with her and her 3 wonderful children. Later that afternoon, we finally arrived at my Grandfather's farm on Signal Mountain. The evening centered on making the oyster dressing and cranberry salad with groceries brought from Florida.

Thanksgiving Day, I spent most of the morning walking around the farm after putting the turkey in the oven to roast. Mom, Dad and I surveyed the back fence lines and tried to find one corner so we could put the final fence up between my mom's property and that sold to a new owner. After we ate lunch, my brother finally arrived with his 2 year old son, so Andy and I walked the fence lines again to verify proper markings corresponded to the deeds issued by the probate court. After it got dark, Andy took dinner home to his wife and baby, and we planned to follow to get a look at the newest Ducker. Unfortunately, as we went to get in the car, I realized I did not have my keys. Fearing I had dropped them somewhere over the miles of fence line I had traversed today, all woodsy and briar filled, I was rather apoplectic. Thankfully my wife found the keys right where I had dropped them in our room.

On Friday morning, we left about sunup to drive to Greeneville for the funeral. My wife's college roommate's mother had been living in Greeneville, Tennessee, to be near one daughter who could take care of her to prevent having to go to an assisted living facility or nursing home. Ironically, the funeral occurred at Tusculum Baptist Church, across the street from Tusculum College, one of the schools my 17-year old is considering. We drove around before the funeral taking in the beautiful campus and sports facilities.

I'll have to write more tomorrow! If you need assistance in selecting an attorney in the Central Florida area for a Collaborative Divorce, Elder Law, Family Law, Guardianship or other question, please call me at 407-645-3297 or visit my website at www.aubreylaw.com

Thanks, Aubrey

Making Sound Decisions

Most people assume that given all relevant information, they will make sound decisions. Many people however, do not know when they have all the relevant information and may consider much irrelevant information in their decision making process.
When considering a contract, You Need An Attorney.
Contracts take many forms and all are considered by the courts to be a law between the parties. Whether the contract is for a Water Purification System in your home, a Home Security Monitoring Agreement, a Child Support or Alimony Agreement, an Insurance Settlement, a Probate Accounting, an agreement for piano lessons, a Timeshare Purchase, a Lease, or the purchase of an appliance with a warranty, You Need An Attorney. The company presenting the contract for your signature no doubt had an attorney look at the document to determine its legality and enforceability. You should also have an attorney review the contract. Most Insurance companies have staffs of attorneys to draft and review settlement agreements. The agreements are presented to the consumer by "Adjusters" who work for the insurance company. You the consumer need an attorney as well.

What does the Law Require?

Many questions to attorneys ask, "What is required by Law" in a given situation. To begin to answer this question, contact an attorney, www.aubreylaw.com or www.lawyers.com/duckerlaw or www.FloridaGuardianAttorney.com
Sometimes the Law requires less than our own Morality might believe is due. Other times, the Law may require significantly More than we truly believe is due and oweing.

One example can be found in Credit Card Interest Rates. We borrow money and expect to pay interest until the debt is extinguished. What we do not expect is that our creditor, be it Visa, MasterCard, AmericanExpress or Discover, will work to collect every dollar possible under the contract.



We all know we will owe interest, perhaps even cash advance fees; however, what if the Credit Company lowers our "Available Credit" to a point below our current "Outstanding Credit"? Then Overlimit fees apply. If the Minimum Payment is not made we expect to pay a penalty; however, when the Lowered Available Credit causes an Overbalance condition with additional fees, and the Required Minimum Payment is increased by the Total Amount Over Limit, what was once a $150 or $250 payment is suddenly and UNEXPECTEDLY a Minimum Payment Due of $765 or worse. Additionally, the $39 overlimit fees along with the increased Interest Rate due to being Overlimit (usually a jump in interest of 10% to 25%) make the Credit Card Company a SIGNIFICANT REVENUE SOURCE. Why do you think the credit companies extend credit and solicit new credit even when people are making minimum payments?



All this as an example of What Does the Law Require. A new law gives consumers significantly more protection from the "legal" overreaching by credit companies. You can get more information at the following websites:

http://www.creditcards.com/credit-card-news/obama-signs-credit-card-law-1282.php

http://www.dailyfinance.com/2009/08/20/new-credit-card-laws/

http://www.creditcards.com/credit-card-news/credit-card-act-takes-effect-1282.php



The 8 Major Benefits of the new Law can be found here: http://www.bankrate.com/finance/credit-cards/8-major-benefits-of-new-credit-card-law-1.aspx



The real key is to Know What the Law Requires, and don't allow Fear or Intimidation to force you to do what the Law does not or cannot require.

Dementia? Alzheimer's Disease? Memory Problems?

Many people ask, "how do I know what is normal aging and what is Alzheimer's Disease (AD) or Dementia?
First, the term Dementia describes a whole group of memory problesm caused by changes in the Human Brain's overall function. Some of the symptoms may be:
1. Asking the same questions repeatedly
2. Getting lost in very familiar surroundings and places
3. Neglecting personal safety and security measures
4. Being disoriented about time, place or people
5. Neglecting personal hygiene and nutrition
6. Being unable to follow simple directions
When these symptoms are noted together, frequently the cause is Dementia.
Dementia itself may be caused by any number of other neurological basis, including Alzheimer's Disease or stroke, but also possibly cause by treatable conditions such as High Fever, Dehydration, reactions to food or medicines, vitamin deficiencies, thyroid problems or a minor head injury.
The real question for caregiver is, "do these symptoms impact daily life?" Many times they indicate a need for an Assisted Living environment or Adult Congregate Living Facility. Other times families may be able to provide all necessary care. In either instance, an attorney can be quite helpful in making arrangements and transitions. Call me if you have further questions. Aubrey Ducker (407) 645-3297

The Most Important Thing

I don't normally like tearjerker stories; however, the following link shows what can happen when Customer Service is taken personally by the lowest of employees.
http://www.stservicemovie.com/

Thanks, Aubrey

P.S. If you want to check out my site, go to www.aubreylaw.com
Thanks