link to the Top Valentine's Day Candy by State interactive map:
https://www.candystore.com/blog/holidays/valentines-candy-popular-states/
And here again is the link to the Where Are the SweetHearts? piece:
https://www.candystore.com/blog/candy-news/where-are-sweethearts/
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4 Ways Your Retirement Plan
Can Survive A Volatile Market
A volatile stock market is raising the anxiety level of some investors – especially those nearing retirement.
In the wake of last year’s closing tumble – the S&P 500 lost 6.2 percent in 2018, its worst showing since the 2008 financial crisis – market analysts and those with equities comprising much of their portfolio aren’t quite sure what to expect in 2019.
Such uncertainty necessitates reviewing and perhaps adjusting a retirement plan to protect against market downturns, some financial advisers say.
“When you’re getting closer to retirement and truly planning for it, you have to understand the effects of volatility,” says Christy Smith (www.thepresleygroup.net), founder of Presley Wealth Management and an Investment Adviser Representative. “People forget easily the pain of the recession when the markets are doing well. But the market will always go up and down, and it’s a struggle teaching people that to have a successful retirement, they need to truly diversify, and recession-proof, their retirement portfolio.
“How do you do that? You build a lower-volatility, long-term plan that puts some safety nets in place to protect us if we do see a recession.”
Smith gives four tips for protecting a portfolio from a volatile stock market and a possible recession:
Know your risk level. “We tend as a society to not understand the difference between accumulation and preservation,” Smith says. “It’s extremely important to understand how much risk you can handle. If you build a plan based on that, you won’t make emotional decisions – which are often bad ones – when the markets go down.”
Consider a fixed-index annuity. With interest rates trending upward, bonds aren’t as safe an investment as they were. “A fixed-index annuity is an alternative to bonds because it has principal protection built into it and thus provides safety,” Smith says. “The last few years people have been trained to think they need to invest in bonds to offset risk in their equities, but we’re in a time period now where we’re treading in some uncharted waters. The equity market is going down, but then we also have rising interest rates, which affects the bond market. When you’re using a fixed-index annuity, you won’t see the value of it go down as interest rates go up.”
Don’t overanalyze. “When market conditions are good, you’re looking at your 401(k) and not seeing a lot of losses, and you tend to step away and not check your account as often,” Smith says. “But in times like right now, when the market has been turbulent, people start to be more proactive and analyzing things more than normally would. Sometimes it’s better for people not to watch as much of the news, because it’s so negative and we can overreact. Put a good recession-proof plan in place with a fiduciary and don’t panic.”
Diversify your plan. “You don’t want to have, say, 80 percent of your portfolio in stocks, especially right now,” Smith says. “It’s important to diversify and also to understand how your money is truly invested. Have a written investment plan tailored to your goals.”
“You have to understand the importance of having the mind shift of, the closer you get to retirement, the less you need to be aggressive like when you were young,” Smith says.
About Christy Smith
Christy Smith (www.thepresleygroup.net) is the founder and principal of Presley Wealth Management, which she opened in 2006. An investment Adviser Representative, she co-hosts a weekly radio show, “Your Money Matters,” and has appeared in The Wall Street Journal, U.S. News & World Report, MarketWatch and Kiplinger. Smith is the author of the book, Plan, Protect, Preserve, holds a life and health insurance license in Louisiana, passed the Series 65 securities exam and earned a Certified in Long-Term Care (CLTC) designation.
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Q: What are the ingredients to a great charter school law?
A. Independent multiple authorizers to review, approve and support charters, equal funding, flexibility, high potential for growth and scalability and unlimited cap on schools and students.
The National Charter School Law Rankings and Scorecard on charter school laws is the nation’s oldest and most reliable evaluation of how a charter school law works and why.
Since 1996, CER has analyzed and ranked state charter school laws to demonstrate how laws can best ensure vibrant, healthy, successful opportunities for parents. These findings consider not only the content of each law, but also how the law impacts charter schools on the ground: How robust is the charter sector in each state? How diverse are the schools? To what extent do burdensome regulations prevent charters from doing anything meaningfully different?
Other industry rankings do their best, but aren’t nearly as comprehensive, omitting important aspects created by policy, such as impact of single authorizers, commitment to innovation, over-regulation of charter schools, and caps.
The National Charter School Law Rankings and Scorecard provides case study examples of weak laws and regulations and other aspects of poorly conceived charter school policies impact charter operators and students. CER also provides model legislation for you to consider when crafting or amending charter school laws and regulations.
With this important guide, we offer evidence-rich feedback and recommendations to inform decision making and provide clear policy revisions for greater innovation and opportunity for all learners. With feedback and guidance, change is possible.
2019’s rankings are around the corner. We look forward to sharing our findings with you soon.
Founded in 1993, the Center for Education Reform aims to expand educational opportunities that lead to improved economic outcomes for all Americans — particularly our youth — ensuring that conditions are ripe for innovation, freedom and flexibility throughout U.S. education.
CON ETIQUETTE
PREMIERE VIDEO FOR
"TRIAL AND ERROR"
VIA GHETTOBLASTER
WATCH HERE
January 22, 2019 - Stratford, CT - Con Etiquette are premiering the video for their single "Trial and Error" exclusively today via Ghettoblaster. Watch HERE. The single, which follows up the band's most recent EP, The Company We Keep, comes from a series of one-off singles, including "Anywhere", released by the band this fall/winter. For more information on Con Etiquette, please visit: https://www.facebook.com/pg/conetiquette/.
Con Etiquette are a four piece rock band from southern Connecticut. Their sound can be described as a high energy blend of '90s alternative rock and contemporary post-rock, led by frontman/guitarist Antonino Lappostato, who, as a former solo acoustic artist, has a knack for smart songwriting. The band, fleshed out by guitarist Vin Testani, drummer Matt Krugel and bassist Dan Nicolari, make punchy, well-written songs touching on life and death, and everything in between.
The band's debut release Resulting In..., was warmly received, with New Noise Magazine giving the album a five-star review, writing, "Con Etiquette is a refresher course on post-rock, a reminder of the progressive genre we've all forgotten could be this good." The band followed this up with the EP, The Company We Keep, and most recently they have garnered comparisons to the likes of Have Mercy and Microwave with their one-off singles like "Anywhere" and "Trial and Error".
For more information, please visit:
https://www.facebook.com/pg/conetiquette/
https://twitter.com/conetiquette_ct
https://www.instagram.com/con_etiquette/
