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Think
Money Smart By SHARON EPPERSON
Figuring out life insurance
Some experts say you
need enough life in
surance to cover five,
six, even 10 times your
annual income (esjiedally
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if you have a young family). However,
“the answer really isn’t how much life
insurance you need, it’s how much
money your family will need after you
are gone,” says Byron Udell, CEO of
AccuQuote, which provides term life
insurance rates and helps individuals
secure policies, lb get started:
EVALUATE YOUR FAMILY’S NEEDS.
Policies can pay immediate expenses,
such as medical costs, funeral bills,
taxes, mortgage payments and out
standing debts. But you also should
have enough coverage to pay for future
Animal Smart steve dale
“People” names now popular for pets
What ever happened to “Rover”? It’s no
longer cool, it seems, to name a dog Fido,
Snoopy or Lassie.
According to a database of more than
450,000 pets insured by Veterinary Pet
Insurance, Max is the most popular name
for both dogs and cats.
Other crossover favorites:
Lucy and Bella.
Interestingly, the top
10 dog names are also
names for people. “When
Pets are
an integral
part of
many
families.
pets are an integral part of the family
people are more inclined to choose a
human name,” says Carol McConnell,
who is the chief veterinary medical offi-
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Government Employees insurance Co • GEICO General Insurance Co • GEICO Indemnity Co. • GEICO Casualty Co. These companies are subsidiaries of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. GEICO auto insurance is not available in Mass GEICO: Washington. DC 20076. © 2006 GEICO
Smart
financial obligations. “Outline
your family’s cash-flow
needs and financial
goals, and then add
up the price tag to
figure out your true
insurance needs,”
says Judith Rosen
thal, a financial adviser
with Ameriprise.
TALLY UP TILE RESOURCES
your survivors could use to help
support themselves. These may
include your spouse’s
income: long- and short
term savings, such as
401(k)s, IRAs, 529 plans
for college and emer
gency reserves; and
cer at Veterinary
Pet Insurance.
1 Max
2 Molly
3 Buddy
4 Bella
5 Lucy
6 Maggie
7 Daisy
8 Jake
9 Bailey
10 Rocky
To »k any USA WEEKEND columnist a question, visit usawookond.com.
HELPFULTIPS CfIMQUREVERYDAY LIFE
Your family’s
situation
determines
the coverage
you’ll need.
TOP CAT
NAMES
TOP DOG
NAMES
Max
Chloe
Lucy
Tigger
Tiger
Smokey
Oliver
Bella
Sophie
Princess
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existing life insurance policies. The dif
ference between your family’s needs
and the available resources will tell you
how much life insurance to get.
For help with calculations, go to
smartmoney.com and search for its
Life Insurance Worksheet
Relation Tips dennie hughes
Go on, Google your date*
i A reader asked me recently whether ™
it’s acceptable to Google a date. My
take: Nothing is wrong with getting
your Google on. Everyone does it
even President Bush admits to using
the site because it’s a quick and easy
tool for scoping out any possible posi
tive points (having w r on a citizenship
award, for example) of someone you’re
about to meet as well as revealing nega
tives (such as an arrest).
Dating blindly is a thing of the past
However, don’t rely solely on a Web
search for guidance. Avoid going out
with someone w r ho makes you uncom
fortable. Trust your gut not Google.
SURVIVE THE’6Os?
YOU DESERVE SPECIAL TREATMENT.
GEICO
geico.com
Game Smart melanie d.g. kaplan
How about Pac-Man
with your peanuts?
Grab your boarding pass and go play.
Just as fliers have had it up to here
with cuts in amenities by U.S. carri
ers, a few foreign airlines have raised
the bar by adding some fun and games
to travel.
Air France installed PS3 consoles
in its new satellite at Paris Charles de
Gaulle Airport. And last year, when
Virgin Atlantic opened a new Club
house (business-class lounge) at Lon
don’s Heathrow Airport the airline in
cluded among the available diversions
a dedicated games area called the Den.
It features a pool table, comfy sofas,
retro tabletop video games like Astro
jff
Virgin Atlantic offers pool in the Den.
Wars and Pac-Man and hand-held PSP
stations. (You just need to show your
boarding pass for access to the games.)
In the States, check out Virgin At
lantic’s Clubhouse at Dulles Airport
near Washington, D.C. Business-class
passengers can access a separate room
that offers an educational board game
called Take Off plus a flat-screen TV
on which to play video games such as
NBA Street, NASCAR Thunder and
The Simpsons: Hit & Run. tt
That’s why GEICO offers personal
service, just for you.
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