Column

 A Hybrid for the Family!

Chrysler, under the ownership of Fiat, is continuing to enhance its 35 years of minivan leadership with the 2019 Pacifica Hybrid minivan. The 2019 Pacifica Hybrid is more than just a hybrid of gas and electric but also a hybrid of minivan and SUV. The Pacifica Hybrid is the first electrified vehicle in the minivan segment to achieve more than 80 miles per gallon equivalent (MPGe) in electric-only mode, which delivers a total range of more than 500 miles. Chrysler’s claims that they have reinvented the minivan with its re-engineered Pacifica on an all-new platform and an unprecedented level of functionality and technology. The 2019 Pacifica is also available in a non-hybrid version. 

Pricing and Trims
The 2019 Pacifica Hybrid is available in three trim levels: Touring Plus ($39,995), Touring L ($42,195), and Limited ($45,595).

What’s new for 2019?
Being that this is Chryslers 35^th anniversary of creating the minivan, the 2019 Pacifica offers a 35^th Anniversary special badging and features. A new “S” Appearance package includes black accents inside and out, 18-inch wheels with a Black Noise finish, and other all-black interior touches.

Interior Highpoints
The Pacifica Hybrid doesn’t sacrifice any interior space or volume due to the battery pack cleverly stored under the floor in the middle of the van. The only thing forfeited is the loss of the Stow ‘N Go seating for the second-row seats as that space is now occupied by the batteries. The interior is comfortable and beautifully designed. The transmission shifter is in the center dash, which took a little to get used to. The center seats are captain chairs providing easy access to the third row sitting area. The rear cargo area (32.3 cubic feet behind the third-row seats) provides decent opportunities to store supplies. The optional Uconnect theater rear-seat entertainment system, available with 4G Wi-Fi, was the main attraction of my 11-year old son.

Exterior Highlights
The exterior of the Pacifica leans more towards a minivan profile. From the front view it delivers a stylish impression that could be mistaken as an SUV. The front hood, grille, headlights, and bumper are beautifully sculptured with a bold presence. The wheels come as standard 17-inch with optional 18-inch available. The power side doors are what make minivans so convenient. Two new paint colors are available: Luxury White and Maximum Steel.

Performance Specs
The 2019 front wheel drive Pacifica Hybrid is equipped with a 3.6-liter Pentastar V-6 EHybrid that generates 260 horsepower; about 26 horses less than the all gas engine available in the non-hybrid Pacifica. A benefit of electric motors is their ability to provide torque on demand and making acceleration on the Pacifica hybrid an non-issue. The 3.6-V-6 engine is paired with an electrically variable transmission that combines the power of two electric motors for EV-only driving and dual mode hybrid operation.

Cool Features:

• It’s a hybrid Minivan that generates around 80 MPGe!
  
• 32-miles of all-electric driving range
  
• Loaded with technology and connectivity features operated off an 8.4-inch touchscreen

Safety & Integrity
The 2019 Pacifica Hybrid is loaded with safety features including blind-spot monitoring and rear-cross-traffic alert systems with automatic braking. Every model gets a standard reversing camera and front-, side-, side-curtain, and driver’s-knee airbags. SafetyTec also comes with rain-sensitive windshield wipers and reversing sensors. Buyers can add a 360-degree camera system, forward-collision warning with automatic emergency braking, lane-departure warning, lane-keep assist, automated parking, and adaptive cruise control with traffic crawl.

In Summary   Thirty-five years later, Chrysler is still making innovated advancements in the minivan segment. The 2019 Pacifica Hybrid is a perfect example of providing its customers what they want and helping the environment at the same time. It’s a family vehicle that carries 7-passengers in comfort, with style and economically. Plus, it is eligible for a full $7,500 federal tax credit and other state incentives in certain areas.  If you enjoy being green and have a family, then the 2019 Pacifica Hybrid is a new option.

Specifications.

2019 Pacifica Hybrid Limited

Base price:                 $45,595 as driven: $50,005 (including destination & optional features)

Engine:                       3.6-liter Pentastar V-6 EHybrid

Horsepower:             260 hp

Transmission:           eFlite Si-EVT  

Drive:                         Front Wheel Drive

Seating:                      5-passenger

Cargo space:             32.3/140.5 cubic feet (rear seats up/down)

Curb weight:             4987 pounds

Turning Circle:         39.7 ft.

Fuel Capacity:           16.5 gallons

Wheelbase:                121.6 inches

Warranty:                  3 years/36,000-miles

Also Consider:          Honda Odyssey, Kia Sedona, Toyota Sienna

Today, I am fortunate to share with you the car love story of Chris Oldag, a boy from northern Florida whose mother spawned his love of high-powered cars. She worked nightshifts managing a highway motel about an hour’s drive north of Daytona. It was in this motel’s parking lot where Chris discovered super-cars—meaning race cars, that is. It was in that parking lot that NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing) teams would occasionally stop over on their way to or from the Daytona races with race cars sitting on the open trailers.

Back in the 60s when he was a little kid (born 1958), Chris and his older brothers got to see the racetrack crews working on the old race cars, and were able to watch them drive the cars up and down the freeway frontage roads along Highway 95. This exposure to the race car world sparked his interest that led to his love of high-performance cars.

Added to this was the fact that he had a couple of older brothers who were, what he calls, motor-heads, whose interest was all about cars as well. After they returned from their service in Vietnam, they were constantly debating as to which car was better; Chevy versus Ford, Dodge versus Plymouth.  Also, at that time in their life, something new had come to the foreground; drag racing, along with the new term “muscle-cars,” both of which reigned tantamount in their minds. His brothers had an assortment of old cars they turned from jalopies into less safe and much lighter and faster vehicles. Their jargon permeating the household atmosphere, so you can see how the love of hot rods and modified muscle cars became implanted on Chris’s young brain.

Eventually in 1970, the family moved to the Midwest, where hot-rods were popular. Due to the fact that the weather in the mid-west often has very long, cold winters, hot-rod owners often worked on their cars in their garages most of that time. In addition, Chris’s family lived close to a couple of large wrecking yards where lots of spare time was spent rummaging through those salvage yards looking for replacement parts.

By 1971, the same year as Chris’s current Oldsmobile, legislative changes marked the end of the muscle car era because after that time, new federal regulations required cars to burn unleaded fuel. That meant lower compression engines and lower compression meant less power, which, when tied with the oil crisis of 1976, put nails in the coffin of the American muscle-cars.

However, as if America was not yet ready to let go of the “muscle-car,” a purely escapist movie opened in 1977, in thousands of theaters across the country that featured a black 1977 Pontiac Trans Am Firebird, starring Burt Reynolds and Sally Fields, in  Smokey and the Bandit. This madcap movie involved little more than a 28-hour Texarkana round-trip police-chase condensed into 96 minutes on film. (As a side note, the “Smokey & the Bandit promo Trans Am car” was eventually sold at auction in 2016 for a mere $550,000. A pretty handsome sum!)

Years later, in or about 1998, Chris bought an old Jeep Comanche from a neighbor which rekindled his interest in restoring and rebuilding cars again. Next, he bought a Miata, followed by an Infiniti G37 coupe, which of course, was a high-performance model. Right about that time, Chris became a docent at the Blackhawk Museum as he had recently retired from his job and had a little more time on my hands. Luckily. Chris says, “my wife saw a notice by the Blackhawk Museum of their ongoing recruiting effort. She reached out to them, and they informed her that they had a training class that was available, provided that those who signed up for the class, would agree to serve at the museum a minimum of five hours a week.” Chris smiled and said “it was a lot like running into the brother you never had, or never met, who thinks the same way you think and reacts the same way you do and hangs onto every detail of collecting, repairing, driving and understanding these collectors’ cars. It was really fascinating and I’m now literally at my 10^th anniversary as a docent.”

“How many cars do I own currently? I have my 1971 Olds Cutlass that I bought from another Blackhawk Museum docent, and more recently I found a 65 Mustang convertible that is a ‘barn-find’ car, which I intend to bring back to collectible condition with lots of love and hard work in the restoration process. In my work today, at Pacific Service Credit Union in Walnut Creek, my love of cars is furthered by my knowledge of collectible cars and cars in general. I spend a certain amount of my time in the process of financing what my company might call ‘special-interest’ cars. We provide a service for the cars that we will accept, providing a financing rate that is much more attractive than what other finance companies are currently charging for comparable collectible used cars.” He cautions however, that they don’t finance projects cars or junk, and there must be a clear title on a car that is at least in drivable condition. In addition, it has to be registered in California, is insurable, and the purchase price must be at least 20% of the vehicle’s value. In in summary, he says, “I have to say that I emphatically love collectible cars, and the company of others who share the same love.”

Indian maiden, as beautiful as the land. Indian maiden, your beauty is as endless as the multitude of stars that hang high in the midnight sky—the same stars that nightly kiss the soft grasses of the great plains. It is a beauty that is not of only one, but all ladies of American Indian descent.

Indian maiden, through the annals of history, people have written, quoted, sang, and spoken of the beauty that is the moon. When I get lost in myself and think of that fact, I feel that your beauty, and it is at least a million miles past that. I feel it especially when the moon is full, on a deep and clear summer’s night.

Indian maiden, I say to you, that no other woman could light the match, much less hold the candle to you. Your beauty radiates and permeates my mind, my heart, and my soul.

There is no doubt, beautiful Indian maiden, that your beauty is as pure and timeless as the poems of Yeats, Frost, or even Poe’s masterpiece, “The Raven,” that he penned from deep inside his soul.

Indian maiden, even as you begin to grow old, your beauty is one; one sure to hold for now, for then, and for evermore.

So please, Indian maiden, do not dispute or try to refute these simple words of fact and truth. Be ever so thankful, great indigenous lady, as am I, that the Creator made only one, not two, because he shattered the mold—the mold that cast the image of you; and not just in this life, but in the next life too.

With the utmost pride and respect, I say: Please, beautiful Indian maiden, remember always and remember well, your beauty is without boundaries, without limits, indescribable, unbreakable, unwavering, without fault or shame. It is infinite.      

In a recent conversation, I claimed that some people support Trump because they believe he is more honest than other politicians. To that my debate partner cringed, “What are you talking about? He lies all the time. Practically everything he says is a lie!” He then went on to enumerate Trump’s every exaggeration, misstated phrase, and well-known sins. He then continued by saying the reason he might win again in 2020 is that many American voters have less than a 6th grade education.

I reminded my friend that grade level isn’t a very accurate measure of intelligence; after all, of the four types of intelligence—physical, mental, societal/relationship, and spiritual—one’s grade level is indicative of but a narrow portion of mental smarts. In fact, when it comes to making important decisions, the most “intelligent” option is to do so by tapping all four types of intelligence. I don’t recall ever attending “Advanced Judgment 202” or “Wisdom 101” in school, and it doesn’t matter anyway because we don’t even start learning the language necessary for these important courses until fairly late in the game.

Could Trump’s appeal with some voters have more to do with life experience than “book-learnin’?” Sure, President Trump is a loud-mouthed, egotistical, often insensitive, insecure “sinner” of the highest order—but then again, aren’t we all? Maybe some think a president who publishes a transcript of his conversation with a foreign leader is, perhaps, more trustworthy than one who is caught whispering his real intentions for “after the election.” A wolf in sheep’s clothing is still a wolf. Sometimes it takes years of   hearing and seeing wolves and sheep to truly recognize the difference.

Here’s the bottom line on what will happen next: There are only three options.

1) The democrats will be successful and Trump will be ousted, and Mike Pence will be our new President. This option is unlikely because a Senate vote to remove Trump is all but impossible.

2) The election will come and a democrat will win the presidency. Considering the current field of democrat candidates, this too is a long shot. The party is divided philosophically and a majority of voters won’t be backing any of the current democrats. Even many democrats still aren’t socialists—yet.

3) Trump will win a second term. This is the most likely, and he may well win by a greater margin than in 2016. In 2016, Trump was up against a united, well-funded democrat party, the experienced Clinton “machine,” the Republican Establishment, a hostile press, and possibly, even a weaponized prior administration. This time, he has solid republican support, a significant marketing budget, campaign and political experience, and so far, a robust economy as a foundation. 

A lot of smart people were really surprised in 2016. Looking back these past three years, maybe they should have looked into why it was that Hillary got only 44% of the votes of the 45+ year-olds when Trump got 52%. Perhaps, instead of dismissing an enormous block of voters as dimwits, had they been more interested in asking some old-timers why they voted the way they did in the last election, things might turn out different than they are likely to again in 2020.

There may be more to the greeting “Happy Holidays” than many know.  People are putting up Halloween decorations by early September, and Christmas decorations barely a week after the candy bags are empty from trick-or-treating.  What’s going on here?  Psychologist Deborah Serani says that smells and lights associated with the holidays trigger happy hormones and that decorating early lifts our mood.  “Decorating can spike dopamine.  For a lot of us holidays are a time of innocence and a time of joy,” Serani said in an interview for USA Today.

 The truth is, for most of the year, people hunker down to get through busy, stressful lives.  But while doing so, they hunger for joy, nostalgia and community.  And the folks at the Danville Livery know just how to meet that need with signature holiday events.  Management and merchants want the Livery to be a place where families can gather.  They understand shopping centers need to become part of the fabric of the community, not just a place to shop and dine.  

With that in mind, the Danville Livery will once again celebrate fall with its annual Pumpkin Jubilee on Saturday, October 26, an event that has nurtured nostalgia and gathered community for more than a decade.

The signature event that kicks off fall at the Livery is set at one of the most majestic properties in the East Bay, with its lush canopy of sycamores, oaks and maples bursting brilliant with color while providing the backdrop of the season.  The Pumpkin Jubilee features horse and carriage rides, artistic pumpkin carvers, pumpkin giveaways, and a collection of fancy fairies who leave children smiling, faces painted, with a fabulous balloon animal in hand.

Families can plan to visit the Livery’s sweetest little courtyard, a benched court that circles an old cork tree just outside Cold Stone Creamery.  There they will find pumpkin carvers who will transform garden-variety gourds and pumpkins into holiday masterpieces.  At the end of the event, organizers will draw names for 30 lucky winners who will take home a finished original creation.

Of course, the central activity at the Pumpkin Jubilee is the community trick-or-treat.  Families can collect a free treat bag at the guest services booth in the courtyard next to Danville Interiors and then visit participating merchants for candy.  While at the Livery, families will want to stop by and visit the center’s newest retailers including Whimsy Kidz, SPACE Hair Studio, Spree Boutique and       Be-You-Tiful Salon.  They shouldn’t forget to stop by Games Unlimited to enjoy traditional board games and toys.  Stride Rite supplies kids’ footwear specifically designed to be trendy and to support healthy growth of children’s feet.

The folks at the Livery understand that shoppers who have been cocooning need a reason to come out of their homes and spend time at any shopping center.  Modern shoppers seek, need and love comfort, so management and merchants try to make the Pumpkin Jubilee and other holiday programs fun for the entire family.  Stores and restaurants strive to offer a place to retreat with friends and family year-round.   

Merchants and management do not consider the Livery to be a mall.  They see it as a community neighborhood lifestyle center.  Shoppers can’t find a shopping experience like this online.  It’s tactile; it’s tangible.  Its mood lifting because shoppers can smell it, see it, taste it, feel it.

The smell of pumpkins and spice.  The joy of family and community.  People can’t find these things in a search bar.  But they can at the Danville Livery.

Q. I have a young nectarine and cherry tree planted about ten feet apart. I realize I’ve planted them in the wrong spot. And to make matters worse, they ’re getting too much water as I’ve planted flowers under them. When can they be moved?

A. I’m glad you recognized the problem with the watering before it was too late to correct things. Cherries and nectarines along with apricots, peaches, and plums do not like regular summer water, hence, they don’t tolerate having herbaceous and ornamental plants planted under their canopy. Apples, pears, Asian pears and all types of citrus are your best choice as they thrive with lots of summer water. Young fruit trees can be transplanted starting in late November, after leaf drop, through February or mid-March; however, with citrus, you should wait until early spring when the danger of frost has passed. Cherries and nectarines have a branching root system, so the root ball needs to be rectangular in shape, not necessarily a square box. I’d prune the trees first to reduce the canopy to makes the move easier. The planting holes should be twice as large and eight-inch deeper than the root ball, and they can be dug ahead of time. The backfill is amended at a fifty-fifty ratio of soil conditioner or homemade compost and the native soil. The next and most critical step in transplanting is not to bury the root ball. I’d remove any excess soil to expose the first root and plant it, so this root is at or above the soil surface. If you are concerned about the exposed root, you can apply a layer of mulch next year to insulate it. Also, remember, the root ball will sink in the amended soil. In April or May, I’d apply an organic fruit tree fertilizer to encourage the new growth. Starting in June unless the rainy season concludes early, water the trees once every two to three weeks through mid-September, depending on the temperature. Each tree should have a six-inch high watering basin that extends from the trunk to the drip line. This basin should be filled to the brim several times every time you water. Since these trees are not showing any stress, the transition to a new location should have a high degree of success.

Q. Last year I planted several Gardenias in containers. They were beautiful at first planted but now all the leaves have fallen off and the flower buds form, turn black and drop off. They’re watered weekly and fed frequently. Am I over-watering them?

A. Gardenias can be frustrating to grow, especially when the flower buds never open and drop off. Your plants have two unrelated problems. First, you have a watering problem, but it’s not over-watering. Instead, the plants are going dry and suffering from water stress. Water stress causes the leaves to turn brown and drop off. You might also find that the stems become dry and brittle. Gardenias are watered weekly when planted in the ground, but this is not the case in pots. Container plants are watered at least three times a week, April through October, depending on how much afternoon sun they get and the temperature. Also, with established plants, the longer they stay in the same container, the more critical the watering frequency becomes, as the soil is depleted by the mass of roots. It’s tough to over water Gardenias, or any other plant, as the excess water flows out the bottom of the container. During periods of warm temperatures and windy conditions, the plants go dry, the leaves burn and drop off. This is corrected by watering more often, however, don’t expect to see a big difference until next spring.  When the rainy season begins you water less often.     

Now on to the second issue. Gardenias are a tropical plant that requires warm nights to flower. The buds turn black and drop off when the nighttime temperatures are not consistently over fifty-five degrees. Although listed as a shade plant, I find they grow better in a sunny location. They also benefit from the reflected heat. They need to be shaded during the heat of the day when planted inland. Typically, the right conditions for flowering usually occur during the fall months with our Indian Summer weather pattern.

Q. Our front yard is dominated by two large, twenty-five-year-old flowering plum trees. However, the trees have sent roots throughout the yard. Would a weed prevention fabric cover the ground prevent the emergence of the suckers?                   

A. You’re really caught between a rock and a hard spot. Landscape fabric may slow down the problem, but it’s not the ultimate solution. The suckers could push through any openings or just accumulate under the covering. You will need to add two to three inches of mulch to block the light from getting to the soil on top of the mulch. Black plastic is not recommended as it traps too much moisture which then harms the tree and plants. Unfortunately, I don’t have a good solution. Manually removing the suckers may be the best answer.  

Welcome to the Investor’s Edge column and the last article in my six-part series on the financial planning process. Last, but not least, Estate Planning is the sixth essential part of the process. All six steps are equally critical to the success of the financial planning process, and while I have not addressed them in any particular order, estate planning may be the best to discuss last in this series because it is ultimately the sum of all the parts of your financial plan. If estate planning conjures up thoughts of the fame and fortune such as the vast wealth of Bruce Wayne, the billionaire with a butler (remember Batman?), think again. Estate planning is a method that enables you to decide how the things you own should be handled after your death or incapacitation.

The best way to predict the future is to plan for it.—Abraham Lincoln

Sadly, many people put off creating an estate plan or think they don’t have enough assets to need one. Sadder still are the uber-rich that just put off estate planning.  Well-known people have died intestate, meaning without a valid will.  Ironically, President Abraham Lincoln was one of those. Lincoln was a respected and esteemed lawyer, but he didn’t even have the legal services needed to create a will for himself.  It is estimated that his estate was worth about $100,000 at his death in 1865, which would be several million dollars today. The lack of a will created over two years of delay in his estate going to his surviving wife and two sons. Likely an early end to his life at 56 was a reason. Sonny Bono, Pablo Picasso, Howard Hughes, James Brown, and John Denver, all passed away intestate. More recently, Aretha Franklin and Prince are among the wealthy people who died without wills or estate plans. This tied up Franklin’s $80 million estate and Prince’s $200 million estate as both landed in probate.

YOU DON’T HAVE TO BE RICH TO HAVE AN ESTATE PLAN

At a minimum, an estate plan allows you to select someone you trust to make decisions on your behalf after your death or if you become incapacitated. This enables your wishes to be carried out quickly and smoothly to avoid probate. Many mistakenly believe estate planning as a technique to minimize taxes.  True, a blunt way to refer to “estate tax” is “death tax.”  Your estate tax liability, if you have one, is the tax you pay when you die.  It is a tax owed on the value of all the things you own at your demise.  The good news is, the IRS gave us all a Unified Tax Credit to apply to our estate at death. This year it is $11.4 million (you get $22.8 million if married). Therefore, after applying that credit to the value of your estate when you die, only any amount above the credit is taxed. So, while it would be a nice problem to have, most people won’t pay an estate tax.  Reducing your estate tax bill, then, is probably not the primary reason to have an estate plan.

Estate planning is about making sure your wishes are carried out.  It gives you “post-mortem control”—the ability to be the boss of what you earned and saved over your lifetime after you die. An estate plan can also cover the extent of medical treatment you desire.

So, while not all of us will have an estate tax bill to pay, there are several estate planning steps that everyone should take.  Here are five:

Write a Will: If you die without a will—or intestate—state laws, and not your wishes, will decide who gets your assets. Even if your assets do go to the people you intended, it could cost your heirs more time and money to get their inheritance in the probate process.

Consider Tax Issues: It’s said that there are no sure things in life except death and taxes, and the two also often go together. Depending on the value of the estate and other issues, there may be steps you can take, such as establishing a trust or making gifts while you’re still living, that can help lower the taxes your heirs will pay on their inheritance. 

Create a Durable Power of Attorney: These documents designate someone to manage your financial, legal or business affairs in case you are incapacitated. 

Address Medical Decision Making: A living will can establish how you would like your medical care to be handled in case you are unable to speak for yourself. A medical power of attorney names someone to make sure your wishes are followed. 

Fill Out and Regularly Update Your Beneficiary Forms: When you sign up for life insurance or create a retirement account, you are asked to name beneficiaries who would inherit your money if you die. After an important life change—such as marriage, birth of a child or divorce—consider whether you need to update your beneficiaries. 

Now is better than later to establish your estate plan. You never know what can happen. Remember Lincoln. With minimal planning, you will have assurance that your estate and all your assets go to the beneficiaries you choose and on the terms you want.

Please see my November Investor’s Edge column: Understanding the Alphabet Soup of Investing.

Maintaining Financial Health Through the Holiday Season

We all know the drill; we vow each year to spend less and watch our intake of food and alcohol during the holiday season. But the spirit of the season is contagious. We gather with family, friends, and coworkers and share an abundance of food, toast to good health, a vibrant New Year, and shop til’ we drop!

Like a bad cold virus, we all catch it quickly and the next thing you know, the holidays and parties are over, the credit card statements start arriving in the mail, the scale moves up a few pounds, and the New Year starts with the post-party blues versus the bang we all anticipated.

Whether you can afford to pay off the debt or not, overspending and adding an angry inch to the waistline can take the pop out of the champagne bottle and leave the memory of the firework display to feel more like a dud than a grand finale. 

So how do you enjoy the holidays without having the pain of the after-party? One word, MODERATION. Like anything in life, moderation is the key. Regardless of income level, where you live, or your background, moderation is the key to maintaining your financial (and physical) health during the holiday season. A little preplanning blended with a few challenges can spark creativity, keep you on track financially, and reduce the stress of spending. 

The holidays entail loads of lists from grocery shopping lists to gift lists and from decorating lists to entertaining lists. Beginning with entertaining, create a list of all the events you are planning to host and determine how many people will be in attendance. For example, if you are hosting Thanksgiving, make a list of the family and friends who will join and create the menu. Make the menu list as detailed as possible (e.g., appetizers, entrée, side dishes, desserts, beverages, wine, cocktails, etc.).

Challenge: To keep expenses down, ask each person to bring a dish, bottle of wine, or specialty cocktail. Not only does this reduce the cost of hosting, but it also shortens your to-do list and allows guests to showcase their favorite dish or libation. Guests love to help the hostess and contribute to a memorable event.

If you plan to host a holiday party, choose a fun theme and involve your guests. Parties do not have to involve massive amounts of food, nibbles and cheer are typically preferred. Host a wine and hors d’oeuvre party or cookies and cheer party.

Challenge: Ask each guest to bring a bottle of wine, hors d’oeuvre, or a plate of cookies and set a limit on the amount everyone can spend on a bottle of wine. This is a fun, creative, cost-effective way to host a party, have tasty nibbles versus a heavy buffet, and host an evening full of laughter and cheer without breaking the bank—or adding inches to the waistline.

Shopping and gift lists should include gifts for family, friends, colleagues, clients, teachers and hostess gifts. If the list is ridiculously long, reduce the number of individuals you buy for and ask family members to draw names. Family members will likely thank you for introducing this idea as many are in the same boat and would rather spend quality time with you than go into debt buying gifts.

Challenge: Set a limit for the amount each person can spend on the gift and find ways to get creative with gifts. For teachers and colleagues, bake your favorite holiday treat and give a little to everyone on your list. The thought and time that goes into a homemade gift will go a lot farther than buying a gift card to a coffee shop.

Partner up with a family member or friend and coordinate a day to shop together. Find a sale day, coupons, discounts, or offers. Refrain from the temptation to shop for yourself or get lured into retail offers that encourage you to spend more to earn rewards. The rewards can be tempting, and many are not valid until the New Year.

Challenge: Shop together and encourage your partner to only purchase items on the shopping list, share deals and cool gift finds, and see who can save the most. The one who saves the most money wins a small prize (a cup of coffee, lunch, or a baked goodie). 

If you start the season well, you can end the season well. Doing so will help you jumpstart 2020 and put you on the path to your wealthiest and healthiest year yet.

I want to hear from you. Start a challenge today and follow me on Instagram (jodeebrydges1), and share the details of your challenge. Each post will enter you in a chance to win my book, Digging Out!

Jodee Brydges is a Loan Officer at RPM Mortgage and the award-winning author of “Digging Out: A Practical Guide to Getting Out of Debt and Paving a Path to a Secure Financial Future,” published by ALIVE Book Publishing. It is available on Amazon.com, BarnesAndNoble.com, and Target.   

Do you ever find yourself staring at your closet full of clothes feeling like you have nothing to wear? This is a common issue for so many women. Shopping to create complete looks for any occasion can be difficult. Women tend to end up with a closet full of tops and very few bottoms and/or pieces to complete an outfit. After all, it’s easy to walk into a store, see a top you like, and perhaps purchase it without even trying it on. Pieces that complete a look, like pants, a skirt, overlays, shoes, or accessories, take more work. It takes time to consider what you’ll pair the items with—time that gets pushed to the side.

This is just one of the reasons women are opening their closets with no idea of what to wear each day, and it’s why I’m so excited to share a new service offered by the online styling company, Millie and Main. This awesome company offers super affordable monthly styling.

Here’s out it works: Find out what’s in style; discover pieces you already own; learn where to purchase items you are missing, then see complete outfit ideas to wear from day to night.

Each month, Millie and Main releases two complete looks with links for FREE! From there, twelve complete outfit ideas are waiting for ya’, with several links per look. Each look has three options per item. This way, their price points appeal to every shopper! Whether you’re shopping with a budget, or in it to splurge, there are price points for everyone. Never has a stylist-like experience been so easy and so affordable.

For less than $30, Millie and Main’s clients will receive a total of 14 looks of inspiration with hundreds of links, making creating complete looks and getting dressed each morning a piece of cake! Shop for only the things you need and use the pieces you already own to complete the looks. Many clients choose to print their photos and tape them up in their closet. It’s a great way keep inspiration at the forefront. Millie and Main’s clients are no longer opening their closet door and staring at it wondering what the heck they should wear. They’re starting the day picking out their clothes with confidence and feeling stress free.

Become a reoccurring client with a monthly subscription or purchase a month of style inspiration here and there for whenever you’re feeling in need of some new ideas and links. Head on over to millieandmain.com for lots of outfit inspiration and all the links you could ever want.

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I’m always puzzled by people from other states who complain there is no discernable change of seasons in California. I can only assume they’ve never visited a farmers’ market.

Having been born with no desire to rake bushels of leaves or shovel snow out of my driveway, I’m quite content to mark our subtle seasonal transitions with the current bounty of locally grown produce.

Though warm summer days are merely a memory, we can still stock up on end-of-season vine-ripened tomatoes. (And don’t forget to pick up some hard-to-find immature green tomatoes for frying.) Multi-color sweet bell peppers abound, as do tender arugula leaves; aromatic fennel; just-picked Brussels sprouts; and newly harvested sweet potatoes.

After months of outdoor entertaining, my nesting instincts have kicked in. I find it impossible to leave the farmers’ market without crunchy Asian pears and sweet grapes for snacking; a few glossy Hachiya persimmons to ripen on the kitchen counter; an armload of pomegranates to pile onto a delft platter for the dining table; voluptuous pears to admire in a wooden bowl until they find their way into salads or desserts; and—of course—a family of pumpkins and other big, gnarly winter squash to enchant even the most jaded spirits.

Beeswax candles and fresh flowers abound—now in ivory and shades of gold, rust, and sage. These are the transitional colors that dominate the next few weeks—at the farmers’ market, as well as at home.

This month ends with an explosion of pre-Holiday whimsy and pumpkin-spiced everything. But Halloween is not just about the boos. It’s also the perfect excuse to go a little batty with friends—with or without the benefit of costumes.  

As legions of little boys and ghouls deplete your candy supply, scare up something spooktacular that doesn’t require adults to be seated at the table. And since you don’t want to be stuck alone in the kitchen on the scariest of nights, I’m bringing you a ghostly white recipe that can be made up to 3 days in advance. And easily doubled for a crowd. It’s magic from the farmers’ market.

A cauldron of warm and comforting soup, loaded with bewitching garnishes of your choosing, will cast the desired spell without breaking the bank. Serve alongside a monstrous green salad and crusty whole-grain artisan bread.

For dessert, skip the poison apples and instead bake some devilishly good ones into a pie or tart. It will be a dinner to die for.

Farmers’ Haute Potato Soup

2 tablespoons butter

1 large onion, chopped (about 2 cups total)

Salt

Dash of cayenne pepper

2 or 3 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced (to ward off vampires)

2 to 2 1/4 pounds russet (baking) potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks

5 cups chicken or vegetable broth

1/2 cup heavy (whipping) cream

Eye of newt (optional)

1. Melt the butter in a soup pot or 4-quart saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the onion, season with salt and cayenne, and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened but not browned, 7 to 9 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
2. Add the potatoes and broth. Increase the heat to medium-high and bring to a boil. Partially cover, reduce the heat to medium-low, and cook until the potatoes are very soft, 25 to 30 minutes.
3. Using an immersion (stick) blender, puree the soup. (Alternatively, let cool 10-15 minutes and then, working in small batches, puree in a blender and return the soup to the pot.)
4. Stir in the cream and cook over medium heat until warmed through. Taste, adding salt and more cayenne as needed. Ladle into bowls or mugs and let each guest garnish as desired. Makes about 8 cups, to serve 6.

 Suggested Garnishes:

Freshly ground black pepper (or offer a peppermill)

Chopped fresh parsley and/or cilantro

Chopped fresh chives or green onions

Chopped fresh rosemary or thyme

Basil Pesto

Finely chopped jalapeno or serrano chile peppers

Thinly sliced spinach or arugula leaves

Sautéed mushrooms

Homemade croutons

Crumbled cooked bacon

Diced pancetta, cooked until nicely browned and crisp

Small chunks of cooked spicy sausage

Shredded cheese, such as cheddar or jack

Freshly grated parmesan cheese

Sour cream or crème fraiche

The Danville Certified Farmers’ Market, located at Railroad & Prospect, is open every Saturday, rain or shine, from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. For specific crop information call the Pacific Coast Farmers’ Market Association at 1-800-949-FARM, or visit their web site at www.pcfma.org. This market is made possible through the generous support of the Town of Danville. Please show your appreciation by patronizing the many fine shops and restaurants located in downtown Danville. Buy fresh. Buy local. Live well!