Plan a Cheap Date Night w/ Goldstar Events

Sometimes you'd like to attend a nice event without having to spend an arm and a leg. That's where Goldstar Events comes in.

They work similar to Ticketmaster except they offer tickets to events at a discounted price.

Example:

Wicked, Broadway's Hit Musical - Pantages Theatre

Full Price: $98.00 Our Price: $59.00

LA Wine Fest 2008: Huge Wine Tasting - Hollywood's Raleigh Studios

Full Price: $45.00 - $80.00 Our Price: $30.00 - $60.00

If you live in, near or are traveling to any of these major cities you can enjoy a Goldstar event - Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, New York, DC Metro, San Diego, Boston, Las Vegas.

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From the website:

What is Goldstar Events?

We help our members find better ways to spend their leisure time by providing them with opportunities to see live entertainment and other unique events.

How does the service work?

When someone becomes a member of Goldstar Events, they tell us what kinds of events they're interested in and where they like to go. We then tell them about event offers that match their preferences. Members get a weekly e-mail summary of events with our special pricing, and if they also sign up for e-mail alerts, they get late-breaking event offers tailored to them.

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"I attended an event on Sunday in Long Beach, a children's adaptation of Suessical. It was only $10 so you can't beat that!"

Half-Price to Live Entertainment
Free membership to get dozens of half-price music, comedy, theatre and spa offers.

New California Cell Phone Laws

If you haven't heard driving as we know it changes as of July 1, 2008 when the California law banning cell phone usage without the use of a hands-free device becomes effective.

There are actually two different laws - one for drivers under 18 and one for drivers over 18. Drivers under 18 are outlawed from driving while using a wireless telephone, pager, laptop or any other electronic communication or mobile services device to speak or text while driving in any manner, even hands-free, exceptions are made for emergency situations.

Drivers over 18 are allowed to use a wireless device but it must be hands-free. Using a Bluetooth device is acceptable along with the speaker function on your wireless phone.

For a FAQ on the new laws view the California DMV website.

I purchased a Bluetooth device sometime last year. The hands-free device I use now is a Motorola and I have been pretty satisfied with it. It definitely works better than the Plantronics one I used previously.

If you haven't done so already be sure to get your wireless ear pierce before the new California cellular phone law goes into effect July 1, 2008.

Successful Notary Tip #4 - Ship With Ease

If you are a Notary Signing Agent you will regularly need to ship documents to lenders, title and escrow companies. In order to make this process as easy as possible it is best to open your own account with FedEx, UPS and any other shipping company that is frequently used in your area.

Not only is it convenient to have shipping supplies readily available but having the supplies on hand will prevent an unnecessary headache when the local drop box or store, in the case of FedEx and UPS, are out of supplies.

Another good idea is to take note of the location of all your local drop boxes and stores, and their pick up times. This will help you when you are told that the documents must go out that same day, and you will know whether this is possible or not.

Related posts:

Successful Notary Tip #3 - Get A Website!
Do I Use An Acknowledgment or Jurat?
Notaries - Supplement Your Income

What does it Cost to Become a Notary?

Becoming a notary is a great way to supplement your income, meet new people and to add variety to your life because you never know what each day will bring. But before you take on any new venture you should always do your research.

One of the things to research about becoming a notary is the cost. I am currently in the process of renewing my license and below are a list of my expenses so far:

Golden State Notary 6-hour online class - $49.95
CA State exam - $40.00
Live Scan fingerprinting - $85.00

My upcoming expenses:

Required $15,000 Bond - $38.00
New stamp - $19.95
New embosser - $28.95
Error & Omissions Insurance ($100,000) - $156.00

Thankfully, these expenses do not come all at once but after it is all said and done a new notary will easily spend between $500 - $600 for licensing and supplies.

Now, if you want to become a Loan Signing Agent your costs will be between $1,000 - $1,500 but we will examine these expenses in another blog.

Related posts:

It's Time to Renew My Notary License
I Passed My Notary Exam!

I Love My Canon Powershot SD750!

Canon PowerShot SD750 7.1MP Digital Elph Camera with 3x Optical Zoom (Silver)

As my family & friends know when I like a product or service I do not have any problem recommending it to others. My latest recommendation is the Powershot SD750 by Canon.

I have had the camera since August 2007 and I have not found anything I do not like about the camera. I got everything I wanted - fabulous pictures, 3x optical zoom and a wide 3 inch color LCD view screen.

Here is an example of one of my shots. It looks professional, doesn't it? :)

Weekend Mobile Notary Available

If you have ever needed a document notarized on a Saturday, Sunday, holiday or after hours you are aware it can be quite difficult to find a notary. Well, I'm here to tell you that The Document Diva is available to notarize documents when her clients need her the most.

Just last week I received a frantic call from a woman who needed her document notarized in the morning on a Sunday, and this particular Sunday happened to be a holiday. Once she found out I was available she thanked me profusely.

She and her husband are in the process of adopting a child from Ethiopia so this was a pretty important notarization. I was happy to be of service.

If you are in need of a weekend, holiday or after hours notarization please do not hesitate to give The Document Diva a call at (562) 314-4319.

Free Loan Signing Videos

NotaryGift.com is a great place to review free videos of the most common documents in the loan signing process. Whether you a new or seasoned loan signing agent or a borrower about to signing loan documents these videos are quite helpful.

The 25 videos are listed on the home page on the left-hand side.

Nothing like free stuff, enjoy!

Fax Backs Can be a Pain!

As a notary, you'll have the greatest opportunity to earn income working as a Loan Signing Agent, and after four years in this profession I have gotten used to many things - last minute signings, e-docs (loan docs that are electronically transmitted so that you can print them), keeping a smile on your face when in front of a difficult borrower, etc. But one thing that I still do not like are fax backs!

This is when the company that has contracted you requires you to fax back a portion of the loan documents after the signing for their review. I know it is a necessary evil in some instances but when I have to fax back 20 pages and more I am a little irritated.

I mean what are they doing with all this extra paper?! You are overnighting the documents back to them so what is the big deal.

I could understand if they were asking for just the notarized documents to review so they can catch any errors early but I just faxed over 50 pages for a Countrywide loan and only three of the pages were notarized! Faxing that many pages took more than 30 minutes.

Thankfully, this does not happen all of the time or I would be pulling my hair out.