The Survive and Thrive Boomer Guide

What are the best states for summer road trips?

People across the country preparing to drive to vacation destinations

WalletHub, a personal-finance website, offers the following information to help people  maximize savings and fun:

Best states for summer road trips			Worst states for summer road trips
1.	Wyoming		41.	Alabama
2.	North Carolina		42.	Kansas
3.	Minnesota		43.	Alaska
4.	Texas		44.	Kentucky
5.	Florida		45.	Indiana
6.	Louisiana		46.	New Mexico
7.	Washington		47.	Hawaii
8.	New York		48.	Delaware
9.	Utah		49.	Connecticut
10.	Colorado		50.	Rhode Island

Baby boomers offer tips on grief, retirement, survival tools, and gratitude

Getting ready to retire? Recently retired and facing challenges? Sorting travel options?

This week, our boomer blogging group offer articles on addressing suicide, creating a vision board, continuing to work rather than retiring, deciding where to live in retirement, adopting survival tools for the coming decades, and walking with gratitude.

Rebecca Olkowski blogging at Baby Boomster writes about these articles in the Best of Boomer Blogs #551. Click here to get the links to the articles. And, be sure to join in the conversations. Boomer bloggers love to hear from readers.

Copyright 2018, Rita R. Robison, Consumer Specialist

Kellogg recalls Honey Smacks cereal after Salmonella sickens dozens

Kellogg Co. is recalling some 15.3 oz. and 23 oz. packages of its Honey Smacks cereal because they may be contaminated with Salmonella.

The recall is based on preliminary evidence linking the cereal to more than 73 illnesses in 31 states. Twenty-four people, from age 1 to 87, have been hospitalized, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. No deaths have been reported.

Kellogg launched an investigation with a third-party manufacturer who produces Honey Smacks after being contacted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention about reported illnesses.

Happy Father’s Day

Will you be having a celebration with your dad today on Father’s Day?

So many families live in different communities. Skype may be the main way many older dads and their adult kids see each other today.

I've been thinking about my dad a lot lately. He and my mom were married in 1933. They had to figure out a way during the Great Depression, the 1940s, and the 1950s to make a life for themselves and their three daughters.

Facts and figures for Father’s Day 2018

What are your plans for Father's Day this year? Will you be taking your dad out to dinner or buying him a tie? Or, will you be taking a walk or a hike with your dad?

Spending

This year, 77 percent of Americans will celebrate Father’s Day and spend an average of $133 per person, treating dad to special outings, clothing, gift cards, electronics, and more, according to a survey prepared for the National Retail Federation.

The expected spending is second only to last year’s $15.5 billion, the highest in the 15-year history of the survey at an average $135 per person. Consumers between 25 and 34 years old will be the biggest spenders this year at an average $188 per person.

Dads

Here are facts on fathers from the U.S. Census Bureau:

Good deals for Father’s Day 2018

Not sure what get for your dad for Father’s Day?

Here are some suggestions from DealNews.com:

TVs

In the month leading up to Father's Day last year, DealNews.com saw plenty of TV deals for every budget.

Games

If your dad's hobbies include gaming, Father's Day is a good time to indulge him. During the month before Father's Day last year, DealNews.com saw the most deals on video games for consoles, although there was a good number of computer game deals, too.

Outdoor items

Maybe your dad loves the great outdoors. If so, there are plenty of deals on outdoor gear around Father's Day.

Tools

Unfortunately, for the do-it-yourself-loving dad, tool deals are less common this time of year.

Clothes

Apparel sales might not be common around the holiday, but there should still be a handful. Expect savings in the 20 percent to 30 percent range, or maybe a buy one, get one free promotion. 

Copyright 2018, Rita R. Robison, Consumer Specialist

Citibank to pay $100 million in multistate settlement over manipulating interest rates

Photo: TonyTheTiger

Citibank will pay $100 million for manipulating a key interest rate before and during the Great Recession, costing investors millions of dollars.

The investigation of LIBOR, the daily average interest rate that some banks charge each other to borrow money, was conducted by 42 state attorneys general.

“Financial institutions have a basic responsibility to play by the rules – and we will continue to hold those accountable who don’t,” said New York Attorney General Barbara D. Underwood.

New York attorney general charges Donald J. Trump Foundation and its board with 'persistent' violations

A lawsuit filed Thursday against the Donald J. Trump Foundation, and its directors, alleges a persistent pattern of illegal conduct, occurring over more than a decade, that includes unlawful political coordination with the Trump presidential campaign, repeated and self-dealing transactions to benefit Trump’s personal and business interests, and violations of legal requirements for non-profit foundations.

New York Attorney General Barbara D. Underwood initiated a proceeding to dissolve the Trump Foundation under court supervision and obtain restitution of $2.8 million and additional penalties. The lawsuit also seeks to ban Trump from serving as a director of a New York not-for-profit for 10 years, with a one-year ban for the foundation’s other board members, Donald Trump Jr., Ivanka Trump, and Eric Trump.

Underwood also sent letters Thursday to the Internal Revenue Service and the Federal Election Commission identifying possible violations of federal law for further investigation and legal action.

On Flag Day, think about what you can do to improve our democracy

Today is Flag Day, which commemorates the adoption of the American flag.

To me, the U.S. flag stands for democracy. As a supporter of government and a believer that everyone should participate in our government to make it the best it can be, I find it upsetting that so many conservatives hate government and are teaching others, especially children, to hate it.

Flag Day is a good day to figure out what you can do to make your nation and community better. Here are 10 ways to make it so:

Top 11 occupations held by American’s 65 and older

Baby boomers are retiring in record numbers and with higher life expectancy and better healthcare. But, a record number of people 65 and older are continuing to work

Higher education teachers 65 and older make up 11.3 percent of the workforce, and despite universities trying to buy out older professors, retirement offers are being declined, and 15 percent plan to keep teaching until they’re 80.

The top 11 occupations held by American’s 65 and over, according to SeniorLiving.org, are: