6 Tips for Keeping Resolutions

I know we all hear how New Year’s Resolutions are doomed to fail. But don’t give up on the notion of change just because of someone else’s failure. According to a survey by TD Ameritrade and the Opinion Research Corp of Princeton, N.J, three in four Americans will make at least one financial-related New Year's resolution in 2010. The survey also found that 60 percent of those who made financial resolutions last year reported they were still "going strong". This year if resolve to succeed at better managing your money here are a few tactics to help you reach your goal.

1) Automate. This tip comes from Ramit Sethi author of I Will Teach You to be Rich. Ramit say’s that you can “Save money while sleeping.” This is simple get your money flowing by using the tools of technology. Sign-up for direct deposit and split your paycheck between some type of savings and checking accounts. Enroll in paycheck deductions that go into your 401(k). Set up automatic transfers from regular savings into higher yielding accounts. Use electronic bill pay and you won’t have to worry about mailing checks on time. There is so much you can do to make your financial life easier and reach your goals.

2) Remove Temptation. If you like to go to the mall or browse ebay and craigslist for entertainment get a new hobby. If you regularly meet with friends for coffee, suggest a walk instead. In fact, I’d probably suggest that you replace any wallet draining habit you have with going outside. You’ll be healthier and wealthier. But the bigger point is that if you are spending money just to feel better or kill time, find another outlet.

3) Don’t just go without, redirect. Many people will tell you that you should not spend $5 on a daily latte. They’ll say you should save that money instead. But, if you’re not taking that five bucks and redirecting it toward savings or debt payoff you might as well enjoy the latte. Physically (or automatically) redirect your that money into debt payment or investments. And better than giving up a $5 latte, look for bigger money by refinancing your mortgage or selling un-needed stuff.

4) Learn more about money. Start soaking up everything you can about finances and soon you’ll make better financial decisions. Take advantage of the abundant resources Coors Credit Union offers like online seminars, this blog, the website, and free workshops. There are also many excellent blogs and websites that offer free and up-to-date information. Reading about finances can be boring, but there are a few writers who simplify and make it interesting. Check Amazon and the New York Times Bestseller list for the latest in personal finance books.

5) Don’t keep secrets. If you want to succeed with your goal to better manage your money tell the people who matter. Don’t just blast your message to everyone in hopes that if you say it it will happen. Enlist the people who are closest to you to work toward a specific goal: your kids, best friend, spouse or partner.

6) Make it visual. Some people like to stick a chart on the fridge or in the bathroom—some place where it will be seen daily. This chart visual depicts the goal. If your goal is to save money you could make one of those thermometers that fundraisers use to show progress. If it’s paying down debt you could simply write the amount of debt and each month cross off the old balance in red and write the new one. Or if you goal is to save for a vacation, buy a house or some other purchase you could post a picture that represents the purchase to remind you of its importance.

If you adopt just one of these tactics you are more apt to achieve your goal.
Good Luck and Happy New Year!

Fees Still Lower at Credit Unions

The Federal investigations of fees will not exempt credit unions, but we members can sleep more peacefully knowing that we are less gorged by fees than our banking friends.

The latest research comparing the fees on deposit products between credit union and bank customers by Researchers Victor Stango, a professor of economics at the University of California, Davis, and Jonathan Zinman, a professor of economics at Dartmouth College, report the following key findings:

- Average annual costs on bank checking accounts are more than twice as high as those on credit union share draft accounts.

- Some of the bank/credit union difference can be explained by a greater number of fee-incurring transactions on bank checking accounts.

- The greatest component of annual costs of both bank and credit union accounts is the overdraft fee, which is roughly one-third lower at credit unions.

Nobody likes to pay fees at a financial institution (FI) or anywhere else. Fees have always been around and were originally intended to discourage certain behaviors like paying bills late, spending more than is in your account or using another financial institutions ATM. But most FIs learned early on that fees were also a great way to make money. So they literally cashed in on consumer behavior. Over the years FIs found even that increasing the amounts of the fees didn’t change our behavior much, we still did all those things that trigger fees. So the FIs kept raising fees for easy profit. Now with profits shrinking in other areas of their business, fees have come to be looked on as even more valuable.

How to Choose a Realtor

Your real estate agent gets paid the same commission upon sale of your home whether they are good or not. So don’t settle for a ho-hum agent, go for the best.

You don’t find the best realtor by going with the one that everyone in your neighborhood uses. And don’t use a realtor just because they are your friend’s neighbor or because your friend used him/her three years ago. Finding that go-getter realtor isn’t hard because they’ll be easy to spot—everywhere.

Pick your realtor as you would an employee. They will be working for you. If one realtor dominates in your area call them first. Notice how quick or slow their houses in your area sell. Ask to see a listing history which shows number of days on market, asking price and selling price.

Once you’ve selected a few realtors, check up on them. Look them up on Google, Facebook and Twitter. A good realtor will be active, on a professional level. Their postings on Facebook and Twitter should have minimal personal information. Look at the number dates of their postings. Their presence on these types should be professional and current. This tells you that they stay on top of the industry.

Next, look at their company and personal websites, which again should be focused on their business. Take a look at their listings. Are the listings detailed enough to help buyers narrow their choices, too detailed, or too sparse? Look at the listings from a buyer’s perspective.

Then take a few of the listing addresses and type them into Trulia, Zillow, and Craigslist. If there aren’t there it is a big sign that this realtor won’t use all available resources. If they are listed, do they use lots of pictures? Pictures do sell. Also check for a listing on 123mainstreet.com. The more online listings and pictures the more likely that this realtor will get your house sold quickly for the best price.

If the realtor has a huge list of homes for sale find out if they have assistants. You don’t want to pick a realtor who is too busy to give you the attention that you deserve.

It takes a more than a lawn sign to sell a house. And these days the competition on the housing market is abundant. So if you really want to sell your house you need a savvy agent.

Join the campaign to Take Back the Beep

New York Times writer, David Pogue, is mad and thinks you should be too. He’s really ticked off about the 15 seconds of his money and his life that are being stolen every time he leaves a cell phone voice mail message.

Says Pogue, “Suppose you call my cell to leave me a message. First you hear my own voice: "Hi, it's David Pogue. Leave a message, and I'll get back to you"--and THEN you hear a 15-second canned carrier message…These messages are outrageous for two reasons. First, they waste your time. Good heavens: it's 2009. WE KNOW WHAT TO DO AT THE BEEP.”

Pogue figures that although it may just be 15 seconds, if Verizon's 70 million customers leave or check messages twice a weekday Verizon makes about $620 million a year or takes three hours of your time a year.

So he’s on a crusade to Take Back the Beep and here’s what he wants us all to do:

We're going to descend, en masse, on our carriers. Send them a complaint, politely but firmly. Together, we'll send them a LOT of complaints.

If enough of us make our unhappiness known, I'll bet they'll change.

I've told each of the four major carriers that they'll be hearing from us. They've told us where to send the messages:
* Verizon: Post a complaint here: http://bit.ly/FJncH.
* AT&T: Send e-mail to Mark Siegel, executive director of media relations: MS8460@att.com.
* Sprint: Post a complaint here: http://bit.ly/9CmrZ
* T-Mobile: Post a complaint here: http://bit.ly/2rKy0u

Join the Take Back the Beep campaign. It will take more than 15 seconds of your time to voice your complaint, but you’ll be gaining much more.

Who Gets the Debt? (or Financial Lesson #2 from the King of Pop)

Everybody knows that Michael Jackson leaves a legacy of debt, which has left some people wondering why there is so much hoopla about who is entitled to his estate. Actually, it's not about debt at all. MJ was responsible for creating the debt and even in death it's still his.

Debt cannot be passed on to heirs--only assets are passed on. However, assets can be depleted to pay off debt. Whatever is left over is distributed to heirs, even spouses.

But let me tell you about my personal experience. My parents divorced when I was a teen and my father remarried. He'd always been meticulously financially responsible. He built his own business, owned his house outright and had several rental properties. Then at a early age he suffered from Alzheimer's disease. His new wife new nothing about money, but was too proud to let anyone know. The business quickly failed. She couldn't manage the properties. So they were stuck. She let the health insurance laps because she couldn't afford it and so my father's health rapidly deteriorated. All the properties including the business began to fall apart. One-by-one she sold the rentals, but not the business. She took a reverse mortgage on their home. She stopped paying for oil (east coast heating). Eventually my father died. After the funeral his wife disappeared. She walked away from the house and everything.

For years while this was going on I never heard from my father or his wife. I had been living in Colorado for many years and they were in Pennsylvania. They never answered the phone, didn't return messages or letters. I assumed that his wife wanted me out of their lives. I did learn about his death and attended his funeral.

So none of my father's bills were paid--not even the funeral. Nothing was left to me or my siblings in the will, because my dad's wife wanted it that way. But creditors still contacted me. The funeral home gently wondered if I could pay the bill or at least part of it. Nursing homes that occasionally cared for my father also asked. And now, three years later I'm getting calls from a lawyer regarding my dad's house. Most of the queries are small. No government agencies, would ever think to contact me.

I am not obligated for any of my father's debts, but that doesn't mean his creditors can't ask, ever so gently. That's okay since I know to say, "No Way."

How Long do You Need to be Employed to Get a Car Loan?

This question was recently posed to me by a reader. It's a good one and brings up a few topics. First off, every loan application asks for employment status and history.

I asked the Coors Credit Union lending manager to give a general comment and this is what she said, "There is no minimum to apply. However it is preferred that an applicant has at least 6 months employment history, again preferably at the same employer."

But, the answer also depends on your situation and your credit score. You probably are aware of how important a good credit score is for qualifying for a loan and for getting a good rate, but employment can subtly affect your loan as well. Generally, lenders like to see consistent employment history of two years, but that doesn't mean others can't get a loan.

First-time buyers can get a better rate by waiting until they've been at a job for six months. For many first-time buyers the biggest hurdle is credit history. Often they just don't have much. You can qualify for a better rate and begin to build your credit by finding a co-signer. The loan will be yours. You'll make the payments and build credit history. However, if you can't make the payments your co-signer will be liable. If payments aren't made both of your credit scores will suffer.

Lenders look at numbers to determine risk. The higher the risk the higher your interest rate. Two things determine the risk level:

1) credit score

2) debt-to-income ratio

In some cases, you may be asked to provide proof of income. For example, self-employed people may need to provide documentation of income.

It is not impossible for unemployed people to get a car loan, however, you cannot claim unemployment benefits as income.

One thing to keep in mind when buying your first car, or any car, is that you are not locked into the rate you get. After a year your credit score could improve and if you stay with the same job your employment history will be more secure. At this time you could refinance your loan for a lower rate and possibly drop the co-signer if you have one.

Sun Might be Shining on Colorado Housing Market

On Tuesday my friendly neighborhood realtor dropped by. I asked her what her opinion was of the market right now since it seems that just a short while ago every house on the street was for sale. I find it interested to check my observances against those of someone in the business, against what the media reports. Below are some findings:

Me: So, I've noticed less for sale signs on my street, does that mean the market has slowed?

Coldwell Banker Realtor: It's definitely slowed down in this area. Houses comparable to yours are in demand and there is less inventory. That's good news if you're looking to sell. Are you thinking about selling?

translation: My house is currently valued at less than $350,000. In this price range it's easier to find qualified buyers who can get loans. The inventory is low so she's eager to get a house she can sell.

I look down my street again and notice that maybe there is one house on either side of the street for sale, so two houses. But I also see 4 rental signs. A year ago there was only one visible rental on the street. I know there are other houses that are rentals. They don't seem to have trouble being rented and never have signs on them. The additional signs tell me more properties are going this way, which I interpret as trouble for my home value.

To get another perspective I turned to another realtor I know who handles a more upscale area. Here is what Jenny Lane had to say:
I think the inventory is reduced because of the time of year. This is a desirable family community so many of the people who want to buy here are looking in the spring/summer months. What is actually hurting the most are higher priced homes, above $500K or so. Mainly this is due to lenders becoming more strict with their lending practices, the way it should have been all along. It's much more difficult for anyone to qualify for a loan these days since the interest rates are tiered based on a very high starting point (740+ is an "A" mortgage, whereas 675 or so used to be), plus a conventional loan which is what you'd need at that price, would require 10% down nowadays, maybe 5% but rare. Jumbo loans are also more expensive now, coupled with the % down payment, there are less buyers at that price range that can afford it now than before. Homes that used to be valued above $500K or so have become very devalued and that will continue. Overall inventory will continue to sell off and start to appreciate again, but the higher end homes will suffer the most.

And then I ran into this article on Mile High Urban Living that restates that the Today Show picked Denver as the #1 Rebounding Housing Market. Watch the video to learn how they picked Denver. I chose this Youtube version over the official Today Show video because it cuts out the advertising. The visual quality is poor but, the audio is perfect. If you prefer you can view the Today Show segment.



I think Jenny Lane really hits it for what's happening to the Denver Metro market. While the Today Show claims that homes in this area are going for around $193,000 I don't know where these houses are. This amount is not based on looking at actual homes and doesn't consider the needs of families or amount of work that might need to be done to the house. The median home price in Golden is $400,000 with still more sellers than buyers.

This quote is from the National Realestate Summary:
"Like the legendary phoenix which rose renewed from its ashes, the U.S. housing market appears to be on the verge of emerging from the worst real estate market in three years."

All of your recycle/reuse questions answered

My daughter and I were driving by the donation box in a parking lot when she said, "Yuck, a mattress. That shouldn't be donated." I had to agree. I'd never buy a used mattress and I'm not even sure the donation centers accept them. But what do you do with old mattresses? Add them to the landfill?

Well, for this burning question and an infinite amount of others there is a resource. How Can I Recycle This? Let's you ask all kinds of reclying questions. Readers post their answers through the comment system. Sometimes the answers are completely practical. Other times they are quite creative.

The answer to the mattress dilemna that I liked best is the Stone Golem. Yeah, that's a little weird, but would be a hit at Halloween.

Check it out and post your questions. It's fun to see what people will come up!

How much is that iguana in the window?

My son has suddenly become charmed with the idea of having a pet shark. He doesn't want one of the little fish tank variety. He wants a big one. I'm not worried because the kid can't follow through on anything lately. (Really I love him, but it's been a long summer already.)


Go ahead honey, Google "pet sharks" all you like.


Having a pet is serious there's much more to consider than the cuteness or coolness of the animal. In addition to time and love they demand a good amount of money too. Veterinary bills, shots, food, supplies--it all ads up even for ordinary pets like cats and dogs. But what about the more exotic varieties. Well, they require even more of almost everything. (Maybe not so much love. I've never nuzzled a shark or invited a lizard to curl up on my lap. But, that's just me. Who knows maybe I'm missing out.)


Exotic pets often require exotic accessories like cages, environments and toys. Usually the food they eat doesn't come from the grocery store either. There is no Purina Rat Chow or frozen cricket in the freezer isle.


You can buy health insurance for your exotic pet. Like other pet insurance policies coverage is available for as much as you can afford. Basics to cover are vaccinations, health screenings, yearly checkups and booster shots as needed. Some policies will completely cover all of these costs. Other types of policies will only cover emergency types of care, such as surgery due to an accident. Some policies require you to make a minimum co-payment for each veterinary visit, while others fully cover such costs. If you own a really exotic pet some insurance policies and also cover theft of the pet.


Another thing to consider before committing to a less than ordinary pet is their long-term financial care. This is a choice to care for another life and shouldn't be discarded because of income loss--or even owner loss.


Know the lifespan of your potential pet. For example, some birds can live up to 50 years. Will you? That's quite a long-term relationship. If you should die before your pet who will take care of it? That's why some owners include their pets in their will. That, and the fact that pets generally won't argue over who gets what.


Average Lifespan of Exotic Animals
Rat - 3 years
Gerbil - 3 years
Tarantula female - 30 years after maturation (33 years total)
Rabbit - 10 years
Gecko - 15 years
Iguana - 15 years
Boa Constrictor - 23 years
Pot Bellied Pig - 15 years
Cockatoo - 40 years
African Grey Parrot - 50 years
Box Turtle - 50 years (100 is possible)


A friend's son once had an iguana. She didn't like the smell of it so she tried to give it a bath. After chasing the beast around the house she finally got it into the tub and then it bit her. Oh, don't get me started on wild exotic animal stories. Please, if you must own something unusual plan, on how to take care of it.

Whew! Share Insurance extended to 2013

Okay, maybe you aren't as excited about the news that increased deposit insurance at both banks and credit unions will continue at least through December 31, 2013. But this is great news!

Back in October 2008 Deposit Insurance was raised for both the FDIC and NCUA temporarily and set to expire December 31, 2009. The extension is part of The Helping Families Save Their Homes Act of 2009, signed into law May 20, 2009. The action continues the increase from $100,000 to $250,000 on member share accounts. This isn't just good news it is big news since the $100,000 amount was set way back in the 1970's.

In my September post entitled Is your money safe? PART 2 I run through the NCUA's insurance estimator to give an example of how your actual insured deposit amount could be even higher than the $250,000. You can run your own estimates by using the NCUA share insurance estimator located on the website. If you haven't looked at this estimator, you should. Doing so could help you sleep a bit better.

A Look at the Credit Card Reform Law

In just a little over 50 years credit cards have gone from something used by a few elite consumers to a major financial industry. Like any successful business this one constantly looks for new ways to generate income. But unlike most businesses the credit card industry has been especially good at developing sneaky income generators that confuse and trick and enslave their customers.

That brings us to May 22nd when President Obama signed the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility, and Disclosure (CARD) Act of 2009. Like all laws this one had a few transformations as it moved through the House and Senate. Here are some highlights of the final version of the law.

• No More Retroactive Rate Increases: Rates cannot increase on existing balances due to "any time, any reason" or "universal default".
• Restrictions of Retroactive Rate Increases Due to Late Payment: Your rate may be raised for late payment, but you must have had late payments for 60 days. After six months of on-time minimum payment, the rate must be returned to the amount before the late payments occurred.
• First Year Protection: Contract terms must be clearly spelled out and stable for the entirety of the first year. Firms may continue to offer promotional rates with new accounts or during the life of an account, but these rates must be clearly disclosed and last at least 6 months.
• Bills: Must be mailed a full 21 days before their due date. Billing dates cannot be changed without 45 days notice. Weekend deadlines and time stamped middle-of-the-day deadlines are banned.
• Over-the-Limit: Over-the-limit credit purchases will require consumer opt-in. Over-the-Limit purchases can still impose fees, but won't these purchases cannot be processes without prior consumer agreement.
• Enforces Fair Interest Calculation: Credit card companies will be required to apply excess payments to the highest interest balance first. This portion also ends double-cycle billing.
• Disclosures: Will be posted online and written in clear terms with specific areas highlighted.
• Pay-off: Statements will clearly indicate how long it would take to pay-off the debt if only the minimum payment is made.
• Young Consumers: No one under the age of 18 can open a credit card on their own. College students will be limited to one card with a limit based on their income.

What this all means to consumers it that many sneaky credit card tricks that were designed to keep you paying until the grave are gone. You also cannot claim that you have no idea that paying just the minimum is keeping you debt. And you have a responsibility to read through all disclosures, which will be readily accessible and unable to fall into the shredder bin.

What this means to credit card companies is that the specific unfair practices are no longer a source of income. They claim that their profits will be squeezed, but it may also improve their loan loss. Will it end creative income generation--probably not, in time new tricks will be invented.

What it means to your Credit Union--NOT MUCH. Coors Credit Union has not participated in any of the deceitful practices addressed by the White House. Every credit union, that I know of, has always offered credit cards that operate in full disclosure and straight forward operation. Credit cards are offered by credit unions as a convenience to members and as a competitive product to enhance offerings in the market.

In the end it's nice that the government is regulating industries that take unfair advantage of their customers, but really it's the responsibility of all of us to watch out for our own welfare.

Still Phishing After All These Years

This post originally ran back on June 22, 2008. The point was to let you all know that phishing is still a prevalent scam. Sadly though phishing hasn't decreased. It's gotten worse and know this type of imposter scam has spread to text messaging and telephone forms. Beware of anyone claiming to contact you from any company that you have a financial relationship with. No company that you do business with will ask for your account number, passwords or PINs by contacting you. They only ask for this info when you contact them.

WHEN IN DOUBT, DON'T GIVE IT OUT

Check out this email message from PayPal.

Yep, it's a fake. But you can safely click on these images. I captured them from an actual message that showed up in my email box yesterday morning. Get a look at how realistic this bait is. But then there's that tricky "Dispute" link.

I decided to click the link. But Internet Explorer picked up the phony. If the link were to work it would likely ask me for personal information like my PayPal login and credit card or account info.

Really, I'm am surprised that phishing is still so popular. Yet it must be lucrative since it's still going on. This particular message looks quite authentic. And since I hadn't made the noted purchase I might have actually fallen for the the "Dispute". But I'm not at all trusting of email that I didn't initiate and you shouldn't be either. Consider this a reminder--be suspicious.

Phishers are getting more sophisticated, but you can outwit them. And if you do encounter a phishing bait notify the Anti-Phishing Workgroup.

How to Reduce Your Car Payments

Remember my post from last week in which I reduced our monthly utility bill? I hope that you concluded that really none of your fixed monthly bills are hard set. Really we should all take a look at all expenses when looking for a reduction.

How about your car payments? Have you looked at your interest rate lately? Do you even remember what it was? Loan rates are low right now and you might just be able to refinance your car loan.

Most of us don't often associate refi's with car loans. It's an action that's more associated with mortgages. But, it is possible to lower your car payments.

First, take a look at your current loan. Interest rates are now less than 5.5% annual percentage rate. If you are currently paying more there is a good chance that you could do better.

And, if your credit score has improved since you first financed your car, it may help you qualify for a better rate.

These days every little bit saved can help you out in a big way. Check out this link regarding the Coors Credit Union auto loan refinance program.

Let's Go Shopping: At the Warehouse

This post originally ran back on May 16, 2008 as part of the Let's Go Shopping theme week.

A few years ago my husband and I got a membership to one of those warehouse stores. We didn't really research it, we just went with it. Probably because we heard it was supposed to be such a good deal. But it didn't take long before we were caught up in the abundance and spending too much money there. Plus, I grew increasingly suspicious of the quality of meats and other items. So we let our membership go and didn't really look back--until recently.

About nine months ago I started paying more attention to how much we spent at the grocery store on standard items like toilet paper, paper towels, etc. So I decided to conduct an experiment to see if shopping at the warehouse store would really save us money.

So here's what I did. I made a specific list and stuck to it. I didn't even look around to see what other items were there. The first visit felt successful, but I needed more guidelines. In the past I treated the warehouse store like a grocery store and went every week. This go around I made new rules. I would only go to the warehouse if I had a list of at least 10 items. Of course they had to be valid needs and not wants. I have to admit coming up with a list of 10 needs was tough, but that's the whole point. Doing so reduced my visits to once every three months.

After my first visit I created a spreadsheet to track my purchases against what I would have paid at the grocery store. I also wanted to be sure that I recovered my $50 membership fee. Here are the results:

Happily I recovered the membership fee just in this visit. For comparison I used King Soopers and tried to match up brands. Often I calculated price based on quantity and I used King Soopers' sale price whenever possible. Notice that toothpaste was not a big bargain.

Usually stuff like toilet paper and paper towels do run out just around 3 months. For the things that we go through more quickly like Cliff bars and Vitamin water our house rule is "when it's gone, it's gone until the next scheduled trip."

Of course this is all just an estimate and I should track this over time, but I still think it shows that the Costco savings are worth it. However, I could easily slip back in to overspending if I didn't stick to my essential list (with a few exceptions like the delicious large container of blackberries I purchased last time for just $4.99).

Don't Sell Your Stuff, Rent It

We all have stuff around the house that we don't use, right? But sometimes it's hard to part with either because you think there's a chance, no matter how slim, that you'll use it again. Meanwhile, it's taking up space and just not earning it's keep.



Well it's time to dust off that lazy mitre saw, oil that bicycle chain and put grandma's china to work. Yep, your stuff could earn you money!


Borrowing the principal of Craigslist, Zilok lets you list and rent your stuff online. It's an that hasn't quite caught on. Zilok launched in 2007 and operates in the United States, France, Belgium, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands. There is still just slim coverage. A search for items available in the Golden area were mostly baby items, some power tools, and camera equipment.


Zilok's promotion has been picking up. They've gained the attention of PC Magazine and other large publications. The Huffington Post called Zilok"a green solution to overconsumption and the sagging economy."


Is Zilok one of those simple genius ideas? Of course anyone can go to the local rental company and find what they want. And there is the risk having your personal property damaged or not returned. But, still it seems like a great idea except that it's not craigslist.


Craiglist started as a hobby by Craig Newmark in early 1995. It was a simple email list of SF events. Zilok was created to be a business and doesn't have the grassroots, viral momentum. Still the idea that those excess gadgets around your home could make money is enticing. So I gotta wish the best to Zilok (weird name though, sounds like something from Battlestar Galactica--or whatever space fantasy).