Enjoy this spooky Halloween greeting from NASA.
The Social Security Administration announced a 1.7% COLA increase for monthly Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI). This means that the 64 million Americans receiving Social Security benefits will see about 22 additional dollars in their check each month. The increase will take effect in January 2015.
A COLA is a “cost of living adjustment”. SSI benefits are adjusted to reflect increases, if any, in the cost of living as measured by the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) prepared by the Bureau of Labor Statistics .
If you need to apply for retirement or disability benefits, you can do so online. This video has helpful hints and tips as you go through the application process.
Image description: Even the animals at the National Zoo are getting into the Halloween spirit this week. With pumpkin enrichment, otters can feel the squish between their toes and smell new and different scents.
Photo from the National Zoo.
Image description: Today in 1886, Grover Cleveland dedicated the Statue of Liberty. The French gift attracts around 5 million visitors each year.
If you can’t make a trip in person, you can check out online webcams and virtual tours: http://go.usa.gov/vUYA
Photo from the National Park Service.
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National Archives is hosting a Virtual Genealogy Fair!
Join for us three days genealogy! All of our lectures will be broadcast live via YouTube with captioning on StreamText.
On October 28, 29, and 30, genealogy experts from National Archives facilities around the nation and special guests from the U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services, Ancestry.com, and FamilySearch will discuss topics ranging from preserving your own personal records to American Indian records.
Best of all, you do not need to get out of bed! The lectures will broadcast live on our National Archives YouTube channel and the handouts and presentations will be available to download at our Virtual Genealogy Fair homepage: http://ift.tt/1lUTW8U genealogy-fair.
Tuesday: http://ift.tt/wjgBk1 watch?v=cy8sqN1TUF8
Close Captioning: http://ift.tt/ZWs0IN player?event=102814nara1000am
Wednesday: http://ift.tt/wjgBk1watch?v=hIuirre9BN8
Close Captioning: http://ift.tt/ZWs0INplayer?event=102914nara1000am
Thursday: http://ift.tt/wjgBk1watch?v=rUAq9bik8ZY
Close Captioning: http://ift.tt/ZWs0INplayer?event=103014nara1000am
Have a question for our experts? No problem! Simply ask during the lectures using Twitter and the hashtag #GenFair2014 and we’ll have a dedicated question and answer time at the end of each lecture!So gather your grandmother’s photos, pop some popcorn, and check out the Virtual Genealogy Fair schedule at http://ift.tt/1lUTW8U genealogy-fair and tune in starting at 10 a.m. EDT next week!
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From the Department of Interior:
One word: WOW!
Ranger Carey Goldstein snapped this photo of the partial solar eclipse through the solar telescope set up at the Joshua Tree National Park in California.
