A Gift....

author unknown


The other day a young person asked me how I felt about being old. I was taken aback, for I do not think of myself as old.

Upon seeing my reaction, he was immediately embarrassed, but I explained that it was an interesting question, and I would ponder it, and let him know.

Growing Older, I decided, is a gift. I am now, probably for the first time in my life, the person I have always wanted to be.

Oh, not my body! I sometime despair over my body ... the wrinkles, the baggy eyes, and the cellulite. And often I am taken aback by that old person that lives in my mirror, but I don't agonize over those things for long.

I would never trade my amazing friends, my wonderful life, and my loving family for less gray hair or a flatter belly.

As I've aged, I've become kinder to myself, and less critical of myself. I've become my own friend. I don't chide myself for eating that extra cookie, or for not making my bed, or for buying that silly cement gecko that I didn't need, but looks so avant-garde on my patio. I am entitled to be messy, to be extravagant and smell the flowers.

I have seen too many dear friends leave this world too soon, before they understood the great freedom that comes with aging. Whose business is it if I choose to read or play on the computer until 4 AM and then sleep until -- ?

I will dance with myself to those wonderful tunes of the 50's & 60's, and if I, at the same time, wish to weep over a lost love... I will.

I will walk the beach in a swim suit that is stretched over a bulging body, and will dive into the waves with abandon if I choose to, despite the pitying glances from the bikini set. They, too, will get old (if they're lucky).

I know I am sometimes forgetful.But then again, some of life is just as well forgotten and I eventually remember the important things.

Sure, over the years my heart has been broken. How can your heart not break when you lose a loved one, or when a child suffers, or even when a beloved pet gets hit by a car? But broken hearts are what give us strength and understanding and compassion. A heart never broken is pristine and sterile and will never know the joy of being imperfect.

I am so blessed to have lived long enough to have my hair turn gray, and to have my youthful laughs be forever etched into deep grooves on my face. So many have never laughed, and so many have died before their hair could turn silver.

I can say "no," and mean it.

I can say "yes." and mean it.

As you get older, it is easier to be positive.

You care less about what other people think. I don't question myself anymore. I've even earned the right to be wrong.

So...... to answer your question, I like being older. It has set me free. I like the person I have become. I am not going to live forever, but while I am still here, I will not waste time lamenting what could have been, or worrying about what will be. And I shall eat dessert every single day... (if I want).

Today,I wish you a day of ordinary miracles.

Love simply.

Love generously.

Care deeply.

Speak kindly.

Leave the rest to God.

44 Magnum vs Mouse

Maybe it's all the smoke from the fires, but something's gotten into the intelligence factor of some folks out here in California. It's the kind of stuff that comedies are made of.


An unidentified 44-year-old woman was apparently disturbed by the sight of mice scurrying across her travel trailer floor. Rather than resorting to peanut butter and spring traps, she found the .44 caliber magnum pistol in her shoulder holster to be a tad bit quicker to get at. Enter the forces of gravity, and perhaps (peanut?) butter-fingers.


The loaded pistol fell to the trailer floor, whereupon it immediately discharged one bullet. With unerring--seeming fatalistic--accuracy, the gun's projectile then made a non-stop, through-and-through visit in and out of the woman's right kneecap. After departing the kneecap, the bullet traveled across the trailer, impacting a ring of keys.

Unfortunately, the ring of keys was attached to a 42-year-old man's belt loop. On impact with the keys, the bullet ricocheted off the key ring. From there the wayward bullet tore an entry hole into the man's pants, traveled across his body, causing what police described as a, "superficial wound" to the front of his groin. The bullet was later seized as evidence by police when it was found hiding out in the man's coin pocket.


On arrival medics found the woman lying partially in and partially out of the trailer. The report did not indicate in what position the as-yet-unidentified man was found in. Some might suggest it was possibly in prayer.

Folks, we don't make these things up. Further information appears in both the Santa Rosa Press Democrat, and the Lake County News.

Realtors on Defense.........An Update

The following is courtesy of Trish Baehr Shaefer Broker/Owner of Prudential Community Realty in Madison. With the recent murder of one of our Colleagues, a Realtor in the Cambridge area, Trish took it upon herself to make our world (the world of Realtors) a little safer.


Greetings Colleagues,


Let’s face it; our city is no longer the peaceful quiet place it used to be. The sad reality of crime going up in our city and our profession is upsetting to all of us. We no longer feel safe on the job or in our own backyard.

Can you believe over 200 Realtors have been killed while showing homes or conducting open houses over the past 20 years? Countless other professionals have been raped, beaten or mugged. The numbers are truly alarming. (Read some of the articles, below, written about this issue.)

Prudential Community Realty is proud to sponsor free self-defense classes for Realtors who want to learn how to protect themselves in the face of danger, but don't necessarily want to enroll in a karate program. If this is you, we welcome you to Realtors® on Defense; “Where the best offense is a good defense!”

Realtors® on Defense is designed to educate Realtors® on how to be safe while showing properties, holding Open Houses and conducting your everyday business. It is a combination of demonstration, audience participation and personal safety tips.

In this class you will practice: (click here to see class photos)
How to defend yourself against hand/leg attacks (punches, kicks)
How to defend yourself against grabs (bear hug, choke, full nelson, hair grab, etc.)
How to defend yourself against attacks with weapons (knife, stick, gun attacks)
Practical self defense moves that work

You will also learn:
Safe Property Showing Standards
How to spot danger and avoid it
Situational awareness
Rules of self defense (legal vs. illegal self-defense practices)
Appropriate distancing from potentially harmful situations

Our philosophy on self defense is: "It's better to have it and not need it then to need it and not have it". Come learn the skills to protect your life. Remember, no lure of commission is worth compromising your safety.

Realtors® on Defense is self-defense training provided free to members of RASCW (Realtors® Association of South Central Wisconsin) courtesy of Prudential Community Realty. Come as you are and feel free to bring a friend in the business. This could be the most valuable hour you spend every month.

This class is held on the third Thursday of each month from 2:30 - 3:30 at the Weston Place Building 12th Floor Community Room.We look forward to you joining us.

Sign up today for the next class: realtorsondefense@prucomrealty.com;

The next class is August 21st.

What Others Are Saying........

"Thank you so much for doing this. Great information. I'll continue [to attend] as long as you have the class." Florann Ament--First Weber Group

"Thank you for having this service available." Diane Huset--First Weber Group

"Thanks so much! I'll be back." Kelly Maly--Kruse Company Realtors

"Thank you for this opportunity to learn something helpful!" Kim Haas--Coldwell Banker Success Realty

"I believe it is really helpful if everyone practices and also come prepared. Thank you." Alberta Baker-- Keller Williams

"Very Good!!!" Sara Olson--Badger Abstract

"The class was great and I really appreciated it. Thank you so much." Javin Hintz--Keller Williams

“In just one hour you learned some life saving techniques. Thanks for making this available to us!”
Sandy Webber--Dane County Title

"It was so great. I just feel stronger after knowing what I learned from one class. I am so thankful and forever grateful that you have put this all together for us." Rachel Corey--Bunbury & Associates

On To St. George Island.......

Continued from (click here)

Fluffy Landing and other fine places........



We are approaching the Gulf of Mexico and it was time to take a left hand turn onto Florida State Highway 98 and head for Apalachicola. Gee…. That’s a fun word isn’t it? Our destination would be the State park campground on St. George Island just off the coast from Apalachicola.

Since we had all the time in the world and this was supposed to be an adventure, we decided to get off the main roads. Highway 98 runs all along the coast but does not always give us a view of the Gulf of Mexico. There were local roads on the computer map that would take us off the beaten track and promised an adventure. “Toots” the GPS unit was interfaced with the computer maps so we had nothing to fear…..

It was so enjoyable getting off the highway. A couple of miles down the road we came to a little town, I am not even sure if it was a town or just a widening of the road. There on the right hand side of the road was a ‘general store’. I could pull off and park less than a block away.

Now you have to understand that to me, shopping is going into a store, picking out the item, and proceeding to the check out as quickly as possible. That’s just the way men are wired. To Irene, shopping is entertainment. After all the years together I still cannot rap my mind around that one.

While walking up to the ‘general store’ I asked her what we needed. She replied
“I don’t know, but I will know it when I see it.”

The store was right out of an old movie complete with a covered porch and a couple of comfortable wicker ‘whittling chairs’. The owners lived upstairs and the store had been in the family for almost 100 years. Store hours posted in the window were “8 AM till whenever” Closed Sundays. It was dimly lit, especially in the back of the store, and it smelled of leather and baking spices and other wonderful smells right from my childhood memories. Up on one shelf there were kerosene lamps complete with white glass shades, there were large blue and white porcelain coated canning pots on another shelf. Of course there was every canning, pickling, and preserving spice imaginable. And boxes and boxes of canning jars and lids. The store also had an ample grocery selection with fresh and frozen meat and seafood.

You could buy wool blankets, bib overalls, straw hats, and baby shoes - and the list goes on. Hunting and fishing equipment was on display - the guns were not even under lock and key.

I walked around the end of one of the isles and found the hardware and automotive department, with anything you would need for minor repairs and oil changes. Another corner of the store was devoted to the farm items, including a selection of barbed wire and steel fence posts.
I am sure this is where Sam Walton got his inspiration for the Super Wal-Mart stores.

This was indeed, a ‘General Store’. I found it simply fascinating and Irene found just what she wanted, a genuine rag doll for her granddaughter. Upon checkout the owner rang up the sale on a cash register where he had to push the numbered buttons in unison. It sang out “ka-ching…. ka-ching…..” as the cash drawer opened. I guess shopping really can be entertainment after all. What a change from the more sophisticated stores that caters to life in the fast lane.

Back to the motor home, let Gizmo out to do her thing, and back on the road – looking forward to the next adventure.

“Toots” on the other hand, didn’t have the same sense of adventure as us and she was always trying to get us back on the designated route – Highway 98. She would say “Turn left in ½ mile.” When I would pass the turn she would say “Make the first legal U turn.” She sure was persistent and wanted to have things her way. I hate arguing with a machine…. I hate it even worse when I lose the argument.

OK… time to get back on Hwy 98. I thought I would get “Toots” off my back and I turned left to get back to Hwy 98. This road was going to take me through a residential area, but “Toots” seemed to think she knew what she was doing. I looked at the road in front of me. There was a double yellow ‘no passing’ line running down the center of the road, and the road seemed to disappear into a valley. It sure looked OK from where I sat.

I came to the crest of the hill and saw what every motor home driver fears most. Just a half block ahead the road came to a dead end. Why? I ask myself, would there be a double yellow no passing line on a dead end road? There surely was no traffic to pass. It must be some sort of conspiracy to see how many people get trapped. And now “Toots” tells me again to “Take the first legal U turn.”

“Hey Toots,……” remember that our total length – motor home and “Toad” (RV’ers talk for ‘towed vehicle’ – my Saturn Vue) is pushing 55 ft. I am about the same size of a semi truck and trailer. There is no way I can make a U turn on a narrow two lane road. A semi truck could have backed up the 2 ½ blocks. I cannot back up at all with the toad attached without damaging the tow bar or the steering on the car.

An old man in bib overalls and a straw hat came out of one of the houses to sit on his porch and watch. I can imagine what he was thinking….
“Who in his right mind would ever drive a motor home with a Toad down a dead end street?” “Oh….. Wisconsin plates….. That explains things…..”

I will have to unhook the Toad and back the motor home out while trying to look cool all the time.

Even after unhooking the car, things are still not easy. Irene can turn the car around in a driveway. I will not even attempt to turn a 37 foot motor home around in someone’s driveway. I will take my time and back up the 2 1/2 blocks to get to the main road. Not so bad, I have great mirrors on both sides and the backup camera monitor on the dash make it fairly simple – if it were not for…… Gizmo......

Gizmo, our Papillion mix, has been with us for 10 years now. She was just a little pocket pet when we brought her home. Her ears stood up just like the main character in the movie “Gremlins”. We just had to name her after that famous animated creature – thus her name, Gizmo.

I still don’t know if she is a Momma’s dog of a Daddy’s dog. I sit down in my lazy boy – she can hear me put the foot rest up all the way from the other end of the house and she comes running to jump up on my lap. Now this is not just a normal dog run – this is an all out gallop – I swear it is faster than when she chases a squirrel in the back yard. Nearing her target, with one gigantic leap she is airborne. Fourteen pounds of flying dog land squarely on my chest. It’s enough to take my breath away.

When I take a nap she is right up on the bed with me. Everywhere I go, Gizmo has to follow. For ten years now I have been trying unsuccessfully to break her of following me into the bathroom. I would definitely have to say that she is a Daddy’s dog.

So……

Irene gets in the car and I am in the motor home with Gizmo and the cats. This is when Gizmo decides she is a Momma’s dog. Believe me when I tell you that a full blown case of separation anxiety is no fun in a motor home.

She jumps up on the passenger seat, jumps down, runs around the motor home looking for Mom, whimpering and whining, panting heavily and drooling excessively. Her anxiety attack causes her to “blow her coat” and she starts to shed. She was losing her hair faster than me during my chemotherapy.

Now I am trying to back the motor home out of the dead end street and she has to Jump up on my lap, panting, whining, clawing at my chest and drooling all over me. In a flash my freshly laundered shirt is covered with dog hair and slobber. What’s worse is that for some reason Gizmo’s breath and her slobber smell horrible when she is having a panic attack. On the positive side, she has not peed on the floor….or my lap… yet…..



Stay tuned for the next stop and enjoy....

"Life in the Slow Lane......"

Mortgage info from Metro-Mortgage

Interest Rates and the Guru Report

by Bob Martin - Metro-Mortgage

Interest rates have had a pretty steady week, they lost a little bit of ground from a week ago, but they remain kinda "locked in" to the range their currently in, right around 6.5% -6.75%...

Anyway, the Guru report is packed with additional info today, so I'll defer to him!

Should there be anything I can help you with, please do not hesitate to let me know.....

Thanks,
Bob
608-575-1978

Guru Report:

Mortgage Bonds are trading higher thanks to some tame news on inflation. The Empire State Index Report for July was 2.8, better than expectations of -0.5. This tells us that manufacturing in NY is a little stronger than anticipated. Normally a better than expected economic report would be bad for Bond prices, however, when traders dug deeper into the report, they found the Prices Paid Index subcomponent fell due to retreating commodity prices - so the drop in inflationary pressures gave Traders a reason to push Bond prices higher so far today.

Speaking of falling commodity prices, today we are seeing a sharp drop in Oil and Precious Metals as the US Dollar gains more strength against foreign currencies. Gold is near $800 per ounce, a low for 2008. And Oil lies near $112 a barrel, the lowest levels since May. It will be interesting to see how Oil performs as it approaches its 200-day Moving Average, presently at $110.18. This level could act as a strong floor of support and prevent Oil prices from falling further.
Industrial Production, Capacity Utilization and Consumer Sentiment were all reported essentially in line with expectations and had little effect on the markets.

At 1:30pm ET, Chicago Fed President Charles "Thank you Chuck" Evans will be talking on the US economic outlook. A question and answer session is expected to follow so his comments may stir the bond market later today.

Technically, we appear to be in the exact same position as last Friday - Mortgage Bonds are higher on day, but battling a heavy layer of resistance, represented first by the 25-day Moving Average. With no news on Monday, there is risk that prices will be pushed lower from this tough ceiling. Here's what we wrote last Friday "With no news coming Monday, it may be difficult for prices to overtake this strong overhead layer of resistance. For now we can carefully float, but it may be wise to lock later today, especially if prices are unable to add to their current gains." As you can see on the Bond chart, this advice proved to be correct as Bonds dropped significantly on Monday.

Adopting the same position now may be conservative, but if you look at the Bond Page you can see how prices have touched the 25-day MA six out of the last twelve trading days and were unable to bust through this ceiling - so it may be tough for prices to gain much more ground.

Too good to keep to myself...... Snips and Snails and Puppy Dog Tales....

Some things are just too good to keep to yourself. This is surely one of them.

Jasper and the Unbaked Yeast Rolls

author unknown

We have a fox terrier by the name of Jasper. He came to us in the summer of 2001 from the fox terrier rescue program. For those of you, who are unfamiliar with this type of adoption, imagine taking in a 10-year-old child about whom you know nothing and committing to doing your best to be a good parent.

Like a child, the dog came with his own idiosyncrasies. He will only sleep on the bed, on top of the covers, nuzzled as close to my face as he can get without actually performing a French kiss on me.

Lest you think this is a bad case of 'no discipline,' I should tell you that Perry and I tried every means to break him of this habit including locking him in a separate bedroom for several nights. The new door cost over $200. But I digress...

Five weeks ago we began remodeling our house. Although the cost of the project is downright obnoxious, it was 20 years overdue AND it got me out of cooking Thanksgiving for family, extended family, and a lot of friends that I like more than family most of the time.

I was assigned the task of preparing 124 of my famous yeast dinner rolls for the two Thanksgiving feasts we did attend. I am still cursing the electrician for getting the new oven hooked up so quickly. It was the only appliance in the whole darn house that worked, thus the assignment. I made the decision to bake the rolls on Wed evening to reheat Thurs am. Since the kitchen was freshly painted, you can imagine the odor. Not wanting the rolls to smell like Sherwin Williams #586, I put the rolls on baking sheets and set them in the living room to rise hours.

Perry and I decided to go out to eat, returning in about an hour. The rolls were ready to go in the oven. It was 8:30 PM. When I went to the living room to retrieve the pans, much to my shock one whole pan of 12 rolls was empty.

I called out to Jasper and my worst nightmare became a reality. He literally wobbled over to me. He looked like a combination of the Pillsbury dough boy and the Michelin Tire man wrapped up in fur. He groaned when he walked. I swear even his cheeks were bloated. I ran to the phone and called our vet. After a few seconds of uproarious laughter, he told me the dog would probably be OK, however, I needed to give him Pepto Bismol every 2 hours for the rest of the night. God only knows why I thought a dog would like Pepto Bismol any more than my kids did when they were sick. Suffice it to say that by the time we went to bed the dog was black, white and pink. He was so bloated we had to lift him onto the bed for the night.

We arose at 7:30 and as we always do first thing; put the dog out to relieve himself. Well, the dog was as drunk as a sailor on his first leave. He was running into walls, falling flat on his butt, and most of the time when he was walking his front half was going one direction and the other half was either dragging the grass or headed 90 degrees in another direction.

He couldn't lift his leg to pee, so he would just walk and pee at the same time. When he ran down the small incline in our backyard, he couldn't stop himself and nearly ended up running into the fence. His pupils were dilated and he was as dizzy as a loon. I endured another few seconds of laughter from the vet (second call within 12 hours) before he explained that the yeast had fermented in his belly and that he was indeed drunk. He assured me that, not unlike most binges we humans go through, it would wear off after about 4 or 5 hours and to keep giving him Pepto Bismol.

Afraid to leave him by himself in the house, Perry and I loaded him up and took him with us to my sister's house for the first Thanksgiving meal of the day. My sister lives outside of Muskogee on a ranch, (10 to 15 minute drive). Rolls firmly secured in the trunk (124 less 12) and drunk dog leaning from the back seat onto the console of the car between Perry and me, we took off.

Now I know you probably don't believe that dogs burp, but believe me when I say that after eating a tray of risen unbaked yeast rolls, DOGS WILL BURP. These burps were pure Old Charter. They would have matched or beat any smell in a drunk tank at the police station. But that's not the worst of it.

Now he was beginning to let off gas and it smelled like baked rolls. God strike me dead if I am not telling the truth! We endured this for the entire trip to Karen's, thankful she didn't live any further away than she did. Once Jasper was firmly placed in my sister's garage with the door locked, we finally sat down to enjoy our first Thanksgiving meal of the day. The dog was the topic of conversation all morning long and everyone made trips to the garage to witness my drunken dog, each returning with a tale of Jasper's latest endeavor to walk without running into something.

Of course, as the old adage goes, 'what goes in, must come out' and Jasper was no exception. Granted, if it had been me that had eaten 12 risen, unbaked yeast rolls, you might as well have put a concrete block up my behind, but alas a dog's digestive system is quite different from yours or mine. I discovered this was a mixed blessing when we prepared to leave Karen's house. Having discovered his 'packages' on the garage floor, we loaded him up in the car so we could hose down the floor. This was another naive decision on our part. The blast of water from the hose hit the poop on the floor and the poop on the floor withstood the blast from the hose. It was like Portland cement beginning to set up and cure. We finally tried to remove it with a shovel. I (obviously no one else was going to offer their services) had to get on my hands and knees with a coarse brush to get the remnants off of the floor. And as if this wasn't degrading enough, the darn dog in his drunken state had walked through the poop and left paw prints all over the garage floor that had to be brushed, too.

Well, by this time the dog was sobering up nicely so we took him home and dropped him off before we left for our second Thanksgiving dinner at Perry's sister's house. I am happy to report that as of today (Monday) the dog is back to normal both in size and temperament. He has had a bath and is no longer tricolor. None the worse for wear ... I presume.

I am also happy to report that just this evening I found 2 risen unbaked yeast rolls hidden inside my closet door. It appears he must have come to his senses after eating 10 of them but decided hiding 2 of them for later would not be a bad idea. Now, I'm doing research on the computer as to: 'How to clean unbaked dough from the carpet.'

And how was your day????


Check out Pet Education
http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=2&cat=1661&articleid=1030

The last item – There it is - yeast dough.

Fluffy Landing and other fine places........

Snow Birds and Canadian Geese share one common trait. They are both migratory species.

When the air gets nippy and the clouds move in and threaten to block out the sun for the rest of eternity, it’s time to pack the motor home and “Git Out-O-Dodge”. Our final destination is the Water’s Edge RV Resort in Punta Gorda FL where Irene and I have our own private camp site on the lake.

Punta Gorda is where Hurricane Charlie, with sustained winds of 150 mph, made shore in mid August of 2004. The devastation was complete….. I will post pictures of the resort after Charlie on another post. For about 2 years the Florida State Flag was the blue plastic tarp……

The shortest route from door to door is 1416 miles and according to Microsoft Streets and Trips, we should be able to make it in 2 days, 4 hours and 13 minutes (driving 8 hours a day). Gee…. That’s not much fun…. and that’s definitely not “Life in the Slow Lane…”

Since we don’t have to make reservations, we can get there whenever we want. Last year we decided to take a different route and visit the Florida Panhandle. We wanted to see some of the beautiful white sand beaches that the Panhandle is famous for. First a quick check of the map to see any points of interest.

Whoa!!..….. Hold everything!!……..What’s this…..?

Right there on the map, not far from our anticipated route is Fluffy Landing FL. This is a real place – I don’t make things like that up, Folks. I told Irene that visiting Fluffy Landing would surely rival the fun and excitement of visiting Toad Suck Arkansas – also a real place worth visiting especially during “Toad Suck Daze” in early May of each year.

I tried to do some research on the web about Fluffy Landing, but there is surprisingly little to be found. The burning question is “What’s behind the name?”

When we are on the road going from point A to point B we usually stay in a “Super Wal-Mart Campground”. Many years ago Wal-Mart made a corporate decision to allow overnight parking for RV’s. It sure was a good decision for them and they enjoy the genuine support and business of the RVing community. They have good security and everything we need for supplies and all the last minute things that we always forget when packing. We can even fill the gas tank before leaving the next day.

After a full day on the road neither of us feels like cooking. We go in to the camp ground store (Super Wal-Mart Store) and pick up something from the deli. Back to the coach, turn on the generator, heat up dinner in the microwave, and sit back and watch the local weather and news on the TV before turning in for the night. It sure is wonderful staying in your own home and sleeping in your own bed while on the road.

Wal-Mart camping works great for Gizmo and the cats too. No strange motel room to stress them out - they are in familiar surroundings all the time. Come bed time, all the animals have their own special place either on the bed or at the foot of the bed.

We always carry a full tank of fresh water. That way we can use the toilet, take a quick shower, make coffee, cook, and wash the dishes. Since we have a washer/dryer combo in the coach, Irene could even turn on the generator and do a load of wash while we were going down the road. All the waste water goes into the holding tanks. How’s that for convenience?

In the morning it’s “Up and at ‘em…” long before the sun pokes up in the east. I turn on the gas water heater and start the generator to make coffee. While the shower water is heating I take Gizmo for her morning constitutional. She sure loves sniffing all the strange smells and she has to leave a "pee-mail" for all the other dogs that come along. In the meantime Irene has been getting ready; she makes the bed, puts some oatmeal in the microwave and some English muffins in the toaster for breakfast. Milk and fresh fruit for the oatmeal is right there in the refrigerator.

When we stop for the night in near a big city we always try to hit the road by about 5:30 in the morning. We can take the interstate right through or around the city with no commuter traffic to worry about. This means getting up about 4:30 and it does have a downside. By 10:00 AM my eyes are starting to droop. Not to worry – we simply pull into the next rest area and I take a nap on my own comfortable bed (Gizmo has to jump up on the bed and keep me company and the two cats seem to think it is a good time to go punchy punchy on my stomach). I simply don’t have the heart to close the bedroom door and keep the zoo up front with Irene.

While I am taking a nap Irene will be on the internet checking the road conditions and the weather. All the time we are on the road I have the computer turned on and connected to the internet on my Verizon Air Card. The computer rides on the work station in front of the passenger seat. I power it with an inverter that plugs into the 12 volt system. I can drive all day long using the computer maps and the GPS and never lose my internet connection.

Lunch is always an enjoyable interlude. We pull into a rest area – quite often parking next to and visiting with other RV’ers. Gizmo gets to go sniffing and do her thing. Irene and I can walk around and stretch our legs. The first day on the road on the way south, we are in cold weather all day. We have soup and sandwiches in a nice warm coach while thinking about others who are waiting in the drive up lane at McDonalds, only to eat in their car and spill their French fries. And…….. isn’t it odd how the French fries seem to navigate (seemingly on their own power) to a dark place under the driver’s seat where they are impossible to find. They hide there for months giving off the odor of rancid fat. Ah ha…… you’re smiling…… You’ve done that too………. Wonderful, Huh……?

After lunch I will check my email, make a few phone calls and get caught up on office correspondence. How is that for telecommuting!!

And our journey continues. What a wonderful way to travel. Climb aboard and enjoy “Life In The Slow Lane…..”

Next stop…….. St. George Island State Park.

The American Housing Rescue and Foreclosure Prevention Act of 2008: Real Rescue or Only Bandage?

Can the 2008 Housing Act Stabilize and Turn the Real Estate Cycle Around?

by Stefan Swanepoel

The American Housing Rescue and Foreclosure Prevention Act of 2008 (the Housing Act) was signed into law as the most sweeping housing legislation since the Great Depression. The new Act authorizes the Department of the Treasury to stem the tide of home foreclosures and provide a lifeline to mortgage lenders.

It’s significant as the last legislation addressing a large group of homeowners was the National Housing Act of 1934 that created the Federal Housing Administration and authorized the creation of Fannie Mae.

The new Housing Act of 2008 is expected to do many things. Here’s my quick and direct take on the key issues:

1. $300 billion in FHA loans for Homeowners to Refinance
CLIFF NOTES: The Act could avoid foreclosure through refinancing into lower-cost mortgages insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA).

THE GOOD NEWS: It will help an anticipated 400,000 people whose loan servicers are willing to accept a write-down on principal.

REALITY: To qualify, borrowers must have a relatively high level of debt to income, use their homes as primary residences and agree to share any profits from any eventual resale with the government.

2. $4 billion to Buy and Rehab Foreclosed Homes

CLIFF NOTES: The Act offers $4 billion for local communities to buy homes at a discount, rehabilitate them, sell them and use profits for neighborhood development.

THE GOOD NEWS: This could help many low- and moderate-income families in holding on to the American Dream.

REALITY: Should reduce crime, especially in the inner city and low income areas.

3. New Home Buyer Tax Credit of up to $7,500 for Qualified Buyers

CLIFF NOTES: It’s not really a credit but really a loan.

THE GOOD NEWS: It’s refundable credit and it’s a zero-percent loan. An estimated 3 million buyers could be eligible for the tax credit.

REALITY: You've got to pay it back.

4. New Deductions for Real Property Taxes

CLIFF NOTES: New deductions, in addition to the existing standard deductions.

THE GOOD NEWS: It’s effective immediately.

REALITY: These are “above the line” deductions.

5. Change in Vacation-home Status

CLIFF NOTES: The personal resident exclusion is still good on your personal home but not on your vacation home or rental property converted to a home.

THE GOOD NEWS: It’s effective until Jan. 1, 2009 so you still have time.

REALITY: The decade-long free ride is over.

Closing Thoughts
With inventory in many large cities sitting at almost a one year level, and foreclosures expected to surpass 6 million by 2012, this legislation will probably put the brakes on the downward real estate slide of the last three years. At the same time, it’s no silver bullet either and will not in itself turn the real estate market.
Who would have only 5 years ago expected that we would be staring down such complex and turbulent times in real estate?

Stefan Swanepoel is widely recognized as the leading visionary on trends and change in the real estate industry. He has penned 14 Books, Whitepapers and Reports including the 1998 Amazon.com bestseller, Real Estate confronts Reality (1997) and the annual Swanepoel Real Estate TRENDS Report. His academic accomplishments include a bachelor’s in science, a master’s in business economics and diplomas in arbitration, mergers and acquisitions, real estate, computer science and marketing. Today Stefan serves as CEO of the RealtyU Group, one of the largest career development companies in the real estate industry.Stefan@Swanepoel.com

Weston Place Condominium News

Weston Place Condominiums

625 N. Segoe Rd, Madison WI 53705

by David Baehr

We are excited to welcome The Athletic Club of Madison as the newest member of our Weston Place community.The Athletic Club of Madison is a member only, upscale health club and a perfect compliment not only to Weston Place, but the new Hilldale Mall and surrounding area.

The facility will offer exercise programs, aerobics, sauna and spa services and a juice bar. Completion is anticipated for early November. The convenient location of this upscale facility will no doubt make condominium living at Weston Place more attractive for current and future owners.

Other exciting news is that construction of the Whole Foods project is expected to begin this month and be completed in 2009. With that project and Hilldale Mall, with great restaurants, shopping, and the Sundance Theatre we do have everything you could want right here!

On another note, we’ve noticed a shift making condominium living even more attractive than ever before. Dozens of news reports are pouring in from across the country, showing that Americans are enthusiastically buying into urbanism. For the first time in decades, the average number of vehicle miles driven by Americans is falling, down 1 percent for the year and more than 6 percent in May alone.

David Stiff from Standard & Poor's finds evidence that choice locations in several metro areas, particularly those with a balance of jobs and housing and better mixed uses, are retaining their value and predicts that sprawling parts of the metropolitan edge will continue to decline.

Joe Cortright, in a report written for CEOs for Cities, writes that "the gas price spike popped the housing bubble" by exposing the false economy of sprawl, while noting that cities with stronger centers have fared better in the marketplace.In short, the gas price shock signals more than just a temporary disruption in suburban housing markets and supports continued value in urban areas.

We’re excited about the opportunities before us at Weston Place.

David Baehr Broker, ABR, RRS Baehr Inc.
http://www.BaehrInc.com/
Prudential Community Realty 3392 Brooks DriveSun Prairie, WI 53590

Click the links below for more articles on this fascinating phenomenon.http://danecountyrealtors.c.topica.com/maal7XGabJs06aDDYlLeaeQCFu/http://danecountyrealtors.c.topica.com/maal7XGabJs07aDDYlLeaeQCFu/

Check out Weston Place online!

"My Momma Didn't Raise No Dummies"..................BBQ Wit and Wisdom.....

A couple of years ago I entered the Illinois “Field of Dreams” BBQ cook off in Shannon IL http://www.ilstatebbqchampionship.com/. This is a Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) sanctioned event and there were perhaps 40 or more teams competing for top prizes. The KCBS rules were enforced and the winners were decided in a double blind judging by a team of certified KCBS judges.

I was getting set up the afternoon before the judging when a particularly jovial gentleman strolled up to visit. He was dressed in jeans held up by a pair of wide suspenders, a plaid shirt, cowboy boots and a straw hat. His deeply tanned weathered face and graying hair gave him a gentle, kindly look. By his belly and size of his pants it was obvious that he had eaten a lot of “Q” over the years. I introduced myself and asked him where he was cooking and what team he was on.

This kindly old gentleman replied in a heavy Southern drawl.

“Son, my Momma didn’t raise no dummies.”

“I came all the way up here from Huntsville Alabama. You see…. you and your lovely wife are going to light a fire in your cooker about 7:30 this evening. You will be going to go to the cooks meeting at 8:00 PM. By the time the cooks meeting is over at 8:30 PM your cooker should be hot and the temperature stabilized. That’s about the time you are going to start cooking your beef brisket.

Tonight you will sleep in a lawn chair, waking up every hour or so to tend the fire and check the brisket. You will have a cold, miserable, mosquito filled night”.

“I, on the other hand, will be sleeping in the motel just down the road. At 7:00 tomorrow morning when you are putting drops in your bloodshot eyes, I am going to get up and take a hot shower. I will put on clean clothes that don’t smell like grease and smoke. I will arrive here tomorrow morning about 10:30 and will find a comfortable chair in that tent over there (pointing to the judging tent). At 11:00 AM tomorrow you will bring me my food.” He held his ample belly that shook as he laughed.

“You see, Son, my Momma didn’t raise no dummies.

I’m a Barbeque Judge!”

Can You Read This?

fi yuo cna raed tihs, yuo hvae a sgtrane mnid too. Cna yuo raed tihs? Olny 55 plepoe out of 100 can. i cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it dseno't mtaetr in waht oerdr the ltteres in a wrod are, the olny iproamtnt tihng is taht the frsit and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it whotuit a pboerlm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Azanmig huh? yaeh and I awlyas tghuhot slpeling was ipmorantt!

Unbelievable - almost spooky

Post a comment if you can read this