I was reading an interesting Newsweek article this morning (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16720746/site/newsweek/). It talked about how insurance companies are raising rates and even canceling homeowner insurance policies all across the eastern seaboard. The insurance companies say that in recent years there have been many more extreme weather catastrophes -- hurricanes, ice storms, lightning strikes -- than there were in the past. Ignoring the controversy over whether these weather changes are a result of global warming, the important thing to point out is that future home buyers will probably be increasingly concerned with things like the cost of homeowner's insurance and how well the home can survive weather-related disasters. I know that if I were buying a home in certain areas today I'd want to know what features it had to better survive hurricanes and windstorms. This seems like a trend that has been largely ignored and, if you believe in global warming, will only get more pronounced in coming years. If anyone out there is hearing these concerns from prospective buyers (or sellers who have to move because it's gotten too expensive to live where they are), I'd love to hear about it.

Having lived in Newcastle for many years, I thought I'd list a few of my favorite places in the area. If you're new to the area, I encourage you to check them out.

• Newcastle Fruit Stand: At the corner of Coal Creek Parkway and Newcastle Way, there's a seasonal fruit stand that sells all kinds of fresh fruit and vegetables. They also sell lots of different plants and trees for landscaping. In the winter they sell Christmas trees. You pay a little bit more, but it's so much nicer than buying your fruit at the grocery store.
• Tapatio: A great mexican restaurant. The people are nice, the food is good, and it's conveniently located in the strip mall along Coal Creek Parkway
• Lake Boren Park: Sitting on small but pretty Lake Boren, this park has a nice playground for kids to play, lots of wide open fields for sunning, and a sheltered area you can reserve for picnics and cookouts.
• Cougar Mountain Park: I'm not sure this is technically in Newcastle, but it's right next door. It's a great place for hiking. See http://www.metrokc.gov/parks/parks/cougarmountain.html for details.