Hmmm... I'm seem to be feeling a little philosophical today.

As diligent as we are, there are just some days that feel like we're working and working, only to find that at the end of the day, we're right where we started... Watch these guys do it in style!

You probabaly recognize the song - especially if you spend time online.

These guys are a terrific example of the power of a unique message, smartly delivered.

Click to watch!

Competing for my attention today is this - also a classic - featuring one of my very favorite performers, Christopher Walken.  This reminds me of the importance of being able to look to yourself to find - and act on - the inspiration to excel.

Click the pic to enjoy...

See you I hope you have a terrific rest-of-the-weekend!

Best,

Christina 

If you use A/R, chances are you know the difference between the Star Trek series, you know what "ST:NG" means, you probably know that "ST: Deep Space Nine" is an alleged rip-off of "Babylon5," you probably even know that in 1978, the series "ST: Phase II" was shelved because of concerns with the popularity of the movie "Star Wars"... 

But did you know this: CASTING IS NOW SET FOR THE NEXT STAR TREK MOVIE! (woo-hoo!)

My work here is done.

Live long and prosper ... and have a nice weekend!

Best,

Christina :)

My goodness, is it time for another installment of What Is A "Naranjilla?"

You betcha! 

Today's words are "manmohpan,"mocambo, and "feijoa." 

Enjoy!

"Manmohpan" ... what could it be?  A mythical creature combining a man with an ohpan, or orphan? Is it an expression of exasperation, pronounced "man-o-man?"  Let's see...

Ah-ha!  This one took a little while, but thanks to the California Rare Fruit Growers, the secrets of the manmohpan are revealed!

The manmohpan is an elusive, treat whose secrets were uncovered only by looking it up by its Latin name, terminalia ferdinandiana. In short, a manmohpan is a small, plum-like tropical fruit. 

Wiki tells us that this small, sweet fruit is also called the Gubinge, Billygoat or Kakadu plum.  

Daleys Fruit goes on to explain that this fruit is native to Austrailia and commonly sold throughout the tropical regions there. Indigenous Australians use it for food and medicine, and they use the trees for timber. 

Fun Fact: the manmohpan scores as the highest concentration of vitamin C in fruit. 

Neat! 

Next we have "Mocambo" Hmmm, sounds like a dance, like tango. Let's see ...

Hey! It looks like I was close - the Mocambo is a famous club in Hollywood.

Looks like it's also - you guessed it - a fruit!

The Rainforest Conservation Fund says that both the seeds and pulp are popular to eat. Also, the seeds are fried as a snack (like pumpkin seeds) and used in soup. Finally, the empty pods are dried like gourds and used as containers and for starting plants.

Extra Fun Fact: the mocambo is a close relative of the cacao - you know, where we get cocoa.

Yum! 

Finally, we have "Feijoa." Sounds like a tasty dish of pan fried meats and veggies areved sizzling with tortillas...  Let's see ...

Shocking! The feijoa is a fruit! 

Julia Morton of Perdue University wrote, "Few fruit bearers have received as much initial high-level attention and yet have amounted to so little as this member of the Myrtaceae, Feijoa sellowiana Berg..."  C'mon Julie, tell us what you really think! ;)

Wiki says that the chicken-egg sized feijoa also called the Pineapple Guava (hmm).  The flesh is juicy and is divided into a four-pronged, clear jelly-like seed pulp and a firmer, slightly gritty solid pulp toward the skin.

Extra Fun Fact: You know a feijoa is ripe when it falls off the tree.  Most people pick it beforehand because hey, nobody likes a bruised feijoa, am I right??

Who wants pie?!

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Whew!  This installment was a bit challenging.  But thanks to my trusty internet connection, these obtuse fruity delights were no match!  As always, specials thanks to wiki and Google ... how did we ever live before without them??

Until next time...

Best,

Christina :)

Gordon Corsie wrote a really good piece this morning breaking down "what happened" to the Real Estate Market.  To the seasoned professional, this analysis is not new.  But I think it's really important to remind everyone as to the "how's" and "why's" of our Market today. 

It's like this, when you know where the "monster" is, it's a lot less scary.

QUESTION: Why aren't homes selling like they did before? 

(from Gordon's post) BECAUSE:

1. Lenders loaned too much money to too many buyers who should never have been qualified to such a high level of purchase price.
2. Those buyers who bought with zero down loans and whose "OPTION ARMS" (Negative amortizing loans) are adjusting upwards can not make the payments, and cannot refinance either and so are headed toward foreclosure.
3. Because of #1 and #2 several major lenders are now out of business.
4. The Media has loved to cover this, they love a good negative story.
5. Buyers therefore are hesitant, why buy now when prices may keep falling!

This slowdown is different than the ones we have experienced over the last 10 years. For example, the 1997 Russian economy slowdown...remember that one? Lasted 23-4 months; 2001 9/11...

These were slowdowns related to the stock market which affected buyers confidence but really did not have anything to do with California Real Estate, but this one does!

In October of 1989 the Savings & Loan scandal hit and hit hard. We had close to 600 homes for sale alone in Pleasanton which was a much smaller town then. It took 5 years for prices to come back up to the peak levels they had reached in 1989.

THIS DIP IS NOT AS SEVERE AS 1989. We have more sales. We have fewer listings available.

There are still more peole moving to California than are moving out 

Statistically we can track the slowdown beginning in late spring of 2005 and if we project a 5 year term then we should creep out no later than 2009.

If I am a buyer, should I wait?  You can, but by doing so you miss out on owning a home with the potential to build equity. Even buyers who purchased at the peak in 1989 did very well in the long run. Get on the equity train, its time to buy, investors are!

If I am a seller should I wait?  What for? Assuming you sell at a lower price today, and you buy today, then all you are really doing is transferring your equity, you are not disadvantaged in any way. 

(end Gordon's post) 

Thanks, Gordon! 

I would add a couple of important points...

The housing market is always-and-forever linked to the job market.  If there are jobs, the housing market will be ok. 

The double whammy of the 1989 Earthquakes in SF and LA plus the economy (read: job market) being creamed by the first wave of military base closings caused a huge spike in unemployment. That was the big thing that REALLY tanked the market in CA (Sacramento alone lost three bases).  I would go a step further and say that the economic effect rippled through and actually 'artificially' depressed the price of homes for nearly a decade.

This latest upward correction was boosted by the final release of that downward pressure - which caused a bit of an over correction to the upside.

Ahhhh, free markets, you got to love 'em!

The overall conclusion is correct: barring some unknown catastrophe, we should get through this correction cycle in the next 12-18 mo. But I think's important to say that the days of 26%/yr appreciation rates are g-o-n-e for the forseeable future.

Best,

Christina

PS. The reason I included basically all of Gordon's post here was to add context and convenience. 

This is classic -- for anyone who is really feeling the stress of the market, this music video parody is for you.  (Frankly, this is one of the best musical parodies I have ever seen.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!)

The picture link above will take you... Enjoy!!

Best,

Christina ;)

 Thanks for Gray Kid who produced this terrific video and posted it to YouTube.com last year.

I came across this interesting article talking about the Russian mortgage market, and how it may (or may not!) be effected by the sub-prime collapse here in the United States.  It's pretty interesting stuff if you follow mortgage news.

In other news, a somewhat-not-as-dark-as-the-rest-of-the-market-sort-of-bright spot in the market is smaller, trendy homes.  As a response to the retail credit squeeze, builders are shrinking down both pricetags and floorplans, hoping to make up the difference in volume...

Hey everybody! It's time to look at a few more of those interesting words we have to type in to submit comments and posts.  (Here is the prior installment.)

Enjoy!

The first word is Quince. Is it a kind of royalty? Is it the number 15? Let's find out...

Ah-ha!   Foodglossary says: "The quince tree is used for everything from perfume to honey. It was also considered a symbol of love and given to ones intended as a sign of commitment..." 

Wiki has a lengthy article on Quince: "It is a small deciduous tree, growing 5-8 m tall and 4-6 m wide, related to apples and pears, and like them has a pome fruit, which is bright golden yellow when mature, pear-shaped, 7-12 cm long and 6-9 cm broad."

Yum!

Next is Namnam. Ummm... I got nuthin'

OK ... well, this sort of follows the food trend.  According to the book, French and Creole in Louisiana by Albert Valdman, namnam is nam-nam, or "food to eat" Click the link above to read the interesting etymology. Thanks, GoogleBooks!

Our final word today is Mape.

In short, the Tahiti Traveler tells us that the mape, also called a Tahitian Chestnut, finds its origin in Malaysia and might have been brought in French Polynesia by the Polynesian immigrants from South-east Asia. This tree is characterized by foothills that develop from roots to branches for the oldest ones. Boiled or roasted, the mape fruit -that looks like chestnut- is highly prized by Tahitians that eat it at every hour. Children are used to selling those cooked fruits in all gatherings, notably around markets.

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Until next time!

Best,

Christina :) 

Please Note: As always, this series is certainly powered mainly by my 1980 Oxford American Dictionary, GoogleBooks, and Wikipedia.

Every once in a while I stumble across a really terrific and interesting website.

Strange Business is one of those sites.

It talks all about the fresh and interesting ways people are finding ways to start businesses.

That being said, all the business ideas are maybe not so fantastic.  Iggys House is one example, imho... What do you think??  Me?  In a nutshell: It's all fun and games until somebody loses and eye.

I blogged last week about the possible tax consequences of forclosure.  It now looks like a bill moving through Congress will go a long way to ease the tax burden of borrowers who lose their home to foreclosure. Read all about it here.

For fun, or if you are having trouble falling asleep, you can go read the text of the bill here. 

In short, this bill provides that any amount forgiven on mortgage debt on a principal residence will not be taxed.

I feel like I have a pretty good vocabulary. I can use words like "juxtaposition" and "akimbo;" I know the difference between the words "effect" and "affect."  But I have to hand it to these Active Rain guys. They have come up with word after word that I have never heard of.

So, let's find out what they mean together! This is the first of an ongoing series that will explain the meaning behind the mysterious and intriguing 'confirmation word-graphics' that A/R uses to help prevent spam-posts, etc.

The first word is Naranjilla. What is that? I speak Spanish a bit, so I know there's 'orange' in it - but what's the '-jilla'??

 From Wikipedia... "The naranjilla is a subtropical perennial plant from northwestern South America. The juice of the naranjillas is somewhat green and is used as a beverage. Ripe naranjilla fruit is very delicious, but must be harvested when fully ripe otherwise they can be quite sour. Naranjilla are attractive plants, with large heart shaped leaves up to 30cm in length. The leaves and stems of the plant are covered in short purple hairs. Naranjilla are fairly sensitive and must be protected from strong winds, and grow best in partial shade as full sunlight is too intense."

Tasty!

Next is "Taruma." I got not a clue...After a quick look-up, it appears that Taruma is both a city in Sao Paulo, Brazil and a berry-producing ornamental plant.

Here's what japi has to say... "As suas flores são meliferas. Os frutos são comestíveis e também muito procurados por macacos, pássaros e outras espécies da fauna.A árvore é bastante ornamental."

Literal translation... "Its flowers are meliferas. The fruits are eatable and also very looked for for monkeys, birds and other species of fauna.A tree is sufficiently ornamental."

Neat!

The final word for today is "Galangale." Fun to say? Sure! But is it fruit?? I'm going to say yes, but let's see... 

... Also called "galangal," it's a root, like ginger. Wiki says "... a rhizome with culinary and medicinal uses, best known in the west today for its appearance in Southeast Asia cuisine but also common in recipes from medieval Europe. In its raw form, galangal has a soapy, earthy aroma and a pine-like flavor with a faint hint of citrus. It is available as a powder from vendors of Oriental spices and is also available whole, cut or powdered from vendors of herbs. A mixture of galangal and lime juice is used as a tonic in parts of Southeast Asia. It is said to have the effect of an aphrodisiac, and act as a stimulant. Galangal is also known somewhat confusingly as, galingale, the name for several unrelated plants of the Cyperus genus of sedges, also with aromatic rhizomes."

Tasty!

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Until next time...

Christina :)

Note: This series will certainly be powered mainly by my 1980 Oxford American Dictionary and Wikipedia.