How Dumb is Stupid? - 10/31/08 10:19 PM
The creature below might be the stupidest creature on earth. You might doubt this, but I have compelling evidence. This bird brain is a few cards short of a full deck, his elevator does not go all the way to the top, he is a couple French fries short of a happy meal, he … (18 comments)
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Stories Behind the Music -- The Best Halloween Songs - 10/30/08 10:09 AM
There are a number of songs that might, arguably, be in the category of the best ever Halloween song. The three below are on most top ten Halloween song lists -- by the experts in such matters. Personally, as an old radio guy, I would say that these three picks by … (9 comments)
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Scammers and Slammers - 10/28/08 10:36 PM
I had a low-down and deceptive phone call at the office today. From the very beginning, it did not seem right. A man with a foreign accent, but very good with English, identified himself as being with the local yellow pages. In this area, the most widely used yellow pages directory is … (14 comments)
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Stories Behind the Music -- Johnny and the Moondogs - 10/27/08 10:40 AM
Johnny and the Moondogs -- A household name right? After all, you have all heard Johnny and the Moondogs on the radio, you might even have a CD. The name still doesn't ring a bell? I bet it will, let me explain.
In late 1959, there was a guy band in Great Britain, pretty much unknowns, … (3 comments)
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Stories Behind the Music -- A Legend Beyond His Hits - 10/26/08 11:02 AM
Bo Diddley. Ever heard that name before? Probably. The man with that stage name was an interesting case study in the history of early rock n' roll. His real name was Otha McDaniel. But, for as long as I can remember, the name Bo Diddley has been synonymous with the title … (9 comments)
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Unexpected (Active) Rain -- Why We Are Hired and Illogical Logic - 10/25/08 04:13 PM
I estimate that twenty percent, or more, of my inspection work comes from my firm's online presence. Sure, the bulk of my work still comes from referrals, mostly from past clients or real estate professionals, but I think I can make an argument that I have achieved some modicum of success … (37 comments)
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Mind the Gap - 10/25/08 10:23 AM
I remember, when I was visiting the United Kingdom, riding the Tube -- the underground train -- I kept hearing these words on the P.A. system in the subway -- "Mind the Gap"
At first, being a greenhorn, I did not even know what they were talking about. Actually, it is … (9 comments)
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Stories Behind the Music -- British Invasion By Woman - 10/24/08 10:05 AM
When you think back to the British Invasion of the early to mid-1960's, you have to think of the boy bands -- Beatles, Stones, Searchers, Dave Clark 5, Animals, Yardbirds, Kinks, Hollies. There were not that many solo artists who landed on our shores, male or female, but there were a few. One … (3 comments)
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My Very Seasonal Second Career - 10/24/08 09:30 AM
Everybody knows that there is big money in being a model or a mascot. Heck, Ronald McDonald and the Red Robin are famous. Me, I am still trying to find my sea legs in this arena -- but working hard to make it all fall into place. My home inspection assistant … (8 comments)
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Things Change -- Deck Safety - 10/23/08 02:09 PM
When a deck is of significant height, say 30" above grade, it should have a guardrail around it. People have known that for years. While sometimes homeowners neglect to install such a rail on a deck that is about 30" high, almost everyone agrees that a deck several feet off the … (19 comments)
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Stories Behind The Music -- Spector's Wall of Sound - 10/22/08 12:44 PM
There is considerable legend that goes with producer Phil Spector and his "wall of sound" recording techniques. To better understand where he was coming from, when he developed the wall of sound, one has to realize that at that time in the early 1960's, all hit tunes were made by airplay on … (12 comments)
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Stories Behind The Music -- Twistin' The Years Away - 10/21/08 12:22 PM
The twist had to be one of the most popular dance crazes ever. There were several artists who, basically, made their careers from this one wild and crazy, but popular, dance. Ah yes, things were so much simpler back then.
First, there was Hank Ballard. He wrote and recorded the original of … (15 comments)
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Good Intentions, Not Quite Right - 10/21/08 08:57 AM
The title of this post is familiar territory for the working home inspector. So often homeowners, or builders, realize that something needs to be done about a problem or a potential problem but they do not know just what to do. Or, they do know what to do, but they do … (3 comments)
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Stories Behind the Music -- Dubious Beginnings - 10/20/08 11:04 AM
Pickin' a Chicken, eh? Sometimes an event happens which, at the time, seems to be of little significance. Then it is a big surprise when that seemingly insignificant event turns into a big deal -- a major happening. What follows is a story of just such circumstances.
In Great Britain, 1950, … (8 comments)
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Stories Behind the Music -- Birthday Party Singers Make Good - 10/19/08 11:14 AM
The boys who became the Four Tops, childhood friends from Detroit, performed together at a birthday party in 1954. Let's face it, they sounded good. There is no other way to describe the success they enjoyed for more than 40 years.
After that birthday party, the boys decided to go into singing, make it a … (9 comments)
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And the Walls Came Tumbling Down - 10/19/08 10:31 AM
A little over a week ago, I wrote a post about a runaway garbage truck that ran into a home in Bellingham. At the time, it was disclosed that the home was a total loss. Well, that was made official in the last couple days. The house was demolished, as in knocked down, and … (5 comments)
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From a Frog to Prince Charles - 10/18/08 01:28 PM
I think that, within the real estate profession, there is a certain fascination with the horrors we home inspectors find. Some of my most popular posts are those that display crawl space horrors. These unsightly views are usually dead animals -- you name it, dead cats (always popular), dead rats (the most common) … (18 comments)
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Stories Behind the Music -- Big Joe and Ahmet - 10/17/08 09:58 AM
This is an interesting intersection of two lives. Ahmet Ertegun was the son of Turkey's ambassador to Washington. He took out a ten thousand dollar loan, from his dentist, and started Atlantic Records. That label became legendary, and a prime mover, of the earliest rhythm and blues music in the 1950's. Names … (4 comments)
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Stories Behind The Music -- Ol' Blue Eyes - 10/16/08 12:46 PM
New Jersey native Francis Albert Sinatra is up there in the clouds with Elvis and the Beatles. This is territory where even other legends fear to tread.
Sinatra's career first took off as a teen idol. He was popular on the jukebox and the radio and he could really get the … (13 comments)
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Home Inspector Licensing Board Subcommittee Meeting -- Education - 10/16/08 10:30 AM
On October 17, Friday, the education subcommittee of the Washington State Home Inspector Licensing Board will have another meeting, which is open to the public. The agenda includes discussion of pre-license curriculum and topics related to continuing education. This subcommittee also makes recommendations regarding the home inspector exam.
These subcommittees are meeting … (0 comments)
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My Amazing Discovery Found While Enlarging Satellite Photos - 10/15/08 02:16 PM
As you probably know, it first became common knowledge many years ago, in the Tom Clancy novels and the movies that followed, that the U.S. government, and some other foreign governments, have the ability to track human activity, anywhere in the world, through satellite imagery.
While some of the entertainment satellites might be … (40 comments)
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Stories Behind the Music -- R&B Goes Mainstream, The Platters - 10/13/08 09:41 AM
I was only three years old when this group came on the national scene. However, even now, I really like their music. I think that the Platters have stood the test of time way better than many of their more modern contemporaries.
The Ink Spots and the Mills Brothers (they were … (8 comments)
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Saved From Cruel Fate By Fast Acting Squirrel - 10/13/08 08:29 AM
It was Wednesday, October 8, 2008. Nutsy and I were on a home inspection. I should have known that it was going to be a strange day. Nutsy, who normally dresses like any other home inspector assistant, except for the white vest, was wearing his French Foreign Legion officer's uniform.
If … (17 comments)
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Stories Behind the Music -- You Give Me Fever - 10/12/08 01:35 PM
Peggy Lee, North Dakota born in 1920, had been successful for two decades in the music business before her defining moment. She had co-written much of her own material but, no doubt about it, the crowning achievement of her career came in July 1958. She released the song "Fever." The tune had been recorded more rock … (5 comments)
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Financial Success in the Family-- by Nutsy - 10/12/08 12:22 PM
As a squirrel, with many, many extended family members and relatives, I take pride in family that achieves success. Being a certifried home inspector assistant, I am one of the more successful professionals in the family. That would go without saying.
However, I just found out that my cousin Macadamia has … (14 comments)
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Garbage Truck Packs a Big Wallop - 10/11/08 11:30 AM
Every once in awhile there is a news story that is really bizarre. I was driving to Seattle the other day and heard this story on the radio and, fact is, it took place back home in Bellingham. Apparently a garbage collector, for the local firm Sanitary Service Company, was outside … (12 comments)
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Stories Behind The Music -- The Night Mr. Dynamite Saved Boston - 10/11/08 09:46 AM
I was a kid, but I remember it well. The Reverend Martin Luther King was murdered on April 14, 1968. The country began to implode. There were major riots in Washington D.C., Baltimore, Louisville and sixty cities around the nation.
The late, legendary, funk and soul singer James Brown went down … (2 comments)
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Wood to Earth - 10/10/08 08:13 PM
The photo below is one of the most common sights at a home inspection. That is not so much the case at new homes, but it is often the case at older homes. That is especially true if the people in the home have lived there long enough to do some … (5 comments)
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Ridge Vent Damage - 10/10/08 09:15 AM
In the northwest probably the most common form of upper roof ventilation I see is the ridge vent. This is basically an opening along the ridge of the roof which is covered with a vent and then shingles go over the top of that. While these are an excellent form of … (2 comments)
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When the Obvious is Not! - 10/09/08 09:49 AM
It is always strange to find some deficiency that looks like it should be an obvious problem, yet a seller has not addressed it. The photo below is about as basic as we can get in that regard. Here we have a downspout that is completely missing the drain below. It … (4 comments)
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Stories Behind The Music -- Danny and the Juniors - 10/08/08 11:32 AM
We all know that, in life, how things turn out is a combination of how hard you work, talent and also a fair amount of luck. Since we have a group here at Active Rain that is dedicated to American Bandstand I thought this would be a good story to tell.
In 1955 a … (4 comments)
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Flat Roof Ponding - 10/08/08 10:44 AM
In the Pacific Northwet, an inspector sees more than his or her share of flat or low-sloped roofs. I have had clients, who are buying houses, ask me why anyone would put a flat roof on a house in our climate. In theory, they are cheaper to put on but, longterm, … (7 comments)
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Too Much Information AKA Right the First Time - 10/07/08 07:10 PM
At an inspection the other day I saw two stains on the carpet. They looked to me like previous pet stains. However, the home had a flat roof and there was ponding above. Therefore, I did not want to assume too much and end up with egg on my face. You … (18 comments)
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The Cold Hard Facts About My Home Inspector Assistant - 10/06/08 09:57 AM
I think it is time to get real frank . My certified home inspection assistant Nutsy Wallenda has, in just the short month he has been with the firm, gained a number of supporters and a few detractors here at Active Rain. The detractors have not taken the time to understand his qualifications. The detractors act … (40 comments)
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Announcement: Washington State Home Inspectors - 10/04/08 12:09 PM
At this point, the sub-committees of the Washington State Home Inspector Licensing Board have met enough times to have formulated some ideas as to how the licensing process will unfold over the next year. Any Washington inspectors, who wish to follow the process, are encouraged to attend the second meeting of … (0 comments)
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Working Too Fast - 10/04/08 11:50 AM
Contractors need to get jobs done. Often their workers and sub-contractors want to get done for the evening so they can go home or head to the party. This atmosphere is part of the reason that new homes should always be inspected.
This top photo was from an inspection I did … (9 comments)
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Stories Behind The Music -- Rockin' Ivories - 10/03/08 10:03 AM
If a person was to think of the instrument that is most associated with rock n' roll it would probably be the guitar, likely the electric guitar. That was true even going back to the roots of the music in the 1950's. However, there were three rebels out there who became huge stars … (6 comments)
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Home Inspector Alert -- Misleading Marketing in Washington State - 10/01/08 04:53 PM
If you are thinking about entering the field of home inspection in Washington State, please read this announcement.
Under the new home inspector licensing law, which takes effect in the fall of next year, all prospective new inspectors will be required to complete 120 hours of state approved classroom residential home inspection … (10 comments)
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Worthless Human Inventions -- by Nutsy - 10/01/08 12:05 PM
As a professional squirrel, with technical training and gainful employment, I by necessity have to associate with humans on a daily basis. Although I find many of them to be nervous creatures, I am often overwhelmed by the ridiculous products that humans create or invent. Some of these consumer items, in my view, have no … (14 comments)
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