SUN DOGS, You Really Don't Want To See Them.

These are "Sun Dogs" and you really don't want to see them (in person). What you have here is two pictures with a "sun Dog" on each side of the sun. If I had a panoramic camera we could eliminate one of the suns in the middle. The Sun Dogs almost form a rainbow around the sun.

The key to Sun Dogs is that it needs to be below 0 degrees outside or colder. The colder it is outside the more spectacular the Sun Dogs. When I woke up today it was 8 below zero (that's 40 degrees below freezing) actual air temperature. Then there is this thing called "Wind Chill". The weather service is warning that it will be windy today causing a wind chill of up to 45 degrees below zero.

What do we do when it's 45 degrees below zero? You make sure you have several layers of clothing on and you go out there and attend to business just like any other day. Obviously those who work out of doors need to come in frequently to avoid frostbite. On a day like today a person who is not properly dress may experience hypothermia within a few short minutes.

OFFICE SWEET OFFICE

THERE IS NO PLACE LIKE OFFICE

Office Sweet Office. It's small, it's ugly, but it's mine.

After a summer of conducting business out of my mother-in-laws basement, Starbucks, and the public library, I finally have an office to call home office.

With all the positives it's easy for me to overlook the ugly color of the building (which I will repaint this spring) and the fact that the interior needs a little spritzing up.

The next big step is to get that secretary I've talked about for 2 or 3 years. I hired one and she quit before she started because she didn't like the interior colors of the office. This despite the fact I told her she could pick new colors and I'd paint!

I thought the colors were a little loud myself but I kind of like them and now that I've added some "stuff" like desks and bookcases I'm rather pleased. The pic to the right is the reception area that eventually will have a receptionists/secretaries desk.

I'm located on BROADWAY, how cool is that! In Minot Broadway is thee main Street with the heaviest traffic. I've already had more walk-ins in a month then I had in a year in my old location. I'm not knocking the old location, how great was that to be in a movie theater, across the street from a big park, and also on a main arterial of the City?

I'm far from finished with my office project but here are a few more pictures. The pic's include my desk as well as the desk for my personal assistant, my conference area for when I'm meeting with clients and viewing MLS listings, and the play area for kids to run wild while Mom and Dad look at listings with me. In the play area I need to and have removed most of the "junk" and to restock the office with a toy-box and kids furniture.

After spending the summer in my mother-in-laws basement because I lost my home, my office, and my rental property in the flood that destroyed 1/4th of our City this place really looks beautiful to me. Once again it's a joy to actually "GO" to work and to have a place for friends and clients come and visit.

Oddly enough despite the tragedy that struck our City and my family personally 2011 was the best year I've had in business. 2011 was full of blessings thanks to all the kind people who let us know they cared, many who never met us, but all eager to help out those in need because of the tragedy that struck our City.

Oh Yea, Then There's THAT!

INK

In setting up my new office I decided to add ink-jet printers to each desk in addition to the networked color laser copier/printer.  I like having a printer on my desk so if I'm printing something personal, like a receipt from eBay, no one else has to see it plus sometimes I just don't want to leave my work area when I'm immersed in my work.

The one thing I did remembered about ink-jet printers was that ink is just about as expense as gold. I also remembered that I used to purchase ink cartridges any time I saw them at rummage sales, thrift stores, or even if I saw close-outs at Kmart or Walmart. I didn't care if they fit my printer or not.

Why not??? I learned early on that one can use a syringe and suck the ink out of that cartridge you bought for a buck and then pump it into the cartridge you need. I've re-filled the same cartridge many, many, many times.

I don't know how much money I've saved but it may have been enough to pay for that color laser copier/printer.

So why was I at Staples today looking at $30.00 - $50.00 ink cartridges??? I was wondering that myself... until I went home, found my re-inking stuff, and started re-filling a needed cartridge.       Then it all came back to me.

Ooops

CHRISTMAS... Thank God for the Commercialization!

Speaking as a dedicated Christian, follower of the Savior of the world Christ Jesus, I am so happy that Christmas has become extreamly commercialized.

In the USA nearly 90% of our citizens profess a Christian faith, I'm guessing that like myself you are among those 90%.

I would also guess that if you ask those who do not know Christ in the USA what are the two biggest holidays you would overwhelming hear Christmas and Easter.

Many people think that Christmas has been taken over by Satan masquerading as Santa Claus and that retail has totally corrupted the meaning of Christmas. I say that Satan is doing a BIG ooops over his attempt to commercialize Christmas.

POP QUIZ! How many of you/us reading this can name 6 major Christian events and explain them to your children satisfactorily?

At least with the mass commercialization of Christmas no one can deny it's roots. No matter what kind of hermit or religious zealot of a non-Christian faith one may be the fact that December 25th is the day that Christians celebrate our Saviors birth can NOT be denied!

Equally important, the same can be said about Easter! The best thing about Easter is that everyone knows, even if they don't believe, is that it is the day that Christians celebrate our Lord and Savior conquering death and rising again to life.

So what about some of those other major Christian events? Here are a few that come to mind for me off the top of my head: Pentecost (did you know that Pentecost is the birthday of the Christian church), Ascention Day (did you know that Christ showed himself to all for 40 days after Easter Sunday before ascending up to heaven?), Epiphany (the 12th day of Christmas. It means sudden understanding. Yes even for many of his faithful followers it took 12 days to sink in as to the miracle of Christs conquering death.), Passover, Palm Sunday, Lent, Advent, Good Friday, and Maundy Thursday.

So I say "Bring On The Commercialization"! Let the world know about all/more of the great events of Christianity! Christ will always out shine Santa and the Easter Bunny. I can live with slogans like "You won't get burned on our Ash Wednesday sale" or "Savings are in the palm of your hand this Palm Sunday".

Bring it on, bring on the commercialization so we will have more opportunity to tell our children about the roots of the holiday and how those roots are deep in Christ Jesus. Bring it on so we can share the good news that Jesus Christ is Lord!

REALTORS...A DIVERSE GROUP!

It never ceases to amaze me what a diverse group we Realtors are. Granted some folks hold a Real Estate license as a hobby or even just for their own purchasing benefits. Some Real Estate professionals hold a second job out of necessity just to make ends meet. Many Real Estate professionals have a second occupation because it works well with a hobby. Heck I know one Real Estate agent who's a clown (actually a magician but I think of him as a clown).

I've noticed that a few Realtors really excell at that 2nd vocation BUT I've never seen anyone do so more then my good friend Gabrielle Kamahele Rhind.

Who ever would have guessed that beautiful little Gabrielle's hobby is auto body work??? She is absolutely AMAZING! When Gabrielle read right here on AR about my automobile woes, two crashes in one week, she jumped to action down in Tucson AZ to help out this poor broken North Dakota boy. Check out these amazing before and after photo's.

Kia, after crash, before the amazing Auto Body work by Gabrielle.

Kia, after crash, AFTER the amazing Auto Body work by Gabrielle.

I am sooo indebted to Gabrielle. I can now drive the Kia once again with my head held high and full of pride as I invite my clients to ride with me as we look at homes in the Minot area. What an amazing lady! I love you Gabrielle!

There is No "Right To Receive" or "Obligation To Give"!

I consider myself to be a generous giver. I give more to the church I attend then I think I can afford (but it always works out) and I also give to various charities of my choosing.

At this time of year we are all besieged by pleas to give to just about every cause we can think of... as well as a few we never dreamed of.

The purpose of this post is to relate to you the receiving experience we experienced through the flood disaster Minot ND experienced this year and also to remind you of the "Golden Rule" of giving.

Having lived (and am living) through a disaster like our recent flood I can tell you that it was The Red Cross and The Salvation Army who were first on the scene. They were amazing in their help and generosity. Next, and nearly simultaneously, were all kinds of faith based groups such as Lutheran Disaster Services, The Samaritan's Purse, Mennonite Disaster Relief, and on and on. Faith Based Organizations accounted for 85% of the relief efforts in our disaster. Four months later many of them are still here helping us out with some very difficult tasks associated with flooding. I encourage you to give to these Faith Based organizations during this giving season.

The Golden Rule of Giving is to remember God Loves A Cheerful Giver.

Never give in a begrudgingly way.

The reason I emphasize this is I remember a time when I worked for a non-profit organization that once a year would impound 10% of all employees checks and give it The United Way. Not having a choice in the matter it angered me to the point that I have not/will not give to The United Way ever again in my life time. If you are an employer with a "mandatory" giving plan that does not let your employee choose where his/her gift goes please keep in mind you may be doing more harm then good.

The NEW (1996) RealMan Mobile.

With the demise of the Kia and the sale of my Dodge Grand Caravan I absolutely had to start the search for a new "RealMan" mobile. I don't believe I mentioned the sale of the Caravan previously but the Caravan was the most recent bearer of the "RealMan" license plates and wore them proudly for 3 years. So many things started to fail on the Caravan that when I thought I should buy new tires I felt it was just plain "totaled out".

I love driving the Kia but even I can not imagine asking a client to step into it in it's current condition.

Those of you who have gotten to know me may have grasped the fact that when it comes to cars I have NO ego at all. If a client needs to be shown around in a Cadillac, a Lincoln, or a Hummer then I am not the agent they are looking for. If a client is looking for a Realtor who will work his butt off for him/her and doesn't care if the agent drives a 15 year old car so he can spend more money on his family then HERE I AM!

Meet the NEW RealMan Mobile

1996 Honda Odyssey

Just a note: This pic was shot today (Thanksgiving) and it was in the mid 50's. That's 20 degrees above normal for us this time of year. Note the snow here and there on the ground (it was covered a couple of days ago). Note the neighbor taking full advantage of the unusual weather by washing his car out in the street.

Winter Is Here, Crash Boom Bang!

Yesterday we got our first taste of Winter. An unpredicted 6" of snow came roaring in with strong winds. I think the winds were predicted but no one predicted the snow.

Having a large Air Force Base here we are used to our share of accidents with the first snowfall. For many of the fine men and women on the base it's the first time they have seen snow. Well it's compounded this year with our oil boom and a whole lot more drivers who have never seen or driven in snow before.

The paper says over 100 accidents were reported yesterday. Mine was one of those that went unreported. The young man who hit my parked car did not want certain people to know about it so he just handed me a big wad of cash and I said OK (or Ye Haw or something).

If you are headed up North and you are not used to snow, or even if you are, keep in mind good tires and a go slow approach are the best ways to keep from crashing or occupying the ditch.

Just Listed, The BEST View In Minot North Dakota!

This home has been under professional re-construction for nearly a year because the professional was going to make it his own. Nearly 2,000 square feet on each floor makes this home one you can easily get lost in. Check it out... and check out the magnificent view!

MLS# 20112115    $399,900.00

Who Says An Old Dog Can't Teach YOU New Tricks???

Jack is a 12 year old mutt. He loves to fetch but we've never known him to actually catch a ball. Even at the age of 12 he will run after a ball much longer then your arm will hold out throwing the ball.

Jack has never done steps. He will run up them (in shear terror) if he has to but forget him ever going down steps on his own.

So what will he do if he is in the mood to play fetch and no one is paying attention? He just throws his ball down the steps and expects YOU to go get it.

This is new behavior he's learned since we became (flood) refugees living at Grandma's house while our home is being rebuilt.

With my office being downstairs (until I relocate into my new space sometime this month) I am usually the one Jack makes fetch the ball. What also adds to the "weirdness" is that when I toss it back up the steps he always catches it.

If I don't get the ball or if no one is around to get the ball he will just stand at the top of the steps and stair down until someone does get it or he gets hungry or tired and wonders off.

Four about 4 years now I've been working under the oldest active Broker in North Dakota, Mr Earl Allen. I'm wondering if he may not be the oldest active Broker in the USA. Earl is a spry 92 years young.

Some people are questioning Mr. Allens clarity of late and I say shame on them. Earl knows more about Real Estate than any man I know and as the old saying goes he's probably forgot more then we ever hope to learn.

I am really proud to be working under a living legend like Earl. I've learned a lot. You talk about old school... I'm learning things first hand that go back to the foundation of North Dakota Real Estate.

Yes, someday I'm going to have to tell people that I knew and worked under the legend of Mr. Earl Allen but today I can say that I'm still a student of the best man in North Dakota Real Estate.

Those that critisize this man need to realize that even if they live to be 200 years old they will never measure up to this man and his dedication to Real Estate as well as his dedication to the principals he believes in.

Long live the great Mr. Earl Allen!