Yes Deer You're On Candid Camera. - 03/31/09 10:32 PM
Okay, so this isn't really candid camera, but how else would I have gotten you to look?
Anyone who lives in the Pocono's will tell you that there is nothing out of the ordinary about seeing deer out in the open, but how many times have you heard of them just pose for a picture. 
I was driving home when I saw these guys just hanging around enjoying the weather.  I couldn't resist, I had to get at least one picture. My husband insisted I had about a 1 in a million chance of getting close enough to get a decent … (12 comments)

Being Positive Means Being Helpful - 03/30/09 09:48 AM
I read many blogs, not just here on the Rain, but from numerous other sources. One message seems to be evident in all of them. Negative people will bring you down, less successful people will slow you down, less educated people are not worth hanging out with. When did we become so selfish and so judgmental?
I'm positive regardless of who's around me. Think about this way, if all the positive people hung out on one side of the room and all the negative people hung out on the other side of the room, who would convert all that negative energy … (25 comments)

It’s The Little Things That Count - 03/28/09 03:34 PM
I was supposed to have today off. I was looking forward to having today off. I earned the right to have today off. I told everyone I had today off. Then my cell phone rang. It was a Realtor friend who was having major computer problems. Best Buy told him they could fix it, but he needed to leave it and pick it back up on Thursday. My friend felt he couldn't wait that long, he needed it back today. So I get the phone call.
He brings me the notebook, I check it on the spot and tell him his … (33 comments)

Bolt Cutters and PadLock - Never Leave Home Without Them - 03/27/09 07:01 PM
Earlier in this week I mentioned in a post that I carry bolt cutters and an extra brand new Master padlock when performing home inspections. The reasons being that all too often Sellers don't have or just forget to leave the key to their crawlspace either at the house or with their Realtors.
Now we always make sure that it is very clear that the crawlspace will be inspected and that access needs to be provided, but all too often this is forgotten and it would require that portion of the inspection to be postponed and for us to return at … (14 comments)

Where To Eat In The Poconos - 03/27/09 05:55 PM
Yes, It's time for another Favorite Pocono Restaurant Review. When I started the group Pocono Pa Living my intentions were to let people know more about this beautiful location and get more of my local AR Pocono members blogging. It amazed me how many people here on AR are from my backyard and have not yet written a single post. I said when I started the group that I would contribute a local area post at least every other day, but I've fallen behind on that at well. So as of today, I am going to do what I said and … (3 comments)

Would You Lie To Sell A House? - 03/25/09 12:59 PM
Okay, sometimes people try to get away with little things that really don't matter much in the whole scheme of things, but tell me why anyone would try to pull this one off? Did he actually think a home inspector could possibly miss such a thing?

As you can see from the picture there is moisture intrusion in the crawlspace and the main girder is broken and decayed. Yet the sellers did everything in their power to conceal this fact form everyone. The girder is broken at the rear of the house directly under the bed in the master bedroom. … (16 comments)

I'm Not Going Up There ... Nope, Nope, Nope, Nope, No - 03/25/09 12:05 PM
Can you tell me how this picture was taken?

I wouldn't take it too seriously if you can't. I was pretty amazed myself when I found out how it was done.
Years ago, my ex-son-in-law purchased a home in Jim Thorpe Pa. The houses in the village are pretty close together and very tall. This one requires a 40-foot extension ladder in order to reach the top of the eaves and as you can see it has a very steep pitch.
When the house was purchased the inspector told them there was no way for him to inspect this roof. The … (14 comments)

Spring In The Pocono’s - 03/20/09 07:05 PM
Spring in the Pocono's usually starts off with cool crisp mornings, followed by warmer sunny day and ending with cool to cold nighttime temperatures. No reason to have expected that today, the first day of spring would be any different.
The view from my living room window is too inviting to remain inside any longer. I must go sit outside where I can take it all in before beginning the days work. If this were your view, wouldn't you do the same?
The temperature is a cool 21°F. Ahh ... spring in the Pocono's.
As I sat on the rear porch sipping … (6 comments)

Wow, My First 20,000 Points! - 03/20/09 04:48 PM
 

 
I know 20,000 really isn't that big a deal, but when I first joined AR on Dec. 28th, 2008 that number seemed pretty unreachable to me. I'm not much of a writer and blogging is definitely not what I'm used to doing. Computers are something I take apart, put together, connect to each other ... well you get the picture.
You can imagine the look on my face this when I logged on AR and saw my points. I have to say that it feels pretty good. Not sure I'm getting any better at this, but then again, … (19 comments)

There's More to Re-Blogging Than Clicking a Button, People! - 03/15/09 10:23 PM
I just read this post by Heather Chavez and thought that it was worthy of a re-blog. It has some pretty good suggestions that I thought should be shared again for those of us who were not aware of them.

Via Heather Chavez (Second Self Virtual Assistance):
Thank you to the always helpful Active Brad for his great post about the facelift given to the re-blogging button.  It's nice and I like it MUCH better than the dreary old grey one that used to be there.  I guess the guys that originally thought that the big grey button looked good had … (1 comments)

When You Snooze, You Loose. - 03/15/09 09:47 PM
I'm sure everyone here can remember hearing that silly little quote at one time or another. Well, nothing can be so true. My business line rang about 9:00PM this evening. Now I suppose that 8:00PM on a Sunday evening might be a little late to be calling to schedule an inspection, but what the heck I'm up, might as well answer it. 
Sure enough it's a couple from New York City who just got home 30 minutes earlier. Their offer for their new house was accepted today and they drove up to sign all the paperwork. Their Realtor gave them a … (13 comments)

Home Inspection – A Crappy Predicament: - 03/15/09 01:37 PM
I recently did a home inspection where the seller resides many states away. The home was well taken care of, but because of it's size it still took over 3 hours to inspect before we were ready to tackle the physical inspection of the septic tank. My husband and son were outback digging up the lid while I finished discussing the particulars with the buyer and his Realtor.  
That's when we realized we had problems. First the tank's manhole access cover was 24 inches below ground with no riser bringing it to the required 12 in level. Then the lid was … (8 comments)

Today's Computer Tip - 03/13/09 06:20 PM

So you have a Dimension 3000 and you want to upgrade the RAM. Maybe you want to install a bigger hard drive or a better video card. Well, the first thing you're going t need to d is get the access cover off.
You look and you look, but those screws just don't look like they come off. Well that's cause on many Dell models they don't. They're not screws. The side with the funny looking things that look like rivets really are rivets. That side is the side the motherboard it attached to and it does not open.
Look … (5 comments)

Help! ... My Screen's Upside Down. - 03/07/09 09:38 PM
I have a small computer service business. Tech support happens to be one of the services we offer. A large number of our clients are Realtors, and as we all know not too many things can panic a Realtor more than not being able to access the files on his/her computer. This morning I get one of those frantic calls:Help! ... My Screen's Upside Down! Now that just sounds funny doesn't it? I get this call at least once every other week. If I'm on friendly terms with the caller I usually respond with something to the tune of: "Well, have … (28 comments)

New Group: Pocono Pa Living - 03/07/09 09:04 PM
Yesterday I started a new group and named it Pocono Pa Living. I got the idea to start the group from a post I read on William James Walton Sr. blog titled Where's The Love for Where We Live???? I've included a link to his post in case anyone wants to check it out.
The idea of this group is to get Pocono AR members blogging and promoting our area. Anything and everything goes. I'm looking for Real Estate info, favorite restaurant reviews, vacation stories, fishing stories and local history - anything about life in the Pocono's.
As I look down … (4 comments)