Avoiding the B.B.B. (hint - it's not who you think) - Published! - 01/28/09 02:04 PM
While on a consultation this month, I was torn with what to do with one particular item on my list.  After almost five days of weighing the pros and cons of Action/No Action and discussing with a Home Staging associate and the REALTOR on the listing, I decided to advise on avoiding the B.B.B.
Not the Better Business Bureau.  The dreaded Builders' Beige Box.
These home owners had quite to color palette going on:
Front room: yellow Hall way: a Rose red-ish One wall: A light blue Kitchen/Family room: Olive Greenish It seems to me that local builders only used Summertime … (5 comments)

Less is More for Facebook Friends - 01/28/09 08:28 AM
Had enough of your Facebook friends?
This morning, I was browsing the Facebook section on A/R and I cam across a post by Heather Goodwin ~ Shreveport and Bossier City, Louisiana Real Estate called Please Don't Hate Me Because I Removed You From My Friends List!  She and her Repliers make some great comments about how user-unfriendly a site like Facebook can be. I thought the site was going to be completely useless until the friend requests from a seemingly endless supply of people from grade school, high school, college, past relationships, friends of friends, and people I have not thought … (12 comments)

So much for keeping it 'local'... - 01/27/09 08:31 AM
Yesterday, I was meeting another ASP Stager for coffee over in Hutto as she was working there and it's just down the road from me.  I had located a locally owned coffee shop on the internet which appeared to have a great selection of 'treats' and we agreed to meet there.
Now, much to both of our dismay, the coffee shop was now For Lease.  Oy!  And we had to head back West on 79 and grab a cup @ the Starbucks just past Red Bud. 
I was very disappointed.  Mostly because I think Starbucks is like Microsoft (probably not a … (2 comments)

Some Online Weekend Fun - 01/17/09 01:38 PM
 
It has been a while since The Simpsons Movie was at the theaters, and I was just made aware of the following web site yesterday:
http://simpsonizeme.com/
This must have been a promotional website for Burger King at the time and it is still online and running. I uploaded my profile picture and was returned the following picture.  This is how I would look if I were a character on the show:

I was really surprised at the accuracy.  Isn't technology grand! 
Enjoying the output, I could not resist to add the other members of my family:
My Wife:

… (6 comments)

Balancing your Online Persona and your Professional Career - 01/12/09 01:32 PM
Last week, I was reading a post by Jason Crouch: Are YOU the Eddie Haskell of Real Estate?  I am old enough to remember reruns of "Leave it to Beaver", so I knew all about the suck-up insincere character from the show. Jason makes a good point about being yourself in this blog.
Then on Sunday, there was an article in the Austin American Statesman, Business section, Job Hunting?  Beware of what recruiters see online" by Candice Choi of A.P.  I was quite floored in regards to the statistics thay were provided:
One survey reported that 34% of the time, Social … (6 comments)

Update to: Life in Round Rock about to get a little bit sweeter… - 01/09/09 02:35 PM
Update to: Life in Round Rock about to get a little bit sweeter…
The dust has settled at the Dunkin' Donuts at A.W. Grimes and Gattis School Road, so I took the girls over for their first Donut. It was a ho-hum experience for me personally - the reception was less than friendly. At least, less than friendly from what I expect after living in Round Rock for six years. But that was just my initial impression.
At my recommendation, my older daughter picked a Double Chocolate, and the younger stuck with the old stand by, Chocolate Frosted. It took a … (10 comments)

Finally help with this darn Facebook thing... - 01/08/09 10:05 AM
Another victory goes to A/R!  I am happy to have found the Facebook Tips Group.
Over Thanksgiving, I decided to give Facebook a whirl (over myspace) mainly because my cell phone has more options for supporting facebook when I am out and about.  I was really excited to start and I sent Facebook invitations out to all of my contacts. 
But this was quickly diminished by an onslaught of people I have not even thought of in over 10 years coming out of the woodwork.  It was viral!  One close buddy was friends with some one who knew me, and then … (4 comments)

Time to face reality folks... - 01/07/09 11:33 AM
OK, folks:  It's 2009 and the Holidays are over.  You have most likely been back to work for a few days by now.  The kids are back to school.  So I hate to be the one to have to tell you this, but some one has to do it: 
It's time to take down your Christmas Decorations.
As a supporter of decorating for the Holidays, it is important to remember that "What goes up, must come down..."  Tuesday marked Three Kings Day, celebrating the day the wise men arrived in Bethlehem bringing gifts for Baby Jesus.  Some religious and ethnic groups … (9 comments)

Getting dragged to the Office Party late - Office 2007 that is... - 01/05/09 03:46 PM
I admit that as technologically inclined as I am, I do not like a lot of change.  Becoming accustomed to my computers and their software is an important part of my business routine.  So, yes, I have been using MS Office 2003 - it would be Office XP if it were not for the fact the boss at my previous job dragged me forward back in 2005.
Office 2007 would never have even crossed my mind had I not come across "The Ultimate Steal".  Microsoft was offering MS 2007 Office Ultimate for about $70 if you had a valid Student ID … (0 comments)

What I am doing with my 2008 Resolution... - 01/05/09 01:01 PM
Before I set my goals on resolutions for 2009, I need to wrap up my 2008 Resolution.  One of my goals for 2008 was to take back some of the privacy we have given up by making ourselves available on the web via sites like A/R and Facebook, etc.  Without even realizing it, the personal information you make available can quickly snowball.
Phase I of my plan was checking the old Credit Report.   I used www.annualcreditreport.com to get copies of mine and my wife's.  Be careful of sites pretending to provide Credit Reports - or contact the credit bureaus directly.  This … (5 comments)