Volunteers aged 15 or older are requested by the Crisis Intervention of Clear Lake to answer phone calls on the Hotline and Teenline.  Volunteers receive the necessary training to assist callers needing help dealing with relationships, substance abuse, depression, stress, and other issues.  Callers are also provided with information about community and educational resources.No prior experience is required, but good listening skills and an objective and caring attitude are necessary.  Contact Volunteer Houston Bay Area at 281-282-6035 or www.volunteerhouston.org to inquire.www.StagingSmartNSold.com provides Houston home staging solutions to facilitate a quicker and more profitable house sale.  The owner is a volunteer with Family Outreach of Clear Lake. 02/03/2008

Clear Lake Regional Medical Center seeks assistance at it's Heart & Vascular Hospital. Volunteer opportunities include providing assistance to patients and visitors at the information desk and in-patient areas, or providing support to relatives of patients.  Requirements are a one year commitment, a minimum of four hours weekly, and release for a criminal background check.  Contact Volunteer Houston Bay Area at 281-282-6035 or www.volunteerhouston.org for more information.www.StagingSmartNSold.com provides Houston home staging solutions to Bay Area homeowners and Realtors to facilitate a rapid and profitable house sale.  The owner is also a volunteer in the Houston Bay Area. 02/03/2008

Monster Jam was at the Reliant Center last night (Feb. 2, 2008) and as always it was entertaining for everyone!  There was much excitement when Spring, Texas' own  Daron Basl w/El Matador was in the semi finals with Pablo w/Gravedigger.  The hard charging Daron Basl was even with Gravedigger when after the final turn at the finish line, Daron flipped his truck ending up on it roof and ripping off the tire.  David Smith w/ King Krunch is also from Spring, Tx and did a fantastic job as well.Maximum Distruction, driven by Tom Meetz went on to take the win over Gravedigger.The freestyle was won by Pablo w/ Gravedigger, also from Spring, Texas.  We were really proud of our hometown guys! 02/03/2008

Your house could sell faster and at a higher price if it shows well!  Potential buyers will get the best impression if your house is clean, light, airy, uncluttered, neat & in good shape-after all, the first impression is usually the only impression.  Most of us think our homes are in fine shape, but you need to really see it from a buyers' point of view, so here are some things you can do to spruce it up and get the edge up on the competition.  It can mean the difference between a potential sale or a sale on the one down the street.  I have seen cases where the buyer purchases a house that is in excellent shape, uncluttered, clean and looked well cared for rather than a newer home that was even a little larger.  It just showed well and was taken such good care of!  Here are a few initi... 02/02/2008

I have a fondness for movie theaters. I used to work in one when I was younger. I particularly like the old Art Deco theaters, which really carry you away. I go to the Bookstop on West Alabama street, since you can still see a few elements of the old theater. I joke about the ghost with Whole Food employees at the old Bellaire theater location. (All older movie theaters have a ghost story, but at the Bellaire there was a light that we could never explain- maybe it had something to do with the bar in the lobby). I have movie posters around the house, and more rolled up in tubes. I even made a sculpture out of old seventies film reels in my backyard. All of this leads up to the fact that I am witnessing the destruction of a megaplex close to home. I never went to this location, since it ... 02/01/2008

                                                               According to the statistics, the Houston market isn't how the national media keep talking about.  When the media talks about the crashing of the housing market, they aren't talking about the Houston real estate market.  Are there foreclosures in the Houston area?  Yes there are!  According to a study, Houston has averaged 1000 foreclosures a month for the past year and its looking steady at that number.  This may sound like a high number and it is except that we are talking about a market that has more than 2 million homes.  So 12,000 foreclosures a year isn't bad since there are investors picking them up as soon as they hit the market.     The median home price has consistently gone up in the Houston area.  Currently the av... 01/31/2008

Dear, I am going down to Ikea to order the house. Pick the nice Scandinavian one, Bob. There all nice Scandinavian ones he grumbles. You know the one I mean. The beige two story. Be sure to get all of the extras for the garden. Well, of course I am going to buy everything for the garden; all I was asking about is the shed. Should we have a shed or use the garage? Of course we need the shed. Honestly, you men do not know how to shop. Do I need to come with you? Sorry, dear, I didn't hear you. I am going out the front door. When he returns, he announces the flat pack is in the mail. We have to wait six to eight weeks dear. Are we going to put it together? Well, I am pretty handy. So we are hiring a builder then. I was looking back over some plans from Archigram's designs for pre-fabricat... 01/31/2008

It has been a long day, and now I am sitting back reflecting upon the work of the day. I do not carry a camera to take pictures of the homes that I inspect for reasons of my own, but today I should have. I would have taken a nice picture of corn swaying in the breeze. Last year, an inspector from another city in Texas showed me a photograph of corn growing out of a gutter. I had a good laugh, but I never really thought that I would see this plant in a gutter. I have seen many things growing or making their home in a gutter. My favorite was the small tree with roots going down the drain pipe. Shortly after seeing the corn photograph, I saw a single stalk of corn growing in a gutter. I thought it might be a little joke from the universe to let me know that strange things are not so stran... 01/29/2008

Where's the bathroom he asked. By the front door, I reply. He turns and smiles, You can tell it is only my second time in this home. I have been scampering around this house for the past three hours, so I know its layout. In reality, I have investigated a few homes from this builder with the same layout, so it is almost like an old friend now. The front window will always have that crack in the wall above it because of the weight bearing down on the studs from above. You would think that the builder or architect would take note a change that little defect, but I always find it. I like to consider the layout of homes. Where will the inhabitants walk? How will the rooms be used. Would moving the closet create a better room? I do not share these thoughts with my clients. I think of the el... 01/28/2008

The Bay Area American Red Cross provides area residents with door-to-door transportation to medical appointments.  Volunteer drivers are needed to provide local non-emergency medical transportation utilizing Red cross minivans that are covered by Red Cross insurance. Transportation service to residents is provided from 9 am-3pm on weekdays.  For information on shifts available and other questions call Volunteer Houston Bay Area at 281-282-6035 or visit www.volunteerhouston.org Drivers are asked to commit to a specific shift between two and four hours each week, and training is provided.www.StagingSmartNSold.com provides Houston home staging to assist Bay Area homeowners and realtors with a quick and profitable house sale.  The owner is also a Bay Area volunteer. 01/28/2008

The Rose is a nonprofit women's heathcare center providing breast cancer screening, diagnosis, and support regardless of ability to pay.  Every patient covered by insurance who receives screening also assists a low income or uninsured woman to be screened.Volunteers are requested to help with mailouts, special projects, and events.  There is a great need for bilingual volunteers.  Community service and youth volunteers are welcome also. Call Volunteer Houston Bay Area at 282-282-6035 or visit www.volunteerhouston.org for more information.www.StagingSmartNSold.comprovides Houston home staging solutions to homeowners and realtors to assist a rapid and profitable sale.  The owner has also been a volunteer in the Houston Bay Area for years. 01/28/2008

Have you ever had a thought follow you? You begin to see a pattern or trend or idea reoccur to you. Sometimes you are just making connections, because of your own musing, but at other times I wonder. I had such a feeling reading the New York Times on Sunday. The persistent belief came down that the wages of sin are quite tolerated in our society. We do not accept this idea when blatantly confronted with it, but I started to see this theme in my readings from the paper. People in the financial and real estate industry are losing their jobs because of the financial crisis. The majority of them did nothing wrong, but their employers want to save payroll dollars. On the bright side, greed is good, although a sin. If you were an executive who oversaw aspects of your firm that became involve... 01/28/2008

Recent roof, fence, carpet. Just painted. Kitchen has great built-in and bright breakfast area. Tile entry. Huge master bedroom with large bath and walk-in closet! Big backyard. Study upstairs (no closet) could be 4th bedroom. Big Home-Low Price! Move-in ready.Recent roof, fence, carpet. Just painted. Kitchen has great built-in and bright breakfast area. Tile entry. Huge master bedroom with large bath and walk-in closet! Big backyard. Study upstairs (no closet) could be 4th bedroom. Big Home-Low Price! Move-in ready.2000 sq ft for only $129,900 . 01/27/2008

Growing up, I had a great desire to learn how to use the dishwasher. My mother cleaned our dishes by hand, and she had me dry when smaller. By the time when I was my son's age, she had me doing them by myself after dinner. My brother eventually became the rag man, but still that dishwasher looked enticing. My grandmother used her's. She found that it was great for storing baking supplies. Considering that she baked enough goods for the entire neighborhood, I had to bicycle over to her house each Sunday evening (baking day) to help wash up. She managed to get in the local paper for this habit (but did they include the poor kid washing up the dishes in the story?). When I was sixteen, I thought that I would be smart, and give the dishwasher a try. I loaded it, turned it on, and I left. W... 01/25/2008

The Space Alliance Technology Outreach Program is offered by the Bay Area Houston Economic Partnership.  It provides technical help to small businesses at no charge.  It is funded by NASA and the State of Texas.SATOP is now assisting a company to perfect a device that would permanently anchor mobile homes in order to prevent excess damage in the case of hurricane force winds.  For more information on SATOP and its technical assistance, contact Nick Gardner at 281-486-5535.www.StagingSmartNSold.comprovides Houston Bay Area home staging to facilitate a rapid and profitable house sale for area homeowners and realtors. 01/25/2008

It's that time of year again, when the Houston Asset Building Coalition is needing volunteers for its Income Tax Assistance program.  VITA assists low income people needing help to complete their federal tax returns.  It is sponsered by the Internal Revenue Service and training for volunteers is provided.Requirements for volunteers is computer literacy with good interpersonal skills. Day, evening, and weekend shifts are available.  Contact Volunteer Houston at www.volunteerhouston.org for further information.www.StagingSmartNSold.com provides Houston home staging to assist homeowners and realtors with a rapid and profitable home sale.  The owner is also a volunteer in the Houston Bay Area. 01/25/2008

On most weekends, you will find me strolling with my daughter on early Saturday mornings in Hermann Park. The park offers a lot to us residents of Houston. The Miller Outdoor Theatre, the zoo, the natural history museum, a jogging track, a playground, and a golf course. Saturday mornings are fun. Brides and quinceiras are posing in their dresses by the fountains. My daughter waddles over to imitate their poses. She was really engrossed in the female body builder wearing a red cocktail dress. The poses were surreal to me. It is fun to go over to the lake to watch the elderly Russians play backgammon. They think that I am Russian, so I just say “Da, Da” (which happens to be my favorite art form too. Hermann Park was donated by the Hermann family as a place for the Germans here in Houston... 01/24/2008

I am sure that my parent's were giving me certain phrases as advice over and over again, but one tidbit from my mother keeps recurring to me now. It is not that the others were not memorable, but I have a tendency to remember actions more than words, but in this case, the phrase comes back. “ It is easy to go to an extreme, but moderation is the way to go.” Vague enough to apply to a host of topics, but concrete enough for me to recall. I remember when President Bush took office with the claim that the parties will work together. That claim has not come to fruition. I am sure that all of the candidates will be promising the same, particularly since the polls show that is what the public wants. Honest reasoning has gone out of our political thinking, in favor of pleasing a special inter... 01/23/2008

Real Estate professionals are a passionate people. We work 24/7 to help our clients, but our passions take us to new places. For some, we find outlets for our passions in causes and charities. I think that the best of my peers have always exhibited this desire. You will find professionals concerned about the environment, their communities, habitat for humanity, or another charity which gives back to the community. I give this as a prelude to explain this post.    I have donated can goods to the Food Bank in Houston for some time now, and last year I started to volunteer there. I had asked my son what would he like to do to give back to the community. I said it could be anything he wanted to do. He wanted to work at the Food Bank, so off we went to work in the repack room (children canno... 01/23/2008

Current Houston volunteer opportunities include:An agency providing health and nutrition services in the United States and Africa needs Grant Writers.Nursing homes need Valentines Cards created.  Other volunteers will deliver in early February.The Fifth Ward office of a faith based social service agency needs word processing assistance.A Montrose area thrift shop supporting services to women needs volunteers.To get involved, call Volunteer Houston at 713-965-0031 or visit www.volunteerhouston.orgwww.StagingSmartNSold.com provides Houston home staging solutions to facilitate a rapid and profitable home sale for homeowners and realtors. The owner is also a volunteer with Family Outreach of Clear Lake.  01/23/2008