blogging on activerain: More Than Just a Number Can Mean Just That
- 03/19/26 06:53 AM
More Than Just a Number Can Mean Just That
Over the past month, I have been eyeing the points total on my homepage and wondering when and how was I going to step into another category.
Would I back into it with a comment made or received, or after working a challenge.
As I looked at the tally today, I knew exactly how I wanted it done, with a post that would be representative of the effort consistent with the first one.
My Way
Everyone does there thing on the platform and while it may not garner the appeal it once had, the networking possibilities offered … (13 comments)
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blogging on activerain: March Challenge #2: Celebrating a Member That Cared
- 03/09/26 11:59 AM
March Challenge #2: Celebrating a Member That Cared
This is entry 1 for the March Challenge hosted by Patricia Feager and Lew Corcoran and it is a testimonial to a true friend to all he touched and a source of knowledge and inspiration to all that cared to know him.
Joe Petrowski was the founder of Right Trac Financial Group in Manchester CT and Florida.
Whie not of the early members of ActiveRain, only starting in May of 2011, he jumped in with both feet and was a prolific blogger, commenter and offered up highly informational posts on how to get a mortgage, where … (14 comments)
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blogging on activerain: Charlotte, NC has Always Been Special to Me
- 02/15/26 04:49 PM
Charlotte, NC has Always Been Special to Me
Before I got into real estate, I traveled a lot on business. I was all over the country, but the place that was always special to me was Charlotte, NC.
There was always something about the place that brought a smile to my face and high expectations for when I would get a chance to go back.
I got out of that business and got into real estate just so I would not travel as much as I once did. For years I would tell my wife that I wanted to live in the Carolinas. It … (16 comments)
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blogging on activerain: In Appreciation of How We Got Here
- 02/14/26 05:45 AM
In Appreciation of How We Got Here
ActiveRain has been different things for different people over the years. As with any venture we undertake, you get out of something proportional to the investment you make in that venture.
I have had the good fortune to be a member of the platform long enough to remember the way it operated in the beginning. Blogging was not on the mind of all that were involved in real estate.
Marketing to get business or attention was somewhat alien to online enterprises and our spheres were geographically limited.
New concepts or styles were rare as people were reluctant to … (20 comments)
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blogging on activerain: February Challenge: Let's Showcase Barbara Todaro
- 02/09/26 06:30 PM
February Challenge: Let's Showcase Barbara Todaro
The Challenge for February has members posting blogs about ActiveRain members that have left their mark on the platform.
The challenge is hosted by Patricia Feager and Lew Corcoran.
As a member that has been here a while I do have fond memories of the posts and meetings had with Barbara Todaro.
Barbara was a wealth of information on marketing and was known for her work in matching the right expanse of land with the right builder and then allowing them to let her sell the tracts.
She was also keen on marketing here subdivisions in her Franklin, MA area … (17 comments)
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blogging on activerain: Reflect, Rejoice, Renew, as Life Transitions
- 01/13/26 06:22 AM
Reflect, Rejoice, Renew, as Life Transitions
The January 2026 Challenge is big hosted by Carol Williams and Leanne Smith and is one that each view with a different lens.
Reflections
At 13 years old, I earned my first official pay for work when I sat as a union musician with a group that was, on so many levels an education, but still it was a check for labors.
From there it would be all manner of labors:
carpenter concrete laborer postal worker landscaper mechanical designer All while maintaining a band and playing all over the state until graduating college Military service, 38 years in engineering, engineering service, … (22 comments)
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blogging on activerain: A Feel-Good Type of Real Estate Sale
- 12/31/25 08:25 AM
A Feel-Good Type of Real Estate Sale
Through 2008-2009 real estate was like an oil boom, with people selling and buying and at times not enough hours in the day. Then the reservoir dried up, because bank inventories were high and lending started to tighten-up. It became apparent that things had to change.
Late in 2008, a nephew of a family member reached out to me for help in selling their home. They were getting the demand letters from their lenders and needed guidance. What they needed at the time was beyond my level of experience and was also too late to enter into … (11 comments)
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blogging on activerain: I've Seen North Dakota in Films for Years
- 12/26/25 05:20 PM
I've Seen North Dakota in Films for Years
Our Zoom call for the Tuesday before Christmas was presented by Bob Timm, on the state of North Dakota. He mentioned some notables that called North Dakota home, as well as facts for which North Dakota is most famous.
When one thinks of the Continent of North America, we see the USA and Canada. If someone were to ask where the geographic center of the continent might be most would not get it correct.
That small dot so close to the Canadian border, represents Rugby, Noth Dakota and slight wet of there, still within the sphere … (16 comments)
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blogging on activerain: Friday Flags: The Prospect CT Post Office Waving Hard
- 12/24/25 11:18 AM
Friday Flags: The Prospect CT Post Office Waving Hard
Driving through town on my way in Waterbury I always pass the post office. This particular day the flags were really waving hard. I don't know if it was more than the wind, or just the wind gods giving me the shot I needed for the week.
The flag was just raised to full mast as the state was honoring the 25th anniversary of the Sandy Hook School shooting.
The second flag is for MIA's and POW's that was initiated in the 70's, many of them lost never to be returned.
It is a proud flag … (11 comments)
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blogging on activerain: Thankful for the Knowledge Real Estate Gave Me
- 11/30/25 08:56 AM
Thankful for the Knowledge Real Estate Gave Me
After 23 years of work in real estate, I have called it a day and as noted previously, thrown in the towel. I do so with the warmth of knowing that I did help people and while doing the short sales, it was even more rewarding.
My belief was that truly helping people in this business required learning beyond the requirements of getting licensed, where so any stop.
The continuing education classes mandatory to stay licensed are often the minimum far too many feel the need to take.
That was never enough for me and all the … (20 comments)
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blogging on activerain: No One Can do the Job Without a Strong Support Team
- 11/23/25 05:54 AM
No One Can do the Job Without a Strong Support Team
Real estate is an interesting career. The job requires the knowledge to properly list and sell a client's house, or to properly evaluate a listing in order to make a competitive offer.
It is a business of self-promotion as almost none have a line of people asking them to work with, or for them, unless they have done the work to create recognition.
It starts with the proper brokerage where there are fellow agents that have the answers one may not know, and the support of the broker to make sure one does … (16 comments)
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blogging on activerain: The Wonders of Utah: Who Would Have Guessed
- 11/18/25 12:46 PM
The Wonders of Utah: Who Would Have Guessed
The Zoom call this week was a presentation by Wanda Kubat-Nerdin on the state she calls home, Utah, and with great affection.
At the end of her presentation and detailing of facts, one could not be more impressed with the area for the impact it has had on society as a whole.
For example, everyone knows how pretty a tree can be. Now imagine a simple aspen tree, specifically a Pando Aspen, which is part of a single organic culture that is generated from a single root system and sprouting almost 50,000 trees, weighing over 13,000,000 … (15 comments)
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blogging on activerain: The Ways We Can Impact a Family and Their Lives
- 11/17/25 10:01 AM
The Ways We Can Impact a Family and Their Lives
In the season of appreciation, we all reflect on the manner in which our lives and our business culture has changed over the years.
For me, as I got into real estate after working in industry for so long, it became more of a service from me so much as a hard revenue stream. The mortgage meltdown in 2008-09 was catastrophic for many and none more than people that were used by agents and lenders strictly for a check.
Bad things happened to good people, and the villains went on their way, but lives … (17 comments)
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blogging on activerain: When a Presidential Candidate Came to Waterbury CT
- 10/30/25 06:54 AM
When a Presidential Candidate Came to Waterbury CT
The elections this upcoming week in Connecticut are not important on a national level, but do have impact locally as municipalities are electing leaders
I do remember a pre-teen morning, standing with my parents on the green in town waiting for a motorcade to arrive. It was a campaign visit by Democratic candidate John F Kennedy and the blue on display that night/morning was more than from the temperatures.
When the motorcade arrived, it was almost 3 AM and there were still an estimated 30,000 jammed into the green, looking up at the balcony of the … (19 comments)
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blogging on activerain: Waterbury CT Brass Capital of the World
- 10/27/25 09:43 AM
Waterbury CT Brass Capital of the World
By population, Waterbury CT is one of the top 5 cities in Connecticut. In heritage it could be the top city. Early settlements in the new world were established around farming as all needed to eat.
The core of the land between the two rivers, or the Indian name Mattatuck, later changed to Waterbury was not as suited to farming because of the hills and the flooding created by the rivers. The power generated by the water, however, was ideal for manufacturing and metalworking in particular.
It became a center for artisans, gifted in metalworking that spawned … (14 comments)
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blogging on activerain: The Mediterranean Diet Is a Lifestyle
- 10/17/25 06:17 PM
The Mediterranean Diet Is a Lifestyle
The Zoom call this week was a presentation by member John Henry on the lifestyle he lives with credit to his parents, and his youth spent on the Greek island of Crete.
A diet created many years ago and passed along with changes offered by the advances in more modern appliances, but holding true to culture.
Most meals were sufficient for the family to eat and seldom was there extra prepared with the intent to be leftovers.
Meals were prepared from that which was grown and only sufficient for that day. No such thing as cooking extra to allow … (16 comments)
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blogging on activerain: Selling the Perfect Listing and Making Dreams Become Realities
- 10/11/25 01:23 PM
Selling the Perfect Listing and Making Dreams Become Realities
There are times when we recognize that the buyers looking for a home just need a break. With one of my last sales, I felt a sense of comfort at closing that I felt my years of service had been perfect.
My buyer was a widow, and she explained that her previous home had been badly damaged in a storm.
As the house was so unique, her insurance agent had always made sure that the coverage was adequate to handle all issues.
So, criteria were established
As she and the children had always lived in a … (16 comments)
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blogging on activerain: When Other Forces Know What to do to Get your Attention
- 09/30/25 08:38 AM
When Other Forces Know What to do to Get your Attention
The Monthly Challenges on ActiveRain are a throwback to the early days when the platform was not only trying to teach us how to blog but also generating activity to increase its numbers.
There were also the Rain Camps, which were high-powered presentations that afforded great presentations and a chance to meet Rainers in person.
The Raincamps are not likely to ever happen again for a number of reasons.
What was spooky was the Cloud where my photos are stored sent me a memory jog.
Up came a photo taken at RainCamp in Washington, DC, … (19 comments)
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blogging on activerain: Friday Flags: A Bypass with a Fluttering Flag in Watertown CT
- 08/28/25 06:48 PM
Friday Flags: A Bypass with a Fluttering Flag in Watertown CT
Midweek, and I had still not seen a flag for this post. Our weather has been more than calm, and even chilly in the mornings, which offered no breezes to make Old Glory shine.
Until: I was making a Staples run and traffic on the main streets in Watertown were heavy. I took a bypass road that should have gotten me at least past the construction that was holding the traffic,
Fortuitous, as I went past a drive-thru area and stopped in the middle of the road.
I couldn't wait to get a full … (10 comments)
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blogging on activerain: There's a Reason We Do What We Do 2
- 08/28/25 08:05 AM
There's a Reason We Do What We Do 2
I have always prided myself on being attentive to details., and when it came to a potential listing more important.
I was called to a house to do a listing presentation. In order to get familiar, I will pull the property card from the assessor's office for several reasons. This card showed a 2-bedroom ranch and no garage.
When I got to the house, it had grown some from what was listed on the card.
In talking with the sellers, I learned that they had bought the house as a foreclosure, and it was partially remodeled. … (11 comments)
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More Than Just a Number Can Mean Just That
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