personal life: There's a Body in the Driveway!!
- 01/21/10 04:43 AM
As folks may know, Southern California has been deluged with rain and wind - we are on the 3rd or 4th storm of the week, with flooding, some mudslides, home evacuations and other unpleasantness.
My seller let me know that my sign had blown down yesterday so I schlepped out in the pouring rain to go fix it. I was working on getting it righted and sunk in the ground in a firmer spot and happened to turn and look across the road to the neighbor's.
Yikes!! There was a body in the driveway!!
It (appeared to be male) was lying … (48 comments)
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personal life: Our Family Holiday Tradition - Making Cookies
- 11/29/09 02:48 PM
We have followed a tradition of making an old German cookie recipe, Honey Lebkuchen, at Christmas time every year for 30+ years.
That's about 450 DOZEN cookies. It tends to be a big tradition in my wife's side of the family with most taking part and passing the tradition on to the kids (our older daughter, who just got married, made them with her husband for the first time this year - they were terrific). The recipe has been passed along for generations which makes it that much more interesting and fun.
The slide show details the primary steps of the … (6 comments)
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personal life: Speechless Sunday - Cancun Moon
- 11/15/09 03:28 PM
I took this photo from the balcony of our room at the Westin Lagunamar Resort in Cancun Mexico one evening (Monday Nov. 2, 2009) as we were enjoying a glass of wine before dinner, watching the full moon rise. I didn't have my tripod so the photo was a little shakey, but catching the cruise ship coming past the edge of the hotel added some interest. Not quite as good as the real thing but you get the idea.
… (15 comments)
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personal life: Cancun Restaurants - MB at the Aqua Resort in Cancun Mexico
- 11/11/09 04:32 PM
A Special Occasion at the Cancun Restaurant,
MB in the Aqua Resort in Cancun Mexico
As a confessed foodie, there is not much I enjoy better than a great restaurant. There is something special about dining when everything clicks - inventive food that delights the eye and the palate, attentive service, a wonderful ambiance enhanced by music, attention to detail, and a feeling that you are a very special guest.
Cancun restaurant MB at the Aqua Resort MAKES your feel special!!
Everything clicks at the Cancun restaurant MB at the Aqua Resort in Cancun Mexico, which is oceanfront … (17 comments)
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personal life: Blogging Withdrawal, A Vacation, and a Hurricane
- 11/09/09 10:14 AM
I just returned from a week in Cancun.
Yes, it was vacation, and there was NO blogging withdrawal (OK so I did activate a couple of draft posts that were done before leaving but it took 30 seconds to do that).
And there WAS a hurricane - IDA was her name. She flipped from tropical storm to hurricane, to tropical storm and back to hurricane while we were there, AND decided to hide the sun, and provide plenty of rain and wind for 5 of the 7 days of our trip. Despite that there was plenty of great food, it was … (14 comments)
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personal life: A Lonely, Stupid REALTOR is Transformed - BEFORE ActiveRain and NOW
- 10/19/09 03:29 AM
My first thought was that this BEFORE ActiveRain and NOW contest would be a snap. Ha!!
Once I started actually thinking about it I realized my memory was going to be significantly challenged (that happens often). Of course I joined AR in August 2006 so I'm old in blog years - those who are newer may easily recollect their before-AR personas. But let's give it a shot with the few neurons I still have.
BEFORE ACTIVERAIN I HAD NO FRIENDS.
Well, not quite - make that no real on-line friends. The shift from Internetless-friends to where I now have more than … (36 comments)
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personal life: Not Quite Speechless Sunday, Nor Should It Be!!
- 10/11/09 01:55 PM
Being absent from AR for any length of time is always a challenge. But there are some things that are just more important.
We just finished up all the whirlwind activities of my older daughter's wedding, which started with a big barbecue at our house on Friday for all who were in town from LA and Chicago.
The ceremony was yesterday afternoon at Cardiff State Beach with the reception at the Four Seasons Aviara in Carlsbad near our home. We had a brunch today at our house for everyone who was still in town and now everyone is gone and … (18 comments)
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personal life: A Topsy Turvy, and Emotional, Week!!
- 10/09/09 01:54 AM
This week has been, and will be, nuts.
There have been out of town clients, a ton of admin things to take care of, a 24 hour trip to San Jose to participate in a blogging panel at the California Association of REALTORS Convention, and now all the excitement of my daughter's wedding on Saturday.
That means out of town guests arriving already, getting the house in order, a barbecue at our house tomorrow night, the wedding on the beach in Cardiff in the late afternoon on Saturday, followed by a reception at the Four Seasons Aviara in Carlsbad, a catered … (20 comments)
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personal life: WHO Are Those Men and WHY Are They Just Standing Around?
- 09/03/09 08:27 AM
You see groups of men (some times a total of 20 or 30) standing around the exit of the Home Depot in Encinitas, along Alga Road adjacent to the La Costa Green master planned community in Carlsbad near my house, and on Encinitas Boulevard at the shopping center just west of the I-5 freeway. Other areas, too, I imagine but this is where I normally see them. Every day (just about) all year, given our weather.
There are no signs or placards so it’s not a protest.
I wondered about this the first few times I noticed until my neighbor … (12 comments)
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personal life: Not Quite Speechless Sunday - For a Good Reason
- 08/30/09 03:55 PM
Sometimes it's really important to take a step away from the crazy personal and business lives that envelop us and take so many hours of life from us, and enjoy a few moments to appreciate all that life offers.
It passes by so quickly, and we just never know when our particular moment on this planet will end. Contemplating what our lives are all about and what is really important is something we should all do on a regular basis. I am always thankful when I take that time, which is so rare...I need to do it more often.
… (12 comments)
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personal life: Scottsdale Restaurants - Mosaic Restaurant Scottsdale Arizona
- 08/11/09 03:22 AM
For visitors, or residents, seeking a stellar dining experience in the Scottsdale restaurants, Mosaic Restaurant in Scottsdale Arizona in the Pinnacle Peak/Troon North area would be my top pick.
We spent several days in Sedona and Scottsdale very recently, and of the many Scottsdale restaurants Mosaic Restaurant was the choice for a celebratory dinner. I would classify our overall experience as among the top picks of all the places I have dined in recent years, which includes Europe, the Caribbean, Brazil and major cities in the US.
Mosaic was not the most expensive, nor the fanciest or most opulent, but … (12 comments)
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personal life: Speechless Sunday - almost
- 08/09/09 01:08 PM
Windmill farm (wind turbine generators) along the 10 freeway just west of Palm Springs as we were heading to Sedona
… (5 comments)
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personal life: Speechless Sunday - almost
- 08/02/09 03:43 PM
You can't visit Arizona without being impressed by the Saguaro cactus - we drove by this the other day on our 3 day trip to Sedona and Scottsdale. They grow very slowly, and this one, given the number of arms, is probably about 200 years old. Cactus wrens love them and use them for nests - you can often see lots of holes. So different from the cactus we see in our area of SoCal.
… (5 comments)
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personal life: Friday Humor - New Words in My California Vocabulary
- 05/15/09 05:14 AM
I have some new words in my vocabulary since moving from Boston to SoCal's Carlsbad.
No, it's not what you're thinkin - they're not swear words. I already know all of them and still use them actively, especially when I get the dreaded proxy error or I lose Internet access in the midst of writing a lengthy email. Word autosaves so at least I don't lose my precious post drafts.
FREEWAY - now back East this is a highway. Still is in my mind...a big road with lots of cars subject to massive tie ups, delays and road rage. But you … (6 comments)
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personal life: A Long Time Ago and Far Far Away...
- 12/28/08 12:20 PM
Sounds like the start of a great movie, doesn't it?
Sorry to disappoint, but it's only a bit of history here. Interesting, perhaps.
A package arrived in the mail a week ago from my Mom on the East coast...an assortment of Christmas gifts and a brown envelope with some old photos. Seems she had been cleaning out some boxes and going through a ton of photos and sent some along that she thought would be of interest.
I might even be inspired to share some, at least those that are of the non-embarrassing sort. More on that later.
What was of … (18 comments)
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personal life: Want to Get Married on the Beach? Some Things to Consider?
- 12/28/08 03:48 AM
Getting married on the beach, for some, is a dream, a must-do. We certainly have plenty of beaches here in the Carlsbad area to consider - Ponto, Tamarack, Frazee, South Carlsbad, Grandview, Stone Steps, Beacon's, Moonlight, Swami's, Cardiff State Beach.
I'm not a wedding planner or anything of the sort, but this topic is kinda important right at the moment. My older daughter and her fiancé are planning their wedding for next September (we are thrilled) and getting married on one of our local beaches is a must do. We think it's a great idea.
While it might seem to … (7 comments)
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personal life: A New Office, and a New Beginning, Sorta
- 11/13/08 04:56 PM
I am in a new office starting today. Still RE/MAX Associates.
Actually it's not that earth shattering. The lease was up at my other office and could not be renewed, so the office is moving to a new spot in Encinitas which is further from my home in La Costa. It was a good opportunity to now move over to a RE/MAX Associates office just 2 miles from my home, near the beach, and in one of my favorite communities - Leucadia - since I have to change the address on everything anyway.
OLD OFFICE
OLD OFFICE VIEW
NEW … (22 comments)
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personal life: Feeling Like a Kid Again at Disneyland
- 11/10/07 01:28 PM
I spent the last day before my birthday (I'm NOT telling which one, except it was another Jack Benny birthday) at Disneyland in Anaheim, near Los Angeles.
It was a deja vu experience, having been there with our two daughters about 20 years ago (and returning with the older one and her boyfriend). The really cool thing is that we had FREE tickets plus got to eat at Club 33 (the private dining room with there is a waiting list for membership of almost 14 years - many members are corporations, and they often give out tickets to deserving employees).
Disneyland … (36 comments)
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personal life: A Photographic Journey of Southern California
- 10/15/07 03:21 AM
WARNING - this is a long slideshow, about 100 photos, but it represents much of what I enjoy about Southern California and some snippets into daily life. Sometimes photos say it better . Enjoy! (no points here!)
… (24 comments)
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personal life: A Taste of Luxury in Beverly Hills - Shopping, Hotels and Real Estate
- 07/16/07 03:36 PM
… (2 comments)
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As folks may know, Southern California has been deluged with rain and wind - we are on the 3rd or 4th storm of the week, with flooding, some mudslides, home evacuations and other unpleasantness. 
;)
;)
;)
