~ Walking the dog in Longboat Key, Sarasota, Florida ~ You can't do this in Tucson, Arizona! I was taking an early morning walk with my three brothers along a bay in Longboat Key, and I saw something none of the four of us had seen in more than 45 years. People were standing up in tiny watercraft, paddling across the water! We five boys (we lost one of our gang three years ago) grew up in the rainforest in Suriname, South America. It wasn't unusual to stand in a canoe. I'd never seen anyone here in the States do (42 comments)
~ Cumulus Clouds Over Southern Utah ~ It was just two weeks ago that I was driving through southern Utah, and although I came away with more than 400 photos, I didn't stop nearly often enough to take advantage of all the opportunity that was presented by the ancient landscape! My photo's not copyrighted. Please right click, copy and enjoy! _____________________ (I don't copyright my photos anymore. I use them mostly for blogging and creating greeting cards for friends and clients.) Right click on an image, copy and use it! Click the Send Out Cards logo below. Send a real (18 comments)
~ Longboat Key Angel ~ Longboat Key, Sarasota, Florida Serendipity! If you'll take enough pictures, you'll get some great ones. This photo, taken this morning in Longboat Key, Sarasota on the Gulf of Mexico, is proof of that. These shorebirds were enjoying the morning and so was I. Sitting on the beach, I took photo after photo of the birds flying in and landing with the rest of the clan. I didn't know I had this shot until I uploaded them to the computer. It's not copyrighted. Please right click, copy and enjoy! _____________________ (I don't copyright my photos anymore. (20 comments)
~ Sarasota Sunset on the Gulf ~ You're used to seeing my sunset photos from the Tucson desert, but tonight, I'm enjoyng the company of my brothers Dan, Morgan & John at John's place on the gulf in Sarasota. The Gulf of Mexico is perfectly calm this evening, and the weather is just beautiful! Oh, and Go Gamecocks! My alma mater South Carolina whupped up on #1 Alabamba's Crimson Tide this afternoon! _____________________ (I don't copyright my photos anymore. I use them mostly for blogging and creating greeting cards for friends.) Right click on an image, copy and use it! (7 comments)
A Loan Officer who makes house calls? You bet! I go the extra mile for my REALTOR friends because they remember me. It's a recipe for success that will work for you, too. Get Noticed! Stand out from the crowd. Solve problems for your business referral partners. Remember their birthdays and special occasions with a unique greeting card. Be available to answer questions. See "opportunities to serve" instead of complaining about what others should be doing to earn THEIR commission. I wrote a featured post about VA lending today. VA and FHA loans have quirks, especially when it comes to (15 comments)
Does your listing show "VA" in the financing options? In Arizona, most do, and it often comes as a surprise to the listing agent and the selling agent that VA appraisers won't allow the property to have trash - junk - stuff just laying around. Most of the stuff you see in the photo on the right is useful. There's nothing wrong with that telescopic ladder on the right. The refrigerator sitting under the porch roof works just fine. All of it must be removed, per the VA appraiser, and he's going to charge another $100. to come back and (43 comments)
sunstreet mortgage llc: Custom Caskets, Kitchen Cabinets & Email: Whatever It Takes To Survive in a Down Market
- 09/30/10 01:52 AM
Custom Woodworking. Custom Caskets. Okay. ...but then I read the rest of the rest of the sign! Custom Caskets Kitchen Cabinets Cedar Chests Gun Cabinets Cremation Urns Email! Tuesday afternoon found me north of Arizona in Utah. You know I always have my camera with me, and this sign made me hit the brakes, look in my rear view mirror, and make a U-Turn! This Utah entrepreneur has something for you from the cradle to the grave. I'm surprised the sign didn't say "High Chairs," or "Rocking Chairs." Not content to rely on his trade for income in this down (13 comments)
~ Serendipity Saguaro Sunrise ~ Tuesday sunrise found me driving on I-10 between Tucson and Phoenix in the tiny town of Picacho, and I saw these clouds in my rear view mirror. Pulling off the highway, I started snapping photos of the spectacular color. It wasn't until I downloaded the photos to my computer that I saw the Giant Saguaros (out of the photo to your left) perfectly mirrored on the side of the big rig on the right. Never miss an opportunity to snap a photo. You're making memories! ___________________ (I don't copyright my photos anymore. I use them (7 comments)
This photo of the final approach to La Cholla Airpark's runway is featured on their home page, along with a disclaimer (under the tab "Pilot/Airport Information) that says the following: Use Extreme caution on the final approach to verify that the runway environment is free of animals, vehicles and other potential hazards. Helicopters, livestock, wildlife may be present. This, after all, is Arizona! The Airpark's home page paints an attractive mental image of the lifestyle offered at (21 comments)
That's a ranch house you see on the valley floor below. Cattle graze down there, unaware of the danger above. People go about their daily work, oblivious to North America's largest cat. There are more than 40 names in English for this cat. Cougar, Puma, Painter, Mountain Lion... A big male like this one can weigh 200 lbs, and stand 2.5' high at the shoulder. It's likely that he's bigger than you. Its scream, reverbrating across the valley in the night air, will send a chill down the spine of the most seasoned (28 comments)
A Ballpark Estimate... A financial planner found me on Active Rain, and sent me the following message: Hello Mike, We have a client who may look into taking a Jumbo loan on his residence. More than likely it will be a $900k loan so I wanted to check rates, how it underwritten and approximate payments. Thanks! It's not every day that I get a request like this. The $900,000 part is interesting. Here's my response: Dear Sir, Thanks for your email. Without knowing... the borrower the borrower’s credit the borrower’s income the borrower’s debt ratio (obligations / income) (15 comments)
~ Labor Day Sunset from Gates Pass, Tucson, AZ ~ ___________________ (I don't copyright my photos anymore. I use them mostly for blogging and creating greeting cards for friends.) Right click on an image, copy and use it! Click the Send Out Cards logo below. Send a real card to someone you love. (Card and postage are free ~ on me. Thanks for reading my blog.)
I'm Mike in Tucson, your preferred Tucson Mortgage Lender. NMLS #223495SUNSTREET MORTGAGE llc ~ Correspondent Mortgage BankOffices (AZ) Mesa, Tucson, Nogales, and Albuquerque, NM. (13 comments)
~ Giant Saguaro Cactus ~ ___________________ (I don't copyright my photos anymore. I use them mostly for blogging and creating greeting cards for friends.) Right click on an image, copy and use it! Click the Send Out Cards logo below. Send a real card to someone you love. (Card and postage are free ~ on me. Thanks for reading my blog.)
I'm Mike in Tucson, your preferred Tucson Mortgage Lender. NMLS #223495SUNSTREET MORTGAGE llc ~ Correspondent Mortgage BankOffices (AZ) Mesa, Tucson, Nogales, and Albuquerque, NM. (10 comments)
~ Cocoraque Ranch at Sunset ~ ___________________ (I don't copyright my photos anymore. I use them mostly for blogging and creating greeting cards for friends.) Right click on an image, copy and use it! Click the Send Out Cards logo below. Send a real card to someone you love. (Card and postage are free ~ on me. Thanks for reading my blog.)
I'm Mike in Tucson, your preferred Tucson Mortgage Lender. NMLS #223495SUNSTREET MORTGAGE llc ~ Correspondent Mortgage BankOffices (AZ) Mesa, Tucson, Nogales, and Albuquerque, NM. (7 comments)
Gates Pass Road winds through a forest of Giant Saguaro cacti, and joins Tucson with the Avra Valley. The structure you see in the photo is built of rock, and has a stone picnic table and benches inside. Drive west on Speedway, and this is where you'll top out going over the pass. It's part of Tucson Mountain Park, and there's a ramada just below the structure you see here that's Handicapped Accessable. Should you need it, you'll find a "necessary" at the parking lot. This is a magical spot at sunset, and you owe it to yourself to come (13 comments)
~ Monsoon Evening in Tucson AZ ~ ___________________ (I don't copyright my photos anymore. I use them mostly for blogging and creating greeting cards for friends.) Right click on an image, copy and use it! Click the Send Out Cards logo below. Send a real card to someone you love. (Card and postage are free ~ on me. Thanks for reading my blog.)
I'm Mike in Tucson, your preferred Tucson Mortgage Lender. NMLS #223495SUNSTREET MORTGAGE llc ~ Correspondent Mortgage BankOffices (AZ) Mesa, Tucson, Nogales, and Albuquerque, NM. (28 comments)
sunstreet mortgage llc: HAFA ~ What Is It, & How Can It Help You?
- 08/25/10 06:16 AM
HAFA ~ What is it, and how can it help you? One in seven mortgages in the United States is not being paid. Yours may be one of them. If so, you need a REALTOR who understands HAFA. The Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternative (HAFA) is a government program designed to help homeowners who can't afford their mortgages to get out from under without incurring future liability. You'll need a REALTOR, since HAFA "aids eligible homeowners by pre-approving short sales before listing and releasing them from future liability for the first mortgage debt." A special "thank you" to Nancy Keith, new (7 comments)
190,000 Active Rainers! That's where we'll be by next week. That blows me away! And we did it one by one. One by one by one by one... Just like that August field in the photo above, watered by summer rain and blanketed with sunshine. Does one make a difference? These are difficult times. Difficulty can bend our focus inward, and that's not good. It's not how we're made to function in this life. We're made for each other. Discouragement makes me think small. "I'm just one person, one blogger, one insignificant vote." When I'm discouraged, I ask the wrong (49 comments)
Bloom where you're planted! (If you're a pessimist, move on.) Compare and contrast the environment for two identical, thriving cacti. The little guy on the left has all the luck! Of course it's doing well! He sprouted where there's soil for his roots, shade from that bush on the right, and level ground to retain water from the monsoon rains. The cactus above has none of that. The only soil to nourish its roots is that which blows into the rock crevice during a dust storm. Perched eight feet above the desert floor on barren rock, he has no shade (31 comments)
The perspective from which we view the world changes everything! The circle of brilliant pink flowers caught my eye as I was hiking in Tucson Mountain Park. Without the flowers, I might not have noticed the cactus. From six feet up in the air, this little cactus was a pretty insignificant part of my view of the landscape. Wondering to myself what this would look like from the perspective of the Desert Tortoise, I got down on my hands and knees, and then laid down full length on the ground. What had been a tiny cactus suddenly became a fortified (31 comments)