murrieta real estate: Coffee, Tea Or Pastries? - Temecula Tea House
- 03/18/09 06:53 AM
It's heartening to see new businesses become established and successful. Diane Walden called me yesterday to invite me to take a look at the California Tea & Coffee Brewery. Laura and I dropped in this morning, met Diane and her husband Vern and checked it out. Wonderful smells hit your nostrils the moiment you step in. They offer forty different loose leaf tes, with flavors like Caramelized Pear, Cinnamon Plum and Apricot Dream as well as the more traditional Earl Grey, English Breakfast, Oolong and the like. They also serve coffee. As Vern put it, they major in tea and … (14 comments)
murrieta real estate: Happy St. Patty's Day - Growin' Of The Green
- 03/17/09 04:30 AM
I thought I'd take you on a tour of my newly planted veggie garden. Lots of green to share with you on a sunny St. Patrick's Day in Southern California. I'll bring you back in a few months and we'll see how big everything has gotten.
Murrieta Real Estate Expert – Tom Plant, REALTOR® - Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage – Active Rain Ambassador (951) 907-9701 It would be my honor to show you the incredible Temecula Valley, a place I’m very proud to call home.
Two years ago, the Esperanza Fire claimed the lives of five Riverside County firefighters. After the tragedy of losing those five brave men, the news got worse when investigators learned the blaze was set intentionally. This week, a man was convicted of setting that blaze (I won't name him, he deserves no more mention) and murdering the firefighters. His conviction brings a sense of closure to the families of the victims, but clearly the loss will never go away. Yesterday I attended Joey Azsterbaum's monthly Real Agent Help breakfast. The guest speaker was Will Burger, who's family has set … (2 comments)
The calendar may say winter, but signs of spring are popping up all over Southern California. These are peach and nectarine blossoms in bloom in my back yard. As I drive around the Temecula Valley, the roadsides are awash with gold and yellow wildflowers. The strawberry stands are open for business. Spring is here, baby! I've been preparing to plant my annual vegetable garden. Over the past few weeks I've been adding soil, turning the earth and getting things in order. Yesterday I stopped by Armstrong Garden Center and picked up tomatoes, squash, hot peppers, green onions and … (24 comments)
I'm the proud papa of a new website. It's called lenscapes. I have threatened promised to do a website devoted to my photography for way too long. They say getting started is the hardest part... well, I got started. So stop by, take it for a test drive, kick the tires and let me know what you think. There's a lot more content coming. Here's the cry for help. My good friend Shaun Murphy has spent most of the last 16 years singing with Little Feat. As even further evidence of the toll the economy is taking, she was … (11 comments)
Animal Friends of The Valleys is a wonderful organization that provides services for our four legged (and some winged) friends. A few years ago, I adopted the light of my life, Domino, a black and white tuxedo kitty. Last year I submitted his photo for their annual calendar. Guess who's the pet of the month for February, 2009? Am I a proud papa? You bet! Isn't he adorable?
Murrieta Real Estate Expert – Tom Plant, REALTOR® - Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage – Active Rain Ambassador (951) 907-9701 It would be my honor to show you … (16 comments)
murrieta real estate: What I Did (And Learned) On My Winter Vacation
- 02/07/09 03:54 AM
Each January for the past seven years, a group of die-hard Little Feat fans have headed for Negril, Jamaica to hear their favorite band perform on the beach. As you might imagine, when you put several hundred people with a shared interest together, strong friendships develop. Not only have I enjoyed the opportunity of getting to know the band members better, I've made wonderful friends and have spent time pursuing one of my other passions: photography.
Little Feat's keyboard player Bill Payne is an artist in every sense of the word. He plunged into photography a few years back … (10 comments)
I met Maryann Edwards a few years ago when she was a member of the Temecula City Council and I was board chairman of The Southwest Riverside County Association of REALTORS. She was always a great guest speaker and she is now doing a tremendous job as Temecula's mayor. I run into her from time to time at Mission Oaks Bank. She works there and it's where I do my banking. You can always count on Maryann to have an opinion and to take a stand. I asked her to weigh in on the economic stimulus package:
It's no secret that I'm a big fan of the farmers market in Old Town Temecula. Laura and I try to stop by every Saturday morning when we're in town. During our visits, we've grown to know George Petrou and look forward to stopping by his booth. George is 84 years young. He invites you to taste his olive oils and garlic, and then goes on to extoll their virtues. He points to the fact of how good his health is and mentions that his mom is well over 100 and still going strong! Pay a visit to his … (4 comments)
There's nothing wrong with the idea of making New Year's resolutions. The problem is, for the most part, they just don't work. If you want to accomplish something, make it a goal and put it in writing. Your goals need to be clearly definable and attainable. They should be extremely specific. For example, instead of writing "I want to lose weight", spell it out. How do you plan to achieve it? Try this: "I will lose 30 pounds by March 1, 2009. I will attain my goal by exercising a minimum of thirty minutes daily. I will follow a … (16 comments)
A few weeks back I got a message from my good friends Carl & Ceil Winters: Howdy my friend way out in California. However, we still consider you 1/2 Texan so it is time to write your own Birthday Blog. This willl be time for you to shine and I just know you will receive many, many well wishes. Write my own birthday blog, eh? Well, I suppose there's a first time for everything, so here goes. I had the good fortune of being born on December 31, 1952. There have been a lot of people who have asked … (16 comments)
Fresh tortillas on Christmas day at El Nido restaurant in Rosarito Beach. I have been visiting Rosarito for more than twenty years now, and ate at El Nido the first time I visited. This was Laura's first trip south of Tijuana, so there were many places I was anxious to share with her. The global economic downturn was evident south of the border, too. The roads were nearly empty. The media has been emphasizing drug-related crimes, and those stories haven't done much to help tourism either. Nonetheless, the weather for the most part was spectacular, we had an unforgettable … (26 comments)
murrieta real estate: A Young Boy Believes - Yes, Tom, There IS A Santa Claus
- 12/20/08 10:42 AM
Isn't this the best time of year? I Love seeing the faces of young people, as they take in the sights and sounds of the season, and get perhaps their first glimpse of Santa. Friends and neighbors gathered at our house last night for a little bit of Christmas cheer, to reflect on the year rapidly vanishing and looking towards the new year with hopeful anticipation. Thank you for sharing this piece of cyberspace with me. I wish the best for you in 2009. Merry Christmas from Southern California!
Murrieta Real Estate Expert – Tom Plant, … (9 comments)
Each year at this time downtown Riverside is turned into a winter wonderland. At the heart of it all is the historic Mission Inn. This is where U.S. presidents come to stay when they visit. When Laura and I went Wednesday evening, we strolled the streets soaking up the 16th annual Festival of Lights. Block after block is filled with lights, ornaments, trees and horse drawn carriages. Vendors sell fresh donuts, cookies, light wands and more. There's an ice skating rink. It's truly a spectacle. Next year I hope to attend the opening ceremony, which features a jaw-dropping fireworks … (41 comments)
It's no secret that charities are really feeling the pinch this year. Missy Caulk wrote an excellent post on it: Good Search, You Search We Give My sister has always been one who would rather a gift be given in her name than to her directly. This year she let me know about a wonderful site -
Redefine Christmas gives you many options of donating to charities in other peoples' names. It also provides multiple links to other sites, like and
This year, it's easier than ever to make a difference. Here's wishing you … (14 comments)
Thanksgiving is my favorite day of the year. I love practicing gratitude and sharing the day with friends and family. This has been a challenging year to say the least, but I have so much to be grateful for it's heard to know where to start. I am grateful I have found my soulmate in Laura. I am grateful for my good health. I am grateful I have so many wonderful friends, including so many I have met here … (21 comments)
The seasons are changing and it's finally beginning to feel like autumn in the Temecula Valley. Every year at this time the Temecula Valley Woman's Club hosts its annual Holiday Home Tour. This year the homes selected were in the wine country . Laura and I decided to tour the three homes chosen for this year's tour this morning. We started at Keyways Winery where owner Terri Pebley's home is located.
Cameras weren't permitted inside any of the homes, but I'm happy to show you the exteriors. The Pebley home is 4,300 square feet, and you … (3 comments)
Southwest Riverside Country is so full of hidden treasures. Take a stroll down Main Street and you'll discover some of the best restaurants and shops in the county. Rusticana, Raviolis!, Flour Fusion, and Guadalajara can all be found on the same side of the street in the same block. Laura and I stopped in at Flour Fusion for lunch and it was exceptional. We both had half a sandwich and a cup of soup. I had the egg salad and she had the veggie sandwich. Everything was fresh and delicious. We topped it off with an oatmeal raisin cookie. … (16 comments)
I'm proud to call Laura Vecchione my friend. We met last week when she was in Murrieta to mix her new song, Tell Em About The Dream. I heard a rough mix Wednesday, received the final mix Friday and this morning she sent me the video. "This is a song and video that came together in a week, in three different cities, because of people's belief in Sen. Obama and his message of renewal and the historic nature of this election. We got it done just in the nick of time!!!The song was inspired by Gospel singer, Mahalia Jackson … (3 comments)
Laura and I headed for San Francisco yesterday to celebrate her granddaughter Mather's 2nd birthday, which is today. Yesterday was Halloween. If you've never been to San Francisco on Halloween, you don't know what you're missing. Before heading out to Belvedere Street, mom Emily and dad Dan dressed Mather as Raggedy Ann.
We'd been told Belvedere Street is the place to go on Halloween, but there was no way to prepare us for what we saw. Thousands of celebrants lined both sides of the street, which had been closed to vehicular traffic. Therewere witches and goblins … (18 comments)
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