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Breakdown
Forget about real estate for a sec.We’ve been Safer At Home for a while now and the bigger message of this month’s Tom-Petty-Themed Update is: It’s alright. Tom says:“It’s alright if you love me It’s alright if you don’t” I would add:It’s alright if you learned a new language while you worked from home.It’s alright if you watched all of the Tiger King… and everything else on Netflix.It’s alright if you put your kids on a schedule and gave them enriching, hands-on activities.It’s alright if you relied heavily on PBS. It’s alright if you enjoyed the extra hours with people you love. It’s alright if those people annoyed the crap out…
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The Waiting
There’s a lot to unpack this time around. Let’s begin. First of all, there are really no lyrics, from this song, that I could contort into a real estate reference. I mean, I could -“Every day you get one more yard” – but it would be a ridiculous stretch. I’ll let it remain the peppy little love song it is. Instead, I’m going for the obvious: the title, in allll it’s truthy wonder. So much of life is about waiting, though not all waiting is equal. Waiting for a bus when you have free time is no big deal, but becomes much more stressful when you’re running late. Waiting on…
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Wildflowers
Wildflowers, as a song, isn’t the rockin’ good time we best know Tom Petty for, but that difference is what makes it special. A simple melody that almost reaches a Dylan-esque feel, as it works its way through a very “Peace & Love” vibe. Truly, this song was made for February, a month that is such a dramatic blend of extremes; it’s the dreariest time of year, in desperate need of some warm, cheerful thoughts, and it’s the month of love and romance, thanks to Valentine’s Day. What could be more romantic than a bunch of flowers? Wildflowers, in this particular instance, picked just for you. Imagine, that bright field…
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Into the Great Wide Open
As if I could kick off this year’s blog series with any other title. Last Fall, trying to pick a theme for this year’s blog, I ended up doing some crowd-sourcing. My friend, Sean Carpenter, suggested Tom Petty songs. As Realtors, who -presumably- write blogs about real estate, this makes perfect sense. Or not. Direct relevance aside, I loved the idea and, coincidentally, I’d already named our upcoming summer vacation, “IGWO 2020.” The line, “Into the great wide open,” seemed the perfect way to describe our plans for a roadtrip out west. It was all coming together… >>> Jumping back to the present, there is a real-estate-related point here and…
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Something For Everyone
Q: A vegan, a crossfitter and an atheist walk into a bar; how can you tell which is which? A: Don’t worry, they’ll tell you. It’s really interesting, how many different types of people we have on our tiny planet. In some instances, you may never know of the interests or inclinations of your neighbor. In other cases, people feel so strongly about their convictions and life paths that they want everyone to know about the amazing benefits of their decisions and terrible consequences of ignoring their warnings. Different strokes for different folks, you know? It keeps life interesting. For example, it may interest you to know that November 1st…
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10 People You MUST Know When Moving to Knoxville
June 12th International Falafel Day 10 People You MUST Know When Moving to Knoxville 10. It 9. Doesn’t 8. Matter 7. They’re 6. All 5. So 4. Nice 3. Laura Fangman 2. Yassin Terou 1. Dolly Parton Allow me to explain. 10-4: It doesn’t matter, they’re all so nice. Now, I understand that no one is immune and there are always exceptions -I don’t live in a bubble- but there truly are so many great folks around here! It was one of the first things we noticed, when we were considering our move. General friendliness was our introduction; strangers who looked you in the eye and smiled, people driving by…
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Jealous?
You should be. March 23rd is National Chips & Dip Day. To clarify, when I think of chips and dip, I’m not talking about fried tortilla bits and runny garden smush (though that combo has a time and place, for sure!). I’m talking about crispy-thin slices of golden potato, lowered into a creamy blend of dairy and a particular selection of spices. Potato chips and French Onion dip. Specifically, Prairie Farms French Onion Dip. If you’ve had it, you know what I mean. Growing up, absolutely nothing else would do and everyone knew it. PF’s dip is distinct and far superior to any other brand, off-brand, or store-brand. It was…
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Food Focus
As I began searching for a theme for this year’s blogs, I remembered a fun little calendar that the good folks at Bite Squad sent me. Each month has a clever food pun and the food-related national holidays are listed in the squares. This seemed great, at first blush: I like food, I like blogging and I like Bite Squad. A Realtor, building a year’s worth of blogging on a foundation of obscure, foodie holidays? I could be on to something. Speaking of Bite Squad, have you used the service yet? They bring you food from restaurants that don’t deliver and you can do the whole thing online. If…
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Stone Soup
Welcome to 2019! This year’s theme is: STONE SOUP We are off and running, in the new year, but I wanted to take a moment to pause and check in with you. This is the time of year when we’re trying to get our collective acts together in order to accomplish those Big, Audacious Goals we’ve been quietly planning. It can be daunting, for sure. Have you summoned the nerve to say your goal out loud, yet? Remember, if it doesn’t scare you, it probably isn’t big enough! When I first started planning goals for 2019, I was afraid mine were too small. I quickly realized that…
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A Step Forward for Safety
Realtor Safety is at the top of my priority list. It can’t not be. Those in the industry are -hopefully- well aware and those on the outside are, sadly, beginning to learn. As excited as the general public seems to be about HGTV, I don’t recall hearing the Property Brothers talk about the buddy system or Joanna Gaines reaching for the next piece of shiplap with a can of pepper spray swinging from her belt loop. A big part of this job, as a Realtor, involves agreeing to go with people I barely know, into places where we are alone and no one will think anything of it. I…
