The Deal
My daughter, Lily, said she had a deal for me. Since I feed my family by making deals, I was intrigued.
Having evaluated the deal, however, I'm not doing it.
She'll be disappointed.
And being right in the middle of what I've come to call "the difficult years," she may even be mad…
Birthdays
Seated opposite me in the small & unique house she rented in Park City, Julia snapped this picture this morning and sent it out to the family.
"This is what old codgers do on their birthday," she said.
As the sun rose over the town earlier, Ken texted me to ask if I'd hit 50. Knowing I'd not, yet not entirely sure of my age, I checked with Google…
Perseverance
Saturday afternoon, while Julia took a break in the lodge, I found myself alone on the Saddleback Express chairlift here in Park City.
Being alone on a chairlift is a beautiful experience. Gliding silently through the air, surrounded by aspen trees and falling snow, an incredible feeling of joy overtook me.
I'm alive.
And life is good…
We’re Going To Make It
At the top, the wind was howling, and we could barely hear each other.
"Baby, can I do this?"
"What if I die?"
"Can I really get down this way?"
To that, I said, "Yes, yes, and yes."…
Cash Offers - Are You Paying What Zillow or Redfin Will Pay?
Yesterday we got a request to purchase a home in Charlotte, and after looking over the submitted information, I called the owner to discuss an offer.
We talked about the usual stuff - the house's condition, the roof's age, the last time the kitchen was updated - that sort of thing.
When we qualify a home for a cash offer, we ask the owner for their "win-win" price; that is, a price at which they are comfortable selling based on the condition of the house and the needed work.
In this case, that number was $296,000.
Not coincidentally, the "Zestimate" from Zillow was $296,000…
School's Out For. . . Rain?
Being stuck inside for most of the past week with Covid, I'd paid little attention to the weather forecast. I knew a hurricane was coming, but being unable to explore much past my rear fence, the predictions for wind and rain didn't much matter.
Still, like my neighbors, I could feel it yesterday.
The treetops bent beneath the wind.
As if knowing their fate, the weakest branches in the old oak tree behind my house let go.
The pressure and humidity levels changed…
$40 Bucks For Playing Nintendo?
Despite my best efforts, my middle son, Jack, has not yet become the financially savvy teenager I'd hoped he would be.
Case in point: recently, Julia allowed him to buy a game for his Nintendo Switch with our Amazon credit card. Rather than a one-time transaction, Jack associated the card with his account, which authorized it for in-game purchases.
I knew nothing of this…
Graduation
This time of year, there are always a lot of cap and gown photos floating around. Understandably, folks get excited when their kids graduate and move on to the next phase of life.
Although it's been more years than I care to admit, I still remember my high school graduation. It wasn't such a formal affair back then, and my classmates and I walked across a "stage" that was little more than a semi-truck trailer parked in the middle of the football field. We baked in the sun, threw our caps in the air, and then headed to Myrtle Beach.
The captions I see from parents and teachers on Facebook today echo those I heard on that football field all those years ago, "Today is the first day of the rest of your life."
How true…
Slower
It's 4:56 AM, and I just sent out an offer to purchase a property in Charlotte for one of our clients. We're just one of the probably 20, 30, or even more offers that will be submitted by the deadline today.
You've probably heard the real estate market is crazy right now.
And it is…
Because It’s Easy
The rise of iBuyers in the housing market is interesting. Opendoor, Offerpad, Knock, and a handful of other companies promise to make selling a house faster and easier.
Just give them your address and they automatically calculate the value of your home and buy it.
There’s no work to be done.
No cleaning, no repairs, no staging, nobody coming to your house.
Just sign the papers and move.
Sounds great right? But what’s the catch?…
Dr. Seuss
Who banned Dr. Seuss?
The crazy liberals on the loose!
No more Cat’s Hat
No more Horton’s Who
No more Beyond Zebra
Nor Mr. Brown’s Moo
No Wokcets in Pockets
No Thinks to be thunk
No Hunches in Bunches
Nor Only Old Once
No Hop on Pop
No Places to Go
No Grinch Who Stole Christmas
Nor the others you know…
My Body Is More Than Hardware
I have to be at my doctor’s office at 9:00 this morning - it’s a 30-minute drive. On a typical day, I’d be about halfway through my workout around the time I need to leave this morning, but today’s workout had to start much earlier.
When I left home at 5:30, it was twenty-four degrees outside. With today’s workout being a 5K, it only took a moment for the excuses to bubble up…
Election Fraud
Back in college, I got sucked into a Multi-Level Marketing company. Although that could never happen today, at the time, it looked legit.
I was about to get rich!
After spending lots of money on the start-up costs, I was out shopping for a new Chevy Blazer before I ever sold anything. Dark blue, four-wheel drive, and as my dad would say, it was "loaded to the gills."
My friends pleaded with me. "Look at what you're saying and doing! This doesn't make any sense!"
Looking back, it didn't…
People Who Have Done It Before
You know the old clichés about men not wanting to ask for directions or read the instructions?
Until my mid-30’s, I was that guy…
Even if You Pee a Little
My wife, Julia, has wanted to get back into a size two ever since she started gaining weight a few years back.
And like a lot of people who want to lose weight, she talked about it a lot.
“I want to be skinny!”
“I want to look like I did when I met you!”
“I want to be able to wear my sexy dresses!”
I want, I want, I want. . .
Freedom
What a great workout to kick off July #GRIT, and what a perfect day to get started.
July 4th.
Independence Day.
Freedom…
GRIT
Today should have been a stretch day in GRIT. I expected a twist, but I didn’t expect another round of the Spartan 1000. For those unfamiliar, it looks like this:
100 Squat Jumps
200 Push-ups
300 Sit-ups
400 Burpees
I did it last month; it’s brutal (but in a good way)…
The View from the Top of the World
The view from The Top Of The World is awe-inspiring.
And it’s freaking terrifying.
You get there by chairlift, traveling over terrain that, in the winter, is blanketed with soft and forgiving snow and covered with hordes of skiers. In the summer, the snow melts, exposing the rocky surface of the mountain, and the skiers give way to mountain bikers.
This is Whistler Mountain Bike Park, and I’m standing at the top of the highest point, looking down at a two-foot-wide path snaking down the side of the biggest mountain I’ve ever laid eyes on…
Cost vs. Return
I met some folks earlier this week to discuss selling a house. Like most people, they wanted to get as much money as possible from the sale and were curious to know my opinion of selling as-is versus updating the house.
Situations like this are interesting because I’m all about spending money to make money. From time to time, I’ll even lend to folks who are short on cash or create equity share deals where we front the money in exchange for a portion of the increased profit.
But, If I’m going to recommend someone spend money, I want to have a precise idea of what we’re spending it on, how that will affect the sales price, and the return on investment.
The spending has to be strategic…
Time For Myself
I’m not sure if it’s a blessing or a curse, but, either way, I have an extensive set of interests and a wide range of pursuits, a benefit of which is that I'm rarely bored. I often have a hard time relating to folks who say they’re bored or that they don’t have anything to do.
Being wired this way has its perks, but it does come with some drawbacks. I often have a hard time deciding what to do next, and it can be challenging to find the time to enjoy everything I want to do.
As a result, I have stacks unfinished books.
Mountains of unfinished projects.
And a list of other projects that I’ve yet to start.
For years, I’ve wished that the days were longer. I imagine you have, too, but no matter how it's sliced we each get the same 24 hours...