The rain we received today wasn’t much to speak of, but the lingering gray skies aren’t the most welcome after being spoiled with all the beautiful Fall sunshine we’ve had thus far. With this week flying by so quickly, I’ll have to check and see what our weekend is supposed to be. Slowly but surely, I’m working at getting as much outside work done as possible before the deep freeze arrives.
When listening to the messages on my answering machine at office this morning, I was a bit more than irritated by a “canned” message from Donald Trump’s son who was calling to invite me to a “Save America” rally taking place at the fairgrounds in Des Moines this weekend. It was bad enough getting one of them last night on my home phone, but at my office was over the edge for me. The tone of his voice was bordering on a war cry instead of an invitation. Once again, these are troubling times in which we live, and I think it’s getting worse by the day.
I will freely admit that I’m a die-hard moderate when it comes to politics, and whenever listening to such intense language coming from both the far left and right of our political spectrum, I dig my heels in and say, “Enough is enough of this nonsense.”, and just today when talking about the mentalities of certain groups, I couldn’t help saying once again, “You can’t fix stupid.” Keep in mind, there’s a huge difference between ignorant and stupid, and believe me, there are a number of really stupid people who’re insisting they’ve got all the answers, when in fact, they’re nothing more than very loud mouthpieces of those they’ve aligned themselves with, and only because those poor souls “think” they’re working for the good of all. “Hogwash!” I say, because it’s all part of furthering their own personal agendas. I’m eternally thankful for the great teachers I had when I was in school because they helped teach me the art of discernment.
My morning appointment was with a co-executor of an estate who needed to come to Mason City and sign all the listing documents I’d already had signed by the executor several days ago, and with that done, I was able to keep my afternoon appointment over at the home, just so I could get the rooms measured and photos taken.
With my noon hour free, I ran out to one of my listings to turn off a light a Realtor left on several days ago, and what caused me to bristle all the more, was finding that agent left its back door unlocked. Ugh! There are times when I feel like a kindergarten moderator, and with all the break-ins we’ve been having, that’s all the more of an invitation for thievery. Thank goodness the seller didn’t discover it before I did.
Since I was out and about, I stopped to check on another project that’s been slowly moving forward, and to my surprise the worker had gone to great lengths in doing a good job, and what I’ve seen thus far, I’ll be looking forward to thanking a client of mine for referring him to me. I couldn’t help asking the gentleman, “Did you grow up on a farm?” His acknowledgement came as no surprise because that guy is one heck of a worker. If the job is completed as I’m expecting, I’ll be referring him to others because it’s getting all the harder to find good workers who’ll do good jobs for fair prices. Some day I’ll share with you a staggeringly larger price quote I got from another who thought he was doing me a favor by giving me a bid.
Around mid-afternoon I went up to my new listing at 1602 N. Pennsylvania to measure and take photos. I could see the executor had already done some extra cleaning and prepping for the photos I’d be taking. I reminded her that in this market, most buyers do not want to do much of anything, and because of their laziness, they’re paying many thousands of dollars more than they should be.
The home is a classic mid-century story and a half which was built with good materials and a skilled builder. It’s much larger than those you’d normally find of that style, and what makes it even more marketable, is its 10 x 10 heated breezeway which could easily be converted into a home office. The attached double garage is also a big plus since nearly every household owns more than one vehicle. The beautiful hardwood floors it has will also be a bonus for today’s buyers who prefer natural wood flooring. We’ll see how many calls for showings I get tomorrow.
My afternoon appointment went well, but unfortunately I was interrupted by walk-ins and cell phone calls which soon became embarrassing. I apologized profusely and fortunately the seller was understanding. While walking out he made mention of the beauty of the jade plants in my front window. Yes, they certainly love that window, and if they get any larger, I’ll have to re-pot them once again.
After my client left, I had a barrage of phone calls to return, emails to send out, and one last appointment that lasted only about a half hour. The seller could tell I was running on fumes, and all I could say was, “It’s been a busy week for me, but I’m not complaining.”
Since the mating season for deer is near, those devils are more interested in procreating than staying off the roadways. I almost hit a doe as it was darting across S. Pierce near Big Blue tonight, and thank goodness I keep a watchful eye out for those varmints. My curiosity now has me wondering what month or months of our year here in North Iowa has the most “deer-strikes”. I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if it’s either October or November. Be sure to keep your eyes peeled during their mating season.
Tonight’s One-liner is: We cannot tailor-make the situations in our lives, but we can tailor-make our attitudes to fit those situations.
