Sure Halloween hasn't hit yet. But as Autumn falls and the weather turns, you may be starting to think about the coming holiday season and entertaining family in your new home. No new home yet? There's still plenty of time to be in by Christmas. Call, and let's get started. ~Mardin, (408) 210-2073
6 Rules for a safe Halloween
When it appears you’ve killed the monster, NEVER check to see if it's really dead. Just run away.
Never read a book of demon summoning aloud, even as a joke.
Do not search the basement, especially if the power has gone out. Don't be that girl.
As a general rule, don't solve puzzles that open portals to Hell.
Don't fool with recombinant DNA technology unless you're sure you know what you're doing.
If your car runs out of gas at night on a lonely road, and you think that's strange because you thought you still had a half tank of gas, do not get out of the car and flag down a passing stranger.
You've heard of winterizing your house, but have you heard of winterizing your life?
You're familiar with the idea of winterizing your home ... servicing the furnace, etc. But now is also the perfect time to winterize your life. That means tying up loose threads you don't want to drag into the new year with you. While January is the usual time for life planning, it makes sense to get as many of these things out of the way before the New Year. Things like...
Household projects you've put off.
Family situations you need to settle.
Financial or legal issues you've resisted.
Health conditions you've been avoiding.
Here's a quick process for knocking some of those items off your list:
List everything you want to wrap up or start before the end of the year.
Is there anything you can handle quickly? Do that first for an energy boost.
For big challenges, prioritize the most critical first. These are things that could cause bigger problems later.
Make a micro-plan for each challenge. Remember the saying “How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.”
Oh, and don't forget to start your holiday shopping early!
October Quiz QuestionWhat can you hold in your right hand,
but never in your left hand?
Send your answer for a chance to win a $5 coffee card! Last month's Q&A:You bought an item for $7, sold it for $8, bought it back for $9, and sold it for $10. How much profit did you make? $2. Congratulations to last month's winner!
Nuggets of News
Should you pay off your mortgage before you retire?
If you have a sizable nest egg ($300,000 or more), and just a small amount left on your mortgage (like $50,000 or less), then paying off your mortgage might make sense. That will still leave you with a large cash cushion, and you'll enjoy being mortgage-free.
However, if your nest egg is small (say, under $150,000), then it doesn't make sense to pay off the mortgage, even if it’s just $50,000, because you’ll need that money for a cash cushion. You can't count on your home equity for extra cash because you might not be eligible for the loan after you retire, or your home might drop in value, reducing the equity.
As you can see, the numbers are not exact, and what one person feels is enough may not apply to another person. Always check with your own financial advisor before making any kind of decision like this. And as always, I'm here if you need any real estate information to help in your retirement planning. ~Mardin
Sherwin-Williams' Paint Color of the Year 2023
Darkroom is the 2023 Color of the Year and is described as 'an alluring and classic shade for an eclectic yet modern look'. We expect the color will dominate paint ideas in the seasons ahead.
“Inside every 72 year old is a 27 year old wondering what happened.”
Do you have a retirement backup plan?
Planning for retirement is based on considering present circumstances and making intelligent assumptions about the future. Since both these things change over time, a retirement plan is more of a guide than a hard target. As you plan, you will want to consider both your ideal outcome and possible worst case scenarios. Even if you've never done any retirement planning before, this article is a real eye-opener about retirement planning.
What happened to Saturday Morning cartoons? Probably not what you think.
If you're of a certain age, you might remember the peaceful joy of Saturday morning cartoons. If you're wondering what happened to that comforting ritual, you might be surprised to learn that its demise wasn't due to the internet. What happened?
Persistent appeals to the US Federal Communications Council (FCC) about violence and commercials aimed for kids eventually brought about the Children's Television Act (CTA) in 1990, placing strict regulations on what an American network could show on Saturday mornings. Commercials were limited and advertisements for toys that aired during shows the toy was based on, such as G.I. Joe, were banned.
As profitability dropped, so did cartoon programming. Fun, frivolous, and far-fetched cartoons were replaced by educational content that was pumped out by digital programming companies. The clear morals of good vs bad guys told in story form we're replaced by saccharine objective-based lessons.
Just how many pumpkins are there in the world?
Every wonder how many pumpkins there are at Halloween? Halloween wastes more food than any other time of year. According to Statistics Canada, over 80,000 metric tonnes (176 million pounds) of pumpkins are produced annually in Canada. And according to the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, more than 1.5 billion pounds (680,000 metric tonnes) are grown in the US. That's a lot of Jack-o-lanterns.
Just for Fun
Architecture for Adults
Sometimes it's out of necessity, and sometimes you wonder what they were thinking.
