The American Fool

I received an email that is, unfortunately, true not only for our last election but for several elections before it. As you read it, think about it, substitute the names of our ex-presidents and our congressional representatives for Obama… We are in serious trouble and we need to repent before it gets worse. Here is the email:

Some people have the vocabulary to sum up things in a way you can understand them. This quote came from the Czech Republic . Someone over there has it figured out. We have a lot of work to do.
 
“The danger to America is not Barack Obama but a citizenry capable of entrusting a man like him with the Presidency. It will be far easier to limit and undo the follies of an Obama presidency than to restore the necessary common sense and good judgment to a depraved electorate willing to have such a man for their president.”
 
“The problem is much deeper and far more serious than Mr. Obama, who is a mere symptom of what ails America. Blaming the prince of the fools should not blind anyone to the vast confederacy of fools that made him their prince.
 
The Republic can survive a Barack Obama, who is, after all, merely a fool. It is less likely to survive a multitude of fools such as those who made him their president.”

Hey Mom, I Caught a Troll

Once upon a time there was a school teacher with a 33 year old special needs son who functioned well enough that he was able to stay at home safely without supervision while his mother was away at work. And, his mother was able to go to work having peace of mind because she knew that her son would phone her in the event of an emergency. Time passed and all went well until early one morning the mother received a call at work:

“Mom, I’ve caught a troll. You’ve gotta come home!” exclaimed her son excitedly.

“Honey, you know I can’t leave work,” his mother calmly replied. “And, remember, you’re only supposed to call me if there is an emergency.”

The second time her son called that day to tell her he caught a troll and she needed to come home, she sternly reminded him that she could not come home unless there was a real emergency. By the fifth call, she definitely was not amused.

When she got home from work that afternoon, her son rushed to the car door as she opened it. “Mom, come see my troll!” He grabbed her hand and hurriedly led her upstairs to his bedroom. There she saw a chair propped firmly against his closet door to keep it shut.

“Be careful mom,” he warned as he removed the chair from the door. “You gotta see him but he really wants to get away!” When he opened the door, there sat a real live midget.

The poor fellow was a Jehovah’s Witness who had been out proselyting that morning. When the midget knocked on the door and the son opened the door and saw him, the boy picked him up and carried him upstairs to his bedroom and shut him up in his closet…where he had spent the last five hours.

Overcoming Job Title Identity Theft

Do You Feel Erased?
By Janet Walgren

One of the challenges unemployed workers are facing in today’s job market is trying to find a new work identity after their old identity was erased. In my former position as Student Success Manager for EWI, I spent four years helping seasoned professionals and novices alike identify, utilize and monetize their transferable skills to create new careers as entrepreneurs.

In this capacity, I was able to help hundreds of people stay positive in the face of adversity, create new dreams and gain the courage to fulfill their dreams. I was also able to help entrepreneurs identify their needs and suggest resources to help them meet their business challenges.

I believe the current economy presents an unprecedented opportunity for both employers and prospective employees alike because of the incredible pool of talented candidates that was unavailable for employers to choose from in older more stable economies. Non-traditional crossover candidates bring with them a wealth of training and a diversity of experiences that can enrich and rejuvenate a stale corporate environment while fulfilling staffing needs.

A title isn’t who you are. A title doesn’t even necessarily tell what you did. You are a valuable person regardless of the titles others might bestow on you or take from you. If you have been downsized and feel like your identity has been erased, make a list of your skills, talents and experiences. Then, as you read job announcements, ask yourself, “How can my skill set fit in with [this] employer’s needs?”

You don’t have to be desperate and settle for a bad employer or a bad job. Remember, you were looking for a job when you found your last one so, don’t forget to make it a two way interview.

It’s not what you have been but what you are becoming that determines your future.

A New Year’s Challenge

There are so many things that can take up your time. As you can see, my new house is one of them. I have scarcely posted anything on my blog or twitter since I started doing the rehab on my house. However, I have kept up on Facebook and have found it most gratifying.

I cherish the ability to see at a glance what is going on in the lives of those whom I treasure most. After reading my children’s posts, one thing that I have become most grateful for is that all my children are decent, good, kind, loving people who I can be proud of.

There is so much coarseness in the world, so much immodesty in speech, dress and behavior. In fact it is at times shocking to see and hear how common some folks have become and how brazen they are in publicising their immoral and coarse behaviors. So, for this new year, I would like to invite everybody to join me in striving to elevate ourselves and the world around us. We can all become more refined, gracious and good.

Changing the world around us begins with elevating ourselves.

A Place to Call Home

Well it finally happened. My daughter and I closed on our new home this week. We got a new realtor who helped us with twice daily emails to show us every house that came on the market that fit our exact specifications. With the see it fast service he provided, we were able to find our perfect home and make an offer just a few days after it hit the market.

If you are looking for a home in Utah contact Nathan T. Olpin www.FindUTHomes.com  801-506-3166 or email Nathan@NathanOlpin.com You’ll be glad you did. He helped us do in a few weeks what we were not able to do in seven months. His superb customer service, custom MLS searches and immediate responses to our requests to view properties was beyond extraordinary.  Thanks Nathan!

Now on to the move – then the projects…  Hum… What color for the Venetian Plaster??? Yes!  We will have a library with room for thousands of books and a conference table. A cozy chair to read in by the fire place… yep, got that too:) What, a dojo and climbing gym in the 30′ x 40′ fully insulated RV garage? You’d better believe it! And the yard… what can I say? Half acre with mature trees including cherry, apple, walnut, maples and pine. A garden, actually several gardens.

DARE TO DREAM! We did and occasionally dreams do come true:)

P.S. – I will try to be better at posting after we get settled in to our new home.

Unclogging the Real Estate Market

By Janet Walgren

I’m sorry that I’ve neglected this blog for quite some time now. My daughter and I have been trying to find the perfect house to buy. With all the houses on the market, you’d think that would be a simple task. We are pre-approved for more than an adequate amount of money. We have our down payment. Our credit scores are terrific. We are motivated to buy… so what is the problem? Answer… the listing agent, the seller or the seller’s bank!

It is time for folks to get a reality check.

Imagine you own a 1996 Geo Metro with 250,000 miles on it. You are ready to get a new car. The used car lot says, “We’ll list it for $125,000″ and you say”_______???” If you said, “Great!!!,” you need a reality check. It doesn’t matter what “equity” some fool told you that you had accumulated over time. Truth is, the car is old. It is worn out. It needs rehabbed, renovated, restored and the cost of the rehab is more than the car is worth.

If you start shopping for a $125,000 replacement car, you need a mental evaluation.

If no one buys your car… what do you expect? Even if you were fool enough to pay more, or expect more, than the car was worth, do you expect the world is full of greater fools?

On the flip side:

The world is full of bargain hunters. Listing agents know this. Now, imagine the above Geo Metro was advertised for $50 dollars. You were looking at a similar car. It was clean, had less mileage and was still a bargain for $1000. You are one of two bidders and you are in the top position. You decide to relinquish your position and take the $50 dollar car so you can save for a new car. But, when you go to pay for the car, the dealer says, “I’m sorry, the bank wants $2,500 for the car.”

About that time you want to scream. You decide that the dealer is involved in fraudulent advertising and you call the Better Business Bureau. Apply this scenario to the short sale housing market.

Don’t you think a seller and the seller’s bank should be required to list the actual price they are willing to take for the property. Some potential buyers wait for up to 9 months only to find out that the bank holding the note said no. In the meantime, other honest sellers are waiting to sell their homes and end up in foreclosure because a potential buyer was sidelined.

I think it should be illegal to post a bogus asking price and that anyone doing so should be charged with fraud. I also think banks refusing to sell properties that have legitimate offers should be barred from bidding for the property when it goes to auction and barred from getting deficiency judgments on the foreclosed owner.

Make a Joyful Noise

By Janet Walgren
Unemployed 47 year old Susan Boyle lives alone with her cat. She confesses that she’s never been married, never been kissed, and has always wanted to be a professional singer. She decided to pursue her dream by appearing on Britain’s Got Talent. Simon greeted her with his usual cynicism… this will put a smile on your face. Enjoy!

I wish more folks had the courage to follow their dreams. 

I think we could fix the world if we were more like Susan Boyle or the Belgium’s in Antwerp’s Central Station.

I think I’ll go outside and dance in the street:)

House Hunting

No, I haven’t disappeared of the face of the earth. I’ve been house hunting and it takes hours every day. We put in an offer $10,000 above list in a bidding war and the listing agent cussed my agent out. Go figure. The house is still on the market and sitting vacant.

Tomorrow we will make an offer on another house that has huge potential, but it has been totally trashed by the last occupant. It needs a total rehab but the price and location are great. Wish me luck!

Earmarks – Who are the fools who elected these guys anyway?… Sadly, it is us!

Congressional earmarks are a way for congress to usurp the power of the states to self-direct. One of the most effective ways Americans have to restore some integrity to congress is to eliminate earmark spending.

Basically what is happening currently is:

• Congress taxes Americans at a much higher rate than is necessary
• Congress gives some of our tax dollars back to the states
• Congress tells the states how to spend the money
• Political action groups and lobbyist (pay, donate, gift…) congressional representatives then demand federal tax money is spent on their special projects

Don’t you think it would be better if we got to keep more of our hard earned money? And, if we need something at a state level, don’t you think you could better decide how to provide for it on a local level?

Earmarks provide a way for special groups to get the EAR of the (often corrupt) officials who write our government’s checks.

It is amazing to me that congress can be so specific in telling a state how to spend tax dollars, or a public school what to teach but, they can’t be specific in telling private corporations (especially Wall Street and international banks) how to spend hundreds of billions of our tax dollars.

Who are the fools who elected these guys anyway?… Sadly, it is us!

No child left behind?

My grand-child’s cousin tested poorly and had to repeat kindergarten when he moved to Denver. He is a smart boy. Unfortunately, there were only three English speaking children in his 25 pupil kindergarten class and the teacher, a native Spanish speaker, taught the class in Spanish.

This wasn’t in Mexico. It was in central Colorado on the I-70 corridor.

False Advertising? Fraud? or Bidding UP!

Have you ever noticed that the only ones who get away with committing fraud are the banks and real estate agents?

If a house is in foreclosure and is owned by the bank, don’t you think you ought to be able to buy it if you offer $10,000 ABOVE the listing price?

NO! They sit on your offer, let it expire, then wait for the next party to offer more than your offer that they didn’t respond to.

Putting a price on a house that’s on the MLS isn’t like a starting bid on eBay folks.

On Record???

Why does Congress have to ask who received the bail out money they spent? It gives a whole new meaning to “BLANK CHECK.”  And we wonder why they can’t balance the budget…

9/11… 9/16. Can we just skip September this year?

A very busy week

Wow! This has been a very busy week. Heather went to the temple for the first time on Thursday, then our good friend Julia got married Saturday. Between the two events, and submitting an offer on a house in Salt Lake, and packing to move, and, and, and… We haven’t had enough sleep in a week, but it has been well worth it, a very good week indeed.

Selling Ice to an Eskimo

By Janet Walgren

It snowed today and it’s cold outside. It’s also dark and the kiddies should be getting ready for bed by now… so why is the ice-cream truck parked outside blasting it’s music while the driver knocks on 3 doors out of 24? It happens almost every night except after a drug bust. Money Landry truck perhaps…anyone, anyone, anyone?

Home Schooled

By Janet Walgren

Yesterday I went home shopping with a real estate agent and real estate investor/trainer. We viewed four homes out of the original list of the ten that we started with.  Three of the four were not functional and looked way too lived in (by pigs). As we were driving back to my car, the agent said, “Janet, you know what’s wrong?”

I asked, “What?”

He said, “You’re looking for a home instead of making offers on houses.”

I think he’s on to something. Architects design houses, contractors build houses, banks fund houses, investors rent or flip houses and real estate agents sell houses.

I wonder if the market might look a whole lot more appealing if someone was actually designing, building, funding, renting, flipping and selling (or living in) HOMES? I ask you:

• Does anyone ever think about the people who are going to live in the space they’re creating?
• Does anyone think about what a person, or family, does in a room when they design it?

The kitchens had room for a coffee pot on the counter and enough cupboard space for coffee and mugs. What more can I say when there isn’t anything more to talk about? ”I don’t even drink coffee!”

Doesn’t anyone cook anymore? If they do cook, where do they cook – the outdoor barbecue? Wait, there wasn’t one! I guess that ‘s OK because there wasn’t really room for one. Where are people supposed to put their dishes, pots and pans and food? Where do they eat?

The bedrooms, what can I say? Crib space… that would have been a real ”WOW!” for me forty years ago, but wait!!! I had six babies and they got BIG!

Two of the houses smelled like barns. Perhaps houses ought to come with enough ”room for a pony” and out buildings with pet bathrooms.

One house was an art gallery of sorts. It had graffiti on the walls (0r what was left of them). The water pipes burst when they had frozen and then flooded when they thawed. The tile, walls and ceilings all over the house had been smashed to get to the offending copper pipes.  This was a bank owned property that needed gutted back to the frame. Do you think the bank would loan money to a buyer or pay someone - anyone to fix it?

I asked my agent about it and he said someone would need hard money (cash loaned by a private investor at about 10-12% interest) for the purchase. The bank won’t even loan money to sell their own house. No wonder the market is slow.

It kind of makes me want to drive a stake in some raw land and start from scratch.

WAKE UP AMERICA – HR 45: The Blair Holt Firearm Licensing & Record of Sale Act of 2009

By Janet Walgren

HR 45, The Blair Holt Firearm Licensing & Record of Sale Act of 2009, that was introduced into the U.S. House of Representatives is a threat to the U.S. Constitution and the liberty of our nation. It would make it illegal to own a firearm unless:

• It is registered
• You are fingerprinted
• You supply a current Driver’s License
• You supply your Social Security # 
• You submit to a physical & mental evaluation at anytime of the government’s choosing.
• Change of ownership through private or public sale must be reported and would cost $25.00. If you failed to report updates, you would automatically lose the right to own a firearm and would be subject up to a year in jail.
• All guns must be locked and inaccessible to any child under 18. The Child Provision Clause on page 16, Section 305, provides the government would have the right to come and inspect your home to see that you are storing your guns safely away from accessibility to children. There would be a fine for non-compliance and the violation would be punishable for up to 5 years in prison.

This is NOT a joke – go to this website find out about the legislation for yourself. 

• http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h111-45

Our right to bear arms, to own guns has a purpose, a reason to exist. Our forefathers understood that sometimes folks need to DEFEND THEIR LIVES, THEIR LIBERTY and THEIR FREEDOM. They understood that sometimes folks need to obtain food. What was true then is also true now. We must demand that the U.S. Congress does not INFRINGE on our Constitutional right to bear arms.

Amendment II

“A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”

HR 45 may seem to make sense to a legislator from Illinois who represents a crime-ridden state, with a high unemployment rate, a high foreclosure rate and low civic morals. I understand why corrupt politicians are getting worried that guns could become a threat to their lives. But, HR 45 is unconstitutional and it really doesn’t make sense for the the rest of us as a nation.

We don’t give Chemo-therapy to a family, a block, a city or an entire nation because an individual is diagnosed with cancer. It makes no sense to medicate (poison) the rest of us. So, why would we cripple the majority of healthy Americans, and deny them the right to protect themselves, just because a small segment of society lacks an understanding of morals, liberty, freedom  and civic responsibility?

There is a reason that the Constitution provided for States Rights and Individual Rights. Some folks have guile and therefore elect representatives who are corrupt, greedy and power hungry. Some representatives have dangerous motives, agendas that would rob us of our liberty.

To protect us from unscrupulous law makers who would legislate away our liberty, our founding fathers insisted on some provisions known as ”The Bill of Rights,” (the original 10 amendments to the U.S. Constitution).

Amendment IX

 ”The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.”

 Amendment X

“The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.”

Unfortunately, not all citizens have an understanding of their constitutional rights. If an individual or family can’t solve their own problems, the courts get involved and a solution is mandated by law. If a city or state can’t solve their own problems, the courts get involved and a solution is mandated under the law.

We don’t have the person or family that has a problem, that created a problem, make mandates to the courts. NO, we have the court, under the law of our republic, mandate a solution for the problem for the person who has the problem.

If Chicago has a problem with gangs using guns, Chicago needs to fix Chicago. They need to get rid of the gangs and get rid of the criminals. Illinois needs to fix Illinois. Why should we believe Illinois can fix the nation when they can’t even fix themselves? The overwhelming majority of Americans don’t need fixing we just need to be left alone.

Wall Street broke the world when it comes to finance. Now the same Wall Street folks who broke the world’s financial system have been appointed to fix the world by raping everyone’s piggy banks.

Are we now going to allow our Congressional representatives to break America when it comes to the rest of the Constitution. They have gutted the Constitution one law at a time. The courts have been (or at least act like they have been) neutered. Who is defending our liberty?

I do not own a gun. I am not a member of the NRA, but I believe the right to own a gun is critical to my liberty as a citizen of the United States of America. If you value your freedom, you need to speak up now. You need to become a fan of C-SPAN and read the congressional record. You need to watch Washington D.C. like a hawk. WAKE UP AMERICA! Get involved!!!

Go here to find the contact information for all Congressional Representatives, after all, there votes affect you regardless of who voted them into office:

• http://www.conservativeusa.org/mega-cong.htm
• http://www.webslingerz.com/jhoffman/congress-email.html

• https://writerep.house.gov/writerep/welcome.shtml

• http://www.visi.com/juan/congress/

Photo-chopped Glamor

By Janet Walgren

On rare occasions, I feel glamorous for a second. I don’t expect much more than that. After all, I’m 62. Well after thousands of seconds of primping and prepping, today the magic second arrived.

“Quick, Heather, get the camera! I can stand in the bathtub and you can stand on the washing machine. If I look up, I won’t have a double chin and you can get a glamor shot of me with the cultured marble background!”

Obediently, she got the camera and mounted her station atop the washer. Click! Click, click, click! “The battery just died!” she informed me.

“Did you get some good shots?” I inquired.

“With the cameras and the technology we have today, any shot can be a good shot!” she responded.

Isn’t technology amazing?

House Hunting – The tale of Peter, Sam and Paul

By Janet Walgren

Heather and I went house hunting yesterday. Jeesh! What a joke. We found a house of interest but, when we toured it, we found an incredible mess. The house was a bank owned foreclosure, better known as an REO. The furnace, the entire kitchen, and parts of the bathroom were missing as well as some floor covering and most light fixtures. The walls were a mess and the water had been shut off. TOXIC antifreeze had been poured in the pipes and toilet to keep the water in them from freezing. Animals had pooped in the basement – yucky! The bank was asking $150,000. That’s $20,000 below market for a rehab that would cost a minimum of $40,000 in repairs to bring it up to market value. Like I said, jeesh, what a joke!

Perhaps this was an isolated incident. We can only hope… or can we?

We had asked our realtor to show us another REO house but he had already checked it out and said it was as bad as the first one we toured.

A contractor friend of ours just finished building a home located across the street from another REO (the original contractor who was building the sub-division went bankrupt). Anyway, our friend noticed wet bricks on the front of the REO across the street and went over to investigate. The power had been shut off, but not the water. The frozen pipes had burst then thawed flooding the entire house (second floor included). The sheet-rock on the ceilings and some of the walls had collapsed, the walls were full of water and the basement had several inches of water flooding it. In other words, this brand new $200,000 house was a total loss because the bank was too cheap to pay the electric bill.

It is obvious that, in these three cases, the banks manage REO property about as well as they manage money. It probably doesn’t matter to them because they have insurance. And, if the insurance doesn’t pony up the dough… there’s always dear ole Uncle Sam who seems more than willing to rob Peter (another name for taxpayers) to pay Paul (the banker).

The American Busybody

By Janet Walgren

Have you ever wondered what is really wrong with America? Well I think I have the answer. It’s the American busybody. We call what they have say NEWS! We buy their newspapers, books and magazines. We listen to them on the radio and watch them on television. We absorb their propaganda in the movies. We elect them to Congress. And, we spend most of our spare-time everyday discussing the disgusting diet of misinformation they put before us.

We are like the proverbial kid holding a basket of valuables full of – time, money, talent, skills, morals… and did I mention liberty? Oh yeah, I almost forgot… That’s probably because most of it is missing. Anyway, the American busybodies approach us kids and say, “LOOK OVER THERE!!!” And, when we look, they steal something of value out of our basket and replace it with junk.

Now I’m not saying that we shouldn’t be informed. We should be very informed. The problem is that the American Busybody keeps us so occupied with getting informed about disgusting, trivial, irrelevant things that we forget to pay attention to the really important things. And, that’s the way the American Busybodies want it.

I wonder, when will we get it? When will we grow up and take charge of our information input, our destiny? And, when and if we do finally get it, will there still be some liberty, some freedom, something… anything worth keeping left in our baskets?

Teaching our children

Have you ever considered how we socialize our children? How do children learn values? What kind of influence are you having your children? Here is a father’s short story. It’s worth hearing.

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