The Robbinsville Scoop

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Calling Seth Godin!!!

Hey Seth Godin....   I've read two of yours now can you read Margarets?

Via Bryant Tutas Broker/REALTOR(R) Tutas Towne Realty, Inc:

www.homerome.comHi folks. My good friend and fellow ActiveRainer, Margaret Rome, is getting close to launching her first book "Real Estate the Right Rome Way". I'm sure most of you know Margaret but if not....stop over and check out her profile.

Margaret and I joined AR at just about the same time, July of 2006. In fact, as far as I can, tell we actually joined on the same day. Her first post and my first post were both on July 8, 2006.

Margaret and I have always had a connection. We are very much alike and handle our businesses the same. I still believe we were separated at birth. Here are a few similarities.

  1. We are both "solo" agents
  2. We both specialize in listings
  3. I have a TLW she has a TLH.
  4. We both have tempurpedic craftmatic adjustable beds!!!
  5. We are both soooooooo good looking.  

Anyway....Margaret is really wanting to get Seth Godin to review her book and maybe writReal Estate the Rome Waye a blurb on the jacket. So she decided to have a little contest to see who could come up with a good idea to get Seth's attention. My idea was to get as many Rainers as possible to place this phrase in their next post:  

Hey Seth Godin!!!! Come over and review Margaret Rome's new book"

I figure Seth has his Google alerts activated and if enough of us do this he will not be able to ignore us and will have to come over to see what's going on. If you are not familiar with Seth he is a master marketeer and a best selling author. Getting him to review Margaret's book would be HUGE!! 

So.....if you would, next post you write, just take a minute and copy/paste this phrase....

Hey Seth Godin!!!! Come over and review Margaret Rome's new book"

.....and place it at the bottom of your post. Or the top. Or the middle. Let's show Seth the power of the Rain. How simple is that?

9 comments • Desiree Daniels • October 22 2008 10:25PM

Have you ever met a Cheater?

Why do people cheat?      Human nature has always amazed Me.   

Why do people that you consider friends, clients work with other agents?        Isn’t this a form of “cheating”?    I think so.

So why do people cheat?    

On the most basic of levels it’s generally because they are not getting “something” from the other party and that causes them to stray.

They Cheat

So what can we do about all the cheaters out there?    Who knows.  In business I’ve been cheated on many times and I am sure it will happen again.

In my book there are two (2) types of Cheaters the ignorant ones and the ones that are targeted as prey.

Education/Ignorance - I think clients cheat because of a lack of understanding.    Is that our fault as agents?   I think so.  

If a client has been explained the process on how to buy a home, from  A to Z,  then why would they feel a need to contact another agent? <shrug>

We make a lot of assumptions as agents that clients understand the process when in actuality they don’t.     Human nature creates this very natural response from a client to “yes” us to death, so they don’t look stupid by asking too many questions.   

How many times has a client said to you “I have to ask you a stupid question”.     Their question wasn’t stupid; they just felt stupid not knowing the answer and having to ask the question to begin with.   We as agents must take better steps to make sure our clients don’t feel stupid.

Predators/Prey– This is another form of cheating, where the agent preys on the buyers regardless of their “situation”.    The client can be totally upfront with an agent that they are working with someone else, involved, committed.  

A ruthless, hungry, unscrupulous agent will pursue that buyer with all that they have.  Until they get that buyer to cave and work with them and score.

Some clients are just not strong enough to resist the predator…  Both of these forms of cheating are prevalent in everyday life experiences.  

No excuse ….   It’s still cheating.    

Don’t bury your head in the sand  Do what you can to keep our industry honesty and true.    Remember one day YOU could be on the receiving end. 

What’s that old saying   “Do unto others as you would have others do unto you”

 

Now make it a great day!  subscribe button   

**disclaimer - the person in the photo is a friend of mine and I am certainly not calling him a cheater, but the photo I took was too perfect for this post and easy to edit....  sorry FG**

65 comments • Desiree Daniels • September 23 2008 10:23PM

My 9-11 Story

September 11, 2001

A date that will be written about forever. A date that will be remembered forever. How many dates can we actually say that about with confidence and conviction? I can't think of another day in history that will ever have the same impact on the worlds population as today.

Kinda too big for me to truly wrap my brain around, though I try. I hope to never see, never witness another historic day like that again.

Now seven long years ago, it feels like yesterday as I am writing. Those of you that know me know I was there.... here’s my story as I sit here and remember all those that were lost. God Bless!

" When we cast our bread upon the waters, we can presume that someone downstream who's face we will never know will benefit from our actions"........ .Maya Angelou --

I've lived a privileged life. Being the eldest of two children of parents who are self-made, successful business owners.

Prior to real estate both of my folks were over achievers in their careers. My mother, in sales and then real estate management and new construction. My father as a tavern owner and (don't laugh) the First American World Dart Champion... that's a story in itself but ... laziness my folks did not teach.

Myself.. Employed by the earliest days... and realizing that "money" could get me what I wanted I was (am) always a workaholic. After several jobs.. I settled in a large psychology practice managing it from top to bottom. Then came the burn out.

Everyday... a sad face... a sad story...... It gave me such a horrible outlook on life that I had to get out and quick. I couldn’t fight it any longer, so Real Estate it was. At this point my folks were both achieving financial success in real estate, and I knew I had the people skills to succeed. And succeed I did(am)

Fast-forward to 2001..... I met Al in the summer of 2001 through friends... we started dating.. He's lived an hour north of me... but made the commute regularly to see me and we often meet in NYC for long weekends.

We made a date to go to Monday night football at ESPN zone in NYC on Monday September 10, 2001.... The next morning I have a meeting in the towers for a fund raiser I was running for Children's Hospital......

my life changed from there.

I knew it was going to be a late night... called my friend with C.M.N. Could we switch the meeting to the late afternoon? No problem and we promised to touch base in the morning.

9-11-01 - Today I still sit here and can't believe I was apart of it all... That I was supposed to be there. And Al, he believes he saved my life by keeping me out late the night before. And I am okay with that. For the next 3 days we were stuck in Times Square... in and out of lock down in the Marriott not really understanding what was happening in the world right around us. We didn't know that our families couldn't reach us... didn't know that our phones had no service and we couldn't call out.

Anyone who has ever been to NYC knows the city is anything but quiet. Well I wish I had a camera.. but the most descriptive visual I can give you is ... Al and I walking hand in hand down the center of the road... in Times Square. .. Not a car on the road or a sound in air .... Only papers flying by and smoke billowing around us..... So surreal it was right out of a movie.

After major consultation with real estate professionals and processionals in general , today I am here.... On the top of my game... In the top of my profession.. in my home state of New Jersey... my home... my Soprano Land.

What I can only hope for in the future is that I continue to deliver to my clients 150%. I go more than the extra mile. I will jump... run and swing through hoops for my clients. I will fight the battle for the ones who don't have the will to do so themselves. If someone is wronged, I am all over it and pursuing justice.

I will take no crap from anyone. I have earned my space in the world and I am due the respect of my colleges and the world around me, as I respect them. As that famous old saying goes "What goes around comes around" You only get what you give

I am not someone who deals with illness or death well. It hits me hard... relationships to me are for a lifetime, and loss is not my strong point. I still morn for the loss of my grandmother who passed more than 10 years ago.. She was my love..... My idol and I am her too a tee. My dogs who were my babies... their deaths killed me... And I didn't like having that much control over another beings existence.

My Life Legacy... is loyalty..... Integrity...Understanding... a huge heart... a great problem solver... always extending my hand to a stranger.... Daring to be different... And wanting to make a difference in any way I can. It took me a long time to figure out, but in real estate, I do make a difference in peoples lives, every single day.

One person can change the world... don't ever forget Shindlers' List.

(originally written 8-07 - edited)

My hope today, seven long years after, that everyone tries to take a minute of their day and remember what life means to them.

I Hope that everyone tries a little harder to be kinder to the world around them

I Hope that everyone who was touched by this day feels some sort of peace

I Hope that everyone has learned something from this day so that it never happens again……………

Always Remember 9-11-01

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

21 comments • Desiree Daniels • September 11 2008 08:00AM

Top 10 Free Programs and Websites I Can't Live Without and You Shouldn't Have to Either

 

 I just love FREE information.     In case you missed the fabulous Mary McKnight's , and one of her last posts, below she has listed 10 Free programs that she finds a must have.

Picture of Real Estate - Other: Mary McKnight (1parkplace)I don't know about you, but in my opinion Mary is the Goddess of SEO here and happily take her advice any day.....

 

Via Mary McKnight:

Alright, it's the weekend and I totally don't feel like talking geek, SEO, blogging or real estate.  So, here are some of the things I have found on the web that I couldn't imagine living without.  These things either greatly entertain me or make my life/job easier and I think you should know about them too.  Oh yeah, these tools are also totally free, which rocks, 'cause I'm cheap.

Hulu - Watch Movies online for free1.      Hulu.com - watch streaming TV shows and movies for free

Hulu is just cool.  Watch your favorite TV shows and movies online for free.  Totally legal (because none of us would ever violate a copyright by using the torrents.) because they sponsor to usage of the copyright with ads!  I use this all the time to entertain my son.

Prefer to Download Movies?

Speaking of the torrents, thePirateBay.org is my favorite, closely followed by seedpeer.com.  For the uninitiated - Torrents are peer to peer networks (meaning my machine and your machine can search each other) where you can download movies, images, software, music etc.  Because I go old school from time to time, I also like eMule (although it freaks me out it is written in Visual C++ which basically means that it s held together with rocket science theory, Miracle Whip and scotch tape.)

2.      Actionext.com - create and listen to free music play lists

Actionext.com Killer site that allows you to search for songs, listen to them and create playlists.  It also has an open wiki-like tool where you can get lyrics to the songs you are listening to.  I love being able to find the songs, build the playlist, share the lists (see the embedded widget on the left of my blog - totally annoying, right?  Another reason you should NEVER have music playing when a visitor lands on your site!!!) and even read the lyrics in one place.

Want to share music socially and see other's playlists?

Other music search and playlist sites you might like: 8tracks (another playlist site), Tagoo.ru (terrific site for finding hard to find songs online - lets you search and download from other people's machine's).

Try Blip.fm if you want to share music and fid other people that like the same kind music you like.  It's life streaming for music - you can even connect it to your twitter account so you can share your music with all your followers.

 

Jing - Screen capture, video and sharing3.      Jing - record screencasts with voice overs and capture images from your desktop and share online

LOVE THIS.  I can record screen casts with audio and publish them to the web.  Very easy to use and high quality!  Think of Jing as a supplement to all your chat discussions, email threads, forum posts and blog entries. It sits nicely on your desktop, ready to capture and share your stuff at a moment's notice. Simply select an area of your screen, capture it as an image or record it as a video, and then click Share. Jing conveniently places a URL to your content which you can paste into any of your conversations.

Download Jing now!

4.      Skype - make free phone calls, conference calls and even video calls

We all love something for nothing. With Skype's free software - by the way, it works seamlessly with your internet connection - you can chat away with free Skype-to-Skype calls and never worry about cost, time or distance. Share the love and get your friends to download Skype so you can talk, chat or make video calls for nothing. You can also make local, long distance and international calls to phones and cell phones at great rates too. Additional features include instant messaging, file transfer and video conferencing.

Check it out and SKYPE me at REBlogGirl or simply search for Mary McKnight on Skype!  Click te logo below to download Skype.

Skype Mary McKnight

Audacity - Free Audio Recorder5.      Audacity

Do you want to import, export, edit, mix, record, add sound effects or analyze voice, music, sounds, etc?  Then Audacity is the program you need. 

Download it for free from Source Forge at:

Audacity at Source Forge

Audacity is a free, easy-to-use audio editor and recorder for Windows, Mac OS X, GNU/Linux and other operating systems. You can use Audacity to:

  • Record live audio.
  • Convert tapes and records into digital recordings or CDs.
  • Edit Ogg Vorbis, MP3, WAV or AIFF sound files.
  • Cut, copy, splice or mix sounds together.
  • Change the speed or pitch of a recording.
  • And more! See the complete list of features.

Other Stuff I Just Love!

6.   Txt2day.com - free text messaging

Txt2day.com is the premier free manual messaging website.  Send Free Text Messages. Add text messages to your MySpace. Works with most cell phone providers. Stop Paying For Texting!  I use this all the time because when I text from my phone I make too many typos and I am usually sitting at the computer anyway.

 

7.   Eyejot.com - record and send video to friends and family via email

Eyejot is a video messaging platform in which there is NO software to download.  You record the message and the receipient of the message is notified via email that they have a new video message.   It offers everyone the ability to create and receive video messages in a self-contained, spam-free environment. With no client to install, you can start using Eyejot immediately with any browser, on any platform. It even features built-in support for iTunesTM (and iPodsTM), mobile devices and social networks like MySpaceTM. Watch Eyejot video examples.

Twirl - Twitter App for your Desktop8.      Twirl - Funky desktop Twitter ap you can use to

Couldn't keep my Twitter conversations updated without this nifty little desktop widget! twhirl is a desktop client for the Twitter microblogging service. Most of the features available on the Twitter website are accessible through twhirl, too. Plus, a lot of usability enhancements have been added.

If you have an iphone- Twinkle is the way to go!

9.      Spamyourenemies.com - I can't help myself - this is just fun to do when somone pisses you off

Spamyourenemies.com - If you are not that technical or not really that pissed off, this a great solution to a little immediate revenge.  Doesn't really hurt anything, just fills their inbox with a whole bunch of weird spam.  Of course, if the person you are spammng is more technical than your average lab rat, their spam filters will catch this before it annoys them, but it still gives you that sense of justice and self satisfaction you need in those moments of ire. 

NOTE TO ALL - If you have ever been spammed, it wasn't me.  This is just where I direct people that come to me and ask me to do something evil to their main competition's website.  I'm a sociologist- I understand that if I don't give a suitable answer and they can't get immediate satisfaction, they may go to somone who would link bomb another site.  I find this to be a reasonable compromise for all parties when therapy is not an option.

Click here to view full-size image.

10.  Rememebr the milk - Online to do lists!

The old-fashioned to-do list, which lets the brain concentrate on the task at hand rather than on others in the future, remains one of the world's best productivity tools. These fresh new sites let you keep track of your obligations and prompt you to keep up the pace.

RememberTheMilk reinvents the to-do list in a snazzy interface that lets you make lists in configurable categories, all laid out on the front page as tabs. Adding to-dos is easy, though adding deadlines, notes, and time estimates is unintuitive.

You can add to-dos using natural language such as "Call Ted next Thursday," sync with your calendar via the widely supported iCalendar format, and set tasks such as "Pay credit card bill" to recur. RememberTheMilk sends reminders through instant message, e-mail, text message, or a combination of these. You can also upload tasks via a special e-mail address that the site gives you.

It's a tremendously well-rounded free product, with neither more nor less than you need to get and stay organized.

12 comments • Desiree Daniels • September 07 2008 10:36AM

Robbinsville, New Jersey - Market Report for August - Sales Double!!

Robbinsville Market Report by Desiree Daniels

I am pleased to report that in Robbinsville, New Jersey,  Real Estate Sales are up!!  There have been a reported 32 sales for the month of August.    This is huge since the monthly average for the year is 16.    We've doubled the closed sales in August!!!     It does appear that the pending contracts are down for the month but I believe as a professional that once kids get settled into school and everyone returns home from their summer holidays, September and October will be more banner months.

If your thinking of selling, now is the time don't miss out on a great opportunity.   Timing is very important in the real estate industry.  Contact the Desiree Daniels Team at  (609) 448-2222  (home) or  (609) 587-9300  Ext 312 for all your real estate needs.

We are the #1 Real Estate in Robbinsville New Jersey, 2005, 2006, 2007 and soon 2008!    Why call anyone else!

Read the complete report by clicking Here

 

4 comments • Desiree Daniels • September 02 2008 08:56AM

The Loss of Karen George please keep her family in your thoughts

My heart hurts...    Very rarely will you find me at a loss for words.   I am.

Today we lost a great woman Karen George   (George Tallabas's Tribute - The loss of an Angel)

Bless you Micheal for all the love and support you gave Karen.   

I am proud to say I knew you and proud to call you friend.   

 Rest in Peace

 

Via Karen George:

my beautiful wife, the mortgage proGood afternoon fellow ActiveRainers.  From now on, this blog will be co-authored by Michael and Karen George.

As most of Karen's regular readers are aware, Karen did 90% of the writing and I (Michael George) acted as her assistant...giving her ideas to write about when she had the occasional writer's block.

Occasionally, I would write a post.  I think I wrote about 4 or 5 of the hundred posts Karen wrote.  So hopefully, those of you that enjoyed Karen's posts will also enjoy mine.  We were connected at the hip and write in a similar fashion.

As of now however, it is difficult for Karen to write.  She still wants to be involved in the online community.  She wants to read posts (and she does) but leaving comments is tough.  Her hands aren't working well.

However, for those of you that know about Karen's fight with breast cancer...  Well, you should know that she is fighting very hard right now.  I am not going to write a great deal about it here, but to those that are friends of Karen, please contact me at karen.george@azwm.com and I will fill you in.

Thank you for reading and all prayers are appreciated!

 

17 comments • Desiree Daniels • August 24 2008 08:29PM

Robbinsville Parade to Honor Girls Little League Team

 

Robbinsville parade to honor Little League Softball Team

 

Robbinsville NJ Little League

 

Tomorrow, Tuesday Robbinsville will hold a parade to honor the 12 year-old girls, Robbinsville Little League softball team, which was the runner-up at the Softball World Series.

The parade will start at 6:30 p.m. at Pond Road Middle School, where many of the players attend. The parade route will continue along Pond Road /Washington Boulevard, onto North Street. The route will turn right on Newtown Boulevard and then right on to Lake Drive, concluding at the Town Center gazebo at Lake Circle. 

The rain date is Wednesday.

Members of the World Series runner-up team and their coaches will ride in antique cars, with the parade also featuring bands, local fire companies, other Little League teams and representatives, and many other participants.

At the parade's conclusion, the township will host a cookout sponsored by H&H Gas and Maggi Moos ice cream parlor.  Mayor Dave Fried and other area officials will honor the girls from a reviewing stand.

I would like to encourage all to the residents to come out and show support for all these girls did to represent our town

1 comment • Desiree Daniels • August 18 2008 09:20PM

Want to keep ahead of the competition & stay informed?

Google Alerts. are  A MUST

I can’t remember when someone told me about them.   If I had to say I would say it was my favorite gal in West Virginia, Sarah Cooper that first mentioned them easily over a year ago.

I recently (finally) decided to put them into action.   

So Google alerts is a free (love free) service that Google has to offer.   Here’s the concept as I understand it.    You set up alerts bases on your specific search criteria and whenever that criteria is written about you’ll be sent an email with alert and link to the article/post.  

 

I’ve put the obvious alert for my name and than I was trying to think outside the box.  I put in other information that could be valuable to me in business.   My local towns, communities and  mayors anything that might be "news worthy" to me in business.

How am I capitalizing on that you asked?   Well I am getting the information as soon as it hits…  

And in turn, if its something of value I am writing about it on my blogs. myself   We are supposed to be informed, what better way to stay on top of things.

I am sorry I didn’t implement this ages ago when Sarah Cooper told me about it.  And I am sure she’ll pop by and hello when she get’s her “alert” on this post.   

HI SARAH!!!!

 

 

Here's an example I received this email last night

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Google Blogs Alert for: robbinsville, new jersey

 

The Greatest 100 Active Rain bloggers from all 50 states.
By Castellum Realty LLC. (Castellum Realty...(Castellum Realty LLC. (Castellum Realty...)
Desiree Daniels New Jersey Real Estate  (609) 448-2222  - Real Estate Agent Score: 212490 Robbinsville, NJ The Desiree Daniels Team of Real Estate Professionals are dedicated to providing quality real estate service in Robbinsville, ...
Castellum Realty 's Blog - http://activerain.com/blogs/castellum 

 This as-it-happens Google Alert is brought to you by Google.

Remove this alert.
Create another alert.
Manage your alerts.

______________________________________________________________________________________

That was the only way I would have know about this post (thanks again Castellum Realty)… pretty cool huh.

If you have any other suggestions on how to use it ... please feel free to share I'd love to hear them.

subscribe button 

93 comments • Desiree Daniels • August 17 2008 10:39PM

Featured Hot Spots - Greater Mercer County Area

Six Flags Great Adventure


Great Adventure New jerseyGreat Adventure is about a 20 -minute ride down 195 East, and is a great day trip.  This adventurous theme park just opened the new section, the "Golden Kingdom." and the new thrill ride "Dark Knight Coaster".   A great place for someone searching for  the ultimate coaster rides. 

Great Adventure is also home to the Wild Safari   billed as the largest drive-thru safari outside of Africa.    The 350 Acre wildlife preserve is home to over 1,200 animals and many endangered species.    The 4.5 mile car trail allows animals to walk right up to your car for a one in a life time encounter with wildlife you'll never forget. 

Next door is the ever popular water park  Hurricane Harbor fun for the entire family.    From thrill water rides to a relaxing cruise down a lazy river this park is a 45 acre tropical paradise of fun.

Thrill seekers will love the 10 most advanced roller coasters the park offers, along with many other great attractions.  Great Adventure also hosts many shows, has shopping  and dining, and rides for people of all ages. 

If you don't want to make it a day trip there is plenty of lodging near by.

Another great attraction for the area residents.


Enjoy!!!            

 

6 comments • Desiree Daniels • August 17 2008 08:44AM

Robbinsville, New Jersey - From Small town to ESPN!!!!

Robbinsville Girls Softball Little League

Robbinsville New Jersey Little League Softball World Series

Today's game World Championship Little League Softball game featured Robbinsville, New Jersey (East) vs. S. Carolina (South).   

After a slow start and falling into a 2 nothing hole in the top of the first inning,  the Robbinsville girls struck for 2 runs of their own in the bottom half of the inning to tie up the score.

Becca Freeman has pitched a solid 3 innings so for but after some questionable officiating has caused the girls to fall behind by 2 in the middle of the third

However, heads up base running by LeAnne Gearhart as pushed a run across and Robbinsville trailed by 1 with 2 outs in the bottom of the 3rd.

With runners on second and third with 2 outs, clutch pitching, and excellent defense got the girls out of a jam in the top of the 4th to remain within 1.

In the bottom of the 5th a leadoff single by catcher LeAnne Gearhart and an infield single by Christine Levering, led to an RBI single by Becca Freeman that has knotted the game at 4.

Moments later, a wild pitch by the South plated Christine Levering with the go ahead run putting Robbinsville 3 outs away from the championship.

Without hitting a ball out of the infield the South pushed across 5 runs to take a 9-5 lead.  In the bottom half, a lead off walk by Jessica Samel and a clean single Claire Speranza had Robbinsville threaten to get back in the game.

A Stellar performance by the South's top pitcher Carley Hoover shut down the rally ending the girls wild ride to the championship leaving Robbinsville on the short end of a 9-5 score.

The girls played their hearts out leaving the residents of Robbinsville beaming with pride at all their achievements.

Congratulations to all the girls, Paige Motusesky, Julia Boroski, LeAnne Gearhart, Claire Speranza, Jessica Samel, Christine Levering, Ali Valentin, Lauren Fischer, Taylor Ponti, Becca Freeman and Erin Wojton.....   

  

co-authored by Albert Sodaro (aspiring sports writer/realtor)

10 comments • Desiree Daniels • August 13 2008 09:21PM