Friday, December 19, 2008

Christmas Holiday Eating Tips


1. Avoid carrot sticks. Anyone who puts carrots on a holiday buffet table knows nothing of the Christmas spirit. In fact, if you see carrots, leave immediately. Go next door, where they're serving rum balls.

2. Drink as much eggnog as you can. And quickly. It's rare..You cannot find it any other time of year but now. So drink up! Who cares that it has 10,000 calories in every sip? It's not as if you're going to turn into an eggnog-alcoholic or something. It's a treat. Enjoy it. Have one for me. Have two. It's later than you think. It's Christmas!

3. If something comes with gravy, use it. That's the whole point of gravy. Gravy does not stand alone. Pour it on. Make a volcano out of your mashed potatoes. Fill it with gravy. Eat the volcano. Repeat.

4. As for mashed potatoes, always ask if they're made with skim milk or whole milk. If it's skim, pass. Why bother? It's like buying a sports car with an automatic transmission.

5. Do not have a snack before going to a party in an effort to control your eating. The whole point of going to a Christmas party is to eat other people's food for free. Lots of it. Hello?

6. Under no circumstances should you exercise between now and New Year's. You can do that in January when you have nothing else to do. This is the time for long naps, which you'll need after circling the buffet table while carrying a 10-pound plat e of food and that vat of eggnog.

7. If you come across something really good at a buffet table, like frosted Christmas cookies in the shape and size of Santa, position yourself near them and don't budge. Have as many as you can before becoming the center of attention. They're like a beautiful pair of shoes. If you leave them behind, you're never going to see them again.

8. Same for pies. Apple, Pumpkin, Mincemeat. Have a slice of each. Or if you don't like mincemeat, have two apples and one pumpkin. Always have three. When else do you get to have more than one dessert? Labor DAY?

9. Did someone mention fruitcake? Granted, it's loaded with the mandatory celebratory calories, but avoid it at all cost. I mean, have some standards.

10. One final tip: If you don't feel terrible when you leave the party or get up from the table, you haven't been paying attention. Re-read tips; start over, but hurry, January is just around the corner. Remember this motto to live by:


"Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in one hand, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming "WOO HOO what a ride!"

Have a great CHRISTMAS season

Sunday, December 14, 2008

November 2008 Ann Arbor Condo Sales Report

After a spike in unit sales of +31% for October 2008 over October 2007, there was more than a 60% swing to the negative in Condo unit sales with only 25 units sold in November 2008.

Here are the latest statistics from the Ann Arbor Board of Realtors. These numbers are for Condominiums. Please see earlier post for Single Family Home sales statistics.

Condo Listings in November 2007: 111
Condo Listings in November 2008: 93
Decrease: 17%

Condo Listings Y.T.D. 2007: 2,531
Condo Listings Y.T.D. 2008: 1,843
Decrease: 17.2%

Condo Sales Nov. 2007: 41
Condo Sales Nov. 2008: 25
Decrease: 39.1%

Condo Sales Y.T.D. 2007: 615
Condo Sales Y.T.D. 2008: 558
Decrease: 9.3%

Condo Avg. Days on Market Nov. 2007: 89
Condo Avg. Days on Market Nov. 2008: 74

Condo Avg. Days on Market Y.T.D. 2007: 87
Condo Avg. Days on Market Y.T.D. 2008: 95

Condo Median Sales Price Nov. 2007: $152,288
Condo Median Sales Price Nov. 2008: $140,000
Decrease: 8.1%

Condo Median Sales Price Y.T.D. 2007: $158,000
Condo Median Sales Price Y.T.D. 2008: $144,250
Decrease: 8.8%

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

November 2008 Ann Arbor Home Sales Report

Single Family Home sales, in units, were down by 4.3% over a year ago, and are up by a scant 1.2% year to date.

Average sales price is down by 25.2% from November 2007, and YTD comparison shows 14.6% average sales price decline.

Here are the latest statistics from the Ann Arbor Board of Realtors. These numbers are for Single Family Homes (SFH) Residential, and do not include condominiums:

SFH Listings in November 2007: 623
SFH Listings in November 2008: 428
Decrease: 30.2%

SFH Listings Y.T.D. 2007: 10,691
SFH Listings Y.T.D. 2008: 8,120
Decrease: 24.9%

SFH Sales November 2007: 211
SFH Sales November 2008: 202
Decrease: 4.3%

SFH Sales Y.T.D. 2007: 2,826
SFH Sales Y.T.D. 2008: 2,860
Increase: 1.2%

SFH Avg. Days on Market Nov. 2007: 73
SFH Avg. Days on Market Nov. 2008: 73

SFH Avg. Days on Market Y.T.D. 2007: 77
SFH Avg. Days on Market Y.T.D. 2008: 80

SFH Avg. Sales Price Nov. 2007: $245,359
SFH Avg. Sales Price Nov. 2008: $183,738
Decrease: 25.2%

SFH Avg. Sales Price Y.T.D. 2007: $250,643
SFH Avg. Sales Price Y.T.D. 2008: $214,456
Decrease: 14.6%

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

"The Best Way to Predict the Future is to Create it" --Peter Drucker

I invite you to join me in creating your own successful future by writing your own success book. Here are a few suggestions to get you started:

Step I. Write Your Personal Mission Statement. Eternity is a long time. If we're lucky, we're on this earth for 100 years, which is the blink of an eye. We'd better figure out how our earthly life fits into the big picture. If you need ideas, I suggest the teachings of Rick Warren and The Purpose Driven Life

Step II. Write Your 10 Year Big Hairy Audacious Goals. If you're going to have goals, you might as well have big goals. It does not cost you any more to create big goals than it does to create small goals. Be inspired by those who create BHAG's based on: This Definition and This Strategy

Step III. Break Down Your BHAG's into One Year SMART Goals. SMART stands for: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-Phased. Use This Worksheet:

Step IV. Each Month, Create Your 30 Day; 80:20 Vilfredo Pareto Goal to Action Worksheet The Pareto Principle states that 80% of our results come from 20% of our efforts. You must focus on that 20% of your actions that deliver the 80% of your results.

Step V. Implement 52 Week Networking Success Strategies, one per week for the next year based on The Book: The 29% Solution by Ivan Misner. This is one of the best Networking Books written. If you implement these strategies, you simply cannot fail.

Step VI. Meet a Personal Trainer and Create Your Personal Workout Plan (including 2 Yoga classes per week). 3 Cardios; 2 Strength; 2 Yoga = You're rockin'

Step VII. Get a Grip on Your Personal Financial Picture, based on the Worksheets Found Here

Step VIII. Find, Write, and Speak Loudly and Often Several Positive Daily Affirmations based on the teachings of The Pitbull of Personal Development, and my hero, Larry Winget