Miscellaneous Ramblings for 1/18/08

Whoops! It's now January 17th and this is my FIRST email of the year! Other than our dog Lillie's well-wishing email, I hadn't set aside time to email as of yet. I do blog from time to time, however, so check out my blogs as outlined on the bottom of the page (They have different names, but all end the same, such as http://www.boknowsclosings.blogspot.com). Sometimes I have a random flash of brilliance (or not!) and share it with the world via the topic-relevant blog, so check it out! I split the blogs into the same topics as my newsletters- one for my Ramblings, Wine and Economics (not that I am an Economist by any stretch!).

I love the photo above--a friend let us stay in her cabin over the New Year's holiday. This was the view off the back deck as the sun was rising just before leaving to go to work on January 2nd.

Have you made any New Year's resolutions? Me neither, really, but I have been working on clarifying my goals for the year. We'll see how that works out... Suffice it to say that 2008 is going to be an awesome year for us all!

Who did NOT enjoy the snow? Shame on you! It was beautiful AND it has cut into our drought conditions! Guess Al may not be 100% right, eh? : )

Why aren't people buying homes? Rates are UNDER 6% (closer to 5.5% actually) so there is no valid reason! RENTERS ARE FOOLS--BUY NOW! : )

If you have anything to do with the mortgage industry (or even if you don't), you cannot miss the video attached here:

Happy 2008!

What are you happy about today? Day two, 2008... I was lucky enough to go to the North Georgia mountains to stay at a friend's place. Very cool view; beautiful scenery! Took a walk (ouch, steep hills!) and saw about 8 deer 'hanging out' and was so impressed with everything. It kind of sinks in (while looking out over the valleys below) how beautiful our lives are; how lucky I am to be alive and married to a wonderful woman. Think about it--how often is it just the two of you with 'nothing to do'. We cooked, drank champagne, watched movies and 'almost' completed a 750 piece puzzle (one of our only defeats but we'll get those last 40 or so in place next time! It was a blue sky... all the pieces looked the same!).

It was just the two of us and it was great to just be together and talk. I know that a lot of people who are married or otherwise 'together' cannot spend 2 solid days together without distractions as they don't have much in common. I am lucky to be married to my best friend!

With that said, I am so looking forward to 2008. Real estate is going to start to rebound; my house will either be sold or rented (sooner, rather than later!) and all will balance out financially. The kids are doing great, our dog is happy, what else can I say but I am truly blessed! May God bless you and yours in 2008!