May this 4th of July bring you much happiness!  I wanted to share this quote with you, from Erma Bombeck, a talented columnist you may even recall.  I think she captured one of the great truths about this great country of ours:

“You have to love a nation that celebrates its independence every July 4, not with a parade of guns, tanks, and soldiers who file by the White House in a show of strength and muscle, but with family picnics where kids throw Frisbees, the potato salad gets iffy, and the flies die from happiness.  You may think you have overeaten, but it is patriotism.” (Erma Bombeck)

May you have so much joy this Independence Day.

Abundant Blessings to you and your loved ones, and please remember and honor those who have fought or currently bear arms in order that we may enjoy the peace and liberties to which we have become accustomed.

We're looking for a few Fine Agents!

As many of you know, we’re in a growth mode here at Fine Austin Living, and as we’ve been meeting a bunch of terrific agents over the past several weeks, a friend passed along this handy tool to help translate the “interview-speak” we’ve been encountering recently.

It’s always interesting to meet others, learn about their work experiences and commitment to excellent customer service, and see if and how they might fit in with the other members of our Team.

Thanks for the tips, but the folks we’ve been meeting with are truly outstanding so therefore none of the above applies, and we look forward to making some big announcements in the very near future!  And if you happen to know of someone who you think might make a great addition to our Team, please get us in contact with him/her as soon as possible!

Geez, Dad...what is all this stuff? It's freezing my delicate paws!

Life here in Central Texas, aka the Live Music Capital of the World, doesn’t usually include thoughts of snowflakes, roaring fires, and windshield de-icers. But this morning, in a rare gift from Mother Nature … thanks to the “monster storm” the rest of the country is experiencing … we got dusted with about an inch of the white stuff.

Yes, one inch.

And from the news reports, electronic messages whirling about, tweets, and automated phone dialers ringing off the hook, you’d think the world had come to an end! The dogs are restless… and Tyson (seen here in the photo) isn’t quite sure what to make of this stuff all over the ground … other than to whimper that his paws are cold! Schools are closed, even my gym is delayed in opening this morning (hence time for a blog post), and our local newspaper (the Austin-American Statesman) published an electronic edition since they were concerned their drivers couldn’t deliver the print edition on time!

Thank heavens for the internet. What would we be otherwise doing on a day like this? Oh…I forgot to mention…the internet is down at my office and I can’t get my car up the hill from the house…so I guess I’ll get plenty of time to catch up on emails and such.

I know he's around here somewhere!

May your stuffing be tasty

May your turkey be plump,

May your potatoes and gravy

Have never a lump.

May your yams be delicious

And your pies take the prize,

And may your Thanksgiving dinner

Stay off of your thighs!

Happy Thanksgiving to you,

And those you are near

Wake up early on Black Friday

‘cuz Christmas will soon be here!

Have a safe, memorable, and fun-filled holiday!  Best wishes from all of us at Fine Austin Living, REALTORS.

PART 2 of 2

 Continuing from my earlier post, if you will take the time to read these you’ll come away with an enlightened perspective on living life to its fullest potential!

* I’ve learned…. That when you plan to get even with someone, you are only letting that person continue to hurt you.

* I’ve learned…. That love, not time, heals all wounds.

* I’ve learned… That the easiest way for me to grow as a person is to surround myself with people smarter than I am.

* I’ve learned…. That everyone you meet deserves to be greeted with a smile.

* I’ve learned… That no one is perfect until you fall in love with them.

* I’ve learned…. That life is tough, but I’m tougher.

* I’ve learned…. That opportunities are never lost; someone will take the ones you miss.

* I’ve learned…. That when you harbor bitterness, happiness will dock elsewhere.

* I’ve learned…. That one should keep his words both soft and tender, because tomorrow he may have to eat them.

* I’ve learned…. That a smile is an inexpensive way to improve your looks.

* I’ve learned…. That I can’t choose how I feel, but I can choose what I do about it.

* I’ve learned…. That everyone wants to live on top of the mountain, but all the happiness and growth occurs while you’re climbing it.

* I’ve learned…. That the less time I have to work with, the more things I get done.

Off the soapbox for awhile now…hope you found something of interest in here.  If so, let me hear from you!

Part 1 of 2

If you will take the time to read these you’ll come away with an enlightened perspective. The subjects covered affect us all on a daily basis!

* I’ve learned…. That the best classroom in the world is at the feet of an elderly person.

* I’ve learned…. That just one person saying to me, “You’ve made my day!” makes my day.

* I’ve learned…. That having a child fall asleep in your arms is one of the most peaceful feelings in the world.

* I’ve learned…. That you should never say no to a gift from a child.

* I’ve learned…. That I can always pray for someone when I don’t have the strength to help him in some other way.

* I’ve learned…. That no matter how serious your life requires you to be, everyone needs a friend to act goofy with.

* I’ve learned…. That sometimes all a person needs is a hand to hold and a heart to understand.

* I’ve learned…. That life is like a roll of toilet paper.  The closer it gets to the end, the faster it goes.

* I’ve learned…. That it’s those small daily happenings that make life so spectacular!  

* I’ve learned…. That under everyone’s hard shell is someone who wants to be appreciated and loved.

* I’ve learned…. That to ignore the facts does not change the facts.

Maybe you’ve heard or read the phrase “Success leaves clues.” Hopefully, you’re also aware that failure also leaves clues. Do you think people are paying attention to those clues?

During this current recession, the number of millionaires in the United States has dropped by 18 percent. That is a huge number.

But you can be fairly confident that those 18 percent will be just fine. In fact, they will regain millionaire status in a short time and will probably actually exceed their net worth heading into the recession. Why? Because people who achieve what must be achieved to attain millionaire status have something in common:

Successful people learn from failure. As I said, “Failure leaves clues.”

And so as the financial system as a whole (hopefully) takes some lessons away from this recession, so will the millionaires who have endured a few recent bumps. I don’t know what all those lessons will be — maybe more diversification, less speculation, lower-risk tolerances, etc. — but the millionaire mind-set will be “What has this taught me?” And they will use the knowledge re-make and then keep their millions.

Winston Churchill once issued one of my favorite quotes of all time: “Success is going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm.” I think that if you can manage to view failures as lessons, then you have a much better chance of maintaining the enthusiasm that Churchill talked about.

What if you, as a baby, had completely given up trying to walk after falling the first couple of times? You’d never walk, right?

Instead, you kept getting up, time after time, until you were able to wobble around slowly at first, then eventually run. If you’ve watched a baby trying to walk, I think you’ve seen the enthusiasm from failure to failure that Churchill mentions. That baby never gives up, never loses his or her enthusiasm, despite “failure” after “failure.”

So what happens to that persistence as we get older? Why are we, as children, more persistent, more determined than we are as adults?

You have to answer that question for yourself. But part of being successful is never losing that drive you had as a child. Think about all the “failures” you have growing up — when you’re learning to walk, ride a bike, throw a ball, tie your shoes, whatever — did you ever stop trying? Chances are you can now do all those things.

Somehow, as a child, your ability to self-correct and your determination and persistence carried the day.

I think those who are ultra-successful as adults are the ones who never lose those qualities from childhood. If at first they don’t succeed, they try and try again. It’s why many millionaires have failed businesses, bad investments, even bankruptcies, in their pasts. They have these failures and they learn from them, they BENEFIT from them. Those failures enhance who they are, what they know, what they’re prepared for going forward. The failures are part of their success.

Is it difficult for you to see it that way? It really shouldn’t be. 

Even a baby can do it.

HOW TO STAY YOUNG

1. Throw out nonessential numbers. This includes age, weight and height. Let the doctors worry about them. That is why you pay them.

2. Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down.

3.Keep learning.  Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever, even ham radio. Never let the brain idle. ‘An idle mind is the devil’s workshop.’ And the devil’s family name is Alzheimer’s.

4. Enjoy the simple things.

5. Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath.

6. The tears happen. Endure, grieve, and move on. The only person, who is with us our entire life, is ourselves. Be ALIVE while you are alive.

7. Surround yourself with what you love , whether it’s family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever.  Your home is your refuge.

8. Cherish your health: If it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it.  If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.

9. Don’t take guilt trips. Take a trip to the mall, even to the next county; to a foreign country but NOT to where the guilt is.

10. Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity.

AND ALWAYS REMEMBER:

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.

Life’s journey is not to arrive at the grave safely in a well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, totally used up and worn out, shouting ” ….wow….man, what a ride!”

 Hope you enjoy these…I sure do!

Wish I knew who said it first , but my memory seems to be failing me a bit!

A thought for today…

Years ago I heard a story of a dad named Paul who gave his young son a small chalkboard to practice writing on. One evening his son called out from the bedroom, “Dad, how do you spell best?”

Paul answered him. Moments later, the boy hollered, “How do you spell kid?”

Finally he asked, “How do you spell ever?”

When the boy showed him what he’d written on the chalkboard, Paul expected to see “I’m the best kid ever.” Instead, the boy beamed as Paul read the message: “You’re the best dad a kid can ever have.”

Paul recalled that it was one of the best days of his life. In fact, he had to buy his son another chalkboard because he wanted to save this message forever and hang it on his wall. It’s still there. Feeling appreciated is enormously important to adults as well as children. So much so that we often don’t think enough about what we’d most like to be appreciated for.

Being appreciated at work is a big deal. Who doesn’t want approval and respect from one’s boss and coworkers? Beyond the economic value of raises, promotions, and commendations, praise can be gratifying and motivating. That’s why good employers look for opportunities to acknowledge and thank employees for their contributions.

Yet as meaningful as work recognition is, if you could choose between winning your child’s “Best Mom/Dad a Kid Can Ever Have” award and being named “Best Employee,” which would you choose? The point is not to belittle the pursuit of approval in your business life but to remind you how much more meaningful it is to know you’re important to and appreciated by the people who love and need you the most.

Your most important job in life is to be worthy of that appreciation. Being the “best ever” mom or dad, husband or wife, or friend – it doesn’t get any better than that.

- Michael Josephson “Character Counts“