Sardis, BC

Some time ago I ferreted out the fact that

the Obama administration was open to communicating

with everyone, and I reasearched this, and emailed the White House, and thought

no more of it. Today, I received an email on White House letterhead,

(it might have been sent by a staffer), informing me of

planned updates on health care reform.

Sent by a staffer or not; getting an email with the

Presidential Seal on it was a litttle exciting and a

new experience. The letter concludes with:

Thank you, Barack Obama.

(And, he says, he's going to keep me posted on further developments).

George Dubbya, or his staffers never sent me an email.

This President is unprecedented in his availabity to the public-I'm impressed!

For those of you who aren't part of the inner circle yet

and wish more information, I'll tell you how to get in touch with your President.

I've been in this game a few months now, posting my first blog in January 2009 and,

THIS BLOG IS NUMBER...

TA-DA!

Is this a milestone? Do I get a star? A gold medal? A hug even?

In my short sojourn at the keyboard, I've learned lots.

As pathetic as my first attempts were, I had encouragement, and, I perservered.

I also learned, the key is to get INTO a routine, and stick to it.

My advice to "Newbies"...

...reply to ten other posts each day and write two blogs each morning,

read two papers cover to cover, and tune in to the news on the

BBC, CNN and CTV. ALL BEFORE 6 AM.

Get up early and do this!

THEN, DO REAL ESTATE.

Here's what what else I've learned so far on Active Rain.

There are masters of the craft out there.

MARTI,

This guy is an absolute genius.

Some of the stuff he creates is absolutely

PHENOMENAL!

http://activerain.com/garaughty

If I had a tenth of his talent in the creativety department.

I'd be a blogging nut case!

There's a wealth of knowledge and resources among

the Active Rain members, and most are

willing to help and share their expertise.

I've had first hand experience on the help and advice,

and I've been added to Sue's site in PA as someone

she would recommend to do business with.

I'm honoured. Thank you Sue Therriault.

(Suesan's Link, below).

http://activerain.com/search?cx=016483636732923014967%3Ajjjq9jpey6w&cof=FORID%3A11&q=suesan+therriault&sa=Search#1161

A couple of people's posts, I read all the time,

and I mention them now in this post......

Lou Ludwig: Always with the blogs on quotes or passages.

http://activerain.com/louludwig

He must have a library of this stuff. I enjoy reading it.

Richard Weisser: The photographer. His pictures are

always extraordinary. He's very talented.

http://activerain.com/cowetafayette

I've also learned which blogs to read and which ones to avoid.

Some bloggers I read on a regular basis;

I'm not quite sure how to subscribe to a blog, but when I get that figured out,

I'll subscribe to my favorite ones. There's lots yet on my "to do" list.

Last week,

I almost went into cardiac arrest. I was editing some old blogs

and suddenly, lost several thousand points!

Poof! Gone into neverland. Lost in cyber-space.

Brad got them back for me. Apparently it was a computer glitch.

Some personal observations, if I may...

I'm a Newbie by definition, (under 6 months), but if I may offer

some advice to those just starting out, venturing into

their first blog.

Take the time to research your material.

Make sure your facts are right, because you WILL

get picked up on inaccuracies. I know I have. Be warned!

There are some people out there with too much time on their hands.

Blogs that are a "wall of words", will usually get a pass from me.

I prefer blogs spiced up with the appropriate clip art.

That's a common complaint from others too.

If you find you are getting 0, 1, 2 or 3 comments

on a blog, then it's time to re-think what you're doing.

I've had two too to re-think many a blog once or twice.

It's dissapointing when people don't comment,

especially when you think you've put a lot of effort into a blog.

I remember doing one blog on the "Baltic Dry Index". It was

an important blog from an informational point of view

and I researched it to death. It took hours to do.

It had graphs and pictures and facts,

and it was boring for most people.

I could actually "hear" peoples'

eyes glazing over!

Anyways, no one, (I think seven),

read the damn thing, and, I was crushed.

But, I learned a lesson.

http://activerain.com/blogsview/923878/horribly-boring-article-but-alarming-

I linked it here again. (Only because I can-it's my blog after all).

Take a moment for an exercise in "eye-glazing" and read it.

Blogs that are too technical in nature make my eyes glassy too.

I usually have valium on hand when reading these blogs.

I'm not a techy, and most people aren't, but techies assume

everyone understands this stuff.

So, I tend to pass.

If your from Nantucket or New Orleans, Toronto or Tofino,

don't give me statistics on your local market; make me passionate

about wanting to know more and move there. Yah! Do it like that!

Statistics are boring and "mind-numbing" and they don't mean a thing,

unless you're an actuary or an accountant.

All in all, so far, my time on Active Rain has been a tremendous experience.

I'm aiming to be number two in British Columbia shortly, but,

I doubt if I'll ever over-take the "Dragon-lady", (Liz), unless she

goes on holidays and loses her laptop over the side of a boat. But, we'll see.

I'm competitive and I like what I'm doing, and I enjoy a challenge.

Everytime I reach a new plateau, I look up at the

next "targets"; those in the next bracket.

Eventually, if I keep blogging at the the same pace until 2048,

Brad and Lenn are going to be toast!

(Click the link below)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-S2g8CXUAk&feature=relateded

I read somewhere, and these are facts:

It is estimated that all over the world, at any given time,

79,000,000 people are engaged in sex.

All over the world, at any given time 58,000,000 people are kissing.

And, at any given time, one old guy in Canada

is sitting at his computer, blogging.

I gotta' get a life. Jeez!

This is Alexandre Bilodeau, skier. Most people

haven't heard of him, and the skiing's not the story. After emerging as a promising

18 year old rookie, he fizzled. Then he went nuts! FIVE gold medals,

World Cup Champion, World Champion and at 21, Canadian champion.

It's hard to say what causes any athelete

to break through the mental barier, but for Bilodeau-it was ATTITUDE.

He sat down with sports psychologists, studied great athletes

and tried everything-nothing worked!

The real grounding force was his older brother,

idol and best friend, Frederic. Frederic has cerebral palsy,

a disease that affects body movement and muscle coordination.

The doctors told him he wouldn't be walking after 12 years of age.

He's 28 now, and he skis. It keeps Alexandre in perspective.

So when he's skiing and complaining because it's raining-it's nothing!

He would be up here, if he could, and he wouldn't be complaining.

He would be saying, "Great, I've got a chance to ski today!"

2003 was a tough year for me.

My younger brother Alan died at 53-of cancer.

Everytime I start bitching about anything,

I remind myself that Al would just love

to be here, experiencing "my torment".

He keeps me grounded most days.

Writing this today was a wake-up for me.

I think Al was guiding my fingers on the keyboard.

El Cordobes was undoubtedly

one of the greatest bullfighters of all time. Spain elevates these people

to the status afforded rock stars or soccer players, and

their earnings reflect it.

Lately though, 2 brothers, Cayetano and Francisco Ordonez

are grabbing all the headlines. After their father died

in the bull ring, their mother tried to keep them

away from it; but it's in their blood, going

back several generations.

Bullfighting evokes a lot of negative emotions,

especially among North Americans.

A few years ago, I was in Madrid and had

the opportunity to watch several fights.

It was quite a spectacle, with the music, the crowds and

the pageantry. I was fortunate to be with a

Spanish guide who explained all

the idiocyncracies.

To the uninitiated, bullfighting looks like

a brutal sport with a forgone conclusion.

One fight I saw, the bull won, and apparently,

if that happens, they are put out to pasture.

I prefer to think of it as a deadly ballet.

Much to my wife's chagrin, I am a tool pig!

Any latest gizmo or tool-I've got to have it.

I've got, at latest count 12 levels, including some that are laser.

Then the Germans came out with this line

of levels, (made by Stabila), that have an electronic

digital read-out. Gotta' have that too! ($300).

I have every manner of saw, powered or otherwise,

and every air tool available. In other words,

I have a lot of tools. I park in the driveway because my

garage is my shop. (In addition to the other shop

I built out back).

I also watch a lot of building programs.

"This Old House" and "The New Yankee Workshop", among others

and I can never figure it out. With all the tools

in my possession, why can't I built

a Quaker dining room set in

30 minutes like they do

on T.V.?