Leesburg, FL

In three days it will be exactly 22 years since I met my wife. A few weeks back we celebrated our 5th year of marriage with a weekend at the beach.

Twenty two years and three days ago I was a single dad with four sons. In the movies, this situation is easily remiedied by the perfect person coming along and after a few wonderful mishaps, a few hours later they are happily married an driving off into the sunset.

In reality, most single women hear that you, a single dad, have 4 kids and suddenly have other plans. Sock drawers need organizing, plans to enter the convent, stuff like that. I had resigned myself to a life of an occasional pity date and relying on my Mom, my Sister, and my Church for assitance in raising my kids.

For those of you who want a formula for changing the storyline, try what I did. Have a dentist appointment for a bad tooth on a Wed, and take the required anti biotics and go home to prepare for the next day when they will remove the tooth and hope the swelling will go down.

Then, get a phone call from a friend who needs a ride home from a local juke joint and will I come to get him home safely. After securing said children with Mom and Sis, go to the juke joint and attempt to retrieve said friend, who is now winning at pool and refuses to leave while winning.. Take a seat in the dark to avoid the large swollen side of your face from being so noticeable.

While sitting there in pain, you can't help but to notice the most beautiful women you have ever seen wearing very funny pants dancing with a girlfriend and a guy you know. Imagine the three of them come by your table, and try to imagine making a good first impression while dealing with being totally awestruck and sounding like I am gargling marbles due to the swollen jaw.. Somehow I manage to give her a business card after telling her I would love to see her again after I get my dental work done.

SHe actually takes my call the next day after my surgery,and agrees to meet me at Pizza Hut. I had told her the night before that I have 4 kids, and her eyes did not roll back or glaze over, a good sign.

With a mouth full of packing I try to be charming when I should have been sleeping off the codine pain pills. I spent three hours in Pizza Hut without eating a bite.. I could not wait to see her again and I had no feeling on the left side of my face...Teresa would warn me when the side of my mouth was drooling...Romantic Huh...

Fast forward 17 years and we are finally married. We had agreed to make a life seperate, yet together for these years while we raised our families and dated...When the youngest went off to college, we set a date and got married, just like we had promised each other..

Then one day, my Wife tells me a normal check up did not go well, and she was scheduled for more testing. MY heart nearly stops, but I try to not go crazy with worry......More testing, and more testing, and our doctor begins using the C word. Her calcuim levels were thru the roof, and the thyroid drugs began not regulating anymore. The C word will take over your life. It was not conclusive, but once it is shared, it cannot be taken back. Its like a weight on your chest that get heavier, but you have to pretend not to notice. That is not easy to do....

Months go by, with more testing, MRIs, Sonograms, Xrays, and still the results were being read as Possible Cancer of the thyriod, causing all these other issues. Finally, wanting another opinion, we went to a Thyroid specialist, and started over with the testing...

I remember this last Jan when we were given the news that it was not cancer, it was a rogue Parathyroid, just doing whatever it wanted and throwing my Wifes poor body for a loop. More testing, another kind of special MRI and more sonagrams and we meet with a wonderful surgeon. All the tests are inconclusive, but in her opinion there are lumps on the Thyroid and one of her four Parathyroids must be acting up, but they can't find it.

After our weekend in Daytona Beach celebrating our 5th year of being married, we we quietly aware of the upcoming surgery the following Thursday. We had high hopes, but with all the tests not being able to find anything, we were apprehensive.. Finally, get get up early that day and meet just about our entire family at the hospital.

The surgeon tells us it should be about an hour. One hour goes by, then two, and then three..Finally, the surgeon meets me in the little room and says they found a nodule lump on the thyroid, an attatched lymhp gland sticking to the thyroid, and after all that, found the rogue Parathyroid on the other side of the neck, behind the thyroid. So, all three bad things were removed, and biopsied. No cancer, but a much longer surgery, and a five inch incision accross her neck from one side to the other.

Her blood testing taken immediately after the surgery showed a dramatic drop in the calcium PCHT levels, from 63 before the surgery down to 16 after. Between 15 and 20 is normal. I was able to bring her home the next day, and we spent a week together at home while she recovered. Its been three weeks now, and she is feeling better in many ways now that the thyroid is regulated.

Being the naturally beautiful person that she is, she is unreasonably worried about the scar across her neck. SHe is worried that I, and other people are going to notice the scar. I am just so happy that she is doing better, and that the problem has been solved. Trust me, I am so happy she is better I do not see a scar. Its just so wonderful to not be scared anymore..What scar...

For our 22nd anniversary of being together, I cannot begin to express how much weight is off of our heads now that she is doing so much better. The little voices in my head that had been worrying me so for the last few months have finally been quieted.

There is a joy in my life again that is hard to explain. The future is there again for the both of us together, and I finally feel like I can breathe again. This 22nd anniversary will be a special one, one that has our hopes and dreams back intact again for our future together.

I wish everyone would take another look at your loved ones and cherish your time together. I feel like we are being able to start over again. I wish the same for everyone, take the time to enjoy your family.

Now is surely the time to get the best price on your retirement home! Alysa and I specialize in Active Adult Communities in Lake County. Prices have fallen an average of $50,000! A 1600 square foot home last year would have been priced at $234,000. Now it is priced $187,000! Larger homes over 2,000 square feet used to bring $425,000 and are now priced $339,000! The market here in Lake County is seeing an increase in buyers and Realtor activity has picked up considerably. The new Pringle Community of Lakes of Mount Dora has just recently finished it's beautiful new clubhouse!

Come enjoy winter's without snow and high energy bills! Enjoy communities that offer every range of activity to keep you active and involved. Lake County is centrally located and within an hour of beaches, Orlando, natural springs, Disney World and so much more!!!

Welcome to the Active Rain Blogging world. Its not often you will find a forum like Active Rain. If you are looking for a way to move up on Google, then this is your best bet. In fact, I cannot believe how quickly blogging on Active Rain will make a difference.

I suggest using phases that will show up in normal searches for your area in your blog. If you are in Lake County, Fl, then use Lake County, Fl in your blog. If you put a title like " Short Sales Specialists in Lake County, Fl in your title, then when someone is searching Google for Short Sales they will come across your article.

Try posting with your name in the title. If you put Mike Norvell Sr is finding bargins in Lake County, Fl in the title, then try putting the same thing in Google a few hours later...Yep, its that powerful.

Now, if you want to increase your odds of Google finding your content, then use BOLD. So, I might use Short Sale Specialists in Lake County, Fl in bold and this may help. I also recommend some titles that are very self serving, but get your point across. Try something like...Mike Norvell Moves to Developers Capital Realty....see that come up later in Google.

Also, use links ( once you learn how) to posts that you have already done. Google likes these links. Most of all, if you want to make a difference in your exposure right away, start posting to localism right away. I recently had a couple relocating to Leesburg, Fl that found a story I wrote about a 2 bed, two bath, owner finance doublewide mobile home...They liked what they saw, and when they came to Leesburg, Fl from Texas, guess what happened. Thats right, a deal was made in days....

There are posts on here that show you how to post to Localism..Mike Norvell is well known in Leesburg Fla on localism. It makes my phone ring. I am # 2 in Lake County, Fl and being # 2 still makes me featured in this Lake County, FL area. This is my example of how to write a story, get a point across, and still have Google find you to get your info to awaiting buyers...

Best wishes, from Mike Norvell Sr, of Leesburg, Fl Specializing in Foreclosure & Short Sales of Subdivisions and vacant Land in Lake County, Fl......

Hello Active Rainers...Points are an easy commodity on Active Rain. For some, it appears it is the only reason for being here. I just found a series of posts that are obviously cut and pasted from some article on-line. One article right after another, with her smiling face right beside it like she is proud of her accomplishments.

So anyway, back to the tutorial. Start by naming your post with something like How to make points on Active Rain, a Short Tutorial. Actually, if you just combine some of these phrases together, it may work just as well.

Also try to name it along the lines of " My broker ran off with my wife and my commission check..I know I would check in for that one myself. Another favorite is How to insert pics, how to change the color of your fonts..That is a mind altering concept in-itself, one that no self respecting Rainer should be without.

Another tactic is to Use Bob Stewart in the title. He may even drop in to say thanks for mentioning his name, he is such a nice guy, its no wonder he is so popular here.

Another point grabber might be " How long should you leave your children in the car during a listing appointment?" I am sure if its a big listing with a very motivated seller you can get more time, but what about in the winter?? Does leaving the car running with heat, as long as the kids are securly strapped into their car seats??, and with gas prices being what they are, AC on in summer.. Who knows, but it will get you points. Maybe even a call from a police officer or two, but they aren't likely to be reading Active Rain.

One of my favorites is " Should you allow yourself a big bean burrito smothered in chili cheese sauce before a listing appointment in a closed office environment"... I personally have the answer to this one, and I can highly recommend the appropriate time is one full day...Nothing like pressure from a big deal to get the ol stomach churning up room blasting odors after a double helping of that creamy yellow dipping cheese sauce, mix in some spicy green chili salsa... let your conscience be your guide..

By far, the best choice of a point grabber is "Should I take this overpriced listing from My Aunt Mosley, even though she is on the same committee to save the Historic Church Building foundation I am on with my Mom and her cousin" Now there is a 500 pointer, just by weight alone. If you can some how incorporate small puppies into the same title, it might bring in another 200 points on the cute factor..

There are many ways to make points here on Active Rain, but most any title that gives starving Realtors and Mortgage Brokers an opportunity to vent, or learn how to colorize their otherwise boring fonts is a great way to get to the top of the proverbial heap.

I can't guarantee this will bring any business, but if points is what you want, these are some sure fired winners..

As always, comments are always appreciated....

Hello Active Rain, I have an announcement again!

Effective Feb 28, 2008, a new Real Estate Brokerage is now in business in Leesburg, Fl. The new brokerage is called Developers Capitol Reality, LLC.

Developers Capitol Realty, LLC will focus on larger acquisition projects in the State of Florida. One of it's primary clients will be Blount Development Group, LLC. Rick Blount is the Corporate President of the Brokerage, and Rob Arrington is the Lic Broker. Mike Norvell Sr will operate as a buyers agent for the Brokerage, and will seek out Motivated Commercial listings as well.

Blount Development Group, LLC is actively seeking financially troubled subdivisions and platted raw land developments. It is also currently seeking Fl based mobile home parks located in the central part of the State. Developers Capitol Realty will act as a buyers agent for this developer.

The new brokerage will add to the ability of the firm to be able to buy, list and sell Commercial Real Estate, financially distressed subdivisions, and large land tracts. In Fla, there were many developments that got started during the boom, but have not been able to finish the development due to the market slowdown. Developers Capital Realty will seek to represent large investment firms in the acquisition of these types of distressed properties.

Mike Norvell Sr has been recently hired by Developers Capitol Realty LLC to work out of the Leesburg Office. He will handle the day to day business for the firm, under the Broker Rob Arrington. Mike Norvell Sr is a Fla native, with a detailed knowledge of the Central Fla area. Mike will work to find projects within your firms criteria, and handle the bid process with confidentiality.

Developers Capitol Realty LLC, and Blount Development Group are currently representing large investment firms that have decided this is a great time to invest in Fla. Any Realtors that would refer potential clients to our firm will be protected with a standard referral agreement, as well as a non disclosure agreement. Opportunities are available for Investors and Joint Venture Partners. Call today for bid packages on currently available projects. Also, call for a free consultation on bringing potential deals to us to present to our investors.