About Hampden County, MA

Today I had my first experience at the fish elevator at the Holyoke Dam in Holyoke, MA.

I have lived in Western MA my whole life and somehow missed out on this curiosity until today. 

At the Hadley Falls in Holyoke Ma the annual migration of anadromous fish is no small affair. A visit to the  website explains the technical aspects.

I stood watching the fish through the observation windows with my daughters and I listened to my guide and date explain to us that these fish are swimming up the river to mate and then die.   This brutal trip takes them up the rocky Connecticut River where they cease to eat.  Eventually they make it to Holyoke, where the dam constructed in 1849 prevented them from migrating.  The once plentiful shad and salmon of the river valley were extinct to this region until the first fish lift was built at the Holyoke Dam in 1955.

After watching the complicated process that ushers the fish into the elevator and seeing them deposited into the tank, we made our way to the viewing windows.  There we were met with  busy scene encompassing hundreds of shad, one salmon, many lampreys and some tiger striped bass.  The shad, in particular, were looking worse for the wear on their journey.

Several seemed bitten, one had almost lost an eye and another had a fish hook hanging from a side gill.

I can't relate to their ultimate and undeniable goal of mating, but I have swam upstream.  I did it for a long time and I think I have a few scars from the hooks and bites along the way.

I am unsure about the nature of these fish or what drives them upstream to fullfil their destiny.  But I did get a glimmer about myself during my observations today: I  swam upstream HARD for years.  I thought I was doing what I was supposed to do.  I made promises and set goals and was determined that I would do things RIGHT.

Well, that didn't work out much better for me than it does your average salmon (except of course I don't have to expire), but it did teach me a lot.

As I stood next to this great man watching our children meet for the first time it occurred to me that life doesn't have to be a constant struggle with unattainable goals at the brink.  Life can be spontaneous, sweet and easy:if you let it. 

You can swim upstream....I am going to follow the course downstream and guide it the best I can while I let life ebb and flow around me in a beautiful froth. 

So, thank you Morriss for sharing today with me...you teach me something new all the time, even when you don't realize that is what you did.

In my over 20 year career the one client that has always been a favorite is the first time homebuyer.

What isn't to love about the flush of excitement as a young adult sheds the protection of parents, landlords or school and makes the decision to strike out on their own? Their energy is contagious and they are open to education and guidance.

These fledgling buyers almost always do everything on time and as you requested because they don't have the bad habits of more "experienced" buyers.

I am working with a series of first time homebuyers lately, most of them are young women (neat!) and have been caught up in their excitment. There were issues with the last two closings, but these ladies kept their cool, took my (very good) advice and hung in there while things were sorted out.

Getting to the closing with these buyers has been so much fun....seeing them take the keys to their new home is a gift to my spirit.

What is even better is the recognition and thanks that they freely offer to me. Both young ladies are having me to their new home after they settle in and both stay in touch with me regularly. One of them texted me when she hung the "Welcome Home" picture I gave her and today I got a thank you note in the mail from another.

What could be a better feeling than opening up a note like this?:

FINDING A HOUSE

There are a variety of approaches to finding a house that have proven successful. Each buyer has requirements that must be satisfied, but often people are unclear about their priorities until the search process has clarified the tradeoffs. Most people start their search with a general notion of what cities they like, often because they are aware of which cities offer the best schools, the best downtown shops and restaurants or the best proximity to where they work. We suggest that if there is an attribute that you absolutely must have, such as highly-rated schools, find out where the best schools are, and use that information to limit your choice of search areas. If there are other characteristics that you would like to have but do not regard as essential, perhaps a good view or being within walking distance of a shopping area, then note where these things are available within the larger area that your must-have conditions are satisfied.

The foregoing may seem obvious, but experience has shown us that commonly people start by choosing a couple of cities that they think will likely satisfy their needs, and then narrow the search to their favorite neighborhoods. This can work well, but may not offer the array of choice or the ideal match to the client that the attribute-based method does. Whichever initial process you use, the next step is to familiarize yourself with the selected areas. Your Movoto agent will be familiar with local neighborhoods and can save you time by helping you eliminate areas that have little promise of meeting your requirements, but ultimately, you will have to get in the car and both physically visit a number of properties in various areas before the tradeoffs will become clear. The convenience of everyday activities needs to be evaluated in different areas. How long does it take to get to work? Can the kids walk home from school? Are there good cafés, restaurants, libraries, parks, etc. nearby? When you view listings on Movoto's website, the proximity to such things is conveniently tabulated.

The real estate boards have broken down many cities into sub-areas that have recognizably different attributes. In areas where this has been done, setting up your search will be easier, since you will limit your search to the areas that best suit your needs. Within Movoto's Custom Search, when selecting the search areas, check the "show neighborhoods" box, and this capability, until recently only available to real estate professionals, will be yours. Prefer older houses? You can specify your search so that you don't have to sift thorough listings for recently built houses. Only want a brand-new house? You can specify that as well. Would you like to have a family room, but might consider an otherwise good house lacked a family room? You can set the level of preference in your search so that houses with family rooms will come to the top of your search results, but houses that lack family rooms will still appear lower down. This kind of user-customized searching is not even possible to subscribers to the MLS.

In the process of familiarizing yourself with different neighborhoods, you will probably go to quite a few open houses and also visit a selection of properties with your Movoto agent, before you are in a position to be serious about making an offer. We believe that it is essential for buyers to become extremely knowledgeable about the neighborhoods in which they plan to buy. You may expect your Movoto agent to invest considerable time in helping you develop that knowledge."

CALL KRIS GONET-HALL

413-204-6099

hppt://www.KrisSells.com

Kris@KrisSells.com

www.theranchgolfclub.com

Top Realtor in Western Massachusetts

April 28, 2009, Westfield, MA...no one knows how to dress today. It is 95 degrees and everyone is complaining about it being too hot, too soon. The daffodils and tulips are wilted in protest and I didn't unpack my summer clothes yet...what happened to spring?

May 5th, 2009, Westfield, MA...I sit in my office shivering. I unpacked the summer clothes and now I am ready to go unpack the sweaters! Again I sit wondering where did Spring go? It is raining, which isn't so odd, but it is CCCCCoold today. Isn't it supposed to be warm in May?

Well, after living here my whole life I can attest to that old adage: If you don't like the weather, just wait a minute, it will change!

I have been asked numerous times why I wouldn't like to move somewhere with a better climate. Friends who have gone South or who live in temperate California wonder what could be appealing about what I just described above.

When they ask this I usually shrug and respond: "Well, it is never boring." Truthfully, though, it is a lot more than that. So here is my list of why I love Western Massachusetts even though the weather is tempermental:

---It is gorgeous. Lush, green, picturesque and beautiful.

---I adore the seasons. All of them. Yes, I even like winter!

---My favorite people are here!

---My career is here and I love my job.

---2 hours to Boston or 3 hours to NYC when I need a big city fix

---1 hour or less to great skiing

---2 hours to the beach

---Great safe community

---Outstanding support of the arts and culture

---Amazingly gifted, generous and intelligent people

---Excellent colleges and schools

---So many amazing outdoor activities available

So even though I don't always love the extremes in the weather, I always love it here. I travel and can't wait to get home to my little corner of the world: (of course the two sweeties are the best part of my home!)

Lesley Lambert, The Real Estate Natural at Park Square Realty AND Member of the #twitterqueens

It certainly has been one of the busiest years that I can remember in the mortgage busines. There are so many people not only taking advantage of getting lower monthly payments but many that are lowering the amount of years for their mortgage!

I have seen so many cases that customers are paying less and have lower term than they have now! It is a wonderful way to help people.

For some people we are able to help them even when they have lower credit (FICO) scores with FHA refinance. The minimum FICO score is 600 for FHA.

I am doing at least 2-4 new construction loans a week. We handle all over New England, NY and FL and I love the construction process. It is very exciting to help so many people wade through the financial and building process to get to the end result! A new home that is their dream home.

On a personal note, I am very thankful for all the hard work of my husband; who has volunteered to make up loan packages for the files that I fed-ex out to customers! After 30 years of marriage, I am still so loved by this man!

I hope that all is well in your life. Take the time to take care of yourself.

Feel your breath as it comes in and goes out of your body. Listen quietly to your heart beating. Slow down and be thankful for all that life has blessed you with and remember to believe the best of others.

Take care,

Marianne