Michael and Karen George

So you're running late on your Chandler halloween preparations? Not sure what to do with the kids? Never fear, we have gathered together what you need, and you can find it below.

First of all, if you need general halloween stuff... Okay, if you need anything to do with Halloween, you really only need to visit the

Spirit Halloween Superstore, located at 2980 N Alma School Rd, Chandler, AZ - (800) 267-8869‎

There are also costume-specific places, if you want a higher quality costume or if you want to rent. But none in Chandler unfortunately.

However, close by in Tempe we have:

Fun City Costumes, at 2820 E University Dr, Mesa, AZ‎ - (480) 654-5113‎

I'm not sure if Fun City rents or not. They probably do. But these guys do for sure:

Fantasy Costume Rentals, at 1400 S McClintock Dr, Tempe, AZ‎ - (480) 858-0805‎

What about things to do in Chandler on Halloween?

Halloween Spooktacular Downtown Library Courtyard, 125 E. Commonwealth Ave., Chandler, Arizona 480-782-2735

From about.com: "An evening of safe family fun. Food, games, arts and crafts, costume contests, souvenir photos, and a Haunted House. Everyone is welcome to wear a costume and enter the costume contest and parade. In 2009: Friday, October 30 from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m."

And if your kids get too much candy, a Chandler Dentist will buy your children's candy back from them. I'm not kidding. Click the link!

For adults and for charity there is the annual Chandler Witches Night Out. Unfortunately, that happened on October 17, but at least you know for next year. Click the link above for more information on the Chandler AZ Witches night or you can read about the Phoenix Witches Ball right here.

~Copyright by Michael George, Arizona Wholesale Mortgage, (480) 704-4430

Chandler (and neighboring Sun Lakes) are not the most exciting towns in Arizona. We are terrific for retirees and families. We have a great school system and clean neighborhoods, but it's no Las Vegas as far as action, if you know what I mean. Sometimes it can be hard to find things to do. But actually we have quite a bit!

However, there is still fun to be had in Chandler, depending on your tastes. Here's a few of my favorites, not in any particular order at all:

1. C-FU Gourmet: I love this place for Sunday "brunch." If you've never had Dim Sum, it's a style of eating, in which tiny plates of all kinds of exotic Chinese food is brought to your table in steaming carts. You just point to what you want. It's excellent. Get there early though!

2. The Chandler Center For The Arts: I saw Bill Cosby there with my wife and it was really terrific. Only a couple of minutes from my home, deep in the burbs. This December, there will be an Italian Circus performing there. Click the link above for information on Tickets.

3. Veterans Oasis Park / Environmental Education Center: From their website--

Veterans Oasis Park covers 113 acres and feature both lush wetland and arid habitat suitable for the diverse plants and wildlife of the Sonoran Desert. The park will also include 4½ miles of trails, wildlife viewing areas; ramadas and picnic areas; a butterfly and hummingbird habitat; an outdoor amphitheatre; a unique, learning-oriented playground; a 5-acre “urban fishing” lake; and interpretive signs and exhibits.

4. The Hamilton Aquatic Center: I have never grown out of my love for playing around waterslides. I'm 38 years old and I have no shame standing in line with kids. I love it. This is walking distance from my home and they have 2 waterslides, a lazy river, an Olympic sized-pool and a volleyball court if all that weren't enough. If you live in Chandler, you've got to check it out. And how much will a day of fun and sun cost you?

Admission is $2 for Adults and .75 for children!

5. Chandler Skate Park: If you like skateboarding or inline skating-- or, if you are like me and like to watch crazy people do crazy things on skateboards, we have the place for you.

Did you know that Thrasher, a popular skateboarding magazing wrote that the city skate park in Chandler is one of the top five in the United States? Right here in lil' ole Chandler!

Anybody can use the park at any skill level. But if you go there enough, you are bound to see many professional skateboarders there. Famous guys on the circuit.

So those are my five favorite things to do in Chandler. The above list, you can do anytime. However, we also have some great yearly events, such as:

The Chandler Ostrich Festival

The Downtown Chandler Art Walk

The Chandler Jazz Festival

I hope you find this list helpful whether you currently live in Chander or in one of our neighboring Arizona cities. Chandler has a lot more to offer than just farmland!

~ Copyright By Michael George, of Arizona Wholesale Mortgage, (480) 551-8188, ext. 81

Chandler AZ First Time Homebuyer?

Chandler AZ Refinance

I am so proud of my fellow Arizonans.

When Obama came to town, lots of angry white people showed up brandishing guns. One guy, with an assault rifle, told our local news that "America isn't ready for a black President."

And he didn't even wear a hood like most of his cowardly brothers do.

The guns were a message and we heard it loud and clear. Thanks to you crazy, gun-toting racists! I appreciate you exposing yourselves. It's not about this or that, for some folks, it's all about color.

I wonder what the right-wing would have to say about a large crowd of black people attending a McCain rally with assault rifles and telling news cameras that they aren't ready for a white President. What do you think Rush Limbaugh would say about that?

Fox News would be all in a tizzy. It would be discussed for weeks! Scare the heck out of white people and push our much more gentle, gun-toting agenda. But blacks with guns? You've got to be kidding me.

When I attended the Phoenix Gun Show, I heard many people use the n-word when describing our Commander-in-Chief.

Is that ever appropriate?

I saw assault rifles for sale, with our President's face on the price tag and a target superimposed...as if to say "Buy this gun and kill the President."

And now this. Political signs in Cave Creek, AZ with the words "Kill Obama" on them.

In the words of Sheriff Joe: "This is a complete disgrace and gross act towards our president."

P.S.-- And if anybody knows the genius in the picture, please remind him that America has no official language, but if we did...he isn't writing it. I have tons of these totally ironic teabagger signs.

It's just so hard to choose which ones to post!

If you love lobster like I do, there is the seventeenth annual Lobster Festival this weekend in Puerto Nuevo.

Puerto Nuevo is a lovely little town in Mexico, about an hour from the heart of San Diego. It's about 6 hours from my home in Arizona, but if I am going to spend a weekend in Mexico, this is the time.

The weather is absolutely perfect at this time of the year and the people of Puerto Nuevo are experts at preparing lobster.

They don't boil it-- no sir! They split it open, drizzle it with butter and garlic, and broil it until perfectly tender. They serve it with rice, beans, tortillas, guacamole and three margaritas are included. (Festival Special- $15 American Dollars) Now where can you get all of that for $15? Maybe three margaritas alone!

If you live within driving distance of San Diego, I hope you check it out. You'll be sure to have a good time. I've been there many, many times.

And don't forget your passports!

I think that everybody is tightening their proverbial belts right now. Times are tough. I just read that unemployment in Michigan is at 25% right now. I can't even believe that is true.

Ironically, I have a friend who works only part time, but gets by wonderfully. It's truly amazing. She's always eating out, taking vacations, and generally living better than most of us do.

Last night we had dinner and I always get a laugh about her latest adventures and how she went about paying for them. She offered a couple of tips:

1. She goes to every grocery store's website every single week to "download" coupons to her shopper's saving cards. I definitely did not know about this, but I just signed up and downloaded a bunch of coupons. You just need to enter the number on your shopper card. I'm ready to go.

2. She will shop at four grocery stores per week if she has to. (Around my home in Chandler, AZ, I have six good grocery stores within a two mile radius.) One store is inevitably running a special on chicken breasts and another will have her organic milk. She claims that she often saves 75% on her food this way, which is totally worth the extra work. She just purchased a boatload of Bumblebee Tuna in water for .25 per can.

3. She never, ever goes out to dinner without an Entertainment Book coupon.

4. Finally, she is signed up as a Mystery Shopper and dines out one or two times per month, writes specific details about the bathroom cleanliness and service and so forth, submits her receipt and gets fully reimbursed. I realize that everybody is going to want to do this-- but the link she gave me last night does not work. So I am trying to find that now and I will edit this post later on. I sincerely apologize. I can't imagine where she is at, because she only works on the weekend!

I shouldn't have ended my list with the word "finally." Because she has about a thousand tips for saving money, getting free vacations and merchandise... I'll write more later on.