Susan Brown

BookCrossing is something I heard about from a team member. She told me it was a great way to share books with strangers. And you feel as if you are giving your books good homes. Passing the literary wealth around, if you will.

Here is what the BookCrossing website had to say:

BookCrossing is earth-friendly, and gives you a way to share your books, clear your shelves, and conserve precious resources at the same time. Through our own unique method of recycling reads, BookCrossers give life to books. A book registered on BookCrossing is ready for adventure.

Leave it on a park bench, a coffee shop, at a hotel on vacation. Share it with a friend or tuck it onto a bookshelf at the gym -- anywhere it might find a new reader! What happens next is up to fate, and we never know where our books might travel. Track the book's journey around the world as it is passed on from person to person.

Wow. This sounds interesting to me. And a way to share my love of reading with others. BookCrossing has a current membership 819,769 book lovers in nearly 150 countries. And they are growing at the rate of 300 new members daily.

It is easy to participate. You sign up, complete your profile & create a library of your books. Each book will be assigned a BookCrossing ID Number. You'll label your book with its ID number - then you can set it free!

There are community forums to interact on. Even a Newbie Forum for any questions that you may have. There is also a BookCrossing Supply Shop that has labels for your book or bookmarks that explain the program or even release bags to protect your book from the elements as it goes on its journey. Which made me think of a winged book!

Susan Brown, Your Texas Connection sells real estate in Walden on Lake Houston, Eagle Springs, Summerwood, Atascocita, TX, Kingwood Greens, Royal Shores & Kingwood, TX - just to name a few! Susan's the team leader for Your Texas Connection at Keller Williams Realty NE. Visit their website for more in depth info about the team and what they can do for you. Or call Susan direct (281) 415-1454 if you'd like her to start working on your behalf today!

Keller Williams Northeast's VIVA LAS VEGAS Gala was a Smash Hit!

Saturday, October 24, the ballroom at the Marriott Houston Airport was transformed into a glitzy Las Vegas casino for the well-attended event. Attendees dressed in their luckiest outfits checked in, received a special party bracelet, beverage tickets and a marker to be exchanged for chips for the table games.

As we continued to the main ballroom, we had the opportunity to view a variety of silent auction items that included a trip to the Grammy's, a special shopping extravaganza at Bloomingdales in New York, guitars autographed by Led Zepplin, Eric Clapton & the Rolling Stones & gift baskets of every kind. Inside the main ballroom, you were transported to Las Vegas with the brilliant decorating, lavish buffet and gaming tables.

Speaking of the lavish buffet. The guests were treated to salad, grilled vegetables, chicken alfredo pasta, stuffed chicken breasts & a prime rib carving station. A dessert bar included perfect little bites of cheesecake, both in raspberry or turtle, a strawberry cake & chocolate torte. The food was delicious.

After dinner, the fun began at the tables. All the different casino games were offered. And the guests took full advantage of playing with the provided chips. Accumulating the chips & cashing in the winnings gave extra tickets to be placed in a raffle for a fabulous all-expense-paid trip to Orlando, Florida. The dealers kept the action and laughter going at the tables. Las Vegas showgirls made the rounds handing out extra chips if you did The Robot or The Picture Frame dance for them. The pit boss made his rounds handing out extra chips "just because." The spirit of the evening was FUN!

And all this FUN had a great cause. The charity of the evening Including Kids. This local charity, directed by Jennifer Dantzler, provides for children with autism a means of educating and instructing with the ultimate goal of being a productive part of the communtiy. There are so many success stories for Including Kids - it will overwhelm you. At the Keller Williams Viva Las Vegas Gala, the stories of these young people were displayed for everyone to read and enjoy.

Another evening highlight was the entertainment. Tony Mac kept the crowd going with his vocals. Tony is an outstanding singer - if you ever have the opportunity to hear him, grab it! The dance floor was crowded with couples as well as line dancers. Everyone enjoyed the entertainment!

A huge round of applause for the co-chairs of this spectacular event, Letitia Whipple & Diana Heffner. They kept the ball rolling and with assistance from a number of the Keller Williams Northeast associates - they made it an evening to remember. Kudos also to the sponsors for their support. Event sponsors included: Comfort Concepts; Electronic Technical Services Corporation; Farmer's Insurance - Ken Pickett; Forest Image Magazine; Genesis Mortgage; Keller Williams Realty Northeast; Stewart Title; The Zach Jones Foundation; and the Houston Chronicle, The Observer and The Tribune newspapers.

Did I mention that Elvis was there?

Susan Brown, Your Texas Connection sells real estate in Walden on Lake Houston, Eagle Springs, Summerwood, Atascocita, TX, Kingwood Greens, Royal Shores & Kingwood, TX - just to name a few! Susan's the team leader for Your Texas Connection at Keller Williams Realty NE. Visit their website for more in depth info about the team and what they can do for you. Or call Susan direct (281) 415-1454 if you'd like her to start working on your behalf today!

Susan Brown, Your Texas Connection sells real estate in Walden on Lake Houston, Eagle Springs, Summerwood, Atascocita, TX, Kingwood Greens, Royal Shores & Kingwood, TX - just to name a few! Susan's the team leader for Your Texas Connection at Keller Williams Realty NE. Visit their website for more in depth info about the team and what they can do for you. Or call Susan direct (281) 415-1454 if you'd like her to start working on your behalf today!

Since this is the time of year to tell scary stories, it made me think of some of the odd things that have happened to me or members of my team over the years. Enjoy. I feel sure that every one of you has some sort of Trick or Treat for the Realtor story you could share!

The Basement. I was showing a home to my single, female buyer in Indiana. We walked downstairs to check out the basement. She went to the right but I stopped in my tracks. There was a TV, folding chair and a sandwich in the left corner of the basement. But this was a VACANT home. I tried my best to hustle my buyer out of there quickly as she kept giving me a look of "Why?" When we got outside, I told her what I saw and she almost fainted. Then I called the proper authorities to let them know there was a squatter in that vacant house.

The Kitchen. I was holding an open house. The sellers were wonderful - they had the home in perfect condition, lights on in appropriate places, soft music and even a plate of freshly-baked cookies on the kitchen counter. And a cute little sign saying, "Enjoy." Since I had a few minutes to spare, I decided to sample the cookies. As I went to take a bite, I looked at the plate and saw something moving. I looked at the cookie in my hand and saw more of that something moving. ANTS. The counter also held the seller's herb garden and there was a marching line of ants heading over to the cookie plate for their dessert. YUK. The front doorbell rang - I dumped the contents (and serving plate) right in the trash. I scooted the herb garden over and ran to show the house.

The Dog. This particular dog ran the show, intermission and all, for these sellers. Cupcake China Doll. "But we call her Sweetums." Okay. Sweetums couldn't be confined for showings, the crate was too hard on her psyche. Sweetums couldn't go outside because her wittle paws would be too wet or cold. Sweetums free spirit also didn't allow her to spend time in the laundry room or extra room. So, I said I'd run over for showings and take care of Sweetums. BIG MISTAKE. The very first showing I ran over about 10 minutes ahead of time. I walked into the house and there was Sweetums and she had left about 5 sweet little presents for me all over the house. This little dog could really produce - if you know what I mean! I started running around cleaning up, with Sweetums barking and jumping right along with me. Needless to say, I'd promised the sellers I'd take care of everything and I did - for the entire 41 days it was on the market.

These are just a few of my favorites. What are some of yours? I'd love to hear about your special encounters in the wonderful world of real estate!

Susan Brown, Your Texas Connection sells real estate in Walden on Lake Houston, Eagle Springs, Summerwood, Atascocita, TX, Kingwood Greens, Royal Shores & Kingwood, TX - just to name a few! Susan's the team leader for Your Texas Connection at Keller Williams Realty NE. Visit their website for more in depth info about the team and what they can do for you. Or call Susan direct (281) 415-1454 if you'd like her to start working on your behalf today!

Thanksgiving. The time of year where the age-old question is raised.

Is it Stuffing or is it Dressing?

To me, it's simple. It's stuffing inside the turkey, dressing outside the bird. But since I had a burning desire to know what others thought, I took this question to the streets of Atascocita. And I found out it was pretty evenly split. The other thing I found out is that everyone wants to tell you what kind of stuffing/dressing they make! Cornbread, oyster, cranberry-nut, sausage, wild rice and mushroom - and these are just a few on the list. Anyway, I digress. Back to "stuffing or dressing."

Now, as I pondered a bit more. How does this question apply to real estate?

Isn't the "stuffing or dressing" kind of like a how a seller perceives the sale of their home? A good majority of sellers look at their home as dressing. They want potential buyers to see just how beautiful their home is dressed. How they've decorated and designed? Whereas they should be putting themselves in the buyers' shoes. The buyers are paying closer attention to the substantial features of the home. The systems inside the walls. The stuffing!

I just may have to use this analogy when I talk turkey to my next listing.

Susan Brown, Your Texas Connection sells real estate in Walden on Lake Houston, Eagle Springs, Summerwood, Atascocita, TX, Kingwood Greens, Royal Shores & Kingwood, TX - just to name a few! Susan's the team leader for Your Texas Connection at Keller Williams Realty NE. Visit their website for more in depth info about the team and what they can do for you. Or call Susan direct (281) 415-1454 if you'd like her to start working on your behalf today!