Springfield, OR

Todd Clark (Realtor), GRI (Your Washington Co. Real Estate Expert) : Helping Families Home - Your Oregon Real Estate Blog, has tagged me with an interesting MeMe, a Christmas one. The idea behind the Christmas MeMe is that if we could get just one present, what would it be?

I would be happy with a lot of things, but the one really special, unbelievable, unreal, without a doubt killer, one present above all would be......drum roll please.....a small fishing trip. I guess, maybe small might not be the right discriptive word, because I would like to fly into a fishing lodge in Northern Canada or Alaska and I would like to have my entire family with me.

I would like to be able to help my grandson pull in his first salmon. I would like to help my great grandaughter catch a 10 pound lake trout. I would like to see my brother real in a huge halibut. So, that isn't going to happen, but it is sure fun to think about. Thanks Todd for this opportunity. Now, who are my victims? It is getting closer and closer to Christmas, so we better hurry gang. I am choosing four that I don't believe have done this yet. If you have and I missed it, I am sorry. They are:.....another drum roll....

William Johnson, San Diego's Real Estate Voice, because I know he is into Christmas, just check out his posts this month.

Dave Pautsch, Albany Oregon Radio Real Estate Voice, because he interviewed me on the radio.

Missy Caulk - Ann Arbor Realtor, because she has found her blogging voice and uses it for good.

Danny Thornton, A National Sports Voice beside his other business, because I have had to listen to him tell me how to get things working on my website....and he knows of what he speaks.

Good Luck everyone, now make me proud.

Springfield Christmas Parade, December 2008

by Fred Chamberlin, Springfield/Eugene Real Estate Loan Officer

I joined Active Rain in June and made my first "barely" adequate post on June 27 but between then and the end of the month, I posted 13 times and got 2 comments. Obviously I was the hit of the neighborhood. The bright spot was I picked up my first associate and subscriber, Leslie Stewart who has been a loyal reader since then.

Boosted by such rave reviews of my writing, I posted 62 blogs in July and actually had people reading them, not many, but some. Over the months since then, I have made some exceptional A/R friends and at least one enemy. The friends have made my progress informative and fun. To see good things written about your information is very fulfilling. I recommend that anyone that has been wondering if it is worthwhile, to stick in there and work on quality and quantity. If you only publish one "really great" blog per month, that is great quality, but most people will probably miss it. If you publish several "definitely good" and one "really great" blogs during the month, there is more chance that the "really great" one will be found.

I have to thank so many people for making this journey easier and know that I would miss so many if I tried to list them all. For now, I would like to thank Danny Thornton and Rich Dansereau, A/R members and founders of RandDArt for assistance (read this as doing all the work) with my new blog, Eugene Loan Guy and the invite to join Positive Real Estate Professionals. Additionally, Paul Dunn for recommending me to Mark Madsen, also A/R members, for the new MyFHAMortgageBlog. I think Paul probably knows more about FHA mortgages than anyone, even me. My other associations and friends, what can I say, you are wonderful. Thesa Chambers sent me a FHA203k Streamline customer and I can't thank her enough for that trust.

I have gotten several calls from my A/R Blogs. Just this week, a lady in San Diego county called because she needed a 100% cash out VA refinance on a manufactured home and had read my blog about 100% VA refinance. In answer to her question, yes, we can do that loan.

Carolyn Tann-Star has promised me a virtual party when I reach the 100,000 mark and I am ready. Jason Sardi and Jennifer Bukaty have even promised I can be the flower girl at their wedding. Greg Nino never fails to make me laugh and Sandy Shores never misses commenting on my posts. Please don't hate me since I didn't list you here, but I have 70 associates and 55 subscribers now and love them all. I would be remiss if I didn't at least mention Marti Garaughty who designed my blog heading and furnishes the wallpaper for free.

I am not sure I am better today than yesterday. Yesterday I was the #0 for my city and county and today I am back to #1. Is 0 better or worse that 1? I probably would have posted this yesterday but all I could get was Proxy Errors. I still have several difficulties. I am not getting notified of comments, my comments disappear and Proxy is still hanging around. I am #5 in the state and put #3 & 4 on notice. No way I will catch Thesa or Todd Clark.

Thanks to everyone. The sunset above is just for fun and the picture of me and my granddaugher at Disney World is just because it always makes me smile.