Hope Leitner, Realtor®, CRS

I’m inspired by the following story to not only be kind to others, but also to be kinder to myself. What do you think? Here’s the story: On the way back from work every evening, more often than not, there would be a homeless man standing at the exit ramp of the freeway. He waved at every car. He was always happy and smiling and sometimes almost dancing. Every day after work I would gather my spare change, and put it aside to give to him if I saw him. A feeling of joy would come over me whenever he was there as I came off the ramp.   He had that effect. His joy was infectious. Occasionally the red light would be on for a minute and we would ask each other about our day. His answer would always be the same, “I’m blessed!”   Then one day I was called into my boss’s office and told that I was being let go due to some mistakes I had made on a recent project. Needless to say that on my way home that day I was upset. I started calling myself names and reviewing e...

You've packed up your dorm room, thrown your Frisbee into storage, and have bid adieu to those cumbersome textbooks. College has culminated, so what now? This exciting time in a young person's life is ruled by one question: what's next? For many, that answer takes quite a while to define. Many millennials are open to moving back to their parents' houses after college. But for some, moving home may not be a viable option or, at the very least, seems an undesirable path post-college. This is leading recent college grads to a fork in the road: should I rent or buy? With renting costs continuing to rise, many recent graduates are deciding on the latter.  So, as a recent college graduate, what do you need to know when buying your first home? What does the future hold? It can be very daunting to map out the next ten years of your life just as your tassel has been moved to the left. Impulsive decisions should be left in the dorm room and recent grads need to plan where...

The key to generating less waste is to reduce the amount we buy or consume and reuse the products we purchase. Making the choice to consume less provides more social and environmental benefits than recycling and composting alone. Our small daily choices and habits add up. And don't forget...BUY RECYCLED! We need to close the recycling loop by buying products made from recycled materials. Look for recycled content information on the products you purchase. Successful recycling depends on every one of us. Waste reduction depends on every one of us. Waste reduction and recycling every day, at home, work and play is an easy and rewarding practice. Join us on the Road to Zero Waste by rethinking the way you handle your materials. By adopting more sustainable habits, we can reduce pollution, save resources and better help our community fight climate change.

How to win a coin toss. Flipping a coin does not carry 50/50 odds, but rather 51/49 biased for the side that is facing up when flipped. Also, when spinning a penny, tails will face up 80% of the time.  Here's some coin flipping strategies you can use to increase your odds at winning a toss: - Always be the chooser, if possible. - Always be the flipper, if you can. - Don't allow the same person to both toss and choose. - If the coin is being flipped, and you're the chooser, always choose the side that's initially face down. If the coin is being spun rather than flipped, always choose whichever side is lightest. On a typical coin, the "heads" side of the coin will have more "stuff" engraved on it, causing "tails" to show up more frequently than it should. Choosing "tails" in this situation is usually the power play. - Never under any circumstances agree to a coin spin if you're not the chooser. Adding e...