Hope Leitner, Realtor®, CRS

After finishing a paper, Einstein and his assistant could find only one paper clip in his office to hold the pages together.  Unfortunately, it was bent out of shape and impossible to use. They searched the desk for something to use as a tool to straighten the clip and found a full box of paper clips in one drawer.  Instead of taking one of those clips, Einstein used one of those clips as a tool to straighten out the bent clip.  The assistant asked why he didn't just use one of the fresh clips.  Einstein answered, "Once I am set on a goal it becomes difficult to deflect me." 

Excluding Thanksgiving weekend, more families celebrate reunions in Summer than any other time of year. Warm weather prevails, more outdoor locations and activities are available, and the kids are out of school - all of which make summertime travel easier for most families.  If family is visiting this summer and conversations turn to the possibility of a move that brings them closer, feel comfortable giving my time and expertise to them. I can help weigh the options of getting a condo for the summer and holiday travel, or the best options for a permanent relocation.  Wouldn't it be great if you could pick your next door neighbor, and it is someone you would love to have nearby? 

Mozart saved one of the greatest choral works from being forgotten forever. Mozart transcribed Allegri's "Miserere" in 1770, note-for-note, after hearing it only once as a 14-year old.  The piece of music was considered to be sacred, written for the Sistine Chapel choir over a century and a half earlier. Composers tended to guard their music jealously. One way to protect music was to not write it down at all, but to pass it on orally, from generation to generation. If the music manuscripts for Allegri's Miserere did exist, they were only circulated among the members of the Sistine Chapel choir.  The attempt to keep music private was foiled by this young kid who could simply write it all down after just hearing it once. 

Not only is summer a time for vacation, it is also the time you'll notice friends, family and neighbors who want to move into a new home. The reason more people move in the summer is simple - school is out. Most moves involve shifting towns or states so a change in schools is inevitable. Rather than being "the-new-kid-in-school" most families choose to move during summer break so the kids can have a fresh start and become well acclimated in the community before school starts. Moving to a new town and school is rarely easy and kids tend to experience strong emotions associated with moving.

In the last year, valued clients like yourself were responsible for referring most of my new clients. It feels good to know you trust me to give the very best advice to your friends, family members and neighbors. My ultimate goal is being referable. This means building strong, lifelong relationships - one person at a time. It's important that you know I choose to always put relationships ahead of results. As you continue to introduce people you care about to me, I can spend more of my time focusing on their needs while also working with great clients like you. Now, that's what I call a win-win situation!

An old man used to meditate early every morning under a large tree on the bank of the Ganges River in India. One morning he saw a scorpion flailing helplessly in the strong current of the river, tangled in a complex network of tree roots.  The old man immediately reached out to rescue the drowning scorpion. The panicked animal tried to sting him, but the man persisted. For several long minutes his hand darted back and forth, evading the scorpion's plunging stinger as he tried to rescue it. A passerby on the riverbank saw the struggle.  "Hey, old man, what's wrong with you? Don't you know that you may kill yourself to help that dangerous animal?"  Slowly the man turned his head to gaze calmly into the stranger's eyes.  "Friend, is it the nature of the scorpion to sting. Why should I give up on my own nature for fear of his?" Maintaining the compassionate nature in a world that sometimes bites and strings can feel like a struggle...

There are more trees on Earth than there are stars in our galaxy. There are about 400 billion stars in the Milky Way galaxy. A new estimate published in the journal Nature  recalculates the number of trees on Earth to three trillion. The latest estimate of the planet's tree population exceeds the number of stars in the Milky Way by more than 7 times the previous estimate. This means there are 422 trees for every person on the planet. Next time you take a deep breath, remember you have a small forest of trees helping to fill your lungs with clean, fresh oxygen!