End of the Year!

It has been a long time since I've blogged, but I assure you it has been because I have been so busy! Well, now that we are approaching the holiday season, real estate has slowed to a crawling pace and I have some free time! A welcome change-of-pace and a nice way to conclude a crazy year.

Originally I was going to write a month-by-month summary of what we've done, but pictures and collages are so much more fun!




And, of course, a video of Katie being an absolute dead-eye 12-gauge handlin' skeet shooter! Good job!



Unfortunately I've had a major delay in closing my first deal. I should've been receiving a nice check tomorrow, but instead we're closing on 1/16/12, assuming there are no other delays. Although this would've been a great Christmas "bonus," these things occasionally happen, and we are fully dedicated to making the most of our winter break.

In two days, we head down to California for some fun in the December sun! I mean that, too. Each year, we go to Dog Beach in Southern California on or around Christmas day and enjoy the nice weather. If we were to try that up here we would nearly freeze as our weather has been hovering around 35° for the past couple of weeks.

We'll start our trip with 3-4 days in Northern California with my family. We'll do a White Elephant gift exchange on the 23rd and a small Christmas on the 24th. On Christmas day we fly out of Oakland to Long Beach for a week with Katie's family! The time frames work out well because her family is solidly in Southern California whereas mine is disbursed throughout Northern California, Eugene, and Portland. We'll be on-the-go down there pretty much every day. Can't wait!

Ok, I'm out of time for now. I'll update later.

What I Do

I have found it somewhat tricky to describe my job in just a few words. Because the idea of academic coaching is still relatively new, it takes some explaining for people to understand what it is that I really do. Below is a link to a little cartoon that my company put out about my role as a Coach.

Click here for a little tidbit about my job!

Sister Visit!

I know I'm a few weeks late on this, but later is better than never, right?
My sisters and my dad flew out to Portland on the 10th of November. We stopped at Rocky Butte on our way home from the airport for a gorgeous, clear-skied night view of the city and then spent the evening hanging out at home.
On Friday we woke up early and started out on our drive to Eugene--with a nice long pit stop at the Woodburn Outlets, of course! We more than got our fill of clearances, sales and specials going on for Veteran's Day weekend--including 40% off everything at the North Face and Bass Shoes.
When we got to Eugene, we went straight to the Super Walmart (which could easily be its own town) and stocked up on Thanksgiving foods for our feast later that night.

Auntie Linda and Uncle Mike graciously allowed us to stay in their home, as they were out of town for Nick's cousin's wedding. We also got to watch little Bessie all weekend long--and she got SO much attention!

Due to my dad's desire to get a giant turkey (for leftovers, needless to say), there was a slight miscalculation in our schedule and we ended up eating pretty late into the evening! Nevertheless it was delicious, as were the sides that we each prepared. To keep us busy while we were waiting for the turkey to cook, we went in the hot tub, listened to Christmas music and played with the pups.
On Saturday morning we all woke up early for some good ol' fashioned shootin'. We drove further into the boondocks of Eugene and into the little town of Crow. After driving down a pot-hole-ridden road for a bit, we arrived at a nice clearing. We shot Nick's two 9mm handguns, as well as his .22 and his grandpa's .380. We each took turns shooting at our own targets, and it was pretty cool to see how accurate we got (or, er, didn't get ;).

On our way out of Eugene we stopped at our favorite coffee shop and enjoyed fresh pastries for breakfast. Then we headed back to Portland and walked around downtown PDX for a bit. It was super cold and rainy-- I think they got a very authentic Portland experience. For dinner we got a growler (how could we not?) and pizza from Signal Pizza--Nick's all-time favorite place in St. John's (ok, maybe it's tied with Plew's Brews).

Sunday, the last day of their trip, we woke up early and drove to Multnomah Falls. There were no crowds because we got there so early, which made for a very pleasant morning. The Fall colors were at their brightest, making the scenery that much more amazing.

It was very hard trying to cram so many sights into a few short days, but I tried my best to show them a little of everything. There are so many places that we did not get to, such as the alphabet district, Hawthorne, and the other side of downtown. I guess they'll just have to come back again soon. :)

Just to Appease my Mother...

...here are some pics from my sisters'/dad's visit to Oregon. Yes, it's a teaser. Many more coming soon.... I'm at work right now and have a long list of students to save and retain!!

My New View!

Not bad, huh?

Another Week

Katie came down this weekend to visit and we both realize that even a 3-day weekend isn't enough time together. We did manage to do a couple of fun things, but again found ourselves out of time too quickly.

On Friday we went out to Steelhead Brewery in downtown Eugene and had the beer sample platter. Well, we also had burgers and clam-chowder, but that's less important (although tasty as well). Their beer is absolutely delectable--a symphony of flavor. They had prime Oatmeal Stouts, Reds, and even an IPA that I really enjoyed (I don't like IPAs)! We had a good time.

On Saturday, we drove out to Crow (about 15 miles from Eugene) to do a little target practicing. We basically got rained out, but not after shooting the glock a few times! It was a nice way to blow off some steam from the week.

Uncle Mike and Auntie Linda had a get-together with Amy, Brandy, Scottie, the kids, "Shawdog" and Rosemarie on Saturday night. We had an interesting spread of food (delicious beef stew, cheesy crab dip, et.al.) and watched the Ducks beat Washington State.

Katie and I took a nice walk on Sunday. We explored Peaceful Valley Road and took Toby. He's been on his best behavior lately. After a few close calls with losing him, we got a training collar. His nose is simply too powerful--he doesn't even hear our calls when he is following a scent or chasing after deer/cats/turkeys, etc. Although it seems cruel, there just isn't a more effective way to teach him the boundaries of his six-acre playground. When he ignores 2-3 of our calls, he gets a vibration. The collar also has a shock feature, but so far he has responded well to the vibration. Katie likens it to a tap on the shoulder.

Having the collar on him has expanded both his and our freedom. We don't leash him outdoors now (unless it is night-time and we can't see him), and he can explore as much as he wants as long as he listens to us when we call him. The difference really is night-and-day.

Back to Sunday. We also got to see Ducks basketball! They went 100-59--absolutely destroyed the other team. Uncle Mike has season tickets and couldn't make it to this game. Their seats are excellent--we will happily put those tickets to good use if they come up in the future, as well!

Sunday evening again came way too quickly. As Katie drove off, it become even more apparent to me that I need to kick some major butt in real estate so we can get her down here.

Cannon Beach

Last weekend Nick and I finally went to the Oregon coast. The drive takes just under 1.5 hours and during this time of year the scenery is full of gorgeous Fall colors. As soon as we arrived at the little town of Cannon Beach, we realized that we had chosen the perfect day to visit. The weather was very mild, the tide was extremely low, and the shore was far from crowded. The main feature of the Cannon Beach shoreline is Haystack Rock. This rock gained a lot of popularity due to its appearance in an 80s movie, The Goonies (a childhood favorite). It was pretty cool to see the giant rock up close after having seen it in a movie many times. Regardless of its added fame from The Goonies, this place stands on its own. The whole experience was almost magical. The weather was beautiful and the surrounding scenery was breathtaking. Words don't do justice in describing the experience, so I will let the pictures and videos do the talking. (videos coming soon!)

After we got our fill of the waves, we walked through the little downtown strip and treated ourselves to a mocha and a couple pastries (ok, so Nick's was a maple bar). It was such a lovely day!

A Tail of Two Cities

Hello, this is Toby Larone speaking. I figured it is about time that my voice be heard around here.
Over the couple years that I've lived with Nick and Katie, we have been on the move several times. On the weekend I moved in with them back in August '09, they were already packing it up and getting ready to move into another place (lucky for me, it was much bigger and had lots of stairs for me to run up and down, up and down). A year after that, we moved into another place with an icky landlord, which consequently forced us to move down to Concord for a few weeks in November last year. I liked it in Concord because my grandma spoiled me with daily walks and lots of love. Plus, I was finally allowed on the bed.
Then Katie brought me down to Garden Grove, which I didn't mind because I got to torment Peanut (I won her over with my good looks eventually, and now we're friends) and I could go outside whenever I wanted to because of this thing called a "doggie door." Katie was always resting, and she let me keep her company on the bed each night. When Nick came to visit, we would go to the dog beach, which is my favorite place ever. I could dig, chase, and rough house without any punishment!
On January 1 we started a long and painful drive up to Portland. I do not like long drives. I'm thinking that my parents get the hint, because I avoid eye contact and don't respond to their pets while I'm in the car. Well, that 11-hour journey was a doozy. Luckily we ended up at a nice couple's house with a super huge backyard for me to run and play in. I think it was worth the drive.
A month after that, we moved into another place-- this time with a tiny backyard, but no roommates and lots of 4-legged friends nearby. We've lived here for about 8 months now, but I think something's up again.
I noticed it when Katie and Nick started packing both of the cars full to the brim. They even took the futon from the guest room-- that was my favorite hiding place! We went on a two hour drive and arrived at Auntie Linda and Uncle's Mike's home. Next to the beach, this is my favorite place to be. There are tons of deer to chase (the chase is worth getting yelled at), and SO many squirrels that tease me-- they're so fast, but I know I will get one someday.


Nick and Katie unloaded their cars and moved everything into the little cabin on the property. The cabin has some scary spiral stairs--the first few nights I was too afraid to climb them, but Katie gave me so much love after I climbed them myself that I realized it's not too bad after all.

Here's what the cabin looks like from the inside:

We stayed at the cabin for a couple nights, then Katie took me back to Portland. Lucky for me, we went back again that next weekend. I got to run and sniff every inch of their 6 acres. On part of their land, Mike and Linda are putting in a lake! It's going to take a while for the rain runoff to fill it, but next summer I'm going to have a lot of fun swimming for sticks--and maybe even fish!

Mike and Linda are also getting a Border Collie puppy in the next couple weeks-- that means I'll have another friend soon. She's less than two months old right now and shares a birthday with Nick. Katie is so excited to meet her... I hope this doesn't mean that I get less attention.
This weekend Nick is coming up again. I like it when he comes because they stay home with me and my dad and I wrestle. Don't worry, I go easy on him. Katie says that I am going home with my dad next week, which I am really excited about. The puppy won't be there yet, but I'll have lots of fun sniffing deer tracks.
Now I'm just waiting for my dad to get here...

I should probably be working right now

And so starts another week at the brokerage! My first week was exhausting--mentally, not physically--and required about 70 hours of my time. I was expecting it, though, and have decided to focus my time better this week. Now that the foundation of the business has been established (at least somewhat), I feel like I can accomplish a little bit more in a little bit less time. This week I will aim for 50 hours, including Satuday's open house.

This last weekend I spent about 5 hours each day showing a 4plex and 3 duplexes. At first I was a little disappointed at the populations my ad attracted, but as the day progressed I found myself talking to more qualified people. The open house created some interest, and I have a feeling I'll be getting a few calls this week based on it. I'm hoping to hear from one person in particular, though. He made a verbal cash offer, but it was too low. Hopefully he will come to his senses and agree to pay full price as the property is already underpriced!

Most importantly, though, I got to see Katie and Toby. It was a hard week to spend without them, but I know there is a greater good involved. We ended up taking it easy the first night. On Saturday night we went over to Mike & Linda's for burgers and scrabble. Last night, we went over for Chinese food. I think they are trying to put some meat on our bones! Katie spent the mornings of my open houses tanning and working out. I'm glad we have access to those amenities!

Well, it is time to get to work now. Today I will be meeting with a Mortgage Banker/Loan Officer to start building a relationship. After that, Mike and I will do lunch to discuss our plans for the week. Finally, I'll be showing Auntie's house, which I am listing :) Hope it sells!

Nick Goes South

This past weekend we moved Nick down to Eugene. My car was packed to the brim with a mattress, frame, desk, chair and bedding (and Toby--the lucky dog got to ride shotgun); Nick's car was jammed with bags and boxes.

 

We moved everything in and unpacked in just a couple hours. Nick is living pretty sparsely for now-- I've got the TV and his big computer is at the office (he's still got his laptop though). He's got a bookshelf full of real estate books to keep him busy. There's plenty of nature-watching to do from the windows, too. On Sunday alone we saw 7 different deer on the property: 3 babies, their mama and 3 bucks.Toby was the most excited to see them, and would have chased them all over the property if we let him. We are trying to familiarize him with the creatures so that it isn't such an ordeal every time he sees one. My hope is that someday he will not be fazed by them. Someday!

Nick now has a beard! Mike and Linda and I think it makes him look more mature. Nick thinks it's too scratchy. It's actually quite a bit longer now.

Nick's new private office!

I am headed to bed-- it's been an exhausting week so far for me...