An Antidote to Stupidity – Naomi Klein and Barbara Ehrenreich

Quit Listening to Stupid People

My wife and I were in Italy when Sarah Palin was chosen as John McCain’s running mate in the 2008 elections. My relatives turned to us and asked, Chi e’? Who is that? Of course we had no idea then and, frankly, after over a year of undeserved attention and overexposure, I’m still not sure who she is. Even tonight, as she addressed the “Tea Bagger Convention” all she can seem to parrot are worn-out clichés and political half-truths. I am sure of one thing: She’s not the fastest bullet in the chamber. In fact, what so disturbs me about Mrs. Palin is that anyone takes her seriously as a politician, leader or thoughtful person.

In the brilliant book “Outliers,” by Malcolm Gladwell, the author identifies what he calls the 10,000 hour rule. Studies suggest that the key to success in any field has nothing to do with talent. It’s simply practice, 10,000 hours of it — 20 hours a week for 10 years. And you know something, it’s clear listening to Mrs. Palin that she has spent very little time cultivating her intellect (or much else it seems).

So, as an antidote to stupidity, I invite you to watch the  clips below that feature two of the smartest kids in the class, Naomi Klein and Barbara Ehernreich. Both of these brilliant thinkers are not only accomplished authors and lecturers but women who have addressed some of the most important and provocative issues of our time. Ah, it’s nice to listen to smart people:

Naomi Klein – The Shock Doctrine

Barbara Ehrenreich – Bright Sided

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A Conversation On Body, Mind, Spirit, Nature and Medicine

Don’t Miss this Fascinating Conversation at Bastyr University

Warren Etheredge

A series of conversations on Body, Mind, Spirit, Nature and Medicine - Feb. 8

Bastyr University is proud to host a series of conversations examining the intersections of science, spirituality and medicine. The events are presented by the Bastyr University Center for Spirituality, Science and Medicine and will be moderated by Warren Etheredge of The Warren Report.

Event Details:

Where: Bastyr University Chapel, 14500 Juanita Dr. N.E., Kenmore, WA 98028
When: Musical conversation begins at 6:30 p.m.
Moderated conversation is 7 – 8:30 p.m.
Advance Tickets: $15/night, $40 for series
At the Door: $20
Students: $10/night, $25 for series
Dine in Bastyr’s award-winning, vegetarian cafeteria before the conversation. Open until 6:30 before the event.

Spirit conversation:

When: Monday, February 8, 2010
With: Rabbi Ted Falcon, PhD, Terrill Gibson, PhD, and Leanna Standish, ND, PhD, LAc
Music: By Thomas Arthur
Register online for this lecture.

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The Omnivore’s Dilemma – What We Eat Matters…A Lot

You Will Never Experience Food the Same Way Again

Most Americans have no idea how food is produced in the U.S.. Would it surprise you to know that almost everything on the American menu today is based on corn and petroleum? Michael Pollan, the author of The Omnivore’s Dilemma, examines the various food chains that bring food to the American dinner table. What he reveals is both interesting and downright disturbing. A warning: If you read this book, you will never look at what you eat the same way.

Here’s a short video clip of Pollan discussing some of the ideas behind “The Omnivore’s Dilemma”:

Lest you think this book is all about “going vegetarian” and swearing off the modern world, I assure you that the point of the book is nothing of the sort. In fact, Pollan acknowledges that we are, indeed, omnivores which makes our food choices that much more important. It’s how our food is “manufactured” and manipulated by food scientists, large agribusiness and genetic engineering that so disturb him. We have become so far removed from our food sources that we no longer know how it is produced or how far it travelled to arrive on the dinner table.

I hope you can make some time to sit down and read this important book. It will enlighten you and it may even change your relationship to the food you eat.

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Kenmore Home Sales, Janary 2010 – Not Bad Compared to 2009!

Warm Weather Brought a Warmer Real Estate Market to Kenmore

Last night I attended our neighborhood annual Home Owner’s Association Meeting and there was a lot of concern about property values and questions about how the real estate market was going to perform in 2010. There is no reason to believe that 2010 will bring much change to this tough market. Lending continues to be tight and I have a sense that the job market will have more of a negative impact on the market than does price or inventory. Even so, last month buyers were obviously taking advantage of tax credits and low interest rates. So let’s take a quick look at January which turned out to be a good month for home sales in Kenmore:

ACTIVE LISTINGS

We saw a 31% decrease in inventory compared to last January (148). I believe a lot of homeowners have finally realized that unless they absolutely MUST move, they are staying put. One interesting factor this last month was the number of new construction homes that were offered and sold. Currently, 27% of the active listing are new construction and many of these homes (DH Horton homes) are smaller 1500-2000 square foot houses at the low $300,ooo price point. It was a smart move to build smaller. The builder is also offering some attractive buyer’s incentives. 39% of the inventory has dropped in price and many of these price reductions are significant.

PENDING SALES

Pending sales are encouraging as they represent homes that are in the sales process. Last January there were only 19 pending sales. It’s also a positive sign that the days-on-market are fairly low at 64 days. Something to keep in mind is that 43% of the pending sales are new construction. Only 16% were “distressed” properties.

SOLD HOMES

Last January there were a whopping 8 homes that sold! We did much better this year. Of course, this time last year we were still recovering from the most severe winter in many years and that certainly made things tough; however, it’s nice to see that we had some good activity. I would like to point out that fully 58% of the homes that sold last month were new construction, most of which were the lower priced properties. As the new homes are sold out, it will be interesting to see how the remaining inventory will sell. I can tell you that selling a home that’s over $450,000 is  challenging.

So the 2010 real estate market started out much better than last year. Let’s hope that the momentum continues. If you have any questions regarding the Kenmore housing market or have questions about the value of your home, please give me a call at 206.713.2102 or email me at jlupori@gmail.com.

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A Stunning Discovery – Our 1st Home Is “For Sale” and We Want To Cry!

Seeing Our First Home “For Sale” Is a Real Wake Up Call!

Our 1st Home circa 1990 in Shoreline, WA

My wife and I have a confession to make: We bought our first home because there was a raspberry patch in the back yard. Yup. That’s what sold us on the place! We were looking for a house with room for a garden and when we ate some of those sweet, ripe berries we were hooked. When we think back on it, we realize that we should have spent more time looking at the house itself because….well, we have 16 years of “home project” stories to share with you if you ever want to hear them.

It’s a classic story. We had been looking at homes in 1989 which was a tough time for a young couple to be buying their first house. Prices were rising, interest rates weren’t all that great (our first mortgage was at 10.25%) and a huge number of homes were being purchased by Californians who saw good values in Puget Sound. We had looked at a huge number of homes with our VERY PATIENT real estate agent and were losing patience as we kept getting beaten out of sales left and right. Luckily,  our agent found a home that wasn’t yet listed and a contractor who was anxious to make a deal. Well, we ended up writing our offer on the hood of a car in the parking lot of the Seattle Center during the Bite of Seattle on a warm July evening. We were excited and really, really scared!

We lived in our little house (barely 800 square feet) for 16 years. There was hardly one square inch of the place that we didn’t alter, remodel, tweak or paint. When it came to the yard Virginia was the “Flower Lady” and I was the “Vegetable Guy.” Necessity forced me to learn all about the challenges of owing an old home. Sometimes this was not very fun but today, as a real estate agent, the experiences of fixing that little house have made me a better advocate for my clients. I still can’t fix a leaking faucet!

The truth is, WE REALLY LOVED OUR HOUSE. Several of our cats were born, grew-up and died at that house. We entertained and frolicked there. It was a wonderful little universe that we made our own for many, many years. That’s why, when I drove through the old neighborhood on the way home from an appointment today, I was shocked to see a “For Sale” sign in front of our first house. A wave of intense emotion literally gripped me as I pulled into the driveway and saw the old house all “prettied-up” for potential buyers:

Manicured and "prettied-up" for sale!

When I drove up to the house, I discovered it was vacant. I have to tell you, I really struggled to get the key and go into our old house. I had not been in the home since we sold it and moved here to Kenmore in 2005 and I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel walking into a place where my wife and I had lived for so long…………..

As it turned out, I was surprised to find that the home was almost the same as we left it 5 years ago.  I was also overcome with a sense that Virginia and I had been good stewards of this little house as had the last owner. We really exerted a lot of  hard work to make the house a better place when we lived there and as I write these words I’m proud that it’s going to be another lucky family’s home. It really is a cute little place.

When I got home today to share my experience and pictures with my wife she was very emotional. After all, we were in our 20’s when we bought the house and we became “real adults” living there with our crazy cats.  It was a time in our lives when we learned how to deal with many of the challenges life throws at us. Most importantly, we share some wonderful memories of good times and creating a life together in that little house. I hope the new owners find as much joy there as we did.

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RIP Howard Zinn – The People’s Historian

If You Haven’t Read Howard Zinn, You’re Not Educated

It has often been said that History is told by the powerful. Well, when it comes to American History, Howard Zinn challenged and defeated that notion in 1980 with his powerfully influential work, “A People’s History of the United States.”

Required Reading for All Americans!

Howard Zinn, a professor of History at Boston University, generated a great deal of controversy among scholars and critics with “A People’s History” because he wrote about the American story from the perspective of slaves, the poor and working people. For those of you who haven’t yet read this book, I highly recommend you do. It very well may give you a different perspective of “populism” and class struggle in the U.S..

For those of you unfamiliar with Howard Zinn and want a quick insight into his thinking, take a look at this interview with him in 2008. Howard Zinn: one of the good guys!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/wajahat-ali/the-late-great-howard-zin_b_439481.html

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It’s Time to Think About Locally Grown Food – Growing Washington’s New Farm

Support Local Agriculture by Subscription Farming

Click on this picture to learn more about Growing Washington

When I last wrote about Growing Washington, they were in search of a new new farm! I’m happy to announce that they found a nice piece of land between Woodinville and Redmond:

15410 NE 124th St., Redmond, WA 98052

I would encourage you to visit the Growing Washington website and see for yourself how you can purchase locally grown, high quality produce and, at the same time, become a shareholder in the very farm your vegetables come from. This last year my wife and I ate like royalty for 18 glorious weeks. If you want to see a slide show of the food received, just click on the picture below:

Click on this picture to see what a share in GW is worth!

Also, if you’re a member of Face Book become a fan of Growing Washington!

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A Snap-Shot of the Kenmore City Council Retreat

Some Excellent Priorities Identified

Last Wednesday I posted the first “official poll” on Kenmore Undressed in anticipation of the Kenmore City Council Retreat that convened this last weekend. I asked what the most important priorities are for the City of Kenmore in 2010. So far I’m pleased with the number of votes and the poll is still active for those of you who would like to add your two cents! Here’s what it looks like so far:

Click this picture to answer the poll!

Today I received a quick summary of the City Council’s retreat from Councilman Bob Hensel. It’s interesting to compare those priorities identified by the council and some of the issues I raised in the poll. Here’s Bob’s summary:

The top 5 are as follows,

1. The completion of the 522 project which will assist in attracting new businesses.
2. Working to reopen the CAWM pool at St Edwards as the council realizes the longer the pool stays closed the the more difficult it will be to reopen.
3. Economic development which includes implementing the plan put forward by the Citizens Advisory Committee and approved by the council last summer. Note that plan includes attracting new businesses, downtown,lakepoint, and more.
4. Completing a parks plan which provides for more active park space and and financing options.
5. Review of current police services and the contract with King County. The annexation of Finn Hill (unincorporated King County) to the city of Kirkland and other changes to services provided by King County in 2012 need to be addressed now.
This is only a brief synopsis of each priority, a lot of discussion went into getting to this point and there is a lot more meat on the bones of each priority.

I’d like to thank the City Council for some good brainstorming at their retreat. As a resident of Kenmore and a Real Estate Agent, I’m encouraged by the Council’s focus on business development while at the same time working to preserve Kenmore’s landmarks and natural resources. 2010 is going to be a challenging year. I sincerely hope some of you out there get involved in making Kenmore a 21st Century City.

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The Great Recession – Are We Out of the Woods?

NO, In Fact Don’t Get Comfortable

The "American Way" has some serious systemic problems

This Great Recession in which we find ourselves has had an enormous impact on many facets of our lives. If you’re paying attention, you know that the “American Way” may not have been as affluent as it appeared. Certainly, we know just how over-inflated the housing market became. As a Realtor® I believe it’s imperative that we understand the underlying causes of this recession and, more importantly, we need to consider what’s going to happen in the coming years. Should we be optimistic given the rise in the Stock Market this last year? Should we expect home prices to rise? Will the job market improve?

7 “Inconvenient” Economic Realities to Ponder

Pondering the Future!

Dan Froomkin of the Huffington Post has written a powerful summary of a series of articles from the Nieman Watchdog website which highlight 7 things about the economy that we should be worried about. He writes:

“A common theme underlying them all is that while our leaders — and the voices of conventional wisdom — treat our current recession as cyclical in nature, and are essentially mostly just waiting around for growth to pick up again, there is plenty of reason to believe that this crisis was instead an expression of structural problems. And if that is so, and we don’t take the proper action, then the wait could be a long one.“

I highly recommend you read the article entitled: Seven Things about the Economy that Everyone Should Be More Worried About than They Are.

Here is a summary of the 7 ideas:

1. The middle class may never be the same again – Lost wealth + high debt
2. The recovery could take a really long time – The recovery has been largely government funded and this won’t last
3. The recovery could only be temporary – What will spur new growth?
4. Then what? We don’t have the tools to get out of a recession – we can’t keep borrowing forever or lower interest rats any lower
5. The “very real” people in Washington are still obsessed about the deficit – let’s not make the same mistake made during the Great Depression
6. Whatever is making the stock market go up could go away – where’s all the money coming from to fuel the current rise in the market?
7. The hugely irresponsible financial sector remains unchastened – the banks, so far, have been successful in dodging regulation

Why is this important to talk about on a real estate blog? Well, it was irrational speculation that drove the housing bubble that helped bring our economy to its knees. As we face the future, I think it’s important for anyone buying or selling property to think carefully about what long-term consequences there are in being in this difficult market.

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The Great Recession – Let’s Review How We Got Here

This Investment (of 15 minutes) Will Pay Off

The populist anger that has been so much in the news lately is certainly justified. It seems as if our elected officials (all of them) have been pussy-footing around with Wall Street far too long and now the public is out for blood. Yes! A revolution is on the way, right? Well, not exactly. Don’t get out your pitch forks and machetes yet.

When the Glass-Steagall of 1933 was repealed in 1999 and investment banks were allowed to speculate (gamble) with your money and mine, these emblematic institutions of capitalism threw caution (and our money) to the wind. In the last several days, there’s been a lot of fighting talk coming out of Washington DC and from the public about reinstituting Glass-Steagall-like legislation and holding the “fat-cats” of Wall Street accountable for their recklessness. Well, I’m not holding my breath.

Now that this issue is back on everyone’s mind, I thought you might benefit by reviewing the Vimeo video entitled Financial Crisis – Meltdown what brought about our current financial crisis. I think it’s important for us to be clear about the fundamentals so that when the politicians, pundits and pseudo-experts talk about the problem, you’ll be prepared to agree or challenge their arguments for yourself.

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