Cancer really does stink. The "C" word as I call it took a special lady today, Karen George. It took her away from us and her family, including her husband Michael. My heart aches for him.

I have enjoyed the Social Butterfly hat I've been wearing lately - but its also hard as you get to know so many people, along come the tragedies and they are hard. 

Karen was one of the first blogs I subscribed to - and I remember getting so excited when she posted about how to change the size and color of your fonts in HTML!!!  That was only a teeny, tiny bit of what she shared, but it was needed at the time.

Missy Caulk has told me a few times.... go back and read what Karen George has written, go back and read Karen's posts.....  She was held in high esteem here at ActiveRain and I will miss her!

This touched me today - thanks, Joey for your words.....

Today is the birthday of Al Gorithm.  But Al isn't really Al. Most of us who know @Twitterzilla know who Al is however. Or do we? Is he like Snuffleupagus from Sesame Street? Dr Wilson, the next door neighbor who never showed his face on Home Improvement?

Wishing Al a Happy Birthday got me thinking about sharing why my children are AChrome22, Princess19, and LittleOne5 if we aren't friends.

There are many different names you might know from others .... TallOne, Husband, Spousal Unit, Kidlet, Fric, Frac, etc. Rarely do we, as Bloggers use real names of friends, family, and associates.

Why? In my opinion there are two big reasons - do you have more to add?

1. There are crazies out there. My life is very transparent in the blogging and online social networking that I do. I don't want people to have that same transparency with my friends & family. They need protection, especially the Little Ones.  (By the way, please never, never post a picture of your children in public view)
   
2. I want them to have a voice in their online identity. My older children are both online quite a bit. They are who they are. I want them to decide what they want people to know and not.

So along with saying Happy Birthday, to Al, support Al being Al and not Jack, or Rob, or Bart, if those were his given name.

If you are a new blogger... please think this through - protect the ones close to you. We have to be so transparent so people find us - but we don't need to make that decision for others.

PS AlGorithm I hope you get some Banana Cream Pie today! (And playtime!) Happy Birthday!!!

Image Courtesy of Allie's.Dad

I posted about the Free gift from your Chester County Real Estate agent this morning and thought I should share with the awesome readers of ActiveRain!

If you live in the greater Chester County area - here is your opportunity to get Free Potted Mums from your Chester County Real Estate Agent !!!  You get to chose the color too!

It's not a contest - it's a giveaway. Free. No obligation. No strings attached. You don't even have to be thinking about a Home Sale in Chester County at all!!  No, you don't have to be moving to or from Chester County !

Why? RE/MAX Main Line, the brokerage I am affiliated with, began the RE/MAX Main Line Charitable Foundation about two and a half years ago. I contribute a portion of my commission from every sale whether from a Home Buyer or Home Seller. The foundation has been able to grant monies to various organizations in the communities we serve.  This is the 3rd Annual Mum Sale and is one of a couple of fundraisers we do. So its a way I can support the foundation and show appreciation for my readers!

If you live in Chester County, Montgomery County, or Delaware County PA - you are a winner!  Just email me at Flowers(at)KimWood.net by Monday, August 25th at Midnight with your choice of what color flowers you would like. You can chose from Deep Wines/Red, Golden, Pinks/Roses, Whites/Creams. 8" pots.  We can arrange for delivery or pick up in Paoli or West Chester. One per household, please.

Watching the Philadelphia Phillies against the Washington Nationals the other night was such a treat in so many ways!

First, Kevin Sutera of Mortgage America gave away the tickets to the first person who emailed and said they'd like them. I wasn't first, but the person who was had a client emergency come up - so I was next in line :)

There were three tickets - so I invited two of my three daughters (the 3 yr old said she didn't want to go anyway). Here is a picture of us on the way to the game

I'd been to Citizens Bank Park before, and I love the patriotism that is so evident there

Not just the game was cool..... another part was the rescuing of Manti, the Praying Mantis. It was windy where we were (Mr. Mortgage guy doesn't know I'm a scaredy cat princess and the seats were high up - so I stood).  Manti was having trouble.... so I thought.... until he got just where he wanted to be....

Watching the game!

That's not all!!!  I got to see my friend, Bill Lublin, who was also at the game with some friends, family, and co-workers.  Yep. That was the best part!  I needed a real life hug from him! (We were talking when the Phillies won the game in the 9th inning! oops, Sorry Bill!)

I'm lucky that Philadelphia Sports are so close. From Chester County you can get to the pro-games in about 40 minutes. In a couple of weeks, I'll get to my first Eagle's game. I can't wait!!!  For more things you can do if you move to the Chester County area, visit my West of Philly Burbs blog.

Internet Friends become "REAL" friends. Whether or not you get to meet in person!

I wrote about Warning: Social Networking and a friend of mine, Lani,  from Twitter that was rushed to the hospital a while back. I think I was permanently logged into Twitter to hear about an update from her, I was so worried (she's fine). I got to meet Lani at Inman in SFO earlier this month - and she was just like I thought she was! A Hoot of fun!  (She even let some of us crash the www.AgentGenius.com after party :)

Kim Wood and Lani Anglin-Rosales

My first live and in person meet up was seeing Teresa Boardman and Bob Carney during Teresa's presentation for Pennsylvania Association of Realtors on Blogging.  We only had a short amount of time together - but it was fun-filled!

Bob gets a TBoard bolt of lightning strike!

The North Carolina girls meetup that Desiree Daniels put together was "out of this world" full of fun and laughter! 

Part of Diane Aurit, Antoinette S, Sarah Cooper, Missy Caulk, Kim Wood, and Desiree Daniels

Lucky me got to see the beautiful West Virginia !! Seeing my WEBBFF, Sarah was a blast! Meeting her familky and the Jeff Turner clan was amazing!  Our families had fun together - and the real life hugs were heartfelt.

Jeff Turner, Kim Wood, Rocky Turner, and Sarah Cooper

I had the pleasure at Inman SFO to meet many other "people who lived inside my computer" - and got the real ((hugs)). (post pending!)

Bill Lublin and Kim Wood

Along with making friends and getting to know people comes some sadness like this week. Pain.
Heavy stuff. I was away in Ocean City, MD when I signed onto twitter. There were tweets like this:

• Here is a peaceful song for BillLublin
• I can't believe what happened.
• I just met them in SFO.
• Pinky379 will be missed.
  

I couldn't wait to read the stream - I just shouted out: WHAT IS GOING ON WITH PINKY & BILLLUBLIN? I got the news to read Our Friend Bill Lublin loses his wife today, and AG loses a wonderful friend. 

Tragic. Just tragic.

Most people can not relate. People that you've known on the computer, and met in person 2 weeks earlier and you are crying tears? Yes. But you don't know them. Yes, I do. My heart ached. Bill & Sheila loved each other - and she will definitely be missed by many people.

Here is a capture from my alone morning on the beach for sunrise and photo time. The picture says so much. My message is.............. Sheila Lublin's Memory will live on forever..............

Tredyffrin Easttown School District Wayne, PA

The first Day T/E is Back to School for students is September 2nd. When you are getting ready to plan your year if you have children in school, it's a good idea to check their school calendar first.

The Tredyffrin-Easttown (T/E) School District is comprised of the following schools:

Elementary - Grades K-4

Beaumont Elementary
Devon Elementary
Hillside Elementary
New Eagle Elementary
Valley Forge Elementary

Middle School - Grades 5-8

T/E Middle
Valley Forge Middle S

Senior High- Grades 9-12

Conestoga High

Tredyffrin and Easttown are the two townships located in the T/E School District. The main area included is Paoli, Devon, Berwyn, Daylesford, Chesterbrook, Strattford, and Wayne. The enrollment is over 6,100 students. If you are new to the T/E School District you can find out how to register.

Test Scores are sometimes helpful in determining which school district you are interested in moving to in Pennsylvania. You can find information about statistics in the school from the Pennsylvania Department of Education. If you are interested in Real Estate for sale in the T/E School District Area you can search for homes currently on the market.

Originally posted on WestofPhillyBurbs

Downingtown Area School District Downingtown, PA

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The first day Downingtown Students will be Back to School is Tuesday, September 2nd. Ready to plan vacations for the 2008-2009 year? You better check the school calendar so the kiddos don't miss too much school.

The Downingtown School District is comprised of the following schools:

Elementary - Grades K-5
Beaver Creek
Bradford Heights
Brandywine Wallace
East Ward
Lionville Elementary
Pickering Valley
Shamona Creek
Springton Manor
Uwchlan Hills
West Bradford

Middle- Grades 6-8
Downingtown Middle
Lionville Middle

Senior High- Grades 9-12
Downingtown East High
Downingtown West High

East Brandywine, East Caln, Upper Uwchlan, Uwchlan, Wallace, West Bradford, and West Pikeland are the townships located in the Downingtown School District. The enrollment is over 11,700 students.

If you are relocating to the area and you are new to the Downingtown School District, you can register at one of the central locations. The DASD website has additional information if you are New to the District or Registering for Kindergarten.

Test Scores are sometimes helpful in determining which school district you are interested in moving to in Pennsylvania. You can find information about statistics in the school from the Pennsylvania Department of Education. If you would like information about the Real Estate currently available in the Downingtown Area School District, you can search for homes in Chester County, PA here.

Originally published on WestofPhillyBurbs.

Some people have a natural gift of Listening. Others have to work at it. Jeff Turner is one example of a good listener. I've had the pleasure of meeting Jeff a few times now, it's true what they say, when Jeff is talking to you in a crowded room, you feel like you are the only person around. This is Jeff talking to my daughter, AChrome21. He was explaining who Jeff Turner really is. We were all standing around laughing - Jeff was talking and focused on her.

Hank Baskett #84 of the Philadelphia Eagles is a friend of my daughter's. We got some time with him (while he was signing autographs) after The Eagles Training Camp.

A woman came over to him and said, "Mary's Mom is over there. She can't get to you".  "I'll be right there" Hank replied.

When he was finished signing everyone's stuff (he does that).... he walked over to the woman. They embraced each other and tears flowed from her. Sobbing.

You could sense there was pain. It was a private moment, yet so touching to witness. Goosebumps. As you can see in this picture, Hank's eyes did not wander. He listened to her so focused that nothing else mattered.

It was a lesson for me. A reminder. Being a good listener is focus. I have to work at this, its not a natural thing for me. My eyes wander. I get distracted by other people around me. I interupt. Not good, but I try to work on it. I know its important for all facets of relationships. Clients, family, friends, servicepersons, etc.

I challenge you (and me!) to work on this today. Whomever you are with - LISTEN. No distractions.

This topic was also featured here.

Have you been in a hospital or doctors office and noticed when a nurse might be “burned out”? He/She just doesn’t care about you as a human – in and out – that’s what matters.

Real Estate Agents have the same problem.  Not only being stuck in a rut, but also with burn out.

Some agents have been practicing for a while and they are just plain tired of it. Sorry to say – it shows! Comments are overheard at the water cooler, “ugh. I have six showings tomorrow.” “Why do I have to let the appraiser in the house” “Darn paperwork is getting ridiculous.”

If you are not passionate about what you do as a real estate agent, find something else to do. You owe it to yourself. You owe it to your clients.  Maybe you just need some time away. Whatever it is – figure it out. Don’t let your burned out attitude rub off on others.

What happened with West Chester, PA Real Estate Sales in 2008? The 1st Quarter has ended, so let's have a look at the sales from January-June 2008 in West Chester, PA - zip 19380.

111 Homes Sold (Single Family, 1+ years old)

Average Price $417,241 (Highest $925,000/Lowest $174,000)

Average Days on Market 73

The neighborhoods represented in this report include: West Chester Borough, Wyntre Brook,  Kirkland Manor, Sunset Grove, Gary Terrace,  Indian King, Banbury, Knollwood,  Whiteland Woods,  Polo Run,  Ryerss Hunt, Woods of Brookfield,  Tattersall,  Deerfield Greene, Harmony Hills,  Kenmare, Creekside,  Heritage at Parke Farm, Oak Hill, Parkchester Estates, Merriwether Farm,  Suburban Village,  Greenhill, Hamlet Hills,  Caswallen, Scots Grove,  Northhill, Idlewild,  The Pines, Fresh Meadows,  Kirby Woods, Sturbridge,  Brandywine Knoll, Pemberly,  Hidden Meadow, Hershey Mills, Waterview Farms, Rockland Village,  Pin Oak, Vista Farms, Charter Chase,  Hunt Country, Bow Tree, Wentworth, Ivy Hill, Deerfield Knoll, unnamed.

For a personalized report of your town or neighborhood in Chester, Montgomery or Delaware County, PA - just send your location and email address.