Today just feels like a lazy day and couldn't think of a thing to do but relax. I can't believe it's September already, though!

Labor Day today. Had to get out of the house to do something so K.A. and I drove up to Nashua, NH to go to the Pheasant Lane Mall. I'm not usually a mall rat and haven't been to this particular mall in about 12 years. It was jam packed--must be the hot meeting place in Nashua. Nothing too exciting to buy though it was fun to go through the "As Seen on TV" store. Coulda bought a Flowbee! Before heading back home, we stopped to buy cigarettes since they are 1/2 the price than they are in MA. Yeah, I know, if I quit, they'd be cheaper.

We had our weekly sales meeting this morning. Apparently somebody in the office has been busy--there was a vague announcement that there will be 40 new listings in Westwood by next week. Must be a new condo complex or new neighborhood though I haven't seen signs of new construction of this magnitude.

Big caravan following the meeting. And most of us were there today so there were about 50 agents running through these small houses and driving around town.

Had an interview with another real estate firm. They called a bunch of us trying to recruit us. Figured it couldn't hurt to hear what they have to say. It was very interesting. They offer a lot more than where I am now, including a higher commission rate. They offer a 60/40 split to start (with my take being the 60) and eventually goes to a 95/5 split; where I am now, it starts at 50/50 and only goes to a 75/25 split. The new place also pays for some of your expenses like voice mail. Currently I have to pay that myself. And, the place seems like fun. They have monthly get togethers--wine and cheese parties, deep sea fishing trips, Red Sox games, that sort of thing. And they have the admins do all your paperwork and mailings and keep track of your showings for you--in fact they make all the appointments for you. AND, I wouldn't have to do my volunteer receptionist duties. They have people they pay a salary to do that. So what's the downside? Location, location, location. Of course, I'd still be able to work with buyers and sellers anywhere in Massachusetts but the office is in Stoughton which is not my favorite area. I want to get closer to Boston, not further away. What should I do? I'm serious--if anyone has any opinions, let me know!

Shay and her friends ventured into the city finally. Not sure what took them so long to do that.

Guess Shay and friends didn't have that much fun in the city. They couldn't think of anything to do but drive around. She said that they did stop for pizza at a convenience store which she said was horrible.

I'm not motivated to do much work today. One thing that I have discovered is that working from home is very difficult. It's hard to stay focused, it's not much fun, and I don't get as much work done as I would like. I did a mailing campaign and made some phone calls as well as sent out a few market analyses that were requested but nothing came from any of it so far.

Shay wanted my help in using her first checking account. It was hilarious! Her mom had deposited $400.00 last week and she is now down to $17.23!! In one week! She had no idea her account was so low and was surprised at how fast it had disappeard. I had her find all of her receipts and helped her figure out how to enter them in the register. As we went through the process of writing in all her purchases and withdrawals she sheepishly told me she bought her boyfriend a guitar from the Home Shopping Network for about $100 the other night. Too funny. And to make matters worse, her employer had not filed the paperwork on time so she doesn't get her paycheck until next week. She also had bought some sneakers for $50 at Frugal Fannies. Luckily, when you are 18 you don't need that much money.

Worked the desk for a little while tonite but no activity.

I'm learning so much about the evils of real estate. I thought I had worked with some evil people in the past but geez, these people take the cake! Big Momma's office is right next to the reception desk at work. We all knew she spent most of the day listening in on our conversations (we're still trying to figure out if the intercome button on the telephone, which is mysteriously lit at all times is feeding her our conversations) but what we are discovering is that she is writing down our information. One of the "perks" of working the desk is that you get cold calls that come in. As most people do, in order to verify that you have the correct number you read it back to them and you call them by name, etc. Big Momma is writing down that info and then calling certain agents and passing the info on to them and she tells them to call quickly. We have been wondering how these people find out about some of this info. Some of the agents that receive the info had no idea how Big Momma got the info and never questioned it. Luckily some of them have some ethics and have backed down when they found out. The other ones though.... What an evil business. I know a few people that would be perfect for this job!! AP for one!

I did get a million dollar call at the end of my shift. But I doubt if I'll be able to help this guy. He's "downsizing" and MUST have minimum 9 foot ceilings, around 4,000 square feet of living space, large living room, large dining room, and at least an acre of land. He is willing to spend up to a million dollars. The houses that I'm aware of that he hasn't seen yet are over two million.

I tried to help Shay work out a budget tonight. She wasn't that interested though she was surprised at how much her expenses were. Her lack of interest is due to the fact that, in January, she plans on moving in with her boyfriend and her mom will support her. She thinks that love will conquer all and she won't have a care in the world. What can I do to at least help her have some goals or to understand the ways of the world? Probably not much and I fear I'm not that great of an influence. She wants to go live in a trailer in the mountains of North Carolina and work in a tanning salon. I suppose that's a goal of some sort. She's not too fond of Boston so far, either.

My neighbor called today to say that she wanted to put in an offer on the house on our street that just came back on the market. They had wanted to buy it few months ago but were too late and it had gone under agreement quickly. They were very excited to see that it was back on the market and were ready to make an offer. We scheduled some time for her to stop by in the afternoon to write up the offer. Unfortunately, on the way over, her mother-in-law called and talked her out of it for now. Apparently she is going to give them some money to buy a more expensive house in another town. Whenever family or friends get involved, everything goes to hell in a handbasket. Amazing! At least it means she will be spending more money on a house--if she goes through me, that will be a good thing. I just really hoped they would stay in the neighborhood and I prefer to see people get what they want, not what someone tells them they should have.

Today is my sister's 25th wedding anniversary and my grandparents anniversary, though I can't remember how many years it is. It's got to be around 70 years I think.

It's hard to believe it's been one year since the terrorist attacks. The television is airing 9/11 stories all day and all evening, memorial services are being held all over the place, and people are finding their own personal way of honoring the victims and heroes of that day. Or, at least you would think so. Our office was open today and I had to work the 2-4 shift. The phone never stopped ringing! It was a crazy day at the desk with people calling to make appointments to see houses. I even had to show a house this evening around 4:20 and then met up with friends for dinner at TGIFriday's.

Talked to my sister and found out that Shay is very homesick. I guess she called home crying, saying she wanted to come home. Awww--I feel so bad.

Had our usual caravan today but nothing exciting. Our office met up at the new Sky restaurant in Norwood this evening for our Office Administrator. Her husband had a brain tumor removed a few months back and will be coming home after extensive rehab so we wanted to take her out. We all gathered in the lounge but weren't sure what the game plan was supposed to be--dinner or just drinks? Finally someone said she was going to eat so we all sat down in the lounge and for some reason I ended up next to Big Momma. We sat there talking and waiting for the rest to arrive when Big Momma started complaining about how noisy it was and how she couldn't hear anyone talk and why were we in the lounge instead of the restaurant. Oy, she loves to complain. I had made the mistake of mentioning that this was a big hangout for singles in the area and everyone flipped--they couldn't believe they were in a singles bar on singles night. It was like they were doing something naughty and just couldn't believe they were in this situation. It was the weirdest conversation I think I've ever heard. As people were ordering food I decided to just leave. I don't really like some of these people and started to feel like a freak since I'm one of the "single" people and they all wanted to know from me what it's like at a single's bar. Geez, get over yourself already. You'd think they had mistakenly entered a topless bar and didn't know where to look in case they got caught staring at one of the dreaded single people--it could be catchy, you know? Typical smug marrieds if I can quote Bridget Jones. They kept marveling at how many singles were at the bar and lined up to get inside--most likely to pick someone up and take them home--oh God, how could they? Isn't that just awful? Yes, that's sarcasm there for ya.

Had to work the desk today--it's the first day of saying "Coldwell Banker" when we answer the phone. That's going to take some getting used to! It's funny to hear people's response to that phrase when they are calling DeWolfe. Especially from my co-workers who hadn't yet been told that we have to answer the phones with the new name.

I went apple picking today with S.E. to my favorite place in Stowe, MA. I've been going to this place almost every year for about 12 years now. I think their little gift shop is the best and they sell the most fantastic Vermont Cheddar cheese--makes the trip worthwhile. And their caramel apples are fantastic. Stopped for lunch at the Sit N Bull in Maynard. I've never been there before but have heard of it. The Fools are playing tonite and I actually thought about going but it's such a long drive to see a band in a small dive. Decided to just grab a bite locally with K.A. Interesting place this evening with very unusual people.

Took my buyers out to look at houses today in West Roxbury. Some weren't too bad and weren't priced outrageously either. Maybe the market is turning after all? That would be great. I'd take a smaller commission if it meant people would actually be able to buy houses.

Shay turns 19 today so I took her out to dinner to celebrate and then she joined her friends for the evening. Sure wish I had their energy. Sure am glad I'm not 19 anymore!

A very warm welcome to the world to Skylar Jane Sanford! I can't remember the statistics--6 pounds, some ounces? She's going to be a beauty!

Showed a couple houses again to my neighbors. They feel the same way I do. The houses out here are just very small and old and not very appealing. The newer houses are great but WAY too expensive. So far nothing that appeals to them too much. The mother-in-law will be in town this weekend so they can show her around and get her to understand that they really won't find the perfect house that suits her.

Worked the desk this morning. Got an email from M.G. about a townhouse in town to go see. It sounded fantastic so I made the appointment for this afternoon. On the way there, I tried to read the map to get a better feel for it. It's on St. James Street in Boston but as I looked at the map, there are several St. James Streets. I checked the instructions and it said that it crossed Warren St. Wouldn't you know that 2 different St. James Streets crossed a Warren St.? Since M.G. works on St. James Street in Back Bay, we had both assumed that's where it was. Wrong! It ended up being in Roxbury. We decided to go see it anyway. What a nice surprise. This townhouse is beautiful and has its own garage, 2 bedrooms (master is huge), one and a half baths, large living room, washer and dryer and refrigerator stay with the unit, and very clean. Cheap condo fees, cheap price, but not the best location--and you know what they say about real estate--location, location, location. We went to lunch at Fire and Ice afterwards to discuss and just hang out a bit before she had to get back to work. Too bad it wasn't in the Back Bay location. That would have been perfect and a fun place to live. She is going back tonite to check it out again.

Meanwhile, this evening was our DeWolfe Cares charity event being held at one of the other agents home. $20.00 to get in the door. Luckily someone had been there before and had made references to the road to get there or I never would have found it. It's not even on the map! You follow the road to what appears to be the end of a cul-de-sac and there is a brick wall on either side of a small road that says Private--Residences only or something like that. Then you have to drive down this one lane road and over a few little bridges to another cul-de-sac. There were cars everywhere and I could hear the band playing so I knew this was it. Finally got my car parked though wasn't sure if it would get hit. The band was great though a little loud and everyone was partying in the driveway where all the food and wine and beer were. I haven't been to a party like that since high school! It was kinda cool. You should see this house! Wow! It's huge and beautiful--must be worth several million. Of course, her husband owns Clay Chevrolet and they do quite well. I think we all had a great time; some more than others! It's always very funny to see co-workers outside the work environment. There's always a few surprises.

Strange day today.

Got a slow start today--spent the morning working on the computer to do some market analyses for potential customers. Discovered that AOL users haven't been getting any of the mail I have sent them---grrrrrr. Not sure why. Around noon, still in my pajamas, unshowered, hair in a ponytail on top of my head, and NO makeup on and my neighbor comes to the door! He had a list of houses they wanted to see sometime this week. Little embarrassing! Pulled the info for these houses off the web site and made calls to get appointments. His mother is in town--did I mention earlier that she is calling the shots on which house they buy?--they took her around Boston to show her that the pickins are slim, houses are small and old, etc. I think they took her to some open houses and by 7:00 they called me to say they changed their minds again and decided to just remodel their current house instead of buying something new and selling their house. Can't say as I blame them and I'm glad they will still be my neighbors but geez, that's about $9,000 that I lose out on! I could have paid my bills for a change. They did say that if the other neighbor's house comes back on the market, they will buy that and sell their house which is where they started. They could have had that house if the mother hadn't stepped in. Note to everyone: if you are a parent--stay out of your kids business; if you're parents are butting in on your business, ignore them!

This morning on the radio, they announced that there was a casting call for MTVs Real World all day at the Rack downtown. I left Shay a note about it in case she was interested and went off to work for my weekly sales meeting and then our caravan. The first house on our caravan is a $5.6 million dollar home in Dover and was beyond spectacular. The details were superb as were the tiles in all the bathrooms and kitchen. I lost count on how many bathrooms there were--though we did count 1 bidet and 2 urinals! I can't even begin to describe it so I won't. I'll wait to see if they do a video tour of it and add the link here. The other houses were so drab in comparison.

Finally got home and Shay was just getting up. She went in the kitchen to make breakfast (as I was eating lunch) and saw the note. Apparently she is interested in trying out for the Real World so she quickly got ready and we headed downtown. Well, actually, as I usually do, I parked in Cambridge and we took the T over to Government Center and walked to the Rack. As we neared the place we could see the crowd but didn't realize how many people until we got there. The line was out the door and around the corner, and around the next corner, and the next corner, and the next corner (this is Boston after all and it's not a square block in case you were wondering). Finally we found the end of the line and took our places. We had noticed that people had applications so we asked where they got them but them person in front of us said that they were all out and weren't going to get anymore. Not knowing how long people had been in line we decided to wait around to see what we could find out. Meanwhile, more people were getting in line behind us and asking the same questions we were asking. Finally, one guy came up to Shay and asked if she wanted his application since he had a spare for a friend who never showed. Of course she took it! Eventually the guy behind us also was able to get an application. The conversation was lively at the end of the line especially as new people arrived and the guy behind us was happy to inform them that they were out of luck, that he had the last application. Rumors also started flying about where this would take place and for how long--seems Paris for 6 months was the most popular guess. Shay wasn't thrilled with the idea of going to Paris, that she heard it was dirty and people were mean and that it was just plain awful. Ah, so young and naive--Paris is beautiful and I would love to go back. We had gotten there around 1:00 I think and by about 3:30 Shay said that I didn't have to stay there with her, that she would be fine and her friends would come by to pick her up. They had stopped by the line earlier so I knew they knew where she was. So, feeling absolutely horrible for leaving a young girl in the city, I headed back to Cambridge to get my car and go home. I wonder if she knows how exciting an opportunity this is?

Back to work--had a message on my phone from my neighbor. She found out that the other neighbor's house is back on the market yet again and this time they really want to go see it and make an offer if they will be able to fit their baby grand piano in there. And they don't plan on telling any family members until after they have it secured! Whew! Then she invited me over to check out her house to see what it's worth so I grabbed a few things and ran over. It's been a long time since I've been in that house and she really has done some nice things with it. After walking through the house, we sat down in the dining room to discuss how all this will work and what will happen if they buy the house across the street but they can't sell theirs immediately. During the conversation, she asked me if there were any advantages to using me as an agent to buy the other house or to use the listing agent. I couldn't lie--the main advantage is mine. The only advantage for her is that she knows me and can hopefully trust me. Other than that, no major advantage. She seemed to accept that and she said that she would prefer to use me. Another Whew!

After getting home I called Shay on her cell phone to make sure she was okay and to find out what was going on. OK, I also wanted to remind her that she had school tonite and going late was better than not going at all. She was just getting ready to go inside to meet with the MTV people. So far, that's all I know at 7:37 p.m. Tune in tomorrow!

Well, that little Daisy May!! She got a call back for MTV! They gave her a packet of information and a series of questions for her to answer and then they called here twice to give her more information.

That was last night. Today she had to go back downtown to Hotel 90 for another interview at 12:30. She got up at 11:00 and was going to go to the tanning booth. I told her she didn't have time for tanning today and to get ready. We left around 11:45 after several changes of clothes and got to the hotel at 12:30 where they were waiting in the lobby for her. They chatted in the lobby for a while and then sent her up to the official interview which they videotaped. It lasted about an hour and they asked very in-depth, very personal questions as anyone who ever watched the show can imagine. When she came back down, the people in the lobby gave her their cards and some final instructions--specifically that she probably won't here from them for about 4-5 weeks but not to worry. They have 7 more cities to go to during that time and then they will contact her. Meanwhile, she has to make a 5 minute videotape of herself and send it to them. Apparently of the 1,000 people they interviewed yesterday, only 20 were selected. I'm not sure if they pared down that list today or if all 20 are still in the running. I don't think she's homesick at the moment! She's too busy floating on air.

Shay was heading out to a party tonite in Roxbury.... don't get me started on that! Anyway, a friend of hers came by to pick her up and used the ladies room while Shay explained the directions she was given to get to the party. The directions had her getting to 93N and down Melnea Cass Blvd which is so far OUT of the way from here. We checked out the map and I had her take the Jamaica Way to Rt. 9 etc. They left the house to head to the party but within a few minutes they came back in. Jamie was missing her keys and figured she must have left them in the house. She found them fairly quickly--they were in the waste basket in the bathroom....???? First, I'm not sure how they got there and second, how would you know to look there? I think they are sharing a brain tonite--oy! And, of course, Shay had to call a couple of times because she got lost. If she had followed the directions, she wouldn't have been lost. We talked specifically about what to do and she didn't do any of it. She called when she was by the Forest Hills T station which is WAY out of the way. I don't know how they got home or how long it took them. Maybe it's best that I don't know.

It's amazing how bad a day can be...

V.S.'s birthday dinner this evening. Had dinner at a pub in Needham and then over to R.A.'s house.