$4 a Gallon Gas May be a New Reality But...

...there is an upside! No, really! I live and work in St. Paul, which has a great "walk score". If you don't know what this is, you may be hearing more and more about it in the near future, as people look for ways to avoid driving. Click on the link above, and you can see that St. Paul's walk score is 82 out of 100-- a very good score. In comparison, Manhattan gets a walk score of 86, Chicago is 98, and the nearest suburb to my office, Eagan, MN gets a score of 38, or "Car Dependent". There's no question that an urban area is going to tend to have a better walk score than a suburb or very rural area. Walking and biking are going to become more and more important in the future as people choose to avoid driving not only for economic reasons, but also as they adopt more environmentally friendly and active lifestyles.

Yes, paying $4 a gallon for gas hurts, but it may be a new reality for our country, and the upside is that people who live in urban areas have the choice to drive less. We can walk or bike more and encourage our city leaders to continue to pass initiatives that support walking and biking. If you don't live in an urban area, consider it an option the next time you decide to make a move! And of course, if you're moving to the lovely cities of St. Paul or Minneapolis, be sure you drop me a line!

...And that's a wrap!

What a ride! The roller coaster has come to a complete stop, and I'm looking back at it thinking, "Did that really happen?" It was a blast, and I know my clients had a great time, too. But instead of boring you with all the details, I think it's better to show you in pictures...

Here are the clients who started it all by bravely sending in their audition video!

The cast and crew

Getting "mic-ed up"!

Filming at the "Red House"!

And that's just a taste! For all the photos, and to see the House Hunters episode that I was on a couple of years ago, go to my web site!

Roll 'Em!

The lights are on, the sound's been checked, and the cameras are rolling! It's the first day of shooting and everyone's running in 10 different directions! Actually, today is all about my clients-- today is when they shoot the house they're moving out of, do some interviewing, and get shots of the neighborhood. So, even though I'm not in front of the camera much today, I'm busy making sure everything is in place, PLUS continuing to run my real estate business and make sure that ALL of my clients are being served!
I hope to post pictures ASAP! Stay tuned...

The Newest "Reality" TV Star?

When I was a kid, my parents always made me feel like their little "star", but this little star is all grown up and ready for the big, bright lights of reality TV: I just found out that my clients and I are going to be on HGTV's "House Hunters"! I feel a little like I'm on the slow climb up the first big hill of the roller coaster, hearing the "click, click, click" as we inch closer and closer to the summit. Thrilled, scared, excited, nervous...I'm feeling all that. Oh, yeah. And wondering if I can lost 10 pounds in a week! Hey, they do it on "Biggest Loser", don't they? That's "reality", right?

 

Yes, I did say a week-- the film crew is coming out in a week to start filming! Click, click, click...

I'll blog more as I get closer to the summit, and through the first big plunge, the loop-de-loops, and that moment when we'll pull into the station shouting, "What a ride!!"