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It doesn't matter if you are for or against the war.  We should all be equally shocked, dismayed and disgusted at what Priscilla Ceballos (the mother of a six-year old girl in Texas) did to win tickets to see Hannah Montana in an essay contest.  This sick woman had her daughter begin her essay with the following...

"My daddy died this year in Iraq"

If this was true, it would have been totally understandable why this girl's essay was chosen as the winner.  Unfortunately, this was nothing more than fraud by an overzealous mother trying to win tickets to a concert.  There are no words strong enough to describe the absolute disgust that I feel towards this woman.

The contest sponsor, Club Libby Lu, has taken the prize away from this little girl in the wake of the truth coming out about this essay.  While I sympathize with the little girl, I'm surprised that there was ever any debate about whether or not to take the prize back.  What kind of lesson would it teach her if she was allowed to keep the prize that she got by cheating?  Beyond the cheating was a disgusting display of human behavior on her mother's part. 

Ms. Ceballos should realize that there are many children who really did lose their daddy, and many more who lost their mommy too.  There is nothing light-hearted about what is going on in Iraq.  The troops over there are real people with real families that are worried about them during every waking moment.  A lot of lives have already been lost in Iraq, and unfortunately, a lot more loss of life is probably yet to come.

Our troops deserve our utmost respect, regardless of our personal opinions about the war.  Given the choice, I'm sure that most of them would come home in a heartbeat to be with their families, especially during the holidays.  This holiday season may have been tougher on many people because of tightening budgets, but the most priceless gift (time spent with family) was something that most people got to enjoy.  This cannot be said for our troops in Iraq.

As the New Year approaches, we should all take a moment to think about our troops, and pray for their safe return to their families.  I, for one, am very grateful for their efforts, and would never do anything to disrespect them.

As the year winds down, many of us are in planning mode for 2008.  Today, I took a step toward bringing plans for the future to fruition, and I wanted to share it with both the Active Rain and Long Island communities.  This is a bit unusual, but I've always been one to try and do things a little differently.

If you're an Active Rain member, you have probably established relationships with other Active Rain members throughout the country, although it's quite likely that you've met very few (if any) members face-to-face.  Today, I had my first-ever face-to-face meeting with another Active Rain member, nearly five months after joining the community.

Most times these meetings between Active Rain members are written about, but they are usually written as "members only" posts, since the meeting wouldn't necessarily be of interest to the general public.  I decided to make this post public because there will be benefits to Long Islanders in the near future as a result of this meeting.

Many people have heard the term "staging," but may not fully understand what it's all about.  If you've watched shows like "Sell This House" or "Designed To Sell", then you know what staging is, even if you didn't know the term for it.  On Long Island, staging is still in its infancy, so it stands to reason that many home sellers are unaware of what staging can do for them to help them sell their home. 

As a Long Island REALTOR®, it is in my best interest to help educate Long Islanders on the benefits of staging their home before putting it on the market.  However, until recently, I did not know any stagers personally, so it made the process of selling the benefits of staging a bit difficult.  Today's meeting with Kathy Passarette of Creative Home Expressions was an important step in my quest to heighten awareness about the benefits of staging to Long Islanders.

Based on the relationship that Kathy and I have built both on Active Rain, and in our phone conversations, I had no doubt that our face-to-face meeting would be very productive.  Before we knew it, our cup of coffee turned into a two-and-half hour meeting about working together in the future.  A lot of great ideas were exchanged, and it won't be long before Kathy and I team up with other professionals involved in typical real estate transactions to present seminars to homeowners that are thinking about selling their home on Long Island.

It was great to finally have a face-to-face meeting with one of my new friends.  If you're an Active Rain member, I would highly recommend trying to get together with other members of the community whenever possible.  Because of Active Rain, I have been able to fill a very important role on the team of professionals that I work with on real estate transactions.  This team will be hitting the road in 2008 together to do our part to educate the Long Island community about the home selling process.

Whether you are an Active Rain member or a Long Island homeowner, I would definitely recommend that you check out Kathy's blog for helpful hints about home staging and things to do on Long Island.

We've all seen the devastation that Mother Nature can cause, from hurricanes to earthquakes, wildfires and beyond.  Often times, families are left with destroyed homes, or badly damaged homes and no power for a very long time.

"In the wake of disasters, small comforts make a big difference."  This headline can be found on the Tide Loads of Hope homepage.  If you're not familiar with Tide Loads of Hope, it's all about helping others during their time of need.  Tide is partnering with America's Second Harvest to bring the Tide CleanStart Truck (a free mobile laundry facility) to families in need. 

This program was launched in November of 2005 after Hurricane Katrina, where they provided over 10,000 loads of free laundry at Camp Hope in Metarie, Louisiana.  If you'd like to see a video journal of the Hurricane Katrina relief efforts please click here.  The foundation of Tide Loads of Hope is built around what was achieved during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

The CleanStart truck has now moved on to the Mountainview Community Church in Ramona, CA, to assist the victims of the California wildfires.  The CleanStart truck has the capacity to do 300 wash and dry cycles each day (the amount of laundry that a single family does in a year).  Ideally, the CleanStart truck would finish its job in California and then be done, but realistically, it will be needed again.  When the need arises, the CleanStart truck will be mobilized to the area in need. 

Tide is also doing their part to assist in the rebuilding efforts for families affected by Hurricane Katrina and the California wildfires by selling Tide Vintage T-Shirts.  The cost of these t-shirts is only $15, and all of the profits are donated towards the rebuilding efforts for those families in need.  There has been such overwhelming support for this program that the initial shipment of t-shirts has already sold out.  There is a new shipment arriving in January, but since these shirts are limited edition, this will be the last shipment of shirts.

Before joining the real estate profession, I was involved with screen printing of t-shirts, amongst other apparel items.  I can tell you with absolute certainty that most of the $15 is going towards helping others in need.  In fact, I would venture to say that at least $12 of every purchase is going towards the rebuilding efforts for the victims of Hurricane Katrina and the California wildfires.

Since joining Active Rain, I have become friends with people that were affected by each of these disasters, which has only made me appreciate Tide's efforts even more.  We should all be thankful that companies like Tide go the extra mile to help people.  Who knows?  It's possible that any one of us could be in need of Tide's assistance in the future.

We've all had days that we would consider to be "bad days."  It's a part of life.  So what do you do when you have a bad day?  Do you bury your head in your pillow waiting for a new day to dawn?  Do you sit around thinking about what caused the bad day, and what you could have done to change it?  Or do you do something positive to make you put your bad day behind you and move forward?

Yesterday was one of those days for me.  I could have sat around allowing a disappointing development to ruin my whole day, but it wouldn't have changed the outcome anyway.  I took some time to deal with the frustration, spoke to my wife about the disappointment, and then I went along with my regularly scheduled day, although there was some temptation to change my plans, but I couldn't.  I guess saying I couldn't isn't exactly accurate.  I could have, but I wouldn't, and there's a very good reason why I made this decision.

My son and I had plans for a father-son movie.  We had planned several days ago to go and see "Alvin & The Chipmunks" together.  My only recollection of Alvin & The Chipmunks is the Christmas songs that I heard growing up, and I wasn't much of a fan even as a kid.  Needless to say, the last thing that I wanted to do was to go and see a movie that I didn't have much interest in.  My wife even suggested that we just do it another day if I wasn't into going, but I told her that it would be wrong.

Earlier in the day, I felt like I was let down by someone.  The actual story is a post for another day.  I know how I felt when this all happened.  How could I then turn around and do the same thing to my son, who gives me nothing but unconditional love?  How would disappointing him help me feel better in any way?  It would have just made him feel what I was feeling, and probably a lot more since it would have been his dad disappointing him.  So I just sucked it up and headed out to the movie theater.

Of course, when you're having a bad day, everything seems to snowball, so it wasn't at all surprising that the movie was sold out when we got there.  Fortunately, it's a popular enough movie that it was being shown again an hour later.  We bought the tickets and went to go grab a slice of pizza before the movie, since we had time to kill.  As we sat there eating our pizza and talking, it suddenly no longer mattered what happened to me earlier in the day.  The most important thing was to be there for my son fully.

We made sure to finish up with enough time to get back to the theater early so that we didn't end up in the front row.  Hanging out and joking around with my son made the events of the day seem less dramatic.  When the litany of previews finally ended, the theater went dark and it was time for the movie.  Not to give anything away, but the movie ironically starts with the Chipmunks singing "Bad Day" by Daniel Powter.  For some reason that song always makes me feel better, so it was a good start to the movie, and it only got better from there.

The movie far exceeded my expectations.  I would highly recommend taking children of all ages to see it.  If you don't have any children, go to a late night showing of it anyway.  It was that good!  By the time the movie ended, I was happy.  This movie was pure fun.  Sure, it had the unlikable character that reminded me a bit about my situation, but the overall story was fun and positive. 

My son and I ended up having a great day together after all.  It turns out that when you are having a bad day, it's best to do something fun to reverse the trend.  Who knew that a movie about singing chipmunks could provide such a renewed outlook on the day?  It didn't hurt that I had my pal right next to me to lift my spirits either.  I'm looking forward to buying this movie when it comes out on DVD, so the next time that I have a bad day, I can grab my pal, some snacks and turn a bad day into a good one again!

In November, I introduced an upcoming 4-part series in a post entitled Bits & Pieces (An Inspired By Song! Series).  The first installment entitled So Many Faces In And Out Of My Life  followed shortly thereafter.  If you haven't read it yet, I would suggest doing so, as the story continues where the last installment left off.  This is part 2 of the series...Some Will Last, Some Will Just Be Now And Then.

The chosen path for each of us may have varied as we left high school, but the one thing that we all had in common was that we were all about to start experiencing "real life."  In "real life," you don't have that same comfort level of seeing the same people over and over again.  This new reality required some getting used to, although most of us probably didn't realize that this change was happening until later on in our lives because reflection is a difficult thing to do when you are living in the moment. 

Throughout the years leading up to high school graduation, we were all accustomed to seeing the same faces day after day.  The confines of high school helped to create this dynamic.  We were exposed to our fellow classmates on a regular basis, even though we weren't always in the same classes. 

After graduation, all of this familiarity came to a grinding halt.  In fact, a number of the people that were a part of my life everyday for many years suddenly disappeared in the blink of an eye, and wouldn't resurface again for ten years, until our high school reunion.  However, there were those that chose not to attend our high school reunion, so they basically were reduced to being nothing more than a fading memory.

I didn't come to this realization until many years later.  Quite frankly, there aren't many recent high school graduates that spend a great deal of time wondering which people they may never see ever again.  It's probably a bit too much for the average teenager to wrap their mind around.

The summer after senior year was spent hanging out with my close friends.  The time spent together after that summer would be limited to college breaks.  It was a great summer - a perfect buffer between my youth and the beginning of the rest of my life.  During that summer, I would see many of my fellow classmates at the beach and at the numerous graduation parties that seemed to last right through August.  I don't think that any of us truly realized how much our lives were about to change when the summer ended though. 

By the time that I got through orientation week of college (the week before all of the classes started), I had already started to distance myself from my high school days, and started looking forward to my future.  While it was a new and unfamiliar experience, I can honestly say that orientation week was one of the most enjoyable weeks of my life.  It was over twenty years ago, but I can still remember it as if it happened last week. 

Oddly enough, the four years that I spent in college after orientation week have all kind of blended together into one big memory.  There will always be certain moments that are more memorable than others, but for the most part, the experience is filed away in my memory bank under the heading "college."  It was a time that was made up of a great deal of change, and it set the course for the rest of my life.  Ultimately, my college years are the foundation that this 4-part series is built upon. 

Once orientation week ended, and the classes began, so did the process of seeing people come in and out of my life.  Although my college campus wasn't as big as some of the bigger universities, it was still considerably larger than my high school.  The enormity of it all is exaggerated by the fact that I was really a part of the overall student body, and not just my class.  In high school, I knew everyone in my grade, but my interaction with people from other grades was restricted, for the most part, to sports, and a few elective classes.

In college, every class was, for all intents and purposes, an elective class.  While there were some classes that were predominantly freshmen classes, most of the classes were filled with a mixture of students ranging from freshmen to seniors.  In high school, the classes were all given in one building, and all of the classes took place during the same block of time.   In college, classes were spread out over a whole campus, and each person had their own unique time schedule.  Because college courses weren't conducive to socializing, the majority of the time was spent learning in a room filled mostly with strangers, which is the polar opposite of high school learning.

It was, however, easy to meet people in the dorm - a social structure that was comparable to high school.  Outside the comfort zone of the dorm, the college environment really crystallized the significance of the overall message of this series thus far... "so many faces in and out of my life, some will last, some will just be now and then."

It felt like the bonds that were created during orientation week would never end, but they did.  It was only a week, so it seemed reasonable that this would happen, particularly when actual course work was thrown into the mix.  The overwhelming workload greatly changed the dynamic that we experienced during orientation week. 

However, you would think that the bonds created in the dorm would have had staying power because they were built on being together for an entire school year, but they also didn't last.  Sure, some of the friendships were carried over to the following year, but once people started moving to different dorms, things just weren't the same.  It was as if the magic of the moment was only meant to last for the duration of the school year, and then it was gone forever. 

Good friends became casual friends, casual friends became acquaintances, and acquaintances became non-entities over the course of a summer.  This process repeated itself throughout all of the years of college.  Some friends graduated, some transferred to other schools and some didn't make it because of their academic shortcomings.  Many old friends were replaced by new ones, although some lasted through the years. 

It's sad to say, but the adjustment to the cyclical nature of friendships got easier as the years went by.  I didn't know it at the time, but the cyclical nature of these college friendships was merely an introduction to what was in store for me in the future. 

Coming Soon - Life Is A Series Of Hellos And Goodbyes (part 3 of 4)

During this holiday season, I have been spending more time with my family, and less time working, as things are customarily slow at this time of year.  This extra time has given me the chance to get caught up on some of the programs that have been pushing our TIVO to maximum capacity.  One show that my wife and I particularly enjoy is "House."

For those of you that are unfamiliar with the show, it revolves around an unorthodox doctor that is a great diagnostician, but comes up short on the bedside manner.  Basically, he tells patients what they need to hear to give them the best chance for recovery, rather than what they want to hear to make them feel good, or give them a false sense of hope.  While watching a recent episode, it dawned on me that this is a similar approach to the one that I use with buyers and sellers as a REALTOR®. 

Since the play on words fit perfectly, I decided that I would start a recurring column in post form called Doctor House's Real Estate Chronicles.  In these posts, I will discuss real-life case studies based on my experience, and use them to help home buyers and sellers avoid the mistakes that others have made before them. 

Too many agents are willing to tell buyers and sellers what they want to hear so that they can "get" their business.  This approach doesn't work for me.  In the end, you usually wind up with unhappy clients that do not fulfill their dreams of buying the home that they really want, or sellers that end up having their home languish on the market.

My goal is to help homeowners sell their homes.  Many homes that are on the market now will expire without selling, and many more will come on the market and suffer the same fate.  Having worked with a number of expired listings, the one common theme is that they were overpriced.  There will always be agents that are willing to take overpriced listings, but it is not in anyone's best interest, particularly in a buyer's market.

My other goal is to help buyers find the home that they are looking for, in a price range that they can afford.  In the case of a number of Long Islanders, finding the home that fits their needs and their budget simultaneously may involve educating them about the opportunities that are available to them in other parts of the country.  Sometimes, it just isn't possible to meet all of the wants and needs at a certain price point.  Even with the market softening, it doesn't mean that buyers can dictate their price and still get everything that they want. This is just the reality of the Long Island real estate market. 

A home is the most expensive purchase that most people will make in their lifetime and likely the most expensive asset that they will ever sell.  There is no shortage of agents that are willing to tell people exactly what they want to hear, even if they know that it isn't the truth.  In my opinion, this creates nothing but contempt and lose-lose situations.

Please be on the lookout for this new series, as Doctor House tells homebuyers and sellers what they need to know to achieve their goals, even if it isn't exactly what they want to hear. 

Economists pour through reams of statistical data and draw conclusions based on history.  Surely they must be the ones that can tell us what is going to happen with the real estate market going forward, right?  No.  Unfortunately, they can't.  They can use their data to make sweeping generalizations about the national real estate market, but the information does not translate properly to local markets.  However, this does not stop them from using the mass media to alarm the public with their findings. 

So, it must be the REALTORS® who  work in various LOCAL markets that can tell you what's going to happen in their area.  After all, REALTORS® have all of the relevant local data.  Surely they must know what is going to happen, right?  Not exactly.  Although we know how much homes are selling for, which listings are expiring and which homes are currently on the market, we can hypothesize about the near future, but we certainly cannot give any guarantees as to what the local real estate market will do in the coming months.

So if it's not the economists and it's not the REALTORS®, then who is this guru that can tell buyers when to buy and sellers when to sell?  It's December, so it must be....Santa Claus!  Of course!  It makes perfect sense.  After all, he sees you when you're sleeping and he knows when you're awake.  To top it all off, he can deliver presents to every child in the world in one night.  Surely, with these powers, the mere predicting of real estate trends should be like child's play to Santa Claus, right?  No, I'm afraid even Santa Claus cannot predict what's going to happen in the real estate market.

Give up?  The answer is a homeowner living on Long Island.  I know that you must find this shocking because I sure did.  Why hasn't the whole world heard about this homeowner?  Why isn't he the one talking to the media?  Why doesn't he become a REALTOR® and guide all of the other REALTORS® with his vast knowledge?  If you're finding this hard to believe, please read the following example of this homeowner's wizardry.

This homeowner was trying to sell his home.  It was on the market for the whole summer with a listing price of $419,000.  The three month listing expired, and he put the home back on the market with another REALTOR® with a listing price of $409,000.  About five months after the home first went on the market, a buyer that I'm working with made an offer of $375,000.  The homeowner countered the offer at $390,000.  The two sides were deadlocked, but if there was a way to get this deal done, I was going to make it happen.

The mortgage broker that I recommend regularly has been working with me on using a point buy-down system.  Most times buyers think that they have to buy the points to reduce their mortgage rate, but it can also be done by the sellers.  Since these buyers were already working with my mortgage broker, we decided to have a sit-down meeting about using this point buy-down system to increase their offer.  The system requires some explaining, and I will provide further explanation in an upcoming post.  For now, suffice it to say that using this system creates a win-win situation.

It is important to note that this particular home is located in an area where there are a great deal of foreclosures and short sales, mostly due to the fact that many of the buyers in the area in recent years were sub-prime borrowers (bad credit, little or no down payment).  When the sub-prime mortgage issues came to a head earlier in the year, this was one of the hardest hit neighborhoods.  Even though sales prices in this particular part of town haven't dropped in the past few months, they haven't appreciated either.  Local inventory has sky rocketed however, so the only homes that  are selling are the ones that are priced to sell and/or in outstanding condition.

This home was priced slightly above average, and its condition would be considered above average for the area.  The comparables show that similar homes sold for around $400,000 in the past six months.  However, this home had gotten somewhat stale on the market, and the offers weren't coming in.  At this point, there were no buyers willing to make offers in the $400,000 range for this particular home.  Another factor that plays into this scenario is the fact that many buyers in this area are still likely to be sub-prime borrowers that may have a hard time qualifying for a mortgage.

The buyers that made the offer through me had credit scores hovering near 800.  They had a more significant down payment to put down than many other buyers in the area.  The buyers intended to apply for a 30-year fixed loan, showing full documentation.  Being that they were renters with no lease, they were willing to close within 30 days, which is no easy feat on Long Island, where most closings take 60-90 days.  These were dream buyers coming in at a very fair price.  Through creative financing, we got the offer up to $388,000. 

The mortgage broker and I went to explain the point buy-down system to the homeowner, and showed him how both parties would benefit by using this technique.  He seemed to understand fully, and said that he just needed to talk it over with his wife. 

The next day, the other agent called me and told me that the homeowner decided not to take this offer.  Over $2000!  Are you kidding me?  The agent then told me that the homeowner decided that even at $390,000, he wasn't making enough money on the home.  In fact the exact wording was that he was "losing too much money on the home!"  I was left speechless, but here is the best part.

Remember, this post is about meeting someone that can predict the real estate market.  The facts show that this home sat on the market for three months with one broker at $419,000 and expired.  It sat for another two months with another broker at $409,000 and had only one other offer that never came to fruition because the buyers couldn't get financing.  The homeowner decided that if he waits a year, then the home will sell for around $450,000 - $460,000.  This is based on his opinion of what's going to happen, and absolutely no factual data to support this claim.

I implore all Long Island homeowners to speak to this man with the crystal ball.  He can tell you with absolute certainty what your home will sell for next year.  Personally, I can't wait for 2008, and I'm sure that you can see why.  I've met the man that can predict the real estate market, and he sees it rising dramatically next year.  He's not just a myth.  I shook his hand, so I know that he's made of flesh and bone.  This guru has spoken and an increase of nearly 20% in home prices is on the horizon for 2008 for Long Islanders! 

The holiday season is upon us.  What better way to get into the spirit of the holidays than through hearing the songs of the season.  Many people have an affinity for the traditional songs that really define the season.  I would say that I can appreciate the classics, but most of the songs that I look forward to are more modern, and one is even obscure. 

                                The following are my Top 10 Songs Of The Season

[10]      Father Christmas by The Kinks - This is a song that I always enjoyed hearing, and even singing along to as a youth.  It is a song that focuses on the darker side of the season.  I still remember buying this on 45 (now I feel old).  It is nostalgic because it connects me to a time period in my life, but I don't relate to the sentiment in any personal way.  [Click to listen]. 

[9]        The Chanukah Song by Adam Sandler, The Chanukah Song (Part 2) by Adam Sandler, and The Chanukah Song (Part 3) by Adam Sandler - There are very few Chanukah songs outside of Dreidle, Dreidle, Dreidle aside from this trilogy of classics by Adam Sandler.  The songs are catchy and the lyrics are very funny.  As a bonus, you get to learn some interesting facts. 

[Click to listen to Part 1.  Click to listen to Part 2.  Click to listen to Part 3].

[8]        Happy Christmas (War Is Over) by John Lennon - From the sublime to the serious.  This song of hope is certainly appropriate all of these years later.  The tragic irony is that the creator of this song of hope was taken from us by the very actions that he preached against.  He may be gone, but his inspiration lives on.   [Click to listen]. 

[7]        Do They Know It's Christmas? by Band Aid - This compilation of well-known musicians carries one of the most powerful messages of any Christmas song.  It's a reminder to take a moment to think about those less fortunate than you and count your blessings for what you have.  [Click to listen]. 

[6]        All I Want For Christmas by Mariah Carey - This is a very upbeat, happy song about people being more important than material items.  It's the type of song that just puts you in a good mood, and makes you feel the spirit of the holiday.  [Click to listen]. 

[5]        I Believe In Father Christmas by Greg Lake - A song of hope and rebirth.  There is a feeling that I get when listening to this song - a sort of unexplained inner peace.  Each Christmas is followed by a new year that gives us all the chance to start with a clean slate, and this song captures that hope in a poignant way.   [Click to listen].

[4]        Christmas Time by Bryan Adams - "There's something about Christmas time...that makes you wish it was Christmas everyday....see the joy in the children's eyes....the way that the old folks smile...that says that Christmas will never go away."   Bryan Adams magically encapsulated the feelings that we get around this time of the year.  Whether you are happy or sad, you are feeling something.  It's virtually impossible to go through this time of year with a business as usual approach.  [Click to listen]. 

[3]        Same Old Lang Syne by Dan Fogelberg - This is one of the most moving songs that I've ever heard, and also one of the only songs that I can hear anytime of year and appreciate it just as much.  It's seasonal, but it transcends the season.  Is there anyone among us that can't look back on something that happened to them in their lives and say "What if?"  This song captures the nostalgic sadness and emptiness that "what if" often inspires.  [Click to listen]. 

***This post was written about a week ago, but wasn't posted right away.  Since the writing of this post, Dan Fogelberg has passed away at the age of 56.  This season when I hear this song, I'll not only be stirred by the emotions of the song, but also by the tragic loss of the great singer/songwriter that gave the world this song.***

[2]        Christmas Is The Time To Say "I Love You" by Billy Squier - For many years, this was the one song that I had to hear to feel the spirit of the season.  It is still one of my all-time favorite songs, and not just of the season.  Billy Squier captures the festive feeling of the season.  The song is fun and catchy, and the lyrics are positive and uplifting.  For me, the mental image that is painted when hearing this song is the live performance that was shown on MTV years ago.  It was the first place that I ever heard the song, and the only place that I heard it for years before hearing it on the radio.  It is not one of those songs that is played very much, so it's a real treat when you catch it.  [Click to listen].

[1]        Best Part Of Christmas by American Angel - My favorite song of the season, and it's almost impossible to find anywhere.  [Click to listen].   I have never heard it on any radio station or seen any video for it.  It just happened to be on an album of a band from Brooklyn that I learned about when working in the music industry.  This song was always a favorite of mine, and my wife's as well.  Although she is very much into the traditional Christmas songs, this song will always hold a special place in both of our hearts.  When my wife and I first met, I was working, but she was a college student on a very tight budget.  I knew that I would be giving her a lot more gifts than she could possibly give me.  Inside her card, I wrote the lyrics to this song.  So, while this may not be a song that many people know, it is a great song, and the one that will always be my favorite song of the season because of what it represents to me.  Here are the lyrics....

The time is drawing nearer and we all can think much clearer about

The good times, the bad times, and all that's in between

There's a spirit, can't you hear it?  You can feel it in the air

And winter sends its chilling winds and most don't seem to care

You can't put a price on, all that we've been through.

And even though it's Christmas, this is all I want from you.....

All I want from you is you on Christmas baby

The gift I give to you is an everlasting love

I only want to be with you on Christmas baby

Because the best part of Christmas.....is us

There's children singing in the playground, as we lie near the fire and talk about

The best times, the odd times, I hope they never end

Chimes are singing, bells are ringing, you can hear it everywhere

Forgiveness lives within us all, and now's the time to share.....

You can't put a price on, all that we've been through

And even though it's Christmas, this is all I want from you.....

All I want from you is you on Christmas baby

The gift I give to you is an everlasting love

I only want to be with you on Christmas baby

Because the best part of Christmas.....is us

You're the best thing that's ever happened to me,

Christmas can't get much better when you're next to me.

And as we live those golden years,

The best part of Christmas is having you here.....

In a perfect world, everyone with a child in school, that is looking to change school districts, would close on their new home between the months of June and August.  This would ensure that the disruption that moving causes is kept to a minimum, at least for the children.  However, as we all know, the world is not a perfect place, and people with children in school do move into new school districts all year long.  While most parents feel that they are hurting their kids in some way by doing this, the truth of the matter is that kids are far more resilient than we give them credit for.

On this date (December 17^th) over 30 years ago, my family and I moved from Queens to Long Island.  The anniversary of our move has always stuck with me, but not because it was a traumatic event.  Quite the contrary.  I remember the date because it was one of the most exciting times in my life, as this move was definitely a big step up for us as a family.

We had been living in a 2-family house in Queens, as tenants in the top half of a house.  It was fine for what it was, but it also had its drawbacks.  The landlords lived downstairs, which meant that the noise level that we created while playing was always something of an issue.  There was no outside area for play besides the driveway, but we made the best of it anyway.  As kids we didn't have anything to compare it to, so we never knew how much better things could be.

Over the summer before we moved, we went with our parents to go and see homes.  The fact that the homes had a backyard and that we would each have our own bedroom would have been enough for us, since those were luxuries that we didn't have in Queens.  When we stepped foot in the backyard of the home that we ended up moving to, my brother and I were sold, and fortunately for us, my father felt the same way.  The backyard was large, even by Long Island standards.  We would have a swing set and enough room to play whatever sport we wanted to.  This was going to be great for us!

Even though I was in third grade, I didn't have that many friends that I was going to miss.  Truthfully, there was only one friend that I even intended to stay in touch with, but that idea didn't last very long once I made friends with the kids in the neighborhood.  My brother was in first grade, and my sister hadn't even started school yet, so they were going to be less effected than me.  As I mentioned previously, I was so excited about the move that the change in schools didn't even seem to register with me.

We arrived at the new home on a Friday.  By the weekend, I had met a number of the neighborhood kids, so by the time that I started school on the Monday before Christmas, I already knew people.  Upon arriving in the class, the kids were actually pretty friendly.  At that age, there is a natural curiosity about meeting the "new kid."  My whole first week of school was a lot of fun, as the week was filled with festivities surrounding the holiday.  By the time that the week had ended, I had made friends and I was happy in our new home.  The adjustment period was very quick, and before long, I never thought about my friends, my school or my apartment in Queens. 

There is an old proverb that says "today is the first day of the rest of your life."  While it's a true statement for all of us, it's not something that most of us focus on daily.  However, I do believe that the day that I moved to Long Island, was in fact the first day of the rest of my life.  Most of my childhood memories were made in our home on Long Island.  To this day, it is the only place that I ever considered "home."

Could my parents have tried to coordinate a summer move?  Yes, they could have.  Do I wish that they did?  No, I'm glad that we moved when we did.  It was great to spend the holiday season in our new home.  There was never an ounce of resentment or regret from me or my siblings as to the timing of our move.

As a parent, I fully understand why people are reluctant to move their child in the middle of a school year.  There is a fear of the unknown that we all possess to some degree, and we allow the "what ifs?" to creep in to our thinking.  What if my child doesn't make any friends?  What if my child has trouble picking up the school work in the middle of the year?  What if they resent me for making them move away from their friends and their old school?

As someone that has experienced moving during the school year as a child, I have another perspective.  What if your child is actually much happier in the new home?  What if your child makes more friends than they had in their old school?  What if you miss out on the perfect home because you were trying to time your closing around the school year?

We are all naturally protective of our children and their best interests.  I've experienced the mid-year move as a child, and it was actually a positive experience for me.  It's been over 30 years, and I still remember my first day in my new home and my new school as if it were yesterday.

If you are considering a move to another school district in the middle of the year, and are worried about the impact that it will have on your children, this is just a reminder that there are kids out there that not only survive the move, some actually thrive because of the move.  I know that I did.

The holiday season is upon us, and most people have started their holiday shopping already.  Due to a variety of economic factors, people may find themselves tightening up a bit this year when it comes to gift giving.  If things are tougher on people with steady incomes, can you imagine how this season is affecting those that are barely able to make ends meet? 

When the choice comes down to choosing food on the table and heating a home or buying toys for the holidays, unfortunately for many children, the choice must be the former.  Although we've all be affected by rising home heating costs, taxes, insurance and gas prices, many of us still plan on giving a number of gifts out for the holidays.  Just think about the difference that we can all make if we gave one less gift to our own children, and made a donation to those children that will have nothing to open if not for the generosity of others. 

You can help out a fellow Long Islander in need by donating to one of our local charities that helps put at least one gift in the hands of a child in need.  There are local organizations doing their part to make this happen.  It is up to people like you and me to help them achieve their goals.  Please consider donating to one of the following organizations, or finding one on your own during this holiday season.

John Thiessen Children's Foundation - The John Thiessen Children's Foundation is having its 6^th annual holiday fundraiser tomorrow night (12/5/07) at Mulcahy's in Wantagh.  For more information about the event, please click here.

In addition, the JTCF is working with many organizations across Long Island on their holiday toy drive (WBAB, K-B Toys, Friendly's, Supercuts, P&G Grippo, Bethpage Federal Credit Union, Super Suppers West Islip).  This organization also collects toys directly.  For more information on where to donate, please click here.

Perhaps the most impressive part of JTCF is their newly opened "Wish Room."  This room is open 7 days a week for sick and underprivileged children on Long Island.  The best part is that all of the toys are FREE!

Toys Of Hope - TOYS OF HOPE and OHEKA CASTLE announce that they have joined together for the 13th Annual Toys Of Hope Children's event benefitting over 300 needy children on December 12th, 2007.  On that day, children ages 3-5 will be treated to a party with clowns, a DJ, Spongebob, Elmo, Dora the explorer, Cat in the Hat among many celebrities and sports figures to make it a day that they will never forget! This is a closed party and by invitation only. Donation admission is $ 75 at the door, $ 50 if prepaid by Dec. 8th. If you are interested in sponsorship or would like to come to this party and be put on the Guest List, please contact Toys of Hope at 631-470-0254.

The mission of Toys of Hope is to provide toys, books, clothing, activities and other items to needy and homeless children and their families. The guiding principal behind the Toys of Hope mission is that all children, regardless of financial status, race, religion or nationality, are deserving of those things which can help give them a happier and more fulfilling life. A now toy can mean everything to a needy or homeless child. It provides fun and enjoyment and gives a child a sense of pride in having something of their very own. Toys of Hope also provides essential items to needy families so that they can become more self sufficient and in turn help to improve their children's lives.

Toys of Hope operates all year round and relies solely on volunteers to accomplish its mission.  There are no paid employees and 100% of all funds contributed goes towards helping needy and homeless children and their families.

To contact Toys of Hope, please click here.