Virtual Assistance for Real Estate Professionals

That’s What Christmas is All About Charlie Brown

Heather Chavez — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 17:15:46 +0000

Christmas isn’t wrapping paper, bright lights and Santa Claus. It isn’t about scurrying around to find presents at the last minute to tuck under the Christmas tree. And it isn’t about being disappointed when you don’t get exactly what you want on Christmas morning. Here is the real meaning of Christmas, as explained by Linus from “Peanuts”.

This is what we need to keep in mind when celebrating this season. Merry Christmas everybody and may God bless you, everyone! (Oops, sorry. That last bit was from “A Christmas Carol”.)

Heather Chavez, Real Estate Virtual Assistance – Second Self Virtual Assistance, When There Isn’t Enough of You to Go Around!

Help Make Terminally Ill 5-Year-Old Boy’s Wish Come True

Heather Chavez — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 17:41:11 +0000

The Cosmic Cow’s Carra Riley sent me a message on Facebook from one of her other Facebook friends telling me about this heartbreaking/heartwarming story that I wanted to pass along to everyone else in hopes that you, dear Active Rain members, will help this little boy and his family create a legacy of help and hope for other little kids.

Little Noah Biorkman is a typical 5-year-old boy: he loves Christmas. However, what is atypical for this little guy is that he has been fighting cancer since he was 3 years old. When it went into remission in late 2007, the family was overjoyed. But, a year later, Noah experienced a relapse. Currently, Noah is in hospice care in Michigan after being diagnosed with end stage neuroblastoma. Both he and his family have come to terms with the fact that Noah most likely will not make it to Christmas. But, instead of focusing on the negative, they have decided to make the most of the time Noah has left in this world. Christmas was brougth to Noah this weekend.

After the family had put out Noah’s request to receive as many Christmas cards as possible, they were overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and wishes from all over the world, including a package from as far away as Hong Kong. So far, they have received around 8000 cards. The family is forever grateful to all these people for showing such tremendous support to their little boy. They have set up a trust fund in Noah’s name and have asked that, in lieu of gifts, please send a card with $1 inside and they will donate all money received in Noah’s name to the University of Michigan’s neuroblastoma research center and the Michigan Make-a-Wish chapter. Please send a card to the family and make a donation of anything you are comfortable with.

Cards can be sent to:

Noah Biorkman
1141 Fountain View Circle
South Lyon, MI 48178

Thank you, Carra, for letting me know about this story. It is heartbreaking as well as heartwarming. My card and donation are in the mail tomorrow. I hope more people join me in this.

Click here to view the video of Noah’s story on Click on Detroit.

Heather Chavez, Real Estate Virtual Assistant – Second Self Virtual Assistance: When There Isn’t Enough of You to Go Around!

I Don’t Need a Blog…Period!

Heather Chavez — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 05:12:40 +0000

“I don’t need a blog…period!” These are the actual words spoken by one of our clients as she was being informed that, while SEO is great for working her site, social networking was an even better tool with even bigger results. She wasn’t buying it. (Notice the “period”, just in case we didn’t understand how much she meant it.) No matter how many times or how many ways we told her how important social networking is in a Web 2.0 world, she didn’t budge. If Google, Microsoft and Yahoo! understand the importance of social networking (as seen with their agreements with Twitter to begin providing status updates in real-time on their search engines), then why can’t I make a Realtor® understand that her blog posts are an excellent way to get her name out to hundreds of thousands of potential clients in just a few minutes a day? How many thousands of dollars have been spent in the past with postcard mailings, open houses and those notepads that EVERYONE has lying around with a photo and contact info on them that are only used for scrap paper? Social networking is only a fraction of the cost of these things and takes just minutes a day. It seems that some people get stuck on the “social” part and forget completely that, what it really comes down to is “networking”.

“But everyone knows who I am. Why do I need to waste my time with a blog?” Sure, you may be a big star in your neck of the woods. But, why limit yourself to ONLY your neck of the woods? It’s called the “World Wide Web”, not “Joe Shmoe’s Neighborhood”. Think about the fact that more and more people are using the internet to purchase a home, whether in their own city, across the country or even internationally. If you only set your sights on the local market, you’re short-changing your potential. And a blog is an excellent way to let people from all over the web know that you are the expert in what you do. It opens the door for potential clients to get to know you a bit before they decide if you are the right representative for them. And it only takes a few minutes a day. The same people who say “I don’t need a blog…period” are the same ones that will be running to catch up with the rest of the industry when their competitors take all the action from them. Don’t let that be you!

Heather Chavez, Real Estate Virtual Assistant – Second Self Virtual Assistance: When There Isn’t Enough of You to Go Around!

Full Moon at Halloween

Heather Chavez — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 04:17:10 +0000

I knew you couldn’t resist! You’re naughty, naughty children and need to spend time in the naughty chair. I hope you have a Happy Halloween!

Heather Chavez, Real Estate Virtual Assistant – Second Self Virtual Assistance: When There Isn’t Enough of You to Go Around!

You Know it’s Hot When…

Heather Chavez — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 03:54:57 +0000

As a tribute to my Lake Havasu family and since there’s been alot of chatter about the weather amongst my Facebook friends today, I thought I would present: You know it’s hot when…

1. You have to bring your CDs into the house with you because they will melt if left in the car.

2. You need to use oven mitts to buckle your seatbelt and drive the car because the steering wheel and stick shift feel like you’re taking a roast out of the oven.

3. You brush your teeth with hot water because that is the only thing coming out of the cold water tap.

4. You can’t even hop into the pool to cool off because it feels like a great big hot tub. (Bring on the margaritas, boys! Momma wants to cool off!)

5. You plan all your errands around dropping the kids off at school in the morning. Anything after 8:30am is just crazy talk!

6. You keep an ice chest in the car for your dairy items. Otherwise, things melt and spoil before you get home from the grocery store, which is located about two miles from your home.

7. You see “air conditioned garage” as a necessity, not a luxury.

8. It is considered thrifty when it only costs you $400 a month to cool off a 1200 sq ft home…seriously!

9. Absolutely no (and I mean NO) car dealer offers leather seats as an option. Only a masochist would derive pleasure from having their skin adhere to their seat.

and most important of all…

10. Everytime the evening news comes on, the answer to the “Hottest Place in the Country” is always “Lake Havasu”!

I love you guys in Lake Havasu, but I won’t be back out until it chills out a bit. Thanks!

Heather Chavez, Real Estate Virtual Assistant – Second Self Virtual Assistance: When There Isn’t Enough of You to Go Around!

Are You Marketing Your Blog?

Heather Chavez — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 03:51:11 +0000

Are you marketing your blog or are you just writing it? Yes, Word Press, Blogger, TypePad and Active Rain allow for a certain amount of “Google juice”. But, are you simply posting your blog on one of these platforms hoping that someone reads it…sometime? Or are you actively marketing your blog to those readers surfing the internet, hungry for the knowledge you know that only you can impart? If you aren’t actively marketing your blog, you may be missing one of the greatest opportunities to get your voice heard.

There are several great blog directories that you absolutely MUST add your blog to, such as Technorati and Blogarama (just to name a couple). Automated submission tools like Pingomatic can get your blog pinged and sent to a couple dozen different services on the web. And, by adding your RSS feeds to several feed managers, such as Feedburner, you can get your posts listed in record-breaking time. Don’t forget to add these RSS feeds to all your social networks as well to keep track of any post you list in real-time.

If you don’t know how or where to add your blogs and RSS feeds, feel free to contact Second Self Virtual Assistance. Second Self is always ready to lend a helping hand to get your voice hear. You are marketing your services. But, are you marketing your blog?

Heather Chavez, Real Estate Virtual Assistant – Second Self Virtual Assistance: When There Isn’t Enough of You to Go Around!

Whoa, Cowboy! Check the Facts Before You Forward That Email

Heather Chavez — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 14:30:52 +0000

Whoa, cowboy! You may want to check the facts before you forward that email. Have you received an email about any of the following in the past: Nostradamus predicting the 9/11 tragedy, women need to watch out for the rapist hiding under their car (usually heightens around Christmas shopping season), a 9-year-old girl named Penny Brown is missing (same girl, same name, same photo, same info circulating for the last 8 years) and a large beverage distributor pulling their product from an Arab-owned convenience store because they were celebrating the fall of the twin towers on 9/11. Most of these emails prey on the fears or emotions of the people they wish to incite expecting (apparently, correctly) that no one will actually check to see if these things are true. Some of these guys have even taken to writing that they checked this info on snopes.com and it is true. If anyone in that long chain of forwarded emails had actually checked snopes.com, they would see that it was, indeed, false.

While some of these emails can be slightly entertaining (contrary to popular reports, chewing gum does NOT take 7 years to digest in your stomach), many of these emails can be slanderous. When big corporations are involved, it seems that people are much quicker to believe the negative than to entertain the possibility that it is only a rumor. I recently received such an email from a family member which claimed that a prominent coffee company was refusing to send free coffee to military personnel overseas because they didn’t support the war. A quick check on snopes.com showed this to be a rumor circulating for years and years and was not true. When told of this information, my relative asked me “How do you know you can trust them (snopes)?” Fair enough question. I simply googled the name of the alleged original emailer and found 61,600 other references to this. My relative was willing to believe an unsubstantiated rumor but didn’t want to just assume that the opposite may be true.

False emails like the one about the girl Penny Brown act against the very real and important Amber Alerts that circulate. (If Penny Brown is false, how do I know THIS one is true?) As a victim of slander myself and seeing slander thrown at other members of the Active Rain community, I wonder why it is so easy to throw this information into the internet atmosphere without worrying about the consequences it might incur. If you forward a slanderous email, are you responsible for slander as well? Is this what you want to represent you? Check your facts before you forward that email.

**This photo was taken by my very own camera and is my property. However, if you like what you see and want to use it for yourself, feel free to do so. Simply mention where you got it. I’d appreciate it. **

Heather Chavez, Real Estate Virtual Assistant – Second Self Virtual Assistance: When There Isn’t Enough of You to Go Around!

NASCAR NATION: Watch Them Wiggle at Atlanta Motor Speedway

Heather Chavez — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 23:59:07 +0000

“Watch them wiggle, see them jiggle.” This is what kept running through my mind as I watched the Sprint Cup race on Sunday night at the Atlanta Motor Speedway. First, there was poor Carl Edwards who hobbled in on crutches after breaking his foot in a weird Frisbee accident. (Yes, you CAN injure yourself while playing Frisbee). While hurting yourself playing Frisbee may not sound very manly, driving 500 miles with a broken foot (your gas foot, too) is VERY manly. As is driving a car whose paint scheme was created by a 13-year-old girl in her 3rd year of fighting cancer. Needless to say, Edwards wasn’t complaining much about his foot after meeting the little girl. Unfortunately, the new paint didn’t help Edwards when he had to come in to get his car fixed after the engine started puffing smoke around lap 81. He eventually went back on the track to race, but was over 20 laps down at that point.

Several times, Jimmie Johnson was sideways. But, he wasn’t the only one. Everyone seemed to be sliding around the slippery track. There were 29 lead changes and 9 cautions throughout the entire 500 mile event. It seemed that just about everyone was struggling with their cars. Everytime drivers pitted under caution, someone new would be leading the race. Cars that were previously doing well would fade to the back while those that weren’t doing so hot would end up out front. But, at the next stop, the cars that did well on that run wouldn’t be doing so well after they pitted. It was quite a roller coaster ride. Jimmie Johnson and Brian Vickers each broke an axle. Johnson had to go back in the garage to get his fixed, putting him 3 laps down, while Vickers’ team managed to fix theirs on pit row under caution and, amazingly, got him out ahead of the pace car to keep him on the lead lap. The fantastic actions of his pit crew gave Brian Vickers a fabulous Top 10 finish (#7, to be exact). There weren’t any major crashes, although a glimpse from the Kurt Busch’s camera after he wrecked out showed a very frustrated driver throwing his helmet at the car in the garage. He cooled down in time to do his interview with ESPN, though.

In the final laps, it was Kevin Harvick, Kasey Kahne and Juan Pablo Montoya who were chasing that checkered flag. In the end, victory went to the little guy from Washington state: Kasey Kahne. Next Saturday will be the final race to determine who is in the chase for the 2009 Sprint Cup. You can watch it live from Richmond, VA, on ABC (which will be carrying all the races for the rest of the season) at 7pm PST.

Results of the 2009 Pep Boys Auto 500 at the Atlanta Motor Speedway:

1. Kasey Kahne (#9)
2. Kevin Harvick (#29)
3. Juan Montoya (#42)
4. David Reutimann (#28)
5. Mark Martin (#25)

Definitely in the Chase for the 2009 Sprint Cup:

1. Tony Stewart (#14)
2. Jeff Gordon (#24)
3. Jimmie Johnson (#48)
4. Denny Hamlin (#11)

On the bubble (only 122 points separate 5th place from 14th):

5. Carl Edwards (#99)
6. Kasey Kahne (#9)
7. Kurt Busch (#2)
8. Juan Pablo Montoya (#42)
9. Ryan Newman (#39)
10. Mark Martin (#25)
11. Greg Biffle (#16)
12. Matt Kenseth (#17)
13. Brian Vickers (#83)
14. Kyle Busch (#18)

Good luck, boys. Next race is sure to be a nail-biter; especially for those who haven’t locked their spot in the chase yet.

Heather Chavez – Second Self Virtual Assistance: When There Isn’t Enough of You to Go Around!

National Holy Cow You’re Hot Day

Heather Chavez — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 15:48:59 +0000

Today is National Holy Cow…You’re Hot Day! Make sure you tell someone “Holy Cow! You’re Hot!” today. But, don’t worry about telling me. I have already heard that SO MUCH today. It’s starting to get embarrassing.

Heather Chavez, Real Estate Virtual Assistant – Second Self Virtual Assistance: When There Isn’t Enough of You to Go Around!

NASCAR NATION: Carfax 400 at Michigan International Raceway

Heather Chavez — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 22:34:06 +0000

Michigan is a track that is well known for races that are determined by fuel mileage (the Spring race was won by Mark Martin after first Jimmie Johnson and then Greg Biffle ran out of fuel on the very last lap). And this race was no exception. For the third week in a row, there was a rain delay for the NASCAR Sprint Cup race. When the caution was thrown at lap 9 for rain, I thought, “Oh great! This will be the 3rd week in a row that I have to rearrange my schedule on Monday to watch the race. I got work to do, man!” Fortunately, there was only a 19 minute delay because, thankfully, the rain gods let up quickly and only left a light sprinkling on the track. Then we were back in business.

After adding even more laps lead to his already impressive tally this year (over 1000+ laps lead in the season for the 3rd or 4th time in his career), Jimmie Johnson took a gamble on fuel by not pitting at the last caution. In fact, most of the leaders decided to gamble with their fuel strategies by not pitting. Dale Earnhardt Jr ended up coming in for four tires and fuel with 42 laps to go, guaranteeing him a finish under his own power. This gave him just what he needed to start storming up the ranks when the drivers made their final restart. While the drivers in front of him were trying to save as much fuel as possible to make it to the end, Jr didn’t have to worry and passed car after car on each successive lap. Unfortunately, history repeated itself when, just like the spring race in Michigan, Jimmie Johnson ran out of fuel with only two laps to go. His lead at lap 198 turned into a dismal 33rd place finish after a prolonged splash and not-so dash to get to the end. Brian Vickers ended up almost coasting across the finish to take the checkered flag, his first win in three years and only the second win of his career. He was so low on fuel that he wasn’t able to do a burnout AND go get the checkered flag (a traditional finish for NASCAR). Jeff Gordon took 2nd and Dale Jr ended up with a very nice 3rd place finish. This put Jeff back in second in the overall points lead, with Jimmie dropping to third.

The next NASCAR Sprint Cup race will be held on Saturday, August 22 at 6:30 EST on ESPN at Bristol Motor Speedway. There are only three more races left before the chase for the cup is on. For you football fans, the cup chase is like our playoff season. See you there!

Top 5 Finish at Carfax 400 at Michigan International Speedway:

1. Brian Vickers #83
2. Jeff Gordon #24
3. Dale Earnhardt Jr #88
4. Carl Edwards #99
5. Sam Hornish Jr #77

Heather Chavez – Second Self Virtual Assistance: When There Isn’t Enough of You to Go Around!