A new report estimates that nearly one in five mortgage defaults through the first half of 2009 were “strategic,” where borrowers who appeared to have the capacity to pay their mortgages stopped doing so. The research follows on an earlier report by Experian and Oliver Wyman that first aimed to quantify the share of mortgage [...]
By Jeff Toff This is Logan who was born on St. Patrick’s day! 5 years ago. He was a champion show dog, winning every show he entered except one. He retired from the ring and became my hiking buddy. Logan is the gentlest giant around. When other dogs–big or small–growl at Logan, he just wags his [...]
by Lisa J. Lehr It’s been a long, cool spring, but it’s bound to get hot one of these days. And when it does, human bodies will be heading for water bodies in droves. There’s no question that swimming cools you off, provided the water temperature is lower than your body temperature—which it is, unless [...]
A place of great beauty, in which a residence was built for the devil reincarnated, Adolf Hitler. Situated upon a mountain top in the Alps, at an elevation of 6,017 feet above sea level, it has breath taking views of the mountains and valleys below. Since then, the idyllic setting and remarkable architecture of the [...]
Arriving by airplane form Catania, Sicily about 9:00 AM, our first hint that this was a different sort of town was when we took a waterbus from the airport instead of a bus or a taxi. There is actually a “water road” marked by large piers on either side, to guide the boats through the [...]
by Lisa J. Lehr In an earlier post, I talked about the importance of autoresponders: those little automated messages that your website visitors get when they opt in to (i.e., put their name and e-mail address in the boxes) your website. In doing some outreach to local businesses recently, however, I discovered that not only [...]
One of the days we took a beautiful cruise to Panarea and Stromboli, with the purpose “to see Stromboli at night.” Stromboli is an active volcano for the last two millennia, spewing sparks and red hot rocks into the air. In the daylight, you can only see puffs of steam but at night it is [...]
The Nevada County Fairgrounds was recently recognized by the California Heritage Council (CHC) with an Award of Achievement and Recognition for historic preservation. The Fairgrounds, established in 1938, was recognized for its natural beauty, expansive green lawns, hundreds of tall pine trees, and for the many community events that attract people from all over the country [...]
After a nice train ride, all the way to Milazzo, the best port to ship to Vulcano for our 7 day stay in Judy’s RCI Resort, booked through Shell Vacations Club, named Bahia Fenicia, closer to Vulcanello (small volcano) than the main Volcano. It was a smooth trip, with door-to-door service from the office in [...]
While in Rome, for some reason I got an asthma attack. I haven’t had an asthma attack since I was a teen ager which was a couple of years ago, more or less. In talking to the receptionist at the place we were staying at, he suggested that I go to the emergency room, since [...]
