WaynesWord for June 2008
“As Within, so Without…”
--the Bible, the Tao te Ching, & The Tom-Tom Club, among others
Some days we work on “the Without;” other days we get to work on
“the Within.” In this sense, I am talking about work done on the homefront,
as opposed to work done at work. The way I see it, work done at work is in
service of others; while work done at home is reflective of work performed
on the Self.
While theoretically one could work on the Self while renting, or while
perpetually traveling, or even (theoretically) while homeless, my belief is that
it’s easier to gain and note results when you own a home of your own.
This may seem patently obviously that a full-time Realtor would be compelled to defend and promote homeownership… but I’m interested more in the metaphysical, evolutionary, aspects of homeownership at the moment, as opposed to merely financial or sociological. (Some people will be too cynical to believe that any real estate agent would think in these terms, but they’re not the ones I’m trying to appeal to—if you’ve read this far, you are.)
I was provoked in this by a recent online article that promoted a host of reasons why Renting was preferable to Owning for some people. Among the items cited was “Flexibility of Lifestyle.” In other words, you could pick up and move whenever or wherever you wanted—you weren’t bound to one place. If your job changed locations, you could move without a hitch (although you might forfeit your security deposit, in some cases). For those who prize this kind of ultra-mobility, the Home you Own was posited as an unnecessary anchor, a tether cord you could not easily and instantly detach.
True enough. I saw things that way myself, through my bachelor years, all through my 20’s. I did not crave added responsibilities, property taxes, home improvement projects, or “a great place to raise kids” (yet). I was still busy trying to raise myself… and incessantly seeking out culture, musical events, adventure, and shall we say, Companionship, at the time. But once you’ve found the latter, in the proper form, you might think about settling down, and finding the right place to do so—All in the right time. I understand that you can’t rush the process, and home-ownership (or the home-maintenance part itself) is not for everyone. That’s one reason condos and townhouses are so popular around here now, which are costlier formats for apartment-simplicity.
But the key thing in today’s world, given the expense of moving about in any
way other than biking or walking, is to LIKE WHERE YOU ARE on a daily basis. If you don’t, by all means move. If you’re going to stay in one place, you’d better enjoy it, and hopefully you’ll take care of it, or pay someone else to do so.
For anyone with children, however, I would argue that the lack of roots, or the lack of a home their parents take pride in is a detrimental thing… a yard, a bedroom of their own, a sense of belonging in a certain place—these are things a lot of middle- and upper-class kids take for granted, but there are still many who lack such basic amenities while the clock is ticking away on their childhood. For the younger generation, their parents having “lifestyle-mobility” means uncertainty, and feeling as if they are living like tumbleweed, unsure of their next stop. One hears this from so-called “Army-brats” or other military families all the time, later on—those who grew up that way received the benefit of seeing a lot of different places and living situations in their youth, but never felt the sense of being rooted, or semi-permanent, in any one place. Similarly, when I see kids sitting on a front stoop of an apartment building in Capital-area urban scenes, I feel they’d be happier if they had even a small patch of grass out back, or a driveway (with a basketball hoop or a place to jump rope) to call their own.
To Mow A Lawn of My Own…
Even as a young bachelor when I rented, I made a deal with the landlord that I would perform lawn chores for a slight decrease in rent—I always liked that chore. My dad had taught me the fine art of mowing at a young age, and it was one task I didn’t mind doing. I would listen to New York Mets’ games with a transistor radio and an ear jack—a primitive precursor to the iPod-plugged youth of today— as I strolled back and forth behind one old push mower or the other. Even then, but more-so now, I realized the lawnmower’s power to blot out all other distractions—the phone, quibbling siblings, parental tensions, school or business issues—all these things were drowned-out by the drone of the mower at work, and I liked the look of the crisp clean lines left behind.
In today’s world of growing Green-ery, however, and with gas prices above $4./gallon, I am second-guessing the wisdom of pushing (or riding) a petroleum-driven 4-cycle engine around on our plot of ground. With my mind saturated by my wife’s last few issues of Organic Gardening, I feel guilty-as-charged when non-noxious alternatives are advertised, and I haven’t gone that route yet. There is the “Neuton Mower”—a fully silent, electric model run on batteries—the advertisement claims “You’ll hear the birds sing, and all you’ll smell is fresh cut grass…” I must admit that sounds appealing, and more importantly, smells appealing. No more smoky, half-burnt gas fumes, nor CO2 exhaust released on our yard’s account. But then again, I would also forfeit that bless-ed DRONE of the engine, which as I said is instrumental in drowning out the dreck of everyday mind-chatter. Fresh air, or motorized thought-flow? I guess someday soon I will opt for the former, and hope the fresh thoughts will flourish on their own.
There is also the Brill Razorcut Mower, a push reel model of a sort that those of us over 50 might recognize, with spinning steel blades. That kind of lawn implement is about as green as you can get—not even needing its battery re-charged-- running largely on one-human power. For large lawns like ours, it becomes a marathon event, using just one of those by itself—but what better exercise could you ask for? So much more task-directed and functional than jogging, for instance, or working out on a treadmill or elliptical.
Soon I expect to come across a true solar-powered rider mower—
something in-between the above two choices. Then one day, instead of hearing a chorus of gas-fired John Deeres or Briggs-&-Stratton engines, there will be a more-silent lawn-shearing going down in American suburbia.
The Yard and Lawn as Referendum on the Self…
“The ground is rich,
from tender care,
re-pay, do not forget…”
--Robert Plant, The Battle of Evermore
My compulsion to engage in lawn care is not meant to reflect a competitive sense of suburban mania as portrayed in TV commercials however.
I do not care if my lawn is “weed-free” or greener than anyone else’s. My wife and I
do not use toxic chemical products to “enhance” the ideal appearance of the lawn and landscape at the expense of poisoning our kids, pets, or the runoff into the Kaydeross Creek. Just as we are organic as much as possible in our food choices,
we go organic with lawn-care as well. This means allowing bio-diversity in our own backyard (and the front yard too, for that matter), not seeking a mono-culture of
Kentucky bluegrass or homogenized turf. We probably had more dandelions per square foot this past May than anyone in our neighborhood, but they don’t bother me in the slightest. Once the dandelions pass, the white buds of clover appear, and anything that draws the bumblebees is fine with me—I almost hate to mow the tops of the clover blossoms off. But at some point, my wife insists that I do.
We do not use a lawn edger (not that fanatic), automatic lawn sprinkler (huge user of water), or aforementioned bags of chemical fertilizers (sold by agri-business chains). We do not bag our lawn “waste” and cart it away somewhere. Our lawn weapon of choice is simply a Ninja Mulching Mower, which recycles the trimmings into our own lawn instead of transporting them to a Town
Mulch pile. We recycle as much nitrogen as possible into our own soil. Behind our stone wall we have a compost pit for everything from watermelon rinds to romaine lettuce ends to birch leaves and corn cobs and banana skins. There are ever-more efficient ways to process compost advertised in Organic Gardening, but for now, the layered dirt-pit works fine, and greatly cuts down on what we throw away in our weekly trash pick-up. Next, I’d like to get a shredder for all the brush we cut to turn twigs and branches into mulch as well. Even if you only have an acre or two, you can do all this on your own plot of land, and plant gardens on any sized piece of property you own. All these locally-controlled, little things are aggregate bonuses of homeownership in the growing age of enlightenment.
Conversely, I cringe when I see otherwise intelligent, caring people employing pesticides on their own plot of lawn, posting those nefarious little wire flags with the poison symbols on them. Often these are homeowners with young children and/or pets who pad around the lawn in barefeet (or paws), picking up the lawn-chemicals through skin contact, unknowingly. Even for people without young kids or outdoor pets, there are environment consequences when runoff after a rain occurs on such lawns, and toxic soup is washed off into the storm sewers, adding to the inorganic content of our watersheds, streams, rivulets, and lakes. I don’t mean to be judgmental of such homeowners, but it baffles me that people spend money to toxify their own property in pursuit of the greenest monoculture possible to surround their beloved home. That makes no sense to me.
My lawn may have some bald spots (“as within, so without!”), some patchy dry spots (likewise) and there may be some weeds and some moss here and there, but I am not a perfectionist in this regard, and do not feel swayed by television commercials or glossy brochures indicating the blissful pride of manicured greenery. I’m not inclined to micro-manage each blade of grass, even though I remember that Walt Whitman (or was it William Blake?) imagined that you could witness infinity by looking closely enough at one.
When you go organic, and do it yourself, you simply feel better about yourself at the end of the day, knowing you’re doing things on your own small slice of land in the right way. How many Realtors have taken the time to explain these things to you about the choices you can make AFTER you’ve bought your home?
Enough said, end of written lecture—now it’s time to speak of some other things that make June in the Saratoga area so special….
CONCERTS OF GREAT CONSEQUENCE…
I’ve noted this on my website for several years running, but there are (hopefully) always new readers out there, or new visitors to Saratoga who don’t know the perennial cycles of sublime musical ecstasy we are fortunate to receive here….
My wife and I have been attending Dave Matthews Band concerts at SPAC virtually every summer season since 1996, including one year when she was five months pregnant with my daughter at the time. Most years, DMB performs a two-night stand, and this makes it an event many locals and incoming visitors make a
weekend ritual….this year coinciding with the Summer Solstice, Friday June 20th, and Saturday June 21st!!
For those who know Dave Matthews’ prodigious musical and songwriting talents, no explanation or elaboration is necessary; and for those who don’t know,
where have you been? The band’s makeup sounds innocuous—rhythm guitar,
bass, drums, violin and sax form the basic band, augmented by a semi-anonymous but superb keyboard player, a phenomenal trumpeter, and occasional background singers. But the cumulative effect of a DMB concert is sheer and guaranteed EUPHORIA, highlighted by long jams that raise the hairs on your arms, and familiar refrains which the crowd sings en masse. The crowd will encompass everyone from teens to 60-somethings (even older than me), with virtually everyone shaking or twitching their butts at sometime during the evening, if not all the way through. There will be close to 30,000 fans and onlookers crowding the fabled SPAC grounds for each of the 2-nights, similar to the massive rock events many of us recall from the Golden Age of concerts back in the 70’s and 80’s—The Who,The Grateful Dead, Fleetwood Mac at their brief zenith of popularity. But while many of the great bands of the past have in fact dis-banded or become watered-down parodies of themselves… the Dave Matthews Band is still rising in popularity even without the benefit of massive radio airplay, based largely on the cult following of those who have seen them perform live.
Their sound is a hybrid of rock, folk, jazz, fusion, blues and world music, but most of all, brilliantly original, other than a few chestnut covers like Dylan’s ALL
ALONG THE WATCHTOWER, or Neil Young’s CORTEZ THE KILLER, which the crowds have come to crave. Dave himself is one of the most creative and prolific songwriters of recent generations, and his songs are full of worldly relevance, more layered and heavy than 99% of the love/lust/& loss songs that are so redundant in club-land and radio these days. You should and would have to experience a concert of his to understand… and then no further explanation would be necessary. There is nothing quite like it, and I say that as a musical aficionado who has sought musical delight in many forms for close to forty years. The Live CD’s and DVD’s of his band’s performances will give a great sample of what he puts out onstage, but the actual presence in the amphitheatre at SPAC is an event that makes life here a much richer experience, and long may Dave reign, and return.
If I sound like I’m raving, you should hear my son—at 16 now one of the
bigger fanatics in the nation, with just about every Dave song ever recorded on his iPod, and having helped convert half his schoolmates to similar levels of DMB-idolatry. These two concerts a year are the only things he will interrupt his basketball career for… and he may miss tournament games this month because of the bad timing conflict of his two passions. Even my 10 year old daughter is quoting Dave-song lyrics in the car to me these days, and her Dave Matthews’ collection on her iPod far outnumbers her token Miley Cyrus or Jonas Brothers numbers. How many fourth-graders can claim that?
It seems appropriate to me that DMB will be truly kicking off the summer of 2008 on the very cusp of the Solstice—we know that he loves playing at SPAC, having heard him say as much for each of the past dozen years or so…and I’d bet that he personally had something to do with choosing that date. He is merging a powerful date on the calendar with a power spot in Northeast geography, and today’s equivalent of the Druid masses will gather to appreciate that recurring musical ritual. Long Live Dave!
Saratoga is featuring an almost non-stop allotment of good musical events this year, even outside of SPAC. In early June there was a Caroline Street Blues Festival, and on the weekend when I am submitting this piece there is a city-wide Arts Fest with a host of musical venues and fine art displays. There will be plenty of reasons to join in with the downtown throngs this summer in the hippest city in upstate New York.
POLITICAL POTPOURRI…
As we ultimately bear down on the fall political season, I’ve been wanting to comment on what I think is a strange and under-noted phenomenon: the ubiquitous presence of RON PAUL posters. In the Saratoga/Capital District area, which I travel extensively and constantly, the distinctive purple and white signs featuring this Libertarian’s seven-letter name are EVERYWHERE. As one who has voted for long-shot candidates in the past (environmentalist Barry Commoner in 1976, the first election I could vote in, for instance), I am fascinated by the persistence of interest displayed in a candidate who is getting almost NO national coverage, nor given any chance to win as a marginal, much less Third Party, candidate.
It is not just the work of a couple of fanatics with staplers plastering these signs on telephone poles or empty building facades…there are yard signs galore proudly posted in front of homes everywhere I go! I would guess-timate that RON PAUL signs have outnumbered all Obama/Hillary/McCain posters collectively in this area by about 20-1. There is a huge untapped groundswell of support for a retired 72-year old doctor from rural Texas with severe libertarian views, calling for smaller government (yes!), abolishment of income tax (yeah!), and a complete pull-back from all foreign intervention of a military nature. This represents a populist hunger that is not being addressed by any of the conventional candidates—local or national. It’s amazing. The only thing close in my lifetime of observation would have been Ross Perot’s campaign in the 90’s—but he was a bit too shrill in his personal style, and not as widely beloved. Ralph Nader, whose ideas I have liked since I was in 9th grade, has never had the charisma or widespread effect that Paul has exhibited. Something good will come out of Paul’s campaign, though I’m not sure what yet… but it speaks to something deeply American, and there is something Taoist about it too: “Just leave us alone to live our lives, and do no harm to others.
I feel simpatico with all those people with Ron Paul signs in front of their homes, even though I am happy to have a good alternative among the major party candidates, both of whom I respect, as well. Any national politician who likes basketball and jazz is, however, going to get my vote in November. There are a host of other factors, of course, but you can probably figure it out from there. Most real estate agents nationally are assumed to be knee-jerk Republicans, but by now you must realize I don’t mind being different from the rest.
A BRIEF SYNOPSIS OF THE LOCAL MARKET…
Realtors as a rule tend to speak in extremes of how the Market is behaving (for them) at any given moment: “It’s been really dead...” or “I’m busy as hell right now!” As of now I would be inclined to modulate between the two.
Compared to a few months ago, the activity on our listings has certainly been active, but the offers are not being written anywhere near as fast and furious as they were a few years ago. Sellers have to experience a lot more viewings of their home, and possibly a reduction or two, before they get the result of a viable contract. Conversely, the Buyers of today are very selective, and will patiently scope out a ton of options before being motivated to make their choice. So from the agent’s perspective, there can be a whole lot of activity which does not always translate to instant productivity. I’m not sure the public understands that—it’s a business where you don’t always get rewarded for all your running around. We don’t get a salary for showing homes, or doing listing appointments, or market analyses, or computer searches; we get paid only when something closes. The point is, a lot of people in the business will tell you breathlessly how busy they are, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re making any money that day.
AN ILLUSTRATIVE ABERRATION…
As in the past, I’ve been cautious about reporting that our area is immune to the nationwide downturn. There are always exceptions, with certain properties or homeowners who occupy a special niche or location experiencing a quick sale, but not that many. I showed a ramshackle 3000 sq ft 2-family in early May on the first day it was available, and was called by the listing agent while I was still at the property, informed that there were 3 other offers on the table already that day, and asked if my buyer wanted to join in the fun. He thought the place was greatly over-priced at $345,000, and passed, not seeing how he could make any money on it as an investor. With multiple offers, it sold for $380,000, and closed less than a month later. Why?? Because it was situated on the prime part of Nelson Avenue of Saratoga Springs, NY, overlooking the first turn of the fabled racetrack, that’s why. While it seemed like a flashback to 2003 for a moment there, it was indeed a rare and unusual moment in 2008’s market.
I read recently a bold statement from a nationally-syndicated Feng Shui expert whose newsletter I receive by email. In response to a reader’s generic question: "What is the best way sell my house fast & get my listing price?”
Suzy Miller wrote:
First off—NO AMOUNT of Feng Shui can hurdle an over-priced listing, and 90-95% of all “non-foreclosure” properties on the market
(in most states) are over-priced!
I could almost hear the collective cheers from Realtors around the country in the background, as someone said out-loud what many of us have thought privately, especially those of us who work with a lot of Buyers. There is a persistent
reluctance for the selling public to appreciate how difficult it is to sell in a crowded,
over-priced market where few people have the temerity (or good advice) to put an aggressively low-enough number on their property, to make it stand out, and sell quickly. They think there is a magic formula or marketing plan that can do it, and if not, they want to make the individual real agent the whipping boy (or girl) for the
ills of the national economy.
Note that Suzy Miller correctly (I think) noted that 90-95% of the listed properties are over-priced—NOT ALL! The small percentage that sell quickly were priced right to begin with, while others were aggressively reduced in a regular fashion to get to the right number. I’ve seen many places listed for 2 years now with 3 different brokers, without the list price ever changing! Those kinds of sellers are hoping for a miracle that just will not arrive.
Working with savvy buyers has convinced me how incredibly cautious
they are, and how expert they are at comparison shopping. The few creampuff bargains go quickly because there are plenty of good buyers waiting to pounce, but not enough compelling properties to make the market hot again yet. It will take a couple of stern rounds of healthy reductions, or realistic listing agents giving stern advice, to reach that point again.
On that note, I am ever-ready to serve in the Saratoga/Capital area real estate market, and when not serving, I will be mowing my lawn, attending concerts or summer basketball games, or enjoying family life at my retreat in Middle Grove. I wish you all a splendid summer season.
--Copyright Wayne Perras 2008
Posted June 17th 2008