Baby It's Cold Outside!

I have to say that being in Chicago in the era of global warming leads to some cognitive dissonance. You know it's bad. You read about even worse things coming in the future and ice caps melting and New York and LA sinking into the ocean... well as a Chicagoan it's hard to think that's all that bad.... But at what cost? They predictions vary, but I recently learned that we 2nd city folk can expect to have a summer climate like Texas in about ten years time. Sounds a bit too hot and dry for my tastes.

But lately, on warm, sunny October days, hanging out in the playground after school watching the kids run around in t-shirts with a backdrop of leaves just starting to show shades of red and yellow, it's hard not to just enjoy it. Here in Chicago the last few years we've had milder weather overall. Warmer winters, springs and autumns and summers that aren't so hot. This summer we didn't even have our requisite heat wave of 100+ degrees. People seemed to complain just as much at the 90+ days. I thought that was funny. I guess it's always relative to what you're used to. When I lived in Luxembourg, oh so many years ago, temperatures in the mid seventies brought complaints from my wool sweater clad friends.

Even the beginning of this November was balmy, so when the weather turned cold all of a sudden, I found myself spending a lot of time bundled up in long underwear, jeans, wool socks, three layers of shirts and a couple of jackets and still shivering... even in the house. At first our furnace was on the fritz. (Isn't that always the way? You find out that something doesn't work because you need it all of a sudden. Maybe there are people out there who test the furnace out in September, but not most of the folks I know.)

Now that the furnace is going again and the weather's been a bit warmer, I can pass on the long underwear and just wear a light fleece to be cozy, but all these factors together have me thinking about preparing for winter. I live in a vintage condo building, so like many folks out there, there's a lot we can do to winterize our homes. Our windows are old and drafty, so we can be sure to pull down our storms and seal out any more air leaks. For windows that still feel cool even with the storms down or if the storms are missing, like in our sun porch, we'll be putting up window film. The drawback to this is that you can't open the windows, but they do a lot to seal leaks and add an extra warm cushion of air between indoors and the great out doors Outlets on exterior walls are another source of drafts. You can pull the covers and pop a little piece of insulation in there. (Make sure it's fire safe!) Doors are also leaky air spots, but we'll add some weather stripping around the edges and a door sweep on the bottom.

Even if air isn't leaking, all these spots - doors windows, outlets -- can transfer cold through. (Try touching the windows to feel how cold they get!) The temperature difference between the cool spots and warmer spots in the room keep that air moving and mixing so that the whole room cools off a lot faster. If you can get the cold spots insulated better, then your whole room will stay warmer longer. Fewer heating cylces also save money and energy.

As a Chicago Conservation Corp leader, I'm happy to promote the city's Winter Preparedness Fairs. Check these out. Drop by and you walk away with a free winterization kit with things like window film and weather stripping all in a nifty canvas bag. For more info call 311 or go to the city of Chicago's gargantuan web site and find the department of the environment for a schedule: http://egov.cityofchicago.org

Stay warm!

Identity Crisis!

When I got my real estate salesperson license a year ago, I have to admit the label made me squirm. That day I became a licensed "salesperson." Visions of dismal failure danced in my head (singing, "Nanny, nanny boo-boo," no less.) Life was not looking up. I just laid out a few hundred bucks for the course, a couple hundred more for exam and license, several hundred more to come with membership in the necessary associations and I was already doomed to fail. After five years of booming, the real estate market was really, really slow. Still is. On top of that, I'm not a sales kind of person. Never have been. Given the chance, I will point out every little flaw and talk you out of almost any purchase. So what in the heck was I thinking becoming a real estate salesperson? Long story.

Over the past dozen years or so, I've been a struggling artist. Thankfully not a starving artist, but not because I was making gobs of money with my art. I got jobs, sure and lots of compliments on my work, but this amounted to egg money. Go out to movies money. Maybe a couple of fancy dinners money. Not pay the mortgage and put food on the table and clothes on the kids kind of money. I gradually realized that the main reason the kids and I weren't starving was that ten years ago I managed to get myself some real estate investment property. The occasional sale or refi provided me with the necessary cash and then some. I also realized that this had been a terrific way to earn my keep doing something I really enjoyed. I love buildings, land, houses. For me, watching the markets change, following what's going on in the varied Chicago neighborhoods and nearby suburbs, even other spots across the country and around the world, was so much fun. When it comes to clothes, I am not a shopper. Going to malls wears me out. I avoid them like the plague, but shopping for houses? Now that I can do.

When you read the manual, the Real Estate Salesperson Study Guide explains agency. The guide is far from a work of literature and has definitely never, ever been on the New York Times Bestseller list, but everyone who wants to make a living helping people buy and sell real estate has to slog through it. The guide tells you that as a real estate salesperson, you're acting as your client's agent. I like to think it's like being a secret agent -- without all the drama or the gunplay. But like James Bond, you're serving your boss's (i.e. your client's) needs and their needs come first. So while I may not have to take a bullet for you, I am required to help you buy or sell your property without constantly checking my own bottom line. And if I find myself on a luxury cruise surrounded by handsome men catering to my every whim and you call me, I jump onto the nearest helicopter and I'm ready to work for you.

Hey, it could happen.

Alright I'll admit what it really boils down to is that real estate agents are service people. Less james Bond, more "Have it your way" a la Burger King. Not so glamorous, but then I'm not a glamour girl anyway. And much as I've always wanted to somehow make my mark on the world, leave a legacy, become famous, etc. etc., I've discovered over and over again that service is what I'm all about. I like to help people, to connect people, to research and dig up information for people. And that is what a real estate agent really should be. If I can do that, if I don't have to be a cut throat salesperson, then I should do just great.

Wish me luck!