Detroit Real Estate

Marianne is still fighting cancer.  It has taken over so many of her functions.  As I sit by my wife's bedside I wish to share something I watched her do over and over.  It's something all of us try to learn but my wife had a God given talent.  She was able to engage people like none other.  She had the special talent of anybody that met her, loved her.  She had the special way of engaging people.  A special way of friending people.

She was like Santa Claus in a woman's body.  Her sparkling blue eyes, infectious smile, and body language that made people feel comfortable.  She was a sight to see with young kids.  She would squat, kneel, or sit and talk to those kids like she was their best friend.  I myself have a voice that scares young kids so I could never do what she did.

She was the sounding board for people's problems.  She would spend hours on the phone, or sitting with somebody "LISTENING" to their problems.  Even if it was the same problem over and over.  That's the way it always was.  Many people get bossy, or irritated in those situations but she would just listen.

Here is what she would do:

• 1. Get down to their level, sit if they are sitting, stand if they are standing.
• 2. Ask questions about the person that she is talking to. She wouldn't talk about herself, other to identify with the person relating a story of hers that made the person she was talking to realize she was like them.
• 3. Look into their eyes and nod while talking
• 4. Re-affirm what the person was saying
• 5. She would lightly touch the person.... On the hand, on the arm making the "connection"
• 6. But most of all she listened far more than she talked
• 7. Listen, Listen, Listen

It is something we all try to do as real estate people, something we try to learn and improve upon each year.  But my wife had the talent.  I was always afraid she would be abducted by some wacko, because her smile and eyes invited people.  You know us guys we fall for women that give us the time of day, talk, and smile at us.  We take it as this lady likes us.  Marianne could stand anywhere, strike up a conversation, and become a friend before she walked away.

No ulterior motive, but she could "Win friends, and influence people".  That's the way she was.     So I give you her tips to share.  To become a better person, because listening to your kids, your friends, your loved ones will build communication and make you a better friend.

 This is the last in my series of Michigan trivia and interesting Michigan facts

Michigan is the 11th largest state in the USA with 96,810 square miles

Origin of the Name Michigan - Michigan is from an Algonquian Chippewa Indian word "meicigama" that means "big sea wate" (referring to the Great Lakes).

 Here is a history of the Detroit Pistons names
1939-41 Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons [Independent]
1941-48 Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons [NBL]
1948-49 Fort Wayne Pistons [BAA]
1949-57 Fort Wayne Pistons [NBA]
1957-   Detroit Pistons [NBA]

State Motto - "Si quaeris peninsulam amoenam, circum spice" [If you are seeking a amenable (pleasant) peninsula, look around you

The Detroit Pistons won championships in 1989, 1990, 2004

Michigan's State Song is Michigan, My Michigan

The first dominant mafia leader to be recognized in the Detroit area was the eldest of two brothers originally from the Alcamo, Sicily area. Born in 1881, Vito Adamo and his brother Salvatore, two years his junior led a gang of Black Hand extortionists, thieves and beer runners and were the first Italian criminals in their area to control the smuggling of immigrants into the Michigan area. Vito Adamo resided in the Wyandotte area while the brothers ran a profitable criminal enterprise based in the Little Italy section of Detroit that extorted grocers and other merchants, but their biggest money maker was their control of illicit liquor, mainly beer within the Italian community. The Adamo brothers operated quietly as old world Sicilian mafiosi usually did and were not recognized by law enforcement outside of the Little Italy area until roughly 1912 when a rival group of Sicilian criminals who had also settled in the Wynadotte area just before the turn of the century began their rise within Detroit's Italian underworld

Pistons players are believed to have conspired with gamblers to shave points and throw various games during the 1953-54 and 1954-55 seasons

Michigan's official flag was adopted in 1911. The flag has a deep blue background and pictures an elk and moose around a blue shield labeled "TUEBOR," meaning "I will defend." The shield pictures a man with a raised hand and a gun, a rising sun, a peninsula and lakes (representing Michigan's geography). Over the shield is a bald eagle (holding an olive branch and a sheaf of three arrows) and a red ribbon reading "E PLURIBUS UNUM" (which is the motto of the U.S.A. and means "Out of Many, One" - this refers to the states of the United States being united into one country). Under everything lie two white ribbons that read "SI QUAERIS PENINSULAM AMOENAM" and "CIRCUM SPICE," which means, "If you are seeking an amenable (pleasant) peninsula, look around you."

I hope you enjoyed my series on Michigan trivia, Michigan firsts, and interesting Michigan facts

Russ Ravary your Metro Detroit real estate agent

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Michigan trivia and interesting Michigan facts series part 1 

Michigan trivia and interesting Michigan fun facts series part 2

Michigan trivia and interesting Michigan facts series part 3

Michigan trivia and interesting Michigan  fun facts series part 4

Michigan trivia and interesting Michigan facts series part 5

Michigan trivia and interesting Michigan facts series part 6

Michigan trivia and interesting Michigan facts series part 7

Michigan trivia and interesting Michigan facts series part 8

Michigan trivia and interesting Michigan facts series part 9 

 I hope you learn something new when reading this series on Michigan trivia and interesting Michigan facts:

 The first roadsid picnic tables were installed in 1929 on U.S. 16 in Ionia, Michigan

The Tigers have won four World Series championships in 1935, 1945, 1968 and 1984.

The Kellogg Company has made Battle Creek the Cereal Capital of the World. The Kellogg brothers accidentally discovered the process for producing flaked cereal products and sparked the beginning of the dry cereal industry.

 Detroit is home to the second tallest hotel in North America - the Detroit Marriott Renaissance Center, at 73 stories

Grand Rapids is home to the 24-foot Leonardo da Vinci horse, called Il Gavallo, it is the largest equestrian bronze sculpture in the Western Hemisphere.

 The nation's first roadside park was opened in 1919 on U.S. 2 in Iron County

 The western shore of Michigan has many sand dunes. The Sleeping Bear Dunes rise 460 feet above Lake Michigan. Living among the dunes is the dwarf lake iris the official state wildflower.

Detroit Tiger leaders in career hits as of 2007 )

Detroit Tigers
1.	T. Cobb	3,902
2.	A. Kaline	3,007
3.	C. Gehringer	2,839

Seul Choix Point Lighthouse in Gulliver has been guiding ships since 1895. The working light also functions as a museum, which houses early 1900s furnishings and maritime artifacts.  

The Detroit Tigers constructed Bennett Park at Trumbull Avenue and began playing there in 1896. In 1912, the team moved into Navin Field, which was built on the same location. It was almost completely rebuilt in 1938 and renamed Briggs Stadium. It was renamed Tiger Stadium in 1961 and the Tigers played there until 2000.

Michigan was the first state to guarantee every child the right to tax-paid high school education.

Happy reading!!!!

Russ Ravary your metro Detroit real estate agent

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Michigan trivia and interesting Michigan facts series part 1 

Michigan trivia and interesting Michigan fun facts series part 2

Michigan trivia and interesting Michigan facts series part 3

Michigan trivia and interesting Michigan  fun facts series part 4

Michigan trivia and interesting Michigan facts series part 5

Michigan trivia and interesting Michigan facts series part 6

Michigan trivia and interesting Michigan facts series part 7

Michigan trivia and interesting Michigan facts series part 8

We have been so stressed here.  Marianne, my wife has just gotten halfway through her chemo.  It has been a very rough three months for her.  I feel so bad for her.  She has lost over 20 pounds because she is so nauseous.   She can't seem to hold anything down some days.

The chemo has really taken a toll on her.  She has no energy to do anything.  She wants to get out of the house but doesn't have the energy to do it.  I wish there was more I could do for her.  Some days I feel so helpless.

She is taking so many pills any more.   She is taking nausea medicine, pain medicine,vitamins, then 3 pills to keep her body regular.  Chemo does so much to her right now.  All I can do is to call friends and family to see if they can get Marianne out.  It is like a no win situation because if she sits in the house all day all she does is think about how bad everything is.  She gets more depressed.  Her friends cheer her up, but there are some days when she doesn't even want to talk to them.

This week is extremely stressful for us because she is getting a MRI and CAT scan done.  She is so scared that the chemo isn't working.  She has cried so much this week.  Cancer has changed my wife so much.  She is so scared of dying and no matter what I say or do can't alleviate those fears.

All I can do is be there for her.  And pray that she beats it.  I wish she could have some good days that she feels good.

Yes we have it tough in real estate business for the last few years.   Home values across the country are down and the real estate market has gotten tougher.  But it could be worse.  Think of all the people that depend on the Gulf of Mexico for a living.  The shrimpers, the seafood restaurants, the hotels, and the tourism industry are hurting.  

Then realize the side effects.  All the innocent wildlife that is dying because of the oil spill.    Animals, turtles, fish, and birds that have done no wrong, now are suffering immensely.  Some are dying.  Too many things are being destroyed by man's stupidity and greed. 

Now thousand's of British people are going to suffer.  BP's stock prices have fallen dramatically.  British retirees are being hurt too.  So I feel bad for all involved.  The economy of Britain and the southern US states are going to suffer. Corporate management is going to have to start realizing that profits at the expense of the environment, safety, and people is a recipe for disaster.

It is same way in our business, we must always put the people first.  It's not about dollars.  Over the years I have helped people get homes.  It hasn't been about the biggest commission for me.  It has been about helping people.  It's about families, not profits.  Yes we have to make a living, but without hurting the world around us.  It's about making a difference in the world, helping people while providing a life for our families. 

Hopefully BP management will double their efforts to get the oil stopped before it is too late.