BILL CHERRY'S GREATEST DALLAS PARK CITIES REAL ESTATE BLOG: December 2010

SUNDAY IN THE PARK
December 26, 2010

Christmas Eve, our Episcopal parish church, Church of the Incarnation, had three traditional services and two contemporary services.

Patty and I, and our daughter-in-law, Susan, went to the 5 PM traditional service.  By 4:30, there were no seats remaining.  I suspect the church holds about 1,000. 

Afterward, "Chef" Randy had dinner waiting for us.  He had stayed home to babysit Millie.

That begun a great Christmas celebration.  It'll end tomorrow with Patty's birthday.

I hope your celebration was every bit as wonderful -- Bill Cherry

CHRISTMAS FIRES...IN FACT, FIRES IN GENERAL

We bought a freshly cut tree from one of the prominent Dallas nurseries three days before Thanksgiving.  It was delivered Sunday, four days later.  By December 15th, that tree was dry and an obvious fire hazard.  The 7-8 foot tree cost $140 including delivery, and it was not safe two weeks later.

We only ran the lights for brief periods of time, and when we were in the room with it.  Today, I'm ready to take it down and get it outside.  And today's only December 26th.

This was our 6th Christmas to celebrate in Dallas since we moved here.  Every year at least one house within a few blocks of us has caught fire and seriously burned because a dry Christmas tree ignited. 

<<---A home fire caused by dry a Christmas tree.

Those fires are almost like explosions.  They happen very fast, they get very hot, and the fire and heat is concentrated in a small area.  The fire protection of the drywall ceiling becomes minimal under those condition, and as soon as the fire burns through into the attic, the attic's ventilation acts as a chimney.

That's when the fire is out of control.  And from start to finish, that takes less than one handful of minutes.

Often people caught up in the Christmas spirit understandably find themselves taking one more chance by buying a real tree, putting themselves and their property in peril, but rationalizing false confidence that they'll beat the house fire odds one more year.

Perhaps it's past time for state, county and city fire laws as they pertain to Christmas trees to be looked over.  Perhaps how trees are cut, stored, transported, etc., need to be regulated.  Perhaps local fire departments need to frequently visit Christmas tree lots, condemning those trees that are unsafe.

This might be a good project for the National Association of Realtors to lobby for.

BILL CHERRY, REALTORS

DALLAS - PARK CITIES

Since 1964

214 503-8563

Man in the Park drawing by Carlotta Barker.

FELIZ NAVIDAD

As far as I'm concerned, the King and Queen of Parties are Gary and Larrie Boetticher.  And now that we no longer live near, Patty and I have had to give up those great invitational occasions.

The way these things work is this.  Larrie goes all out decorating their home and preparing keepsake favors for the guests.  She and Gary provide the main course and the soft drinks and light libations.  Guests bring a covered dish.

Gary and Larrie also engage the professional entertainers, and no one knows who they will be until they arrive.  One of the best was a magician, for an example.

But my very favorite was the Christmas party about eight years ago.  The guests had been there for some time, chatting, eating and getting reacquainted, when the stereo music stopped and the doorbell rang.  Gary went to the door, and as nosy people do, we all looked to see who the Diller A Dollar A 10 O'clock Scholar late guest was going to be.

Larrie and Gary Boetticher ===>>>

The moment Gary opened the door, there was not one guest but a big mariachi band! And instantaneously they began playing and singing "Feliz Navidad," and for the next hour the band entertained.  As they always do. Larrie and Gary stood at the back of the room, blending almost unnoticeable into the wall, watching their guests' smiles and laughter swell, recognizing that the Christmas Season in Clear Lake City had now arrived.

Seeing their guests' reactions to the surprise is the joyous reward to the best hosts - Gary and Larry Boetticher.

BILL CHERRY, REALTORS

DALLAS - PARK CITIES

Since 1964

WEB

One of my friends is in her late 70s.  She has spent many years directing her personal ministry to benefit the programs of the Salvation Army.

When she is needed in a new location, it doesn't take her anytime to move there and begin organizing other members as well as the community to be the "Resolution Team."

Everyone knows that the red kettles that have been the Salvation Army's Christmas trademark for decades raise a significant portion of the money the Army uses to operate its programs.  And it does it one dime, one quarter, one dollar at a time.

Unless a kettle is manned by a volunteer, the person ringing the bell is paid to do it.  The Salvation Army makes every effort to hire those who are their "clients" since many of them are "clients" because they have been unable to find work.

My friend told me that this year, more than ever before, paid bell ringers by the hundreds are taking their kettles into the stores where they are located, giving them to the manager for safe keeping, and telling the manager to let the Army know they have quit.

So until the Army can find someone as a substitute bell ringer, the revenues of each of those kettles is at a standstill.  Meanwhile, the Salvation Army continues to help those who have quit, giving them meals and a safe place to sleep.

BILL CHERRY, REALTORS

DALLAS - PARK CITIES

Since 1964

214 503-8563

WEB

This past week I was led to meet the Jobe Martin Family -- Jobe, Jenna Dee, Taryn and Mirren.  Quite frankly, the meeting made my day

Here's a bit of history.

Jobe began his career as a dentist.  In fact after a few years in private practice in Houston, he became a full-professor at Baylor Dental School in Dallas.  In 1982, he felt the call of God.  He entered Dallas Theological Seminary, graduating in 1986 with a master's degree in Systematic Theology.  He officially ended his dental career to become a missionary.

Jobe's wife, Jenna Dee, was a registered nurse.  She and Jobe had two daughters, Taryn and Mirren.  With Jobe's theology degree in hand and less than $10,000 in the bank, the Martins began their family missionary career.  They travel the highways of America in a Ford Van.

Here's what they do.

Their primary focus is leading seminars in which Jobe addresses Creation vs. Evolution; Marriage and the Family; Christian Leadership; Cults; the Cost of Commitment; and the Value of Life.

Frankly, though, Jobe's most serious expertise and his largest passion is presenting the credible argument that creation logically beats out evolution.  And this is the one that many ministers need help in addressing the subject with their church's membership. Jobe removes that burden.

And here's how to find out more.

The Martins have some valuable books and DVDs that you should consider.  One set is for children.  You can read more about the Martins and see their books and DVDs by clicking HERE.

My interview.

Finally, I spent several hours with the Martins at their home in Rockwall, Texas, a suburb of Dallas.  And you know me, my "get to the bottom of things" interviewing instinct went into high gear while I was there.  I can promise you, this family is the real McCoy.

Do they have God's favor?

One would have to conclude that they do.  With more than twenty years devoted to their missionary ministry, they have never asked their followers for a dime.  Their income has solely come from voluntary offerings and the sale of their teaching materials.

BILL CHERRY, REALTORS

DALLAS - PARK CITIES

Since 1964

214 503-8563

WEB

The Salvation Army Has Meant So Much to So Many

By Fred Niccum

Special to The Galveston County Daily News
Published December 19, 2010

When I was 5 years old, spending half my time on the streets of El Paso and the other half with my mother, brother and sister, I was picked up and placed in Baptist Children's Home in San Antonio.

We had no presence of a father in our home. I finally met him when I was 30 years old. I remember when I was with my mother, she would take me and my siblings to a school gym at Christmas where The Salvation Army had created a toy warehouse and we could pick out a toy.

I vividly remember selecting a Flyer red wagon and a bag of candy. These were my two gifts, which made my Christmas!

I lived with my mother in projects in El Paso, and she knew how to make the best of Christmas in getting us donated gifts.

One of my childhood memories is the ringing of the bells at the red kettles of The Salvation Army during the season. My wife, who is a teacher in a Clear Creek school, and I always stop and make a donation during the Christmas Red Kettle campaign. It feels good to us and we know the money will always be used to help others.

My mother eventually remarried and came to the Baptist Children's Home and took my brother to live with her but left me behind. My sister was taken in by a family in New Mexico.

I didn't understand at the time why my mother made the decision to choose just my brother to live with her and her new husband. I felt very unfortunate, and my life was sprinkled with obstacles. But as years passed, I learned to cope with an ever-changing world and the hand that I was dealt.

I lived in the Baptist Children's Home until I was 18 and graduated from high school. There were 144 children at the orphanage, and every Christmas The Salvation Army would bring big trucks full of gifts for the children. We would watch with excitement and anticipation as the trucks were unloaded and the gifts placed under the Christmas tree on Christmas Eve.

I was blessed with some wonderful coaches and teachers who mentored and encouraged me to go to college. After graduating from high school, I worked in restaurants, washed storefront windows and built fences to help pay my college tuition.

I was awarded a partial scholarship for my participation in track in high school. I attended Howard Payne College in Brownwood and became a science teacher and a track and football coach at Jeff Davis High School in Houston.

Later, I became the director of facilities in the Clear Creek School District.

I was a hard worker, ambitious and had dreams of becoming a school administrator.

I attended classes at night at Sam Houston State and obtained a master's degree and became an assistant superintendent in the Alief School District in Houston.

One day, out of the clear blue, I received a call from the administrator of the Baptist Children's Home where I grew up. The administrator was retiring, and he asked me to become his replacement and take charge of 144 children.

And again, each Christmas, The Salvation Army trucks brought loads of toys for all the children in the home. Witnessing the approaching Salvation Army trucks was a flashback to the '50s when I was a child and watched the officers move with tender hearts and dedication serving all of us in every way possible. And finally, my gift again was to witness the happiness of 144 children receiving new toys and gifts. This was my true blessing!

I look forward again to work with The Salvation Army and the Christmas Distribution Center at Alamo Elementary in the Galveston Independent School District this holiday season.

GISD's new superintendent, Larry Nichols, has given The Salvation Army permission to use Alamo Elementary for the Christmas Distribution Center supporting gifts to needy children in Galveston and Bolivar during the month of December.

I now am 69 years young and still believe in the work of The Salvation Army and "what it does for humanity." I feel all the good deeds of The Salvation Army for those in need will be remembered for many years to come by those who have benefitted or heard about the organization.

Today, I am blessed with a lovely wife, four beautiful children and four grandchildren.

Being an orphan is not easy but also, this is a special category of people whom God shows special favor; God's children are not orphans! There are no orphans of God!

"Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."

Fred Niccum is director of facilities and maintenance for Galveston Independent School District.

********

BILL CHERRY, REALTORS

DALLAS - PARK CITIES

Since 1964

214 503-8563

WEB

SUNDAY IN THE PARK

December 19, 2010 

Thanks for joining me this Sunday in the park as we prepare for the Christmas and the beginning of the year of 2011.  - Bill Cherry

Church of the Incarnation.  Our Episcopal church in uptown Dallas (3966 McKinney) is especially traditional in its ceremonies.  While there will be seven services beginning Christmas Eve and ending Christmas day, our favorite is always the one that begins at 11 p.m. Christmas Eve.  It's a solemn Eucharist with incense, the big choir and organ, along with brass instruments.   We'll be there.  You're welcome to come, too.

Pizza.  Sometimes I just don't understand certain business models.  There's a new set of franchise pizza stores that have entered the Dallas market.  They're called Papa Murphy's.  So you go to their store, tell them what kind of pizza you want.  They put all of the junk together, then box it up and send you on your way.  Sounds ok so far, right?  Well it isn't baked.  You have to take the pizza home and cook it in your own oven.

Rent a Tire.   Perhaps there are multiple locations of this concept, which the name adequately defines.  Tires are expensive, I suppose.  And good ones are required in Texas for passing the annual state vehicle inspection.  So why would anyone rent tires?  So they can pass the inspection?  Is it a rent to buy program like Realtors push when they are trying to sell a home to someone who doesn't qualify for a conventional loan?

Social Security.   The federal government in another expression of its infinite pseudo-wisdom is bankrupting retired citizens by the thousands, and taxing and threatening the financial well-being of millions of others. 

Although prices for almost all goods seniors use - drugs, gasoline, home utilities, groceries to name a few - have increased in price, the formula for determining whether or not to raise the Social Security benefits has allowed them to remain stagnant.  Seniors are forced to cut back.

On top of that, by artificially causing interest rates to garner less than a one percent return, the income from seniors' savings and other income-earning assets has decreased as well.  Many are now having to ask their children for financial help, while others are left alone to crash and burn.

And it seems to put one more notch in the bedpost of those who say the AARP is not a representative of senior citizens, but a for-profit company in disguise.  I'm one of those who is not an AARP member for that very reason.

Gift Giving.   It amazes me how many people go throughout their lives from childhood to their death bed without ever understanding what gift giving is.  It's not the present at all.  The real gift is the expression of love/caring that the recipient got as a result.  The giver thought about you, spent time thinking about what you would like that he could give you, went and bought the gift, wrapped it, brought it to you and watched you open it.  The gift was that expression of love from him to you.  It wasn't what was in the box.

By the time we sit here on the park bench next week, Christmas will be over and we'll be looking forward to the 2011 New Year.  Hope your Christmas is joyous and that your New Year will deliver to you the return of prosperity.  - Bill Cherry

BILL CHERRY, REALTORS

DALLAS - PARK CITIES

Since 1964

214 503-8563

WEB

Dr. Melvyn Schreiber is one of my longtime Galveston friends.  His daddy was one time the Island's mayor.  Dr. Schreiber picked medicine as his life's work while I picked business as mine.  But if we set that aside, he and I are alot alike.  We both have had a mired of lifetime interests and some new ones, too.  Sometimes these fascinations become demons.

He writes about his experiences with having to give up some of those lifetime interests, but not at the willy-nilly expense of adding new ones. -- Bill Cherry

THE WISDOM OF GIVING UP THINGS

By Dr. Melvyn H. Schreiber
Correspondent for the Galveston County Daily News
Published December 13, 2010

I was a nerdy kid. I wore horned-rimmed glasses and played chess. Sometimes a friend and I would play chess over the telephone, tying up the line for hours until my parents found out and said no.

I played chess with friends all my life, and I have only recently given up the game.

The people I played with almost always beat me, and that was discouraging. But now, in the far end of my life, I have given it up, and all I feel is relief.

I played tennis most of my adult life and got to be good enough that people didn't laugh at me out loud.

I never was a threat to the professional tour, but I played well enough to attract good opponents, and we had some memorable matches.

But then, the tendons of my rotator cuff muscles in my shoulders began to rot, and handling the racket became uncomfortable.

So, after a while, I gave up tennis. That was a loss.

My mother made me take piano lessons when I was 9 years old, and the thought never crossed my mind to decline.

I made progress with several teachers and finally got good enough to play in a couple of public concerts with other students of the piano. (These recitals were open to the general public, but you know who attended.)

Through the years I practiced and played the piano, and for a few years, long ago, some friends and I met at my house each week to play chamber music together (a flute, an oboe, one or two violins, the rare cello).

The truth is, I never was very good at it, though I enjoyed greatly playing for my own pleasure. Now, arthritis in my hands impairs my ability to perform, and I have given up playing the piano.

The other thing I have given up is certain members of my family and some friends, who lived out their lives and died. I have been to more funerals than I wish, but not giving them up was never an option.

Someone has said that growing old is defined as the process of giving up things, and I can vouch for that.

It would really be depressing except for this: I continue to work, to help take care of the sick and wounded, to associate with and teach the young, to serve as the experienced elder with whom my colleagues consult.

Several years ago, I got interested in building doll houses, and it's a rare time when I am not working on one. Tina helps me choose the colors, and I enjoy working with my hands. I look for young parents with 4-year-old daughters to give them to.

Out of the clear blue sky I have developed an interest in opera. I have been to a few in person, but mostly I watch them at home on DVDs.

I have collected most of the best of Verdi, Puccini, Mozart, Donizetti, Rossini, Bellini, Gounod and others, and I read books of anecdotes about composers, opera singers, conductors and impresarios.

Grandchildren always have been important to me, never more so than now. My granddaughter called the other night to ask me to help with her homework, and I was glad to comply.

She wanted to know about isotopes and ions and atoms, something I know something about. She texted me the next day that she scored well on the test on those subjects. I was proud.

A certain freedom comes from giving up things, and renunciation can be liberating.

If one's wits still are working and one can substitute a new thing for the one lost, all the better.

Melvyn H. Schreiber is a physician at The University of Texas Medical Branch.

BILL CHERRY, REALTORS

DALLAS - PARK CITIES

Since 1964

214 503-8563

WEB

SUNDAY IN THE PARK

December 12, 2010

I can't help but smile as Patty and I drive during Christmas time through the streets of Dallas.  It's the personal interpretation each family has injected with lights and wreaths and blow-up Santa Clauses to appropriately decorate their homes that makes me smile.  Some are formal, tailored and beautiful just as they are.  Others have so much stuff in the yard, on the roof, in the windows and hanging on the door that they are outrageous but fun nevertheless. 

Thanks for joining me this Sunday in the park as we prepare for the Christmas Season and the beginning of the year of 2011.  - Bill Cherry

THE PASTOR.  One of the large Dallas churches has a pastor who enjoys stirring up controversy.  The latest is the creation of a web site that has a name that references the story about the "Grinch Who Stole Christmas."  The idea is that people should post on the site the names of businesses who use "Happy Holidays" and the like in their ads and store decorations rather than "Merry Christmas." 

He says it's "just for fun," and not meant in any way as a subtle way of inferring that Christians should boycott the Happy Holidays businesses.  Of course that's disingenuous and utter nonsense.  He has to say that to keep from violating anti-trust laws.  The Episcopalian in me says this web site and its real reason for being is not a good example of Christian behavior.

DISHWASHER DETERGENT.   In recent months, the makers of dishwasher detergents have been required to change the formulas of their products so as to remove chemicals that were considered hazardous to the environment.  The brand we had used for years now no longer seems to work well.  So we tried others; no better results.  Lastly, however, I bought a container of Finish Gel, the cheapest of the national brands carried by the grocery store where we shop.  Finish Gel works great!

ANGEL TREE.   My mother and dad were very specific about the obligation we have to help those who aren't as fortunate as we are.  Consequently, contributing toward the well-being of the poor and disadvantaged has always been a priority with me.  Today, Patty and I took our oldest granddaughter, Alice, with us as we delivered groceries and loads of Christmas presents to a family in West Dallas.

Alice ===>>

It was the final part of this year's Angel Tree program that our church, Church of the Incarnation (Episcopal) does every year.  It's my understanding that the members of the church provided Christmas groceries and gifts for about 125 families today.

I cannot possibly tell you how much pleasure Patty and I got from our visit this morning, and further, that Alice got to experience the meaning of benevolence to the poor.

STEVE BLOW.   Steve Blow is a regular columnist with the Dallas Morning News, and I suspect that his columns are the most widely read.  When we first moved to Dallas, I did my best to encourage a friendship between Steve and me because I admired his ability to find and attack important subjects, and to write about them.

Recently, some of our friends were having a great deal of trouble getting the attention their case deserved from the district attorney's office.  I asked Steve for help.  When he began looking at the public records and asking questions, the district attorney decided the case must be more important than he had judged it to be.

I tell you this, not because of this specific case, but as an example of why complete freedom of the press, totally unencumbered whether you like what they write or not, is so important to how we live in the U.S.

Steve Blow is a great asset to Dallas, and consistently provides fine examples of the value of good reporting and editorial analysis.

CHRISTMAS GIFT.   Every year about this time, I encourage friends to buy and give the absolutely best good old American cookbook there is.  It's called The Cotton Country Collection and it was first compiled and published in 1972.  I bought my copy in 1990.  At that time, the book had been reprinted thirteen more times for a total publication by then of 500,000.  Another twenty years has passed since then, so it's possible that by now the total of the press runs has exceeded 1,000,000.

The book is available from amazon.com or from the Monroe Junior League for $19.95.  If you order no later than December 14, 2010, the Junior League promises delivery by Christmas.  Amazon can probably promise delivery even if ordered a few days later.

Thanks for stopping by and sitting for awhile with me on the park bench.  I enjoy having this time with you each week just so we can talk about this and that.  And every now and then we might say a thing or two about real estate.

BILL CHERRY, REALTORS

DALLAS - PARK CITIES

Since 1964

214 503-8563

Web

Man in the Park pen & ink drawing by Carlotta Barker

Before I start this blog post, I want to apologize to you.  I'm going to use this space today to rant and rave for a moment.

I don't know what's happened in recent years, but the word "moot" has become a popular one to use, and it seems most who have begun to use it, are using it incorrectly.

When something is "moot" it means that something is debatable.  It does not mean, "That's set in stone and that's where it's going to stay forever, so there!"

So a moot issue is a debatable issue.

Now I feel better. Thanks.

BILL CHERRY, REALTORS

DALLAS - PARK CITIES

Since 1964

214 503-8563

WEB