An elderly carpenter was ready to retire. He told his employer of his plans to leave the house-building business and live a more leisurely life with his wife and extended family. He would miss the paycheck, but he needed to retire.

The contractor was sorry to see his good worker go, and asked if he could build just one more house as a personal favor. The carpenter said yes, but it became easy to see that his heart was not in his work. He resorted to shoddy workmanship and used inferior materials. It was an unfortunate way to end a dedicated career.

When the carpenter finished his work the employer came to inspect the house. He handed the front-door key to the carpenter. “This is your house,” he said, “my gift to you.”

Don't part with your illusions. When they are gone, you may still exist, but you have ceased to live. -Mark Twain

The carpenter was shocked. If he had only known he was building his own house, he would have done it all so differently!

So it is with us. We build our lives, a day at a time, often putting less than our best into the building. Each day you hammer a nail, place a board, or erect a wall. Your attitudes and the choices you make today, build the “house” you live in tomorrow.

This story is a good reminder whenever I’m tempted to do less than my best!

Congratulations John and Dolores Ciufi Brandi Bates and Brice Hoffman Dorothy Ostermeier William Hanover For successfully completing their transactions with Top Priority within the last month. Watch for your name here in a coming month!

Treat Yourself To A Healthy Morning Commute

For busy morning commuters, fitting a decent breakfast into the schedule can be tough. And while driving and eating is a recipe for fender benders, many people have to do it, or else go hungry. So, if your empty passenger seat subs for a breakfast table, try these rules for a healthy breakfast on the road:

• Pass up the drive-through. While it’s convenient to stop at a fast-food restaurant, these meals don’t score high for health and nutrition. An egg, cheese and bacon biscuit, for example, derives 59% of its 477 calories from fat.

• Bring along your breakfast from home. This lets you to control the fat and calorie content of your most important meal of the day.

• Store healthy nonperishables, such as breakfast bars and packages of dried fruit, in your car so they’re available on those mornings you must hit the ground running.

• Avoid fat- and calorie-laden foods that are easy to grab, such as doughnuts, toaster pastries and bagels.

• If you’ve left the house without breakfast and have to stop at a minimart, instead of a doughnut and coffee, choose a banana and some yogurt.

• Get a mini-cooler or cooler lunch bag so you can have healthy perishables in the car especially on long commutes.

• Adapted from Intelihealth.com

Auction News Home Seller’s Marketing Kit

If you’re thinking of selling now or in the future, get your Home Seller’s Marketing Kit. This special kit has helped hundreds of sellers save tens of thousands of dollars and countless headaches (and lawsuits!) •The kit contains: •Blank purchase contracts • Sample purchase contracts •Title insurance request forms •Termite inspection forms •Sources for signs

To get your kit E-mail: TprtomH@netscape.net Tom Hoffman, Broker Owner (720) 540-7800

The Joys Of Modern Machinery

The new employee stood before the paper shredder looking confused.

“Need some help?” a secretary asked.

“Yes,” he replied. “How does this thing work?”

“Simple,” she said, taking the fat report from his hand and feeding it into the shredder. “Thanks,” he said, “but where do the copies come out?”

•Adapted from humor.com

“Sleeper-Inners” Are Happier

If you’re among those who repeatedly hit the snooze button on the alarm clock, just ignore all the slacker barbs. Studies show that people who push for the extra few minutes of sleep can have lower stress levels.

A study by Westminster University in London found that people who wake later have lower levels of cortisol – the body’s main stress hormone. In general, cortisol levels rise 15 to 20 minutes after a person undergoes a stressful situation. Some studies have found that prolonged exposure to high levels of the hormone can put you at risk for bone-mass loss, depression and brain degeneration.

The study found that people who woke at earlier hours, say 5:30am, had higher concentrations of cortisol during the first 45 minutes of their day. The study also found that cortisol levels are not necessarily affected by how much sleep you get, but by the hour you wake. The later the hour, the better. This doesn’t mean that you have to sleep in until 10am to see any benefits. Adding just 20 to 30 minutes more to your regular routine can help you feel more relaxed during the rest of the day.

•Adapted from MyPrimeTime.com website

Words Of Wisdom

When a man sits with a pretty girl for an hour, it seems like a minute.But let him sit on a hot stove for a minute and its seems longer than an hour. That is relativity. Albert Einstein

How To Use The Office Grapevine

You’ve heard the saying “I heard it through the grapevine.” But when it comes to an office setting, is the grapevine a good thing? Gossip is unavoidable in all workplaces. But, is it also unwelcome?

In some companies – you’ve probably worked for one at one time or other – information isn’t very forthcoming. Employees are kept in the dark about information that actually greatly concerns them. The office grapevine can sometimes be the only conduit available to employees for disseminating important news. Here’s how to make the grapevine work for you:

42.7 percent of all statistics are made up on the spot…

Before you pass it along, confirm it. A lot of what you’ll hear is false. Many times, true information can get mangled through the “operator effect,” which changes details with every new listener.

Gossip at your own risk. Be very careful about telling even a trusted coworker information you wouldn’t want everyone to know. Not everyone is as great as you at keeping a secret.

Use the grapevine to your advantage. If you’ve done something great at work, you’ll want to share that information with others. You never know whom it will reach. Conversely, if someone has done something to upset you, you might mention this to someone who’s likely to share it. Of course, the direct approach really is best. Don’t be underhanded when it comes to letting someone know how you feel.

– Adapted from About.com

Golf Light After a man at the 11th tee took a murderous swing and missed the ball completely, his caddie offered hin a few words of encouragement. " Your swing is improving that would have been the best shot you've made allday if you had hit the ball"

What Is The Largest Animal Ever Known To Exist?

The blue whale is the largest animal that ever lived on Earth, even larger than any of the great dinosaurs, growing to about 80 feet long on average and weighing about 120 tons. The largest specimen ever found was a female 94 feet long and weighing more than 174 tons. The largest of the blue whales (150 tons) has a heart that weighs about 1,000 pounds, and has 14,000 pounds of blood circulating in its body. The heart is about the size of a Volkswagen Beetle, and a human could crawl through the aorta (a major blood vessel)!

Blue whales are also the loudest animals on Earth. Their call reaches levels up to 188 decibels, and this low-frequency whistle can be heard for hundreds of miles. The blue whale is louder than a jet, which reaches only 140 decibels!

Blue whales (like all baleen whales) are seasonal feeders and carnivores that filter-feed tiny crustaceans, plankton, and small fish from the water. They are gulpers – that is, filter feeders that alternately swim, then gulp a mouthful of food.

The water is forced through the baleen plates hanging from the upper jaw, and the baleen catches the food, acting like a sieve. An average-sized blue whale will eat 2,000-9,000 pounds of plankton each day during the four-month summer feeding season in cold, arctic waters.

Blue whales live individually or in very small pods (groups), and are found in all the oceans of the world.

•Adapted from www.zoomdinosaurs.co

Welcome New Clients

We would like to welcome the new clients who became members of our “Real Estate Family” this past month. I’d like to welcome you and wish you all the best! Darrell and Marie Clayton from Tampa (referred by Sarah Parker) Larry Miller from Brandon Sue and Martin Baxter from Odessa (referred by George Franklin) The Larry Davidson Family from Lutz We love giving recognition to our new friends and our wonderful existing clients who are kind enough to refer their friends and relatives to us.

You Can Prevent Skateboarding Injuries

A different style of skateboarding is responsible for causing more injuries among skateboarders.

More and more skateboarders are skating on the streets, which led to twice the amount of injuries between 1998 and 2001 than were reported between 1993 and 1998. Trauma specialists say the increase in injuries is due to kids trying a more complex array of stunts off lower ramps, instead of doing conservative tricks off the usual 10-foot-high ramps.

Skateboard parks seem to be the solution to decreasing the number of injuries. But experts point out that all skateboarders should wear helmets, wrist guards, and elbow and kneepads. Kids under the age of 10 should be closely supervised, and those five years old and younger should not skateboard at all.

• Adapted from USA Weekend

I've never been poor, only broke. Being poor is a frame of mind. Being broke is only a temporary situation. Mike Todd

How To Teach Children About Money

•The best time to teach children about money is right now! Here are some tips:

•Give kids a piggy bank at a young age, and teach them the differences in coins’ values.

•Make saving a habit, with a rule that a certain percentage of their allowance or birthday money is put in the piggy bank.

•Open a savings account in a child’s name and show them how the interest will compound over time.

•Encourage goal setting. Have them make a wish list along with a deadline: a skateboard by the end of the summer, a bike by the end of the year.

•Teach how to budget. Have them write down what they plan to spend in any given week, and if any money will be left over. This will teach them the difference between wants and needs.

• Adapted from Bankrate.com

Avoiding More Grief

Making funeral arrangements for a loved one is a reality many of us will have to face, but most of us are unprepared for such a task. Here are some tips to ensure you stay focused through the process:

Bring along a friend. The person should have enough emotional distance from the death you will be discussing to help you examine funeral options.

Know the laws. With the many state regulations governing funerals, as well as bylaws governing cemeteries, educate yourself.

Don’t rush. Even if your loved one has died at home, you usually have a day or two to look over your options. If you can, give yourself time before you call a mortuary.

Collect prices. Get price lists from several funeral homes before you sit down with a funeral director. You’ll feel less pressured and more able to make a sound financial and emotional decision.

Keep some information to yourself. Don’t disclose to a funeral home the value of a loved-one’s estate, death benefits or insurance.

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“One pound of learning requires ten pounds of common sense to apply it.” Unknown

When you are content to simply be yourself and don't compare or compete, everybody will respect you. LAO-TZU

The only 'normal' people are the ones that you don't know very well. Joe Ancis

Beware Of Payday Loans

You’ve seen the commercials, and they seem too good to be true: secure a loan by the promise to repay it on your next payday. The Federal Citizen Information Center wants consumers to know the truth. If a person borrows $100 for two weeks (until payday), he or she will have to shell out $115 to repay the loan. Crunch the numbers and you’ll find that’s an annual percentage rate of 390%! The center advises avoiding payday loans by considering the alternatives: asking for more time to pay a bill, seeking a small loan from a bank, or using a cash advance on a credit card. Payday loans have been declared illegal in 19 states.

– Adapted from the FCIC website

News Letter Archive August 2006

See An Interesting Home?

No need to wonder about the price. No need to call a high-pressure sales agent who will just make you feel obligated. My computers can send you the information quickly and easily, for any house, listed or sold, anywhere in town. Just ask me! It’s all part of my free, no-obligation HomeFinder Service. Leave the address on my voicemail, anytime, 24 hours a day, and I’ll fax or mail you all the information on that listing within 24 hours.

If you see something you like please call: 720 289 2115

Follow the link in this form to:

Top Priority Information Form Print, fill out the information form and fax or mail the form to:

Top Priority Realty 11744 Melody Drive Northglenn, Co. 80234

TOP
Priority Realty, LLC
and Associates

Tom Hoffman
Broker/Owner
Email: tomhoffman@live.com
Contact:
Office: 720 540 7800
Cell: 720 289 2115
Fax: 720 540 7876

For Auctions Call
Toll Free 1 (800) 211-1481
Extension 262

If you are looking to buy Real Estate in Colorado register with our office: Information Form

*** Visit the "Auction Calendar" to view upcoming auctions.*** 

Tom Hoffman and his associates are the leading professional, residential auction firm in Northern Colorado, providing innovative, effective and efficient sales solutions to his clients, since 1985.

During this time, Tom Hoffman has provided services for leading financial institutions, corporations, local, state and federal governments, estates and private individuals, with consistent success and remains committed to his clients success.