Recent Discussions

<div style="padding-top: 7px; padding-right: 7px; padding-bottom: 7px; padding-left: 7px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); font: normal normal normal 13px/1.22 arial, helvetica, clean, sans-serif;"> <div class="post-body entry-content yui-wk-div" style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0.75em; margin-left: 0px; line-height: 1.6em;"> <p> <span><font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">Many people may not know it, but indoor air pollution is actually worse than outdoor air pollution, in fact 2 to 10 times as worse depending on the materials in your home. There are many materials in your home that can omit Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC&#39;s) into the air that you are breathing. VOC&#39;s include a variety of chemicals, some of which have long term adverse health effects, including liver, kidney and central nervous system damage and cancer, according to the EPA.</font></span> </p> <p> <span><font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">Here is a list of some of the indoor air pollutants that were a concern to me when I was pregnant and how you can help to avoid adding more of them into your home, especially if you are having a baby, have small children in your home or if you have anyone living in your home with asthma or chemical sensitivities.</font></span> </p> <div id="bxAb5444930042581130388" class="yui-wk-div"> <font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);"><br /> Paint: You don&#39;t just have to be worried about old lead paint, you also need to be worried about the brand new fresh paint you are putting on your walls. Paint, paint strippers, varnish removers and floor stains all emit</font> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2"><font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">VOC</font></span><font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">&#39;s into the air. What most people don&#39;t realize is that these chemicals don&#39;t go away once the paint has dried or once it stops smelling, these chemicals are in the air that you breathe long after the smell is gone, in fact, for at least two years.<br /> <br /> What I would do: Buy non-</font><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3"><font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">VOC</font></span> <font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">paint. It is not as expensive as it used to be! As co-owner of a construction company, I shop construction materials quite a bit. The best deal that I have found in my area is the <a href="http://www.sherwin-williams.com/do_it_yourself/sherwin_williams_products/green/">Sherwin Williams Harmony line of paint</a>. I do get a contractor&#39;s discount but I think it is somewhere around $40/gallon retail. It is great quality, low/no smell and non-</font><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4"><font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">VOC</font></span><font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">! Sherwin Williams can also match any color so just bring in a sample or chip of the paint color you want matched, I&#39;</font><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5"><font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">ve</font></span> <font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">even had them match the color of a floor sample I liked. They will match it on the spot and you should be out of the store within 20 minutes... if there&#39;s not a line!<br /> <br /> New Flooring: Whether it&#39;s new carpet, wood floors or even linoleum flooring, you want to be careful of what you are putting into your home. Most traditional flooring materials off-gas</font> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6"><font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">VOC</font></span><font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">&#39;s, so make sure you buy green.<br /> <br /> What I would do: Some of my favorite products are</font> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7"><font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">Marmoleum</font></span> <font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">flooring, a linoleum type floor (but far from the ugly</font> <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8"><font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">linoleum</font></span> <font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">from your childhood you are imagining in your head right now). It is produced from renewable materials such as linseed oil, rosins, wood flour and jute. My personal favorite color is Caribbean although there are tons of colors to choose from. You can <a href="http://www.forboflooringna.com/Default.aspx?MenuId=3">visit</a></font><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9"><a href="http://www.forboflooringna.com/Default.aspx?MenuId=3"><font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">Forbo</font></a></span> <font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">to check out all of the colors. Wood flooring is a bit more complex because there are so many different options and considerations you need to be aware of. For example, is the wood FSC Certified (it came from a Forest Stewardship Council Certified Forest which helps protect old growth forests from being clear cut), were the floors shipped in from China? For the most part, carpets are not a good idea when going green because of the amount of dirt they collect as well as the VOC&#39;s that they off-gass (that new carpet smell... it&#39;s not good for you!) There are natural carpet options as well as other materials such as cork flooring.</font> <font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">When it comes to flooring, or green building materials in general, feel free to contact me for a ton of resources in the Bay Area for sustainable options.<br /> <br /> Household Cleaning Supplies: Many people are often surprised when I tell them that many of the household chemicals they think are good and keep their house clean are actually horrible for your health, bleach being one of the biggest offenders. In fact, the company</font> <a href="http://www.seventhgeneration.com/"><font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">Seventh Generation</font></a><font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">, which is the leading and fastest growing company for natural home products, was founded after the owner&#39;s son was hospitalized for an asthma attack at the age of 10 and his doctor confirmed that the asthma was caused 100% by environmental factors.<br /> <br /> What I would do: I would remove all of these chemicals and start replacing them with natural ones, especially bleach. There is currently a Clorox commercial where they show parents how to wash their infant&#39;s toys in diluted Clorox to make them safe! It makes me sick just watching it. If you love your bleach try</font> <a style="color: rgb(85, 136, 170); text-decoration: none; cursor: text !important;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Seventh-Generation-Laundry-Bleach-Non-Chlorine/dp/B000OSAW06/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;s=home-garden&amp;qid=1244188683&amp;sr=1-1"><font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">Seventh Generation Non-Chlorine Bleach</font></a><font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">. Bounce and other dryer towels have formaldehyde in them; try Trader Joe&#39;s lavender bags or</font><a style="color: rgb(85, 136, 170); text-decoration: none; cursor: text !important;" href="http://www.amazon.com/7TH-GEN-FABRIC-SFNR-SHTS-FR/dp/B001SB6A68/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;s=home-garden&amp;qid=1244187745&amp;sr=1-1"><font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">Seventh Generation Dryer Sheets with no formaldehyde</font></a><font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">. My favorite every day household cleaners are made by a company called <a href="http://www.methodhome.com/">Method</a>. My favorite scent is cucumber and my second favorite is pink grapefruit.<br /> <br /> Furniture: If you are having a baby and you are planning on having your baby sleep in a crib, think twice before you buy a conventional mattress for your baby, they are covered in very toxic flame retardants as well as vinyl covered ones have PVC. PVC is a proven neurotoxin. If you&#39;re interested in learning more about PVC let me know. Unfortunately I wish the answer was as easy as telling you to buy an organic mattress but it&#39;s not.</font> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10"><a href="http://www.treehugger.com"><font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">Treehugger</font></a></span><a href="http://www.treehugger.com"><font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">.com</font></a> <font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">has been a great resource to me for years and a very trustworthy source of information.</font> R<font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">ead their article here on <a href="http://www.treehugger.com/files/2009/01/the-truth-about-mattresses.php">the truth behind mattresses</a>. Another option besides buying a new mattress is to buy a used one, which has already off-gassed most of its chemicals so it is less toxic. People always think I&#39;m crazy when I tell them I&#39;d take a used mattress any day over a new one. You may think that sounds gross, but not as gross as breathing in flame retardants all night.<br /> <br /> In addition to changing out the products you are currently using and being aware of the products you are putting into your home, you can also use plants to detoxify the air in your home. <a href="http://www.eartheasy.com/blog/2009/05/the-top-10-plants-for-removing-indoor-toxins/">Here is an</a></font><a href="http://www.eartheasy.com/blog/2009/05/the-top-10-plants-for-removing-indoor-toxins/"><font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">article from</font></a><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11"><a href="http://www.eartheasy.com/blog/2009/05/the-top-10-plants-for-removing-indoor-toxins/"><font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">eartheasy</font></a></span><a href="http://www.eartheasy.com/blog/2009/05/the-top-10-plants-for-removing-indoor-toxins/"><font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">.com</font></a> <font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">in which they very clearly and concisely explain a study done by NASA a few years back in which they reported the top 10 plants for removing indoor toxins.<br /> <br /> There are many other things that you can do to make your home as healthy as possible. If you have any questions on things that you are worried about or products you want more information on, or suggestions on green alternatives, just e-mail me any questions you may have and I will get answers if I don&#39;t already know them.</font><br /> <div class="yui-wk-div"> </div> <div class="yui-wk-div"> </div> <div id="bxAb5444930042581130388" class="yui-wk-div"> <font style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">Kate McCaffrey | Realtor | Certified Green Building Professional | Co-owner of McCaffrey Custom Construction, Inc.</font> </div> <div class="yui-wk-div"> <span><span style="color: rgb(45, 45, 45);">Info@HomesOfAlameda.com | 510.522.5223 |<a target="_blank" title="Homes Of Alameda" style="color: blue !important; text-decoration: underline !important; cursor: text !important;" href="http://www.homesofalameda.com/">www.HomesOfAlameda.com</a></span></span> </div> </div> </div> </div>

<p> Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!!! </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> My dear experts, </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> There are so many types of phones, that I am getting dizzy searching a new one for me :) </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> Can someone advice me a phone to buy that will work more for a real estate agent? </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> <o:p> </o:p>Thank you! </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> Sincerely, </p> <p class="MsoNormal"> Anastasia <span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span> </p>

<p>Seemed like this wasthe first&nbsp;part of the e pro class. Is this the start?</p>

<p>Can anyone tell me about their experience with z57</p>

<p> I am trying to create a feedback form. The one that I created with FrontPage was unprotected from spam feedback. It was my understanding that ASP.NET forms have validation controls that deal with that problem. But I have created a test form that views properly in Design View but after I save and then look at the page in a browser I can not view the page. Why isn&#39;t the ASP.NET runtime environment rendering the code as an HTML? </p>

<p>Dear expert,</p> <p>I want to know about the housing price in the USA. Please introduce the the situation about the real estate . thanks</p>

<p> Something has changed my outlook. Until a couple months ago when I closed an unfinished/unaddressed post it went to Drafts folder. Now they go to the Sent Items folder. How can I change so they go to Drafts again? </p>

<p> Is anyone using this yet. I was able to download it today after several attempts last week. This a great step forward! </p>

<p> Hello and welcome to our NEW group here at RealTown! Do you manage your real estate business from your virtual office? That can be your home office or your on-the-go office that is WHEREVER you travel! </p> <p> Thanks for joining. Make yourself at home here. </p>

<p>How do I participate in a discussion or blog. I just started this course and finished module 1. but I come to real town and find that i see alot of post but I do not know how to participate with these groups or blogs or communities</p> <p>&nbsp;</p>

<p> Here&#39;s a new one on me ... .someone was asking my advice (all of a sudden I&#39;ve become the expert right :) _ anyway - before the question was even out another agent comes over and is so adamant about her answer - the question: </p> <p> The listing agent of the SS is telling the selling agent to get the inspectiond one and get her financial application done because &quot;if&quot; approved they&#39;ll want to close in a week &lt;&lt;&lt; I was going to tell the agent - wait until approval if that happens because so many things can happen - and this other agent was like all the short sales I&#39;ve worked req&#39;d that we close in less than a week after approval? is this common??? I never heard of such a thing??? </p> <p> Thanks- </p>

<p> Hello: </p> <p> I&#39;m debating between using Point2 or alamode to host my website. Any thoughts or suggestions? By the way, Point 2 is $600 a year, Alamode is $500. I like the looks of Alamode, has anyone tried this company? </p> <p> Thanks for your time! </p>

<p>I have a friend that wants to short sale his home in Gilbert Arizona.</p> <p>Where do I post on this site to locate someone?</p> <p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>holiday cards</p>

<p> Looking for Free Video Editing Download for XP. I&#39;m using IMovie on my Mac at home, but need something PC-based for the office. Any recommendations? </p>