Take this Presidents Quiz!

All right, February is here and to celebrate, I've decided to host the First Annual Real Estate Group President's Day Quiz. Anyone that completes the quiz with a score or 50% or higher will be entered into a drawing for $1,000,000 cash and various food prizes from McDonalds! Scores will be reported using the honor system - just email your grade to Andrew@AndrewSmithTeam.com Really? No, Not Really! But it is a good test to see how well you know the former Presidents of the United States. Enjoy!

1) Who’s 6,000 book library became the basis of the Library of Congress?
2) Who was the only president elected unanimously?
3) Who was the first President to live in the White House?
4) Who was the only president to be elected to two nonconsecutive terms?
5) Who took reporters' questions with his helicopter roaring in the background to avoid the press?
6) Who was the first president to appear on television?
7) Who was the only president to appoint their brother to a cabinet post?
8) Who was the first president to hold a press conference?
9) Who was responsible for putting 'under God' into the Pledge of Allegiance?
10) Who was the only President to take the Oath of Office on an airplane?

OK, before I spill the beans and enlighten you on the correct answers to these questions - I will now take a brief moment to plug my business - ;) If you've got a home to sell give me a call at (979) 777-7677 or email me at Andrew@AndrewSmithTeam.com I Guarantee to Sell Your Home in 90 Days or will Pay You $1000 at Closing! (some stipulations do apply). I also offer a Cancellation Guarantee that enables you to cancel your listing if for any reason you are ever unsatisfied - which you won't be! but it is there just for your peace of mind) ;)

Drum roll....

All right here are the answers to this year's First Annual Real Estate Group President's Day Quiz.

1) Thomas Jefferson
2) George Washington
3) John Adams
4) Grover Cleveland
5) Ronald Reagan
6) Franklin D. Roosevelt
7) John F. Kennedy
8) Woodrow Wilson
9) Dwight D. Eisenhower
10) Lyndon B. Johnson

May you and yours have a Fantastic February! A wonderful Valentine's Day and of course a Extra Special President's Day!

Don't forget to answer my February Trivia Question and earn a chance to score to free movie tickets! Visit www.AndrewSmithTeam.com and click on the starburst in the top right corner of the home page!

Coffee - Nature's Wonder Drug?

How would you like to lower your risk of diabetes, Parkinson's disease, and even colon cancer? The secret maybe right in front of you, even in your own kitchen.
I’ll bet you didn’t know that drinking six or more cups of coffee each day could possibly reduce diabetes risk by 54% in men and 30% of women according to a recent Harvard research study.

We’ve all got our own stereotypical images in the back of our minds of a co-worker or colleague that is strung out on caffeine; the hyperactive, restless, jumpy bundle of nervous energy who can’t even sit still for a second.

Side effects such as feeling restless, irritable, trembling hands and cause rapid heartbeat.. In extreme cases, it can create severe insomnia. Coffee may also raise cholesterol levels in some people and may contribute to artery clogging.

The word "coffee" comes from Kaffa, a region in Ethiopia where coffee beans may have been discovered. More than 500 billion cups of coffee are served worldwide each year and more than half of all Americans over the age of 18 (107 million people) drink coffee daily. On average, U.S. coffee drinkers consume three and a half cups each day.

An eight ounce cup of drip-brewed coffee contains about 85 mg -- about three and a half times more than the same serving of tea or cola or one ounce of chocolate.

According to one American study, coffee drinkers who have a daily intake of four or more cups have a lower incidence of Parkinson's disease. Some suggest it may even help prevent Alzheimer's disease too. The theory is that the stimulative effect coffee has on brain cells increases the brain's intake of the chemical choline, which is depleted in those suffering with the cognitive dysfunction.

According to a new study from the University of California at San Diego, coffee reduces diabetes risk among pre-diabetics by over 60%.

At least six studies indicate that people who drink coffee on a regular basis are up to 80% less likely to develop Parkinson's, with three showing the more they drink, the lower the risk. Other research shows that compared to not drinking coffee, at least two cups daily can translate to a 25% reduced risk of colon cancer, an 80% drop in liver cirrhosis risk. Medical researchers associate positive health benefits to moderate coffee consumption, including improved mood and the prevention of gallstone and kidney stone formation.
There's also some evidence that coffee may help manage asthma and even control attacks when medication is unavailable.

When tired, caffeine can help you sharpen some complex mental skills like manipulating numbers or recognizing words.

It can also lower your risk of cavities, and even help treat headaches. Caffeine helps cure headaches and is a key ingredient in headache pills because it increases the power of aspirin on the body.

"Overall, the research shows that coffee is far more healthful than it is harmful," says Tomas DePaulis, PhD, research scientist at Vanderbilt University's Institute for Coffee Studies, which conducts its own medical research and tracks coffee studies from around the world. "For most people, very little bad comes from drinking it, but a lot of good."

Caffeine makes java a powerful aid in enhancing athletic endurance and performance, says physiologist and longtime coffee researcher, Terry Graham, PhD, of the University of Guelph in Canada.

So powerful, in fact, that until recently, caffeine in coffee or other forms was deemed a "controlled" substance by the Olympic Games Committee, meaning that it could be consumed only in small, designated amounts by competing athletes.
As little as one cup can offer some benefit, but the real impact comes from at least two mugs, says Graham. By comparison, it'd take at least eight glasses of cola to get the same effect, which isn't exactly conducive for running a marathon.

So, once you've had your morning cup of Joe, and are ready to buy or sell a home - give me a call at (979) 777-7677 or shoot me an email at Andrew@AndrewSmithTeam.com or visit me online www.AndrewSmithTeam.com


source - http://www.webmd.com/content/Article/80/96454.htm?printing=true

Julia the All-Star

Julia (our oldest daughter) made her first basket tonight at her FIRST ever basketball game. Actually, she made two!

She truly embodies Wayne Gretzky's famous quote, "You miss 100% of the shots you never take". Well, in this case the ones she didn't take weren't the only ones she missed. ;) She shot a blistering 7% (no, not a typo) she really only shot about 7% from the field, ;) but she was the team leader on the floor and I'm very proud of her.

She was incredible, she is the defination of a true leader. On several occasions she shoved...and I mean "shoved" her teammates into position (not meanly), but hard enough to let them know they were not in the right spot defensively.

Julia is an 18 year old stuffed into a 7 year old body. She's always been mature for her age, and she excels at just about everything she does. She's a dancer, a reader, tennis player (or was until I pushed her a little to hard), a Spanish speaker - she's in the dual language program at school, a great speller, fashion expert (Lisa now asks Julia if things go together) ;) and now a basketball player.

She's a real life "King Midas" - every thing she does turns to gold. She meshes well with both younger and older people. Fits in everywhere and is generally the center of attention.

Most recently, she' learned to drag every state into it's proper place on a map of the United States (and I'm not talking about a jigsaw puzzle) - she can actually drag the name of each state into the correct place without an outline and she completed it in 320 seconds. Give it a try yourself, it's much harder than it sounds - Geography Games Pick Level 6 under the States column to see for yourself how challenging it really is. We've got even more fun and challenging games that you can play at www.BryanCollegeStationInfo.com in the Entertainment Forum.

Now she's even got her own blog - Julia Smith Check it out and be sure to leave a comment!

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# 6 Aggies vs. Texas Tech

A&M vs. TT - Wednesday 1/24/07 - 7:00 PM (CST even though as far away as Lubbock is, it seems like Tech should be in a different time zone) at United Spirit Center. No TV :(

The Aggies are hot, moving up to number 6 in the polls and tying their highest men's basketball ranking ever. Tonight is a true test. A road game in Lubbock vs the 14-5 Red Raiders.

All right, I'm not a Tech fan by any means. Although my sister actually went to Tech in the early 90's, I don't know if I've seen a less classy fan base anywhere. Texas Tech fans make Oakland Raider fans look like Cub Scouts.

From their high flying tortillias to their dorms which actually have "Drug Free" floors Seriously, if they have "drug free" floors what does that make the other floors?

You may remember in the 90's when Tech fans threw red punch all over our football team as they were coming onto the field. Or when Tech fans got into an actual fight with the Aggie basketball team after a game in Lubbock in the early 90's.

On campus, they even have a statue of Will Rogers riding a horse in which the rear of the horse intentionally faces Aggieland.

One thing that I truely do love about Tech is that the Masked Rider looks exactly like the Hamburglar from Micky D's.

I went to a football game at Jones Staduim in 1994. My brother, myself and a couple of friends and my had one of the best times just laughing at their outrageous traditions and the Tech band. The game started with the Lone Ranger making a guest appearance (apparently that's their mascot) and Tech fans tossing tortillas around like frisbees.

Next was the truely fun part, I don't know if you've ever seen "The Puffy Shirt" episode of Seinfeld, but we had a field day heckeling the fans around us with this one. It had to just have been release a week or two before because it was fresh on our minds. The Texas Tech band marched out onto the field to our "Avast, Ye Matey!" and "Arrrrr!" yells.

If you haven't seen "The Puffy Shirt" episode, it's a must see! You'll think about the Tech band the next time you see it.

To borrow a line from one of the Dixie Girls, "I'm embarassed they're from Texas".

Gig'em!

Game Predicitions? Make yours here...
http://www.bryancollegestationinfo.com/showthread.php?p=333#post333

View all B/CS Homes for sale at www.AndrewSmithTeam.com

ZEBRA Meat!

What the heck is ZEBRA meat? "Zebra Meat" as defined by Webster's as anything that a parent (OK, maybe...myself) attempts to place a "curiousity label" on to an "unwelcomed food" item to an unknowing individual (let's just say for illustrative purposes only ;) a five-year old child...OK...cough...my child, Alyssa...cough,cough...).

I don't exactly remember all the details, but I do remember, it was a dark and stormy night, all right maybe not stormy, and yeah, it was in the summer, so maybe it wasn't even dark, but this I do remember. We grilled chicken on the grill (fajita chicken) and Alyssa (our second child (out of four)...stop laughing right there! YES, We HAVE a TV in the Bedroom!!) :)

Anyway, Alyssa decided that the food I worked hard to prepare (OK, maybe I bought it at HEB) wasn't worth eating. Alyssa, who actually has a "Sixth-Sense" and can actually TASTE food based on the way it LOOKS, decided right then and there that she was not going to eat the chicken that I had prepared because of the charcoal lines/stripes that the grill produced.



Alyssa also has a 'Seventh-Sense" that recognizes "rhetorical questions" better than anyone else in the world (including myself). Honestly, I'll ask her a legitimate question and if she doesn't feel like answering it (than gosh-darnit it's a rhetorical question). It's quite frustrating at times! "Alyssa, did you spill this milk on the ground?' She just walks away... and mumbles...never really answering my question. :(

I'll never forget it, it was at that moment that it hit me. It was like a great flash of brillance, like you'd see in the movies. I was just about to pack up her things and send her on her way (yeah, I know she's only five) but I was tired of it. All she wants to eat is chicken nuggets and candy. Anyway, a stroke of genius hit me like a ton of bricks.

However, you need to know this first...Alyssa is known as the "Animal Angel" in our family. My parents dubbed her that after she spent a couple of days with them (God bless them!) ;) She is fascinated with animals, watches Zaboomafoo (a kids' "Wild Kingdom" show) and tries to pet and smother every living creature.

Back to my epiphany...I fooled her and although I probably shouldn't be proud of this moment (secretly, I am - OK maybe not secretly, since I'm sharing it with over "8 billion internet friends") but Alyssa can't read, and what she can't read, well, it will only make her stronger - isn't that how the saying goes? She was complaining about the stripes on the chicken and how she wasn't going to eat it, when I dug down deep (into her biggest weakness) and said "You're not going to have any of this ZEBRA meat?" acting quite astonished and convincing.

She bit! She wanted to try the zebra meat. WOO HOO! I finally hooked the big one. You see Alyssa is not your typical child. Alyssa is not scared of punishment, and she is not motivated by rewards (treats). Disciplining her has been one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. I still claim that she's the only child I can't beat (no, not "beat" literally). What I mean is that I've figured the boy (Hunter) out and Julia (our oldest) out, but I've never been able to figure out Alyssa and how to motivate (or better yet, manipulate her).

Alyssa, is our "special child". You see, Alyssa has "Selective Amnesia". Alyssa can't ever remember doing anything wrong...EVER! Yeah, she can recall the name of the cat she pet back in 2002, but she can't remember who knocked the lamp over - 20 minutes ago! She's got "Bill Clinton disease" and just "can't recall" her mistakes.

She's also very in-tune with her rights. As a five-year old, she knows more about the fifth-amendment than both Lisa and I do together.

Back to my story, it was a true stroke of genius on my part, (and since I don't have them too often - I'm having to brag about it here), using her ONE weakness (animals) against her. Her curiousity of knowing what a zebra tastes like (for those of you that don't know, it tastes a whole lot like marinated chicken fajita meat). ;)

Hope you enjoyed it! - Leave a comment & tell a friend!!

Get a FREE, Quick, Over-the-Net Market Analysis of Your Home - by simply going to www.AndrewSmithTeam.com and fill out the brief form and I'll email you a free, no obligation, market analysis of what you're home might sell for! Find out Today!

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Gig'em Ags! BTH outta OSU!

I Don't Want to Take it Anymore!

OK! So, I'm flipping through the 456 stations on DirecTV hoping to find something interesting - especially since there is no Rockets game tonight...

Instead, I find some chump trying to sell me the latest, greatest, newest piece of athletic equipment that "I can fit in the corner of any room in my home", obviously, so when I QUIT using it after the initial two-week period (one week past the initial money back guarantee trial period) then I'll have a place to store it.

Now, if that wasn't tempting enough...they also offer a no-money-down payment plan, where you can finance the entire $35,000 slightly-modified treadmill machine, over the next 240 years for payments of only $39.99.

It reminds me of the first time I went to a Rockets game without my parents. A group of four guys (including myself) decided to go to a Rockets game at the Summit in 1985-86. I was naive. I just didn't realize a carton of (pre-popped) popcorn cost $12.50 (even back then)! I was just excited to be there.

I remember standing in the concession line. For some reason the items I was planning on purchasing were hidden from the view of the checkout lady. She asked me what I was buying, I promptly told her "a popcorn and coke" - she quickly replied that my total was $17.50. I held up my 3 1/2 oz. Coke (mostly filled with ice anyway) to display the size (of both my 12 kernel popcorn and 3 1/2 oz. drink) and said "No, this size popcorn" thinking that maybe she had misheard me and thought I had said "Popcorn & Cokes for the whole frickin' Arena is on me tonight". She quickly replied, "That'll be...$17.50."

Ouch! I was speachless! Actually, I wasn't...although, I was only 15 at the time, being the smart-alec I was, I quickly asked her if I "could put that on my Visa card?" Un-amused, she said "No!" I then asked her if I could take out a second mortgage on my house and bring my payment by later. Again, she was un-amused. I finally paid her the $11,000 cash that was due for the popcorn and coke that I had ordered.

In addition to being a "Rockets Freak", I'm also a "Parrothead". What is a "Parrothead?" A "Parrothead" is defined as anyone that enjoys Jimmy Buffett music.

A few (OK...maybe many) years ago, Jimmy Buffett released an album called "Fruitcakes". In the title track, Jimmy sings (or shouts) "Take for example when you go to the movies these days, you know. They try to sell you this jumbo drink...8-extra ounces of watered-down Cherry Coke for an extra 25 cents. I don't want it. I don't want that much organization in my life. I don't want other people thinking for me. I want my Junior Mints! Where did the Junior Mints go in the movies? I don't want a 12-pound Nestle's Crunch for $25.00. I want Junior Mints! We need more fruitcakes in this world and less bakers! We need people that care! I'm mad as hell and I don't want to take it anymore!"

I really identify with this song. I'm so sick and tired of every one trying to tap me for another 30-50 bucks each and every month!

In my business, technology is crucial. Not having a state-of-the-art website, can be the difference between whether or not you make it in this business. According to the National Association of Realtors, over 75% of all people that bought a home last year did at least some sort of their search via the internet.

It's crucial that I have a strong presence on the internet. It's also important that I advertise in the local newspaper, on TV, the radio, on the shopping carts at the local grocery store and in the bathroom at my Kindergartner's school...Seriously, where does it end?

I love marketing! It's a passion of mine. It's fun, exciting, and I enjoy the challenge of finding better ways to "out-do" my competition but recently I've been struggling with everyone, everwhere...(borrrowing a line from Alanis Moresette) trying to stick a "hand in my pocket".

Everything I do there is someone, somewhere with a better product, service or idea that they want to charge me $25, $30 or $50 a month to "make my life easier". Is it worth it? In some cases yes, but in most "no."

I don't know who first invented the "upsell", but in my opinion they are a genius. I don't have many opportunities in my business to ask "would you like a condo with your house?" but seriously, whoever first came up with the idea was a marketing genius. However, it has gotten to the point that I am starting more and more each and every day thinking maybe I can live without some of these products.

Today I cancelled two call-forward numbers that were costing me over $40 a month. IT FELT GOOD! It felt nice to say "See Ya!" to Verizon and the $40 they charge me each month for simply moving to a more desireable location. I support local businesses and hope they do well. However, there is a fine-line between earning an honest living and taking advantage of someone. I moved office locations about a year ago, when we needed more space. It was quite costly, and I understand that part of that is the cost of doing business. However, I also don't agree with many of the "because that is our company policy" rules made by corporate monopolies.

It's just not right. It's not acceptable that I pay $25 for my family to go to the movies and then have to buy their concessions...at an over-inflated 5000% mark-up.

That's why we sneak our own candy into the movies. It's not that I'm cheap. I'd honestly prefer to buy their concessions, but not at the 5000% mark up. Come on... it's public knowledge that a fountain drink costs 5-10 cents (probably 2-3 cents when they fill it up with ice) but to charge $4.00 as does Cinemark (not to mention the $5.75 bucket of popcorn that probably cost them another 5-10 cents.)

I'm bombarded each and every day with hundreds of SPAM emails. Anything and eveything from "a new stock that has just been released that will quadruple your money in 24 hours" to pills that can help you "lose 35 lbs. in 23 minutes" or "grow your manhood 3 x bigger in just a few weeks."

Enough of my rave. I'll see you at the movies (matinee of course)! I'll bring the candy, you bring the soda. ;)



P.S. Don't forget the Junior Mints!

Bryan-College Station Housing Market Statistics 2006

Click here to see the 2006 end of year B/CS housing market statistics!

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