Pasadena Real Estate

Disneyland is giving the best present of all - a free Disney ticket to the happiest place on earth.  The only condition is that you have to visit Disneyland on your birthday.  Why not?  What a fun way to spend your birthday!  So visit the Free Disney Ticket site here.

I found the Disney information on a great new website - new to me, but has been around for awhile.  It's called Fitness for Busy Moms and is run by my Altadena neighbor, personal fitness trainer - Stephen Cooper.  Stephen offers great exercise and relaxation tips that are quick to read and easy to incorporate into our schedule.  Check Fitness For Busy Moms website out.  You'll be glad you did.

What websites are you reading?  Share them here.  I'd love to hear about them - spread the love!

Google Maps just introduced the most amazing new feature called Street View. Here's a quick and funny video giving you a taste of what Street View is all about.

Now that you have a feel about what Street View can do, let's take a look at some serious applications of this tool. Let's say you wanted to get a feel for what Pasadena's South Lake Avenue District looks like. Take a look at this street view of the South Lake Avenue District in Pasadena that I just created. Place the curser in the middle of the map and drag it to the right and to the left to move the photo around.

View Larger Map

Can you imagine, you can go to www.maps.google.com , type in any address or destination, click on the Street View link on the top of the map and actually see the location. Imagine the possibilities as you are searching for your new Pasadena home or trying to get an idea of what a Pasadena neighborhood is like. It is definitely an amazing feature. Play with it and let me know how you like it!

Posted by Irina Netchaev, Pasadena Real Estate Agent

I woke up to a beautiful rainbow right over my home in San Marino.  What a way to start a Monday... Enjoy!

Here's a story to honor all dads - and all the men who inspire us.

There was a skinny young boy who loved football with all his heart.  Practice after practice, he eagerly gave everything he had; but being half the size of the others, he rarely got into the games.  In spite of that, his father was always in the stands cheering.

After high school, he made the college team as a "walk-on."  The coach admitted that he put the boy on the roster because he always put lots of heart and soul into every practice, energizing the other members with the spirit and hustle they badly needed.

His father shared his excitement and got season tickets for all the college games.  As before, the young athlete never missed practice during his four years at college, but he never got to play in a game.  At the end of his senior football season, as he trotted onto the practice field shortly before the big playoff game, he was handed a telegram.

After reading it, he mumbled to the coach, "My father died this morning.  Is it all right if I miss practice today?"  The coach gently put his arm around his shoulder and said, "Take the rest of the week off, son.  And don't try to come back for the game on Saturday."

Saturday arrived, and the team was behind by 10 points in the third quarter.  They were surprised to see the young man appear on the sidelines, dressed in his football gear.  He ran to the coach and begged to be put into the game.  After delaying as long as possible, the coach finally said, "All right.  Go on in."

He did everything right - ran, blocked, and tackled like a star.  His team began to triumph, and, in the closing seconds, he intercepted a pass and scored the winning touchdown.

The fans went wild, and his teammates hoisted the boy onto their shoulders.  Later, after the stands had emptied and the team had showered and left the locker room, the coach saw the boy sitting alone in the corner.  "Son," said the coach, "you're amazing!  What got into you tonight?"

"Well," the boy answered, "did I ever tell you that my dad was blind?"  He swallowed and forced a smile.  "He never missed a game, but today was the first time he could see me play."

That kind of inspiration is always something to celebrate.

This is Sunday and Sundays are for fun and rest.  I thought I'd share with you some of the strangest and craziest California laws that I was reading recently. 

Most of these laws have been repealed - thank you!  But, believe it or not, some are still active on our books.

Without further ado, here we go:

• A city ordinance states that a $500 fine will be given to anyone who detonates a nuclear device within city limits.
• Alhambra: You cannot leave your car on the street overnight without the proper permit.
• Animals are banned from mating publicly within 1,500 feet of a tavern, school, or place of worship.
• A regulation in San Francisco makes it unlawful to use used underwear to wipe off cars in a car wash.
• Baldwin Park: Nobody is allowed to ride a bicycle in a swimming pool.
• Bathhouses are against the law.
• Blythe: You are not permitted to wear cowboy boots unless you already own at least two cows.
• Burlingame: It is illegal to spit, except on baseball diamonds; Caramel Ice cream may not be eaten while standing on the sidewalk; Women may not wear high heels while in the city limits.
• Giving or receiving oral sex is prohibited.
• Hollywood: It is illegal to drive more than two thousand sheep down Hollywood Boulevard at one time.
• In Los Angeles courts it is illegal to cry on the witness stand.
• In California it's against regulations to let phones ring more than nine times in state offices.
• In Los Angeles a man is legally entitled to beat his wife with a leather belt or strap, but the belt can't be wider than 2 inches, unless he has his wife's consent to beat her with a wider strap. Consent should be given prior to the event, as is carefully stipulated.
• In Los Angeles, you cannot bathe two babies in the same tub at the same time.
• In Riverside, California, kissing on the lips, unless both parties wipe their lips with carbonized rose water, is against the local health ordinance.
• In San Francisco it's illegal to play poker in public or gamble in a barricaded room.
• In Ventura County, California, cats and dogs are not allowed to have sex without a permit.
• It is a misdemeanor to shoot at any kind of game from a moving vehicle, unless the target is a whale.
• It is illegal for a secretary to be alone in a room with her boss.
• It is illegal to eat an orange in your bath tub
• It is illegal to pile horse manure more than six feet high on a street corner.
• Lodi: It is illegal to own or sell "Silly String".
• Lompoc: It is illegal to posses, own or raise roosters. This is considered disturbing the peace.
• Long Beach: Cars are the only item allowed in a garage; It is illegal to curse on a mini-golf course.
• Molesting butterflies can result in a $500 fine.
• No alcohol beverages can be displayed within five feet of a cash register of any store in California that sells both alcohol and motor fuel.
• No vehicle without a driver may exceed 60 miles per hour.
• Prunedale: Two bathtubs may not be installed in the same house.
• Riverside: One may not carry a lunch down the street between 11 and 1 o'clock.
• San Diego: It is illegal to shoot jackrabbits from the back of a streetcar; The owners of houses with Christmas lights on them past February second may be fined up to $250.
• San Francisco bans any "mechanical device that reproduces obscene language."
• San Jose: It is illegal to have more than two cats or dogs. -Ord. 7.08.595
• Santa Monica: You may not play percussion instruments on the beach.
• Sunshine is guaranteed to the masses.
• The city of San Francisco holds a copyright on the name "San Francisco." It is illegal to manufacture any item with the name without first getting permission from the city. Since the Supreme Court upheld the copyright, San Francisco has had an annual $300 million surplus every year.

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