Almost every Bryan/College Station resident would admit to driving past the abandoned Plaza Hotel occasionally in their weekly routine, if not daily. The seventeen story concrete shell stands at the intersection of Texas Avenue and University Drive, arguably the two busiest streets in the whole city. And after 6:30am on Thursday, May 24th 2012, this once pivotal structure will be reduced to nothing more than a pile of shattered concrete and useless rubble.

If you’ve driven through the city of College Station in the past few weeks, it’s likely that you’ve noticed the unusual vacancy of the Plaza Hotel. Not that you would be expected to notice a parking lot or diminished business: instead, it is the actual building itself which you would’ve noticed. The windows of various apartments and hotel rooms appear to almost open up to the sky behind the structure. I myself have viewed this spectacle on a few sunset evenings, when the sky behind the Plaza Hotel was painted with the various colors of sunset, the different tones of orange, pink, or Easter purple leaking through the hollowed frame of the seventeen story structure. It’s more than evident then, peering up through the cracks in the concrete frame, to understand how completely abandoned the Plaza Hotel had become. And to hear now that the building will be imploded this upcoming Thursday, you might not be entirely surprised.

But how did this pivotal structure, the hotel that has had such a powerful presence in the history of our growing city, come to such an abrupt end? In such instances as this, it is sometimes important to understand the buildings past in order to appreciate the present circumstances.

What we know today as the Plaza Hotel actually began as a Ramada Inn, the first foundations of which were laid in the late 1950s. Joe Ferreri, the constructor of the Ramada Inn, was approached in the 1950s by Earl Rudder of Texas A&M. Attracted to Ferreri’s success as a drive-inn restaurant owner, Rudder approached Joe with the proposition to construct a badly needed hotel on the Corner of Texas Avenue and University. After appearing hesitant about the project due to his lack of experience in the hotel industry, Rudder encouraged him forward, getting the young businessman to wonder how much different it could be than the food industry.

So Joe began to build. By 1960 the Ramada Inn opened, looking far different than the Plaza Hotel that we know today. The Ramada had been a quaint, two story Inn with an Olympic swimming pool, faculty club, banquet hall, and just over 150 rooms. But this quiet corner served as a focal point for the College Station and Texas A&M community.

The Ramada Inn had immediate success and was consistently pushed to over 90% of its overall capacity. In fact, the hotel had such great business that Ferreri was pressed to expand. In 1980 he began the construction of a new high-rise for his Hotel, and in just one year an additional seventeen story tower was built: making the shell of the structure that you see today.

But despite the initial success of Ferreri’s expanded hotel and the overall consistent business he was receiving from the community at large, only a few years after the construction of the Hotel’s new high-rise, Joe Ferreri was forced to sell the Ramada Inn. In the early 1980s there was a major economic recession, much like the most recent economic events of the late 21st Century. Rising interest rates on the debts incurred from Ferreri’s construction, along with the overall state of the economy and slowing business, forced Ferreri out of his prized construction. The result was a loss of over 32 million dollars in assets and personal funds. Ferreri was left only with his home, a single car, and his family.

Since then what began as the Ramada Inn has switched ownership several times, becoming most recently what it is known as today: the Plaza Hotel. And it would appear that a similar fate befell the success of the Plaza Hotel’s business, the inevitable slip to bankruptcy that caused the hotel to close its doors for the last time in 2010.

Unfortunately, the story does not end there. After the abandonment of the Plaza Hotel, the twelve acre site of prime real-estate has become a hot-spot for crime, vandalism, and drug use. Criminals have been simply unable to avoid the alluring pull of an abandoned, seventeen story shelter full of furniture, walls, and glass. Security has been gradually increasing over the past few months, but authorities have become hard-pressed for the funds to support the coverage of such a broad area when the use of civil authorities is generally looked for elsewhere. So what is the result? Demolition.

The demolition project has been delegated to the local Civil Engineering Company, Mitchell and Morgan. Veronica Morgan is the lead Civil Engineer in charge of the implosion, which is currently set to occur around 6:30am this Thursday, the 24th of May. The event will be free and open to the public. Veronica Morgan herself hopes the implosion “will be an event for the community.” Many are certainly looking forward to the removal of the towering Plaza Hotel, which has been described by as an ‘eyesore’ to the community at large.

While future construction in the Plaza Hotel area is still unclear (there has been speculation about student housing, shopping/eating centers, night clubs, etc.), it is obvious and in popular demand that the archaic, outdated shell of the 1960s Ramada Inn be destroyed and replaced with a more aesthetically appealing structure. While the overall value of the land has decreased 28.7% from 2008 to 2010, it is still located in a prime location with an excellent promise of prosperous business. The city allegedly has had multiple propositions processed over the past several months, and the entire community is excited to find out what the future will hold.

PS – Susan Hilton is Bryan College Station, Texas’ real estate specialist in foreclosure sales and real estate agent career building so if you need help – CALL! 979-219-3970

When kids were asked what they were going to do with the money they earned, some replied they were going to “spend it!” Others decided to give the money they raised to their church. The main point is that the children learned how to work for money and learned that they had the freedom to decide what they were going to do with the profit they earned. They were allowed to feel grown up and allowed a taste of the real world. This type of experience excites children and allows them the freedom to make decisions for themselves.

Sunday May 6 was Lemonade Day in 31 cities across America and Canada, including Bryan and College Station. When Lemonade Day first began, it included about 2,700 kids. Now, more than 120,000 kids across these 31 cities participate in the day. Lemonade Day was started as a program to give experience to children, teaching them entrepreneurship skills. Kids learn to plan, start, and operate a business through their experiences with Lemonade Day.

Kids were offered the chance to mark their lemonade stands on a map online that would be available to the community on Lemonade Day. The stand locations were given the opportunity to be published not only to the online map, but also to Facebook, Twitter, and via email.

The goal is to prepare children to be empowered future citizens. Upon registering, each child received a backpack that contained an Entrepreneur Workbook, teaching them 14 lessons that are a central part of Lemonade Day. They learned how to create budgets, how to set profit-making goals, how to serve customers, how to repay investors, and how to give back to the community. In addition to learning how to perform these skills, they also learned the value of the skills. The children are also taught how to set goals for themselves, how to problem solve, and how to gain self-esteem which will aid them in their future endeavors for success.

On Lemonade Day, children are allowed to keep all of the money that they make and are encouraged by adults to spend some of their money, save some of it, and share some of it with others less fortunate.

Lemonade Day teaches kids a very special and specific set of skills from financial literacy and economics, to college readiness and career, to life skills and personal development, and of course academics. The financial literacy and economics that the kids learn include subjects like capital equipment and consumables, supply and demand, credit, debt, gross and net income, marginal utility, return on investment and compound interest. To prepare kids for college, they are exposed to critical thinking and collaboration, interest in attending college, civic responsibility, customer service, teamwork and problem solving and presentation skills and design. Children also learn life skills and personal development such as leadership, the belief that attaining goals is within reach, personal productivity, self-direction and time management, social responsibility and charity, high order thinking and social skills and self confidence. The day also increases the kids’ academic capacities such as math calculations, reading and interpreting data, and oral and written communication.

Lemonade Day offers an online website for kids to register and sign up on. Lemonade Day sponsors and partners include many businesses and individuals in the area, including Dick and Linda Lester, Lenae Heubner, Atmos Energy, Double Dave’s Pizzaworks, James and Paula Lancaster, Research Valley, Len and Nancy Berry, Mathnasium, Caldwell Companies, AgniTEK, Wells Fargo, Research Valley Funds, Blue Baker, Documation, Copy Corner, Kroger, Ecolyse, Brazos Valley Small Business Development Center, College Station ISD, Bryan Broadcasting, The Eagle, Chamber of Commerce, Bryan ISD, Sideshow Creative, the City of College Station, KBTX Media, Brazos Monthly, KAMU, Mays Business School, AbouTown Press, KAGS, and the City of Bryan.

If you like to help out with and work with children, then you may want to consider becoming a volunteer for Lemonade Day. Volunteers are necessary to run Lemonade Day and are needed to stuff backpacks that are given out to the children to teach them entrepreneurship, spread the news about Lemonade Day by distributing materials to local schools and youth organizations, register youth to participate at special events going on in the community, and lastly you can help out by blogging, tweeting, or sharing information about Lemonade Day online or through Facebook!

PS – Susan Hilton is Bryan College Station, Texas’ real estate specialist in foreclosure sales and real estate agent career building so if you need help – CALL! 979-219-3970

You have seen them, dogs and their owners.  Dogs love the the sidewalks as they lead the way on their leashes.  Most dog walkers have real doggy bags on their leashes.  It is exciting to see and know that the sidewalks are clean of debris for everyone.  The sidewalks are wide enough for dogs and their owners can walk and still give way to other pedestrians.  If you have a beagle, like me, you know that having a wide sidewalk helps.  I promise, my beagle Riley-Puppy, does not lift his nose from the ground the whole time we are on a walk.   Sometimes I think he is hunting for a beagle that smells just like him.  He will always leads the way around the 2.25 mile sidewalk straight to our front door.
Kids love the sidewalks because it leads them straight to Forest Ridge in the morning.  It is thrilling to see all the parents that ride their bikes next to their kids every morning.   Kids need sidewalks to ride bikes.  Recently, I saw that the sidewalk was cleared of all the underbrush that was between the sidewalk, fence and Forest Ridge.  This way kids can be seen. Thank you, city of College Station and Castlegate HOA!

You may not know this, but the sidewalk changes in elevation more than you realize.  You do not notice the hills in the car, but when you are running your legs will not miss them. These sidewalks are so much better  than running on  graded street.  There is a half mile downhill, and you guessed it, a half mile uphill around the northeast sidewalk.   There are flats, curves, wooden bridges and lots of turn offs that lead to other streets in the neighborhood.  Read some of the shirts people are wearing while running.  You will see several people with running event shirts while training on these sidewalks.  5K, 10K, ½ marathons and marathons shirts are running past you all the time.

Hopefully, if you have not utilized the sidewalk in Castlegate, you will now.  Spring is among us so get out there and walk your dog, ask your kid if they want to be a bike rider today or go for a 10 K run.

Keep them clean and keep it classy.

Steve Santos “My REALTOR”

PS - I’m Steve Santos, I do what I say I will do, some times more just never less

These elegant events are held in Rudder on the Texas A&M University Campus and offer a place of amusement for visitors and locals alike. OPAS was initiated as a student organization with the intent of serving the community by offering a variety of performances and serving students by granting them the performing arts program they needed. Theatre productions, music and dance programs inform and entertain the audience, exposing them to a night of fine arts not found elsewhere in the Brazos Valley. This contributes to enhancing students’ appreciation of the arts and results in a much more cultured city.

OPAS is internationally known for its performances by Yo Yo Ma, Les Miserables, Rent, and the world premiere of the Bolshoi-Grigorovich Ballet (covered by The New York Times). Monty Python’s Spamalot, The Color Purple, Beauty and the Beast and Mama Mia! have been performed at OPAS in seasons past. This season is filled with many hits that are straight off of Broadway. There is no longer a need to drive to Houston or some other large city for a dressed-up show. The hits are brought straight to you here in Bryan, College Station, eliminating the necessity to take up an entire night with driving to and from a big city and spending too much on gas money.
OPAS programs are funded entirely by revenue generated from ticket sales and contributions, so low ticket prices are a priority to encourage as many community members as possible to attend. The organization’s focus is not to make a profit, they instead focus on bringing the community together through their shows and through other activities. They offer musicals for families to attend accompanied by ice cream socials catered by Blue Bell, a great opportunity to get the whole family together for a night of fun. Family night doesn’t have to be routine. Change it up and try visiting an OPAS performance after a family dinner.
OPAS serves a wide audience from children who come to see the OPAS JR performances such as Charlotte’s Web and ImaginOcean, to seasoned veterans who have been participants for almost 40 years. Different events are offered to appeal to these different audiences. The array of performances range from Broadway, to Main Stage, to Intimate Gatherings to OPAS JR. While OPAS does offer high culture events for the individual who enjoys a fancy night out, they also provide performances such as Jeff Corwin from the Animal Planet and the Spaghetti Western Orchestra. There truly is something offered for everyone.
The real value of the performances comes after the entertaining show. A post performance reception is offered for viewers who are interested in interacting with the performers and asking them about their hometown, asking how they were introduced to performing and learning about their life. This personal interaction is where memories are made and stories exchanged. Socializing with the artists after the performance is an uncommon opportunity that you won’t want to miss out on.
The 40th season of OPAS is about to open and announce their list of performances. Don’t miss out on this wonderful community experience!Bryan College Station is known for being a down-home Southern town with locals who are all about going out of their way to show hospitality. Home cooked meals, evenings spent out on the back porch, and walks through the green pastures are all part of this small town country life and evenings are often spent together with family around the house or in the back yard. But that doesn’t mean this community doesn’t enjoy getting dressed up for an evening out of performances by MSC OPAS (Opera and Performing Arts Society).

These elegant events are held in Rudder on the Texas A&M University Campus and offer a place of amusement for visitors and locals alike. OPAS was initiated as a student organization with the intent of serving the community by offering a variety of performances and serving students by granting them the performing arts program they needed. Theatre productions, music and dance programs inform and entertain the audience, exposing them to a night of fine arts not found elsewhere in the Brazos Valley. This contributes to enhancing students’ appreciation of the arts and results in a much more cultured city.

OPAS is internationally known for its performances by Yo Yo Ma, Les Miserables, Rent, and the world premiere of the Bolshoi-Grigorovich Ballet (covered by The New York Times). Monty Python’s Spamalot, The Color Purple, Beauty and the Beast and Mama Mia! have been performed at OPAS in seasons past. This season is filled with many hits that are straight off of Broadway. There is no longer a need to drive to Houston or some other large city for a dressed-up show. The hits are brought straight to you here in Bryan, College Station, eliminating the necessity to take up an entire night with driving to and from a big city and spending too much on gas money.
OPAS programs are funded entirely by revenue generated from ticket sales and contributions, so low ticket prices are a priority to encourage as many community members as possible to attend. The organization’s focus is not to make a profit, they instead focus on bringing the community together through their shows and through other activities. They offer musicals for families to attend accompanied by ice cream socials catered by Blue Bell, a great opportunity to get the whole family together for a night of fun. Family night doesn’t have to be routine. Change it up and try visiting an OPAS performance after a family dinner.
OPAS serves a wide audience from children who come to see the OPAS JR performances such as Charlotte’s Web and ImaginOcean, to seasoned veterans who have been participants for almost 40 years. Different events are offered to appeal to these different audiences. The array of performances range from Broadway, to Main Stage, to Intimate Gatherings to OPAS JR. While OPAS does offer high culture events for the individual who enjoys a fancy night out, they also provide performances such as Jeff Corwin from the Animal Planet and the Spaghetti Western Orchestra. There truly is something offered for everyone.
The real value of the performances comes after the entertaining show. A post performance reception is offered for viewers who are interested in interacting with the performers and asking them about their hometown, asking how they were introduced to performing and learning about their life. This personal interaction is where memories are made and stories exchanged. Socializing with the artists after the performance is an uncommon opportunity that you won’t want to miss out on.
The 40th season of OPAS is about to open and announce their list of performances. Don’t miss out on this wonderful community experience!

PS -  Susan Hilton is Bryan College Station,
Texas’ real estate specialist in foreclosure sales and real estate
agent career building so if you need help –
CALL!             979-219-3970

Was this you?????  Do you wish you had been paying attention during your knitting lessons?    This March, on the Texas A&M campus, TAMU students with the help of the Visual Arts Committee, the Brazos Valley Knitters Guild, The Hook and Needle, and Magda Sayeg, dressed the light poles on Military Walk in a printed rainbow knit. These tube socks that were knitted around the poles are part of a nation-wide craze known as Yarn Bombing.

Textile art has gradually made its way onto the contemporary art scene. This new form of art is said to serve as a ground where textile production is neither solely for the female nor the male. Despite gender, race and age, this art speaks beautifully and carries a presence unlike any other art form.

Over the past few years, yarn bombing has become more and more prevalent; beginning with urban areas and moving throughout the rest of the country. It is practiced regularly in a few major cities in areas including Canada, the United States, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand.  And though this form of art is catching on, it is still not very widely known. Other names for the practice include knit bombing, guerilla knitting, yarn storming, and urban knitting.

Trees, sculptures, statues, phone booths, gates, handles, poles and any other object of reasonable size is at risk of being bombed by this craze. There are even cans of spray yarn (similar to spray paint), used to graffiti walls.

Magda Sayeg was a guest lecturer on the Texas A&M campus this year and the founder of Yarn Bombing. Her work has grown to include the knit-covered bus in Mexico City, her first solo exhibit in Rome at La Museo des Esposizione, covering the AC ductwork of Etsy.com’s headquarters located in Brooklyn, and she is finishing an installation at the Williamsburg Bridge working with the NYC Department of Transportation.

She has worked with companies worldwide, including Absolut Vodka, Madewell, Insight 51, Mini Cooper, and Smart Car. She has also participated in art shows at Milan’s Triennale Design Museum, Le M.U.R. in Paris, and the National Gallery of Australia.

She has begun experimenting with new techniques and additions to her artwork, such as using lighting with her knitted material. She has joined forces with the integrated media company 1stAveMachine as a director. This position will push her to new varieties of experimentation and collaboration.

Are you wanting to learn how to knit? Checkout our own LOCAL YARN KNIT SHOP in Bryan College Station! Checkout The Hook and Needle!  If they can teach me to knit they can teach YOU!

PS -  Susan Hilton is Bryan College Station, Texas’ real estate specialist in foreclosure sales and real estate agent career building so if you need help – CALL!             979-219-3970

Creek Meadows is a neighborhood in South College Station

with the neighborhood itself.
If you live in Creek Meadows or have visited you might have seen a brown German Short Haired Pointer. He’s our neighbors’ dog “Gus”.   His owners have tried to keep him put up but he seems to escape anyway.  He’s almost 15 years old, his hearing is bad and sight isn’t so hot.   Gus can still catch field mice like no other.  Almost as if he is the built in pest control along our street.
With true country feeling the stars are beautiful and peaceful on a crisp clear night.  The coyotes howling at midnight are a common welcomed sound.  Another sound that I love is the slow rumble of the train it is almost therapeutic and reminds me of life outside the neighborhood.
Watching the homes being built, walking through new ones with new features is almost a past time for me and my husband.  We’ve been doing it since the beginning.  Every time I see someone looking at a home I want to yell out of my car window.  Buy it!  You will love living here!  But instead I give a friendly wave and smile.
Selling homes in this neighborhood has been so fun.  I get to meet my neighbors and help them find a home.  I did an open house at one of my listings a few weeks ago and a nice couple came in and told me about their “wave test”.  They drive in different neighborhoods in College Station and wave at random people to see if they would wave back.  They laughed as they said “we’ve waved at a lot of people today and Creek Meadows has been different, people wave back with smiles.   Children are outside playing.  It has a feeling of being welcome.”
Listing homes have been harder.   I’m selling my friends’ homes and I am sad to see them go.  I’ve met most my neighbors from block parties where we get together at the cul-de-sac.  Everyone brings food, chairs, children, dogs and we have a lot of fun.
I have just sold a home to a couple that lives in Houston.  They have both lived all over the world and the wife said “Creek Meadows is like the neighborhood I always pictured living in when I was young”.  Glad to have them as new neighbors.
With all neighborhoods there are the pros and the cons but Creek Meadows is where I have found my home.   If you are looking for a nice place to live where your neighbors wave and you meet new people come check out Creek Meadows, where people have pride in their homes and respect for other people.  I’m sure glad I did.

Jana Grieve

CENTURY 21 Beal, Inc.

PS – The strategic thinking and marketing that goes into selling a home and the excitement of finding the right one is the reason I love real estate.

This is the busiest time of the year in the real estate world, which is wonderful, but it also means that there is a ton of competition out there.  Many times I may show 10-20 homes in one day to one client, and sometimes they drive around and preview homes before we even go inside.  Many times a home gets passed up if the home doesn’t have great curb appeal.  It doesn’t  matter how adorable it is on the inside because my clients never make it inside.

When it comes time to list your home, you must separate yourself from your home and look at it as you were a buyer!  I have a few tips for you to make it a little easier for you!
Step 1…walk out on to the street and look at your home from the street level.  Look at it through the eyes of a buyer.  Is wooden garage door in dire need of new stain, is the paint chipping, how does the front door look?  Is the home warm and welcoming or does it look like it hasn’t been maintained in years?  If they think the outside is bad, they will assume that the inside is worse!  Paint is one of the easiest fixes.  Nothing makes a home look more inviting than freshly painted trim and doors,  newly stained shutters or garage door.

Step 2…look at the landscaping.  Is the grass green, are the hedges trimmed, is the lawn edged, and are there fresh flowers?  Nothing looks worse than a dead yard, over grown landscaping, or dead plants/flowers in the yard.  You can make the home look great with just a few minor adjustments.  Pull any weeds, trim the bushes, edge the yard, throw out some mulch, and grab a few new flowers for the flower beds.  You might even get some adorable pots and plant some flowers in them for the front entry!  You have no idea how different the same home can look with some easy landscaping touches.

Step 3…have an agent or an inspector look for things that might be potential problems in an inspection so you nip them in the bud before you ever have a buyer.  I am not saying that I am an inspector; however, I have been on enough inspections to know what things could show up on a report.  A few of these things are rotten wood, limbs touching the roof, broken window seals, and drainage issues.  Many of these things are easy fixes but can alarm potential buyers.  Have a realtor walk around and show you potential problems, or hire an inspector to do a pre-listing inspection to find anything that could be wrong with the home!  This may cost you a little money on the front end, but it could potentially save  a sale(and quite a bit of money) on the back end!!

Step 4…Look at the drive way and walkway.  Again, it’s all about first impressions.  If you have a low spot in your sidewalk that holds water, it can turn a little green and is just gross looking!  That is an easy fix with just a little bleach, and it makes a huge difference!  If the sidewalk or driveway is badly damaged, you might replace or repair it as this is the path that leads to your home!

Step 5…De-clutter and clean!  Wash all the windows inside and out, pick up any toys or old patio furniture that might be sitting in the front yard, and change all the light bulbs.  Make sure your walk way is clean and inviting, and even look at your home during the night to see how it appears at night.

The bottom line is that no matter how beautiful your home is inside, many may not have the chance to see that if they drive by and it looks as if someone may not even live there or doesn’t care!  The most important thing you can do is hire a professional to help you get your home ready to list and sell in the time you want for the money you want!

For this and other tips, give me, Farrah Spears, a call at 979-229-0919

What a fabulous morning in Central Park in College Station, Texas today. Easter Eggs were EVERYWHERE!

Century 21 Beal, Inc. Agents hosted the annual Easter Egg hunt today.  What fun we had.  We had over 2000 eggs with prizes, cookies, drinks, the Easter Bunny, photos and a drawing. We had such a great time.  Thank you all for coming and we’ll see you again next year.

Century 21 Beal, Inc.

979-764-2100

The City of College Station is ranked by The Business Journals as the brainiest city in Texas among those with populations between 50,000 and 100,000. Some 28 percent of College Station residents hold a bachelor’s degree and another 28.23 percent have a graduate or professional degree. A lot of this has to do with Texas A&M faculty as well as so many Aggies staying here after graduation!

The Business Journals ranked 483 mid-sized U.S. cities using 2009 U.S. Census Data. The rankings were based on the percentage of population with each level of educational attainment.  Not only were we #1 in Texas, but College Station ranked No. 31 nationally.

So, next time someone makes an Aggie joke, make sure and let them know that they are actually making fun of the smartest city in all of Texas!

Wonder what businesses are eligible? American Express says…. “Eligible small business merchants are independently owned small businesses located in the United States that accept the American Express Card. Purchases made at large or national chain stores, at franchised business locations and at government agencies are not eligible. Prepaid, Corporate Cards and ExpressPay transactions are not eligible. ”

After you register your card on American Express look on Facebook (click the links to get to the sites you need) and you can search by zip code to see which small businesses are available. I found most local smaller businesses (that take the American Express card) are on the list!

A friend of mine sent me an email a while back about why we should buy local and how much buying local affects our LOCAL economy.  The email sent to me may have been written by someone else so if I am plagiarizing I apologize!  Below is the message. Are you going to buy local this year or send your money to another country instead?

GREAT Christmas thought from a friend – Where are you spending YOUR money?

As the holidays approach, the giant Asian factories are kicking into high gear to provide Americans with monstrous piles of cheaply produced goods — merchandise that has been produced at the expense of American labor.

This year will be different. This year Americans will give the gift of genuine concern for other Americans. There is no longer an excuse that, at gift giving time, nothing can be found that is produced by American hands. Oh…. Yes there is! It is time to think outside the box, people. Who says a gift needs to fit in a shirt box, wrapped in Chinese produced wrapping paper?

Everyone — yes EVERYONE gets their hair cut. How about gift certificates from your local American hair salon or barber?

Gym membership? It’s appropriate for all ages who are thinking about some health improvement.

Who wouldn’t appreciate getting their car detailed? Small, American owned detail shops and car washes would love to sell you a gift certificate or a book of gift certificates.

Are you one of those extravagant givers who think nothing of plunking down the Benjamins on a Chinese-made flat-screen TV? Perhaps that grateful gift receiver would like his driveway sealed, or lawn mowed for the summer, or driveway plowed all winter, or games at the local golf course.

There are a gazillion owner-run restaurants — all offering gift certificates. And, if your intended isn’t the fancy eatery sort, what about a half dozen breakfasts at the local breakfast joint.

Remember, folks this isn’t about big National chains — this is about supporting your home town Americans with their financial lives on the line to keep their doors open.

How many people couldn’t use an oil change for their car, truck or motorcycle, done at a shop run by the American working guy?

Thinking about a heartfelt gift for mom? Mom would LOVE the services of a local cleaning lady for a day.

My computer could use a tune-up, and I KNOW I can find some young guy who is struggling to get his repair business up and running.

OK, you were looking for something more personal. Local crafts people spin their own wool and knit them into scarves. They make jewelry, and pottery and beautiful wooden boxes.

Plan your holiday outings at local, owner operated restaurants and leave your server a nice tip.

And, how about going out to see a play or ballet at your hometown theatre. Musicians need love too, so find a venue showcasing local bands.

Honestly people, do you REALLY need to buy another ten thousand Chinese lights for the house? When you buy a five dollar string of light, about fifty cents stays in the community.

If you have those kinds of bucks to burn, leave the mailman, trash guy or babysitter a nice BIG tip.

You see, Christmas is no longer about draining American pockets so that China can build another glittering city. Christmas is now about caring about US (We the People), encouraging American small businesses to keep plugging away to follow their dreams. And, when we care about other Americans, we care about our communities, and the benefits come back to us in ways we could not imagine.

THIS is the new American Christmas tradition!!