Simms Team splattered for Chihuly

The Simms Team is now splattered for Chihuli!  Following the Morean Arts Center’s shoe painting event, ilovetheburg has been splattering photos. So – now The Simms Team is splattered in anticipation of the new Chihuly Collection opening in July just  a block and a half from us. We’re using this splattered photo on our ALVA International facebook page for the next month or so.

Welcome, Chihuly!

Not sure how to prepare for a hurricane? Check out the 2009 Hurricane Guide at the St Pete Times.  My husband, George, likes to track each named storm and hurricane on a tracking chart, with points from each advisory. You can download a tracking chart from this site if you want to do the same.

Egmont Passage Tale of the Dreamcatcher  is now out. Antonino Fabiano’s latest book is even better than his first, Egmont Passage, Tale of the Seventh Mystery. I like the combination of the local setting, which is Tierra Verde and the Bayway Islands, and the history intertwined with a current plot. Fabiano brings together elements of his interesting life as background, and has created a tale that is interesting to both youth and the no-longer-so-young. Zeke, JJ and Izzy are familiar from his first book, and though the second is a continuation, it stands on its own. From the first chapter on I couldn’t put the book down until I finished reading it. I might not have found this book if Nino wasn’t a friend and client, so I’m glad I had that introduction, and pass it on to you as well. Hopefully we’ll ve having a book signing here at the ALVA International office. Until then – follow your dreams, and read Egmont Passage.     Yo Creo!

Pinellas County Florida seems an odd place to be affecting coffee around the country and the world. When you sip your morning coffee at a local coffee shop, you may not think about where the beans are roasted, and for that matter, where the roasting machines are made! Here in Pinellas County. What about the filters that affect the taste, or the flavorings of the coffee and/or the bean?  Here in Pinellas County.

Ambex, in Clearwater, is the 3rd largest builder of coffee roasters in the US, those machines that cost from $3,500 to $150,000 (note roasters, not grinders). Learn about Terry Davis.

Kahwa, who retail coffee shop in downtown St Petersburg is a favorite morning stopping place, also has a wholesale coffee roasting facility that supplies many of the local restaurants and coffee shops.They’re one of a couple of dozen roasters in the Tampa Bay area.

What about the filters, that keep the grounds out of your cup? Melitta is here in Pinellas County.  And
What about the flavors, flavoring the beans, or flavoring your unique cup of coffee? Monin Flavors, founded in Bourges, France in 1912, is also here in Pinellas County.

The St Pete Times publishes a great magazine, Bay, that’s inserted in some zip code locations of the St Pete Times six times a year. This morning’s Bay had a wonderful article about coffee here in Pinellas County. When you get to Bay, go to page 49 to start the article.

I did a double-take when I passed this room parking near BayWalk. So I drove around the block,  parked and then took a few photos.  This certainly gives new meaning to “Rooms To Go”.

Ikea recently opened a new store in Tampa. What a great way for Ikea to advertise with this mobile showroom.

Fujitsu Scansnap S1500 scanner, closed

Fujitsu Scansnap S1500 scanner, open

Fujitsu just came out with a new scanner, and techie that I am, I had to have one right away. Our team loves the Scansnap – they went from a “Why did you buy another scanner, and where are we going to put it?” when I bought the first one several years ago, to “You can keep it on MY desk.” So now we each have a scanner on our desk, and most of us have one at home, too – and I have a mobile one to take with me when I travel. They do spoil you.

What’s so exciting about a scanner? Just watch and you’ll see. It scans 20 color pages a minute, one sided or two sided or mixed, various sizes, and has a 50 page automatic document feeder. The new one handles drivers licenses better than the old one as it can take thicker material, and there’s now a sensor to tell you if 2 pages in a big stack stuck together. Want to get new tips on how to use your scanner in more ways? Check out the ScanSnap community website.

I’ve been playing with this one since it arrived this week – grocery and restaurant receipts, stacks of business cards (that go into a CardMinder program), paid bills, contracts, and all kinds of things. The older machines rotate down the line, and Tami is very happy about having a newer, faster one on her desk.

The cost is about $450 and comes with a copy of Adobe Acrobat 9 standard. There’s also one available for the Mac for $400.

If you want to see this in action, come over to our ALVA International office at 238 Beach Drive NE in downtown St Petersburg, Florida. Any of us will be happy to show you how it works.

My boss (mother) has been after me for a year to start blogging.  Does everyone have a mother like that? 

She had her first web site before I even owned my first computer.  I love gadgets, but she is light years ahead of me in all of them.  So now, I follow her down the blogging path.  The key will be can I blog regularly as she does?  I will do my best. 

Today, I start with rambling, tomorrow I will discuss my closing on a bank owned property (knock on wood), and then I will move on to my experiences in showing properties out on the beaches lately. 

See you tomorrow!

Tampa International Airport has been computer friendly for years by offering free wireless internet access. Not too long ago Southwest Airlines started providing computer “bars” where you could plug in and recharge your computer, and the small flat surface everyone shared was certainly better than balancing on your knees. What a pleasant surprise when I arrived at the Southwest Terminal at Tampa International Airport today to find in the main lobby and at the gates were these banks of computer stations – a flat private surface of probably 2 ft x 3 ft where you can spread out your papers, your coffee or sandwich, as well as your computer, and use the two plugs for working and recharging. Plus the free internet access. Kudos and thanks to both Southwest Airlines and to Tampa International Airport!