Five Ways to Get Motivated in February

Five Ways to Get Motivated Today 2/22/2013.

Seeking inspiration to get to work or even the motivation to get out of bed in February in Northeast Ohio is a challenge. Today is one of those days. Living along Lake Erie today means no sunshine, winds gusting 20 mph from the southwest, temperatures in the low thirties, and schools from Milan to Monroeville closed under the threat of freezing rain.

Here are five things that inspired me this morning:

Greatest Rescue Ever

A good night’s sleep.  For you lucky people who regularly go to bed at night and sleep a full 8 hours without waking up, or only wake for a quick pit stop, this is a no-brainer. For the rest of us whose brains run on overdrive at least 20 hours a day, a good night’s sleep is sublime.

My dog, Gracie. Her mantra for a morning walk is like that of the postal service, “Come rain, snow, sleet or hail, we deliver the U.S. mail.”  They call dogs like her a “rescue” dog but I often wonder, “who rescued whom?” She’s got the sweetest eyes I’ve ever seen.

Erie Metroparks Dog Park Gets Two Paws Up

Erie Metroparks Bark Park Gets Two Enthusiastic Paws Up

The heavy, iron latch on the first gate clanked open and she felt herself untethered in a small, holding pen. She’d broken the clasp on her leash earlier in her zeal to catch up to one of her humans who chose to run while her other human struggled with her, walking too far behind. For a shepherd/collie mix, the instinct to herd her humans together proved too strong for the leash.

Gracie at Erie Metroparks Dog Park

The second latch slid open the gate to her freedom. Gracie bounded off with unbridled joy towards the other dogs without a backwards glance. We watched with a mixture of pride and trepidation, feeling like parents dropping their child off for the first day of kindergarten. 

7 Reasons Not to Wait to Buy a Home

Many potential buyers are still on the fence, wondering whether it’s the best time to buy a home. Some fear buying before the market has fully recovered. Others are concerned that they may lose out if they jump in too early before prices and interest rates have hit rock bottom. Here are 7 reasons why I believe now is the best time to buy a home:

A beautiful home for sale with sold sign out front

1) Mortgage Interest Rates are on the Upswing 

Nobody has a crystal ball, but all of the economic indicators point to mortgage rates rising this year after several years of historic low rates. Rates have not been this low since the 1950s, when long-term mortgage rates went into effect and Dwight D. Eisenhower was President.