No, not rooms or houses;  When...On Saturday, November 20th, you can 'Release your creativity' by learning to paint to music.  Where...Summer Arts Studio, Mt. Gretna  Who...Instructed by Frederick D. Swarr  Cost...$95.00 includes all supplies  Register...Phone or email, Patty @ SummerArts @aol.com or 717-964-3330  Have fun! 11/09/2010

John Toomey and June Oppman of U.S.Benefits Analysts, Inc. will discuss 'The Aid and Attendance Benefit' for wartime veterans and their spouses on November 11th, 2010 at 6:15 PM @ Elmcroft of Lebanon, 860 Norman Drive, Lebanon. There is limited seating available. RSVP to Linda or Jacquee @ 717-228-0909 by November 10th. 11/06/2010

When: Saturday, November 6, 2010 Time:  10:00AM until 2:00PM Where: Municipal Building Parking lot behind Lebanon County Courthouse, 400 South 8th Street, Lebanon What will be collected: Unused, expired and unwanted medications only...NO sharps, needles, syringes or bandages!!! Questions? call: 274-0427 This is a great opportunity to clean out your medicine cabinet and it's FREE!!! 11/04/2010

Sponsored by The Affordable Housing Council of Lebanon County 39 N. 12th St. Lebanon, PA 17046 When...Nov. 2, 9, & 16 (Tues. Evenings)Time...6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.Spanish Classes Nov. 13 & 20 (Saturdays 9am-1pm) No December Classes Attendance is limited, so registration is required by contactingthe Lebanon County Redevelopment Authority at:(717) 273-9326. After completing all sessions, each participant receives a letterof completion. This may entitle you to special opportunitieswith reduced fees and rates with most council member financialinstitutions for certain mortgage products. 11/02/2010

According to a recent report from the Keystone Research Center the actions by Congress, the Federal Reserve and Presidents Bush and Obama saved approximately 400,000 Pennsylvania jobs. Here in Lebanon County, the unemployment rate would have reached 11.6%. Our August unemployment rate, according to the Department of Labor and Industry was 7.5%. The state unemployment rate for September was a seasonally adjusted 9%. The report can be found at keystoneresearch.org This is some interesting information to keep in mind when you go to the polls next Tuesday. Forget all the negative finger pointing ads about who voted for what under which President. The proof that the stimulus package may have helped you keep your job should certainly make you think about who you vote for in the mid-term elect... 10/30/2010

Some interesting statistics for Lebanon CITY properties. These numbers came from Keystone MLS and compare August 2009 to August 2010. Active listings are UP, sales are DOWN, average price is UP, average days on market is DOWN.                   # Active Listings    #Sold     Average Sale Price     ADOM 2009                     164                   25               $72,520.00              80 2010                     209                   11               $82,718.00              75 Also interesting is that this comparison holds true to Lebanon County sales statistics as a whole year to year for the same period. 2009                    1215                 113             $152,171.00            93 2010                    1455                  81              $159,785.00            87 So,... 09/09/2010

The heading says it all...Over 4 acres...Virtual tour available online...16 rooms, 4 baths, 7 fireplaces, heated in ground pool, over 9,000 sq. ft. of living space...Original woodwork, 19th century American HISTORY made here, too many pluses to try to even mention in this format...Keystone MLS#169598...137 Furnace St. Lebanon, PA...Qualified buyers only...Proof of funds required for all showings...$1,300,000.00...Listing agent MUST set up and attend all showings...No sign on property...Call Ernie Steele for your private tour...717-273-3774...Prudential Homesale Services Group...1402 Quentin Rd. Lebanon, PA 17042... www.LebanonPaRealEstate.com 09/07/2010

Here's an update on some great places for LEBANON COUNTY fruits and veggies. I used some of my personal favorites but everyone has their own. Just remember, buying local as much as you can keeps your money here in our county and what you buy is picked fresh almost daily. Fresh fruits and veggies are plentiful this time of year.  Some of our favorite places to get produce every year are MAPLE ACRES on east Maple St on the left as you're heading to SEYFERTS ORCHARDS. MAPLE ACRES grows most of their own vegetables (tomatoes, onions, zuchinni, all colors of peppers, beets, cucumbers and potatoes. Earlier this year they had asparagus and white sweet corn. Right now, they also have PUMPKINS of all types and some great watermelons. Early spring you can't beat their selection of bedding plants ... 09/06/2010

Not everyone knows where to go to find this info so I thought I'd post it here for my Lebanon County readers. Annville Free Library, 216 E. Main St, Annville, (717)867-1802 Lebanon Community Library, 125 N. 7th St., (717)273-7624 Matthews Public Library,102 W. Main St., Fredericksburg, (717)865-5523 Myerstown Community Library, 199 N. College St., Myerstown, (717)866-2800 Palmyra Public Library, 325 S. Railroad St, Palmyra, (717)838-1347 Richland Community Library, 111 E. Main St., Richland (717)866-4939   09/03/2010

Useful information for Lebanon Countys senior citizens to avail themselves of programs, trips and other activities. Annville Senior Community Center (717)867-1796 Maple Street Senior Community Center (717)273-1048 Myerstown Senior Community Center (717)866-6786 Northern Lebanon County Senior Community Center (717)865-0944 Palmyra Senior Community Center (717)838-8237 Senior Center Of Lebanon Valley (717)274-3451 Southern Lebanon County Senior Community Center (717)274-7541 09/03/2010

FYI everyone. Military personnel have one more year to take advantage of the federal homebuyer tax credit. Those who were serving overseas between January 2009 and May 2010 are eligible. Lucien Salvant, managing director of public affairs for the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR), said since some service members may be limited by financial reserves, REALTORS® can help by checking clients' eligibility for a mortgage and  the tax credit before looking at houses. "The tax credit is designed to help those folks meet their down payment and monthly obligations by lessening that financial burden," Salvant said. Service members have until April 30, 2011 to sign a sales contract and until June 30, 2011 to close on a home. Both the $8000 first-time homebuyer and $6500 move-up tax credits ap... 07/19/2010

Tricks to Keep Your House Cool this Summer   By Paige TeppingRISMEDIA, July 3, 2010--As the temperatures continue to rise this summer, so does the cost of keeping your home cool. While homeowners across the country come to depend on air conditioners to keep the temperature down during the warm summer months, there are other options that will keep you cool while keeping your energy bill low. Fans and ceiling fans-If you're looking for ways to beat the heat, a ceiling fan can be a great investment for your home. This one appliance can make a room feel 6 or 7 degrees cooler, and even the most power-hungry fan costs less than $10 a month to use if you keep it on for 12 hours a day. Good fans make it possible for you to raise your thermostat setting and save on air-conditioning costs. Fans ... 07/05/2010

Tomatoes won't be far behind!...I bought my first couple of dozen ears the other day, saved a few for dinner, and blanched the rest, cut it off the cobs and froze it in 'dinner size' freezer bags...I do this every year when sweet corn first becomes available and is at it's freshest so I have it for holiday meals etc...Anyone else out there looking forward to a certain fresh vegetable or fruit to arrive?...Just a fun post for a slow Tuesday morning...Enjoy the day! 06/29/2010

The Senate has amended a bill to give homebuyers who were under contract on a home purchase by April 30 an additional three months to close the deal and claim the federal homebuyer tax credit.  Extending the deadline for closing from June 30 to Sept. 30 would allow lenders more time to clear a backlog of 180,000 homebuyers nationwide, said amendment sponsor Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev. The amendment to HR 4213, the "American Jobs and Closing Tax Loopholes Act of 2010" -- which primarily extends unemployment insurance benefits -- was approved in a 60-37 vote Wednesday. The vote was mostly along party lines, with only four Republicans in favor and one Democrat opposed.  "While I am disappointed that more Republicans did not support this common-sense measure to strengthen the economy and reduce... 06/17/2010

I originally posted this a couple of years ago but it's that time of year again...Enjoy the day. Here's one for everybody who travels by car to their destination and has to stop for lunch or dinner on the interstate...I thought it was a pretty novel idea when I did it several years ago for the first time and it's worked every time...Now, this is an East Coast observation but adapt it to wherever you are...You're hungry and gotta go too...Take the exit with all the food stops, Cracker Barrel, Dennys, yadda, yadda, yadda...EVERY ONE of them has lines outside the door waiting EXCEPT HOOTERS...I'm tellin' ya it works...Good food, fast service and you're in and out because families and elderly won't go in because of a pre-conceived idea of what it's like...Honest, try it, thank me later. 05/29/2010

This is just a for fun post on an unusually slow Friday...This time of year I keep a lightweight rod, my bucket of 'stuff', my hat and my license in my van all the time...Today looks like one of those days when I'm going to use it all...Not much on the calendar this morning and the lake near my home is becoming awfully inviting the more I think about...Enjoy the day everyone, I'm hanging out the 'gone fishin' sign. 05/07/2010

It's a slow day in a small town in America, The sun is beating down, and the streets are deserted. Times are tough, everybody is in debt, and everybody lives on credit.....   On this particular day a rich tourist from back east is driving through town. He stops at a motel and lays a $100 bill on the  desk saying he wants to inspect the rooms upstairs in order to pick one to spend the night.   As soon as the man walks upstairs, the owner grabs the bill and runs next door to pay his debt to the butcher.   The butcher takes the $100 and runs down the street to retire his debt to the pig farmer.   The pig farmer takes the $100 and heads off to pay his bill at the supplier of feed and fuel.   The guy at the Farmer's Co-op takes the $100 and runs to pay his debt to the local prostitute, who h... 04/12/2010

Is it possible to have too big a tag cloud  ???       Tags:         State/Province: -- Not State Specific -- Alabama Alaska Alberta Arizona Arkansas Asia British Columbia California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana International Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Manitoba Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Brunswick Newfoundland New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota North West Territories Nova Scotia Nunavut Ohio Oklahoma Ontario Oregon Pennsylvania Prince Edward Island Puerto Rico Quebec Rhode Island Saskatchewan South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas US Virgin Islands Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin W... 02/13/2010

The following is a response from FICO regarding an inquiry from our in-house Insurance Representative...Shared with permission.   Email sent to FICO:    If I apply for insurance, and the insurance company checks my credit to determine my insurance score, will that cause my FICO Score to go down?   Response back from FICO: Hello, The FICO® score does NOT count: ·         Consumer disclosure inquiries - requests you have made for your credit report, in order to check it. ·         Promotional inquiries - requests made by lenders in order to make you a pre-approved credit offer. ·         Account review inquiries - requests made by lenders to review your existing account with them. ·         Employment inquiries - requests marked as coming from employers. ·         Insurance inquiries - re... 04/06/2009

It seems all you hear from the media is how low home prices are dropping. But, in some markets around the United States, homes are still appreciating, according to First American CoreLogic Inc.  These cities had the highest home price appreciation in 2008:    1. Cedar Rapids, Iowa: 8.83 percent   2. Binghamton, N.Y.: 7.78 percent   3. Amsterdam, N.Y.: 7.89 percent   4. Malone, N.Y.: 7.60 percent   5. Bay City, Mich.: 6.87 percent   6. College Station-Bryan, TX: 6.78 percent   7. Rocky Mount, N.C.: 6.69 percent   8. Auburn, N.Y.: 6.51 percent   9. Lebanon, PA.: 6.41 percent  10. Elmira, N.Y.: 6.28 percent  11. Johnstown, PA.: 6.20 percent Source: First American CoreLogic 02/25/2009