Blog by Betsy Carstairs

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aging parents

January 29th, 2008
Have been in the perculiar situation where I have reversed roles with my mom. She had a stroke in November and was in the hospital for almost 2 months!!!! Stroke patients I am learning need help making decisions especially if there has been cognative damage...which with my mom's stroke was a side effect. Guiding/helping your parent make a good decision as to whether or not to return back to t ...
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Vacationing in Costa Rica

January 29th, 2008
Just returned from Costa Rica!!! Had a wonderful vacation once I got there (over 20 hours en route ). Much better than Mexico. Food and water were good. Never once got sick which I always do when I go to Mexico. Stayed in a small hotel on the beach in Playa Hermosa in the Gunacaste Province (on the Pacific Coast), Hotel El Vellero www.costaricahotel.net. Price was good $89.00 per night ...
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BC MEDICAL UNCARE

December 6th, 2007
Last week my mom had a stroke AND I now know first-hand what hall room nursing care is ALL about. We waited for 7 hours on a stretcher at Lion's Gate Hospital just to get into emergency. After watching Michel Moore's "SICKO", it brings one's awareness of how other countries ... Cuba being one that treats health care as a priority. These countries give a much more supportive caring a ...
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OPEN HOUSE MIND SET

December 5th, 2007
Of interest to me what is the public's perception of OPEN HOUSES. 2 weeks ago I held an OPEN HOUSE of one of my Burnaby listings. I had Gary Thomas help me as we correctly assumed there would be lots of visitors. We had just under 50 groups through, so YES there was LOTS OF INTEREST in this property. At the end of the weekend we were left empty handed with narry an offer. My client was mo ...
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Whistler Cornucopia '07 - Day 3

November 18th, 2007
On Sunday, my son came up to Whistler AND we went to the Wildwood for brunch. This is my favourite brunch spot. Open space with great mountain views AND good food to boot! After brunch I then headed off with some friends to MORE wine tasting!! This event was called "Big Guns and their Little Sisters" AND was a most informative afternoon spent with David Scholefield and Christopher Per ...
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Whistler Cornucopia '07 - Day 2

November 17th, 2007
On Saturday, I attended a private residence lunch. This year we went to a beautiful home in Nordic. It was catered by the Pacific Culinary Institute cooking school on Granville Island in Vancouver www.picachef.com. The luncheon was called the Green Table Experience. Its theme was sustainability and organic food and wine. Presenters were Chef Julian Bond, Andre LaRiviere; The Green Table Netw ...
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Whistler Cornucopia '07 - Day 1

November 15th, 2007
I LOVE this Whistler weekend which happens to fall on my birthday. This year I did the wine tasting Friday afternoon. This Trade Tasting is a fine opportunity to meet vintners and find out what new products the wine merchants are offering AND have fun doing it! Admission by donation benefits the Whistler Arts Council (WAC). My favorite wine was the 2005 Dierburg Pinot Noir. It h ...
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WOW 2007

November 8th, 2007
It's NOW an annual event AND every year its just gets better. This year 500 women gathered at the Hyatt in Vancouver for the Women of Worth Event ~ www.thewowevent.com I booked a table for 10 and arrived at 8:15am AND the place was "a buzzin'"! Lots of booths with interesting ideas and fabulous speakers including the amazing Jan Jensen performing her passion, the art of Nia - a ...
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Navigating Recreational Waterways

November 1st, 2007
Selling recreational property up the Indian Arm requires knowledge of who to connect with to efficiently get any hurdles resolved. In a recent sale of 2 Indian Arm properties, we needed a survey certificate which was not available. I phoned 4 different surveyors AND no one had the available time or interest to travel by boat up "The Arm". FINALLY located Hobbs, Winters & MacDonald A ...
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Title Insurance

September 22nd, 2007
    Do Greater Vancouver property owners need title insurance? Property title problems have been making the news more frequently. Mortgage fraud seems to top the list, with examples like that of Susan Lawrence, an Ontario resident who put her home on the market and months later discovered a thief had for ...
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