Linda's Southeastern CT Real Estate Blog

10 Things to Do When There is Nothing To Do!

Linda Davis (RE/MAX Realty Group) — Wed, 04 Jul 2007 17:45:04 -0500

I've been in the real estate business for 31 years. I've been through 3 down markets. It happens every 10-12 years for me whether I like it or not. I use the slow markets as opportunity time. I have three drawers in my office full of ideas. The first drawer is for buyer ideas. The second is for seller ideas. The third is for ideas I can use when I speak on panels or at conferences. During the busy times, when I come across a great idea, I just stuff it in the appropriate drawer. All three drawers are just about full. In my seller drawer are 2 ideas I'm working on now while I have the time.

A flyer for sellers called YIKES! Tips to get your home ready to show in 10 minutes.

A flyer for sellers called How to get your home ready for MLS and Internet Photos.

During busy markets, I don't have time to institute new ideas or systems. I'm usually paddling as fast as I can. I often look forward to a breather to be more creative. I know a down market can be scary especially if you are new in the business or if your bank balance is dwindling. But sitting around whining about it won't help. So buck up and get to work. Here are 10 things to do when there is nothing to do. When the market turns around (it always does), you'll be ahead of the game.

1. Organize your database. I wrote a post in December called You are your database. For the last couple of months, I've been working on my database every weekend. I'm re-catagorizing a few groups and updating others. For instance, I have a catagory called Movers and Shakers. In this catagory, I add all the elected officials and community leaders in my town. This weekend I'm going to be sure that list is accurate and everyone is listed.

2. Tweak your systems. Don't do this when the market is busy! I have a system of postcards and letters I send buyers and sellers prior to the closing. One of the letters is the utility phone numbers for disconnecting for the sellers and connecting for the buyers. Now's the time to be sure the information is accurate. Phone numbers and addresses do change. I also want to create a new postcard called "Things to leave in the kitchen drawer before you move out".

3. Clean your desk drawers. I just found something I had been looking for for 6 months! Really.

4. Order your calendars early. Every year I send out refrigerator calendars for my clients. Because I've been sending them out for the past 20 years or so, people have come to expect them. This year I ordered them very very early so I can deliver a lot of them in person. I'll save a bundle and see a few clients too!

5. Organize your photos. I'm pretty organized but eeeeek. My photos are everywhere.

6. Organize your email. (See #5 above. Substitute email for photos)

7. Review you buyer book, your pre-listing package, and your seller communications book. Ooops. You don't have those things???? Then you better get to work. You are already behind.

8. Hand write 6 months worth of birthday cards. You do have all your client's birthdays in your database, right? C'mon people. If not, create a VIP form to send to every client you are working with. Ask for contact information plus family birthdays etc. We even ask for their favorite dessert!

9. Go Paperless. This one might require more than one down market period. I'm using Paperport to try to get lots of my paper filed digitally. I'm starting by scanning my 3 drawers full of ideas to leave room for more ideas.

10. Review your marketing plan, your techology plan and your business plan. Don't have them? It's never too early or too late to write a good plan.

After competing 1-10 above, if the market still hasn't improved then Pray. Lord, give me one more good market. I promise not to &%$# it up this time.

Mailboxes of New England

Linda Davis (RE/MAX Realty Group) — Fri, 02 Feb 2007 19:16:59 -0600

Today in the Norwich Bulletin, our local newspaper, is a story that involves 2 neighbors fighting over a busty mailbox. Yes, I said "busty" not rusty. Two neighbors on Route 44 in Pomfret, CT are fighting over a mailbox disguised as a busty mermaid. It seems that the creator feels the mailbox is "artistic expression". Her neighbor does not agree and thinks it is driving her property value down. Although on private property, the US Postal Service does have regulations on the size and dimension of the mailbox, but not on how it is decorated.

Many homeowners in Eastern Connecticut have curbside mailboxes which are served by postal trucks. I've always loved how creative some folks can be in regards to their mailboxes. Over the years, I've had a few listings where the remarks for buyers read "mailbox does not convey", due to the personal nature of their mailbox creations. I thought decorating mailboxes was a New England thing until I came across this website about the subject. It appears that I'm not the only one fascinated by home built mailboxes. There are plenty of cute, funny and unique mailboxes on the site, but I especially liked the ones I would categorize as "clever". My personal favorite was the "hammer" mailbox in Boone, NC. I also found a wonderful poster called "Mailboxes of Altadena", a collection of mailboxes found in Altadena, CA. I think that would be a wonderful project, and now instead of just admiring the mailboxes when I see them, I'll capture them for a future poster or perhaps, a jumbo postcard. I don't think I'll include the busty mermaid. But if you are interested, you'll find the photos and story HERE.

My politically incorrect blog post

Linda Davis (RE/MAX Realty Group) — Tue, 23 Oct 2007 06:54:28 -0500

Sweet Sarah did a blog post yesterday about hugging. In my comments I warned her not to let her kids try that in school because they could be sent home for sexual harassment. Unfortunately, in this world of political correctness, hugging can be a bad thing and there are too many stories in the newspapers of political correctness run amok. Shortly after I left a hug on her post (seemed safe enough) I found this video. I wanted to share it in the worst way but worried how it may be taken. But then I remembered who I am... I don't really care about any political correctness crap.

And so here it is ...Psalm 23 in the words of a child. Surely...you will love it. ((((((((((((hugs))))))))))

How much is that view worth anyway?

Linda Davis (RE/MAX Realty Group) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 20:25:14 -0500

There are many factors to consider when determining the value of real estate. In addition to square footage, condition and amenities, there are things like steep driveways, busy roads, power lines, and bright colors. In New England, swimming pools don't necessarily add value like they would in Florida or Georgia. Electric heat can negatively affect value in Connecticut despite rising oil costs. Water, mountain and sunset views increase value.

I recently completed a market analysis on a foreclosed condominium in the Jewett City area of Griswold, CT. This condo has a view. Unfortunately, the view is of a cemetery. A very close up view of a cemetery. From every back window. You get the picture. Actually you really do get the picture since you will find a picture below of the view from the bedroom window.

So how much is that view worth in time and money? For my analysis I deducted 5%. I also assumed an increase in days on market. There are some buyers that won't consider this condo no matter what the price. I'm hoping others might enjoy the benefit of having quiet neighbors.

I'm back talking politics and real estate!

Linda Davis (RE/MAX Realty Group) — Sun, 21 Sep 2008 02:50:17 -0500

Ok, I'm back and talking politics and real estate. I've been gone for awhile. For those following, I sold the assets of my business and I'm now an agent in the office I used to own, doing what I love...listing and selling real estate. If you haven't been paying attention, you can read about all of that in some of my past blog posts. If you don't care, that's ok too.

While I was away from Active Rain, I completed the sale and moved to a home office which was a challenge since I had so much crap* to move. My truck still doesn't fit in the garage but I promise it will before the snow flies. I am thrilled with the transition. I mean, how lucky was I to be able to pull this off in this market, huh? And the first Friday I didn't have to put out the garbage was so rewarding.

I wasn't sure what to write as my first post having been away from Active Rain for so long. Wow! The place has changed and looks very different. It will take me awhile to get back into the swing of things and come up with a worthy Carnac post. Since I'm a political junkie, I thought I might write about a favorite subject of mine...mixing politics and real estate. I'll fess up and tell you this is a semi-reblog since I wrote about the subject here 18 months ago.

This is really quite the election. Everyone has an opinion and sometimes it's hard not to get into the debate. Most bloggers that follow me here know I'm a bit conservative. Ok, I'm a lot conservative and a member of the Vast Right Wing Conspiracy. Ledyard is a small town with 15,000 people. I'm a past Chairman of the Ledyard Board of Education and now serve as an elected official on the the Ledyard Town Council. When I am in the local grocery store and someone stops me with a question, it can be to ask about the price of their neighbors home... or whether their street will be repaved soon.

I've managed to juggle politics and real estate for a number of years. It was probably the hardest juggling act when I served as Chairman of the Board of Education. In that position, you can easily make as many friends as enemies. Since then I moved on to the Ledyard Town Council where I serve as Chairman of the Land Use and Planning Committee.

Most people in town know my politics but I have listed the homes of the most liberal among us. It is easy to make enemies in politics, but I find that disagreeing with someone shouldn't necessarily harbor bad feelings. There are very few people I wouldn't want to join for a morning cup of coffee.

There is, of course, the ugly side of politics. It can be hard to make progress in a small town where egos are large and personal agendas can get in the way. In addition, our meetings are televised and there can be a certain amount of grandstanding for the camera. I hate being on camera and at times need to remind myself not to get caught picking my nose or reading the email on my Blackberry. I also prefer only to speak only when I have something to say which is rare for a politician. The best part of speaking only when you have something to say is that people actually listen.

The biggest benefit of being involved in public office is gaining current local knowledge that would be hard to obtain in other ways. Serving in public office is also my way of giving back to the community that has been so supportive of my business.

P.S. I hope to catch up with all of you again by reading your blogs and making comments. Keep in mind, Carnac is now watching so be on your best behavior. Ok?

Rumors of my demise are greatly exaggerated

Linda Davis (RE/MAX Realty Group) — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 21:49:18 -0500

I guess I kind of expected it.

When I decided to sell the assets of my RE/MAX Realty Group office in Gales Ferry and stay on as an agent at the new RE/MAX Realty Group, I knew to anticipate the rumors. Fortunately, blogging gives me the opportunity to clear up a few things so here goes....

To my competition:

1. I am not closing my office because business sucks. I'm doing quite fine, but thank you for your obvious concern.

2. No, I'm not interested in multi-level marketing no matter how much better you think my life will be. Your emails go in my spam folder and I won't be returning yours calls.

3. I AM NOT "RETIRING" and you know it. Knock it off, OK?

4. I am not "going on the speaking circuit". (that's my favorite so far and I kind of like the idea so please email if you have a gig for me)

Here's the scoop: After 31 years, I've decided I love listing and selling real estate more than unjamming copy machines and taking out the garbage. I plan to sell a lot of real estate over the next few years. In addition, with the elimination of the burden of broker ownership, I plan to golf more, blog more and share more of what I've learned. It doesn't get any better than that! You can read more about my plans in my previous post about my move to a home office.

So...if you hear any more crap about me, please refer to numbers 1 through 4 above and then just call and ask.

Say Goodbye to the Kodak V705 Camera

Linda Davis (RE/MAX Realty Group) — Sat, 01 Dec 2007 10:15:57 -0600

I remember reading Jeff Turner's first article on the Kodak V705, Sell Your Camera on Ebay and Buy This one. It started a stampede to purchase the camera. I bought one myself and have been highly recommending this peach of a camera to anyone who would listen. I LOVE MY LITTLE CAMERA. I even have a little pink case for it with a fashionable pink beaded neck strap. The Late Mike Stankewich wrote a wonderful series on using the camera that I still refer to. Ted Baker recently provided us with a link to what he called The Good Stuff Book, a Kodak User's Guide which can be downloaded. It contains tons of good info; I printed out all 76 pages. If you search Active Rain for Kodak V705 you will find a bunch of good info on this marvelous real estate camera.

And now it is discontinued! WHAT ARE THEY THINKING????? What a bunch of crap. (Yes Carnac is alive and well and is planning a 2008 prediction post before the end of the year.)

Move quickly and you can still find a few Kodak V705's online or on Ebay. After that..... <snif>

These are a few of my favorite things!

Linda Davis (RE/MAX Realty Group) — Thu, 22 Feb 2007 19:01:54 -0600

Many bloggers here are super geeks aka techy genuises. You know who you are. You can look away now. For those of you still looking, I'd like to share a tiny corner of my REAL ESTATE TECHNOLOGY TOOL KIT:

Contact Management: Agent Office is my contact management software of choice. It works well especially if you have a team. But what I use doesn't matter. Just use something. "How you gather, manage and use information to serve the needs of your customer will determine whether you win or lose in your business" - Bill Gates in "Business at the Speed of Thought". For a complete list of Real Estate Contact Management Programs, visit Gary Hall Online. This is not an advertisement for Gary - at least he's not paying me to say this. I think he is a great guy and he was very helpful to me when I was upgrading my Agent Office software.

CMA Program - I use Tool Kit CMA by Realty Tools. The CMA presentation is professional looking and pretty impressive for such an easy to use web based program.

Seller Communication - This is a cool little program. HomeFeedback.com. Seller's love it and agents really do give me feedback at a pretty high percentage of return.

Printing - I love Express Copy. L-O-V-E. $39 for 100 flyers. I don't want to be in the printing business so I order my printing online and usually have it the next day. And they are in California and I'm in Connecticut. I also use Color for Real Estate. This is a fun company with some creative stuff. Good prices, fast turnaround. They even have a secret handshake club.

Screen Capture - If you don't use Snag It, run don't walk to get it. Or just get out your credit card. NOW. This is one of my all time favorite programs.

File Organization - Some kids were born with artistic abilities. My sister was born beautiful. I was born organized. I'm moving to paperless with Paperport 11. I don't bother to scan. I just fax the stuff to "my magic fax number" at MaxEmail. It arrives as a PDF which I file in my perfectly organized Paperport files.

Online Backup - Carbonite is "non-stop, unlimited, automatic backup over the internet." UNLIMITED and CHEAP.

Marketing - The small town I live in is my niche. I have a neighborhood website from My Online Neighborhood. And I send a newspaper every 60 days to my whole town. Custom House Publishers makes it easy! I got a listing last year because the seller said he received my newspaper "every week". I like Agency Logic to do individual web sites for my listings like the one at 29 Sawmill Drive. Imprev produces some very professional flyers and I've also used HP Real Estate Marketing Assistant. And of course, there is the old standby, Microsoft Publisher. I've been using MSPub since the day it was born.

Photographs - I use the wonderful Flickr for online photo management and sharing. I get most of my photos, including the one here, at Istockphoto and at YotoPhoto. I keep it simple and use Microsoft Digital Image Suite for my photo enhancement.

That's just an itty bitty corner of my Technology Tool Kit. I'm working on a followup called "When you want to eat, technology is sweet". Stay tuned.

BUT I do it my way.

Linda Davis (RE/MAX Realty Group) — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 17:39:03 -0500

The hardest part about writing my Eastern Connecticut Real Estate Blog is the writing part. I find it necessary to keep a copy of William Strunk's "The Elements of Style" right next to me at all times to help with placing the necessary comma or semi-colon. . I really should be better at it since I went to Catholic Schools for 12 years and diagramming sentences was a part of growing up. But (oops, can you start a sentence with "but"?) I struggle for the words and I'm a terrible speller.

I have no problem coming up with ideas. Heck, I have a bazillion masterpieces just waiting to be written. Early on I decided to stop worrying about being technically perfect and just write the way I talk. I'm a Pittsburgh gal so that presents some challenges but I get by.

Today I got this email:

hi linda
i stumbled across your blog while reading on foreclosures.
i am a freelance writer & it occurred to me to let it be known to you that if you ever have any writing work that you wish to delegate to a freelancer, you could contact me.
with regards,

Um, I don't think so. But (there I go again), thanks for trying to help.

What I Learned From My Cousin Vinny

Linda Davis (RE/MAX Realty Group) — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 17:33:31 -0600

Riches in Niches - A Book Review

The books I love are pretty worn; I'm hard on them. I even turn down the corners of the pages that speak to me. I have plenty of corners turned down in Susan Friedmann's Riches in Niches, How to Make it BIG in a Small Market. SEO experts lecture about using "the long tail" in your internet strategy. Susan explains how to use "the long tail" in your everyday business and for me, it relates perfectly to real estate. It's the "sell more of less" theory, the same theory that Seth Godin talks about in Small is the New Big.

Most real estate agents try to serve too many masters. They will work with investors and builders and single family homebuyers. In between, they might show a rental or two or throw on some boots to walk a piece of farm land. Just for good measure, they'll try to dabble in commercial real estate. At the end of the year, a typical real estate agent will have put a gazillion miles on their car.

Many years ago, there was an agent in my office who's niche was mobile homes. Diane was the expert. She could drive by a mobile home and tell you what model it was and what year it was built. If you have ever seen the movie, My Cousin Vinnie, Diane was like the character portrayed by Marisa Tomei who knew everything there was to know about cars. Most agents hated the idea of listing or selling a mobile home because they were cheap which meant the commissions weren't much. As a result, when a call came into almost any office in Eastern CT for a mobile home, they'd suggest the customer call Diane. Diane made well over $100,000 back in the 90's selling almost exclusively mobile homes. Since she was the expert, she was also able to raise her commission which helped when selling cheap mobile homes. Later in her career, Diane become an expert in selling HUD foreclosures, another area that most agents avoided. She learned everything she could about the process and became the HUD Foreclosure expert in the area. I'm sure she never thought about "the long tail" or Seth Godin but it sure put a lot of money in her pocket.

In the book, Riches in Niches, Susan coins becoming an expert in a niche as a "nichepreneur". She goes on to talk about ways to enhance and capitalize on your expert status. I've always subscribed to the "Do one thing really well theory". What I do really well is list property in my small town of Ledyard, CT. 90% of my commissions are earned from listing property in one small town. I realize that a new agent might not be able to narrowly focus on one small niche but it is something to strive for. By becoming an expert at just one thing, you become a "nichepreneur". That is a very good thing.

If you get a chance, be sure to watch My Cousin Vinnie. I promise it will make you laugh and you'll see an expert in action.

And so it began....

Linda Davis (RE/MAX Realty Group) — Mon, 04 Sep 2006 08:18:48 -0500

The last 10 years have brought revolutionary changes to the real estate industry especially as it relates to technology. I'll never forget the first website I built in 1995, the same year as Microsoft launched Internet Explorer 1.0 and Windows 95. Of course, there were very few people looking online for information about real estate. My site was more of a resource - a link I could email potential customers with information about the area. As far as finding my website, search engines were still in their infancy and Google wasn't officially born until 1998.

It is hard to believe that only 10 years later, 77% of homebuyers use the internet as an information source. Even more amazing is that consumer access to listings is now available and the MLS database has become a public tool. Welcome to our world, where our clients often know about a new listing before we do!

As a systems and checklist nut (I'm an avid follower of David Allen's GTD), technology has certainly impacted my business. I doubt I could do the number of transactions I do without it. It makes me more efficient and allows me to communicate on a more regular basis with my current and past customers, through my blog, online newsletters, drip campaigns, electronic feedback, and online transaction and database management. Organizational software like Paperport (my favorite) and Microsoft One Note help me with my GTD (Getting Things Done) mentality. (Each listing has its own Paperport file and each project has its own One Note tab.)

The costs? While technology certainly improves efficiency it also costs money and takes time. Last year I spent about 5% of my income in a specific category called "internet". That paid for websites, pay for clicks, and other subscription services. Of course, that doesn't include software and other toys of the industry of which I have many. My favorite time of year is November when I visit the NAR Trade Show and try to add to my toy collection. I mostly succeed.

I have also invested an enormous amount of "time" during the learning curve and on numerous technology projects and initiatives, although the use of a virtual assistant has limited that burden somewhat.

The last ten years have also been special because I have found lots of other technology friends through my membership in the Cyberprofessionals. But that's a blog for another day...

My Cats Hate My New Flip Video Camera

Linda Davis (RE/MAX Realty Group) — Sun, 25 Nov 2007 07:26:32 -0600

I bought my new flip video camera while at the NAR convention. NO, they didn't sell them at the Expo. I actually bought it on Amazon after seeing someone with one. I had to have it. It was in my office by the time I got home. It is small (about the same size as my Kodak V705) and cute (they have pink ones ladies) and fits in my purse; just the criteria I was looking for. No, this isn't a super high quality video camcorder like the one a videographer might use to shoot your wedding but for $150 (or the lower priced model at $119) it is pretty darn good.

To start recording, you press a red button. To stop, you press the same red button. There is a zoom feature. There are no plugs or cords. The best part of the camera is why it is called The Flip - the USB flips out, you plug it in, the built in software lets you email it instantly, save it to your computer, copy it to a CD or you can upload it to YouTube. You can also hook it up to your TV. The camera's memory holds up to 60 minutes of video.

My cats hide now when I get out The Flip. I've been practicing on them and they have had enough. This was the very first video I took. I've never used a video camera before and I did not read the directions. I literally took this one right out of the box. Yes, it will make you dizzy but I linked to this one because it was the very first and makes the point of how easy this camera is to use. I've gotten much better but my more recent videos wouldn't be as much fun to look at! This one is as bad as it gets. I can only improve from here!

You'll flip over THE FLIP. There, I said it!

63 Days to Home Office!

Linda Davis (RE/MAX Realty Group) — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 01:03:33 -0500

On January 1, 2008, I wrote a blog post on Active Rain called "From Single to Team to Single Again". I described how I had decided to push my buyer specialists out of the nest, and to return to practicing as a single agent with an assistant. (I continue to refer all my buyers to my former buyer agents.) I made this change for reasons unrelated to market conditions but rather to golf more and concentrate on building my niche of listing homes in the town of Ledyard. Having been blessed with a great business over a long career, I also want to spend some time helping other people grow their businesses. To that end, I have started my Real Estate Solutions Blog and also have a few other ideas swirling in my head.

And now for the rest of the story..... On September 1st, I'll be selling the assets of the RE/MAX Office I have owned since 1985. The new owners will keep the name, so RE/MAX Realty Group is alive and well! And no, I am not retiring but instead moving to a home office and still working at RE/MAX Realty Group. After going into the office almost every morning by 8AM for a whole bunch of years, it's time for a change. Yes, this 58 year old welcomes change. To almost quote Ray Croc....I'd rather be green and growing, than ripe and rotting.

For now I have plenty to do to get ready for the change. I have years and years of "stuff" that needs moved to my home office. A couple weeks ago I committed to bringing home one box a day. At that rate, I should have everything home by 2012..... so next week it is time to speed it up a notch.

While concentrating on the things leading up to this change, I've missed my social networking buddies on Active Rain and Twitter and I apologize for not being as attentive as usual and not commenting on some great posts. Once I've settled in, I (and Carnac) promise to be a lot more social.

In the meantime, this "home office thing" is going to be very different for me. This weekend I've started to work on my physical home office. I'm moving into a 9x11 space from an office much larger. Every bit of floor space needs to be well utilized. While measuring the spot for my waste basket, it occurred to me that there must be plenty of Rainers already working in a home office who might have some advice to share. Or maybe I'll have some advice myself to share along the way. Stay tuned.

Shame on you Linda Davis....

Linda Davis (RE/MAX Realty Group) — Sun, 06 Apr 2008 10:20:31 -0500

That's the message I heard on my voice mail yesterday from an agent who wants to show one of my listings. Shame on me because I use one of those dreaded.....(cover your eyes if you don't want to see the words) ....Electonic Lock Boxes.....OH, the horror of it all!

After saying, "Shame on you Linda Davis", she proceeded to tell me how I am the only one using electronic lock boxes and to please let her know if I really have the dreaded electronic lock box on my listing or some better kind of lock box.

I called her this morning. She went on ad nauseum about how much she dislikes electronic lock boxes. BUT THE GOOD NEWS..... she would be able to show the house because it was a cloudy day. HUH? She says she can't use the electronic pass key on sunny days because she can't see the display. OK. Lucky for me.

I hate blog posts that are rants about other agents. In fact, I try hard not to complain about other agents even if they are a special kind of stupid. Instead, I smile and remind myself that this is the competition and why I have been successful.

Heck, I never let a little thing like sunshine ruin my day.

Cows and Cones in Gales Ferry, CT - The Real Scoop

Linda Davis (RE/MAX Realty Group) — Sun, 26 Aug 2007 09:59:04 -0500

When a town as small as Ledyard (population 15,000) gets a premium ice cream stand, it's big news. Last month, after a few weeks of delays, Cows and Cones finally opened amidst the greenhouses and cows at Alice's Acres Farm. It's been standing room only ever since.

My office is within walking distance of Cows and Cones. It is so close that I can't even burn off calories walking there; the distance can be measured in feet.

I was lucky enough to get the inside scoop on Cows and Cones as it was being built on Military Highway. Farmer Pete, the owner, gave me the grand tour of the place. The machines were just being delivered, and work was progressing as we walked through the building. I hesitate calling it an ice cream stand since it comes complete with heat, a bathroom and a second story. Oh...and internet access. But I was most amazed to discover there was a basement. I'm not sure how I missed the foundation going in, since I drive by at least twice a day on my way to and from work. Pete shared with me his future plans for the place, which were all good for the town of Ledyard. A few lucky kids got to work there this summer. I say lucky, because besides being surrounded by ice cream, Cows and Cones is air conditioned. It is no wonder over 80 kids submitted applications.

Alice Acres, established in the early 1900's, was always the place to go for plants in the spring, corn and tomatos in the summer and mums in the fall. Now there is ice cream. Besides a variety of hard ice cream favorites, there are some unique soft ice cream concoctions! My favorite is soft ice cream so for the carnival I tried the soft vanilla ice cream with the butterscotch burst. Actually there are lots of burst options so I have plenty to look forward to. For the purpose of the carnival, my husband experimented with a banana milk shake. Jen in my office tried an Expresso Bean Ripple cone. And there are smoothies, which we joked could be considered healthy, since they have some actual fruit in them.

Owner Pete Bargmann is noticeably proud of his property which he says is green, clean and good for children. The pavilion is graced with beautiful baskets and fresh stones, and wood chips have been recently scattered. It is a picturesque spot for parties, picnics and barbecues. The kids love watching the cows, goats and pigs. (A local private school holds cow chip bingo every year.) And yes, there are Hay rides.

The location on Military Highway is rural despite being located just outside the back gate of the Navy Submarine Base in Groton. It is becoming a popular place for Submariners on their way home from work.

The Ledyard community is really proud of their native son. Farmer Pete has continued to maintain his farm in an age and location where farming isn't necessarily considered cool. I think we can all learn a lot about operating a business from Peter Bargmann. In an article in the Thames River Times, he sums it up.

"The biggest thing in a successful farm is diversification and synergy; those are the two biggest words. With diversification you can offer your customers almost everything they'll be looking for, and diversification leads to synergy. The ice cream shop is a great example of that. All the aspects of the farm, in one way or another, will help out the others."

For additional information about the Town of Ledyard, be sure to visit my Ledyard PhotoBlog. And watch for Eastern CT Photo Friday at my Eastern CT Real Estate Blog.

To Find Cows and Cones, follow Directions to MY OFFICE and I'll walk you over!