By Warren McNeil, We just bought a new car and I would like to blog about how positive the experiece was. We bought a 2010 Honda Accord Crosstour. We purchased the car from Waterloo Honda. Our salesmen was Jorge Sandoval. He did a really good job explaining all of the features of the car/CUV to us so we knew exactly what we were getting. There was never any pressure to buy and we felt really comfortable. In the past I have purchased cars from other dealers but I never felt that I really got what I wanted. This time we took our time and looked at everything that was available. We searched for this car for 2 years. I went to many car shows and looked at all of the different car options. We looked into the Venza and the Acura ZDX. Although I really liked those other vehicles, we liked the ... 07/25/2010

Hello, my name is Ciara. I am a one year old, spayed female, black and tan Dobermann. I didn't always look as good as my picture. When I first arrived here at the Centre back in February, I was far from being the good-looking girl that I am now. I was and still am suffering from Generalized Demodectic Mange. What is demodectic mange you ask? It is a skin disease caused by tiny mites that inhabit everybody's bodies. When your immune system is very low, like mine was, the mites take control. The end result is a dog that has lesions covering most of their body, is very itchy and uncomfortable. My hair had fallen out on most of my body and my feet were very swollen. I had a bath once a week and was put on medication to help me get rid of the mites. I am pleased to say that I am recovering n... 07/21/2010

Not much in life is free anymore, but admission to this event is. (However, donations to Waterloo Region's Food Bank are gladly accepted. Anyone under 19 must be accompanied by an adult.) Where: Victoria Park When: Friday 5pm-10pmSaturday noon-10pmSunday noon-6pm What You Can Expect: Barbecued ribs and chicken, craft-brewed beer, live entertainment. AND THERE'S A MIDWAY TOO!  Operated by GTA Midways. For more information go to: www.kitchenerribandbeerfest.com And Please: With over 50 brands of beer there, please sample responsibly. 07/15/2010

By Warren McNeil, Well my favourite time of year is just about to arrive. It's not Christmas, its not my birthday, its Ribfest.. If you like eating food off of a paper plate, sampling craft beers and watching live entertainment, then come out to Victoria Park this weekend July 16-18. Mel and I will be there at least once and maybe even twice. I am really happy that Ribfest comes to Kitchener. I can remember a few years ago that we had to go to Guelph to get to ribfest. Check out this link for lots of pictures by the moderator, Urban Waterloo. I have been to about 4 different Ribfests. I love these events because it reminds me of the US south. I love BBQ. When we travel through South Carolina, Georgia and Florida I love eating at the BBQ restaurants. I am also excited  to mention that we... 07/13/2010

Nominations are ending soon for the Kitchener in Bloom contest. Deadline is July 9, 2010. What is Kitchener in Bloom? Each year the City of Kitchener and its community partners encourages residents and businesses to beautify our community. Contest includes three components: Residential Front Yard Award, Environmental Award, and Business Award. For more information about the awards and their criteria visit: www.kitchener.ca/award_prog/bloom.html 07/08/2010

By Warren McNeil, For the past three days the weather here in Waterloo area has been extremely warm. Yesterday I got into my car and pressed the outside temperature button. The temperature registered at 109F. My vehicle had been sitting for a couple of hours so when I started driving the temperature dropped to 100 degrees. The forecast all week has been in the 30's. We measure in Celsius so that is 30 degree Celsius. Then you need to factor in the humidity which makes it feel more like 45degrees. Now I know what it must have been like for Les Stroud (Survivorman) when he was in the desert. His temperatures reached up to 60degC.... One thing that bothered me the other day was some people who left their dogs in their car while they ate at a restaurant. They checked on them frequent enough... 07/07/2010

Swimming is a great way to cool down and is one of the best ways to exercise: It limits the amount of stress on your body while exercising - your weight in water is about 1/10 of your weight on land. It can soothe your mind as well as exercise your body by regulating breathing and stimulating circulation. It is a great warm up or cool down exercise to use with any other work out. And then of course, it can relieve the stress caused by kids on holidays who are hot, but still have energy to burn :) Kitchener has 4 indoor pools, 3 outdoor pools, 4 splash pads available to the public: Indoor Breithaupt Centre: 350 Margaret Ave Cameron Heights: 301 Charles St East Forest Heights: 253 Fischer Hallman Rd Lyle S. Hallman Pool: 600 Heritage Dr Outdoor Idlewood Pool: 5 Thaler Avenue Kiwanis Park:... 07/07/2010

Michelangelo and Leonardo Da Vinci created stunning works of art that still have the power to make people speechless. Sadly, as a professional stager, the works of art that my partner and I create sadly don't have that type of longevity (houses sell too fast). We do however create beautiful staging designs that we have captured in photographs and which now grace the pages of our portfolio albums. Bedroom "Before" Bedroom "After" We're proud of these pictures and of the unique designs we create for each of our clients. When we talk to new or prospective clients we encourage them to look at our portfolio because they are indicative of our style and different levels of staging services we offer.  Our portfolio is also a visual journey of our work over the past few years. We all start somew... 07/06/2010

On Thursday, July 1 - Canada Day - The Doon Heritage Cross Roads hosted an open house. I hadn't been there since on a school field trip many moons ago, and neither had hubby, so we decided to take a stroll over. (We live about 5 minutes away). There had been a few changes from what I remembered. For one, they had decided to focus on the year 1914. Why? According to their Web site: Waterloo County was at its most well developed as a distinctive culture. The eve of the first Great War was the exciting end of an era that existed in Waterloo County and the world. This date was compatible with the collections and buildings at Doon Heritage Village This restoration date would make Doon Heritage Village distinct from any other restored villages. The rapid changes in technology and lifestyles w... 07/05/2010

My name is Kylie and out of all the cats in the Centre I have sadly been here the longest. I am a 1 year old Domestic Short Hair grey tabby with white who is already spayed. At first I am seem like a boring cat, but I am really the opposite! I love to play, you just need to figure out which toy I like. I love playing with a fake mouse on a string! I could chase it for hours! If you are looking for a fun loving cat, come meet me, Kylie! Note: Posted with general permission from the K-W Humane Society to assist them with finding forever homes for their animals. For more information about the K-W Humane Society visit: http://www.kwhumane.com/ To become a friend, visit: http://www.facebook.com/KitchenerWaterlooHumaneSociety   06/24/2010

My name is Karma! I am a 8-month old Domestic Short Haired cat who is hoping for a forever home with you very soon! My favourite game to play here at the Centre with the different volunteers is "chase the feather"! It is just a feather on a string, but it is so fun! When I am not busy playing around I love to sit and watch the different staff members and people walking through the hallways. If you are looking for a little sweet Karma in your life, come and meet me! Note: Posted with general permission from the K-W Humane Society to assist them with finding forever homes for their animals. For more information about the K-W Humane Society visit: http://www.kwhumane.com/ To become a friend, visit: http://www.facebook.com/KitchenerWaterlooHumaneSociety   06/24/2010

Visit Victoria Park in Kitchener on Saturday, June 26, and Sunday, June 27 for the K-W Multicultural Festival. Join in and celebrate the beginning the summer as well as all of what Canada has to offer. For more information go to: http://www.kwmc.on.ca/html/festival.html   06/24/2010

When I tell people where I live - a condo backing onto miles and miles of walking trails along the Grand River - I am told I'm "lucky". Well, folks, luck has nothing to do with it. When we decided to put our house up for sale in Fergus, we thought long and hard about where we wanted to move to in Kitchener: We knew we wanted a condo - the kids were out of the nest and we weren't "backyard" people. We knew we wanted a place that would be nice to walk the dog - we are dog people and will probably always will be. We knew what our budget was. Being from Kitchener it wasn't hard to know which areas were desirable to us and which areas we wanted to stay away from. So I set up appointments and we toured many of the condos for sale. When we toured four units in both condo buildings on Green Val... 06/23/2010

Some good articles to read for Real Estate Investors: News about the Canadian Economy "Smart Real Estate Investors educate themselves about the economy.  I try to be a smart investor, so.. Here are a few articles that I'm reading about the Canadian economy:" Why Europe is in trouble, and how it affects Real Estate Investors "Anyone who invests their money anywhere should be watching the economic events unfold in the Euro Zone.  People who know me know that I'm not too optimistic about Europe's chances to emerge unscathed (and united) from their latest economic debt (or rather, spending) crisis."  Read the whole thing  Real Estate Investors take note: Gold hits another high  "Many of the clients I serve are investing in real estate as a way to take control of their retirement back from t... 06/19/2010

By Warren McNeil, If there weren't already enough reasons to relocate to the Waterloo Region, more reasons keep popping up! Waterloo region and Guelph received an "A" for family friendliness. There were five factors that the family friendliness grade was based on: community feel, education choice, cost of living, economic strength and family independence. "The region received "A"s for charitable giving, a low homicide rate, low commute times, high family income and population growth; also low government transfers and a high level of family independence." All was not perfect though. The region needs to improve in areas of greenspace, the number of long-term residents and high monthly mortgage payments. The region also scored an "A" in average family income. I always knew that Waterloo Re... 06/19/2010

By Warren McNeil, Many people are asking me if now is a good time to sell their house. I think the reason why they're asking this question is because of the HST. I'm not talking about the hubble space telescope, I'm talking about the new Harmonized Sales Tax that the Ontario government is implementing July 1st. The HST is going to cost sellers more money to sell their houses. There is going to be an additional 8% on top of commissions and other service fees associated with the sale of a house. Yesterday Tim Hudak was in Kitchener-Waterloo and sat down for a roundtable discussion with members of the Kitchener-Waterloo Real Estate board. " Hudak asked roundtable participants to share their thoughts on the upcoming implementation of Dalton McGuinty's $3 billion HST tax grab. According to t... 06/18/2010

Waterloo Aviation Expo & Air Show at the Waterloo-Wellington Flight Centre (http://www.wwflightcentre.com)  Father's Day weekend - June 19 & 20, 2010 Featuring the Canadian Forces Snowbirds! Air Show Headlined by the Canadian Forces Snowbirds:  A 3-hour event containing a mix of jets, historic warbirds, incredible daredevil aerobatics, and a comedy act (see a plane land on a speeding motorhome). A tribute will also be made to the 100th anniversary of the Canadian Navy. Aviation Expo The Aviation Expo will offer displays and exhibits for the public to discover and explore military and civilian aviation up close. Static Display The Static Display features additional aircraft that are not flying in the air show, but are on display. Talk to the pilots and crew, and maybe climb aboard. See t... 06/17/2010

Hi everyone! My name is Posie and I am a female spayed Labrador Rottweiler cross!I am very playful and would love a forever owner who can take me for a fun run or to the leash free park everyday! If interested please call the K-W Humane Society at 519-745-5615 or visit them at 250 Riverbend Drive in Kitchener. 06/11/2010

By Warren McNeil,   Helpful video for people who are having difficulty selling their house. These are just a couple of reasons that might help.   Transcript of video: Five Possible Reasons Why Your House Hasn't Sold Yet  Putting your house on the market can be a very stressful. There are many things you need to do to prep the house in order for it to get it ready to go on the market. Now that the house has been on the market for a week or two  you are starting to get concerned why it hasn't sold yet. Well here are Five Possible Reasons Why Your House Hasn't Sold Yet: Number 5: Cleanliness. If the house is not clean and tidy  people might be getting turned off. This is one of the cheapest ways to get a higher return and quicker sale. If you smoke or have pets, you might want to consider ... 06/10/2010

This is Moo Moo. He was brought into the K-W Humane Society because someone in his home was allergic to him. He is a 3-year old, neutered domestic long hair who would really like to have a forever home. Look at that face! He is very handsome :)  Presently, he is at Petcetera in Waterloo (582 King Street North). If you're looking to love a new member of the the family or know of someone who is, please go visit Moo Moo. You'll be glad you did :) 06/10/2010