I saw the city crews taking down the Christmas decorations in Nye Beach last week, so I snapped a quick photo of the Nye Beach turnaround in Newport, Oregon on a nice sunny day with lamp post decorations still intact. Today is bright and sunny, not a cloud in the sky! I plan to take my lunch to this very spot today and bring a smooth jazz CD to seranade me while I have a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. I have a busy day planned, but when this is part of my schedule, I am thankful that I am a real estate broker in the Lincoln County area of the Oregon Coast! 01/17/2013

This photo was taken during the recent performance if Mel Brooks "The Producers," just minutes before the conductor waved his wand for the downbeat. The orchestra pit at the Newport Perfoming Arts Center is about 5 feet deep below the floor of the first three rows of seats, which are removed when the pit is opened. The excitement begins when we remove the floor boards and set up the chairs and music stands for what is known as "tech week," or the solid week of rehearsals leading up to opening night. Enjoy one of the moments which is most exciting to me, the anticipation you feel when the conductor is about to raise his wand! We are unable to see the stage for cues to start and stop with the action, instead we must trust the conductor to guide us from start to finish. These photos were ... 01/10/2013

This photo of two cute goats was taken yesterday in the Rite Aid / Safeway Market parking lot near my office at S & W Real Estate. Although we have about 10000 full time residents a suburban setting in Newport, Oregon, this photo shows just how rural we really are out here on the Oregon Coast. It is not unusual to see goats being transported in this fashion as they are usually "working goats" which are rented / borrowed to clear the blackberry brambles from overgrown property.  I had the pleasure of borrowing a couple of goats one summer and enjoyed the experience tremendously. I was amazed when they ate all my bramble with the extra large thorns.  There is not a yard machine on the planet which can compete with a hungry goat! 01/07/2013

Here is the grand entrance to the campground. Immediately to the left of this gate are the RV amenities, a little further ahead you will find the host camp and information center. There are planned activities and group hiking for those who like to meet new fellow campers. The play area is relatively new and has some fun apparatus for the kids to play with. Stay tuned for more photos of the my walking tour of South Beach State Park in beautiful Newport, Oregon! 01/07/2013

I took a detour through the campground so I can show you a few of the sights in the off season. I highly recommend this campground in the winter, there is a ridge which keeps the park protected from some of the harsher winds, and there are plenty of things to do and trails to explore to keep you busy without ever leaving the park. Here is a handicapped accessible Yurt, which you will need to get reservations for if you want to stay in one during the summer. Many are empty in the winter, which gives me a perfect chance to show you the interior. 01/06/2013

The Cooper Ridge trail circles the So. Beach State Park campground and is well marked. I chose the lower flat trail to take me up to the Jetty where I can catch the Old Jetty Trail to take me back to the day use parking lot. The Cooper Ridge trail as pleasant, with open spaces, beautiful trees and a mixture of unsual plantlife. The views change with every step, which is why this is one of my favorite coastal trails. There was a wonderful scent of shore pines and surf to accompany me on my trek. This part of the trail was mesmerizing! It was so soft and enchanting to walk upon the fresh green groundcover! The grasses at the edges of the path have a delicate scent all their own. 01/06/2013

This lightly used service road continues north toward the Newport Jetty and Cooper Ridge trail which circles the South Beach Campground. I have seen many mushrooms growing along the way, but I do not recommend touching them as many are poisonous to eat, so best to leave them be. Here is a photo of them: 01/06/2013

Here is the trailhead sign located at the North end of the South Beach State Park Day Use parking lot. In my previous photo, we were walking through the shore pines on a dirt trail which is unmarked, to the south of this sign. This is a paved trail which takes you to the Newport Jetty and views of the Yaquina Bridge and Yaquina Bay Lighthouse. I will be returning to the parking lot on this trail after I walk the entire loop. Remember that I started my walk going south from the parking lot through the shore pines, then ventured east on an unmarked trail. I came upon the "boneyard" area for the campground, where larger trash items are stored. I am now closer to Hwy. 101. I want to show you what I found here! This stone hearth looks to be over 100 years old and was located in the bushes b... 01/02/2013

We have now reached the southern end of the park where a brick wall in the shore pine forest separates the park from the Southshore residential subdivision. I have just stepped out of the forest to take this photo. This is an unusually clean and uncrowded beach. This photo taken 1/1/13. Yesterday, I saw horses here! As you can see, yesterday was a bit cloudy but very beautiful. The horses were spry as we had some light sprinkles. Back to our walk - New Years Day, 2013. To find this trail, I headed east from the ocean at the southernmost trail. This trail goes back toward the highway and veers north back toward the campground. See photo series #3 for the photos of the mushrooms on this trail! 01/01/2013

Happy New Year from Newport, Oregon! This photo was taken at South Beach State Park at the "Day Use" parking lot, located west of one of the finest campgrounds on the Pacific. Shown here are picnic tables, behind the restroom building is the beach access just over the sand dune. Park here and bring a lunch, for there is much to explore! Today I took trails around the perimeter of the park, just to see how long it would take. I started at 12:30 and walked/jogged until about 4:00pm. I started my walk from this spot, this was the first photo of a series which I will post my South Beach Campground adventures. You are in for some fun, come along! First, we will go west and take a peek over the sand dunes, a reasonably short walk from the car. The uncrowded beaches and stunning views are wha... 01/01/2013

Here is a fresh photo from the north side of the Yaquina Bay Bridge looking toward South Beach in Newport, Oregon. It has been raining this week, but when the clouds clear, it is necessary have a camera ready! This photo was taken just west of the Yaquina Bay Bridge, which shows the Newport Jetty. NOAA has recently made a new home in Newport, it is a majestic sight when one of the larger ships come in from an ocean voyage. Newport has many commercial fishing vessels as well, the jetty allows safe passage beyond the turbulent surf. Yaquina Bay Lighthouse State Park is a wonderful place to bring a lunch and watch the boats come in and out of the harbor. 12/17/2012

When in Newport Oregon, the Yaquina Bay Lighthouse is a must see. The park surrounding it is pleasant and clean, lots of picnic tables and trails to explore. The scenery is beautiful and easily accessed by bicycle or walking tour. 12/15/2012

I just read a blog this morning about the inefficiency of multitasking, that you can get lots more done if you are focused on one thing. I couldn't agree more. Multitasking can get me sidetracked - I prefer doing one thing at a time, smoothly and efficiently. If you get good enough at it, it looks like you are multitasking to the observer - each task is done so quickly and smoothly that you have the appearance of doing many things at once. I am a musician as well as real estate broker here in Newport, Oregon. When I am playing music, there is no answering the phone, live music is the ultimate "be here now" kind of thing.  However, you can train yourself to sing and play an instrument at the same time, which is the ultimate form of multitasking, but with extreme focus on both tasks, sing... 12/08/2012

Here is my very favorite place to be in the world! This is a photo inside the orchestra pit at "the Producers", playing tonight, tomorrow and next weekend at the Newport Performing Arts Center in Newport, Oregon. This is my percussion setup for the show. Included are the following instruments written in to the music by Mel Brooks: Can you identify them all? Vibraphone, Xylophone, Glockenspiel, Mark Tree, Bell Tree, Floor Tom, Medium Tom, Crash Cymbal, Bongos, Triangle, Small Woodblock, Old Vietnamese Cowbell used as woodblock sound. Not pictured but in there somewhere is a Ratchet, Tamborine, Police Whistle, ACME Siren Whistle, extra low pitched larger sized Triangle and an industrial strength Slide Whistle. An assortment of different mallets can also be seen - yarn wrapped mallets for... 12/01/2012

Welcome to the orchestra pit at the Newport Performing Arts Center in Newport Oregon! Now showing is the wildly funny Mel Brooks comedy, "The Producers" which will take place tonight at 7:30 pm and tomorrow, Sunday matinee at 2:00 pm.  The performances will continue for just one more weekend, so if your are in the Newport, Oregon area, please be sure to catch this wonderful live show with a full orchestra. We have had raving reviews for our last couple of weekends, the crowds have been large and lively. Be prepared for a fast paced show. If you will be at any of the shows, please come visit me in the pit......I am all the way in the corner on the right hand side of the stage in the percussion section.     12/01/2012

  A good powerwashing and a can of white paint would improve the "Feng Shui" of this house, don't you think?! By the way, the rest of this house looks pretty nice,so I was surprised to see the entrance looking so worn, even here on the coast. A little bit of TLC will go a long way toward selling this house. Not sure what the little blue plastic bag is covering, but I bet it is clean and white underneath! 12/01/2012

Today, I had a call from a seller who wants to carry the loan for a buyer because the house will not finance conventionally. He had heard that you need a Mortgage Loan Origination License.   Question from the caller: "I'm selling my residence and the buyer wants me to provide the financing. Do I need a license?"     The answer: "No. Ors 86A.203 (2)(c) provides and exception from the MLO licensing requirements for an individual providing financing as part iof the sale of the individual's residence. Therefore, no MLO license would be required."   Although there are very few exceptions to this statute, as long as it is the sellers residence, the MLO requirement would not apply. It is advisable to check statues on your states government website prior to selling your house if you plan to car... 11/30/2012

I recently played jazz music outdoors on my vibraphone....overlooking the Yaquina Head Lighthouse in Newport, Oregon! It was a fundraiser for the Samaritan House Homeless Shelter for families with children. The event was the "Secret Garden Tour" and it was a success even though there was a few sprinkles mixed with the sunshine, not uncommon here on the coast. Please view this photo with smooth jazz in the backround, open the window for a light breeze, a nice cold adult beverage and a snack, and you will experience a little of the magic I felt while playing live music that day in Newport! If you have a dream of owning coastal Oregon property, please give me a ring at 541-270-6758 and I can tell you all about the area. As you can see, we have lots of unusual, fun things to do here in Lin... 07/10/2012

One of my favorite places to visit in Newport is the Sylvia Beach Hotel and the Table of Contents restarant in Nye Beach, Newport, Oregon. The hotel is a turn of the century themed hotel with rooms named and decorated after famous authors such as Agatha Christie, Edgar Allen Poe and Mark Twain. There is even a Dr. Suess room, filled with books like Hop on Pop and Green Eggs and Ham, Suess sheets, blankets, toys, portraits of the Lorax, everything in the room to fit the theme of the author featured. The original old porcelin sinks are intact, the fixtures from a time gone by. Upstairs on the 4th floor there is a wonderful library / game room and reading room with a comfortable spot to curl up with a novel and watch the waves crash on the shore. From the open casement window you can smel... 06/29/2012

If you are a fan of the Oregon Ducks, you should have been with me in the Wal-Mart parking lot this afternoon to see this car. In Newport, we see plenty of bright orange Beaver flags flapping from the windows of cars headed in to Newport from Oregon State University OSU in Corvallis.  Yellow duck colors are more rare, so this was a fun car to see and photograph.  We have a very healthy rivalry of fans in Newport, which seems to be predominantly Beaver territory. I would guess that the driver of this car lives closer to University of Oregon UO in Eugene.....So, if you are a Duck fan in Newport, this fine muscle car is certainly worth a honk or two if you see it! 06/29/2012