Cupertino Tournament of Bands Videos By Michelle Carr-Crowe, Cupertino Schools real estate agent selling San Jose homes Numerous award-winning local high school bands participated in the Cupertino Tournament of Bands on October 8, 2011. If you were unable to make it or would just enjoy seeing and hearing the talented performances of these Santa Clara County youth, here are links to many of the parade performances.     Videos on YouTube include St. Francis, Monta Vista, Lynbrook and Cupertino High Schools. Another set of videos those affiliated with Lynbrook High School may enjoy are the 2011 Homecoming skits. I’ve included links to the freshman, sophomore, junior and senior themed skits for your enjoyment. Also included are the staff/teacher skit. I am amazed at the creativity and commu... 10/30/2011

  Save Energy, Lower Bills with Cupertino Home Tune-Up Workshop   By Michelle Carr-Crowe, Silicon Valley guide   Who wants to save energy? How about lower utility Bills? What about learning how to do both…for FREE?   Attend the free Cupertino Home Tune-Up Workshop on November 2nd from 6 pm to 8 pm and learn all this and more.   At the Energy Upgrade California. Homeowners Workshop, friends and neighbors will share experiences and contractors will be on-hand to fast-track Cupertino's residents through this new state-funded energy assessment and retrofit-focused program.   Even better, eligible Cupertino homeowners can access up to $25,000 for energy-saving projects like insulation, heating and cooling systems, and solar panels. This workshop will show you how take advantage of this progr... 10/30/2011

Love is the Answer to Hate by Michelle Carr-Crowe Last week the inflammatory Westboro Church (whose key message is "God hates fags") decided to target not only Steve Jobs memorial service at Apple Computer in Cupertino, they also chose to attack Cupertino High School. Their press release called Cupertino High students "brats," the school itself "fag-infested" and "pervert-run," and accused the teachers of being "brutish" and the parents "hateful."  This photo of the leaderboard at Cupertino High School during the demonstration expresses it all...and Cupertino proved Love IS the Answer.  Students sported purple shirts (the color of anti-bullying), flashed the American Sign Language symbol for "I love you," and held signs saying, "God Loves You." They behaved peacefully and civilly in the... 10/23/2011

 October 16th "Steve Jobs Day" in the State of California The memorial service for Steve Jobs will be held this evening, Sunday October 16, 2011 at Stanford University.  The service is private, by invitation only.  California Governor Jerry Brown announced on Friday evening that October 16th “will be Steve Jobs Day in the State of California." Apple Computers will host a Celebration of Jobs’ Life on October 19, 2011 at Apple headquarters in Cupertino, California.    Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak - The Beginning of Apple Computer “Steve was among the greatest of American Innovators – brave enough to think differently, bold enough to believe he could change the world, and talented enough to do it.”  President Barack Obama “You are already naked.  There is no reason not to follow your heart... 10/16/2011

To Dress or Not to Dress That is the Question for Steve Jobs Day Sun. October 16 by Michelle Carr-Crowe, Silicon Valley guide and Cupertino home selling specialist Now that the governor of California Jerry Brown has made Steve Jobs Day official for Sunday, October 16, (after the unofficial Steve Jobs Day locally in Silicon Valley on Friday, October 14), here are details from the official site on how to celebrate the first Steve Jobs Day, http://www.stevejobsday2011.com/index.php. " We admire his work. We've embraced his vision. And we love what he's brought to the world. Let's take a day to celebrate the life and work of Steve Jobs and say thank you. Everyone around the world is invited to participate — in real life and in person and on Facebook, Twitter and here." And then the tricky p... 10/15/2011

What a great time at the Cupertino Tournament of Bands on Saturday night (October 8th, 2011).  The annual event is hosted by Cupertino High School. You have to excuse my pictures, as I broke my camera and was using a loner type.  :)  We all brought jackets, food, blankets and really enjoyed the 4 1/2 hours of feild shows by local favorites!   The event drew dozens of bands from around the bay area, and towards the end of the evening the stands were PACKED! My Alma Mater was in the house!  Cupertino High School, the Host Band was on display too! Saratoga High School was one of the larger bands. Homestead High School was/is one of our bands local to Cupertino and is one of 10 bands nationally picked to be in the Rose Parade this year.  And of course, they stole the show! I tried to snap a... 10/12/2011

Wanna Hack Autism? There's an App for That by Michelle Carr Crowe, Silicon Valley guide and San Jose real estate agent selling homes in Cupertino Schools Did you know Monday, October 11 is Hacking Autism Day? Yes, it's true. It's call the Hackathon, and it's happening in the city of Cupertino, the spirit of Silicon Valley, Calif. Hacking Autism and The Hackathon are about using technology to give people with autism a voice. In preparation for the October 11th App Hackathon in Cupertino, California, Hacking Autism has assembled an impressive advisory board of leading autism specialists and recruited an eager army of software programmers. Their mission? To develop innovative, touch-enabled applications for the autism community and make this software available for free on HackingAutism.org... 10/09/2011

Cupertino Tournament of Bands Today October 8   By Michelle Carr Crowe, Silicon Valley guide and Cupertino homes selling specialist   This Saturday over 30 bands and their supporters (an estimated 4,000 people) will converge on Cupertino High in Cupertino to participate in the 41st annual Cupertino Tournament of Bands.   The parade of bands competition is from 10am-12pm. The parade competition occurs on Stevens Creek between Miller and Finch. Real estate agents and consumers should be aware of the impact of increased traffic due to both the Diwali Festival at Memorial Park and the Cupertino Tournament of Bands parade. The evening’s field show is from 4:30-9:30pm, and will be held in Cupertino High School’s new  lighted stadium.  Cupertino PROUD Pioneer Band Performance Times ·     Para... 10/08/2011

Diwali-A Free Festival for All in Cupertino Today October 8   By Michelle Carr Crowe, Silicon Valley guide and Cupertino homes selling specialist   Join thousands of Bay Area residents to celebrate the victory of good over evil today at the Diwali Festival in Cupertino, today, Saturday, October 8th.   Starting at 10:00 am, music, dancing, family activities and of course delectable food will be available for all to enjoy at Memorial Park in Cupertino, near De Anza College.   Diwali, also known as the Festival of Lights, is celebrated with family gatherings, prayers for prosperity in the new year and purchasing new clothes.   Organized with cooperation from many Indian organizations, including Maithry, the Bay Area Malayalee community, and the Cupertino Chamber of Commerce, the event is F... 10/08/2011

Cupertino Homes Sales September 2011 The Chart and Map show all Cupertino Homes (Single Family Residences only) sold on the local Multiple Listing Service (MLS; MLSListings, Inc.) in September 2011. As customary in Cupertino, the average Sale Price exceeded the average Asking Price as multiple offers created bidding wars.  Top-rated schools combined with relatively moderate prices by Silicon Valley standards make Cupertino a favored location for young families with school-aged children.  Buyers are often well-paid, highly-educated people working in Silicon Valley's high tech sector.  I think it's fair to say that the Cupertino School District, not the City per se, is the primary attraction. With an Average Days on the Market (DOM) of only 17, and an average Sale Price of $1,088,935 my g... 10/07/2011

By Michelle Carr CroweThe suspected Cupertino gunman involved in the shooting and killing of three people was shot and killed by police today, ending a 28-hour manhunt in Silicon Valley. In yesterday's story, Cupertino Residents On Alert, Alleged Killer Still At Large, citizens in Cupertino and Sunnyvale were alerted to danger after an apparently disgruntled employee of Lehigh Hanson Permanante Cement shot and killed three people, and injured seven. The alleged suspect, who matched the description of the shooter, was 45-year-old, Shareeff William Allman.Although nearby schools, including Monta Vista High in Cupertino, opted to cancel classes on Wed., schools were back to normal today. Those are the facts. The feelings were scary. This is generally a low-crime area (as in very low crime)... 10/06/2011

By Michelle Carr Crowe Cupertino residents are on the alert after a man shot and killed three people, and injured seven at Lehigh Permanente Cement Plant in Cupertino. Many Cupertino residents as well as people who work in Cupetino received an automated call this morning from the Santa Clara County Sherriffs Department alerting them to the danger, giving a description of the suspect and cautioning them not to approach him if spotted. Nearby schools, including Monta Vista High in Cupertino, opted to cancel classes for the day. People were advised to stay away from areas currently blocked from traffic by police at the areas of Stevens Creek west of Foothill, and roads near Tantau and Homestead. Suspect is described as dark-skinned, with brown eyes and black hair, and may be driving a brow... 10/05/2011

Environmental Recycling Day & Document Shredding Event – Cupertino, CA. 10/22/2011 The City of Cupertino will be hosting this event on October 22, 2011.  It will be located in the De Anza College in Parking Lot “A”.  This free drive-through, drop off service is for Cupertino Residences and happens twice a year.  It is to help encourage extended use of products and prevent valuable resources from being sent to the dump! ACCEPTABLE MATERIALS ·         Shred your confidential documents - two box limit ·         Yard Waste (processed for compost) ·         Reusable furniture, clothing and shoes (for donation; NO dirty, broken, stained or torn furniture ·         Children’s plastic toys and play structures (for recycling) ·         U-Waste (batteries, cell phones, compact fluorescent bulbs a... 10/02/2011

Looking at home sale stats for the city of Cupertino, CA.  These stats are for Single Family Units. As we extend ourselves through August 2011, we see a sales pattern of peaks and valleys.  Most peaks occur during the Sunner and valleys during the winter. Looking at last year, the largest months of inventory occurred in July and August.  It seems that this year we may see the same thing, but it might be August and September. Last year or sales low was in January, so it seems that we may see that same thing this year.  In a few days we will be able to track the numbers from September to give us a clearer picture. If you are thinking of selling, you should make sure you home is in great condition and priced right.  If you a buyer, NOW is the time to buy! -Chris Alston Are you following me... 09/30/2011

Cupertino Tournament of Bands (TOB) Saturday, October 8th, 2011 As you know, I am an alumni of Cupertino High School...  I am a native of Cupertino and still live and work here...  So I am planning on taking my son to this awesome event! This event draws crowds from all the local high schools, as well as schools from across the state and US!  Band compete based upon band size so the schools are always competing against others that are of the same caliber. They compete on marching in parade, music, percussion, and of course everyone's favorite the Field shows! Make it a boint to come down this year! Location: Cupertino High School 10100 Finch Avenue, Cupertino, CA 95014 www.chs.fuhsd.org/TOB Schedule: 9:30 AM First band leaves Band Formation Area 10:00 AM Parade Competition begins on St... 09/28/2011

Support St. Jude Children's Hospital-Eat at Chili's Tonight All Proceeds to St. Jude by Michelle Carr Crowe Today, September 26, all proceeds of sales at participating Chili's Restaurants benefit St. Jude Children's Hospital In addition to Cupertino, Calif., there are nearly a dozen other Chili's location in Santa Clara County to choose from, including several in San Jose, and ones in Mountain View, Morgan Hill, Fremont and Union City. You can get phone numbers and directions to the numerous Chili's Locations in Santa Clara County here. Please verify with your desired Chili's location that they are participating-and/or keep this blog up on your SmartPhone to show them the info when you order. You can also sign up for Chili's e-mail newsletter and be eligible for free chips and queso on ... 09/26/2011

by Michelle Carr Crowe, Cupertino homes San Jose real estate agent Stop by the open house at 6312 Bollinger Road, San Jose, Calif. today and pick up a FREE list of the Cupertino City-wide Garage Sales happening Sunday, Sept. 25. Free guides, including map and addresses of participating Cupertino homes (and lists of items for sale) are available while supplies last. More than 100 families are holding garage sales in Cupertino, and some in nearby West San Jose, including one at 1133 Fairford, San Jose (just off of Johnson between Rainbow & Bollinger).  More information can be found at Cupertino's city site garage sale page: http://www.cupertino.org/index.aspx?page=153. The beautiful home at 6312 Bollinger, San Jose is listed at the lowest price for a single family home located in the Cupe... 09/25/2011

100+ Cupertino Homes Participating in Annual Garage Sale Sept. 24 & 25 by Michelle Carr-Crowe, Your San Jose Saratoga Lynbrook & Cupertino Schools Expert More than 100 Cupertino homes will host garage sales at this year’s annual Cupertino On Sale, citywide garage sale event. You can still sign up and download a free Garage Sale Kit. If you love great deals and a good value when you shop garage sales, you know the best sales are at homes in expensive neighborhoods, such as Cupertino, Los Altos, Saratoga and Los Gatos.   So when you are out visiting the open house at 6312 Bollinger in San Jose with Cupertino Schools, stop by some of these garage sales. See the full list of participating Cupertino households here at http://forms4.cupertino.org/garage/list.aspx. Listings include types of it... 09/22/2011

Listen to the Sound of Onam by Michelle Carr Crowe, San Jose real estate agent selling homes in Cupertino Schools   Happy Onam! While on Maithry's Facebook page, I came across a lovely song you can listen to to get a feeling for Onam. Onam is the harvest festival for people from the state of Kerala in India.   Music by Rajesh Naroth Lyrics by P. N. Kozhikode Performed by Nitya Iyer & Gopakumar Pillai "Onam" by Naroth is licensed under a Creative Commons License   For more information on Onam:   www.maithry.org http://www.onamfestival.org/what-is-onam.html http://soundcloud.com/naroth/onam   09/11/2011

Living in Saratoga on the Cupertino border, there is train tracks that kinda travel right through the neighborhood.  I mean, right through the neighborhood.  Every time I go to work, or head home I cross this rail crossing.  It is located at the intersection of Prospect and Stelling in Cupertino. I have heard a train once, but never was able to see it.  Then, heading out camping with my son a few Fridays back, I caught the train!  My son was sooooo thrilled!  You can see the houses on the other side of the tracks, so you can see that it is right there...  We were so excited to see a train, crumbing through our neighborhood at the bottom of the hill...  So we chased it down to the next crossing on De Anza Blvd.  We pulled into the pool store parking lot and watched it slowly lumber down ... 09/07/2011