365 Things to do in Worcester County - Open Mic Night at Beatnik's in Worcester.  Ever have that feeling of "the hump of the week"?  Well, I'm here to tell you that there is a cure for that "my god it's only half way to the week end blues"  That is to join open Mic night at Beatnik's on Park Ave.   Open Mic Night at BEATNIK'S with Bill McCarthy - Open Mike! Wednesdays, 6/17/2009 - 6/18/2011 7:30 PM-11:00 PM Beatnik's, 433 Park Avenue, Worcester, MA - Free! check the schedules and open slots Any slot marked as "open" usually is. Email OPENMCC@VERIZON. NET to reserve it! (make sure you put "open mic" in the email's "subject box") Bill McCarthy (originator of the "Half-Hour Sets!" is Your Host at another great Open Mic Night! NETWORK * COLLABORATE * LEARN OVER SIXTY DIFFERENT MUSICIANS REG... 02/18/2011

365 Things to do in Worcester County - Listen to live Jazz at Luciano's in Worcester.  Last Spring, when my husband and I shaperoned a High School Senior prom, Alex, the manager of Luciano's invited me to tour his new "hip and happening" club at Union Station.  Alex already managing a successful restaurant in Worcester called Maxwell Sylverman's, embarked on this venue a while back an since we were literally next door, I got the inside look.  The place is decorated in a classic theme of a classic mobster movie, a place where a gangster or a mob boss would sit smoking a big cigar listening to a crooner like Frank Sinatra sing his set.  Yes, it really does feel like it's straight out of a 30s Mobster movie, this cafe and lounge is is an elegant bar that is sure to impress any client. Loca... 02/17/2011

365 things to do in Worcester County - support the Arts at Sopranopalooza in Worcester.  On Saturday, February 26, 2011 at 7:00 PM at Briarwood Community Center (65 Briarwood Circle, Worcester), an exciting event will be  held and you're invited! There is something for everyone, whether it is the chance to win theatre tickets or gift certificates, a glimpse at a unique historical item of great cultural value, or the lush sound of a dozen talented singers performing beautiful music written for women. Sopranopalooza! What better way to spend a cold winter evening than in the company of friends and surrounded by music? The many talented ladies of Worcester Opera Works will be the featured musical guests of this event, which will also include raffles, a silent auction, and more. Singer rost... 02/16/2011

Mortgage Rate Outlook for the Week Begining 02/14 Tues 830am Retail Sales: This could be a market mover either way. Did the bad month of storms keep consumers away? A jammed packed Wed Housing starts and Producer Price Index at 830am: This will give us a picture of construction for the country and how the inflation picture is looking. PPI can move interest rates either way FOMC Minutes at 2pm: These are the comments from the last fed meeting, as of late there has been a lot of tension on whether it's time to start worrying about raising rates and inflation or not. It will be interesting to see what was said Thursday Consumer Price Index and Weekly Jobless Claims: Another picture of what inflation is doing and if job creation can get some momentum My Rate Outlook for the Week:   I think ... 02/14/2011

365 things to do in Worcester County - celebrate Valentine with romantic music in Worcester. As Valentine approached, I want to dedicate a few blogs to this romantic holiday.  Started many years ago, it now represent a day set aside for lovers.  Everyone celebrates Valentine differently and there are many really interesting and innovative ways to celebrate right here in Worcester County: If you like music, enjoy classical wooing on February 16, 2011 at 8:00 pm   The Romantic Music of Mozart, Chopin, Beethoven   in Mechanics Hall   Tickets to this performance will fit nicely into your Valentine's Day card! Maestro Bogoslaw Dawidow will conduct this magnificent orchestra on their first U.S. tour as they perform a romantic program that will include the Chopin Piano Concerto No.1 with Evgen... 02/12/2011

Obama's Housing Plan GSEs and What It Means to Us Background The GSE Purchase Program is a government program that was put in place as a result of the financial crisis of late 2008. This program was designed to give the strained mortgage market some breathing room in the form of more liquidity in the market. Basically the United States Treasury would invest or buy up mortgage back securities from the likes of Aunt Fannie Mae and Uncle Freddie Mac.   This was a vital program that helped a paralyzed banking system stay afloat while the economy tried to get some traction. It pushed down mortgage rates and kept mortgage rates low by allowing the bond market to rally for an extended period of time. It helped home owners refinance at a time when otherwise they wouldn't be able to take advanta... 02/12/2011

365 things to do in Worcester County - See Worcester Consortium art Exhibit. - Have you been keeping up with the young talent in Worcester County?  Wondering what new art movement is taking over our communities?  Do you know a talented college student, being recognised for his or her art talent? Well, for the next few weeks, you can enjoy art in a different way: Announcing: Seventh Annual Colleges of Worcester Consortium Art Exhibition Being held now onTuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays until March 4, 2011In the afternoon between 1:00 PM and 4:00 PM ARTSWorcester Aurora Gallery 660 Main Street Worcester, MA 01610 Google Maps - MapQuest Seventh Annual Colleges of Worcester Consortium Show is a juried group exhibition culled from over one hundred emerging student artists ... 02/11/2011

365 Things to do in Worcester County - take ZUMBA class in Worcester Each Monday from January 10, 2011 to April 25, 2011, at 4:30 pm, the fun begins.   It's really a party more than excersice and you have only one hour to enjoy this dance sensation that is sweeping the nation. If you are looking to take advantage of Zumba, go to Quinsigamond Community College: Athletic Center in the Yoga Room 670 West Boylston St. Worcester, MA 01606 Google Maps - MapQuest The address @ Quinsigamond Community College is: 670 W Boylston St Worcester, MA 01606 To register go call 508-853-2300 or become a member ZUMBA is a LATIN "DANCERSIZE" where you will ditch the work out, and join the party!!! You can burn up to 700 calories and trim your waist line in this class while having tons of fun!!! Featuring a... 02/08/2011

365 Things to do in Worcester County - Enjoy music at Jillians in Worcester - Last Friday night I went out with friends to Jillian's on Grove St.  To listen to "Great Escape".  The band plays a tribute to Journey.  The festivities started close to ten pm, certainly past my bed time to relive my youth.  But fun was held by all. I did have to use some precaution in order to enjoy my night.  When the band started playing, I realized that if the volume escalated, I was going to come home with a major head ache.  So, I pealed my friend's napkin and made ear plugs.  That worked out well.  The music was just right for the rest of the night. the dance floor was a bit small, but my out going group knew how to have fun.  We danced the night away even though the music wasn't ideal for any ballroom... 02/06/2011

This week will change the mortgage industry for good and it's very important that everyone involved in the mortgage transaction process know why. We are all going to have to work together to explain these changes to our clients.   As most of us know the past few years in the mortgage world have been frustrating to say the least. Ever changing bank guidelines and product tightening have pushed our communication skills to their max. I'm sure many agents reading this can think back to at least one instance when a purchase and sales contract had to be extended because of a slow mortgage scenario or appraisal review process. I know for me there has been way too many rate lock extensions I had to pay for because of unforeseen circumstances to otherwise straight forward loans.  When I'm explai... 02/04/2011

365 things to do in Worcester County - Learn Irish folk dance at the Worcester Hibernian Cultural Center.  Sorry for the late notice, but I just learned about free dance lessons in Worcester and want to share it with you.  Now, I've focused on traditional Ball room dancing but there are other types of dancing that can be just as fun and exciting to learn.  Here is your opportunity to experience a new dance technique. On Monday Nights 7:00pm to 8:30 pm, from now till February 28, 2011, Worcester Hibernian Culture Center at 19 Temple St., in Worcester will teach you what you need to know to look like an Irish (Ceili) couple dancing the Irish folk dance.  The Hibernian Cultural Center offers FREE dance lessons every Monday night. They cover all of the ceili dances, some Irish set dancing, ... 02/03/2011

365 things to do in Worcester County - visit water color exhibit in Worcester.  If you can find your shovel and shovel your self out of the snow that looks like has stopped for now, you can go to Hanover Theater in Worcester and visit water color exhibit. I recognise this scene from one of  my 365 things to do in Worcester County.  So this gives me an idea.  Only a die hard fan or an avid reader of my blog will be able to track down the blog.  If you find the blog that talks about this location, I will give you a Dunkin Donuts $10 gift card.  Just post your "I know the blog" message and send me an email to buyhomes@charter.net.  I will randomly pick a winner and send you you the card.  I will post the winner in the remarks after the Deadline of March 1, 2011.   ARTSWorcester presents Wo... 02/02/2011

365 things to do in Worcester County - Tour American Antiquarian Society in Worcester. Did you know that Worcester boasts the first national historical society.  This independent research library was founded in 1812 by Isaiah Thomas and has the largest single collection of printed source materials relati9ng to U.S. history and culture from 1640 to 1876 and the world's most extensive early American newspaper collection. American Antiquarian Society 185 Salisbury Street Worcester, Massachusetts 01609-1634 Tel.: 508-755-5221 Fax: 508-753-3311   The American Antiquarian Society's library contains 20 miles of shelves that hold over three million items including: books, pamphlets, broadsides, newspapers, periodicals, sheet music, and graphic materials.  This building is open to the public   M... 02/01/2011

365 things to do in Worcester County - See "Inherit the Wind" at Worcester County Light Opera. It's not too late to get tickets for WCLO's second show of the season, "Inherit the Wind". The play house is offering a special $3.00 off the $18.00 ticket price for opening night (Friday, February 4th) performance when you order tickets online and enter coupon code WIND. There is also a $3.00 Senior Citizen discount (60 yrs and older) for all Sunday performances.  Show Synopsis “Inherit The Wind” is a classic American drama based on the Scopes “Monkey” Trial of 1925, pitting the teachings of Darwinist evolution against Fundamentalist Christianity. The town of Hillsboro, Tennessee, is the sight of this monumental legal clash between Matthew Harrison Brady, a leading Christian scholar and forme... 01/29/2011

Egypts Troubles Could Be Good For Mortgage Rates... Egypts Troubles Could Be Good For Mortgage Rates... It was almost about a year ago when the European debt crisis fears started to creep into the US stock market pushing rates down. What happens is that when there is fear in the market risk trading comes off the table and investors and institutions start to buy safer assets like gold and bonds. When the market is moving up investors are buying stocks in hopes of getting a large return on their money. These stocks or equities are risk, or at least riskier than bonds. Once people become nervous the animal spirits of the market move the money into other things. This is what happened Friday. Egypts Troubles Could Be Good For Mortgage Rates... because now the fear trade is back on. Investors... 01/29/2011

365 Things to do in Worcester County - Adjust the price of your home in Worcester so that it will sell.  So let's say that you have a home with an atypical floor plan,  a house that has more quare footage that a typical buyer may even need, a home in a great location with easy access to highways and amenities, but buyers have passed you by.  What do you do?  Well you've already udated the rugs, minimized the furniture and have a great agent like me marketing it everywhere.  The next step is to review the market and adjust the price to make your home more desirable than the competition.  And that's just what we have done.   Imagine, waking up in your own master suite with full bath and a walk in closet.  But that's not all: right through the glass doors is a spa, just waiting for you.  E... 01/28/2011

The foreclosure process is stuck in the mud and getting slower, and you didn't think that was possible. I have been reading some interesting studies the last couple of weeks trying to weed through the bias opinions and non-sense data in hopes to come up with some real facts behind the slow foreclose process. And from everything I'm reading it looks like we could have a 5yr or longer back log on foreclosures. That's right I said 5 years or longer. According to a report on the housing market from TrimTabs Investment research, it's taken three years to process $1 trillion in foreclosed homes. At that rate, it will take more than five years for the amount of each individual's mortgage debt, relative to their income, to get back to levels that were the norm in this country before the housin... 01/27/2011

365 things to do in Worcester County - Celebrate 6 months of blogging by enjoying Worcester.  Today marks the half way point of my blogging goal, to create 365 things to do in Worcester County.  I've really enjoyed cataloguing all the fun things to do either at home or in our neighborhoods.  I've learned so much about the history and the people that make up Worcester County. My goal is to continue to enlighten and entertain you, my readers.  If you have an event or a business that you would like to have me featured, please let me know.  I will be delighted to let everyone know of one of your 365 things to do in Worcester County - Celebrate 6 months of blogging by enjoying Worcester 01/27/2011

The next scandal to rock the foreclosure process is about to explode onto the scene and it's not robo signing. The next scandal looks like it's going to be Notice of Default letters.The banks are about to be stuck once again the legal web of interpretation.                     The Notice of Default letter is the letter that a mortgage lender or servicer sends to a homeowner who has fallen behind on payments. So the home owner goes 30 days late on their mortgage and now they can receive a Notice of Default letter in the mail. The Notice of Default letter is used in 27 states, and that's a lot of people and potentially a lot of issues. Here's the issue. Every Notice of Defaultis supposed to have a signature on it. That's right these thousands upon thousands of Notice of Defaultletters tha... 01/25/2011

365 things to do in Worcester County – come listen and see Cuarteto Casals , with Andreas Klein, Guest Pianist. On Friday, February 25, 2011, @ Tuckerman Hall - 8:00 PM with Free Pre-Concert Talk at 7:00 PM, there will be a concert of international renown.  Worcester’s Tuckerman Hall will host Cuarteto Casals, a Quartet founded in Madrid in 1997. Cuarteto Casals has quickly become recognized as one of Europe's most distinguished string quartets.  It has won top musical awards - including a First at the 2000 London and at the 2002 Johannes Brahms International String Quartet Competitions, and in 2006 The National Music Award in Spain. To say that Cuarteto Casals is worldly, is an understatement.  The four person string ensemble has graced cities such as London, Amsterdam, Lincoln Center ... 01/25/2011