The holiday season finally wrapped, with traditional gift giving, partying and good will to all. And, it leads up to the event we all just celebrated together, the New Year. Hats, horns, champagne and Auld Lang Syne marked New Year’s Eve throughout America, while elsewhere, different cultures added their own customs to the end of the old year and the start of the new.
In Armenia, they feasted on fl at bread baked with a coin in it for luck. In Brazil, boats filled with flowers, candles and jewelry were pushed out to sea from Rio’s Ipanema Beach. The Scots banned blondes after midnight on December 31, as it’s considered bad luck to have anyone not dark-haired be the first to cross your threshold in the New Year. In Wales, little boys in each village traveled house to house singing and waving evergreen twigs for good luck – at 3:00 or 4:00 a.m. – a tradition not likely to catch on anywhere in Southern California. And, in Canada, they celebrated the holiday much as their neighbors to the south did, except at 12:00 midnight they shouted, “Happy New Year, eh!!!”
January 1 being a time for new beginnings, one custom we all shared is making New Year’s resolutions. Some of us promised to confront the truly difficult challenges in life, such as quitting smoking, joining a gym or losing some weight. Others preferred to focus their attentions on easier problems – developing a foreign policy, solving the nation’s economic woes, landing a manned mission on Mars. Whatever resolutions we chose, we awoke on New Year’s Day with new resolve, and often a powerful desire for orange juice and aspirin. This time, we vowed we’d achieve our goals regardless of the obstacles facing us! Unfortunately, by the time we’d watched all the football bowl games, we sometimes forgot what it was that we resolved to do when the balloons and confetti fell onto the dance floor the night before. So, this year, I’m offering a suggestion to everyone considering a residential real estate transaction in Bel Air. Now that the hats and horns have been put away and champagne bottles tossed in the trash, think of a few words you can use as a reminder to strike while the iron is hot and not miss out on a great opportunity in 2015. This little mental trigger can be something as simple as a person’s name. In fact, I’d be happy to offer my own name, Mark Goldsmith.
Feel free to use it as your own special mnemonic device. When you think of my name, it will cue a response that will remind you that the new year can be your time to make a very successful transaction. For that matter, feel free to call me and talk about your opportunities. That’s what I’m here for. I’m the real estate professional who is totally focused on two things: my very special market and, dedicated customer service. I’m available to you all the time by calling (310)777-6291, even in the waning days of the holiday season. It’s going to be a very positive 2015, and you’ll want to list your premium property ASAP.
That’s why at midnight on New Year’s Eve, I was at home drinking hot cocoa, resting up for the listing calls to come and reading a good book. Well, actually, it was the Multiple Listing Service.
