Wrapping Up this Week

As this week comes to a close we have had a swoon of activity in our market place. Here are some comments that I picked up form Realty Times that may help put a few things into perspective.

Now let's turn to market developments still ahead: No one is predicting any quick turnarounds or sudden bursts in sales, but think about these facts:

Thirty-year mortgage rates continue to be in the mid to upper 5 percent range -- among the lowest in half a century. If they stay low, most economists agree they will stimulate home sales.

Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke told Congress last week that he is committed to lowering short-term rates even further to help stimulate the economy -- and hinted that the Fed could cut rates another half point in mid March.

The new, higher mortgage maximums for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and FHA will kick in by mid-March and should help thousands of first-time buyers in high-cost markets like California and the Northeast and ultimately help clear out some of the unsold inventory clogging those areas.

Combine low-cost money with sharply lower prices and at some point, you hit bottom -- flatten out -- and sales begin to pick up.

Downcycles aren't forever, nor are upcycles.

Bissextile - Leap Year

bissextile adjective

referring to a leap yearbissextile

noun [C]a leap yearbissext (also bissextus) noun [C]

February 29th, the extra day in a leap year‘Let’s leap for joy – today is Bissextile Day! … Calm down, this story has nothing to do with gender preferences. Bissextile is the official name of the leap day we add every four years to keep our calendar in kilter.’

(The Virginian-Pilot, 29th February 2004)Contrary to what you might think, the word bissextile has nothing to do with issues of sexual orientation or gender! It refers simply to a leap year - a year containing February 29th and therefore a total of 366 days. A noun derivative bissext refers to the extra day itself, though leap day is a common alternative in much wider use.

February 29th is often technically referred to as an intercalary day, intercalary being an adjective of Latin origin used to describe the insertion of an extra day in the calendar to harmonise it with a solar year.A recent coining on the same topic is the countable noun leapling, used to refer to a person born on February 29th.

Twenty-first century leaplings can be united through a dedicated website, http://www.leapdaybabies.com/. A recent quote from the site states:‘… Now you will always know someone born on the same day as you. If your child was born today, February 29, 2004 – Leap Year Day – Congratulations!

Please register your little Leapling with us …’-ling is a suffix often used to imply that a person or thing is small or very young, as illustrated by words like duckling, seedling etc. In the same way, leapling is often reserved for a newborn leap day baby, also affectionately referred to as a leapy.

The countable noun leaper is a slightly less recent general term for a person born on February 29th. The website also humorously promotes a range of related terms, including an adjective leapless, which describes a person not born on February 29th, and a noun leapship, which refers to a relationship between two people both born on a leap day. Background

The word bissextile in fact has its origins in the sixteenth century, deriving from the Latin term bissextilis meaning ‘having an intercalary day’. In the Roman calendar, the sixth day before the ‘Calends of March’ (i.e. 24th February, counting back from the beginning of March) occurred twice in a leap year. Hence the term is based on Latin sextus - ‘six’ - and bis - ‘twice’ - and means ‘twice the sixth day’.

The word bissextile is relatively rare in modern English, but emerges from obscurity every four years as illustrated by articles like the one cited above. The phrase année bissextile is however a commonly used French term for leap year. The term leapling is a twenty-first century coining. The use of the word leap in reference to a year with 366 days dates from the time of late Middle English.

In years with the extra day, feast days after February came two days rather than one day later than the previous year, and could therefore be said to have ‘leaped’ a day.

Provided by the Macmillan Dictionary

Fun Facts About Leap Year

2008 is a leap year, with 366 days instead of the usual 365 days. Why?

It was the ancient Egyptians who first figured out that the solar year and the man-made calendar year didn't always match up.

That's because it actually takes the Earth a little longer than a year to travel around the Sun — 365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, and 46 seconds, to be exact.

Therefore, as the hours accumulated over the centures, an extra day was occasionally added to the calendar, and over time the practice became more or less official.

It was the Romans who first designated February 29 as leap day. Later, a more precise formula (still in use today) was adopted in the 16th century when the Gregorian calendar fine-tuned the calculations to include a leap day in years only divisible by four, i.e., 2008, 2012.

Another stipulation ruled that no year divisible by 100 would have a leap year, except if it was divisible by 400. Thus, 1900 was not a leap year ... but 2000 was! Go figure.

Thankfully, all this intricate plotting will continue to keep us in tune with the seasons over the next several thousand years.

Born on a Leap Day?
Born February 29: Actor Antonio Sabato Jr. and rapper Ja Rule.

According to astrologers, those born under the sign of Pisces on February 29 have unusual talents and personalities reflecting their special status.

Most have to wait every four years to "officially" observe their birthdays, but leap year babies typically choose either February 28 or March 1 to celebrate in years that aren't leap years.

Some Famous People Born on February 29

Born 1976 - Ja Rule, rapper

Born 1972 - Anthonio Sabato Jr., model & actor

Born 1916 - Dinah Shore, singer

Born 1904 - Jimmy Dorsey, bandleader.

Born 1792 - Gioacchino Rossini, Italian opera composer

Leap Day Traditions - No Man is Safe
While leap day helped official timekeepers, it also resulted in social customs turned upside down when February 29 became a "no man's land" without legal jurisdiction.

"Help! They're after me!1912 Leap Year postcard

As the story goes, the tradition of women romantically pursuing men in leap years began in 5th century Ireland, when St. Bridget complained to St. Patrick about the fair sex having to wait for men to propose. Patrick finally relented and set February 29 aside as the day set aside allowing women the right to ask for a man's hand in marriage.

The tradition continued in Scotland, when Queen Margaret declared in 1288 that on February 29 a woman had the right to pop the question to any man she fancied. Menfolk who refused were faced with a fine in the form of a kiss, a silk dress, or a pair of gloves given to the rejected lady fair.

A similar modern American tradition, Sadie Hawkins Day, honors "the homeliest gal in the hills" created by Al Capp in the cartoon strip Li'l Abner. In the famous story line, Sadie and every other woman in town were allowed on that day to pursue and catch the most eligible bachelors in Dogpatch. Although the comic strip placed Sadie Hawkins Day in November, today it has become almost synonymous with February 29

Leap Year on Stage & Screen
The day also plays a pivotal role in the fictional The Pirates of Penzance, the most famous Gilbert & Sullivan comic opera that was translated to Broadway and the silver screen.

In the story, the hero Frederic realizes his apprenticeship binds him until his 21st birthday, but since his birthday falls on February 29, it means that technically he is only a young lad - and won't reach his 21st birthday until he is in his eighties!

A Leap Year Ditty to Remember It By
Thirty days hath September,

April, June and November;

All the rest have thirty-one

Save February, she alone

Hath eight days and a score

Til leap year gives her one day more.

Compliments of Chiff.com

Take Me Back to the Sixties - on a fun note!

On the lighter side of life I received this today and it was a walk down memory lane for me. I felt as if I was in high school again. ok, so now I have dated myself! ;)

I hope you enjoy this as much as I did and it is very well done. Just click on the link, relax and enjoy. Click Here Link: Take Me Back To The Sixties

President Signs $168 Billion Economic Stimulus Bill

President Bush today signed off on the $168 billion stimulus package approved by Congress last week, which, in addition to tax rebates for millions of working Americans and business owners, includes a vital, but temporary increase in the conforming loan limit. The economic stimulus package will allow the Federal Housing Administration, as well as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to offer mortgages above the current conforming loan limit of $417,000 to as much as $729,750 in high-cost areas for loans originated between July 1, 2007 and Dec. 31, 2008.

"The actions of Congress and our president represent a significant victory for homeowners across the state and nationwide," said C.A.R. President William E. Brown. "C.A.R. has long fought for increases to the conforming loan limit in order to close the gap for would-be home buyers in high-cost areas, such as California, and, with the spotlight now fully shining on this important issue, will continue those efforts and push for permanent changes beyond Dec. 31."

This information provided by the California Association of Realtors.