Troy's Blog

The 22nd Annual Chandler Ostrich Festival is coming to Chandler Arizona March 12th - 14th at Tumbleweed Park (southwest corner of McQueen and Germann roads).  From it's small beginnings in 1989, it has grown to be one of the premier festivals in the Southwest, with attendance up to 350,000 for the three day event. 

There is something for the entire family at this fun-filled event.  There will be three stages to entertain you throughout the weekend with music and dance.  A wide array of nationally known artists will perform on the Main Stage nightly.  The Community Stage and Ostrich Coop Stage will feature the top local talents and the newest venue, the Chandler Ranch Stage will showcase family music and entertainment in the day and dance bands at night.  

Like any world class festival, all kinds of food will be available from the traditional fair favorites to Ostrich burgers.  Of course, don't forget the main attraction, The Ostrich races!  

What, you've never been to the Ostrich Races?  Well, if you have never seen this attraction, you must make it a point to witness the unpredictability of the races this year.  The Ostrich races are a staple of the Chandler Ostrich Festival, and will provide hilarious entertainment for anyone lucky enough to watch.  They are held, of course, on the Ostrich Track.  

Ostrich Race Schedule:

Friday, March 12 | 4pm, 6pm        
Saturday, March 13 | 12pm, 2pm, 5pm
Sunday, March 14 | 12pm, 2pm, 5pm 

To go along with the ostrich races, a huge carnival midway will have more rides than ever, as well as a live ostrich display, pig races, and a 100 animal petting zoo.  There will also be  amateur boxing you can participate in at the midway on Friday at 4pm, and Saturday at 1pm.  Proceeds from every boxing show will go towards autism research and awareness.   Many artisans will be displaying their Arts and Crafts in booths throughout the midway as well.  

The kids zone is loaded with bouncies, pony rides, and games just for kids.  The kids zone will also showcase the high flying action of dockdogs, as well as stunt and thrills show by the fearless Flores family, and a show featuring performing Baboons. 

The sideshow tent will entertain you with a rhinestone roper, a comic juggler and magician, a crossbow archery show, and a freakshow you have to see to believe.                                         

Also on the ostrich track, there will be the Imperial Knights jousting for your entertainment.  There is nothing fake about this event.  From sword fight to a full joust, they provide every combination of knightly skills. 

Jousting Schedule:

Friday, March 12 | 3pm, 5pm
Saturday, March 13 | 11am, 1pm, 3pm
Sunday, March 14 | 11am, 1pm, 3pm  

 Tickets range from $9 to $7 for general admission, and an all-day ride wristband is $25.  You can pick up discount tickets at any Fry's or the Chandler Chamber of Commerce.  Parking is $5 per car. 

This areas rich and unusual heritage in Ostrich ranching provides the basis for a wonderful family oriented community event.  Young and old alike can explore, relax, and enjoy the many exhibits, games, and shows.  Plan to spend some fun time this year as we celebrate Chandler's unique history in a fun family friendly festival.  For more information regarding the Chandler Ostrich Festival, please visit www.ostrichfestival.com.

There is a new generation of kids growing up these days, the iGeneration, and it's all because of technology.  The iGeneration "wants to be constantly connected and available in a way even their older siblings don't quite get", said Sharon Jayson in a USA Today article the other day.  As the Y Generation gets older, the iGeneration does not remember a time without constant connectivity through technology.  These kids are always going to be available to their peers no matter where they are.

Larry Rosen has written a book called "Rewired: Understanding the iGeneration and the way they learn."  Rosen says the little "i" stands for individualized.  "Everything is customized and individualized to me.  My music choices are customized to me.  What I watch on TV is customizable to me."  Rosen also says "the iGeneration believes anything is possible.  If they can think of it, somebody probably has or will invent it.  They expect innovation."  Portability is key to this generation, as they are inseparable from their wireless devices.  Rosen's research discovered that 35 percent of children ages 6 months to 3 years have a TV in their bedroom, 10 percent of children ages 4 to 8 have a computer in their bedroom, and 51 percent of children ages 9 to 12 have a cellphone.  When I was a kid, my parents would have thought it was criminal to have a TV in my room, and cell phones were not even invented yet.

New generations are developed through the use of new technologies.  The iGeneration is taking in astronomical amounts of information, screening out unimportant details, and focusing on the parts they need.  They are less interested in learning facts and data, and more interested in how to gain access to it, produce it, and integrate it into their life.  I guess my 11 year old son will be forever known as part of the iGeneration, and I can't wait to see what they accomplish!

My son's shortened soccer season is ending on a good note.  His soccer season didn't start this year until December 2009 because he decided to try tackle football for the first time this last fall.  Typically he would play club soccer starting in August, and it would go through March.  This year football lasted through Thanksgiving weekend, so December 7th was his first soccer practice.

His first game, with a new club team, and playing U12 as an 11 year old, was on December 12th, and wasn't pretty.  My son only had an opportunity to practice with the team once before that game.  The game started off bad and got nothing but worse.  They ended up losing 1-7, which is an embarassing score at that age.  My son felt bad because he thought he didn't play well.

Their second game wasn't until January 16th, so my son had an opportunity to practice with the team several times, and get comfortable with his role on the team.  They ended up winning that game 4-2 against a team they had lost twice to earlier in the season.  On January 30th, they were winning their game 1-0 with under five minutes left, and they let an easy goal in their net to end up tying that game 1-1 to another team they had lost to before.  They won their next game 2-0, and were gearing up to play in their first tournament since my son started playing with them.

The tournament started out on a Friday night with our team totally dominating the other team throughout the game, and winning 3-0.  The next game on Saturday morning was a game played in the rain, with huge wind gusts, and temperatures probably in the 40's (not something we are typically prepared for in Arizona).  We completely dominated the game, but couldn't get the ball in the net.  My son alone had 4 shots on goal, and our team probably had over 20 shots on goal.  The other team had one shot on goal, and you guessed it, it just happened to sneak by our goalie.  We lost 0-1.  This was our first loss since the very first game my son played in with the team.  However, we were still in the running to play in the championship if we won our next game Sunday morning.  We ended up winning that game 3-1, and made it to the championship game against the team we lost to the game before.  We dominated the championship game just as we had the last time we played them, but the difference was that we scored. We ended up winning 3-1 and won the tournament.

Today we had our second to last league game.  My son has been very frustrated about all the opportunities he has had to score, but hadn't been able to put the ball in the net.  We started the game a little show, and by halftime, we were down 0-1.  About five minutes into the second half, we had a corner kick.  The ball ended up short and took a big bounce that ended up right in front of the goal.  My son was in the right place at the right time and headed the ball into the goal.  His first goal of the season, finally!  We could all breathe a huge sigh of relief.  We ended up coming back in that game and winning 3-1.

So, with one league game remaining, and one final tournament to play, we have been on quite a roll since the first game my son played in.  Since the worst loss for the team this year, we have gone on to win 6, tie 1, and lose 1.  We also took first place in the only tournament we have played in, and my son scored his first goal in a comeback win today.

I just hope the team can finish the season as strong as they have been playing over the past two months.

Come to the 7th Annual Chandler Classic Car and Hot Rod Show.  The show is FREE to the public, and will feature over 200 classic cars and hot rods, as well as arts and craft vendors and a kids' area.  There will be three classic-rock bands performing throughout the event, Star, Panhead Ronnie, and Grove Street.

The event takes place in Downtown Chandler at the Dr. A.J. Chandler Park at 35 S. Arizona Avenue.  It will run from 9 a.m. through 5 p.m. on Saturday, February 27, 2010.

The Chandler Classic Car and Hot Rod Show was founded in 2003 by the late Jerry Biondi and Maury Williamson.  Maury is still the owner of the Country Clipper Barber Shop located in the Chandler Historic Downtown area.  Jerry and Maury wanted to give back to the downtown area, have a fun place for car enthusiasts to enjoy classic cars, and to raise money for local non-profit organizations, and this is why they started the Chandler Classic Car and Hot Rod Show.

If you have a car that you would like to register for the event, it's not too late.  You can actually register on the day of the event.  Registration to showcase your vehicle is $40, and the proceeds from this years event will benefit ICAN (Improving Chandler Area Neighborhoods).  ICAN provides free, comprehensive out of school time programs that empower youth to be productive, self-confident, and responsible citizens.

Here are some pictures my 11 year old son (10 at the time) took from last year's event:

FHA has tightened it's lending requirements in order to maintain their capital reserves and manage risk better.  Here is what a recent article in Realtor Magazine had to say.  They are raising the upfront mortgage insurance premium (effective April 5th), increasing the minimum down payment for some borrowers, and reducing the seller concessions (both to be posted in the Federal Registry in February with a 60-90 day comment period).  The FHA is also seeking legislation to raise the annual mortgage insurance premium above the current level of .55 percent.

What does this mean to the borrower?  

With the upfront mortgage insurance premium going to 2.25 percent from 1.75 percent, it won't affect the amount of cash the buyers will need to raise (it can be financed), but it will affect how much house the buyer can afford.  It could increase their monthly payments by $50 to $100.

The minimum down payment increasing to 10 percent for anyone with a credit score of 580 or less will impact many first time homebuyers who have yet to establish a credit history.  The difference between 3.5 percent and 10 percent on a $150,000 home is an extra $9,750 in down payment the buyer will have to come up with.

The reduction in the seller contribution from 6 percent to 3 percent will hurt the buyers as well, as now they are having to pay much more of their closing costs, like title insurance and the mortgage origination fee.  Buyers may have to come up with another 1 percent of the mortgage amount.

There is a fine balance between providing access to underserved communities, supporting the economic recovery, and maintaining a healthy financial balance for the FHA to thrive and survive.  Let's hope the FHA tightening their lending requirements will not go too far to disrupt this balance of what is good for the economy.