Apartment Blog

St. Patrick’s Day Celebrations

In the United States there are many festivities to celebrate Saint Patrick’s Day. It goes back to the first celebration in Boston, Massachusetts in 1737 where the first Saint Patrick’s Day Parade took place on March 17th.

From the major cities like Boston or New York to your home town. Here is a brief list of some major festivals, parades and events happening in the U.S. Feel free to add your city’s celebrations to our list!

Savannah, Georgia
Savannah’s Saint Patrick’s Day parade usually takes place on March 17th, regardless if it’s during the work week. However for 2008, the parade will take place on Friday, March 14th to honor Holy week in the Catholic faith. The parade route changes each year but usually travels through Savannah’s Historic Park District and Bay Street. In additional to the parade, Savannah’s Waterfront Association has an annual celebration on Historic River Street which mimics Mardi Gras on Bourbon Street.

New York City, New York
According to Wikipedia, the New York parade has become the largest St. Patrick’s Day parade in the world with more than 150,000 marchers and close to 2 million spectators on the street! The parade marches up 5th Avenue in Manhattan and ends by the U.S. 69th Infantry Regiment.

Seattle, Washington
A unique fact I did not know is that Seattle and Galway, Ireland are sister cities given that Seattle has many Irish residents! The annual Irish Week Festival is enormous and includes activities such as Irish step dancing, food, historical and modern exhibitions and Gaelic lessons. It starts on March 14th and goes through the 17th.

Chicago, Illinois
The dyeing of the Chicago River has been a tradition for over 40 years. While many cities have tried to mimic it, none can get as true of a St. Patrick’s color as Chicago’s river can. This year the dyeing is to take place on March 15th. Chicago also has a St. Patrick’s Day parade that takes place on the same day.

San Francisco, California
On March 15th, San Francisco will have the 156th anniversary of its Saint Patrick’s Day parade. At the end of the race there will be a family festival with games, music and various other ‘green’ activities!

If you enjoy celebrating St. Patrick’s Day, there are many options to choose from! Regardless of where you are, cheers to you having a great time!

Source: Wikipedia.com

Many of you know today is President’s Day from the various amounts of sales adds or if you are one of the lucky few to have the day off from work. But do you know what the actual history of President’s Day is? Where is stems from and why it’s so important? Allow us to educate you a bit….

This holiday was first celebrated in commemoration of George Washington’s birthday in 1796, which was the last full year of his presidency. By the early 19th century, Washington’s Birthday had become a bona fide national holiday including many celebrated traditions such as speeches, receptions, etc. Then along came Abraham Lincoln who was another revered President also born on February 12th. Following the year after his assassination, Lincoln’s Birthday became a formal observance. Lincoln’s Birthday, however, didn’t actually make it to become a national holiday, although many states made it so.

In 1968, legislation was enacted that affected several federal holidays, one being Washington’s Birthday. It was decided that the observation of his birthday would be on the third Monday in February whether it fell on the 22nd or not (which is actually his birth date). This act was designed to simplify the yearly calendar of holidays and give federal employees some standard three-day weekends in the process.

Even though on record the third Monday in February is known as Washington’s Birthday, it has become popularly known as ‘President’s Day.’ To honor Washington and Lincoln as well as the other men who have served as president.

It is very important to realize how this holiday came to be and to honor the beloved men who have run our country. Given that this year is an election year, you can choose who will be celebrated on the next Presidents day. So be informed and vote in the 2008 election!!

Source: patriotism.org

It’s no secret that rents are skyrocketing all over
the United
States. People are constantly looking at ways
to save money as the cost of living increases. One thought I find extremely interesting
is that couples are now ‘shacking’ up to save some money!!

According to the Census Bureau’s latest research,
there were an estimated 6.02 million unmarried-partner households in the
U.S. in 2006! Forbes.com researched these cities by
collecting data for 40 of the largest metropolitan statistical areas for five
different categories: marriages per 1,000 people, divorces per 1,000 people,
starter-home affordability, income disparity and availability of couples or
family counseling.

The round-up of the best cities for couples
were:

1. Dallas

2. Houston

3. Minneapolis

4. Denver

5. Austin, Texas

This is interesting news on Valentine’s Day!! We’ve
posted numerous blogs about the benefits of having a roommate, so why not
make that roommate your sweetheart!

For more information about how these cities were
selected, visit Forbes.com or Realestate.msn.

ForRent.com is dedicated to helping the consumer long after the apartment hunting process is over. We strive to be a resource for apartment renters, when searching for tips and advice during the apartment search as well as in their daily life. Which is why this February we have posted many topics such as tips for your Super Bowl & Valentine’s Day Party, cheap decoration tips, 10 reasons you will Love using ForRent.com, Apartment Amenities you love, Valentine’s Day Classic Movies, fun Valentine’s Day craft ideas, President’s birthdays, recipes and more! We hope that by providing our research and comments, the consumer will visit us again and again to obtain more helpful information and begin to recognize us as the ultimate apartment listing service.

Thank you for being our friend, visiting our blog, myspace profile, our videos on YouTubeTM and searching for apartments on our website. We hope you and your loved ones have a fabulous Valentine’s Day!!

Sincerely,

ForRent.com

Okay, so we’ve posted a lot of ‘lovey, dovey’ blogs pertaining to Valentine’s Day. And truth be told I wasn’t even going to blog about this, but I go to check my email this morning and saw this article! It must be shared with everyone! It’s about revenge Valentine’s gifts. So let’s say you and your sweetheart just recently broke up, right before Valentine’s Day, and you want to send him/her a little reminder that you’re still mad about it! Well on Asylum.com, you can. This website offers you many little trinkets to send depending on the level of revenge you’d like to get!

Scrolling through their gallery I saw so many things that almost make me wish I had an ex to send them to! Like the severed middle finger. Instead of actually flipping off your ex, you can now send him/her one in the mail! An authentic voodoo kit to put a curse on your enemy or a mailed stinky dead fish (guaranteed to be extremely offensive) is also available! There are also ‘bitter hearts’ which are like conversation hearts traditional of Valentine’s Day, but with the words ‘dumped, despair and dysfunctional’ written on them instead. And lastly, a mixed CD of the most annoying sounds!

Even if you don’t have an ex you’d like to send a revengeful gift to, just seeing all the possibilities you could send has to make you laugh a little!! And put a little smile on your face this Valentine’s Day!!

DISCLAIMER: FORRENT.COM DOES NOT ADVOCATE THE ACT OF BEING REVENGEFUL IN ANY WAY. WE CANNOT BE HELD LIABLE FOR ACTIONS TAKEN UPON SOMEONE AS THIS BLOG IS SIMPLY POSTED FOR INFORMATIVE PURPOSES.

Mr. Abraham Lincoln, born on February 12th, 1809 in Hardin County, Kentucky, was the sixteenth President of the United States. During his terms, he helped preserve the United States by leading the defeat of the secessionist Confederate States of America in the Civil War. He also introduced measures that resulted in the abolitions of slavery. His assassination in 1865 by John Wilkes Booth was the first presidential assassination in U.S. history. Booth thought he was helping the south, but instead made Lincoln a martyr for national unity.

Lincoln is viewed by many scholars as one of the top three U.S. Presidents. His everlasting influence on the United States will forever be remembered.

Remember him and all that he has done for this great nation today. Happy Birthday!

Source: Wikipedia.com

Want to know how to make Toll House cookies from scratch? It’s really not that hard! Just take a look….

Items needed:
2 1/2 cup Flour
1 tsp Baking Soda
1 tsp Salt
1 cup Butter
3/4 cup Gran. Sugar
3/4 cup Brown Sugar
1 tsp Vanilla
1 tsp Water
2 Eggs

Process:
Mix well. Add 1 cup of Chocolate Chips (optional 2 cups of Oatmeal). Set your oven to 375 degrees and cook on a baking pan for 10-12 minutes!

And enjoy with a cold glass of milk!!

Anyone from Virginia can tell you that ‘Virginia is for LOVERS’ has been our tag line for many years. It’s on at least 80% of the tourist merchandise sold at Virginia Beach’s oceanfront!

Hand in hand, Virginia and Valentine’s Day truly is for LOVERS! This great state offers romantic settings and picturesque landscape for your special day. From the boardwalk at Virginia Beach’s oceanfront, to the nightlife in downtown Norfolk; from the spectacular scenery of the Appalachian Trail to the beautiful and historic inns of Williamsburg, Virginia has everything to offer you and your special someone during Valentine’s Day and all year long!

So what does the LOVERS state have in store this Valentine’s Day? There are Wine Country Tours of Virginia’s majestic Wineries taking place from February 9^th-17^th. At Breaux Vineyards there is a Chocolate and Cabernet weekend on February 9^th-10^th, bringing two enticing elements for Valentine’s Day-chocolate and wine! The Cooper’s Landing Inn Romantic Valentine Dinner, the James River Plantation Valentine’s Candlelight Dinner & Tour as well as the Land Rover America’s Polo Cup Valentine’s Gala which all take place on February 14^th.

Virginia has magnificent attractions for all LOVERS! So this Valentine’s Day celebrate it right, with the state that accommodates you and your special someone! Go to Virginia!

Source: Virginia.org

Did you know that there is a town called Valentine? It’s the “Heart City” of Nebraska with a scenic backdrop comprised of cliffs and pine trees. It was named after E.K. Valentine, who as a Congressman from Nebraska was chairman of the house committee on Agriculture for six years while in office. From 1870-1885, as a member of the House of Representatives, he was instrumental in passing a bill to protect settlers from ‘land sharks’. Due to his popularity in the region, Valentine, NE was named after him. This small town has a land area of 2.01 square miles with only 1,380 people per square mile! It’s comprised of 46.6% males and 53.4% females with the median resident age of 40 years old.

Something of particular interest for you apartment renters, is the “Heart City’s” median rent asked for vacant units, in 2000, was $283!! The median gross rent in Valentine, in 2000, was $435!! That’s amazing! I know that I pay double that where I live!! View apartments in Nebraska on ForRent.com.

During Valentine’s Day this town is always buzzing with festivities. For example, February 14^th, Valentine’s Day itself, gets many travelers from all over the country wanting to get married there! Another big event that happens on Valentine’s Day in Valentine, Nebraska is the Valentine’s Day Coronation. The Valentine’s Day Coronation, which is a community-wide celebration, is where students from each grade, K through 12, are elected to participate in the ceremony which has a different theme each year. The King and Queen of Hearts are crowned from the Senior class with a dance held afterwards for the high school students.

So if you’re not sure what your plans are this Valentine’s Day, you could always visit the quaint town Valentine, NE to celebrate your love!

The Save the Children organization and Julianne Moore have teamed up to create a wonderful campaign this Valentine’s Day. By making a donation to Save the Children’s organization, you can print out or email beautiful Valentine’s Day cards featuring children’s artwork to give to classmates, friends and family. If you choose, you can honor someone special with a gift donation and Save the Children will send a personalized card for you. Your donation will help Save the Children reach more children in poor, rural communities in the United States through early childhood education, literacy, physical activity and nutrition programs.

This is a beautiful way for kids and families across America to make a difference in the lives of children in need. Since you’re already going to be giving out Valentine’s Day cards, why not use cards that will actually do some good for other children.

Visit Save the Children website and donate today! Save the Children is offering children hope for a brighter future, and what better gift can we give on Valentine’s Day than hope?

Thanks!

ForRent.com