Lifestyle
Lake Geneva Independence Day
Sometimes, when my neighbors are lighting off fireworks at all hours of the night, I like to close my eyes and pretend that those fireworks are bombs. Like real bombs. … Read more
Williams Bay Tornado
That was quite a storm last night, perhaps the worst one I’ve seen here. Some meaningful tree damage on the village lakefront in Williams Bay and around the lake, but … Read more
Memorial Day Weekend
Well, my 17th issue of Summer Homes For City People is finished. You should be able to find it around the lake this weekend, although the rainy day today is … Read more
George Williams College
By now you’ve read the articles in Crain’s and the Tribune, so I don’t need to tell you that Aurora University has found a buyer for their cherished George Williams … Read more
Work From Home
If no one had to work in a physical office with co-workers and a communal CLIFF BAR dispenser, then it made good sense that people might move to Whitefish, Montana. … Read more
Summer Homes For City People
Well, it’s that time again. The fifteenth issue of Summer Homes For City People is now complete. As is my usual course, I approached this day with equal portions of … Read more
In Praise of Doing Nothing
There’s a cheeky little line about a dead squirrel that some people like to tell. They say that the road is full of dead squirrels who couldn’t make up their … Read more
Summer Homes For City People
I hope by now you’ve had a chance to pick up a copy of the winter edition of Summer Homes For City People. But, for the sake of today, let’s … Read more
Happy Thanksgiving
Remember when I told you I was going to write about the things I’m thankful for? I was going to work on being grateful. I was going to really, really … Read more
Lake Geneva Restaurants
This is my SOS. Except my ship is my town and that makes the situation far more dire than if it were just my ship in trouble. The Lake Geneva … Read more
Idle Hands
If I’ve accomplished nothing else in my life, I’ve certainly succeeded in identifying the many reasons people buy Lake Geneva vacation homes. I’ve rambled about gibberish, tried incredibly hard to … Read more
Hey Jealousy
I declared it to be the finest place I have ever visited. No, more than that. The finest property I have ever seen. The finest of everything at any time … Read more
Mr. Complacent
I’m complacent. I can feel it. I still turn over every rock and sweat out every deal, that part of me will never fade. It’ll kill me, but it won’t … Read more
These Days
I spend most of my time wondering how Jackson Browne could write this song when he was just 16 years old. I remember being 16 years old. I had a … Read more
Geographic Catastrophe
I’m not sure if you knew this, but this is not a climate science blog. Nor is it a climate speculation blog. I wake up in the morning and look … Read more
Lake Geneva Fireworks
If this blog was about my neighbors, and I was tasked with telling you when their firework celebrations were to occur, I would fail miserably. There are myriad reasons why … Read more
Summer Homes For City People
It really shouldn’t be as hard as it is. It’s just a magazine, after all. A bunch of words and some pictures and the magic of a printing press and … Read more
Lake Geneva Airports
Private jets are all the rage, and thankfully Lake Geneva airports have you covered.
Merry Christmas
It’s strikingly obvious to me that without my clients and friends, my family would not be so uniquely blessed. For that, I am exceedingly thankful and appreciative. There’s a lot … Read more
Happy Thanksgiving
My wife and her family are Canadians. It’s not their fault, really, they just are, and they do the best that they can with this condition. During our Covid Chronicles, … Read more
The Romantic
Growing old is fascinating. There are things that matter and things that don’t, and when I was younger I assumed that when I was older I’d have a better understanding … Read more
California Dreaming
California has positioned itself as the cultural king of America, as every Midwestern kid knows. A weekend visit to judge its importance.
October
I don’t like September anymore. In fact, I don’t know why I ever did. October is where it’s at.
Fall At The Lake
Well, that’s that. Summer is dead and gone. My dreams of enjoying it are left mostly unfulfilled, and I know it’s my own fault. When you’re young and you’re taught … Read more
Freedom?
Covid was hard on Michigan. Tim Allen wants you to return to normal, while at Lake Geneva we never departed from it.
Lake Geneva Rental Market
Lake Geneva lakefront rental market? Sure it sort of exists, but you’re not going to like it very much.
Regrets
Regrets are a part of life. Thankfully, Lake Geneva ownership isn’t one of the sources of regret. And for that, we can all be thankful.
Improvement City
The City of Lake Geneva is nice. But it could be a whole lot better. Step one in a multi-step plan to improve the city.
Lake Geneva Fall Colors
They’re here. It’s now. They snuck up on me, even though I knew they were imminent. I told you a few weeks ago that they’d be here, but I didn’t … Read more
Mountain Towns
Ski Towns are more popular today than ever before, but will the new owners actually enjoy living full time in a vacation destination?
Lake Geneva Fall Colors
It’s fall in Lake Geneva, and while we do summer exceptionally well, nothing beats October at the lake.
Independence Day Weekend
I’d like to take a moment to give June the credit that June deserves. Typically, June deserves very little credit. Take last year, for instance. June was miserable and petulant, … Read more
Close the Lake Geneva Boat Launch
Want to know what Lake Geneva should be in the future? Look to its past, because it already told you what it is.
Vacation Home Markets
In the good times, underlying market weakness is hard to see. During a crisis, there’s no hiding what makes most vacation home markets weaker than Lake Geneva.
Lake Geneva Quarantine
I’ve been contemplating what, if anything, to write about the current state of things. Things, as a point of fact, are bad. Individually, I’m fine. I have a nice house … Read more
Lake Geneva Farms
My wife and children were to be out of town for a few days, and my job was simple. In the morning, let the chickens out and be sure they had food
Lake Geneva Videos
It’s gray again. The snow has melted, so we have that going for us, but the white has been replaced with the grays and browns of November, and
High End
What is it that makes a house appear high end? Is it the color palette? If we gray out a house in the most modern style, will that make it high end?
Lake Geneva Water
I see the world in black and white. I see it in wrong and right. I see the people who dwell in the gray and I wonder why. Packers fans see Bears
November
If I were the sort of person who was forced to spend sixth months in a more tax advantageous state, it would be a struggle for me. In order to find
Elevated
I spent last week in the south of France. It was a nice week, although it could be successfully argued that sitting at this desk watching the fall leav
Cancel The Boat Parade
There is a boat parade that precedes the Venetian Fest fireworks. There shouldn’t be.
The Test
Considering Lake Geneva for a vacation home but you’re unsure about the scene? Take my test and find out in just one day!
Lake Geneva Fireworks 2019
It’s Independence Day Weekend at the lake. Let’s pray for sunshine and remember how fortunate we are to celebrate our freedom.
Lake Geneva Winter
This is the time of year when social media feeds are filled to the brim with mockery. Mockery of our place, of this place, of the cold. The snowbirds are … Read more
New Construction Lake Geneva
We know the trend. It’s not just here, but it sure is pronounced here. It’s not just a trend on Geneva, it’s a trend on our other, secondary lakes as … Read more
Lake Geneva Boat Slip
It’s that time of year again. The time of year when the piers are unceremoniously disassembled and stacked along our shorelines. That happened in October, sure, but this morning there … Read more
Lake Geneva Winter
I think it’s cute that the city of Lake Geneva is installing an ice rink this winter. The ice rink will complement the ice castles that are currently being built … Read more
Lake Geneva Ski Season
I write with disappointment today. Today is opening day at Alpine Valley, the ski hill near Lake Geneva where my family spends considerable time during these coming winter months. Last … Read more
November Swim
There’s a thing about my dad that you wouldn’t otherwise know. He’s a quitter. Sure, he’s been married for a long time to my mother, and yes, he taught school … Read more
Lake Geneva Video
It’s been three years since I had my homepage video filmed. That was a terrific video, if I do say so myself. But this last week’s weather was so perfect … Read more
Emagine Theater
I’d like to become the sort of person who only spells theater theatre. I’d like to place emphasis on the A, while I’m at it. But I’m not sure I … Read more
Lazy Patience
It was good to be a buyer in 2011. And in 2012. 2013, too. We know that now. What a time! We think. If only I could have been a … Read more
Geneva National Vs. The World
If you think the vacation home market at the lake is active, you should check out the market for sub-$350k single family and condominium residences that lack lake access. That … Read more
Fall Rules
I have several different sets of rules pertaining to several different disciplines. My real estate rules are well known. Don’t buy a house on any lake that doesn’t start with … Read more
Sell The Lake Geneva Riviera
In a recent Lake Geneva Regional News article, City of Lake Geneva Alderman John Halverson, when discussing the state of the Lake Geneva Riviera and a desired multi-million dollar referendum … Read more
Summer’s End
The streets are quiet now. The excited conversations of summer are now just a murmur, fading like the green in all of these leaves. There was life back then, so … Read more
Summer Night
There is some thought, rampant among those who cannot yet know, that a night is a night is a night. The night it dark here, just like there, in fact … Read more
Lake Geneva Farmer’s Market
The thing about summer in Wisconsin is that as summer we know it starts on Memorial Day weekend. That’s when we’re first ready to light our grills, gas our boats, … Read more
Matthew McConaughey Lake Geneva
I first saw Matthew McConaughey in line at The Cheese Box. I had seem him before, sure, at the Quik Trip, but this was the first time I really saw … Read more
Fontana Fireworks
I admit I’m a lazy fireworks watcher. I know what happens. The fuse, the ssssssss, the explosion. I’ve watched them before. I know the weeping willow and the star ones. … Read more
Lake Geneva Musky
It wasn’t so long ago that I remember seeing a rainbow trout. It was swimming from my childhood pier to the next door pier, aloof, brilliant, without purpose or direction. … Read more
Lake Geneva Memorial Day Weekend
And away. We. Go. That’s best if read in the Joker’s voice, right before he ignites a bomb that has the power to destroy one thousand Gothams. But alas, we … Read more
Vernacular
If we were in the deep south, it would be understood that there would be certain words we’d use at certain times. We’d drop the G on many words, like … Read more
Lake Geneva Shore Path Race
The Shore Path. It is perhaps the most unique aspect of this Lake Geneva scene. While water flows from one end to the other, from a shore over here to a … Read more
Mushroom Time
When an acorn falls in the forest a squirrel eats it. The squirrels wait for the acorns, then the acorns drop from the trees, and then the squirrels eat the acorns. … Read more
Avant Bicycle and Cafe
Resort towns in the Midwest tend to follow the same pattern. A downtown, some shops. The outskirts of the downtown, some big box stores. In the downtown you’ll find some … Read more
Golf Lake Geneva
I haven’t cared about golf for a long time. To be honest, I never particularly cared about golf. I was on the golf team in high school, which, at first … Read more
Lake Geneva Construction
During times of relative boom, mistakes are made. Mistakes are made during times of relative bust as well, but those mistakes can be more easily forgiven because of the toxic … Read more