I'm really starting to wonder if dictionary.com is a blocked site in all of Garrett County's offices ..

I've edited this advertisement only to block out the name but have otherwise left the text unchanged. Anyone care to guess what type of free services this gentleman is offering when he suggests you contact him for a free "consulatation," once again Garrett County's "professionals" are doing a disservice to the reputation of Garrett County and its people. Maybe it's time to contact the board of education and see if they can raise their standards a bit. Or maybe I should just send this one off to Jay Leno for his "Headlines" skit. Maybe once this organization was the butt of a nationally televised joke they would start taking a serious look at what they are putting on their own websites and reexamine how they are portraying themselves. Clearly, my efforts alone are not enough to clean up the mess.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

Still no oversight and still lacking professionalism from some of Garrett County's professionals ..

As I've said before, we all make mistakes, but after two weeks you would think someone within the organization would have realized that "comming" is not a word and corrections would have been made. Since that is not the case, however, I can only assume that they are either lazy and simply don't care or they just aren't paying attention to how their staff is representing them and the people of Garrett County. You be the judge.

"Lowe's Is Comming to Oakland, MD - Jon Bell / Railey Realty"

Updated, 8/20/08: well it seems Mr. Bell is also reading this blog, otherwise I would have to assume he had a revelation on the spelling of coming in the last 24 hours. Either way, it's good to see that changes have been made and those type of things aren't out there on professional websites reflecting poorly on the people and businesses of Garrett County.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

Is this seriously a professional website?

Or the result of a small child randomly tapping a keyboard? Once again I am terribly disappointed in what I am seeing from Garrett County's "professionals". Some highlights from this website (as it appeared Tuesday June 17, 2008):

"Marlynad"

"peopel"

"swiimming"

"afting"

The author of this page, his employer and all of those who provided his education and allowed him to obtain a high school diploma should be thoroughly embarrassed by this website. We all make typos from time to time but to publish something on your "professional" website without proofreading or subseqent editing is inexcusable in my opinion. Imagine how poorly this website reflects upon the educational system of the area when this website is the product of both a "lifelong" resident and a major local employer.

Updated June 18, 2008: The website linked above has been corrected to meet the most basic professional standards. And once again, I have definitive proof that this blog is being read and making a difference. I never intended to be the de facto editor or proofreader of these professional publications but if that's what it takes to save Garrett County from further embarassment I suppose I will be doing my part.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.

Who has more training, the person cutting your hair or your local real estate agent?

Well in California and Arizona, the answer to that question is the person cutting your hair. Maryland requirements are slightly different than either of these two states but needless to say becoming licensed to sell real estate does not exactly measure up to becoming an expert economist, statistician or investment advisor as they might have you believe.

A few quotes from the links above:

“The current system is pretty much, 'Can you fog a mirror and are you out of prison?' ” he said. “If you can pass those two tests, come get your license.”

“We are not looking to raise the drawbridge,” Malta stressed. “What we are trying to do is raise the level of professionalism for incoming agents.”

And since I have been pretty hard on the shortcomings of the real estate agents, tomorrow I promise to tell you about the valuable services real estate agents can provide. Stay tuned.

Don't forget to check back to Dan's Deep Creek Blog for future updates.