VanDyk Mortgage - November 2020

VanDyk Mortgage - November 2020

NOVEMBER 2020

Letters From the Hart Give us a call! 239-437-4278 Or visit www.TimHartJr.com MEET OUR NEWEST TEAM MEMBERS They Keep Our Clients in Good Hands Corporate NMLS #3035 www.nmlsconsumeraccess.org

Over the last few months, our branch of VanDyk Mortgage has welcomed several new team members who we’re eager to introduce!

Southwest Florida and began selling real estate. Her experience gives her a comprehensive understanding of the entire home purchasing process, and her philosophy is that there is no one- size-fits-all loan. She’s excited to help buyers and realtors better market their properties for quicker sales. Outside of work, she’s an avid reader, loves cruises, volunteers with several organizations, and teaches financial literacy through the City of Fort Myers Housing Authority. Kimberly has been married for 27 years, has three children, two cats, and is a self-declared huge Winston Churchill fan. She especially admires his skills as a negotiator, his writing, and his quick wit.

and can’t wait to network and share the work she does with them.

Sean Carter Mortgage Loan Originator Sean joined us in mid-September

Jonathon Steele Transaction Coordinator Jonathan joined the VanDyk team in early June with a background in customer service. His

after nearly 30 years working as a finance manager in the retail

automotive industry. Over the years, he’s discovered that the most rewarding part of the work he does is serving others and being even just a small part of making someone’s life a little better. He’s excited to help people save money and find ways to make the impossible happen and can already see that here at VanDyk, everyone wants to be a part of everyone else’s success, both for clients and team members. Outside of work, you’ll find Sean tackling the latest item on his wife’s DIY honey-do list or near the water. He likes hanging out on the beach but loves getting out on the water and boating even more. We’re thrilled about the knowledge and experience Jonathan, Kimberly, Kelly, and Sean each bring to our team, and our clients are already enjoying working with them too. Our goal is to maintain a team that keeps our clients in good hands, and our newest additions help make that happen every day.

father has been in the mortgage business for over 27 years and has shared his love for what he does with Jonathan for so long that he finally decided to pursue it as a career himself. He loves the opportunity to learn from a team that shares the common goal of helping people close their loans and wants clients to feel like they can come to us with any questions along the way. When not working, Jonathan spends time with his wife and three young kids, who they’ve recently taught how to play Candy Land. He’s also a superhero aficionado and loves to cook. He recently began trying homemade pasta recipes.

Kelly Sweeney Transaction Coordinator

Kelly joined our team in August after previously working as a financial counselor in the

emergency room at Lee Hospital. She has over 20 years of experience in the lending industry, specializing in loan originations and reverse mortgages. She currently maintains our relationships with leads in order to help as many clients act as quickly as they would like to. She’s already loving the support, patience, and open- mindedness of our team and is eager to pick up even more responsibilities. When she’s not working, Kelly loves fishing, boating, and riding her Harley motorcycle. She recently joined a dance group called SWFL Girls that she’s enjoyed immensely

Kimberly R. Lang Mortgage Originator Kimberly joined the team in June after working as a mortgage lender in the Fort

Myers and Naples area. Prior to that, she operated an insurance agency until 2005, when she relocated to

NMLS #354676

VanDyk Mortgage | www.TimHartJr.com | 239-437-4278

Page 1

MEDITATION ALTERNATIVES For People Who Don’t Like to Meditate

Stay mentally engaged. Many people achieve clarity, focus, and stress reduction through simple but engaging tasks, such as immersing themselves in an adult coloring book, doing brain teasers, or assembling LEGO sets, which proves they can be effective therapeutic tools or alternatives to meditation. The LEGO Company has actually been developing more products for adults with this sort of research in mind. But why LEGO products specifically? In addition to being objects you touch and push together, LEGO products come with clear, step-by-step instructions, which make them easy to put together and allow you to focus more on the task at hand. Even if you don’t complete the piece in one sitting, working on a project a few minutes a day can be a beneficial way to find a little clarity.

If you’re not interested in meditation, or it just doesn’t work for you, here are some alternative ways to clear your mind and reduce stress. Get serious about physical activity. Aerobic exercises — like walking, jogging, running, cycling, and swimming — are great for clearing your mind and getting your body moving. Really, any exercise that gets the heart pumping and increases your respiratory rate will do. Research supports that aerobic exercise is a great alternative to meditation that yields many of the same benefits. Exercising outdoors or in nature — especially in new places — enhances these benefits. Because your surroundings are going to be unfamiliar, your mind is more focused, which can help if you’re searching for clarity.

Meditation is lauded for its health benefits and is often suggested as an effective way to clear the mind, organize thoughts, and reduce stress. Realistically, however, it’s not for everyone. In fact, some people don’t experience any benefits at all from meditating. In a recent study published in New Scientist about the effectiveness of meditation, researchers confirmed that some people do not benefit from meditation and that about 8% of people who try meditation experience an “unwanted effect,” such as an increase in anxiety.

What Is Family Burnout AND HOW DO I PREVENT IT FROM AFFECTING MY FAMILY?

According to one study from 2018, over half of all parents surveyed were experiencing some form of burnout (i.e., exhaustion, cynicism, lack of professional satisfaction, etc.) — and that was before the pandemic. Now, as the world enters the eighth month of the coronavirus pandemic, many parents are working from home or dealing with unemployment, and many children are doing school online. Families are spending a lot of time together at home, balancing new routines — and that’s led to family burnout.

might feel like you don’t have a moment to spare between work and taking care of the kiddos in the house, identifying those spare moments in your day is absolutely necessary for your health. Establish a routine that defines time for work, sleep, studying, and other tasks. You’ll then move from task to task easier, leaving less room for conflict between others in the household. You’ll also see more clearly when you can rest! Those breaks don’t have to be anything special — a 15-minute walk by yourself outside or a 30-minute stretch with a good book in a comfy chair. Find time to let your kids have a break, too, like playing their favorite games, reading their favorite books, or playing outside. You’ll all feel more refreshed to tackle the remaining tasks of the day.

When you experience “family burnout,” the kind of exhaustion that comes from spending too much time with family, it manifests

itself as physical and emotional exhaustion, an inability to handle usual tasks, and increased irritability. The more demanding your work and home responsibilities are, the more susceptible you are to family burnout. Single parents are especially susceptible, but burnout can drastically affect romantic relationships and even children. Most people are not used to spending so much time together at home.

Even though you can prevent or minimize burnout through a more balanced routine, sometimes that’s not enough. Don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it. Family therapy can be immensely helpful for maintaining your mental health when your own attempts need a boost. These are unique times, so be patient with yourself and your family as you cope with new challenges and routines. Burnout doesn’t have to be inevitable.

With all that in mind, don’t worry — family burnout is preventable. It starts with creating a balance between work and rest. While it

VanDyk Mortgage | www.TimHartJr.com | 239-437-4278

Page 2

... CONTINUED FROM PAGE 4

Netflix not gotten their hands on it, it would have been buried and all of us “Karate Kid” fans would have missed out on it. Now, just because we enjoyed the show immensely doesn’t mean it was a perfect home run. But really, we were just looking to be as entertained by “Cobra Kai'' as we were by “The Karate Kid” when we were younger, and on that front, it did not disappoint. The cheesy acting, the nostalgia, and the way the creators flipped the entire story right from the get-go just worked for us. Jamming on Characters A lot of classic characters make appearances in “Cobra Kai,” but there are also new characters to discover. The creators have essentially made Johnny out to be the new Mr. Miyagi, Miguel has become the new Daniel, and in many ways, Daniel shows up to become a bit of a bully. To be honest, neither Travis nor I realized how much we actually dislike Daniel! He’s always been pretty cheesy, but I didn't realize until “Cobra Kai,” that he’s never been a great person. If you think about it, Daniel ruined Johnny’s whole senior year in the first movie. That’s the side of the story you don’t see. But I suppose we wouldn’t have loved the movie as much as we did back then if it were presented that way. Let’s jam on Johnny here for a bit. Last we saw him in that first movie, he was getting choked out by the sensei. Then in the second movie, they go off to Okinawa to deal with other people and Johnny doesn’t reappear.

It’s exciting and refreshing to now get to come back to such a memorable character and explore him so much more. Part of the entertaining nostalgia we find in him is the fact that his character seems to have never left the 80s. He drives around in an old Firebird and is entirely unfamiliar with the internet, which adds to the hilarity of every situation. Plus, the Cobra Kai commercial that he made was one of our favorite parts. It was completely hilarious. There are so many good one-liners throughout this show, by the way — and not just from Johnny. The rest of the cast is a pretty solid mix of entertaining, unbelievable, sometimes annoying, but often hilarious characters. It’s a motley crew that you come to love no matter how silly their scenes might get sometimes, and we’re just fine with that. Season 3 Predictions Season 3 of “Cobra Kai” is coming to Netflix in 2021, and we’ll be ready for it, even though I wasn’t the biggest fan of the way season 2 ended. Spoilers are coming, so keep reading at your own peril. Not only was it not fun to see Johnny twisted out of his own dojo, but the way he handles it was also a bit corny. He leaves his car, chucks his phone, walks away, and that’s that. We realize it’s fully intended to be a cliffhanger, so we can’t help but pose a few questions and make a few guesses about what’s in store: What’s to become of the Cobra Kai dojo? Where is Johnny and Daniel’s friendship

headed? Will a trip to Okinawa be coming up, a la the second “Karate Kid” movie? Will Allie come back and cause trouble for Daniel? Will Miguel’s dad make an appearance as a new character? There are a lot of different directions things can go, and our only hope is that season 3 of “Cobra Kai” doesn’t bomb the same way the third “Karate Kid” movie did. (If you haven’t watched that one, trust me, you’re not missing anything.) In Conclusion “Cobra Kai” is just plain fun. The show hit us hard with some great nostalgia. It’s a bit cheesy, is endlessly hilarious, and gets creative with character perspectives and relationships. Parents be warned, however, that it’s not exactly the most kid-friendly show. It steps beyond the family-action realm that “The Karate Kid” inhabited in the '80s, but it can still be fun to watch with your kids like I did. Just know that they’ll probably hear a few jokes and phrases that they may not have before. If you loved “The Karate Kid” like I did, then hands down, you’ll get a kick out of “Cobra Kai,” in every sense of the word.

Solution on Pg. 4

TRIVIA QUESTION: How many years after " The Karate Kid" is Cobra Kai set?

VanDyk Mortgage | www.TimHartJr.com | 239-437-4278

Page 3

PRST STD US POSTAGE PAID BOISE, ID PERMIT 411

Inside This Issue Tim Hart, NMLS #354676 8280 College Parkway, Suite #101 Fort Myers, FL 33919 Introducing Our Newest Team Members PAGE 1

Give us a call! 239-437-4278 Or visit www.TimHartJr.com

Clear Your Mind in a Different Way

What Is Family Burnout, and How Do I Prevent It? PAGE 2

Why We Loved ‘Cobra Kai’ PAGE 4

Quality Time With Tim and Trav

BREAKING DOWN

It’s hard to beat kicking back and talking about TV shows and movies you love with a good friend who gets where you’re coming from. The only thing that makes it better is when you do it live on Facebook where other friends can join in. That’s exactly what my buddy Travis and I did when we talked about “Cobra Kai” on what we now like to call “Quality Time With Tim and Trav.” If you grew up in the ‘80s, “The Karate Kid” was probably a massive part of your childhood. Just about everyone who grew up then saw it at one point or another — probably multiple times whether or not they enjoyed it (although I find it hard to believe anyone wouldn't). I’ve always loved the first “Karate Kid” movie — it was a staple of our era and a huge reason we were so excited to watch and review “Cobra Kai,” which now has two seasons available to stream on Netflix. For anyone who may not be familiar with “Cobra Kai,” it takes place 34 years after “The Karate Kid” and flips the narrative on its head a bit. Instead of focusing on Daniel, the main character in the first movie who was mentored by Mr. Miyagi so he could face the bullies who trained at the Cobra Kai dojo, this series instead focuses on Johnny, who was essentially Daniel’s biggest rival and meanest bully in the original movie.

Only now, Daniel has grown up to become the owner of a highly successful car dealership chain, is married, has two children, and lives a wealthy lifestyle. On the flipside, Johnny works as a part-time handyman living in a small apartment and has fallen from the wealthy lifestyle he had as a child. He’s also got an ex-girlfriend, an estranged son, and a bit of a drinking problem. Needless to say, Johnny is down and out on his luck, which now makes him a much more interesting character to follow than the bully he was as a preteen. The main premise of the show reveals itself when Johnny uses karate to rescue his teenage neighbor Miguel from a gang of bullies. Miguel asks Johnny to teach him his ways, which is when Johnny decides to reopen the Cobra Kai dojo, recapture his past, and revive his rivalry with Daniel. Where We Stand We won’t beat around the bush: Travis and I have loved this show so far. We’re so glad that Netflix picked it up for streaming this year after the first season was released on YouTube Red in 2018. We’re fairly certain had

CONTINUED ON PG. 3 ...

VanDyk Mortgage | www.TimHartJr.com | 239-437-4278

Page 4