#QuarantineTips Top 5 Reads + Sips

Mary Mychael lives in the heart of 5 Points, and she and her husband run The Riverdale Inn! MM loves to read and used to work for a winery in Northern California, so she's an expert when it comes to a cozy night in! She’s sharing her favorite reads + wine pairings to help you escape to another world during quarantine.

5. The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbary

This is the story of an unlikely friendship between two characters who share a love of hiding the best qualities about themselves. Within just a few pages, a beautiful story begins to emerge, and the reader is quickly connected with the characters who realize that the appreciation of finer things in life only excels with company. 

Wine Pairing – Louis Latour Bourgogne Pinot Noir

With a setting in Paris, a French wine is clearly the perfect accompaniment to this novel. Many French wines can *break the bank*, so here is one that is elegant, rich, earthy and fruity while still affordable ($20-25).

4. The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett

This detective mystery novel is fast paced, fun to read and has a timeless quality to it. The first time I read it was in one sitting and it has kept a spot on my shelf ever since.

Wine Pairing – Caymus Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon

Something about the bold masculinity of the characters in this novel scream for a bold rich Cabernet Sauvignon. Albeit…this particular Cab ranks in the *special occasion* category (as it sits right about $100 a pop), but it is worth every penny. I recommend decanting this sucker to let the rich flavors and silky tannins open up, and sip away.

3. The Road by Cormac McCarthy

A long-time favorite of mine, and a book I revisit every few years, The Road is a timeless classic. Post-apocalyptic novels have a sort of serenity that encapsulate fear and intrigue so beautifully. “He walked out in the gray light and stood and he saw for a brief moment the absolute truth of the world. The cold relentless circling of the intestate earth. Darkness implacable.”

Wine Pairing – Blanton’s Bourbon

OK so it’s not wine, but The Road calls for something stiff. Recommended “neat” and probably a hefty pour. Rich, spicy, smooth, with notes of caramel to carry you through the beautifully-rough realties that this novel paints to life.

2. A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole

Just as incredible as the novel itself is the story behind it; Toole considered himself a failed writer yet posthumously received a Pulitzer Prize for this novel (which his mother discovered carbon copies of after his death). An equally hilarious & obscene depiction of the titular character, Ignatius J. Reilly, carries this novel while twisting and turning through New Orleans: as depicted in an equally brilliant light. It is silly, full of satirical humor and necessarily pointless.

Wine Pairing – Steele Viognier

One of my all-time favorite white wines, this Viognier is elegant, bright, floral, crisp, earthy and full. Drink it cold, but not ice cold, and before you know it, the bottle is gone. Steele Winery is located in Lake County California where this particular Viognier thrives. Its small production though, so you might have to go direct to the winery to get your hands on a bottle…and trust me, it’s worth it!

1. Harry Potter (any and all novels in the series) by  J.K. Rowling

I don’t think my love (obsession?) for HP is news to anyone, but here we are. I “grew up” with Harry…the novels came out when I was 10, about the same age Harry was when he discovered he was a wizard (he was 11) and from then on, my life changed for the better. I was on the pre-order list at Chamblins Bookmine for EVERY release and I am always re-reading the series (seriously, I get to the end, then I start again). I don’t need to defend the stories, they are great, and worth reading tenfold.

Wine Pairing – Whatever you have laying around the house

So the point here is not to be picky about your wine choice, but ultimately to drink it out of a goblet. It makes all the difference and adds magic to the experience of drinking while reading. (See what I did there with the magic thing?!) 

*If you enjoyed this beverage pairing with literature, you’ve got to check out Tequila Mockingbird by Tim Federle. It was my inspo for this post and a fun book to thumb through with friends!

Guest Blog: While the World Is Ever-Changing, Home Is Where the Heart Is

Our owner/broker, MaryAnne Rodriguez, wrote a guest blog for Jacksonville Mom explaining life and work during the world of Covid-19. Check out the excerpt below!

Real estate agents are constantly adapting to a job that is flexible but non-stop. We adjust our days, appointments, time with family, and much more to help people through an incredibly important decision. As a mom and owner/broker of Root Realty, I’m constantly juggling 100 moving parts, sometimes in a single day! In today’s constantly changing world of COVID-19, we’re adapting even more in all of our many roles. For some of us, it’s our first time teaching our children formal schooling within the walls of our home. For others, it’s adapting to a temporary new normal of not walking into the doors of our businesses. For all of us, it’s unusual, it’s strange, it’s different, and it requires a few things: adaptability, flexibility, grace, patience, and innovation. For me, this time includes changes to the way I run my business, the way I am teaching my children from home, and how I am learning to innovate and stay safe (and sane!).

Real estate is deemed an essential business as people will always need a place to live. While it’s certainly a blessing and privilege to still be working, it is, most importantly, a responsibility that we are taking very seriously.

How We Are Adapting to the Changing Times

At Root Realty, we have adapted our business practices to ensure safety and health are our number one priority. One way we have adapted is by taking our usual in-person buyer consultation online! Usually, buyer consults take place in our client’s favorite coffee shop or restaurant. We develop a relationship with our customers and dive into what they really want (and don’t want) and overall want to ensure we are both a good fit for one another. Now, we’ve taken that opportunity from a coffee shop right into your living room! We are utilizing Zoom and FaceTime to connect with potential buyers and get to know them on a deeper level. We’re still utilizing purposeful questions, mindful listening, and other strategies to connect from your home. We have also changed the way we “show” homes right now — we are providing FaceTime and video tours to our buyers as well as practicing social distancing during in-person showings while utilizing gloves, masks, and ALL the hand sanitizer.

READ MORE here!

How to Sell Your House During Covid-19

At Root, we want to help you sell your house during Covid-19 with your safety as our top priority. We want to assure you that you can still find a Realtor, sell your house, and #StayHome by following local and state guidelines. We’re confident in our Root process and have made innovative adaptations with the assistance of technology to give you a seamless transaction!

How To Sell A House During Quarantine

If you’re relocating for a job, want to downsize, or simply need more space for the kids now at home, the team at Root can help you sell your home. Here is how Root Realty will prioritize your health and your goals:

• Schedule a virtual Listing Appointment. Connect with one of the agents at Root to talk about selling your home! It’s important to find a REALTOR® who will sell your house and understand the ins and outs of the process. At Root Realty, our average is only 31 days on market, while the average Realtor in NE Florida averages over 70 days! You can connect with our team through a FaceTime call, Zoom meeting, Google Hangout, or phone call to discuss the best practice to sell your house. You will have the opportunity to ask questions, see the neighborhood comparisons, and more! Not only will you gain a new friend in the process, but you’ll better understand the steps you need to take to make your house market ready.

• Make any necessary adjustments. Your Root agent can help you understand what will add value to your house, before it hits the Multiple Listing Service. With extra time at home, your agent can give you advice as to the projects that will help sell your home quickly.

• Photo time! Our Preferred Partner, Residential Photography Solutions, is offering amazing packages for professional photos of your home. This will make our house stand out on MLS! He is also offering Virtual Home Tours, so you can provide buyers with an inside look at your home, while you both can shelter in place!

• Marketing begins! As your house hits the Multiple Listing Service, our team will focus on digital marketing to sell your house quickly. Your house will be posted on all of our social profiles to over 15,000 local followers! Additionally, our team will collaborate ways to market your home to buyers they are currently working with or anyone they know who may be interested within their network.

• Host Showings. Your health and safety are the top priorities of Root Realty and the Northeast Florida Association of Realtors. We are only encouraging in-person showings to those who are interested in making an offer on your home. As buyers become increasingly interested, your Root agent will coordinate with you to ensure you are comfortable with showings. You can go outside for your daily walk, while we ask agents to follow our #SafeForYourHome guidelines. If you’re interested in how we’re encouraging buyers to follow safety precautions, check out this post. We’ve created guidelines to help you reduce contact and exposure with anyone who enters your home. We are also allowing Virtual Open Houses, so people can call into a video chat for a tour and reduce contact in your home.

• Accept an offer. Your Root agent will help you handle your offer(s). She will present you with the offer(s) that have come in for your home, and you can discuss which option works best for you and/or your family. Then, everything from this point forward can be done digitally! You can connect via email, phone, text, or Zoom to discuss the process with your agent. Once you accept an offer, our incredible Transaction Coordinator, Beckie Hyatt from Transaction Medics, LLC, will make sure every element is in place for a stress-free closing!

• Allow inspections and appraisal. Each of our Preferred Partners, BW Home Inspections, Biltrite Home Inspections, and Southern Brothers Home Inspections, as well as appraisers we work with are certified with Covid-19 Safety Guidelines. They will wear masks, gloves, follow social distancing protocols, and are asking that no one attend inspections unless absolutely necessary. After completing the inspection, they will thoroughly sanitize your home.

• Complete a Final Walkthrough and Close Virtually! Our amazing Preferred Partners J. Riley Law, PLC. are offering Drive-Up Closings, so you can stay in your own vehicle but sign your documents! There are also options for mail away closings and digital notaries. Talk to your agent about the option that you’re most comfortable with!

How to Buy A House During Covid-19

Are you wondering how to buy a house during Covid-19? We know these can be scary times, but as always, Root Realty is here for you! We want to ensure you can still achieve your real estate goals while following the best practices for safety. We’re using technology and innovative practices to still bring you the incomparable Root experience.

How to Buy a Home During Quarantine

If you’re looking for a bigger home, relocated for a job, or simply want something new, we can help you buy a house during Quarantine! Here are some options on how to buy a home during Covid-19.

• Schedule a virtual buyer consult with one of our Root Agents. It’s important to find a real estate agent that best suits you, and as the Void #1 Best in Jax Boutique Brokerage, we know anyone on our team can help you find your home. We’re connecting with buyers through Zoom chats to get to know one another (foodies, favorite movies, etc.!), talk through your wish list, and to walk Once you through the Root Path to Home Buying. Feel free to ask our agents any questions about their experience and knowledge of the business. Once you’re confident in the Root process, you’ll sign a Buyer/Broker agreement and get to the fun parts!

• Search for Houses to Buy online. Once you’ve decided to work with Root, your agent will start putting together a list from MLS that will compile your wish list with what’s available in the current market. Take virtual tours through listing photos and even tour homes virtually with videos of select listings!

• Narrow your search. If you are loving a property, you and your agent will come up with a plan for you to see the home! First, your agent can give you a FaceTime tour of the home to get a better feel for the location, the closet space, the layout, and all of the fun details, so you can stay safe and #StayHome!

• Schedule a showing safely. Once you are ready to move forward on a property, we’ll schedule a showing of the home. It’s important for your safety and the safety of our team that only necessary personnel attend the showing. Your agent will wear masks, booties when available, and make sure that necessary doors are already open. We would encourage you to do the same! Throughout the showing, we’ll maintain a safe 6 foot distance from one another while still giving you the full experience of picturing yourself in this potential home. We’ve outlined our best practices for Root Buyers!

• Make an offer digitally. Your Root agent will handle all things offer related! She will work directly with the Listing Agent and ensure your offer will be presented properly. Everything from this point forward can be done digitally! You can connect via email, phone, text, or Zoom to discuss the process. Once an offer is accepted, our incredible Transaction Coordinator, Beckie Hyatt, will make sure every element is in place for a stress-free closing!

• Close on your new home! Our amazing Preferred Partners J. Riley Law, PLC. are offering Drive-Up Closings, so you can stay in your own vehicle but sign your documents! There are also options for mail away closings and digital notaries. Talk to your agent about the option that you’re most comfortable with!

Drinks with Lemonstreet Brewing Co. 🍋 🍻

Danay, here! Having a chat with the owner of one of my favorite local breweries, Joe Baez of Lemonstreet Brewing Company.

D: What are you drinking?

J: One of my favorite beers to drink. It’s named Experiment 626 after Lilo and Stitch. Stitch was called Experiment 626. I was a big fan and Isa [Joe’s daughter] loved Lilo and Stitch as a little girl. We watched it a lot, so we have an experimental beer that we made where we just tossed a garbage can full of hops just to see what it would taste like. It was just random hops that we had left over so it’s the name Experiment 626. It actually turned out to be a very tasty beer, so we like it a lot. In fact, the nickname of the beer is actually TastyCakes because it tastes so good.

D: What is it that you do?

J: I manage a brewing enterprise, a budding brewing enterprise, of course. We were just born in September, so that means that we’re not of any consequence to anybody yet. But, we hope to be sometime in the future; we hope people will like us. My job is to manage this business.

D: What is a typical day for you?

J: I still have a “day job”, so my typical day is going to my regular work at an unnamed bank, and then at night I become super brewery manager owner. [Danay interjects: “it’s a busy day”] It is a busy day. So I do that as many days as I can; I take some days off every once in a while. Mondays and Tuesdays we’re closed here, so it’s my weekend, so if you wanna party on a Monday let me know. Nobody ever does. [laughs]

D:What is the best part of your job?

J: I would say meeting people. I love meeting people. I like to spend time with people who come and appreciate the beer that we make. I think it’s an honor; it’s kind of humbling to make something that people really like. It makes you think about how chefs feel. You know like when a chef makes something really good and people give them accolades. That’s how we feel about it, because you know it’s all of us that work here and make it, it’s not just me, I don’t literally make the beer, we all collaborate on recipes and everything but there’s only one brewer, and it’s not me [laughs], so that’s what we like the most.

D: What do you love about Jacksonville?

J: What I like about Jacksonville is that in my other job I got an opportunity to travel all over, and there were some great places. It was fun to go visit other places, but it was always very emotional when I saw the pine trees coming into Jacksonville International Airport. I like it. I like it here. It’s almost like you can’t be separated from where you were raised, so this is what I call home. I love it, warts and all.

My First...

What is your first memory of 'home' as a kid?

summer of 1998

My parents bought their home when I was nine months old and have been there ever since. It’s always been ‘home’ to me and as I’ve gotten older I realize just how much I took that for granted. Many memories spring to life but the one that sticks out the most is when I was roughly four years old; it was summer time and my parents would connect the sprinkler to the hose and let me run and play in the yard while they watched, or sometimes joined me in the kiddy pool that was set up nearby.

When was your first time moving out of your parents home? 

I was 18 and a senior in high school when I first moved out. My boyfriend (now husband) and I got our first apartment off Southside Blvd near Baymeadows Rd. We decided to rent a unit on the third floor because we didn't want to have people above us, plus the top floor had vaulted ceilings and a fireplace! However, as charming as this little apartment was, we did not consider all the trips we would have to take up the stairs toting groceries, or how difficult it would be to move all our furniture into our new home.

If you’re a fan of Friends, the famous “pivot” scene was literally my husband and our friends trying to maneuver the couch and mattress up the small stairway. Comical now, not so comical then.

When was your first big trip away from home?

My grandma, mom, sisters, and me in front of the entrance to the Shuri Castle

I am blessed to have a large family, with many members in the military. In 2006, I was twelve years old when my aunt and uncle were stationed in Japan and invited my grandma, mom, sisters and me to join them for Christmas. After three layovers, a delayed flight which led to missing a connection, and 18 hours in an airplane, we finally landed in Okinawa. We spent close to four weeks exploring Japan and learning about their culture - from the Shuri Castle to Gyokusendo Cave to playing at Araha Beach, we took in all that Japan had to offer. It was such an authentic experience I hope to visit again, but this time with more appreciation.

The scrapbook I made of my dream first home (yes I still have it!)

What is your DREAM first home?

Similar to how many young girls plan out and dream of their wedding, I would dream about my future home and life. I even had a scrap book where I planned out each room along with decor from pictures I cut out of home style magazines! I envisioned my first home to have a wrap around porch, a master suite with french doors that faced the morning sun, and a mile long drive way that had huge oak trees lining each side.. needless to say my exceptions were very high. My family currently does not live in what I thought my first home would be like, but that home is still a dream and we are striving for it everyday.