Blog by Mary Kay Hopkins

These two videos are of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception at 935 Bilbo Street in Lake Charles, LA. The architectural style of this historic Lake Charles Church is Romanesque. It is one of several properties in Calcasieu Parish listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The churc...

In this video, Kevin Cormier with DeVillier House Moving and Leveling discusses the following elements of a job that involves raising a home from a slab: -Explanation of the turn-key nature of this house raising job. -Hardi Plank, AKA, "Hardi Board" - an explanation of the advantages of Hardi Pla...

While no one wants to go through raising a home from a slab, or even raising a home on piers, there are times when it is a sensible alternative.  I was very skeptical of raising a home from a slab.  That fear was based on ignorance.  Now that I've witnessed the slab-separation technique, and stoo...

In this video, Kevin Cormier with DeVillier House Moving and Leveling responds to my request for more information about the company and addresses a decision homeowners must make insofar as the type of support columns to be used once the house is raised. He also discusses allowable ground-floor en...

It is a privilege to help spread the word about the New Leash on Life program. That is why I'm posting the following call for volunteers from Misty Richard: Have you ever wanted to be a part of something great? The Southwest Louisiana Humane Society and Juvenile Detention Center has an ongoing pr...

Earlier today, I posted an introduction to what I thought would be a 3-part series about raising a home from a slab using the slab-separation technique. Forgive me for under estimating the topics/videos necessary to best present the process. The fact is that I did not know the difference between ...

Last week, I was able to observe while a house that had previously been on a slab  was raised approximately 9' to avoid future flooding. While volumes could be written about the trials and tribulations that my friends went through to  now stand and stare "up" at their just-elevated home, my prim...

A reminder in this reblog that "Your brand is your name, your personality, your attitude and how you treat others. The Internet is public and the public is reading everything you are writing.  This includes your comments on other agents blogs." Read more of Cynthia's review of Chapter 2 of Soci@l...

While she has a better known nickname in certain circles, I can't reveal that name here for reasons that I cannot tell you or I'd have to ....(lets not go there), this is my cat "Margaret Place".  Margaret Place is her official name as she was found under my house (as a baby kitten) which is loc...

A few days ago, I began the process of placing my home for sale in Margaret Place. I've already blogged about the many locational advantages and features of my home.  They are as numerous as the perks of my Margaret home.  What I have not done is take photos and I hope to get that off my to-do l...