Weekly Wisdom: Friday, June 18, 2021

HAPPY FRIDAY! We would like to wish all of our dad's a Happy Father's Day! To be a dad is an honor. A father's divine protection and love is one of a kind. Thank you for all that you do!

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DID YOU KNOW?

Existing-home sales continued to drastically outpace inventory in May, marking two straight months of an over 25% increase in sales and an over 60% decrease in active listings, according to the MetroTex Association of REALTORS®

DID YOU KNOW? The Fed - under Jerome Powell's leadership that started in 2018 - signaled they expect to raise interest rates twice by late 2023, sooner than they anticipated in March, as the economy recovers rapidly from the effects of the pandemic and inflation heats up. 18 more months of super-low interest rates? I'll take that! Some expect rates to rise sooner with rising inflation, an indicator of massive economic activity. We should be reminded that rates are at record lows..... (WSJ)

DID YOU KNOW? After weeks of headlines about soaring commodity prices, a new headline emerges: PLUMMETING commodity prices: Lumber down 9.8% in one week, Copper down 7.9%, corn down 21.3%! Actions by the Chinese government to curb speculation combined with the Fed's comments fueled this. The threat of commodity hyper-inflation seems to be over. (CNBC)

DID YOU KNOW? The average rate on the popular 30-year fixed mortgage moved higher, hitting 3.25%, according to Mortgage News Daily. Last fall, mortgage rates dropped dramatically, and by February of 2021 the average rate on the 30-year fixed was at 2.75%.

DID YOU KNOW? More than 40 million people in the U.S. are forecast to experience triple-digit temperatures this week and roughly 200 million people are projected to see temperatures over 90 degrees. Nevada and Arizona are forecast to see record temperatures of 125 and 128 degrees, respectively. 107 years ago in 1914 the first in-home air conditioning machine (made by Carrier) was installed in a Minneapolis mansion. It was 7ft high and 20ft wide. Up to this point, air-conditioning had only been used in hospital or manufacturing settings.

Father's Day Feature: Clint Cunningham Blackman, Jr.

Clint was born July 2, 1931, in Austin, Texas. He was a proud graduate of Baylor University in Waco, Texas, where he earned his BA in Business and met his future wife, who was also a student at Baylor. After a tour of duty in the Air Force, Clint moved his family to Longview, Texas, and started making his mark. He pioneered self-service gas stations in East Texas and created the Thrifty Man chain of convenience stores, among other business developments and interests. He learned to fly so that he could expand his chain of gas stations to his beloved Texas Gulf Coast. He was invited to speak to business students at the University of Texas in Austin about his extensive career as an entrepreneur. In 2004, Clint and Shirley moved to Rockport, Texas, and opened Austin Street Gallery, which they operated for 10 years. Clint had a lifelong love of “big water,” sailing, power boats, and fishing. He loved to sit on the back porch at their home in Rockport and look out at the water.

He is survived by his loving wife of 63 years, Shirley Hughes Blackman, two sons, Clint III (Judy), and Christopher (Diana), granddaughters Candace Hines (Clinton) and Jen Lavelle (Kevin), as well as three great-grandsons, whom he adored, Brock and Cory Hines and Jack Lavelle.

Recipe of the Week: BBQ Beer Chicken Skewers with Avocado Corn and Feta Salsa (Half Baked Harvest)

Ingredients:

1/2 cup of your favorite beer

3/4 cup ketchup

1/2 cup honey

2 teaspoons dijon mustard

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

2 teaspoons chipotle chili powder

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

1 teaspoon garlic powder

kosher salt

2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size chunks

Corn and Feta Salsa: 1-2 jalapeños, 2 cups grilled or steamed corn, 1/3 cup fresh cilantro chopped, 1/4 cup fresh basil chopped, 2 tablespoons lime juice, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar, 1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese whipped or mashed avocado, for serving

Instructions: 1. In a pot, combine the beer, ketchup, honey, dijon, Worcestershire sauce, chili powder, paprika, garlic powder and about 1 teaspoon of salt. Bring the sauce to a boil over medium- high heat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer 15 minutes, until thickened. 2. Combine the chicken and about 1/2 cup BBQ sauce in a bowl, tossing to coat. 3. Set your grill, grill pan, or skillet to medium-high heat. Take skewers and thread the chicken pieces on. Grill the skewers until lightly charred and cooked through, turning them occasionally throughout cooking, about 10 to 12 minutes total. Alternately, you can roast the chicken at 400 degrees for 20-30 minutes. 4. At the same time, grill the jalapeño until lightly charred, then give it a rough chop and toss with the corn, cilantro, basil, chives, lime juice, lemon juice, and vinegar. Season with salt then toss with the feta. 5. Serve the chicken with the salsa, whipped avocado, and fresh herbs all on the side.

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