moldy leftovers are never any fun

I have a friend that lives a couple of blocks away from the house I am buying. Apparently the previous owners told all the neighbors they are letting the house go into foreclosure because the bank won’t work with them on a mold issue. The neighborhood gossip is that the house is covered with mold, and the whole family was sick, even the babysitters.

Neither I nor the home inspector found any evidence of mold. Granted, we were looking before I got wind of the neighborhood rumor mill, but this is freaking me out.  I am having my brother look at the house today with me. He is a General Contractor and has dealt with mold many times.

We already plan on doing some remodeling where mold usually hangs out. A new roof, bathroom and kitchen are already planned. If we don’t see mold in those places of obvious water sources, I should be fine.

I plan on getting some relative humidity sensors and dehumidifiers to keep the moisture level below 55%.

After all of this freakout though…. I am still holding fast that the previous owners were trying to save face with not being able to make the mortgage payments. Apparently they owned three or four other homes as well, so they probably leveraged themselves to the outer edge of financial insanity. They bought at the very top of the market, and I am purchasing this home for literally $100,000 less than what they bought it for.

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All of this turmoil and potential change in my life path has me strangely lethargic.

Another weekend has passed very similar to the previous. I did nothing Friday night, had a very leisurely breakfast and afternoon in a coffee shop reading and WiFi’ing  with my hiking partner, and then home alone Saturday night. The Sunday hike was called off due to the threat of snow, as we really didn’t want to push into the woods with any threat of unnecessarily bad weather. I went to ecstatic dance instead, and then straight back home to lay in bed the remainder of the day doing nothing. VERY LETHARGIC weekend 

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There were some interesting private emails sent to my facebook account regarding yesterday’s post about prepping and survivalists.

I will clarify. I am very grateful for learning from these folks. These people have thought long and hard about preparing for disasters and are willingly sharing information. They are a very inclusive bunch that has space for everyone from lefty-liberals that want to live off-grid and kill all televisions and cars, to righty-righteous folks that want to “kill them all and let God sort ‘em out”.

Most folks are solidly in the middle of these two extremes, and we can all make use of some common sense preparedness. I invite you to respectfully check these two great resources out.

http://www.survivalistboards.com/

http://www.preparednesspro.com

I might not be carrying a daily bag filled with enough provisions to last for a week anymore, but I am most assuredly using these skills to keep a full pantry, with knowledge to survive a week or more without electricity or other services  Or at least not go crazy without a smartphone and internet access!

Let’s be realistic….… You don’t rely on take-out for lunch and dinner every day, do you?

Prepare for the Mighty Roller Skater

I went roller skating last night. Much fun and quite the workout for the two hours I went around the rink. I waited all night for a “couples skate in the reverse direction” but they never called it out.

Roller-skating is a great ‘quiet’ workout for the legs and core. It is also very social. I could easily see myself adding this to my weekly options of activity.

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My hiking partner and his wife have a great hike lined up for Sunday morning. I never know where we are going until that morning. It’s wonderful not needing to plan for any of the hikes.  I carry a nicely filled backpack that has a little bit of everything so I can make a fire, create a small shelter, and cover myself from the elements, so I feel pretty safe in the woods. It’s always good to be prepared.

I realize none of us are prepared for a partner’s death, but when my wife died, I felt so helpless and lost that I wanted to become prepared for anything. I found myself reading up on ‘preparedness’ and ‘preppers’. These are the new code words for the old-school term of ‘survivalists’. I’m sure there are a great many differences between the two groups, but in my early grief, I clumped the terms all together.

I found myself stockpiling food. I searched out more camping equipment. I upgraded my old camping water filtration items. I bought wilderness survival books like the US Army Survival Manual: FM 21-76.

My wife and I would sleep in the back of the mini-van for weeks at a time, so I started keeping all of my sleeping materials in the back.  I created a safety “Bug Out Bag” that I kept in my mini-van at all times. There were solar rechargeable flashlights stuck on my dashboard, always charged. I kept my entire camping setup in the storage compartments of the van. Everything from tent and tarps, to hatchets and 550 paracord. From hiking shoes and poles, to cooking equipment. I shoved as much as possible into the mini-van. I had travelled and memorized the back roads out of town. I could get myself away from the city and up in the hills with enough provisions to last 3-4 weeks.

I wanted to be ready. I wanted to prepare for the worst possible thing I could see myself facing. 

I wasn’t going to be caught unprepared, No Sir! I would be able to tackle Anything!

I just wasn’t in the right frame of mind to realize the shit had already hit the fan the night my wife died.

I’ve spent the last three years working through the thoughts that lead me to stock the mini-van.

I can still go for an over-night camping trip with just a moment’s notice…but I’m getting better. 

Peace, Love, and Understanding

What a long strange weekend.

I took Friday off work and spent the day moving load after load of items from the old apartment to the new apartment. It felt great. A positive move all around. I even had a session with my shrink in the afternoon. My shrink psychologist and I don’t spend as much time talking about my late wife nowadays. We mostly talk about other stuff. The stuff I’ve been carrying around my entire life. Things I don’t really like about myself.

I find it rather sad that this openness I have towards looking inward to myself has only become possible through the death of my wife.  I have guilty thoughts of not being this communicative and open when my wife was alive. I try to keep those thoughts to a minimum though.

After my shrink session, I had dinner with B.D. at her place.  She is opening up more and laughing frequently. I am really enjoying her company.  I also like that she is insanely busy so it keeps a bit of distance between us.  Things progressed after dinner and I stayed the night. A nice breakfast at a local café and I was back to the task of moving belongings. I was still a bit unsure and freaked out about staying over, but seem to be warming up to the idea.

Some friends arrived at 10:00 am to help move all the big stuff. We only needed two trips to move everything. The new apartment has a steep stairwell with a tight 90 degree landing at the top. Everything was able to get squeezed in with minimal damage, but some of the nicer furniture pieces have some pretty ugly markings now. No complaints though, as I can hopefully buff it out. As the great poet Jeff Spicoli once said, “My old man is a television repairman, he's got this ultimate set of tools. I can fix it.”

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Got a call from my brother on Saturday night. Seems my mother’s new husband is in the hospital again. He is working on the 5^th of his 9 lives, so I didn’t head to the hospital. They were taking him out of the emergency room and into ICU.  I have mixed feeling about this guy. He was my father's fishing buddy. Mom decided after 40 years of marriage that this dirt poor guy 20 years her senior and already 2 major hospitalizations into it, that he could provide more that she was currently getting. The guy is no catch. His emotional connectedness to reality is non-existent. He is really strong in his faith, to the point of being overly literal with his particular style of a bible. Hard core conservative values that are completely different than the values my mother instilled in me. My mother has now adopted all of his beliefs and is no longer recognizable as the person that raised me.  The universe provides though… the last time he was in the hospital his nurse was a young black woman.  She was attentive and encouraging and genuinely compassionate towards both him and my mother. On the last day when they discharged him, they both questioned this young black woman to see if she knew the way to Jesus. She politely let them know that she too, was very strong in her faith. She let them know she was Muslim, and a follower of the Islamic religion. So my shrink has plenty of grist for the mill with my relationship with my mother.

I have no qualms with anyone’s personal beliefs, only when those beliefs become bedrock for hatred.  When a religious belief can justify mass killings, directly against a straightforward commandment like “Thou Shalt Not Kill” is it wrong that I question?

Dad, on the other hand, has remarried to a fun and free-spirited hippie mamma and he is actually happier in this new marriage.

(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding  Elvis Costello & The Attractions

Bank Transfer Day – November 5th, 2011

Joined in the march for #occupyWallSt  October 15th - Day of Actions event in my hometown. It was massive, loud, and informational. Lots of quality speakers on stage. The local police were friendly, even helpful. There was a moment of tension when the march ended at the pre-acknowledged ending spot at an auditorium for more speeches, but the crowd wanted to continue marching. The local police held everyone back for about 15 minutes to establish a proposed route and then we were back on our way. They eventually funneled us into a large city park and the marchers disbanded peacefully.

There were more older faces this time. The word is getting out. The suburban families are starting to take notice and join in. A friend asked me why I was marching, and if I thought it was really doing anything to change the situation. Yes, I think it is making a difference. It is letting people know they are not alone in the daily struggle. It is showcasing some alternatives for a group of people that don’t normally pay attention to the news. One of the common themes for the speakers on Saturday seemed to be “speak with your wallet” and move banking accounts to local credit unions.

Bank Transfer Day – November 5^th, 2011

https://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=281139538577206

There are local credit unions everywhere. Check into them!

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I spent a good part of the weekend with Blind Date woman. On Friday I even took her to an event with a few close friends. I need to give her a name for this blog. How about B.D.?  We had a blast, and although she is pretty quiet, there is some fun conversation. She has invited me over for dinner at her place on Tuesday night.  I’m still torn on how to approach this budding relationship. I enjoy her company, but am unsure of how sustainable it could be. She is very reserved, and non-excitable. I’m not sure I have heard her laugh out loud yet. Smile and chuckle, yes, but an outright laugh needs to be observed soon. She is very serious business. But then again, I can be pretty darn serious myself.

The Operation of the Machine becomes so Odious

I updated my Facebook app for iPhone this morning, and of course it crashed my phone and it requires a system restore. Apple has also made it a requirement that a restore can only be accomplished with a connection to the internet. How nice. My company blocks the Apple domain so I can’t install iTunes to update the phone.  And since I don’t have internet access at home, I need to take my laptop to a coffee shop after work and try to find some fast WiFi.

Joy.

I told my landlord I am moving at the end of November. It really is a relief. I feel stifled in this basement.  I’m excited to decorate the new place, hanging up pictures and bringing out of storage some vintage knick-knacks. I hope to be able to have people over in a setting that more reflects my personality.

I was watching some YouTube videos last night of the #OccupyTogether march I attended on Sunday.  I was shocked to see my face on several of the videos. I was standing about 3 rows back from the front. I was amazed at how I looked on the video. I looked angry. My fist was clenched in the air. The muscles in my face and neck stretched tight. Wide open mouth shouting with the crowd. The reality of the march was very peaceful, with many smiles, and even laughter. Children were playing  and musical instruments were spread throughout.  The face on the videos was not the face I was actually feeling  while marching.

The march ended at a city park, where people stood and voiced their opinions. I was struck by their intensity, but I also noticed their lack of preparedness for the speeches.  I wanted to hear another Mario Savio:

"There's a time when the operation of the machine becomes so odious—makes you so sick at heart—that you can't take part. You can't even passively take part. And you've got to put your bodies upon the gears and upon the wheels, upon the levers, upon all the apparatus, and you've got to make it stop. And you've got to indicate to the people who run it, to the people who own it, that unless you're free, the machine will be prevented from working at all." Mario Savio -Sproul Hall Steps, December 2, 1964

Movin on Up to the East side!

So much can change in so little of time. Last week, a friend wanted me to look at the upstairs apartment in their 100 year old house that they wanted me to rent. I took a look at it on Friday afternoon, and was instantly refreshed with the amount of sunlight streaming into the rooms. My basement apartment has very small windows that look out into bushes that block all the sunlight. I walked through it again on Saturday, and was enthralled with the amount of closet space. My current closet is as big as a breadbox.

I have agreed to rent the space, and will move in the first part of November.

The place also doubles as an instant boost to my social life, as my new landlord is the hub for my large circle of friends and we congregate on the porch frequently. I have no fear of being overwhelmed with visitors, as the bedroom is in the back of the house, and with the separate entrance, nobody would come up unless invited.

I’m stoked. This might just be the positive change I need. And it’s in the same neighborhood as I am in now!

I’ve sent an email to my current landlord and will be putting in notice on my current apartment any day now.

Whew! Changes!

 And if that wasn’t enough, I joined the #OccupyTogether  march on Sunday afternoon. It was great to see all walks of life there. Lots of families with young children. There were also many older people lending their voice to the cause. It was very peaceful, and while the local police were lining the path with bicycles and motorcycles ready to quell any disturbance, they also had the slightest smile and head nods towards the marchers that caught their eye. I do believe the police count themselves as part of the 99%. The police are one budget cut away from the unemployment line just like the rest of us.

I started the march with a cup of coffee with the 28 year old hottie. After we marched we had some dinner. I had a great time with her. I tried to gently encourage some more outings together. We shall see what happens.

I need to start packing!

And here is where I would post The Jefferson's Theme Song, but apparently those pesky uptight copyright laws prohibit YouTube posters from having the unauthorized audio. 

The Clash of #OccupyWallSt

Well let’s see. How am I doing today? Frustrated with my work today, but only because my bosses are not in the office this week, and there is a larger than normal amount of an oddball workload.

Procrastination and Apathy keep me from making any changes to my situation, even though I realize life could be much better. Still waffling on step Five.

I think buying an RV or Conversion Van first is the best way to go. I just gotta talk myself into it. It’s easier to just sit on my rear-end and complain about not doing it.

The #OccupyTogether group downtown is growing by the thousands today. And it apparently is not just kids, but many middle-aged people.

I saw a post on Randi Rhodes Facebook page today:

Caller on show: Steve Jobs was a great man, but the way Apple does business (China, taxes) is what #OccupyWallStreet is all about.

This movement is gaining steam. 

The Clash - Guns of Brixton