July 01, 2008
We are officially MOVED! There is no place like HOME!I enclosed the old house keys in a card that I deliverd to the owners/managers. I explained a few things about the property and what has transpired there over the years. I merely mentioned the chronic problems with the sewers that were never given attention, the broken plumbing in the house, termites, etc.
I also mildly scolded them for never having the courtesy to meet any of the tenants since they bought the place a year ago. I suggested that our relationships with them might have been on better footing if they had made the effort to meet us as people rather than monthly rent checks. I also addressed the fact that phone calls were not returned in a timely manner, forcing us to take many matters into our own hands too many times to count.
I also let them know that everyone is aware of their plan to convert the property into a condo association and that we all hope to leave on our own terms rather than receive a 60-day notice from them.
To make my old house rentable, they will have to replace all the plumbing in the master bath and replace the shower, treat the house for termites, rebuild the decks, completely rat-proof the structure, paint the interior, stain the exterior, repair all the skylights, fix the pond, resurface the driveway, replace the garage door, and replace the roof with shingles that meet fire code. My guess is that will cost them at least $150,000 or more. Methinks they won't do that. They will probably offer it really cheap to some unsuspecting short-term renters who don't mind living with all the building code violations.
There was pretty good evidence that some homeless guys broke into the house the other night thinking it was already empty. Roomie made a stop to get the dogs and found the garage door open, all the lights on, the regular doors wide open, and the dogs freaked out in the driveway. Some homeless guys broke into the small cottage on the property right after the previous tenants moved. It would only make sense that they tried it again. I was SO glad that the dogs didn't run off. I was also glad that my laptop was still there and my priceless vintage Martin guitar too. Since I had no interior lights in my bedroom, they couldn't see what was in there.
So.....thanks to cocoabean's help, we finished today around noon. I picked up cheese enchiladas for lunch and decided I am calling it a day. No more work tonight! No more!
I started cruising the yellow pages for take-out dinner ideas, and I came across something I had never seen before. I thought it had to be a joke. BANGUS BELLY. What the fook is BANGUS BELLY?????
It's milkfish tummy sides. Doesn't that sound.....yummithy? I don't really like the idea of MILKFISH either. I don't even want to know why it's called that.
So....to whet (neener) appetites, I present you a photo of bangus belly steaks. Check out the fish platter. Why do people think it's so cute to serve fish on fish platters? Is simply seeing the dead fish not enough? Must we be reminded with that fookin' platter?
Enough. I'm tired. Enjoy the bangus belly.
