Monday, April 23, 2007
Friday, April 06, 2007
Bored on Easter Break
Your Score Is.... 100%!
Congratulations, you scored in the highest percentile. You don't let very many mispronunciations slip by. No sir, not you. You speak quite properly, and everyone is impressed with your command of the English language. But do keep in mind, you probably come across as bookish and pedantic!
Do You Pronounce Words Right?
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Your life has jumped the shark 13%!
Your life still has meaning. Congratulations. You have not jumped the shark. Your life may even be kinda cool.
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| What Be Your Nerd Type? Your Result: Drama Nerd You sure do love the spotlight and probably have a very out-going and loud personality. Or not. That's just a stereotype, of course. Participation in the theatre is something to be very proud of. Whether you have a great voice for musicals, or astounding skills for dramas/comedies; keep up the good work. We need more entertainment these days that isn't television and video games (not that these things are bad, necessarily.) | |
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| Which Simpsons character are you? Your Result: Lisa You are very intelligent, but you are not quite as grown up as you think you are. You feel like the only one in your family that holds everything together. | |
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You are 62% Bittch!
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| What type of Emo are you??? Your Result: Awesome/Emotastic Emo! You are an Awesome/Emotastic emo! | |
| Depressed Emo :( | |
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You are 0% Racist...
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Wednesday, March 28, 2007
What the hell is going on
I know I've left everyone in an uncomfortable state of suspense these past two weeks. I'd like to apologize. I just didn't want to say anything until everything was set.
These past two weeks have been awful. The Friday before our scheduled act of sale, we learned there may have been a problem. When the house was inspected, they noted that there were some foundations issues that were not a problem now, but would become one. When the appraisal went on, they noted this and said it COULD use leveling/shoring. It did not say it HAD to. Our loan officer, a very nice and helpful man named AJ (and that's honestly not sarcasm there...) told us that the bank was taking some issue here. Our plan had been to get my spider monkey brother Geoff and his equally lanky and excitable roommate, our friend Chris, to crawl under the house (it's a raised house) and to add some support to the piers. My uncle, who is an architect restoring a gorgeous shotgun double Uptown (he's been at it for like 15 years now), said he did it to his house, and it is a good solution, at least for a while.
That weekend, we were worried, but not terribly, based on what everyone was saying. Monday, March 12, the day before our act of sale, we found out that the bank was not signing off on the loan until we agreed and were under contract to shore the house. This was a major problem. We do not have the money to do it. My parents told us that they were planning to give us a good amount of money to help fix up the house. However, this was probably not going to cover it. My father had a contractor he's known for years look at the house. He said, without really looking at it, that it would cost $20-$30,000 to fix it, and then left. We think he didn't want the job in the first place.
I took down the countdown at that point. Well, posted to ignore it, as I was in such a deep state of despair.
"Why?" you ask. Because we do not have much money. We are going to deplete our savings with the down payment and closing costs and inspections and the sofa and recliner we bought. The money my parents are giving us was to buy furniture and appliances, the least of which is a refrigerator.
To lose this house is worse than you can imagine. As I said in another post, I've lost one house already. I am not prepared to lose another.
Back to us not having much money: the housing market is ridiculous here. People want more than $150,000 back in Lakeview for a house that isn't even gutted yet. It's selling for "land value only." There are thousands of houses like that in our former neighborhood. Our loan is for the bottom of the unflooded housing market here. It was extremely slim pickings. Each house we looked at was like walking through a fun house; the floors were slanted at dangerous angles and one became disoriented when walking.
ANY house in our price range had one of the following wrong with it: foundation trouble, one bathroom, shitty neighborhood, small bedrooms that wouldn't hold our queen-sized bed...I could go on. It wasn't just us being picky; one house had a crack house on the corner, and upon reading the police reports in the newspaper that night, we discovered countless arrests on that one street. Things were grim until we found this house on the Internet.
It may not be the most attractive home, but it has huge bedrooms, two bathrooms, a nice yard, and is in a neighborhood with million-dollar homes popping up every few houses. It's my brother's neighborhood, Old Metairie. This house, with all of its cosmetic flaws, was the wisest investment. A few coats of paint and some mortar would almost double its value instantly, to be honest.
To lose this house meant several things: losing our shot at freedom and regaining our independence, repairing our straining-due-to-spending-a-year-and-a-half-with-our-parents relationship, and losing our loan. By prequalifying for our loan, we had 90 days to use it. The first 45 had to attach a property to the loan. The next 45 covered all of the inspections and other crap that comes along with buying a house. By the time we had this bomb drop, we were 30 days left to the loan before we would have to endure that painful process all over again.
This is the reason for my explosive post. There was so much at stake on this house. It was more than just house-shopping. It destroyed me.
Mark called a shoring company that advertises with WWL and had them do an estimate. They gave us two scenarios; if it was one type of problem, it would cost $9,000. That we could do. But if it was the other type of problem, the estimate placed it at $34,500. That we could not do.
Everyone started bombarding us with other house ads. I guess it's like when a couple miscarries, and everyone says, "Well, you can always try for another one. By the way, look at this picture of Susie and Gregg's kid!!! Isn't he adorable???" This was a major loss. Another reason for the explosive post. But these ads were more of the same: bad neighborhoods, deserted neighborhoods, one bathroom, etc.
Mark worked with the sales staff at WWL. Apparently, over the years, on-air hosts have done what are called "live spots." A live spot is when the host just randomly starts talking about the nice people over at such and such a company and all of the great work they do. It's not a commercial, per se, but it kind of is. In the past, live spots were done on trade sometimes. One man had Lasic surgery on both eyes for free, another has almost built a house for free. Spud, our savior, agreed to do our live spots and give us the benefits.
But first, they had to get under the house and give us the verdict. The house is raised, yes, but the crawlspace is small. They had to dig a hole in the backyard to get under there. And, as is our luck, it was the $34,500 job.
There went all hope, unless we could get the trade. Then we learned that the trade has been declared illegal in the past couple of years. When Mark told me about it, I said it sounded illegal, but that I was willing to do whatever it took to get the house, and so if it wasn't illegal, well, there you go. Then we found out that it was. Not totally surprised, but crushed. There was only one option left.
We had already low-balled them on the house. They accepted the offer with a slightly higher counter-offer. We didn't think they would drop. Our agent, Jim, told us to try. We dropped the offer by $20,000. All of last week was agony.
Mark spoke with Jim on St. Patrick's Day. He said that the family still owed over $120,000 on the house, and that they were thinking that maybe it could be worked out with their lender. It was a tiny ray of hope. No more word until....
Thursday, Mark talked to Jim, who said he'd spoken to their agent. Apparently, the sellers were having a meeting the next day with their agent. The couple has divorced, and he lives in Texas but was in town for the weekend. We thought this could be a good sign. He wouldn't waste a trip here if the answer was a flat-out no. They met at 1:30. Around 5 p.m., Mark finally heard from our agent. Apparently, the lady was ready to accept the offer, the agent wanted them to accept the offer, and the guy was holding out. He thought they could get a better offer. The agent and ex-wife were trying to get him to understand that they probably wouldn't. The house had been on the market for over a year. They moved out on the 13th, so they were paying the mortgage and 2 rents. If they didn't accept our offer, they had to be up-front about the foundation trouble. Or, they could always fix it themselves. Apparently, there was also a chance of foreclosure if they didn't take our offer. That must have been some meeting.
The result of the meeting was that the guy wanted the weekend to think about it, and we would know on Monday. GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR...
But at 10 a.m. Saturday, Jim called to say that the guy had thought it over, and he was ready to agree. But they had to speak to their lenders first to work out a payment plan to cover the rest of what they owed outside of what we were offering.
Monday came, Monday went, not a single word was sent.
Tuesday afternoon, Mark got in touch with Jim. The sellers accepted our offer, and there was new paperwork to fill out. AGAIN. However, we have to wait until their lender agrees, which will be by the end of the week. Apparently, this is a small hurdle, and Jim is confident that we should finally get it.
The act of sale has moved to "on or before April 15." Beings as that is a Sunday, I'm guessing it will be before. Our loan runs out on April 18. We pushed our furniture delivery, which was scheduled for March 30, to April 21.
More on this story as it develops. As of now, it looks like we'll get it, but there is still a chance to not get it. I am staying very low-key on this in the meantime.
Thank you to everyone who worried and/or cared. I may not have responded to you, but I had good reason. Adding to the stress was our designing, giving, and grading 6 exams, then creating our massive report cards (10-12 pages per child!!!!) all last week. Now I'm catching up on the other things that have been turned in since then.
Is it June yet?
These past two weeks have been awful. The Friday before our scheduled act of sale, we learned there may have been a problem. When the house was inspected, they noted that there were some foundations issues that were not a problem now, but would become one. When the appraisal went on, they noted this and said it COULD use leveling/shoring. It did not say it HAD to. Our loan officer, a very nice and helpful man named AJ (and that's honestly not sarcasm there...) told us that the bank was taking some issue here. Our plan had been to get my spider monkey brother Geoff and his equally lanky and excitable roommate, our friend Chris, to crawl under the house (it's a raised house) and to add some support to the piers. My uncle, who is an architect restoring a gorgeous shotgun double Uptown (he's been at it for like 15 years now), said he did it to his house, and it is a good solution, at least for a while.
That weekend, we were worried, but not terribly, based on what everyone was saying. Monday, March 12, the day before our act of sale, we found out that the bank was not signing off on the loan until we agreed and were under contract to shore the house. This was a major problem. We do not have the money to do it. My parents told us that they were planning to give us a good amount of money to help fix up the house. However, this was probably not going to cover it. My father had a contractor he's known for years look at the house. He said, without really looking at it, that it would cost $20-$30,000 to fix it, and then left. We think he didn't want the job in the first place.
I took down the countdown at that point. Well, posted to ignore it, as I was in such a deep state of despair.
"Why?" you ask. Because we do not have much money. We are going to deplete our savings with the down payment and closing costs and inspections and the sofa and recliner we bought. The money my parents are giving us was to buy furniture and appliances, the least of which is a refrigerator.
To lose this house is worse than you can imagine. As I said in another post, I've lost one house already. I am not prepared to lose another.
Back to us not having much money: the housing market is ridiculous here. People want more than $150,000 back in Lakeview for a house that isn't even gutted yet. It's selling for "land value only." There are thousands of houses like that in our former neighborhood. Our loan is for the bottom of the unflooded housing market here. It was extremely slim pickings. Each house we looked at was like walking through a fun house; the floors were slanted at dangerous angles and one became disoriented when walking.
ANY house in our price range had one of the following wrong with it: foundation trouble, one bathroom, shitty neighborhood, small bedrooms that wouldn't hold our queen-sized bed...I could go on. It wasn't just us being picky; one house had a crack house on the corner, and upon reading the police reports in the newspaper that night, we discovered countless arrests on that one street. Things were grim until we found this house on the Internet.
It may not be the most attractive home, but it has huge bedrooms, two bathrooms, a nice yard, and is in a neighborhood with million-dollar homes popping up every few houses. It's my brother's neighborhood, Old Metairie. This house, with all of its cosmetic flaws, was the wisest investment. A few coats of paint and some mortar would almost double its value instantly, to be honest.
To lose this house meant several things: losing our shot at freedom and regaining our independence, repairing our straining-due-to-spending-a-year-and-a-half-with-our-parents relationship, and losing our loan. By prequalifying for our loan, we had 90 days to use it. The first 45 had to attach a property to the loan. The next 45 covered all of the inspections and other crap that comes along with buying a house. By the time we had this bomb drop, we were 30 days left to the loan before we would have to endure that painful process all over again.
This is the reason for my explosive post. There was so much at stake on this house. It was more than just house-shopping. It destroyed me.
Mark called a shoring company that advertises with WWL and had them do an estimate. They gave us two scenarios; if it was one type of problem, it would cost $9,000. That we could do. But if it was the other type of problem, the estimate placed it at $34,500. That we could not do.
Everyone started bombarding us with other house ads. I guess it's like when a couple miscarries, and everyone says, "Well, you can always try for another one. By the way, look at this picture of Susie and Gregg's kid!!! Isn't he adorable???" This was a major loss. Another reason for the explosive post. But these ads were more of the same: bad neighborhoods, deserted neighborhoods, one bathroom, etc.
Mark worked with the sales staff at WWL. Apparently, over the years, on-air hosts have done what are called "live spots." A live spot is when the host just randomly starts talking about the nice people over at such and such a company and all of the great work they do. It's not a commercial, per se, but it kind of is. In the past, live spots were done on trade sometimes. One man had Lasic surgery on both eyes for free, another has almost built a house for free. Spud, our savior, agreed to do our live spots and give us the benefits.
But first, they had to get under the house and give us the verdict. The house is raised, yes, but the crawlspace is small. They had to dig a hole in the backyard to get under there. And, as is our luck, it was the $34,500 job.
There went all hope, unless we could get the trade. Then we learned that the trade has been declared illegal in the past couple of years. When Mark told me about it, I said it sounded illegal, but that I was willing to do whatever it took to get the house, and so if it wasn't illegal, well, there you go. Then we found out that it was. Not totally surprised, but crushed. There was only one option left.
We had already low-balled them on the house. They accepted the offer with a slightly higher counter-offer. We didn't think they would drop. Our agent, Jim, told us to try. We dropped the offer by $20,000. All of last week was agony.
Mark spoke with Jim on St. Patrick's Day. He said that the family still owed over $120,000 on the house, and that they were thinking that maybe it could be worked out with their lender. It was a tiny ray of hope. No more word until....
Thursday, Mark talked to Jim, who said he'd spoken to their agent. Apparently, the sellers were having a meeting the next day with their agent. The couple has divorced, and he lives in Texas but was in town for the weekend. We thought this could be a good sign. He wouldn't waste a trip here if the answer was a flat-out no. They met at 1:30. Around 5 p.m., Mark finally heard from our agent. Apparently, the lady was ready to accept the offer, the agent wanted them to accept the offer, and the guy was holding out. He thought they could get a better offer. The agent and ex-wife were trying to get him to understand that they probably wouldn't. The house had been on the market for over a year. They moved out on the 13th, so they were paying the mortgage and 2 rents. If they didn't accept our offer, they had to be up-front about the foundation trouble. Or, they could always fix it themselves. Apparently, there was also a chance of foreclosure if they didn't take our offer. That must have been some meeting.
The result of the meeting was that the guy wanted the weekend to think about it, and we would know on Monday. GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR...
But at 10 a.m. Saturday, Jim called to say that the guy had thought it over, and he was ready to agree. But they had to speak to their lenders first to work out a payment plan to cover the rest of what they owed outside of what we were offering.
Monday came, Monday went, not a single word was sent.
Tuesday afternoon, Mark got in touch with Jim. The sellers accepted our offer, and there was new paperwork to fill out. AGAIN. However, we have to wait until their lender agrees, which will be by the end of the week. Apparently, this is a small hurdle, and Jim is confident that we should finally get it.
The act of sale has moved to "on or before April 15." Beings as that is a Sunday, I'm guessing it will be before. Our loan runs out on April 18. We pushed our furniture delivery, which was scheduled for March 30, to April 21.
More on this story as it develops. As of now, it looks like we'll get it, but there is still a chance to not get it. I am staying very low-key on this in the meantime.
Thank you to everyone who worried and/or cared. I may not have responded to you, but I had good reason. Adding to the stress was our designing, giving, and grading 6 exams, then creating our massive report cards (10-12 pages per child!!!!) all last week. Now I'm catching up on the other things that have been turned in since then.
Is it June yet?
Saturday, March 24, 2007
Insulting to women everywhere
Just another reason to dislike the products of Texas....
To be clear, I am pro-choice. I know that if I was careless enough to end up pregnant at this point in my life, I would probably abort. At some other point in my life, I may be willing to go for adoption. I don't want kids. I can't afford kids. And to the people who always say, "You can never afford kids," I understand that this is true, but as we are trying to scrape up enough money to level the house we're trying to buy and worrying that there won't be money left for a fridge, don't even try convincing me now. Had Katrina never happened, perhaps I would feel differently. I wouldn't have to start with naught but the 10K Allstate gave us. I'd have appliances and furniture and art and things. Let's hope that the class-action lawsuit against the Corps of Engineers plays out in our favor. We've filed for a large sum...including mental and physical anguish (I have developed depression and reflux as a result) and property not covered through insurance. If that works out in our favor, I'd consider children.
But that's a different blog.
Anyway, I read this article and felt so angry about it that I am here typing my first non-life status post in over a year and a half. http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070324/od_nm/texas_abortion1_dc;_ylt=AsOODKwDCSWBReqZJ84awivMWM0F
First, I find it painfully obvious that some Republican man came up with this brilliant plan. I say this not as an obnoxious feminist, but as a human. He wants to offer women $500 to skip the abortion and carry the pregnancy to term.
Let that sink in.
First, how can you even put a price on it? What mathematical procedure did he use to decide this was a brilliant idea? What does this man even know about it?
Yeah. $500 will cover the cost of all of the prenatal care, the hospital fees, and whatever else needs to be covered. What about the physical and mental strains on the woman's body? Does he know what problems can arise during pregnancy? What if it's a case of the woman's life or the child's? "Hey, here's $500. Make sure you spend it all before you die, but go easy on it." That's valuing the mother's life at $500. Maybe she could form a trust fund or buy a tiny bond to leave the kid something. "Mommy died so you can have this $500. Enjoy!"
I may not be worth much, but I'm definitely worth more than $500.
This figure is a slap in the face of every woman faced with the difficult position of what to do once she is pregnant. I know that if I was raped and ended up pregnant, I could forget all of the trauma with a magic $500 check from the government. Worst night of my life? No way! I totally scored $500 out of it! That eases my pain and suffering!
If this gets to the people of Texas, they should be ashamed of themselves, their leaders, and their state if they vote it in. I doubt it will, but the current Christian agenda of the country and that state (cough cough Bush cough cough), anything is possible.
And this is happening in New Braunfels, Texas, land of the world's greatest water park, Schlitterbahn. So disappointed.
I especially love how he brings in Iraq. Interesting that that comment came from a Republican. Classy guy, this Dan Patrick. Also not surprising: he hosts a conservative radio talk show. I hate those people.
This is my favorite part: "Critics say the proposal would violate Texas and federal laws against buying babies, which Patrick rejected as 'the typical ridiculous criticism.'" What? This man in insane. "Typical ridiculous criticism?" Either he doesn't know what he's saying, or the journalist who wrote this needs to go back to J-school and learn to put things in context.
$500. You've got to be kidding me.
To be clear, I am pro-choice. I know that if I was careless enough to end up pregnant at this point in my life, I would probably abort. At some other point in my life, I may be willing to go for adoption. I don't want kids. I can't afford kids. And to the people who always say, "You can never afford kids," I understand that this is true, but as we are trying to scrape up enough money to level the house we're trying to buy and worrying that there won't be money left for a fridge, don't even try convincing me now. Had Katrina never happened, perhaps I would feel differently. I wouldn't have to start with naught but the 10K Allstate gave us. I'd have appliances and furniture and art and things. Let's hope that the class-action lawsuit against the Corps of Engineers plays out in our favor. We've filed for a large sum...including mental and physical anguish (I have developed depression and reflux as a result) and property not covered through insurance. If that works out in our favor, I'd consider children.
But that's a different blog.
Anyway, I read this article and felt so angry about it that I am here typing my first non-life status post in over a year and a half. http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070324/od_nm/texas_abortion1_dc;_ylt=AsOODKwDCSWBReqZJ84awivMWM0F
First, I find it painfully obvious that some Republican man came up with this brilliant plan. I say this not as an obnoxious feminist, but as a human. He wants to offer women $500 to skip the abortion and carry the pregnancy to term.
Let that sink in.
First, how can you even put a price on it? What mathematical procedure did he use to decide this was a brilliant idea? What does this man even know about it?
Yeah. $500 will cover the cost of all of the prenatal care, the hospital fees, and whatever else needs to be covered. What about the physical and mental strains on the woman's body? Does he know what problems can arise during pregnancy? What if it's a case of the woman's life or the child's? "Hey, here's $500. Make sure you spend it all before you die, but go easy on it." That's valuing the mother's life at $500. Maybe she could form a trust fund or buy a tiny bond to leave the kid something. "Mommy died so you can have this $500. Enjoy!"
I may not be worth much, but I'm definitely worth more than $500.
This figure is a slap in the face of every woman faced with the difficult position of what to do once she is pregnant. I know that if I was raped and ended up pregnant, I could forget all of the trauma with a magic $500 check from the government. Worst night of my life? No way! I totally scored $500 out of it! That eases my pain and suffering!
If this gets to the people of Texas, they should be ashamed of themselves, their leaders, and their state if they vote it in. I doubt it will, but the current Christian agenda of the country and that state (cough cough Bush cough cough), anything is possible.
And this is happening in New Braunfels, Texas, land of the world's greatest water park, Schlitterbahn. So disappointed.
I especially love how he brings in Iraq. Interesting that that comment came from a Republican. Classy guy, this Dan Patrick. Also not surprising: he hosts a conservative radio talk show. I hate those people.
This is my favorite part: "Critics say the proposal would violate Texas and federal laws against buying babies, which Patrick rejected as 'the typical ridiculous criticism.'" What? This man in insane. "Typical ridiculous criticism?" Either he doesn't know what he's saying, or the journalist who wrote this needs to go back to J-school and learn to put things in context.
$500. You've got to be kidding me.
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
Not directed at any one person, but every person
No, stop telling me that you understand or you get it. I haven't even said the whole thing.
You don't understand. I lost one house already. I cannot lose another. You have no fucking clue what it is like to be us. And if you do, then skip reading this.
I have felt low in my life. I was pretty low upon Katrina existing. But this, this is a new low. I'm saving what's going on for later. It is not over. But quit fucking trying to understand, because you won't. Don't tell me it will be okay or that it will all work out. Because it may not be okay. Not ever. I will never, I repeat NEVER get over what has happened in the past 18 months. Every time we try to get ahead, some underlying force has ripped the proverbial rug out from under us. It's never anything we do. It's always some force of nature. I'm sick of being shat upon. I have had enough.
I don't even have the strength to keep up. I'm done. There is no spark in me any more. I'm about ready to hang up my hat.
You don't understand. I lost one house already. I cannot lose another. You have no fucking clue what it is like to be us. And if you do, then skip reading this.
I have felt low in my life. I was pretty low upon Katrina existing. But this, this is a new low. I'm saving what's going on for later. It is not over. But quit fucking trying to understand, because you won't. Don't tell me it will be okay or that it will all work out. Because it may not be okay. Not ever. I will never, I repeat NEVER get over what has happened in the past 18 months. Every time we try to get ahead, some underlying force has ripped the proverbial rug out from under us. It's never anything we do. It's always some force of nature. I'm sick of being shat upon. I have had enough.
I don't even have the strength to keep up. I'm done. There is no spark in me any more. I'm about ready to hang up my hat.
Monday, March 12, 2007
Ignore the previous post
THIS IS NOT HAPPENING, THIS IS NOT HAPPENING, THIS IS NOT HAPPENING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Sunday, February 25, 2007
Update again
Friday was the end of the inspection period for our prospective house. Nothing entirely major...things that can be major in a few years, but that's all due to it being an old house.
We will proceed as planned...
2 weeks until the act of sale...then two weeks until they move out...
Bought a couch and a recliner today. It makes it more real.
We will proceed as planned...
2 weeks until the act of sale...then two weeks until they move out...
Bought a couch and a recliner today. It makes it more real.
| You Are An ENFP |
The Inspirer You love being around people, and you are deeply committed to your friends. You are also unconventional, irreverant, and unimpressed by authority and rules. Incredibly perceptive, you can usually sense if someone has hidden motives. You use lots of colorful language and expressions. You're qutie the storyteller! You would make an excellent entrepreneur, politician, or journalist. |
Wednesday, February 07, 2007
We may have a winner!
We put in a bid on a house Tuesday morning, and they countered today, much lower than we expected! They want the act of sale to be March 13, and then they want 14 days of occupancy....so we'll get to spend two weeks as landlords!!!!
The reign of casa de Stan is about to end after 18 lonnnnnng months!!!
The reign of casa de Stan is about to end after 18 lonnnnnng months!!!
Sunday, February 04, 2007
Update
--Looking at houses, round two, involving both sets of parents, 10:30 a.m. Central on Sunday. God help us all.
--Flooring finally installed at my parents' house.
--To be done in line of Katrina repairs: New baseboards in bedrooms, closets, and hallway, with exception of my parents' bedroom.
--Flooring finally installed at my parents' house.
--To be done in line of Katrina repairs: New baseboards in bedrooms, closets, and hallway, with exception of my parents' bedroom.
Friday, January 26, 2007
Cribs: Katrina
My brother posted a link to this on Facebook and I wanted to share it, too. It's pretty brilliant. Little disturbing, but I'm strangely desensitized to the visuals. Except the pool and the fridge. Ugh. Quick note: mild language...I'd call it PG-13, maybe PG.
Anyway, thanks for bringing it to my attention, Geoff.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlTFuXdbHvc
Anyway, thanks for bringing it to my attention, Geoff.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlTFuXdbHvc
Monday, January 22, 2007
I hope Sunday's events don't render the previous post null and void...
I feel so much sadness over the Saints. And so much hatred towards the Bears.
I can't put it into words as eloquently as Chris Rose can, because, frankly, he is the man, and I am not. So I'll let him do it.
http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/frontpage/index.ssf?/base/news-7/1169448177104140.xml&coll=1
By the way...did I tell you how I got to meet him? Back in...October....I think... there was a huge golf tournament and silent auction for school. Lots of Saints and other sports memorabilia, food from local restaurants, a few local celebrities, free spirits...it was fun. Anyway, Chris Rose frequents the bar where it was held, Monkey Hill Bar, and he showed up at the event. He went out, got a couple boxes of his book, "1 dead in attic," came back, and sold and autographed them, donating all of the money to school. He is just so amazing. And, I bought a second copy of his book, which he autographed. It says "To Aimée. Louisiana Toujours! Chris Rose 10-06." It is my new prized possession. He was so cool to meet and chat with while he was autographing. He didn't write up our event, because this was not long before he started writing about things other than despair once his depression article came out. Google it. It's fantastic. So raw...so real...oh heck, I'll link that one, too. Anyway, when we evacuate again, that baby's coming with us. He is my idol.
http://www.nola.com/rose/t-p/index.ssf?/rose/katrina/hell_and_back.html
I can't put it into words as eloquently as Chris Rose can, because, frankly, he is the man, and I am not. So I'll let him do it.
http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/frontpage/index.ssf?/base/news-7/1169448177104140.xml&coll=1
By the way...did I tell you how I got to meet him? Back in...October....I think... there was a huge golf tournament and silent auction for school. Lots of Saints and other sports memorabilia, food from local restaurants, a few local celebrities, free spirits...it was fun. Anyway, Chris Rose frequents the bar where it was held, Monkey Hill Bar, and he showed up at the event. He went out, got a couple boxes of his book, "1 dead in attic," came back, and sold and autographed them, donating all of the money to school. He is just so amazing. And, I bought a second copy of his book, which he autographed. It says "To Aimée. Louisiana Toujours! Chris Rose 10-06." It is my new prized possession. He was so cool to meet and chat with while he was autographing. He didn't write up our event, because this was not long before he started writing about things other than despair once his depression article came out. Google it. It's fantastic. So raw...so real...oh heck, I'll link that one, too. Anyway, when we evacuate again, that baby's coming with us. He is my idol.
http://www.nola.com/rose/t-p/index.ssf?/rose/katrina/hell_and_back.html
Friday, January 19, 2007
Vignet
Phone call, 3:42 p.m., as my students are dismissing for the day.
Phone: "Bzzzzz bzzzzzzzzzzzzz. bzzzzzzzzz bzzzzzzz." ('Twas on vibrate)
7/8 C: "Go Saints!!!!!! See you Monday!!!!!!! Woooooo no school!"
Me: (Finger in ear to hear) "Hello?"
Loan Officer: "Hi, Aimée...this is A.J. How are you today?"
Me: "I'm good...and how about you?"
A.J.: "Good...I tried calling Mark, and he didn't answer, which is unusual, so I decided to try you."
Me: "Yeah, he is working longer hours now. He's probably still at work."
A.J.: "Oh, I didn't know that. So, the Saints are going to the Super Bowl."
Me: "Oh, I certainly hope so!!"
A.J.: "Well, I know they are. You finally got your loan approval!"
Phone: "Bzzzzz bzzzzzzzzzzzzz. bzzzzzzzzz bzzzzzzz." ('Twas on vibrate)
7/8 C: "Go Saints!!!!!! See you Monday!!!!!!! Woooooo no school!"
Me: (Finger in ear to hear) "Hello?"
Loan Officer: "Hi, Aimée...this is A.J. How are you today?"
Me: "I'm good...and how about you?"
A.J.: "Good...I tried calling Mark, and he didn't answer, which is unusual, so I decided to try you."
Me: "Yeah, he is working longer hours now. He's probably still at work."
A.J.: "Oh, I didn't know that. So, the Saints are going to the Super Bowl."
Me: "Oh, I certainly hope so!!"
A.J.: "Well, I know they are. You finally got your loan approval!"
Saturday, January 13, 2007
National news that quotes me.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/12/AR2007011202169.html
Tuesday, December 26, 2006
Ho Ho Ho Dat....and other thoughts.
The Saints won again! Dear Lord...could this be the year? And Dallas delivered quite the prettily wrapped package today by losing so spectacularly to Philly. First-round bye is OURS.
Anyway, the most important thing of all is that Christmas is finally over. No one I know seems to have been excited about it this year. I only shopped and made jewelry because I felt I had to do it. I was purely driven by the need to conform.
I didn't bring a single decoration to school this year. My classroom is now as it was weeks ago. My mom hung a wreath on the door, and we bought a tree on sale for $10 at Lowe's last Sunday after the Saints game. It stayed on the porch until Wednesday, then got brought inside, and has a grand total of zero lights and 8 ornaments on it. Those ornaments are the ones that were downstairs already based on the fact that we bought or received them this year. No stockings are hung by the chimney with care, and who really gave a shit if St. Nick would be here? We had dinner at home...mom, dad, Geoff, me, Mark. We visited Lance and Mimi, then the Cabin exchanged secret Santa gifts. We did Midnight Mass because my mom would cry if we didn't. We went to Pam and John's, but were late to that because we were coming in from Morgan City.
Yes, we got fairly decent things, but with no place to put them, it doesn't matter. Mark gave me a lovely necklace, but I don't deserve it.
But we were talking about it last night, and Geoff mentioned that he was shocked that he wasn't in the mood for Christmas this year, but was last year. I noted that last year, we NEEDED Christmas. This year, it seemed trivial and we really didn't need it.
Holidays are a joke.
Anyway, the most important thing of all is that Christmas is finally over. No one I know seems to have been excited about it this year. I only shopped and made jewelry because I felt I had to do it. I was purely driven by the need to conform.
I didn't bring a single decoration to school this year. My classroom is now as it was weeks ago. My mom hung a wreath on the door, and we bought a tree on sale for $10 at Lowe's last Sunday after the Saints game. It stayed on the porch until Wednesday, then got brought inside, and has a grand total of zero lights and 8 ornaments on it. Those ornaments are the ones that were downstairs already based on the fact that we bought or received them this year. No stockings are hung by the chimney with care, and who really gave a shit if St. Nick would be here? We had dinner at home...mom, dad, Geoff, me, Mark. We visited Lance and Mimi, then the Cabin exchanged secret Santa gifts. We did Midnight Mass because my mom would cry if we didn't. We went to Pam and John's, but were late to that because we were coming in from Morgan City.
Yes, we got fairly decent things, but with no place to put them, it doesn't matter. Mark gave me a lovely necklace, but I don't deserve it.
But we were talking about it last night, and Geoff mentioned that he was shocked that he wasn't in the mood for Christmas this year, but was last year. I noted that last year, we NEEDED Christmas. This year, it seemed trivial and we really didn't need it.
Holidays are a joke.
Friday, December 15, 2006
100th post and a mystery.
I intended to do a poignant post for this one, my 100th, but instead, I have a mystery to solve. Perhaps you can help. I got a package in the mail today from an Internet store. In it was the He-Man and She-Ra Christmas movie on DVD. I am very confused. I didn't order it, Mark didn't order it, and neither of us has heard of this website. There was nothing else...no packing slip, no nothing. So, someone has sent me a gift. I want to thank that person. But I have no idea who I should be thanking! Please help!
Friday, December 08, 2006
Results are in...
So, the ultrasound showed that I do not have gallstones. This is a very good thing.
However, my B12 levels are very low. I have to start injections next week, five days in a row. Then I will go once a week for 4 weeks. Then I will go once a month for three months. Then they will recheck my levels and see if I need more.
Also, there are problems with my thyroid. They are referring me to my p.c. physician. If he's no help, then I will be referred to an endocrinologist.
I love aging and my parents' genes.
The good news is that I've got some diagnoses. The bad news is that I've been diagnosed. I'm not going to be able to afford myself much longer. I'm already paying $110 a month for prescriptions, and that's only because I've been skipping my Nasonex. I also will add the Zelnorm, and then who knows what I'll need for the thyroid trouble. Oy vey.
However, my B12 levels are very low. I have to start injections next week, five days in a row. Then I will go once a week for 4 weeks. Then I will go once a month for three months. Then they will recheck my levels and see if I need more.
Also, there are problems with my thyroid. They are referring me to my p.c. physician. If he's no help, then I will be referred to an endocrinologist.
I love aging and my parents' genes.
The good news is that I've got some diagnoses. The bad news is that I've been diagnosed. I'm not going to be able to afford myself much longer. I'm already paying $110 a month for prescriptions, and that's only because I've been skipping my Nasonex. I also will add the Zelnorm, and then who knows what I'll need for the thyroid trouble. Oy vey.
Friday, November 24, 2006
I saw it.
Yes, all of you who posted to me or e-mailed me or tried to call me, I got it. I just don't have much to say. Hence, my updates have become few and far between. I'm not ignoring you; don't think that at all. I just have no reply.
Updates:
There was a delay in the loan application process that required a 30-wait period. Then they will resubmit. We do not know yet whether or not we have one.
We house-sat for my aunt and uncle this week. It was great fun...until we had to come back here. It only drives home how futile it all feels.
We have been told to get out Jan. 1.
My father's daytime help was murdered in New Orleans East in her FEMA trailer. He really liked her...she was a new hire who was happy working for him, and who was about to earn her own set of keys and alarm code when her nephew gunned her down over a senseless family argument. Dad wanted to attend her funeral but decided that under the circumstances (her friend and her brother were also murdered by the guy) he shouldn't. Who knows what the services would be like. But then, we still haven't seen any arrangements in the paper. They caught the guy, though. Now, in addition, he is overworked again. But our friend Chris works for him after school, and he's been a huge help to him. No new help has been hired.
I went to the gastroenterologist and was formally diagnosed with both IBS and Reflux. I am on Nexium and will be on Zelnorm. I can no longer take Advil products. I had to have an abdominal ultrasound to rule out gallstones and a hiatal hernia, plus bloodwork to rule out thyroid trouble. I have not heard back about either test. Hopefully, that is good. However, she wants me to have a colonoscopy in January. We'll see about that.
I am tired of waiting. I am always waiting on someone or something. I do not want to do this any more. I want some instant gratification for once. I wish carpe diem was possibly in Post-Katrina New Orleans.
I am so tired.
Updates:
There was a delay in the loan application process that required a 30-wait period. Then they will resubmit. We do not know yet whether or not we have one.
We house-sat for my aunt and uncle this week. It was great fun...until we had to come back here. It only drives home how futile it all feels.
We have been told to get out Jan. 1.
My father's daytime help was murdered in New Orleans East in her FEMA trailer. He really liked her...she was a new hire who was happy working for him, and who was about to earn her own set of keys and alarm code when her nephew gunned her down over a senseless family argument. Dad wanted to attend her funeral but decided that under the circumstances (her friend and her brother were also murdered by the guy) he shouldn't. Who knows what the services would be like. But then, we still haven't seen any arrangements in the paper. They caught the guy, though. Now, in addition, he is overworked again. But our friend Chris works for him after school, and he's been a huge help to him. No new help has been hired.
I went to the gastroenterologist and was formally diagnosed with both IBS and Reflux. I am on Nexium and will be on Zelnorm. I can no longer take Advil products. I had to have an abdominal ultrasound to rule out gallstones and a hiatal hernia, plus bloodwork to rule out thyroid trouble. I have not heard back about either test. Hopefully, that is good. However, she wants me to have a colonoscopy in January. We'll see about that.
I am tired of waiting. I am always waiting on someone or something. I do not want to do this any more. I want some instant gratification for once. I wish carpe diem was possibly in Post-Katrina New Orleans.
I am so tired.
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