Saturday, July 30, 2022

The 411

Topic of the rent increase was front and center at yesterday's bingo game.

We mostly laughed about the duplicity. Thought it hilarious that management finally did something nice for us, only to learn we were just being buttered up to make the rent increase a little more palatable.

It was ROFLMAO funny when some of the bingo players said they didn’t get notice of the increase attached to their doors the day after Summer Social, as I and others did. That, when they returned to their units AFTER the Social, the notice was waiting for them. Someone had snuck around, posted, while we were being distracted.

It's hilarious!

So anyway, as far as we can figure, the 411 is that … those of us who are not receiving aid have rent increases of $75 if we occupy a one bedroom, which is me, and $80 if in a two-bedroom unit.

Of those receiving aid (Section 8), not all have received rent increases. It’s unknown if they will be later notified or not receive increases at all.

Of those receiving aid (Section 8) that did receive notice — and we know of only one so far who copped to it, her increase is only $18 and, she says, not a hardship.

From the number of residents I saw going in/out of Assistant Manager’s Office while I was playing bingo, and who those residents were, I’m assuming they are the Section 8’s that received an increase for whom the increase will be a hardship.

They were probably in her office pleading their case.

Painted Rock Lady, who falls under the $80 increase because she gets no aid and has a two-bedroom, jokingly said she might have to find a Sugar Daddy to help her out.

At least I think she was joking but maybe not because, believe it or not, old gal in a walker with a breathing instrument has two male "friends" who frequently wine and dine her.

So, anyway, that’s the 411 on the rent increases.

By my calculations, I’ll be paying an additional $900 a year in rent. Which is not bad considering what’s happening elsewhere, so I’m not complaining.

One woman said, "We paid for that party".

She’s not wrong.

Whatever management paid out on that Summer Social for us is being recouped over and above.

Using that same logic, since I didn’t eat, I calculate I paid for these two Tiki Cups @$450 each.


You gotta laugh.

Today was my lucky day in bingo, even though I didn’t wear my lucky shirt.

Looking at the prize table, I’d spotted a little wallet that looked like a $100 bill and planned to go for if I won a game.

Won it on Game 3. 


Outside

Inside

The resident that used those cute buttons on her bingo cards is now using cute little rubberized hearts, flowers, stars.


Lastly ... What are the odds? Three of us turned up wearing animal print masks.


Thursday, July 28, 2022

Plot Twist


The only one I disagree with is Thao. His actions towards concerned bystanders and that first responder — an off-duty firefighter who walked up on the scene, identified herself, asked to be allowed to provide aid to Floyd, disturbed me just as much as Chavin’s actions.

Thao had responded, "If you are who you say you are, then you know not to get involved".

WHAT?!, though I at the time. A first responder should know better than to try to respond to a person in distress?

Well, I hope it hasn't escaped Thao that he's the one going to prison for not getting involved, rather than the first responder getting in trouble for trying to get involved.

Three and a half years is nowhere near what Thao should have gotten, but it’s more than the other two so, evidently, the judge must have also thought Thao deserved more.

I actually would have liked Kueng to get the same two years as Lang, but it is what it is.

Returning from Wednesday’s workout, I ran into Jan heading for a doctor’s appointment.

Asking how she was, she said she was fine.

She looked fine.

"You had us worried with police, fire, ambulance. I was expecting the National Guard to come through the gate next".

She laughed, said "That was my ex-husband’s fault. I told him 'Thanks a lot'. He said, 'Well, you should answer your phone'".

Evidently, he’d called, she didn’t answer, so he asked for a welfare check.

That doesn't explain why the ambulance took her away but, inasmuch as she looked quite well, I didn’t inquire further.

It amazes me how it is she and her ex get along so well, live separately, care for and take care of each other.

Makes me wonder why they bothered to get divorced.

We have a divorced couple living here. They share the same unit, live as if still married. I’m assuming the divorce is paperwork that is somehow benefitting the both of them financially in some way.

I was asked a question at Summer Social. A question to which I answered instantly, without thought, right off the top of my head.

While Bible Thumper (BT) was off getting a third, maybe a fourth helping of what was being served, a lady at my table and I were talking about how nice of management to give us this treat. Then she questioned why … "Why do you suppose they’re doing this for us".

"They’re probably going to raise the rent” came out of nowhere.

She said, "Oh! Oh yeah!" and we laughed and laughed and laughed because we thought we were joking.

Plot Twist!

Guess what happened yesterday.

Yep, a "30-Day Notice to Change the Terms of Your Rental Agreement" was attached to our doors — one day after the Summer Social.

An increase of $75.

Management could have at least waited a few days, so it wouldn't have been so obvious.

In my mind, I should be exempt from the increase because I didn't eat anything at the Summer Social. They didn't have anything I could digest, so I just sipped on coffee I myself brought.

This exemption should also apply to those who did not attend, those who did not fall for the trap.

I don't think this logic is going to fly with management but, in a world where rent increases are escalating into hundreds of dollars a month, $75 isn’t bad. Fortunately, at least not for me.

However, for residents on severely fixed incomes, those that are not being subsidized by the county, $75 is going to seem like hundreds of dollars.

I hope this doesn't put a damper on future events, make folks afraid to participate thinking management might be up to something.

One other thing that happened at the Summer Social was that when BT returned to the table, with his third/fourth plate of what was being served (He really stuffed his face. Had even asked that, since I wasn't eating, for me to go make a plate and give it to him to which I replied, "Get it yourself"), he tried to impress us with his knowledge saying, "You know why they’re doing this for us. It’s because they have so many vacancies".

That didn’t even make sense, because how would giving us a party have an impact on vacancies. Plus, someone just moved into Bonita’s old unit, and management has finally relented and has an outside crew getting the unit that used to have the black box quick fast ready for new tenants, AND we have a waiting list.

All of which I told Mr. Know It All Bible Thumper, adding that the other lady and I had another theory — a rent increase.

Of course, he shook his head, said I was wrong — we don’t have a waiting list and we have a lot of vacancies.

Well look who has a rent increase attached to his door.

The man's a fool.

What's sad about it is .... he is completely oblivious to the fact that he's a fool.

Wednesday, July 27, 2022

New Player on the Field

There was no medal or swag bag involved in the Hawlin Hawley 5K. What I received was an e-ticket to the 5K, the pleasure of knowing I’d participated in sticking it to Hawley, and added/survived an additional 6,000 or so steps to my resume.

Looks like the sticking’s are nowhere near coming to an end. Tee shirts are popping up all over the internet.


Then there’s this …



We have a new player on the field here at the complex — the guy I first met at the July 4th BBQ that the seniors threw for themselves.

He was a late comer, as was I, so he ended up sitting at the table where I was seated and began telling me he moved in six months ago, has experience as a personal trainer, was raised in Israel —"Just down the road from where Jesus is buried" said he, now leads a bible group in the Community Room on Thursdays, invited me to attend.

No thanks was my thought about joining in on his bible group. Not that I don’t believe in the religion of the bible, it’s just that I find people involved in those groups boring, judgmental, hypocritical — too attached to the letter of what’s in the bible, lacking in understanding as to the spirit of it.

So anyway, he ended up at my table at yesterday’s Summer Social and, by the end of the luncheon, had gotten on my last nerve.

He’s the kind of guy that never shuts up, has something to say about EVERYTHING.

Let’s call him Bible Thumper because everything he has to say somehow ends up with "Trust in the Lord" and an invitation to attend his bible group.

Even when not talking specifically to him, talking to someone else, he’d jump into my conversation with "You should do this, you should do that, yada yada yada trust in the Lord".

Listening to his pontificating and having something to say about every single thing is exhausting.

A few examples ….

At the BBQ, another woman and I were reminiscing about when we had a little water exercise group going in the pool.

He jumped in, said he’d been a trainer and was thinking of starting a water exercise group.

I now doubt he was ever a trainer and, if he starts a water aerobics group — which was probably just more yada yada to make himself relevant, I won’t be participating.

At yesterday’s Summer Social, I was discussing with another resident that, because I live upstairs, heat rises, my unit is always hot.

"You should keep your windows open. I leave mine open all night".

Well good for him. Maybe someone will do us all a favor, breaks in and bash him in the head with a baseball bat.

I said leaving windows open at night is not a smart thing for a woman to do.

He said, "Why not. No one is going to climb to the second floor".

"I’ve had someone try to break in my upstairs apartment twice in my life."

"If they use a ladder, all you have to do is push the ladder over".

He thinks he’s cute.

He’s not.

"I’ll be asleep in the back bedroom, wake up to some guy attacking me."

"I’ll teach you self-defense".

I gave up, let him have the last word because he was getting on my nerves, and the conversation ended with his saying something about God keeping me safe.

He was right about that. Somebody up there has been looking out for me, because so much in life has tried to harm me, kill me, break my spirit, and I’m still here.

The first time some guy tried to get into my then upstairs apartment, through a sliding glass window, I’d put a stick in the window to keep it from being opened at night. He was jiggling the window, trying to get the stick to fall out. Fortunately, I’d fallen asleep on the couch by the window, instead of being in the back bedroom. I heard the jiggle noise, yelled and whoever it was fled.

The second time it happened, a neighbor saw some guy hanging onto the stair rails, trying to access a side window. He yelled and the guy fled.

So don’t tell me people don’t climb to second floors.

Someone at the table asked me about the charm on my necklace that says, "Try God".

He looked over at it said, “Well, you can’t just try”.

My inner Anne Marie rose up. Inside I could hear it saying, "Jesus F’ing Christ! This guy is sooooo annoying".

When there was a discussion about our facebook group, he chimed in that he had to delete all his social media accounts because, "I’ve got enemies. Many enemies that were sending me hate".

I don’t doubt that for one moment, as he was rapidly turning me into an unfriendly.

Casino Lady arrived late for the party, sought me out to give me an update on a young man we observed jumping the wall one day, looking under cars before she and her sister chased him off.

Looking for catalytic convers to steal we’d assumed.

She was telling me how he’d come back at 5:00 in the morning, broken into one of the cars, causing the alarm to go off.

Hearing the alarm, she gotten out of bed, run to the window, yelled to him that she’s calling the police (she did), whereupon he ran and jumped back over the wall, out of the complex.

Before I knew what was happening, Bible Thumper interrupted and took over the conversation. Something about, "You should set up cameras. My neighbor has cameras all over the place" … yada yada yada. He then transitioned into talking about God, trusting in the Lord, invited Casino Lady to his bible group, got into what is discussed in his bible group where upon I couldn’t take it any longer, blurted out, "Save it for Thursday" (the day he supposedly has a bible group) and took my conversation back, asking Casino Lady what the kid had taken.

She said the kid didn’t have time to take the car, just grabbed what he could when she yelled, which later was determined to be a bag of coins and escaped back over the wall.

Bible Thumper didn’t appear nonplussed by what I’d said. Was quiet just long enough for me to finish my conversation and, when I got up to leave shortly after, saying goodby that "I’ve got to check mail", he retorted "Why mail? Why not female?"

What the hell!? Just another episode of having something to say about every word I say.

No disrespect to my LGBTQ readers, but having had enough of him I said, "I don’t swing that way", whereupon the entire table laughed at him. Someone said, "Good answer" and, as I began to walk away, I heard the sound of laughter behind me, turned and saw a sheepish look on his face as his head fell a little.

I think the laughter was applause as everyone at the table had probably had enough of him.

Tuesday, July 26, 2022

Hawlin It

Good news — Painted Rock Lady is back in her unit. I’ve not yet seen her out and about, but whatever emergency she had has passed.

Bad news is Red Light isn’t letting up. She’s not buying “emergency”. She’s insisting it was “more drama”, a bid for attention.

Anything is possible, but I’m relieved to know PRL is still with us.

As PRL is painting rocks in her unit without proper ventilation, I’m tempted to tell her that Bob Ross, the television painting instructor, passed away from complications of lymphoma suspected to be caused by the fumes from the paint and sealants he worked with. That maybe she should move her painting out to the patio After all, last time she went to the hospital, she came back attached to a breathing machine that she has to lug around with her wherever she goes.

I’m tempted, but reluctant to do so because, in the past, people have not always appreciated my alerting them to a knowing I've had or my two-cents.

Instead of appreciating or heeding the warning, I’ve been accused of causing the problem — "putting something" on them, bringing it into being.

Believe it or not, there are a lot of ignorant people in the world, so to speak of certain things would be like what is described as "Pearls before swine".

Consequently, I keep my knowings to myself and just watch, sometimes with a heavy heart, as things play out as they will. That is, unless specifically asked my thought or opinion or if I'm "feeling anything".

Plan for today was to check out the Summer Social "Lunch with property management" scheduled for 11:30. However, I wanted to get the Hawlin’ Hawley Virtual 5K off my bucket list — I’d registered just last night, saw the active dates had already begun (July 25 – 31).


Figuring I could manage both, I hauled arse and did.

Up early and arriving at the college shortly after 9:45, seeing plenty of parking spaces on campus and no security car, I took a chance at not getting ticketed for lack of a pass and parked.

The weather was wacked — fluctuating between uncomfortably hot and what appeared to be June Gloom overcast, but it was a pleasant walk and 7,005 steps later, 3.19 Miles @ 1:08:44, I was back at the complex in time to get out of walking gear, refresh my makeup and get down to the Community Room around 11:35.

Turns out the event was Luau themed and set around the pool area.


Had I known, I’d have pulled my grass skirt out of the storage area.

As it was, I got leid when I arrived and was given a flower to wear near my ear.


I don't know if I'm wearing it correctly. Did I put the flower on the correct side to indicate a single woman?

That new resident I’d met at the pool the other day was a no-show. Sucks for her because it was a fun event.

That video was taken when I first arrived, so it looks kinda sparce insofar as residents. Others came and though attendance was eventually good, a woman at my table pointed out attendance in no way represented the number of residents we have.

One would have thought that, even if the residents did not read the Monthly Calendar, they would at least have heard the music and come out to join in.

On the other hand, some residents might be pissed because, in their minds, they did not get notified. Like the woman I met at the front gate when I was headed to the event. She said, "They’re having a party back there and no one let us know".

"Yes, they did" said I. "It was on the calendar".

I am sooooooo sick of people complaining about not knowing an event is to take place, when it’s in black and white on the calendar they don’t bother to read.

Like I said about the no-show resident, it's they’re loss, because it was a fun event and we got to keep the little coconut drinking cups.


To my disappointment, the coconut shells were empty — no Mai Tai inside.

OH, and btw, the new manager was introduced — a middle-aged woman, no tight pants, no high heels. Started a week ago, I'm told. Let's see how long she lasts.

Saturday, July 23, 2022

Taking Care of Business

No word yet or how Painted Rock Lady is doing, but I slept in late this morning and slept well, straight through, so I think that sense of a disturbance in the force was related to PRL, because it's gone now.

Having put off errands for some time, I was all over several towns today, catching up, taking care of business.

Returning to the complex, stopping by the mail center I saw a young lady and her young child enjoying the pool.

Because I had stopped to wait for another resident to exit the tight mail center area — six feet rule and more for me in tight spaces, and was watching the young woman enjoy the pool, I guess she felt she needed to explain herself.

I wasn’t thinking anything about her using the pool, just looking, waving at the little boy as I waited for the mail center to clear, so she didn’t need to explain herself to me, but she did saying, "I don’t have a pool where I live. My mother lives here" and motioned to a woman seated in a shaded area.

"Oh, hi," said I. "I’ve not seen you around before, are you new?"

"I’ve been here one year already", said she.

We chatted for a bit, she vibed well, so I invited her to join us at Bingo and next week’s Social Luncheon, that the office is hosting for us residents.

She seemed excited, saying she was glad to have talked to me and would look for me to sit with when she came.

As the mail center was now clear of another human being, I went on about my business.

However, before I moved on, I asked her daughter "Is the sun not making the water warm?"

"Oh no. It’s nice and cool and refreshing", said she.

So, it’s been verified by two different sources — those kids the other day and the resident’s daughter today that the sun is having no impact on the pool water. It’s cold.

This woman’s excitement about getting involved in activities, saying she was glad to have talked to me, made me think this is one reason why some residents stay in their units, don’t come out. They might be shy, not sure of themselves in new and unfamiliar surroundings.

The resident known in the blog as Genie as much as said so when, a few weeks ago, she almost made me cry when she said, "You were the first person I met when I moved in here, and you were soooo nice".

I didn’t know until she’d just said that, when I saw her struggling in the heat a few years ago, appearing to be heading for the Community Room, I went outside, gave her my arm, helped her inside, provided her with cold water, that she was brand new to the community, didn’t know anyone, felt alone in a strange place.

I expressed surprise and said, "I didn’t know you were brand new here".

"Yes, and I was so scared".

"Scared of what?"

"Oh, you know. New people. Unfamiliar surroundings. I didn’t know what to expect and you were soooo nice to me".

It was a touching moment, so feeling a bit teary eyed, I changed the mood by saying, "Fooled you didn’t I. You didn’t know what a beoch I was".

When I first moved in, we had a Welcome Lady who came around, welcomed and acclimated me to the community activities. 

I’m pretty independent, not fearful of getting out, going places, joining in whether I know anyone or not, but it seems more than a few seniors are like Genie and this new lady — need a bridge, someone or something to make them feel comfortable.

So, anyway, on another note, I wonder if this is for real.


If it’s for real, I hope there’s a virtual option so I can join in on the fun at Hawley’s expense.

I can't get enough of looking at the video of him hauling arse through the Capitol, fleeing from the homegrown terrorists he'd encouraged on his way in.

Sleep Deprived

Lack of sleep notwithstanding, I managed to drag myself through yesterday’s morning workout and bingo after.

I actually had completely forgotten about bingo so, instead of heading home to change out of my workout wear so I could arrive on time, I headed for the other market because I was desperate for two items I’ve been unable to find elsewhere.

If you will recall, in order to get away from the creepy flirtatious security guard at the corner market, I switched to a market other end of the area that I generally only went to for two specific items I could never find anywhere else.

That market was working fine until the kid cashier I’d seen around for years bringing in carts, bagging groceries, got a promotion to cashier, whereupon he became a little too friendly — invited me to a party at his place.

Luckily for me, it was about that same time I learned from Trainer, who had friends working at the corner market, that the security guard I'd fled from was no longer employed there, so I switched back to escape the kid.

Able to again shop at the corner market, the other market having problems restocking the two items I needed from them because of the supply chain thing, I had no reason to go back and had not been back since March. That is until yesterday, when I decided to take a chance the two items were back in stock, and I could get in/out without running into that kid cashier or that maybe by now he'd not remember me.

Luckily, he wasn’t around, and I was able to score all they had of Alexia Roasted Potatoes (one package) and two packages of Ore-Ida Steamed and Mashed potatoes.

Don’t judge.

I cook not because I want or like to, but because I have to and if there's a frozen item that will help me avoid prep work, I'm on it.

At any rate, heading to the other market I spotted that random woman, the woman who'd gotten all paranoid when she thought I’d taken a photo of her exiting the complex after swimming in the pool.

She was coming down the street, from I know not where, carrying a towel, appearing to be headed for another day at the pool.

The photo I’d taken of her previously was on accident — she just happened to be in the background, but I’d planned to take a photo on purpose when I returned.

So, returning from the market, I checked the pool area but did not see her. It may be the two guys sitting out front made her think twice about sneaking in.

She needn’t have worried. Pretty girl like that, the guys would have gotten up out of their walkers, gladly unlocked the gate and held it open for her to enter.

Since she wasn’t in our pool, maybe she detoured to the pool in the building next door. Their office people have reported chasing street people out of and away from their pool as well.

Though, I didn’t see random woman in our pool, I did run into a resident on her way to bingo, which served as a reminder .... ah yes, it's Friday, Bingo Day.

With no time to switch out of workout wear into my lucky shirt, I arrived just as Game 1 was beginning AND, because I’d not worn that lucky shirt, won not a single game.

I wasn't disappointed, as there wasn't anything on the prize table I wanted and there was plenty of other excitement besides winning going on.

For instance, while we were playing, two cop cars drove through the gate.

Hmmmmmm?????

Also, while we were playing, we spotted Karen hanging suspiciously around outside front of the building.


Hmmmmmm?????

She wasn't fooling anyone trying to look like she had a legitimate purpose for hanging around outside.

At one point, someone yelled out, "Oh No!" ... (It wasn’t me this time). We all turned, including Dream Lover, and saw Karen had moved from outside to inside the lobby. She was standing outside of the Community Room entry door staring at us.

When she saw us all looking at her and that she'd caught the attention of Dream Lover, she smiled and waved at him. He turned his back on her, whereupon one of the ladies sitting at his table yelled "Go away" and gave her the universal shoo, scoot, go away hand gesture.

Karen couldn’t hear "Go away" through the closed door, but she certainly understood sign language and fled quick like a bunny.

I began ROFLMAO!

As we continued to play, just as we took a break and I was headed to my unit to get a cup of coffee to take back with me, a fire truck came through the gate, followed by an ambulance.

One of the two police cars that had originally entered was positioned in front of Painted Rock Lady’s (PRL) unit. The firetruck and ambulance stopped in the same location.

It was the trifecta — police, fire, ambulance, so I walked over to verify it was PRL’s unit they were entering.

It was.

Bless her heart, it was not looking good.

Red Light says it's a ploy, that PRL is looking for sympathy and forgiveness because she's no longer trusted, but I dunno. It looked serious, and the ambulance took her away.

Friday, July 22, 2022

Bad Penny

Remember that dental office I asked to take me off their patient list … the one I blasted in a Yelp review? Well, just like the proverbial bad penny, they’ve turned up again.

There was a message on my phone, timed shortly after 3PM Tuesday, saying they were calling to "schedule an appointment to continue my treatment plan".

That would be the treatment plan the dentist wrote up for an additional $5,000+ worth of unnecessary dental work, over the $3,000 or so he got outa me before I woke up.

I gotta give it to them for chutzpa.

This is the first time I’ve had a dental office call ME in what can only be interpreted as a move to drum up business, rather than my calling to schedule necessary care. 

So, does this mean they’ve milked all they can from us long-time clients of the office before they took over? Are we leaving in droves? Is business declining to where they are now desperate?

I dunno but I won’t be giving them the courtesy of a return call to repeat "take me off your patient list, I’ve moved on".

This week has been moving fast. Can’t believe it’s Friday already, and up until Wednesday it has been a very good week. THEN I had one of those convoluted overwhelming dreams that can’t be interpreted but left me with a sense of there being a disturbance in the force.

That dream was followed by my tossing and turning all of last night, resulting in waking up this morning somewhat exhausted as I try to figure out if this sense of dread/disturbance in the force is related to something going on in the family or has to do with residents here at the complex or elsewhere.

Unfortunately, I can never pinpoint where this sense of uneasiness will land. It's a time will tell kinda thing.

Last time I went through this was when it landed elsewhere.

I still think of him often and fondly. He was so fun.

Picking up mail yesterday, I halfway expected to see that random woman availing herself of our pool again. Instead, it was a resident I didn’t recognize and what I assume to be her three grandkids.

As I responded to a comment by blog buddy Mike, over at Billions of Visions of Normal, that the pool has no cover, is subject to direct sunlight, I’d assumed the water was warm, rather than refreshingly cool, so I asked the kids "Is the water warm?"

They assured me "No. It’s cold".

I don’t know how it could be, unless there’s a special mechanism to keep it so, but afraid I’d tip over and fall in, I didn’t dip my toe in to verify.

Tuesday, July 19, 2022

Strange Encounter

Another scorcher day here in the Inland Empire so, with nothing pressing, I stayed inside until 5:00, at which time I ventured out to drop off the trash, pick up mail.

I noticed our Painted Rock Lady (PRL) had dropped of a few new creations.

When last you heard of PRL, she was conspicuously absent from July 5 bingo. She was not speaking to the other ladies, was mad and embarrassed because of having been called out as a troublemaker for inviting Karen to bingo under the guise of being a “good Christian lady”.

I guess she worked through that because, while I was in Long Beach, PRL did attend that Friday’s Bingo Game.

I understand Karen did not attend, but did walk in, whisper something into PRL’s ear, then walk out.

Hmmmmmm?????

So, anyway, the new rocks are a nice addition to the walkway.







After dropping off the trash, heading to the mailbox, I noticed one of the cars parked in the carport was parked in a way which seemed, to me, damaging to the car’s front end.



The car belongs to a young woman I’ve seen coming/going and can’t figure out if she’s someone’s caregiver or is a ghost tenant (living here illegally with a tenant).

No matter to me, but it won’t surprise me to one day see the front end torn loose because of scraping on/off the sidewalk.

From there, I began walking towards the front gate, to loop around to the Mail Center and noticed a young woman standing at the gate, holding the gate open, watching me. She wasn’t familiar, didn’t even look like she belonged here. Dressed in shorts and a halter top, carrying a towel or something similar, it appeared she was coming from the pool.

As I got to where she was standing, she asked, "Did you take a picture?"

"Yes, of a car. Why?"

She didn’t reply, just walked away, off the property, down the street.

Wondering about the strange encounter, I deduced she was more than likely a street person who’d made her way onto the property, gone swimming in the pool. I didn’t notice her until I began walking towards the front of the property, saw her watching me as I approached and then questioning me about taking a picture of her.

Her paranoia (probably because she knew she shouldn’t be here) is what brought her to my attention and now, having been brought to my attention, I took a closer look at the parking job photo I’d taken and, sure enough, she’s in the background.

You can barely see her, so here's a close up.


I wonder if her swimming in the pool is a one-time deal, if she’ll be back, or her thinking I might have taken a photo and will report her keeps her away.

She needn’t have worried. I’d not have reported her. Mainly, because the office clearly doesn’t give a damn about anything relating to us residents and because I don’t really care. It’s not the first time someone has come in off the street, going swimming in the pool, enjoyed the jacuzzi, even availed themselves of the pool's shower facility. However, in the past, they've usually waited until dark to sneak onto the property.

Monday, July 18, 2022

No Place Like Home

This was a quiet weekend for me. Probably because I didn’t step foot outside the door.

I really needed to make a trip to Sprouts, load up on supplies, but inside was just too comfortable. So comfortable that, but for the Pain Cave, I could easily become one of the seniors who, though able to get out and about, opt to remain alone ... inside their units.

Didn’t accomplish much inside, other than needlepoint, catch up on recorded TV programs, eat sushi all weekend, organize and send out for printing the photographs taken while in Long Beach last week — 170 of over 200 photos.

Now that I’ve got the hang of the sushi maker I purchased last month, I’m finding it is faster, easier, more enjoyable than rolling by hand. Now I just need to find a good sushi knife.

I once had a so-called sushi knife, ordered it online, but evidently it came from an unscrupulous seller because the blade was dull. Literally couldn’t cut through butter, so I tossed it and have contented myself with a store-bought sharp kitchen knife.

Kay over at Musings recently did a post on disappointing online purchases. That sushi knife was one I experienced and there have been a few others.

I don't let such experiences ruin my day. Instead, I mostly just take it as a learning experience, toss the item, in future have relied more on in-store purchases for items that have proven themselves to be problematic online; but sometimes there have been returns and my posting buyer beware reviews.

We’re still getting fireworks in our area, but not the aerial displays. Instead, it’s the exploding type. There seeming to be no end in sight to the perp’s supply, we’ll just have to get accustomed to the noise.

Speaking of noise ... In bed, just about to fall asleep Saturday night, there was a loud crash in the bedroom.

Didn’t frighten me as I immediately recognized it as the rattle of clothes hangers banging together, as the hook on the back of the bedroom door failed and all my workout wear crashed to the floor.


It was a good thing my downstairs neighbor, known in the blog as Illusive Unfriendly ─ though a few eggs short of a dozen, isn’t as off the chart as Talker’s neighbor Karen. Had Karen been my downstairs neighbor, she’d have called the cops or security about my making noise late at night.

On the other hand, I really don't know if Illusive Unfriendly is making complaints which are being ignored by management. However, if I ever get a visit from the cops or security or a call from the office, I can make Illusive Unfriendly appear even more wierd than she already is by saying and being believed ─ because of who I am, how I present myself vs who she is, how she presents herself when I say, "I don't know what noise she's talking about" and inform whoever that she has a history of hearing things and talking to herself.

Speaking of nutsy koo koo, am I the only one on here watching Big Brother this season?

Few things will get me to not multitask as I watch TV ─ Survivor is one, Big Brother is the other. Those shows have me singularly focused, glued to the tube.

Big Brother, much like Survivor, is a social experiment of what happens when a group of strangers, different ages, different cultures are forced to live together for X number of weeks, compete against each other. The only difference is Survivor is set outdoors, while Big Brother is set indoors.

First airing in 2000, I've never missed a season and, thus far, this season is turning into one of the best.

We’re only into the third episode and the drama is focused on a girl named Taylor ─ a "personal stylist and former Miss Michigan USA".

The house doesn’t like her and wants her out, but some viewers are yelling "racism", see it as bullying the Black girl because it is absolutely true that the Black players are the first ones targeted for eviction in these shows.

Last season was a shocker because, with this history of Black players going first, a brilliant plan was devised that ended up with the Black players going to the end while, one by one, everyone else was evicted.

Taylor of course thinks she's being targeted out of jealousy. Says she’s had to face this kind of treatment all her life.

However, I keep having this reoccurring thought whenever I see her on camera ... "How much did she pay to win that beauty queen title" because I find her not only unattractive but oddly weird looking. I just don't see her winning a beauty contest on poise and looks alone.

So, if you too are into the show let me just say ... all this social media stuff about "bullying and racial hatred", I’m Black and I don’t like her any better than the other players do. I don't like her personality, she strikes me as fake to the umpteenth degree, and I didn’t care for her from the start.

Thursday, July 14, 2022

Two Steps Forward, One Step Back

The return to normal everyday life started off with a notice posted to the door, by the office, alerting us to the fact a resident has tested positive for Covid and is self-isolating.

Insofar as I know, Bingo Fridays is still on, as is the July 26 Summer Social Luncheon with "property management and Activity Director" but, for sure, we’ll be required to mask up again.

It's two steps forward, one step back with this thing, but Fauci said as long as we keep up with vaccinations, we should be okay.

We'll see.

"Property Management" still consists of the two maintenance guys and Assistant Manager, as there have been no takers for the position of a 10th Community Manager for us.

My buddy Apache got himself in trouble while I was gone.

The Assistant Manager called this afternoon, said she was calling all of Apache's friends to let them know he was no longer allowed to visit any of us on the property, visits would have to be off-site as he’s been told the police will be called on him should he henceforth be seen on the property.

Asking what he’d done to get himself completely banned, she said there were a group of residents out on the front lawn, Apache had approached and came close to getting into a physical fight with one of them.

I didn’t have to ask who because I knew the only people Apache did not get along with was management and Bicycle Boy. He and Bicycle Boy have this alpha male thing going, came close to blows on many occasions and, at one time, had restraining orders on each other.

So, anyway, if Apache wants to communicate with me, he'll have to catch me at the Pain Cave, but I’ve no doubt Apache will push the envelope, creep his way onto the property when management is not around.

THEN, Red Light calls a little while ago to tell me that shortly after 10 p.m. last night, Talker made a noise when a tray of CD’s fell from her hands onto the floor, whereupon Karen promptly called Security on her.

Security are the two guys hired to drive through here nightly, check that everything is okay, which doesn’t seem effective to me to just ride around the complex, ride out, but Security did respond, knocked on Talker’s door.

Now get this …. Talker’s brother is ill. Talker said he’s showing signs of Covid, but won’t let her test him, so she’s staying locked up inside just in case. (She’s not the one mentioned in the notice posted to our doors. That’s someone else we don’t know who).

So, when Security shows up, they tell her to open the door, they need to speak with her about a noise complaint. She says, "I can’t open the door. We possibly have Covid".

I guess the guys decided they don’t get paid enough to catch Covid, so they said "Okay, ma’am. Thank you" and left.

Karen has been warned about further complaints, so I wonder if management will finally get off their butts and carry through on what they said they’d do if she complained again. They certainly had no problem moving on my Buddy Apache.

There’s also the situation with my downstairs neighbor across the quad, the Smoker. She’s still smoking.

It also turns out she’s had Covid and has been suffering with Long Covid since. (They say long covid, but I think it might be the smoking). The office won’t let her near them, not even to pay rent, so she’s been giving her check to my Next-Door Neighbor (NDN) who has been dropping it off for her.

While I was away, she asked NDN to pick up medication for her at the pharmacy and also to purchase liquor.

NDN picked up the prescription but failed to bring back liquor, whereupon the Smoker was so upset that she threw something at NDN.

She then called an Uber, had the driver take her to the liquor store, thereby jeopardizing the driver's health if she does have long-covid.

Long-covid aside, it seems she has no problem getting out and about to get liquor, but not to pick up medication or smoke outside like the other smokers. 

I don’t think NDN is going to help her again.

While Red Light was telling me all this about the Smoker, I remarked that I’d not seen the food delivery truck drop off her meals in a while, that I wasn’t sure she was eating and suggested we contact someone to check on her.

Red Light said she’ll called Protective Services, that I am to expect to see people coming to the Smoker’s door.

I hope they wear masks and I hope she answers and lets someone help her.

A lot happened in the short time I was away and during reentry.