Half a Tank of Gas and a Traffic Ticket

Today was challenging.

Since it takes upwards of three months to get an appointment with doctors, the medical facility set up a system where if one needs immediate care, a Nurse Practitioner can be contacted by video or phone.

Still experiencing some difficulties after the morning I awoke with a BP of 173, I decided I’d better contact the medical center for a phone visit.

The Nurse Practitioner seemed knowledgeable, said she’d contact my primary that I needed an appointment sooner rather than later; and, in the interim, gave me a prescription for something or other to help relieve the symptoms until I see the doctor.

The medication is good for 56 days, no refill, so in my mind it’s a horse race ……… will the 56 days come and go before the doctor gets around to seeing me.

At any rate, I headed a few cities over to the medical center’s nearest off site pharmacy and, just as I exited the gate and was driving down the street, I saw my old buddy Apache walking down the street, appearing to be heading for the complex.

He waved for me to pull over, so I did.

I would have hugged him but, after hearing of Ruthie’s bed bugs, I’m leary of touching anyone.

I don’t know whose bed their boots have been under.

Apache was indeed heading for the complex, so I said, "I thought management had banned you".

"They did, but it’s Saturday, none of them are around; and besides, I’ve been there a lot lately. I helped (paraphrasing here because I don’t remember the names) so and so and so and so and even walked so and so’s rent check into the office the other day".

Apache says he’s looking to move from where he is, back into the complex.

That would be great, because Apache is a ton of fun, but there’s the issue of having been banned from the property.

Inasmuch as he says he’s been hanging around lately, it’s possible current manager is unaware of the ban.

We had a different manager back then — Jack the Tyrant.

We now have a different Maintenance Crew so, unless Apache has someone here that doesn’t like him and will snitch … bring the previous ban up to management — like the male resident he threatened harm to over jealousy of that resident talking to the female resident Apache was dating at the time (which threat got Apache banned) he just might be able to pull off a return to the complex as a resident.

EXCEPT, Apache says he’s been calling the office, "but they never answer the phone".

Well, isn't that interesting.

Office personnel doesn’t answer the phone, they want us to sign up for Rent Café so they don’t have to process rent checks, what do they actually do?

Another job for President Elon … send the office one of his questionnaires asking them to list five things they accomplished last week.

So anyway, after catching up with Apache, I was back on the road headed to the pharmacy which, when I arrived, saw no cars on the lot, learned they closed at noon — it was 12:45.

After calming down, I checked the phone for the hours at the pharmacy all the way back to where I started and over to a city in another part of town.

Now correct me if I’m wrong, but the first pharmacy’s door indicated, "closed at 12 noon", so when the second pharmacy’s website indicated "closed at 12 pm", that to me meant midnight.

Evidently, I was wrong because, after that long drive, they too were closed.

They’ll be no relief, no medication today. Tomorrow, I’ll have to drive all the way to the pharmacy at the main medical center, hope the website is correct in indicating "open on Sundays from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m." or suffer until Monday, when the first pharmacy I drove to reopens.

At any rate, driving back to the complex, I saw the freeway exit to Macy’s, where I had an order of makeup and perfume to pick up.

That particular Macy’s is only 7 miles from complex. So, after picking up my items, I took the streets back.

Who did I see but Bicycle Boy.

He bicycled right by my passenger side door, so I was sure I’d gotten a good shot of him on the plug and play dash came for you; BUT, I’d forgotten to plug.

By now, I’d been on the road way too long, used half a tank of gas driving from one end of town to another, was tired from driving, not feeling all that well, had forgotten to set the dash cam, and was coming up on a light flashing yellow. Something in me said fuck it, so I gunned the engine thinking I could make it before the light turned red.

I didn’t. I drove through the red.

I’m sure the traffic cam caught me and I’ll be getting my very first traffic ticket.

Highway Robbery

Leaving the Pain Cave, after this morning’s workout, I ran into Car Dweller — the neighbor who likes to hang out in her car on the parking lot.

Asking what she and others did about paying rent yesterday, since the rent drop box is gone, she said she and others just walked into the office, handed off their money orders and checks.

So, for those that did not and/or could not sign up for Rent Café, the office will still let them walk their payments in BUT management is still tightening the noose, making it harder to pay rent outside of Rent Café.

What management did was to post a note that the "Office is unable to accept rent payments until the 1st of the month and IF PAYING WITH CHECK/MONEY ORDER , YOUR LAST DAY TO PAY RENT IS FRIDAY MAY 2nd!"

Not being able to drop your payment off earlier in the week, which is what I used to do so as not to forget and to work around office closures due to long lunches, absences and such, makes for a really tight window to catch someone in the office, drop your payment off, but I’m sure that’s management’s plan — to make it harder to avoid Rent Café.

Yesterday was my first month on Rent Café and I’m seriously thinking of opting out already, due to the $29.41 service fee.

"The service fee is collected by the Payment Agent, not the property management company, and will not display on your ledger. Service fee is non-refundable".

Whoever heard of a service fee that high?

Clearly highway robbery.

I don’t mind paying when I’m getting something for my money, but Rent Café is offering nothing of substance to me for the additional $352.92 a year. It’s just giving management less work to do and probably a kickback from the service fee.

What a rip off, but it is what it is.

Car Dweller also dropped some interesting tea about the resident that hates children, Ruthie in the blog.

Ruthie once got upset because the Baker's granddaughter was visiting and playing bingo with us, yelled at the child, "WHY ARE YOU HERE?!".

I wasn't there that time, but was told, by the Baker no less, when I asked if anyone defended the child, that no one spoke up …… not even the Baker herself.

No surprise. Bunch of cowards. I'm still disappointed they didn't have my back when I had it out with the Black Witch.

On another occasion, when there was a child in the room, Ruthie stood up, said, "There's a child in here, so I'm leaving" and walked out.

As if any of us cared.

The tea on Ruthie is that management is trying to evict her.

She’s been living here longer than I have and, when I moved in, she was one of the three bullies that had a stranglehold on the place.

As far as I know, there are no bullies around now, and the previous bullies — Big Linda, Little Linda, Ruthie, are now toothless tigers.

The reason I’m told for Ruthie’s eviction is bedbugs. She’s somehow twice infested her unit, management doesn’t want it to spread (neither do I) and management is tired of having to bring in the expensive treatment to rid the unit of bedbugs.

If I were living in Ruthie’s building, I’d be very very afraid, as my understanding is bed bugs jump and once they’re in your place, you have to get rid of everything.

Car Dweller tells me she’s staying away from Ruthie because that unit is still infested …… "It’s bad" she says, which is why management wants Ruthie gone.

How does that happen?

How is there treatment …… twice, and still bedbugs in the unit?

Ruthie either did not get rid of the infested items or she’s continuing to bring infested items in — maybe from the garage that is full of treasures, i.e., junk she’s been holding onto for years.

Ruthie also has a boyfriend on the property …… Miracle Guy in the blog. Named thusly because he survived being shot on two separate occasions, attacked with a molotov cocktail, and stabbed in his younger years.

He and Ruthie go back/forth to each other’s unit, so I’ll be giving the boyfriend a wide berth as well.

I didn’t know to laugh or offer my condolences to Car Dweller when she complained that money has gotten so tight, because of the economy, that she’s had to take her husband back, let him move into her unit.

"I didn’t want to, but we’ve got to help each other these days and I've got two bedrooms", she says.

So, I guess he's relegated to the extra bedroom and won't be sleeping with her, LOL.

I hope it works out for Car Dweller, but the hypothesis that "two can live as cheaply as one" is likely not workable.

Another Day, Another Inspection

We just had an inspection here at the complex back in February — some kind of Regulatory Agency. Today an inspector from a different Regulatory Agency will be doing a random inspection of 20% of the 178 units on the property.

The February Notice of Inspection indicated the inspector would be checking the smoke detector, toilet, garbage disposal, light fixtures, HVAC, Bathroom Exhaust Fan, Stove, Water Heater, Windows and Doors.

My unit was selected at that time, and that level of detail is not exactly how it went.

All the inspector did was to check the patio flooring, look up at the A/C filter cover, test the smoke detector, walk into the kitchen, open the refrigerator door, look inside, close the refrigerator door and exit the unit saying the Maintenance Guys would be replacing a part — the grill that runs across the bottom of the fridge.

I blogged at the time that it sounded like B.S. to me, finding something to replace just to make himself look important, and I doubted the Maintenance Guys would be replacing shiz.

They didn’t.

The checklist for today’s inspector is exactly the same as the February inspector — check the smoke detector, toilet, garbage disposal, light fixtures, HVAC, Bathroom Exhaust Fan, Stove, Water Heater, Windows and Doors.

Remains to be seen if I’m selected again — I doubt it but, if so, I might not know about it as I’ll be in and out today.

These back-to-back inspections to make sure management is “in compliance with the federal tax credit program” seems excessive and suspicious.

What’s really going on?

All I can say is President Elon and his DOGE better not find out there are regulatory agencies doing the same job.

Today is also the last day of April.

You know what that means.

That Woozy Feeling

Not much to blog about lately, which seems to be the result of not hanging out with the seniors at bingo, and only leaving my unit for workouts, grocery shopping, errands.

In my few goings/comings, having not seen hide nor hair of that weird little man, I was beginning to think he might not be a resident, but someone who took the opportunity of walking in through the open gate. That is until yesterday when, through the patio window, I saw him walking down the walkway.

Heading who knows where, he was walking fast, carrying a dog in his arms, and was following behind a younger version of himself, who was also walking fast, carrying a dog in his arms.

It was a missed opportunity to gather intel on him, because I didn’t think until just now that I could have telephoned Lu to ask if she knew who he was because, as he and his younger self were heading down the walkway, Lu was returning from bingo. She passed right by the two, then stopped, turned around, watched them walk away with a strange look on her face.

Did the weird little man say something to her?

I’ll never know because, if I call her now, she won’t remember, who what when.

During the week, I also caught a glimpse of Hubba Hubba Awooga Silver Fox walking back to his unit from what looked like picking up mail.

Tall, lean, dressed all in black, walking with that signature Obama stride, he looked even better walking away, than when coming forward.

Other than that, my week has been the return of woozy spells, BP bouncing between high of 173 and a low of 106, causing me to take it slow and easy since Tuesday …… called off Wednesday’s workout, but felt unwoozy enough to get through Friday’s workout.

Can’t pinpoint what the issue might be, but I can’t risk the spike coffee brings, so it’s been water and not coffee since Tuesday.

The irony is a Starbucks is under construction across the street from the Pain Cave, in the same lot as the market …… just when it’s looking like coffee is off the menu for me.

Earth Day

So Far So Good

Social security hit the bank in a timely manner, 18-count organic eggs went down 20 cents — from $13.99 to $13.79, and I’ve not run into that creepy little guy, so life has been okay last few days.

I folded on Rent Café and signed up for management's portal …… with the added precaution of setting up the account at a separate bank.

I'm not happy about giving in, but it is what it is.

Registering for the online portal was way too complicated, a headache.

I’m computer literate and still had trouble figuring it all out, so there is not much hope the seniors who are unaccustomed to computers and smartphones will be able to comply with management removing the drop box, expecting the seniors to register for the online portal.

End of this month, when rent is due, is going to be a shiz show with residents walking into the office, demanding their checks be accepted.

Elsewhere, it’s looking like we might be getting a new neighbor in the quad sooner rather than later, as maintenance is already feverishly working on getting TinTin’s vacant unit ready for a new tenant, starting with removing all that crap plastered on the window.

Could it be we actually have a waiting list again?

I just hope management doesn’t bring in another someone with issues that the county is desperate to house.

In other complex news, though Dream Lover seems to have backed up off Lu, it looks like they are still on friendly terms, as the photos of last Friday’s bingo — sent for me to post to the Resident’s facebook page, showed the two sitting at the same table. What was different is there was a respectable distance between the two. Lu wasn’t crawling all over him, touching, rubbing.

Could that be why Lu all of a sudden got a dog?

Guess she just had to have something to rub.

The weather around here has been drab, dreary, cold, rainy last few days. That didn’t stop Twin 1 from showing up yesterday.

She’d been asked to come down to San Bernardino, service the homeless at a rather large encampment that has taken over a Community Center in a rough area.

I was worried, didn’t want her to go anywhere near that area, even though she had her long-time security guy coming down to accompany her, and had no problem getting volunteers to help when she posted a request for seven people from the San Bernardino community to help.

So, anyway, Twin 1 showed up at my place early Thursday with the truck donated by Miley Cyrus to the non-profit.

After running around gathering supplies, she had dinner with her sister, Twin 2.

First time my girls have been able to manage their schedules to appear together at the same time since October ’22, when Twin 1 arranged an all-day spa thing for her twin and I ─ facials, rose water baths, massages, the whole nine yards.

Up early this morning, Twin 1 was off as soon as her security guy arrived, met up with the volunteers — who, bless their hearts, were so eager to be a part of helping the homeless that they texted they were already at the site waiting for her.

Turns out my worry was for naught. She said the homeless were respectful, appreciative, that she’ll return to service them again.

On the way back to my place, she and her security guy spotted the homeless encampment that’s been building up across the street — not so large, rough and terrifying looking IMO as the encampment at the Community Center, pulled over, gave them what was left on the truck. It was just she and her security guy at this point, but she said the homeless were respectful.

So, it’s looking like Twin 2 and I will be seeing a lot more of Twin 1 in the future, as she adds the homeless of San Bernardino to her servicing area.

Also stopping by yesterday was Little Knock Knock, only she’s not so little any longer.

2023

2025

They grow up so fast.