still raining

It's still raining every day here in North Carolina. A lot of the mulch has washed away from the back yard. I knew we would be tired of this wet weather when I saw the storm map and the 10-day forecast last week but I also know we will miss some of this rain by the time everything is dried out in the Summer months. Nothing ever feels completely dry now and clear, sunny days seem distant.
I had a nice long conversation with Cindi, who called to check in about my condo in Atlanta. She's an old friend, former neighbor, and my real estate agent in charge of my condo now. So we talked about my renter and whether I would be willing to let his girlfriend and her dog move in with him and how much I should add to the rent to cover possible damage created by pets if that happens. I don't want to lose the tenant I have so if we can keep everyone happy while not sacrificing the space that still feels like home to me, I'll be happy.

She has a new cat now that an old cat does not seem to be adjusting to very well - or he could just be showing signs of his advanced years now because he is a 17-year-old cat. Their new cat is a young tortoiseshell who has a lot more energy than the old guy.
Her husband, like mine, is out of work now but he's quite tech-savvy so both of us believe he will find more work soon that he can do remotely.
Both of our households have been doing a lot of gardening while we are sheltering in place during this time of quarantine but while that's not much an option this week while the rain is coming down every day. I had purchased a new additional raised bed planter, a 4'x4' two-part stacking kit, but the Amazon seller only sent half of my order and refunded me for half the price. Now MonsterMustDie needs to make it work somehow. This, I swear, was the last thing I will spend my rapidly-disappearing money on for the yard.

MonsterMustDie went out grocery-shopping and treasure-hunting earlier today. He's been out treasure-hunting several times a week now that all the antique malls are open. He's even had a couple of small sales at the antique mall here, where he has a booth. Most of his sales are still online only. The antiques market is a very strange thing to me. So much of it seems to be like gambling on what collectors might want. It's all unnecessary spending for consumers so there is no judging things by necessity or usability. It's all trends. On top of that, a lot of it is dealers buying things from each other to resell. Total folly in my mind, hoping to score a wild prize. Still, he's now supporting our household with it.

I had a telephone job interview this afternoon for a position selling insurance, which feels like something I am completely unsuited for because I do not have a salesman personality. I might still try it if I can talk myself into it but the very thought of it is filling me with anxiety. It would be something I believe I would only have to do remotely, by phone, but there are classes to get licensed for it which I am totally unwilling to pay for if they expect me to do that and the job is commission-only with no benefits. It's just a step better than no prospects whatsoever, which is what I have now.

Stress

Not a good week for internet, tv, or radio. I think I need to put myself into a media blackout until next week is over. Not just because I have no mother for the first time this coming Mother's Day weekend (she blew me off for the last two years of her life to have dinner with friends) but I feel like I am further disconnected from all the Mothers in family and friends this year. Every add is Mother's day. Every commercial website has a huge Mother's Day banner featuring gifts for the woman in honor or photos of fun gatherings of family.

I expect a good general media black-out of a week to improve my overall view of humanity as well. The world is so much better first-hand than it is at a distance. My ever-changing work schedule is causing me a great deal of anxiety this week as well. Social anxiety is hitting me more than usual as well when I have to speak with other humans in formal conversations over the phone. There are job interviews I want to try to get into but my schedule makes it nearly impossible with this dance I am trying so hard to do to stay active and employed at low-paying gigs that do not pay enough to support anyone. It's pocket change for my car and phone and nothing more.

I need new underwear. I need new glasses.

On top of that, I got news yesterday that my condo in Atlanta is now infested with what is probably bed-bugs that came in luggage from a business trip. I have my people (real estate agent & manager) on it. They've tried two exterminator visits from Orkin without success and now are trying diatomaceous earth.

Spinning round and round

Spinning round in circles today trying to schedule repairs on the leaking roof, looking for or scheduling work. Nothing set in ink all day. 

We waited through two good rainy spells to make sure my condo was staying dry before we made not one but two repairs to the ceiling before I found a new tenant for my former home. She moved in this month and now, at the first two-day rain we get, the water poured into my condo in the space  between the kitchen and the breakfast nook, destroying all the repairs that were made and leaving me scrambling all weekend to get some action from the condominium association to repair the roof. There was a raging silence from everyone until today. I had to phone the building manager yesterday until I got him on the phone to let me know he had contacted the roofing company, Hudson Specialty Group, to repair the building. Meanwhile Caroline, who is living in my unit now, is desperately calling and emailing me to let me know the ceiling is peeling away and the leak is getting worse. 

With all this going on, I was originally planning to work for Lone Wolf today but none of that happened. I've been able to slide all of those plans to a half day on Friday at a new workspace. I am feeling hopeful about the new location for those meetings. I haven't worked for anyone or on anything for weeks now. 

Wednesday, I have another one-day job that might also have to be broken apart or lost if I have to meet the roofer at the condo. If I can have a tight time to show up to show them the damage during a lunch break or if Caroline can meet them in the early morning, things will work out much better for me. 

Now, it is well past 6 p.m. The work day has ended for everyone, and all I can do is carry with my original work plans until I hear differently from anyone else. Emails have been written. Phone calls have been made. Texts have been sent to those not answering their phones or emails. 

condo, work, dreams

Met Marty the Plumber at the condo to repair the toilet. Some day, I do plan to replace it with a nice low-water toilet. Thankfully, he gave me a very good price on the work, even with him having a helper with him as well.

Worked yesterday nearly 8 hours. Found out the pressman's wife works in network communications. She was off work for a couple of days and stopped in to bring him lunch and sodas, which he shared with me. The drink was a life saver that day because there are no more clean or disposable cups at work, despite having a water cooler there. I had somehow managed to remember to bring a snack but nothing to drink.

Uneven sleep last night, ending with a long dream that included 1. working at an office being punked by John Stewart and the Daily Show, 2, Springtime, living in a luxury high rise apartment with a window overlooking a swimming pool and dogwoods blooming outside and trying to take a polaroid photo of myself in front of the window, 3. A weekend AJC with a large (quarter page?) ad for Iggy Pop concert in to Atlanta, making it look like he was headlining at an arena, 4. Me looking fabulous with a good haircut.

Trying to make this as expensive as possible

Because the cabinets were not set up in time last week to take advantage of the free installation of appliances by Home Depot, I had to hire a plumber to install and hook up the new gas range. Now, the person in charge of the kitchen renovation tells me the plumber has to come back this week to move the dishwasher one foot from it's current position. The new countertop are and stainless steel sink will have to be installed AFTER the dishwasher is moved. That's three plumber visits at $250 each.

And now the kitchen has to be remodeled

We had someone look at the kitchen. The stove and oven could be repaired but as old as they are, the one company willing to work on it said they could not guarantee what they could do once they took it apart. In the end it will cost as much to repair and retrofit old parts as it will to just buy a new oven and cook top. We'll still need a plumber to replace as much of the old pipes as possible. If we're replacing the oddly sized appliances, I'll need to have new cabinetry and countertops installed. So the broken oven has turned into a kitchen remodel job. Should I keep the old sink? that seems like the only thing I might not need to replace. And the dishwasher is a nearly new Kitchenaid that I think is still in decent condition. Monster had to make his only workday this week short so he could be there for the technician. Now I need to find a good contractor who can pull all of this together for me while I attempt to remain employed.

I hope the new renter will hang in there. The reward at the end is that he'll be gettin a new kitchen at the same old rent. I hope that works for him.