I can't say that I've thought much about updating this blog. It's been a crazy few months. But I am committed to getting back in the groove.
I also decided to start another blog -- more geared towards our experiences as living as expats in Taiwan, so make sure to bookmark: http://chellivanstravels.blogspot.com. I'll try to get more posts going there as well.
In the mean time, mobile posts on Facebook have been my easiest way to do quick updates.
Stay tuned...more to come.
Friday, July 22, 2011
Monday, February 14, 2011
new business venture
Strange how some things just land in your lap without even looking. For the last few months, we've been lamenting about how much money we've been paying out to Comcast each month -- especially when our bill jumped $50+ a month. More insulting was when the customer service rep said he could only get me a $10 discount on our bill. Really?
Thus began my campaign to find a more agreeable solution for our tv and internet services. It just so happens that a friend of ours is a telecommunications broker, and so he had mentioned he could help us out. In our quest to switch our services, we were presented with a business opportunity to not only save on our services, but also offer those same services to our friends and family.
We thought about it and decided that this just might be the right opportunity for us to earn some extra income while maintaining our current career commitments. After all, this isn't about selling soaps, make up, hand bags or any of those inventory-laden businesses. It's about services that we all consume every day and the potential to earn residual income by bringing customers to reputable service providers -- phone, local/long distance, cellular, home security, satellite tv, etc.
Our first order of business? Get rid of Comcast. We called Dish and first thing Sunday morning, we had an installer to our house to get us set up with our new satellite tv service, complete with free HD and dual-room DVR for half the price of what Comcast charges each month. Now waiting for our Clear wireless internet service to get set up and we'll be set.
Now that we are our own customer, we're working to get our business off the ground. Would love your help and support. We can help you (or any referrals) as an authorized dealer for the following services:
Thus began my campaign to find a more agreeable solution for our tv and internet services. It just so happens that a friend of ours is a telecommunications broker, and so he had mentioned he could help us out. In our quest to switch our services, we were presented with a business opportunity to not only save on our services, but also offer those same services to our friends and family.
We thought about it and decided that this just might be the right opportunity for us to earn some extra income while maintaining our current career commitments. After all, this isn't about selling soaps, make up, hand bags or any of those inventory-laden businesses. It's about services that we all consume every day and the potential to earn residual income by bringing customers to reputable service providers -- phone, local/long distance, cellular, home security, satellite tv, etc.
Our first order of business? Get rid of Comcast. We called Dish and first thing Sunday morning, we had an installer to our house to get us set up with our new satellite tv service, complete with free HD and dual-room DVR for half the price of what Comcast charges each month. Now waiting for our Clear wireless internet service to get set up and we'll be set.
Now that we are our own customer, we're working to get our business off the ground. Would love your help and support. We can help you (or any referrals) as an authorized dealer for the following services:
- Digital phone service + DSL (Qwest)
- Local & long distance plans
- Wireless (Verizon, AT&T, Nextel, Sprint, T-Mobile)
- Satellite tv (Directv, Dish Network)
- Home security (ADT)
- Energy - coming soon when it's deregulated
Monday, February 07, 2011
maybe a tiger can change its stripes
Since Linda moved into her own apartment, I have been blissfully unengaged in her drama. If she called my cell...I ignored it. If she needed something, Rick was on point to get it.
Don't get me wrong, there have been some not-so-fun moments with her since she's been on her own. For one, her first month in her apartment she did not set foot outside other than to take her trash out to the dumpster. Knowing her tendencies, I'll call this a small victory in and of itself that she actually took the initiative to throw out her garbage on her own.
But with that meant I was receiving phone calls from her landlady worried about Linda's welfare because she wouldn't answer the door or return her phone calls. It also meant Linda only had the food I'd originally stocked in her pantry to get her started with the intent she'd go to the grocery store to get her perishables.
The holidays came and went without her meeting my parents, but we did package up some leftovers for her to enjoy. And I know Rick picked up some special requests like orange juice, bread and some other sundries. But all in all, she subsisted off Ramen noodles, pasta, etc.
So the weekend came where we knew we needed to get her out of her apartment so she could get groceries. The condition was that she would have to do the shopping and we would provide the transportation. I was no longer going to enable this unhealthy behavior. Coupled with her constant state of prescription medication withdrawal, she was quite worked up. Even just sitting in the car with her was nearly unbearable. The yelling and screaming, complaining which turned into full-blown tantrum. I asked Rick to quit engaging and told Linda that if she didn't knock it off, we would stop the car and turn around. Now I start hearing the echos of my parents as they threatened to stop the car on long road trips while us kids bickered in the backseats of our 12 passenger van.
Linda pulled herself together that day and managed to stock her apartment with groceries and long-depleted necessities.
So you can imagine my surprise when we stopped over to her apartment the other night to find her in a cheery mood. Over the course of the last two weeks, she has finally broken through the boundaries of her four-walled apartment, walking across the street to the General Store for supplies or down the street to the post office and ATM. She even said that she's making friends in her apartment complex. The landlady (god bless her) had been taking Linda to her doctor appointments and to the pharmacy to pick up her meds.
But what struck me the most was Linda's apartment. It was CLEAN. Mind you, she's now been there two full months. During that same amount of time while she was living with us in our townhouse, she'd gone back to her old hoarding habits. But this was new...her apartment was tidy, dare I say even organized. I knew things were looking up when I saw that she had her earrings neatly hung on a jewelry organizer. A far cry from the indiscriminate dumping of jewelry, pills, trash, cigarette butts and other unidentifiable things into her drawers.
I walked out of there on Friday night thinking maybe, just maybe the hell that I went through with her was worth it. Maybe this tiger is going to use this second chance to make a better life for herself. Of course, nothing is for sure, but for a moment I felt proud of her.
Don't get me wrong, there have been some not-so-fun moments with her since she's been on her own. For one, her first month in her apartment she did not set foot outside other than to take her trash out to the dumpster. Knowing her tendencies, I'll call this a small victory in and of itself that she actually took the initiative to throw out her garbage on her own.
But with that meant I was receiving phone calls from her landlady worried about Linda's welfare because she wouldn't answer the door or return her phone calls. It also meant Linda only had the food I'd originally stocked in her pantry to get her started with the intent she'd go to the grocery store to get her perishables.
The holidays came and went without her meeting my parents, but we did package up some leftovers for her to enjoy. And I know Rick picked up some special requests like orange juice, bread and some other sundries. But all in all, she subsisted off Ramen noodles, pasta, etc.
So the weekend came where we knew we needed to get her out of her apartment so she could get groceries. The condition was that she would have to do the shopping and we would provide the transportation. I was no longer going to enable this unhealthy behavior. Coupled with her constant state of prescription medication withdrawal, she was quite worked up. Even just sitting in the car with her was nearly unbearable. The yelling and screaming, complaining which turned into full-blown tantrum. I asked Rick to quit engaging and told Linda that if she didn't knock it off, we would stop the car and turn around. Now I start hearing the echos of my parents as they threatened to stop the car on long road trips while us kids bickered in the backseats of our 12 passenger van.
Linda pulled herself together that day and managed to stock her apartment with groceries and long-depleted necessities.
So you can imagine my surprise when we stopped over to her apartment the other night to find her in a cheery mood. Over the course of the last two weeks, she has finally broken through the boundaries of her four-walled apartment, walking across the street to the General Store for supplies or down the street to the post office and ATM. She even said that she's making friends in her apartment complex. The landlady (god bless her) had been taking Linda to her doctor appointments and to the pharmacy to pick up her meds.
But what struck me the most was Linda's apartment. It was CLEAN. Mind you, she's now been there two full months. During that same amount of time while she was living with us in our townhouse, she'd gone back to her old hoarding habits. But this was new...her apartment was tidy, dare I say even organized. I knew things were looking up when I saw that she had her earrings neatly hung on a jewelry organizer. A far cry from the indiscriminate dumping of jewelry, pills, trash, cigarette butts and other unidentifiable things into her drawers.
I walked out of there on Friday night thinking maybe, just maybe the hell that I went through with her was worth it. Maybe this tiger is going to use this second chance to make a better life for herself. Of course, nothing is for sure, but for a moment I felt proud of her.
Monday, December 27, 2010
christmas with my parents
I didn't think they'd actually do it, but my parents actually gave up a Texas Christmas to spend it with us at the cabin. Of course leading up to the long weekend, I was receiving phone calls from my mom to verify that the cabin indeed had heat and that she wouldn't have to go in the snow. Check and check. I think it's been almost 8 years since I had Christmas with my family.
They arrived last Thursday and I whisked them away to the cabin for a snow-filled weekend. Considering that we had my parents, my sister & her husband, my brother and four dogs in the house, it was actually a pretty mellow few days. No real gift exchanges as Rick and I "gave" each other our snowmobiles for Christmas.
I was excited to have our Christmas meats (ham & prime rib) come from the local butcher and we picked up some fresh pies from the bakery in town. My brother-in-law willingly took on the responsibility of making the dinner, which was nice since most of my family could care less about cooking. :)
My brother Richard got to break in my snowmobile and seemed to really take a liking to the sport. I stayed back at the house instead of going out on the snowmobile so that the boys could all have their turn at riding -- including my dad.
We also donned some snowshoes and walked around the woods behind the house. Dad had a chance to explore on his own and then later in our quest to find a sledding hill, we all set out with snowshoes and an inner tube, only to be disappointed by the lack of speed from the "hill" we selected.
As promised, Mom stayed back at the cabin the whole time. But she seemed to be quite content just relaxing there, so we were ok with leaving her behind.
With Rick's mom living about 10 minutes away, we thought we might have an opportunity to introduce my parents to her. My youngest brother met her briefly when Rick stopped by her place one night, but we could never seem to get Linda to commit to meeting my parents. Not surprising, and probably just as well. She's the one who has to live with regrets, not me. Given how infrequently my parents come out here to visit, that may well have been her only opportunity to meet my mom & dad.
So the 'rents left this morning and I'm back at home getting things organized and taking care of business here. Planning to head back out to the cabin for some New Year's R&R in a few days.
I must say, this is the first time in a long time where I've actually taken time off work during the holidays, and it's been so nice to just chill. Here's to a long, drawn out week to delay the inevitable of going back to the office in January.
They arrived last Thursday and I whisked them away to the cabin for a snow-filled weekend. Considering that we had my parents, my sister & her husband, my brother and four dogs in the house, it was actually a pretty mellow few days. No real gift exchanges as Rick and I "gave" each other our snowmobiles for Christmas.
I was excited to have our Christmas meats (ham & prime rib) come from the local butcher and we picked up some fresh pies from the bakery in town. My brother-in-law willingly took on the responsibility of making the dinner, which was nice since most of my family could care less about cooking. :)
My brother Richard got to break in my snowmobile and seemed to really take a liking to the sport. I stayed back at the house instead of going out on the snowmobile so that the boys could all have their turn at riding -- including my dad.
We also donned some snowshoes and walked around the woods behind the house. Dad had a chance to explore on his own and then later in our quest to find a sledding hill, we all set out with snowshoes and an inner tube, only to be disappointed by the lack of speed from the "hill" we selected.
As promised, Mom stayed back at the cabin the whole time. But she seemed to be quite content just relaxing there, so we were ok with leaving her behind.
With Rick's mom living about 10 minutes away, we thought we might have an opportunity to introduce my parents to her. My youngest brother met her briefly when Rick stopped by her place one night, but we could never seem to get Linda to commit to meeting my parents. Not surprising, and probably just as well. She's the one who has to live with regrets, not me. Given how infrequently my parents come out here to visit, that may well have been her only opportunity to meet my mom & dad.
So the 'rents left this morning and I'm back at home getting things organized and taking care of business here. Planning to head back out to the cabin for some New Year's R&R in a few days.
I must say, this is the first time in a long time where I've actually taken time off work during the holidays, and it's been so nice to just chill. Here's to a long, drawn out week to delay the inevitable of going back to the office in January.
Tuesday, December 07, 2010
channeling 2000
Such a strange occurrence this weekend. We had our work holiday party the other night and it turns out that a new gal who I work with actually knows my husband through his company. Of course, it was a nice "small world" experience and I was glad to know Rick knew someone at the event.
She introduced us both to her husband. At first glance he looked familiar but I couldn't place him. Throughout the evening, Rick was making a new friend. The husband was also a Midwesterner and so the boys spent the evening talking fishing, hunting, snowmobiles, motorcycles....you know the drill.
Since I was "running the show" that evening, I spent a lot of my time attending to the event, while Rick entertained himself. I'd occasionally check in to make sure he was doing OK and not bored out of his mind. As the party came to an end, we all went our separate ways.
It wasn't until the next day that it dawned on me. I thought I figured out how I knew her husband. More than 10 years ago I was meeting a guy friend for dinner and while I waited, I decided to stop in the local REI to kill some time. While there, one of the sales guys struck up a conversation with me. And when my friend arrived, we left the store to go to dinner.
The next day I was at work and I got a call from the guy at REI. He'd seen my name badge (yes, I was lame enough to still be wearing it out in public) and he saw the company that I worked for and my name. He called through the main line and asked me out on a date.
Now, I have to say that in my many years as a single person, there are lots of people who've I've probably gone on dates with that I don't remember at all. But this one was interesting just because of his gumption to track me down to ask me out. I don't recall a whole lot about him, other than his name was Todd. I think the reason we never went out again was because he was significantly older than me (when you are in your mid 20's, someone in their mid 30's feels lots older). The other thing that stuck out in my mind was that for our second date, he'd asked me to go on a mountain biking trip and I just didn't feel comfortable going away on a trip with someone I barely knew.
I can't remember if he never called again or if I just blew him off. Regardless, I had met Todd when I was in the "off phase" of a very on-again, off-again relationship with Michael (aka "M"). And shortly thereafter, Michael and I were on again.
Probably in the next six months, Michael and I took a flight down to Colorado to see his parents. And as I was settling into our seats, I look across the row and I see Todd. Sitting just across the aisle. Awkward to say the least. I'm sure I whispered something to Michael at the time, and I think we even exchanged pleasantries at the baggage claim at the end of the flight.
And so hidden in the recesses of my mind, it all of a sudden hit me. I had gone on a date with my colleague's husband over ten years ago. Clearly well before either of us had met our future husbands. I brought it up to Rick, and he convinced me that it wasn't the same guy and so I was convinced that I was mistaken as well.
Until I ran into my coworker again today. As we were talking about what a fun time we had, and how our husbands are now BFFs, I asked her if her husband had ever worked at REI.
She stopped and looked at me. "How did you know that?"
I said, "I may be stepping over the line, but 10 years ago, I think I went on a date with him."
I told her the story and she laughed and said, "was he an asshole?" I laughed no and reassured her it had been one date and we'd never even kissed. She asked her husband about me, and he couldn't remember me. Clearly I made quite the impression back then. :)
Well, the boys hit it off so well, they exchanged numbers. I suspect that we'll become good friends before too long. What strange inter-connections between us two couples.
She introduced us both to her husband. At first glance he looked familiar but I couldn't place him. Throughout the evening, Rick was making a new friend. The husband was also a Midwesterner and so the boys spent the evening talking fishing, hunting, snowmobiles, motorcycles....you know the drill.
Since I was "running the show" that evening, I spent a lot of my time attending to the event, while Rick entertained himself. I'd occasionally check in to make sure he was doing OK and not bored out of his mind. As the party came to an end, we all went our separate ways.
It wasn't until the next day that it dawned on me. I thought I figured out how I knew her husband. More than 10 years ago I was meeting a guy friend for dinner and while I waited, I decided to stop in the local REI to kill some time. While there, one of the sales guys struck up a conversation with me. And when my friend arrived, we left the store to go to dinner.
The next day I was at work and I got a call from the guy at REI. He'd seen my name badge (yes, I was lame enough to still be wearing it out in public) and he saw the company that I worked for and my name. He called through the main line and asked me out on a date.
Now, I have to say that in my many years as a single person, there are lots of people who've I've probably gone on dates with that I don't remember at all. But this one was interesting just because of his gumption to track me down to ask me out. I don't recall a whole lot about him, other than his name was Todd. I think the reason we never went out again was because he was significantly older than me (when you are in your mid 20's, someone in their mid 30's feels lots older). The other thing that stuck out in my mind was that for our second date, he'd asked me to go on a mountain biking trip and I just didn't feel comfortable going away on a trip with someone I barely knew.
I can't remember if he never called again or if I just blew him off. Regardless, I had met Todd when I was in the "off phase" of a very on-again, off-again relationship with Michael (aka "M"). And shortly thereafter, Michael and I were on again.
Probably in the next six months, Michael and I took a flight down to Colorado to see his parents. And as I was settling into our seats, I look across the row and I see Todd. Sitting just across the aisle. Awkward to say the least. I'm sure I whispered something to Michael at the time, and I think we even exchanged pleasantries at the baggage claim at the end of the flight.
And so hidden in the recesses of my mind, it all of a sudden hit me. I had gone on a date with my colleague's husband over ten years ago. Clearly well before either of us had met our future husbands. I brought it up to Rick, and he convinced me that it wasn't the same guy and so I was convinced that I was mistaken as well.
Until I ran into my coworker again today. As we were talking about what a fun time we had, and how our husbands are now BFFs, I asked her if her husband had ever worked at REI.
She stopped and looked at me. "How did you know that?"
I said, "I may be stepping over the line, but 10 years ago, I think I went on a date with him."
I told her the story and she laughed and said, "was he an asshole?" I laughed no and reassured her it had been one date and we'd never even kissed. She asked her husband about me, and he couldn't remember me. Clearly I made quite the impression back then. :)
Well, the boys hit it off so well, they exchanged numbers. I suspect that we'll become good friends before too long. What strange inter-connections between us two couples.
Monday, December 06, 2010
new normal?
With her train running 3 hours late, Rick and I had a few hours Saturday morning to prepare ourselves for the 1.5 hour car ride out to the other side of the mountains where Linda would be living in an apartment complex just 4 miles from our cabin.
Getting off the train, she was frazzled, but nothing out of the ordinary. It turns out she didn't get the sleeper car. When I asked Rick to make the next round of reservations for her (since she couldn't manage to get on the train any of the previous days), he inadvertently booked her for the regular seats, not even in the disability car. That proved to be quite the harrowing experience for my mother-in-law. Nothing is worse to an agoraphobe than having to sit in cattle car. Of course, after the fact, we found it to be quite humorous that she was subjected to her worst nightmare for two days straight.
After 90 minutes of chatter about her "stroke," how embarrassed she was on the train, and how everyone is out to get her, we finally made it to the apartment. Rick whisked her immediately to the manager's office to sign papers, while I took on the ominous task of opening her suitcases. My intent was to get everything put away, while filtering for trash (note-filled papers, candy wrappers) and useless (e.g., unmatched socks & gloves, broken alarm clock) items.
Once Linda walked into the apartment, she was so thrilled to see her new place. Discovering all of the things we had purchased to furnish it -- from furniture to dishes and cleaning supplies. We left as soon as we could so she could settle in and take a shower. We headed to our place to let the dogs run around in the snow and then we headed out to dinner in town and watched the Apple Cup.
On Sunday, we kept it low key. Rick took the snowmobiles out to get gas while I went into town to order our Christmas ham, prime rib and to buy a new guest bed for our cabin now that Linda has our old one.
We checked in on her a few times, and it was apparent she was right back in her old patterns. Sleeping all afternoon after being up all night. Still dwelling on all the negative things from her stay in Minnesota. And to top it off, Rick caught her smoking in her new apartment even though she promised she'd only smoke on the patio. Oh well, it's her choice now. I've learned to let it go. She's in her own place, not under my roof. Her crises are no longer my crises. I don't have to answer my phone. I don't need to engage.
We won't be out that way for two weeks, so she's on her own to get sorted out. I can only imagine what sorts of drama she's going to cook up.
Getting off the train, she was frazzled, but nothing out of the ordinary. It turns out she didn't get the sleeper car. When I asked Rick to make the next round of reservations for her (since she couldn't manage to get on the train any of the previous days), he inadvertently booked her for the regular seats, not even in the disability car. That proved to be quite the harrowing experience for my mother-in-law. Nothing is worse to an agoraphobe than having to sit in cattle car. Of course, after the fact, we found it to be quite humorous that she was subjected to her worst nightmare for two days straight.
After 90 minutes of chatter about her "stroke," how embarrassed she was on the train, and how everyone is out to get her, we finally made it to the apartment. Rick whisked her immediately to the manager's office to sign papers, while I took on the ominous task of opening her suitcases. My intent was to get everything put away, while filtering for trash (note-filled papers, candy wrappers) and useless (e.g., unmatched socks & gloves, broken alarm clock) items.
Once Linda walked into the apartment, she was so thrilled to see her new place. Discovering all of the things we had purchased to furnish it -- from furniture to dishes and cleaning supplies. We left as soon as we could so she could settle in and take a shower. We headed to our place to let the dogs run around in the snow and then we headed out to dinner in town and watched the Apple Cup.
On Sunday, we kept it low key. Rick took the snowmobiles out to get gas while I went into town to order our Christmas ham, prime rib and to buy a new guest bed for our cabin now that Linda has our old one.
We checked in on her a few times, and it was apparent she was right back in her old patterns. Sleeping all afternoon after being up all night. Still dwelling on all the negative things from her stay in Minnesota. And to top it off, Rick caught her smoking in her new apartment even though she promised she'd only smoke on the patio. Oh well, it's her choice now. I've learned to let it go. She's in her own place, not under my roof. Her crises are no longer my crises. I don't have to answer my phone. I don't need to engage.
We won't be out that way for two weeks, so she's on her own to get sorted out. I can only imagine what sorts of drama she's going to cook up.
Thursday, December 02, 2010
it continues
8:21 am -- Just received a call from Linda. She tells me she's had a stroke and that it's caused damage. I asked her if she went to the hospital and she said no. She says her brother is coming down to pick her up and take her to the hospital. Ask me if I believe her, not that it matters.
I tell her that the apartment manager is not happy and will likely need to turn her apartment over to someone else. She said she would call me later from the hospital.
I'm now turning over the reins to Rick to deal with the apartment complex.
4:43 pm - All quiet today. I tried calling Rick several times to no avail. So I came home a little early to find a napping husband.
"Did you buy your mom's train ticket?"
He groggily wakes up. Uh?
"Yeah, your mom's train leaves in 30 minutes. Is she there? Did you buy the train ticket?"
Oh shoot. No.
"And of course, your phone has been on silent, so no one could reach you. Good thing I came home early."
His mom actually made it to the train station. And this time it would have been Rick's fault.
Well, sounds like she'll be here on Saturday morning.
I tell her that the apartment manager is not happy and will likely need to turn her apartment over to someone else. She said she would call me later from the hospital.
I'm now turning over the reins to Rick to deal with the apartment complex.
4:43 pm - All quiet today. I tried calling Rick several times to no avail. So I came home a little early to find a napping husband.
"Did you buy your mom's train ticket?"
He groggily wakes up. Uh?
"Yeah, your mom's train leaves in 30 minutes. Is she there? Did you buy the train ticket?"
Oh shoot. No.
"And of course, your phone has been on silent, so no one could reach you. Good thing I came home early."
His mom actually made it to the train station. And this time it would have been Rick's fault.
Well, sounds like she'll be here on Saturday morning.
Wednesday, December 01, 2010
the next hurdle
11:38 am - She has the train reservation made, but now she can't seem to find her purse & wallet.
Of course!
This will be a nail biter folks...will she or won't she get on that train in less than 5 hours.
11:56 am - Purse has been found, but now she is in such a panicked state that she wants a sleeper car. So out comes my Amex so I can buy her a $550 train ticket.
1:47 pm - Linda called me in a meltdown. She has decided she needs go to the ER to get her anxiety and pain medications. Unclear as to whether she will be on the train in 3 hours.
3:38 pm - Received phone call from apartment complex. Apparently Linda never told her that she did not make the train and so the apartment manager has been waiting in her office with papers printed up for Linda to sign all afternoon. She was not happy about being inconvenienced.
I explained Linda was having a medical emergency in Minnesota and has not yet caught her train, and it was unclear to me whether she would catch her train today. I need to call the apartment manager in the morning to update her on Linda's arrival status. Worst case scenario -- I need to go out to the apartment this weekend so that we can move Linda's things out so someone else can move in.
As of now, I am unable to reach Linda to find out where she is at and if she is prepared to take the train which leaves in a little more than an hour.
5:14 pm - The train has left the station -- as expected, without my mother-in-law.
Of course!
This will be a nail biter folks...will she or won't she get on that train in less than 5 hours.
11:56 am - Purse has been found, but now she is in such a panicked state that she wants a sleeper car. So out comes my Amex so I can buy her a $550 train ticket.
1:47 pm - Linda called me in a meltdown. She has decided she needs go to the ER to get her anxiety and pain medications. Unclear as to whether she will be on the train in 3 hours.
3:38 pm - Received phone call from apartment complex. Apparently Linda never told her that she did not make the train and so the apartment manager has been waiting in her office with papers printed up for Linda to sign all afternoon. She was not happy about being inconvenienced.
I explained Linda was having a medical emergency in Minnesota and has not yet caught her train, and it was unclear to me whether she would catch her train today. I need to call the apartment manager in the morning to update her on Linda's arrival status. Worst case scenario -- I need to go out to the apartment this weekend so that we can move Linda's things out so someone else can move in.
As of now, I am unable to reach Linda to find out where she is at and if she is prepared to take the train which leaves in a little more than an hour.
5:14 pm - The train has left the station -- as expected, without my mother-in-law.
time will tell
Never ceases to amaze me how my mother-in-law can continue to sabotage her opportunity to start fresh. She's been in Minnesota visiting her sister who's battling lung cancer, with the intent that she would return when her apartment became available.
Rick and I have been working with the apartment manager while Linda has been gone, and she was kind enough to give us access to the apartment in advance of Linda returning to sign the lease. So last weekend we moved in the sparse items we've collected for her -- a bed, recliner, TV, kitchen items, her clothes and the basic necessities to get her settled.
The plan was for Linda to get on a train on Monday so that she would be here by today to sign her lease. Naturally, she managed to decide that she wasn't going to make the train on Monday, nor Tuesday. She's worked herself into a frenzy, has said she's out of her medication, is convinced she's going to have a stroke and says she's going to check into the hospital. Has she done anything about it? No. Has she considered the consequences? If she doesn't make it out here this week, she may just lose her apartment.
There are other people who are on the waiting list, and I wouldn't blame the landlady if she decided to lease the apartment to the next person on the list. If so, we'll have to go back out there and move everything out of the apartment.
If it comes to this, that's the last chance. If she does not get on the train by Friday, as far as I'm concerned, she will not be coming back. I am so over the drama. If you can't help yourself, then there's nothing left for me to do.
Rick and I have been working with the apartment manager while Linda has been gone, and she was kind enough to give us access to the apartment in advance of Linda returning to sign the lease. So last weekend we moved in the sparse items we've collected for her -- a bed, recliner, TV, kitchen items, her clothes and the basic necessities to get her settled.
The plan was for Linda to get on a train on Monday so that she would be here by today to sign her lease. Naturally, she managed to decide that she wasn't going to make the train on Monday, nor Tuesday. She's worked herself into a frenzy, has said she's out of her medication, is convinced she's going to have a stroke and says she's going to check into the hospital. Has she done anything about it? No. Has she considered the consequences? If she doesn't make it out here this week, she may just lose her apartment.
There are other people who are on the waiting list, and I wouldn't blame the landlady if she decided to lease the apartment to the next person on the list. If so, we'll have to go back out there and move everything out of the apartment.
If it comes to this, that's the last chance. If she does not get on the train by Friday, as far as I'm concerned, she will not be coming back. I am so over the drama. If you can't help yourself, then there's nothing left for me to do.
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
sweet justice
You know how the saying goes..."what goes around, comes around."
Today is just one of those days where I will admit I take absolute pleasure in someone else's downfall.
Apparently after 3 years of incompetence, they gave my nemesis her walking papers and she has quietly exited with the "pursuing other opportunities" (aka don't let the door hit you in the ass) as her parting reason for leaving.
Ah yes. I will say that in hindsight, I'm glad I didn't get that job and that I ended up where I did. But somewhat nice to relish in the long overdue karma.
Today is just one of those days where I will admit I take absolute pleasure in someone else's downfall.
Apparently after 3 years of incompetence, they gave my nemesis her walking papers and she has quietly exited with the "pursuing other opportunities" (aka don't let the door hit you in the ass) as her parting reason for leaving.
Ah yes. I will say that in hindsight, I'm glad I didn't get that job and that I ended up where I did. But somewhat nice to relish in the long overdue karma.
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