Learning how things work can be a lifetime achievement. Not that it is necessary to understand every single thing, but sometimes an eye opener comes along that makes one take stock of their surroundings.
The apartment complex that we call "home" recently changed hands, ownership. This isn't the first time, since we have been here, it's the second.
Let me back up a bit. When I first arrived here I was astounded at the number of apartment complexes. Coming from a small mid-western town explains a lot of that. What I did not take into account is that these complexes are a necessary evil, people need places to live. Raleigh attracts a huge number of people each year and it would be ridiculous to think that all these people are going to live in individual houses. If that were to be the case, Raleigh, NC would encompass most of the eastern side of the state, as would any other large metropolis. So, the relentless pursuit of a small chunk of land continues and the apartment complexes are sprouting up all over the city.
A lot of the people who come here are just starting out, on their own and need affordable housing. Some people really like apartment style living. They have no other responsibilities to worry about such as property taxes, lawn care, HOA's, repairs and maintenance. Regardless of the situation, apartment complexes provide a place to call home.
Most complexes are owned by real estate investors and investors are always on the look out on how to increase their profits. When our complex sold the first time, since we have been here, the new investors did something remarkable. They took a look at the numbers this place generated. The numbers were good and they had gotten steadily better because of the work force that was in place and had been in place for several months. When the new investors bought the property, they kept the same work force and had the original investors handle the employees just as they always had. Now, things are different, much different.
The new investors have plans to spend a lot of money to make a lot of changes on the property. They saw no need to continue, as the last owners had done, as far as the work force was concerned. What that ended up equating to was everyone that my husband has worked with over the last three years are gone. There are over 360 apartments here and now his face is the only familiar face for all these people. Only then did we realize that this may be just one apartment complex in thousands, but it is home to many people and some of them have been here for years. Kind of like a small town in the mid west.
Some of these people feel like they have been abandoned. Left for the wolves, so to speak. Time will tell if that is correct.
Monday, October 28, 2019
Monday, October 21, 2019
From The Desk of The Dog
Hello everyone! It's Runtly, the ever so entertaining Jack Russell Terrier here to serve you! Mom is laying on the floor with cold, wet teabags on her eyes. I'm tellin' ya, Mom is weird.
While Mom is being weird, I want to tell you about a trick I have taught her. Mom has taught me some tricks. I can sit, lay down and roll over really fast, I do that all in one movement, no need to wait for her to say "rollover" as far as I'm concerned. I can shake paws, stand pretty, which is pretty stupid and jump while I'm standing on my back legs. I know all the names of my toys and they all start with Mr. and I can find them when I'm asked to do so. The only thing Mom hasn't been able to teach me is how to put my toys back in the basket. Maybe some day I'll relent and do it for her, but today ain't that day.
Anyway, I taught Mom this great trick. We do it almost everyday as long as it's not too cold outside. Me and Mom and Dad sit out on our deck a lot. Since it's on the second floor, Mom and Dad put up a barrier, made out of what Mom call lattice, so I don't jump through the spindles. See, that's a quirk about JRT's, we tend to get so focused on whatever we are focused on and forget about where we might be. So, if we are sitting on something really high off the ground and we be focused on a squirrel, we just jump. This lattice is tall enough to keep me from jumping but I can stand on my back legs and look out over the top of it. My all time favorite toy is my collar-ball. Just what it sounds like. It's a ball that has a hole in it and in the hole is a red collar. It's kinda like a ball with a loop. I play fetch with this every single day, three or four times a day. When we all sit out on the deck, Mom and Day leave the door open a little bit and throw my collar-ball through the opening, back into the living room. This is great fun but when I get tired of it, I bring it back out onto the deck. I go to the far end of the deck and try to push my collar-ball over the lattice. This always brings loud shouts of "Don't you do it!" from Mom and Dad. About after the third time of hearin' them say that, I drop the collar-ball over the lattice.
Then, I look at it and I cry about it. It's a great act!
Now for the bestest part. After a bit more whining on my part, Mom gets out of her chair. She opens up the outside storage closet and reaches inside and brings out a fishin' pole! This is so exciting!
She takes that pole and puts it out over the deck railing and lets down a long string. I'm not sure what is on the end of it, but after a few tries, Mom starts to reel in the string and there on the end of it is my collar-ball! Mom has gotten really good at this trick and that is why we practice it everyday. I don't want her to lose her touch and I always tell her, "Good Mom".
Well, gotta go. Mom is wondering what I'm up to and I was just giving some serious thought to stealing somepin' off her desk! Woof!
While Mom is being weird, I want to tell you about a trick I have taught her. Mom has taught me some tricks. I can sit, lay down and roll over really fast, I do that all in one movement, no need to wait for her to say "rollover" as far as I'm concerned. I can shake paws, stand pretty, which is pretty stupid and jump while I'm standing on my back legs. I know all the names of my toys and they all start with Mr. and I can find them when I'm asked to do so. The only thing Mom hasn't been able to teach me is how to put my toys back in the basket. Maybe some day I'll relent and do it for her, but today ain't that day.
Anyway, I taught Mom this great trick. We do it almost everyday as long as it's not too cold outside. Me and Mom and Dad sit out on our deck a lot. Since it's on the second floor, Mom and Dad put up a barrier, made out of what Mom call lattice, so I don't jump through the spindles. See, that's a quirk about JRT's, we tend to get so focused on whatever we are focused on and forget about where we might be. So, if we are sitting on something really high off the ground and we be focused on a squirrel, we just jump. This lattice is tall enough to keep me from jumping but I can stand on my back legs and look out over the top of it. My all time favorite toy is my collar-ball. Just what it sounds like. It's a ball that has a hole in it and in the hole is a red collar. It's kinda like a ball with a loop. I play fetch with this every single day, three or four times a day. When we all sit out on the deck, Mom and Day leave the door open a little bit and throw my collar-ball through the opening, back into the living room. This is great fun but when I get tired of it, I bring it back out onto the deck. I go to the far end of the deck and try to push my collar-ball over the lattice. This always brings loud shouts of "Don't you do it!" from Mom and Dad. About after the third time of hearin' them say that, I drop the collar-ball over the lattice.
Then, I look at it and I cry about it. It's a great act!
Now for the bestest part. After a bit more whining on my part, Mom gets out of her chair. She opens up the outside storage closet and reaches inside and brings out a fishin' pole! This is so exciting!
She takes that pole and puts it out over the deck railing and lets down a long string. I'm not sure what is on the end of it, but after a few tries, Mom starts to reel in the string and there on the end of it is my collar-ball! Mom has gotten really good at this trick and that is why we practice it everyday. I don't want her to lose her touch and I always tell her, "Good Mom".
Well, gotta go. Mom is wondering what I'm up to and I was just giving some serious thought to stealing somepin' off her desk! Woof!
Thursday, October 10, 2019
The Water Pot
It does not seem like it was that long ago. Sometimes it feels like it was yesterday. There are two constants that help to keep this particular reality in check. One, a birthday and two, the youngest grandson. The youngest grandson is 12, born two months before the deportation, for lack of a better substitute word.
Mother has been gone for a little over 12 years. She decided to die on my birthday. My 51st birthday. Keeping track of how long she has been gone is so easy. Living with that, not so much.
I remind myself that Mother went many years without her own mother. Mother was in her late twenties when her mom died. They said she died from a broken heart. Mother's dad had died about six months before her mom. The joys of being a late in life child. So, yeah, she went without seeing her parents for over 60 years. Being a late in life child, Mother's parents were long gone before I came around and I do not ever recall asking Mother about them. There were no grandparents from either Mother or Dad, at least not for me.
What was she doing when she was the age I am now? After a few mental calculations, she was in the beginning stages of taking care of Dad. He had been given 3 years to live. Wonder what would have happened if they had given him 10 years....or 20....or 30? Guess we will never know the answer to that one. Mother took that job of caretaker with the help of no one else. Not that there was not help offered from time to time, it was part of her nature and part of her place as his wife. It wasn't a real job, it was an act of love. Part of the deal, the package, the good with the bad, the better or worse stuff. One day, when she had wrestled Dad into a nearby wheel chair she looked up to see him gazing longingly at her. She asked, "What?" He said he was just wondering about how it would be if the roles had been reversed. She snorted and said, "Let's not go there." She moved him every single day from the time he could not do it without her help. She never let him lay for very long at a time. She cared for his body as best she could, even though it was wasting away before her eyes. Dad always said Mother was never happy unless she had something torn up or remodeling some part of the house. That same description went hand in hand with the care she gave him.
Mother was the glue. The glue that kept things together. She liked to entertain, have family over for whatever holiday might be at hand. She was happy with neighbors that had no need to knock, they were always welcome. Things have been so different since she left. Some days it is hard not to be melancholy....or simply put, feel sorry for oneself.
Looking at the water pot on the counter, the memory of when it was purchased was as fresh in my mind as if it had been yesterday. We, Mother, Lela, Blanche, myself and my two daughters, were on our annual shopping trip. Something we did every Mother's Day weekend for many years. Mother was with me in the store and when I picked up the box from the shelf, to take a closer look, she said to me, "That will be the best thing you ever buy." My response was, "Really?"
"Yes!", she answered. "You will absolutely love it!"
She was right. It was an electric water pot and it has boiled more water than flows down the Mississippi. That might be an exaggeration, but not much of one. It has gone on trips and was one of the first kitchen gadgets to be packed for the move to the south east. In the last couple of years, it had started to malfunction. It would not shut off when the water started to boil. Eventually, it would shut off, but not until it had bubbled, gurgled and spewed boiling water all over the counter. It's been another constant, for 15 years, maybe longer, but it was time to be replaced.
The new model is a sporty little number with a ring of blue LED lights at the bottom....to let the user know the power is on. I carried the old one out to the dumpster. I wanted to make its passing as symbolic as possible. I stood back a few feet and tried to punt the water pot through the hole in the dumpster. That didn't work. I picked it up, took a step back, tossed it into the air and with my best overhand volleyball serve, I spiked that pot to the far right corner of the dumpster. As I walked away, I laughed out loud, knowing Mother enjoyed the show. It was very reminiscent of the time she chucked the bare and bony Thanksgiving turkey carcass right out of the kitchen window.
Mother has been gone for a little over 12 years. She decided to die on my birthday. My 51st birthday. Keeping track of how long she has been gone is so easy. Living with that, not so much.
I remind myself that Mother went many years without her own mother. Mother was in her late twenties when her mom died. They said she died from a broken heart. Mother's dad had died about six months before her mom. The joys of being a late in life child. So, yeah, she went without seeing her parents for over 60 years. Being a late in life child, Mother's parents were long gone before I came around and I do not ever recall asking Mother about them. There were no grandparents from either Mother or Dad, at least not for me.
What was she doing when she was the age I am now? After a few mental calculations, she was in the beginning stages of taking care of Dad. He had been given 3 years to live. Wonder what would have happened if they had given him 10 years....or 20....or 30? Guess we will never know the answer to that one. Mother took that job of caretaker with the help of no one else. Not that there was not help offered from time to time, it was part of her nature and part of her place as his wife. It wasn't a real job, it was an act of love. Part of the deal, the package, the good with the bad, the better or worse stuff. One day, when she had wrestled Dad into a nearby wheel chair she looked up to see him gazing longingly at her. She asked, "What?" He said he was just wondering about how it would be if the roles had been reversed. She snorted and said, "Let's not go there." She moved him every single day from the time he could not do it without her help. She never let him lay for very long at a time. She cared for his body as best she could, even though it was wasting away before her eyes. Dad always said Mother was never happy unless she had something torn up or remodeling some part of the house. That same description went hand in hand with the care she gave him.
Mother was the glue. The glue that kept things together. She liked to entertain, have family over for whatever holiday might be at hand. She was happy with neighbors that had no need to knock, they were always welcome. Things have been so different since she left. Some days it is hard not to be melancholy....or simply put, feel sorry for oneself.
Looking at the water pot on the counter, the memory of when it was purchased was as fresh in my mind as if it had been yesterday. We, Mother, Lela, Blanche, myself and my two daughters, were on our annual shopping trip. Something we did every Mother's Day weekend for many years. Mother was with me in the store and when I picked up the box from the shelf, to take a closer look, she said to me, "That will be the best thing you ever buy." My response was, "Really?"
"Yes!", she answered. "You will absolutely love it!"
She was right. It was an electric water pot and it has boiled more water than flows down the Mississippi. That might be an exaggeration, but not much of one. It has gone on trips and was one of the first kitchen gadgets to be packed for the move to the south east. In the last couple of years, it had started to malfunction. It would not shut off when the water started to boil. Eventually, it would shut off, but not until it had bubbled, gurgled and spewed boiling water all over the counter. It's been another constant, for 15 years, maybe longer, but it was time to be replaced.
The new model is a sporty little number with a ring of blue LED lights at the bottom....to let the user know the power is on. I carried the old one out to the dumpster. I wanted to make its passing as symbolic as possible. I stood back a few feet and tried to punt the water pot through the hole in the dumpster. That didn't work. I picked it up, took a step back, tossed it into the air and with my best overhand volleyball serve, I spiked that pot to the far right corner of the dumpster. As I walked away, I laughed out loud, knowing Mother enjoyed the show. It was very reminiscent of the time she chucked the bare and bony Thanksgiving turkey carcass right out of the kitchen window.
Monday, October 7, 2019
Sunset
A Great Blue Heron crossed the wide expanse of sky. Its long legs trailed behind while its neck, folded ever so eloquently, rested neatly on its back. She watched its uninterrupted flight until it was out of sight. She had always marveled at the heron, pondering if it was a distant relative of a pterodactyl.
She had come to this place to watch the sun set. Something she had not seen in a long time. She was not to see it this time either as a large bank of clouds rose up in the far western sky. There were no other clouds in the sky, just those and they were in the way. It did not matter, the sound of absolutely nothing surrounded her and there was much solace to find in that quietness.
She decided to watch the sunset anyway. It was a wise choice. Although the giant glowing ball of gas could not be seen, it began to paint a picture on the back of the canvas of clouds and the colors started to bleed through the mist. For the most part, the cloud bank throbbed with a dull shade of orange. But, as the earth turned away from the sun, the orange began to brighten. As this happened, the edges of the clouds seemed to come alive. They shimmered with nearly the white light of electricity. It looked as though molten silver was flowing around each cloud. It may not have had all the colors she had hoped for, but the pulsing silver lining had her full attention. It was almost mesmerizing. Perhaps a cloud with a silver lining was what she was meant to see.
The sun continued its descent and the orange hues and silver lining were no longer visible. Just a big cloud bank in the western sky. She scanned the rest of the empty sky to see if any stars or planets were visible. None that she could see. Just lots of open endless sky. She knew if she sat there long enough, she would see them, but there was something so comforting about that huge sky. It seemed to speak to her. Her. One tiny person in the vastness of the universe was made to feel like she belonged. She belonged to something that perhaps she could not see right now, but it was big and it was powerful and it was full of love. It was full of hope and full of promise and it seemed to endow these things to her. But, the message she received told her she already had all these things and more, she had simply forgotten about them. The things of the world had been in the way, trying to turn her into one of its wanton slaves. That made sense to her. She had not touched her phone in days, nor did she miss it and it felt as if a heavy burden had been lifted without it.
She stood up and walked back down the path she had taken to reach this natural seat in natures' amphitheater. A new found confidence followed closely behind.
She had come to this place to watch the sun set. Something she had not seen in a long time. She was not to see it this time either as a large bank of clouds rose up in the far western sky. There were no other clouds in the sky, just those and they were in the way. It did not matter, the sound of absolutely nothing surrounded her and there was much solace to find in that quietness.
She decided to watch the sunset anyway. It was a wise choice. Although the giant glowing ball of gas could not be seen, it began to paint a picture on the back of the canvas of clouds and the colors started to bleed through the mist. For the most part, the cloud bank throbbed with a dull shade of orange. But, as the earth turned away from the sun, the orange began to brighten. As this happened, the edges of the clouds seemed to come alive. They shimmered with nearly the white light of electricity. It looked as though molten silver was flowing around each cloud. It may not have had all the colors she had hoped for, but the pulsing silver lining had her full attention. It was almost mesmerizing. Perhaps a cloud with a silver lining was what she was meant to see.
The sun continued its descent and the orange hues and silver lining were no longer visible. Just a big cloud bank in the western sky. She scanned the rest of the empty sky to see if any stars or planets were visible. None that she could see. Just lots of open endless sky. She knew if she sat there long enough, she would see them, but there was something so comforting about that huge sky. It seemed to speak to her. Her. One tiny person in the vastness of the universe was made to feel like she belonged. She belonged to something that perhaps she could not see right now, but it was big and it was powerful and it was full of love. It was full of hope and full of promise and it seemed to endow these things to her. But, the message she received told her she already had all these things and more, she had simply forgotten about them. The things of the world had been in the way, trying to turn her into one of its wanton slaves. That made sense to her. She had not touched her phone in days, nor did she miss it and it felt as if a heavy burden had been lifted without it.
She stood up and walked back down the path she had taken to reach this natural seat in natures' amphitheater. A new found confidence followed closely behind.
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