Stuff. Not good. Not bad. Just...stuff.

[OSJ]

It gets better, sister-in-law Lynn wants Waldo, so we can still see him and Sansa out on the rez. They have a huge piece of property with plenty of lizards and field mice running about to give the cats endless entertainment. So Varys and Bushi go to the Humane Society and I'm not a bit worried about either one getting adopted with a quickness. That will leave us with:

Jorkens -16

Jackpot - 6

Seven - 6

Cersei - 5

Sandor - 4

Tyrion - 4 

Waldo and Sansa remain in-family and at a great home (Sansa's mother Newt is already there because she was just getting out of hand picking on Cersei.) So they'll get reunited, and the two of them look like twins and run around together. They'll have to keep Waldo inside for a couple of weeks, but once he adapts to the new digs, he'll love it. I shall commence with the happy dance!

 

[Epic Rickey]

Double post

Edited July 24, 2019 by Epic Rickey
Double post

[MORELOCK]

[never mind]

Edited July 24, 2019 by MORELOCK

[AxB]

My modem died and I've got no internet at home. Except on the mobile phone, like. New one is coming Tuesday. But apparently all the apps on the cable box use the modem as well.

EDIT: And suddenly it repaired itself. 23 hours offline, and it just... came back.

Edited July 26, 2019 by AxB

[Epic Rickey]

I graduated and can move forward in my studies if I choose.

[AxB]

So my son's cats stay with me at the weekend, because his Mum is out of town usually. They're always begging to go outside, so I let them. I'm watching TV, and I hear this high pitched squeal from the kitchen. Both cats are staring into a narrow nook, like there's a tiny creature hiding there. I'm thinking it's a mouse, or a small bird perhaps. So I opened things up and had a look. It was a fucking frog. Who knew frogs could scream? Sounded like a squeaky balloon. Anyway, I put on the rubber gloves, picked it up and put it back outside. So either it's hopping back to wherever it lives, or it's bleeding to death outside the window. Didn't seem that badly hurt, but I don't know how the cats managed to get it to stay still long enough for them to carry it in anyway. Bloody predators. Now they're begging me to let them back outside. Not happening.

[Cliff Hanger]

I spent most of today writing and re-writing the thing I've wanted to say to my dad's family for a decade, about how much it sucks to be treated as though I'm a baby because of my disability and how that time I got mocked for not laughing at my shitty uncle's racist jokes made me never want to see any of them again, and how those feelings relate to 2019 politics stuff I won't go into detail about here.  I don't know if I have the balls to throw this particular grenade, which is why this isn't in either the How's It Going or Really Swell News threads, but at least I finally wrote it down and showed it to people other than the targets.

[Matt D]

13 minutes ago, Cliff Hanger said:

I spent most of today writing and re-writing the thing I've wanted to say to my dad's family for a decade, about how much it sucks to be treated as though I'm a baby because of my disability and how that time I got mocked for not laughing at my shitty uncle's racist jokes made me never want to see any of them again, and how those feelings relate to 2019 politics stuff I won't go into detail about here.  I don't know if I have the balls to throw this particular grenade, which is why this isn't in either the How's It Going or Really Swell News threads, but at least I finally wrote it down and showed it to people other than the targets.

We support scorching the earth with the light of truth.

[Brian Fowler]

6 hours ago, Matt D said:

We support scorching the earth with the light of truth.

This

[OSJ]

14 hours ago, AxB said:

So my son's cats stay with me at the weekend, because his Mum is out of town usually. They're always begging to go outside, so I let them. I'm watching TV, and I hear this high pitched squeal from the kitchen. Both cats are staring into a narrow nook, like there's a tiny creature hiding there. I'm thinking it's a mouse, or a small bird perhaps. So I opened things up and had a look. It was a fucking frog. Who knew frogs could scream? Sounded like a squeaky balloon. Anyway, I put on the rubber gloves, picked it up and put it back outside. So either it's hopping back to wherever it lives, or it's bleeding to death outside the window. Didn't seem that badly hurt, but I don't know how the cats managed to get it to stay still long enough for them to carry it in anyway. Bloody predators. Now they're begging me to let them back outside. Not happening.

Some three years ago, at the place that we are moving back to, I noticed the cats were in a circle surrounding something. Further investigation revealed a horned toad (which is actually a lizard), it was pissed, up on it's hind legs hissing and squirting out blood from its eyesockets (they do that for reasons). The cats weren't sure what to make of it and I didn't want them to slaughter the poor thing as cool-looking reptiles are something I like, so I carried him a couple of houses away and turned him loose. The skinks I allow to be slaughtered indiscriminately, there are hundreds of the damn things, they're as stupid as a piece of wood and left to their own devices are fond of running into the house and dying from starvation under the furniture, fuck that shit.

[Contentious C]

Gotta love it when you make multiple efforts to get the new landlords/property managers to tell you what's going on with your lease renewal, only for them to hem and haw and not tell you shit for a full month, and then find out the change in ownership means your rent's getting jacked up by 10% (aka, the property manager's pound of fucking flesh).  Fucking parasites.  I'm lucky I can afford it, but the only reason I'm not leaving is because they just didn't leave me with enough time to make the arrangements.  So gone next October if I can find something better.  Asshats.

[OSJ]

1 hour ago, Contentious C said:

Gotta love it when you make multiple efforts to get the new landlords/property managers to tell you what's going on with your lease renewal, only for them to hem and haw and not tell you shit for a full month, and then find out the change in ownership means your rent's getting jacked up by 10% (aka, the property manager's pound of fucking flesh).  Fucking parasites.  I'm lucky I can afford it, but the only reason I'm not leaving is because they just didn't leave me with enough time to make the arrangements.  So gone next October if I can find something better.  Asshats.

Well, you don't say how long you've been in the place, but 10% doesn't sound particularly onerous unless they've already jacked the rent once in the last year. We're about to move and it's like a 7.5% hike from what we're paying now ($700 from $650). There are some additional expenses, such as it being slightly smaller, we'll have to shell out another $50-$60 for a storage unit, but it is what it is; we're both tired of asking for repairs that were promised two years ago and getting "You no like, you move!"  from one of the landlords, the male half of the tandem just tells you whatever he thinks you want to hear and goes on about his business ignoring everything that he agreed to do.  Should be amusing when they come around next month looking for the rent and I say "I no like, so we move!"  By the time they can actually start eviction proceedings, we'll be in the new place. Lest anyone think that the present landlords might cause trouble with the future landlord, that's one of the advantages of a small town, everyone knows everyone at least by reputation. Our once and future landlord is a Superior Court Judge and when we mentioned wanting to move back, his comments on "The Dragon Lady" and that "poor pussy-whipped bastard" were hysterical. Apparently he doesn't think much of the pair.

[Contentious C]

Well, since my rent is twice what you're paying, 10% means "all of next year's raise".  And I'm driving around in a 17-year-old car that'll need replacing before long.  I've saved for that, but that's the problem: replacing the car is the extent of my savings.  I think I still stand a good chance at being able to save enough in 2-3 more years to just hand a dealership a cashier's check, but these jerkoffs are just making that $130/mo. harder because they're middle-men.  Fuck 'em.

[Technico Support]

Landlords.  Fucking landlords.  What a racket.  I really love the "renew for one year with a 10% increase or go month to month......with a HYOOOOOGE increase" bullshit.

When we bought our house four years ago, we had to break the lease, which had a few months left on it.  They wanted the 60 days' rent plus a fine equal to another month to break it.  WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK.  So it was like a little more than $4500 they wanted so we could get out and buy a house.  I sent letters and bitched them out on the phone a few times, especially making the point that these luxury-ass apartments turned over really fast and there's no way they'd be out that money with us leaving.  I even said "look, I'll pay you a month and if nobody rents this place in 30 days, I'll give you one more month!"  They eventually gave up and let us out with one month, which I made up because my mortgage had a one month gap after signing where I didn't have to pay out of pocket.

Still, what a load of bullshit.   I understand the need to cover themselves but that was just a crazy.  They do shit like this because people typically don't fight them.  How is anyone supposed to get out of renting and into owning  like this?

Edited July 30, 2019 by Technico Support

[Contentious C]

31 minutes ago, Technico Support said:

How is anyone supposed to get out of renting and into owning  like this?

They're...not?  And that's how the shitty cycle keeps perpetuating itself?

[OSJ]

10 hours ago, Contentious C said:

Well, since my rent is twice what you're paying, 10% means "all of next year's raise".  And I'm driving around in a 17-year-old car that'll need replacing before long.  I've saved for that, but that's the problem: replacing the car is the extent of my savings.  I think I still stand a good chance at being able to save enough in 2-3 more years to just hand a dealership a cashier's check, but these jerkoffs are just making that $130/mo. harder because they're middle-men.  Fuck 'em.

You don't mention where you live which is a huge factor. For what we pay here for a nice place perfectly adequate to our needs we couldn't get a closet in Seattle. A huge part of why we moved was my decision to go full-time freelance, I was fifty and damn tired of working to make other people rich and Kathy's family is from here. We first moved to ABQ and then here to Gallup. I never thought that I could dig living in a small town, but I've adapted quite well, and couldn't see going back to a big city.

[Contentious C]

Near enough to D.C. that this will be a perpetual shitshow as long as I'm in the area.  And Arlington hasn't even installed itself up Amazon's butt yet, so who knows how much worse it's going to get in a year's time?

I actually liked living in Baltimore while I was there (to an extent), but as much as I'd prefer to be able to walk to work or have an easier commute, I feel like every city is probably just going to be in this death spiral of non-affordability regardless.  In addition to a finite amount of money, I also feel like I have a finite amount of patience for the whole setup.  And I'm hardly built for 9-to-5, so I really don't know what the Hell I'm going to do with myself after my current job ends.

[Tabe]

6 hours ago, Technico Support said:

Landlords.  Fucking landlords.  What a racket.  I really love the "renew for one year with a 10% increase or go month to month......with a HYOOOOOGE increase" bullshit.

When we bought our house four years ago, we had to break the lease, which had a few months left on it.  They wanted the 60 days' rent plus a fine equal to another month to break it.  WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK.  So it was like a little more than $4500 they wanted so we could get out and buy a house.  I sent letters and bitched them out on the phone a few times, especially making the point that these luxury-ass apartments turned over really fast and there's no way they'd be out that money with us leaving.  I even said "look, I'll pay you a month and if nobody rents this place in 30 days, I'll give you one more month!"  They eventually gave up and let us out with one month, which I made up because my mortgage had a one month gap after signing where I didn't have to pay out of pocket.

Still, what a load of bullshit.   I understand the need to cover themselves but that was just a crazy.  They do shit like this because people typically don't fight them.  How is anyone supposed to get out of renting and into owning  like this?

In some places, buying a house gets you out of your apartment lease without penalty. 

[OSJ]

3 minutes ago, Tabe said:

In some places, buying a house gets you out of your apartment lease without penalty. 

Owning can be highly overrated. We lost our house in Seattle when we had to file bankruptcy in the early 1990s. We had borrowed heavily and then the housing market went into the toilet and we were fucked. No regrets, we were stupid about stuff like that and didn't know any better. 

After moving is when things got interesting for the folks that bought the place. Our next-door neighbor, the wedding-dress maker who is as gay as a spring frock has occasionally taken it upon himself to "beautify" the neighborhood, one such attempt included hanging feather boas from trees around the block, didn't matter that they weren't HIS trees...  Anyway, after we moved he dug up our parking strip and planted three trees, something that I had told him not to do when we lived there. Sure enough, within a year the roots got into the old clay pipes and split the pavement in pieces. Did he have to pay for the chaos? Of course not, it wasn't his parking strip that was causing the problem. ..  According to my stepson who still lives in the area, the sidewalk is still fucked up from the roots.

[Technico Support]

15 hours ago, Tabe said:

In some places, buying a house gets you out of your apartment lease without penalty. 

That's a great policy, like how some gyms let you cancel your membership if you're moving away. 

[Lawful Metal]

Well, I finally did it. I gave the prosecutors good reason to dismiss this case, but we’re still going through with this hearing.

I responded to his email with this:

 

[OSJ]

First step in the move completed, we rented a 7 x 10 storage unit and Kathy and sister-in-law Delphine found a couple of more or less sober drunks hanging out by Safeway and paid them $25 each to tote all of our Midnight House inventory and my signed paperbacks to the storage unit and stack everything up nice and neat. There's still a ton of room and we arranged a shelf inside the unit so that any book orders that come in can still be quickly dealt with. I'm hoping that there's ample room in the new place to display my signed paperbacks, they represent some twenty years of con-going and making a nuisance of myself. 

[PB-13]

Friend invited me to a wrestling trivia night and we ran away with first place. Good times. Got Glory Pro Wrestling tickets and cash. About time this useless knowledge in my head was good for something.

[Contentious C]

I might have overstepped a touch, but I think I finally twisted enough arms to get the dipshit property managers to get the lease changes in my hands.  I wrote a relatively snitty e-mail to the woman who'd been dropping the ball and made sure I CC'ed it to her flunkies, and I imagine I pissed her off pretty good with that, because she called me a minute later and said, "I'm gonna have to ask you to tone it down."  All I did to respond was, "Look, just do what I'm asking you to do and this is solved.  Just get the addendum to me like you said you would."  Tried not to raise my voice - except that she wouldn't listen to me and basically made me talk over her - and didn't use any untoward language, but I also made it patently clear that they dropped the ball on this.

Now I fully expect they're going to try to pull some mealy-mouthed bullshit if it suits them - like, for example, I have 2 cats and they could ding me over whether or not they've had up-to-date rabies vaccines, so the kitties will be making a vet trip soon.  And I'll probably have to keep the place a little cleaner, which I should be doing anyway.  But I sort of hope they try to get cute with me and find some fault, because it will fall on its face like Chris Farley through a gimmicked coffee table.  And, I get to sit on these copies of the addendum for the next week and take my sweet-ass time returning it.

The real kicker was this phony, manipulative dope telling me, "I work in national security when I'm not doing this; that's my day job."  Oh, yeah, what do you work on?  Elections?  I wouldn't trust these managers to bag groceries correctly.

[AxB]

So the Coffee Machine at work, it has these syrups in, for bonus flavours. The standard two are Caramel and Vanilla, but there's a third spot for seasonal offers and promotions. It had Salted Caramel in for a while a few months ago, but it ran out. As in it literally leaked out onto the floor because some idiot ripped the tube it flowed through. Anyway, that's done now, so they sent a new one out for November. It's called "Irish Velvet".

Irish Velvet. Irish Velvet what? Do they even make Velvet in Ireland? Besides which, it's a fabric, not a foodstuff. You don't drink Velvet, you wear it. You'd choke. Be like trying to drink a pair of fancy trousers. Can't be done.

Also they had an All Drinks Free day last month, but we're not speaking of that. Bloody nightmare it was.