Okay, an update. First of all, we got a call back on the townhome I liked best. (the one with the garage.) The bank came back with a counter offer and we have accepted it. Now we need to get the earnest money to them and get the financing taken care of and we have our Florida home. Yay!
Second, I got a call from (wait for it...) Delta Airlines for a flight attendant position. Yes, first a few preliminary qualifying questions. Mostly to see if I would follow FAA rules and regulations. I passed those so I was offered a phone interview. I may be offered an interview in Atlanta. Keep your fingers crossed for me! The odds are still tough, of course. There were a thousand positions and over a hundred thousand applicants. But hey, not everyone got a phone interview, and I got that much so at least I can say I got that far, right? And that much of it was fun.
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Monday, October 25, 2010
A mouse visit with an ulterior motive...
Okay, so last week we were in Orlando to visit the mouse, but we had an ulterior motive... We were actually there to scout out a second home. We saw several townhomes that we really liked and ended up putting offers on two of them. They're both "short sales" which sounds like they'll be settled quickly but the opposite is actually true. A short sale actually takes a lot longer than a regular sale. Our realtor (a really great realtor, by the way. If anyone needs a good realtor in the Orlando area, contact "In Touch Real Estate" and ask for D'Anne Kincannon or Mary Henderson) said she's never seen one settled in less than three months and they usually take a lot longer than that.
A short sale is one where the asking price is actually less than the bank is owed. But the owners are about to be foreclosed on and they're desperate to sell and they're hoping the bank will allow them to sell the property at the lower price to enable them to have a sale and avoid the foreclosure. Many times it's in the bank's best interest to accept the short sale because a foreclosure costs the bank money too, but if the short sale is too low, the bank won't accept it. It takes a lot of negotiating, which is why it takes so long for a short sale to go through. Anyway, we'll see what happens.
The first one is the one I hope we actually get. It has three bedrooms. One of them is downstairs as you come in the front door. It's a decent size. There is a full bath downstairs as well. There's a dining area (pretty large), a living room area, and a decent sized kitchen. There's a one-car attached garage. There's also a small screened porch. Upstairs has two bedrooms and two baths. There's also a balcony that's accessible by both bedrooms and a laundry closet with a stacked washer and dryer. The place is in good condition but will need some pretty thorough cleaning. The location is good, about 15 minutes away from Disney, and at the opening of a small cul-de-sac that's gated and has a pool. The view behind the house (from the screened porch and from the balcony on the second floor) is of a wooded area that probably won't be built on for a long time, if ever.
The other one is also very nice and I would be fine if we got that one, too. It has four bedrooms with the master bedroom and master bath on the main floor (which Gary likes, since he's starting to not love stairs so much.) The master bath has a jetted tub, which would be fun. The living area is a little on the compact size, but not unlivable. The kitchen is small, but nice and open to the rest of the living are so you don't feel closed in. Upstairs has three more bedrooms with another full bath. The real plus for this particular townhome is that the complex has a lot of amenities. There are several playgrounds and four pools. There's also a theater and they play movies a couple times a week. And the security is excellent. This location is 95% vacation homes and short term rentals, so they make sure that only people who are supposed to be there get through the gate. It was very impressive. Oh, and there's a fitness area as well.
There were also several houses we saw that were nice, but I feel like a house is more than I want right now. For the next ten years we won't actually live there, we'll only be vacationing there and I will be there without Gary a lot of the time since I visit Mickey more often than he does. I felt I would be a lot safer in a gated community than I would be in the houses.
Anyway, that's how we spent the week. And between realtor visits we visited with Mickey, so we had a good time. It was good to be in Florida again, with my sweetheart.
A short sale is one where the asking price is actually less than the bank is owed. But the owners are about to be foreclosed on and they're desperate to sell and they're hoping the bank will allow them to sell the property at the lower price to enable them to have a sale and avoid the foreclosure. Many times it's in the bank's best interest to accept the short sale because a foreclosure costs the bank money too, but if the short sale is too low, the bank won't accept it. It takes a lot of negotiating, which is why it takes so long for a short sale to go through. Anyway, we'll see what happens.
The first one is the one I hope we actually get. It has three bedrooms. One of them is downstairs as you come in the front door. It's a decent size. There is a full bath downstairs as well. There's a dining area (pretty large), a living room area, and a decent sized kitchen. There's a one-car attached garage. There's also a small screened porch. Upstairs has two bedrooms and two baths. There's also a balcony that's accessible by both bedrooms and a laundry closet with a stacked washer and dryer. The place is in good condition but will need some pretty thorough cleaning. The location is good, about 15 minutes away from Disney, and at the opening of a small cul-de-sac that's gated and has a pool. The view behind the house (from the screened porch and from the balcony on the second floor) is of a wooded area that probably won't be built on for a long time, if ever.
The other one is also very nice and I would be fine if we got that one, too. It has four bedrooms with the master bedroom and master bath on the main floor (which Gary likes, since he's starting to not love stairs so much.) The master bath has a jetted tub, which would be fun. The living area is a little on the compact size, but not unlivable. The kitchen is small, but nice and open to the rest of the living are so you don't feel closed in. Upstairs has three more bedrooms with another full bath. The real plus for this particular townhome is that the complex has a lot of amenities. There are several playgrounds and four pools. There's also a theater and they play movies a couple times a week. And the security is excellent. This location is 95% vacation homes and short term rentals, so they make sure that only people who are supposed to be there get through the gate. It was very impressive. Oh, and there's a fitness area as well.
There were also several houses we saw that were nice, but I feel like a house is more than I want right now. For the next ten years we won't actually live there, we'll only be vacationing there and I will be there without Gary a lot of the time since I visit Mickey more often than he does. I felt I would be a lot safer in a gated community than I would be in the houses.
Anyway, that's how we spent the week. And between realtor visits we visited with Mickey, so we had a good time. It was good to be in Florida again, with my sweetheart.
Sunday, September 12, 2010
A bolt out of the blue...
I have applied for a job. And of all the jobs I have applied for, this is the first one that I really, REALLY want. Of course, I have no idea how many openings there are. And I know that for every opening there are probably a thousand applicants. But that's okay, even applying for it has been fun and imagining the possibilities has been a blast. Want to know what I applied for?
I applied to be a flight attendant with Delta Airlines. :)
As soon as I applied I texted Dad, and he called almost immediately. I answered the phone with, "I figured that'd get a call out of you." He was laughing with a really delighted laugh, which made me happy. I didn't know at first if I would need to talk him into this or what. Shoot, for that matter I didn't know if I would have to talk MYSELF into this kind of thing or not. But Gary's been super supportive, which I appreciate more than I can express. Gary's always been supportive, it's one of the things that I love most about him.
Like I said before, I don't know if this will actually go anywhere because flight attendant jobs are not easy to get, but the more I think about it the more I really want to do this. My last baby is in college, for Pete's sake. Michael and Melissa will be moving out soon. What better time is there to take on a brand new kind of life?
If I am successful, there will be 8 weeks of training in Atlanta, GA, and I'm not sure when it would start but the sooner the better. Room and board is provided, and I'll get a small salary in addition. After that, I'd be assigned to one of Delta's hubs. I'm not certain which it would be, but I assume that it would be one of the following: Atlanta, Salt Lake City, Cincinnati, Detroit, Memphis, Minneapolis, or New York City (JFK). (I would be hoping to be assigned to SLC, or course.)
Anyway, I'd have to stay in the area where I'd be assigned, so I'd have to have an apartment, most likely shared with other flight attendants. These are called "crash pads." Flight attendants work 3-4 days per week. The rest of the time I could be at home. Flying home would be on a space available basis, but as a flight attendant I would have the option of using an unoccupied jump seat if the passenger seats on the flight were full so it would be somewhat easier to get on a plane.
Anyway, in other news I just got back from a wonderful trip to Vacaville where I spent over a week with Mona. She treated me to an early birthday gift, we went to see a production of "Wicked," which is the story of the Wizard of Oz told from the witch's point of view. It was absolutely amazing and the music is memorable. We also had a wonderful dinner afterwards and I tasted veal for the first time. Delicious. (For a couple of days of that week I house- and kitty- sat for Mona while she was on a business trip to the Reno area.) I also cooked a couple of times and filled up Mona's freezer with some meals she can pop out when she's in the mood for some home cooking. It was fun. Mona has a great house and her back yard is a little slice of heaven. I could stay back there for hours and watch the play of shadows across her little plants and statues. So peaceful and comfortable.
Well, I suppose I should get this posted. I probably should have some dinner since it's nearly 8:00. Oh, and Mona and I saw both Inception and Toy Story 3. :)
I applied to be a flight attendant with Delta Airlines. :)
As soon as I applied I texted Dad, and he called almost immediately. I answered the phone with, "I figured that'd get a call out of you." He was laughing with a really delighted laugh, which made me happy. I didn't know at first if I would need to talk him into this or what. Shoot, for that matter I didn't know if I would have to talk MYSELF into this kind of thing or not. But Gary's been super supportive, which I appreciate more than I can express. Gary's always been supportive, it's one of the things that I love most about him.
Like I said before, I don't know if this will actually go anywhere because flight attendant jobs are not easy to get, but the more I think about it the more I really want to do this. My last baby is in college, for Pete's sake. Michael and Melissa will be moving out soon. What better time is there to take on a brand new kind of life?
If I am successful, there will be 8 weeks of training in Atlanta, GA, and I'm not sure when it would start but the sooner the better. Room and board is provided, and I'll get a small salary in addition. After that, I'd be assigned to one of Delta's hubs. I'm not certain which it would be, but I assume that it would be one of the following: Atlanta, Salt Lake City, Cincinnati, Detroit, Memphis, Minneapolis, or New York City (JFK). (I would be hoping to be assigned to SLC, or course.)
Anyway, I'd have to stay in the area where I'd be assigned, so I'd have to have an apartment, most likely shared with other flight attendants. These are called "crash pads." Flight attendants work 3-4 days per week. The rest of the time I could be at home. Flying home would be on a space available basis, but as a flight attendant I would have the option of using an unoccupied jump seat if the passenger seats on the flight were full so it would be somewhat easier to get on a plane.
Anyway, in other news I just got back from a wonderful trip to Vacaville where I spent over a week with Mona. She treated me to an early birthday gift, we went to see a production of "Wicked," which is the story of the Wizard of Oz told from the witch's point of view. It was absolutely amazing and the music is memorable. We also had a wonderful dinner afterwards and I tasted veal for the first time. Delicious. (For a couple of days of that week I house- and kitty- sat for Mona while she was on a business trip to the Reno area.) I also cooked a couple of times and filled up Mona's freezer with some meals she can pop out when she's in the mood for some home cooking. It was fun. Mona has a great house and her back yard is a little slice of heaven. I could stay back there for hours and watch the play of shadows across her little plants and statues. So peaceful and comfortable.
Well, I suppose I should get this posted. I probably should have some dinner since it's nearly 8:00. Oh, and Mona and I saw both Inception and Toy Story 3. :)
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Even the tomatoes know...
Even the TOMATOES know about hidden mickeys!
See that? It's a hidden mickey in my very own garden! I love it! I saw it when I was watering the garden this morning. Amazing.
On another note, I have now seen Toy Story 3 10 times. I don't want to call it pathetic but I believe that some of you have used that exact term. Oh well. There's just something about that movie, and yes I cry every single time I see it. And I plan to see it again tomorrow. Milk duds, pop corn, and coke zero included.
See that? It's a hidden mickey in my very own garden! I love it! I saw it when I was watering the garden this morning. Amazing.
On another note, I have now seen Toy Story 3 10 times. I don't want to call it pathetic but I believe that some of you have used that exact term. Oh well. There's just something about that movie, and yes I cry every single time I see it. And I plan to see it again tomorrow. Milk duds, pop corn, and coke zero included.
Friday, August 20, 2010
The job hunt...
Okay, the job hunt goes on and on... Now how do I describe this? On one hand, I feel kind of pampered and spoiled that I can stay home and look for a job, not necessarily snagging the first thing out of desperation. I haven't had to resort to working at McDonald's or whatever. I apply for 5 jobs a week unless something looks REALLY tempting, then I'll go ahead and apply for that too. (Five is the number of job contacts I need to make in order to qualify for unemployment.) Once I make my five contacts, I pretty much don't worry about applying again until the next week.
On the other hand, It's now been nearly 9 months since I lost my job and I have had only two real nibbles job-wise. The first nibble was a phone interview followed by an in-person interview that I thought went pretty well. Unfortunately I got a "thanks but no thanks" letter about a week later. The second nibble was this last week, an email requesting a phone interview, which led to some computer testing, which in turn led to an in-person interview (today.) The interview went pretty well, I think, and if I do NOT get the job I am pretty sure it will be because I have some travel plans coming up for the remainder of the year (Carebear's baby, and the family vacation in November) that will make me a less-desirable candidate than whomever else they are considering. Other than that I think my skills are what they're looking for.
So now I'm trying to figure out exactly how I feel about this. I kind of want the job for a couple of reasons. First of all, the pay is okay. It's not spectacular. It's about what I was getting at United. The problem with that is, airlines pay notoriously low because they can get away with that due to their benefits (mostly travel benefits.) So here I'm going to be getting about the same thing, but for a company that isn't going to offer something spectacular like free flight. (Yes, I still have that from United, but even so.) But at least it's decent pay, not LESS than I was making before. There are so many jobs out there offering in the $10 to $12 range for what seems like a whole shopping list of requirements. Getting a job that pays about the same is almost a relief. The second reason I kind of want the job is because I'm starting to feel like Gary is really, REALLY the only one who thinks my skill set is amazing. If it were all he thought it was, wouldn't I have a job by NOW? It's hard not to doubt your worth when no one has beat a path to your door and you've been available for 9 months. The jobs I've applied for I have been very qualified for, and yet very little interest has been shown.
Okay, so why do I NOT want the job? I was hoping for a part time job and this is definitely full time. Also, it's further away than I wanted it to be, but it's not horribly far so that's workable I suppose. Also, it offers only 2 weeks vacation and I was up to 4 weeks vacation with United. It'll be hard to slide back to the beginning again, especially with my travel benefits. Most of my traveling hinges on being pretty flexible since it's standby travel. I've been pretty spoiled for the last 9 months, being able to look at a flight and not having to worry about not being back in Denver to get to work. If a flight has looked full, I've been able to say, "Eh, I'll wait till the next day." That will come to a screeching halt. And I haven't traveled nearly as much as I would like to. I planned to do it, I just didn't get around to it.
If I do get the job, I will miss being at home, keeping things clean and keeping all the laundry caught up all the time. It's actually been nice to be on top of things again. I think Gary will miss that too.
Well, no sense counting my chicks before they're hatched. But I think if I am offered the job I will counter with an additional week of vacation. I don't even care about whether or not it's a paid week, I just want to be able to have the time off if I need it. We'll see.
On the other hand, It's now been nearly 9 months since I lost my job and I have had only two real nibbles job-wise. The first nibble was a phone interview followed by an in-person interview that I thought went pretty well. Unfortunately I got a "thanks but no thanks" letter about a week later. The second nibble was this last week, an email requesting a phone interview, which led to some computer testing, which in turn led to an in-person interview (today.) The interview went pretty well, I think, and if I do NOT get the job I am pretty sure it will be because I have some travel plans coming up for the remainder of the year (Carebear's baby, and the family vacation in November) that will make me a less-desirable candidate than whomever else they are considering. Other than that I think my skills are what they're looking for.
So now I'm trying to figure out exactly how I feel about this. I kind of want the job for a couple of reasons. First of all, the pay is okay. It's not spectacular. It's about what I was getting at United. The problem with that is, airlines pay notoriously low because they can get away with that due to their benefits (mostly travel benefits.) So here I'm going to be getting about the same thing, but for a company that isn't going to offer something spectacular like free flight. (Yes, I still have that from United, but even so.) But at least it's decent pay, not LESS than I was making before. There are so many jobs out there offering in the $10 to $12 range for what seems like a whole shopping list of requirements. Getting a job that pays about the same is almost a relief. The second reason I kind of want the job is because I'm starting to feel like Gary is really, REALLY the only one who thinks my skill set is amazing. If it were all he thought it was, wouldn't I have a job by NOW? It's hard not to doubt your worth when no one has beat a path to your door and you've been available for 9 months. The jobs I've applied for I have been very qualified for, and yet very little interest has been shown.
Okay, so why do I NOT want the job? I was hoping for a part time job and this is definitely full time. Also, it's further away than I wanted it to be, but it's not horribly far so that's workable I suppose. Also, it offers only 2 weeks vacation and I was up to 4 weeks vacation with United. It'll be hard to slide back to the beginning again, especially with my travel benefits. Most of my traveling hinges on being pretty flexible since it's standby travel. I've been pretty spoiled for the last 9 months, being able to look at a flight and not having to worry about not being back in Denver to get to work. If a flight has looked full, I've been able to say, "Eh, I'll wait till the next day." That will come to a screeching halt. And I haven't traveled nearly as much as I would like to. I planned to do it, I just didn't get around to it.
If I do get the job, I will miss being at home, keeping things clean and keeping all the laundry caught up all the time. It's actually been nice to be on top of things again. I think Gary will miss that too.
Well, no sense counting my chicks before they're hatched. But I think if I am offered the job I will counter with an additional week of vacation. I don't even care about whether or not it's a paid week, I just want to be able to have the time off if I need it. We'll see.
Sunday, July 18, 2010
I still need a girl's lawnmower...
I can finally start the lawnmower by myself, which makes me proud of myself, but even though Michael has discovered there is a way to keep it running even when you don't want the wheels to turn by letting the "dead man" thingie go about halfway, that only works for men or women with longer fingers than mine. That means that when I need to turn corners I still have to try to drag the lawnmower backwards a little bit so I don't miss great big hunks of lawn. This is not easy considering the lawnmower is already trying to go forward much faster than I am comfortable with. (And this is on the slowest speed.) In fact, this last time I mowed the lawn, the lawnmower was absolutely determined to get away from me and nearly escaped to the street on two occasions.
The Wizard has pronounced it painful to watch me mow the lawn. Well, he can call it painful if he wants to but judging by the twitching of his lips I would say he laughs in the face of pain.
I also got the flower bed all weeded, and my zinnias are beginning to bloom. That makes me happy. That plus I am about 1/3 of the way through with cleaning out my closet. I love de-junking the house. The Wizard hates it when I get into this kind of mood. :)
Monday, May 31, 2010
Vicki
I got back a few days ago from a funeral. My brother, Gary, called several weeks ago to let us know that his wife (I don't know if they were actually married technically, but they've been together for 26 years so at the very least they were common-law husband and wife) had passed away. She was diagnosed in January with lung cancer that had already metastasized to her liver and bones, so they knew she was not long for this world.
I hadn't seen Vicki for many years, but my memories of her were that of a very kind, courteous woman who brought out the best in my brother and allowed him to let go of the more difficult parts of himself. He would be the first to admit that because of her he became the best he could be. He has said that he hadn't realized, until she was gone, how much they were connected soul to soul. When they were together they were always very kind and considerate to each other, and that always impressed me. You never saw one of them go into the kitchen to get something only for themselves, they always asked if the other wanted something as well. And of course that extended to anyone else who happened to be nearby as well. Anyway, it always struck me that they were thoughtful of one another's needs...
After a little considering, I decided to go to her memorial service, and of course Dad went with me. He is always so supportive and I appreciate that so much about him. I didn't know if my brother would really want me there, since we don't always see eye to eye on things. In fact, we often tend to take offense at the things we say to each other so I worried that maybe it wouldn't be a good thing to go, but I wanted to show my support and to be honest I wanted to bury the hatchet, if there was one to be buried.
I shouldn't have worried about it. Gary was grateful to see us. Dad and I stayed with Mona (thanks Mona!) in her new house in Vacaville. (more on that later, it's the first time I've been there and I want to talk about that.) We drove to Sacramento about an hour before the services were to start and when we arrived most of the people were waiting outside since the weather was nice. We got out of the car (a rented new beetle) and saw Gary right away. He was standing with my step sister, Barb (who I also hadn't seen in a very long time) and daughter Grace. As soon as I saw him we hugged and of course I cried and told him I loved him and that I was very sorry for his loss. He and Vicki were very much in love and I hated to see him hurting. I asked him if the two of us could just start over and forgive and forget any past offenses and he said yes we could.
After chatting for a few moments with Gary and also Barb, and being introduced to her daughter Grace, we headed into the church for the service. The service itself was short, and Barb's son Mack (we called him Mackie when he was a toddler) read scripture for part of the service. He looks a lot like his father, Mack, who we also got to talk to for a little while. After the service there were some refreshments served for those who attended.
Gary didn't want to keep the flowers from the service so Barb and her family and Dad, Mona, and I drove to the cemetery and left some of the flowers on my dad's grave. It's actually the first time I've been to his grave, he died when I was pregnant with Carolyn. I'll see if I can figure out how to post a couple of the pictures I took with my phone.
Anyway, later that day we had dinner with Mona, Grandma Marilyn (my dad's widow), her daughter Sherri, and Sherri's husband Ashley. It was nice to see them and get re-connected. Dad left to fly home early the next morning but I decided to stay a few extra days to visit with Mona. Her home is a wonderful place. There are three bedrooms, the master bedroom, a bedroom Mona has set up as a home office, and a guest room. There is a "great room" downstairs that consists of a really nice kitchen with upgraded appliances, a dining area, and the living area. There's a 2-car garage, and the best part is a backyard that's small but perfectly designed to be a retreat from the real world. My favorite part of the yard is a solar fountain that's a mermaid. Plus there are all kinds of tiny little succulents and perfect little plants and a few small statues... Everywhere you look you discover something else. It gave me a lot of ideas for a tiny yard in Florida. :)
Well, anyway, that's what I was up to for the last week. Now let's see if I can get the pictures posted. Oh,, look... I did it.
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