Humpday Happenings...
Mid-week already....well, that's what occurs when you have a Monday holiday, isn't it?
To many of you, it must still seem like Tuesday.
I know I have to pull a reality-check by peeping the calendar.
Still, time marches on.
And with that, let's take a look at some "stuff", shall we?
*** Tonight at sundown marks the beginning of the Jewish holiday Rosh Hashanah.
This is looked upon as the "New Year", but also means "a day of rest", AND a day of judgment, signified by the blowing of the SHOFAR (a trumpet made from a ram's horn).
Talk about efficiency.
ALL that rolled into ONE day...OY!
And rather amazing!
Now, if you're wondering about this holiday and want some details, here's a site that has everything you need to bone up on the holiday:
http://www.chabad.org/holidays/JewishNewYear/template_cdo/aid/4644/jewish/Rosh-Hashanah.htm
Hey, you don't have to be Jewish to become interested in the Hebrew culture.
After all, if one were to follow the (Old Testament) BIBLICAL aspect to humanity, we are ALL descended from the TWELVE tribes of Israel.

(that oughta piss off a LOT of Muslims, eh?)
So, we ALL have a vested interest in Hebrew history...or maybe we should.
Moving on...
*** A house two doors down from us had a sign placed on it saying: HOUSE FOR SALE.

(ahem...)
It's been vacant almost TWO years, so maybe it's time someone did something about the property. I would have razed it...the fewer hovels, the better, but it DOES block my view of the undesireables down the block (Thank God for the small things in life).
It's not a bad looking place, but I heard the water backed up into the basement (indoor pool?)...so you can figure out the rest.
On the sign was a phone number 260-436-5000, so I checked out the number.
And I was amazed at what I found.
There were at least TEN websites with that same number, all different in appearance, but with the same overall "message"...
This place will likely become the newest "rent-to-own" hovel or the FWHA will get some HUD'ers into it, and we start the game all over again with yet another once nice property.
The list of places with this phone number were as follows:
-- Rentdigs.com
-- EZHomebuyers
(activerain.com/homebuyers)
-- HudClips.org.
-- TheRehabcash.com
-- Applyforthehouse.com
-- The Home Support Team
(homesupportteam.com)
-- CasaPorContracto.com
(they also have another house on our street listed)
-- FWHAhomes.com
-- HomeLoanPromise.com
-- HomesHotList.com
ALL of these websites have the EXACT same telephone number with two extensions (x221 or x222).
Now, I could see one, or perhaps two sites hawking houses, but THIS many?
Something just doesn't smell right here.
And NOTHING about these homes on ANY of the "normal" realtor websites, such as ReMax, or Century 21.
Why, it's AS IF they are attempting to get "certain" people into these houses.
That appears to be BIASED, doesn't it?
I mean regular folks COULD find these as nice starter houses.
But this type of fly-by-night "realty agent" doesn't seem to bother with such people.
They want the gov't subsidised folks...the ones in financial slavery to the Feds.
*** Funny thing about all this ownership-landlord-mortgaging gamesmanship these days...we're actually seeing a growing trend with people wanting (or having) to move back to a less rural setting.
And that COULD be a boon for neighborhoods such as MINE...provisionally-speaking. There are caveats now, but that can change.
You have GOT to get the criminal element OUT of the ghettohood FIRST.
THEN, you can reclaim the area, and put decent families back INTO the houses such people were originally chased from.
I've said for quite a while that these houses would be perfect for disabled VETS, seniors, and even young families just getting started.
Most of them are single floor dwellings in the 1000-1200 sq. ft. range. Some have garages (both attached and detached) and all of them have off-street parking for at least ONE car.
We have sidewalks here on most ALL the streets (although you'd never know it by the current crop of what passes for humanity, who prefer to use the middle of the street, instead), and if nothing else, this area has POTENTIAL.
It COULD become a fully-revitalized area with all the tax money the city sorely needs...IF ONLY something were done to reverse this blight.
Like I said....rid the area of CRIME (and those responsible), and you CAN turn it all back around.
I might even be able to mow my lawn without packing heat for a change...wouldn't THAT be nice?
*** The missus and I are making our list of things that need to get done, such as a roof for the house (we had a new garage roof put on 2 years ago), and since we've got a drip in the one downstairs room, MAYBE it's time to get that roof.
Our property-line fence needs replacing, as two posts have all but rotted away. Yesterday's gusting winds had it flapping like laundry on the clothesline...not a good thing to see a FENCE do, I must say.
I'm going to "get creative" and try to BUTCH something to keep it standing while we get the ball rolling on having it replaced...another grand to get that done!
If there is ONE thing I don't want, it's an unsecured perimeter...not with THESE "people" around.
So, when completed, it will compliment the OTHER fences we had installed over a year ago to replace those that rotted out.
And then there are the front steps...the crumbling ones near the sidewalk AND the ones against the house that have settled "stern-first", looking wonderfully unattractive. We need them replaced and railings added to the new steps (per city code).
We also can use a new STEEL front door to replace the wooden one that sticks. along with a new threshold to keep the winter OUTSIDE where it belongs.
So while we're at it, what the hell...toss on a new SCREEN DOOR as well. Another thousand bucks for THAT.
And we can't have one new screen door without the other, so let's slap one on the REAR entrance.
I mean, it's nice to have a "matching set", right?
MY concern with ANY of these "Improvements", is that whatever we SINK into the house (monetarily)...we will NEVER recoup ANY of it back, should we sell the place.
The way the city has ALLOWED this part of town to fall down the crapper is testimony to that.
We become the penalized...because we OWN a house...and we PAY taxes, which from a property tax standpoint have dropped incredibly over the last few years...not bad, but it's a helluva price to pay for LOWER taxes.
With lower taxes comes a level of ignorance on behalf of the city (and specifically the council members representing OUR part of town) that knows no bounds.
Crime can't seem to be halted or even slowed, people that move into the area are less cordial than a junkyard mutt (and have way more attitude), and this "anything goes" mindset is the order of the day to such ingrates.

You hate to dump GOOD money into something you KNOW will not reap any benefit, other than the fact that YOU are living like a normal human being. And I suppose that alone will have to suffice...for now.
We're not worrying about NOT having the funds for all this...we DO, but it's nice to NOT have to blow the wad in one fell swoop, don'cha think?
Problem is, life doesn't come at you in times of YOUR own convenience...it comes when IT wants to.
And that should be something we need to remember.
It's nice to be prepared for the worst, even if it never occurs.
But, it's nicer still to be prepared when the worst DOES come along.
Always be prepared, and you will never be left standing alone with your fly unzipped, wondering where that draft is coming from, kapeesh?
Therein lies the lesson for today.
Be well, make a difference to someone, and...
Stay safe out there, America.