Oh, the REUBENity!

Monday is Reuben Day at the Senior Center. They can't fool Val, even if they DO list it under Broccoli Cheddar Soup these days. Reuben Sandwich is clearly on the menu for Monday, along with the soup, and SLAW, and Lemon Cake.

Val won't be getting a Reuben. 

I have that feeling in my bones. Hick hasn't said as much. I HAVE told him for a few days in a row that Reuben is on the Monday menu. He has merely nodded. Which is not a good sign. Especially after he mentioned Sunday morning that he had some chairs to pick up on Monday morning.

"That dentist who is giving away all the chairs is letting me get them Monday morning. I'll find some way to use them. Then if I can get away by 10:00 or 11:00, I'll have time to drive up and look at that trailer, and get back without going through rush hour traffic."

That right there is the nail in Reuben's coffin.

Hick will be too busy wheeling and dealing and (possibly) trailer-buying to have lunch at the Senior Center and bring me a Reuben. 

The Universe is as sly as Mr. Grinch. Everything happens on Reuben Day.

Where There's Smoke, There's a Worried Val

I pulled into The Pony's driveway on Thursday, to pick up my little companion for Errand Day. Smoke was billowing around the back of the house! I tried not to jump to conclusions. No way could I run inside and carry The Pony out on my shoulders. I can barely carry myself from T-Hoe to convenience store.

Maybe The Pony was sitting in the Rogue, waiting for me, and had started up the engine. It was 37 degrees. Yeah. That must be it. Car exhaust in the cold air. But no. That car wasn't running. Nobody inside. The smoke came from the other side of The Pony's house. The kitchen side, next to the neighbors.

Well. Perhaps The Pony was doing laundry. I don't know where the dryer vent is, but my own dryer makes that billowy white smoke during the winter. That must be it. Heat from the dryer, condensing in the cold air. 

The Pony came trotting out. Whew!

"Is your house on fire?"

"No. I don't think so."

"Are you doing laundry?"

"Nope."

"What's all that smoke! Look at it!"

"Huh. I did not know it was doing that. But don't worry. It's probably just the sewer. The city sent out a notice. They're doing a smoke test of the sewers over three days. This is the middle day. I don't have any smoke coming up in my house. So I figure everything at my end must be okay."

When I backed out and then turned onto the street in front of The Pony's house, we saw a crew with two or three city trucks several houses away. So I believed that was the source of the smoke. I asked Hick the next day about why they would be doing that.

"Is it to see if the sewer is blocked? Or if any smoke goes up into houses? Should all that smoke have been pouring out beside The Pony's house, there by the kitchen?"

"That's where The Pony's sewer vent is. The smoke could have been coming out there. The trap keeps it from going into the house. So that's working. I don't know why they would be doing a test. Maybe to see if the smoke comes out of the storm drains. Drain water is not supposed to mix with sewer water. According to the EPA."

The more you know... the less you worry about The Pony's house burning down at the first sign of smoke.

Some Flipping Trivialities

Hick took a small break from flipping and selling on Friday morning, to drive me to an annual doctor (Nurse Practitioner) appointment. Don't you worry about Hick losing any sales. His son, The Veteran, sat in the shop to handle any customers. Of course Hick drove (20 miles) down there to open up at 6:30. Then came home at 8:00 to take me to the 9:00 appointment. We were back home at 10:00. It's a big help for me, having Hick drop me off at the door.

Hick said on his way back to his SUS2.5, he was stopping by Bargain House to turn on a fan in the kitchen. It was to help the ceiling dry faster. Hick hired a buddy for $150 to put up plywood and drywall to patch the hole in the kitchen ceiling. Hick and Old Buddy usually do this themselves. But this buddy does it for a living. Included in the price is making the swirls on that section match the swirls on the existing ceiling. The buddy said that is no problem, he does it all the time. Hick said he figures this way is cheaper than paying Old Buddy $15 an hour for his efforts, and the finished ceiling will be better.

When Hick ordered the two pieces of silver backsplash needed to finish the job, he assumed they would be shipped to the Lowe's store, and he'd pick them up like usual things he orders. He found out Thursday, by email, that those two pieces will be shipped directly to our address. 

"That will take extra time, because it won't fit in the mailbox or parcel lockers. We'll get a notice, and I'll have to pick them up at the post office the next day. They're 18 inches by 24 inches."

"I don't think so. I bet Lowe's doesn't use the USPS. I bet they use FedEx. Or UPS."

Indeed, when checking the tracking during my appointment, Hick discovered that his backsplash is coming by FedEx.

I haven't heard anything about the backordered cabinet handles. Hick got the sale price, but I don't know where they will be shipped. The gray flooring (for the FLOOR) should be delivered to the store on Tuesday.

This upcoming week will have three days with temps in the 50s. So hopefully Hick will use that opportunity to power wash the side of Bargain House.

Also, Hick talked to the city building inspector about Cheap House. The city had given the original owner a short window of time to clean up the property (even though I don't think it looks bad at all). Hick explained how the closing has been delayed. The building inspector told Hick that until he actually takes possession, he is not responsible for that property. That the city will give a little extra time, considering this situation. And then notify the financial institution that is going to foreclose, and they, or the original owner, will have to go board up the windows and secure the property so it's not an eyesore or a hazard.

Hick has an appointment on Monday to look at another trailer. The destroyed trailer is sitting in the BARn field. If Hick takes a picture, I'll share it. He was able to save ONE of the new tires on it. Possibly another one, which he thinks only popped off the rim. 

Hick Shops for Backsplash, and SHINY!

Since nobody liked the gray flooring alongside the gray patterned countertop, Hick went shopping for other backsplash options for Bargain House. Apparently, Hick is easily distracted by SHINY things, and came back with this on Sunday:

"How do you like this seems will line up." I liked it just fine. So on Monday, Hick fastened it into place.

"Two pieces on rest tomorrow." I asked if he was going to put it around the window. "Window gets trimmed so maybe above the window."

Wednesday, Hick put the counter and sink in place, and trimmed the window.

"Sink and counter setting in place got to put the corner in." Hick is short two pieces of the backsplash. He went to Lowe's for more, and it is out of stock, so he ordered it. Also, he wanted to get some handles for the cabinets. They were on sale. But out of stock! Hick ordered them, too. They are black, long handles, not knobs.

Hick is at a standstill until his materials come in. Supposedly on Monday. He will be putting down that gray flooring, but not until Old Buddy is done painting, and with the ceiling. Just about all that remains will be painting the door, and getting under the house to hook up the sink pipes. And power-washing the side of the house, once the temperature is above freezing for a day or two. Oh, and putting on the door for the shower in the small bathroom, which Hick had to order.

Bargain House nears completion!

Val's Gut Might Have Been Right

Try to remember that time in September, when Hick and The Pony were all hyped up to buy Cheap House. When the 2/3 partnership ruled, and Val was outvoted. It's a nice little house in a nice little neighborhood, over by the School-Turn Casey's. It's pretty close to Bargain House. The problem is that it's a junked-up house in ill repair on the inside, though structurally sound. The biggest problem is that I'm concerned about the sellers. 

Cheap House was about to be a foreclosure. Hick got a tip from a Loan Officer, saying it wasn't quite ready yet. When he drove by to look at it, the lady who was selling it (for a relative) was there, and let Hick inside. She told Hick the amount owed on the house. They forged a deal. Off the books, Hick would pay her a little bonus for her help, as long as he could have the contents of the shed in the back yard. She could have anything she wanted inside the house. The bonus plus Hick's offer were a bit less than the amount owed to the loan company. Hick's offer was accepted on September 18th. So we got a good deal.

Well. We MIGHT get a good deal. We're still waiting for a closing date!!!

The loan company sent information to a title company to start the paperwork for the closing. Hick called both places over the past couple months, seeking info on when we could close. Supposedly they were tying up loose ends, getting The Lady to sign some paperwork. I again told Hick that I didn't have a good feeling about this deal. It shouldn't take so long. My original concern is still in effect: The Lady's relative might not want to sell, despite giving her power of attorney to do the deal. 

Hick said that wouldn't happen. But he was already wrong on one item, in that the relative is roaming freely among us, when originally that was not the case. Anyhoo... Hick said he told the title company that he wanted a complete title search, and title insurance.

The closing was finally scheduled for Tuesday, December 9th. Hick got that date when he called last week. But no time. He emphasized that he would need the amount, to go by the bank for a check. Yet there was no contact. Monday, the day before the mystery-o'clock closing, Hick called the Loan Officer to find out what was going on with the title company, since nobody was telling him anything.

There are two judgments against the property. To a total of around $7000. This was discovered during the title search for our title insurance. The loan company had no idea. The wait is for The Lady to sign paperwork with a financial institution to take care of that $7000.

Val's gut knows its stuff! If a Cheap House seems too good to true, it most likely IS. Hick says it won't be a problem, even if some other lien comes up after our purchase. That the title company will be on the hook for that. It's what title insurance is for. Without it, we would have to pay the judgment, or we couldn't resell the house. 

I hope Hick knows title insurance better than trailer insurance...

The Big Bad Wolf Bear

Hick played Santa on Saturday, for a local preschool group. He does it every year, taking little gifts to hand out to the kids. Nothing extravagant. He usually spends around $100 on them. Toys suitable for that age, which he takes in a bag, pulls the bag in a wagon, then dumps the toys in. The kids line up, and get to talk to Santa, then choose a toy from the wagon. 

Hick bought his toys this year. He left them out in SilverRedO, so I didn't see what he got. He just transferred them to his bag in A-Cad before going to the event. He DID have two boxes of toys that he was sorting through on the couch. One of them worried me.

"Are you giving those toys to the kids?"

"Yeah. My buddy gave them to me, for free, to hand out. He's been helping clean out his mother's house, and they're toys nobody needs now."

"I can understand those little action figures. But that big one? That WOLF??? It will scare those kids to death!"

"Wolf? There ain't no wolf. Oh, you mean the BEAR. Somebody'll want it."

"I don't know. They're just little kids. It might give them nightmares! Look at its face!"

"It'll be fine, Val. I guarantee you some kid will want that bear."

The Wolf Bear was at least 18 inches tall. It wasn't a fluffy stuffed toy. Just a resin figure you might set in a shelf. The expression was fierce.

MARK YOU CALENDAR! Val was WRONG! But even worse... Hick was RIGHT!

Hick was thrilled to tell me about the Wolf Bear.

"There was this one little girl, about 3. She went over to my wagon, and picked up that bear. Her mom and dad said, 'Are you sure that's what you want?' And she nodded her head and wrapped both arms around that bear, and wouldn't put it down. She carried it the whole time. She LOVED that bear."

Val stands corrected.

Hick Takes It on the Chin After a Chomp to His Rumpus

Hick's penchant for lending out his "toys" has come back to bite him on the rumpus. He has been waiting to hear from The Buddy about what insurance says concerning his wrecked trailer. Meanwhile, Hick did a little investigating and calling around on his own. He was wrong about insurance coverage on a trailer.

The only insurance Hick's trailer had was liability insurance. That was automatic, with the insurance on the pulling vehicle. All these years, Hick had assumed that a trailer is covered like the vehicle. Nope. It takes a separate insurance policy, just like a vehicle. You can bet Hick will do that with his NEXT trailer. If he ever gets one.

"That lady dealing with The Buddy's insurance from the truck rental called me back this morning. Right after I sent her a nasty email. She said that my trailer won't be covered, which I figured out by now. But she also said they ain't done nothin' with the claim yet because they don't have nothin' from The Buddy! A relative of his was handling all this, and ain't turned nothin' in! Not even the police report from the accident! So this insurance cain't do nothin'. I think he's using his regular insurance. Anyway, he's just gonna hafta buy me another trailer. There's no way around it."

"We can afford to buy you a trailer. He can make payments. Even if it's just a little bit a week. So he won't feel bad, and you can get paid back. There's no need to go without a trailer. You NEED a trailer. Just stop loaning it!"

"I'll have to look for one and see if I can get a deal. It's a 16-foot double axle dovetail trailer. I got my first one from a guy where I used to work, for $500. It'll be a lot more now!"

"You'll have to look around for a used one."

"I'm having the wrecked trailer hauled out here, so I can get my tires off it. I just put on 4 new tires this summer. It's gonna cost me $285 for the tow. I'll tell The Buddy he can junk the rest of the trailer. Sell it for scrap. Then he'll have a little bit of the money to start paying me back."

Being a nice guy is kind of expensive...