Dear Diary
I bought a drill last week. My drill and I bonded yesterday over curtain brackets in the kitchen and then today we (my drill and I) moved our fun into the bedroom. Now there are more curtains in the house, making it homier. The bedroom looks especially nice.
I found out from my ins. company that I need to make some modifications to the front of the house to make it safer to walk up the stairs. That means pushing back the electrical upgrade a few months depending on how much that will cost. My tenant also had some issues with a leaky pipe. I’d called Roto-Rooter first and the guy tried to charge me 200 bucks plus the part to replace one measly pipe. I sent him on his way and called the handyman I’m sharing with other people. This was all yesterday. I saw his truck parked outside today and now it’s not there. I’m assuming some fixing was accomplished. I don’t know. I am not calling the tenant because part of me doesn’t want to hear that it might not be done yet.
Later this week I have to install smoke detectors in the tenants’ bedrooms. My friend the drill will be helping me out.
My other tenant has yet to pay me rent. they usually pay on the 15th. It’s the 18th. I left a phone message.
Some guy in the city fire department is helping me research fire records on my house. I was told there was a fire in the basement in the 1950’s, so I want to find out more about the extent of the damage and all that good stuff. This house was built in 1920.
Since I don’t have a washer/dryer in my house yet, I’m flirting with the idea of wash and fold service. Thanks to my friend Pat I haven’t had to go to a laundromat since I moved here. The idea of wash and fold is titillating to me. I feel like I could use the time I’d ordinarily spend in the laundromat to do other things.
Today I’ve been reading my old journals from the mid 80s all the way up to college. The older I get the less interesting the entries have been. At some point I could possibly share these with you. We’ll see.
If i suddenly stop talking about the house, it’s because I got paranoid. I don’t know if you know this but if you google my first and last name, this blog is one of the results. I’ve been aware of this for a long time. Don’t try this at home!
daily life, home improvement | sighclub February 18, 2007
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By Jamie, February 19, 2007 @ 12:26 am
Your friend the drill? Is your “friend” Pat a person? I’m so confused!
By kristen, February 19, 2007 @ 3:21 pm
Pat is a person. drill is a dill
By Geo, February 19, 2007 @ 6:12 pm
I’m sure everything will be fine (and sicerely hop it is, obviously), but it’s less than a week later after your “I seriously don’t know why more people I know don’t own multi-family homes” comment –and now maybe you see why some of us don’t and wouldn’t want to.
Personally, I’d have even higher blood pressure than I already do if I had to start worrying every month whether or not tenants were going to pay me (and I’m enough of a worry-wart that three days late would set my emotional pots a-rattlin’)
But some folks (and I hope you are one of them) can calmly handle such things.
And as a security freak, yes, I encourage you to be careful about posting TMI about the old homestead on the blog–but you’re a smart cookie and I’m sure you are already being cautious.
(Sorry for being such a nervous Nellie, but I worry about people I like, even people I don’t know that well! That’s why I’d be a bad landlord!)
By kristen, February 19, 2007 @ 6:23 pm
well i got lucky with the tenants I have. I’m not worried about the rent collection – i think it’s more miscommunication than anything else. And i totally hear that not everyone should do it, i just don’t know why MORE people don’t.
But i’ll exclude you from that next time. Maybe i’ll say, “I don’t know why more people, except nervous nellies, don’t do own multi-families.”
By kristen, February 21, 2007 @ 7:07 am
oh by the way… it was a misunderstanding on the rent. They actually don’t usually pay until the end of the month. See? miscommunication taken care of with a phone call. Rest easy now, geo.
By kelp!, February 23, 2007 @ 12:52 am
You go with your big bad drill! I for one want to hear about your house and landlording adventures!
By knitgirl, March 4, 2007 @ 3:28 pm
Now you’ve made me too paranoid to google myself.
I am always surprised when someone I know has found my blog. It is disconcerting….and worrysome, but I try and keep it general, or anonymous when I really do have to dish about someone….. : )