Yo. After visits to more than 40 houses, treks through neighborhoods far and near, and a trail of now-scattered MLS listings, I FINALLY FOUND A HOUSE. At this point, I don't know who is more excited, me or my real estate agent. The place went on the market on Monday afternoon, Stephanie (the Agent), called me and demanded that I meet here there in an hour. I saw the listing (looked good) and the priced (looked low), so I met her. Saw it, made an offer that night, wrote a brown-nosing, "Gosh, I love your place" letter - and my bid was accepted.
Right away, I realized the place was near perfect. It's in a neighborhood I like (Beaumont-Wilshire), with a nice central area, SBUX, 2 dog shops, gourmet food shop, and a few great restaurants. There are three bedrooms, 1 bath, warm wood floors, a fireplace, great backyard with landscaping, including a "water feature" with goldfish. I just learned of the goldfish at today's inspection, so maybe I'll add them to the contract (along with a Fix the Roof or I'm Backing Out clause...). Actually the roof is going to be a wee bone of contention, as the owners just got an estimate and the remarks were that it would be fine for next 3-5 yrs. I am paying enough for the place, that they'll have to figure it out. Oh, best part, a Bose speaker system installed in the living and dining rooms, and kitchen. Booming sounds, ya!
Have a great weekend - and any advice on care for outdoor goldfish is more than welcome. NATHAN
Friday, February 24, 2006
Wednesday, February 22, 2006
Fifty-eigth posting - who knew?
This morning I was jolted out of my chair by the clanging of an over-sized cowbell. Turns out that when my company has a Million Dollar Day, my administrator walks into the lobby and rings said cowbell. Brilliant.
NATHAN
NATHAN
Wednesday, February 15, 2006
Fifty-seventh posting - Polynesia
A short entry today, friends.
(1) There is an active movement afoot here called Keep Portland Weird. This manifests itself in the odd combination of great cafes and restaurants in undeveloped, industrial locations; in the surprisingly high unemployment combined with fast-growing inner city gentrification; in the (healthy) obsession the city has with bike friendliness; and in the complete lack of pretension (I could imagine hearing the following – “Wow, Martha’s wearing her “good fleece” tonight – must be a fancy date.”)
(2) Serious discussions at the office include the words ripped, stacked, rockin' and killer; the merits of advertising in Muscle Polynesia magazine; and how Preacher Curls are through the roof.
(3) Regarding the home search, I have seen more than 30 houses over the past 4 weeks. Of them, I’d say 3 were really close to what I’m looking for, and 2 would have been ok in a pinch. I am beginning to get the knack for spotting a “flipped” house, which may not be a bad thing (if it was “flipped” well). Unlike the Old Curry House back East, this time I will buy what I really really like.
(4) My training has been taken up a notch by a woman who started here when I did. She’s a chatty marathoner, which makes running not such a chore. An odd duck, but a good companion. Like my bro-in-law next weekend, hopefully I can get a half-marathon in this spring…
(5) Dick Cheney is an asshole.
That’s it, kids. NATHAN
(1) There is an active movement afoot here called Keep Portland Weird. This manifests itself in the odd combination of great cafes and restaurants in undeveloped, industrial locations; in the surprisingly high unemployment combined with fast-growing inner city gentrification; in the (healthy) obsession the city has with bike friendliness; and in the complete lack of pretension (I could imagine hearing the following – “Wow, Martha’s wearing her “good fleece” tonight – must be a fancy date.”)
(2) Serious discussions at the office include the words ripped, stacked, rockin' and killer; the merits of advertising in Muscle Polynesia magazine; and how Preacher Curls are through the roof.
(3) Regarding the home search, I have seen more than 30 houses over the past 4 weeks. Of them, I’d say 3 were really close to what I’m looking for, and 2 would have been ok in a pinch. I am beginning to get the knack for spotting a “flipped” house, which may not be a bad thing (if it was “flipped” well). Unlike the Old Curry House back East, this time I will buy what I really really like.
(4) My training has been taken up a notch by a woman who started here when I did. She’s a chatty marathoner, which makes running not such a chore. An odd duck, but a good companion. Like my bro-in-law next weekend, hopefully I can get a half-marathon in this spring…
(5) Dick Cheney is an asshole.
That’s it, kids. NATHAN
Wednesday, February 08, 2006
Fifty-sixth posting - lie
Friends, I am writing to you from 30,000 feet, on my way home from a few days in sunny, sunny, sunny San Diego. At my old company, sales meetings were in Chicago or suburban New York. Yawn. At my new company, they’re wherever the team wants to go. At my old company, hundreds of people went to sales meetings. At my new company, I presented to the entire retail sales organization – all nine of them…. Although the hotel was beautiful and reminded me of a Disney theme-park, the trip isn’t really the subject of today’s blog….
So I’ve developed a bit of a Saturday morning ritual. When the weather’s crappy, I take an indoor cycling class at 8, then walk across the street to the Byways Café for breakfast. It’s a great place and has been around for decades, and the latest owner (Anne) has filled it with kitschy 50s diner memorabilia, like plates and placemats and… yes, MUGS! Of course, they fill the mugs with phenomenal Peet’s coffee, which makes them that much better.
Anyway, this past Saturday, sitting at the counter, I started talking to the 50ish woman next to me, Susan. She pointed out the café owner and introduced me to a couple of other folks who worked there. Evidently she’s well-known around the area. Turns out that she’s also a good friend of the director Gus Van Sant, who lives down the street, she’s the mother of a not un-famous actor, John Robinson, who starred in The Lords of Dogtown and Elephant. It turns out that John’s latest film is scheduled to be released in March but not without a little controversy. For those of you artsy, literary types, you may have read about this in the New York Times. I hadn’t, but it’s interesting.
Several years ago, JT LeRoy wrote a book about his childhood as a truck-stop prostitute. It’s called The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things. Catchy, eh? Evidently it was a terrible, terrible story, but it somehow ended fairy well in that he was placed in foster care and later adopted by a loving couple. His problems didn’t end, though, and years later, he successfully underwent surgery to become a woman. After the book got some initial publicity, and JT made the literary rounds (as a woman), several famous people, including Suzanne Vega, became personally involved because of the book. This involvement led to the story being made into a film, starring the aforementioned John Robinson.
The reason I’m telling you this now is that John’s mother learned that very morning that morning that JT was a completely made up person. The two conspirators who “created” JT LeRoy tried to throw off any leads with the sex-change act, and the woman who’s been traipsing around as JT in front of the literati was the sister-in-law of one of the conspirators. Oprah thought she had something with the author of A Million Tiny Pieces. This one’s even bigger. I don’t know how the ruse was finally exposed, but it had something to do with where the royalties were going and what expenses were being billed.
At first I thought, good for him/her/them for sticking it to the Man. Then I realized that JT’s creators were asking for sympathy and lying about a horrible childhood tragedy. It’s one thing to fabricate a harmless story; it’s another to use this tragedy for pure financial gain.
Enjoy your weeks. NATHAN
(By the way, lest you think Play to Win!; Fewer, Bigger, Better; and All Hands On Deck are the meaningless slogans of just my old company… Nope, my new one uses them, too.)
So I’ve developed a bit of a Saturday morning ritual. When the weather’s crappy, I take an indoor cycling class at 8, then walk across the street to the Byways Café for breakfast. It’s a great place and has been around for decades, and the latest owner (Anne) has filled it with kitschy 50s diner memorabilia, like plates and placemats and… yes, MUGS! Of course, they fill the mugs with phenomenal Peet’s coffee, which makes them that much better.
Anyway, this past Saturday, sitting at the counter, I started talking to the 50ish woman next to me, Susan. She pointed out the café owner and introduced me to a couple of other folks who worked there. Evidently she’s well-known around the area. Turns out that she’s also a good friend of the director Gus Van Sant, who lives down the street, she’s the mother of a not un-famous actor, John Robinson, who starred in The Lords of Dogtown and Elephant. It turns out that John’s latest film is scheduled to be released in March but not without a little controversy. For those of you artsy, literary types, you may have read about this in the New York Times. I hadn’t, but it’s interesting.
Several years ago, JT LeRoy wrote a book about his childhood as a truck-stop prostitute. It’s called The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things. Catchy, eh? Evidently it was a terrible, terrible story, but it somehow ended fairy well in that he was placed in foster care and later adopted by a loving couple. His problems didn’t end, though, and years later, he successfully underwent surgery to become a woman. After the book got some initial publicity, and JT made the literary rounds (as a woman), several famous people, including Suzanne Vega, became personally involved because of the book. This involvement led to the story being made into a film, starring the aforementioned John Robinson.
The reason I’m telling you this now is that John’s mother learned that very morning that morning that JT was a completely made up person. The two conspirators who “created” JT LeRoy tried to throw off any leads with the sex-change act, and the woman who’s been traipsing around as JT in front of the literati was the sister-in-law of one of the conspirators. Oprah thought she had something with the author of A Million Tiny Pieces. This one’s even bigger. I don’t know how the ruse was finally exposed, but it had something to do with where the royalties were going and what expenses were being billed.
At first I thought, good for him/her/them for sticking it to the Man. Then I realized that JT’s creators were asking for sympathy and lying about a horrible childhood tragedy. It’s one thing to fabricate a harmless story; it’s another to use this tragedy for pure financial gain.
Enjoy your weeks. NATHAN
(By the way, lest you think Play to Win!; Fewer, Bigger, Better; and All Hands On Deck are the meaningless slogans of just my old company… Nope, my new one uses them, too.)
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