Day 905

Yes, the rain did find a way inside last night. No, it didn't find its way to the carefully placed buckets I set out before I went to bed. Leaking water has a mind of its own. It just goes wherever it wants. After I cleaned up the puddles in the living room and utility room, I drove down to the rent property to make sure that water hadn't leaked in there as well. The place was clean and dry. It even smelled nice, because the real estate agent had set a bowl of potpourri on the coffee table when he staged the place.

It's kind of ironic. The rent property I'm selling is actually in much better condition that the house I'm living in. To keep the place occupied and tenants happy, I've always made necessary repairs to the rent house almost immediately. In contrast, I tend to put things off at my own house. "Maybe I'll have more money next year," I think. "What's the point," I rationalize. "The dogs will just tear it up anyway." Sometimes I even convince myself that the problems will fix themselves. At any rate, the rent house looks really nice. Maybe that's why the new owners bought it.

I had a lot of errands to run today. It was nice to drive around in a new car. I think this is one reason the dealer gives you these nice loaner cars. After driving around in a new car for a week, it's easy to convince yourself that your old car is rubbish. I'm sure they'd like me to trade up to a new Land Rover. I wish I could get a new car every three years or so, like I did when I was an ad agency employee. As the owner of a small business, my income fluctuates too much to be casual about large purchases like I used to be. Some years I do pretty well, but other years, I make almost nothing after expenses. You just never know. I think a new car will just have to wait until the stock market makes a dramatic rebound. And when will that be? After the events of the past two years, I'm inclined to say never.

It rained off and on today, but thankfully, the dogs were calm. I think it's thunder that really sets them off. They're both smart enough however to associate rain with the thunder they fear. Even a gentle shower will make them nervous. They're always waiting for the other show to drop. I guess I'm the same way. I'm still superstitious that something's going to go wrong with the sale of my rent house, even though we close nest week. Janet thinks I've made the dogs neurotic. Of course, maybe it's the other way around.

Domino is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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Day 812

Life is entirely too complicated. I'm finally being forced to deal with the reality of an empty rent property. All the little things I need to do to make the transition to a new tenant are driving me nuts. I got the electricity for the rent house transferred back to my name today. This used to be an easy process that took about five seconds over the phone. Now, you've got to spend five minutes just to get a real person on the other end of the line and then things get even more difficult. The power company records your call and forces you to answer a barrage of questions before they'll even consider transferring the electric bill. When they finally agree to transfer the billing, you have to agree to pay a higher rate for "short term" service. Apparently, the power company now wants you to sign a two year contract just like the phone companies do. It's a bit ridiculous.

When I got all the electricity issues ironed out, I realized that I had lost my spare set of keys to the rent house. I have no idea where they are. I guess this proves that I'm pretty much a "hands off" landlord. I haven't been down to the place to inspect anything in over two years. Now, I'm going to have to ask my renter for the original set of keys, just so I can get inside the place. Of course, my tenant is going to want her entire security deposit back. Now, where did that money disappear to? All the real estate agents I know are going to call too, wanting to be my "leasing agent." Apparently this is what real estate agents do these days, now that they don't sell as many houses.

Hopefully, I can put all the rent house issues behind me before I have to concentrate on tax preparation. Dealing with tax problems and real estate problems at the same time would simply be too much to bear. I increasingly find myself envying the dogs. Although Dash occasionally worries about being attacked by another dog in the park again and Dot worries about her dinner being late, these pups don't have a care in the world.

I took Dash to the vet for his bi-weekly antigen shot today. It was the first time I've left the house in several days. There was an Avid Media Composer seminar downtown this afternoon that I kind of wanted to go to. I didn't want to deal with finding a parking place downtown though, so I skipped the event. That's kind of how things have become.

Anne is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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Day 785

I got a note from my tenant today saying that she was moving out in March. Oh, well. This one stayed over two years, which is a lot longer than some of my tenants. The young ones never stay very long. They fall in love. They find a new job. They evolve into something new, and then they're gone. The older tenants stay a lot longer, but they eventually get so grumpy that you wish they would leave.

I don't really like being a landlord. The renters never take care of the place very well and I'm always horrified to discover that they've taken the lovely white interior and painted the rooms some atrocious color. I think it says you can't paint right in the lease, but nobody seems to listen. Renters start to think it's their house until something breaks, and then they call me immediately to fix it. I really should just sell the place, but the younger crowd who likes the mid-century architecture can't seem to qualify for a mortgage anymore. Nobody seems to be able to come up with a down payment unless their parents give it to them. If I'd sold the rent house ten or twelve years ago, before the bubble burst, it would have been a good investment. I don't know if anything is a good investment anymore.

I lost the lens cap on my camera this morning while I was walking the dogs and discovered that Dot and Dash hate to retrace their steps. I was determined to find the lens cap, since little things like this are almost impossible to buy separately. Eventually, I found the elusive cap, but Dot and Dash certainly weren't any help. They were continually pulling on the leash to go in the opposite direction.

Somebody brought a really aggressive dog to training class tonight. Luckily, the dog was in the beginner's class instead of ours. Nobody in any of the classes wanted to go anywhere near this dog. I felt sorry for the owner. I'm sure she adopted the dog from a shelter, thinking she would give it a better life. You can never rest easy with an aggressive dog though. Even with the best training and care, you can never, ever let down your guard. If you adopt a dog like this, you are always going to wonder if today is the day your dog is going to snap. There are far too many nice, gentle dog who need good homes. I would avoid the mean ones.

It's going to get real cold again tonight. I'm pretty sure that this is what the rest of our Winter will be like. One day it will be 70 degrees and the next day it will be below freezing. That's just the way it is in Texas. We'll have a few really nice days in April and then it will suddenly be too hot again.

Taylor is today's Dalmatian of the Day

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