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Apartment Living – Competitive Parking
Life in a moderate density apartment complex is fun, and I mean that in the most positive way. The property management team does try to be fair, particularly around “parking“. Each unit has one assigned space. There is a “permit” (a mirror hangar) that looks impossible to counterfeit. And even if you could, the spaces…
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Apartment Living – The Exodus
While we have been here only a month, we have noticed an exodus of tenants. The residents are moving out in droves, hence the overflowing trash with household goods. I had wondered why there were so many people moving out, but hadn’t put much thought into it. A part of the puzzle fell into place…
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Apartment Living – Living with less space
Having the shock of going from ~2,400 sqft to < 1,200 sqft is enough. While we never filled out last house, we had collected a lot of “stuff“. But there are things we have lost that hurt. Today, I will talk about kitchen space Both our houses in Arizona had ample counter space. In Tucson,…
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The Travel Log – carry on baggage
My work keeps me on the road a lot. I am a frequent flier, in and out of airports all over the country and the world. In the new world order, with domestic carriers trying to extract the most fees from fliers, charging for checked bags, has encouraged everyone to carry on their luggage. This wouldn’t…
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Apartment Living – Maintenance
There is one benefit of leasing an apartment (or even a house) that I was looking forward to: Your landlord is responsible for all the routine maintenance. No longer if the plumbing springs a leak, or a drain clogs, or a hot water heater dies, do I need to call a repairman or roll up…
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Apartment Living – Competitive Laundry
Continuing on in the vein of apartment living adjustments, this episode will be about the laundry situation. As the units do not have hookups for washers and dryers, we have four laundry rooms spread across the campus. Open from 9:00AM until 10:00PM, they are convenient oases for those needing to do laundry. Of course, there…
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Competitive Panhandling
Unless you just arrived from Mars, odds are high that you have see the panhandlers working the off-ramps. It is a pretty simple scam. Look scruffy, carry a sign with a sob story, and make eye contact with the drivers waiting at the light. While there might be some seriously needy people, the vast majority…
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Apartment Living – Communal Trash
The continuing saga of apartment living; today we will talk about the common trash area. The complex has three parking lots, and in each parking lot has a common trash collection area. Three large trash bins, and one recycling bin. One would think that would be sufficient capacity. And they would be, if all was…
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Relocation: The Commute
Recap: I have been relocated to the San Jose area after living in Arizona for 11+ years. I grew up here, so I am not too shocked at what we have come back to. Today I will offer my observations of the commute, and the drivers, particularly how they have changed in the last 11…
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Apartment Life – the less pleasant bit(s)
I forgot how much “fun” it was living in close proximity with a wide demographic. That was brought back into focus last night around 11:40. The master bedroom is facing the street (boo) but it also is over the little patio we have on the back. At about 11:40, there was a bit of a…