I'm sitting here in our local downtown coffee shop, Steeltown Coffee and Tea. As I was working I was thinking how much I like this little notebook. The Aspire Acer is easy to use and easy to carry. I have a small case that holds everything I need. When we first got the Dell I didn't think a 15" lap top would be "too big." Anyhow, I digress, I spoke too soon.
I was working on the blog when a lady walked up to my table and asked how I liked the "little computer." As we were talking a friend of hers joined us. They both had several questions that I answered as best I could. When I had satisfied their curiosity I refocused my attention to what I was doing and promptly erased my entire blog entry.
I was saying Wanda was getting a much needed massage just down the street. On the way to the massage she dropped me here and would join me in an hour or so. She wanted to come in and get a High Chai which is a Chi Tea with a shot of espresso. She did, by the way and it was very tasty.
Getting back to my blunder. I have been using various computers since 1998. I still haven't figured out which key is the one that erases all my work. I know it's there somewhere because I find it every once in a while, like I did today. One minute I had five paragraphs of writing and the next I had the letter t. With every change, or every few minutes, the auto save, auto saves. I obviously hit the "mystery key" and seconds later the letter t. I make a point of this now because the writing that I lost was brilliant. In my opinion, since Jennifer set up this blog it was my very best work. I'm sorry you won't have the opportunity to read it for yourselves. You will just have to accept my word. I tried to duplicate the work, but that sort of flowing excellence doesn't happen often.
I finally met the home owner next door. Until ten or so years ago we had the owners actually living in the house next door. They were not the brightest bulbs in the closet and not very good with money. They had a teenage boy who inherited his parents low wattage. He had little interest in school and no guidance at home. Actually he was terrible at most things. He was however, very good at lying, cheating and stealing. He cost his parents a lot of money eventually bankrupting them. I can't remember what the exact circumstances were but the house went into foreclosure. They moved, the place was sold, it's been a rental ever since.
Over the years living next door to a rental has had a few challenges. The neighbors who borrowed our very expensive jumper cables for one. I heard some cock and bull story about their car getting towed away with the cables in the trunk. We had some people there for maybe five months that were under the impression their backyard patio was the city dump. Not terribly bad in the winter but when it hit a hundred summer degrees it was a little pungent. Then there were the folks who thought fresh eggs should come from the backyard, more on that later. Of all the people there the nicest was a lady with her teenage son. Wanda and I both watched very carefully when, after three or four months, they moved out. We were hoping to spot the television, DVR, DVD player and surround sound system of ours. The set up that went missing one evening while we were out for dinner.
The egg people had chickens and a rooster. Every morning with the rising sun that damn rooster would feel it was his duty to wake anyone within a half mile. Some mornings I thought he would jump the fence, start pecking on our windows and demand our attention. After several months of this torture at five one morning I called our towns code enforcement division. I called early knowing I would get voice mail. I held the phone outside the patio door and said, "Hear this? This is what we wake up to every morning around this time." Later that day my call was returned, on my voice mail I heard, "We got your message." A couple of weeks later the rooster was gone. I guess they started getting their eggs at the store. Over the next few weeks the chicken population began to dwindle. I shudder to think where they ended up, probably on someones plate.
These last tenants lived there for a couple of years. They really were very good neighbors and we are sorry to see them go. They moved out two weeks ago. As we were leaving this morning I saw a couple guys working in the front yard, a truck in the garage. I thought maybe it was time to finally meet the owner? I walked over to introduce myself while Wanda waited in the RAV.
Have you ever talked with someone who seemed like they were listening but had a vapid look in their eyes? Both the guys were wearing respirator type masks over their mouths and noses. Maybe they were getting ready to do some painting? I really don't know if the guy I was talking with spoke English. The Spanish I speak is mostly medical and that wouldn't fill a thimble. I think he did say he was the home owner, he would be around working on the house for two weeks and his name is Carlos. I guess I better brush up my language skills and quick.
Wanda and I are now keeping our fingers crossed we don't have kids, dogs, chickens or roosters, drunks, druggies or people who use the house and yard for toilets and/or garbage dumps. Years ago we should have bought the place ourselves and knocked it down.
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