Grrr...venting...

Grrr...venting...

Current mood:pissed off

In the 80s outside today on this blustery winter day. Have to run the air to dry the inside air as it is so humid.

My project today is to tear down my carports. I put them up about 9 years ago or so...and someone has recently gotten around to noticing them. They are not permanent type permittable structures, they are canvas canopies that remove easily for hurricanes, etc... that require no permit as they are deemed temporary.

I originally put them up when I bought this house to protect my very nicely restored Ford Galaxy 500. Leaves from all my trees kept falling on the new paint, and the rain or dew was causing staining from the leaves. I have since grown accustomed to getting into a cool shaded vehicle, and being able to have a car wash last indefinitely since the cars were protected from the elements and debris.

I went to the courthouse to get a permit, and the bureaucracy involved is amazing! I would have to have surveys done and engineering performed to attest to the rigidity of the structures in winds before they will even talk to me.

I had a 10 day window to remove the stuff or face a $1000 a day fine.

Now I have to either contact a contractor to have some permanently affixed to the house as an addition, if zoning allows, or have new temporary carports installed by a professional after submitting the engineering and having a new survey done. I had my property surveyed about 9 years ago, but the survey I take to zoning has to be less than 5 years old. I am sure the boundary has changed in the last 4 years.

Hey, its only money, right?

So as of today, my vehicles sit in the bright sun, exposed to the heat and rain and the leaves falling on the wet vehicles. Oh well.

Grr.

I thought maybe someone was picking on me personally, and that still may be so, but my neighbor has one in her backyard and they are after her too apparantly. Maybe they saw hers when mine were reported or vice versa. Who knows...I am sure they wont tell me who complained. But, we dont live in city limits, we live in the unincorporated county, so we are not held to the same high standards as "city folk". LOL. So, this action amazes me, as I see far more "podunk" activity around me going unnoticed.

I wonder if they will need to see a permit or wind engineering for my lawn furniture or garbage cans...they are far more deadly than my canopies, which had survived MANY storms and hurricanes with no trouble.

MORE BUREAUCRACY GONE WILD:

On a similar subject, those who know me well know this part of my life well...

To save money for several years, I bought a mobile home...in 1988 I believe. This served me well, with cheap lot rent, and modest living for a single bachelor workaholic who basically needed a crash pad. It was in a family trailer park, but they would send inspectors around to check out your lot and cite you for violations of their policies.

They had the nerve to cite me once for having an ugly truck...a nice old 64 Ford Fleetside I had that was a little rustic looking...had some primer spots etc... They asked me to avoid having unsightly vehicles on premise, LOL. (When I lived there, I had a lot of cars...up to 11 at once, but I never kept more than 3 at my house at a time...that is a subject for another Blog, LOL) This citation put the bad taste in my mouth with them...

I worked for a company that installed burglar alarms, so I put a yard sign in my yard showing I had a burgler alarm installed. They cited me for that, so I pulled out the bylaws and nowhere did it say they were not allowed, so I went to fight the power.

They could not show me the rule either, but cited the rule that if your house was for sale, the forsale sign had to be attached to the trailer, and not the yard. I told them I disagreed with their interpretation and they argued back. I asked about election signs and they agreed that was ok as they were temporary. I asked about lawn ornaments, and again, they conceded that they were not signs.

So off I went home to move my sign from the yard, to the side of the house, and I continued off to make another acquisition...PINK LAWN FLAMINGOS! I bordered my driveway, flowerbed and sidewalks with them. I nailed them up in my trees, and attached them to the side of my trailer. They were HIDEOUS and hilarious.

Not a word was said... ;c)

When they cited me for peeling paint, they were right, but it occured to me to paint the trailer like the Partridge family bus just for good measure.

The white trash in me wanted to acquire the front of a semi truck to attach to the front of the trailer and make it look like a semi truck! The cab would have been where my kitchen was, so I would have a comfy spot to have coffee, LOL! That was not covered in the rules either, LOL!

Oh well, that passed, and this too shall...just venting. I feel better.

Odd Observation

Odd Observation

Current mood:weird

Well, the tornado left about 37.5 million dollars in damage in its wake. Hundreds left homeless, and many of the trailer dwellers and apartment dwellers are uninsured. That is sad, and unfortunate that they did not carry insurance.

Embry Riddle aeronautical university was hit especially hard, with each building taking some damage, as well as 65 of their airplanes being destroyed.

What was weird was that Spruance Hall at Embry Riddle was built around 20 years ago. During the building, someone painted "Merry Christmas" on a girder facing the road in yellow spray paint. The tornado tore the facing off of the building in the exact spot that message was painted, revealing the eerie message some 20 years later on Christmas Day.

I am also amazed at how little national coverage there was for this event. I saw the news cover a small storm in Tallahassee, but have heard no national mention of this tradgedy affecting 100s of people directly, and thousands indirectly on Christmas Day.

F2 Tornado Christmas Day

F2 Tornado comes thru DeLand and Daytona

Current mood:shocked

F2 tornado came thru about 2pm. We dodged a major bullet. About a mile and a half from here, about 200 homes took damage. Major devastation. The place is evacuated as gas lines were ruptured. The images are just getting to the media. The WalMart is being used as a staging area for that area, but the tornado continued east, and did a lot of damage to the residential area by the police station, wiping out an apartment complex and playing havoc with a huge area of the city. The counts are still coming in.

Many people are going to come home on Christmas to no home. We rode thru some of the damaged area on the way home from dinner, and it is amazing. I called my house to be sure the electricity was on, as we had no idea what to expect. Fortunately we have no apparant damage that I can see, and our electricity is on, so that is good!

I had dinner at my brother in laws house, with the whole family there. He owns a business downtown and we feared it was levelled. A friend went down and checked it out, and it appears to have sustained no damage, but everything after 100 feet away is majorly damaged. He has no electricity there, but that is a small issue compared with having damage to the building.

Making for an interesting day. Keep a good thought for those more affected. Tomorrow will probably reveal some big hardships.

Go figger....

Go figger....

Why does everything seem to wait until a holiday to break? Last year we found a plumbing leak and had the TV blow up on Christmas, this year water has come flooding from underneath the kitchen faucet.

The main water supply valve outside is completely buried now that they dont actually look at the meter anymore, so I had to dig that out to shut the water off, since there is not a shutoff valve under the sink. So, now all the water to the house is turned off.

It is going to take a plumber to sort where the leak is coming from, and good luck getting one on a Sunday, Christmas eve. I have one on the way and he should be here by 2...and there will be a $149 Holiday surcharge on top of the bill. Oh well. The floors ought to be dry by the time he gets here anyway.

Whatta Weekend!

Whatta Weekend...

Current mood:accomplished

Hello all! What a whirlwind weekend! I have been so very busy with work that I have been neglecting my blogs, lol.

Yesterday was the Shark House fundraiser at Rossi's to benefit the employee family relief fund. I think it went really well, and we had an unbelievable turnout. I got there at 2 and there were already people there.

Many people ask me where I have had the largest rotation of singers, and for now, the answer will be at the benefit! I stopped counting around the 60's...and at points I know we had over 70 singers in line. Of course, some of the singers had to bail out before their turn...nothing like a 4 or 5 hour wait, LOL!

It was suggested that I was going to charge people to sing...like $5 a song, to raise money. I had a better idea. I would let everyone sing for free, but I would take bribes. A $20 would get you to the front of the line...so if you were the 12th person to hand me a $20, you were the 12th singer...all who handed in a 20 or more went to the front of the list. If you wanted to sing next, just hand me $100.

Now assuming I could get 15 singers an hour in (and that would have been tough with raffles, announcements, etc...) that would have only raised about $75 an hour for the cause. The way I did it, after 4 hours of karaoke, I personally raised $1350.00 in bribes alone! I felt REALLY good about that! I was also able to hand Robin an envelope stuffed with cash when I got there...that came from donations made in cash at my other shows this week! That is money that is above and beyond the other efforts, such as the raffles and auctions and contributions being collected elsewhere. So, I am happy to say that it looks like the efforts are working, and we will be able to help some of these folks who may need it. There are more ways to help and I will put them on my website at www.harryoke.com today.

I ended up shutting down around 10pm...that made a long day, but worth it.

On Saturday I did a corporate holiday party just South of Jax. That went really well...we were in a different room than last year, and they had me on a moveable wall with no electricity. That was the only oversight. Once they got electricity to me all went well. The folks seemed a lot more receptive than they were last year, and I was definitely in my groove with the age group. The other parties around us broke up and we kept it going until midnight...some folks from the other parties were walking by and crashed our dance floor since the DJ seemed to be doing such a good job, (coff-coff), LOL!

I always enjoy the reward of being in the right crowd, playing the right music. When people are up for a party, and receptive to entertainment, and interact by requesting, commenting and dancing, it makes the job eaier for me...and I do a better job. Nothing is worse than being at a party that people are being forced to be at, and they are not music people, or dancers...and you cant really get them going. I tend to take nights like that personally, until I have that really good night to remind me that I may actually know what I am doing to some degree.

DJ jobs are infinitely more difficult to me than Karaoke jobs. With karaoke you definitely use a different side of your brain. Not that karaoke is easy, but you are relieved of the song choice process at least. When you DJ, if you are good at it, you must have a strong working knowledge of songs and be able to know in 15 seconds what the better song to play is going to be, then start thinking of the next one, to keep the people happy, working the ebb and flow of energy.

Well with most of the holiday work behind me, things will get back to normal...although now I will have my Sundays free since the fire. This will be a temporary setback...I am looking forward to having a few Sundays free for now, but I have no illusions that come January or February, Sundays will find me onstage at yet another venue. I have some prospects, but nothing committed, so any rumours to the contrary floating around out there are just speculation. It has been less than a week, and already I hear the rumors on the street of where I am gonna be next, LOL!

All for now, and all the best to you all...

Foster is Sick

Foster

Many of you know my dog Foster (www.myspace.com/fosterthedog ). We have been really preoccupied with worry about him this week as he was very ill. He pretty much lost all his steam, became very lethargic and had no interest in anything. I took him to the vet as we had no clue what the problem could be...anything from bowel obstructions to worms or whatever. The vet didnt think it was a bowel obstruction and was leaning toward a parasite of some type, and treated him accordingly. He has not been NORMAL since I left for work on Sunday.

Yesterday he threw up a copious amount and there were undigested leaves in the vomit. He is prone, as is our other dog Tiny, to graze and eat foliage in the yard. We are thinking he got ahold of something poisonous.,.possibly Lantana, that caused the issue. The more I research the issue on the net, the more convinced I become that he was poisoned by Lantana.

Last night he seemed to be sparking back up...actually moving around and had some interest in his tennis ball. I was relieved to wake up this morning and find him standing at my door waiting for me with his tennis ball in his mouth. We went for a long walk, the first in a couple of days. He seems to be getting back to his old self...and I am not worrying as much.

Thinking of the possibility of him being gone, and seeing him suffer, absolutely broke my heart. He is a good guy.

Remembering Mom

Remembering Mom

Current mood:nostalgic

Today it has been one year since my Mom passed away. It hardly seems that long. I suppose I really should have packed up her house by now, but I just havent gotten around to it...in a year, LOL! At least I have the luxury of not being forced to do it...it isnt hurting anything sitting quietly. I go over every once in a while and putter...and I keep the yard groomed, etc...

I am glad she is not suffering. Each day, when I go to lunch with my brother, I see many elderly people who are suffering, but able to get out and about with help...at least they are LIVING rather than existing. When I get to a point where I am merely existing, I hope that my dispatch becomes prompt and eminent. As much as I miss my Mom, I am glad she is gone and no longer existing to suffer. I lost my Mom long before she ceased breathing.

I called her brother in San Diego the other day to check in on him...hadnt heard anything in awhile and was thinking the worst, but was pleased to get him on the phone and have a pleasant conversation. He is going to be 90 on his next birthday. He is the person in my family that I most relate to...we have similar outlooks, personality, and demeanor. He apparantly needs a procedure similar to my Mom, but is reluctant to do so and I cant blame him...my Mom never recovered, and also, c'mon, how invasive of a surgery does a 90 year old want to prolong his life? He goes to lunch and dinner by himself in the car each day, although he is giving up his license on this birthday. At least he is not stuck in a bed in a home somewhere, incoherant and unable to take care of himself.

That will not be me either, hopefully.

Here's to Mom...I think I will have to go eat at one of her favorite haunts in her honor this weekend.