Rental

Friday night I had my second attempt at inviting all my friends over. Nish came, and brought Manny along. It was difficult to be flirty to Manny in front of Nish. And Manny has not called, otherwise. Then Luther showed up. Nish bought two little kitchen items. The other two bought NOTHING. But they drank up some of my booze that needs to go...

Nish and Manny headed out to go to the townie bar. Luther stayed a bit longer. We visited for a little while. Ended up making out in front of the TV (i.e. on the rug). Then we decided to head to the club. Nish had called to say he was heading over there, and Luther said his ex would be there, too. A bit of awkwardness with Keniah. He came up to me later and specifically asked if I'd had sex with Luther, and asked me to not do it again. After a bit of conversation, I said that was fine. He apparently thought we'd been messing around for a lot longer than we had, which explains the attitude that night on the dance floor.

I danced with Ronny and Cris. Cris said he was trying to get a hold of Diego, but he wasn't answering the phone. I thought it odd that he would point that out to me, so I asked if Diego was with a boyfriend still. Cris said no, not now. Ronny flirted with the new door guy, Todd, who has a hubby. He was also interested in the new bartender, Peter. Peter is very cute. Ronny wondered aloud if Peter was a top, so I called him over and said Ronny wanted to know if he was a top. Ronny got very embarrassed, and Peter dodged the question. I followed up later, and he claims to be vers. The new shotboy, Steven, was trying to get me buy a shot, but I didn't.

Saturday met up with Brad, Rick, and Joe and Jen to play some games all afternoon. When we finished, I stopped in at the club again. Nish was there, dancing with some random guy he had flirted with (while Drunk) the night before. Diego came in, by himself, and met up with some friends, but I managed to say hi and ended up hanging out with him for a bit. I went for broke, and invited him over. I even mentioned it was the last night I'd be at my place. But, he said he had to work early in the morning, and needed to go home to sleep. He did, however, give me his phone number and said I should come over to his place sometime. As we parted (with a side-kiss), I said - in Portuguese - that I had the hots for him. He got a surprised look on his face, which I assumed was because of the (well practiced) expression I had uttered in well pronounced Brazilian Portuguese. But he looked a little surprised, and said, "Me??" I said of course ("Claro").

Danielle had stopped me at the front desk when I had first gotten there to tell me that she saw my condo for rent on Craigslist. She recognized the pictures, and said it was going for $700/mo. I was very surprised that he hasn't closed yet, and was already posting it up for rent. At about half of what I would have charged, were I to rent it out. She was very excited at the opportunity, because she liked my place. I thought it would be a great idea, too, because I could just leave all my stuff behind. I wouldn't have to pack up and haul away all that junk, and she'd get a ton of free stuff. We both win!

Sunday I met Ronny for breakfast at IHOP. He told me that last weekend, after they all left my place, Diego was asking him about me. He claimed to be interested and thought I was very cute. I mentioned the condo being for rent, and Ronny wanted it. Then he went home to get a truck. The guy from the yard sale day showed up with a friend and a van, and took the futon and the chair away. Joe and Jen came over and took the last of the stuff they had bought. I mentioned the Craigslist posting again, and Joe said he'd take it, too.

Later, Danielle called. She had gotten a hold of the guy posting the ad. He said he and his wife loved the place, but had to move to Africa, so were renting it out. The friend that was supposed to show it and manage the rental was in Spain at the time, so she would have to send him the rent money, and he'd mail her the keys. Apparently, MY condo is the pictorial bait in an online scam! That's kinda scary, but at the same time, rather flattering.

Ronny came back with this adorable Latino kid named Miguel that he works with, who was helping him move. Ronny was flirting with him the whole time. At one point, he tells me that Miguel has an 8" dick. I ask how on earth he knows that. He simply says they work together. Right. Like that's what -I- talk about at work... He did modify that to say that Miguel's girlfriend is one of his good friends, so she had told him, and that Miguel would freak out if he found out that she had told Ronny. We moved the bed and the bookcase, then Ronny and I met up with Brad and Cris at Coldstone for ice cream. His other friend Rick was there, too. We went back to Rick's after to hang out for a while. Andre was still at work, so he didn't get to see any of us, but he's quite anti-social, anyway.

So, we shall if anything ever comes of talking to Diego. I think that would be a great send-off as I leave New England for the other end of the country...

Inching Closer

More discussions this week at work. I did agree to two more weeks, so right now 9/5/08 is my last day. They won't be prepared...

Tonight is the second chance to get rid of all my stuff. Hopefully a bunch of it goes. Or at least a couple people show up. I got a couple 'definite' responses, but that doesn't necessarily mean anything.

Sunday my bed is going away, so I called Russell, and he's OK with me moving in that day, so I will be out of here soon. Plan to take a couple days next week to finish emptying it out and cleaning it up a bit.

Once that's done, it will be Labor Day weekend. Not sure what my plans will be, but a short week at work after that, and then I'm free! I plan to hit the gym obsessively while I am unemployed. This is my goal (see below). As in I want to be hot enough to hook up with him, not necessarily be him.

Empty room

Friday night I did not go to work. Went to bed at a reasonable hour, and woke up Saturday morning at a reasonable hour. Got the place ready for my open house / moving sale. The craigslist post drew a few people right at 2pm. They bought a bunch of stuff, and most of the furniture was taken care of. Then I sat here bored until about 6, when Ronny came over. He was followed shortly by Cris, with a 'friend' that Ronny thought I'd like. Well, turns out to have been Diego (Mr. ewwww-troll)! He liked my place, and was very friendly and sweet, and bought a bunch of stuff, including the rest of the large furniture pieces. Then Brad came over, just as the Brazilians were all leaving. Ronny had a date, and Cris was taking Diego back home with his new furniture.

Brad was upset, because he'd been sitting at home waiting for Cris to come home so that they could come over. When he finally broke down and called, Cris was at my place. The usual, in other words.

But other than those three friends, and a random hottie, none of my 40-some friends who were invited bothered showing up. It kind of pisses me off. The last few parties I tried to throw, nobody came to, but I thought maybe the threat of never seeing me again, coupled with the chance to buy dirt cheap stuff would lure at least a COUPLE of the bastards over. Wrong... I need to have a round 2 just to clear more of the clutter. Maybe one or two of the selfish bitches will come over!

Sunday I installed my new smoke detectors and the CO sensors, so I can pass the state mandated fire safety inspection. Total rip-off. Then met up with Brad and Cris and saw Mama Mia! We enjoyed it a lot. Along the lines of Hairspray, it's just fun and exuberant.

Lowballing

Thursday morning I got a message that I received an offer on my condo. It was $30k below asking. So we countered. Friday I started thinking of life after quitting my job. It was happy! I had to remind myself it wasn't happening, yet.

I got an email at work saying that the new guy is going to be the next Quality Manager, but it still leaves 'opportunity' for me. Great. I'm working on getting the details worked out on just how they are screwing me over - preferably in writing - but my boss will be on a fishing trip until Wednesday.

I had dinner that night with Russell. Mentioned what was in the works. He offered to let me stay at his place after (if) everything happens. At this point, I'm looking at signing Purchase and Sale this week, turning in my notice, and putting together an unemployment claim. Lack of advancement opportunity... In which case I can list Russell's place as my address, and hang out for a while, as I figure out where I am going and what I am doing.

Friday night was pretty dull at work, except for one grumpy drunk straight guy we wouldn't let in. Seth stopped by to say hi. He looked really good. Nish stopped in; minor update on Denison; he's being a rube, but Nish isn't helping. (Despite the conversation I had with Nish on 7/4 about why I thought Denison was being a moron, when Dension asked Nish on 7/5 why I was 'avoiding him', Nish's reply was "I don't know"!) I left fairly quickly after we closed, though. Ran home, took a nap, then picked Russell up at 4:30am to take him to the airport. Got back home, slept a few hours, then headed over to my friend Rick's place to play some games with a few friends. After that, headed over by Brad and Cris (with Ronny). Watched a movie (Naked Boys Singing! - it's actually a lot of fun, and pretty good), then headed towards the club. I dropped Ronny off at home, though, 'cuz he has to work Sundays, yet. He quit his part-time job, so my last weekend at the club is also his last weekend at the hotel.

There were a ton of Brazilians there that night, so I was dancing all night. One hot new one was trying to garner all the attention, but looked a little uncomfortable at the same time, and was staring at the girls. This summer's version of Shirtless Confused Brazilian, I guess. (He did take his shirt off toward the end of the night.) When I went up to the bar to order a drink, Joe said the guy at the other end bought mine. He was older and pasty, flabby, NOT my type. I did say Hi and Thank You. Some other guy interrupted to say hi to me and give me a hug. Not sure who it was, but drink-buyer made a dismissive comment about "twinks not knowing any better". I wasn't sure what he was talking about, since he was basically doing the exact same thing. So I went to dance with my friends. I'm hoping that being around cute Brazilians all night tipped him off. Diego was there, without boyfriend, but with a new young guy that was kind of all over him. Diego danced with me a little bit, too. There was a hunky 40ish white guy there that I thought was hot, too, but he was obviously there with his boyfriend. (Oddly enough, the BF was black, but I didn't care for him...) Barry was there, too (a cute guy I see now and then, and even bumped into at Providence Pride). I chatted briefly with him, but he seemed avoidant after that. The one queeny Brazilian that likes to hang all over me was there, too. I tried pushing him off gently again. Seemed to work. Hotdog guy was not there, but Brad mentioned he's invited HD guy to game nights. Interesting...

As we were leaving, the queeny one trapped me on the sidewalk. Invited himself over. I said no thank you. I actually was really tired (see airport run from earlier), but wouldn't have wanted him to come over anyway. Not my type... Turns out he's not Brazilian, though. Didn't say what he IS, but doesn't matter. He tried to come over "just to cuddle" when I said I just needed to sleep. I turned him down. He got offended. Whatever.

Sunday, spent 2.5 hours on the phone with Daemian. Also ran to the grocery store. Saw Banana Twinkies. Had to try them. I like them better than normal Twinkies - which is probably a bad thing. I got a call from my agent. The buyer agreed to my 'final offer', so I'm basically breaking even, but will be moving on with my life soon. Or at least quitting my soul-sucking job. Met up with Brad online, and played WoW for a while. I went to bed with thoughts of unemployment claims dancing in my head. And being rather excited about the possibility.

So far, Monday has offered up nothing useful at work. I got more paperwork underway on the P&S agreement for the condo. I have to be out by the 29th. I can't turn my 2-weeks in at work until at least Wednesday, which sucks. I would have loved to have had the conversation today about what the 'plans' are and storm off in a huff. Soon, though. "All good things come to those who wait."

Long Term

I have been mainly writing about dating foibles. I have completely been remiss on complaining about the morons at my day job. It's just that it gets so repetitive...

Today, the plant manager stopped by, and started talking about the management team has started working on a 5-year strategic plan. (Yea most companies always do that, but it's a new concept here!) Apparently 5 of the 8 members of the "management team" will be retiring in about 5 years, including the president/owner. I was expecting this to be followed up by a comment about where I see myself in 5 years. As much as I was dreading that, he instead said they are doing ROI analyses. Again, something most companies always do. It ended up being an opportunity to share a humorous anecdote. Nothing significant... I am SO glad I work for a company that isn't even aware of how short-sighted it is! (sarcasm)

My AC is still not working right, so I have been calling them to try to schedule an appointment. Fourth attempt was today. They called back to say they tried coming to fix it this afternoon. Good thing they bothered to TELL ME! Morons. They will try again tomorrow. Having mentioned it the day before might help!

Prelude

While talking to Angel on Monday, he said Wednesday he was busy, but he would see what he could work out, and would call me Tuesday to let me know when we could meet up. Tuesday, no call. Wednesday, no call. Thursday, still no call. So, I called him. No answer, so I left a message. He has not yet called back. Meanwhile, my A/C went completely dead Tuesday evening, so my place was uncomfortably warm Thursday (we had near 90 and soggy humidity levels). Since Angel wasn’t calling back, I tried Ronny, to see if I could hang out at his place. He worked until 9, so we agreed to meet at his house then.

I beat him home, since he stopped to chat with a friend first. Junior was home, though, so he let me in. Talked with him until Ronny showed up. I had mentioned Monday’s phone conversation with Angel to Ronny, so he asked how things were with the “new boyfriend”. Junior’s ears perked way up. I said one phone conversation hardly makes him a “boyfriend” and Junior heartily agreed. I asked Junior about the SCB, nothing really happened, and Junior doesn’t even know his name. I mentioned I found his shirt on the dancefloor. I reiterated that I had offered to come over that night, but Junior said no. He was like “the guy was too drunk anyway,” so I just said “but I could have given him the shirt back.” He didn’t believe that was my motive. I said I still have it at home, so I’ll have to invite SCB over to my place the next time I see him. Junior seemed suspicious, and asked “for the shirt??” I said of course. Nish had pointed out the tendency for Brazilians to react more strongly to envy, and it seemed to be true here. Junior was suddenly much more engaging with me. The perfect icing on that cake was Ronny saying something about me being interested in Junior, and I got to look at Junior, then turn to Ronny and say “well, he just wants to be friends.” Later, I helped delete a random program from Ronny’s computer, so Junior asked if I could fix his computer’s audio. He had no sound coming through the speakers. First, I noticed the speaker wasn’t plugged in properly (no power, no sound!), but also eventually realized that his hardware was switched to the additional sound card output, but he was still plugging into the main motherboard output. As soon as I moved the plug, everything worked great. When I was heading out to go home, he thanked me for fixing the computer, and gave me a hug. A very full-on, lingering, affectionate hug. And I got invited to their little cookout on Sunday. (I work at 4:45, but the party starts at 2, so I can stop by for a bit.)

At this point, I’m already starting to think it’s over with Angel. I’ve been dumped before even starting on several occasions, and I still don’t understand how one great conversation can be the prelude to complete avoidance, but I’m used to it. I work front door at the club, now, though, so I see everyone. I’m sure I’ll get a “I’m sorry, I was SO busy” at some point. But, usually, many things are postponable if you are truly interested in meeting someone.

And, Friday morning the moron contractors were back, and got the A/C running. I’m still not convinced it’s “fixed” but it is running. A little cleaning and adjusting, and I will be ready to re-list. The Fed just lowered the discount rate (Prime is still steady), which might help spark better housing market activity. Please…

Start of something

We spent like two hours on the phone last night. Mostly chatty, historical info. Got a few flirty comments in. And I was witness to a brief conversation he had with his roommate about condom size. I started getting all hot and bothered... :) Oh, and he's part Puerto Rican. Not Brazilian at all!

Tonight the switch in my AC completely fried, so in additional to poorly functioning, I can't turn it on at all anymore. It's probably about 3 weeks until it will be cool enough to not hate my lack of AC. I have calls in about getting it repaired, but it's not going well. That is also preventing me from re-listing. Ughhh.

Frustrated

Two weeks ago, I had two phone interviews. One led to a face-to-face interview. I have not heard back from either one. I should have by now. Which means I was passed over. They could have at least had the decency to tell me.

And, it has been eons since my last showing, so I am biting the bullet and pulling the listing. I called the realtor and gave a de-list date so I can refinance and cut my payment. I would so much rather have just sold the F(*#^$(*&^@$)@&*@(*ing place, but I am still here, so time for plan B, I guess.

And in follow up to a previous comment I made about getting to go out on a date, that never happened either. He switched to calling while I was at work, which is an evasive move. So, I emailed a "hey I'll be around this weekend, let's plan something" and never heard back again. So, yet once again I got dumped before even meeting.

Sometimes I just can't take it...

Almost a bright idea

Just before I awoke on Wednesday, I dreamt that I was visiting my parents, and they were house-hunting again. I made a cute little joke about if they wanted to buy a one-bedroom condo. Then the alarm went off. I immediately thought, Oh my God! IF they still had that chunk of money in the bank from their adventures in real estate (when they moved, it them a while to find the right house), then they could buy my house to get me out the door, and then resell it. The more I thought about it, though, the more I realized it would be better to have them lend me the money and just pay off my own mortgage.

That afternoon at work, we had a little meeting in the CFO's office about "quality office responsibilities." I was hoping that it would amount to them saying they had no interest in making me the quality director, so I could quit and collect unemployment (due to lack of advancement opportunity). Instead they were talking about removing all QC responsibilities from the Quality Manager, which would naturally land at my desk. Not exactly saying I would get a promotion, but close.

When I leave work, I find a voicemail from a company in Tucson looking to schedule a phone interview. (The HR lady pronounces it literally, as in "tuck sun".)

So, I get home, and check my MegaMillions ticket (didn't win a damn thing), and called my parents to see if I could borrow roughly $125,000. Just a normal phone call... Unfortunately, they have since sunk all that money into retirement accounts, and are not able to pull it out. If my condo weren't so non-liquid right now, I'd complain about the lack of liquidity in their assets.

Still no offers on the condo, and no showings on the horizon. We'll see how the interview goes, and whether something big happens at work in the next few days. My bright idea for instant escape, however, did not work out, so I am stuck waiting.

Sell sell sell

Okay, I can now sell my condo! Let me explain...
You are aware, I am sure, of the old addage that everything happens for a reason. The corollary to that would be that something NOT happening, is NOT happening for a reason. Case in point, getting an offer on my condo. I had thought the random appearance of the 2 year late insurance hearing was my 'hold-up' or the fact that I was being a chicken and using the move as the tool by which to break up with Ronny. But those have both come and gone, and nothing helped sell the condo.

So, the other Monday night I was watching Six Feet Under on Bravo, and there was a scene where Keith and David got in another fight and broke up. David felt miserable, so they met up to talk. Keith said not to give up on them, yet. The whole 'work this out' scene flashed Sergio to my mind. I then started crying, and continued for the next hour and a half. At first it really bothered me, because it has been SO long since I'd cried over him. The more I thought about it, though, the more I realized that I had never really dealt with the situation or gotten closure. He dumped me, I asked him not to, then I ignored him for two and a half years because I couldn't bear it. So, the wound was still there, and festering. I got the idea that maybe the reason I was still stuck in MA was because I needed to flush the wound to get the healing going or I would be cursed with a lifetime of failed relationships.

The following morning I emailed Sergio and said I wanted to establish a friendship with him, and hoped he was still willing. He of course was still willing. Today I ended up heading into Boston to meet up with him. Spent about 7 hours together, had Chinese for lunch, and hung out for a while, and talked. Caught up on some of the events of the past few years, remembered some times from when we were together, and even had a few discussions about our histories, and background - first date kind of things. Honestly, I felt really good about it. He was very friendly and casual, and I didn't feel any NEED to be with him. I think it will be very healthy for me to stop carrying some buried torch for him.

While we there, his roomie, and my friend, and my friend Nish's bf - Mark - came home. We were in Sergio's room, and the door was open. When Mark saw me, he kind of stopped, with a surprised look on his face, and said hi. Sergio was like "you know Jeremy..." And then Mark got back into a 'well, whatever' mood. I'm sure he's talking to Nish about it as I'm writing.

As I was leaving, Sergio asked if I was okay to drive. I asked why wouldn't I be. He said it was late, I must be getting tired. I said I was fine. Then I asked what the alternative would be, anyway. He said, "Well, you can stay here you know." I just smiled and said "mmm No". I think he was being silly.

Somehow, I have a feeling this must be the reason I was still here. Now that the healing has begun, the cosmic wheels have been set in motion. I had three showings in the past week, so it feels like it is already coming to a big bang moment.

Dammit

Well, Tiffany sent a rejection letter today. So, no word from Saint Gobain probably means I was rejected there, as well. That means I am back down to selling the condo. Aggravating. I can't quit my job, yet! Aughhh.

I guess tomorrow I need to have a chat with the real estate agent. My alternate paths failed, so back to pressuring the main course of action.

Saint G

I had a job interview this afternoon at Saint-Gobain performance plastics. It was the first time I'd interviewed for a job while I was still working, so it felt a little wierd to ditch early and go to an interview while technically still being paid to be at the first job. They think I had a car-service appointment. I said my check-engine light was intermittently coming on. Vague health complaints for cars are just as good as ones for people.
The interview seemed to go exceptionally well. From what the plant manager said after I was done talking, it sounded like I hit all his targets right on. He wanted a cultural fit. I knew that everybody is always looking for the 'fit' when you are interviewing, so I had chosen my responses to keep everything upbeat and positive. (He asked what I dislike about my current job, but I refrained from bad-mouthing anyone!)
They want to make the hire very quickly, so I should be hearing back from the HR lady pretty soon, I guess. If they want me to come in for Round Two, I imagine I'll have to pretend to fall ill to get the time off for that one.

Meanwhile, no new showings, no word from the agent. Lowering the price (again) has done nothing to stir up activity (again). There were lots of internet hits, but no showings... So, it's shaping up to another couple years in Worcester. But at least it would be happier!

Joe's Progress

St. Joseph has been buried head-first in my philodendron for over three weeks now, and I still have not had an offer submitted. So much for that hyped superstition. I had a showing this past weekend, though through a miscommunication on the part of the showing agent, I was at home at the time. (She was unsure how to use the lockbox, so asked that I stay home to let them in, then used the lockbox and was Surprised I was at home. Those realtor licenses must be Very difficult to obtain.)

It was an old couple; I knew immediately they would not be interested. They harped on not having in-unit laundry hook-ups, because “you know” women don’t do their unmentionables in public laundry areas. (She must not have attended college.) Then they pooh-poohed my wood floors, because they could just buy a cheap unit and put floors in themselves. Then the old grouch started complaining about Elgin toilets. She had her husband check what brand the toilet is because Elgins “don’t flush.” The agent was even saying that being on the sixth floor, it probably wouldn’t be a problem.

To my horror, I had forgotten to clean the little space between the seat and the tank, which is usually where the name is stamped. It was nothing tragic, but a few stray hairs. I did get a sinking feeling in my stomach, as I pictured them studying my toilet. I had cleaned the bowl, the seat, and the tank, but somehow missed that part. This was the only tour I had been included in, and it gave me NO reassurance.

And to answer your burning question; it does not say what brand it is.

Joe

I planted St. Joseph on Thursday. It’s been 8 months with no offers, and 2 months since the last showing. Oddly enough, two months ago was when I chose NOT to bury St Joseph, so I figured it was worth a shot. There’s a little superstition about burying an icon of St Joseph in your yard to help sell your house (or a flower pot in my case). Out of sheer desperation I bought one of the little statues. Nothing else is working, I may as well try. My mother’s prayers must need an amp…

Happiest Boy on Earth

I just booked a vacation to Walt Disney world. One week in early March. It's about $2500 for the two of us. I still have to schedule the vacation time at work. I'm thinking March may be the quitting month, so it'll be fun! :)
Ronny had mentioned that on his list of Things He'd Love to Do in America, visiting Disney is WAY up there on the list. Apparently the "going to Disney" thing is a major dream of children across the world, not just here in the US. Brazilians, anyway, all want to go there - so I'm told.
Last weekend I was talking to our friend about which casino to visit (see the Foxy Lady post), and he mentioned that he finishes his class in late February, so had just booked a vacation to Disney with Cris. When I mentioned it to Ronny as a passing comment, he immediately decided that we had to go, too! So, I called Brad and asked if he'd mind us tagging along, and he said that would be cool. I booked the exact same trip as he did (yet mine is apparently $300 cheaper). Ronny is SO excited about it. He had already taken the days off from work on Monday.
We're staying at a 'value hotel' on the premises, but to me, hotels are the kind of thing you don't splurge on when going on vacation. The trip is about everything ELSE. As long as the room is clean, and the bed in comfy, what more do you really need? On-premises is a plus, so it's costing like $130 a night just for the room, but we're skipping the rental car this way.

I noticed I haven't updated on the listing, and it's effect on Ronny. It's been about two weeks now that the condo has been on the MLS. I told Ronny about it all up-front. The day the lockbox for the key showed up on my door handle was a little rough for him, but he took it much better than I expected. The news of me meeting with the realtor threw him for a loop again, but the lockbox wasn't that bad. He asked "What is that?" as he came in the door. I told him. He kind of frowned and said it "doesn't make me happy". But that was it. Not really bad.

The other day he came over and said he had spoken with a friend of his from Oceanside, CA who told him that the southern CA area is full of immigrants, and he shouldn't worry about being down there. So, he kind of poked around the thought of coming along. But, as mentioned (see "Bettering") he got a second job because he would have nothing to do with his time after I left. So, I think that means he isn't really going to leave. His sister doesn't want him to leave, and she is his only family here in the States. I think that is a pretty strong tie for him.

The place has shown several times, and the realtor says he LOVES the place. He told me likes it more and more everytime he comes here to show it. I'm sure it helps to sell a place when the agent is bubbling over about how great it is! But no offers, yet. It's only two weeks, so I'm not worried. The thing that does annoy me, though, is that people don't take their shoes off when they visit, and the floor is actually getting scuff marks on it for the first time. Showing the place for sale is of itself going to make it less attractive. I'm sure I'm the only one anal enough to even notice the scuffs, so it probably won't affect the sale, but it does annoy me.

Penance

Monday I finally set the wheels in motion and called a realtor. He's the rather questonable realtor that Russell bought his house through back a couple years ago. The guy is married, et cetera, but has an obvious crush on Russell. (As does Russell's mortgage lender...)
He also is a broker, and has his own agency. So, he's more flexible on commission rates. He offered Russell to cut the commission in half if he is also the buyer's agent. This is also his turf - he knows the area and the home values very well. He currently has two listings in my building even.
I have a vacation day next Monday, so we scheduled an appointment for him to view the condo and start the sales process. So, I have to CLEAN this weekend!! I am not sure if I should tell Ronny yet. I think he would realize the significance of having my place on the market. He has been holding onto a slim hope that I won't actually leave. I have been only honest in telling him that I will head out some day soon. His sister told me that he is not taking it well.

In honor of setting the ball in motion, today was a Horrible day at work. Three and half hours in the conference room for three back-to-back meetings that basically all ended up with people arguing over whose fault it is that everything is falling apart. We continue to have major product failures getting to our customers. Of course, since this can be described as poor quality, everyone turns to me and says, "Well, it's a QUALITY problem..."
Yes, it is a quality problem, but if YOU screw up, it's not a QC Department problem. They don't get it. They just want to drop the hot potato in someone else's lap. I got quite behind today. The piles of random problems accumulating on my desk are getting higher and deeper.
I don't want to leave on a sour note, so I am trying to keep up appearances until the last minute. Hopefully, I won't have a huge backlog of work when I go. If there is, you know they will be blaming for everything that goes wrong for the next four years...