Good evening
Well this has been a stay at home day. I've been creating reports all day with breaks for Ray, Steve, Nikki, Jason and many business calls.
Ray did his brakes for his SUV in the garage which was much cooler than working in the sun, Steve came by and dropped off files, then was able to help Ray break lose a couple stubborn bolts, so sort of saved the day. He often does that.
Jason attended his first day of classes in SF today and is learning how and when and where to do his thing there. I'll probably catch up with him tomorrow evening after Marilyn and I drop down to Scots Valley to pick up a bunk bed for Kallie, she is out growing her bed. I've got the van and Nikki has the Civic right now.
In the morning I'll jam another report out and then head out for the day to see two properties which are relatively near by. Then we will drive down to get the bed.
Marilyn made a great salad for dinner tonight, so good and a nice break from work.
So for now I'm wishing each of you a pleasant night.
Love to all
Tim
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
Monday, August 6, 2012
An Excellent Day
Good evening family and friends,
We are just back from Rio Vista, Vacaville, Vallejo and Hercules. We didn't get out of town until about 2:30. Tried to get into a local subdivision that has a security gate and today the guard was acting pretty strange, we finally got through the gate but it took 30 precious minutes.
We needed to shoot comp photos and we finally were able to get in and shoot but it was a struggle.
I worked in this morning after doing a short walk to the park, the coffee I'm making these morning with the new coffee machine is really good. I put into each cup the following: teaspoon of mocha, teaspoon of honey, sprinkle of fiber and some creamer. Then using the little single of a Green Mountain Blend I use my Kureig. I end up with a blend of tastes that is so good, one has to careful not to just drink it straight down.
This evening we stopped by Trader Joe's for some guilt less mac and cheese and ended up with $60 worth in groceries, some are things we can't get elsewhere and others are just for the fun of it. I picked up a sack of almonds, been meaning to eat more since Ron and I talked on the campout. I love almonds. We got bananas, strawberries, peaches, bread, vege cheese, stuff like that.
Now its bed time, I'm so thankful for a safe and productive day. The Lord is kind to me and I'm also thankful that Ray and Lois are home safely after a weekend trip to Sacramento to see family.
So good night friend and family,
Love
tim
We are just back from Rio Vista, Vacaville, Vallejo and Hercules. We didn't get out of town until about 2:30. Tried to get into a local subdivision that has a security gate and today the guard was acting pretty strange, we finally got through the gate but it took 30 precious minutes.
We needed to shoot comp photos and we finally were able to get in and shoot but it was a struggle.
I worked in this morning after doing a short walk to the park, the coffee I'm making these morning with the new coffee machine is really good. I put into each cup the following: teaspoon of mocha, teaspoon of honey, sprinkle of fiber and some creamer. Then using the little single of a Green Mountain Blend I use my Kureig. I end up with a blend of tastes that is so good, one has to careful not to just drink it straight down.
This evening we stopped by Trader Joe's for some guilt less mac and cheese and ended up with $60 worth in groceries, some are things we can't get elsewhere and others are just for the fun of it. I picked up a sack of almonds, been meaning to eat more since Ron and I talked on the campout. I love almonds. We got bananas, strawberries, peaches, bread, vege cheese, stuff like that.
Now its bed time, I'm so thankful for a safe and productive day. The Lord is kind to me and I'm also thankful that Ray and Lois are home safely after a weekend trip to Sacramento to see family.
So good night friend and family,
Love
tim
Sunday, August 5, 2012
Finally the spa's flaws are exposed
After a long day of pushing paper, writing reports and eating way too often I took a break tonight and went on a rampage pulling up decking around the spa I finally was able to reach the problem, there are two places where the spa drains into the return line which extends to the pump. Just after the two lines meet in a t and the line heads back to the pump it takes an unfortunate downward bend and then goes directly under the spa, as it does you can see it squeezed totally flat. There is no way the normal flow of water can get through that flattened section. It will be easy to cut the line before it goes under the spa and then attach a new line which will extend directly to the pump.
Other problems have become obvious though. The base that has held the spa in place for the last 35 years is totally rotted away. There needs to be a base to hold the spa in place so it won't wiggle when its full of water and people step down into it. I'll have to come up with a new base, probably use treated wood and build a new base, jack the spa up slightly so the pieces of wood can be put in place and replace what has served so well. Jim and Ron Miller constructed this base years ago when they were boys and its served perfectly since then. Most of the stringers that hold up the decking are rotten away, so we will have to make a decision whether to replace all the deck or go back to a lawn area instead of such a huge deck, interesting ideas are floating around and I'm open to all of them.
I'm finally catching up work wise and its about time to let the companies know that I can handle more work. Tomorrow I'll be in Vacaville and Vallejo to see properties that were once reverse mortgages and are now being sold. The goofy loan company gave me an access phone number for one property. When I reached the people today I discovered that they moved to Washington 3 years ago, signed the property over to Bank of American, no one told me, very strange things I encounter in my work.
Well now its time to fade into slumber, its been a slow day today and I'm not feeling very energetic. I so enjoyed yesteray with all the kidos and sort of wish I had taken Nikki up on her offer, her company is sponsoring a day at the A's today and my kids are there with the little ones having a good time. I should have gone really.
Well we have a new week coming so rested and ready we'll face it.
Love to all
Tim
Other problems have become obvious though. The base that has held the spa in place for the last 35 years is totally rotted away. There needs to be a base to hold the spa in place so it won't wiggle when its full of water and people step down into it. I'll have to come up with a new base, probably use treated wood and build a new base, jack the spa up slightly so the pieces of wood can be put in place and replace what has served so well. Jim and Ron Miller constructed this base years ago when they were boys and its served perfectly since then. Most of the stringers that hold up the decking are rotten away, so we will have to make a decision whether to replace all the deck or go back to a lawn area instead of such a huge deck, interesting ideas are floating around and I'm open to all of them.
I'm finally catching up work wise and its about time to let the companies know that I can handle more work. Tomorrow I'll be in Vacaville and Vallejo to see properties that were once reverse mortgages and are now being sold. The goofy loan company gave me an access phone number for one property. When I reached the people today I discovered that they moved to Washington 3 years ago, signed the property over to Bank of American, no one told me, very strange things I encounter in my work.
Well now its time to fade into slumber, its been a slow day today and I'm not feeling very energetic. I so enjoyed yesteray with all the kidos and sort of wish I had taken Nikki up on her offer, her company is sponsoring a day at the A's today and my kids are there with the little ones having a good time. I should have gone really.
Well we have a new week coming so rested and ready we'll face it.
Love to all
Tim
Saturday, August 4, 2012
One Great Sabbath
This morning we drove to Hollister to worship with the church there and enjoy hearing Art give his personal testimony. It was a great experience and Art did a great job of conveying his message of God's grace.
Once the service was over we said our good byes and went to the car to drive home, Jason texted to say he had just dropped off Jo at the Oakland airport and we heading to On the Border in Dublin. So we redirected our path home, met them in Dublin and had a super lunch together.
When we got home Nikki and the girls joined us and we all had a great afternoon. We took the kiddos out in the paddle boat which for Mia was a first, we had fun in the cool weather and it was great to just have time to watch the kiddos in action. They play so well together and the game I bought a few week ago turned out to be great fun for Clayton, Timothy, Keanna and Jason.
What fun to just kick back and have the bunch here. Later in the afternoon we cut up a watermelon, beaches, strawberries, cheese. We actually used the living room for conversation and the Kallie taught Mia how to feed the bottle to a baby who makes noise like sipping the milk, sleeping and crying. It was cute when Mia worked and worked getting the bottle into the baby's mouth. She was so proud.
Mid evening they all headed home and the house grew quiet.
It was a great day, one I will treasure for some time.
Love to all and thanks Art for your great presentation. It was also fun to see Pam there, she was happy and it was very nice to see her.
So with a grateful heart I head to bed.
Tim
Once the service was over we said our good byes and went to the car to drive home, Jason texted to say he had just dropped off Jo at the Oakland airport and we heading to On the Border in Dublin. So we redirected our path home, met them in Dublin and had a super lunch together.
When we got home Nikki and the girls joined us and we all had a great afternoon. We took the kiddos out in the paddle boat which for Mia was a first, we had fun in the cool weather and it was great to just have time to watch the kiddos in action. They play so well together and the game I bought a few week ago turned out to be great fun for Clayton, Timothy, Keanna and Jason.
What fun to just kick back and have the bunch here. Later in the afternoon we cut up a watermelon, beaches, strawberries, cheese. We actually used the living room for conversation and the Kallie taught Mia how to feed the bottle to a baby who makes noise like sipping the milk, sleeping and crying. It was cute when Mia worked and worked getting the bottle into the baby's mouth. She was so proud.
Mid evening they all headed home and the house grew quiet.
It was a great day, one I will treasure for some time.
Love to all and thanks Art for your great presentation. It was also fun to see Pam there, she was happy and it was very nice to see her.
So with a grateful heart I head to bed.
Tim
Friday, August 3, 2012
It is Friday night here by the lake
The crickets are singing in the distance, the lake is totally still with nary a ripple, the leaves are still and music is wafting over the water from somewhere, right now its blues and soon the huge frog will begin to thump the bass in this natural lakeside symphony.
The day is over, the dark is deepening and only a few stray lights cast their dim glow across the lake. Marilyn is reading a book on her fire so is quiet. We are just back from Applebees where the service was adequate, the food was good and our server was helpful.
I started early this morning, having finally finished work and gone to bed at 11:30 the 5 am alarm seems harsh, it was still dark and after stumbling through the shower and using the new Kuerig for my morning jolt I set to work. By 7:30 I was inspecting a home right here on the lake. What I found was a very sharp black man who had just moved here from San Francisco and was still adjusted to quiet nights and the beauty of the lake. He was a delight.
The next stop was in Brentwood where two wonderful Pugs came out to greet me, I could hardly work as I just wanted to pet and talk to the dogs. They were wonderful and she is involved with the Pug rescue so any time I want one I just need to call her. But right now I'm contented with Pooka. After tearing myself away from the beautiful home and the Pugs I then drove to a 3 acre property right in the middle of a Pulte Subdivision. They had built beautiful fences, installed drains in appreciation of the farmer selling them land to develop. My client had constructed two identical buildings on the site but one was a shop inside, a beautiful shop and the other was a home for his 94 year old dad. They were so enjoyable to talk to. I got the grand tour of the property. Turns out the older man keeps bees and sells honey. I came home with a free jar, I can't wait to try it on my cereal in the morning. Its mostly lavendar honey, should be great.
Once I was through with this property I had lunch at BJ's, part of a potato and a side salad, perfect lunch. After that I drove to another local property where Lisa lives, Lisa is a lady I've worked with and known for years. Now she is newly married for the last year to a Hayward policeman and is settling a new life. She is a lovely lady and not only was her house perfect she is quite a lady. One can tell she really loves her friends and she talked about the people she has lost over the last year. Quite a list, lots of pain.
Then it was home until we went to eat. Of course what I leave out is the constant barrage of phone calls seeking status on appraisals, people trying to sell my timeshare, people wanting money for causes, people needing free advice and the occasional call from a friend.
Tomorrow morning we are leaving early for Hollister where Art Diaz is preaching, sharing the story of his experience with the proton therapy at Loma Linda. i know Ron is driving down from here as well but I'm coming right back home so i can be ready to see Jason and the kiddos when they come to visit. I'm looking forward to all four kiddos being here at once. What a joy that will be.
So I have much to be thankful for, life is very challenging and way out of balance but at least I'm thinking about changing it, not sure how yet but its being considered.
Love to all, may your Sabbath be special for you.
Tim
The day is over, the dark is deepening and only a few stray lights cast their dim glow across the lake. Marilyn is reading a book on her fire so is quiet. We are just back from Applebees where the service was adequate, the food was good and our server was helpful.
I started early this morning, having finally finished work and gone to bed at 11:30 the 5 am alarm seems harsh, it was still dark and after stumbling through the shower and using the new Kuerig for my morning jolt I set to work. By 7:30 I was inspecting a home right here on the lake. What I found was a very sharp black man who had just moved here from San Francisco and was still adjusted to quiet nights and the beauty of the lake. He was a delight.
The next stop was in Brentwood where two wonderful Pugs came out to greet me, I could hardly work as I just wanted to pet and talk to the dogs. They were wonderful and she is involved with the Pug rescue so any time I want one I just need to call her. But right now I'm contented with Pooka. After tearing myself away from the beautiful home and the Pugs I then drove to a 3 acre property right in the middle of a Pulte Subdivision. They had built beautiful fences, installed drains in appreciation of the farmer selling them land to develop. My client had constructed two identical buildings on the site but one was a shop inside, a beautiful shop and the other was a home for his 94 year old dad. They were so enjoyable to talk to. I got the grand tour of the property. Turns out the older man keeps bees and sells honey. I came home with a free jar, I can't wait to try it on my cereal in the morning. Its mostly lavendar honey, should be great.
Once I was through with this property I had lunch at BJ's, part of a potato and a side salad, perfect lunch. After that I drove to another local property where Lisa lives, Lisa is a lady I've worked with and known for years. Now she is newly married for the last year to a Hayward policeman and is settling a new life. She is a lovely lady and not only was her house perfect she is quite a lady. One can tell she really loves her friends and she talked about the people she has lost over the last year. Quite a list, lots of pain.
Then it was home until we went to eat. Of course what I leave out is the constant barrage of phone calls seeking status on appraisals, people trying to sell my timeshare, people wanting money for causes, people needing free advice and the occasional call from a friend.
Tomorrow morning we are leaving early for Hollister where Art Diaz is preaching, sharing the story of his experience with the proton therapy at Loma Linda. i know Ron is driving down from here as well but I'm coming right back home so i can be ready to see Jason and the kiddos when they come to visit. I'm looking forward to all four kiddos being here at once. What a joy that will be.
So I have much to be thankful for, life is very challenging and way out of balance but at least I'm thinking about changing it, not sure how yet but its being considered.
Love to all, may your Sabbath be special for you.
Tim
Thursday, August 2, 2012
Running full out
We started in the park this morning, Pooka loved her time in the cool morning air, I think she misses the cool days of summer near the ocean.
I came home, ate a hard boiled egg and went to work. Once again I had tough ones to work through and I'm finally quitting now at 10:50. Its been a long one, sure eventually I'll get some cash for all this work but for now its just trying to hold it together mentally and physically. The cough has been really bad today and my throat is raw tonight.
At 6:30 after I finished up a challenging one in Richmond we drove to Oakley and did a rush purchase appraisal, someone else has had it for 2 weeks but could not get to it so I was asked yesterday to have it done by Friday morning. I'll make it but at what price!
This evening we had to drive to Pittsburg to take one photo of a CO detector hung on a wall. For that trip I'll be paid $100, its just amazing how much junk slips into the loan process, what a waste of my time and their money.
Tomorrow my first appointment is here on the lake at 7:30, then I'll rush home to do some research and head out again to see three properties. By early afternoon I'll be finished with field work and return to enjoy the cool office and crank some more work out.
Marilyn is setting up orders, logging out orders and keeping the board up, all of this helps a lot.
Well good night to all,
Love
tim
I came home, ate a hard boiled egg and went to work. Once again I had tough ones to work through and I'm finally quitting now at 10:50. Its been a long one, sure eventually I'll get some cash for all this work but for now its just trying to hold it together mentally and physically. The cough has been really bad today and my throat is raw tonight.
At 6:30 after I finished up a challenging one in Richmond we drove to Oakley and did a rush purchase appraisal, someone else has had it for 2 weeks but could not get to it so I was asked yesterday to have it done by Friday morning. I'll make it but at what price!
This evening we had to drive to Pittsburg to take one photo of a CO detector hung on a wall. For that trip I'll be paid $100, its just amazing how much junk slips into the loan process, what a waste of my time and their money.
Tomorrow my first appointment is here on the lake at 7:30, then I'll rush home to do some research and head out again to see three properties. By early afternoon I'll be finished with field work and return to enjoy the cool office and crank some more work out.
Marilyn is setting up orders, logging out orders and keeping the board up, all of this helps a lot.
Well good night to all,
Love
tim
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
Little people on board
So today Kallie came to play. What a great little kiddo. She was able to watch Rio the movie after Marilyn figured out how to play a DVD through the new gaming system we have. She made many drawings for me and loves to use the copier. At 1 we went to her school to see her new classroom but she was very uncertain about entering, Nikki came with Keanna and that helped, it was so hot and Kallie wanted to stay outside rather than go in and meet her new teachers. She finally ventured in.
Then I had both girls and I had Marilyn away on a venture shooting photos in Lafayette so we managed pretty well here, Keanna had lots of homework and did well with it. Then they started the movie and watched it again, its pretty cute from a minute I saw of it.
I've tried to stay in the chair and crank out appraisals today and actually have gotten some pretty tough ones out, still there is always more that needs to be done. I'm in again tomorrow and with Steve's help I'll get caught up.
So that is about it from here, working, enjoying the cool of a very good AC in my office and keeping the rest of the house at 78 which seems to do the trick.
Sending love to all family and friends,
Love
tim
Then I had both girls and I had Marilyn away on a venture shooting photos in Lafayette so we managed pretty well here, Keanna had lots of homework and did well with it. Then they started the movie and watched it again, its pretty cute from a minute I saw of it.
I've tried to stay in the chair and crank out appraisals today and actually have gotten some pretty tough ones out, still there is always more that needs to be done. I'm in again tomorrow and with Steve's help I'll get caught up.
So that is about it from here, working, enjoying the cool of a very good AC in my office and keeping the rest of the house at 78 which seems to do the trick.
Sending love to all family and friends,
Love
tim
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