......it's off, it's on, it's off, it's on, and now it is off again permanently.
You know, people say there are a lot of headaches with owning a house and I think that all starts right with the buying process. For those of you that may not know, Bapple & I were in the process of buying a house in Sunapee. We signed a purchase and sales agreement a month ago when I went to school. This agreement was pending a septic & a home inspection. Well, we never made it to the home inspection part of it, the septic failed first. So, in haggling back & forth and with Bapple doing a lot of the leg work over 3 weeks, the owners had agreed to replace the septic(something they would need to do either way) at their cost. That is UNTIL there less than professional agent realized that her commission could grow and said we were taking advantage of the owner, and talked them into demanding $7K+ more on the agreed price (which means we are paying for a new septic). Well at this we have finally had enough of that bull sh!t and had our agent tell their agent to take a hike, we are all done. And you know what, say what you want about renting, but our place is not that bad, I am minutes from everything and with heating fuel prices the way they are and our heat is included..... I'll stay right here and save a few bucks in the process.
It has also been my first week back at work, albeit a short one, but long none the less. I return to my area a "rated man" which means all the 1ST Class lineman can now work the higher primary voltages with me on the ground as a set of eyes/rescue.
This means overtime, which except for horse shoe night at Maggot's, has been every night I have been back. So, if I am not buying a house I want.......
"Never hate your enemies. It clouds your judgement."-Michael Corleone, Godfather II
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Thursday, June 19, 2008
So it comes to an end...
Well, this is my last night down here at 2nd Class lineman school and I will say that I am going to miss working with my buddies down here. It's nice to be around a group that is on the same playing field as you are. Don't get me wrong, I like the guys I work with in Lebanon, but I feel that most of them have been tainted with a little negativity that comes with age and having been in this trade for a long time.
The attitudes at home tend to wear on you after awhile. The daily "I missed this call last night" or "I got f-cked out of over time here" or "Management is trying to stick it to me there", these things set anyone into a great negative tailspin and it starts to reflect in other aspects of life.
You gotta check out Wingate, he climbed to management height:
Down here in Mass has been like a bit of a vacation work wise. The guy's keep it fun, we talk about pretty much everything, not just work, and it is a much lighter atmoshere. Perhaps we have not been soiled yet by the industry we or company that we have chosen to work for. I must say, I never see to many smiles from the people that have been at this trade or in this company for any lengthy amount of time. I hope my friends down here & myself, do not end up as hardened and bitter in the years to come. Believe me, the temptation to transfer to Malden to work with the boys is always on my mind. If I thought my wife would like it, I would consider it. Another downside is I would fall to the bottom of that work roster and have ALOT slimmer chance at crew leader pay in the future as I would in Lebanon, IF I decided to stay with the Grid.
I do get to go home to my Bapple, with whom I have a great time no matter what. She is the mainstay to helping me repel the negativity that I tend to gravitate to after a long day at work. I get to back home and possibly continue my house hunting? Yes, that's right, more house hunting. The house we are trying to get now just failed it's septic inspection and a new septic system is anywhere from $20-30K. It also will change the landscape of the yard if it is required to be a mound system. Which in tern will change the way the house lot drains itself. Not to mention hydroseeding if we want a lawn this year.
So it's all good, and I am going home refreshed, with somewhat of a more positive spin on things...lets see how long that lasts.
"I owe it all to little chocolate donuts." --John Belushi
The attitudes at home tend to wear on you after awhile. The daily "I missed this call last night" or "I got f-cked out of over time here" or "Management is trying to stick it to me there", these things set anyone into a great negative tailspin and it starts to reflect in other aspects of life.
You gotta check out Wingate, he climbed to management height:
Down here in Mass has been like a bit of a vacation work wise. The guy's keep it fun, we talk about pretty much everything, not just work, and it is a much lighter atmoshere. Perhaps we have not been soiled yet by the industry we or company that we have chosen to work for. I must say, I never see to many smiles from the people that have been at this trade or in this company for any lengthy amount of time. I hope my friends down here & myself, do not end up as hardened and bitter in the years to come. Believe me, the temptation to transfer to Malden to work with the boys is always on my mind. If I thought my wife would like it, I would consider it. Another downside is I would fall to the bottom of that work roster and have ALOT slimmer chance at crew leader pay in the future as I would in Lebanon, IF I decided to stay with the Grid.
I do get to go home to my Bapple, with whom I have a great time no matter what. She is the mainstay to helping me repel the negativity that I tend to gravitate to after a long day at work. I get to back home and possibly continue my house hunting? Yes, that's right, more house hunting. The house we are trying to get now just failed it's septic inspection and a new septic system is anywhere from $20-30K. It also will change the landscape of the yard if it is required to be a mound system. Which in tern will change the way the house lot drains itself. Not to mention hydroseeding if we want a lawn this year.
So it's all good, and I am going home refreshed, with somewhat of a more positive spin on things...lets see how long that lasts.
"I owe it all to little chocolate donuts." --John Belushi
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Wow, it's been awhile...
....And I can say that it has been VERY busy. I am presently back in Taxachusetts for another summer of fun, courtesy of my employer. This year it's not climb poles in the heat, it is wear a a bunch of layers, consisting of rubber, leather, & cotton and work in the hot sun. Hey, it's what we are all about. I must say, it is good to be back with the boys from Mass. We all operate well together, so well, that I am constantly beckoned to pack up my wife and transfer to Malden, MA so we can continue our daily rapport. Seeing that the wife & I are looking to buy a house up in NH, I don't think it is going to happen. Especially since her boss is in Malden.
We also have taken on a new member to our team here at lineman school. We have all grown to know him as "Joey" even though that is not his name. He is a cross between Joey Tribiani from "Friends"---mentally, and Joey Lawrence from "Blossom"/"Dancing w/ the Stars"--physically. Basically he is kind of a dumb ass and we have a great target for our humor.
Oh well, alot of other stuff has happened too, since my last post. Let's see, Father Time turned 40....old bastid.
Spring fishing trip came & went, we spent Memorial up at Lunchbox's camp in East Nowhere, VT.
My younger brother turned up last weekend from St. Louis, always a trip to see him.
And, like I mentioned earlier, Bapple & I have been on the house hunt, which the latest has us pointing back to my home town of Sunapee. Now, I have to admit, I am very mixed about the whole Sunapee thing. I have not lived there in 15 years, and had prided myself on "getting out" of that town, even if it was only to the Upper Valley. I really like the Lebanon area, and if it wasn't so goddamned expensive to live up there, I'd stay. The taxes in Lebanon are INSANE, the town has it's head way up it's own ass, really. Anyway, back to the Sunapee thing, I just don't know what to think. I mean I have a few good friends there (and I am not knocking them in the least for choosing to stay there, Sunapee itself is a great town) and I have a large number of friends in Newport. It would put Bapple in a good spot to get to her family, in all areas. I just hesitate because of the winter commute, up the worst stretch of Interstate in NH, also the inconvenience of not being close to shopping and all the conveniences of Lebanon. There is also the underlying principal of Sunapee that I did not like growing up. The clique atmosphere of the "thick as thieves" regime that I know is still there in one way or another..... I just don't know, it is a beautiful town with the mountain and the lake, and I do have a couple of great friends still there (yeah, I mean you Crispy), it just poses a little hesitation.
Oh well, did you miss my rants?....probably not.
We also have taken on a new member to our team here at lineman school. We have all grown to know him as "Joey" even though that is not his name. He is a cross between Joey Tribiani from "Friends"---mentally, and Joey Lawrence from "Blossom"/"Dancing w/ the Stars"--physically. Basically he is kind of a dumb ass and we have a great target for our humor.
Oh well, alot of other stuff has happened too, since my last post. Let's see, Father Time turned 40....old bastid.
Spring fishing trip came & went, we spent Memorial up at Lunchbox's camp in East Nowhere, VT.
My younger brother turned up last weekend from St. Louis, always a trip to see him.
And, like I mentioned earlier, Bapple & I have been on the house hunt, which the latest has us pointing back to my home town of Sunapee. Now, I have to admit, I am very mixed about the whole Sunapee thing. I have not lived there in 15 years, and had prided myself on "getting out" of that town, even if it was only to the Upper Valley. I really like the Lebanon area, and if it wasn't so goddamned expensive to live up there, I'd stay. The taxes in Lebanon are INSANE, the town has it's head way up it's own ass, really. Anyway, back to the Sunapee thing, I just don't know what to think. I mean I have a few good friends there (and I am not knocking them in the least for choosing to stay there, Sunapee itself is a great town) and I have a large number of friends in Newport. It would put Bapple in a good spot to get to her family, in all areas. I just hesitate because of the winter commute, up the worst stretch of Interstate in NH, also the inconvenience of not being close to shopping and all the conveniences of Lebanon. There is also the underlying principal of Sunapee that I did not like growing up. The clique atmosphere of the "thick as thieves" regime that I know is still there in one way or another..... I just don't know, it is a beautiful town with the mountain and the lake, and I do have a couple of great friends still there (yeah, I mean you Crispy), it just poses a little hesitation.
Oh well, did you miss my rants?....probably not.
"The most terrifying words in the English language are: I'm from the government and I'm here to help." -----Ronald Reagan
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
