Spoke too soon

Oops! The water didn't start pouring in until after the rain stopped. I guess it had to fill up the walls and all the other spaces before it started coming into the house.

Maybe I'm having a bad day, but I just want this to be over. I want my house to be fixed. I don't want water everywhere each time it rains, I don't want this mildew smell everywhere, I don't want paint peeling off the walls, I don't want to be afraid every time I turn on a light switch, I don't want to be emptying buckets of water all day long. I'm over it. Really, really, over it. I want to have time to do something else besides emptying buckets and calling the insurance company or the homeowners people or FEMA or the one million other hurricane-related calls every day.

I finally called the insurance commission of the state of Florida. They told me I'd have results within 24 hours.

Guess what? My insurance adjuster called me three hours later and made an appointment to come over Friday morning. A small win, I guess, because I'm sure that we will not agree on the cost of the repairs. Nor on what part of the structure the repairs begin. My insurance says from the 'paint in', the property management policy says from the 'wainscott out' (I never knew what a wainscott was, it's the outside covering of your house). So, that leaves about 12 inches unaccounted, that neither insurance will pay for. It all has to be torn out and replaced, there is no other option. Maybe I can figure out how to do it myself?

And the stupid homeowners association (I should have abbreviated that second word) levied a $5000 assessment per owner for repairs. They "graciously" gave us 60 days to pay it. What the ?????? How the hell do they think that anyone who lives here just has $5K laying around? After all this crap? "Take a home equity loan", they say. Well, a home equity loan requires an appraisal, and if anyone were to appraise my home right now, they'd appraise it at zero. Who is going to lend me money against a house that I can't sell?

It's all enough to make a girl cry. But I won't. I won't. I won't...BWAAAAAHHHH......

I just want it fixed. I want it back the way it was. And then I want to sell it, and get the heck out of Florida.

Buenavista, here I come!

Cat

Rain, rain, go away...

Finally, we've had a few sunny days, although as I write this it is raining again. But, I think at last we have enough layers of tarp and tape and gook on the roof because no water is coming in this time. YAY!

A FEMA adjuster came and looked at the house, but they said I'm not eligible for a grant because I have insurance, and I'm not eligible for a loan since I'm not working. Oh, well, at least they came over. My insurance company hasn't even done that yet, so everything is still a mess while I wait for them to come and look at the damage. I'm also waiting for the Homeowners Association to tell us when their insurance company will be replacing the roofs, so that I can schedule my inside work to be done after that.

It'll probably be the next hurricane season before I finish all the repairs from this one. Whose idea was it to move to Florida, anyway?

Cat

Just a quickie

Well, Wilma came and went. Lost my fence, my screened patio, and part of my roof. Only the roof is covered by insurance. Guess I will just live without a sreened patio for a while. ;-)

Also lost electricity, and phone service was intermittent. Good thing I had a trip to Mexico planned, finally got a hot shower in Oaxaca. Also made some good connections there to buy Mexican handicrafts at wholesale prices.

I will probably not update the blog again until I get home next week. I had planned to update often while I was here, but I am just having too much fun to sit at the internet cafe.

Mexico City is huge! It really makes me miss Buenavista. I am only three hours from there, I am very tempted to visit for a day, but I should take advantage of all there is to do in Mexico City while I am here. I will be back in Buenavista soon enough. (well, it is never soon enough, but I will be there soon....)

Hasta luego,

Cat

In the homestretch

After four days of almost constant news coverage on every channel ("here we are Suzie, on location, with a live shot of the long gas lines"), and after the terrible devastion wrought in Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, the arrival of Wilma here in Florida sometime tonight seems almost anti-climatic.

I don't want to become complacent though, as the hurricane now seems to be strengthening to a category 3, and who knows what other surprises she has in store for us?

So, all of my patio furniture and outdoor items are stuffed in my living room once again, we are prepared for the inevitable power outtage, and are getting ready to hunker down and wait for the storm.

I sure hope this is the last one this year. (I know Alpha is out there, but it is supposed to just head out to open seas)

Cat

Like father, like son

I don't know where the Bush family learned geography, but they all seem to have a very interesting view of it.

Speaking about Tropical Storm Wilma, Florida governor Jeb Bush said, "It's a volatile storm. The entire peninsula needs to keep it's eyes south and east."

OK, while he's looking to the east for the storm it'll hit him on his keister, since it is coming in from the Gulf of Mexico, which is to our west.

Doofus!

Cat

What a day

It's not even 7:00 am yet, and I can already see what kind of a day this is going to be. I dropped my badge while trying to pin it on, spilled coffee on myself, discovered that I brought something from my house to work with me that was totally unneccesary, forgot to bring the item that I wanted to bring with me, and probably most telling of all, I decided to charge my cell phone on the way to work. I put the plug in the phone and went on my way. When I got to work, I realized I never plugged the other end into the car lighter!

Aiiiiiii! Things can only get better....

7:10 am....edited to add....OK, the computer at my desk is broken, so I had to move to another desk, and my first call was a guy screaming, yelling, and cursing at me because his wife ran up his bill and he won't pay the charges so now his account is cancelled.....

I can definitely see where this day is going.....Where's my xanax?

Cat

It figures

I just filled up my gas tank two days ago for $2.98 a gallon, now today I drove past the same gas station and gas was $2.81. Darn!

I'm sure it'll go up again when it's time for me to refill.

Cat

Just thanks

All I want to say today is that I never even knew how many people really care about me, but I have found out this week.

Thanks guys. You know who you are.

*sniff, sniff*, as I wipe a tear.

Cat

Pics as promised

Just a couple of pics from Buenavista. I want to go back already. I'm homesick.

Here is the town just beginning to stir, very early in the morning.

This is me, Mami, and Papi in the kitchen/patio, where we usually have our mezcal and botanas (snacks), and some very interesting conversations.



And this is me and Belo, my mexican "brother", on Independence Day, which actually begins at 11:00 pm on the night before the holiday with entertainment, a speech, and fireworks. It then continues through the night with music and dancing, and then on through the next day with a parade and lots of parties. Gotta love a country that begins a holiday at 11:00 at night!!



* * * * Cat * * * *

Your comments

I love when people leave me comments. It gives me a nice feeling to know that someone reads my blog, and cares enough to to respond, even just a small sentence.

But I hate blog spam! And I've been getting a lot of it. I guess someone figured out a program to crawl the web and leave advertising as comments on people's blogs. As if we don't already get enough in our e-mail.

So, even though I hated to do it, I had to add word verification to my comment section. It was taking me more time to delete the unwanted spam comments than to think of things to blog about. I know it's inconvenient to have to type that silly word in the box, and I hope that doesn't stop the few of you who do comment occasionally, but I had no choice. :(

Cat