Last night, I had a disagreement with my brother.

 

My brother and I had a stiff disagreement last night, and it got me to thinking that we should sell the rental property we jointly own.  He is overworked, over-tasked, and overwhelmed.  And all I was asking him to do was to take care of the financials for the property, so that I can get my taxes done by April 15th.  Today, he called to apologize for getting upset, and I gracefully accepted the apology.  (I won't tell him that he triggered my emotional walls to go up and prepare for the absolute worst to happen.)

- - - - - - 

We are in the process of getting the house ready for another rental.  Recently, we were told that we need a new hot water installed.  This will cost about $3,000 or so, excluding permits. When the permits were filed for, we encountered another problem - our dad had converted the house from oil to gas heat.  But the paperwork wasn't marked as complete in the town offices, and we have more headaches because of things that happened years ago.

 

The work was done, but it appears that the final inspection wasn't taken care of.  So, my brother is contacting the plumbing firm that took care of the boiler install years ago, and we hope to get this resolved without spending too much money.  Once this is done, the new permit for the hot water heater could be issued, and we could finally be done with some of the work that's needed for the house.

- - - - - -

Looking at work we need to take care of , I feel that we need to replace windows in the basement, followed by installing a half-bath in the basement.  This way, we can up the rent and recover what we put into the house this year.

Right now, I have the money in my bank accounts to fund the work on my own if needed.  But that's not how things work.  My brother has to find ways of financing his home maintenance as well as financing his share of this house's maintenance.  This makes me glad that I only have to worry about my co-op board responsibilities, leaving general financing issues to a party of others.

I'm glad that I never bought a townhouse or detached home....

 

 

 

 

Sometimes, it's too much of a bother to present as Marian (a short post)

 

Yesterday, we spent some time straightening out the apartment.  One of the things i did was to find a "new" blanket in my cedar chest and put it on my bed, along with a "new" mattress pad.  This meant that I'll have to restock with new ones later on - especially when the "new" blanket has been sitting in the chest for years, and is suffering from a form of dry rot (found this morning).

But this is not what I intended to talk about today....

I wasn't in the mood to spend the time to shave and apply makeup just to go to Walmart.  If I were a cisgender female, this wouldn't be an issue for me.  However, I am trans, and do not look that much like a female without makeup.  So, I figured it was time for Mario to make an appearance.

Walmart is only 15 minutes from my place.  Both RQS and I were able to get showered and dressed quickly, so that we could make it to Walmart and to the local grocery store before 7:30 pm.  (We were thinking of doing some laundry when the machines weren't busy.)  I was glad not to make myself up, as I would have hated to clean off the makeup after 2 hours out of the house.

Did we get around to doing laundry?  No.  But we did get out of the house for a couple of hours.

My paperwork is almost ready

 

As I've mentioned before, I am in the process of getting a second passport.  It's not just because I want to reconnect with the nation of my grandmother's birth, but it's also due to politics in the USA.

- - - - - - 

I've said many times that the Orange Snowflake is a threat to us all.  First, he has targeted transgenders.  Now, he's going after many of the Federal workers which help keep this nation running smoothly.  As I like to describe it, he's on his 2025 revenge tour for his loss in 2020.  He is not as popular as he once was, and the polling over the past few weeks shows a precipitous drop in public approval.  

So what does this mean?

If history is my guide, he will use political persecution as a means of distracting the public from the greater evil he is trying to hide.  As for me, I intend to have an exit plan, just in case things get much worse than they are now.

Right now, I am following this guide from one of the nations that I qualify for overseas birth citizenship:

Documents relating to the applicant (unless stated, originals must be submitted):

• Completed, signed and witnessed application form (see list of witnesses at 1 above)
• Original civil birth certificate (showing parental details)
• Original civil marriage certificate (if applicable) OR other change of name document (if applicable)
• Photocopy of current state-issued photographic ID document (i.e. passport, drivers licence, national identity card) certified as a true copy of the original by application form witness
• 2 separate original proofs of address
• 4 colour photographs (2 of which to be witnessed) – do not attach these to the application form
• Documents relating to the xxxxx Citizen parent (unless stated, originals must be submitted):

Original civil birth certificate of xxxxx Citizen parent (showing parental details)

• Original civil marriage certificate of xxxxx Citizen parent (if applicable) OR other change of name document (if applicable)
• Photocopy of current state-issued photographic ID document (i.e. passport, drivers license, national identity card) certified as a true copy of the original by a professional from the list of witnesses OR original civil death certificate (if applicable)
• Documents relating to the grandparent born in xxxxx (unless stated, originals must be submitted):

Original civil birth certificate of xxxxx born grandparent (showing parental details)

Original civil marriage certificate of xxxxx born grandparent (if applicable) OR other change of name document (if applicable)

Photocopy of current state-issued photographic ID document (i.e. passport, drivers licence, national identity card) certified as a true copy of the original by a professional from the list of witnesses

OR

Original civil death certificate (if applicable)

 

All I need to do right now is get a copy of my grandmother's death certificate, get my proofs of address, pay my application fee, get the application form notarized, and send it in.   Right now, they are processing applications sent in during November.  So if all goes right, I'll be sending in my paperwork in March and getting my second passport around my birthday.  It won't be as dramatic as getting the Letters of Transit in the movie, Casablanca.  But it will have just as good a result for me, if things go very sour here....

I'm dying to ask this person a question

 

No, I am not talking about asking this character any questions.   He is the one making war against us transgender people.  However, I know someone who supported him once, and I would love to find out how she's doing, and what this war means to her....

- - - - - -

A while back, I met this acquaintance in Brooklyn.  Although we've met several times before, this was the first time in years that I've been to Downtown Brooklyn.  It was cold (like today) and it was dark.  But it was before the 2024 election, and this person was a supporter of the Orange Snowflake - even though she is a post-op trans-woman.

 

Neither of us had problems being able to talk with someone with different views.  Yet, I always wondered what would happen to trans folk, if the Snowflake was elected - especially, knowing the radical Christianist Nationalists he owes big time for their votes.  Within a few days of the election, we had our answer - the Snowflake has tried to erase transgenders from society, even having the gall to take the T off of the LGBT at Stonewall National Historic Site.

I do not know in which state my acquaintance was born, but I have a strong feeling that it will be hard for her to renew her passport when the time comes.  How will she feel that she is under attack from the very man she supported for president?  Will this be the first of many things that could be denied her because she is caught in the middle of a culture war?

Sooner or later, I will reach out to her and try to get together.  Right now, I sent a text message saying hello.  It's hard to hate people without reason, and most GOP'ers have a sense of ethics.  Sadly, as 1930's history has proven, it is easy for some people to develop a cult and cause people to ignore their own inner compasses for the sake of group loyalty and out of fear of being persecuted.

How would you feel in her size-13W shoes?

How do you talk to a friend named Maria....

 

I've known my friend Maria for almost as long as I've lived in my apartment.  We worked together near the beginning of our careers, and we've kept in contact with each other through the loss of my wife, her divorce, and the loss of her second husband.  Neither of us has been available when the other has been free, and that's a plus for a good friendship.  I'm probably the only person who can say that she slept in my bed every night for several months, and there was nothing immoral about it.  (I lent her a folding cot with thick mattress, as her ex-husband stole all of the bedroom furniture in the house.  My 'bed' was over 35 miles away when she slept in it.)

Maria knows me both as Mario and as Marian, and is comfortable with me in both presentations.  She leans to the right politically, while I lean to the left.  And yet, she finds what is going on in DC these days very disturbing.  So, when I started discussing politics, she didn't challenge me on the facts - she knew that the Orange Snowflake is up to no good.

The real reason for us getting together was to have lunch - we haven't been able to do so in months.  The secondary reason was to have some paperwork notarized.  Over lunch, I found out that her two grand-kids are living at home again, and that the eldest has already entered puberty.  (If I ever go through that experience again, it will be because of estrogen, not testosterone, like my first puberty.  But I digress.)  The younger of the two grand-kids is still cute.  I can only imagine what it will be like when this child enters puberty.  As you can guess, when a grandmother is raising her grandchildren, it takes a lot of energy out of a person, leaving little left for her volunteer work and for her social life.

Lunch lasted over 2 hours, and at the end, she notarized some of the documents I'll need to apply for my second passport.  And then, we left Cold Spring to go our separate ways....

- - - - - -

I had no energy when I got home, and it was all I could to so that 2 loads of laundry could get done.  By the time it was done, I had decided to blow off game night for a change.  I never do this.  But with RQS coming up tomorrow, I wanted to be ready for her arrival in the afternoon.

Later in the evening, RQS and I got into a long discussion about my brother, the family homestead, and interactions with  both friends and family.  I mentioned my friend Nan from the AOL Widows/Widowers chat room (long disbanded) and a wish to visit her in the "North Country"  RQS was up for it (she wanted some new photo opportunities), so I sent a DM to Nan to see if it would be OK.  Hopefully, she will be up for visitors, as I know that people in their 80's don't have a lot of life in front of them....

Waiting for a washer/dryer set.

 

This was the day I dreaded - a morning rush to get RQS to her pottery class, followed by a lot of waiting in a "cold" house for a washer and dryer to be delivered and installed.

- - - - - -

RQS and I set our alarms to get us up and moving at the ungodly hour (for us) of 8 am.  I was the first one in the shower, and I was ready to go out by 9 am.  However, we didn't need to be at the pottery studio until 10 am.  So that gave us 30 minutes to kill.

I was glad to be able to drive RQS to the studio - I'd have never found it on my own without Google Maps.  But I did take the slow route to Long Island afterwards, as I had a lot of time to kill.  When I arrived in my old neighborhood, I started shopping for a doorbell. Although I saw one in the local hardware store, the price wasn't as good as I wanted for an inexpensive piece of Chinese crap.  (I wanted something inexpensive, but didn't have a cheap look or feel to it.)  So, I'll bring up the idea with my brother that we should buy something a little bit better when the place is ready to be rented out.

Arriving at the old homestead at 11:30, I set things up and began my wait.  This was not going to be a day where being out as Marian would be practical, especially with the possibility that my brother may stop by if installation runs late.  Fortunately, we had a table and chair available for me, and I proceeded to make myself at home for a while.

 

The delivery truck came a little bit before 2 pm, and then the "fun" began.  It was interesting to see how 2 people could "comfortably" carry a washer and a dryer up and down steps without a hand truck, then install the appliances in the basement.  Within 30 minutes, everything was set up, and I was ready to go home.

Next, I'll have to find some time to be around when the hot water heater is installed....

I didn't originally plan to be at RQS's place today (a short post)

 

Normally, I might try to put more effort into a topic for a post.  Today is very different.  We have a washer/dryer set being delivered to the family homestead, and I have to be around the house tomorrow waiting for the delivery.  Given that I didn't want to risk being late for the delivery, I decided to drive RQS home and stay at her place for the night.

- - - - - -

I would usually drop RQS off at the station on Mondays, and I would have the rest of the week to myself.  Not this week.  I packed up minimal supplies (my CPAP machine, a change of clothes, and the computer I'm writing this post on) and drove to RQS's place.  We arrived around 2 pm, and I easily found a spot within eyesight of her building's front door.

Given the frigid weather outside, neither of us wanted to go out for dinner.  So, it was Chinese delivery.  What Chippies are to the UK, "Chinese" joints are to the US - ubiquitous in almost every town.  None of them serve the exact same food, as their offerings are not as standardized as a McDonald's.  But they will serve a typical set of food selections that will fill you up for at least 59 minutes.  (As the old canard goes: Eat Chinese food, and in 60 minutes, you'll be hungry again.)

For the most part, it was a nothing-burger of a day.  Tomorrow, on the other hand, will be a rush, followed up by a lot of waiting.