Monday, July 10, 2023

 Monday.

Got up early. AC repair guy was supposed to show up at 8:00 am.  A storm hit early and thunder woke up. So, there it is 5:30 AM and eventually got back to sleep, but at 7:30 it was time to boogie.

Got my coffee, got over there before 8 and ... nothing. Dude didn't show up but eventually called.  He didn't show because of the storm, however, he didn't bother to tell me he wasn't showing. Not the end of the world but I could have stayed in bed much longer.  I was up half the night itching all over again. Benadryl works - a  little - but my entire feet are just giant itching machines.  

Keeping my hands off of them, yes, but it doesn't stop the almost agony of intense need to itch the life out of them and get some relief.  

I'm so tired right now.  It's like, I may just go back to sleep for a while.  

Anyway, the guy finally showed up and gave me the news I figured it would be: it isn't putting out cold enough air and isn't drawing enough amperage. It's old, worn out and there's no fixing this thing.  It wasn't shocking or even surprising, I figured this is what i would be told.  He also said they had the cover on backwards.  Great.  It means that there wasn't enough air getting to the thing where it needed it and probably over heated it many times over.

He did say the thing was probably 20 plus years old.  

He quoted me a price much higher than I expected.  Rock, meet hard place.  What am I going to do? Not fix it and be stuck with a unit I can't rent out?  He had a replacement unit on his truck, said he could get a new one on there in no time.  So, that's what I did.  It's going to be a situation where I'm going to check everything out, get fixed whatever else needs fixing and get the thing rented out. If there is no water heater in there - we both came to the conclusion the propane version of one had been removed - I will rent it with the idea that there is a shower with hot water in the bathroom.  Just means I'll rent it cheaper than I want.  

I actually think at this point my idea of selling it on payments to someone is a better idea.  I don't want the headache of continual problems with this thing, tho admittedly the AC was the big ticket item.  The electrical outlets work, it only really needs (as far as I know) the new carpet installed, a couch (cheap) and a deep cleaning. I haven't hooked up water to it yet, that will be the next dive into the deep unknown.

However, if it has water leaks, I can fix those myself.  I can install a watered down version of a water heater as well.  Just a lower wattage version of an inline that is installed at each outlet you want hot water in. I don't know how much they cost and right now, I don't have to have hot water in there since it's in shed. It would definitely be nice, tho.  I also need to make sure the oven and stove top work - they are propane fired. A person renting or buying it would have to refill the tank themselves.  

Well, the thing is nice and cool in there now and the unit isn't staying on all the time so it's not drawing a lot of power.  I'll either be back over there later today after I get a nap or tomorrow morning. Hoping this itching will start to subside so I can get some sleep.  

Meanwhile, the tent lady supposedly has a job and is working.  I'll just go to the tobacco junction and find out, I can smoke a nice cigar.  The other low income people left quite a while back - like late last month and I haven't seen them.  Their trailer is there but they aren't.

Well, that's been updated.  They drove their old pickup to New Jersey for whatever reason I have no clue and informed me today their truck broke down.  Mind you, they were supposed to pay the lot rent 12 days ago.  They haven't been there, the window ac unit is blasting away, I was getting irritated.  She says they are stranded in NJ, but, that trailer is their only home.

People's decisions to do certain things often times bewilders me.  If you are poor and broke, why are you driving clear to New Jersey? That's 1,400 miles from here.  She said she could have her brother come tow it out of there. Well, honey, you've been sucking down electricity all this time - I thought but did not say to her.  I did say well, your ac is on and it's running up the electric bill.  You can leave the trailer there if you pay it up.

She claimed her brother would come and pay up.  It's a full month's rent owed at this point and that's back payment. I dunno, but their lack of good decision making isn't my problem. Me paying the bills and trying to make a profit is.  But yes, if they can't come up with the money I want that thing out of there.  I'm not trying to be heartless but they've  had ample time - more than I gave the tent people - to pay up. She claimed she had the money on the 28th when it was due but they left town for Oklahoma where they're from. 

No, they didn't move the trailer out of my park.  

Enough. I need to get over there and start painting that shed and now I'll have to find someone to figure out what's wrong with the riding mower. It runs perfectly fine, the PTO works great but the thing refuses to go into gear.  Yes, I took things apart to see if I could find the problem. The drive belt is on. The key in the wheel is not busted.  The linkage is good the tranny. The only thing I could see left is the transmission itself.  I read that the system can get air into it and needs purged. I tried to follow instructions how to purge it, but I'm not sure I was doing it correctly.  I've exhausted the limits of my knowledge, I'm not taking a transmission apart.  

I still have the push mower and I did start trying to cut everything down, but everything is wet and not behaving. I'll have to wait until the rains pass and everything dries up.  I've got plenty to do without all of that, it's just that the rains have pushed weeds up everywhere and I want them all cut down.  There's too much to spray week killer on it. I have to have a nice, dense layer of grass.  So that's next.  Grass. After the shed is painted I'll get with the grass and then if I can get that done I'll get with finding a new trucking job.  

It is what it is.  I've succumbed to the reality that I will be sitting in a driver's seat of a truck and running long days. Unless something drastic - drastically good that is - happens and soon to change that, I have no choice.  I'm running out of money and I have a lot of debt.  If I could fill the park up then I wouldn't be in quite the bind I'm in now.   I could take guesses why I can't fill the park up - time of year, not much transient work going on right now, the lack of grass is a turn off, who knows.  But it only makes sense to have the park looking as good as possible.  

Frankly, I need cash inflow to deal with a lot of stuff I can't deal with right now.  I want a dozer out there to plow up the entire front portion of the property, smooth it out and get something other than giant weeds growing there. That may just have to wait until winter, tho.  Blade it and spread rye grass seed everywhere.  

Okay, I said enough several paragraphs up, lol. Time to get a little sleep and see if I can get some energy going.  







 Friday late-morning Typical morning when there is no work.  It was, I should say, until the new guy called.  "There's nothing wron...