Wednesday, July 3, 2024

 Busy.

Bank, deposit cash and checks.

County courthouse - they passed a bill here recently that vehicle inpsections are no longer needed.  What I didn't know is that that doesn't take place until January next year.  So, over to a place that does inspections, which took all of 5 minutes, over to T Mobile to turn in the malfunctioning device, Lowe's to get supplies for the park then back to the court house to get the registration done for both my SUV and the trailer.  

Over to the park, a person was finally caught in the act dumping trash into the dumpster.  This is a big deal because there are several people doing it and filling the thing up every single week.  It's NOT people from the park doing it. If it were only people from the park, it might get 2/3rds full every week at most.  So, they didn't get the license number as I had asked them to, but they saw where they went.  

_________

Hours later, the dog was stuck with needles fully 4 times.  He never flinched, growled or otherwise showed any signs of unease.  So that part was great. The bill wasn't so great, almost $500 for all of that stuff, but I had to get him the full fledged everything, including an injection that will guard his heart from heartworms for a full year.  Ball park, he said was around $450 to $500 to neuter him.  I'm going to plan on getting that done soon.  

After getting him home, I tackled the pond pump. It hasn't been working and I got a new one to replace it. I went to unplug the thing, lifted up the outdoor weather cover over the outlet and.......WASPS.  A hive of them things in there. I quickly left the area, went into the house, got a spray bottle of wasp killer that sprays some 25 feet and let them have it. They definitely picked the wrong place to build.  Pond pump going, I got a call.

This lady has called 3 times now.  She wants to know everything.  I told her everything more than once, but I'm fairly patient when trying to get new people in there. She is calling about her boy who needs to move here for college.  I'm not sure which one, I didn't want to get too nosy but I did ask about any felonies?  She was actually relieved I asked that question and said no, there is no legal trouble at all.

So, I assume/hope they are actually moving in on Saturday.  That will leave 2 lots left, I need one more long term, the other one I am still going to leave for overnighters even tho the overnight reservations are spartan.  They will pick back up eventually, I just want at least one of them open for overnighters.  And the lot I leave open is the highly desireable end lot with a huge yard.  

So, it's been a productive day and I think I'm done. The heat index is what I guessed it would be: 110 degrees and after spending some time out there cleaning out the pond filter and installing that new pump and dealing with wasps? I'm going to call it quits on this day.  I'm still seriously considering....

cancel that.  I was going to rent a ditch witch, but they're closed tomorrow and I'm not paying for 2 days worth of a rental for a few hours worth of work.  I don't want this thing to drag on forever, I'll have to get a day off either weekday or saturday and just get up early, be at the rental place at 7:00 am, haul it over there, dig out the trench and get the machine back to them in the 4 hour time frame.  I really don't see it taking more than 2 hours, but I'll give it 4 for the entire circuit of getting it, bringing it, using it and returning it.  They're only 6 miles away from the park.

I'll have Allen out there backfilling the driveway while I get the machine back to the rental place and also will just have to block the entrance, people will have to come and go through the exit, no biggies. 

I want his wife, Brenda, to get on that camper asap.  I've really racked my brains about getting that thing fixed up and now I have a person that wants to do it - for an hourly wage of course but I was already prepared to do that anyway - and I think she will do a good job of it. I want a good used, refrigerator in there and she will build a frame around it.  I want the entire sink/cooking area discarded and replaced.  It needs a new RV toilet and the shower - I dunno what she can do about that. In my view, the entire thing needs to be torn out and replaced.  The carpet needs replaced and a sofa bed needs inserted.   A new or good used queen mattress in the bedroom and whatever else needs to be done.  It's going to cost a couple thousand.  I'm not opposed to that if the job is done right and I have a unit that someone can call home via renting and actually like living in it.

She already has a vision for it, that's the kind of person she is.  She is definitely the optimist.  

I don't know what they got done over there today. When I arrived, he was heading to his trailer. He was visibly over-heated and I don't want people dying on me just to get some work done.  It's the kind of thing where you either work in the morning or even, mornings better because it's much cooler out.  Working in mid day heat with the sun blaring down on your, 90 plus percent humidity and heat index at 110? Just not optimal, putting it mildly.

I am optimistic about another renter coming in and staying indefinitely, according to the mother. I do hope that materializes.  Just need another one....well there is another one that said they wanted to move their daughter in there mid-July - another student.  Hey, I'll become EBTU's second dormitory lol.  I don't care who moves in there, with some exceptions (definitely don't need the felons or the drug abusers or drunks and a few other types that come to mind).  Ok, I do have a felon in there, Felony DUI. She's been there for quite a while now and doesn't bother anyone.  She found a boyfriend recently, he's staying with her but he seems ok as well.  

So where am I at with my slowly forming agenda for park expansion?  Umm, if those guys can get all of that brush and small trees cleared out, I can do a version of leveling it with a bobcat.  I suppose I could pay someone to run a dozer there for a day, it wouldn't take a good operator long to smooth and level that out.  You get me that done and I will sit on here thinking of every possible avenue to move it along.  Get 5 more lots in there to start with.  And get a pool.  I'm sold on the pool, doesn't really matter what anyone else thinks. That and a hot tub.  

Still awaiting word on the address of the person dumping trash into my dumpster.  I fully intend on having the sheriff's office go over there and inform the person if they do it again, they will be arrested for criminal trespass and theft of services. I don't want people going to jail over trash, I just want them to STOP dumping THEIR trash into MY dumpster. If they can afford to live in a house, they can afford to get a company to do weekly trash service.  

I think this is enough for now.  I have no clue what's for dinner, we have tomorrow covered but we bought nothing for today, lol. 



2 comments:

Anonymous said...

doesn't really matter what anyone else thinks.

LOL Good for you, Ben. Seriously. Just remember the additional insurance, fencing costs, liability problems despite warning signs, misuse by non residents, daily care needed to keep it from being a major liability, replacement or repair costs, water bill, leakage and all the other delights which come from such an attraction.

Best of luck with it.

BenB said...

You are focused on the negatives. I've thought of all of those things and more. There are ways to mitigate all of that. The increased cost will be insurance coverage and water. If I can get the well going, the water won't be an issue. If I can't, it is what it is. There are many parks in other regions in Texas with pools, whatever the issues may be with them, they make it back in higher rents or usage fees.

 I've decided to get up at 4 am, get over to the park and get rolling out of there no later than 5 am.  That gets me to the washout at 6...