My week in review

Thank goodness for short weeks!

On Friday, November 18th at 4:45 p.m., as luck would have it, my office gets a call from the EPA that a local apartment complex has been condemned for asbestos. We then need to go out to make sure that all the residents who were displaced have been relocated elsewhere. The property owner had just purchased the building several months prior, and was doing some very serious rehabbing to it to improve it for all the tenants and for the neighborhood, in particular. Apparently, the contractor the property owner was using got fired, and later called the property owner with, "Oh, by the way... I think that piping I removed is contaminated with asbestos..." Now disgruntled, the contractor probably called the EPA and likely got the property owners into trouble. So a colleague and I head to the scene, and the residents are, of course, reasonably angry at the sudden move. Everyone was pretty calm with the exception of one guy and his daughter (or son?) who were a couple bricks short of a load and refused to get out unless the sheriff was called. So, we called the police and "gently" persuaded them to leave, and watched the EPA guy post the "condemned" posters with wide red tape all over the doors. After 2-1/2 hours of standing out in the freezing cold with just a lightweight jacket, I was frozen solid. I now have an appreciation for all those folks who have permanent outdoor winter jobs. And, we made the news... a day late. I am now a self-proclaimed expert on the many reasons condemnation can occur. Ha.

On another topic, our interior house painting is pretty much complete. Bedroom, dining room, small bathroom, and small bedroom finito! It's pretty satisfying when it's time to pull down the tape and stand back with your hands on your hips admiring your work. Ta-da! Now, onto the next project... eh, maybe after the 1st of the year.

The first snow arrived this morning. Benny woke me up at 3:00 a.m. for his usual late-night pee, and as he trotted outside he quickly tried to do a circle to come right back in again. I have to say that I am looking forward to making a snowball and tossing it to him - I think he and Mona are going to have a ball romping around in the yard. Bennamin will probably cock his leg on the snowman I plan to make sometime this season.

By the way.... the meatalicious omelet I described in my last post? Correction: the sign actually says MEATnormous. My mistake!

Happy Butterball --er-- Thanksgiving!! Gobble, gobble!