Things starting to gel - Day 1744 (Year 5, Day 275)

Zephryhills, FL

To use a planting metaphor, all the seeds Mitch has planted over the past few months are starting to sprout and with G-d's help, we can harvest something in the very near future. 

He had quite a few interviews over the last 2 weeks, and at the moment, he is being seriously considered for at least 4 positions (possibly a 4th but they haven't been very communicative, so we don't know).  Two of those positions are in Jacksonville, FL, 1 is as a traveler around the country, the last is in Morrisville, NC (near Cary and Raleigh -- an IDEAL location for us!!!).

We're not sure which, if any, of those positions will be offered to him, but Mitch also discovered that there are numerous IT positions open in the Jacksonville area.  So the plan is.... (and bear in mind the old saying that "Man plans and G-d laughs" or as we like to say, our plans are always made in jello.  That being said....

We need some repair work on our roof.  There is a place in Jacksonville that replaced our roof several years ago and we're hoping they guarantee their work (and that the repairs needed have something to do with their work).  In any event, it needs to be done before it gets to the point of causing major damage, no matter who is responsible and who has to pay.  Whether Mitch gets a job in Jacksonville or NC, it seems to make the most sense to go to Jacksonville to get the work on the rig done and use that location as a jumping of point -- either a place to settle for a few years, or as 200 miles closer to NC than we are now.

Next step is to see when we can get a service appointment and base our travels around that.  Passover is also coming close (2 weeks) and we need to do our Passover shopping as well as have a place to attend a seder.  Jacksonville has a large Jewish community and there will be numerous options, as opposed to here where the closest places to shop are in Tampa -- 1.5 hours away with traffic.

So the plan is, based on when we can get an appointment, to move up to Jacksonville, get the rig worked on, and then either settle down long term or travel up to NC.  My hope is that they'll have something available next week and we can leave here next Sunday.

We're still in a state of total limbo, but at least the plans are starting to gel a little.  Will keep ya'all posted (guess I've been in the South too long!)

Fruit of the vine - Day 1739 (Year 5, Day 270)

Zephyrhills, FL

Well, not really of the vine - more like a tree.  About 2 months ago (I don't remember if I wrote about this previously), we found a fruit tree near the laundry room.  We thought they were little round pears, but when we brought it home, discovered they were small red grapefruits.  They were really sweet and wonderful, if you like red grapefruit.

Today, we learned of a clump of 3 other trees near the office - loquats.  I didn't discover the tree myself -- our next door neighbor who has the "farm" and chickens and bring us fresh eggs every now & then, brought us a few of these tiny fruits and told us about the trees.  They are really, really delicious!!!  Kind of tastes like a mixure of peach, citrus and mango.



On Mitch's job front, still nothing yet but the seeds are starting to sprout.  He's been getting a few calls and had 2 interviews so far (in fact, he's on the phone with another recruiter right now).  He also learned about a company that was doing what he did before for the gas company.  Several folks from his old company are working there now.  He's pretty sure he can get work with them, and it may be a good plan while he still explores his Plan B of getting back into IT.

Will keep ya'all posted.

New business rollout - Day 1727 (Year 5, Day 258)

Zephyrhills, FL

Can't believe I have the fireplace on again every morning this week.  Highs in the 70s but waking up to the 40s again.

Anyway, as I've been hinting to over the past few weeks, I was starting an additional business.  Not giving up my VA business (A-Z Admin Solutions), but now also reselling cute, custom, crocheted collectibles, which make awesome unique gifts (Crocheted Cuties).  Check out the website!  In fact, if you want to order something between now and March 31st, use coupon code Welcome!

Shabbat guests & Mitch's project - Day 1723 (Year 5, Day 254)

Zephryhills, FL

Just a few things I forgot to mention during the last few posts...

This past week, Mitch was working on a semi-large project.  You may recall, going back quite a while, that we were having some problems with the refrigerator, in that it was running hot and we needed to keep defrosting almost every week.  One problem had been that the fan burned out, which was resolved and it was working fine... until this week.  We noticed there was a huge amount of ice on the fins in the back of the frig part, which we've never had before.  Upon researching it, it was concluded that too much air was getting in due to the seal (gasket) around the door being either broken or not tight enough.  Unfortunately, they don't sell replacement gaskets - you have to buy the entire door, at a cost of about $900.  So.... Mitch took all 4 doors apart, cleaned the gaskets, used epoxy to close up some of the cracks and put it all back (and also used a heat gun to try to shrink the rubber a little).  So far (fingers crossed), it seems to be working very well.  Frig is running at a normal temp, no ice buildup, and the doors do seem to be closing much tighter.  Yay, Mitch!

As for Shabbat guests, we've hosted 2 (actually 3) people in the last 3 weeks.  One time, it was a lovely woman and her husband (Carla and Carl) who I know from the group I run on Facebook ("Jews on Wheels") and who happened to be in the area.  (She joined me last month when the shul hosted a spa night).  Last Friday, as we were taking our daily walk, we ran into our neighbor, Ellie, who is a retired musician (although she still jams and does local gigs).  She lost her husband just about a year ago and was feeling extremely down and lonely.  On a whim, we invited her to join us for Shabbat dinner, even though she's not Jewish.  She was so extremely grateful and it certainly did cheer her up (she also enjoyed learning a little about our customs).

Weather: has been in the mid to upper 80s all week, but will be in the 70s this coming week.  Still better than being up north!

Met another client in person - Day 1721 (Year 5, Day 252)

Zephyrhills, FL

I have 2 clients who live somewhat in the area (one in Lithia, the other in Clearwater.  I met the one in Lithia a few weeks ago).  I was thrilled to meet the one in Clearwater, along with his partner who was in the area visiting.  Getting there was a nightmare: it was a 50 mile drive which took us about 2 hours (mostly because we had to drive thru Tampa, where there is always horrible traffic).  Our truck was also very thirsty (antifreeze level very low), so we were very anxious as the thermostat gauge was inching it's way to the hot setting while sitting in traffic.  Almost 85 degrees out, we had to run the heater.

The plan was to meet at the Clearwater Mall (Panera Bread Co) at 5:30.  We wanted to stop at a Whole Foods first (about 5 miles away) to stock up on our House Foods shiratake noodles.  We planned plenty of time to go there first.  As we got off the highway en route to Whole Foods, the thermostat hit the red mark, so we pulled in to the first parking lot (thankfully, didn't have the rig!).  Mitch checked the radiator fluid and sure enough, it was way too low.  He added a little antifreeze and the rest of the ride, including returning home, was just fine.  LESSON:  make sure to check fluids on a constant basis.

Despite the stop, we still had about 1/2 hour left over so decided to try to explore the beach, which was also about 5 miles away.  We're told that walking on the white sands of Clearwater is like walking on fine powder.  We drove in the direction of the beach and were hoping to get off before crossing a bridge to another island, but no such luck.  We crossed the bridge (observing the traffic jam on the return side) and realized that if we tried the beach and a place to park and then walk, we wouldn't have enough time to get to the restaurant on time.  So we crossed the bridge, made a U-turn, and headed back.

Do we want to attempt this trip again to experience the Clearwater beach?  I'd love to be there, but not sure it's worth the schlep.  Who knows .. if Mitch finds a job where he can work remotely, maybe we can find a reasonable campground in that area during off season.

One final note, which is mainly for my own memory purposes... for the past few days, Mitch was involved in taking the seals (gaskets) off the refrigerator and fixing them.  He couldn't buy new ones as you need to buy the entire door which is about $900.  The reason for fixing the seals is there that the fins in the back iced over, due to too much air getting in and not circulating properly.  I need to remind myself of this because if there's a problem in the future, I need to remember when it was that Mitch fixed the door!  Thank goodness for the search feature here, which I've needed to use on several occasions!  I don't trust anything to memory!

MItch Sez: (The Journey Y5:D251)

Yes, it's me, the silent one.

Cheryl totally underplayed her birthday post yesterday.  She's really learning to code.
Even if it is in Wordpress.   It's still a lot of work.  

Imagine a set of nested Russian dolls.

• The largest doll contains 6-7 other dolls.

•  In this case, the large doll is a 'theme' for Wordpress.
• The next smaller doll is another theme that does another function.
• The next smaller doll is another theme that does another function.

 It keeps doing this, and getting more and more convoluted, but much more detailed.  Each theme/function has it's own administration and rules.

Very, Very  proud of her.  I'm occasionally giving her a couple of hints, but she's doing most of it on her own!

Oh, and I still like my date formatting.  I think it's more meaningful then "Day 1720".

Your thoughts?  Oh yeah, you thought I  was dead.
Nope, just up at 2 in the morning!

Cheers to all:
Mitch B

Birthday - Day 1719 (Year 5, Day 250)

Zephryhills, FL

Wow, I can't believe it's been 22 days since my last post!  Really, really nothing happening that's worth posting. 

Mitch still continues to look for employment (he has a few leads and has planted a lot of seeds;  now just need to hope some of them take root.  I think one of the greatest challenges he faces is that the number of years of experience he has is often greater than the number of years many of the recruiters have been alive!  No one wants to hire an "old" man.  Many places want someone fresh out of college).

My work continues to be feast or famine.  This past week has been extremely slow, which is a good thing because I'm starting another new business (in addition to A-Z Admin Solutions).  I actually mentioned this in my last post (Feb. 17th) and now I am working full speed ahead on getting the website designed.  Below are some photos of the items I've purchased (if you think you might be interested in learning more once this is up & running, please leave me a comment with your email address (I won't publish it) so I can add you to the mailing list.

     

As for my birthday, which was this past Monday, absolutely nothing special.  I did receive numerous birthday wishes, and the way I celebrated was by going off my diet and ordering Chinese takeout so I didn't need to cook (still on an extremely tight budget, so going out for a nice meal or recreation couldn't be justified). 

I keep this blog mostly for my own memories, but also to keep friends & family apprised of my whereabouts and wanderings.  I looked back to see how I've spent previously birthdays on the road:

2015: Arcadia, FL (at the fairgrounds, waiting for our king pin to be replaced) -- I had 2 sets of friends who were staying about 20 miles away, who came by and took us out for a nice dinner.

2016:  Asheville, NC - 3 couples who worked with Mitch made me a party in the social hall of their campground.

2017: Livingston, TX - the area was very isolated with nowhere to eat.  It was also the year I started my low carb diet.  Mitch pampered me by making all the meals of the day and doing the cleanup afterwards.

2018: Williamsburg, VA - this was a milestone year (#60).  We were having lots of truck troubles at the time and didn't have friends or family in the area to celebrate with.  Landed up staying home watching a movie and going off the diet (for takeout pasta).