That was some kind of hell-raising storm we had early this morning. It was one more reminder of how living in the “flatlands” gives our wind the ability to blow rain in a horizontal direction instead of straight down. If anyone had a window open last night that was facing westerly, you can be sure they had a big puddle of water on their floors.
I was reminded how different weather can be when visiting with some dear clients of mine who live in Hayward Wisconsin. Last winter was the first one they wintered over, and they couldn’t believe how much better it was than here because all the tall trees blocked the wind, and since it’s much drier up there, the snow is always the soft light stuff we rarely see. They also said driving in a foot of snow is like us driving in three inches of it because of how light it is.
Keep in mind, Hayward is only about 50 miles southeast of Duluth, and being inland, they don’t get that nasty lake effect. After hearing about all the festivals and events Hayward has, as well as there being no blighted districts in their community, I was almost ready to start packing until they mentioned they do have bears and even wolves in the timbered areas. Bears have never been my cup of tea, so I guess I’ll just have to drive up there sometime for just a visit.
My morning didn’t start out so well when finding something had happened with the landline phones in my office, and likely due to that wicked storm early this morning. I was on hold with the phone company’s customer service for over an hour, and since I couldn’t stand waiting any longer, I started calling other numbers until I could reach someone who could patch me thru. Making matters worse, was hearing that they wouldn’t be able to physically investigate the problem until tomorrow morning. Ugh!
The real annoyance was having to deal with three different people in their call center who had extremely thick Indian or Pakistani accents. More than once I said, “Your accent is so thick I can’t understand you, and if you’d speak slowly and more clearly, I would.” And wouldn’t you know it, one of them hung up on me after I said that. I don’t believe I was being the least bit rude because I was stating a fact.
Can you imagine what it must be like when some hard-of-hearing oldster is trying to communicate with them? Which reminds me of that old guy at the post office some months ago and mentioning how he couldn’t understand a gal who was on the phone with him regarding a money order. I couldn’t help laughing when saying in a frustrated voice, “I didn’t understand a word she said because she was speaking with either a mouthful of rice or tacos.” I know that was a wicked remark, but I couldn’t help empathizing with his situation.
Most people have no idea how frustrated hard-of-hearing or weak-sighted people get when trying to communicate or interact with others. I’ve been around them enough, and if a person isn’t patient with them, they turn inward and blame themselves for their weak abilities. There’ve been many times when I’ve stepped in one of those frustrating meetings and instructed the person trying to communicate with a near deaf person by saying, “Speak slowly, drop your voice, and above all, speak each word clearly.” I have no regrets for being a little tough on those clerks or medical professionals because some day they’ll be in similar situations. This is one more reason we need more senior advocates because there are too many seniors in our Country who’re living in a near constant state of frustration.
The highlight of my day was getting 12 S. Willowgreen Court listed. It’s located out on our popular west-side, and offers all the features many are looking for in a townhouse. It features 3 bedrooms, a master bath, a beautiful new kitchen, new floor coverings, neutral colors, and an open floor plan most buyers are looking for. It has an attached double garage with a pull-down ladder for attic storage. The real bonus is having a heated in-ground pool that can be used by the association homeowners. I made sure to take some photos of it. There’s no doubt any senior who’d buy that unit would be seeing their grandchildren more often if they knew there was a heated pool they could use.
Tonight’s photo is of its kitchen which I believe whomever installed it did a great job. What I really like, is the under-cabinet lighting which always comes in handy when preparing meals. I’m really not looking for it to be on the market very long because of how much more sought-after Willowgreen Court townhouses have been. There were two recent sales that certainly don’t compare to this one, and they both sold quickly. Be sure to put the word out because this unit is priced to sell!
Tonight’s one-liner is: Ships at a distance seem to always have every person’s wish on board.
