Without Even Trying
So I got a nastygram from the city to clean up the weeds in my alley. They'd gotten bad while I was sick for a few months, unknowingly reacting to my former medication.
The bad thing was that as I sometimes do, I missed the letter in the bottom of my deep mailbox. It had been delivered last week some time. When I found it the deadline for cleaning up the weeds had passed by 2 days. They were threatening a charge of $300 to clean it up plus fines of $2500.
I understand it was shaggy but there weren't tires and garbage piled up.
It kind of bummed me out as I had finally gotten back to work this week. I'm back at IDEM doing data analysis at my old title and pay level. IT was a long struggle to get back (due to some confusion at the insurance office...I was supposed to go back last year and they lost the paperwork). But I was back, treated like a rock star by the old friends and I was feeling pretty good. Then I got the letter.
So I imediately started trying to clean it up by myself without the proper equipment. I had hand clippers. Even an industrial weed eater has trouble with the thistle and wild lettuce due to the stringy nature of the plant. And those plants have thorns that go through even rose gloves. Suck.
I finally got overwhelmed and did the right thing...called JP. He showed up an hour later to help me complete cleaning up more of the mess. I actually had made a good amount of progress.
While waiting for him to show up and picking burrs off of myself I had a few conversations with passers by.
The first conversation was with a regular from the diner. He started off teasing me about the weeds but when he found out the city was after me he was very supportive. He said he would help me if he didn't have other stuff to do.
As we were talking a young woman walked by and said they had gotten on her as well. She was a single mother who had just given birth and was recovering from surgery. She ended up paying somebody to clean up. She said they don't take people's situations into account when they send those things out.
After they left another woman asked if I had help coming. She saw me struggling and was going to offer to help me. She said her neighbor, an elderly man, had the city after him, so she was helping him get things in shape.
IT really made me feel better that a stranger offered help. It also made me feel better to know I wasn't alone having the city come after me. I still felt quite ashamed that it had gotten that bad but I wasn't the only person having trouble keeping up with things.
I also spoke to the owner of the diner next door. She said it was way too much work to do by myself and spoke sympathetically.
JP and I got a lot done that night. Then he and Priscilla came back to help me the next day...like they don't have enough of their own stuff to do. WE got most of it done. I still have to stuff a few bits in bags but enough has been done to satisfy the city.
Tonight I was thinking about some of the struggles women have as homeowners. There are more of us today than ever. I thought it would be cool to start a support group and even had the name of it in my head...then I realized the acronym was priceless.
Without trying I came up with Association of Women Home Owners (ASWHO). Yep...I'd be a total ASWHO.
The bad thing was that as I sometimes do, I missed the letter in the bottom of my deep mailbox. It had been delivered last week some time. When I found it the deadline for cleaning up the weeds had passed by 2 days. They were threatening a charge of $300 to clean it up plus fines of $2500.
I understand it was shaggy but there weren't tires and garbage piled up.
It kind of bummed me out as I had finally gotten back to work this week. I'm back at IDEM doing data analysis at my old title and pay level. IT was a long struggle to get back (due to some confusion at the insurance office...I was supposed to go back last year and they lost the paperwork). But I was back, treated like a rock star by the old friends and I was feeling pretty good. Then I got the letter.
So I imediately started trying to clean it up by myself without the proper equipment. I had hand clippers. Even an industrial weed eater has trouble with the thistle and wild lettuce due to the stringy nature of the plant. And those plants have thorns that go through even rose gloves. Suck.
I finally got overwhelmed and did the right thing...called JP. He showed up an hour later to help me complete cleaning up more of the mess. I actually had made a good amount of progress.
While waiting for him to show up and picking burrs off of myself I had a few conversations with passers by.
The first conversation was with a regular from the diner. He started off teasing me about the weeds but when he found out the city was after me he was very supportive. He said he would help me if he didn't have other stuff to do.
As we were talking a young woman walked by and said they had gotten on her as well. She was a single mother who had just given birth and was recovering from surgery. She ended up paying somebody to clean up. She said they don't take people's situations into account when they send those things out.
After they left another woman asked if I had help coming. She saw me struggling and was going to offer to help me. She said her neighbor, an elderly man, had the city after him, so she was helping him get things in shape.
IT really made me feel better that a stranger offered help. It also made me feel better to know I wasn't alone having the city come after me. I still felt quite ashamed that it had gotten that bad but I wasn't the only person having trouble keeping up with things.
I also spoke to the owner of the diner next door. She said it was way too much work to do by myself and spoke sympathetically.
JP and I got a lot done that night. Then he and Priscilla came back to help me the next day...like they don't have enough of their own stuff to do. WE got most of it done. I still have to stuff a few bits in bags but enough has been done to satisfy the city.
Tonight I was thinking about some of the struggles women have as homeowners. There are more of us today than ever. I thought it would be cool to start a support group and even had the name of it in my head...then I realized the acronym was priceless.
Without trying I came up with Association of Women Home Owners (ASWHO). Yep...I'd be a total ASWHO.