interesting week

baby bird

On Thursday, Rachel went to work mid-day and then came home to go to sleep at 2. She screamed something is alive in her fireplace! You could hear something in there behind the cover.

after, looking sassy!

Before, looking skunky

When Bill came home, he opened up the cover and saw 2 baby birds clinging to the sides of the chimney. They didn't have many feathers and eyes were not open. Part of a nest was on the floor of the fireplace. He picked them up with this towel and put them outside. They clung to the towel like superglue. In the morning, they were still there. I had thought the parents would show up and take them away or at least feed them. I tried giving them bread soaked in milk, but they wouldn't eat. I eventually put them in a nice box with leaves and put them in the shade. Sadly, when we came back from dinner, they were dead.
The big thing this week is I had my hair cut off. I'm sick of coloring it. So, I had my stylist give me a style that will let the grey eventually be the dominate color. The long hair is gone for a while but after the colored hair is completely gone, the long hair will be back. When I told Rachel I was getting my hair cut off, she was shocked.

Lazy Sunday

Louise taking a much needed nap

 Louise is beating me at Solitaire

Unhappy Chip, can't sit in Bill's Lazy Boy Chair

It is is quiet out there today. Louise was taking her nap and then I left the couch to finish laundry. When I came back, she had her paws on the I Pad. She seems to be thinking very intently about her next move.

Since I had Bill's chair cleaned, Chip is no longer allowed to sit in the Lazy Boy. He is not thrilled. Look at that face. He is staring at the chair.

This afternoon, Rachel breezed in and asked for some cash. Which I don't have. Not even one dollar. So, I went into the Wells Fargo website and showed her, she had 2 bucks, I had one and she had 1.76 in her savings. She asked me to transfer the savings to her checking so she could get a gallon of gas to go to Tybee Island with her friends. Half an hour later, she calls me. Why can't she get $20 out of the ATM? WTF? Did she NOT see what we had in our checking accounts? Is she smoking too much p*t? Who knows. I told her better luck tomorrow...

Parking problem

Burnt recycling container

What's the matter with my parking?

This recycle container down the street had a fire. Now, why would something flammable be in there? There is a long list of what can and cannot be put in the container. Glass, aluminum, newspaper and plastic go in. Trash, garbage and fire do not.

Saw this genius parking job on my way to coffee this morning. It has 2 busted rear tires and I think a busted rear axle. It is half on the sidewalk and half out in the busy section of Montgomery Street. When I went by later in the day, it was gone. I'm sure it wasn't driven...

Luck

OMG! Who knew? I got off the phone with my mechanic and nearly died. He said it wasn't a clutch cable on the Subaru, it was the clutch and the throw-out bearing, too. WTF? He could sell it to me for cost $800 but the labor was a killer. Dave is such a good guy, he told me to check to see if it had any warranty left or if Subaru had any recalls. I called Chatham Parkway Subaru but they were in a "meeting." So, I dug through my files and ... FOUND IT!

My warranty is 5 years - 100,000 miles (and covers rental) with a $100 deductible. It expires on, get this JULY 20, 2012! Talk about LUCK. I had thought it was 5 years or 60,000 miles and since I have 67,000 figured it was long gone. Well, at least I'll have my wheels back soon, with a nice new clutch.

I will say though, as I was reading through some posts on line, the newer Subaru s are running into problems with clutches... In over 30+ years of driving stick shift including 5 Subaru s, I have only replaced one clutch.  Forums show 2005+ are running into problems. I'm not liking the sound of this.

Bad day

Damn. This is bad.

This was not exactly a good day for anyone. I drove by the 37th St. Connector and saw this. Turns out it was a double fatality.

I never heard back from the attorney about the job so I guess that is that.

Then this afternoon, the clutch went to the floor. Damn it all. Now it is at the mechanic's shop and I'm out $$... Crap.

MMM, Not so good.

 Every wonder what would happen if you took one of those microwavable mac 'n cheese containers, put it in the microwave.... and FORGET to put water in it?  Well, wonder no more. The girl wonder, Rachel, must have smoked a little too much. The house reeks of burnt macaroni. Nice.

Saturday

Had a final in Legal Research and Writing today. What a fiasco. We were told originally we were to turn in our legal paper and then we would take the final. Then...
He decided to have a review for the final at 1:15. After half an hour, I was more confused than when I walked in the door. Then, he told us to study in a group for another half hour and then work on our brief again for half an hour. WTF? My brief is on my laptop AT HOME. I was working on it right up to the minute I ran out the door to get to class! It turns out, he didn't have the final done. While we were "studying" in class, he was making up the final!  Much as I tried to study for it, I know I only got about a C. I talked to another girl as she and I were leaving at the same time, she isn't even sure she made a C. AND... we are allowed to use note cards.... Nothing printed, it has to be in our own writing. But whatever you study, just seems like you never "get" what is on his test. One class, we spent an hour on the verbs LIE and LAY. Yes, we had a test on it, too. No, it is not English class, it is LEGAL research and writing.

Started cleaning the apartment next door. It was $300+  for the carpet cleaning. In 13 months, they had NEVER vacuumed the carpets. The pic on the left, that is from ONE room. I filled the vacuum bucket up 5 times. By the time I did the last room, my vacuum cleaner was burning up. The filters were all clogged. I hate those people.

I told Rachel if she cleans all the windows, I'll give her $20. Better than just giving her money for nothing. She can do the insides of all the windows and the outside of the ones in the kitchen and front since it has both front and back porches (and is on the second floor). Bill will need to fix the back porch step and hopefully paint the place. Meanwhile, I still have tons of cleaning to do before I sleep, and tons of cleaning before I sleep.....

JUST ONE ROOM

Grime

Monday morning

I saw Captain Heron, of the SCMPD, our former captain of Bull Street. I had wondered what happened to him. Said he moved over to Internal Affairs. It must have burned him to hear that one of the officers in Bull Street was "not arresting family."

This afternoon we are off to Georgia Southern University for a tour. Rachel wants to go there, but we really don't have the money for her to live off campus. As a dual enrollee, she wouldn't have to live on campus. Oh well...

We plan on meeting Lila (Allie) this afternoon when we are done to pick up that Bob Mackie gown Peg sent down. I'm sure she will look great in it. I'm planning on taking some pics of her in it.

Friday Trash Talking

On Thursday after 4, I could see the excessive trash next door had not been picked up. I called the city before closing time. I got the sanitation supervisor on the phone. He called up a truck and the driver said they picked up the trash already. I told the supervisor, that is not true, I am looking at it. So, the truck came out.
When I saw the truck arrive, I went out the back gate to "talk trash." Oh yeah, I said that is all from 310 W. 35th street. They wouldn't touch it until the supervisor arrived. He took one look and then he took pictures. Said $250 would be added to the water bill. Nice.

City Workers picking up the piles

Broken step

Louise destroyed the bunny

This morning, I saw the last tenant from upstairs. I told him I had not gotten the keys. Also, the trash on the front porch needed to be removed and I informed him of the $250 charge to remove the trash. I told him that would be coming out of the security deposit. Then, he told me the water was shut off. I asked him, weren't you staying behind to finish cleaning? Must be hard without water... All he could do was agree.

Later, I checked the alley again to see how much more trash the guy had put outside. The recycle bin was full of garbage. Great. That won't be emptied. Then I noticed one of the back steps was broken. The girls downstairs told me they had been throwing things, including the furniture down the stairs. OK, I'm charging them to fix the stair, too.

This afternoon, I went out for less than a hour. When I came back, Louise was very animated, bouncing around. Chip was acting strange, with his head down. When I walked into the living room, I saw...the reason. The bunny was Dead...I know it was Louise. The bitch. Now there is no more funny bunny...

Trash Day

The SCAD'lings Graduation Day was Saturday. Now they are moving out. And look at the trash they leave behind.
The tenants next door threw out a ton of trash and garbage as well as a bed, couch, table, and even a stereo. Now, here's the best part. I called the city and there is a charge of $250 for them to pick up all that crap. It is added to the water bill. But, what happens if the tenants don't pay it, because maybe they move back to CHINA, then Bill ends up paying for it! Isn't that lovely? Plus, the tenants had bed bugs and they never vacuumed the carpets in the whole year they lived there. Nice.

I saw the Tranny hooker  again. I had thought they were all arrested but I guess the he/she didn't stay gone long. That is one nasty thing.

200 block of 35th street

Tenants crap next door

Tranny street walker on Jefferson

Wednesday June 6 2012

Those among us who don't believe in ghosts, I'm sure will have a perfectly good explanation for what happened this morning... I on the other hand...
At 6:30 am, I got the leashes off the hook next to the back door and prepared to take the dogs out for the first walk of the day. As I walked away, I heard a noise behind me. I looked and my light rain jacket was on the floor. The coat rack is on a different wall from the hooks where the dogs' leashes are. Why did it fall on the floor? Hmmm. I picked it up and placed it back on the hook. I walked out the front door with dogs. Damn. It was sprinkling out.  I went back inside and got that light rain jacket. Good thing too, because by the time we were half way through the walk, it was pouring out! I think my "friend" was looking out for me.

Currently I am in Environmental Studies Law class on Tuesday nights at 6 pm. Shortly after class started this quarter, there was a forum at Savannah State University to discuss the findings of the Ogeechee River Fish Kill. In May 2011, 38,000 fish died in the Ogeechee River after the point where a chemical factory has a discharge pipe. I asked my teacher, since the forum was being held on the same night and same time as our class, if could we do a "field trip." The forum was interesting and frustrating at the same time. We learned that King America Finishing had a permit for one pipe into the river. However, 6 years ago they put a second pipe into the river and had pumping out residue from fire retardant chemicals. After the fish kill, EPA/EPD analyzed the river water before and after the company pipes. Before the pipes, the water was acceptable. After the pipes, there was hydrogen peroxide, ammonia and formaldehyde. Due to the severe drought, the river was not a full as normal so the discharge was not diluted. This caused stress on the fish and the entire ecosystem.
Fast forward to May 2012. Just before Memorial Day, fish started dying again. Next Tuesday night (June 12) the EPD is having a meeting to discuss giving a permit to King America Finishing to allow them to have the second discharge pipe. I am planning on attending.
Each student in my Environmental class is supposed to present a project to the class on June 12. Because I planned on attending the meeting next week, I requested to present my project last night. I worked on my presentation for weeks. I cut out 380 fish to represent the 38,000 dead fish. I made an awesome PowerPoint. I brought my 3 dead gator heads, plastic snakes and frogs. I was animated and made a powerful presentation. At the end, I read from the newspaper about the hearing next week. Now everyone is motivated and wants to attend.
Only thing, that is the last class before finals. That means, no one else is going to give a presentation.... What the heck? I guess I was a little too persuasive....

Tuesday June 5 2012

Read this yesterday. I think more people need to read and heed...

What politicians and policymakers really ought to be telling struggling Americans is this: You're on your own. The government is running out of money and is borderline dysfunctional besides. Instead of new policies that will make the economy more fair, we need more self-sufficient workers who aren't looking to government for answers.

The trick is figuring out what ordinary people can do to make themselves better off. To do that, it helps to understand the real problem, which isn't income inequality in itself. It's a decline in economic mobility which means it's getting harder for people to boost their earnings, move up the socioeconomic ladder, and improve their living standards.

The economy is changing rapidly, and it's not completely clear why it's gotten so much harder to get ahead. But there are certainly clues. Education has a lot to do with it: There are very limited opportunities these days for people who don't have a college degree, or whose training is outdated. Technology is another factor. People whose careers are tied to the digital revolution enjoy the good fortune of working in a burgeoning field, while many others work in shrinking fields being decimated by new technology. Workers able to ride the wave of globalization, at companies that do business around the world, have an edge others don't.

Attitude is another factor. Too many American workers rely on somebody else for their livelihood, without the grit that it takes to adapt and recover when something goes wrong. This is the natural byproduct of a long era of prosperity in which living standards rose for nearly everybody, just because the economy was booming. It didn't take extraordinary fortitude to get ahead. Often, all you had to do was show up.

Things are different now, and the bar for success is higher. Instead of arguing over the abstract causes of income inequality or hoping for miracles from Washington, national leaders ought to be sending this message to America's workers: Get smarter. Work harder. Go where the opportunity is. Prosperity isn't going to trickle down from the wealthy, or arrive in the form of a government check. The only person looking out for you is you.

Rick Newman is the author of Rebounders: How Winners Pivot From Setback To Success. Follow him on Twitter: @rickjnewman.

Monday June 4 2012

"Good people do not need laws to tell them to act responsibly, while bad people will find a way around the laws. "

-- Plato, Philosopher 

About 10 this morning, I called the city about trash left on Brady Street. I guess the neighbors had already called. Then this afternoon, I walked by with Chip and Dang! the stuff was already picked up.

I had a phone interview with Progressive Insurance. All those questions about how do you handle a customer ... how did you do something that .... What a pain. I did the best I could. Decision in about 2 weeks about whether I get an in person interview.

On the other hand, I did go ahead and called back the guy about taking pics of foreclosures/pre-forclosures. Get paid a whopping $4. Well, it is something.

Saturday June 2 2012

Fairly quiet out there. Friday night crack 'n crabs is just not the same with Dirty South Records closed and now Montgomery Liquors closed, too.
Malcolm told me something interesting about good old Hiyah. Seems the felon tried to pass off a fake $20 bill at David's Crabs. When the cashier wrote on it with the special pen, she could tell the bill was bad. Hiyah threw a hissy and the girl ended up giving him back the bill. Malcolm was pissed. He let the cashier know, next time, keep the bill and call the police. Damn, that would have been good. Put old Hiyah back in the big house.

Last night, SCAD alumni held its annual free concert in Forsyth Park. I hadn't heard of the bands before plus I had so much homework to finish up so I didn't go. Rachel went with a few girl friends. She managed to slink on home at 6:30 am. Hmmm. She took a short nap and then the girls went to Tybee Island. Must be nice.

When I took Chip for a walk along Brady Street, I saw this large pile of crap. Not sure if it is a SCAD student(s) trash or if someone was maybe evicted. I'll be calling the city about it on Monday. That has gotta go.

trash on Brady Street

Friday June 1 2012

I didn't go to the hearing for the liquor store yesterday. I had already left my comments with the clerk's office 3 weeks ago. This morning I see Montgomery Liquors is NOT open. That is a good thing. Malcolm from David's Crabs told me it was shut down. While that is good news, he said the people that run the BP station want to open up the liquor store. I hope the hell not. Malcolm also told me that earlier this week there was a stabbing at the BP station. That's the next damn thing that needs to GO!

Rachel is now thinking about completing her last 2 high school classes at Savannah Tech as a dual enrolled student in the fall semester. Then, she would look into going to Georgia Southern in the Spring as a freshman (but not dual enrolled). That isn't a bad thing. She is looking at renting a place on the islands with some friends. I'm not sure how that will work... Time will tell....

Wednesday May 30, 2012

I got this from Groupon today:
 From: Groupon <mail@e.groupon.com>
Subject: Father's Day deals for the man who gave birth to you


Seriously, the man you gave birth to you. OK so what did mom do? Just along for the ride?
Well, let's start off with what happened yesterday. Tuesday. Rachel had a 3 day weekend, a concert on Saturday 250 miles away, and ended with her birthday on Monday. OK we made it through all that drama. Then, Tuesday I wake her up for school at 6:40 am. I had a migraine and told her I can't be yelling at you 6 times to get downstairs and go to school. School starts at 7:45. At 7:30, she says she can't find her car keys. Well... I don't drive that piece of sh*t. So, I tell her to keep looking. I fell asleep after taking another migraine pill. I woke up at 9 to find Rachel back in bed asleep! I told her I'd drive her, but nothing doing. She looks around her room again, still can't find the keys and back to bed she went. Finally, at 2 pm, she got up. Found her keys wrapped up in her sheets. Let her explain to the school why she didn't go. I'm not giving her a note, for sure.


Now this morning, get her up. She finally leaves at 8. Yes, school starts at 7:45....
So, I have a late start to go to Starbucks. All my usual spots are taken. I keep going and magically, 2 spots opened up right in front of SB! I'm amazed. I pull up taking the one further away from the intersection. I get out and open the back door to get my purse, when bam! A woman in a full size pick up pulling into the spot behind me, smacks into the back of my Subaru. What the hell? I go look and there isn't any damage. Hell, it's been hit worse by 2 hit 'n run drivers. The woman is all apologetic. I told her no damage, no problem. She was so grateful she bought me a SB gift card. That was nice.


Then, I get home. I take a look at my and Rachel's checking account balances. What the? Rachel has more money today than yesterday and she hasn't worked. So I look a little more. She made a deposit of $150 check yesterday. Hmmm. Curious. I open up the deposit. No f'n way. It is a check for $150 made out to ISLANDS HIGH SCHOOL for SENIOR DUES... Damn. Rachel "cashed" a check made out to the school for her friend.
OMG. This is bad. The day after she turns 17 she commits a crime... I can't do anything for her. It will have to be between Rachel, Wells Fargo and the girl's dad...(and maybe the police). She may have colored her hair black, but Rachel is still a BLONDE. Thinks it is OK to cash checks for people. So naive. This will be an expensive lesson.l

Memorial Day 2012

Today, Rachel turned 17. Typical day, she slept until almost noon...I picked her up a new digital camera (so she would have no reason to be asking to take mine anymore...).
She had Ariel over. The two girls are talking about getting an apartment together in Statesboro in July or early August. At 17, Ariel is already living on her own. She gets money from her dad (since he didn't pay his child support money when she was younger, he recently entered into a court agreement to pay her directly). Nice.

Trash being disposed behind house

Someone looking for cans?

Birthday girl

Rachel and Ariel

Someone is using this house on 36th Street as their personal dumping ground. Bunch of cans will at least be picked up shortly as people collect and sell them.

Thursday May 24 2012

Things have been quiet here in the 'hood as well as uptown. One would almost think we lived in the 'burbs! Monday night, I noticed the streetlight in front of my house was out. It makes the street look really dark. When the lights go out, you call Georgia Power and they fix them.
Well, I didn't think about the light on Tuesday until about 5 p.m. It had gotten eerily quiet outside. Suddenly the whole house shook and then I saw the lightning and heard the thunder. It was CLOSE. Chip was petrified and Louise, who usually sleeps through it all, was up barking. Seconds later it was hailing then it changed to big, heavy raindrops. Within 15 minutes, it was all over. After a few instances of the lights flickering, they stayed on, thankfully!
That is when I decided, I had better call Georgia Power and report that light. I found you can report it by e-mail. Cool! So I filled out the report about my light and one in the alley behind Oman's house. When you're all done, it says, this will be addressed within 5 working days. Yeah, right. I reported this around 6 p.m. on Tuesday night. At 9 a.m. on Wednesday morning, Georgia Power is in front of my house... Now That's Service!!!
Every time we have reported lights out in our 'hood, it is this way. I don't know who cracks the whip, but I can tell you, I love it!

Only real bit of news today is Rachel's SAT scores are in. She made 520 on reading and 520 on math so she can get into Georgia Southern University as a dual or joint enrolled student. I think she would prefer the term JOINT enrolled.... She can go to college as a freshman and take the last two classes she needs to graduate from high school at the college. She is very excited. She won't even be 17 until Monday and here she is planning on going to college in August. I hope Statesboro, Georgia is ready for Miss Rachel!

Monday May 21 2012

Pretty quiet out there. I saw Hiyah sweeping the sidewalk. Working hard to make enough money for that 40 ounce of Old Milwaukee...Stupid liquor store has opened back up. The hearing is May 31. If I'm not working by then, I'll surely be at the city council hearing on the license...
Not doing much except homework these days. Although this morning I did cut the grass. Yes, me.. Just the front yards though, hell, we've been in a drought. The backyard is 60% stone, 15% pavers, 5% grass and the rest is DUST! 

Funny thing, Rachel just called. She was driving with the moon roof open and  smoking a cigarette. Someone uptown had sprinklers on and the water hit her in the face!!! HA HA HA!

Saturday May 19, 2012

Friday night Crack 'n Crabs just hasn't been the same since Dirty South Records was shut down. I couldn't be happier! My neighbors have commented that parking is no longer a hassle, too.

Homework due tonight. I am not thrilled. Thankfully there are only 3 more weeks left for my online class. Mostly the online classes are a pain. I don't think you learn as much, or I should say, the teachers don't teach that much. We pretty much have to teach ourselves. I don't have a clue half the time where to find the answers. I would rather take classes on ground any time...

Friday May 18 2012

The excitement of yesterday has worn off  a bit and people up town are getting back to normal. There is still talk about the shooting and "where were you when it happened," but mostly people are going about their normal routine.

The storyline now is that a father and son were taken hostage by 2 gunmen on Wednesday night. The father, Earl Hamilton, and one gunman went in the silver Jag up town to get money from a bank. The kidnap victim saw a cop outside Starbucks and alerted the cop that he was being kidnapped. Hamilton bailed out of the Jag and the officer shot at the Jag. The bad guy, Kevin Brooks, took off and holed up in the Pink House. Meanwhile, the other gunman, Brian Jones, stayed at the house with the 11 year old boy. The rest is history as they say.

But, here are my questions. Why was this man targeted? Did the gunmen know him? I don't think they were desperate crackheads as it is reported they had automatic weapons. That sounds pretty serious. I don't believe for a second this was a random act. If someone was to look around my neighborhood (OK that's just ridiculous, 35th and Montgomery! but we're being hypothetical here) would a  person decide to enter my house arbitrarily and take me hostage? My neighbors who are college students? The neighbors across the street at the rooming house? What would they expect to get? I feel there is still more to this story we are not being told.

I like this pic, man and machine

Name: JONES, BRIAN NICHOLASBirth Date: 08/22/1988Race: B  Sex: MArrest Date: 05/17/2012 at 1130Arrest #: 120517042Agency: SAVANNAH PD Bond: $.00Charge(s):
16-8-41 - ARMED ROBBERY - F
16-5-41 - FALSE IMPRISONMENT - F
16-7-1 - BURGLARY - F

Name: BROOKS, KEVIN DALEBirth Date: 11/04/1985Race: B  Sex: MArrest Date: 05/17/2012 at 0830Arrest #: 120517042Agency: SAVANNAH PD Bond: $.00Charge(s):
16-8-41 - ARMED ROBBERY - F
16-5-41 - FALSE IMPRISONMENT - F
16-5-40 - KIDNAPPING - F
16-7-1 - BURGLARY - F
16-13-30(A) - POSSESSION CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE - F
16-5-21 - AGGRAVATED ASSAULT – F

Thusday May 17 2012

shooting @ Bull/Broughton

 What a day! I was sitting at Starbucks when Rachel called at 8:05 AM. She was sick and wanted to go to the doctor. I told her to go back home and I'll meet you there. A minute later, I got up and walked away from Bull/Broughton Streets. Before I could get in my car, I heard a shot!
Holy Crap! It was in front of Starbucks! I jumped behind my Subaru then heard a second shot. People were running towards me and screaming "get down".

glass shattered @ Saigon restaurant

car has bullet hole

As I was peeking out from behind my car, I saw the grey Jaguar with the doors open driving in reverse by itself. It slammed into the Saigon Restaurant then rolled back into the street. I stayed behind my car.... called 9-1-1.

After a few seconds, the police were there. Then I came out from behind the car and closed my driver's door. Everyone started coming out of doorways and stores. Lots of talk about what happened. All I know is my car was instantly blocked in as part of the crime scene. Damn. I couldn't leave. I was stuck up on Broughton Street. Starbucks was the crime scene so I couldn't go back there. Panera Bread was also blocked off so I couldn't go there. I was trapped, like a rat. Thankfully I'd already had my coffee or it could have been very ugly.

After a few minutes, a helicopter started circling overhead. It was getting annoying. I finally checked out WTOC.com (thank you Steve Jobs for the I-phone with internet service). Turns out the shooter was holed up at the Pink House Restaurant a couple of blocks away. Now there were 2 helicopters circling and SWAT arrived. I knew then, I wanted OUT. I helped the young officer raise the tape to let the manager of the Pink House in. Then I pleaded with him, I have a sick child at home.. He finally said, go quickly!

Now here I am safe at home in the 'hood. Seems kind of ironic don't ya think?

Update: So, the person doing the shooting up on Broughton Street, turns out it was a plainclothes policewoman that was in Starbucks. There was also an FBI man in Starbucks. From what was on the news, last night at 11 PM, men armed with automatic weapons, took a man and his son hostage in their home. This morning, the men forced the kidnap victim to go to with them to the bank to get them money. I don't know what happened next just that the policewoman saw the automatic rifle and fired at the car. One of the kidnappers holed up inside the Pink House for hours. A robot was sent in and eventually the dude was arrested. The other kidnapper took off in a different vehicle and went back to the area where the kidnapping had taken place. He ran his car off the road and was arrested, too.

Man in long shirt in front of the car is the kidnapping victim

Wednesday May 16 "2012

Trash on Brady Street

This afternoon, I saw this massive pile of trash on the corner of Brady and Barnard. The guy that used to own the house, Dan Marino, left several months ago. He had a really good pizza place on Bull Street but ran into some, let's say, legal troubles... Happens when you don't pay taxes... Anyways... He decided to walk away from his house and go back to Jersey. I guess someone (the bank?) finally went in there and cleaned up. People were picking through the stuff out there. One girl picked up a teddy bear nearly as big as she was!

Well, things are not going well job-wise or school-wise.  I didn't hear back from the law office uptown and a decision was due to be made on Monday. Then, I heard about this program from the VA, "Vow to hire a vet". I totally qualify for the program, but there are some problems. South University isn't covered because it is not a technical school or vocational school. Plus, I would need to earn an Associates Degree or some kind of certificate. Damn. Paralegal studies are one of the careers that is covered, too. I went to Sav Tech, which is definitely covered under the program. Fall classes start in mid-August. That means, I wouldn't get a check until ? I think beginning of September? How the hell can I survive until then? The program starts on JULY 1. I don't know what to do. I tried looking for other schools in Savannah, but nothing starts in July. I am so frustrated. I could get over $1400+ a month! If only.