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Three Strikes

The housing and rental markets have gotten really tight in Minneapolis. Not much is available and what is for sale or for rent is more expensive than ever. So I recently renewed our lease for another two years. The duplex I’ve been renting for the past four years has been relatively comfortable for my son and I, except for when it’s not. Like now. For the third summer in a row there has been a water damage event where my bedroom carpet has gotten soaked. The carpet has never been replaced and this time it’s much worse than the others. My duplex neighbors’ water heater was leaking FOR DAYS. The property management company confirmed this last Friday but allowed it to leak all weekend long. When they finally replaced it Monday my bedroom had already morphed into the mouth of an Exogorth (giant Star Wars space slug). I’ve been sleeping on a couch for days now. To make matters worse, there’s another leak in my downstairs bathroom ceiling, which maintenance has started pulling apart. And the stench of mold in our lower level is overpowering. I keep asking about mold remediation but I’m being blown off. When I’m not home I’m afraid I smell of mold. It may be time to file a complaint with the city but I’ve never gone that route. I don’t relish this but something needs to be done. This is a health hazard. We weren’t planning to leave town for the long holiday weekend but I’m tempted to now, considering the musty state of our home.

Life has been a mixed bag, as usual. There have been long walks while listening to podcasts, live comedy shows, happy hours, cosplaying (one of my son’s favorite things) and backyard BBQs. I am trying to accentuate the positive. So how about Five Good Things:

  • Last weekend was a particularly busy one. I spent much of Saturday freezing my ass off trying to sell my wares (unsuccessfully) at a booth at Art-A-Whirl but it gave me time to go into problem-solving mode and come up with possible solutions. It was a satisfying exercise.
  • My son has five days left of high school. Ever. That is surreal.
  • Our friends’ band, Rabbit Holes, are almost famous. Their band appeared in the movie The House of Tomorrow and a group of us are going to see it tomorrow night. Been looking forward to that for a while.
  • This growing season our office building will be a drop off site for a Community Supported Agriculture program. I am grateful that one of my colleagues did the legwork to pull this together for us. It has been too long since I’ve been part of a CSA, and this is a great organization: “Open Arms of Minnesota is a nonprofit that cooks and delivers free, nutritious meals to people living with life-threatening illnesses in the Twin Cities.”
  • We’re probably taking my Dad to see Solo: A Star Wars Story this weekend. And this is a fun interview with the new Chewbacca actor. And we’ve just learned that my son’s uncle will be working on visual effects for Star Wars Episode IX. Star Wars is an intergenerational family affair for us.
Nicole at the Minneapolis Passport Program launch party
Tiptoeing through the tulips

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