Well, we haven't heard anything yet from the court, the landlords, or their lawyers. I left a message for the landlords the other day, indicating my intent and ability (thank you, boss!) to pay everything that we should have paid this month.
Nothing.
What we're afraid of is that there may be a sheriff on the doorstep Tuesday morning after I've left for work. What we're hoping is that Tuesday's mail will contain a notice from the court that we have a month to find new digs.
Please cross your fingers for the latter.
Meanwhile, we do have sort of a backup, in that our friend has offered to sublet her Vallejo place to us if we have to get out pronto. It's small, with ancient wiring, and would do ugly things to my commute, but it does beat a homeless shelter - especially because the latter wouldn't let us keep the cats.
12/31/2006
12/28/2006
What Kind of Blogger Are you?
| You Are a Life Blogger! |
 Your blog is the story of your life - a living diary. If it happens, you blog it. And make it as entertaining as possible. |
The Saga Continues...
I spent so much of yesterday in transit or on the phone.
I gathered up all the info to back up my case, and left at 11:15 am to get to the courthouse (it took 2 buses) in hopes of getting one last chance to speak with the judge. When I got there, I found that there was not, in fact, going to be a hearing, or any chance to interact with humans at all (by the way, is it sad that the security guard at the courthouse knows me on sight?). The Court Clerk gave me the number for Legal Aid, and no other info - "I'm not a lawyer; I'm not allowed to give advice" - including whether there was a form or process by which to respond to the current situation (sigh).
It gets better. Legal Aid closed early because it's a holiday week, so no help there. I tried calling the attorney with whom I had spoken before, only to be told that (a) he was on vacation, and (b) he was unusually considerate in sending the notice when he did, as it is the practice of that law office to send it only 1 day before. Whee!
Meanwhile, I had been getting calls from my boss, who had indeed managed to get me an advance - even getting hold of the two regional officers who had to approve it, when they were on vacation! Hooray, Boss! Now, his office is at the extreme other end of the BART line from me, so we arranged for him to meet me at the station at that end.
So I finally admit defeat at the courthouse, and catch a bus back to my BART station, arriving at about 2:30 pm. Fortunately, I was just in time to catch a train, so it was only about 1.5 hours later that I arrived at my destination. (I wish I'd known that a trip to the courthouse would be a waste of time. Not only would I have been able to pick up my advance sooner, I'd have had my knitting with me instead of having to leave it at home because I wouldn't have been able to bring it into the courthouse. Oh, well. At least I have some good games on my Palm.)
So, mission accomplished, I got on the next train heading back home, and was back up here a little after 6. I walked around to the check-cashing place to cash the advance check, and then proceeded to pick up the things we needed. This quickly went from "just picking up a few essentials" to "we need some major grocery activity". I finally finished up at around 8, and called a taxi to take me home. By the time I got home, got everything put away, and dinner prepared and eaten, it was 9:30.
On a normal day, I'd be getting ready for bed at that hour. But last night, Honey looked over everything, and then instructed me in the writing of a letter to the judge that we could take to the courthouse - which we had to do right then, so that it would be considered filed on the same day. So I wrote (and rewrote), and typed it up on the computer, and made copies of everything that we wanted to attach as backup documentation. At midnight, all was ready, and I called another taxi to take me to the courthouse and back (there are NO buses that late at night). We ran over to the courthouse, dropped the envelope in the locked box provided for the purpose, and back home again.
I set up coffee for this morning and did all my other getting-ready-for-bed things, and finally sat down to relax with a little knitting at 1 am. I think it was somewhere around 2 am by the time I fell asleep.
Then this morning, Honey wakes me a little after 6 to mention that we should provide a copy to the complex manager as representative of the owners. So I made more copies and typed up a separate note to her, and dropped that at the office (they have a little drop-slot in the back for after-hours stuff. I used that even though they were open by then, because I just didn't want to deal with it any more.
My next such task is to write a similar letter to the state, with copies of everything, to see if I can get them to take a smaller chunk of my weekly paycheck. I'll work on that tomorrow, and get it in the mail on Saturday. If none of this works out in my favor, my next call is to someone who assists in filing bankruptcy, because that's the only other option I can think of.
Oh, and cross your fingers for me. I also bought tickets for last night's state lottery drawing, and tomorrow's multi-state lottery drawing. I haven't yet dared to check the one for last night, but I will soon.
I gathered up all the info to back up my case, and left at 11:15 am to get to the courthouse (it took 2 buses) in hopes of getting one last chance to speak with the judge. When I got there, I found that there was not, in fact, going to be a hearing, or any chance to interact with humans at all (by the way, is it sad that the security guard at the courthouse knows me on sight?). The Court Clerk gave me the number for Legal Aid, and no other info - "I'm not a lawyer; I'm not allowed to give advice" - including whether there was a form or process by which to respond to the current situation (sigh).
It gets better. Legal Aid closed early because it's a holiday week, so no help there. I tried calling the attorney with whom I had spoken before, only to be told that (a) he was on vacation, and (b) he was unusually considerate in sending the notice when he did, as it is the practice of that law office to send it only 1 day before. Whee!
Meanwhile, I had been getting calls from my boss, who had indeed managed to get me an advance - even getting hold of the two regional officers who had to approve it, when they were on vacation! Hooray, Boss! Now, his office is at the extreme other end of the BART line from me, so we arranged for him to meet me at the station at that end.
So I finally admit defeat at the courthouse, and catch a bus back to my BART station, arriving at about 2:30 pm. Fortunately, I was just in time to catch a train, so it was only about 1.5 hours later that I arrived at my destination. (I wish I'd known that a trip to the courthouse would be a waste of time. Not only would I have been able to pick up my advance sooner, I'd have had my knitting with me instead of having to leave it at home because I wouldn't have been able to bring it into the courthouse. Oh, well. At least I have some good games on my Palm.)
So, mission accomplished, I got on the next train heading back home, and was back up here a little after 6. I walked around to the check-cashing place to cash the advance check, and then proceeded to pick up the things we needed. This quickly went from "just picking up a few essentials" to "we need some major grocery activity". I finally finished up at around 8, and called a taxi to take me home. By the time I got home, got everything put away, and dinner prepared and eaten, it was 9:30.
On a normal day, I'd be getting ready for bed at that hour. But last night, Honey looked over everything, and then instructed me in the writing of a letter to the judge that we could take to the courthouse - which we had to do right then, so that it would be considered filed on the same day. So I wrote (and rewrote), and typed it up on the computer, and made copies of everything that we wanted to attach as backup documentation. At midnight, all was ready, and I called another taxi to take me to the courthouse and back (there are NO buses that late at night). We ran over to the courthouse, dropped the envelope in the locked box provided for the purpose, and back home again.
I set up coffee for this morning and did all my other getting-ready-for-bed things, and finally sat down to relax with a little knitting at 1 am. I think it was somewhere around 2 am by the time I fell asleep.
Then this morning, Honey wakes me a little after 6 to mention that we should provide a copy to the complex manager as representative of the owners. So I made more copies and typed up a separate note to her, and dropped that at the office (they have a little drop-slot in the back for after-hours stuff. I used that even though they were open by then, because I just didn't want to deal with it any more.
My next such task is to write a similar letter to the state, with copies of everything, to see if I can get them to take a smaller chunk of my weekly paycheck. I'll work on that tomorrow, and get it in the mail on Saturday. If none of this works out in my favor, my next call is to someone who assists in filing bankruptcy, because that's the only other option I can think of.
Oh, and cross your fingers for me. I also bought tickets for last night's state lottery drawing, and tomorrow's multi-state lottery drawing. I haven't yet dared to check the one for last night, but I will soon.
Review
My review on Tuesday went very well. I got the maximum possible raise - it's only about half the increase I really need, but it beats nothing by a long shot. However, I was also advised that part of my review next year will be based on my marketing accomplishments, which is to say how many candidate referrals and job orders I generate.
See I work for a major provider of various kinds of contract labor all over the world. When most people here the name of the division that I work for, they immediately think of what this division is most famous for: temporary accounting staffers - you know, the folks you call when your payables clerk goes on vacation for two weeks. Which is fine, if that's all you need. The thing is, a regular temp is always looking for something better, because they only get paid for hours worked. Either that, or they're expecting the position where they're temping will turn into a permanent job with the client company.
On the other hand, I work as a different kind of contractor. I am a full time employee of my company, with vacations and benefits and everything else that goes with it; and I work long-term assignments with any given client. For example, my shortest assignment so far was 5 months. My current one will run well into 2008. It's good for me, because it gives me the stability of full-time employment, and the flexibility of contract work. It's good for the client because s/he knows that I will stay until the project is completed, instead of always looking for a better job.
Now here's the tricky part of marketing this service: it's currently operating as a subset of each of the company's other divisions (each of which provides a different type of temporary help); instead of being a separate division, providing this kind of staffing in all of the different categories. The result is that we're kind of a "stealth" service, and hardly anyone knows who we are or what we do. Unfortunately, until there are more of us doing more business, the parent company won't make us into a separate division (even though that would make effective marketing so much easier). Kind of a catch-22 situation.
So they encourage us to market for the service, by offering us bonuses for each new candidate or job order we generate, if it works out. Between the commissions and the boost it can give to one's year-end raise, the staffer who is also a good marketer can make a fair chunk of change. One of our people made $5,000 in 2006, just in referral bonuses!
Obviously, I need to sharpen up my marketing skills! I've asked my boss to give me whatever marketing tools have already been created (brochures, etc.), since my business card only has the name of the service in a small font - hardly visible next to the logo of the temp division I work for. Depending on what materials they give me, I may wind up either modifying it or creating something new that highlights the service and shows how we're "not your ordinary temp". I talk it up all the time, but without something tangible to leave with folks as a reminder, how much of it can stick, you know?
Anyway, I also filled my boss in about my current housing situation, and persuaded him to try to do something that this company almost never does - give me an advance to help alleviate the problem.
Well, this post has gotten quite long enough. Stay tuned!
See I work for a major provider of various kinds of contract labor all over the world. When most people here the name of the division that I work for, they immediately think of what this division is most famous for: temporary accounting staffers - you know, the folks you call when your payables clerk goes on vacation for two weeks. Which is fine, if that's all you need. The thing is, a regular temp is always looking for something better, because they only get paid for hours worked. Either that, or they're expecting the position where they're temping will turn into a permanent job with the client company.
On the other hand, I work as a different kind of contractor. I am a full time employee of my company, with vacations and benefits and everything else that goes with it; and I work long-term assignments with any given client. For example, my shortest assignment so far was 5 months. My current one will run well into 2008. It's good for me, because it gives me the stability of full-time employment, and the flexibility of contract work. It's good for the client because s/he knows that I will stay until the project is completed, instead of always looking for a better job.
Now here's the tricky part of marketing this service: it's currently operating as a subset of each of the company's other divisions (each of which provides a different type of temporary help); instead of being a separate division, providing this kind of staffing in all of the different categories. The result is that we're kind of a "stealth" service, and hardly anyone knows who we are or what we do. Unfortunately, until there are more of us doing more business, the parent company won't make us into a separate division (even though that would make effective marketing so much easier). Kind of a catch-22 situation.
So they encourage us to market for the service, by offering us bonuses for each new candidate or job order we generate, if it works out. Between the commissions and the boost it can give to one's year-end raise, the staffer who is also a good marketer can make a fair chunk of change. One of our people made $5,000 in 2006, just in referral bonuses!
Obviously, I need to sharpen up my marketing skills! I've asked my boss to give me whatever marketing tools have already been created (brochures, etc.), since my business card only has the name of the service in a small font - hardly visible next to the logo of the temp division I work for. Depending on what materials they give me, I may wind up either modifying it or creating something new that highlights the service and shows how we're "not your ordinary temp". I talk it up all the time, but without something tangible to leave with folks as a reminder, how much of it can stick, you know?
Anyway, I also filled my boss in about my current housing situation, and persuaded him to try to do something that this company almost never does - give me an advance to help alleviate the problem.
Well, this post has gotten quite long enough. Stay tuned!
12/23/2006
And as if it weren't already depressing enough...
Today I got a letter from the landlord's lawyer (the same lawyer I called at the beginning of the month to ask for a modification of the stipulation, because my paychecks are being severely reduced by the state for back taxes) stating that because I didn't hold to the original stipulation, they are going to seek judgment against me in court on Wednesday afternoon. I don't know what I'm going to do; I barely have the fare to go to my review on Tuesday, I don't know if I have the fare to go to court the next day, too.
Merry Fucking Christmas. Maybe I'll get hit by a train.
Merry Fucking Christmas. Maybe I'll get hit by a train.
What kind of holiday food are you?
| You Are a Fruitcake |
 People pretend you're sweet and precious, but they know how weird you really are! |
What's your holiday stress level?
| Your Holiday Stress Level is High |
 Everything about the holidays stresses you out - from your freaky family to packed malls. Maybe this is the perfect time of year for you to take a solo vacation to Hawaii. |
Where I've been instead
I've been posting on my other blog, The Tactile Arts Play Group, about a variety of crafty stuff.
So if you want to read about what makes me feel better, come on over.
If you'd rather read my bitching about how much my life sucks, stick around. I'll be back now and then to do exactly that.
I keep meaning to start posting computer tips and such here, but I haven't gotten around to that...
So if you want to read about what makes me feel better, come on over.
If you'd rather read my bitching about how much my life sucks, stick around. I'll be back now and then to do exactly that.
I keep meaning to start posting computer tips and such here, but I haven't gotten around to that...
I know I haven't posted very much here
That's because (as usual) I don't have a lot of time to spend online, and what time I do have, I'd rather spend in more cheerful ways than bitching about my life here. It's depressing enough to live it; lately bitching just means that I'm dwelling on it, which just brings me down more.
For example, here are a few highlights of my holiday season:
For example, here are a few highlights of my holiday season:
- Last Friday, I took Honey to see her pain doctor, and we both saw our GP.
- $200 for co-pays
- $300 for various medications
- $20 for gas for the friend who met us at the BART station and took us to the GP's office (so I didn't have to push Honey's wheelchair that mile), and then home again
- $35 for a new TV antenna (the old one had died)
- $50 for essential groceries
- The effect of the above is (among other things) that I've had to cancel the two-night hotel stay I'd planned for next week - the first chance I've had in nearly three years to take a couple of days completely off duty and let other people take care of me for a little while.
- This coming Tuesday, I have my annual review, so I figured I'd at least take the afternoon to be out of the house for a little bit, at least.
- Today, I had to take one of the cats to the vet. There went what little money I had, for gas money to the same friend, and a roll of cheap screening to fix one of the windows so we can ventilate the place a little better. So much for my afternoon off. I have enough for the fare to go to my review, and go to the bank later in the week to get the rent check cut (which will take all of my upcoming paycheck, plus advances from two different sources.)
- So we're going to be broke for the next three weeks, at least, and then it's time to do it again for the next month's rent. sigh
- We're having grilled cheese sandwiches for Christmas dinner, and probably for at least the next week.
- The guy upstairs has his stereo cranked way up. The good news is that it's some really good blues; the bad news is that listening to the blues is definitely not cheering me up.
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