And it Strikes Again

It's funny how you can go thru life thinking that some of the "weird" things that happen or stuff that "makes you go hmmmmm . . . ." are just that. Weird sh*t or "hmmmm" moments when they are something deeper. Let me explain.

I was on the phone calling different apartments because we're moving and me being the "like to have sh*t in order" type of person I am wanted to make sure the move would be smooth. As some may know I speak Ebonics and even when I'm talking in my most "proper" voice, ain't like I can hide the fact that I'm a North American Afrikhan. So of course when I talk to strangers on the phone my "blackness" comes thru, because . . . . I'm BLACK. *chuckle*

With that being said, I started calling folks trying to get information on the availability of some apartments. Since we're a family of six, ain't like we gonna camp out in a 2 bedroom or some studio loft. And many times the larger units are not available since they are so far and few and folks who living in them ain't moving out every 6 months. So I'm trying to avoid camping out in a hotel for months on end. Because like I told my hubby, it's fun in theory but in practice hotel living SUCKS.

So anyway, I'm searching and running into problems from jump because many complexes don't have what I need, like space AND a simple amenity like a washer/dryer in the unit. Very important when you have a 6 person family. With that, I'm finding my choices are few. And I panic easily so that's not good for me. Well, I called the first apartment on my list. They seemed nice enough and extremely helpful. Of course they didn't have the size apartment I wanted but offered up another, that would suit my needs. They said they'd email me more info and told me what I needed to do if I wanted to hold the apartment. I was happy and thanked them. I then called another apartment but no one answered the phone. So I kept it moving. I then called yet ANOTHER apartment and was informed that since they are close to some city that I can't remember the name of, that there's an "ordinance" about the number of people that can be in an apartment. I understand stuff like having 10 people in a studio and what not. But I didn't know there was a problem with 6 people in a 3 bedroom. I was told, no more than 5 people. So after hearing that I'm starting to get scared because there's SIX of us. *sigh* Well I call my next apartment that seemed to have the space I needed and was told that the size I wanted wasn't available. By then a few of my children could be heard in the back ground and the baby was a tad cranky sitting on my lap. The lady I spoke too was the only contact person listed on the website so I figured she knew her stuff and would be helpful. And let me explain just how "helpful" she was.

After she told me they had NO 3 bedrooms available in their building, I told her we were a family of six. Well she became SUPER "helpful" then. By telling me there was an "ordinance" about how many folk could be in a 3 bedroom and that "let me give you the number to our sister property." Because as she stated, "they have REAL 3 bedrooms." And they usually have alot available. Well for some reason upon hearing that I was NOT happy. Even tho the lady was being "helpful." I couldn't verbalize it then but something about what she was saying didn't feel right and I felt like she was trying to "shove" me off onto another building. But I write down the number she gave me anyway and even called the property. No one answered the phone so I decided to do some research on my own. And this is what I found.

The property she'd giving me the direct number too, was one that had come up on my search list previously but it was one that I didn't think would suit our needs so I didn't print out it's info. Okay, fine. Then when I contacted the helpful property again regarding the email and application process and I found out that ALL these properties were actually sister properties. And the the REAL 3 bedroom sister property I was referred too was ALOT smaller than the other two properties AND the dayum building has income restrictions. Well lots of buildings have that. But how many have restrictions limiting the amount of money you MAKE? Meaning if you earn more than let's say $35K annually for a family of 2 people, then you CAN'T live there. *lookin into camera* And there's nothing wrong with that, sh*t. Nobody wants to pay high azz rent or mortgages if they don't have too. What got me when I saw that was WHY would ol girl "refer" me to a SMALLER apartment then any of the 2bedrooms in her building? And why oh why would she think my family would meet the the income restriction guild lines? I mean really, even when I was a broke azz teacher in Oakland, I made more than $35K a dayum year and I didn't even have children. Sh*t I made more than that when I was still in college and an admin. asst. for UC. But the clincher was when I did a search on the companies website and realized there were 10 "sister" properties in the city that have more than 2bedrooms. However she "choose" to GIVE me the direct number to the one property that we would not be qualified for. Did she ask me how much money we were looking to spend? Did she offer any suggestions on finding the right space for me in "her" building, like the first complex did? Ummm NOT.

And then what I was feeling came to me in words later that evening. She assumed that I couldn't afford to live in the nicer high rise and "helped" me by referring me to one that would suit the needs of someone such as myself, with being a family of 6 and all. Not to mention my azz is home during the DAY time, with my children no less. Wow, what a wonderful sumaritan she is. *clap, clap* I mean really. Please do not let my Ebonics, not "slang", but my tonal inflections fool you into thinking that I'm some false stereo type drummed up by media, promoted thru entertainment and intentionally perpetuated . Because, really I'm not that and truth be told neither is anyone else.

Things Really Do Happen For a Reson

I found this really great new nail salon and spa right down the street from my house. It's on Redmond Way, and takes me only about 3 minutes to drive there. The lady gave me this really cool design on my nails and the girl who did my pedicure almost made me fall asleep in the chair. Not to mention that my azz had a hot wax on my feet again because I ain't had that sh*t since about 2001.

So this is what happened. The place that's further down the street, like alot further and dayum near in Kirkland (well not really but it feels like it) had been doing a manicure and pedicure for me since Sept of 2007. They had parking, weren't crowded and could usually see me right away, if not within 10-15 minutes of me stepping through the front door. Well during the holidays I wanted to jazz up my nails and got acrylic again after not having it for almost 3 years.

I go in today, as I usually do with this place every 2 weeks. I waited about 15 minutes to be serviced because the two manicurists there had customers. When it was my turn, the lady politely gets me to come to the spa chair so she can start my pedicure. She tells me to pick out my color, which they usually do before they start working on you. Me and another lady are the only customers in the shop. As I'm picking out colors, another customer walks in. My manicurists asks what the lady needs. The lady says she needs a pedicure. My manicurists tells her "10 minutes." I smile to myself because I think, why she lie knowing it's gonna be WAY more than 10 minutes. So I find the color I want and walk towards the spa chair where my water is waiting. My manicurists then moves to pull up another chair for me at a nail station where no one is sitting and says "you sit here, we do nail first." I look at her because SHE only does pedicures and the only other manicurist who does nails already has a customer. I say, "aren't you doing my pedicure?" And she repeats "we do nail first, sit here." I asked her that question 3 times. She then proceeds to go outside and look up and down the street and then comes back inside and tells the new customer that "I can help you here."

Now there were no other manicurists in the shop. So once she decided that she was going to take the new customer who just walked into the salon off the street and try and "make" me wait AGAIN I decided it was time to leave. I politely walked over towards the front of the shop to pick up my coat and purse. Meanwhile she's right on my heals "nooo sit here." I was just going to leave. But she wanted to insist that I sit at a nail station, after politely waiting my turn to be serviced, where there was no nail tech and the dayum station light was off. I'm slow but not stupid. So I kindly said, "I was here first and waited my turn and now you're going to take this lady who just walked in after me." She yelped "ohhh nooo we do same time." Ummm okay. 3 customers and 2 manicurists? I said "that's okay." and left. It's like my Dad always told me "you ain't got to take my money."

That was the best decision I made regarding nail salons. Because I drove back towards my home, walked in to a new nail salon and was really very happy. I had a real spa pedicure AND with hot wax (something I was used to when I lived in Oakland). And the manicurists does airbush and nail designs. I would get airbrush at the other shop but I always had to help them put it on. The owner told me that no one in that area got airbrush so she didn't have alot of designs (meaning any). At the new place I found I asked "do you do airbrush?" and she looked at me like I said that in Swahili. LOL. She said "of course we do airbrush, we do anything you want." I told her that another nail salon said no one in Redmond gets airbrush and that I have to go to Seattle. If I could only show that look she had on her face when I said that. PRICELESS.

Well as Tyler Craig say, "and the moral to that story is . . ." See ya, and I wouldn't wanna be ya. That was a good thing, cuz now I can get my sh*t down right. And have my eyebrows done by some body who ain't gonna have my azz looking like Baby Jane in one eyebrow and Sophia from Color Purple in the other. *chuckle*

I'm done.

*nite, nite* - Lady A

Good Money Meaning

Okay so this thought stemmed from a commercial of all things that I saw today. It was one of those technical college commercials, you know the ones - that promise you gonna be on a new career track and working at your DREAM job and making MONEY in less than 12 months. Just call the number on your screen to get started. So anyway they do these "real" stories type of commercials where EVERYONE and their momma's swear they were at a dead end job, making minimum wage, not happy, etc and so on. And now after attending and graduating from such and such, they are making GOOD money, VERY good money So then that got me to thinking. What exactly is GOOD money? I mean GOOOOOD money?

I mean, this commercial is not the first time I've heard folks say good money. In fact I hear it quite a bit. I hear it from friends, family, acquaintances, radio, tv, internet. And with so many folks using the term I just assumed that everyone was on the same page as to what defined GOOD MONEY. But then I got to thinking that more than likely what I myself considered GOOD MONEY was probably not what the technical college commercial considered GOOD MONEY or the DHL driver, or the person working 2 jobs. It dawned on me that there were just too many definitions floating around on what defines GOOD MONEY. Cuz let's face it, everybody wanna be "rolling like B.A.R.T." as my uncle Kev used to say (and I don't mean Simpson *chuckle*).

So what are folks talking about "I make GOOD MONEY" and "Oh my husband/significant other/brother/sister/mother/lover make GOOD MONEY" and "XYZ rapper make GOOD MONEY" and on and on. Because then I guess my real question would be if so many folks out there in Moneyland making such GOOD MONEY, why is more than 20%. 50%. 70% (should I go on) of the population in such debt. Cuz folks don't save? Are they crack heads? Spending too much? No investments? Or is it that there is truly only ONE definition of what defines GOOD MONEY and truth be told, most folks don't have it and they don't know it.

On the real, I would really like to know how others define GOOD MONEY. If you have just enough to pay your bills, is that GOOD MONEY? Ability to pay bills, vacation once a year out of pocket, and still have money left over? Being able to save all your money and not be living in a cave? Is it minimum wage with no bills and living with your parents? Is my Bill Gates idea of GOOD MONEY not correct? I would surely think that he makes GOOD MONEY. But I don't know him personally and maybe he's more the exception. You know this sh*t really got me twisted and not in a Keith Sweat kinda way. *chuckle to self*

What is GOOD MONEY to you?

*hugs* Lady A