Someone else's words

That is all.

numbers all over the place

okay... 2400 + 1100 is 3500
3500 x 12 is 42000
There are 26 biweekly periods in a year
42000 divided by 26 is 1615 every two weeks or so
1615 - 820 is 800
minus 200 for bills is 600
so that leaves 600 every two weeks for: vehicle, food, credit card debt, renovations, The Boy, and savings.

10,000 divided by 600 is 16, so in 16 pay periods I could save up enough for the BIG SCARY HOME REPAIR that I need to do.

16 pay periods is 8 months.

or... in 4 months I could save up half of it, and put the rest on a credit card...

or I could get another 10,000 on the mortgage to pay for the BIG SCARY HOME REPAIR right away.

Clarification

If you see that I
support you, please understand
I do not like this

If you see that I
am happy, please understand
I do not like this

If you see that I
smile at you, please understand
I do not like this

If you see that I
help you pack, please understand
I do not like this

If you see that I
wave to you, please understand
I do not like this

If you see that I
give you space, please understand
I do not like this

If you see that I
leave you be, please understand
I do not like this

If you see that I
ignore you, please understand
I do not like this

If you see that I
am angry, please understand
I do not like this

If you see that I
do not sleep, please understand
I do not like this

If you see that I
smoke too much, please understand
I do not like this

If you see that I
just stand still, please understand
I do not like this

If you see that I
close my eyes, please understand
I do not like this

If you see that I
walk away, please understand
I do not like this

I am good at this
But that is not evidence
that I accept this

Civil war defeat

I have fled from the island, and am making my way slowly back to the mainland.

Initially, though I planned to take some survivors with me, that has proved to be impossible. When I asked some of the sympathetic locals to return with me, they seemed interested at first, but then when the departure date we had chosen grew closer, their enthusiasm waned, and they seemed less interested.

I think they may have feared fleeing the island, and abandoning their fellow islanders, even the ones that I feel are the causes of the civil war. I suppose I cannot expect them to abandon their friends, families and co-workers so suddenly, given that the words spread against me must have been circulated by them.

This is the first time since I have fled the island that I have had time to sit and write, but I have some notes hastily scribbled on my boarding pass and on a copy of my ferry receipt.

More astute readers will be wondering what has happened with the glade, and I confess I do not know... I will attempt to prepare a place for it, and hope to transplant it, or cuttings from it, in the future.

Civil War

The civil was seems to have calmed last night. There's no peace at all, for certain, but it did seem hopeful.

Locals greeted me in the street from both factions and were glad to see me, I think. I felt safe again.

And, I found the Newcomer actually sweeping a sidewalk! Perhaps he is startled by the civil war as I am.

News of the civil war is spreading to the mainland. International news outlets have picked it up and I fear for our image internationally if the news spreads too far.

Civil war

With the memories of last week's disturbance fresh in my mind, I have been seeing more and more signs that this civil was is long-standing and may last some time.

I think there are strong anti-mainland factions here who were told, unrealistically, that linkages with the mainland would bring prosperity and for whom that prosperity has not materialized.

For some islanders the prosperity has been all too real, but this may have alienated them from their poorer brethren. This may create an expectation from the upper classes that the lower classes should suffice themselves with the overall increased prosperity of the island and not quibble over their own individual circumstances.

What does all this mean to me?

I think I, as the resident mainlander, may be able to bridge the gap, or at least I must avoid being drawn in by one sect or another. When I talk to a sect leader, I will need to emphasize that I support all the islanders, that other islands are also supportive of peace and prosperity on the island, and that civil disturbances are normal...

I must not blame sect leaders for problems, I must not condemn behaviours by sect leaders against one another, and I must ensure that I am not dependent on any one sect for my own survival. Roads to my house, power, water, and other utilities all can wait until the population here is at peace with itself.

Things I have done today

Petted cats

Been grumpy

Had a cup of tea

Eaten toast

Installed stair nosing

Messed about with the bathroom door

Had more tea

Tidied the bedroom

Made a bed

Made another bed

Cleaned the bathroom

surfed crooksandliars.com

Been bad

Ate lunch

Had a break to read

Had a coke

Cleaned the entryway

Stripped some paint off the doorways that jam

Cut excess vapour barrier from the swale between the houses

stripped more paint

cleaned the laundry area

Did a load of laundry

put away towels

watered the cats

watered the plants

hung some pictures

Called my boy

Raked my front yard

Tried to fix a birdfeeder

Had a beer

Had a nap

Fed the birds

Patched a hole in the drywall, and damn nicely, thank you

Listened to the Habs game

Had another beer

Changed the water for the fish

Been bad again...