Smoke
is in the air!
Now the
skinny on Santa Fe, for which you have been waiting patiently. B minus so far.
Blue sky and clean air (or so it was before the fires). Restaurants aplenty, including
the aforementioned Cowgirl BBQ with its open patio and backyard parking lot
with weekend music in one or t’other, sometimes both.
Driving
is a sport not to be taken lightly. Rather than describe the 3 accidents I have
come across so far, I provide a stat to focus the issue. In the Washington, DC
suburb of Fairfax County, VA I paid less than $50/year for uninsured motorist
coverage. In Santa Fe that tariff is $350!
Commute
time is 10 minutes or slightly greater if (when) accidents require detours.
The
condo is large, eerily quiet, with a large pool that seems to hold little
attraction for residents despite 90+ degree heat, and a well-equipped fitness room
which I (and apparently no one else) frequent regularly. The free grilling area
at the pool does attract an enthusiastic following.
The
citizenry is excessively friendly. Hugs replace formal greetings among total
strangers (or icy stares in places like New York and Paris). On the bus total
strangers upon entrance hug upon departure (you know they are total strangers
since if acquainted they would have hugged on entry). I sit in stony silence and
while my lack of societal participation might invoke scorn, I am looked upon
with pity, the assumption being that my hermitic posture denotes a mental
deficiency.
At the
Cowgirl yesterday I was approached by a damsel of a certain age who pointed to
her T-shirt “Kiss me, I’m Greek.” I replied that I’m German and we don’t kiss
Greeks. She seemed not to understand and I beat a hasty retreat.
########
The job
will be interesting if only in its magnitude. An omnibus All Hazards document
created in 2007 requires a number of programs be implemented, few of which
have commenced, and all of which I will be expected to fashion in short order,
if you please.
My
Homeland Security department is education-centric and I am already signed up
for a dazzling array of courses, including a FEMA week in Anniston, AL. I pled
for Emitsburg, MD, on the theory that I have been to Anniston and no one should
be subjected to such delight more than once. But to no avail. I’m told that the
bus ride from Atlanta to Anniston is a scream.
##########
I have
been issued a smartphone, much smarter than I it seems, as it keeps singing to and beeping
at me, the purpose of which has not been revealed. The messages are cryptic and
I will likely be disciplined for non-compliance in some required activity.
##########
It
is somewhat embarrassing how television-centric I am, but I do live alone and
the box provides a link (however tenuous) to the outside world. Comcast (as the
only cable game in town {dishes not permitted by Condo Rules, page 37,
paragraph 12}) treats customers pretty much the way Marshall Dillon would have
handled a drunk in the Longbranch Saloon.
I
was first informed that I could not be connected because I owe the company
$900, despite the fact that I have never been a Comcast customer. This took 2
days to resolve when a “system error” was discovered (not a human one, mind
you, but a “system” malfunction). I was then sent a box for self-installation
that was as moribund as Congressional comity, and which took much convincing to
the 12-year-old in customer service. “YES, I AM QUITE SHURE THE BLOODY THING IS
PLUGGED INTO THE WALL.”
I
then left work early (not something you want to do on your first week), and
retrieved a new box (40 minutes in line behind a string of customers with
concerns far more serious than mine – exploding boxes were mentioned by
several – I plan to keep a gallon of water near mine, if I ever get a working
model).
Took
the new box home and sure enough it worked, but gave me a message on the tube
that I didn’t quite understand, but which clearly deprived me of the picture and
sound I so sorely craved.
A
technician (read $50/hour and a half day wait) is now required. This was
Friday. One could be dispatched next Thursday “during the day,” but
miraculously they work weekends, so I opted for Sunday next “during the day.”
And so another week to suffer in silence (did I mention the condo is REALLY
quiet)?
If
I get desperate I may call some of you. Chit-chat is not required, but a
recap of world events would be appreciated. 
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