patrick.net

today's tip: how to wash a cat

1. get an old pillow slip, aka pillow case*, and an old pyjama cord drawstring
2. get someone who can sew to stitch the drawstring into the opening of the pillow case so it will tighten
3. run the bath and get it all set up
4. get the cat, and put 'the cat in the bag', with its head outside of the bag, and gently do up the drawstring -- the cat will think it's a game up to this point
5. pick up cat in bag and put it into the bath of warm soapy(?) water -- or maybe some sort of benign shampoo -- the pillow case will get wet and stop the cat from flailing around and scratching. they tend to just sit there and take it, as they aren't being irritated by being directly wetted -- cats don't like being sprayed or rained on as the sensation makes them jumpy
6. i suppose you could rinse the cat in the bag with non-soapy water here
7. take the bound cat out of the bath and release it gingerly with the drawstring
8. try to dry it a bit with a towel if it will let you. they usually act surprised more than anything at this stage

* it could be useful to try some sort of fairly open weave permeable material here as a substitute - teatowels have been used sewn into a bag...

Note 1: i don't know if they learn to fear the bag or the bath tub if you do this a lot -- they usually keep themselves fairly clean by themselves...

Note 2: cats look a lot smaller when they are wet...

On a different note:

Fears of revenge attacks on stingrays over Irwin death

At least ten stingrays have been found dead and mutilated on Australia’s eastern coast in the last week in what conservationists believe could be revenge attacks for the death of Steve Irwin, the popular naturalist and television personality.

Irwin, known by his fans as the "Crocodile Hunter", was killed last Monday when a stingray barb pierced his chest as he filmed a new TV programme off the Great Barrier Reef. His death triggered an outpouring of grief in Australia and among thousands of admirers worldwide.
_____

I think Steve Irwin would not have wanted revenge on the critters. It's not the Croc Hunter way.

Lots of interesting ideas. I'd never actually heard of cordwood masonry. Seems to me it's one of those designs you would never get tired of looking at and would be great for 2nd home or even primary res.

For any of us that's ever been a kid straw bales just looks like fun! However, other than over the internet I've never seen one built and would prefer to get some of HARM's first hand experience before attempting?

While I doubt I would ever live in one I just can't see why more "Ag" buildings aren't built out of junk tires? Dry storage for tractors? Would livestock really mind?

One thing is for sure. As todays unsellable subdivisions become tomorrows ghost towns we will have committed a terrible, wasteful fraud. Quite possibly the biggest misallocation of resources in our history. I mean on the scale of wiping out buffalo herds. With all of the sensible alternatives out there we chose the McMansion route?

newsfreak,

I'm sure the response we'll get from the REIC is that they were only providing what the buying public wanted, namely BIG! Oh and just so I don't strike a raw nerve with Randy H, when I say "ghost towns" I suppose what I really mean is "grossly under utilized". Even in LV and Phoenix I'm sure that from 1/2 to 2/3rds will be occupied by one or more "rotational" people the unused portions of these behemoths and the energy used to keep them livable will constitute a terrible waste.

George,

Well exactly. How could we possibly have had an unprecedented boom marketing......... sensible? Never gonna happen. You mean with all of this cheap money we're gonna build........sensible?

A 1% overnight lending rate means every Joe Schmuckiteli in the country will be able to afford AT LEAST 2,000 sq. ft! (For awhile anyway).

This was a once in a lifetime window for the REIC and there was just no way they weren't going to beat on it for all it was worth!

I wish more apartments put washer/dryer in the bathroom. They always put them in the kitchen, which sucks due to noisy and heat. If they went in the bathroom, the noise would be dramatically reduced and the heat could be vented out.

astrid,

Makes sense. Properly vented (to avoid an accumulation of moisture) there's no good reason that shouldn't work.

One other thing about the boom building techniques I can't understand is with all of the building throughout the southwest why was no provision made for a "water catchment system"? What water run-off they do get from their roofs could have been captured, stored and used for everything from your garden to your toilet!

If there's plenty of money to go around for granite counter tops I'm sure we could swing a few plastic barrels and a filter.

DinOR,

It seems like builders just cut corners on anything that can't be seen. They're building 3000 sqft homes with cardboard, for gawd sakes. That's lower construction quality than shacks sold at HD. It's all about creating a facade to lure in the buyers - bricks in the front and a couple thousand dollars of cabinets & countertops and suddenly it's worth $750K or whatever they're charging for the place.

"It's all about creating a facade"

Well that about sums the whole bubble doesn't it?

The faux slate or "river rock" must be a real hoot for the builders! They know full well it goes up in a day and adds a ton of "street appeal" so they can charge major bucks for that!

I can't help but wonder what it will look like in a few years when a few fall out and the whole thing starts to sag.

George,

One of my all time favorite "ghost town" photos is where a mining town that folded years ago has only a bank vault to show that people at one time existed there! It's concrete with a great iron door swung open. And there it sits on a pile of rubble surrounded by sky and dirt.

What will FL's ghost towns look like? Is this where the jungle reclaims the land and "gators" roam freely in what once was a subdivision? From what you describe, whatever it's going to look like, I think we're about to find out.

House # 1 is listed at $244,900.
House # 2 is listed at $195,000.

4-bedroom, 2-bath, 3-car garage, 2,600 sq foot monsters.

wow, unheard of over here... who said florida was booming? i have to spend $260K just to get a 1 br apartment, and that's down from $350K last year...

SFWoman,

Meanwhile, there's a lot of cool stuff (accessible even to non climbers) to whet his appetite

http://www.zionnational-park.com/

The "Wave"
The Zion Narrows
The "Subway"
Calf Creek (with some reservations - the hike in and out is long, hot, and have soft footing)
Hickman Bridge in Capitol Reef

and

Willis Creek (so easy even horse and astrid can walk it)

Also, Angel's Landing in Zion, that's a nice compromise between hiking and climbing. Not too hard half day hike (since I hiked it, but I did grab onto the chains for dear life in places). Much easier and more fun on way down (since you can see where you're going).

Buckskin Gulch and Bull Valley Gorge are also good long semi technical hikes. They would be doable for the non-technical people if you have a guide who can help you through the rough spots.

George,

Yeah, but what's the hurricane insurance and cooling bill on one of those things? Are there many jobs there that pays $50-75K a year?

Different Sean on Coober Pedy:

I've always wanted to go there!

Opals, despite their bad reputation, have always been my favourite gems

In fact, my wedding ring has a light opal in it, from Coober Pedy.....

astrid Says:

Also, Angel’s Landing in Zion, that’s a nice compromise between hiking and climbing.

That is an awesome hike. Amazing views from the top, and the climbing rungs definitely make it easier.

George,

By all means please do! I'd love to track that. I mean at this point, what can we do but laugh?

The monthly expenses have got to be unbearable for these novice investors! Talk about "leave the meter running"? While vacant do specuvestors just set the thermostat at like 80/85 degrees so they don't boil the paint off the walls? Or do they just let them bake?

Opals have a bad rep? I always found them to be very interesting and beautiful. I also prefer the colors of semi-precious stones like garnet, peridot, and aquamarine to the more expensive rubies and emeralds. Diamonds with of a decent size with a good cut are pretty, but such a ripoff.

George,

Thanks! Yeesh, with that level of running expenses, the houses look like real white elephants. I guess it's barely affordable for married people working full time or 4 families living under the same roof.

George,

Wow, more examples of flipper pennywise-poundfoolishness.

It sounds like these out of state owners aren't even trying anymore. They really should just try locking in a renter to cut their losses.

"If these people were smart (I know, I know) they’d be screaming for about 20 air cooled low pressure pebble bed nuclear reactors to be built."

Real Americans can't do math anyways, they're all working high paying sales jobs or flipping houses. They feel the truthiness of McMansion ownership and sure felt good on the ride up.

But what would be the benefit for George? What kind of sales angle can you work into website?

Robert Cote'

That pretty much describes my scenario. My wife and I have looked at "up scale" golf/gated communities and it always seems to boil down to the same depressing math. Even if we did pay it off "cash money" there's maint./HOA's, unreal taxes built off of unreal valuations and of course your own utilities and general upkeep. (These don't go away, if anything they get worse).

If you're unwilling to subject yourself to this kind of monthly abuse, it narrows your choices down considerably. To me, being part of an HOA is like adding another layer of gub'ment, no?

George,

I tend to agree. Adding a renter into the formula at this point is just another form of defeat. (Just to a lesser degree). In the end it seems to me anyway all the specuvestor is accomplishing is prolonging the agony and forestalling the inevitable bigger defeat. Although I'm sure other "owners" that are looking to "cut off a finger to save the hand" appreciate your keeping it off the market putting further inventory pressures and undoubtedly lower comps from seeping in.

I agree that it's better to sell at a loss than rent at this juncture. But it sounds like a lot of people are unwilling to contemplate selling at a loss. I fear they will ride their buys all the way down and destroy the house's value via neglect.

George,

Such a website would be a great service. You're right. If I was looking to buy a house, I would certainly want to buy it with someone like you than someone who reassure/bully me into buying too much house.

Has anyone else had issues with the *freebies* the builders are offering?

It seems to me that offering the same home in the same subdivision (only now) with a pool, upgrades galore, a leased BMW and cash back at closing is like saying "for shareholders of record AFTER 12 SEP 2006 your dividend will be 4.74% vice the previous 3.22%".

I realize it's apples and oranges but if I were in this situation I'd sure want to know where my pool, car and cash are?

I wish more apartments put washer/dryer in the bathroom.

In the west, W/Ds are usually in a separate closet near a bedroom.

Did you say kitchen?

I don’t like stupid-huge bathrooms, or “crap palaces”, but I do like a little more space than the typical bathroom in a rental unit provides.

I think 200 sqft for a master bath should be ideal. Too bad that costs too much. :(

My boyfriend's old apartment was like that but that utility closet solution has similar problem with placement in the kitchen. They'd be much better if they went in the bathroom.

They’d be much better if they went in the bathroom.

Any reason?

200 sqft is way too big for a bathroom. Ideally, a bathroom should be relatively compact, but use mirrors and glass windows to give the illusion of expansiveness. The big master bathrooms I see have a lot of wasted space.

I guess it would be different if the bathroom get turned into a boudoir or some kind of sitting room.

Isolation of noise and heat from the rest of the apartment.

It'd nice if apartments came with quieter dishwashers too.

I hate mechanical sounds in the house. I vacuum with earplugs.

I hate mechanical sounds in the house. I vacuum with earplugs.

I can hear ventilation fan noise in nearby apartments. The sound isolation at our complex is already not too bad. I am just very sensitve to humming noises and vibrations.

I can stand the noise when I am not sleeping though.

You can get a quieter vaccum. They work fine.

"You can get a quieter vaccum. They work fine."

Ear plugs are much cheaper and the vacuums we have work okay.

Ear plugs are much cheaper and the vacuums we have work okay.

But it would be nice to vaccum at night guilt-free. Well, unless you will buy ear plugs for your downstair neighbors too.

"Renting at a loss is a really long term strategy"

I suppose there are scenarios where this could play out favorably..... this just isn't one of them.

If anticipating growth in a commercial RE environment it may make sense to eat it up front with the expectation of huge pay-offs down the road. Seems to me the best most specuvestors can hope for is to b/e?

The carrying costs (assuming you can live with them) would be hard to justify to a group of seasoned investors. If you can't sell it to them, why would you try to sell it to yourself?

Jon,

You're asking for trouble, man. One of these days, the toilet seat cover will be down, and all hell will break loose.

Right time to invest in lawyers is in the contracting stage. If you have to worry about lawyers in a contract dispute, you probably can't afford them.

"Nobody told the specufloppers and maxihousers this. 3% down, 81% exotic or adjustable in California last year? Invest in lawyers my friends."

Maybe pre-sell bankruptcy filings, while these folks can still come up with the money.

"It gets strange"

Sure does. I remember retail grocers paying the lease on a grocery outlet just so they could leave it empty! Welcome to "hardball". Obviously these guys do math and calculated it would be better to suck it up on the lease b/c they wouldn't have any competition in the neighborhood!

"included appreciation as if it was cash flow"

When it's all said and done this will go down as Mr. Specuvestor and even FB's biggest error. We can argue wether they were sold this bill of goods or they sold it to themselves but in the end it won't much matter.