New Thread on my life on a tropical island.

Boring in Guam

I appreciate everyone wanting to know what’s going on. It’s funny but when you move to a new and exciting part of the world every day is an adventure. New sights, sounds, and smells abound. Then, well, it becomes just part of daily life. You wake up, drink coffee, converse with your spouse, go to work, come home pay bills eat supper, and go to bed. Same old, same old. I have eliminated some of that. I’m retired. No alarm wakes me up, no hurried breakfast before rushing out the door, and my bills are paid automatically from my tiny bank account. My life is humdrum. There isn’t much to report. Wakana and I are fine. COVID is tearing up the island but we generally stay home and hide. She is teaching high school Japanese online and I, well that’s another story.

My last entry on the Mudcat was August 17, 2017. I had had a stroke on July 6 and I was still in recovery. I still am. My legs are very weak. My right one possibly due to the stroke but arthritic knees also are taking their toll.

When I was recovering from my stroke I didn’t pay attention to my mail. I didn’t need to. My retirement went into my bank account and the bills were paid from there. One piece of mail I missed was the one telling me my life insurance was going to expire in 60 days. I found that letter 3 or 4 months later so I no longer have life insurance.

Ugh! That’s enough bad news. More later when I get to news of COVID-19 on Guam.

In 2018 we siblings decided to sell The Farm. The Farm was 300 acres of land with a farmhouse and some outbuildings. There were about 100 acres of fields, Hannigan Pond, and the old stage road to Oakfield. That road was little more than an old tote road that ran for miles past County Road Lake and on to the swamps north of Meduxnekeag Lake.

It was a difficult decision. The Farm was one of the last complete homestead sections in Maine. We didn’t want to see it broken up to make subdivisions. Plus it was our children’s happy place. But with Mom and Dad gone it stood empty. We had rented it but that didn’t turn out well. So we sold it in 2019. Our shares were just under $40,000! I sent $1,000 to each of my kids and $500 to my granddaughter. I told Wakana we should repair the house. The roof leaks were terrible and our kitchen and bathrooms needed upgrading. You won’t believe her choice.

You see, our house has a rectangular floorplan. At one end are the bedrooms. At the other end is the carport. Wakana’s request was to enclose the carport! I knew immediately that would use up most of the money but I couldn’t argue. We needed the extra space. It would allow us to have a great sunny and airy living room and to create a wonderful office in the old living room. I had a few requirements of my own. Fixing the roof was paramount as was paying off my car loan.

To make a long story short we hired a contractor and got the job done. The contractor was Russian as was his crew so we couldn’t understand a word when they spoke among themselves. On the first day one of the crew wanted something. He pulled out a cell phone and spoke into it and the phone asked for moving stairs. He wanted a ladder.

Working with Artur was a whole new experience. I don’t like it when people make fun of people for whom English is a second, third, or fourth language but… Plus Wakana had trouble dealing with Artur. He wouldn’t listen to her and he wanted me to confirm everything she said. On the day we signed the contract I told him the job had been her idea and she was going to be in charge. As it turned out he was culturally unable to hear her. He was Muslim. It all came to a head when she sat him down, stood over him, and shook her finger in his face speaking clearly and firmly (she won’t let me say she yelled at him) explaining what he was going to do. I had a tough time keeping a straight face. Artur’s face turned redder than any face I’ve ever seen.

Anyway we now have a roof that doesn’t leak, a very nice living rooms with large windows and two small air conditioners, and ceiling fans. I built a set of low bookcases to set under the windows. I also built an entertainment center to hold our big TV, two large speakers, the cable box, a DVD player, my old JVC AM/FM tuner and amplifier, an old laptop computer, and a turntable. The computer and the laptop are on drawer slides. There is even room for six feet of LPs on the bottom. AND I put the whole thing on wheels so I can easily move it out to work on the wiring.

Gonna take a break. Will post more later.