• November 2009
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Love is More Than A Word

One of the things that I think I am supposed to do with my life, is get my mom into a house of her own. I have been trying to get us a house for maybe three years now. I am not sure when all of this got really going. I tried to begin to figure it out, in 2004. But then it seemed impossible. Because she doesn’t have the kind of income that people have who buy houses. But then the economy crashed, and that all changed. As I watched other people’s misery, I quietly rejoiced, hoping and praying every day, that the numbers would get worse. Because the numbers for the stock market being bad, actually means the difference between my mom being able to ever buy a house or not. With the stock market in turmoil, my mom CAN buy a house. Under normal stock market conditions, she can not. That is because it brings the house prices down. But that is not all. It is just the beginning.


As it turns out, people who have lots of money are out there buying up all of the houses that are now low enough priced for my mom to buy. They are buying them not to live in them themselves, but to fix them up prettier, and sell them for a profit. They are called investors.


At first, I thought that investing in houses was something fabulous, if I could do it. But I don’t have the money. Until I saw first hand how there are not enough houses on the market, for those who want and need to buy houses to live in, to buy. This means that those investors are keeping the lower income people out of the market, taking away their buying power, still, because they are buying every single one, for profit. So the poor are staying poor. But my mom has worked for thirty years at a government job. She has stayed living in a place that is now old and decrepit, for twenty three years. She needs to move. We need to move. It is too small and definitely not healthy. There is not enough room for her or for me. It is falling apart around our ears.

I want her to have a good life, for the last part of her life. That would mean buying a good house, and having enough space for our things. I want her to die happy. But more then that, I want her to live her older years satisfied and fulfilled, like she should be.


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It tears my heart out imagining her living ’til the end of her life where she is living now. People in America should not have to live like this. No one should.


So I have been working for free, figuring out the numbers, the details, the ins and outs of it all, and finding listings of homes for us to go see. We have been out looking at houses almost every week. We only stop when we have an offer in, and as we wait to find out if we got it or not, then. But, she has put in eleven offers before yesterday. That means that we have seen about sixty to seventy houses and chosen eleven to put in a contractual bid on. She was out bid by investors ten times. One time they didn’t want to take her loan type. (She can put down less of a deposit then other loans with the loan that she has, which helps make it possible). Going out looking at houses every week, and finding the listings, has been enough work to be a paid job. It is hard, tiring, and takes all of my time away from working on my career or any other job that I could possibly do. But it’s well worth it.


There have been tears, many tears, and great joy along the way. When I find a house that I love, I get so happy. But when she gets turned down and somebody else has gotten it, my heart has gotten broken, again and again. But then I have to get up and do it all over again. This part of it, has been going on for two years. The most busy part to where it is constant, it is my whole entire life, has been for one year almost.

To top it off, she doesn’t have furniture, not furniture that should ever be used by anyone anyway. Her furniture needs to be thrown away. There are a few nice pieces. But most of it was old when she got it, and has been used for twenty seven years. It’s decrepit. That’s just sad. But it also gives me a drive inside, a pulse that is pushing through my chest to keep going on and make something happen that is good for her.


A side benefit, something that I only realized recently, is how much it could change my life as well. If we get a house that has enough space for our things, then life will be completely different. But I am not sure if we are going to get a house that is really big enough to do that at all. We have been having to choose some houses that simply would not have enough space for our things, due to prices of houses that are out there. But, even a house that does not have enough space at all, would be much better then where we are living presently. It would also be a house for her, a place to call home. Oh, but I hope that we get one that has enough space! Imagine that, a real house, an honest to goodness solid, pretty, house. How peaceful that would be. This is the part of our journey that I am on.


Flowers


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Chasing life, I expand my wings, and feel the breeze. I have been working towards goals of a home for my mother to live out the remainder of her life. I have been dreaming of it’s warmth, solitude, respectful appearance, a room for my mother to have the library that she has always dreamed of, and space for me to be able to practice dancing, write my books, organize my projects, personalize my living environment, and have privacy. I have decided that I would also like to begin to garden and to paint. I have been wanting to paint for many years. I hope that there will be enough space for me to do just that. As I am allergic to lawn grass, the idea of wanting to be a gardener, is a strange dream. But I imagine all of the flowers, fruit, and design to the outdoors, that I would enjoy creating.

I have been sick for several weeks, which has put my practicing singing off even further. But I have a hope, with a quiet joy, that somehow has me not worried. I usually do. But right now, it feels like all is right in my world. I have had so much trouble in my life, and struggle, that I relish a moment not to worry, but to focus on the good that is coming into my life of late.

I have decided to begin to hang out with my friends more often, and to date. I had been keeping to myself and refusing to date for a long time. There were many other things that I needed to do. I was too busy, to put it mildly. So to find the time, to smell the flowers, is making me happy.

My birthday is this week. It is my favorite time of year. I get to see my best friends all at the same time over a dinner of my choosing. I love that. I don’t remember a lot of this past year. But my heart feels good and uplifted in it’s feeling type of memory. It has been difficult, but worth it. I have so much hope, and that is a good thing.


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An Actual Blog


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Hi! Life has been so busy for me lately, with looking for a house for my Mom, going to the gym, and now being sick. I have bronchitis/upper respiratory infection. Last week was spent mostly in bed, or being miserable from my illness. But I managed to somehow go looking for a house two different days! I shouldn’t have! The day after each time that I went out, I woke up so much sicker then the day before!

What is this about looking for a house? Well, my mother has never had a house. She is now sixty six years old. I want to make sure that she gets one for the last part of her life, before she dies. So I have been working on it for three years now. I have been going over her finances, and doing all of the work for her. I do get to live there for a while. It may also become my house after she dies. But hopefully, that won’t be for another twenty years or so. I want her to have a happy older life. She deserves it. I love her. She wants a big house. But she can’t afford much. The kind of house that we both want, is so more expensive then she can afford. So we are competing with others to find those rare houses that are priced lower then their worth, which only need a little fixing. It is hard work to find one. I found two. They were bought before we could even bid on them! I cried, honestly. I cried hard. This is serious stuff, dealing with getting a house that is where we will live, and where she will live for her retirement years. But I am looking every day, in the hopes that I can be that first person next time, to find that rare gem. Most others might only be wanting such a house, to make money on it, by fixing it and selling it for more. But for her, it means so much more. She doesn’t just want a big house, she needs a house so badly! She is living in a very cramped, old, decrepit space, that is broken and worn. So it means the world to me.

I put my career off a little, to work on finding my mother a house to live in. It has been taking twenty hours a week or more, for a year. Before that, I am not sure how much time that I was spending on it.

What I have been thinking about my career, as in where I am at with it right now, is that I have practiced once for putting together my first song for my future first C.D. Then I got sick. So I am having to wait. I need to get well soon, in hopes of being able to finish a solid draft of it, by my birthday, August the 20th. I also am hoping to fix my poetry book draft, from a scattered level, to a solid draft also. That way both will be much closer to being accomplished.

The job ideas that I have been pondering now, is the possibility of being a music teacher. This may be a good job on my way to becoming a writer and a singer. I have not made up my mind yet.

Whatever I do next, I’ve got three weeks to do it in. Greetings! and ’til next time, ado.

Plans


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In June I’ve been working on setting up a gym membership, better health through doctor appointments, and preparing to look for work.

The final day for my singing lessons was last Monday, June 22nd. My teacher is taking off on vacation from June 23 through September 13th. The first class back will be on September 14th. Practice begins this coming week.

I have chosen twelve songs for my first C.D. to finish. I’ve written about one hundred and fifty drafts and one opera. Next week, I will begin to finalize the compositional form of my first song. I’m nervous and excited. I don’t know how long it will take to finish writing it, let alone learn the song as a singer. I am estimating two months.

I went to the gym one day last week, and one day the week before. Next week I plan to go two days. In a couple of weeks, I will begin to attend three days per week. There is an indoor swimming pool! I really need this, for a cardio workout. I still need to buy my swimsuit.

To look for work, I need to buy an outfit including a skirt, shoes, and a shirt too. On my way to being a singer, I am considering a few options for my next job. The possibilities are voice over work, being a movie critic, a professional blogger, a physical therapist assistant, or a ticket girl for the movies. I am also considering going back to school for my BA. Then there is another choice, that falls in line with my future plans perfectly, start my own business. I’d have to find grants, or some avenue to fund it. My dream has always included my own business. It is part of the package. I could start small.


On The Road


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It’s been a long road, learning how to sing. It is time for me to put together my first twelve songs, and a demo. It could easily take a year or more. Therefore, I am also trying to find out about other avenues to work as a singer, for starting out, to get paid. My options that I am considering, is working in a small opera house, or singing jingles for commercials. I don’t yet know what the hours would be.


I want to start. I want to start now. How long am I going to wait? There are money considerations, and certain requirements that need to be met before I go to LA. So it seems that may be further down the road. Which is why I am considering getting work here, now, in the industry. I want to know what my options are. I want to get a job in my career field, soon.


(I have several other blogs, one is at my personal myspace, and another is at my public myspace. I just began a new page here called “Kat’s Life.” The links to all three pages is to the right.)


Opportunities Abound

I recently found another site that is all about music. I have been avoiding this phenomenon about free music on the web as much as possible, ever since it began. However, recently, MySpace deleted my widget from Playlist.com, that was a very cool pink. Nobody else has pink, or blue, or green. But they do. Well now, I have been told that they were not paying their musicians. I also found out on the web, that the music industry sued MySpace because of its’ users having this playlist on their site. I didn’t know that they weren’t paying. How they get paid, is through the advertisements on each web page, paying to advertise to you. They also can get paid by click.

So I had to find a new music playlist for my site. I have not found one yet. But in my travels, I found this great site! It is last.fm   There are profiles there for each user. It is access to a million gazillion trillion C.D.’s worldwide. A few songs won’t play. But most of them do. They pay the musicians per click. It is like having your own C.D. library online, of nearly almost all of the music that you could ever want. Not only that, but it is free of guilt. Because the musicians are getting a cut somehow, plus they also like learning about the statistics, and introducing us to new music. I love it.

If you’d like to check it out, either go to last.fm or go to my profile and check out my favorite pics! : http://www.last.fm/user/BlondeEnigma
P.S. Plus there are additional features, like downloading music, videos, etc.
Merry Christmas!

Under The Christmas Tree

Would you like to find a way to make your family and friends happy for the holidays with your gift giving, and save your pocketbook? Here are a few suggestions:
1) Are there any C.D.’s that you own, or DVD’s, that you are willing to give? Cleaning out your own entertainment closet, can bring out some holiday cheer.
2) Cookies that are store bought, come in many variations, some designed just for the holidays with sprinkles on top!
3) If price is an object, then look for small, out of the way stores, where they may need your patronage more then a regular store will. Take some time with searching their shelves, and you may be surprised the wonderful things hiding in plain view! Once, I found a toy train for my brother this way. It made sounds, was one to two feet long, and had special features too! It made his eyes tear up when I gave it to him.
4) Getting creative, can also come in what you choose to give. Last year, I couldn’t afford to buy my mother any of the wonderful things that I wanted to give. But taking my time, I thought and thought about what to do instead. I was amazed when I realized that there was a pair of lovely hand painted vases just right for her.
5) Another thing to not over look on the holidays, is Hello Kitty cards. Not only for family and friends, but also for those you miss. They are surely to be a gentle reminder that you care. Not only that, but they are cute and festive. Bringing a smile to their face as you light up their eyes, is surely a gift worth giving any time of year.
6) Last but not least, another idea for gift giving, is to find pictures that you like and are allowed to cut out. One way to find pictures to use, is to look up clip art on the internet. Once you find some, print them out. Then choose a small pile of your favorites. Cut around each figure very carefully. Buy small decorative frames. Sometimes frames only cost a few dollars. Shape a white piece of paper to fit into the frame. Play with the cut outs, putting them in various collages, until you create the one that you want. Glue them or tape the back of each one, into the pattern of your choice onto the white piece of paper. They can be painted, or left as they are. Next is putting the new picture in the frame.Voila!

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