From aunt Tammy, Oct 9, 2009

Oct 9

Dear Jerm,

Hey buddy! Michael just got back from running errands with a big batch of mail and right on top was a letter from you! So very cool. You made my Friday! I talked to Grandma the other day and she said Jimmy went out to check the mailbox and came in very sad looking, because they were hoping for a letter from you, but he was really teasing her, because there was a letter in there from you, he hid it in his pocket from her. We laughed about it because Michael did the same thing to me the last time I was in the car when we went to the Post Office. He came out all mad looking and I was thinking it was only bills, but he got in the car and handed me your letter. Joker. Anyway, G’ma and G’pa went to Yakima last weekend. Donna Cortz died, she’d been in the hospital for a while beforehand. Her service is this weekend, but I don’t think they can go back so soon already. Grandma babysat her when she was a teenager and Donna was little, did you know that? So sad.I heard you had been sick recently, so, I was not expecting a letter from you for a little while longer. I hope that you are over that by now and that you are getting caught up on all that you missed. Financials, huh? What is that like, ‘pay your bills, you are a soldier now? Or how to plan for retirement?It got busy there for a second. The little red engine on the railroad spur next to me is going back and forth, and just now the UPS driver, Brad, pulled in. I bet he’s wishing he was on the golf course today, it is very nice at the moment. He’s coming back, I gotta go get the key from him.I have been busy in the office like you said. I leased a whole bunch of units last month so we have been busy with all those new people learning the ropes. I have a tenant who is a fisherman, stocks the pond here in town for the little kids and takes vets and those that have lost family in the military out on the rivers. He does that all voluntarily and doesn’t have a job right now, so he almost lost his unit this week. I was getting an ulcer over that one. I really didn’t want to see him loose his stuff ~ that is absolutely the worst thing about this job. Anyway, some of the people he’s taken out lately heard about his situation and donated some money to help him out. In the month of September, two of my tenants died, unrelated, but I spent a lot of time on the internet looking for their obituaries. One of them was about three weeks ago, a favorite customer as he was really friendly, loved having those ‘good old boy’ chats with us or Michael out on the facility. I just found his obit earlier today after all this time. All together since we’ve been here, we’ve lost about a half dozen tenants in death. Last year, there was a couple who were at their vacation home in the mountains. The were having work done on their propane system, blew the place up. Another thing that happened this month, I’ll tell you about in a minute. I’ve a maintenance guy here now going through the gate systems for routine maintenance right now. That’s not happened before so, it’s nice that he’s here when we are having a good day, he can look it over. I can’t think he’s been here before unless we were having a problem, like last winter when the weather was so bad and the gate system froze. He and Michael get along really well, he was telling us he’d had heart trouble last month, so they were comparing notes. Loren lives in Vancouver and comes down here to take care of our gate. He also answers our calls to his personal cell number when we are having an emergency.Michael has been busy too, like you asked. The one building that runs diagonall to the rest of the facility, he was able to replace all the door frames finally, or at the very least paint them. That took him more than six months, because we had to ask for the keys then wait for people to drop them off. The last one, I sent several notes asking for the keys, couldn’t leave messages because his voicemail was full. We were about to cut the lock when he wanders in. Turns out the jerk didn’t even open the letter I’d sent. Just assumed they were invoices and sent payments without reading what I’d wrote him. It’s funny you asked about his back. He’d been doing OK, till the other day, he carried the carpet cleaner up the stairs full of water, while I was out walking the dogs one morning. About halfway up he felt a snap. Couldn’t do much for a couple days but stay in bed. He’s better now. Tuesday was the one year anniversary of his heart attack, and Wednesday would have been his son’s 30th birthday, so we were a little misty eyed around here. We took cookies over to the fire station on Tuesday for the guys that helped save his life last year. Hopefully, they’ll get eaten. Maggie and Dori are fine. Maggie went with Dad to check the mail, she was a happy girl home again. I need to brush Dori again, I did it earlier this week, she completely fill the dog brush with white fur. I have been taking her outside several times a day now, so that the evening before bed ritual isn’t so dramatic. It does help when Maggie goes with us, but sometimes without Daddy’s involvement it’s hard to get Maggie motivated. Last night, he was sleeping, I got both of them on leashes and out the door. Dori, for once, got her business done, then we had to wait on Maggie. Oh, I wanted to tell you ~ Last weekend, Saturday, was a really nice day like today, we went to the dog park in Clackamas. When we got there, there was an excited dog, Michael thought it was a cocker spaniel, but it seemed larger to me, coulda been a poodle mix. So, we didn’t go in right away, we walked aroung the park a bit. It’s a nice park, has a nice stream and pathways, someday we might take lunch there and watch the water flow by. After a bit we went back to the gate. This park doesn’t have a small/timid dog area we were hoping for. We waited a while and the excited dog left, we went inside. Met a nice boxer named Sunny, very healthy calm, good for Maggie to meet because she gets too agitated about bigger dogs. We walked a little then took the off the leashes when they seemed calm. Other than short runs back into the house, dori has never gone without a leash on. She was staying on path, and I wanted her to run and stuff, so I called here and ran with her back and forth across back the back end of the field. I can’t imagine that my running was anything pretty, but it was so nice to see her go in the sun, she is very fast. If she ever got away from me, I know I couldn’t catcher her.I talked to Nicole a couple days ago. She called to tell me she was watching a movie, I’ve forgotten what it was now. She posted new pics of herself on face book and myspace, showing off a new hair color. It sounds like she’s been buy working, Brian’s back in school. Mikey texted mequite a bit in the last few days, finally got started with SWIFT and got on the road, I think it was yesterday, 5 weeks to Illinois. That will be so hard for him being gone so long. I guess Ann is babysitting her own kids during the days. I hope your mom can handle all of this, with the dogs and work and Wes’ doctors appointments and all. I guess G’ma and G’pa will be close enough to help a little and Priscilla can help some too as she works part-time. Your mom will probably never complain but I’m betting she’s feeling like her hands are full. I know that her communication with you will probably be like sugar on her breakfast cereal. I hope she is catching al your phone calls on Sundays and getting lots of letters. Did you get a new picture taken in your pickles yet? I’m betting she’d be tickled pink to get a copy of that.You’ve never said anything about it, but I’m hoping the typed out letters are OKFine by you. Today my hands are really bothering me. I think I knitted too much yesterday. My thumb and forefinger on my right hand are really bad, like grinding bones. I finished a hat with skeletons on it for Michael’s grandson last week, it was 100% wool, so I shrank it a bit when I washed it, hoping to make it fit a 3rd grader. As I was finishing it, I heard about one of my tenants getting hurt. They, the man and his wife, were in the Taco Bell here in town, and had a confrontation with distant family members and their friends. The beat up the woman, shoved her into a table, which went into her skull about 2 or 3 inches, he’s screaming at people behind the counter for help, to call 911, help and NOBODY DID ANYTHING. She was life lighted downtown to Immanuel hosp, I think, near Nicole’s place. So after I finished the at, I got out some yarn that Grandma gave me last visit, started a shawl. I’m hoping that it will be like a hug, to comfort her while she’s healing. I must have spent too long on it yesterday, I’m thinking maybe 4 hours or more, now I can’t hold a pen or pick up the knitting without discomfort. My chiropractor was here yesterday, I’m wishing he was here again already to fix the hand/elbow/shoulder what ever I messed up so I could get back at it. Your brother just texted me that he’s in Superior, Montana. He seems happy to finally be working. (handwritten) I got several texts today. I am proud of him that he's working hard. I told him so. I'm telling you too, OK? I love you, looking forward to your next letter, hoping you are still enjoying your adventure.

Love,
Auntie Tammy

PS. Need anything? Got stuff to read?