New York March NYC Meet-Up

Signed the contract today. Only applied for a mortgage August 15th, put in an offer on August 31st, and today I have a signed contract.

Closing on or before October 30th.

No Radon remediation needed. Detected level about half of the threshold.

Today I informed my boss that I'll be needing some vacation time. Since the first week in January I have no backup and have worked around patient and experiment schedules taking time when I can.

They let things slide for almost 9 months... Oh-well...

Cal
 
Yesterday I got a $10.00 off a purchase coupon from Bed Bath And Beyond.

Today I retrieved 3 more out of the waste basket by the mail boxes in my building for a total of $40.00 off/savings.

I counted out the 20% off coupons that I rescued that are expired, but still good for in person/store purchases. I have 86 of these.

Cheap-cheap-cheap.

I'll have to use these to help furnish my home. There is a Bissell cordless vacuum/mop, some more All Clad cookwear, and loads of other stuff to secure. On the list will be an air purifier for my darkroom...

Already have mucho cremes for my dry skin.

I'll be sure to load up the truck as they say on Wall Street.

Cal
 
Calzone said:
Signed the contract today. Only applied for a mortgage August 15th, put in an offer on August 31st, and today I have a signed contract.

Closing on or before October 30th.

No Radon remediation needed. Detected level about half of the threshold.

Today I informed my boss that I'll be needing some vacation time. Since the first week in January I have no backup and have worked around patient and experiment schedules taking time when I can.

They let things slide for almost 9 months... Oh-well...

Cal
Click to expand...

Good luck and enjoy your new home Cal.
 
Cal...

Try the trash at the local post office. I am amazed at all the coupons people throw away.

I haven't paid full price in Arby's in years. Ditto Harbor Freight Tools.
 
Range-rover said:
Cal you should hit Bloomingdales when they have their "White Sale" a lot
of great buy's.
Click to expand...

Bob,

One of "Maggie's" clients is Brooklinen.

For one post Maggie created a styled look wearing white towels that she draped as if a cocktail dress.

Also we have all these sets of bedding from Brooklinen.

That Bissell cordless vacuum/mop sells for $419.00 but I can buy it for $335.00.

Anyways this is how I buy the good stuff.

Kinda reminds me when I loaded up the truck with re-brandd Fuji Acros that was close dated for $1.89 a roll, and re-branded Tri-X for $2.89 a roll.

My concentration on only image capture and making only negatives really-really annoyed people, LOL, but I got the last laugh because I did a very smart thing: shoot as much film as possible while it was dirt cheap, and knowing one day that the cost would go way up.

Now the rewards of my delayed gratification further pays off when I set up my darkroom and will wet print once again to get back to where I was in Art School.

Somehow I created an archive of a NYC that no longer exists. Also "Time is the best editor."

"Ha-Ha," I say.

Now I want free raw building materials like distressed concrete pavers, heat-pumps, solar arrays, garden supplies, funishings, roofing...

How entitled is that. LOL. It isn't easy being Calzone, Calvin-August, or Augie. Maybe a free car. Of course luxury. LOL.

In the past I did get a "Free" European vacation, Germany, France, and Switzerland.

Oh, I forgot the trip to Mad-Rid, Spain where we were VIP's and stayed in a hotel that formally was a palace.

"I was just minding my own business..." LOL.

Augie
 
MrFujicaman said:
Cal...

Try the trash at the local post office. I am amazed at all the coupons people throw away.

I haven't paid full price in Arby's in years. Ditto Harbor Freight Tools.
Click to expand...

MFM,

Cheap-cheap-cheap, but only buy the good stuff. LOL.

There is a narrow path of distressed concrete pavers that are 12" by perhaps 30" that leads to the back of my back-backyard and across the yard in the second building lot.

My guess these are "man-killers" or "nut-busters" but I intend on moving some of these around and recycling them. Some will be removed between the rear of the house and the garage.

"Maggie" my OCD gal wants a slate patio between the kitchen and the garage that will be a garden studio with multiple French Doors.

With my luck I'll find a "free" hand truck through "Divine Intervention."

Now that we have a contract, there is a great opportunity to take advantage of a distress sale. The owner mentioned that she is downsizing and all this vintage "Eastlake" late Victorian era furnishings that she accumulated over time is available.

Some of these furnishings are enchanting and definitely are well suited and well proportioned for the house. The dinning room is stunning and we definitely want the dinning room set along with this novel hutch that would be great for storing my cameras. Of course Maggie does not like that idea.

There is a nice secretary desk in the foyer, as well as a wonderful mirror and table that perfectly fits at the base of the stairway.

You have to understand is because of living in a 650 square foot luxury apartment in Madhattan that we lack appropriate furnishings. We don't even have a bed. Basically I have been Glamping in Madhattan for about a decade.

If you saw my current studio with all my gear and Maggie's clothes, shoes and bags, you would say we are kinda crazy. "Don't tell the building department" about our cluttered mess.

Pretty much in a bedroom is a "Camera Museum" as John calls it, a Juki commercial sewing machine, an Epson 7800 affectionately known as "the Jersey Barrier," a Container Store ELFA that Devil Christian says I effectively built a modern high rise by going "vertical" to fit everything that resembles being alike a nuclear submarine that is loaded with 6 months of food to feed the crew.

So let's see how much "divine intervention" continues. Our lawyer and Real Estate Agent says that we are pretty far along, and everything is going remarkably smooth.

Also know that our house was first listed in the beginning of July. The listing price was $20K higher and the price was comparable to the house just across the street that was built in 1910. When the price dropped $20K that's when we got seriously interested in this Victorian.

The seller is relocating as well as downsizing. How lucky is that?

Divine intervention I say. Meanwhile in Beacon and all around in the suburbs of NYC there are insane bidding wars. One house we looked at was newly listed and and already had multiple bids even though it was a worn out neglected rental that require mucho.

Our "Baby-Victorian" has only had 3 owners, and we will be the fourth.

Cal
 
Hey Cal,

I have a camera museum I have been told by multiple pro photographers LOL

It is what it is 🙂

4x5 Fuji HRU Mic-X 5 minutes by Nokton48, on Flickr

Fuji 8x10 HR-U X-Ray cut down into 4x5's shot in thirty seconds six rapid Norma shots.
Developed in Legacy Microdol-X replenished for years (cheap-cheap)

Getting good comments so today reloaded four 4x5 Graphmatics, and have four 2x3 XRay to load today also. Recommend the Dyson pistol for darkroom and camera dusting, although needs frequent charge.

Leann and I went "no money" for years after buying our house. That is the way to go for sure.
 
Nokton48 said:
Hey Cal,

I have a camera museum I have been told by multiple pro photographers LOL

It is what it is 🙂

4x5 Fuji HRU Mic-X 5 minutes by Nokton48, on Flickr

Fuji 8x10 HR-U X-Ray cut down into 4x5's shot in thirty seconds six rapid Norma shots.
Developed in Legacy Microdol-X replenished for years (cheap-cheap)

Getting good comments so today reloaded four 4x5 Graphmatics, and have four 2x3 XRay to load today also. Recommend the Dyson pistol for darkroom and camera dusting, although needs frequent charge.

Leann and I went "no money" for years after buying our house. That is the way to go for sure.
Click to expand...

Dan,

Even though I just bought a house, it became possible only because I didn't waste money, I saved, and I bought only the good stuff to avoid buying things twice.

John took that shot of me decorated as if a Christmas tree with cameras after a NYC Meet-Up. I believe it was Phil's idea. When John created my avitar he put in the "Gear Whore #1."

At first I took exception to his remark, but the more I thought about it, it was true, and I could not get mad about it. John also coined the term "Camera Museum" and made fun of the shelves that display them. I have a pretty good selection.

But you my friend are my inspiration and pretty much has "Camera Disease" I may be known as Cal, Calzone, Calvin-August, and Augie, but there is only one "Crazy Dan" also known as "Devil Dan" for being mighty clever.

Anyways I'm humbly small fry here.

BTW let me know if you want some original boxes and instructions for your 2x3 Graphmatics. I have mucho. I have ten 2x3 Graphmatics due to "Linhof Disease" that I blame "Devil Christian" for. He basically is the epicenter for Linhof's and Linhof Disease.

Joe even caught the Linhof bug. Don't blame me: blame Devil Christian.

Augie
 
pyeh said:
Nice work on the new house, Cal. Congratulations.
Click to expand...

Peter,

Seems like I'll have a new life. Kinda funny how I'm regressing so much. Perhaps I will never grow up.

Going back to art school mode when I had my own darkroom.

Early in life I built lofts in SoHo, and soon I'll be building out my own work spaces.

I use to race bikes and did mountain biking when it was first invented. I still have the vintage bikes from that era. How cool is that. Blue Mountain Preserve is almost my back yard and the main entrance is oly a few blocks away.

Right across the Hudson River is Bear Mountain State Park and Harriman State Park. One side of the Bear Mountain Bridge is in Peekskill.

I always was around the music scene, and the continuity that is presenting itself will allow fruitful wood shedding to see how much talent I have. Remember I use to be a performance artist. My goal is to be a solo performer. I'll have a sound proof room/studio in the full basement.

I have my hill-billy enclosed front porch. Then I'll have my garage studio surrounded by gardens. Being an old Victorian will be kinda magical.

Anyways two decades in NYC is enough. I've outgrown it, yet it will only be an hour's train ride away to Grand Central.

Pretty much the negative archive I created will take a few decades to sort out. I created a great mess by shooting film when it cost little and annoyed people by just concentrating on image capture. Jeff compared me to Garry Winogran. LOL.

What I find so interesting is that in a time of short supply and crazy bidding wars that only "Maggie" and me saw the vast value of this "Baby-Victorian" that is only 1525 square feet that is more of a cottage.

The 1910 home right across the street sold in January for $30K more, is a smaller house, on a smaller lot, 1 less bedroom, only 1 1/2 baths instead of 2 full baths, and has only a one car garage instead of my two car garage.

Seems like most people are stuck wanting a modern house that has all that open space. I lived in a loft, so I know that lifestyle to the max, and it has its limitations too.

My Victorian cottage has all these intimate separate spaces, and this is its true beauty. Kinda funny how if on a home improvement show they would kill the character and charm of an old house by the updating. I don't intend on disrespecting the history, charm or character: I plan on embracing it as an asset.

I kinda love that I have a level 40x100 to "farm" or garden. In Greenpoint I rented a rowhouse and created all these different gardens that made separate spaces. It is really amazing how sculptural gardening can be. I will definitely create a container swamp garden.

Would be really great to have a water feature: perhaps a mucho long lap pool.

I have all I need to create a paradise.

Cal
 
robert blu said:
It seems you'll have interesting and busy times in front of you! Great!
Click to expand...

Robert,

I learned from my travels to Europe and Canada basically as an American that more or less I could be called a savage. As a people and to be honest we are not so polite and respectful as Europeans and Canadians.

So at the age of 62 and 3/4'ers I'm still flexible enough and nimble enough to modify my behavior.

An interesting experiment was when I lived in New Mexico for a year and a half. The other New Yorkers who worked for Grumman on field assignment with me remained annoying and tense New Yorkers, but I learned to relax in "The Land of Manana."

Perhaps this is where I learned to become more civilized, less rude, and ultimately learned how to be a lazy slacker dude. Pretty much I became like a local with the no stress and relaxed attitude.

There was this film "Welcome To Marwin" about this tramatized man who created his own safe place. When I was a performance artist I learned about making and sharing a "safe place" and also about creating a "community."

Anyways what I am trying to do I wish for everybody. Everyone needs a safe place where they can be secure that is sustainable and everlasting. Most of all, and in an Italian kind of way, children need this safe-place. I'm kinda glad that Maggie's granddaughter and daughter live 10 minutes away. We can embrace the extended family in a very Italian way.

Calvin-August
 
Calzone said:
John took that shot of me decorated as if a Christmas tree with cameras after a NYC Meet-Up. I believe it was Phil's idea. When John created my avitar he put in the "Gear Whore #1."

At first I took exception to his remark, but the more I thought about it, it was true, and I could not get mad about it. John also coined the term "Camera Museum" and made fun of the shelves that display them. I have a pretty good selection.
Click to expand...

It was all in good fun... I only make fun of my real friends. 😉
 
Today "Maggie" has a shoot downtown.

It looks more and more like October 30th will firm up as our closing date.

In today's Wall Street Journal a front page headline is about the unintended consequence of forbearance for up to a year on government mortgages.

It seems this process has distilled and placed about a million homeowners at risk of foreclosure as debt levels were allowed to creep up to unsustainable levels.

A housing crisis starts somewhere, and this time it might not be the banks, but a government program instead.

With the bidding wars, home buyers bypassing appraisals, and so many people buying homes above listing prices, I wonder what will happen when and if these Covid buyers find themselves "underwater."

If a supply grows suddenly and gets big enough this could happen. "Look out below," I say.

Also I saw an interesting chart where low interest rates are skewing the numbers of new mortgages. The number of new mortgages it seems is mostly refinances, and not home buying. Interesting to note that the proportions between refi's and home purchases is inverted.

The record low interest rates make sense, but then again the number of quote "New Mortgages" makes it seem like theses new mortgages are home purchases when they are not.

Meanwhile a Second Wave has begun in Europe. Spain and France are the current hot spots, and it is reported that most of the cases are young people so the fatality rate has not spiked as before.

Cal
 
Spent a good part of Saturday wandering around Home Depot. This one in Midtown is actually a basement in a skyscraper around 59th Street on the Eastside.

Looked at lots of products, paints, building materials, and of course tools.

I ended up buying 4 38 gallon stacking storage totes that I later filled 2 with rolls of paper for digital printing that is my current stockpile, and the second two with my stockpile of shoes and boots. I figure if I can wear out a pair of shoes or sneakers in a month that I have about 4-5 years worth of shoes/boots that I bought at discount at DSW using coupons. I walked the 40 blocks each way to and from to save the $2.75 Metrocard, and I left the apartment with a collapsible hand truck with some bungee cords.

38 gallons of paper is mostly bulk, and the same for shoes, boots and sneakers. "Maggie" thought when loaded they might be too heavy, but they are not "man-killers" or "nut-busters." They are heavy, but I can man-handle them alone.

There were 55 gallon versions that I was considering...

So I started emptying the "highrise" I built up in the bedroom of this apartment, but now there is little space to move around in. So I likely will have to rent storage space just to take down all the ELFA shelving and the free standing workstation I built out for printing. Oh-well.

So I'm staging, prepping and packaging my stuff. Meanwhile "Maggie" says she is going to "cull-down" which I believe from past behavior and her procrastination is unlikely to happened. I imagine that her packing up her stuff will be the same as all the other times, where she just loads everything up, and says she will deal with it later when she has more time.

I expect and predict that yet again that having spare time will never happen as she tends to maintain busy schedules. Closing date looks to be October 30th. Call me a lazy-slacker, but it makes sense to get a jump on things and to remain human avoiding a last minute scramble.

Lots of work to do, lots of planing, lots of staging, lots of organizing, lots of cleaning up, culling down, and concentrating. All good/great things that move me forward and gain momentium. I may be a skinny bitch, and not a huge gorilla, but the physics and physicality of doing something every day will get me to the finish line.

Sunday I helped her shoot a video using her cell phone for a beauty product. She told me all about her ideas for shooting this on Saturday, but as usual she didn't think things through, and I know that Sunday when we shoot it will be mucho improv, and a last minute scramble.

Basically all of this could of been avoided if she read her contract, but Sunday I/we learn that it has to be a video and only a small part is photography. The video has to be around a minute in length, but not over a minute or else it will not load.

So I ended up struggling with her through dozens of takes. Of course she did not rehearse, is not organized, and is not trained as a performance artist. On top of this she hates doing videos. Flub-flub-flub...

So about half of an afternoon goes into this. I feel like a dentist. So anyways this is why men have shorter lifespans than women. Pretty hard to gain any momentum when my days get killed. I feel exhausted and expended.

I contacted my friend Dave, who along with my friend Cris has a van load of guitars, amplifiers, and speakers stored in their Long Island Suburban homes. They have store my gear for over a decade and most of this stuff is vintage gear that I considered collectible treasure.

Sometime after Thanksgiving I'll collect my collections. "Don't tell Maggie." She would love if I sold all this gear, but it ends up being a great hedge for inflation. Maggie is dumb in math BTW even though she has a PhD.

Teaching her anything technical like say shutter speeds or worse F-stops makes no sense to her. I give up. LOL.

Picked up another $10.00 off coupon from Bed Bath and Beyond. Will likely purchase a new iron and ironing board as well as a hardwood floor vacuum/mop. I'll keep them boxed, and we will open them up in the new house. EZ-PZ.

Also know that somehow Sunday I picked up some boxes I saved at work, and filled them. It was sad packing up some of my cameras. I removed the batteries to be safe. I found this to be sad, but a good precaution that gives me peace of mind.

Calvin-August
 
An interesting article in the Wall Street Journal Weekend Edition that reported that 7.01% of Government backed Mortgages (Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac) are in forbearance. This also coincides with increased debt loads in these distressed households. A tipping point of sorts is happening where debt is getting too big for many and it is turning into a death spiral. Woosh...

It was also suggested that many other mortgages are in arrears and are not in forbearance. My guess is that perhaps 10%-12% of mortgages in total are in arrears, meaning behind in payments: 7.01% in forebearance; and maybe 3%-5% behind in payments.

The hard deadline where evictions and foreclosure will likely begin will begin in January 2021. I expect that some and many homeowners will be selling soon and somehow the timing might be all at once, in a bit of a forced selling scramble.

The "Q" factor will be Covid and the predicted second wave that will likely impact and compound trying to sell a home. Buying a home in January or February is generally a slow period.

So the numbers suggest that many homeowners are behind in payments, unemployment remains high, and making payments will continue to be a deepening struggle for many as time endures. Clearly some people are in trouble due to loss of income, and this stubborn problem and its likely persistence will lead many to sell their homes rather than loose them is what the data suggests.

Also with the current situation of bidding wars and bypassing bank appraisals means that many are overpaying and inflating home prices. What happens when these homes get "underwater" when and if homes get revalued?

Are we going to have another housing crisis? The DOW is off over 700 points. The 65-day moving averages look to get crossed today or approached closely. "Look-out below," I say. A selloff is beginning.

Augie
 
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