NYC Journal

The power walk has gotten easier. We also have acclimated somewhat to the heat and humidity. WE will likely have to lengthen and extend our power walks or offset our workouts with other exercise. The power walk is being used as a base builder to build out a foundation of sorts to further build on.

I only had a light breakfast of fruit and yogurt. Now I’ll have 4 eggs with only one yoke flavored with leftover sausages from the other night.

Been cutting carbs. Loosing weight is harder than gaining weight now. For most of my life I always had a problem gaining weight or bulking up.

Time to eat and do some work.

Cal
 
A heat index of up to 101 today. I’m working outside in this heat, and it is a bit of a stress test, and is also acclimating me for global warming. I am doing fine in this heat. As conditioning goes on I expect more tolerance to the extreme heat and humidity.

Pretty much North Carolina weather, but here in New York.

Another thing we discovered yesterday is a love for the Hudson River. We love to be close to it, but of course not in any danger of floods or flood damage.

Mountains are one thing, but the Hudson River is another. In Catskill, Catskill Creek was not really pretty, lush or of great vast beauty. There is something majestic about the Hudson.

In less words, the premium to live in a river-town is worth it to us.

On our adventures and explorations we learn about the lay of the land as well as ourselves.

Also green space and its peacefulness and privacy is also important to us. Too bad we have an intrusive next door neighbor.

Cal
 
We could, but right now there is a lot going on with the kids.

Might have to head down to North Carolina. There’s no closing date on the house in Cortlandt. Then there’s a move into the new house in North Carolina.

As such I can’t book anything until we get dates. The grandson is a handful right now because of all the changes and uncertainty.

Pretty much a hot mess lays ahead. Oh-well…

Cal
 
Got a lot of staining done. The heat and light sped up the drying of gel stain.

I had to rebuild 3 out of 4 sills, and I was concerned about the butt joint I made if it would be visible under the stain. Not so bad a transition between the old growth heart pine and the modern clear pine I used. I know the sill is two pieces on the three windows that face my side yard, but unless I told you others likely might not notice.

Perhaps under the right light it might be noticed, but oh-well.

Seems like I still can deal well with extreme heat and high heat indexes. I have to protect “Maggie” from the heat and sun because she not only is 71, but also because her Northern European genes make her ill equipped for extreme heat index and full sun. She kinda is like an albino who only burns.

Cooking a chicken and these small sweet potatoes on the grill for dinner.

Seems like we have another feral tomato plant and another cantaloupe vine that is the result of our kitchen mulch.

Next year we will transplant the strawberry’s onto the table in the back-backyard. They spread in an invasive manner to the point that they could be used as a ground cover.

Our butterfly bush has become a monster and will have to be transplanted. We pruned the hell out of it, but it wants to be a 12 foot tall bush. I imagine the root ball being huge and mucho heavy.

Maggie wants to relocate it in the back-backyard, right now it is by the pergola in the front-backyard. Nothing is easy with Maggie. LOL.

I’m thinking of building a white Telecaster for the grandson. He loves my white Tele, but I want to make a version that’s a single pickup and a very light in weight body. I’ll hold onto it until he can grow into it. Online is a 3 pound 2 ounce solid body made of pine. I could canabilize a “Snakehead” neck I have on my carved top to basically recreate a 1949 Snakehead which is the guitar that led to the Fender Telecaster.

Cal
 
I have to buy some finishing nails for the moldings.

I already installed the sills and the insert that frames the modern aluminum double hung windows, but pretty much it is just a friction fit. The moldings that surround and frame the window are wide planks with a decorative crown.

Similarly the base mouldings are also wide.

Pretty much I have more staining to do, but I can also start an install.

I have two doorways where I have to trim back the sheet rock. There was plaster and the contractor added furring strips to build out the walls, but he didn’t factor in for keeping the moldings flush. Of course back in the day (1912) houses had many irregularities, and these defects become apparent in places like doorways.

Oh-well. I paid good money for a “F”-upped job.

The Con Ed contractor is using my dead end as a staging area. Currently they are building out the home hook up and shut off valves on the street that runs parallel to our street. It is kinda cool seeing all this infrastructure getting replaced and upgraded.

Cal
 
Heat index of 101 here in Peekskill till 8:00 PM Wednesday tomorrow.

Pretty much we have North Carolina weather like conditions here in the Hudson Valley. Humidity is mighty high.

I went to CVS and saved over $24.00 using coupons and rewards. Only spent $42.00 out of my pocket, and pretty much I stockpiled consumerables. Pretty much I hose them, and I doubt they make any money on me.

Bought some stuff at Home Cheapo like the finishing nails. Next went to Trader Joe’s and since Lowes is right there I went in to shop for more building supplies. Lowes at times has a better selection and prices, and I found a 1 pound box if 1 1/2 inch finishing nails for less than $6.00. I had to but two 6 ounce packs at Home Cheapo, and each pack was around $5.00.

Pretty much I’ll return the Home Cheapo finishing nails.

Anyways saving money actually takes time, but my savings is untaxed.

One spin on tariffs is that it is like a Federal sales tax, even if only on imported goods. Also tariffs are inflationary…

A flat tax is not a bad idea to simplify the tax code, it eliminates loopholes, in high tax states like New York and California it could severely reduce the state and local tax deductions, but then again these are generally the states that have high incomes.

Interesting to note a headlined article today where home ownership is the highest is West Virginia which is a low income state. Another state that was low income and held a high percentage of home ownership was Mississippi.

Here in New York where we have the largest city in the U.S.; there are many renters and people tend to be transients. There is a huge drawing in of young people, and pretty much a supply/demand imbalance that makes housing costly.

When I frame our situation, we are a bit unusual because we chose to retired here, and our situation is we have enough income to remain. Many people choose to leave for economic reasons because the cost of living, housing, and taxes are higher than many other areas.

We chose to remain for the medical infrastructure, the climate, the more secure water supply, and some immunity to global warming. This North Carolina weather we are experiencing more and more will become the norm I feel. More extreme weather is expected, and we are situated inland enough to be safe from flooding. We are also nestled in a valley for shelter.

Alternatively we are close enough to the ocean that the Gulf Stream effects our weather and moderates our winters. Pretty much many storms are north and west of NYC, and we live on that fringe. If we get snow generally it is less than upstate and perhaps a tad more than NYC.

Certainly the air is cleaner up here, yet an incinerator is not so far away. We are not far from wilderness and there is mucho green space to explore. Today I slowed down and avoided hitting a deer in the road, and it was around lunchtime.

I kinda also have the balance of many supermarkets to choose from for selection, quality, and value. I have a local Home Cheapo, and a little further away a Lowes to have choices and to compare values. Pretty much enough convenience to exploit.

Further north the towns are kinda sleepy. In Catskill and Athens, on a Sunday, much of the town/village was closed down. Pretty much a serene surroundings, but then again not a lot going on. In a word “Smallsville.” Mighty pleasant, but would you want to live there?

Anyways, in reflection I see why Peekskill with it’s good, bad and ugly is a lucky find that more and more I am pleased with our situation. Pretty much the serenity and wilderness I also require lays to the north and west. On the east side of the river Metro North extends its reach and connects a broader pocket of downstate to NYC.

We find most attractive the river towns, I think mostly because of the history and the old housing. Homes post 1940 lack charm to us it seems. We embrace the old. We love the lower taxes on older homes also.

After I post this I’m heading out to a supermarket (Shop Rite) to load up on peaches ($1.99 a pound) and Avocados (4 for $3.00) on my way to Home Cheapo to return the finishing nails I found to be overpriced.

As a consumer I am well poised to nickel and dime businesses to exploit them. Peekskill is big enough (25K population) that it has two CVS’s, one on each end of the city. One is situated about 2 1/2 blocks away, so I often walk there. There is also a Walgreens, but I don’t know if it will be one of those that are doomed to be shut down.

So where do you balance the urban verses the rural? We seem to have found a sweet spot that is hard to find. We also enjoy New York Columbia Presbyterian health care network. We enjoy first rate health care without having to travel to NYC.

Peekskill is a city, but it fringes on the rural and wilderness. The Catskills is a little more than an hour away. Pretty much all nice highway driving and very scenic.

Cal
 
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I have a “take-away” from the headline about the correlation between home ownership and high and low income states: Pretty much one could argue that the housing affordability crisis, especially in a high income state like New York is due to young people.

I understand the migration. Young people tend to migrate from low income states to big cities in search of adventure, lifestyle, and opportunities. A place like West Virginia has some pretty big limitations.

History has shown us that the costs of urban living tend to grow as population increases. Austin Texas was once affordable, and a lot of people migrated there. It became a tech center with high paying jobs, but then housing costs went crazy, the cost of living went up, congestion grew to untenable, and then a reverse migration started where now the population is declining.

The “Creature” (Maggie’s daughter) today at work heard some locals talking about how the cost of living is increasing at a startling rate due to the influx of incomers and new arrivals. The Creature mentioned to Maggie that she now already worries if moving was a mistake.

Of course the “kids” are not use to the turmoil and complications of selling and buying at the same time on short notice. Maggie and I predicted that there would be crazy difficulties and mucho stress because of a demanding timeline involving a series of deadlines. Oh-well, but we kept quite to maintain boundaries.

Still, Maggie and I can saw, “I told you so,” and we say, “No surprise.”

In a way Peekskill and northern Westchester has built in limited growth, mainly because of the NYC watershed, but like Madhattan where land to develop is limited prices can only go up because of increased demand. Remember Peekskill the city is only 4 square miles. There are no new houses being built, only big buildings at this point and that is pretty much downtown.

The suburbs of Peekskill is the township of Cortlandt. Pretty much it sprawls and is rather large comprising of smanny small villages, towns, and areas of just housing with no stores or businesses. This area too is built out. We have friends who live in Cortlandt, and they expressed to us that they wished the could of bought a house in Peekskill.

For some it was price point, but some of our friends it really was about availability. The Creature and her family kinda felt isolated in Cortlandt.

I can’t see Route 9 or 9A expanding, leaving Peekskill and towns north of Croton along the river as staying small and somewhat remote. What I’m saying is that the interstate highways lay inland, and pretty much north of Croton a long the river gets bypassed.

The way they are building down in the Carolinas in the lowlands I’m pretty sure that the cost of living will eventually get inflated due to growth.

Here in Peekskill I’m expecting the opposite to be true because development is restricted and controlled. The building out of apartments and condo’s in the downtown likely will only increase the value of existing homes. What I’m saying is home values should continue to rise because of limited supply, but because population growth will be modest or small at best that the cost of living should not explode like in the Carolina’s.

Cal
 
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Peekskill to Woodstock, N.Y. 1 hour 20 minutes.

Peekskill to New Paltz, N.Y. 57 minutes.

Rural country life is just a drive away, meanwhile NYC is an hour train ride to Grand Central.

Location-location-location…

A somewhat urban convenience, wilderness is just across the Hudson River over the Bear Mountain Bridge. Low taxes for Westchester, sewers and natural gas, sheltered by a valley within a greater valley.

BTW travel to the Jersey Shore or down to North Carolina can bypass NYC by taking the Palisade's Parkway to the New Jersey Turnpike and Garden State Parkway. Just go over the Bear Mountain Bridge to cross the Hudson.

I love the open road…

I think the Audi loves it too. On the open road 29 MPG doing 70-75.

Cal
 
Another day with a heat advisory of up to 101.

Down in North Carolina the stress is boiling over. The “Creature” started work, and as a new job with a new culture there is a lot to adopt and learn to adapt. Pretty much the teaching job is demanding.

Walls of worry and even talk of returning to New York. Meanwhile the sale of the house is pending, no closing date, while a timeline to purchase a house down there is coming up. Pretty much a pressure cooker.

While the parents are stress, the grand daughter is mucho happy and has a gang of friends already. The grandson though remains unsettled. Maggie will be flying down later this week.

Know that they officially have not resigned from their positions in New York.

Pretty much in the military they would call this a “Cluster FXXX.”

The side moldings on my windows need to be trimmed about 1/2 an inch. The interior mouldings are replacements and I used thicker lumber, and this created an offset. I don’t want the crown to float.

I also problem solved the doorway gap situation and will shim the gap with a thin spacer cut from a 5/16 thick molding I happen to have on hand. This will be a decorative embellishment and will save both time and work.

In the book “Last Breath” about life and death experiences from extreme sports, last night’s story involved heat exhaustion and heat stroke. The story is about a woman on a road bike who made a solo breakaway on a climb. The local was somewhere in Appalachia in 90 degree temperatures with high humidity.

They went through all the ways the human body adjusts, and the thresholds where bodily functions change. I learned that it takes about 2 weeks to acclimate to temperatures over 90 and high humidity. This girl/woman was a European and did not have the 2 weeks to acclimate, so her physiology was different.

I understand why my genes are ideal for 90 plus temperatures and high humidity, because Canton and Hong Kong are tropical and pretty much have the same climate as Havana, Cuba. Also with the power walks and working outside I have been acclimating well beyond the two weeks.

The medical descriptions told in the story of the profuse sweating. Pretty much since I’m a skinny bitch, by definition I have low body fat, and not a large core to store heat. My body is sized to release heat and for high temperatures and humidity. I seem to have large veins to circulate and carry away heat. Perhaps this is why I tend to have low blood pressure.

Pretty much I learned a lot about the symptoms of heat stroke, and the signs of when it happens. Heat stroke causes serious tissue and organ damage. One might recover, but the damage looks to be permanent.

I remember going on a “death march” on a high heat index day with Promone who was worried about my health because of my advanced age. Promone has the genes from a tropical country, and he actually displayed distress and had to retreat to a bodega in Blissville to cool down and recover.

Our friend John, of Northern European extraction, did fine hanging with me doing death marches in insane heat indexes. Point is he toughened up and acclimated hanging out with me. With John it was hard core and kinda crazy.

So pretty much this North Carolina weather I’m kinda prepared for, and “Maggie” being a woman with more body fat and 5 years older, needs to be somewhat protected from suffering heat stroke.

Pretty much the body has to stay under 105 degrees and be able to maintaining cooling itself, but above that threshold there is a tipping point, then bad things happen an a a cascade of catastrophic damage to organs and tissue.

Cal
 
A takeaway from the heat stroke story is that the human body can sweat and loose about a gallon of water in an hour, but can only absorb about a quart of water in an hour. Pretty easy to get dehydrated which accelerates the burden of cooling.

Also know that rapid cooling is the remedy, even to the point of ice baths.

This makes me think of using water externally to kinda be an improvised “swamp cooler” as a tactic and also the many benefits of engineered clothing that wicks yet retains moisture.

Good to know.

Cal
 
We stoped about a block away from our house, a man collapsed on the road with a woman assisting. I offered further assistance and water (always kept in trunk), but we were told paramedics are on the way.

As we pulled away the paramedics were arriving. The man was overweight and had some cuts and bruises. My guess heat stroke was a cause of a collapse.

The humidity is extremely high. The smoke detector in my basement gets triggered by the humidity, even though I run a dehumidifier.

Down south things are not going so well for the kids. The only one happy is the grand daughter with her gang of friends. The “Creature” resigned from her new job. With two closings being indefinite with no timeline it is like trying to move forward in quicksand. Renting for a year was a consideration, but pretty much a bit of a stretch with the new lower pay.

Now the following 2 weeks now seems to have turned into just a surprise vacation and a time to regroup. Unless a series of miracles happens looks like eventually the New York house will eventually be sold and highly likely a return to New York.

A coworker who recently migrated from Pennsylvania disclosed to the Creature that they wished they could head back.

I know from my retirement research that it is strongly suggested to rent before buying when relocating. Then there are these “half-backs” that relocate from the northeast to Florida and can’t deal with the heat and humidity that end up in the mid-Atlantic states.

“Maggie” and I talked about perhaps building out a pre-fab for us in the back-backyard. Perhaps Devil Dan’s idea of building out a studio is possible. We would only need a one bedroom, plus a studio for me. This idea would involve selling our house, the Baby-Victorian, to the kids. Know that the back-backyard is a buildable second building lot with street access.

I could have a small darkroom and a studio. Presently we have two cedar sheds on the second building lot on gravel pads, meaning not permanent structures. The view is fabulous and I envision a kinda size like a summer home.

We are in a really good school district that is separate from Peekskill. Peekskill’s schools are not rated highly because many students have English as a second language. The biggest ethnic group in Peekskill is Latino.

Not sure how all this drama will end, but we will be doing what is best for the kids. Evidently the backstop we provided is sorely missed.

Cal
 
“Maggie” and I talked about perhaps building out a pre-fab for us in the back-backyard.
So you and "Maggie" will occupy a "Granny Flat" in the back- backyard and sell the kids your house.
This is arrangement is somewhat common in Europe and becoming more so here in the states. Sounds like it might just work out for the best.
 
Austin,

We are pretty hands off with adult children. We mind our own business, but of course we have feelings and some wisdom.

Live and let live, I guess, as well as if people don’t ask I won’t tell. All this stress and a return to New York is not such a big surprise. I guess the surprise is how quickly things are getting unwound.

Seems like the grand kids miss us greatly. The pay cut was enormous. Then in this area of growth inflation and the cost of living are concerns.

The problem here in New York were demanding stressful jobs in a city called Yonkers that is kinda big with entrenched problems, poverty, and a lot of politics.

Pretty much was glossed over was changing jobs and looking for an easier commute due north in smaller communities. Yonkers is very close to the Bronx and is pretty far from northern Westchester. Of course a long commute by car compounds stress.

Anyways, this idea of co-living and having an extended family of course has the good, the bad, and the ugly. I’d prefer to just have the grandkids nearby in their own home.

I can’t turn off the creativity. I just speak my mind of potential possibilities.

Cal
 
BTW the parents did not resign yet from their New York teaching jobs yet.

Will likely have a family of 4 living with us at least until the house they are selling closes.

Don’t know if they will do a second attempt to relocate to North Carolina. Next time better prepared and ready.

“Oh-well,” I say.

“Maggie” is flying down tomorrow.

Cal
 
The situation you describe may allow the two of you to "age in place" with the daughter able to assist the both of you as time goes by. My wife and I are in a tri level home in Colorado, about 900 miles from our only child and our grand children. Just got back from a weeks visit with them.
We will both be seventy in September and this home has several stairways we will need to navigate as we age. We have looked for a couple of years for a place nearer to them, but first covid and now the really stupid housing market we have had no luck finding something we can afford.
We would love to be closer to them for many reasons.
 
Austin,

“Maggie” is already 71, and even though I am in somewhat good shape age is catching up with me. Pretty much I have to ensure I take good care of myself, eat well, get enough sleep, and stay active.

Our situations are pretty much the same. The thing with pre-fabs is that they are cost effective and they go up fast.

I would want hot water radiant heat because forced hot air, the less costly system, kills my skin with the dry air. We would require only one bedroom, and Maggie is adamant about having a workspace/studio for me. Could be built on a slab to moderate costs.

Would be very private and would not need a very big footprint.

Pretty much an inter generational plan so we can age in place. This could be good for everyone.

Cal
 
A light rain happened overnight, not enough to really water the garden.

Pretty much the kids need to get jobs that are north of Peekskill even though they still have and retained their old jobs to simplify their careers and their commute.

Earlier they discounted this logical and easy to do option that to me was low risk.

I get it that the burbs can be isolating, especially where they live. Cortlandt is the suburb of Peekskill the City. The city is walkable, but in Cortlandt a township of small towns and tiny vilages there are few sidewalks.

There are many who live in Cortlandt that wished they lived in Peekskill. There is a sense of community here, there are the arts, the Paramount for music venues, and urban culture. In Cortlandt and the surrounds pretty much all you have is your house and your car…

In other words Peekskill is another world.

Cal
 
A solution for a heating system could be a mini-split. The solution would be an interior water feature to add humidity.

Pretty much an aerator forcing bubbles to the surface adds a lot of moisture to the air because they actually pop upon hitting the surface.

In the past I had Koi that I trained. I also has a swamp garden. I had aggressive fish like those invasive Snakeheads, and eve Red Belly Pirania.

The ting is water weighs about 8 pounds a gallon so even a 55 gallon tank holds about 440 pounds of water. Of course being “Calzone” I would want some thing big at least a hundred gallons.

I know from experience that bigger tanks are more stable and in fact are easier to maintain. Water changes involve removing and adding a few 5 gallon buckets worth of water every other day or every day or so. This water could be recycled to water the garden.

Pretty much I would want a bath tub sized tank or pool.

An aquarium also is relaxing. I would rather watch the fish rather than TV.

Cal
 
A kinda emergency vacation is unfolding trying to rescue the kid’s mistakes. Spent lots of time running errands and getting things done before I go for a drive.

I bought some Techron, a fuel additive that boosts octane and cleans fuel injectors. On long highway drives it kinda pays for itself because the Audi adjusts the timing advancing it for more power and because I have a turbo pretty much I get 29-30 MPG.

My German mechanic recommended using it once a month, and I still do it even though I don’t drive much. Best to use on long highway drives.

I bought some caulking, and I will seal behind the moldings to prevent drafts.

I bought a tub of Miso for the grand daughter who loves it and the Somen noodles I can get that are imported from Japan from my local grocery that is Korean run. Also wanted to use some CVS coupons before they expired. Ends up I got a 30% off a single item that I will want to use, and a dollar off coupon on Scott paper products.

I do this to splurge elsewhere. Stoped by Dick’s Sporting goods on the way to the health food store to buy some 20 pound and 30 pound test leaders. I’ll be fishing on Oak Island. I’ll also be running the beach.

I miss the grand kids so much. Boy is the grand daughter high maintenance, but I love her. She is a lot of work. The grandson is a genius and a trouble maker. Pretty much a lot like me even though not my blood. He imitates a lot of my behavior.

Might rain tomorrow and Saturday, so today I’ll mow the lawn. I might still have some time to trim the side moldings and cut the shims I need for the doorways. The dining room is going to be a very pretty room.

Gold popped over $2.4K again.

Cal
 
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