Me Me Meme

Okay, SB_Gypsy sent us the meme a while back, and we've been reading other blogger's responses, so thought we should do our share. So here's our meme response. One thing you should already know about us is that we don't play by the rules. We don't always list five things as requested.


'The Meme':
1.) What were you doing 10 years ago?

DPR--mirabile dictu!! we own a house. a bit of fallout from my position as property manager in a real estate office. i had earlier schemed my way into law school in my middle age by doing well on the lsat and presenting a decent essay written with the wonderful editorial assistance of RD. after one semester i realized that law was not my calling. now i worked in an office with my boss and his wife, very nice people with a small real estate business. they taught me how to manage residential property. the office part was easy for me. getting money, bank deposits, paying bills, owner's statements. dealing with tenants, repair people, owners......not so easy for me, but an ok job all in all. most people were nice, and responsible. there is always the tenant from hell though, and i had mine. don't get me started.

so my entry into the real estate biz eased our way to home ownership. now we have projects: new roof, remove lawn and replace it with flowers and veggies, paint the house inside and out, on and on.


RD-- We had just purchased our first home. Creek in the yard, great old stone retaining wall, funky out buildings. The house had green shag carpet, avocado green formica countertops in the kitchen, harvest gold and avocado green linoleum (circa 1967), green exterior paint with a garish turquoise front door. When we painted the house our neighbors drove by and applauded our efforts.
I had left the university in 1994 when the state of California was facing an intense budget crisis. Campus morale was at an all-time low, and I decided to leave the Economics Department where I administratively advised the graduate students how to complete their PhDs in International Economics or their Masters in Applied, and get out there to change the world. So by 1995 I working as the office manager for a women's health clinic-- Hormone Balancing for Women. Even though I was merely office staff, all of the employees were expected to handle crisis phone calls-- so I became well versed in PMS and menopause talk. I became so accustomed to talking about vaginal dryness, depression, and insomnia I couldn't understand why most people just didn't talk about that all the time, everywhere. Becoming well-versed in the vernacular of intimate details is quite an interesting element to any job.

2.) What were you doing 5 years ago?
DPR--we're still in our own house. no more lawn! lemon tree. fig tree. tomatoes. flowers. i'm still managing property, but rapidly burning out. sometime this year i give up managing, keep doing accounting and start doing fixit and maintenance on the rental units. whew! all my responsibility is balancing the books and fixing faucets. no more screening prospective tenants. no more hassles with late rent payments. no more wackos to evict.

RD--
We remodeled the kitchen. First tore out all the cabinets and pulled out the linoleum all the way down to the sub-floor. We topped the new light maple Shaker cabinets with Italian ceramic tile and granite inserts. A lot of work and a lot of fun. The backsplash was spectacular. We tiled the floor with matching ceramic tile.
I went back to the university in 1996, and was hired to be the Assistant Director of Student Media. So in 2000, I was advising all the students who published the campus newspapers and poetry journals. The job was the very best match for me in terms of interest, competence, and love. I worked with the best and brightest students who were full of passion and creativity. They still believed they could make a difference with their assertions and their forthrightness.

3.) What were you doing one year ago?
DPR---we were newly arrived in washington state for our new life of leisure. contrary to what we had pictured we got a fairly new house not requiring immediate attention. so we built a sauna.

RD-- I was still working for the university in California via telecommuting, iSight, instant messaging. I was training my replacement, and still managing the entire budget (nearly $1 million). I was falling love with Washington. I was falling in love with the pirate again. Spending time together is one of the best bonuses of retirement.

4.) What were you doing yesterday?
DPR--recovering from travel.
RD-- Ditto.

5.) Five snacks you enjoy
DPR-- chocolate, toast, chocolate, dark beer, chocolate.
RD snacks-- chips of any kind, fruit, cheese, wine


6.) Five songs I know all the words to.
DPR---happy birthday (traditional)
find the cost of freedom(neil young)
RD ---anything by Joni Mitchell on her first 5 albums


7.) Five things you would do if you had a million dollars
give some away
spend some
save some

8.) Five things you like doing
DPR--day hiking
bike riding
gardening
reading
building

RD things: Same as the pirate, except delete building and add baking and cooking.
(oooh,oooh, i forgot cooking. me too for cooking! DPR)
We like flirting with each other.


9.) Five bad habits
DPR--smart ass humor
overindulgence of consumables

RD-- assuming the worst about everything
not trusting anyone
trying to control the universe
canceling dinner dates
preferring to be alone

10.) Five things I would never wear again
pirate:
a tie
a dashiki
bermuda shorts
an rotc uniform

RD-- skirts that flare out
shoes with spiky heals
any hairdo
bell bottom pants

11.) Five favorite toys
DPR toys---computers
electric bicycle
riding mower
battery powered drill

RD toys--- iBook
digital camera
electric bicycle

Thanks for reading.