The long and winding road... to Spenard.

Hello,

So much has happened since I last wrote, I don't even no where to begin... I'll start with a list and give a few details in no specific order.

1 - bought a house in Anchorage
2 - moved my best friend up here from Boise
3 - moved back to Anchorage
3 - started a business (VP&D House) with a dear friend
4 - got a room mate
5 - published my first book (as publisher, not writer)
7 - started remodeling the house and converting the basement into an apartment

Those are the big things.  I'm not sure I'll have time to dive into each thing, but at least you know what I've been up to for the past year. Wow... yes, one year.

The last time I updated everyone, I was self-sequestered in Indian, in my little green two-room cabin. That is no longer the case. I met a random guy in real estate at the Brown Bear Saloon late last fall, and over time, mulled the idea over about buying a house. At some point Zev bit his finger, and I thought a little more seriously about buying a house from the poor guy since he didn't get terribly upset over it and forgave me and the dog (mostly).  Briefly though, when the big dog is snarling at you from a car window, don't put your finger near his mouth. Even to give him a sniff, especially after eating when your hand might smell like food. Moving right along...

I wasn't too interested in buying at the time, but as winter wore on, and my plumbing and electricity became less and less reliable, I started thinking more seriously about it.

Then, in late November, we had a freak wind storm that knocked out power to my place long enough that I had to dig a snow hole outside to take care of business, and melt clean snow on the gas stove for drinking water and bathing. This got very old very quickly, and my motivation to buy went into high gear. Thank goodness my good friends Alexis and Jim offered up their showers and washer/dryer during that time. I was fine with no power as long as I had a flushing toilet, but unfortunately, the water was pumped up from a well with an electrically driven pump, so after the power went, I had one flush available (best make good use of it, too). Apparently, the property owners didn't think to have a back up generator for the well pump, so when the power went out, the plumbing became a real problem.

Other joys of Indian were the summer time bears. I never cooked in Indian during the warmer months because my front window was not only large, it was flimsy... and my stove was exactly in front of the window where it opened which meant that any scents of salmon that might be cooking would waft out the window right over to the creek (with salmon swimming in it) and serve as a dinner bell to the lumbering local brown bears. I actually had the pleasure of calling in late to work due to a large, non-aggressive, but lazy fellow who had taken up temporary residence between my front door and my car. The bear was enjoying beries, and utterly unphased by my presence and yelling out the window for him to move along. Anyhow, to make a long story short, I decided to buy a property in a highly urban area, perhaps one of the most urban areas of the state, really. Spenard. It is true, I traded one type of wildlife for another.

It's an okay neighborhood, though not the kind of neighborhood I plan on setting roots in.  It is much like any other semi-urban lot with lots of activity going on in nearby apartments, restaurants, shops, and bars... There is a steady stream of Spenard's finest inebriates meandering on by, and occasionally they pitch over in my front yard for a light snooze. A couple weeks ago, one such individual had actually fallen over my fence into the far corner of the front yard which garnered some puzzled looks from Zev. Zev would normally defend his yard and issue a harsh reprimand in the form of loud snarling and barking, or even a nip if he felt threatened enough, but in this case, Zev was simply confused. The man wasn't supposed to be there, and yet he clearly posed no threat while sleeping (lucky for sleeping beauty). He would have had a very rude, if not painful awakening by Zev had he been even slightly lucid.  I gently woke him up with a light poke from a stick (bear spray in my other hand just in case he rose unceremoniously and aggressive) and ushered him along.  Quoting my old friend James... "Drunkenness is a fun place to visit, but shouldn't be a place to take up permanent residence."

That said, I've come up with my grand master plan! — that vision of my perfect world run by me, which of course, I know I don't actually live in, but I can certainly make the effort to get closer to that world. How so????

Well, late last winter, my good friend and local writer, Jim Sweeney encouraged me to start a business, a publishing business. After a ton of discussion, and some minor headaches, we jumped in feet first! We put out the first title, got a website together (two really), established by-laws, etc... and now we are a business. For now, we have one title, but there is a second book on the way shortly. We hope to build the business from the ground up through contract design and editing, and in time more books!

I moved into the house in late April, and started remodeling it in late May. I am converting my basement into an apartment so that I can rent it out and have my mortgage mostly covered. If I can do that, I can take the steps to leave my day job, and if the rental is full, afford the pay cut and focus on the business.  Our first book, The List, has been selling very well, and although we need a second printing, we're stalling so we can get the next book out this fall along with the second printing. We're also talking to a couple other writers whose work we are interested in, and hope by this time next year to have a minimum of 3 other books out! Jim is in charge of submissions, so the buck stops with him for writers seeking to get their work out there.

So, my perfect world doesn't exist, but the one I've created with the help of good friends is a pretty neat place to live.

In other news, you may be curious of word from Chris. He went to Florida a while back, and competed in his first Olympic length triathlon. And WON! He is training for a half Iron Man race that is to occur later this summer and completed the Fireweed again just one week ago (100 miles in about 5h30m). He is still working at his job, still has Lax who is still very much a food obsessed beast (and oh so cute and cuddly).  He and I trade dog watching duties as our travel schedules and family schedules require. Although we don't see one another often, we do chat periodically.  He was also gracious enough to help wrestle the piano during my move back to Anchorage. I could not have done it without his help.

That leads me to answer the other question that keeps getting thrown around the family and friends not in Anchorage. What about me? Do I have a guy in my life? Simply put, no, though if the right person came along and could tolerate me (or if I could tolerate them), I'd be open to the idea. Truthfully, my work and home remodeling schedule along with travel to visit family don't leave much time for anything else. The good news is that Zev still makes a great foot warmer, and the cat still sleeps on the pillow next to me in bed. Perhaps one of these days, I'll rejoin the world of the dating and dive into a relationship, but that is not really of any concern to me right now, and I'm in NO hurry. For now, I live like a nun in a convent (a poorly behaved Jewish nun, but you get the idea).  Work, work, volunteeer, work a little more...

So that's all for now, and I'll do my best to update the Update a bit more frequently, or as news is fitting.
Cheers,

Vered
(...and Zev, too)