15.1.12

Friday The 13th.....

So obviously this post is going to be about that superstitious day.

So Friday morning I get up early, feed the kids wash the dishes so I can get out and go pick up a friend who is going to replace my front doors in my new house..... Oh yeah we bought a house with land earlier in the week. I'll post pics later in another post after I move in.

So anyway. I get to my car and what do I see? The lock in the driver side door is sitting at an angle. I touch it and half of it falls off. Some punks tried to break in, I'm assuming to steal the car since there was nothing of value in it. But they broke the lock and couldn't get in.

So I manage to get the passenger door unlocked si I can get into the car. I pick up my friend. He goes with me to a parts store. They tell me I can't buy just one lock I have to buy a set, which will cost me 1,000 lei, about $400-500! Forget that! So we go see about an alarm system. That will only be 450 lei which includes installation. So I'll be able to lock and unlock the doors plus have an alarm.

I could wring those punks necks!! So glad that I'll be moving to the country soon!! The teens around here are getting too ballsy!!!!

So we get up to the property. I turn on the water to the house. All the spigots and hoses going to the sinks, toilet, bidet (yes a bidet), shower stall and water heater are all leaky and need to be replaced. My bathroom floor is covered in water. I bought all the parts at a price of 200 Lei. Now I gotta pay the local plumber there in town and the man who was taking care of the property to install it all. If Marius was here he'd do it. But he had to go back to work.

So that was my Friday the 13th. But on the bright side, by Thursday the doors should be replaced. The water/plumbing issues taken care of, and then I can start buying furniture and moving it in, so that me and the kids can start living in our OWN home out in the country where I'll be growing all my own food and raising chickens. ;)

11 comments:

Gorges Smythe said...

Many city folks are scared of the country. Imagine that!

Dan (Pitesti) said...

so, your car was "visited" in these days? if is a car from a foreign country,got all the "attention" from the professional thieves...if is a romanian car -aka Dacia Logan- maybe will be more "invisible".
...(Off-topic): Odessa,what you believe what happen in the last 3-4 days on streets at TV-about more romanians going on streets and blame the president and the government? what you understand (like a foreigner) from TV stations?

Ex-pat Odessa said...

Yes, Dan, my car was "visited" It's a 14 year old Volvo Break. NOthing special, nothing left inside worth taking.

As far as what's going on in Bucuresti with the protests, I'm not sure exactly what is the reason for teh protests. The stiri vorbesti mai repede, si eu nu inteles tot, stie?

Am cunosc despre ceva cu S.M.U.R.D. si bani, dar atat eu stiu.

I realize Basescu and that idiot Boc are probably trying to do something really stupid, something that will hurt the people of Romania more than help them, and for that, I'm very proud to see the people standing up to the government and telling them GATA!!!!

Dan said...

yes,the protests are against 2 men -President Basescu and the prime minister-Emil Boc; because in the last 2-3 years they acting like dictators,they put their "men" from their party in every post in every important place in administration to eliminate any kind of opposition in the incoming presidential elections in this autumn 2012.
They launched the ideea that "who's with me will be well for him,who will be against me will be removed".
Dr.Arafat is a technician,not a political person in medicine (SMURD)and his services are well aprecieted by citizens not a political person.The president Basescu has made an intervention live in a tv show (Realitatea TV) and tell directly to Dr.Arafat something said and sound like "you may go out from SMURD (RESIGN),because I WANT THAT AND THIS IS MY WISH"...
He put in his place another man (a puppet of Traian Basescu)he stayed just 2 days in this position.
Romanians People rioting on the streets because Basescu reminds them by the communist dictator Ceausescu like 25 years ago.
This is no democracy.
People want that actual guvernment to resign because they are to weak,their decisions are just to cut from our salaries (lowest from Eastern Europe) and put more taxes and taxes everywhere making a very low life expectations,(wherever i going for ex., may to bribe some functionaries to make a quick service for me and other bad stuff ,that you ,Odessa,meet already,here in Romania)
Facts:
1) Romania is with Bulgaria the poorest countries from E.U.
2) The medium salary in Romania are very low-150 euro per month,While other countries like United Kingdom,Germany or France are the first with 2500-3000 euro per month (medium salary).
3) Romania doesn't have anymore some romanian corporations in charge in our country,EVERYTHING WAS SOLD TO FOREIGN CORPORATIONS.
4) romanians citizens (normal people) 75-80% from them becoming much more poor in each every year has passed,we're going in a wrong direction,no doubt.
with 150 euro per month in not enough to live in a normal democratic country.
Romanians are made "gypsies" in the western countries and they laughing about us because that,because with 150 euro in our pocket ,we are ashame.
5) the protests will never end ,will be more and more people in the streets demanding their rights (fight with police on the streets is not a solution ,but is a message clear to our president that he should resign (like Nixon in USA IN THE 70'S).
WE WANT COMPETENT TECHNICIANS IN THEIR RIGHTFULL PLACES (DOCTORS,ENGINEERS,TEACHERS etc) to make a better life lever in this country,and not " politicians puppets" in these places to rule just for the glad of our president.
I'm sad and i'm upset because me,like young (ok, i'm 30 years old) don't have a better future.
something must be exchanged in the mentality of our politicians ,they ruled like communists (most of them was in charge before 89' too,they are old communists becoming "capitalists" in 1989.,they STEAL OUR REAL DEMOCRACY!)
Enough! GATA! WE WANT NEW PEOPLE WITH OPEN MINDS! NOT PUPPETS IN THE GOVERNMENT!
Dan,Pitesti.
P.S:Today i'm going in the downtown of Pitesti at 18.00 pm to express my frustrations.

Ex-pat Odessa said...

Dan, am inteles acuma. E foarte bine populare mergeti si vorbesc cu voce tare. Fara vilolenta e mai bine. Dar daca nevoie sa fi violent, hai.

Sunt f.bucurosa sa ved omenii ridic la guvernment!

Ai inteles, ce am sa incerc sa zic? Daca nu, pot sa scrie in Engleza.

Dan said...

yes :) , aproximative romanian language! you may want to say:

"Dan,am inteles acum.E foarte bine ca poporul merge sa vorbeasca cu voce tare.Fara violenta e si mai bine.Dar daca e nevoie sa fi violent, hai.
Sunt foarte bucuroasa sa vad ca oamenii se ridica impotriva guvernului."

(i'm not native speaker of english language too,but i try to learn much more,i teaching myself (hollywood movies with romanian subtitles or internet improve more quickly my basic english,i teaching myself freely and not in schools)...in school i learn some french and german languages,but english is much better for me to understand what british (or from USA people write)...like you here in your own blog... :)

The president should represent the people,not himself, because he was elected in 2005 here with all our suport! at the time he was "cool" ,he won because the people believe he's "the one",his promises "Sa va fie bine!"he said in 2005 like "let it be good (well) to all of you" now sounds like cheap words...

Ex-pat Odessa said...

sounds like my husband was right about Basescu. He said he was the white European version of Obama.

The thing here is though (and I think I mentioned this in the interview), is that it's hard to change things here, when the people in power were in official governmental positions when it was Communist. Not much has really changed as far as mentality goes in the government; cause it's really still Communists running things. The only difference now is that they allow the Eastern European countries to look in.

And yes, it is absolutely disgraceful about the salaries here. And it irritates the mess out of me that the rest of Europe associates Romania with Gypsies.

Dan said...

Many people are without jobs now here,they think how to leave this country (many with studies,smart people) to work in western countries (for ex. in Italy are 1.500.000 romanians ,working and established there,in Spain 1.000.000); and many i nanother counries, in USA romanian diaspora are 4.000.000 people there,now they are american citizens,if all our people return home someday, Romania will be another ,because they already having open minds,free solutions how to make a business to work well.
in Romania remaining now more pensioners and more kids (youngs without jobs),because the middle part of society in Romania missing!!! the middle part (class) of the society (country) make the things work well! (USA,Germany,UK,France etc-middle part is very strong here),in Romania are phew unfortunately :(
in Romania rule 2 sides - very rich -20%,10% are the middle part(too weak in number),the rest- 70% are very poor!(in this category are including gypsies that they know just to begging,parents send the kids on streets to begging-you meet this situation already).
Romania having now 21.000.000 inhabitants, while 89% are native romanians and like ethnic minorities the most are hungarians -6%,gypsies-3%,the rest are serbs,germans,italians,bulgarians,turks etc.
i'm upset because romanian diaspora are in number almost 10.000.000 that should live and work here, and this incompetent government that ruled now in Romania should give them more open to them to give them solutions to comeback them.
in Romania are much bureaucracy!
to open a business,you may have good nerves :) why? in USA for .ex to open a business,a little store ,you run with papers maybe 1 or 2 days. here? OMG! 2-3 months !!! going to an office,they said go in another part of the town to another office, and there they said (after staying 2-3 hours waiting a response) that missed some stamp, some taxes to pay and return home,waiting another week,going again to mayor, pay some bribe (MITA- in romanian language) to make more quickly approval to open my business... etc.
Corruption and more taxes is in the charge here :(
If you are an american citizen when are going in the city for some services here ,the officials "smell" on you if you are stranger,they are benevolent (glad) with you because they thinking that americans having more money (rich persons) and is "normal" that you pay some more "attention"(MITA-"BRIBE"),they expecting from you to pay some more...

Dan said...

(20.01.2012)
After a week of protests in Bucharest and in another cities in the country against the guvernment Boc and the president Basescu (first target),the nation is now an open wound.
Why? because our president refuse to speak,no tv appearances to say his statement about this protests)he stay in his gold palace,his silence is like a combustion,put fire and increase the anger of his citizens (they give votes to him to win in national elections in his second mandate and now the citizens fell cheated from him)
Democracy means free of speech (to make CONVERSATION),the president IGNORE the voices coming from the streets, they fell like slaves without future,they was fired from their jobs,Romania is full of unemployed now,they want to work but they are kicked by the closed doors-their arguments is that "is an economic crise in entire world and we don't have money to pay you"...
The pensioners who work an almost entire life,now are humiliated at their old age,because the president cut thei 15% from their pensions,making the life a hell.
The other social categories like teachers,doctors,engineers and functionaries etc, demand that their lower salaries to be much better than in the present,because lower salaries give a low morale decrease production at work.
The first solution,in my opinion,is that Emil Boc(prime minister) and the president Basescu should resign from their position,and to be free anticipated elections, because if they don't make this, will be an anarchy in Romania,and that's is no good for all of us from here.

Dan,Pitesti-an unemployed losing his job in september 2011.

Ex-pat Odessa said...

Dan, do they not have limits on how many years one person can be President or P.M. here. In the U.S. the president can only serve a maximum of 2 terms. 1 term is 4 years. The vice president is usually with the president. Ai inteles? Unfortunately the "parliment" in the U.S., Congress doesn't have any limits. That is a good thing and a bad thing at the same time.

I think the protests are a good thing, however, it would be better if the protesters would do it peacefully without violence.

Dan said...

Romania is in debts strong and hard. Romania now in the present having Minus 100 billions euro !!!
Corrupt politicians in 23 years after the coomunism fall in december 1989- they stolen everything much strong than old communist. Unbelievable,but the dictator Ceausescu die in 1989,leaving Romania without debts and having a good economy (with plus)!!!
Incredible, but in this savage "capitalism",the guvernments after 1989 sold out all it was romanian (Petroleum to russians,Steel to Indians,cars (dacia logan) to french Renault, gold mines to canadians (Rosia Montana case), 95% banks from Romania are foreigner banks!!! so,our money is all in the foreigner hands,why? because all political system are corrupt (totally) and they sold out the romanian citizens to foreigners.
The situation now is very hard.