3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal

Where are you and where are you going?
bostonimproper
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Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal

Post by bostonimproper »

Hope you get well soon!

ertyu
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Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal

Post by ertyu »

Corona update: on the mend. For the curious, here is how it went:

1. Runny nose and mild fever, which became less runny nose within about 3 days. Fever also went down. I did not have a thermometer and I did not want to go to the apothecary when ill, so if I had fever at this point, it was marginal.

2. At about day 5, my nose was dry but my throat was scratchy and very irritated. A dry cough had also developed. Muscle pains throughout, which sucked. This is also when my sense of taste and smell was most affected, though I never lost smell completely. My sense of smell was dulled but I could still smell it when I stuck my nose right into the packet of coffee.

3. Intensity and frequency of said dry cough increased, then decreased. I personally never got bad enough to feel short of breath, but I did feel very low on energy and lethargic. There was easy cleaning I could have done, for instance, but did not feel gung-ho enough to do it. Probably could have if I had forced myself, but decided not to force myself and take my time. Not needing to engage in full employment has to be good for something, after all.

4. Day 10-ish or so, cough is almost gone, no fever, feel a little more with it and less apathetic/lethargic. While not fully well, I think it's safe to say I'm probably on the mend. Upstairs neighbor also appears to be coughing less. Hooray.

On the whole, quite a mild case, for which I am grateful.

Thanks everyone for the well-wishes, it meant a lot.

It occurs to me this might be one reason why corona is so infectuous. I have no doubt I am still shedding, but any other year, I'll have probably spent an illness like this on my feet, at work, and pumped up on dayquil. I'm certain many find themselves in the position to have to do the same. Having a stash allowed me to take the time to rest while recovering, for which I am grateful.

ertyu
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Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal

Post by ertyu »

Update: fourth dead old guy in my building, age 87, on 12/7. The gallows humor Slav in me wants to go, I should've waited to buy in the building, I would've had my pick.

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Again, obituaries do not state cause of death, so while corona is probable, it isn't certain. So far, all guys, all older than 80: 83, 86, 87. Mine was 82.

For the curious, the little note says that there has been a pipe malfunction in the pipes carrying hot water from the coal power plant to the city, and central heating + hot water will be off until the pipes have been repaired. My trusted socialist space heater is saving my ass

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Date of manufacture, 198-something.

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Thank you, dead old guy, for the 1980s space heater.
Last edited by ertyu on Tue Dec 08, 2020 8:38 am, edited 2 times in total.

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Alphaville
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Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal

Post by Alphaville »

ertyu wrote:
Tue Dec 08, 2020 8:23 am
The gallows humor Slav in me wants to go, I should've waited to buy in the building, I would've had my pick.
well... maybe you can still trade for the penthouse. :lol:

seriously though, glad you're feeling better in spite of the carnage, and stay vigilant--it's a weird virus with surprises, so don't lower your guard yet. and eat your onions.

NuncFluens
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Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal

Post by NuncFluens »

Glad to hear you're doing better! A colleague of mine took about a week to get back to full health after all the symptoms dissipated, but now she's good as new. Just don't pick up the pace too quickly :)

Crusader
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Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal

Post by Crusader »

Glad you are not on that notice board! :lol:

mooretrees
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Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal

Post by mooretrees »

Good news!

Vaikeasti
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Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal

Post by Vaikeasti »

Glad to hear you're already feeling a bit better! You had us worried.

I absolutely agree on your points regarding houses. The best strategy is to get a properly built old place and restore it. Because they just don't make them like they used to.

And I thought about the vacant apartments too "Damn, maybe ertyu could buy the whole building. He'd get to choose his neighbors."

llorona
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Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal

Post by llorona »

Happy to hear you're on the mend!

I've been lurking silently, but I'm a fan of your journal.

Zanka
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Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal

Post by Zanka »

Glad to hear you are feeling better!

ertyu
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Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal

Post by ertyu »

How the repairs are progressing:

Balcony 1 cleared. Disassembled but structurally solid and dense particle board awaiting projects (have been cautioned to work with a N95 as this might contain asbestos)

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the walls of this balcony need degreased and repainted. Some cement crumbling on the outer wall that needs redone. Windows need re-painted as rust is showin through old paint, and new window putty needs applied. Waiting for warmer times.

The cupboard at the back needs cleaned, outside sanded and new waterproof varnish applied. This is wood/wood veneer, so i will do my best to restore it. The top surface is soggy particle board which needs removed and replaced.

2: Kitchen has been emptied. Trash thrown out, salvageable silverware/mugs/pots etc. separated out and either cleaned with degreaser or stacked up in the bathroom expecting to be cleaned (on a medium-cold day when frigid wind doesn't literally blow down the chimney and into the bathroom through the vents). I have also removed and thrown out the outside doors of kitchen cabinets. These were too gross and I did not feeli like trying to salvage them. The kitchen now looks like this:

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Before you scream in terror, yes this is black mould, and no the leak isn't currently active, at least supposedly.


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tl;dr: when I said it needs napalm, I meant it :lol:


The blue spot above the sink was occupied by this cupboard:

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It is disgusting, but structurally sound. Some of the other cupboards that were not directly under the leak might be structurally sound, too. I plan to clean them out, remove any remnants of cupboard door fastenings etc, and cover any holes with pieces of plain white contact paper. Then I will install cheap metal furniture legs, and use them as shelves. First need to take down all cupboards to see how many are salvageable, then will purchase legs. I don't want to place the cupboards directly on the floor because I plan to use them on the balcony and I would like to be able to use a good old bucket of water to clean it. Cupboards directly on the floor will get soggy.

Obviously, the kitchen will need to be redone completely. But that is for another day. Socialist particle board is dense and heavy, these cupboard will be hard to remove. I'm still working on how to do that without dropping one of them on my foot.

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Alphaville
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Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal

Post by Alphaville »

man, great job cleaning. i hope you're wearing a respirator and taking precautions with all that. it's good to see progress... some of that veneer looks nice.

AxelHeyst
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Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal

Post by AxelHeyst »

I was just about to bump this, glad to see your update. Nice work!

mathiverse
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Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal

Post by mathiverse »

Nice work, ertyu! Thanks for the update!

ertyu
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Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal

Post by ertyu »

It looks bad now, but I'm glad I got it in this condition. "Brutally honest" about where every single problem and issue is. I could have paid 10-15k more and it would have looked very pretty and fresh, but I'm certain the issues would've been superficially papered over in the cheapest way possible and would've sprung back up in full glory in a year or two. I'd much rather know what I'm dealing with and have the chance to fix things in a solid and permanent way.

Frita
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Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal

Post by Frita »

Go, @ertyu! Are those hardwood floors in the kitchen?

ertyu
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Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal

Post by ertyu »

Nope, linoleum. Tbh given the state the kitchen was in, hardwood floors would've probably been damaged anyway. I'll probably make the kitchen floors teracotta tile. Seems most durable/sturdiest + would take potential water damage best. I wish the builders'd done it in the same tile as the balcony, that balcony floor is the 1970s original and other than being dirty it's completely sound.

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Alphaville
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Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal

Post by Alphaville »

tile floors are great. once upon a time i labored as an assistant to a team of tile floor installers. i mixed cement and glue under the hot sun like a beast of burden, and they applied the tiles to the slab with my mix and great skill on their part. nicest guys ever, but the work was lousy with the cement dust and the heat. it was a big tub and i worked with a hoe. great amounts of sunblock were required.

should be manageable for a small space though, and a small tub should cut it. watch the cement dust and wear a mask indoors. the stuff used to stick to my hair and... sorta burned it? so i shaved my head :D

ertyu
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Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal

Post by ertyu »

got it, shall protect the thinning tresses :lol:

i wish i could get us restaurant kitchen orange tile. that shit's immortal :lol:

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Alphaville
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Re: 3 yrs to FI: ertyu's journal

Post by Alphaville »

the hair and the lungs, yeah

is this the tile your're talking about? (i couldn't find orange proper)

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Merola-Tile ... /312694401

trying to find where it's made. a lot of tile sold here is from spain or italy, should be available to you.

porcelain tile is harder & more durable than ceramic.

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