I haven't had cooking gas since I moved into my new apartment. When National Fuel came to turn it on, I smelled gas after they left and so they had to come back and shut off my gas at the meter because they said the leak was somewhere between my apartment and the meter inside the walls. Obviously, I was pretty upset considering I knew it would be major work in order to get the gas on. I thought great, they have to tear somebody's wall out in order for me to get my cooking gas. I called the landlord/owner of the building and became pretty pissed off that he suggested that I should have just left a message on the maintenance voicemail line that is checked daily.

Then my first Saturday after moving in two maintenance men came without any prior warning. When I complained about no prior notice they said "Do you want your gas turned on or not?" Anyways we started off on the wrong foot and it ended with me being screamed at by one of them. I wouldn't say I deserved to be screamed at but I did provoke him a bit and didn't handle it as best I could have. In the end I apologized for my responsibility in the altercation and they left letting me know that the problem was fixed.

So that Monday I called National Fuel to have them come turn it back on. They were happy to send somebody that day to have the service connected. When they came they tested the air for gas and said the leak was still there and they would not turn it on until the gas was fixed. They personally told the landlord that the leak was in between the walls between my apartment and the basement (I'm on the second floor).

The next Saturday the maintenance guys came again and again told me that the problem was solved. They did not go into the apartment below me. Everyone kept on telling me that National Fuel was wrong and that the problem was at the meter and it's their responsibility.

National Fuel again comes on Monday and still will not leave the gas on because of the leak. Meanwhile National Fuel is getting bitchy with me because they are sick of rushing someone to my house to turn it back on when the owner isn't addressing the problem which they were advised in writing of.

This time I called the owner and let him know that National Fuel is pissed off and that they want him to hire a certified plumber to fix it. Maintenance men should not in my opinion be addressing gas lines or servicing elevators. He agreed and told me to expect someone on Friday between the hours of 8am and 9am. I waited until 11am and then called the landlord to let him know that nobody showed up. I left a voicemail. Then at 11:30 somebody calls me to say that somebody called in sick and they would be there on Monday (today) to fix the problem. I let her know it would have been nice if somebody called me earlier to let me know as I had arranged my whole day around them coming and missed a work meeting.

Today is Monday. They are supposed to be here between 8am and 9am. It is 9:05 and I am on the phone asking them if they are still coming. Yes, they are running behind. So finally they get here and I have to take a personal day AGAIN to be home for somebody to come and fix the gas line. The guy lets me know that the problem is not at the meter like my landlord insisted and that they would need to get in the apartment below me to address the problem. Thankfully, the woman below me is home and reluctantly permits the intrusion into her home when she has had no idea what has been going on because nobody called to let her know that they would need to be there.

So now they are ripping out her walls and addressing the gas line and I am really hoping that it is going to be fixed and I can finally use my stove. It has been 3 weeks and two days since I have moved in. Problems happen but the worst part about all of this has been the way that this issue has been dealt with by the owner. I am a reasonable person and am well aware that living in older buildings can be problematic but seriously think this issue should have been handled differently.

I am sitting here hoping that the guy will come back and give me good news. I think he is going to fix it. He knows what he is doing.

From the Buffalo News...

Police are investigating the suspicions of a Bidwell Parkway woman who believes a man has been secretly visiting her apartment and wearing her nightclothes.

Police said the woman suspects four such visits over the last two weeks -the most recent Tuesday, when she discovered a coffee cup missing, and Wednesday, when she found her closet door opened, clothing on hangers moved and a bathrobe smelling of men's cologne.

So either this woman is crazy or somebody is really entering her apartment and wearing her robe. If someone is really breaking and wearing, I feel so bad for her. Everybody thinks she is a nut job, but I'm not so sure. Maybe it is her landlord or somebody that used to live there or something. I'm assuming the police believe her if they are "investigating" and it appeared in the Buffalo News.

On that note, I covered up my peep hole with electrical tape. I don't want anyone knowing whether my light is on or if I look at them through the peep hole. This all came about when I got a knock on the door and when I looked through and asked who it was the person backed up right away and said sorry I was looking for my son. After that situation I haven't really felt too secure in my apartment. It felt like they were checking to see if I was home or something. First off, how did he even get into the building, and second who doesn't know which apartment their son is in? Does he want to steal my stuff or just get his stank cologne on my robe? Am I paranoid? Maybe, but at the same time I found my instincts are often right. My renters insurance went up when I moved here so I suspect that this place may have a history. It might be based on zip code rather than the building itself. I plan to call and find out why.

To remove or not to remove?...that is the question.

My dentist wants them removed. They don't bother me, but they are impacted. His argument is to remove them now before they become problematic, while I have dental insurance and while I am young.

I don't want to have surgery in my mouth. It really just seems awful and since they don't bother me it seems stupid but at the same time what the dentist says makes sense.

Although I haven't called MetLife or Independent Health, I don't think that I will get more than 50% coverage. I don't have any money so that is a problem.

So where do I go if I do decide to get them removed? My dentist wants me to see Frank T. Sindoni who practices in Williamsville but I do not drive so that is also a problem. Buffalo Oral Surgery is on Linwood but I did not get a recommendation for them so that bothers me. Does anyone have any experience with any oral surgeons particularly in the city of Buffalo?

P.S. Dr. Katz, my dentist, moved to Williamsville. Anyone know a good dentist in Buffalo?

Congratulations guys! You both are awesome together. Wishing you a great day and a happy life together.











Love,

Libertad

I love this picture. This was an awesome festival.








Obviously I am late in sharing these. I had another that I wanted to share but I can't figure out how to orientate it right.

Because I think at least a couple of you estrippers will appreciate this...





(e:james)? (e:terry)? you like?

Does anyone know how I can get into contact with (e:ladycroft) this weekend? I wrote her an email but have not gotten a response yet so I assume she hasn't checked it.

The move is over and I am in my new place and am mostly unpacked and I love it here so far. The day of my move last Saturday it was pretty cold but not in my new apartment. That was nice and toasty. It was sort of ironic that it was unseasonably cold the whole week before my move and then it warmed up right after I got into the new place. The radiators are super awesome, it is like a dream to me--I love them! Most importantly, I am dry. Even my things are dry now. I hated being so moist all the time. MOIST, isn't that just a nasty word? It was nice because the place was fairly clean and the walls were in good shape and it didn't really need any work besides several hours of getting the cooties out. Mike and I enjoyed some Jim Steak Out sitting on the window sill and the single chair that I had bought over from the old place. The windows are big and when they are open the apartment is nice and airy. Coco likes it here because he has free range except for my bedroom.

I love walking to and from work. I can get from my apartment door to work in just under 30 minutes. I can walk down Delaware, Linwood or Main Street. None of those seem like good bicycle routes. Delaware is way too fast and there is no shoulder really. Linwood I would be going down the wrong way and I could take the side walk but that is illegal and I don't really prefer it anyways. Main Street might be the best route on a bicycle now that I think of it. Not that it matters at the moment not having a bicycle.

So there are some problems with where I am living as there are with any place. First, they don't have any recycling here. If anyone knows me they know that I am OCD about recycling. I do obsessively judge other peoples recycling which is almost debilitating considering most people do it wrong. It is bad enough to have to give up my composting but the recycling thing is just too much. It is so hard to just throw it away. I will do my best to look for alternatives and stealthily dropping recyclables in other people's bins and pleading with friends to take them with them. The next major thing, and this is major, is that National Fuel will not turn my cooking gas back on until the owners fix a leak that is somewhere between my apartment and my meter. Third , it is a small stove and the range power is dramatically less than what I am used to. There are also several plumbing issues that need to be addressed. I told one of the owners about these problems (major and minor) on Monday, which he chastised me for calling him about them, and I still have not heard anything from them. If I want to communicate with them I must leave a message and wait for a call back. Oh and I almost forgot, one of the linen closet drawers is saturated with a bottle of perfume, one that I am especially repulsed by.

More of the good. I have two huge closets, one of them is a walk-in. I also have a built-in book case which is big enough to fit my entire library and then some. So far my neighbors have been quiet enough. There are outlets almost all over the place and if you have ever lived in a place without enough you will know how important that is. Oh and they are 3 prong so I don't have to use all of those dangerous adapters. I also have overhead lighting in every room. There is actually some good cupboard space too. I also have hardwood floors which is what all floors should be made of in my opinion.

This is a lot of fun. They present you with a state and you have to put it in the right spot on the map. The states are presented randomly each time you start it so it is always different.