Condo Walk-Through, Bertucci's, New iPhone

Update April 28 to May 4

-- Trustees Annual Spring Property Survey Walk

Front Porches were addressed last year

When we built our home here in 2007 at Stone Ridge Estates in Jefferson, the builder had about another year to go on finishing the project. There are 40 homes in the development. Once we had over 75 percent ownership in place, the builder surrendered the trusteeship to the owners and I was elected as one of the Founding Trustees.

We had a lot of important decisions to make at the start. We had to search for and hire a management company. We had to set out contracts for maintenance, including landscaping and snow removal, and eventually, we agreed to spend some serious resources installing a full down drain and rain gutter system on every unit. It was a very busy year.

Each year at our annual meeting, the trustees lay out plans for future maintenance work and frankly that was easy in the first half dozen years. But, as time goes by, the buildings, grounds, and systems, such as the wells that support our lawn sprinklers, all need attention. So far we have avoided the need for any assessments, but that's only due to being committed to a fair monthly owner's fee that keeps us moving forward. On Monday, the Trustees made their annual spring walk around the grounds. We found some new items that will need attention in the immediate and long-range future. One of them is some apparently sinking driveways. The substrate seems mushy and there are some places where the driveways are sinking. We will need to address that. In the meantime, I can report that things seem to be in good shape and we plan to keep it that way.

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READ my Blog "The Books of Richard F Wright" (Books, Bookstores, Writing)     

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-- iPhone Training for Patti at the Apple Store

Patti Waiting for Class to Start

Patti has the new iPhone XR, which has a lot more storage and a lot of new features that she was looking to add to her phone. She decided to take advantage of the free classroom training offered at the iPhone Store to learn more about the phone and to solve some nagging problems she had with uploading photos and Facebook.

I went with her but I stayed out of the classroom. I wanted to be sure she focused and did not rely on me to back-up what she learned in the classroom. I'm a flip phone guy, so what do I know?

The iPhone store is at the Solomon Pond Mall, so naturally, we had time for some browsing. We didn't find much that caught our eye, but we realized it was close to Noon and maybe we could make a lunch stop here. So, Bertucci's got the nod.

-- Lunch at Bertucci's at the Solomon Pond Mall

Patti at Bertucci's

Bertucci's at the mall has been a good stop for me for many years. As my office was only five minutes away I could grab a quick lunch and enjoy some quiet time to read my books. I always enjoy the fresh-baked rolls they provide. I generally caution Patti not to overload on the rolls or else she won't have room for her lunch.

We decided to pass on ordering any drinks as it was only Noon time and we weren't sure where it was five o'clock somewhere. I had the Milanese Sandwich with Minestrone soup. It's a great combination and I ate the whole thing. Patti's lunch was a flatbread vegetable pizza. When she realized it had no red sauce she had them bring a bowl of it so she could dip each bite. She had leftovers and managed to eat it before I got to it.
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READING UPDATE: Less than 10 years after resigning the Presidency, Richard Nixon was on a rant of writing books. His book, Leaders, is one of the few that really has some merit. Despite who, Dick Nixon was - and what he became - there is no denying that he was glad-handing, back-slapping, and chit-chatting with every important military and political figure between World War II and the pre-Reagan era. Few people got to know these world leaders as he did, especially when some were at their peak, and others were at their "years in the wilderness." This is a ripping read and leaders like DeGaulle, which American's don't learn about very well, are really worth getting to know through the eyes of Richard Nixon.