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This page was last updated on 12/29/01 05:25 PM .

Note: I sold my condo in White Plains, NY on June 13, 2001.  My stuff is in storage in White Plains awaiting my decision on where I will relocate.  Santa Fe, NM is  getting a thorough examination.

For he latest weather in Santa Fe, NM:

http://www.weather.com/weather/local/87501

Wednesday June 20, 2001:

I'm staying in a guest house at 640 Galisteo St. in downtown Santa Fe. I'm renting it for a month June 15 - July 15. I have a rental car and Monday I bought a bike. That's a great way to check out areas. The weather is great. People are pleasant and friendly, though some are a little strange. Everything seems so fresh, clean and new.

I saw a new development yesterday outside of town that I liked a lot. It has walking/biking trails and great views. I can afford a great house there. I need to resolve whether I want to move 2,500 miles to live in the middle of nowhere, i.e., 20 minutes from downtown. The web site for it is:

http://ranchoviejo.com

This afternoon a realtor is showing me some downtown condos. I need to exhaust that option first.

Friday June 22, 2001:

I've been here a week.  It hasn't rained yet and the weather continues to be great.  Yesterday with two realtors I saw several places, one of which is of interest. We also visited a lot that I had discovered while bike riding.  It has very good views and is in a really good complex, Las Barrancas, which is in the city and 95% built.  They agreed that of the places we had seen, the empty lot was my best choice depending on how much it will cost to build a small house.  They called a builder who had developed in that complex to get a general idea on cost.  They are checking the covenants for stuff like minimum square feet for a house.  They showed me a trail that leads from this development to downtown.  That's a plus.

I'm going to check solar house builders on my own.

On Ranch Viejo: The other day I drove toward Ranch Viejo around 5:30 PM. There was a traffic jam about two miles in so I turned around. That two lane road, Richards Avenue, seems totally inadequate for the number cars that will be using it. It needs more lanes and some visible components. I did not even see reflectors. Especially with college students driving there (the community college is on the way), a head-on collision is inevitable. I may attend the rodeo tonight and drive down Richards in the dark which I have not done yet. That should give some perspective.

In the morning I rode my bike on the Santa Fe Trail which is a two lane road.  Great views.  There was a breeze which added to the feeling that I got in Southampton.  The terrain is similar in that both have small shrubby evergreens.  Like Dune Road, it also has very expensive houses.  I like it here a lot.

I'm thinking of buying a car.

I've got more references on hiking trails but have not had time to go there.  They're a few miles outside the city.  The National Forrest Service which I visited yesterday does not understand the concept of simply WALKING from the city into the adjacent Forrest.  There are supposed to trails in the city but I don't think they are connected yet.

Last night after eating Mexican food I hung out in the downtown Plaza.  There was live music coming out of a nearby restaurant.  The sun receded and the atmosphere was very relaxed.

I have a digital camera and, if I get around to taking pictures, I'll put them on my web site. I don't like to spend time on the computer but it's necessary to get information.

Sunday, June 24, 2001:

Yesterday I bought a manual transmission 2001 PT Cruiser.  They call it Patriot blue.  I call it Yankee blue.  I should have it in a few days.  The main thing holding that up is the U.S. Postal Service.  Friday I went to the Post Office to rent a box to use as my mailing address.  I had been advised by a local attorney and by an insurance agent that a P.O. Box would suffice.  However, the Post Office had me fill out a form which requires an address.  An address is what I need.  I supplied my one month rental address.  The P.O. will mail me a post card which I must then bring in in order to get my box.  I'm not making this up.  It delays everything because I do not want to use my current temporary address for documents for the car.

Before I made the deal I wanted to see if my bike would fit in it.  I signed the deal with this clause added: "will purchase contingent on bike fits inside".  I returned later and apparently all the sales people, including the manager, had heard about this.  The bike fit with some difficulty.  If I remove the back seats completely it should be much easier.

Last night I finally got to the rodeo, the first that I had attended since seeing Roy Rogers at Madison Square Garden as a kid.  It was quite informal and it was good to see the action up close.  One of the honored guests who rode out at the start was Larry Mahan, six time world champ whom I remembered as a participant in the superstars competition in the late 1970s.  Boy, Larry got old.

This provided my first mass exposure to the indigenous  population which is largely non-Anglo.  Many, mostly men, wore cowboy hats and seemed genuine in doing so even if it was merely part of an outfit for impressing the Saturday night date.  Many seemed poor, although that did not preclude them from wearing cell phones on their hips, positioned like a six-shooter.  Also in attendance was a celebrity of sorts whom I recognized, British doctor Jonathon Miller.  He had been a comedic actor of the Monty Python ilk and during that era.  Later he became a doctor and hosted a medical series for the BBC which was shown on PBS in the U.S.

I left after it had become dark to perform my first night driving test in the area.  Boy was that different.  I drove down Richards Avenue about 2-3 miles to the entrance to Ranch Viejo, the aforementioned development south of the city of Santa Fe.  Calling it an entrance is a bit misleading. I could barely find the road that had only a small sign stating "model homes".  To where?  I drove in.  Boy, was it dark.  They do not believe in street lights.  It supposedly detract from enjoyment of the night sky.  This place also lacked adequate foot lights which would not detract from such enjoyment.  It seemed to me that one would not want to take a stroll after dark.  This really turned me off.  As I headed north toward Santa Fe I could see lightning far in he distance.  I couldn't wait to get to some street lights.  Oddly, even one of the major roads, St. Francis Drive, lacked lights in some sections.

I headed up Old Taos Highway to check out the lighting on my favorite potential home within the Santa Fe's north side.  To my relief Old Taos Highway, which is now a long dead end due to a new interstate, had lights on the east side of the road to the unlit entrance to the compound that I was looking for.  There was even a street light near the turn into the cul-de-sac where the home is located.  Another relief.  That place remains a possibility.  As I headed into downtown on my was to Las Barrancas, the development with the lot that I favor, I noticed that the residential areas in the fashionable northeast end were not well lit by Westchester standards.  Hope I didn't buy that car too soon.  The road leading to Las Barrancas had not lights but the entrance, a large, clear sign, was well lit.  I already knew that Las Barrancas had street lights, including one right beside my potential lot.  This is considered undesirable.  I was glad to see it.  One of the street on the way out was not well lit and the houses did not have lights either.  I guess that's considered cool.

As of 8:30 AM my phone line is dead and I can't send this.  Uh, oh.

Service returned about 2:00 P.M.

Rode my bike in places that I'm considering.  There are two good options.  I also drove through an old development south of Santa Fe called Eldorado.  It's huge.  The houses have between 1.5 and 5 acres but it looks so barren.  There is nothing else close except for a small shopping mall on the northeast part of the property.  Dozens of houses are for sale and at good value.  This is low on my list.  I'd opt for Rancho Viejo first.

Wednesday, June 27, 2001:

Yesterday I experienced bad weather for the first time out here.  It rained from mid-day into the evening and was chilly and damp.  I rode in the morning, got my PO Box (what a battle) and looked at real estate with my trusty agents. I'm meeting them again today.

I am picking up my new car this morning.  I got the insurance through AARP for 75% less than from an independent agent.

I want to investigate solar options.  It's a shame that they do so little of that here given that they have so much sunlight.

Friday June 29, 2001:

I made a low ball offer on that lot in the Las Barrancas development.  It has street lights and is five minutes from downtown.  No word yet.

Wednesday afternoon the realtors took me to Eldorado which is about fifteen miles from downtown Santa Fe.  They showed me three houses by different builders.  Each was very impressive in both design and detail. 

Yesterday I spent four hours on my bike investigating the Eldorado area.  I removed the back seats in my PT Cruiser in order to fit the bike.  People ask me about the car.  I found a lot for sale by owner which has great views and is reasonably priced.  I spoke to the owner who lives in Colorado.  I need to go to Eldorado at night and see how I feel about the almost total darkness.

I accidentally got on the road to Taos about 8:30 PM last night. I got off at the next exit which said Santa Fe was an option. There was no sign directing me and I got lost in a developing development as night fell. I was in a bad fix. Finally I flagged a car and the occupants directed me.

I shot hoops this morning for the first in Santa Fe and felt the effects of the 7,000 foot altitude but I did OK and should improve.  I then did laundry at the laundromat.  Yuck!  It rained for about an hour this afternoon.

I feel like I need to take some initiative on the search for a home.

Sunday, July 1, 2001:

Had Thai food for dinner last night.  I'll be investigating Eldorado today mainly through the open house tours.

MANY web sites in Santa Fe do not work.  I wonder if they are all using the same Internet web building company.  It's amazing.

Monday, July 2, 2001:

Yesterday I pumped gas (a struggle), shot hoops and went to several open houses in Eldorado.  I still like the lot that I discovered there.

A principal in South Point Builders returned my call yesterday and we're meeting for lunch. South Point does solar.  I'll check him out for possibly building on one of the two lots that I like: Las Barrancas (doubtful) in the city and Eldorado, fifteen miles away.  If that fails, I'll probably take a very hard look at Rancho Viejo again.  The three builders whose work was shown to me by the realtors have not materialize.  This is too involved.  I want it to be easy.

I'd like to make a decision this week.

I watched the Mets on ESPN last night.  Next Sunday they play the Yankees.  That means that in my first four weeks here the Mets will have been on three times, the Yankees twice, but only against the Mets.  Yuck!

Friday, July 6, 2001:

The Fourth was a mob scene in the Plaza.  Canon Road was not crowded.  Yesterday I saw a condo very close to the heart of Santa Fe that looked pretty good.  An affordable new house in Eldorado, which has its own private canon, also seemed very appealing but when the realtor checked it had gone into contract an hour and a half before.  While standing outside that house I could see beyond a wooden fence about a hundred yards away cowboys in action with one on a horse twirling a lariat and going after a cow.  Cool.

That's three that I've missed out on, including the one off Old Taos Highway and the one in Rancho Viejo which I learned a couple of days ago had been sold.

I'm trying to handle this by using the old baseball axiom: the best deals are the ones you don't make.  Saw the last few innings of last night's Yankee win on Fox.

Today I'm looking at property and homes in Eldorado with the realtor.

Saturday, July 7, 2001:

Yesterday I spent most of the day looking at land and houses in Eldorado with the realtor.  Eldorado has a web site:

http://members.aol.com/ecommunity/

According to its greenbelt brochure and map, Eldorado has "5,000 acres set aside for our exclusive use".  That supposedly includes 4,000 acres of private canon.

I've narrowed my choices down to three:

1. an 1,100 SF condo less than one mile from the downtown area of the city of Santa Fe;

2. a new 1,734 SF house on 1.84 acres in Eldorado that is less than six  weeks from completion and has mountain views;

3. building a new house in Eldorado on a lot that I found and which has really good mountain views.

This morning I'm meeting a builder of solar houses, who has no Eldorado experience, at that lot to see what could be done.  I could also contact one of the builders of  Eldorado houses to construct one of their standard houses.

The downside to new construction is that I would have to continue to live out of a suitcase and pay tourist rent for at least eight more months.  I need to vacate my current one month rental by 11:00 AM Sunday, July 15, 2001.  Yes, I've been here three weeks.

Sunday, July 8, 2001:

Yesterday I met with the solar builders.  I have not heard back from them as they had indicated.  I revisited the in-town condo and was less impressed.  I have to be out of my current apartment next Sunday by 11:00 AM..  This whole process is getting tedious and I feel disconnected.  I'd like to settle someplace.  If I hadn't bought the car I might be tempted to return to New York, at least temporarily.  I've learned that I can be miserable anywhere.  

Las Barrancas and Rancho Viejo are back on the radar screen.  I don't like feeling like I'm settling for something rather than being really enthusiastic about it.

I need a bike ride.  Tomorrow morning for sure.

A friend just sent this:

"New Mexico is #1 in violent crime out of the 50 states".

Last night I attended the Santa Fe opera and slept through most of it.  I saw the Yanks beat the Mets tonight on ESPN.

Tuesday, July 10, 2001:

Yesterday about 5:20 PM my two week old PT Cruiser lost its power steering.  Fortunately, I was able to get it to the Chrysler dealer.  The service manager said that the belt had broken.  Today he told me that something had broken because of a bad part and that two belts had broken.  The defective component must be found and then sent through Chrysler's distribution system and that it will not arrive before MONDAY!  I'm going to see if I can get Chrysler HQ to expedite.  Today I got a rental car at Chrysler's expense about 24 hours after mine broke.  After I got it home I realized that the rental car has no license plate.

Escarpment became an issue regarding the Las Barrancas property on which I made a final offer yesterday with 6:00 PM as the deadline.  No response.  The realtors do not know whether the city of Santa Fe has classified it as escarpment which will increase complexity and cost.  It means that trees and drainage issues are involved.  They showed me a house almost completed by Big Sky builders and then had the builder look at the lot.  Brian, the builder, was very good at addressing issues and his house, which costs $429,000 and is already sold, was a beauty.

I still don't know where I'm staying Sunday.  I must stay at least a couple of days past my one month in order to get my car back.

Thursday, July 12, 2001:

Visited four of the main museums in the last few days.  No contact with anyone yesterday on the real estate front.  I just got an early morning call from the guy who bought my White Plains condo.  He is going to forward some mail that did not get forwarded to my mother's.

Tomorrow I need to deal with getting another place starting Sunday, at least for a few days, until my car is repaired and my mail catches up to me.  I've toyed with the idea of driving to Florida to check out Celebration but I have not given up completely on selecting a place in Santa Fe yet.

Today was a day trip to Taos.  The Indian Pueblo was both depressed and depressing.

The Florida scare has pretty much receded.  The new house that is 90% complete will probably get an offer tomorrow.

Friday, July 13, 2001:

The realtor gave me the official feedback on my offer to buy the Las Barrancas lot.  It was a reduction and I had specifically stated that I did not want another number, just a yes or no.  The seller and his agent must be jackasses.  That is eliminated.

I called an attorney about the 90% house in Eldorado.  He was walking out, according to his secretary, and has not returned my call, although he did respond to my e-mail message of last night.

I found another place, in a better location, for the next two weeks.

Monday, July 16, 2001:

Waiting for the plumber to fix the toilet.

I had scheduled an 8:00AM meeting with the realtors to discuss an offer on the 90% house to be followed by a meeting with an attorney to actually make the offer.  Last night I called off both meetings after spending an hour at the house.  I felt it was too much of a compromise.  There was road noise, not much by NY standards, but more than I wanted for a 2,500 mile move.  I did not like the windows and the absence of screens.  Plus, the cathedral ceiling canales (drain spouts extending out from the parapet of a flat roof, designed to protect an adobe wall from falling water) dump water down onto the lower level living room ceiling.  The mountain view could be compromised by new houses between this one and the "noisy" road.

If I move to Eldorado, my only option now is the lot with the great mountain view and having a new house built there, preferably the passive solar, straw bale design that I favor.  Put my money where my mouth is.

Dinner at Harry's Roadside, local legend with a 30 minute wait, was disappointing.  Maybe I should stick to the city of Santa Fe and buy that condo.  Almost no one lives in the downtown area, so most locals must drive there.  Downtown is devoted to tourists, so it's not a real downtown as described in the New Urbanism book:

Suburban Nation: The Rise of Sprawl and the Decline of the American Dream by Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/newurbanism/

I'm taking a break from real estate and hoping that my PT Cruiser is ready today.

Hey, what's with the Yanks?

Tuesday, July 17, 2001:

My only options now are new construction miles from downtown.  That is not appealing.  Maybe it's a function of living out of a suitcase.  If I could at least watch the Yankees, there would be some sense of normalcy.  The weather is the big thing.

I saw Dandy Don Meredith the other night.  He was socializing at some premier.  He's from Texas and lives in Santa Fe.  I cannot afford the places that would be acceptable and the compromise places are losing their appeal.  Florida may be next. That was the original plan: July in Santa Fe and, if that did not click, August in Florida.  I'm booked in Santa Fe through July.  Buying that PT Cruiser, which I reclaimed from the dealer yesterday complete with license plate, complicates matters.  I had figured that I might buy a car in Florida.  Now I would have to drive there.  Yuck.

To complicate matters a friend has suggested that I look at San Luis Obispo, CA.  I just checked it on weather.com and he's right.  Mild weather, although the winter is too wet.  I need less options, not more.

Thursday, July 19, 2001:

Ambivalence persists.  I'd like to be home, I just don't know where that is.

Friday, July 20, 2001:

I rode my bike for over two hours at Rancho Viejo.  I was impressed with the paved trail system.  It felt comfortable.  It's also the least stressful alternative, although I'd have to wait for construction to be completed.  Lot's of open space.  I went back this evening and even saw a small antelope.  If I stay in Santa Fe, that's at the top of my list now.  The realtors came up with a condo off Old Taos Highway about a mile from downtown.  I've asked to see it.

Another thoughtful friend has added Burney, California ("in northeast California near Redding with 3 "nearby" mountain ranges:  Sierra Nevada, Coastal Range, Cascades") to my list of places to investigate.

Monday, July 23, 2001:

When my current place is unavailable on Aug. 1 I have three options:

1. go to California,

2. go to Florida,

3. stay in Santa Fe,

    a. short term to wait for a lot to become available at Rancho Viejo, which I found out yesterday may not occur until October;

    b. long term to wait for the Rancho Viejo to be built - by May, 2002.

Saturday I went to an Indian arts & crafts thing on a reservation.  It included Indian dances: buffalo, deer, etc.  These Indian exhibitions are largely sad and depressing.  They seem so backward.  I feel bad for the children.  They must have very mixed feelings.  I imagine that they are self conscious.

Is this worth driving to California in the heat of August?

Tuesday, July 24, 2001:

Santa Fe?  California?  Florida?  Beats me.  My thinking is all over the place.  Today I went to a National Monument which is like a National Forrest.  Nice terrain, but hot.  Plus, it's 40 miles away.  That's not much by Rocky Mountain standards but to me it's a long way for an afternoon stroll.

I searched Century21 for a place within 10 miles of  San Luis Obispo, CA for between $150,000 and $300,000. I got two hits, one a mobile home. Here's the other

Description Style: Resale -Single Family Detached Approx. Square Footage: 950 Bedrooms: 2 Baths: 2 A park-like setting surrounds this deluxe 2 bedroom 1 3/4 bath condominium located close to downtown San Luis Obispo. A fireplace, patio deck, included appliances, carport with extra storage and cathedral ceilings complete the unit features. Association amenities include: swimming pool, spa, clubhouse, insurance, water & trash, landscaping, exterior maintenance. Amenities Traditional , Stucco , Liv/Dining Room Combo , Carport , 1 Fireplace , Inground Pool , Hot Tub , Area Pool , Deck Estimated Annual Property Taxes $2,862.50

950 SF and Property Taxes $2,862.50!!! My friend must be nuts!

Thursday, July 26, 2001:

I went to Hyde State park which is enveloped by the Santa Fe National Forrest.  It's certainly not nearly as easy to use as Rockefeller State Park Preserve in Pocantico Hills, New York.  Santa Fe is 7,000 feet above sea level.  The Hyde Park hike started at 8,400 feet and immediately climbed to 9,400 feet.  You feel the altitude, especially when it's a bit humid.  The hikes described in the Sierra Club book for Santa Fe are geared for mountain goats.  The book is useless.  There are less places to walk here than in Westchester.  Actually, there's really no place to walk here.  Bike riding here isn't so hot either.  I'm pretty isolated.

Last night I saw a Checkhov play, The Cherry Orchard.  Santa Fe has plenty of artistic stuff, especially in the summer.

Early in my trip I read Iron Horse by Ray Robinson about Lou Gehrig.  I just finished A Sense of Where You Are by John McPhee.  It's about Bill Bradley and was written in 1965.  I got it as a gift from a dear friend.  It's full of every imaginable piece of  charmingly dated stuff that is just right for the subject and time, just before we lost our innocence.  Bradley did everything we wanted him, and all of us, to do back then, and we forgot about him and rejected him last year when he ran for President as was predicted back in 1965.  What does that say about us?

I visited Las Vegas, NM today.  Another dull place.  Santa Fe is the only place in New Mexico that I would live.  The weather has become increasingly humid and rainy.  The only season that I have not been here is spring which is supposed to have the worst weather when there are dust storms.  Right now I think that I will leave when my stay at this place ends next week.

Now added to the mix is Pismo Beach, which is allegedly near San Luis Obispo, CA.  No mention yet of costs.  My main source is a high school teacher, so I guess money is no object.  A second source has confirmed, independently, that both California places are very good.

Friday, July 27, 2001:

Attended a choir recital tonight.  Tomorrow starts Spanish Market in which the exhibitors must be Spanish.  That's about as un-American as something can gets.  What planet produces beings who dream up this kind of nonsense?

My California friend has been looking for a place to which he can retire in three years but he has not checked on prices.  Also, real estate taxes are not actually low in California, they're just lower than those in New York.

Saturday, July 28, 2001:

Santa Fe was choked with traffic last night and this morning for Spanish Market.  This morning I cruised through the Spanish Market.  There were really only three things for sale: rugs, furniture and religious icons.  Maybe they'd have more variety if they had other than just Spanish exhibitors, you know, a little diversity.  I wonder if it would have been so crowded if they also restricted the buyers to Spanish people.  I can't believe so many people showed up for something that is such a nothing event.  There was some live music playing and it was pleasant enough but even if I lived here I'm not sure I would bother to show up.

This afternoon I drove over a hundred miles in northern New Mexico, mostly through the Kit Carson National Forrest.  The terrain was as different from that around Santa Fe as it could be: green, lush, cramped with trees and vast meadows.  Along the way is Ghost Ranch with red rocks reminiscent of Sedona, AZ.  Hey, maybe I should re-consider ...

Sunday, July 29, 2001:

Hot.  If you can't escape the heat here, then you can't escape it anywhere north of the equator.  The cold can be avoided.

My California friend is an old high school buddy who moved to the LA area 25 years ago.  He's been looking for another place in California to which he can move when he retires in three years.  He still has not found it.  He has not checked prices yet.  His advice to me is to go to California and drive around and he's sure that I'll find something that I can afford.  I can find something affordable but I don't want to live in it.  I just checked Coldwell Banker for listings for San Luis Obispo, which has been matching Santa Fe with high temperatures in the high 80's, and got listings that are EXPENSIVE.  That's what I had anticipated.  I think that I've ruled out California and I'll probably head for Celebration, Florida the middle of this week.

Florida residents can get a special pass to Walt Disney World:

http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/waltdisneyworld/home/floridaresidents/tickettypeindex?id=TKTFLPremAnnualPassTktType

Cool!

Monday, July 30, 2001:

I'm making a final inquiry on the Rancho Viejo lots.  The sales person told me a week ago that the next set may become available in a month or two but that there's no way for me to lock in.  I can't see staying in Santa Fe for that period of time on the off chance that I may get the lot that I like.  I'd rather explore another part of the country but let's see if my e-mail spurs a positive reaction.

I checked Sedona, AZ.  It's VERY hot in the summer.

Charleston and Beaufort, SC both have slightly better weather in the summer weather than Celebration, FL which in September has 28% more rain and is five degrees hotter (89 to 84 average high) than Charleston.  All three have new urban developments which are of interest.

Tuesday, July 31, 2001:

Leaving Santa Fe this morning.  I'll probably head east to Florida.

Wednesday,  August 1, 2001:

Tuesday I left Santa Fe at 7:00 AM and arrived in Dallas, TX at 9:00 PM.  What an awful drive.  West Texas is mostly barren.  This morning I walked the last couple of blocks of the President's motorcade route into Dealey Plaza which was only three blocks from my hotel.  I also visited the museum in the Texas School Depository building.  Here are some observations on key points.

The sniper's nest gave Oswald much more protection than I had realized.  He was back in the corner completely out of sight.  There is an X on Elm St. where the President was hit with the final, third, fatal shot.  When the traffic was stopped at Elm and Houston St. I walked to the X and stood on it.  When I looked up toward the window, it was like a tunnel leading directly to the window.  It was a dead on, can't miss shot.  The President was moving almost directly away  and his car had not accelerated yet, making him an almost stationary target.  Oswald was finding the range: the first shot missed, the second hit the President in the throat and the final shot blew the President's head open.

I also stood behind the fence atop the grassy knoll.  That's about that last place in that area that someone would place a gunman.  There are two obstructions: a tree and a low concrete wall.  The location is a parking lot which backs onto the railroad tracks.  Not a good place for a getaway.  That place is still used as a parking lot.

Finally, if a powerful group were going to hire multiple gunman to assassinate the President, the place for those gunmen would have been on Main St. before the President made the right turn onto Houston St.  There are two tall buildings there with great vantage points.  Once the President was on that block they could have reigned bullets down into that canon and there would have been no place for his car to go except to speed up by which time it would have been too late.

This evening I arrived in Baton Rouge, LA.  Louisiana is very lush, but largely empty.  Tomorrow, I have a much shorter trip to New Orleans, LA.

Friday,  August 3, 2001:

Florida!

This is my second day in Pensacola which is on the western tip of the panhandle, i.e., almost in Alabama.  Yesterday morning I shot hoops in Baton Rouge on a deteriorated court under six interstate ramps with four guys mowing the grass all around me.  It was noisy, dusty and refreshing after those two days of power driving from Santa Fe.  Plus, I had my wind back since I'm at sea level again.

I left Baton Rouge with the intent of staying a day or two in New Orleans.  What a dump!  I walked around the French Quarter for an hour and drove to Pensacola.  There were places when the road was through a bayou and it was elevated enough for there to be water on all sides and underneath and with tress on the sides in the water.  It's quite a sight.  Then all of a sudden the road would break into the clear and there would be water as far as the eye could see on the south side and water taking up most of the other side.  It was the Gulf of Mexico.  This occurred a few times, and not just off the bayou, and in Mississippi and Alabama, too.

Pensacola has a lot of pizzazz with plenty of tourists.  Tomorrow I'm driving south along the gulf coast.  I want to see Seaside and Panama Beach and then Tampa.  Any Yankees rehabing?  Seaside was one of the original new urban developments.  It's expensive and it, not Celebration, was used in the Jim Carey movie Truman  to represent a perfect place.

I spoke to a sales person at Celebration, FL today. I'll give it and places along the way a good look. If I have not been convinced by then I'll head north, stopping in SC and maybe elsewhere. If nothing grabs me, I'll return to NY, maybe even WP.

This driving should be a lot easier since the fear of breaking down in the middle of nowhere is mostly gone.  Eastern New Mexico, west Texas and most of Louisiana had no relief.  Louisiana lulled me into a false sense of security because of it's beauty but it was just as forbidding.  I'll never do this again.

Man, I need to see a Yankee game.

Saturday,  August 4, 2001:

I'm impressed with the panhandle.  Driving east of Pensacola I saw many good looking developments, some on the water with white sand.  Then came Destin which went beyond that.  However, the only place where I stopped was Seaside.  I walked around and ate a crab cake.  I checked on prices and they ranged from half a million up.  It's more impressive than it appears in the Truman movie.  These locations have drawbacks for full time residence: heat, isolation, cost.  Plus, HEAT!  There was HEAT!

I encountered a monsoon trying to get to the cutesy part Panama City so I headed north to Interstate 10 and drove to Tallahassee where I am spending the night on the outskirts.

Tomorrow the serious driving resumes with the final assault on Orlando which I estimate to be at least 300 miles away.

Sunday,  August 5, 2001:

Rain out.  I decided to stay another day at this motel off Interstate 10 because of Hurricane Barry which is hitting the panhandle which I just left.  I have not actually seen Tallahassee but it is supposed to be nearby.  It's still raining but I'm determined to make a major move tomorrow.

I've been encouraged by my youngest brother to visit Tampa before Celebration.  He noticed that the Yankees are playing Tampa Bay Tuesday through Thursday, so that sealed it.  He also checked out George Steinbrenner's hotel near Legends Field and encouraged me to stay there.  Let's see if the Yankees games are on TV there.  At least I might be able to learn how people get the games.  Direct TV does not seem to carry the 50 games which the Yankees broadcast on free TV in New York.  That's too many to miss. Steinbrenner has been equivocating for years on the following: The Stadium and therefore the Metro North station; a cable network.

I hear coop prices are up in White Plains.

Monday,  August 6, 2001:

Break out!  After ten minutes of driving in a blinding rain storm I broke into the clear and arrived in Tampa.  I'm staying at  George Steinbrenner's hotel.  Many of the workers look as if they came from the Bronx.  There are Yankee markings in various spots.  My room faces a body of water and I have a terrace.  A guy working in the lobby told me that the hotel has every Yankee game on TV except those against the Mets.  He claims that Steinbrenner won't tolerate it.  Maybe or maybe just loose talk.

I passed by Legends Field.  It's in the functional equivalent of the south Bronx.  What I've seen so far of Tampa is non-impressive.  I just pulled this from the Yankees web site.

"Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez, who has been on the disabled list since June 1, made a rehab start at Legends Field on Monday night, throwing three innings in a Florida State League game for the Single-A Tampa Yankees...  With George Steinbrenner sitting behind home plate".

Damn, I missed it!  If only I'd known.  I wonder if George is in the hotel.

The guy working in the lobby told me that I can get a ticket to the Yankee-Devil Ray game at the gate ... for sure.  They never sell out.  That's because the park is actually in St. Petersburg.  It's not shown on any maps and the people in the local tourist info center didn't know anything about it.

Thursday,  August 9, 2001:

Tuesday evening I attended the Yankees 3-2 loss in Tropicana Field.  It was like watching a movie about a minor league team.  Knobloch was terrible and Posada made the error that cost the game.  Yesterday I drove from Tampa to Celebration where I rented a one bedroom apartment in downtown for a week.  Then last night I watched the Yankees win 16-1 on TV.

There's an exit sign for Celebration off Interstate 4.  My initial reaction was: wow, this is really nice.  Celebration Blvd. is a long introductory road lined with tall palm trees and positioned well off the interstate.  As I saw residential buildings I became increasingly impressed.  Market Street, the main shopping venue, was equally impressive, though shorter than I had envisioned.  I parked my car in a large free lot and walked around downtown.  It was, of course, hot and humid, though ironically not as much as in New York.  Most of the stores carried useless stuff for tourists.  I went through the grocery store and was unimpressed.  It was obvious that it was not a serious place to shop for food or much else.  I found no stores for much else, i.e., everyday stuff.

Music is playing from ankle high speakers all along Market Street and also along the adjacent lake.  It seemed louder at the lake and, though I found the choice of music acceptable, I really did not like the volume.  I'm guessing that it is intended to thwart other musical forms, like rap-crap and hip-hop-slop.

I recognized several of the public buildings, such as city hall and the post office, from the two books that I read about Celebration.  City hall is a misnomer because there is no representative form of government.  This town is a company.  The only map that they had was in the sales brochure, which contained nothing of the outside world.

After I had settled into my apartment, which had everything including a washer/dryer and dish-washer, I walked to the grocery store for a few essentials for dinner and breakfast.  It had already closed at 7:00 PM.  I ventured out of the sanctuary onto route 192 and fell into a glistening other world of lights and wanderers who cannot afford to stay in Disneyworld.  Lots of hotels and restaurants but no sign of stores that sustain a community of residents.  Finally, I decided to enter a Walgreens and saw behind it a supermarket called Publix.  There is no way that supermarket could be seen from 192.  It is ordinary at best with terrible produce.  I wonder if the residents of Celebration ever eat at home.

There's a lot of new construction going on in Celebration.  I started to ride my bike at 9:00 AM today and immediately felt the heat.  Everywhere I went it was beautiful and clean but I don't know if I can take this weather for four months.  I was exploring my potential home community (I saw a turtle, snake and several lizards) for over two hours by the time I saw some model homes.  I went into a couple of the ones that I can afford and found them OK, oddly with the washer, dryer and hot water heater upstairs.

By the time I had cleaned up and eaten it was raining heavily so I still haven't gotten to the sales office, which is called a gallery.  Maybe I've lost some of my enthusiasm, maybe I just wanted to stay home.  Today is the first day that I have not driven in a long time.  I did visit a sales office for a new condo yesterday and learned that the carrying charges may be a lot more than I had anticipated.  I could not learn such essential stuff from New York because, like many other states, New York has laws prohibiting sellers of Florida real estate from divulging information to foreigners.  I had assumed that once I had visited the site that I could return to my home state and then contact the seller with follow up questions.  I was told no.  Who the heck are the idiots who drafted that law protecting?  It's an indication of just how sleazy Florida must have been for a very long time.

I spoke to an independent documentary producer for ESPN Classic today.  He had gotten my name from SABR and called me looking for old New York Giant baseball fans because he's doing a program on the 1951 pennant race with the Brooklyn Dodgers.  That's why I'm using this stupid computer.  I told him that I'd put out an APB.

I even got a call from guy looking for my Baseball Database.  He wants a freebie.  I told him that I had given up the domain name, not mentioning anything about freeloaders, but that I would send him a message with my private web site from which he could download a copy.  Let's see if he pays.

I think I'll try D'Antonio's tonight for what I hope will be an Italian dinner.  Like everything else, it's a block away.  Then I'll watch the final Yankee game against Tampa Bay on TV.  It may be the last time I see the Yankees for a while ... unless I return to New York.

Friday,  August 10, 2001:

Two problems yesterday: no internet and no Yankee game.  The local phone company requires that you dial the area code even for local calls.  I've been conditioned in recent decades to precede that with a 1.  The one prevented me from making local calls including those to the internet.  This morning that was resolved after more crap including the phone jack that I selected for the PC was dead.

I have no idea why the Yankee game against Tampa Bay was not on TV.  This whole state is a puzzle.

Dinner at D'Antonio's was acceptable except for slow service, flying insects (outside) and a jackass sitting next to me with his wife and teenage children running off at the mouth about what a hot shot he was.  I still do not have any sense about the people here.

This morning I shot hoops at Lakeside Park.  Excellent court.  I got out there at 8:00 AM and there was some shade.  I shot well but was sweating profusely.  Of course, I drank plenty of water.  It's supposed to hit 90 degrees every day for the foreseeable future.  I don't know about this weather.  Oddly, I'm often chilly because of the high air conditioning.

Saturday,  August 11, 2001:

The heat.  The heat.

I rode my bike this morning.  I've seen pretty much all of Celebration.  There is one short trail.  The rest of the riding is on the beautiful streets which are flat.  I miss the variety of Westchester, such as hills, and the possibility of the weather changing for the better.

A kindly soul has offered me a ticket to the Sept. 9 Red Sox game at Yankee Stadium.  I've asked that the ticket be held until a week before the game.  My kingdom for a Yankee game, at least on TV.  ESPN has not televised one Yankee game other than two v. the Mets on Sunday night.  I can't even find the stupid Fox Saturday game.

Sunday,  August 12, 2001:

Shot hoops this morning.  Still hot and humid.

In what may be my final chance on this trip to see the Yankees on the ESPN Sunday night game, ESPN is carrying the stupid White Sox-Mariners game instead of the Yankee-As game.  The Yanks are not even the backup.  Rats!

I checked Amtrak for its autotrain from Orlando to Washington, D.C.  The web site is useless for the autotrain, plus, it does not tell you where to find the stations.  I had to call.  The train, number 52, actually goes from Sanford, FL to Lorton, VA.  It leaves at 4:00 PM and arrives at 8:30 AM.  But hey want you there two hours before departure.  What do you do for two hours in the Sanford station?  There's no way to get a private bathroom, i.e., with toilet.  I can see why people drive instead.

Tuesday,  August 15, 2001:

I'm catching the autotrain at 4:00 PM and should return to New York Wednesday evening, August 15.  I left June 15.  I probably won't get onto the internet before Thursday.

Friday,  August 17, 2001:

I'll be looking at condos and coops in White Plains starting today.  The market is even higher and tighter than when I sold in June but I need a place to live.

Saw the last two Yankee games which they won.  My PT Cruiser did not know what was happening to it when I slogged through bumper to bumper traffic in the final 90 minutes entering Queens.

Monday,  August 20, 2001:

Still looking.  I think August is a bad time to look.

Rhinebeck, NY is looking VERY good.  Really low taxes on condos and a new development is opening.  I'm heading up there today.

Wednesday,  August 22, 2001:

Rhinebeck was a wash.  Electric heat with a heat pump could bring utility bills to $200 per month.  The buildings were nothing special and the land had been a farm, not woods.  Rhinebeck has a very busy intersection and winters would be brutal.  There are no parks.  They won't let me have a satellite dish AND they get their drinking water from the river, as they told me.  The Hudson River, I asked.  Yes!  Oh, boy!

White Plains continues to rear its ugly head.  I can't believe the prices!

Thursday,  August 23, 2001:

Yesterday I saw a coop that I liked at the Dorchester, 50 North Broadway in White Plains, NY.  I'm still looking at other things in the mid-Hudson Valley.  The lack of imagination involved in buying a coop in downtown WP bothers me but I need to keep fixed costs down. White Plains is the very definition of lack of  imagination and settling for mediocrity.  And why does it have to be so dirty?

Monday,  August 27, 2001:

Blew another one!  I keep reminding myself that the best deals are ones you don't make.

Wednesday,  August 29, 2001:

Yesterday I had my offer accepted on another larger apartment in the Dorchester.  That was after encouraging, supportive and constructive advice from ... MY MOTHER!  I should know next week if the deal will be completed.

Wednesday, October 17, 2001:

I cancelled the deal at the Dorchester as well as one at the Claridge, 101 Old Mamaroneck Avenue.  Too expensive for coops.  Prices have almost doubled in two years and they no longer are the value they had been because they still have high fixed costs.  I looked in Scarsdale on Garth Road but nothing clicked.  I also looked at townhouses in Bethel, CT and Pawling, NY.

The other day I got an e-mail from the salesman at  Ranch Viejo.  He stated that more lots would become available October 20.  Meanwhile, my attorney has a contract for a one bedroom condo in a luxury building in White Plains.  I'll probably buy that.  I've got to break out of the Big House!

Tuesday, November 20, 2001:

I closed on a one bedroom condo in a luxury building in White Plains.  I have the least expensive unit, the only one without a terrace.  It has indoor parking and a health club.

The End.