Cut the @#%&* cord...again!

I can feel my wife Mona's double eye roll on the back of my neck a mili-second after I hear the pop!; that very distinct circuit breaker snap!followed by a whiff of ozone that crackles! everytime I cut the extension cord with my electric hedge clippers. Silent darkness in the front rooms of our house always immediately follows. Clocks stop, digital plasmas get reset and blink!, animals whine and bark. The Lord's name, usually in vain, passes through my lips in a clumsy whisper. I've been doing this for years...

I did it twice this past weekend; Once on Sunday. Once on Memorial Day. I've already matched my previous season high in the summer of 2008 with a score of two. Including the one I'm buying today on my way home, that makes seven 50ft extension cords I've accidently biten through while trying to cut a path through the Forest Glen jungle we call our yard. And the rainy season is still the proverbial young lion in Chicago during these last days of May.

Now, I'm either gas or battery powered for all my other garage kept machinery; lawn mower, various trimmers, leaf blower, compressor. Only my power washer and my hedge clippers are electric. (I haven't found a way to mess up the power washer yet although my attempt to blast a half foot of snow from my porch and front steps last winter when the wind chill was 10 below zero almost ended in disaster.) I swing a pretty mean sickle as well, and have the scars to prove it. On a positive home improvement note, I did manage to pull a missing silver baby spoon from the bowels of my garbage disposal this morning so at least that annoying noise is gone.

You see, I'm usually the Realtor hired to buy and sell Chicago real estate, not maintain it. Having an oversized 80 x 120 foot lot to care for along with all the other loafing around I do on a daily basis is a little too much to expect from someone who has lived in one condo or another for the past 10 years. I'm wearing my single family home ownership like a loose garment (ok, boxer shorts) these days. I just need to remind myself to not get it chewed up by my hedge clippers while I'm still in it...the loose garment, that is.

Geno Petro

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Chicago Real Estate Cyber-Cred

If you Google my name on any given day, 25,000 or so entries pop up saying pretty much the same thing; Chicago, blah blah blah: Realtor, blah blah blah; Writer/Weblog Commentor, yada yada yada. By simply placing two " "s around the name, the number instantly gets whacked by 66%. Click on the last number at the bottom of the search page and the total amount of entries under "Geno Petro" gets trimmed to either side of 100 after all the 'duplicate' articles and threads get filtered out. Google 'Chicago Real Estate Blogger' and this site can usually be found on Page One, First Position; but by adding a simple 's' to the word 'Blogger,' I fall down below the fold if not off of Page One completely. ("wtf?" he whispers under his breath.)

Now, I'm no Al Gore (al-gor-ithm? hmmm...) but I have to suspect all those wasted characters are how somehow contributing to this global warming mess we're apparently in. I know for a fact that I personally am very wasteful when it come to commas, semi-colons, and dashes. I'm also a big fan of the '...'. I use ... a lot. Those little cyberkinetic dits and dots are like pistachio nuts to me; I can't put them down no matter how detrimental red dye is to the environment. See, I just did it again. I just snuck another semi-colon.

On a positive note, at least I make good use of the Recycle Bin. Google is both smart and stupid at the same time. It thinks I'm important in some ways but doesn't really know or understand why. It's always messing around with my Page Rank 3, 4, 5, 4, 3. I consider it a fickle friend who does and doesn't know I exist. It talks a big game at first then betrays me the nanosecond someone else puts quotation marks around my name, ready to trim (laser) the fat right down to the bone for whomever dares to go (click) the distance. The question remains; where do all those wasted words end up? Just a lazy thought for a dreamy Monday. (This is a re-post)

Geno Petro

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It's Not Just About Chicago Real Estate

I just posted on the Bloodhound Blog. (ps... follow this link to check out my entire Bloodhound Archives.)

G

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She's riding on my behalf

Hello all you Chicago Real Estate mavens, pundits, and blog hounds. I'm posting the following message from my lovely wife, Mona, who will be riding the Multiple Sclerosis Tour de Farms 2009 on my behalf. We greatly appreciate your support if you are able to contribute. (And if not, good wishes and encouragement will be gladly and equally accepted!)

On June 12 – 14, I will be riding on behalf of my Husband, Geno Petro in the National Multiple Sclerosis Bike for MS Tour de Farms.
(No animals attending except for, perhaps, our Dog Elvis.) My Riding Goal is 150 miles! OH MY THIGHS!

My Fund Raising Goal is $3000.00. Sounds like a lot, but I know that with the support of you, my Friends and Family, it can be achieved or exceeded. Please pledge what you can. Every $ - $$$$ helps. (See attached link below) Geno and I sincerely appreciate your Contribution!

Kind Regards;

Mona Petro
Chicago, IL


PS: After the Bike Ride (assuming I can just walk to the car – HA), I will let you know how I did.

Geno, although not able to ride, will be working as a Volunteer. You know there has to be a story or two in store for the rest of us later!

Mona has shared the following link with you. To view it or to reply to the message, please click below:


Please Visit Here


Gratefully,


Geno

True Chicago Grid

In the early 1900s, Chicagoan Edward P. Brennan proposed a city street system that generally lays out as follows:

Every 8 Blocks equals 1 Mile and House Address Numbers are assigned at a rate of 800 per.

Every 4 Blocks is a major Secondary Street.

Even Numbered Addresses are on the West and North sides of each street.

Odd Numbered Addresses are on the East and South sides of each street.

The intersection of State (0) and Madison (1) is Ground Zero.

Several Diagonal Streets screw it all up.

See picture above. It was taken from my window as I landed into O'Hare last Saturday night.

My house is the one on the corner of 5078 West and 5300 North in the Forest Glen neighborhood of Chicago. (You do the math; I have a hard enough time with spelling.) If you look closely you'll notice a three story Victorian on the corner with a white lamp post in the front yard.

Hint: It's the one with the porch light on. Pretty cool, huh?

images taken from 'first class' seat 1a, somewhere too high in the sky en route to chicago from bloodhound unchained in phoenix. i have now exhausted all frequent flier miles and amex awards points. i guess its 'coach' the rest of the year for me, baby; peanuts, ice water, and wrinkled linen---among other inconveniences.



Geno Petro