Sittin’ around enjoying the effects of covid — which, BTW, are milder than expected just now — and ogling real estate ads.
As I mentioned yesterday, I stumbled upon a real estate ad for my parents’ home out in Sun City. Nicely updated. Very pleasant. Cheap, too: real estate out there is hugely undervalued, when compared with other middle-class tracts in Phoenix. It last sold for $255,000, about a hundred grand less than I could get for the Funny Farm.
Would I want to live there?
Not in THAT house: too much old baggage. But in fact, Sun City has quite a few pleasant, highly livable houses that are perfect for a single person or an aging couple.
So this morning I found myself reconsidering. Maybe I wouldn’t mind living in a ghetto for old folks, not so very much. The houses are designed for couples or singles. When updated, they have everything you’d want and then some. As the West Side has expanded out in that direction, there’s no lack of amenities: Costco stores, grocery shopping, a huge old-fashioned shopping mall full of retail stores, a big hospital, doctors, whatnot upon whatnot.
If I stay put:
a) Here I have to put up with Tony’s depredations, now inflicted by his home for juvenile delinquents across the street.
But…do I care? Truly, why SHOULD I give a damn? The brats are quiet most of the time. Does that institution depress property values? Probably: but again: why do I care unless I’m hot to sell the house and move?
b) The crime flowing along Conduit of Blight Blvd is a problem.
And there’s no answer to that. As we saw just yesterday, the cops-and-robbers highjinks can be quite a problem. It’s an issue that’s certainly not going to go away…and that very likely will get worse.
c) This house is fairly close to my son. He can get here easily and I can get to his place easily. More to the point, we can go out to eat (whenever the plague ends) at the drop of a hat, and many appealing eateries are all around us.
d) This house is sorta kinda within driving distance of the Mayo, the best medical facility in the Valley. If I lived in Sun City, I’d have to charter a helicopter to get out there! And given the experience we had with my mother’s hideous final illness, well…I am NOT impressed with the medical folks in Sun City.
If I move out there:
a) It’s a pretty safe area to live. Crime rates are very low.
Again, though: do I care? Am I not armed to the teeth? Do I not have a dog that goes batsh!t anytime someone comes around?
b) The houses are designed for the convenience and comfort of singletons and couples.
A-n-n-d…why, again, do I care? My present house was built by the same developer who built those tracts, and the layout is very similar to the places out there.
c) Given the endlessly time-consuming and crazy-making drive between North Central Phoenix and Sun City, I’d never see my son. Neither one of us would welcome that traipse.
d) My parents’ experience with the medical offerings out there was beyond horrific. Incompetent, uncaring doctors; fuckup after fuckup; neglect…did I mention “uncaring”?
e) Getting to the Mayo would be impractical. It’s a bitch to drive out there now, and Sun City is twice as far from the Mayo as I am here. Dealing with doctors is always difficult — more so when you’re elderly and the sight of your gray hair and your wrinkles elicits all sorts of presumptions and prejudices. But at least the Mayo’s doctors are by and large competent….quite the opposite of our experience during my mother’s final illness.
No. I’m pretty sure I don’t wanna live out in Sun City. Mighty sure, come to think of it…
Too bad. It does have some advantages, not least of which are the economically designed house plans. Yet my house works just fine for me — one bedroom too many, it’s true, but BFD. And I do like having a swimming pool. And not having to worry too much about coyotes coming after my pint-sized pup. And having a Sprouts AND an AJ’s AND a Walmart AND a Costco AND three large supermarkets within a couple minutes’ driving distance. And having young couples and their cute li’l kids as neighbors.
Hmmm… Speaking of the sociological conditions…. Yeah!
Here’s a cop helicopter circling right over the street just north of me. And circling. And circling. And circling. And cir….on and on. Now he’s right over the house…
DAYUM! I was just about to go out and fire up the barbecue, thereon to heat up one of the gorgeous lamb shanks I picked up yesterday. And to toss on some frozen taters.
Hmmm… Not about to strap a pistol to my waist. So…wot to do?
We could microwave the dinner.
Ugh. Great way to ruin a beautiful piece of expensive meat. Nor do I care for soggy microwaved potatoes.
Heat them in pans on the stove?
Right. That’ll make a fine mess to clean up.
Pour another glass of wine and watch what happens next?
Hmmmmm…. Okay. Time to decide:
- Drink myself into a stupor waiting for the cops and the perps to go away?
- Fire up the grill and risk my life, for the sake of a lamb shank and a fistful of fries?
- Continue surfing the Web?
- Toss the dog in the car and drive down to Encanto Park, there to kill an hour or so?
- Toss the dog in the car and drive over to Petco, there to see if I can score a dog harness proclaiming that Ruby is a “service dog,” which would let me take her into AJ’s with me?
No kidding. Some guy who’s a regular there has got a dwarf dog no bigger than Ruby, gussied up in a harness proclaiming that it’s a service dog. Nobody does a THING to stop him from taking his dog into the grocery store.
Hmmmm…More from the young folks on the neighborhood Facebook page:
Cheryl:
Citizens App says Circle K was robbed
Bobby:
(Inserts image from cell phone)
Lorraine:
Thanks, Bobby. I didn’t see anything on AZfamily or ABC15. Anyone know?
Liz, Top contributor:
At least 20 police cars at 19th Ave and Florence
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