Picky Landlords

The landlords Jared and I had in Portland, Oregon screwed us out of most of our deposit after we left last year. We spend HOURS cleaning that bloody flat, and it was really clean, but the greedy landlords came up with all sorts of stuff to charge us for so that we got back some measly $20 or so. Sounds like my grandma's husband who told me when he rented places he would never give back the deposits, just come up with stuff to charge his tenets for so he could keep the money.

Here in Cape Town we were renting from a German couple who hired a guy to take care of their flat when they aren't here. So he did the choosing of who to rent it out to and was the go-to guy. We have been really pleased with him as the psuedo landlord.

The German couple came back a month ago so Jared and I moved to another flat for our last 6 weeks just up the road. We in fact look out at our old front door from our current window.

The Germans were quite friendly when they came back and we gave them their keys etc. They even waved the next day when they were leaving their place. But then the waving stopped and I figured something was wrong but wasn't sure what it was.

We got a call from the go-to guy and he came over yesterday. Turns out the Germans are upset about a few things in their flat. The blanket on the sofa was ruined they said, a drawer was missing a handle, there was some burn marks on the floor, a piece of the coffee table veneer was chipped off, the awning was damaged, and here is my favorite: the cushions on the sofa were flat. She asked him what we did with the stuffing. I was tempted to tell him that we sold it since we had heard there was a good black market for cushion stuffing. He agreed that they were being really picky and said it was because they are German (he used to live there).

I agree the blanket was pretty tattered as it was poorly made, and we'd be happy to pay for a new one. All the drawer handles were present and accounted for when we left, never used the awnings but the sun is pretty intense here and damages things quickly that then get blown to bits in the extremely strong winds that blow most the summer. The cushions, well, guess we sat on our assess too much on the couch.

I don't think they have rented their place out long-term before as all this stuff is normal wear and tear. Maybe they won't again! They spend 3 months a year in South Africa and I don't think they need the money from the rental, so they should just leave it sit if they are going to be so picky.

Goodness, I hope our next landlords are better! Need to own those picky places in myself now...

Car Accident

Coming home from a weekend away this Monday we were in a car accident. We were 5 minutes from our apartment when our friend's car was rear-ended by a pick-up at a backed up traffic light. As we approached the light, she had to slam the brakes to not hit the car in front of us. As we sat there at the light, there was the crunching sound of sheet metal and plastic and a strong jolt and my head slammed back into the headrest. I sat there for a few moments wondering what had happened because I knew we had stopped before hitting the car in front of us.

Fortunately the traffic had started moving at the same time he hit us so that we were not pushed into the car in front of us. No one was seriously injured, there was no blood. I was so shocked I don't know if I would have been able to use my first aid training. I remained quite shaken up for the next few hours as we waited for everything to be sorted out at the accident site, details to be exchanged, then to the police station where I waited in the car to make sure no one stole from the broken boot. I only started to come back into my body when were we at the car repair shop.

I believe that everything, or nearly everything has meaning, a message. Being rear-ended in a car seems to be about either taking my power or be powerfully pushed from behind. It also seems to be about moving forward. That I am not moving forward enough in my life and so am getting the message it's time to move forward, take action, be powerfully who I am and go for what I want.

I also find it very curious the conversation that had happened in the car. Our friend that was driving is going through a lot in her life: divorce, new relationship that isn't working, health problems. So nearly the entire car ride had been talking about what she is going through and the energy was quite frenetic and ungrounded.

Just before we were rear-ended I was talking about Jared and I's spiritual teacher in Oregon, USA. At the moment of the crash, I was saying how his weekly groups are quite confrontational and people accept that when being a part of it. Humm....another message perhaps?

I have found the accident to be more emotionally jarring than physical, though my neck was quite sore. Our friend's back and neck, which causes her discomfort already, went into spasms and she had to go to the doctor and get an injection for it.

But, we are very lucky, no one was seriously hurt, both drivers have insurance, the guy who hit us was very helpful and concerned. If we had been listening more intently, we would have heard the universe giving us these messages without being in a car accident, but I'm glad I was listening enough that it wasn't worse.