I went to look at houses today.

It was actually very promising. There's one I think I'm going to make an offer on tomorrow. I crunched numbers and it's tight, but I think I can make it work.

OMG there is nothing like a good 80s rock ballad.

Got a playlist going. Onto Simply Red's "If You Don't Know Me By Now". It's like I'm back in time, slow-dancing with that cute boy from middle school science class again.

#cosomusic

@mcfate Same. Blocking folks w/impunity. Ain't nobody got time for that miserable shyte.

Twitter is a great place for getting folks to feel miserable about the world.

Veering towards housing news, I started a GoFundMe to help raise $$$ for a down payment.

I'm working on saving a chunk, will also have access to down payment assistance, & can take a loan against my retirement funds if need be. So I've got some resources, just need a bit more.

Here's the fund, if anybody's interested: https://gofund.me/5edfe997

@LPH6 Thanks - me too. I was fortunate to have grandparents who parented me, but they died in the late 90s. Sometimes I think of them & think of how they'd respond to something like this & it helps.

@PurpleEggsNHam Yeah sometimes it's hard understanding that you didn't really have proper parenting parents. I'm sorry yours were like that, in whatever way they were.

@LPH6 Yeah me & sib are allllll on the same page when it comes to our parents' uh... "parenting". TY for the congrats! I just have to save/raise $$ for the down payment.

What isn't surprising is the lack of support. I learned years ago that I just wouldn't have it from them, regardless.

I excuse it away as dad being preoccupied w/mom's health (she has Parkinson's & he's her primary caregiver), but this isn't really a surprise. Usually they'd tell me all about how I'll fail. I'm almost grateful neither of them has the energy or focus to tear me down for once.

Not a congratulations, or "cool!", or advice, or encouragement, or even criticism - they didn't respond *at all*.

& I know they were on the chat bc I'd just wrapped up a convo about my mom's health.

I don't have the most uh... comfortable relationship with my parents. There's a lot of history there.

Yesterday I mentioned in a family chat that I'd qualified for mortgage pre-approval & am looking to buy a house, woo!

Sibling already gave their congrats. Parents didn't say a word.

@Lingitta Fair. It's rough being her, knowing how things are like that. I wish I were able to leave, but a) I don't have the resources, & b) very broadly, nowhere I'd live particularly wants Americans & our bullshit.

@Lingitta I don't blame you, the US is uh... yeah, it's a bit of a mess at the moment. There are places that are better to visit than others, fwiw. I'm planning trips to NYC, LA & even Cape Canaveral at some point, to see the space shuttles. What is it that makes you turn around & not go?

@thedisasterautist That sounds amazing, frankly! If a bit chilly...

On one trip to England I stayed the night in a 17th-century country church. It was awesome. No sound but the clock ticking away...

@thedisasterautist Oh right on. Yeah last time I was in the UK we checked out an abbey that had been dismantled during Henry VIII's Dissolution. The signs of that are allll over England too.

@coolserenity I also like "Unearthed", for more wide-ranging historical stuff. Similar format, but they focus on one site for the entire hour & use CGI to blow the site apart & explore the insides. Learned something every time from that as well.

@coolserenity It's "Mysteries of the Abandoned." One of those Discovery+ shows that's kind of slicked up & the music is overdramatic & the narration is simple, but I still enjoy it - I've learned something every single episode I've watched.

Every time I've visited Europe, too, the marks of both world wars are everywhere. Churches, especially. Sometimes it's hard to tell what's the focus of veneration at a church: is it war, or is it god?

The last time we had a war on US soil was the US Civil War, & half the nation glorifies that as an upholding of institutionalized racism & white supremacy. We've learned little.