Now listen carefully everyone!

Robin4
Level 10
Mount Barker, Australia

Now listen carefully everyone!

 

Do you have the feeling this is our CEO........

 

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Every day we are confronted with a new revelation. Every day puts new doubts in our minds.

 

But, I have found the last month to be really stress free. I have been able to spend some time with my kids and 'grandies', I have not had that daily bed to make, cottage to service. One morning I slept until 9.15 am...and I didn't feel guilty out it. I have had a few guests over the past few weeks but, now there is nothing because I can't take a risk that Ade might pick up the coronavirus. She is on imuno suppressant drugs for her MS which leaves her particularly vulnerable! And I have suddenly realised, I have my life back.

I hate what this is doing to the world , but in actual fact it has been good for my family. It has taken some of the emphasis off, my life and other people.

 

*

 

Youngest daughter Kate and her partner Chris just bought and moved into a house on the central coast of NSW..

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Seeing as they had that pool, I borrowed @Fred13  'Bird Island' water taxi for the grandies to have a bit of fun in.......

 

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As we were going over for a few weeks Kate said she really wanted the rear porch and outside laundry made into a 'mud room'. So I put my hand up to supply and build it for her.

The porch was just a junk area at the back of the house......

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If you look closely at those glass panel doors you will notice, they don't match! The goose who put those doors in, bought 12 of them when he last remodeled the house, and by the time he came to the back door he used the best two of the four that remained....never mind that they didn't match...those two required the least restoration work for him at the time. The end result of that was there was an identical set of doors under the house that.....did not match.

 

I bought what I needed, built a frame......

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I did the required renovation work on the doors (except for the painting which I hate and didn't want to get involved with) and re-matched the doors so they were at least in matching pairs.......

 

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And Kate ended up with her mudroom......complete with enclosed laundry.

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She was so over the moon and I felt a real sense of achievement ....and I was just able to concentrate on something other than Airbnb.

 

I am looking forward to this break from hosting, the last two years have been solid going, just received our last Superhost notification which showed we hosted 106 reservations for the year comprising over 300 hosting nights.

It really is time for a break where I can chalk up some quality time,  maybe get to give @Sarah977 a run for her money and spend some more here....if I will be tolerated!

 

I don't wish ill on anyone but right now, the smell of roses is pretty good! I hope other hosts can get a bit of comfort out of the situation we have been thrust into and I wish you all a safe passage over this next few months.

 

Cheers.......Rob

 

 

 

39 Replies 39
Fred13
Level 10
Placencia, Belize

Your post perfectly captured the essence of my present thinking & appreciation. I am well aware that 'Western Economic Man' (which I am a classic example of) oftentimes goes & goes non-stop till he drops and it is hard to get off the merry-go-round of a life driven by the accumulation of wealth. Heck, if we do not do 'something' each day to improve 'something', we feel guilty. Of course the wisest among us are well aware of this 'race' we are so easily caught in, but it is hard to stop, unless forced to.

 

Yesterday while working on the new upstairs studio with a gorgeous view of the atoll I was watching the eagle rays below me, the Permits (pompano type of fish) tailing, Mija and her kids (finches) argue over the bird feeder, Rango the iguana was feeding on the flowers of a Moho tree (I didn't know he was still around since I brought him to the island when he was just 6-inch long 4 years ago, now he is 3-foot long!), and the barracudas spinning like digirables planning their next lazer-like move toward their prey. Is this what my last 500 non-stop guests for 5 straight years gotten to see? 

 

When I got home last night to the mainland the first thing I did is move all my Airbnb ~May~ guests into the future, since I was already dreading possibly restarting the hosting dreadmill in just a few mere weeks. I am already moving June ones. My Mrs. agreed, heck she has never been happier waking up without a care, after 5 straight years. 

 

Now I can create the little idealic little world I always wanted and of course if I building it -they will come. 

Robin4
Level 10
Mount Barker, Australia

@Fred13 

I have always felt, the worth of a man is measured by the footprint he leaves behind! Some leave a footprint that history would love to erase, some leave the world a better place.

I have followed the progress of Bird Island since the time it was not even a high water mark refuge from the Caribbean.

You have taken Bird Island from the ocean to Wall Street, Fred! The sense of accomplishment you must be feeling is immense. You have had such a positive influence on so many lives, the footprint you leave behind will be vastly greater than Bird Island!

Bask in the glow of your self achievement Fred........ you deserve it!

 

Cheers.......Rob 

Thank you for the kind word @Robin4, just got back from the island; next time will post pictures.

Wow @Fred13 , First, thank you for your service!  Secondly, Wow again, what a beautiful place.  Yup, you definitely need to rent it to yourself a few times a year once Covid puts us back to work.   Enjoy and stay well, JR

Huma0
Level 10
London, United Kingdom

@Fred13 

 

What about 'Western Economic Woman'?

 

🙂

'Man' is a collective noun, as in MANkind. 🙂  

 

You can probaly surmise by now I am no fan of Political Correctness, and a few years ago I ~heard~ and never have forgotten, that in England, of all places considering they are such bright people with such a rich contributing history which I thoroughly admire, they pass a law of sorts that every other month 'Jack & Jill', would become 'Jill & Jack'. I often wonder which month Jill gets first billing. For some odd reason I tend to remember such silly things. 

Robin4
Level 10
Mount Barker, Australia

@Fred13 

Having spent my life as a mechanical services contractor Fred, to inspect a property roofspace meant, I had to access via the manhole..oops...the 'person hole'! And on many occasions I had to present my proposals to the board chairman...oops...chairperson.

 

To go back a bit in time, when I did my electrical contractors course, my first year I was a  Freshman...oops..first year student. At one point before I got my ticket I had to present a scenario to the assessment panel, and part of that assessment meant I had to use the services of a cameraman...oops...camera operator. After getting my licence a few of us had a celebratory lunch out and managed ......oops...was able to secure the services of not just one waitress.....oops....server, but two. 

 

I could go on and on but I am with you Fred......but for the life of me I can't quite understand why a woman wants to be seen as a man ...I way prefer them the way they are!

 

Cheers.....Rob

Melodie-And-John0
Level 10
Munnsville, NY

@Robin4 (Rob), how awesome, making lemonade out of lemons and enjoying the fruits of your labors!   We have been lucky to be able to enjoy the break and get some much needed stuff done as well, it kinda feels like a test run of retirement.   I do miss getting out and socializing a bit but we have what we need to get though this in pretty fair shape and as callous as it may sound, we will likely have less competition when its all said and done, I'm guessing we will do well when things return to the new normal,  stay well, JR

Hi @Robin4 , I just had a Victorian guest turned away at the border (this morning)! They are moving to Adelaide and had booked for 20 nights.. Such is life. Must be different in Bordertown today. I feel like we are in a movie.. Cheers, Charles.

@Charles224 , so sorry to hear that, Im sure that 20 days worth of booking could really help right now.  We were lucky to get a 4 night this morning from a lineman that has been working here for a couple months.  Im glad he already knows what we expect as far as separation and sanitation.   Your so right about the Movie thing, it has every piece of Hollyweird drama and anticipation in play except the actors being able to walk away when the cameras stop rolling.  My prediction is after this is over, were not gonna be looking forward to many movie nights at home, maybe appreciate a walk and a chat with the neighbors outside a whole lot more than we have in a very long time. Stay well, JR

Robin4
Level 10
Mount Barker, Australia

@Charles224 

Yeah Charles, I feel for you mate...and I can't help feeling we may have gone a bit overboard with the protection of our boundaries. You will possibly be interested in this Charles as here is the most up to date report on Covid-19 in South Australia as of this evening......

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I have had a devil of as time keeping track of this, every few hours they keep changing it. I think it is now current!

 

What I can say for sure, in the last 24 hours we have had one new confirmed case, and we have not had a death here in this state. In total we have just 411 cases. While some other states are still on the rise, we seem to be on the way down.....and I don't think that is a good thing! Because so few of us have been exposed and infected here we are going to leave ourselves open to re-infection from those states that are still on the rise. We are after all a state on 1.5 million inhabitants!

Although the federal government tried to institute a uniform set of policies for Australia, each state seems to have ignored that and gone off and done their own thing. I like the way we as a state have got this under control but, it doesn't matter where you walk here, there are no signs of panic, you are battling to even see a face mask, but, I can't help feeling, it's a wasted effort and it's only going to take a few 'border hoppers' to get the whole thing up and running again! Sorry you have lost that booking Charles, but maybe it is for the best!

 

I hope you can weather this out OK Charles.....all the best mate!

 

Cheers......Rob

 

 

Sarah977
Level 10
Sayulita, Mexico

@Robin4 Nice job on the porch! Yes, please post about 50 times a day- I would love to drop down on that top posters list. Then you can get the PMs from hosts who think you're some kind of expert just because you post a lot :))

Robin4
Level 10
Mount Barker, Australia

@Sarah977 

Your knowledge is infinitely greater than some of those paid 'Experts' Sarah, and it's people like you that make this Community Centre successful....and in fact, the reason it even exists.

 

The CC was set up to take some pressure off company support. You would possibly be surprised to learn that (of the users who came here) in excess of 62% of their issues are solved right here on the CC.

 

Statistic from https://ipropertymanagement.com/research/airbnb-statistics

 

These are problems that did not need to be passed on up the line of support to be dealt with.

 

None of us know everything.....but collectively there is not a lot we don't know, the only real frustration being, the way the company keeps us guessing.

 

Sarah there would be a massive hole in this level of support if you were not here.......you are an expert, don't for a second doubt it!

 

Cheers......Rob

 

 

@Robin4  Aw, shucks, thanks for the kind words. But I have to say that a lot of the advice I give here is not gleaned from my own personal experience, but an amalgam of all the other helpful advice and situations that fellow hosts have shared here. If it weren't for all of you, I'd know next to nothing about hosting business. (I'll admit, though, that there's a bit of insight from 50 adult years of dealing with a myriad of human life forms)