Just finished watching "The Big Short" {2015} the True Story done in a Dark Comedy about the 2008 Banking Collapse. I saw a lot of that coming, being that in my 1st Corporate Life I saw the Industries greed and corruption as a Bank Executive handling their distressed Real Estate, Internal Audits, and trying to mitigate their Losses caused by Subprime Lending and other shit Lending practices of the Era and it's Bubble bursting. I got out of the Banking Industry before the huge Government Bailouts.
Which screwed the American Taxpayers, since we all had to Bankroll it, and the Industry exploited even that, giving themselves huge Bonuses for Failing and being Corrupt as fuck. But a lot of that was going off the Rails long before 2008 in actuality. And... so much still goes on and I don't have Trust in the Systems as they stand, even now, perhaps even less so. As the end of the Movie so adeptly states, they'll always blame the Immigrants and the Poor in the end... and, they do. The Son knew I'd not seen this Movie, but lived thru the whole Scene, so, he knew I'd like it.
It was rather like revisiting the scene of a major Crime or Train Wreck, many Years later. It doesn't feel Good to be Right when so much goes Wrong tho'. The Global implications were dire. But, I know I wasn't the Lone Ranger being one of the Weirdos paying Attention and seeing what was suspect and either being covered up or ignored, so long as Money was flowing from it into some Pockets. Nobody wanted to Believe you then, they don't wanna Believe you now when you give dire forewarnings that might panic them to acknowledge or even consider. Cue in the C&W Lyrics... Gloom, Despair, and Agony on me... {Roy Clark and Buck Owens, Hee Haw} *LOL and Eye Roll*
Anyway, the Movie was done superbly with a lot of very good Dark Humor, famous Actors in the roles, like Christian Bale, Brad Pitt, Steve Carell, Ryan Gosling... it Won an Oscar, not Surprising. Well, in my long Banking Career I saw a lot... a lot that was almost as Bad as what I saw in my long Career at the DA's Office actually. And why I don't miss either of my Corporate Lives at all. Even tho' the Money was good as a Bank Executive, my Moral Compass had Issues with how the Industry was going, even back then, since, from the early 1980's I saw enuf to know things would be seriously going sideways, with the S&L's, which I was an AVP of one, running Three Departments.
Thirty Two Percent of S&L's failed then, the ones I worked for being just some of them. I quit and went to Hawaii as I saw the Industry was going to Tank, I saw it coming. They did hire me on as a Consultant for the RTC, Resolution Trust Corporation, which maximized Value for the Sale of Assets from failed S&L's and trying to minimize and mitigate damage to Markets. It paid well and was the damage control being run by the Government for that Crisis. I worked Two Hours a Day and did Clean Up on what had been royally Fucked Up. Some were Indicted, not nearly enuf who were responsible, as always.
But the Industry learned nothing from it, which resulted in the 2008 Crisis much later with the Bank Giants. Customers and Taxpayers are always the Big Losers with Corporate Corruption on a large scale like that. Go figure. And again, few were Indicted for causing any of it and so what was the Messaging and Consequences? Exactly. Kinda like Bad Politics now... same-o same-o so none of it is New or particularly Surprising. Just worsening IMO and Observations. I'm one who pays attention to subtle nuances and things that look 'Off'... and, a lot is looking quite 'Off' to me on so many levels that I just don't Blog about it as much as I probably should. Since, whose even listening or paying attention, except a scant few... until the Shit hits the Fan?
Anyway, keeping Peace at The Asylum is my biggest challenge these days. Since it can be a volatile bunch of personalities that trigger one another over nothing or anything at all sometimes, if they fail to Mood Regulate appropriately. Each has their Mental Health Challenges, so, Getting along and playing well with others isn't a strong point with Three of them. So, Princess T and I end up being the Moderators and Mediators most of the time, to keep everyone in their own Corners. When we can see any or all of them start getting on the Crazy Train and it begins to leave the Station, threatening to go Wheels Off the Rails if someone doesn't put the Brakes on and diffuse it from escalating into Chaos and complete Madness. I don't want to have to kick anyone out again, but, everyone has to be in compliance and respectful and considerate of each other.
The Son and The Man can go from being pleasant to being Jerks. And if they set The Daughter Off, she's the most likely to go Postal and totally lose her Shit. She rarely starts anything anymore, but she will sure as shit end it with a flourish. Both of the Guys have a tendency to project Anger about things outside of Family Life outwards randomly and inappropriately. So, I try to tell the Guys, hey, knock it off, if either or both of them strays into Jerk Territory when in a Sour Mood and not dealing well with stuff. So, just doesn't know when to shut up, back off, quit being an Asshole for no good reason at all. Don't EVEN go on a Patriarchal Bender or I'll come unglued on your Testosterone laden Ass and be busting some Balls. *Winks*
Of coarse neither of them likes it when I side with whoever didn't start whatever it is and I don't really Care. The Daughter goes to Work Three Days and Week and then still helps me with all Housekeeping, Unpaid Caregiving of her Dad, at the Antique Mall, and the Projects I've got going on here at the Property, which are considerable. The Son can get pompous about Working Full Time and Overtime at a Job outside the Home, as if that's somehow Superior "Work" coz he gets Paid for it. And, we all know he's not happy at Work and it's stressful... but, it's not as if us Gals are Stress Free and not making contributions to the Collective. My intention is to diffuse Situations tho', since none of them seems capable of just walking away from being confrontational and saying too much. My Mantra has always been, if what I'm about to say isn't an improvement over Silence, just don't say it.
The Man doesn't like it when the Adult Kiddos fight, so, the he gets in the mix with his Addled Self, and he's partial to his Girls, so, it's not as if he's unbiased or even logical with his Brain Damage. So, he ends up escalating things rather than being Helpful at all. He shows Gender Preference and Bias, which I personally didn't grow up that way. My Dad was a Man who came from a Matriarchal Tribal Society, and, treated my Brother and I equally and with no Gender preferences or barriers based on being a Male or a Female, or even being a Two Spirit Being. The Man grew up in a Culture that was harder on the Sons and Grandsons, all that Machisimo bullshit. I don't Like it and he knows that. If I'm taking a Side it will be based on whose Right or Wrong, not what Gender they are. But, Patriarchal shit does Trigger me big time. And if someone is Angry, it's best they just remain Quiet... the Angrier I am the Quieter I get.
By the time I go Silent or Walk away, know you're likely Fucked and it's in your best Interest that I did. *LOL* If you want to really Set me Off, try to act Superior becoz you're a Man and I'm a Woman and think you got a big enuf Pair to Square Off with me. I will delight in taking your Ass down even if I Love you. So, The Man, the Son and The Grandsons know better than to Test my Waters unless they are damned sure they're a strong enuf Swimmer not to Drown in them. Tonight was a Night such as that when The Son just got cocky and was disrespecting the 'Work' his Sister does. As compared to all his 'Work', which, frankly, isn't enuf for him to Support himself either and get his own place. So, Pleeease spare us all the pompous and arrogant self-righteous importance of your Value Son. *Eye Roll*
I managed to get The Daughter NOT to lay Hands on him, since, she was ready to go completely Schizo when he kept poking The Beast and wouldn't shut up even after told to numerous times. Never a wise idea when you know someone is a Schizophrenic. But, an Autistic's Social Cues are fucking abysmal and they really can't seem to Read the Room at all. To know when enough is enough, stop already, your Filter is absent or broken and you really have disrespected or offended people. Social faux pas with The Son and Allen are a Given, since their Autism really shows up and their failure to interpret nonverbal cues, or even Tone of verbal ones, is a struggle for both of them. It's what got Allen kicked out permanently and The Son kicked out a few times temporarily.
Allen seems incapable of "owning" when he took it a Bridge too far and has no repentance, The Son is better at accountability and apology. But, you know you will be revisiting it all again, since, they never get 'better' from their Condition and there is no Cure. Not for Serious Mental Illness Diagnosis of any kind actually, so, you just Deal with it all from Situation and Episode to Situation and Episode. It's on Repeat. Brain Damage and Dementia is also a continuous Freefall and decline from which there is little, to no, levels of eliminating the complications from it that cause Situations to arise continuously. Most of the time they do Okay, but everything is Fine until it's not. Right now I got everyone to just go to Bed and Tomorrow will be a Brand New Day.
THE BRAND NEW DAY: Well, all is well this Morning and Calmed Down from the Drama of the Night Before. As is usually the case once everyone is Centered and Calmer again. They probably won't even remember what they were fussing with each other about, it was that incidental and irrelevant. Anyway, I've got an Event to attend this Morning, which I look forward to, but will have The Man in tow, since, he likes this Event and whose Hosting it, so can tolerate it well. I'm glad he engages during it, a good Social experience for him and gets him interacting with people in a way that he usually doesn't. He isolates too much, but, he was reclusive even before his Brain Injury, so, it's his Nature to be Introverted and Solitary, he prefers it.
The problem with bringing him to an Event is it means I also have to watch out for him and be in Caregiver Mode the whole time. That does put a damper on my experience doing something Social and enjoyable for me. Sometimes a Friend of mine will engage him and tell me it's okay, I can go do me and they'll make sure he's Okay. But, they're Hosting their Event, so I don't want to expect that from anyone, this is their Livelihood, not an Adult Day Care. *LOL* Nan, who owns the Antique Mall next door to the Event, tells me if he needs to, I can always send him over to her and she'll give him little things to do for her, he likes to be Helpful and it does help her out.
Once the Event fills up, he'll often opt out to go over to Nan's where it's not as hectic and a lot less of a crowd of Shoppers. Nan's Store is bigger and spread out, so it never seems as crowded as an Occasional Event gets that is only running for Four Days of the Month. My Friend Shelly has an Antique Haberdashery Cabinet I like and am waffling about Buying. She's agreeable to giving me 20% Off and taking payments, so that's not the hesitation, it's Condition. The one almost exactly like it I bought from my Friends Roman and Geisel was probably in use until they bought it, so is in Primo Condition, even tho' it's probably over a Century Old. Above is my Mercantile/Haberdashery Cabinet as Roman and Geisel had it Displayed at their Event prior to me Buying it. I bought the Table below it too. Below is Shelly's as she had it at last Month's Event.
Shelly's was obviously neglected and had a harder Life, in Storage that wasn't ideal and got damaged, some of the Glass is missing and there's obvious Water damage to some parts. Someone also Painted this one, which is not a complete Negative, since I like the now weathered Grey it's in and the original Wood probably wouldn't be in great shape without Paint. That said, it's a Rare piece and Sourcing Two of them within a couple Years time span, when I'd NEVER seen any in all my Years of Collecting before that, is even Rarer Serendipity. So, a part of me knows if I Pass on it, I'd have regrets, almost certainly. But, due to Condition, how useful would it be for my actual Purpose intended, of Storing Antique Fabrics? I'll have to assess that Today and be realistic about it. The Son is a Glazier so could replace Glass for me in it and now works in a Cabinet Making Business.
Even with 20% Off I'll need to do some considerable Restoration, so I'd rather be in it for around only $300. Since it's a risk I can even clean it up enuf to put Antique Fabrics in it? At $300 I could also Cash her out on it Today. Some of the Drawers still have a decent Wooden bottom, others are missing it, or the Glass, or the bottom got Water damage at some point and will need replacement. There will be a lot of Work I'll have to put into it before it's useful to me. A Rare piece is worth it tho' and when would I ever find another one, you know? I think she said she Sourced this in Missouri, Roman had Sourced theirs in Texas. You don't find pieces like these in Arizona anymore and I'm not Traveling on Picks to Source anything these days. My Traveling Nomadic Life is long over now. I'll see what I can further Negotiate on it with her that both of us would feel is Fair?
I can Walk away from any Deal if I can't Square it with myself that I should pull the Trigger. I'm detached from anything until it's actually mine and I then form any attachments. *LOL* But I would rather not have Non Buyer's Remorse. I never have Buyer's Remorse, since I don't impulse Buy anything and if I can't make my Money on the Buy, I don't even consider it to Own. It's all subjective when it comes to Value IMO, since, to me, anything is only really worth what someone IS willing to Pay for it. I don't Care what Value you place on anything if it remains Unsold, clearly it wasn't worth it to anyone no matter what the Market claims it should bear. Supply and Demand dictates literally everything at the end of the day. What is the Supply, what is the Demand for it? Anything else is irrelevant and it shifts constantly.
A Dear Friend's Oldest Daughter was here in Arizona on Business from Florida. I watched her grow up and was present at her Oldest Son's Birth 27 Years ago, but, it had been a long time since I'd seen her. She came with One of her Four Kiddos and a Niece, plus a Friend. The Son she came with is 13 now but was a Pre-School Aged Kiddo last time I saw him. The Niece was a Toddler last time I saw her, she's 11 now and is her Brother's Child. Always nice to see Lifelong Friends and catch up. We all took some pixs, the above is just one I took. She and The Daughter have been BFF's since they were little... The Son has been good Friends with her Brothers since they were little. Her Mom now lives in Texas with her Younger Sister, so they did get to visit them too during this Trip. The Kiddos were so well behaved and great Kids.
I did go to my Event this Morning and worked out a Deal with Shelly for that Haberdashery Cabinet. She actually let me have it for what she'd paid for it in Missouri, since she knows I'm going to Keep and Restore it for use and she just doesn't have the Time or inclination to. But feels the piece deserves that attention. It's a specific piece, Rare, but, with not being Restored yet, might languish in Inventory due to it being a highly unusual Commercial Piece. Not everyone has interest in Buying the larger Commercial Statement pieces or a use for them, I do. So, I was Jazzed for her to work out something with me we both felt good about, my Discount being more than 30% was more than Fair, that was her Margin on it. I Paid for it in full, but told her she can keep it there as a Display piece and just deliver it anytime this Summer, no hurries. Since I will be doing Restoration before I can even use it, I have no urgency to get it here and she didn't have the Time to let me get it Today.
They would have had to take a lot off of it and take it apart for transport and they were slammed busy with the 20% Off Sale they had going on for this Event. I also bought Two Art Bottles from her and Two Antique Rosaries. I bought a Bronze Native American Themed Bookend from my Friend Beau, an early Black and White Yard Long Group Photo Framed, and some Industrial Drawers from another Vendor. At Nan's Antique Store next door I bought Three Vintage Horse Show Ribbons in a muted faded Pink Satin from my Friend Minnie. The Man got a Hunting Knife in a Leather Sheath. So, I was pleased with our Haul and stayed within Budget for the Retail Therapy Spree. *LOL* I took loads of Pixs, since, I haven't been anywhere lately to Pathologically Picture Take for Blog Fodder Imagery. *Le Sigh* Above is one of my Art Bottles with Black Coral Topper.
The other Art Bottle has been turned into a Cloche so you could put something inside it to Display. It has an Antique French Brass Religious Madonna and Child Topper and an Antique Rosary on it. Everything Today was 20% Off all they had in the Event, but, Shelly gave me an additional Deal on everything I bought from her. She Buys from me often and I do the same for her, so we have that reciprocity going on. That's why she'll deliver my Cabinet, she'll likely Buy some Inventory from me, she Buys in bulk too, which I like. *Smiles* Below is the Yard Long Photo I bought, it's from 1952. I just Love Yard Longs, but usually they command a hefty price, this one was a real Bargain even before the additional 20% Discount.
Below are some of my Show Ribbons from Minnie, she had such a Bargain on them since she changed up her Color Palette at Home so no longer Decorates in the Pastels, she's moved to Jewel Tones. I don't do a lot of Pastels, but like the faded look of these Ribbons and have a Champagne Color Metallic Christmas Tree I Decorate with these and keep up Year Round in The RV Garage Mahal. Most all of the Vintage Show Ribbons on it are in Tea Stained Whites, Faded Pinks, or Neutral Shades of Rust, Browns, Brick Reds or Copper Hues. I have a Passion for Old Show Ribbons and have many, I like Decorating with them. There was another Customer who bought some and was complaining to Nan... she went on and on about the Ribbons... not sure what her Beef was. Mine were already up at the Counter being held for me so perhaps she was upset I'd had first pick, who knows? *LOL*
Minnie had all her Ribbons priced the same and at a very reasonable price each. But, mine were more ornate than the ones I'd left and decided not to get, and that Customer had bought. So, it seems she was complaining about price, being hers were smaller and plainer, but all were priced the same? That's the impression I got anyway, but, nobody was making her Buy them and I got to the Vignette first, so, bought the ones I liked best, too bad for her, so suck it up Buttercup. *Winks* I think she was having Ribbon Envy of mine and wanted to get hers Cheaper... it didn't work. *LOL* Sometimes a Shopper gets upset if what is already being held for someone else up at the Counter, they didn't get to first and they would have bought had they gotten to it first. But, that's the way it goes. It happens. And I understand the Let Down, you'd rather not see the ones that Got Away. *Smiles* But, don't be a Karen about it.
Anyway, seems both Venues were having very Strong Sales and that makes me Glad for all my Friends who Sell from both, they work hard to Source their Merch and Style impeccably. They're all Masterful at the Art of Display and have cultivated their Contacts they Buy from and Clients who Buy from them Regularly, it's a Networking that takes Work. I'm sure they'll be exhausted by the end of the Four Day Event if Sales are as Strong as they were on Day One, it was a large Crowd and their Shows are very well received. Even Nan at the Antique Mall was busier than usual, probably due to the draw of who came to the Event next door. So, it's mutually beneficial and quickly becoming a Destination that Shoppers look forward to making Pilgrimages to Monthly. Unlike some Events, they don't do Themes, which is Okay, I like a good Theme, but Pickin' for one is more Pressure on the Designers and Vendors.
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