My first impressions of San Diego.... (Chula Vista, Vista: high school, income, live)

[carlos123]

Originally Posted by Encinitan

I was going to say the same thing. The cookie-cutter development up in North County would look like fields of gold to an enterprising window washer, I'd think. Of course, no trolley up here either.

My mouth salivates at the thought of all that nice, potential glass to clean .

The guy I previously rented a room from (in a foreclosed property) said that if I paid his auto insurance for the month or paid him $10 a day I could rent, his newer model, very nice car. Once I get a California licence and all. He was dead serious! Very nice guy. He even picked me up from the airport when I first arrived in San Diego!

I may take him up on that offer once I make enough to change my Canadian driver's licence over .

Carlos

[carlos123]

Originally Posted by aacole

An old dilapidated building with clean windows is like lipstick on a pig ...

You have a way with words aacole!! Now look what you've done to me! I will henceforth...not be able to look at someone's humble but, old dilapidated home...well...without thinking of a pig with lipstick.

Carlos

[RD5050]

Now that you have a better place to live, it may pay to get a cheap bike, so you won't be limited to walking and public transportation.

You can even take a bike on the bus system. Most buses have a bike rack attached to the outside front part of the bus, and you just drop the bike onto the rack before you board the bus.

Regarding your window cleaning ....

while a lot of Clairemont is mostly single-story ranch homes built in the 1960's, there are some parts of Clairemont with very nice homes. One part is the Northwest end. Another decent section of Clairemont is behind the SW corner of Balboa Ave and Genesee Ave. The area is referred to as the "Mount Streets" because all the streets are named Mount XXXXX ST.

Another place you'll find very nice and expensive homes not too far from Clairemont is in the Crown Point section of Pacific Beach. It's located near the Bay, off Ingraham St.

There are also some pretty nice homes in the Bay Ho section which is just West of Clairemont, near Morena Blvd and North of Balboa Ave.

[carlos123]

Thanks so very much RD5050.

Your insider knowledge may prove invaluable to me. Rather than going all the way up North on route #20 to scout out nice homes one day and then, assuming I get some work lined up there, coming back the next day to do the work...the nice homes I am looking for may be no further than in Clairemont itself.

I will definitely check out the areas you indicated. Perhaps tomorrow after I have my daily buffet ritual (now that I made some money from a window cleaning job today - check out my city-data blog for more details ). I'll tell them RD5050 sent me...on second thought I better not. They might not hire me as a window cleaner and might instead alert the local authorities that some guy purporting to be sent by RD5050 is knocking on doors LOL.

Although the economy is...well...said to be bad, I am hoping that relatively well off folks will have enough desire to see clearly through their windows such that they will still pay a fair price to have them cleaned. The nice thing about catering to rich home owners is that the bucket brigade (what window cleaners call the legion of homeless guys that go around offering to do windows for little more than a cigarette pack) is unlikely to show up, much less go door to door in such neighborhoods.

Incidentally I commend any homeless guy who tries to make an honest buck but the homeless brigade is what other window cleaners normally call the homeless window cleaners (because they go around with little more than a bucket).

Business owners are always trying to justify paying next to nothing because somebody, who they can't get a hold of anymore, came along and cleaned their windows last year for $5 .

It amazes me, the amount of dirty windows in San Diego, and the willingness of business owners especially to leave them as is. Dirty! I've had quite a number tell me that they have someone already while I am staring at a window so dirty that I would be ashamed to be associated with such a window cleaning.

Of course many windows have what I believe are gang markings on them. I think that is the reason that so many bathrooms don't have mirrors in front of their sinks. Because someone comes along and writes some gibberish on them.

All over the place...glass is scribbled on. Weird. I never saw any such thing up north in Canada or anywhere else for that matter. Just weird. If someone figures out a way to get rid of the scratched on scribbling on glass found all over San Diego...they are going to make a bundle of money.

The general public may hardly notice such a thing but...being a window cleaner and all...well...it stands out to me.

You know something else I have noticed here which is...well...even weirder. I'll be in some bathroom stall doing my business and somebody will come in next to me and startle the living daylights out of me by yelling out along with a song playing over the intercom. Only for a minute. Then a few minutes later, after they have concluded their business in the next stall, they might follow up their initial yelling with...."THAT'S SOME FLUSH!!!".

Just weird. I've seen that kind of thing happen a number of times. It's almost as if some San Diegans have to let off steam or something and they find the bathroom a convenient place to do that. Or maybe it's a way to anounce their presence to see if someone in the next stall is a gang member or something. Some secret code type of thing. Don't know.

One guy next to me once came in and started yelling something along the lines of "I KNOW YOU'RE IN THERE!! I KNOW YOU'RE IN THERE!!!". When I remained as quiet as a mouse...he kind of shut up and went about his business. Maybe he wanted to see if anyone was next door before he shot up with some drug or something. I fully expected his face to appear under the stall but I guess when he got no response...he just figured no one was there.

Along with all the good, there is some weird stuff out here. But it does make for some funny and interesting experiences that I can tell my Canadian friends about.

Carlos

[carlos123]

Originally Posted by RD5050

Now that you have a better place to live, it may pay to get a cheap bike, so you won't be limited to walking and public transportation.

I thought of that but, after meeting two guys in the span of about an hour who both had been very badly hurt by drivers hitting them on their bikes...I decided against that.

One was almost a parapalegic in a wheelchair. The other had a disfigured face. If I remember correctly...both told me that they had been hit by drivers talking on their cell phones.

So...for now, I think I will stick to public transportation .

Carlos

[Encinitan]

Man, Carlos. I've lived in SD for 39 years now, and you are describing parts of our fair city that I have never encountered. You really need to expand your coverage area. It sounds like you've settled into some of the sketchiest areas of town. Run-down abandoned buildings, graffiti all over, people speaking Spanish and in wheel chairs. Are you sure you are in San Diego, and not about 20 miles to the south?

[NYSD1995]

Originally Posted by Encinitan

Man, Carlos. I've lived in SD for 39 years now, and you are describing parts of our fair city that I have never encountered. You really need to expand your coverage area. It sounds like you've settled into some of the sketchiest areas of town. Run-down abandoned buildings, graffiti all over, people speaking Spanish and in wheel chairs. Are you sure you are in San Diego, and not about 20 miles to the south?

Been in San Diego for 15 years, up and down the county. Had family in National City, spend most of my weekends in Logan Heights. I can only think of one or two specific areas that are anything like what he is describing... like the area immediately around the 26th and Commercial trolley stop.

[Encinitan]

Originally Posted by Sassberto

Been in San Diego for 15 years, up and down the county. Had family in National City, spend most of my weekends in Logan Heights. I can only think of one or two specific areas that are anything like what he is describing... like the area immediately around the 26th and Commercial trolley stop.

Know what I'm saying, though? I can just picture him moving on and telling everyone he meets about how San Diego is a third-world country where crazy people yell at you in the bathroom. Oh well, whatever.

[NYSD1995]

Originally Posted by Encinitan

Know what I'm saying, though? I can just picture him moving on and telling everyone he meets about how San Diego is a third-world country where crazy people yell at you in the bathroom. Oh well, whatever.

I think if you spend enough time in public restrooms, especially in the crumbling semi-industrial area adjacent to downtown, you're gonna meet some pretty interesting people.

[Encinitan]

Originally Posted by Sassberto

I think if you spend enough time in public restrooms, especially in the crumbling semi-industrial area adjacent to downtown, you're gonna meet some pretty interesting people.

Agreed, but I'll have to take your word on that.