As I said before, being a military spouse has its good points and its bad points. You would think one of the good points would be relatively "free" housing almost anywhere you go in the world. Think again.
When Erick and I first moved in to Bolling we were moved into the old units that were basically labeled "condemned". The floors were tiled in mismatched industrial linoleum and the walls were an icky buff white that made them look like they were in desperate need of a good scrub down. The light fixtures were equally atrocious. I decided I would do what I could to spruce the place up, so paint was used on the walls and much later, I retiled the floors with peel and stick tile and used carpet remnants and rugs in other areas. For three and half years we have lived in more comfort than would have been possible without those upgrades. (Linoleum is frickin hard to clean). Granted, the ceiling in my kitchen leaks after a shower in bath in the bathroom upstairs. Our windows aren't sealed very well and here lately, we have been having issues with mice - but all in all I have enjoyed my house, mainly because of all the work I put into it.
When the military housing was privatized on Bolling a little over a year ago, there was a mass exodus to move off of base. Everyone living in our neighborhood, Doolittle Park, was told that though we lived in sub-standard housing, we would still be charged the full BAH (Base Housing Allowance) rate. Most privatized companies gave residents the option of moving into a new unit, doing upgrades on their current housing, or charging them less BAH per month as an incentive for staying on base despite the fact that they would be living in condemned housing. This was an outrage - and moving trucks could be seen on every block for the next several months. Erick and I even looked at moving off of base at this point. We ended up staying - housing told us we would not have to change anything back in our current home when we moved and that Doolittle Park would be last on the demolition list and wouldn't be touched until 2012.
Two weeks ago there was a giant trash bin placed in front of one of the houses on my block. Since my last neighbor's departure, there are only two other families living on my street and they were both moved in just several months ago. My initial thought in seeing this gigantic trash bin was that they were beginning to salvage useable materials from these houses and "junking" the rest.
About a week ago, I came home from work to see that they were putting on new doors and windows on that unit and I could tell from the open windows that they were updating the light fixtures as well. As I got out of my car, my nearest neighbors (several houses down) approached me with "Do you know they are going to make us move?" I think I stood there with a look of absolute unbelief on my face for a full minute before I stuttered out, "We're scheduled to PCS (Permanent Change of Station) in July." Imagine my shock when they answered "All of us are." Turns out, housing didn't even inform us of this development - my neighbors were told by the workman that "you aren't going to be living here much longer." They went straight down to the housing office and had it confirmed and then told me.
The next day, housing called Erick and told him they were moving us over one block - not into a new unit, but back into the crap that we are being forced out of. The difference? At least my crap has updates! I called housing and asked them why they were moving us when everyone on my block was scheduled to move in July anyway and why they felt it necessary to start on Doolittle Park when there are two housing areas that have been vacated for YEARS and have not been touched. Their answer was basically, "well, this is coming from the big bosses and we can't do anything about it."
Well, we looked at what they had to offer and we had to demand a house with a fence for the dogs (they weren't going to give us one). They are also going to carpet and give us a concession of one month's rent, so we're dealing. It's just kind of a bummer to move twice within 6 month - but hey, it's the military some folks have to pick up and move after three months of being in a new location, so I guess I should be grateful it's just a move around the corner.
2 comments:
You should have told them you won't be mowing your lawn either! Poor things.
If it makes you feel any better I have industrial tile in my house. It blows. Cheyenne is in charge of cleaning floors. When he goes back with the boat, I'll have to go back to cleaning my floors. Ugh.
Doesn't industrial tile suck? They seriously had instructions when we first moved in "Step 1: After sweeping, mop floor with hot water and vinegar" Step 2; Mop floor with pine sol Step 3: Mop floor with Mop & Glo. Who has time to mop their floor three times?
Post a Comment