a home of one's own

it took two young adults 10 hours to clean out just the planter beds in my tiny 0.13 acre lot @ 28/hr. but at least we can now start re-planting with a clean slate. but before moving on to that, had a hard time getting landscapers to accept the job at all. seems that in this valley of semi-literate people opting to battle nature for a living or, failing that, go work for walmart, landscaping - at least in the summer - is a good career in great demand.

work quality is shoddy at best. service fees are arbitrary. but it is hot outside right now and it is strenuous work that i refuse to do myself so i guess i should not be complaining too loudly. except to add that i was substantially taxed by this whole experience.

at the same time, nature is carrying on its own rebellion. weeds are back in the beds already and it hasn't even 2 weeks yet. plus, i haven't even watered the beds lately. if it was only this hard to kill real plants!

next i need help with getting the grass back - which i will do in spring-summer 2007. i can only budget for landscaping this year.

not a bad idea if as homeowner you are typically spending 100 -150 USD almost every month on various repairs and contingencies. and insurance is no insurance at all for normal wear and maintenance issues. over the last year, i spent $90+$135 on two bathrooms and $125 on a/c fix. Altogether almost as much as the annual cost of home warranty ($370 - $380) [minus] the peace of mind.

so, i looked for home warranty plans on the internet. found three. requested quotes online. got follow up phone calls immediately after offering 5 - 15% discount on quote with phone sign-up and one time payment for the year. co-pay is $45 (one company adjusted the co-pay as well from $60 to $45) but can be $0 at an additional $100 per year. i declined that offer cuz i wanted to see how many times i actually use these services.

look for limited roof leak coverage and for sure get a plan that includes central air conditioning.

just in case i need to use the services, i'll of course post a follow-up on the experience.