The most recent HOA meeting at Del Boca started on a somber note. A woman living in the other building passed away. There was the expected moment of silence. Which after a moment got awkward. Finally someone said “Her nephew told me once that she’d had that rage issue ever since she was a child. You wouldn’t see it coming then BANG!” A lot of murmuring and agreeing with more than one resident saying “Yea, she could get mad.” Then another person offered up “But she did fly with the WASPS and learned French to work with the Resistance. She was pretty brave. She didn’t have to volunteer.”
Kind of sorry I never met her.
After that we turned to more colorful matters. Color swatches that is. The building is being painted and we are voting between two paint schemes. That look exactly alike.
After much discussion it was suggested that two people volunteer to have their decks and outside walls painted so we could see the colors in the real light and vote for the best combination. There was some talk about how that would be an imposition since there is a 50/50 chance your deck would have to be painted twice. I quickly raised my hand, said my name loudly and clearly and offered to have ours painted.
Then came the time for the candidates for the HOA board positions to introduce themselves and make a brief statement. There are three openings and five candidates. Four candidates are women. After our names were read one of the outgoing members said “It’s nice to finally have the chances for board members who are good looking! I’m sorry my tenure is up! Any of these gals would bring a lot to the table they know how to make a dollar stretch at the grocery. I’m tickled.” The second awkward silence of the meeting.
Each of us had the chance to give a quick synopsis of our qualifications. One of the other women running recently retired as the head of a national non profit the other has an MBA. Neither chose to highlight her ability to shop for bargains and clip coupons.
When it came time for me to give my CV I heard some people say “Isn’t she the one who offered to have her deck painted?” The “she didn’t have to volunteer” subtext was obvious. Not all heros fly planes. And you no longer need to speak French to be part of the Resistance.
The fourth women had a long list of qualifications including: her daughter was one of the youngest Seafair Princesses ever and her son works forGoldman Sachs. If elected she promised to bring cutting edge technology to the condo to solve some of our day to day problems.
Anticipating “jet packs to replace the aging elevators” emerging as a possible campaign talking point. Getting my pivot statement ready in case it does.
Gregoire has assured me that an unqualified braggert with ties to Goldman is not going to win an election.
I’ve had this rage issue since I was a child.
The Condo Chronicles 
Love this. Wish I could attend the meetings, ours don’t have that “throwback to the 50s” feel. Good luck with the election, you are a shoe-in, especially since you volunteered your deck.
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