With shiva I've always been told to not take flowers. I do not know why or if this is widespread.

No flowers for shiva. I can't remember the reasoning, but Jews don't bring flowers for anything associated with death, so no flowers at funerals, at shiva, or left on graves.

Thanks, Shir! I remember thinking vaguely in the dream, "Hmmph. Nilly or Shir will help me track 'em down!"

Aims, your uncle is a a douchnozzle, and I will come up and kick him in the shins REALLY REALLY HARD.

Meara, you are a darling girl, and we all love you, and if I didn't live in the middle of the country, I would so come over with my leftover bucket o' 'ritas, a blender, my horrible painting skillz, and some Beck on the ipod and help! MWAH!

Hmm. No flowers -- good to know. Oh, lord, I have to brush up/educate myself on Jewish custom -- we will be co-hosting a bar mitzvah for M. in 5 years, and I understand that is usually quite an undertaking.

{{{{{askye&family}}}}}

{{{{meara}}}}}

Honestly, he can say what the fuck he wants. I have no lease, never had a lease, he has no certificate of occupancy, and the IRS and State of Michigan would be very interested in learning that a) he's been taking the property homestead tax credit on this house for two years when it WASN'T his primary and residence and b) he's not been claiming the income he's been making off our rent on any sort of income taxes.

Yeah, I was going to say -- he's going to pull landlord-y shit like a walkthrough, when he can't prove to anyone in a position of authority that he actually *was* a landlord?

Other than being a petty fuckneck, what possible reason could he need you to be out by midnight Friday? I realize that Saturday is the first of May, and so an ACTUAL landlord could be a fuckneck and demand the tenant be out, but since you're moving out because he wants to live there, is he *honestly* going to move alla his shit in there at 12:00:01? Or even the next day?

I don't know the man, and even I know that's fuckwankery because he just wants to be petty and vindictive.

t edit When he does his walkthrough, if he points out shit that he claims you did, you could politely ask him for photographic proof of the way the house looked the day before you moved in. You know, because a good landlord would keep records of things like that, to protect his best interests. I'm sure he does it with all his tenants.

He claims it's because he wanted to have a May Day party and now I'm TOTALLY RUINING IT.

Nevermind the fact that I don't even have keys for the new place yet.

He claims it's because he wanted to have a May Day party and now I'm TOTALLY RUINING IT.

I just literally gurgled something deeply incomprehensible way in the back of my throat. Where the nasty green phlegm lives when I have a virulent upper respiratory infection.

What is he, some kind of communist?

He claims it's because he wanted to have a May Day party and now I'm TOTALLY RUINING IT.

Aims, did you read my edit about my suggestion for the "walkthrough"?

Also, he was going to clean the house (as a landlord is legally required to do), move his shit in, and then have a party, all between 12:00:01 and, say, 3 or 4 p.m. Saturday?

Fuckneckery, I say.

I hate hate hate that this whole thing has just totally gone pear shaped. I am more than happy to take responsibility for the instances in which I could have been a better communicator. But this? Having to move? Totally him and he's trying to blame me for it and there's nothing that will drive me to Cut a Bitch quicker than being lied about.

I don't even know what to say, Aims.

It's beyond headbuggery.