OMG, the tasks just never end. Just as I started getting comfy with my newest favorite dog sitter, turns out she’s not available for Christmas. Whatdya know, dog sitters go on vacation too. So this morning, I launched another exhaustive search, inquiring with 11 new sitters. Thankfully two are maybes: I have a call with one this evening and a meet and greet slated with another person for Monday. See? Turns out it’s a good thing I labelled everything all around the house, bc now it’ll be helpful for the newbie.

The good news is that Marty is mostly stabilized. His appetite has been good and his legs are strong enough to carry him in/out of the doggie door and on multiple walks to the park. I’ve even got the bedtime diaper routine down, such that by morning, it’s only filled with urine. Poor Marty: sometimes I hear him use the doggie door in the middle of the night… little does he know, there’s no need to venture outside just to pee in his diaper. Ah well, old habits die hard, right? But dang that thing gets heavy by morning. My poor Marty. Aging sucks boat loads.

Today the plumbing crew came to install our tankless water heater. I’ve used this plumbing company twice before, and they are always clean, neat, and just plain good. The work took most of the day and we had to shut off the water completely, but by 3:30pm, everything was done. I also managed to find a $300 federal tax rebate for our unit! It’s kinda annoying bc every time I ask contractors about energy/appliance rebates, they never know. Sure would be great if vendors tracked that sort of thing, but then again, I suppose it changes so much year to year, it’s easier to just push that responsibility onto the customer. The work did require a puncture through the roof to add a vent, and oddly enough, it rained lightly this afternoon. I’m not worried though. I’m sure the roof wound is all patched up. Next, J will be applying for a permit; after that, we’re going to scout out vanities and contractors for when we knock down the wall and move the toilet. Argh so many details. I can’t even imagine the level of project management involved for G&J’s place where they are remodeling the entire basement, like almost an extra 1000 sf! Plus, they are both working full time with an active toddler and a baby on the way. Ambitious people.

I swung by the real estate office today. Pretty much, I can’t submit any paperwork until that damn license (with the BRE number) arrives in the mail. However, I have started watching the recommended videos, and I also took the Tony Robbins’ DISC profile test (again). Yup, I actually took the test a few years ago: my results this time are different in scale/intensity but essentially the same with regards to rank/priority of the categories. In other words, I have super high D (Dominance), then next highest is I (Interactive), then low and leveled off for S (Stabilizing) and C (Cautious). Here’s a quick summary of my profile. The report is quite fascinating as it also delves into your natural vs. adaptive state (how you behave/perform under stress). Anyway, here’s a breakdown of what my scores reveal for the four categories.

Dominance: Your score shows a very high score on the ‘D’ spectrum.
· You are very decisive and a risk-taker.
· You migrate towards difficult assignments and opportunity for advancement.
· Your approach tends to be forceful and very direct.
· You are a great source of innovation and new solutions, even if radical sometimes.
· You may be perceived as somewhat egocentric by others (i.e., others who you feel are less confident than you).
· You love a good challenge, seek freedom, and look for a lot of variety.

Interactive: Your score shows a high average score on the ‘I’ spectrum.
· You tend to meet new people in a confident and appropriate manner.
· You like democratic not dictatorial relationships on the job.
· People may find you charming to meet and to converse with on a variety of topics.
· You appreciate an open-door policy with both peers and supervisors.
· You present yourself in a poised manner to both small or large groups of people.
· You prefer an environment with ample people contact.

Stabilizing: Your score shows a low average score on the ‘S’ spectrum.
· You respect the established ways, but are open to change when it is deemed necessary.
· You are comfortable acting alone to determine the best course of action.
· You prefer a faster paced environment, but one that is not frantic or chaotic.
· You can multitask fairly well.
· You are flexible enough to deal with change openly and without fear.
· You like being mobile and on the go, but you like a home base to return to from time to time.

Cautious: Your score shows a low average score on the ‘C’ spectrum.
· You are flexible enough to work with or without a lot of structure or order.
· You can easily work independently when it comes to completing tasks and assignments.
· You may be perceived as being non-committal by some when it comes to deciding on how to proceed.
· To you, rules are guidelines, not concrete.
· You prefer to act as your “own person” rather than follow the norm.
· You are persistent in trying to get a message across, even in the midst of resistance.

These are suggestions for me to be more effective: You could be more effective
by:
• Becoming more aware of your approach to others, and it’s impact on others.
• Trying not to over-react.
• Being aware that your level of aggressiveness and tenacity may be off putting to others.
• Having support staff to handle the detail work.
• Reducing your competitive edge when dealing with others who aren’t as competitive as you.
• Becoming more sensitive to the climate or the situation, and adjusting your intensity accordingly.
• Learning to follow as well as you might lead.
• Remembering to negotiate difficult matters in a real-time, face-to-face manner, rather than through electronic means.

Interestingly, I don’t even consider myself competitive, but the other items are pretty spot on. For example, I wanted to negotiate my commission split via email, but Bubbey told me I had to do it in person. Haha.

Other tasks for this week? Bubs is going to do my photoshoot for my business cards and web materials. Argh, I kinda hate pictures of myself but apparently, homebuyers and sellers want to match the name to a face to build trust. Fuck. Phil Dunphy in da house! We’ll see what I come up with.