Topping the 2013 Totherocktour to the Canadian Rockies I met Kiefer Sutherland in person. That was awesome, he is one of Hollywood's highest paid Canadian actors of all time. We look like brothers. no?
This Walmart Cruiser is a 26er mountain bike frame with swooping frame tubes, I added a rear carrier rack for a backpack, tie down strap is from Canadian Tire, and Butterfly handlebars were $25 from Amazon.ca
For crossing Mongolia, I had support come from Lynskey Performance USA in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Unfortunately, their support was limited to a titanium production frame and it was difficult dealing with their Korean importing affiliate to receive the M240 titanium mountain bike frame for build up. Finally, their marketing manager Don Erwin made the necessary emails and a frame arrived at my apartment in South Korea. The expedition was one of my most difficult, once completed, I required extensive medical treatment.
Lynskey Performance is a high quality bicycle manufacturer based in the United States of America.
The reality out across Mongolia is that all your travel will depend on the people you meet. This friendly Khalk Mongol group were hauling furniture for their move across the Steppe. They drove a giant Russian 1950's era truck towing a large farm trailer. Since the roads are unpaved, it was like taking a 1000km journey on a farm tractor for them, slow and trying not to overheat the engine, it looked challenging.
I've ridden internet mountain bikes from Gmarket.co.kr in Korea, I loved the Blackcat that eventually took me clear across the Taklamakan Desert and the Himalayas in 2011, I invested $400 in the original bike with 25,000km when it was parted and the aluminum frame donated to Ahn Daegi at Gangneung Bike Mart, Korea. I wanted to leave Daegi a memorable gift for all the sponsored wrenching he did to support my trips.
One of my latest bikes is a 1990 CCM bicycle, the model is ICE, it has 26 inch wheels and is easily converted for bicycle touring. I have my Mongolia trek Mavic Crossland wheels with GT pedals. I didn't really modify the stock, original bike which has the original 18 speed gearing. The steel frame and steel fork offer a comfortable and stable ride. I upgraded the tires with Continental Mountain King 2.2 and they are great on paved roads, gravel or dirt trails.
To fund or pay for all the expenses related to my journey in Iceland and England *(Paris and Luxumbourg) I pushed lawnmowers and bush choppers as seen in the image above. It was difficult work and the temperatures were hot. I enjoyed relief from the heat and humidity with my Tilley Endurables hat, also I worked for my former best friend from elementary school - Nick Rosati, a multi-millionaire and kind guy to offer some labour to help fund my journey to Europe. No journeys posted in this blog came for free or without intense and constant efforts - all the prices are paid with hard work and sometimes luck!
I worked briefly for the automotive giant in Detroit, Michigan - FCA Chrysler, it was run by the UAW United Auto Workers Union of America, a corrupt bunch of pricks! Union workers from Detroit were habitually late for work, using drugs while on the job, drinking, sleeping, using Smartphones to check facebook updates while on their fork lift machines. The Chrysler company hires thugs from Detroit and they run the plant inside and out. I left the company in February 2016 with a pocket full of money.
Another hobby I have is building with wood, light carpentry, in this case I had no speakers operational in the back of my work/travel Ford van, so I built a speaker box from Clearance speakers at Canadian Tire. The large speakers were $10, the Small speakers were $5. I also bought a used Sony audio deck at Canadian Tire and used Options Mastercard which gives me discounts after all the home improvement material, insurance and other expenses are paid using the credit. I always pay it off right away. Build points, or free money at Canadian Tire, let their system work for you.
Todd and Jimmy worked on the rear deck to the entrance to Ignacio/Carlos's apartment. I was fortunately to have the help, in the past year - help is few and far between.
At my parents, I worked cleaning up their yard, fallen tree branches, and completed a landscaping project with the help of my children and wife. It was tough moving home and taking on all those responsibilities. In Korea, life was a simple routine with living in a small maintenance-free apartment, good employment in English education, and plenty of free hours to go cycling on shorter adventures that inspired longer ones!
My dad is 70 years old, although not very active at all in sports, he did join me for one bike ride.
Here I was walking nearby Geyser in Iceland. Friends and I collected wild blueberries from the meadows, they were delicious and abundant. Tourists stayed within the area surrounding the geyser which was also impressive.
Wild blueberries in August, location: Geyser, Iceland.
This is the Geyser, the photo doesn't have the best contrast but you can see scale with the group of tourists at the bottom left of the picture frame.
I jumped from FCA Fiat Chrysler Automotive in Detroit, Michigan as Production Supervisor (of UAW animals) and after getting fired by a cunning/jealous
Chrysler JNAP Manager named
Brandon Gloer of Lake Orion, Michigan. Being hired by Chrysler Automotive in Detroit was short lived, but I managed to make enough income to cover family moving expenses in our new home, and since completed major renovations. I followed the Chrysler employment with work at Rosati Construction in Windsor, Ontario which included commercial landscaping maintenance and lawn care. I worked for Nick Rosati my childhood best friend, and was supervised by Gene Morrone, also a childhood friend from elementary school. I saved enough money to fund a short bike trip to Iceland and England. I also visited Paris, France and Luxembourg with my friend James Penlington of Droitwich, England. Adventures always follow the low periods of life challenges, which is why I am continually planning new adventures in different parts of the world since leaving South Korea.
These boots were made for walking, cycling and adventuring. I am standing on an elevator in Luxembourg.
Icelandic horses were beautiful, they were also abundant along many of the roads around Iceland.
Sleeping was no problem in the cool 12-16 Celcius temperatures in August. Icelandic summers have only short 4 hours of darkness or twilight since they are above the Arctic Circle.
Then I visited James Penlington, a Marathon and Park runner in Droitwich, England. His family were very friendly, I met his parents in Thunder Bay, Ontario while they were on a cross-country road trip in 2005.
James getting directions while we continued our bicycle touring adventures in Lake District, Cumbria, England.
Navigating up Pikes Peak in Lake District was another highlight of cycling in northern England
James Penlington and I had our 17 year friendship reunion in style, the highest peak in England.
Riding trails with my nephew Rian Sullivan was a highlight. These woods are located in LaSalle, Ontario and this is the area where all my bicycle and mountain bike adventures began to take shape on short cross country rides since my early childhood. Cycling has been a long-standing foundation in my life for fitness and lately (past 10+ years) stress-relief from working abroad, teaching, raising a family - cycling has always helped me overcome difficulties and challenges in life situations and job occupations.
I restored this Chevy Express cargo van in 2015, Nice Rust Paint in high gloss shine. I used the van for courier delivery driving for a few months and sold it to the current owner who does carpet and flooring installations in Windsor, Ontario. A year after purchase, the new owner happily reported no issues at all since I had completed extensive maintenance a year earlier. I also learned his wife was suffering from Cancer and he came to this medical clinic in the Oasis Plaza to pickup her medicine. Good karma with this purchase and learning about the buyer and his life situation, all the more important the Chevy van was well maintained for Expediting and General work in Windsor. Paid it forward to him, the thousands I spent in maintenance.
Open roads in Essex County.
Shoveling rocks used in commercial landscaping at the Oasis Plaza on Patillo Road, Lakeshore, Ontario.
Disposing of scrap metal fencing with Tony Rosati's son Vince. We worked together for a few days.
The barren field where I stacked and sorted bricks nearby the Oasis Plaza where I landscaped. It was hot and humid work with this assignment. I ended my employment on July 22, 2016 and bought a plane ticket for Iceland and the UK. My employment funded the entire journey in Iceland and England, also in France, and Luxembourg I had free accommodations thanks to my new and old Friends.
Bobcat that I wasn't licensed to drive had air conditioning and a radio, outside it was bleak/hot work.
All the good life, from teaching at universities in South Korea to the desert field next to the Oasis Plaza.
Steel toe shoes and dry earth, when I put heavy boots on the employment is a limited engagement!
Some Bosnian-Canadians I met in Windsor, they explained how to repair basement walls with waterproof membranes. I bought some material from them for my brother Steve who is living in Detroit, Michigan.
Roads of Mongolia, I cycled 3700 kilometers or 2299 miles in 65 days, I spent 10 days resting or had diarrhea and swollen ankles. In all, I enjoyed the 4-corners of Outer Mongolia and meeting Nomadic people
I briefly spent time digging holes through solid clay soil with Florian at my brother's house in Detroit, Michigan. I worked for cold beer.
I cut grass all summer 2016, it was tough work day after day due to humidity and landscapes.
Nice place, Nick Rosati's new home. My work included lifting lawnmowers inside the hedge areas, that was tough work...better to have footpaths to the inside for gardeners when you have spent that kind of money.
Bush chopped I piloted to chop long grass on commercial properties.
Hey, I bought a new toilet and I installed this unit myself in two different apartments I now manage.
Streets of Windsor after the rains.
Dirt from landmowing.
GT bicycle box free from Sportchek.ca Windsor. I am preparing to leave for Iceland.
Bike is shipped on VIA Rail a day before my departure for Toronto, Ontario. At the train terminal, I pickup my bike and a friendly Porter helps me all the way to the airport shuttle/train. I board the train.
VIA RAILWAY, this is how they load oversize luggage with a tractor and trailer.
Health check after 7 weeks of lawn mowing with Rosati Construction, when I worked at Chrysler Detroit, my range was in the RED ZONE. High stress and harassment by UAW union laborers at work caused a lot of health problems for me. No respect, no discipline for bad factory workers building Jeep Grand Cherokees and too many sour attitudes in Detroit - no wonder the place is a dump! LOL
Flying out of North America and on to Iceland.
I met David and we became friends, he also took me back to the hostel to retrieve my camera chargers I left in the Start Hostel. David was helpful and guided me north to continue on my own towards Akureyri.
Looking outside McDonalds while eating a soft ice cream in Paris, France. I had a wonderful experience exploring and meeting friendly locals in Paris. It's a city of culture, history, art/museums, people.
My rental bicycle option. Available at kiosks across the city of Paris. These were fun to commute on and have built in locks for security while visiting the Louvre museum or other landmarks on foot.
Train station "Gare" where I bought a ticket for Luxembourg to meet my friend James Penlington
Feeling physically fit from all the lawn mowing in Canada, and bicycle riding in Iceland!
Relaxed it shows in the lack of dark circles under my eyes, in Korea I had worked long hours talking with thousands of students, therefore, I was heavily taxed on my health and well-being. Outside Korea, I am more active but have to be flexible to find work and to keep myself going financially.
James likes wine, we purchased a few bottles in Calais, France before taking the ferry back to Dover, England.
James strolling through Droitwich, we were on our way to the library and home improvement store where I could buy supplies to repair his bathroom issues. Got everything repaired, minor plumbing repair - my specialty.
James in Droitwich.
Brasserie, a bier from France. Jame's has a beautiful home with fireplace and world-class piano Sasha plays.
Ready for hiking and cycling adventures. We are preparing to leave for the Lake District.
Nether Endsdale, Cumbria. We camped in the nearby campground and used Wifi in the pubs.
Hiking with Jame's family near Worchester, England. Sasha had broken her arm, she is a talented pianist.
Oh man, this was the last repair project at the Penlington residence, I spent hours and hours trimming thicket, straightening the fence with repair wires, and finally painting the entire fence until 10pm. Payment=friends.
Nicole was checking on my progress, long at work on that fence. Fortunately for James and Anna, I came for a visit! Free labor!
Back at Gatwick airport in the south of London, England. I was flying back to Iceland and on to Toronto, Ontario. After 37 days in Europe, it was time to return to other work adventures in home renovations.
Living room padding was full of ants and roaches, they had made highways around the entire 1000 sq. foot apartment. All the wooden doors and wood trim had roach feces, it had to be removed and sent to garbage landfills. I had to purchase new doors throughout, 5 doors, and replace all the moldings with new wood, painful work that took alot of measurement and money to replace everything!
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This is the demolition started in apartment #1. I found dirt, roaches, wood borer insects, mold, stink, etc... the apartment was disgustingly dirty and definitely NOT
maintained MONITORED by the owner since the Velazquez family changed the locks which is against Ontario Rental Law. Added to the misery of filth were leaky taps on the plumbing in the laundry which added to the floor damage under the wall to the hall closet, and
Renter Hell taking place overcrowded and filled like a hoarder paradise. The former property manager Johnny was a drug dealer/drug addict and operated from the building's basement.Johnny's main job was to collect the rent when renters didn't pay, that wasn't too effective either because many former tenants defaulted on their utility bills and owed thousands. All the while, I am noting that this wasn't always a Shithole apartment. According to George Elias, the apartment was rented out in clean, rentable condition in November 2012, when the Velazquez family moved in, in fact, it was in good repair back then. Unfortunately for myself taking over the Tenants and signing new Monthly Leases, I inherited the Velazquez family disorder. After over 4 years of misuse by the tenants, the blatant lack of cleaning (piles of open garbage, used toilet paper in a basket uncovered in the bathroom, food on the floors, gum stuck to hallway vinyl flooring, sticky dirty tiles in the kitchen, this festered roaches and mold, ants in the living room rug. Nobody vacuumed for years and years, the graffiti on the walls from all the children of the Velazquez daughters and when I met David Grainger, the pseudo-grandfather, he was bouncing a grandchild of Maria Mendoza on his lap. He's a local sex offender in Essex County, and
lost his teaching license after retirement from sexually abusing students over years and years. I learned about David after browsing Google, until recently he had visited my property on numerous occasions while courting ideas with Ignacio Velazquez. David liked to interfere in my business running rentals, and made false arguments which led to a small claims court trial pending, while he is preparing for that trial on behalf of the family who damaged the apartment I own, he used Google and this blog to Troll the internet to fabricate a defense for the Velazquez family. Here are pictures of the Velazquez apartment after I removed all the wooden doors and trim, flooring and carpets for the repairs.
Hallway was a highway for roaches,
Bedrooms, stripped the filthy dirty carpets, and padding revealed ants and roaches living off the food crumbs. The ventilation openings in the floor were filled with food wastes, toys, dirt, combs, coins, etc.
Children used the walls for drawing their graffiti.
Yes, filth. Dirt, dirt and more dirt in the bedrooms. Never used a vacuum, I guess it wasn't a concern for them. How this much dirt could penetrate the carpets and the padding is beyond my imagination.
Floors were stripped bare to prepare for Orkin Pest Control revisits to plant Roach Bait everywhere.
Bunch of work, then I went for a swim and cut the grass at my parent's house in Windsor. The green machine finally blew a piston and is no longer working. I need to find another engine for it. I still had an oasis since I still lived at my parents place in Windsor after purchasing the property in Leamington (May 2016). I couldn't move my family in until the end of October 2016, and together we continued undoing the damages from the Velazquez family in our Unit 1 apartment. What a gross and disgusting mess they even left piles of garbage on the front lawn after Sept 2, 2016 - which was billed to my 2016 municipal taxes. I notified Ariana about the tax bill for their garbage but she and her mother Maria Mendoza just ignored me! They were gone and took shelves out of a bedroom closet with them, and took my new garbage can purchased too! Cheap and dirty people - goodbye!
Back to the renovations. Nice hole in the front wall, where it was bashed in. I had to replace the drywall and repair the damages. All the areas of wooden flooring and drywall had cleaning, then Killz2 painting to seal the insects and mold.
The 20 gallons of primer/sealer paint I used alone cost $139.00 per 5 gallons plus Ontario tax. I used 20 gallons ($628.28 to seal the deal and clean up the mess left behind by the Velazquez family. Try patching all the holes in the drywall first...Velazquez family hung their 42 inch flatscreen television by cutting 4 holes right out of the drywall that were 3 inches wide each. I used buckets of plaster paste to repair the drywall holes. I threw away wooden doors, wooden trim, stripped the kitchen for cleaning.
(ABOVE: This is how Mexican-Canadians hang a large HD television on the wall of their living room, punch and drill/cut large holes in the drywall and then hang your meat hooks!) See ROACH SHIT around the openings, it was everywhere since the roaches lived inside the apartment and walls of the apartment too!
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They must of bought some hooks from a Home Building Center to do it. We had to patch holes, like above they broke the drywall and opened the vapor barrier, hence the mold, nice one! That's disgusting and cost a lot of excess expense because the floors and walls needed to be sealed up from ants and roaches festered there. Only animals in a barn could attract that kind of filth, no it happened here in Leamington, Ontario in my property and I had to clean it and repair it all myself. Unreal.
Yes, let their children write on the walls with permanent markers, this is a great idea for creativity.
Holes like this had ROACH FECES (SHIT) coming out of them. Holes were in many walls, patches had to be applied, and Orkin Pest Control put their bait into the openings since Roaches were still alive inside the walls...disgusting.
Velazquez family PETS!!! Roaches...they killed them but left them stuck in their kitchen cabinets. Nice work
Lovely artwork done by the Velazquez family of Leamington.
Soiled paint on the walls from all the tenants healthy living.
During the initial Orkin Pest Control emergency treatments, I had all effects they owned, dirty clothing all needed to be washed, suitcase or plastic bag their belongings. 10 bags of trash went to the curb each week once my message to them about the serious health risk they pose to themselves and other renters.
Kitchen pets. The Velazquez family knew they had a roach problem they created with filth, but even after spraying their industrial insecticide, they left the remains behind. They couldn't care less about being clean!
My friend Jae lariviere helped a lot, here he is cutting out the rotted wood where tie/sub floors used to be. The old refrigerator leaked water and rotted out the flooring.The smells in the apartment were equally disgusting. With some help from friends, I started a near impossible project/expedition for me!!!!
Bill Fontaine came and plastered and sanded off the roaches stuck to the walls. It was really disgusting work
Rachel came and sanded walls, proof is she covered in plaster dust!
Most days I worked by myself, I also commuted from my parents home in Windsor adding about $400-$500 a month in fuel expense to repair the Leamington property and return home each night. I slept a few nights in the darkened basement on an old sofa while doing landscaping but the Velazquez family accused me of living in the basement without a toilet, I don't think so! David Grainger is a professional liar/sex offender, so it doesn't surprise me they pseudo-grandfather who helped them get Canadian citizenship wrote their Defense letter from perusing my Blog! Here's an update you freaks!
Spraying bleach to remove any roaches that may be alive. The Velazquez family that lived in this apartment created an environment of filth for breeding roaches. It took me 2.5 months to scrape the floors, remove all the wooden features including wall trim, wooden doors, and plaster and repair all the holes in the drywall, where the roaches lived in joyous filthy living. Like the tenants themselves, cleanliness was not in their repertoire of healthy living. Overcrowded and being material Hoarders added to the dirty conditions. Still, months later (September, October and part of November 2016)...I continued to clean, bleach, cut out rotted flooring or drywall and eventually, I have a fresh liveable apartment to enjoy with my family. And in the process, I also discovered the Velazquez family friend
David Benjamin Grainger had once been an elementary school teacher at Jack Miner Elementary and another school in Kingsville, he started in 1972. However, during his teaching career he courted and had sexually intimate relationships with minors, these students and eventually post-retirement the authorities caught up with him at his Woodslee, Ontario home. He got his Ontario Teachers pension in full, but went through a Divorce probably when his wife learned he was sexually abusing young girls, he is a sick bastard.
David Grainger lost his teaching license (2016) when victims came forward over the years (reports from former victims of incidents 2002-2011). David Grainger was responsible for several arguments with me - leading to an ongoing feud over damages left in the apartment of the Velazquez family in 2016. I did my due diligence to learn more about him, including knowing his full name and whereabouts. No more blocked numbers calling to harass me either. He needs a new life since he ruined his own and the ones of those he molested while he was teaching Jump Rope!
I started landscaping the front yard.
The utility trailer was used to dispose of all the interior wood and carpets/flooring that was taken to the landfill. I also used it to pickup new flooring from Costco.ca Windsor and other drywall for repair work.
I removed garbage from the property with my father's work trailer and Ford Windstar van.
This is my first house in Canada, first major renovation project, first property management responsibility too
Lunch over new toilet.
View from kitchen to the basement. My friend Jae Lariviere, another witness to the damages done by the Velazquez family. And Jae spent days helping me do necessary repair work.
Framing the kitchen floor joist support.
Patched the flooring in the kitchen, took cutaway time, rebuild the framing from the basement removing the firewall drywall in ceiling, and layering new plywood. Unfortunately, the adjacent room is the laundry and cedar shims hold the rotted floor up as a repair underneath the plywood and tile flooring. It will need future repair to be done right.
I purchased a lot of flooring. Flooring alone was $1500 plus hiring Sylvestre brothers Ryan and Jay cost addtional $1000. It's expensive to repair your own home, but cheaper than hiring out all professional trades.
Excellent primer/sealer/paint is the product above.
Favorite over oil based paints.
Moving in used appliances. Using the utility trailer and fridge cart to carry it. This washer was enormous and difficult to move. It required the help and skills of my next door neighbors who originally came from Laos.
Checking plumbing valves for the laundry taps.
Side entrance step needed some repair. I replaced the aluminum sill plate with a new one and new gaskets.
This is a toilet drain hole where you bolt a toilet. This was cleaned up, added new bolts and the waxed ring, then I bolted in a new toilet after I installed vinyl flooring over the original pink-grey tile. The bathroom countertop was destroyed from water damage, too many people, too much water, I removed and replaced it. Thanks for the damages Velazquez family, I appreciate all the work you did to make my life harder!
New flooring in, new toilet flange installed, ready for the waxed ring and the new toilet! I serviced the old toilet when the Velazquez family still lived here (May 2016), it needed cleaning but still serviced the 6 people living in the apartment, too many people, too much damage.
These photos from the beginning, damaged deck and stairs, broken concrete, marijuana greenhouse on neighbor's property next door (right). I purchased the property with good and terrible renters living there and spent a year improving the residences. The Velazquez family originally from Mexico who emigrated 10 years ago to live in this area, they are Canadian citizens now, they also took up residence in my building in November 2012, and destroyed their once clean, liveable space. I learned the family didn't respect the property because they paid low rent, their daughter Ariana also said once that the apartment they lived in was dirty and broken, so the Landlord couldn't charge more rent. Actually, they degraded the apartment living in their own filth and garbage with roaches festering and overcrowded the apartment with all their extended families (7 in a 3 bedroom apartment, written in the lease!), to keep other renters away and keep living cheap until I came to town! I worked for 350 hours (2.5 months) cleaning up all their filth, bugs, dirt and used 20 gallons of paint to cover the walls and floors to seal off the mold and bugs. Their friend,
a sex offender named David Benjamin Grainger was their babysitter for the past 7 years, he also read this blog and scanned information from my renovation updates here, to try and create a defense for the damage made by the family. The truth is, David was a local elementary school teacher (Jack Miner Elementary, Kingsville, ON) who used his position of authority over youth to lie to parents, manipulate students into having intimate relationships with him, and sexually abusing students and participants in Skip rope competitions creating his own
Skip Rope business out of it to lure more young girls into his illicit lifestyle. David is a great liar, he didn't ask parents before manipulating students into having sexual relations with himself. When he reads this blog, note: Trespassing order is in effect, you are not welcome here - no letters, email, telephone calls. The Ontario Provincial Police have it on record. Sometimes investment into a property in a new neighborhood brings out a lot of trash, in the way people choose to live like the Velazquez family, in their own haven of filth and hoarding, and the people they attract like sex offenders who earn their trust to take advantage of them, or to redeem all the bad things they did to other youth in the community.
I took a break from the renovations and cycled in Iceland, England and Paris, France. Life is a challenge, some challenges are much more difficult than others to overcome. Bicycle touring is a challenge too, but it's much easier than construction and home improvement projects or working at the same job for 50 years!
