Interesting times here in Tampa. As I type this I'm chilling out in my king suite at the Hilton Garden Inn, which I got for next to nothing due to my mate working for the Hilton offices here. I just extended my flight a further month to October 18th due to the condo hunting getting underway. I'd have started much sooner, but another nightmare run put me in no mood to discuss parting with $200k as I had a run of 29 6-handed SNGs without a win, by far my worst ever run. But I've managed to turn it around so, ho-hum.
I spoke with a realtor today and I've lined up ten properties I like the look of in Central/Downtown Tampa. My mate Jason who is a land surveyor drove me around the area, ironically called SOHO of all names, and it was everything I am looking for. It is literally a stone's throw from the action, all the major sporting arenas and a short drive to all the beaches in the area e.g. Clearwater, St. Petersburg.
There was really no decision in deciding I wanted to plump for a stylish 1 bed-1 bath condo in an affluent area rather than a 2 bed-2 bath for $150k on the outskirts, factoring in I am a lazy bastard and the smaller the better (that's what she said) in terms of maintenance and the fact I can't legally live here (I could probably get away with staying here 6 months per year coming and going).
What's great about the condos here is that the complexes come with gyms, swimming pools, saunas, tennis courts and hot tubs as standard. it's really quite something. I am eyeing up a condo for around the $175k mark in an affluent, central area with all these key amenities, and it's a NICE place. What could $175k get you in the UK? A bucket of shit, is my guess. I would perhaps be able to buy a scummy place in somewhere like Blackburn, but why the fuck would I want to do that when Florida is so ridiculously cheap (before you factor in the shithot exchange rate), with so much to do you can never get bored. For example, next week I am spending a few days in Orlando to do the theme parks, then I am going to watch some NHL at Tampa Bay lightning, and a week on Sunday I'm going to see the Buccaneers vs. Rams in the NFL. I've already watched MLB (Devil Rays, cost a whopping $8), and NBA is over otherwise I'd be checking out Orlando Magic or Miami Heat. The beaches, nightlife, restaurants, just amazing.
On the health front I am better than ever. Eating well is not a problem here and I mean well as eating healthy. 24 hours a day, whatever you want. I have been hitting the gym pretty hard and I am up to 12st now and packing some muscle. The aim is to get upto 13st, 10% bodyfat in 12 months.
Poker, well, it's chugging along, and I guess I'll need to hit the grind so I can pay off my prospective condo ASAP.
Best,
JPK
Friday, September 14, 2007
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
Grinding away in Tampa, Florida
Well, not really. Due to my laptop having issues with the connection here my poker has been limited to a handful of SNGs during the past week since landing, of which I've bubbled in 80% of them. Oh joy.
It's a really great place here and just shows how far we are behind the times in the UK. It's just the little things for e.g. I went to buy an iPod at the Apple store and was approached by a salesman. He went and got the iPod for me, so I took it and started to make my way to the checkout (see how I'm slowly becoming Americanised with my language?). "You can pay right here," he chimes up and pulls out this little PDA device with one of those computer pens which you can sign your name on the screen with (same applies in supermarkets). Card swiped and Bob's your uncle, I'm out of the door around 90 seconds after going in.
Our popularity is at an all-time high here; Gordon Brown seems to have made a good impression as Blair was seen as Bush' bitch and well, Bush isn't exactly up for Time magazine man of the year here. However he pales in comparison to David Beckham, his notoriety is just insane. Whenever I'm out and about it's all I'm asked about, he's sent USA football crazy (it will never, ever be SOCCER). It's literally available 24 hours a day on TV here, with pretty much every Premiership game available live, including Saturday afternoon games. He might be earning $50 million a year but even without playing, he's probably paying it back tenfold.
The food selection here is also really sick. We all know about the fast food and the fat bastard reputation USA has, but we went to Walmart and it's roughly 100x easier to eat healthy than the UK. 1kg of seedless grapes for $0.88. Ready made white albacore tuna for $1.10. Just ridiculous. It's really going to help with my fitness plan, as even with downing 10 Michelob Ultras a day I'm losing weight and toning up.
Adding in a multitude of factors I was already considering an investment in the property market here when I was informed I was visiting right in the middle of a market crash, with 1000s of condos and beachside resorts in foreclosure and generally going at rock bottom prices. For e.g. you can get a 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom condo near the beach, with a gym and pool in the complex for under $200k, 10% deposit at 5%ish interest mortgage. Change from £250k in England? Unlikely. Added to the fact furniture, TVs et al are roughly 35% of the UK price on 0% interest multi-year payback plans it really is minimal outlay and maximum prospective return (especially given our current exchange rate). Oh, there's the bonus of living in Tampa, Florida which is by the (various number of) beaches, with an international airport 15 minutes away, and also 1 hour from Orlando, and a few hours from Miami/Key West etc.
So yeah, I'm currently weighing up the options. It would really work as it would put me under pressure and motivated to grind as hard as I can without leaving my finances limited. If for e.g. I am earning ave. $15k/month, I can just take $10k/month and put it towards the condo, and hopefully have it paid off in a year, then upgrade to a higher valued property; rinse and repeat OR buy another $200k property. It is certainly a far more lucrative proposition than getting myself on the ladder in the UK. Interesting times ahead for sure.
Uh, more poker talk next time, once I get the connection sorted.
Best,
JPK
It's a really great place here and just shows how far we are behind the times in the UK. It's just the little things for e.g. I went to buy an iPod at the Apple store and was approached by a salesman. He went and got the iPod for me, so I took it and started to make my way to the checkout (see how I'm slowly becoming Americanised with my language?). "You can pay right here," he chimes up and pulls out this little PDA device with one of those computer pens which you can sign your name on the screen with (same applies in supermarkets). Card swiped and Bob's your uncle, I'm out of the door around 90 seconds after going in.
Our popularity is at an all-time high here; Gordon Brown seems to have made a good impression as Blair was seen as Bush' bitch and well, Bush isn't exactly up for Time magazine man of the year here. However he pales in comparison to David Beckham, his notoriety is just insane. Whenever I'm out and about it's all I'm asked about, he's sent USA football crazy (it will never, ever be SOCCER). It's literally available 24 hours a day on TV here, with pretty much every Premiership game available live, including Saturday afternoon games. He might be earning $50 million a year but even without playing, he's probably paying it back tenfold.
The food selection here is also really sick. We all know about the fast food and the fat bastard reputation USA has, but we went to Walmart and it's roughly 100x easier to eat healthy than the UK. 1kg of seedless grapes for $0.88. Ready made white albacore tuna for $1.10. Just ridiculous. It's really going to help with my fitness plan, as even with downing 10 Michelob Ultras a day I'm losing weight and toning up.
Adding in a multitude of factors I was already considering an investment in the property market here when I was informed I was visiting right in the middle of a market crash, with 1000s of condos and beachside resorts in foreclosure and generally going at rock bottom prices. For e.g. you can get a 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom condo near the beach, with a gym and pool in the complex for under $200k, 10% deposit at 5%ish interest mortgage. Change from £250k in England? Unlikely. Added to the fact furniture, TVs et al are roughly 35% of the UK price on 0% interest multi-year payback plans it really is minimal outlay and maximum prospective return (especially given our current exchange rate). Oh, there's the bonus of living in Tampa, Florida which is by the (various number of) beaches, with an international airport 15 minutes away, and also 1 hour from Orlando, and a few hours from Miami/Key West etc.
So yeah, I'm currently weighing up the options. It would really work as it would put me under pressure and motivated to grind as hard as I can without leaving my finances limited. If for e.g. I am earning ave. $15k/month, I can just take $10k/month and put it towards the condo, and hopefully have it paid off in a year, then upgrade to a higher valued property; rinse and repeat OR buy another $200k property. It is certainly a far more lucrative proposition than getting myself on the ladder in the UK. Interesting times ahead for sure.
Uh, more poker talk next time, once I get the connection sorted.
Best,
JPK
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