large anthologist riled -- 2nd try (forwarded)

[Michael Eisenstadt]

the old-timey email app i use (Netscape 3) sometimes 
doesnt format correctly, sorry

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Jon wrote (to me off list):

Michael--I feel it is time to stop this conversation as
I have been accused (along with you) of being a "boring 
asshole" by a certain Fontaine. I will just clarify where 
my money for real estate came from: 1) Modest personal 
savings, plus $1000 from my wife and selling off a car 
I had restored to buy in 1972 my first house, a small 
shingle 1915-vintage  cottage in AS IS condition in 
Piedmont, CA. 2)Refi and eventual  resale of that house 
3) Buying another run-down, very large house in Oakland 
Hills for about $64,000 4) Refi of the hills home 
5) Buying several fixer-upper large mansion-like houses 
older houses in gentrifying areas of Oakland  6) selling 
these houses after fairly short holding times 7) With 
the profits and sale of the hills home, buying a nice 
five bedroom fixer-upper in the Claremont area of 
Berkeley to which I added an attic room and a small 
apartment to the rear.8) After sale of the Berkeley 
home in 1989, moving to Palo Alto to buy a smaller, 
over-priced shingle bungalow. I think I'll stay here 
until I die. No inheritance, no family gifts--just 
sweat equity, re-fi, a little bit of rental income,  
and riding out the real estate market. My only regret 
is that I sold off my houses rather than keeping most 
of them as rentals. But then I could have been called 
a "slum lord," which you for some reason assumed I was.

And where did you get your information that I flunked 
out in English at U. Michigan? I have only been on 
that campus once in my entire life, to perform an 
anti-war theater piece. I got an M.A. in Comp Lit 
from U. of Wisconsin.Very nice place to hang out in 
the late 60's, but the Vietnam War and the end of 
student draft deferments pushed me into thinking grad
school wasn't worth the hassle.

Jon