Jim Morrison

I'm deeply sad to have missed this when it happened and to be bringing the news to you all so late, but another great HI has left us. Arnie Green. His name is a complete sentence to all who knew him. ASHI NE guys will remember him, though he wasn't active in ASHI national or online at all. He was a gifted, generous and wonderful man who was a family friend for decades. Those few silverbacks who remember Mel Chalfen will understand that Arnie was his very close friend and acolyte, if you'll pardon the expression. I think Arnie was the first non-family HI I ever met at a Chicago convention in about '89 or so. Anyone who has ever made a dollar as an HI owes Arnie a debt of gratitude. His memory is a blessing to us all. https://www.dignitymemorial.com/obituaries/brookline-ma/arnold-green-11597319

We might've dined at the same table a time or two, but those were big tables filled with big personalities and I mostly concentrated on listening. Vallarta was the first time I remember meeting and speaking with the author of one of my favorite columns: "Ask Auntie Jim." Glad to see so many of you OGs are still at it, Jimmy

I remember that evening as well, Jim, and that story is one of my most very favorites. It was also the only time you and I ever met in real life, I believe. Weren't we at the marina?

I searched Charlie's name on this site for a few lines to send his widow, his sister and his daughter, who understandably didn't know much about his professional life. The finest comment on it came from SonOfSwamp, better known to TIJ silverbacks as the late Walter Jowers. He wrote, "I know Charlie Wood. If Charlie tells you a pissant can pull a plow, hitch up that pissant." Thanks, guys.

Hey, It's been awhile. I don't know how many brothers and sisters here might've met Charlie, but I'm sorry to say he died yesterday at noon after a long illness. I posted something about it here, if you're interested: https://www.facebook.com/jim.morrison.127/posts/pfbid02t9jFQKDWLrg99QNZCohDJgXFkyUfMyNcFRfFiDaxrYP8vaksoL158jdPCQEa1TiLl Hope you're all well, Jimmy

If you only know Gary through this website, you might think you don't know him well, but that's not true. He is the same when he posts on TIJ as he is on the phone, as he is on late-night texts, as he is in person. He's the opposite of Baskin-Robbins: he only comes in one flavor. He's a hard-working, fun-loving, bare-knuckled sumbitch who disagrees with me on just about everything. Last time we spoke he told me he'd be working up until noon on the day they bury him and I believed it. I still do, but fate has other plans in the short term. If you can, please write a check for a guy who'd do the same for you. If you can't, please share the link on your social media. In any event, I'm sure he'd appreciate a kind thought or a kind word.

It's not an inspection report, but more evidence that what and how you write matters more than you might think. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/11/world/australia/facebook-post-missing-apostrophe-defamation.html

HIs generally don't complain about the time they spend on inspections, but they all complain about time spent writing reports. How much better would your work and your life be if you could cut your reports -and your report writing time- in half? Or in quarters? Practice it and see.

Mad credit to @Jim Baird for posting this and inviting critique. Few among us would be so bold. Virtually no one enjoys push-ups or sit-ups, but great athletes accept they are necessary for peak performance. Here's an ungraded exercise you will not enjoy, but it will make you better writers: Jim's sentence is 78 words long. Rewrite it privately or publicly and convey everything he did more clearly and in half the words or fewer. Great writing is re-writing. Go.

Who covers greater Philly? A reader just asked me if I knew anyone. Thanks in advance, Jimmy

Very kind of you to mention my name, Bill. I hope it doesn't keep too many people away. Alternative headline: Washed-up home inspector advises everyone in the business to learn from the best-of-class Yeah, that'd probably be too long. I've learned plenty from all three speakers and if you were holding it just a little closer to Boston I'd be there to soak up their knowledge and to pick up a little more of what Les is laying down, too. I hear things might be a little different now, but this conference is exactly what ASHI was in the early days. Honest, accomplished and earnest home inspectors seeking out the best in the field and learning what they had to teach. At dinner, they'd trade war stories and learn best practices from each other and at the bar later in the evening, they'd make great friends. No one who doesn't do what you guys do can understand how damned hard it is to be good at it, let alone great. Bill, Chad and Jim do. They'll up your game. Enjoy it. Post some pics. And please will one (or more) of you kind people buy Les a glass of something he likes. He's shared enough 'lessons learned the hard way' to save us all a heap of trouble. Cheers!

No homebuyer would read this all the way through to the end but if they somehow managed to, they would not come away with a clear understanding of what to do next. #InspectionFail

All my adult life I've heard smart people I respect say, 'Lead tastes sweet.' My question is: How do we know that? Who tasted it and told us? What is the source for this information?

You'd never pass the background check.

Good catch, Chad. This house is being built, so I presume the $10K tax bill is based on the previous value which was about $950K.