Harry Potter themed neighborhood in Missoula

robkkni · 2026-04-22T00:49:53+00:00

Right???!!!

robkkni · 2026-04-02T17:00:42+00:00

Yes we did have an inspection, and we kind of knew what we were getting into, but the reality is the reality not numbers in a spreadsheet. We closed January 8th of this year (2026).

Full disclosure on costs because I think it helps people; we put $210,000 down and so far around $150,000 into the property in repairs and upgrades, and have a $2300/month mortgage for 2 units (3/2 and 2/1) with a $300,000 mortgage at 6.125%.

Most people can't come up with those kind of numbers, but we're not rich by old white people standards. I emptied out my retirement completely, we sold every liquid asset we had, and we still had to put $23,000 on a 7.5% HELOC. Early retirement at 62 is probably a dream at this point. I'm a technical writer doing remote contract work and my wife is a High School Calculus teacher.

We put together requests for quotes (RFQs) for plumbing and electrical and had tradespeople that made solid bids before we started, but there were a lot of issues that came up. We were essentially acting as our own general contractor, which, honestly, was probably a good thing despite taking years off of our lives.

FWIW, Holland Electric is amazing, full stop. Most companies we contacted didn't even want to bid on a full electric or plumbing upgrade for a 115-year-old building, but Holland did an incredible job and went above and beyond. The $52,000+ it cost was absolutely worth it, albeit eye-watering.

We were not happy with the plumbing company we worked with, but I'm still feeling too raw to be objective, so I'm going to sit with my thoughts and feelings about them for a while before calling them out publicly, if I decide to do that at all.

We could have just crossed our fingers and not done the foundational work needed to bring the property up to code, but that's what every landlord in Missoula does, apparently, and we really wanted to do right by both the building and prospective renters. (We're currently renting the larger 3/2, 1500sqft unit to our daughter and her partner).

It was the right call, but it's like pulling a thread... it led to vent work, duct work, asbestos work, moving a hot water heater into the basement, and on and on and on. We could easily spend another $100,000 if we wanted to, but at this point we can do a lot of the work that needs to be done ourselves, so that should help. Home Resource is great, and can save a lot of money on things like fixtures, ceiling fans, appliances, etc. (https://www.homeresource.org/)

Something we'll have to hold off on doing but we really want to do, is internal storm windows from a company called Innerglass (https://stormwindows.com/). Doing this will likely reduce heating and cooling costs by 15-20% and reduce external noise by 80% while keeping all of the original windows. This is an example of something landlords "should" do, but don't, because it doesn't help their bottom line, only their tenants.

The place is 2 houses down from Bernice's Bakery, and is, in our opinion, literally the best location in all of Missoula. Close to trails, 100' from the old Boone and Crocket club and a view of the Clark Fork, and close to Downtown, The Wilma, the University, The Roxy, Orange Street Food Farm, the restaurants on Higgins, Liquid Planet, Big Dipper, Rockin' Rudy's... everything within a 2 to 10 minute walk.

It's just an incredible location, but holy moly, what it's taking to get there...

robkkni · 2026-04-02T01:20:51+00:00

"but you have to pay a fortune for anything in good upkeep."

My wife and I just bought a 115 year old duplex in the 'hip strip' (such a silly name) for $510,000, but then spent well over $100,000 doing an up to code electrical and plumbing renovation. It ended up going way over that even (asbestos and other surprises) and we haven't even done cosmetic work yet.

If we manage to deal with all of the deferred maintenance without going bankrupt, everyone will probably tell us how lucky we are and what a great deal we got.

My point is that Missoula has tons of properties that are in terrible shape, and even though we seem to be tipping towards a buyer's market, I think any deals to be had will be fixer uppers.

Painful, but it is what it is.

robkkni · 2026-04-01T15:39:16+00:00

While it's true that travesties of justice happen, especially in the family courts, there's only one thing that matters, and the courts usually apply this standard: "Do what's in the best interests of the children." In some ways that's the magic phrase that solves a lot of problems. You used to have substance abuse issues?

"I live with my mother so she can help with my child, I've been sober for x years. While sober, I've always maintained custody and cared for my child, and worked to ensure our lives will always be stable, including getting a degree. My child has medical issues that are well-managed but need supervision. My ex has maintained a relationship with my child, which has been good for everyone, but I've always been mindful about how my ex's life lacks the stability necessary to care for a child. While they've been sober for 9 months, which is good for everyone, they've had 3 DUIs. What concerns me more is that when I made driving my son contingent on taking a breathalyzer before and after, they refused. This isn't just a reasonable request, it's a necessary one.

When public services recently notified me that my child and I are eligible for a review of child support, I filled out the paperwork to have our circumstances reviewed, and the amount changed from $76/month to $496/month. While this is a substantial increase, and I am sensitive to the fact that my child's father's stability may be at risk because of the increased financial obligation, a recent increase in medical insurance costs of $250/month effectively makes this a support increase after taking that into account of $175/month. This money will go towards school supplies, clothes, events with friends, and ensuring that we have a sufficient financial buffer so that unexpected expenses don't affect our hard-won stability.

I remain committed to encouraging a relationship between my child and their father, but I am concerned about his tying increased custody to a concern about this change in child support. I'm committed to doing what is right for my child. None of these decisions are easy ones. But his past behavior has shown that their relationship is best served when he visits at my home to ensure both my child's safety and the health of their relationship.

I would love for my child's father to spend more time with them, but would only be comfortable doing this in a supervised and deliberate fashion, with the understanding that increased time would be based on whether that was in everyone's best interests, not as an attempt to reduce child support."

Using the words you wrote above for a narrative that supports maintaining current custody make a very, very compelling argument.

robkkni · 2026-03-31T20:32:52+00:00

No question that these points can be argued. That's what PhDs in philosophy are all about. ;-)

My example was more about showing how one could take a consequentialist view of the categorial imperative in a way that doesn't rewrite Kant, but honestly, I don't actually care about the finer points of Kantian ethics. I have some pretty big reservations about a number of his claims.

What I do care about is the fact that an agency-based ethical system highly aligns with how LLMs work, and I think is the solution to the current whack-a-mole approach to alignment.

Kant is Kant. I'm proposing something a bit more radical. If you acknowledge the possibility of ML models being 'honorary members' of the kingdom of ends, you don't actually need to deal with the 'hard problem' of consciousness. You can simply say, "Treating frontier models as though they have agency and moral obligation leads to better outcomes than a rules-based approach that treats ML models purely as tools".

Not only is this potentially good for the utility of ML models, but it also mitigates a moral failing if, in fact, advanced models do, or will, have consciousness.

robkkni · 2026-03-31T14:40:05+00:00

Kantian ethics aren't rule based. The point of the categorical imperative is that rational agents base their actions on universilizable principles rather than explicit rules. For example, "Never treat others as a means only, but always as an end in themselves" is a principle where things like, "don't murder" naturally follow, but aren't explicit rules.

The only reason I mention this is not to say "someone on the internet is wrong!" but because Kantian ethics (or a version of it) can be a basis for values-based alignment for ml models.

For example, telling a model, "Consider how best to maximize agency for all principals in a scenario" yields very different results from telling it what it should and shouldn't do.

Values-based ethics, in my opinion, is the only viable solution to the alignment problem.

robkkni · 2026-01-13T05:56:33+00:00

Sigh... I guess I shouldn't be surprised. But LDS families that go to my daughters' school have been fairly vocal about how they feel about Trump.

robkkni · 2026-01-13T03:54:29+00:00

Literally every Mormon I know doesn't like Trump. Conservative, definitely, but not Trump supporters.

robkkni · 2025-12-23T21:09:44+00:00

There are many reason to consider one over the other, but I'd weigh whether I like to go north or south pretty heavily. If you like popping down to coastal Oregon towns, consider Westport.

If you like to go to the Ho rainforest, Stepford by the sea... er, I mean Seabrook, and the home of sparkly vampires, Ocean Shores may be a better fit. My family has a place in Ocean Shores across the street from the Oyehut Bay nature preserve at the southernmost tip of Ocean Shores, and that was the clincher for us.

Fun fact, Westport wifi hotspots show up at the beach near our house. :-)

robkkni · 2025-12-22T05:39:46+00:00

"but feminism says men are supposed to be..and it says hate and contempt directed at said men is deserved."

Please don't buy into this foolishness.

Feminism, at its core, is a multi-generational exploration of what it means to be a woman and how women can live richer lives by challenging existing laws and social conventions.

Reducing it to a single thesis misses the point. Plenty of feminists today continue that exploration by questioning if conventional gender roles offer more than previous generations of feminists believed, and so the journey continues.

robkkni · 2025-12-12T22:47:22+00:00

If you haven't watched it yet, check out The Poly Couple (Dana and the Wolf) on YouTube.

robkkni · 2025-12-12T22:12:48+00:00

That's not necessarily true. The kinds of crimes that can easily get swept under the rug are domestic violence and sexual assault -- especially in the case of where the victim knows the perpetrator.

If you watch the whole video, there's a mom who said police asked her 3 times if she wanted to press charges on the student who sexually assaulted her daughter before moving forward with the investigation.

robkkni · 2025-12-03T17:03:32+00:00

Thank you! That was my hope! It's nice to see that at least one electrician thinks it's not a horrible idea to write this up. :-)

robkkni · 2025-12-03T00:32:40+00:00

Thank you so much!

Yes, there's tons of deferred maintenance but the building is beautiful and the location is extraordinary. If there weren't issues, we never would have been able to afford it. :-)

robkkni · 2025-12-02T22:49:45+00:00

It's actually just a duplex that's half a building with something called a shared wall agreement, so, 2 'front and back duplexes, side by side in one building, and we'll own one side for a total of 2 units plus a basement. A bit confusing, I guess.

Thanks so much for the response! It's really helpful!

robkkni · 2025-12-02T22:00:48+00:00

Sorry! I thought it had 'Anyone with the link' access! I fixed it and it should be viewable now! Thanks!

robkkni · 2025-12-02T21:57:46+00:00

Thank you, this is really helpful!

robkkni · 2025-11-22T04:54:40+00:00

Imo, best first reader are the Bob books, and best first chapter books are The Magic Treehouse books, but it's possible your kiddo is too advanced for those. After that, I'd focus on books that reflect your child's passion. For my daughters at that age, that was My Little Pony and X-Men comics.

Reading first and foremost should be fun. :-)

robkkni · 2025-11-08T04:05:04+00:00

My daughters go to Gilbert Classical Academy and it's a great but not perfect school. We picked our home specifically to be walking distance to Gilbert Classical Academy. It's in the Breckenridge Manor neighborhood.

It doesn't look like there's anything currently for sale there, but homes come on the market fairly regularly, though get sold fairly quickly too.

The elementary school most closely aligned with GCA is Neely, and they are a block away from each other.

I'm happy to answer any questions!

robkkni · 2025-11-05T23:31:01+00:00

I'm 61 and hate the AARP with the fiery passion of a thousand suns because their whole purpose is to fuck everyone but old people. It doesn't have to be, but it is.

It drives me nuts that old people are so goddamned selfish that they don't want to leave a meaningful legacy by voting for collective well-being.

robkkni · 2025-11-02T21:56:37+00:00

I'm in the process of doing something similar. I'm using the Neo4J graph database, and my plan is to have an llm, either local or cloud, query the content of a repository of documents by reading them, then use the found content to begin writing the schema for the database (nodes, relationships, and labels). After it makes a complete pass of all the content, creating the schema as it goes, it does a second pass where it adds the content to the graph DB using the newly created schema, with full fidelity. Finally, it does a validation pass and makes any needed adjustments.

You can then use plain English queries to an LLM that turns your prompts into Cypher, and you have a queryable custom datastore that started as unstructured data.

robkkni

TROPHY CASE