One thing I don’t like about blogging is that I feel bad when I sprawl. There are so many things going on that I could type and type and type, but I know MY eyes would glaze over if I had to read that so I’ll be merciful. Here’s the short version of life at the moment (and it’s still long!! Sorry.)
-The ink is not yet signed on the contract between Jrex’s advisor and Stanford, but it might as well be. Looks like the move is a go.
-We met with our realtor (and friend) who told us to sell the shed ‘as is’ (thank God!). She pointed out things that we hadn’t even noticed: residual mold from a leaky bucket in the basement, loose caulk on the front step, and peeling paint on the thingy over the back door. I’m in the midst of stripping and reglazing a tree house window. Yeah, you heard that right: a window that belongs to a tree house. Who has a tree house that needs maintenance?!! All I can say is don’t buy a house from a meticulous house hobbyist (well, actually—DO buy that house cause it’ll be in great shape, but be prepared to feel tons of pressure because you can’t maintain the tree house, much less the house, in the style to which it was accustomed).
-We love our realtor. She’s a white woman married to a Korean man. For some strange reason, she and I bonded quickly. When I first called her we spoke of houses for 20 minutes, then chatted about in-laws and life for 40. Jrex came home in the middle of all that and was VERY confused when I got off the phone and said, “I found a realtor!”
-She gave us great news about how much our house has appreciated in four years. Still not enough to buy a house in NoCal, but encouraging anyway.
-The day after that, the aforementioned Meticulous Homeowner came and fixed some electrical and stove issues we had. My Dad and I tried to install new lights in the basement half bath, but when we were done we had a problem: if the bathroom light was turned off we lost power on the west side of the house. Nothing vital, just the doorbell, the light over my drawing table, and the sump pump. When Meticulous Homeowner finished he tested the doorbell and the dog started whimpering. She’d never heard it before! I guess now I won’t have an excuse when the Jehovah’s Witnesses stop by.
-I leave a week from tomorrow to go to Ireland for two weeks. I forget if I’ve talked about that before, but I’m going to design web sites for rural pastors in Western Ireland. We’ll be staying in their homes for 3-4 days and trying to get something on-line in that time span. The first pastor is also a cattle farmer! I’m SO excited to milk cows. I’m sure it’s all done by machine, but still. My Mom was a farmer’s daughter so I grew up hearing stories of cows, fields, and horses while I stared out the window at the brick walls of the house next door. Not only will I be on a farm, but an Irish farm, on an inlet, in a house with “LOTS of children”. I’ve always disliked being a tourist and this version of seeing a country seems as authentic as it can get.
-My grandmother (Mom’s mom), who had a stroke a year ago and broke her ankle this spring, sent me a $10 bill from her birthday money for my trip! It’s the most valuable ten dollars I’ve ever owned. I’m looking forward to finding her a gift over there.
-On the way home from that I have a five hour layover in Boston. I’m hoping to meet Snickollet for coffee (as long as the twins stay put till then…).
-When I get back from Ireland we’ll probably put our house on the market and hope someone grabs it within a week or so. I’m still awed that when we were moving from Rochester to Baltimore, Jrex had a strong sense that we should buy a house. I thought he was crazy. We wouldn’t know the city, it’s crazy to do that long distance, etc. But if we hadn’t done that we would have hit the housing boom and never could have afforded a house at all. As it is we got in just before Baltimore exploded. Wow. Not only that, we landed in the perfect house for us and our needs. Given that, I’m upset to leave our home, but getting excited to see what the next stage of provision will be. Apparently it will involve having to walk a dog… but I’ll get the exercise I pretend I want and get to meet the neighbors.
(The crazy thing is this leaves out getting my butt-kicked climbing, a weird conversation with another climber about his marriage that included the phrase, “at some point you take what you can get”, our neighbor who almost died and the almost daily phone calls with my MIL)
As my acting teacher said in college, “Don’t forget to breathe.”
4 comments:
It's cool that you had that in common with your realtor. We are a rare breed. :) It's also nice that you might be able to meet Snickollet. That's been the most rewarding thing about blogging for me, the sense of community with other bloggers.
Have fun in Ireland. Take lots of pics!
Wow, I'm honored to make it on your list of happenings, especially given how intriguing some of the things things that got left off sound.
I hope it feels good to have the move decision made and that it resolves some of the limbo-land feeling. I'll cross my fingers for a quick sale of your house and a smooth cross-country move.
Looking forward to our rendez-vous in June. Every day I talk to the twins about why they need to stay on the inside for 4.5 more weeks, your visit being one of them. So far, they seem to be listening.
When I lived with my grandmother, I milked her cow every single morning. Then I carried the heavy bucket from the barn without sloshing one drop of milk. The best part, milking extra into the cracked bowl that held enough milk for the wild cats to have a taste. YOu'd think a cracked bowl would leak, but the crack was at the top and for some reason, cats love fresh, warm milk. I, on the other hand, hated it.
The guy who sold you the house came back to do maintenance now that it is no longer his house? Now, THAT is dedication.
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