What a difference a week makes...

They told us that once the foundation was poured, the framing would go up quickly on our new house (assuming that our old house ever sells)

April 7, 2012

April 15, 2012

I'm not sure why I take these pictures.  If our current house doesn't sell in the next couple of months, we're going to half to walk away from this one. 

Which won't be that great a disappointment since:

A: We've put so much work into our current house that it would be easy to live in.

B:  We wouldn't have to move -- I hate moving.

C:  We would get to stay with out neighbors who we love dearly. 

And yet, I assume that it will sell and we will move.  It feels like there is momentum in the universe that is pushing in that direction and I try not to fight against universal momentum because it is bigger than me. 

...and usually pushes me in better directions that I would take without it.

The New House - Second in an uncertain series

I don't have a clue whether we will be living in the house when it gets built or whether we will end up staying in the house we now have -- and that now has been fixed up with our sweat.

But the process began for real on the 12th.

Lot 44

We met with Tim Dupre, our go-to guy until we either walk away from the project or move in, to finalize plans and walk the lot to discuss which trees should go and which should stay.

Not that there is a whole lot of choice since the lot is small and the house has to be fairly square and can't be build like some snakey maze around trees.  Nor can we have a tree growing up through the livingroom floor and out through the roof.

Most of the trees are not all that nice anyhow -- pines and gum.  (No gums!!!  I don't want to be picking up spikey gum balls in my eighties!!  I've picked up enough of them during the last 13 years at our current house!)

I hate gum trees!

But out at Lot 44 we spot a nice live oak near the back of the lot.

"Hey, Tim!  Do you think we can save that one?"

His answer is a masterful combination of customer service and legal disclaimer.  He tells us that he will save all the trees he can -- (Except the gums!!!!) -- but that when they muck the lot, there is always a danger of damaging roots of big trees when taking out the little ones.

Mucking, we learn, is taking a big piece of heavy equipment, driven by someone getting paid minimum wage, and ripping up the place.  It is not lazer surgery.   Tim's promise to save all the trees he can seems a bit empty.

I begin feeling sorry for the trees so I go past the pack of the lot where there is a long cleared path for a powerline.  I am wondering if it might have the potential for a walking trail.

I turn to my right.

Are we moving into an industrial complex?
Walking away begins to seem more like a good thing.

What are we doing!!!???

Leaving Karen and Tim to debate tree extinction, I wander off to my left.

This is a bit more promising

As Karen says, "If we're meant to live there, we'll live there.  If we're meant to stay where we are, we'll stay where we are."

One of those great truths I've learned in A.A. over the years.

"Let go and let God."

"Make plans but don't plan results."

The New House -First of a series with an uncertain ending

A lot of this makes no sense.  We know it makes no sense, and yet we keep moving further and further into it.  At the end of each non-sensical decision, we look at each other and say, "What are we doing?!!"

So far, I've been documenting attempts to sell our current house so we can downsize and move closer to the grandchildren and Karen's work.  I say "documenting" instead of "blogging" because I sometimes use this blog to journal about things for the future.  Maybe not as entertaining but...

What I haven't mentioned much is what we have been doing to locate a house we can move into after our current one sells.  Assuming that it does.  Big assumption.

And we keep breaking all the rules or guidelines we set for ourselves going into the process.

Assumption #1:  We would look but we would not buy anything until we were sure our house had sold.  We can't afford to own two homes. 

Assumption #1 Broken:  We bought a house!   We'd be complete idiots but instead of buying someone else's house, we are having a new one built!  The advantage is that the contract has an out-clause in case we don't sell our house.   At some point in the building process there will be a "Go/No-Go" meeting -- probably in a couple of months.  At that point, if our house has not sold we can walk away without losing our down payment.

Assumption #2:  We will downsize.

Assumption #2 Broken:  The new home is bigger and more than we expected to pay

Kitchen in "Model Home"

Assumption #3:  We will be moving nearer the grandchildren and Karen's work.

Assumption #3 Partially Broken:  Well, it is a little closer but not all that much. 

What are we doing?!!