Full Day O' Showings

We had three house showings today and I've discovered that my daily limit for house showings is around two.  Definitely not three.  Since our first contract went bust, quite out of the blue, serious momentum was lost.  A meeting of minds determined that we should lower our asking price to get back in the game.  Hours after putting the new listing price into effect, we had three showings.  I like the efficiency of getting that many pairs of eyes on my clean floors all in one day but logistically, it was tricky to pull off, as there were all ready some plans on the books for the day.  Jack had his homeschool science class in a town 20 miles away and Apollo had an appointment with the groomers.  The car was also nearly out of gas (there is only one now, since my beloved van went to live with another family)  and undoubtedly we would be wanting to eat at some point.  Somehow we pulled it all off, although Dale was left to walk around the block with Apollo at one point, waiting for Jack & I to rescue him and take him to lunch.  As hard as it is to get out of the house for a showing, light turned on, counters cleared, used towels hidden away, knowing when you can return to your house is even trickier.  If the agent does not leave a business card (many have not), you have no idea if they've been there and left already or if they haven't arrived yet.  Next time we have a showing, I plan to leave a thread caught in the doorjam, a la Bladerunner, so I can tell at a glance if anyone has entered the house.  And how cool would it be if agents left origami unicorns on the counter!  Anyway, by the final showing, we ended up just parking in the driveway of the vacant house across the street.  Yes, we were staking out our own house. That's what three showing in one day will do to you!

Maybe we are all just replicants after all...

Falling Through To Dark Blue Carpet

Our agent called us last night to tell us that our buyers cancelled the contract on our house.  This was quite unexpected.  The buyers have made several trips from Las Vegas to see our house, including a trip to supervise the inspection and discuss furniture and personal items of ours that they wished to purchase.  The phrase "They really love the house." had been used many times, by everyone associated with the deal.  It feels like Parcheesi, when you are almost to your spaces leading up to your home and someone lands on your spot and sends you all the way back to the start.  I'm sure the lesson here is patience, because, well, isn't it always about patience, dammit?  I'm not worried about our ultimate plans for Costa Rica being threatened and we aren't on a strict time table, so it's really no problem.  It mostly means more vacuuming and I've already done more vacuuming that I thought was possible.  You see, we have a very dark blue carpet and a light golden, largish dog who is apparently blowing out his coat in preparation for growing in his winter one.  Mind you, we live in Arizona and are soon moving to a tropical climate.  Nevertheless, a winter coat is his mission.  So I vacuum.  I'm sure there's some kinda Zen lesson here on the impermanence of things.  But anyone whose ever been responsible for housework knows that.  And anyway, two lessons in one day? Sheesh!

Here are the players:

The dark blue carpet

The largish dog:  friend to all save dark carpets & black yoga pants

And completing the trifecta, the vacuum cleaner!

Houses & Homes

When you own a house, you have a relationship with it.  I've noticed that the relationship goes through stages, just like relationships with people do.  In the beginning, everyone's favorite, is infatuation.  The house is so beautiful, so perfect, so just what you wanted, that it literally can do no wrong.  Oh, there may be a few minor things, changes to make, but those changes will actually be a joy to perform, a labor of love and devotion.  You can't wait to get started and mentally plan trip to Home Depot.  Then somewhere during the actually move in and getting settled, you get worn out and tired.  All those dreams will have to wait while you catch your breath.  Next thing you know, years have gone by and dang it, those things on that fix-it list are starting to really piss you off.  That paint color has gone from a bit off to appalling.  How dare that screen door still bang when closing, just missing your heels?  Age does not improve the kitchen cabinets.  The pile up of grievances is growing so long that it is starting to look like it would be easier to just move again than deal with everything.  You notice other houses for sale in your neighborhood, each with their own special allure.  You come home from walks with listing papers stuffed into your pocket.  But in the end, you come to realize all the reasons you fell in love with the house in the first place are still there and that it's a waste of time looking elsewhere for the happiness.  It's in your own backyard already.

I'll miss you!

The Seed

The idea lay dormant for several years, like a seed.  Dale had been to Peru.  We had talked about the whole family visiting and possibly living for a time.  I'm sure the words "cool" and "awesome" were used to describe the possibility of the thing.  And then we fell back into the relentlessness of suburban life, with its grass to mow and its errands to run, and the idea went into dormancy.  We even managed a startling move to Sedona, Arizona, never dreaming that it was just a warm-up lap.  And then the idea of moving out of the country to Costa Rica started to germinate.  And that which germinates, does tend to grow.

So we will sell most of our worldly possessions, including our house and cars, and move to Costa Rica and see what happens!  This blog will document the whole escapade for our friends & family who are curious about following our doings.  But mostly it is for my entertainment.  I require a lot of entertainment.

There's just something about palm trees, white sand and blue water...