Working On A Quirky Graph

I have signed for the house! Honestly, I thought there would be more of an excited, fluttery feeling with this latest attempt at home ownership, but I’m fairly certain the only jitters I felt were from my quad shot expresso I brought with me to the signing. It felt like it was just another step, another check mark. While I’ve been wanting a house for a while, and this particular process went extremely quickly, I confess that I’m not excited, but not resigned. More like, expectant. This was the next move. Packing up one place to move it to the other is another expected move.

Of course, after signing all the paperwork that goes with title changes and new found debt, I received a key and left to grab some things I would be taking with me to the new place. Important, life altering things, like toilet paper and paper towels. And soap. I waited a bit because I wasn’t sure exactly when the seller would have the last pieces of equipment out (spoiler alert, they didn’t bother), and I knew I would need trash bags, some beginning garden stuff and a trash can or two. While we continued to wait, I grabbed my mom and we went to brunch before we meandered over to the house.

It has been a few days since, and I’ve been back everyday. I’m not supposed to move for another month, which honestly is the best thing because I am totally not motivated to pack at all. I had the cable hooked up in the new place, which, considering the had the connection for the line on one side of the house and a disconnected wire hanging out of the brick on the absolute other side of the house… clearly it was needed for someone to come bail me out. Luckily they ran new wire and we were able to get the house set up.

It is a bit mind bending for me to try and be in two places. My sister and her husband came out to help me hook up a mail box to the brick while we debated whether or not the current placement of the front door is the real one – we believe not, what the hell the seller was thinking when they ‘rehabbed’ the house, and whether or not she should give them a piece of her mind.

I always find it amusing when my baby sister decides that she needs to defend my honor.

The biggest concern I have currently are the windows in the house. They never bothered to get new ones, and the ones there are not storm windows, in fact the one in the main bedroom has an open space. While I realize the seller wasn’t living there over the winter, I can not believe the room freezing was a selling point. I also have a couple of dead trees in the back. This week I will be seeing a tree guy and a window guy, as well as getting a quote on a paint job on the stairwell wall because that will suck to paint myself. I’m supposed to be seeing someone this week as well to see about making some modifications to the first floor bathroom to put a washer/dryer space in it and pulling the shower I will never use. I’d also like to get a gas fireplace put in, but I have a sneaking suspicion that the prior owners ran the electrical wire down the chimney.

Not that I see getting a lot of any work done immediately. Contractors in the city are booked out at least four months, and I’ve seen some booked nine months. Even the painter has a four month backlog. Which makes the priorities change. The windows are the most important thing to get fixed. And while I have some extra saved up, I’m doubtful I will be able to replace in all their glory, all the original windows. That project will be piecemealed getting the windows done that are most unstable or the least storm resistant.

All this week has me moving back and forth between the houses though, bringing loads of stuff from one place to another. In fact, my sister gave me a spare weed whacker for the small yard that I have. I’m planning on getting rid of all the grass and keeping only a garden with lots of flowers and pollinators, and using mulch and wood chips for paths in-between raised bed gardens, but until then I need to keep what is on the ground under control. There is always a little bit of grass or weeds some where so I’m grateful for the gift, but holy cats am I sore from utilizing that little machine. As I continue to get older I’m used to waking up sore and not being entirely sure what happened, but wow was I hurting! There was definite whimpering while I tried to work out the tightness in my upper back. I still have to go back tomorrow. More loads to bring over, more art to subtly place by walls to get an idea for colors, and a bed to build.

Maybe I will hit that bagel place again on my way over. That is a delicious and dangerous (to my bank account) habit to form.