Tag Archives: Moving

Do Not Pass Go

Posted on by
Reply

Things have been crazy for years, decades, eons. I start it all counting when my Dad died almost 4 years ago. We moved into the Linda Vista house shortly after, two years in we got engaged, all the planning for that, got married, honeymoon, holidays, new year, decided to move again. In April of this year we started the staging and showing process for selling the Linda Vista house and we lived in turmoil with about 25% of our belongings. The house sold – finally – and now we’re in a temporary house in Glendale with 25% of our belongings. I haven’t been able to cook because most of my cookware is in storage. The new house closes escrow any day now.

As for the new house, it’s far from Barbie’s dream house, but it’s got loads of potential and it’s up to us to turn potential into reality. Some of it will involve hiring capable professionals to do the heavy lifting, but a lot of it is our job. There’s quite a lot to do and it’s almost impossible to know where to start. What problems need to be fixed before we can move in? First off, we’re going to re-do the wood floors, but I’m afraid they’re so old, we may end up putting in all new hard wood. I’m thinking bamboo. We’ll paint the inside – I’m pretty sure it hasn’t been painted in 20 years. After that, several hundred other dire projects need to be discussed and implemented. It’s a little overwhelming, but I’ve promised myself that we’re going to hit the ground running. It sounds like a good idea, anyway. Needless to say, the house is a fixer, but it’s got good bones, it’s a great size, I get a real office, we have a little pool, I get a studio, AJB gets a bigger office, and the teens get plenty of places to hide out in. It’s gonna be great. I know it, we just have to start.

It’s all coming up so quickly. The current owners are still there and have been trying to guilt us into moving out later rather than sooner. You see, they’re a bit older and have accumulated about 16 families worth of travel knick-knacks, furniture, art, tchotchkes, and things and doodads. They’re hoarders, but in a “ooh, that’s cool” kinda way. They have lots of neat things, they just have lots and lots of them. The basement reminds me of the ending of Citizen Cane. Needless to say, they’re having a hard time getting rid of stuff or moving it out – thus the request for more time. They’ve had 4 months to deal with it and an extended move out date put us moving in a week before Christmas. Not gonna happen. Sorry guys. I’ve been living this life with half my wardrobe, half my kitchen, half my life since April. I’m done. I’m ready to be home. Plus, the house needs so much work I’m ready to start.

The current owners are indeed laying in some heavy guilt. They’ve somehow managed to make us feel as though we’re evicting them, despite actually selling us the house. Aside from that, there’s the uncomfortable meetings, phone calls, and messages though 3rd parties. I don’t know anyone that has THIS MUCH contact with the sellers of a house. I kind of just wanted to buy the house, meet them once, and then send them a thank you card with flowers. The other problem is they don’t actually have anywhere to go once they move out. When we sold Linda Vista, we were in a similar situation and were looking for an in-between rental, not having much luck with our space needs. Finally, we got this house in Glendale – it’s owned by the guy who bought Linda Vista. NOW…the current owners of our NEW house, want to move into THIS house when we move out and into their old house. Still with me?

Us: Sold Linda Vista to the B’s, are renting Rossmoyne from the B’s, are buying El Molino from the A’s.
The B’s: Bought Linda Vista and own Rossmoyne.
The A’s: Sold us El Molino and want to rent Rossmoyne.

Yeah, it actually does sound like a game of Monopoly. The only people truly making out here are the B’s. They bought Linda Vista for a steal and are getting their Glendale house rented consistently. We on the other hand, paid too much for the El Molino house – for a down economy. In an up economy, it’s worth about half a million more. The A’s were hesitant about selling their house and didn’t make as much as they could have if the economy were better. It’s all a lot to process. Should I sell Park Avenue or Indiana Avenue? I also have 2 railroads, but I’m in prison and need a Get Out of Jail Free Card if anyone wants to barter. The end result is we have a great house which, let’s face it, we got for a good price, I just wish it didn’t need so much work. In about 50 years she’ll look amazing. I’m just kidding. I think we can have her looking pretty damned amazing in just a couple of years. The floors and paint will do wonders and slowly but surely she’ll become Barbie’s dream home.

I forget how much blogging makes me feel better.

The Big Stress

Posted on by
Reply

AJB told me that moving is among one of the most stressful times in a person’s life. I’m inclined to believe him. Just a few short weeks ago, we made the final decision to sell our house. We did not take this decision lightly, but I don’t think anyone ever realizes how stressful these things are or how you’ll react to them.

After two grueling weeks of packing (most of which was done by AJB’s assistant) we are officially on the market and had out first agent caravan today. While I remain confident that this is the right choice, it still adds a major element of hardship. We were told by our agent that we should pack as much as possible and clear out the house as best we could. We took this as gospel and cleared out about 80% of our belongings. While packing, it’s hard to know what you may or may not need access to. I asked myself what I could live without and crossed my fingers I was right. At the time, it seemed like I could do without a lot. Little things, like a toaster…we packed it because it takes up space and you can make toast in the oven. OK, so getting along without it hasn’t been horrible. In fact, oven toast is pretty good. I packed up most of my Winter clothes because Spring is here and it’s warming up…except, it keeps warming up and cooling off. And because everything we own that’s left has to be stashed during showings, I don’t know where anything is. We are literally living a bare bones existence, I have one pot holder and no casserole dishes. I did, however, take a stand and kept most of my clothes. Although, it wasn’t much of a stand since I made no formal declaration.

Realizing that there are people in the world who don’t have electricity, let alone toasters, I’m reminded that as an American, I have many luxuries. The hard part isn’t so much living without, it’s that my normal life is disrupted. My day to day routine is fucked up and I can’t find the book I had to return to the library. Things we take for granted are now in new places or in storage. Our kitchen trashcan is in the basement. Our water dispenser is in the garage. It’s like living in Wonderland: Everything is nonsense. Nothing is what it is because everything is what it isn’t. It’s like living someone else’s life. This isn’t our furniture, these aren’t our smells, and strangers are walking through our home leaving lights on and windows open. I can’t cook, I can’t leave my socks on the floor, and aw crap…I packed up The Sims!

Our cats are staying with my brother and I miss them. Knowing that they’re over there, miserable (because they hate change), wishing they could come home, not seeing their little curled up bodies at the foot of the bed…it’s been rough. Not to mention JCS isn’t loving his new guests. I guess this is how parents feel when their kids are off at Summer camp. Empty nest syndrome.

I’m dealing. Some days better than most. With any luck, it will all be over soon and we can start shopping for a house. Of course, this brings up the all new technical difficulties of house hunting, packing up the rest of our stuff, waiting for the old house to clear, waiting for the new house to clear, unpacking, finding new and exciting places for all our things, getting used to new noises, a new neighborhood, and every other challenge that comes with moving out, moving in. Meanwhile, I’m still trying to work, build my new website which should have been done in January, trying to eat right when take-away is so much easier, not getting enough sleep, missing my cats, and living in a fishbowl.

Soon it will all be a distant memory. We’ll be in the house we really love and wonder why we ever moved to Linda Vista Ave.