Today was a productive day, in many ways. Phil returned the trailer that the little car rolled on (two hours); we set up a bank account with a friendly bank that has been in business since 1872 (1 hour); we checked out the local grocery which had watermelon and bananas that I felt okay buying--they had NO organics section! (1/2 hour); we did laundry, I worked at our friends' house; we got the hammock and the cookstove set up on the land; we bought some camp chairs (they were normally $40 and we bought the last for for $25 each!), so now we can sit down outside.
Phil made it back yesterday from getting the well permit and he bought two construction trailers for good prices, so we will soon have storage and sleeping accomodations. There was one that he had hoped to buy a few months ago that was REALLY good, and it had sold, but the buyer never picked it up, so we got it after all! Awesome! Provided we get enough of the brush cut down (whether from Phil scything or a bush hog machine cutting down the brush), we should have all of that set on Friday, and the trailers delivered next week.
I didn't burst into tears when almost all our meat went bad (it is warmer at this time of year than when we were here in October, and it has been difficult to get ice), but tried to be thankful that we have some good stuff in our cooler.
I didn't burst into tears when Abraham's right eye swelled shut, just about, probably from a bug bite. Although he remains in good spirits, he LOOKS painful.
And I didn't burst into tears when our buyers walked away from our house today, ten days before closing, with no repercussions for them. I have wanted to get teary a few times, and even had to externally process, "Are we supposed to move back?" but that isn't the right option. And I can pull all my retirement now that I'm an independent contractor, so we can even live for several more months.
We were going to go with another agent, but she talked us into staying with her. It's good that she still has all the photos, so the promo stuff will look good, even though our house is empty and none-too-clean (we couldn't wipe out the tub after we'd packed all the towels, so the house is actually more filthy now than it ever has been), and she knows the history of the crazy buyers, so when people ask why the house fell out of contract, she can be diplomatic and honest. In the end, although we offered them $5K for their list of wishes, they wanted a new electrical panel and $5K towards asbestos remediation (they were willing to pay half--how generous), so that they could pop the top more easily. I'm sure they are happy today not to have such a large project ahead of them.
I don't honestly think we'll come out ahead in any way. Besides more months of mortgage payments, we have no staging, a dry/dead lawn (when they first came, the rains were yet falling), and a school year starting super soon. Typing that all makes me want to cry, because it seems so impossible. And I was so thrilled with what seemed like the right buyers at the right time withe a neat date, and a painfully low but agreeable price.
In retrospect, though, although I am sad, I have no regrets. If they wanted us to pay $15K toward their remodel, they should have written that in to the contract to begin with, and we would have said no.
We are staying one more night at the Zach Bushes. I am going to work on the Beam now, and am thankful that, once again, we have internet and electricity for the present.
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