Spring began with hope. I had high hopes of getting a lot accomplished while the good weather was around. Then I realized that other people, who would have to help me get those things accomplished, were not as interested. The first disappointment was buying the new refrigerator.
My son came to visit for three weeks and he helped me do a lot. I had been planning to put my house up for sale by summer, but I quickly realized that it wouldn’t be ready to show. I had to wait over a month for the guys to come take down a big beech tree that broke in a high wind. The wood from that is drying before we stack it.
After 30 years of marriage and 4 kids, I am constantly getting rid of the stuff we accumulated over all those years. When my ex left, he took what he wanted and left the rest of the mess with me to deal with. Last fall I had a big yard sale and donated what was leftover to the Kiwanis sale, which happened to be at almost the same time. It felt good to lighten the junk load, but yard sales are a lot of work. You don’t have a yard sale to make money, you have one to give away the stuff you have. Prices must be set super cheap so people know they are getting a deal on everything they go away with.
I’m not planning to have another yard sale, but I am always taking items to the swap shop at the transfer station (fancy name for the dump). I have made headway. The beautiful 3-piece cherry entertainment center I put up for sale (cheap too) on Craig’s list never got one interested buyer, so we chopped it up and threw it away! What a shame, but I couldn’t keep it in the garage any longer. For 4 years it’s been taking up space that I need for the snowblower and other things.
I did do a bathroom renovation in Spring. The new white beadboard and blue paint was a huge improvement. It looks really nice, even though I didn’t have the money to spend on a new vanity and flooring. I compromised by painting a little bookcase from my kitchen, that now works as storage in the bathroom. That was a big accomplishment.
The rest of the summer I spent working on the yard and trying to get a home improvement loan. Once that finally came through, my contractor was busy doing other jobs and couldn’t get to my home improvement needs until recently. Now September is approaching fast and finally I am getting my siding put on the back of the house (see my siding story from 3 years ago). Next, the roof will be shingled (when the builder has time, but he promises it will be before winter).
I have more that needs to be fixed inside, but that can be done in cold weather so I have a feeling I’ll have to wait longer for that. Everything takes so long to finish. I have no choice but to stay here another winter. I should be ready to sell by next summer if I keep working at the fixes and decluttering until then. My house won’t be perfect, but hopefully a potential buyer will see it as a good start. New siding, new roof, and new windows… what more could a buyer want?
All too soon the leaves will change to their bright autumn colors, and then they will fall off the trees. I will rake leaves for months and then fall will end. We are all dreading winter as we have not fully recovered from the last one. It’s still a ways off, and for now I’ll be wrapping it up by cleaning out the summer vegetable gardens and chopping and stacking firewood.
How has your summer been?
New England's Narrow Road 