The floor is laid (layed?), the yard is clean (mostly) and the painting is not done yet. We are not at all happy with the quality of the work. We'll have them fix as much as possible but will not be hiring them to finish any of the other projects.
As for the moving sale folks (whom I've been anxiously waiting to meet for the past several months) -- they walked in, took a look at 2 rooms (out of 8) and walked out. The woman's nose couldn't have been higher in the air if she tried. When I originally contacted her for a walk thru, I warned her that I had nothing of value, but she assured me that everything added up and I shouldn't throw anything out. But while on site, she didn't even look at half the stuff and immediately drew the conclusion that "people don't buy that kind of stuff." (I'm sure she would have used a different word if it was polite!).
No, I cannot hold my own garage/yard sale - I don't have the time or energy and there's just way too much stuff. I'd like to avoid paying a service to remove it all, and I'm sure a few cents can be made rather than putting it all in a dumpster (also costs $ to rent). Perhaps I can find someone who sells stuff at flea markets and would be willing to come get the stuff and maybe give me a small percentage. I'll keep trying....
Always a setback. Sigh.
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Friday, August 17, 2012
No, not first steps!
After publishing my last post, I decided to read everything I've written since we made the decision to do this in Feb. 2011. I didn't realize how far we've actually come and how much we really did accomplish so far. So although we finally hired a contractor to start on the heavy duty stuff, we have done a considerable amount of work. Slow and steady wins the race....!
Finally - first steps!!!!
I can't believe we have finally saved up enough money to get the first phase of the cosmetic repairs done on the house. We had the back yard cleaned up (it's been very sorely neglected for many years -- except by Mother Nature -- the weeds were about 5 feet high!), the 30 year old disgusting rust colored carpeting replaced with wood flooring in the living room, dining room and upstairs hallway, and the entranceway covered with sheetrock and painted. Next steps (when the next round of funds become available -- M must keep working!!!) is repairing the fence, repairing the brick steps and replacing the garage doors. We will try to do all the interior painting ourselves over the course of the next few months.
I have to say I'm not used to having contractors doing work. I freaked out yesterday when I came home and all my dining room furniture was piled into the kitchen! We had to eat out as we couldn't get to anything in there. I get anxiety attacks over the slightest bit of clutter (every paperclip needs to be in it's proper place!) so you can imagine how I'm feeling. But I'm trying desperately to stay in control -- just reminding myself that this is part of the process of getting the house ready to put on the market so we can sell and buy our RV and finally get to live out our dream.
Meanwhile, we have an appointment in a few days with a company that does estate/ moving/ tag sales. Every inch of our house has STUFF, 99% of which we don't need and can't take with us in the RV. There's just way too much more us to list individually for eBay or Craigslist, and I don't have the time or energy to have a full house garage sale on my own. This company will come in, organize everything into categories and hold the sale over a 3 day weekend (Fri-Sat-Sun). I just hope they don't run in fear when they see what's involved!!! Somehow, I suspect that this phase (of selling all our stuff) is going to be the hardest part emotionally, especially for M who is more of the pack rat. He totally understands that we need to do this, and verbally has accepted it, but I think when he actually sees things leaving the house (whether by sale, donation or trash), it will hit the hardest. But we shall see -- I'm sure I'll have more posts when we get to that stage.
Who knows, will this coming Spring (2013) be the year we can do this?
I have to say I'm not used to having contractors doing work. I freaked out yesterday when I came home and all my dining room furniture was piled into the kitchen! We had to eat out as we couldn't get to anything in there. I get anxiety attacks over the slightest bit of clutter (every paperclip needs to be in it's proper place!) so you can imagine how I'm feeling. But I'm trying desperately to stay in control -- just reminding myself that this is part of the process of getting the house ready to put on the market so we can sell and buy our RV and finally get to live out our dream.
Meanwhile, we have an appointment in a few days with a company that does estate/ moving/ tag sales. Every inch of our house has STUFF, 99% of which we don't need and can't take with us in the RV. There's just way too much more us to list individually for eBay or Craigslist, and I don't have the time or energy to have a full house garage sale on my own. This company will come in, organize everything into categories and hold the sale over a 3 day weekend (Fri-Sat-Sun). I just hope they don't run in fear when they see what's involved!!! Somehow, I suspect that this phase (of selling all our stuff) is going to be the hardest part emotionally, especially for M who is more of the pack rat. He totally understands that we need to do this, and verbally has accepted it, but I think when he actually sees things leaving the house (whether by sale, donation or trash), it will hit the hardest. But we shall see -- I'm sure I'll have more posts when we get to that stage.
Who knows, will this coming Spring (2013) be the year we can do this?
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